The Grande Diamond: Ground Floor - Casino/Main Hall
“Bart!”

Moira snarled, completely oblivious to whatever Heather was doing. She knew her role. Keep the heat on Bart, as the person who was most able to take a hit in the group. She left the others to worry about everything else.

Unfortunately, as much as Xan finally managed to get the first hit in, it was just that. The first hit. She was moving as fast as she could, hitting as hard as she could already, at least as hard as she could without her sword. Still, hopefully this was a sign of the fight beginning to turn. She swung her fist once more at Bart, as fast as she could swing it. She was gonna punch the motherfucker into the su-

He was faster.

He drove his fist with extreme force into Moira's stomach. Even with Amy's buff her body screamed in pain as it drove deeper and deeper, until she was suddenly sent flying backwards once more, Syed flailing along with her as she went. The pair tumbled painfully as they went, coming to a short distance away.

Moira coughed sickly a few times, the bile rising in her throat. No, she couldn't be sick now. Not now. Save it. Swallow it back down. Getting punched in the gut was never pleasant, especially one which hurt as much as this one, but she had a job to do.

Syed winced, scowling as he tried to push himself up. Everything hurt - from the various cuts and scrapes, to the ache of his body from being thrown about. From that awful pain in his head of the damned hangover, to the sharp pain of his still not quite healed ribs. But he wasn't going to stop. He needed to find the girls. He couldn't stop.

And then his eyes widened as he came across a realisation.

He couldn't hear Trixie's guns over the band playing anymore. Not that he knew where she was. He could still see Xan and Amy, but both Trixie and the woman were out of his line of sight. She wasn't the sort to go quiet. A part of him wondered if she was trying to be stealthy, but she had her guns going blazing less than a minute ago...

"Trixi-?!"

He was startled when once more Bart was upon them both, bringing his fist down upon Moira. She managed to roll out of the way just in time, his fist skimming past her shoulder and shattering the floor beneath her into great stone shards. She scrambled up, wincing at the pain in her stomach as she tried her hardest not to throw up.

"Just fuck off already..." Her fist clenched at her side, her muscles tensing as she drove her foot into the ground and brought her fist back. She'd had enough of this bullsh- oh shit!

Bart was swinging once more in the blink of a second. Moira gritted her teeth, bracing herself for the inevitable blow she wouldn't be able to react to properly...

Only for there to be a sudden flash of brilliant blue-white light, as Syed managed to twist himself and apply a large amount of volts to Bart just as he passed by the mage. Electricity is a very difficult thing to ignore, and Bart was slowed just enough...

Moira tilted her head ever so slightly, Bart's fist and arm scraping her cheek as she pushed her own fist forward with all the force she could muster, right towards that fucking face of his.

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Sixth Floor: ???

Selan tried her best to jerk away from the man she had nearly forgotten in the years that had passed, realizing with great horror that he was trying and succeeding in taking her away somewhere. He seemed intent on going rogue, with her in tow, thus the deep-rooted fears that she had tucked away for so long were now truly being realized. And no one seemed to know where she was.

When he finally stopped to partake in the leftovers of an abandoned meal, all she could do was look up at him with a look of intense indignation, anger, and disgust.

There was only one other person she hated more than this man.

Neil certainly received the message, and he wasn't happy about it. She thought he was contemplating hitting her. "Don't you look at me like that, you little sh--"

A rattling sound came from the wooden doors, causing Neil to tighten his hold over her mouth and stalk through the tables. She let out a muffled moan through his palm in the hopes that someone, anyone, would hear, but the door was locked...

The ceiling collapsed suddenly, filling Selan's ears with the enormously loud sound of splintering wood and cracking concrete. Selan batted at his hands, hoping to take advantage of the dusty haze filling the room, but he still held on tight.

Selan felt the impact in the form of a whooshing sensation just next to her head, rustling the loose strands of hair that had come undone in her struggle.

She had been released from Neil's grip, and the person responsible for that was kneeling next to her.

There was only one person who could have done what he did.

"Don...?" Selan murmured in surprise.

---

The Grande Diamond - Pool Room

On a regular day, Lisette staring blankly in response to an unusual request wasn't out of character at all, but this time was different; the moment Mordie winked at her, Lisette stopped in her tracks.

All day, the only things that mattered to her were the whereabouts of Kapi and Estelle. Her two best friends had simply disappeared and she couldn't remember a thing about why that was.

Something about Mordie compelled her to drop those thoughts, and in her mind, Estelle and Mordie's images seemingly blended together for just a moment before the only person in her heart was the white-haired woman... and Lucien was trying to hurt her!

Still, something felt off, and Lisette's hands flew to the top of her head, gripping it and wincing. It was a fleeting hesitation that quickly changed to steadfast loyalty towards the charmer, and she stared down her new foes with a determined glare.

"Leave it to me...!" Lisette declared, turning on her heel toward Lucien and the bros, to block their path. She braced her legs, deciding that if she were unarmed, the next best thing would be to kick the crud out of anyone who tried to get past her!

"Dylan, listen to Lisette, yeah?" Lucien gave him an exasperated stare. "She's the bad guy! We need to find Estelle and Don's bro."

He took a step forward, but stopped. The oil would trip him up for sure. The summoner sighed before giving Mordie a glance, was this perhaps an ability? Or was Dylan acting so he could swoop in sneakily and knock her out? He didn't understand what was going on.

Cid and Tom were still on the floor, but what looked the most troubling at the moment was the gun by Mordie's foot. She kicked it up into the air and caught it in her hand, soon enough, it was pointed straight at him. "Dylan? Now would be a really grand time to drop the act, yeah?" He hoped it was an act, but to be honest it didn't look like that at all.

"BROOOOS! SIIIIS!"

The doors were pushed open and in rushed another one of Don's bros. He began yelling about crazy love magic and things began falling in place. Dylan was under a spell. He motioned for Lisette to move back but before she could Mordie winked at her and suddenly she and Dylan were acting as if they were Mordie's bodyguards. Lucien would have charged at them, but the woman was pointing a gun at his face and he didn't want to be shot.

Mordie had given them an option, but they couldn't leave without their friends.

"Ey, ey, let's not be hasty! I really don't want a fight." He gave them a nervous grin as he slowly stepped back towards the pool. Swiftly, he picked up the life ring and with all his might tossed it straight at Mordie and Dylan. "Bros! cover me!" Lucien scrambled towards a few bushes. They were meant to be nothing but decor, however, Lucien decided to use them as cover and hunkered down behind them. The summoner pulled out the first card he could get a hold of, bit down on his thumb and concentrated.

There was a puff of smoke not too far from where Lisette was standing and as soon as it faded a bear came into view.



Xan trailed after Moira, following the berserker as if she were the woman's shadow.

Bart wasted no time and after chucking the roulette table at them (they had miraculously managed to avoid it) he launched himself towards them at an immense speed. Moira readied her own attack, but before the berserker could land a hit, the speedy attacker punched her hard and when Moira staggered back Xan decided to dive in, sword raised and ready to slash. She ran ahead of Moira and took a quick slash at Bart. This time her attack had actually managed to connect, but it was just a scratch and everything was far from over.

“Bart!”

Moira dove in for another attack but Bart retaliated with a punch and soon she was sent across the room with Syed following after. Syed hadn't even been hit?! Xan turned around, a warm green light surrounding her. It made her feel stronger, more solid. She muttered a quick thank you before staring at the scene on the other side of the room.

