[h2][center]Geralt of Rivia & [color=BFBFBF]Zenkichi Hasegawa[/color][/center][/h2]
[center]Skies of Dystopia[/center]
[center]Lvl 13 Geralt (90/130) -> Lvl 13 (92/130) (+1 pending) [/center]
[center]Lvl 6 [color=BFBFBF]Zenkichi[/color] - (78/60) -> Lvl 6 (80/60) (+1 pending)[/center]
[center]Word Count: 780 words[/center]

As the battle raged on even harder, Geralt transformed into her Ardor Blossom form, knocking Zeustrikes out of the sky with fireballs, but taking more heat in return. Z punished each Zeustrike's demise with a bolt of lightning, and then simply summoned more. They couldn't be ignored, however, as they flitted around, hurting every Seeker they could land an attack on. 

Zenkichi was doing his best to purge the statuses that Z and the Zeustrikes gave out, but his buffs were powerful and far apart, meaning that within a few seconds, whoever he managed to cleanse would likely be Charged and Jolted again. It was rough going, and once Midna's will broke and she retreated, things started to look even more bleak as Z commanded his minions to pepper the Seekers with shavings of iron, furthering increasing their electrical conductivity and rendering them more vulnerable to electric damage. 

It was after this point that Sandalphon reached out to Commander Nelson, requesting a change of plan to escape. Sandalphon and Goldlewis unleashed powerful attacks, forcing Z off and heavily damaging the Zeustrikes, and defeating many of them outright. Geralt and Zenkichi filled the air with fireballs and bullets, Zenkichi sighing after his revolvers clicked empty, and Geralt relaxing with satisfaction after the last was destroyed, and the Virgin Victory's shields came up. 

Geralt returned to her natural Identity, and Zenkichi let out a long sigh, shoulders slumping. He was just about depleted again, maybe having a few more Triple Downs or -kaja buffs in him. A Heat Riser or Megidola would probably wipe him out, though. Their relief was short lived, with Z bursting through the cloud cover in a completely expected manner, booming that they'd only made their inevitable crash-landing even worse. Zenkichi and Geralt locked eyes, nodded, and prepared for combat once more, before pausing to stare at the massive ship that appeared before the Virgin Victory. 

Watching the absolute [i]smackdown[/i] that occurred after the fighters burst from the new ship, Zenkichi laughed, hooted and hollered, completely confident that these daredevils had the fight, though Geralt watched with narrowed eyes. [i]That almost looks like Dante, but certainly not the way I remember her. But those three girls are unmistakable as the ones Link freed from that Gaol.[/i] Silently, he smiled. That meant they'd know what happened to Yennefer. Good. 

Not long after, the Virgin Victory landed and the Seekers disembarked near the Avenger. Akane was practically clinging to her father, who was more than willing to reassure his daughter. While their relationship was sometimes acerbic, the time they'd had to remember the mending that the Thieves had helped them do was easing the tension. It didn't hurt that he'd just risked his life to protect her, either. 

When Tora came out of the Avenger, Poppi right at his side, Geralt had to pause. Knowing what she knew, it should have been possible, but...they'd mentioned that Poppi was lost in the Valley when the robots attacked. So...how did Tora get her Spirit back? 

Zenkichi was just thrilled to learn that that doomed expedition had been just a little less terrible. Poppi wasn't the only casualty of that mission, but...well, he couldn't blame the others for celebrating having their friend back. It was a lot easier not to think about the people they'd known for a couple of hours, the mercs that had gone out with them. Even for him. 

The matter of Poppi's Spirit was explained after a couple of questions by Roxas, and Geralt was...only somewhat surprised to hear about the help from the Organization. He knew Roxas didn't trust them, their leader in particular, but they'd been nothing but helpful so far, even if their help was not always practical in nature. Still, having Poppi, and by extension Tora, back was great. 

"It's Geralt, by the way. Flirt with me at your own risk." She made sure to clarify, knowing that neither had seen her since her latest round of Fusions. Zenkichi gave a chuckle to that, though he had no idea just how far Tora's flirtatious ways went when it came to attractive women. Geralt might have had some weird stuff inside her at the moment, but the warning wasn't unwarranted.

The discussion surrounding their new allies, where they had come from, and the...ramifications of Galeem's defeat put a bit of a damper, on the mood, but Geralt looked to Dante, Cirrus, and Dawn, and stepped forward. "Where's Yennefer? On the ship, or did she have you drop her off somewhere?" The possibility that she didn't survive had not once occurred to Geralt, and to even entertain the notion would have felt like a betrayal.