[Plot] [Aq/Be/Be/Oc/Oc] Week 132: Salvage Operation

[swaswj]

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Salvage Operation
Unto the Black Portal, Phase One - Coming of the Legions
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This Thread

This thread is intended for Val, Minja, Sev, and Bunz.

After you arrived in Navale, the old velen and former sea captain Finian begged for aid. He believes that it's possible to restore a warship from the daemon-infested waters, but can't do it alone. Step one involves retrieving some equipment from a warehouse overlooking the docks.

"Right up this way! It's not far!" Finian called out. The grayscale was old but hardy, easily outpacing his new charges. There were hints of his former color at the edges of his scales, a deep navy blue. His skin was wrinkled, sagging in places, and his shoulders had hunched with age, but he hadn't let age slow him down. He was dressed in an old naval uniform with plates and patches of leather sewn onto it.

As promised, the group soon crested the hill. Behind them, they could see the town of Navale, and from so far away, it was hard to tell just how devastated the small city was. There were small hints -- crumbled sections of wall, blackened patches of roof -- but nothing that told the story of a town besieged by demon-kind.

Ahead of them, there was a warehouse, one of several. Nothing about it seemed remarkable, but Finian went straight to the first one and inserted a key into the massive padlock on the outside. "Inside, quick. They mostly come at night, but not jes' then." The sliding metal door grated and squealed when Finian pulled it open just enough to let the newcomers in.

Once everyone was inside, Finian grunted and slid the door closed from the inside. The shriek of metal on metal was even worse on the inside, echoing off of every sharp angle in the loaded warehouse. Machinery was packed high to the ceiling, some things even hanging from the ceiling by heavy chains.

"Whew. Sorry for the rush, but that there's a wide open space and if'n there was any daemons waiting, they suren saw us. Didn't want to give them a chance to make the trip." The grayscale dropped down onto a crate to catch his breath before his age caught up with him. "There's... a lamp of some sort o'er that way." Finian finally paused to get a good look at his makeshift crew.

The feminine demvir, Seneca by name, was the one to retrieve the oil lamp, igniting the wick and casting flickering light among the five of them. Next to her stood a more masculine machina, Artanis. Both had been rather quiet since first joining him, but so long as they could pull their weight, Finian didn't care if they were mute. Then there was the young hooded woman, Elf-head? Ale-fed? Aelflead, that was it. Finian had limited patience for young folk, but she shared some of his heritage, enough that she could work underwater, and that was good enough for him. Deniisis, meanwhile, reminded Finian of himself when he was younger and full of fire, and reminded him of the son that he lost to the damned ophidians many decades back.

"A'ight, thank you, dear. As I were saying back in the town, this ain't going to be easy, but it's doable. I've been trying to get the townfolk to help me with this since the daemons first showed their faces. Navale's a port city, if a small one, and mostly we do repairs on them bigger ships passing through the Aquilonia. However, we do have a small fleet of our own ships, including a warship.

"That first night the daemons came, they attacked the harbor. It were dark, so I couldn'a made out much, but some great monster smashed through so many of our ships and dragged more underwater. I ain't seen anything that big since, so it may be that it went on to attack elsewhere, mayhaps even Terminus."

With his breath finally caught up, Finian stood and took the lamp from Seneca. He started winding his way between propellers, motors, cannon parts, and machines of unknown purpose. "I know ye're thinking this must be a fool's errand, but I swear I dove into the water meself to check, and the old Hydrus is completely intact! Full o' water, but intact. What's more..." The old velen turned and flashed a toothy grin, firelight dancing in his eyes madly. "There's another ship as well. It's a wreck, this one, but its armaments, oh yes those are intact. If we can get the cannons from the Arma Bellica onto the Hydrus, then ohohoo will those damned monsters yearn for the flames of Infernalis to welcome them back!"

Finian turned a corner and stopped in front of a shelf that reached to the top of the warehouse. It was covered in thick layers of dust, but the shelf was full of some kind of large canvas sacks, at least two dozen of them. Finian grabbed one and hefted it with a grunt. It was shaped something like a backpack, including straps, but half the size of the old velen's entire body. "Step back, now," he warned, moving away from the group. Facing down another aisle, he pulled a hidden ripcord in the sack and it burst outward, unleashing a massive cylindrical airbag that inflated explosively. In seconds, it had blocked off that section of the warehouse, wedging tight against the shelving to either side.

Tossing the now-useless sack aside, Finian turned to the others. "We'll be needin' at least two o' these to raise that warship. If'n you want to get them guns, we'll need to get them above the ship afore we raise the ship itself, 'cause I promise you, we dun have any equipment that can lift it after the fact. Movin' the guns will take another of these. If e'rryone takes one, that gives us two spares, aye?" Flashing his grin again, the old velen warned, "And don't you be thinking o' leaving me behind, y'hear? These balloons ain't gonna do it by their lonesome. We also have to run the pumps to get the water out, and ye'll need me to do that part."