"Trixi-?!"

Wait, where was the girl? Xan wanted to rush in to help Moira and Syed but what if Trixie needed back up too? She froze for a few good seconds before a flash of electricity snapped her out of her thoughts. She'd come back for them in a bit, she just needed to make sure the youngest guilder was okay. Xan dashed in the opposite direction, scanning her surroundings. "Trixie?! Give me a yell, please!"

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond - First Floor (Party Hall/Casino)

Her guns dropped to the floor.

The shield trap was so spontaneous; it took Trixie's bullets ricocheting back to her for her to realize that she had been ensnared in something. She pushed and heaved against the walls trapping her, banging on the insides a few times with a fist, but it wouldn't budge. Small enough to see Heather, the prankster kept her wide eyes on her as she continued to wrestle with the box. Yelping, crying out for help - but unheard by the others. Xandra had abandoned Moira and Syed in search for Trixie, and the younger watched her run right on by. "Here! Please! I'm over here!" she called, but was again unheard.

With all of her screaming and struggling, it wasn't long before her vision began to blur. Her poundings weakened, and she slowly slid to her knees, fists still clinging to the inner wall. She could almost feel herself cry, but the shock of it all was too overwhelming.

Trixie choked. She would have dramaticized it if she wasn't actually beginning to choke - but the sentiments were still there, of course. "I'm... I'm gonna die!"



Like Syed, something went off in Amy too at the absence of bullets ricocheting about, even with the music blasting in the background. She was the type to run around screaming if she ran out of ammunition and bombs altogether. A gold glow encased Moira's body following the latest punch delivered to Bart; the berserker was getting punched around like a ragdoll, soaking up hits. It wouldn't be long before fatigue kicked in, and if that suspicious woman was still around to help Bart...

Once the heal was completed, Amy ran off after Xandra towards where Trixie had chased Heather. She called out for her friend, but was also met with no answer back. The woman wasn't anywhere in sight either. Could it be that Trixie managed to chase her out of the room completely? ... Nah, even Amy knew that was a task too grand to take on in a matter of minutes.

And it was confirmed by stumbling soon upon a translucent barricade, amidst the wreckage and debris. And Trixie inside, down on her knees with her palms pressed to the inner walls. Without a second thought Amy jerked her gem, summoning a whip-like substance made entirely of light particles, and began to lash at it. With Heather holding it down however, her whip merely recoiled. The flash of light caught Trixie's attention, but she was much too drained to react otherwise.

Amy snarled and went after the tables in Trixie's line of sight. Her whip sparked with ferocity, its light almost blinding.

"You fucking bitch!"

She lashed out at the fallen table before her, snapping it completely in two. From the looks of it, Heather was buying time by taking Trixie out through suffocation, especially as she was too weak to break out on her own. If the defender was stopped now, then defeating Bart would be easier. Amy was also too weak to do any fighting on her own, but if she could find that woman and stop her - that was the only thing in mind.

Amy cracked another table in half. Hopefully the ruckus she was making drew Xandra's attention to the prankster's location, if not to helping her find the hiding defender.

---

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond - Fourth Floor (Indoor Pool)

"Oh! Oh! Oh, this is interestin'!" Mordie bounced within Dylan's arms, still holding her gun up but having no direct line of target. Lucien had taken off, enshrouded the room with smoke, and - summoned a bear!? That was a summon, was it not? She had never seen something like this before! Oh, if she could get close enough to this bear—she hadn't even thought—would she have to wink at the summoner, or the summoned to get a hold of this beauty? How would that even work?

Before she lost herself in this fantastical train of thought, Mordie instead jumped to a new one: just how far would these teammates go in fighting one another? If any of the teammates incapacitated another, whether it was her newfound bodyguards or those that opposed her, it was a score for Mordie. She grinned widely, fixating her weapon on the incoming bear.

Her attention flicked back to Dylan. She noticed a sense of hesitation once she made a move on Lisette as well. Any further breakthrough would have her immediately vulnerable - so she eased free of the artist's protection. "Dylan love, thank you for the escort! Ah believe ah'm safe back here. But maybe you should help our darling out - all those nasty brutes n' their wild bear. This doesn't seem too fair, dunnit?

"But that's okay. Ah'll help out too." She winked at the artist again with her left eye - just a generic playful wink - before turning her gun to the revealing bear, and firing bullets. The gun wasn't a powerful one, but it was enough to start the show. Luckily the creature was a bit too thick to be able to squeeze through the locker rooms should it break through Lisette's stand; Mordie was positive she had the perfect escape plan thought through.

"Let the games begin, baby!"



Stunned, Jerry merely stood off to the side with his eyes darting between Lucien, his bear, and Lisette - understanding well what on Ddaear was going on. Bro vs bro and sis. Mano y dos manos. No, no no no, this was bad. So bad.

Mordie fired off the first round in hopes of agitating the bear into attack, and Jerry moved in Lisette's direction, hands up. The oil had seeped in Mordie's general direction, providing more of a slip-n-slide cover for the trio, so safe movements were mandatory here. "S, sis? I'm - not here to fight. I just... want to help too. Okay?" Hopefully with the bear's assistance, he would be able to get passed his sis and bro and take down Mordie? He had no idea how, but it was worth a shot.




Meanwhile Tom and Cid had managed to straighten themselves up, avoiding the oil by any means. Lucien had requested for a backup and dove out of sight. They nodded to one another and stood guard between the bear and the bushes, hoping they would be able to... to... defend him from the other bro and sis!? Tears began to form in their eyes. What a battle.

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Sixth Floor: Restaurant

Amidst the settling dust and debris, Neil’s icy eyes shot open, his glare shooting down through the length of the restaurant and focused at the individual at the other end of the room who had just hit him. A man dressed in an impossibly bizarre and gaudy red and white costume with black jacket, his face obscured behind a strange helmet, smoke and flickering embers pouring off him. He crouched besides Selan, before standing up to protect her, thrusting his finger out towards him as though challenging him.

What the fuck was this? Who was this man?

“Nobody touches Selan!” He shouted. Neil’s hands searched the wall behind him, helping to heft him back up to standing again, his frozen gaze never leaving this ridiculous foe.

“Tell me where my sisters are!!”

Sisters? Was he supposed to know what that meant? No, he hadn’t kidnapped some little pink and yellow rangers to sell to some oafish noble. Did he mean some of the girls in the truck below were his sisters? How in the world would he be able to figure something like- no, no he doubted it and it didn’t really matter. It was some lunatic in a superhero outfit. The guy was probably high on something. There couldn’t be any other explanation for parading in an ensemble like that and assaulting Dumont’s mansion. Maybe his sisters had gone missing from an earlier job Neil pulled, but even then he doubted it and didn’t much care. All he knew was that this fool had the audacity to attack him, and try to defend her. Normally he wouldn’t be interested in fighting, but no way would he let that slide. And no way was he going to leave the Grande Diamond empty handed.

“You… are a dead man.” Neil bent down, dusting his jacket down. He took his gaze away from him for just a second, and then-

Neil had to bent his head down, low enough to avoid the punch that sailed overhead and struck the wall behind him. Cracks rippled out from the point of impact, and Neil dodged with a short sidestep to focus his attentions on Crimson Justice again. He really was a madman, asking for death.

