Pealing thunder (Ch. 2: Day 12, pt. III) [Finale]

psikeout · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 1:41 pm

Jam's hop-over-and-kick, while it sent the troop stumbling, didn't dispatch it alone. No, that task was finished when the troop suddenly had a sparking blade of steel and plasma jutting out its back.

Rock was right behind her, knife in hand, and didn't even stop. It looked like some sort of coordinated effort, how the artificial troop staggered gut-first into the white primate's assault, and got completely lifted off its feet by the overpowered ramming stab, carried for several sprinting steps, and thrown to the wayside without stopping.

Rock seemed to have gotten his second (or was it fifth, sixth, maybe twelfth?) wind, and had again become a living battering ram with a knife. The device's blazing plasma made whipping streaks in the air as he bowled his way through, its glow visible even in the contrastingly rainy and fire-lit night. He was making a beeline for the tower's nearest leg, probably with thoughts of ending the fight at its source.

MuffinUnsane · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 4:22 pm

The explosion had consumed Ember's interest for a few moments before the 'soliders' started to attack. Wrenching her eyes away from the blast she went into the air. There was no advantage for her on the ground but as far as she could see the things didn't have wings.

Spotting a nearby one she dove down. Wrapping her hands around the sides of its head she lifted it into the sky. With a heave it was tossed into the base of the tower close by. Killing wasn't her desire. After all she couldn't end of the life of another person. No matter how...odd looking they were. They were people right?

Eyes narrowing she watched their jerky movements. A nagging thought came to her and she drifted back down to Jack.

"Heeeey! Are these things like alive or something? Like a person in there? 'Cause they don't look like they are."

Greens · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 4:33 pm

Although trained by experience to expect the worst, 'grenade out of nowhere' was not on Ace's list of potential starts to the fight (especially one fired from the pink-painted girl... robot, thing). Nor was the wall of fire separating them from their underaged target. But, like always he managed to improvise. Caz had no part in this, especially unarmed, and perhaps fortunately, the both of them knew it. "I'm goin' in" seemed like all he had to say.

"Okay!" she answered simply, already watching him leap over the embers. "But if you die, I'm gonna be real pissed!"

And on the way down, one very unfortunate soul (at least, if these biological horrors even had souls) found itself subjugated to the mightiest flying elbow to the forehead of its brief existence. With a very physical, audible sort of crunch, the thing crumpled down like a house of cards at his feet. Ace even found the time to pump himself with a guttural "Uh!" before moving to whatever batch of baddies came at him next.

And of course, it wasn't long before Power Mask was bounding over the inferno himself already laying waste and ruin to the forces that so foolishly thrust themselves upon him. Perhaps for the better, he had assumed his foes to be robotic in nature, and thus felt no need to hold himself back. One met a spinning backfist, the other a spinning lariat, another a spinning piledriver, and one was simply grabbed by the leg and flung into the fire. Yet the forces were plentiful, and he knew many more would come still.

Kazz · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 4:48 pm

In a way distinctly reminiscent of a dam bursting, Rodolf shot to the side and, in a wide arc, charged into the masses. His head was held down-- if Rock was being a living battering ram with a knife, Rodolf decided to cut the middle man out and just be a living battering ram. With a sort of snort, he simply bowled straight, head-first (or, really, horn first) into the first troop he could see. Would it instantly put it down? Perhaps not-- it still would experience a very frightening black horn backed up by a charging unicorn, and the foot thereof straight to the head thereafter.

Even Mako, who was planning to have run away screaming by now, shambled forward and into the fray-- after a moment or two of dumb staring. Perhaps it was just the adrenaline, or the fact that it had devolved into a truly unruly mob, or just the fact that Seven brought out the worst in the fish, but he out and out tackled one of the bizarre troops.

(He made sure to keep Tank in sight at all times, in the case of disaster.)

NPC · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 5:08 pm

As if on cue to answer Ember's question, one of the things Tank threw in the large-spread thermite fire thrashed and rolled around as long as it could, before burning to nothing except a scrap of a metal helmet. ... And that too soon became slag.

Between that the outright bloody mess Rock was making of the things, and the results of Rodolf's charge (it rammed a horn-shaped impression in the thing's squishy body, and in turn left the troop lying curled up on the floor), it was a little terrible to watch. Either way, the question was answered: they weren't robots. They didn't seem to care much about their fellow troops or their own safety, either, though. It was with a sort of mindless fearlessness that they charged at the group, as many as two or three troops leaping at each individual like wild animals. As sloppy as they were, their attacks were not to be considered harmless. Each one was incredibly quick (even if they didn't use that speed to dodge much), easily had about as much body weight as Ace to throw around, and threw vicious, battering blows and swipes with their metal-knuckled fists while trying to cling to their enemies.

As far as their durability went, they seemed tenacious, but not unstoppable. Sheffer's blow dented the soldier's helmet a little and left it unmoving as he moved on to the next... for about five seconds, before it came back its senses, got right back up, and started running at whoever was closest, not even with any concern about maintaining a single target. Meanwhile, Mako would probably have a little more difficulty dispatching his enemy, but, at least the trooper he was grappling with didn't seem to have a whole lot more skill in the art.