Finian hefted a new salvage airbag and slipped his arms into the straps. Although he bent under its weight, he didn't buckle. "Come on now, we've only three hours before nightfall. It ain't safe in them waters at any hour, leastwise not anymore, but being down there after dark's suicide. Any questions?"

[1015/1015]

 

[Valero]

Any hope of the daemon presence solely being confined to Terminus had been crushed as soon as their group had arrived in Navale. From the very moment that the group arrived at the blasted town, they had been called to action. Naturally, Deni was glad for the brief moment of rest allowed when they arrived at the warehouse. Finian's explanations gave him at least enough time to catch his breath. The old man could talk, and despite being obviously shaken like everyone else who had seen the spawns of Infernalis, he seemed to have a level head. That was good. It wouldn't do to have a makeshift leader crumble underneath the only ragtag band of strangers stupid enough to help.

The younger velen tried to repress the bitter part of his mind that cursed him for agreeing to take part in the suicide mission. It was bound to hinder his productivity. He knew that, but he still couldn't believe that he chose foolish heroism over self-preservation. The latter was much more natural to him. He didn't suit being a hero. Then again, neither did anyone in their group. Mercenaries, bounty hunters, rogues and mobsters. Their force consisted of some of the most dangerous people to associate with. It was a shame that almost all of them had a twisted moral code.

Deni's blue eyes swept over each of the others consecutively. Reading the two demvir was difficult, but the spurii... he might as well have been living with her the past couple of years. It was odd how much he seemed to be crossing her path since he stole her share of the money for the Arx job. Some divine force obviously had a sense of humour.

When nobody else responded, the velen flourished the tails of his tattered black trenchcoat and bore a grin.

"Use balloons to get cannons from the broken ship onto the Hydrus. Then attach more balloons to the Hydrus and float it to the surface. That it?"

He approached one of the huge bags and grasped the straps with both hands.

"It sounds simple enough."

[350]

 

[Mystydjinn]

"Let's get started then," the spurii chimed in, hefting a specialized balloon over her shoulder "I wanna get those guns first though, I'll be damned if we fight all of hell with nothing but toothpicks and peashooters." The redhead glanced briefly at the rouge before moving towards the door, remembering what she had to assume was his and the enlil's role in slaying the beast. She never saw the two of them actually fire, but she knew well that her sword strikes weren't dumping mucus and blood into her clothes. This time around though she would prefer to be on the a little less covered in blood and bone shrapnel when they were done if at all possible.

As far as the cast that'd gathered, she had much of the same opinion. She'd certainly wanted to take out the thieving couple when when they ran off, but most of her anger had been siphoned away when she threw the table through the wall. Now the most she wanted was to punch their lights out, and it was unfortunate she kept meeting the couple in life-threatening events. It was hard to justify punching someone over a grudge when hell was invading. At the very least there were two other people to interact with besides the other end of her one sided, forced treaty.

The two demvir hadn't said anything yet, and she watched them from beneath her cloak curiously, but took care not to seem too obvious. She remembered the female demvir from her talking back to the demon. After her failed attempt on the hell-spawn the demvir's defiance caught her ear, she couldn't quite place her finger on the male demvir though. She knew he'd said something to Ego while he was with them, (at least she was pretty sure) but everything else seemed to have slipped. She just hoped she wouldn't have to call him while they dove and admit she hadn't caught ihs name, or taken note of him.

She'd just have to focus on the work and their objectives while they dove, at least that part would be easy.

[352]

 

[Several Zombies]

Mechanical digits wrapped around the cracked leather strap of the rucksack with a pained churning of gears as the ancient mercenary hefted the burlap bound mechanism over his shoulder. Ocher oculi scanned the motley group of would-be allies, Artanis letting out a muted grunt that reflected his discontent. They were green. Greener than green. Even his mechanized cohort was nary more than a whelp, from the look of her. For a moment, however brief, Artanis cursed his own inability. In his prime, he thought, such an undertaking would have been child's play. And yet now, in his state of disrepair, he wondered if their group would even reach their prize, lest the sea take them. With age comes regret. He mused internally. He only hoped the imp's lurid promises amounted to more than a few dead men. Stomping past the graying Velen, Artanis rested a hand on the hilt of the sword at his hip. It was familiar, almost comforting in a way, and any tremble in the decaying machinae's digits seemed to fade away as he gripped the gilded weapon. Finian seemed under the delusion that the quartet would raise the ship or die trying. However, if there was one skill any good businessman could be said to possess, it would be knowing when to cut and run, and the mercenary knew a raw deal when he saw one. If things went sideways, the machinae was sure he could at least make a hasty retreat. The others, though, would have to fend for themselves. Already, gears turned in his head as he thought of how to explain things to Martinov and still guarantee his fee would be remunerated. "Let's move." He finally rumbled in his usual, tinny baritone. "Time is against us." [295]

 

[OssumBunz]

“Under any other circumstance, sure, I’d say there was no way you’d get to see that ship sail again.” The feminine Demvir spoke as she crossed her arms over her chest, the velvet indigo cloak she wore preventing the metal surfaces from scraping together loudly as she shifted her weight to mostly one foot.