The superhero pulled his hand out and kept up the assault. He was mad, burning mad. To think that this man might have been the one to kidnap Estelle and Josette. To have been doing the same to, and hurting Selan! His blood boiled and burned!

Fist after fist swung out in the air as a flurry, with Neil’s own fists rising in the air to counter and block each attack, his footsteps continuing to push him backwards again and again as Crimson Justice struck forth. Neil darted to the side again, in-between two of the restaurant tables, lifting it up with little effort and throwing it towards the superhero. The table shattered into several pieces as Crimson Justice’s body burst forth with another smoking kick, to land where Neil had once been, but was no longer there.

He heard his voice again from the far side of the room. His and Selan’s heads turned, to see him reaching down for another piece of food from a left behind plate.

“What the hell do you think you are?” Neil asked, snatching meat from bone and chewing, then swallowing. “Dressed like that… is this supposed to be some of game? You think you’re a hero?”

Crimson Justice turned his body to the side, raising his fists up. He wouldn’t let this man dare hurt Selan ever again!!

“I’m putting an end to you,” Behind the mask, the man’s eyes moved across the visor, to look towards Selan, praying she was alright. And then, the image of red and blue haired girls, his sisters, Estelle and Josette, appeared in his mind. The air felt heavier around him. “Now tell me where my sisters are!!”

Neil threw the bone to the floor, his other hand grabbing a glass of wine and downing it, equally throwing it to the floor with a smash.

“Fine. You want to die? Try it.”

NIKOPOL

Los Paraisos : the Grande Diamond, 9th floor

Aria coughed, partially winded from being unexpectedly thrown to the ground so roughly. It didn’t help that he was kneeling on her back to hold her down either, and it was mighty uncomfortable to have her arms held in such unnatural positions.

She subtly shifted her arms, trying to figure out if she could potentially wrest her arms away. Unfortunately they were quite firmly held back, and it would be difficult to reach any knives she had stowed away on her person not to mention if she forced it he could very well break one of her arms. How had he managed to sneak up behind her? And he just melted away, like her own-

Oh. Well then.

If she wasn’t in quite the bind already she might have succumbed to the urge to thud her head against the floor. Out of all the freaking possibilities of what Kenneth’s magic could have been…

“You’re an illusionist, aren’t you?”

She glared up as best as she could at the man almost accusingly. An illusionist just like her, only stronger and more experienced. It certainly explained how he managed to see through her own illusion so easily while casting one on her without her sensing anything out of the ordinary. In other words, she was at a great disadvantage.

Wriggling her hands that had started to feel slightly numb, she just sighed, body going lax. Perhaps he would loosen his grip a little if she showed less resistance.
“As much as I want to go with the first option, I’m afraid I’m not very keen to- wait, Guilders?” They weren’t supposed know that! How did he find out?

“Who said we were Guilders?” She wriggled around, wincing when he dug his knee harder into her back. She needed to somehow get out of his grip. Was there anything around that could distract him?

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Pool Room

"Dylan love, thank you for the escort! Ah believe ah'm safe back here. But maybe you should help our darling out - all those nasty brutes n' their wild bear. This doesn't seem too fair, dunnit?

“No,” he said softly as Mordie slipped from his protection, ready and willing to shoot up the bear. Still, something felt off about it. The enemy had summoned a bear. Why did that feel so familiar? And how did one go about fight a beast like that? He could something something small to combat it, but if he went for anything big he’d need to discard the oil slick.

"But that's okay. Ah'll help out too."

Mordie forced him to action, shooting her gun at the bear. Unfortunately, it didn’t look like it did that much damage. Placing his chalk to slate, he quickly drew up a weapon for Lisette. Perhaps together and she Mordie could take the beast down. The bow appeared in her hands, and the quiver with arrows slung over her shoulder. Since he had to keep the grease trap up, he wasn’t able to give her much to work with, only five arrows.

“Make it count!”

Los Paraisos : The Grande Diamond: 9th floor:- Lobby

“You’re an illusionist, aren’t you?”

Kenneth made no reply to confirm or deny, but a smile etched itself up his features as he continued to look down at Aria. Twisting her head just so, she could see the way in which he looked down at her, and knew it was true enough. For all the type of opponents she could possibly face, this was the worst. An enemy who knew her specific abilities and skillset as well as he, and to be able to turn it back on her as well… what could she do?

Struggling only forced Kenneth to pull on her arms tighter, and to force his knee further down into her back, eliciting a sharp wince. Fighting like this wasn’t going to get anywhere, so instead Aria relaxed her body, and let loose the tension out. Hopefully this might prompt the conman to release pressure quite this tight. If not, well, it’d be saving her energy somewhat.

“As much as I want to go with the first option, I’m afraid I’m not very keen to- wait, Guilders?” Aria suddenly blinked in confusion as she noticed the name drop.

“Who said we were Guilders?”

The rugged blonde laughed.

“Who else could you all be, honey? The only types of people who’d try a stunt like this are either mercenaries, who’d do a far better job at being quiet and effective, not loud and brazen like this, or… well, Guilders.” Kenneth laughed again. “I can hazard a guess as to why y’all are in here. You Guilders focus on the black and white too much, always seeing things as good and evil, never looking at the big picture… which leads to stupid stunts like this. It’s a shame. Or maybe it’s because you’re all so young and naïve. Who knows?”

“Any rate…” Kenneth released his knee from Aria’s back, and used his right to push her right arm further up, before securing it under that knee again, freeing his hand up long enough to reach into his inner suit jacket pocket and pull out a pair of handcuffs. “I think it’s about time you moseyed on outta here, hmm? Would be a shame for a lady as lovely as you to be getting hurt, so, consider this a favour from your good pal Kenny.”

As the cuffs loomed over her, slowly reaching down to tie Aria’s hands together, she could only look frantically around her for something, anything she could use to distract him, to pull herself free. Her more traditional illusion spells wouldn’t work, he’d see through that in a heartbeat. But what about… what about…?

It was more good fortune then anything else.

“Get off.”

Kenneth felt a presence grip the back of his neck. He twirled, a golden switchknife flashing from his sleeve, blade gleaming in the overhead light and spinning around to stab his attacker, but his body was yanked from his perch, and thrown to skid backwards along the ground, slamming against the balcony’s railing with a grunt.

Aria looked up, gasping with relief as she could now move her body and arms, rubbing her wounded wrists. She looked up to her saviour, and saw…

She saw a disgruntled blonde man looking down at her with a frown a mile long.



“Get the hell up! What’s wrong with you?!” Thunderhawk, gripping Aria’s arm and yanking her up to her feet. “Tch… you alright though?”

Unbeknownst to the ranger however, whilst checking on Aria their opponent Kenneth, had by now completely vanished from sight. Where did he go?

The Grande Diamond: Ground Floor - Casino/Main Hall

The fist connected with Bart’s face with unholy, tremendous force. Enough that it pushed him back, straight down into the ground, cracking it and then imbedding him in a deep and unruly crater, as the shockwave from the attack tore the casino’s ground to ruin, cracking it and dislodging it. The whole room reverberated from the attack, with the many casino tables and chairs being uplifted from their roots and thrown into disarray, spilling on their sides. A massive blanket of smoke and dust buffeted the air, passing over Syed’s tense, determined face, and Moira’s own, rage filled expression.