It was all getting pretty crazy. Seven soon stood up on his beam, stretched, and dropped lightly and effortlessly to the ground far below.

Was he about to enter the battle? Was it finally time?

... no. He tucked his hands behind the small of his back, turned, and skipped merrily away to the shelter at the center of the tower's base, and the waiting elevator therein.

Sheff · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 5:20 pm

Sheffer soon found himself surrounded by the pesky soldiers, turning each way and that as he warded them off with a numerous amount of punches. There was even a moment when he curbstomped a fallen attacker that was beside him, the hedgehog doing his best to prevent it, or any of its other comrades, from coming back for round two.

Shedding some of his crystal for the sake of speed (and the realization that not many were using actual weapons), he whipped around and kept running through the crowd. His eyes landed on the retreating Seven though, and his trajectory changed to from an unknown goal to straight after the child tormentor.

More of the soldiers fanned out around him though, obstructing his path. Desperate to get to the elevator in time to intercept Seven, Sheffer rolled forward into the familiar high pitched spinning, shooting forward fast and barreling through the gangly mutated men. Bodies flew as they hit the rotating projectile, not too much to be done at his velocity. A moment later, he pulled out of the spin and hit the ground running hard. More of his crystal fell as he began to speed up, sacrificing defense for agility.

Mie · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 6:14 pm

Lacking an impossibly beefy build, a horn on her head, a shiny crystal coat, or any of the other advantages of the greater majority of her allies, it went without saying that Jam was playing an uneven field, but that wasn't to say she wasn't holding her own. She'd gained significant literal ground, mostly by virtue of speedy evasion and unaugmented, but still impressive agility, but correspondingly failed to make much of a dent (literal or figurative) in their still sizable opposition.

The lack of progress was frustrating, however, and her aggression was making her sloppy; she took a good wallop to the side of the head at once point, and a just-barely blocked swipe at her neck would surely leave her wrist sore the next day, yet it seemed to only aggravate her further, and in the end, was nothing she didn't reciprocate exponentially.

It was by this point that the becoming-familiar streak of green blipped in the angry monkey's periphery, and it took no less than half an eye's blink to notice what he was pursuing.

With Seven in strangling distance, nothing else may as well have existed. Hurdling over the bumbling obstructions between her and what was rightfully hers, she blazed after the hedgehog like a bullet train with blinders on, pushing herself to the upper limits of her capabilities. If she couldn't have the first shot, she'd ascertain she got the last.

NPC · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 6:31 pm

The difference between when the red monkey and green hedgehog would get to Seven wasn't a whole lot. Sheffer had the edge over his teammate on raw running torque, but alas, those flappy clothes were the great equalizer. Still, the hedgehog was definitely the first to arrive, especially with his very direct (see: bowling-ball-of-death-and-destruction) route.

One or the other, or both at the same time, though, it made no difference to Seven. The boy glanced back when he heard the whistle-like spinning noise; he saw both Sheffer and Jam barreling his way; he popped around, bouncing on his toes to face them, and with one hand so demurely and effortlessly flung their way, unleashed a strobing torrent of electricity that roared like thunder, spreading out from the spherical shield that surrounded him like the branches of some huge tree, obscuring an area no less than thirty feet across in bright, white bolts.

It was instant and, frankly, cheap as hell. Between the fact that the electricity was going to seek out a fleshy lightning rod in that empty space just like real lightning, and the fact that the two were moving at irreconcilable speeds, there really wasn't any conceivable way to not run straight into it, and with muscles behaving the way they liked to in lightning, that probably meant a wonderful, high-speed baseball-slide-like faceplant.

If left to his own devices, he'd probably just trot backwards into the elevator from there, all smiles.

Sheff · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 6:53 pm

The hedgehog didn't expect much less when Seven turned and unleashed his electric pain. In fact, he even leaped into the air the minute he started to see the kid turn, thinking it would simply be the same process as before. But, the lightning didn't home in on its target the last time, much to Sheffer's dismay as he watched it approach.

What sounded like a exaggerated "Oof!" left him as the electricity charged right into his chest, and soon the leaping hedgehog was plummeting back to earth in a twist of paralyzed limbs and frayed quills. His landing was not graceful as well, landing on his side with a solid thump, sliding a few feet forward before finally coming to a standstill.

Muscles jerking and spasming, sheer determination brought some of his movement back. The pain was familiar enough to just shrug off for now, and the electricity that had flowed through his body had already been experienced once before, allowing him to stumble back to his feet and continue his pursuit. His face was contorted with a mix of a grimace and fiery hatred as he shuffled forward to the elevator shaft, his glaring blue eyes constantly set on his target.

Mie · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 7:04 pm

Alas, Seven would not be left to his own devices. While Jam had no conceivable desire to get a taste of her own medicine, she knew damnable commitment when she was staring down its barrels, and, rather than some feeble attempt to save herself, instead aimed to make it -- at the very least -- as inconvenient as possible. At the very last second possible, she threw herself into the air, aimed straight for Seven at a hundred-plus mile-per-hour kick.