“Given how you’ve implied it went down, however, I’m willing to give this a go and see if we can’t make use of this vessel.” Truthfully this was an idea which Seneca had never even heard proposed in the past. The machinae had spent her fair amount of time on ships, seen a few go down, with troves of relics and treasures on board, only to be lost to the sea. Better lost than in the hands of someone else thought, at least the Demvir could take solace in that fact.

“Now…” Her voice began with its ever present tinny echo, “Are you taking us out over the wreckage quadrants, or are we going to be going it on foot until we run into something large and solid?” Seneca’s question was followed by a chorus of clicks and whirs as she thought about the annoyance such a ‘feel around in the dark’ game would bring to the group, and most importantly herself.

[216]

 

[swaswj]

Finian paused to consider the feminine machina. "Right, right. Ye cannot swim, aye? Just as well, we might not be swimming too fast ourselves with this cargo." He patted the shoulder strap of the bulky salvage contraption. "I know right where the Hydrus lies, even marked it with a buoy. It's not far out in the water, was anchored with only a few men aboard, rest their souls."

The old velen led the salvage crew back to the same door they entered by. He grabbed a harpoon gun and two spare harpoons propped up near the exit before the group left the relative safety. Finian locked the door once again. From the top of the hill they stood on, they could see the Sea of Aquilonia spread out below. The rest of the Navale dock area was completely deserted, with the workers and fishermen, those who hadn't been killed in the initial attacks, taking refuge deeper in the city. At the water's edge, flotsam and jetsam was strewn across the sand, the remains of ships and cargo that had already been destroyed. The piers themselves were mostly intact, and some of the smaller boats bobbed in the water next to them.

Finian moved as quickly as he could toward those piers, huffing with exertion from the weight on his back. "We'll grab one of the small boats to get us right o'er top of the Hydrus. The Arma is near it, I think, but can't say with certainty which direction. Watch yer backs, now. Just 'cause we're still in the town doesn't mean we're safe." He clutched the harpoon gun tighter.

The trek to the foot of the docks was tense, silence almost smothering as it settled in around them. Nothing accosted them, however, but the anticlimax also heightened the dread. Nothing had gone wrong... yet.

Pointing off across the water, the old velen called out, "See that there blotch of red? That's the buoy I marked 'er with. I had to get out quick, but I know for sure she's there." The tiny speck was easily three hundred meters off-shore, a short distance for a ship but a daunting journey for a small dinghy possibly surrounded by daemons. "Elf-lass, Deni-boy, check that boat over yonder. Me and the metal ones will check this other up ahead. Shout if'n you run into trouble, and listen for a shout from ourselves. We might not be seeing right away if either of us is attacked."

The boat he pointed to in the distance was three piers over to the west. From where they stood it looked like it might be bobbing in the water. The pier it was tied off to was perfectly intact, as well. The one closer in front of them, meanwhile, seemed to be leaning to one side and sections of the pier were splintered or even burnt.

Having both would be good, but first they had to see if one or both of the fishing boats were still water-tight.

[500/1515]

 

[Mystydjinn]

Deni smirked as he and Aelflead made their way to the designated pier with as much haste as their heavy packs would allow them. Despite his smile, the pelagic rogue felt awkward. If Finian had known of the history between the two of them, he might not have sent them off together. It was likely that the fiery redhead still held resentment for one of the pair that stole her paycheck - and rightfully so - but they didn’t have time to argue, with the old velen or each other.

Perhaps a little small talk was needed to lessen the tension.

“So, it’s good to see you again, Red,” Deni said in his usual merry tone. Though it wasn’t entirely a lie - familiar faces were a refreshing sight in such trying times - he couldn't think of many people he wanted to see less.

“Well that’s interesting, can’t say I feel the same way about you.” Aelflead did not smile, not truly at least. Her lips curled upwards in a smile, but her cheekbones did not raise, and her eyes retained the flat look they’d had since arriving.

The velen’s guess that she harbored some resentment was not misplaced. Though she hadn’t swung at him yet though, so her self-imposed truce was still holding at least.

“Say, didja buy your bird friend a ring yet? I hear you can get a okay looking rock for that kinda exa.” An offhand comment but the jab came through pretty well. It seemed, if she wasn’t going to hit him she’d at very least be annoying.

“Come on, don’t be like that,” Deni said with a purposeful pout. He was beginning to pant as the two of them grew closer to the jetty adjacent to the boat. The smirk deepened. He seemed strangely satisfied that the spurii woman was agitated.

“I can assure you,” he said between breaths, “the money went towards a worthy investment.”