Surely, that was enough.

But as the dust began to clear and settle, they were able to suddenly see that their attacker was gone, not lying still and motionless like he should have been. How the hell could he take so much punishment and keep moving? Crimson Justice’s attack should have been enough, and then all of their successive hits. Xandra’s sword slash too. It should have been the end of it. He wasn’t protected by the other woman’s invisible shields then either, Moira knew she felt flesh and bone under her fist. So what the flying fuck?!

“I am getting really, really fucking sick of being hit in the face.”

A dreadful voice appeared from above. The pair turned to look upwards, and see slowly descending from the ceiling of the large casino their adversary glaring down, his face caked in blood. And then, before they could realise anything, his body dropped again, hurtling at breakneck speed downwards, colliding straight on top of them. The explosive force of Bart’s landing caused another shockwave that sent more ripples and cracks to emerge throughout the room, for more casino tables and equipment to be sent flying, and to upset Amy and Xandra’s footing across the room as they dashed frantically to help rescue Trixie from Heather’s clutches. Even the band were jostled from their performance. Looking to each other, they realised that perhaps this was the time to call it quits, and they hurried to the nearest exit.

And in the clearing smoke where Bart had attacked the two Guilders…

He was resting on Moira, with one leg outstretched, his foot resting on Syed’s chest. No matter how much the pair struggled, neither one of them could move, for pressing down on their chests… was an unholy amount of force.

“You two fucks have been pissing me off a lot. First I’m going to deal with you, then that girl, then whatever the fuck that other thing was.” Bart sneered. “You feel that? Hurts, don’t it. I can manipulate my weight, you know. Make myself super light or super heavy… super dense. Like for example… my body at the moment is weighing 150kg. Shall we see how long your bodies last when I crank it up again and again? To 200kg… 500kg… 1000kg…”

“I think this is going to be fun.”

The pressure mounted and screams began to unfurl.

---

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Tenth Floor: Grande Suite

"You are concerned for your friend," Iliana spoke softly. "That is understandable. However."

"I am no fool, I have never been the sort to believe in coincidence. You know something. So did Little Miss Superstar, her clamming up only made her look even more guilty. So tell me..."

Her arm shot out, grabbing a hold of Marcus under his chin, her fingers gripping his cheeks in a vice-like grip. Her hands were deceptively firm and a little rough, despite their perfect appearance.

"Why are they here? Is Mr Hunter involved? What do you all want?!"

Marcus’ head tilted back slightly, his eyes looking down at Iliana as she roughly gripped him. Boring her face into his, she demanded answers, with a look that emphasised no other alternative. A quick glance to Lord Dumont showed no interest in intervening from him, and Marcus could hardly say he was surprised. Dumont’s newest prize, that of Selan, and perhaps the women that man, Hunter, was bringing had slipped out of his fingers. His home was being assaulted. Yes, he needed answers, and he would get them. Even if it meant hurting and roughhousing a harmless young woman to get them.

But Marcus was not a harmless young woman in the slightest.

His left arm shot out, swatting Iliana’s arm away, filling her with surprise. His other arm swung out, gripping her throat, and pushing her away with sudden force, throwing her onto the sofa. Dumont’s eyes widened in disbelief and anger, whilst Marcus’ own narrowed with intensity.

The entire time within the Grande Diamond so far, Marcus had kept silent, in the hope of keeping his cover. Whilst also battling against the raging desire to attack and destroy like Don had done, in demanding answers from these wicked people as to where Estelle and Josette were. He could have reverted back to the man whom appeared in Vandrell when fighting the maniacal alchemist Oren, but kept it in check, for the benefit of his friends, and for Estelle and Josette’s own safety too. But now, now that he was alone… with Selan being kidnapped too…

There didn’t seem to be any need for false pretences.

“Stay down.” Marcus’ right hand flicked up, and suddenly Iliana found herself unable to move. Still gagging and wretching, her hold on her magic nullification had been made briefly weakened, a mistake that would now cost them. Even then, a low rank woman like Marcy, even with magical abilities, shouldn’t have been able to withstand her nullification, even despite her slight transgression. Unless-

She looked up with horror as Marcus walked towards Dumont, his hand rising, a burst of typhoon wind throwing the noble off his feet, to crash against the wall of security monitors. She couldn’t defend him.

Dumont groaned, flickering his eyes open, to see Marcus stride closer, and closer, and closer. His hands then shot out, gripping the noble’s throat.

“Tell me where the women you’ve kidnapped are.” Marcus demanded. “Now.”

As Neil Hunter and Crimson Justice continued to clash in an explosive fist fight, Selan backed away until she reached a wall. She watched fearfully with bated breath, her chest heaving up and down; not a single spot in the room was safe from Neil Hunter's reach. Don had a way of coming through in the end, but Neil wasn't honorable enough to finish a losing battle -- he'd grab her and run if he had to.

"Fine. You want to die? Try it." Neil tossed the wine glass to the floor.
This lunatic wants a fight? He's got one.

The shattering glass captured their attention for nary a second, which was more than enough time for Neil to disappear from sight. Selan's breath caught in her throat, as she saw where he was before Crimson Justice did.

"Above...!"

Neil dropped from the ceiling above Crimson Justice, bringing both of his fists down onto the masked hero's head.

Splinters of wood sprayed across the room as Crimson Justice's body spiraled into and through a table, bouncing across the floor like a skipped stone. He turned his body in mid-air and skidded on his boots, stopping in a crouched position next to the glass.

Neil rubbed at his knuckles, managing to shoot a smug look at Selan before bracing himself for Crimson Justice's imminent counter-attack -- the superhero had already recovered, and leapt forward, his fist squeezed so hard that beneath his gloves his knuckles were turning white.

---

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Pool Room

Lisette was more than willing to go rushing at a bear in order to protect Mordie, but luckily Dylan still had the sense to draw up a weapon for her.

Just as the quiver materialized on her back, Lisette reached to take an arrow. Aiming straight at the bear, she grit her teeth and yelled, "This is what happens when you mess with my friend!"

The arrowhead began to glow with a faint green light as she channeled magical energy to strengthen her shot. Lisette meant business.

The first of her five arrows was released, shooting across the room and leaving a trail of light in its path. She reached for another arrow.

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Casino/Party Hall

It was working. Heather ducked her head back in, hiding behind one of the upturned tables, a causality of Bart’s fighting style. Trixie was trapped, cut off from the others, and quickly running out of air. Suddenly, though, she felt it, someone attacked her shield. It weakened the hold by a small fraction, but that attack plus the strain of holding such a shield fully encircling Trixie was starting to strain her. Sweat started to bead on her forehead, and she heard a snarl across the room.

"You fucking bitch!"

There was a loud snapping noise, and Heather peered around the edge of her hiding place to find the blonde women stalking through the room, destroying even more furniture to find her. She winced as the woman unleashed another crack of her magic whip, getting even closer to her hiding place and drawing the attention of the metal armed woman.

Mordie hadn’t responded to her call. Neither had Kenneth. They must be tied up with fights of their own. Whoever this group was, and despite their lack of subtlety, they were good. But how to take out these two? Her eyes landed on the girl across the way, her victim, gasping for her final breaths while her guns lay around her.