Whatever ridiculous upgrades he'd made to her ring, she could still count on physics; Lightning stone or not, a high-velocity, seventy-pound electrified body flying at a set trajectory would still fly, regardless of whether or not it'd tingle what it hit, or so her limited understanding of the matter could allow her to hope.

Yet much though she braced for it, her comeuppance was denied. The lashing, snapping tendrils of the bolts that had successfully tackled Sheffer to the ground wrapped harmlessly, even gently around her body. Jam barely had time to really wrap her head around the implication of what was happening before that impact she'd been so keen on prior was fractions of a second away from reality.

NPC · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 7:12 pm

Seven was just about to back into the elevator when the ridiculous monkey dove straight into his little lightning storm. With both of his targets caught in the fray, he opened his mouth to laugh—

—and got kicked straight in the head.

His body slammed back into the elevator car, and his head bounced off the rear wall with a painful-sounding whump and metal reverberation, before he fell on the floor on hands and knees, officially suffering the first successful attack against his person. The drone soldier that had been waiting for him in the elevator glanced at him indifferently, unaware of his suffering, dimly holding the "door open" button.

"CLOSE IT!!" shrieked the boy shrilly, his lips pulled back, teeth bared, and big, watery tears in the corners of his eyes as he quickly yanked his automatic pistol out from under his hoodie and started spraying bullets everywhere in a sloppy and undignified Plan B.

Given a second or two, the doors closed with a ding.

Mie · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 7:20 pm

Something nagging at the back of her head told Jam she needed to remain on guard, but upon landing in a clumsy stumble, she was momentarily captivated by the ebbing currents dancing at the tips of her standing fur. Naturally, her interest in the phenomenon declined rapidly as her victim's satisfactorily pained-sounding order rang out, and with dinner plate-sized eyes, and an unceremonious "S**********T," she dove to the side in a neat roll just beyond the hail of bullets.

Sheff · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 7:26 pm

Before Sheffer could even react to the actual landed kick on their antagonist, his eyes went wide at the sight of Seven readying his weapon. In a second's notice, he lowered himself a bit and materialized a fresh new coat of rock. Bullets flew inaccurately towards him, but any that were supposed to give injury only abruptly stopped when they came into contact with the crystal, completely harmless.

When the elevator doors shut and his intended target disappeared, the hedgehog stood straight walking forward to the doors. He was a bit disgruntled that he was unsuccessful in catching their enemy, but hope wasn't gone yet. Already his eyes were looking for some sort of button to summon the elevator...

Kazz · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 7:31 pm

Preoccupied with the soldiers, Mako had been having a bit of a time fighting them off. That aside, he was actually holding well for himself- though a distinct yell of "YE GODS THAT'S FOUL!" indicated that he may or may not have bitten one of the troops over the course of his slipshod brawl. He was so absorbed in not dying that he hadn't even noticed Seven's exit.

But with the yell of the boy and the sound of a round of bullets going off, he all but stopped dead in his tracks and stared with wide orange eyes.

"Oi!" he yelled, only venturing towards Jam and Sheff once the doors had closed, and for just a moment, was a little blue bullet. He may or may not have punched a few drones in their helmeted faces, tripped a few more with his tail-- he wasn't paying attention. Another indistinguishable gargle later, he burst free of the mob and stumbled towards the hedgehog and the monkey.

"Jeeeze, what did you guys DO?"

Somewhere in the crowd, Rodolf was striking left and right, using his horn both as a club and as a spear, lashing out with his head and all four limbs, in a quite-honestly worrying flurry of white hair. Similarly, only Seven's shrill cry seemed to grab his attention.
He punctuated this with another resounding kick to whatever happened to be standing closest to him before he turned to look.

Rachel · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 7:36 pm

Jack had the some concerns as Ember, she would not end a life. But it didn't take long for her to realize the wiggly foes weren't living in any sense she could accept. So she took to the air. She found the ones closest to the patch of flaming death Target and left and began to shoulder check the creatures into it by diving towards them from the air on the opposing side. The floppy what-evers didn't seem so firm on their feet so it was a good enough plan. She did this a few times, hitting them and jumping back up into the air, the heat of the fire giving her lots of lift and made the attacks effortless.

She had stopped though after a notable crack of lighting. Jack caught herself smiling when she saw Jam get a hit on the boy. But then his panicked spray of bullets and escape faded it quickly. She dove towards the pink monkey and came to a landing beside him.

"Damn, How'd ya reckon with that confounded lightning?" Jack asked, hopeful to have a way to shoot the boy in some non-lethal area.

Target must of been over joyed to figure out what the enemies where. A few closed on her, in their wiggly way they jumping towards the robot, who swung out with both fist and arm hitting squishy bodies. After flinging them off one by one she took great joy (to the point of making giggling noises) as she jumped on top of them squishing out the soft bits.

Pealing thunder (Ch. 2: Day 12, pt. III) [Finale]

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