Aelflead’s exa had been placed down on the table in front of Kincaid when Deni was ‘escorted’ there by one of the thief’s associates. The crafty velen had put stolen money into the establishment of a guild of thieves. That seemed rather fitting.

“Who knows? If we get out of this alive, I might give you-”

A swift black shadow sweeping across the ground sealed Deni’s mouth shut. It moved too quickly for it to be a passing cloud. He could feel his already heavy heartbeat pounding from his chest to his throat. He looked up. Blue eyes widened.

“We might want to hurry.”

The spurii wordlessly nodded. She didn’t have to like the velen to agree with him. It was obvious that whatever that shadow was, it certainly wasn’t friendly.

She her hand went to the blade handle at her shoulder and let her gaze fly upwards with the rogue's. If their guest came close she wanted to be ready for it, not fumbling around trying to draw the blade after being surprised. She hoped whatever it was wasn't interested, but given how her day was going, she was ready to be disappointed.
She sighed. At the very least let us check the boat first, flying arsewipe.

380 Val
185 Minj

 

[Several Zombies]

Elsewhere the mechanical pair, led by Finian, approached the second schooner unaware of their compatriots ordeal. Surveying the scene in front of them, Artanis drew his blade in a slow and practiced motion as the group trudged drearily towards the watercraft. Aperture-like eyelids narrowed around amber oculi as the ancient mercenary peered out across the water, spotting the faint dot of red on the shifting seas. “What guarantee do we have that the ship will be in working order once it’s been raised?” he questioned aloud in a muted tone of voice. Surely the Hydrus hadn’t sunk for no reason, and the mercenary had seen enough to know that the vessel was likely damaged. Whether it was beyond repair or not rested entirely on the word of their aging Velen guide, and Artanis didn’t put much stock in promises and vaguities. Moreover, it seemed as though the primary candidate for their borderline suicidal cruise wasn’t even armed. If they were expecting to fight their way through a demonic horde, they’d need the Arma Bellica’s weaponry; yet another complication in a growing list of holes in their plan. “The second ship’s main guns,” the ancient Demvir rumbled with a frustrated click of gears. “...We’ll need more than a few waterlogged cannons to reach the portal. I hope this warship of yours is all it’s cracked up to be.” Nearing the beached skiff, Artanis waited for the greying captain to survey the craft. Hopefully at least one was deemed to be seaworthy, lest they return empty handed. “I wouldn’t put much stock in a ship that was brought down by demons, being much use against even more of the same demons.” Seneca’s tone was one of scoff. There was no way that this old man could possibly think that tossing more sticks at a beast would do more than make it swat the crew away. Of course, there was some saying around the lines of ‘a ship is only as good as her captain,’ or what not. A low grind of gears made up the Demvir’s sigh as she gave it some more thought, it was possible to win, but not very plausible. A suede boot kicked at the sand, uncovering a dirtied tie down of the old wooden boat. The heavy rope had been ripped apart like an annoying loose thread on clothing. While not important to the craft’s seaworthiness, it still dismayed Seneca, causing the mechinae to frown internally. On the other hand this was rather good news, as the small dinghies appeared otherwise fine in the dark. It was entirely possible that even both ships lay on the ocean floor intact and ready to fight again, rope ties snapped in heavy storms after all. “...Perhaps with the right crew, there’s a shot at the very least, of staying afloat. Lets get out there and see what we are working with then.” Golden oculi stared out at the red speck bobbing in the water, what sort of wreck awaited then was anyone’s guess until they got down there. For all they knew the ship had broken in two on its way down. Sev: [554] Bunz: [483]

 

[swaswj]

"I'm telling you, I went down and checked for myself!" Finian growled, none too happy at being questioned by the two machinae. "And don't you be scoffing at the ship 'erself, she did not go down in battle. The daemons came at night, when none were prepared to be fighting. Something big dragged the whole thing underwater."

The boat they were approaching was listing to one side, possibly damaged, its nose run up into the sand, the back end bobbing just slightly.

The old velen led the way out on the wooden pier, casting a glare over his shoulder at the two demvir. "There's more daemons about now, that's true, else I wouldn't be needing help. I'd just make multiple trips by my lonesome. What's more..!"

There was sudden movement inside the boat and then a black shape shot forward toward the velen like a whip, white fangs flashing.

Three piers over, Aelflead's sudden rush caught the attention of another dark form, this one a winged beast flitting around in the sky. Six red eyes narrowed, all focusing on the spurii. A shrill scream issued from a maw filled with rows of irregular and jagged teeth, wide enough to bite the woman in half. Three sets of wings curled in, ebon feathers rustling in the wind. The beast, little more than a massive mouth with wings and a long whipping tail, dove at Aelflead, a black streak across a blue sky, its roaring cry awakening primal fears in its prey.

There was no time to react. Finian's finger snapped tight on the trigger, but he couldn't aim it: the harpoon dug uselessly into the side of the boat. If he even had a thought to move, it was drowned out by that unearthly keen from the sky.