Her guns...

Taking a deep breath, Heather slide out from the side opposite Amy and dashing through the tables, skidding to a stop behind the young trickster. As she slid into place behind Trixie, Heather released the shape of the shield, allowing it to snap out around them in a semi-circle of protection. She grabbed the young girl, holding her around the throat with her arm, and grabbed one of the uzi’s in her hand, the other kicked behind her.

Now that should have their attention - and if it didn’t, this would. She placed the uzi against the girl’s head.

“Now then, enough of this madness.” From the corner of her eye she could she Bart had pinned down the other two. “Bart finish them now!” Flicking her eyes back to the two women before her, she smiled. “As for you two, if you want this little brat to get out of this alive, I suggest dropping your weapons and surrendering.”

They were actually attacking him...

Lucien found it extra hard to concentrate, knowing that he was going up against his friends. Still, he'd be able to keep his medium's attacks to a minimum, maybe he could just knock Lisette and Dylan over then have the bros try to restrain them? He didn't know. The summoner screwed his eyes shut and concentrated as hard as he could, but it was easier said than done especially when Mordie and his friends were attacking the bear all at once.

The animal was irritated, and it tugged at his control, making him feel irritated too. If they were up against just Mordie or any criminal Lucien would have used his medium's emotions to his advantage but because he was up against his friends he had to suppress both the animal's will and feelings and it made him feel weary. "Hell no, they're friends." He mumbled softly to himself when one of the bear's thoughts ran through his head. Just knock them over, yeah? He thought over and over as the bear let out a loud and very upset roar.

An arrow nicked the bear in the shoulder and Lucien felt a string, he focused even harder and the bear raced towards Lisette. Unfortunately, it slipped and soon a rolling bear headed straight for Lisette, knocking them both into the pool. Oops? He released the summon and the bear exploded into a puff of smoke. That had been ridiculously fast. "Sorry!" He called out from behind the bush before looking through the cards he had brought. He had the turtle card with him and the tuna card. Oh, joy.

Maybe this time he'd just try taking matters into his own hands? He picked up a broken chair leg and held it as if it were a sword. "Bros! Today we charge."

"O-Okay bro!" They agreed uncertainly.

He rushed towards Dylan looking almost threatening before he slipped on oil and fell flat on his back. The wooden chair leg flying out of his hand and up into the air. The summoner looked up only for his newest weapon to crash into his face. There was a sharp sting followed by a nosebleed. He let out a yelp before looking up at the still mind controlled Dylan. "Um...I really meant to do that, funny, huh?" He let out a nervous laugh then grabbed Dylan by the feet. He didn't want to fight them but he would try to maybe knock them out of it? "Fight it Dylan! Fight it Lisette! Remember our mission, we need to find Estelle and Josette."



Everything just became ten times worse.

The cleric starter yelling and lashing out at everything and then Moira and Syed started yelling too. Xan froze in place and turned to glance at the other side of the room. Bart had them pinned down. This was bad, very bad. She wanted to help them but they needed to find Trixie too and neither her nor the cleric could be at two places at once, she was sure. Several thoughts were screaming inside her head and she didn't know which thought to obey. Syed and Moira or Trixie? Before she could come to a conclusion Heather dashed out of her hiding place, rushed up to Trixie and took the girl hostage.

The situation suddenly became a hundred times worse.

“Now then, enough of this madness. Bart finish them now!"

Finish them? If they surrendered they couldn't assure everyone's safety and if they didn't then they would be putting Trixie in danger. Xan's lowered her arms, the sword becoming nothing but a clenched fist. She locked eyes with Amy and gave the slightest hint of disagreement. She defied their options with the nastiest glare she could muster. She didn't trust Heather or Bart and either way someone would be getting hurt. "Okay," she scoffed, eyes never leaving Amy. They needed to do something. What if they faked surrender and struck when the stakes were just a bit lower? Still, neither Bart nor Heather looked like the merciful types.

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond - First Floor (Party Hall/Casino)

Amy's whip flashed even brighter as Heather charged passed her, completely missing the blinding flare altogether. Even Trixie couldn't react fast enough once the woman made it inside her encasement. The gasp for air was great - but not enough, as she was soon swept up by the woman, who wrapped her arm around Trixie's neck as if to suffocate her further.

The cleric's grip on her gem tightened, the whip twitching and sparking as though crafted from electricity. Those guns Trixie wielded were nothing on their own, but even a rain of them pounding on someone's head would be enough for brain damage. Amy had to do something, anything to help Trixie out of that rut. And even without the woman assisting Bart over in the back, he seemed to be doing fine without her. A simple glance over the shoulder would show the man... sitting atop the other two. Who walloped in pain? Obviously there was much more to this duo than there seemed.

Xandra too was stricken with hesitation. Three of the five guilders were trapped, though Amy was confident Moira and Syed could somehow break free. Trixie, however...

Still clenching her gem, Amy took a deep breath. There were some options. A flash of light, yes - enough to blind the woman holding Trixie hostage. Or the duo charging straight at her before she could react? Or... a distraction? In all instances, however, all it took was trigger-fingers to release a barrage of bullets.

The metallurgist must have understood this. She gave Amy a disdainful but firm nod before reverting her metal arm into a fist. Amy too retracted her whip. Maybe Xandra had a plan with this - to get Heather to loosen her grip on the hostage, perhaps? And what if she didn't comply?

"Gods damn this."



Realizing what Xandra and Amy were doing, Trixie merely squirmed and squawked under Heather's grasp. There was - there was nothing else she could do. All her weapons and bombs were stripped away from her, and she couldn't slide so easily out of a skinny arm's headlock without breaking her chin. Maybe - maybe being held like this could enable her to kick! Yeah, that's right. Kicking. If she could - if she could dangle just a wee bit closer to the woman's body, she could slam her foot into her shin. Or ankle. Or foot. Or something. Then the lady would let go, Trixie could fetch the other gun, and then they'd have this really cool gun-off or something. At least, she'd be fantasizing about how cool that would be if she wasn't gasping for precious air and kicking her legs about like wild hoses.

Unbeknownst to all four of them though, the uzi Heather wielded - the very same one plucked from a toilet and surmounted in bite marks - was out of ammo.

---

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond - Fourth Floor (Indoor Pool)

Dylan had drawn Lisette a weapon: bow and arrows. Ah, so she was an archer? Following up on Mordie's shot, she was quick to shoot arrows directly at the bear; there was no hesitation. However the battle here was short-lived. The bear, agitated, charged after Lisette, but slipped on the oil splatter - sending both itself and Lisette flying into the pool. Mordie almost lowered her weapon at this sudden change of events, especially as the bear vanished in a puff of smoke.

Okay. What animal was ne--

"Bros! Today we charge."

Oh. How disappointing! Was he out of summons already?

With Lisette in the pool now, nothing but oil stood between an armed (or legged - hehehe) Lucien and his three remaining teammates. Jerry, the lifeguard who was closest and had eased around the oil splats while the bear was out, took his chance and charged after Mordie now, his baton skyhigh. But Mordie only giggled at this, side-stepping the hollering man and elbowing him on the small of his back. Shocked, his baton was sent soaring out of his hand towards Dylan, before Mordie - "See ya, cutie!" - bumped him with her hip, right into the pool as well.

But Lucien had made his way to them as well, after slipping and sliding and smacking himself on the nose. Mordie turned from the pool to see him gripping onto Dylan's foot, encouraging him out of his charmed state. Oh, but she wasn't done with her toy just yet.

"Ah'm afraid ah can't letcha do that, sugar."

The woman reached over with her free hand and yanked back Lucien off the matter artist. Similarly to Heather downstairs, Mordie held him in a chokehold, but the gun-wielding arm was used to support her hold rather than hold him hostage. She glanced over her shoulder to see the other two bros on their way as well, interrupted from one nearly sliding on the oil again and the other trying to pull him back. To make matters worse, she shot at their feet to startle them before chucking her empty gun to the wall.

She grinned.

"Let's try somethin' new."

Quickly Mordie loosened her grip on Lucien, only to turn him to face her. She now freed hand gripped onto his face as well, her long polished nails threatening to dig into his cheeks. Anything to get him to meet her eyes.

And then she winked. With that, her charm on Dylan was released in a flash, though her hold on Lisette remained tight. Mordie's facial features softened into one of injury, a damsel in distress. "Lucy baby, please help." Clicking her heels onto the floor, she about faced, keeping Lucien's back to Dylan as she stroked his face with her soft, soft fingers and drooped her other hand near his neck towards his back, as if embracing him. The blood from his nose ran over her hand, but she paid no mind to this. "Dylan has a dangerous, dangerous weapon... oh, please get it away from us!"

Mordie smiled, pleadingly, and nudged the summoner back towards Dylan, before retrieving Jerry's baton off the floor with a twirl, eyes flitting between Dylan, Lisette, and the two slipping bros.

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Sixth Floor: Restaurant

Crimson Justice wasted no time at all upon landing to push himself forwards again, charging towards Neil like a madman possessed. His hands clenched tighter his fingers boring into his palms, as he threw one fist out after another, trying desperately, and vainly, to hit his target and to wipe that infernal smirk off the man’s face.

But Neil was quick, surprisingly so. Crimson Justice had a lot of speed, and a lot of power behind his attacks. But what good was that if it couldn’t hit? Neil was able to sidestep and parry the superhero’s every attack, batting aside the powerful strikes just so to avoid each attack. But for Neil, this was starting to go on too long. He could dabble in a fistfight if he so wanted, but why bother? Why bother wasting his own precious strength to hit back, when he could just let this costumed buffoon do the job for him?

A frosty glimmer shone in Neil’s eyes. From his palms, a dark, violet energy started to spin and swirl.

Crimson Justice was relentless. Pushing his body forwards again he jabbed forwards, once then twice, again and again. But this time, unlike before where Neil just barely dodged it, Neil rose his hands, leaving a portal hanging in the air in front of him, directly in the path of the superhero’s fists. First Crimson Justice’s left hand hit one, his hand disappearing into it. And then, his right in another.

And then, a second later, two more small violet portals appeared around Crimson Justice’s body, suspended in the air, on either side of his head. And from each, a familiar white gloved fist appear, crackling with passionate energy, to swing out and strike himself. First snapping his head one way, and then violently recoiling the other as the remaining fist connected. Crimson Justice’s fists receeded back from the portals which vanished immediately after, and his body startled to topple and sway groggily. Neil had managed to force him to hit himself, and he didn’t even realise how.

A short distance away, Neil’s body dropped low to the ground, swinging his leg out in a semi circle. A newly created portal laid in the path of his leg, with another formed behind the superhero’s legs. In one portal went Hunter’s foot, and out the other…

Crimson Justice was kicked off his feet and sent crashing to the ground, as Neil effortlessly stood back up and the two purple vortexes dissipated into nothing. Neil reached for another nearby plate of food, pinching a pastry and munching on it satisfactorily as his adversary stuttered on the ground.

With abilities like this, how could Crimson Justice possibly get close enough to hit?

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Pool Room

His plan worked brilliantly! Until the two separate parts of the plan collided into a tumbling bear/archer mess. He winced as Lisette went sprawling into the pool, the bear disappearing in a familiar puff of smoke. Odd, that was, Dylan felt that he should remember something about that summons...and the man in the dress. The man dressed remarkably like he was. With a quick movement of his hand he wiped half the slate clean, dismissing the bow and arrows. Less for Lisette to struggle with in the pool.

The “bros” then charged forward, the cross-dressed man slipping on the grease trap and falling hard, somehow hitting himself in the face with his makeshift weapon...after it had flown in the air. How on Ddear did he manage that?

"Um...I really meant to do that, funny, huh?" He let out a nervous laugh then grabbed Dylan by the feet.

Dylan looked down at the man, confusion etched on his features. He knew this man, and he wanted to help him but...Mordie.

"Fight it Dylan! Fight it Lisette! Remember our mission, we need to find Estelle and Josette."

His mind was a hazy of half-formed memories and emotions. “Estelle...” he whispered her name, barely loud enough for the others to hear, as her image flashed before his eyes. A shock of red hair, a smile that was dazzling bright. She was their leader and their friend...and she was missing! Yes, that was their mission! Not this Mordie, this evil, witchy woman who had turned him and Lisette against Lucy!

"Let's try somethin' new." Mordie grabbed Lucy and released Dylan. Suddenly his mind came rushing back to him, the mission fully remembered.

“You bitch!” he hissed as she commanded Lucy to fight him. Wiping the slate fully clean, he dismissed his grease trap and scurried away, the dress preventing him from breaking into a full run. No doubt Lucy would go for his slate, so he quickly got to work at drawing himself some protection.

“I’m on your side now, Bros!” he called out as he summoned a spiked shield onto his arm. He was not very strong, but if any of Lucy’s summons came forward he could bash them back and do a little damage. “We need to take down the woman!”

The Grande Diamond: Tenth Floor - Grande Suite
“Tell me where the women you’ve kidnapped are.” Marcus demanded. “Now.”

Iliana could do nothing, her breath catching raspily in her throat. It was funny, how right now the fact that Marcy was in fact male didn't register. All that mattered was now. He was threatening Lord Dumont, and she was completely powerless to help him.

And he was asking that. He was literally right outside the room they were captive earlier, when they were on the way up here. Did... did he know something?!

Was it her fault?

She tried to reach out, to pull herself off the sofa. Get herself towards a panic button, anything. But she couldn't.

"Don't...!" she gasped, her throat feeling like sandpaper. Her eyes rolled a little with the sustained effort as she tried to overcome him with her magic null. That wasn't working either. She swallowed. "...Don't hurt him..."

---

The Grande Diamond: Ground Floor - Casino/Main Hall
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!"

Pinned on her front with almost all of his weight upon her, Moira was stuck in that awkward position where she couldn't hit back. She screamed and bellowed and shouted, slamming her fists into the ground and trying to push herself up.

The weight increased some more, shortly accompanied by another moan of pain from her companion. She managed, just about, to turn her head to face him.

Unlike her, Syed was lucky enough to be on his back. And with only one foot resting on him too. However also unlike her, he had no tolerance for being pinned to the ground by a massive weight whatsoever. His hands clutched and gripped at Bart's foot, his fingertips pale as he desperately tried to lift as much of the weight off his chest as he could. It wasn't helping at all.