Artanis didn't even spare a thought, however, stepping forward and slashing with his bared blade to protect his charge. The blade bit into flesh and black blood splattered into the water and sand. The daemon reeled back, hissing and giving them their first good look at it. This one had a massive snake for a body, black as pitch with glistening scales. Most of its body, easily more than a dozen meters long, was curled up in the boat, weighing it down on one side.

Rather than a snake's head, though, the daemon had the head of a velen woman, a beautiful one with its face framed in long, sinuous ribbons. The face seemed disturbingly pleasant, a soft smile on her face, innocent eyes. When the daemon hissed again, though, the woman's face split in half to reveal the beast's jaws and dagger-like fangs dripping with venom.

It curled back and snapped again, aiming for Artanis this time.

Aelflead's mad dash faltered and her fingers tightened on her sword. She wanted to draw the sword, couldn't, couldn't fight the shaking in her bones even with the monster diving in at her back.

A gunshot went off and the daemon's shriek turned into a yowl of pain. Strength returning in an instant, Aelflead whipped the sword from her back and turned around, seeing Deni with a pistol out. The daemon aborted its dive, swooping past the spurii so fast that a cloud of sand blasted the woman in the face. It climbed back into the air and into a steep turn, six eyes locked onto Deni now.

[565/2080]

 

[Mystydjinn]

“Sword out,” Deni yelled. Though his firing arm had reacted well to the ferocious creature’s attack, the same could not be said about his legs. The monster was terrifying, made to rend flesh with its jaw. How was he supposed to combat that?

His heart tried to bash its way through his ribcage. The weight of the large bag over his shoulders didn’t help. Each breath became an effort.

Though it didn’t seem like much of a fortune, he was afraid. All of the horrors he had been told as a child were true. He already knew that, but he had never seen them until the invasion in Terminus. All of the fear he felt that day rushed back to him. That fear kept him alert. Survival instincts hastened his thoughts and urged him to fight.

“Stay close and get ready to strike,” the velen ordered.

Deni shuffled towards the boat with as much haste as the backpack would allow, though he knew that the beast had marked him. As soon as he felt that he was in range, he raised his auritium pistol. Despite his burden and the rapid pace of his heartbeat, the gunslinger found his aim. With a loud bang, a round was unleashed, searing towards one of its eyes.

Aelflead’s snark and indifference turned to surprise the minute the beast rose from the waves, and that surprise turned to fear when it’s screech hit her ears.


The cry was off, not like a normal beast one may have encountered. No, this beast’s screech had a heaviness to it that wasn’t natural. It crashed down on her common sense like a two-ton, freezing cold, blanket, and it was so stifling it took all her concentration just to breathe.

The velen’s shot ringing out at the beast jarred the mental covering though, and immediately her senses returned. The jet of sand in her face combined with the theif’s orders brought her anger and irritation in that order. The fear from the beast’s scream still affected her though, even if only a little and her hands shook just slightly wrapped around her blade.

Her left eye twitched at the sound of Deni’s order being called out from behind her, but the demon was swooping back around now, and as much as she wanted to snap at the velen for trying to order her in the first place she couldn’t bite and swing the greatsword at the same time. Complaining in her head wasn’t out of the question though. Worry about yourself fishlips, I’m not your princess with forest friends and a robot.

Nonetheless, the odd-eyed spurii raised the blade into a forward stance, and readied her swing for the creature’s arrival.

Val [213]
Minj [238]

 

[Several Zombies]

Bringing his gilded blade to bear in a nick of time, sharpened steel ran headlong into the dagger like fangs of the accursed beast. Gears whined in protest as the ancient Demvir heaved against the demon to halt its forward momentum. Turning the sharpened edge inward, his blade found purchase in the pallet of the creature’s gaping maw, letting loose a splash of sickly, dark blood as Artanis shoved the creature aside. Leaping backwards towards his mechanized cohort, the mercenary flicked the putrid cruor free of his weapon, grimacing inwardly as he watched a thin stream of pale blue dahlitium drip from a freshly opened fissure in his already marred armor. The demon had managed to dig its teeth in at the last moment; thankfully only a glancing blow. Amber oculi shifted towards the other Demvir at his back as he readied his blade to rebuff the creature’s next attack. “Open fire!” Without a word in reply two sharp blasts burst out of the antique revolver’s muzzle, the spacing between both shots being so close together that it was almost hard to tell that two bullets had been released from their chambers. The smell and crackle of gunpowder hung in the air bit heavier than what most newer firearms now produced, but the weapon just as quick as the newest of revolvers. Both bullets travelled close together, one right behind the other as the raced to hit their mark on the demon’s neck. Seneca kept her right arm out stretched, one finger to the side of the trigger as she readied to fire at moments notice if need be again. Golden eyes were trained on her target, carefully watching the creatures movements and actions, searching for a hint of a weak spot. Sev: [708] Bunz: [623]

things

Artanis used Parry combined with Machina Body to turn the attack away and take minimal damage, while using Fall Back to retreat towards Seneca. Seneca used Double Tap to shoot at snek.