He groaned quietly, his breathing becoming all the more difficult by the second. It was difficult to concentrate through the pain, and he didn't dare take his hands away from Bart's foot. He looked over to the last direction he saw the others, but with all the rubble and all the noise Moira was making it was pointless.

He then locked his gaze on Bart instead, his teeth gritted in pain as the room span around him. Weight manipulation? That made sense. "G... guys..." he tried to call out, but it came out more as a whisper instead.

Hesitantly, he took one hand away from the foot. He instantly felt the pain intensify, his vision darkening and his eyes unfocusing. He had to be fast. He had to be fast as hell.

Moira snarled, her vision blurring a little. But not with the sheer amount of pressure on her back. Well. It was partially to do with that. But also to do with the boiling rage which was running through every artery and vein in her body. She could hear her heart pounding against her ribs, against the floor. She could feel the coolness of the floor, the sharpness of the cracks and the bits of debris.

But most importantly, she could feel the horrific weight on her back, threatening to crush her into the ground.

She firmly planted her palms once more into the floor and began to try and push herself up again.

"W...weight whatever...!" she shouted, her voice cracking. Her muscles screamed from the effort and the ground cracked under her hands. Blood began to trickle from her nose. "Like I give a shit... you fat fuck...!"

Meanwhile Syed reached desperately towards a small piece of metal with his one free hand. But as hard as he tried, he couldn't focus his magic. He couldn't conciously cast without his gestures, he couldn't concentrate through the pain. The debris remained untouched as he went limp, his vision fading to black.

Los Paraisos : the Grande Diamond- 9th floor

“Chirps?”

Aria stared incredulously at the blond-haired ranger who seemingly popped out of nowhere while rubbing her sore arms. Who would have expected him of all people to come to her rescue?

“How-When did you…?” Her eyes darted to where Kenneth had been thrown against the balcony railings, but quickly widened when she realized that the man had already managed to recover and disappear once more. “Never mind, there’s no time for that right now.” She hissed in frustration, grabbing the ranger’s arm and tugging him back so their backs were close enough to the pillar she had been hiding behind so Kenneth wouldn’t be able to sneak up on them from the back, something illusionists were prone to do.

She scanned the area through narrowed eyes, looking for any telltale signs that illusionists often missed while hiding themselves- any indents on the carpet, missed reflections or remnants of shadows, but spotted nothing. Chirps was giving her a questioning look and she quickly explained under her breath, never stopping her surveillance of the area around them.

“He’s an illusionist like me. Only stronger.” Her lips twitched in distaste. Admitting this had left a sizeable dent in her pride, but it was crucial to convey the situation. “Meaning my illusions are next to useless against him, but I’m susceptible to his.”

Sudden screams from the floors below made her press her lips even tighter and she shut her eyes, trying to block off the sounds and instead focusing her mind on sensing for his illusions. If only a certain Virtuoso was here-

Her eyes snapped open as she abruptly ducked to the left, hand shooting out to grab at what looked like empty air. Her fingertips brushed cloth for one short moment as carpet-muffled footsteps quickly moved away. Two knives were quickly thrown in the direction Aria thought the man had retreated but only hit the wall, blades chipping as they hit the wall.

She stared even more intently now, taking deep breaths in order to keep her ever rising frustration under control. She hated feeling helpless. If she didn’t come up with some idea soon she swore she was going to start chucking knives at random areas in the room, courtesy be damned.

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Pool Room

Lisette resurfaced as quickly as she crashed into the pool, gasping for air and sputtering chemical-y water. Her blonde bangs were flattened over her eyes, and she waved her arms around trying to find the edge of the pool. With one movement, she pushed herself onto the smooth stone floor and clawed her hair away from her face.

"Dylan has a dangerous, dangerous weapon... oh, please get it away from us!"

Lisette's eyes popped open, looking around for the new threat to Mordie. She wasn't thinking straight, she couldn't recall that Dylan had been on her side just seconds ago; the only thing she knew was that Mordie was in danger, and Lisette needed to act, now. She was becoming agitated, both from the powerful need to protect this precious person, while at the same time her mind was a painful, nagging jumble that vaguely knew this wasn't right at all.

Dylan had his back to her, facing Mordie and Lucien and scribbling onto his slate. A spiked shield appeared on his arm, and the sight of it spurred Lisette to pull herself up from the wet floor.

"Don't you dare hurt her...!" Lisette screamed, grabbing Dylan from behind and trying with all of her strength to hold his arms down. While she wasn't completely frail, there was no real technique or power in the attack, and there was a clear desperation in her voice and movements.

He was being held hostage? This was both really cool and horrifying.

Lucien stared at Dylan with wide eyes as if expecting his friend to snap out of it and help him, but assistance never came. Mordie held him in a choke hold and he struggled against her. If the floor hadn't been so slippery he probably would have been able to elbow his way out of this sticky situation, but the with oil everywhere it was easier said than done and even staying upright was sort of a challenge in itself.

"Let's try somethin' new."

Mordie's grip loosened and before the summoner could react, her fingers were pressing down on his cheeks. "Let go--" That was all he could say before she winked.

Everything, his irritation and disdain, they all flew out the window. Lucien melted on the spot, a dreamy sigh leaving his lips and a dorky smile tugging on the corners of his mouth. Soon, he was grinning from ear to ear and looking like a love struck puppy. She was beautiful.

"D-Did it hurt when you fell from heaven?" Lucien looked like he was on cloud nine. "Gods, you're an angel."

The reaction Mordie gave him however was one of fright and soon the lovely lady was asking for his held. He straightened up, puffed out his chest, and stood his ground in front of her. "I'll protect you, Mordie. You can count on me." It sounded so right, but it felt so wrong.

"Dylan has a dangerous, dangerous weapon... oh, please get it away from us!"

He narrowed his eyes at Dylan, no trace of mischief or silliness on his face. The summoner was dead serious. "What kind of gentleman would try to hurt a lady, yeah?" He flipped through his soggy cards, ignoring both turtle and tuna and instead going for large cat he had used back when he had met the pride. "Lisette, make sure to keep the bros away from Mordie." He stated as he hunkered down, and pressed a little blood onto the card.

There was a puff of smoke followed by the appearance of very pissed off cat. It let out a roar then began charging towards Dylan. It showed none of the restraint that the bear had shown because it was blinded by rage, and Lucien's clouded mind didn't understand that Dylan was his friend.

The cat leaped and swiped a paw at the matter artist.



"Let's not be hasty." Xan mumbled as calmly as she could.

She didn't know what kind of bullets were in the gun, but she did not want to put anyone at risk by choosing to attack. Still, if they didn't do something...Moira, Syed. The conflicting thoughts made every action full of hesitation. What could she and Amy do? All Heather needed to do was pull a trigger and if they rushed towards her or showed signs of aggression it would only take the woman a second to make her choice, to let the bullet fly.

"What if we leave?" She sounded sincere enough, though knew that couldn't be an option. "What if you escort us out and call it a day?" That sounded absolutely stupid but she really didn't know what else to do or say.

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Tenth Floor: Grande Suite

"Don't...!" Iliana gasped, her throat feeling like sandpaper. Her eyes rolled a little with the sustained effort as she tried to overcome him with her magic null. "...Don't hurt him..."

Marcus shot her a quick, scathing glare from over her shoulder, before fixing his attention back to the squirming Dumont trapped in his grip, who struggled and futilely swiped at Marcus’ arm for release.

“Yes… please…” Dumont’s legs thrashed. “I’m a… reasonable man… we don’t need to act like… this…”

“Where are they?” Marcus hissed.

“I can… offer you… all the money you wa-”

“I SAID WHERE ARE THEY?!” Marcus’ fist swung besides Dumont’s head, smashing a monitor into a shower of sparks and static, and then finally nothing. Lord Dumont winched, and then squirmed even harder, trying to pull himself free from the terrifying maniac in front of him. He still couldn’t even fathom what was going on… what was happening. He was Lord Alistair Dumont. Didn’t this person know that? What they were doing was just… it was suicide! To attack a regal aristocrat like himself! A man with money, power and connections… why it was an affront against all manner of reason and sensibility! To dare attack someone like him, it was an insult!

“Unhand me, cur!” Dumont summoned his strength to start resisting. He shot Marcus a fierce glare of his own, staring into his eyes, piercing his gaze in an attempt to convince him of the terrible mistake he had just made. “Do you know what you are doing?! I am Alistair Dumont, and I order you to unhand me right no- yeeeeeeeaaaaaarrrrrggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!”

Iliana’s eyes widened in horror as the scene before her enveloped. Even against her greatest struggles, she could do nothing. She couldn’t move, couldn’t protect her lord. All she could do was watch. Watch as this stranger just-

And then she could watch nothing.

A minute later, the doors to Lord Dumont’s Grande Suite burst open, and Marcus strode back out, still garbed in his fetching, bedazzling dress, his expression a stark contrast to the beauty his body presented. He didn’t look back, instead walking towards the balcony’s railing on the side, and vaulting over it, falling to the ground far below.

---

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Lobby: Ninth Floor

“What are you doing?” Thunderhawk narrowed his eyes, as he watched Aria move around the marble column, expertly and swiftly launching a pair of knives into the wayward air before her, striking and chipping the far wall on the other side. After arriving to her rescue, she had managed to explain the situation she was faced with: battling the dangerously handsome Kenneth, a wily trickster with the ability to conjure illusions far more powerful then her own. But it still took a while for Thunderhawk to process.

“Looking for him, idiot!” Aria sighed. “Didn’t you hear a word I said? He’s an illusionist! He’s invisible!”

“Ah… invisible. Well, that’s fun.” Thunderhawk sighed, his hands reaching to the back of his head, tightening his bandana more snugly, before reopening his eyes and ears to concentrate on his senses, on his surroundings. He reached for his belt, unhooking the small sword from his scabbard, and held it ready in his hand. Thunderhawk’s weapon proficiency was in using javelins, but the current fighting conditions they were in made using them impractical. They were designed for distance combat, when he could actually see his opponent. And actually having them on hand would have been useful too, but all he had with him were the equipment and weapons he had in the clothes that Aria had woken up with. Not a lot.

But it would do. His short sword here… it was designed for good, close encounters like this. And Thunderhawk? Well… the Guild hadn’t designated his ‘class’ as Ranger for no good reason. Keen eyesight and hearing is what he had been gifted with, when he wasn’t sullying his body with alcohol. Pausing to concentrate, to really concentrate on his surroundings… it didn’t matter if their opponent was masking them as invisible, or could use illusions. They always left a telltale sign. Aria was doing good, but he… he could do better.

His body tensed. His surroundings almost seemed to die down, as his mind ignored the chaotic sounds from below, and focused on their nearest surroundings. For the first unmistakable sign of him…

There!

Thunderhawk dashed away from the column with breathtaking speed. His right arm swung out, and the short sword followed behind. Aria turned, shocked at Chirp’s sudden movement, in the direction opposite to where she had been looking at, and was even more shocked to see a thin splash of blood appear in the air from where Thunderhawk had hit their invisible opponent. A small, quick wound- it was a graze. But it would hopefully be enough, especially as the ranger pressed forth the attack…

Thunderhawk’s body shifted, and his sword swung out again and again. This time, Aria could see sparks streak across the sky, from where his blade was being parried by another. Kenneth… he was good. He was not only a competent blade fighter himself, to be going up against Thunderhawk, but he was also able to maintain his invisibility too.

Not that it mattered anymore. Thanks to Chirps’ help, Aria could ‘see’ Kenneth. And wasting no time, she unleashed another couple of her knives at her invisible opponent. And then!

“Agghh!!”

Thunderhawk stopped, his short sword raised in front of him defensively, a groaning voice erupting from the barren space before him. Stumbling footsteps below could be heard, and the knives that Aria had thrown wobbled embedded in the air itself, their points vanishing a short distance in. She had hit her mark perfectly!

The invisible figure wobbled, and then, slowly, the illusion began to come undone and be unmasked. From the knives outwards, his body started to appear, slithering back into full form. As the man finally reappeared, stumbling again to expose Aria’s handiwork, she could help but stifle a frightened gasp at the horror before her.

It wasn’t meant to be like this.

Thunderhawk took another couple of uneven, groggy steps backwards, his hands clutching at the small knives, one piercing his chest just below the shoulder, the other in his abdomen. He winced, gritting his teeth, struggling to stay standing and conscious, looking to Aria, and then to the other Thunderhawk, the one with the short sword that Aria had seen. The Thunderhawk whose image bled back to its real form:- that of the smiling, arrogant blonde suited man, Kenneth.

The ranger turned back to Aria, forcing a smile.

“Not your fault…”

He fell to the ground.

Kenneth chuckled, leaning back to look towards Aria.

“Well now, darling, that wasn’t very nice, was it?”

---

Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Ground Floor: Casino/Party Hall

Moira and Syed’s bodies groaned ever more under the weight of Bart’s body. On and on he piled on the pressure, piled on the force crushing them from above. Their bodies couldn’t last much longer. Couldn’t take the strain. The way things were going, the way that maniacal, sadistic man above them was grinning down on them, this could be it. This could be the end. Neither of them wanted that. Neither of them could imagine it. But they were completely pinned, and with such force trapping them, such force crushing their bodies… how could they escape it? How?

Either fortunately or unfortunately, the room answered for them. The floor itself could not bear the strain anymore, and the cracks that permeated the ground grew worse. The floor itself buckled and broke, giving way and collapsing beneath them, shattering into a thousand miniscule pieces. Bart’s weight fell, and he lithely picked himself up, flipping onto Moira’s back, then increasing his weight in his soles briefly to push himself up into the air with enough force, at the same time decreasing his weight to become as light as a piece of paper, and flip back up and onto the casino floor, right beside the edge of the now massive gaping chasm that descended into darkness, Moira and Syed plummeting into the basement below, debris collapsing atop.

Bart straightened up, clapping his hands up and down, then turning around to Heather, Trixie, Amy and Xandra.

“Well, who do we get to kill next?”

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Los Paraisos: The Grande Diamond: Ground Floor: Lobby

A streaking white figure fell to the ground, passing floor after floor and the startled occupants upon them, before coming up closer, and closer to the ground below. The floor came up at a frightening speed, with the figure poised to collide, before the ground suddenly halted, inches away from his face. The man in white’s body was suspended, flipping over to his feet and landing solidly on terra firma. He looked left and right, searching for the particular corridor, that led to the door and room beyond where Estelle and Josette were being held.

‘Estelle,’ Marcus found it. ‘I’m coming.’