 

[swaswj]

A heavy thud rolled across the wooden pier as Finian dropped his bag. Standing behind the two machinae, he struggled to get another harpoon loaded and ready. The giant serpent recoiled with a hiss, but as it closed its maw, its head returned to the shape of a velen woman's face, dark blood oozing from one side of her cheek. More of the snake's body rolled out of the ship onto the pier, the head lifting higher as a soft song began to roll from the woman's lips, unknown to the two machinae but a familiar lullaby to the velen behind them.

It served only as a taunt, however.

The tip of the serpent's tail lashed without warning, sweeping the feet of all three in front of it before splitting its maw open wide and snapping toward Seneca.

Deni's shot found its mark, but rather than recoiling this time, the flying monstrosity roared. Blood spurted from one of its six eyes, but the other five narrowed and all six wings flapped wildly, jaws widening to show those many rows of teeth, rushing straight for the velen man that had wounded it twice.

And behind the teeth, only blackness.

[200/2280]

Note

Sorry it's short. I'm tired and in a generally not-pleasant mood, but didn't want to keep you all waiting.

 

[Mystydjinn]

Aelf wasted no time as the velen's bullet's struck true, and took advantage of the beast's reckless charge by countering with her own.

She ducked her head down as ran forward to intercept the beast on it's way towards the velen, and twisting her body out to the side and pulling her sword up and across her chest with her momentum to slash at the beast's underbelly as it rushed overhead. Apparently she'd come to terms with the fact that she wouldn't be ending the day clean of demon filth.

Noting that she hadn't heard another gunshot since the first two landed from the rogue, she looked over her shoulder at him and barked, "Keep shooting!" as she followed through with her swing. "Rip that damn kite"


[126]

combat notes

Dropping Gangway on all eyes and ugly with Auritium 'buster sword' in an uppercut strike.
2Barbaris + 3TR = 5tier w/knockback

Vigor: {8,882/8,632}

 

[Valero]

The two velen-blooded fighters held a great mistrust for each other due to their history. It was mostly Deni’s fault. If he had known that they were going to be relying on each other against ferocious terrors from Infernalis in the future, he might have reconsidered his decision to take her exa. Regardless, what was done was done. They were both fighting for their lives and neither of them was going to get out alive without the other. In fact, the animosity between them seemed to fuel their fighting prowess. Whether that would be enough to tackle the winged nightmare, however, remained to be seen.

Deni watched the beast’s reaction as he edged closer the pier, from his bullet hitting the target to the moment the creature swooped towards him. Even as it closed in on his position, he found it difficult to tear his gaze away from the gaping black maw that threatened to consume him. Fortunately enough, Aelflead was quick to react and her actions managed to snap him out of his daze.

“Shit!” Deni cursed and twisted awkwardly into a dive. His chest crashed into the ground, though the weight of the backpack only made the fall worse. A strong gale skimmed the back of the pale rogue’s neck. His heart skipped a beat. The creature had missed by inches, due to the redhead’s strike. It wasn’t enough to ground the winged beast, but Deni was lucky to evade the attack.

With a grunt, the velen heaved himself back onto his feet. Black spots swarmed his vision from the impact of his fall, but he didn’t give himself time to catch his breath. The second he was up, he threw his firing arm in the direction of the daemon and unleashed a round, hoping to pierce one of its wings. With the howl of the bullet, he staggered back a few steps towards his sword-wielding ally.

“I’m trying!” he shouted between heavy breaths. “You just hit it like that whenever it gets close.”

[337/1,280]

Note

Because Deni spent a great deal of effort avoiding the attack, he only managed to fire off one shot against the flying nasty, aimed at one of its wings.

 

[Several Zombies]

Landing hard, the mercenary scrambled to regain his footing on the sodden terrain before the creature's fangs could find their purchase. Amber oculi darted between the advancing beast and its prey as the dilapidated machinae struggled to close the distance. Gilded steel swept up to intercept the beasts apical maw, while a gauntlet-clad hand grasped at the lance-like fangs hanging from its palate. However, the Demvir's meager might was no match for the force of the demon's bite; its jagged teeth burrowing beneath the armored plating of his shoulders and spilling cobalt lifeblood into the sand at his feet. With a mix of pain and anger, Artanis heaved against the creature's upper jaw, his blade only barely preventing the fangs from delving deeper into his torso. Pressing a booted foot against its bottom mandible, the mercenary strained to wrench the demon's jowls open wider. Shakily, the machinae reached for the leather strap of the pack on his back, tearing it free. Pressing the bulky rucksack deep into the creature's splayed mouth, mechanical digits grasped at the metal handle hanging from the device. With a final push and a splash of dahlitium fluid, the ancient mercenary wrenched himself free and pulled the cord. [910]

 

[OssumBunz]

Although the large demented beast had, for the most part, decided to seek purchase with other prey, it had barreled its way towards Seneca with the speed of a freight train. No sooner had it decided to change its direction for the Velen man was the serpent already mid bite. Apertures widened around yellow glowing eyes as the predator's face split to reveal the dagger like teeth that lay hidden under the surface. A jolt of panic ran through Seneca from deep inside her chasis, something so primal and instinctual for a being that was so artifical.


Without time to think, she pushed away from the demon with her left hand, the right occupied by the gun she still held. In the same instance, the machinae rolled to her left as the creature’s head dipped down. One of the massive teeth found the metallic surface of Seneca’s calf as she made her quick dive away from the gaping black mouth of the beast.


At first only the sound of scraping alluded to any damage having occurred, the demon had her immediate attention and it was already circling back towards Deni. Hurriedly the Demvir scrambled to her feet, the stinging pain in her right leg grabbing her attention next.


“Son of a bitch!” She hissed as gears whirred beneath her surface out of anger, the wound was a good six inch gash in the polished metal of her leg. While nothing major, it was a flaw she’d now be forced to sport until is could be repair. To make matters worse, bright blue dahlithium was now drizzling down onto the fawn suede of her boots.


...ruined

[277] [This actually takes place right before Sev's turn. There is no reason for my madness.]

 

[swaswj]

The auritium edge of Aelflead's weapon bit deeply into the flying demon as it streaked by overhead, blasting the fiend just far enough off-track that it failed to sink its teeth or claws into Deni, to wring his juices from his corpse. It banked suddenly, aiming to get distance for another swoop, but its reactions were sluggish. Dark ichor had splashed over Deni's back and in an arc as the demon turned.

The monster shrieked again, all of its remaining eyes focused on the spurii again. Its unearthly keen ripped deep into the psyche of both of its prey, promising death, locking their muscles in place. This time, though, it wasn't just the promise of death, but also the promise of revenge for the injuries. Its six wings flapped desperately but weakly, trying to regain altitude while it continued to bleed.

Deni's last shot cut the demon's cry short. Wings losing all sense of coordination, the demon crashed into the waves.

It didn't come back up.

On the other pier, Finian fell hard to the planks after the serpent's tail swept past. The harpoon gun clattered away, and the old velen grabbed for it. The two demvir dodged and deflected above him, machina battling darkness older than time.

Finian did not miss the splashes of glowing blue that hit the planks nearby.

The serpent demon lashed wildly with its tail as it contended with the male demvir, locking split eyes with Artanis' gleaming apertures. Confusion and surprise spread in those strangely-velen eyes when Artanis shoved a boot into its maw. Finian realized what was happening before the demon did. "No, don't!" the velen shouted in vain when the salvage bag went into the serpent's jaws. Finian desperately dove off the side of the wooden pier into the water.

When Artanis yanked on the cord, the compressed float inflated explosively, far more than even the serpent's wide maw could handle. Black blood splashed across the pier and into the air as the force of the inflation ripped the demon's jaws on top and bottom splitting its face all the way in half. The massive cylinder blasted toward the two machina, as well, forcefully catching both against the rapidly unfolding fabric and throwing the pair off the pair and into the metal siding of a nearby warehouse.

Finian bobbed back to the surface to see the viciously wounded serpent flailing around, the flaps of its face swaying around as black blood sprayed all over. Its body curled up, rapidly coiling around itself to create a barrier of undulating scales and flesh. Before it could fully envelop itself, the old velen lifted his harpoon gun from the water.

The demon's eyes locked onto the velen's just before he pulled the lever, launching the spear right through one of the slit pupils, finishing the job.

Like a true snake, though, the black-scaled beast didn't stop moving. Its length continued coiling and rolling, violently and without control. Finian shouted in disbelief as the bulky body rolled off the pier and slammed into the dinghy with enough force to crack the vessel in half. It rapidly sank, taking the demon's corpse with it while inky blackness pooled on the surface of the water.

"Damn, damn, damn," the old velen spat out as he climbed out of the water and rushed toward the two machina to make sure they were alright. He needed them functional if they were going to pull this off. Thankfully, though battered and stunned, they didn't seem to take any serious damage from the sudden flight. "Damn fool machine," Finian chastised, looking back at the pier. "We're down a demon but now we're down a boat, and guess which one's in shorter supply! And one of the salvage packs, too! Lucky yer made of metal or ye'd likely be laid out with a split skull after that stunt, the both of you!" Grumbling, Finian looked off in the distance toward Aelflead and Deni. "Quick, let's get that other boat before something else goes wrong, or the two of you's going to be walking, and we ain't got time for that!"

Busying himself with setting a new harpoon into his gun, the old velen shook his head. "If these are the ones out in the daylight, this night's going to be hell. Let's hurry!"

[720/3000]

 

[Mystydjinn]

Aelflead snickered behind her cloak's collar at old velen's anger, but gave no argument at his command. Breifly she sheathed her sword, and went to the water's edge to deal with her fin bindings.

The fuchsia appendages flushed a deep red as the cloth came off her arms and strength flowed back into them, and Aelfead flexed to hurry them along. Then tore off her heavy boots, and dove in with a splash. Once she was beneath the waves she tugged on straps that ran through her trousers, and pulled them taut, producing a pair of bunched shorts that ballooned around her thighs (an invention of Gwen's) and tossed her shoes to get them acquainted with the boat.

She glanced towards the beach to watch the rest of the group board, and her eyes rested on Deni for a moment as he passed by with a tilt of his head. “You see anything unusual, Red, let me know.”

She ground her teeth unconsciously at the request, the sting to her pride was still fresh in her mind. The velen's shot had been the saving grace that'd snapped her out of her frozen legs, though gratefulness was not the prominent emotion on her mind. She'd have retorted with something smart if she could justify it, but nothing came to mind and the request was reasonable. Instead she gave a shrug and responded with a weak, "Yeah sure, whatever," that she mumbled under her breath. A grumble of frustration would be the last thing heard from her as Finian's craft carried them away from the docks. Ass.

[265]

notes

Read this after the turn it comes before. Makes a little more sense that way

 

[Valero]

Deni’s eyes followed the creature until the moment it collided with the ocean. When the splash from the impact had calmed and only the ripples remained, the velen forced himself to tear his gaze away from the water’s surface. He refused to believe that the thing was dead until he saw a corpse, but he couldn’t just wait for it to reappear. They were running out of time. Caesar’s rays were fading, the glitter on the edge of the water turning to murk. It was time to move.

Deni slid the pistol back into its holster. Then, while the adrenaline still flowed through him, he grasped the straps that dug into his shoulders and jogged to the end of the pier. With a grunt, he heaved the large bag off his shoulders and onto the boat. Relieved at the lack of weight pressing down on him, he stretched out his arms and glanced towards the others to see how they were faring. A sinking feeling tugged at his chest at the sight of them running towards him.

“Aquila’s arse,” he muttered. With a flourish of his arm, he drew the sniper rifle off his back and climbed into the boat. Blue eyes narrowed as he scanned the area surrounding Finian and the two demvir. If any fresh taste of Infernalis was going to descend upon them, he’d see it first.

Without glancing towards her, Deni tilted his head in Aelflead’s direction as she unfurled her fins. “You see anything unusual, Red, let me know.”

[254/1,534]

 

[Several Zombies]

Shakily the ancient machinae pulled himself to his feet. The tide of pale blue dripping from the wounds in his shoulders had already begun to slow, but it was clear that the dilapidated mercenary was hit harder than he was letting on; the ashen plate that encased his trunk bent inward from the force of impact against the sturdy steel warehouse. Gears clicked and churned meekly from within, Artanis' left arm hanging uselessly at his side, the delicate ballet of clockwork likely jammed by the damaged shell protruding inward. Letting out a muted grunt, the mercenary reached back with his good hand, mechanized digits gingerly reaching beneath the damaged panel and tugging it outward. With a final pop, the sound of grinding metal subsided, and feeling began to return to the machinae's infirm appendage. Opening and closing his hand a few times, Artanis grimaced inwardly at the sluggishness. Languishing at the edge of functionality did not suit the swordsman in the slightest. Turning his gaze towards his compatriots, he pulled his cloak a little tighter around himself, perhaps hoping to mask the extent of the damage that had been done. Sliding his gilded blade carefully into the scabbard at his hip, the ancient demvir trudged down the pier towards Finian, letting out an indignant scoff as he neared the greyscale. "I did what was necessary. If you could aim worth a damn we might have ended this needless skirmish sooner." he grunted with a hint of exacerbation evident in his synthetic voice. "Let's get a move on." The sound of metal against metal squealed and scraped as the two large adornments on her head slid out from the metal siding that they had pierced with the airbag’s force. Seneca let weight and gravity lower her the twelve or so inches she needed to be able to touch the ground once more. “You did what was necessary, but I do think it was rather risky and careless.” Her canned sounding voice called towards Artanis with slight irritation hanging in the air. “As Finnian said, we could have ended up with fish cakes had this gone in another direction.” Feet hit the ground with a light thud, the right ankle rolling inward as the twisted chassis around it buckled and groaned. Pain shot up the limb, forcing Seneca to take her weight off of it as she hobbled over to a boulder on the beach, gears turning in frustration the whole while. “I’ll agree that it did get the job done, just that it caused a bit of damage in the process.” she said as she lined her foot up with the rock and kicked it sideways, knocking the ankle back into position as a line of expletives left her. Carefully she tested the joint out, it was a bit stiff and caused a bit of a limp, but at least it was functioning even with the dull ache. It would be fine until it could be properly mended, and that’s what mattered. With arms crossed Seneca joined the others on the pier. Sev: [1,167] Bunz: [1,154]