The Melee fighters were, ironically given conventional wisdom about these things, overtaken by the mages in their charge after the knight. While the sword wielding warrior struck first, after that came a barrage of magics from the teleporting casters in the form of acid and a mighty spear, though all this was preceded by Kamek’s big punch, done at a much more comfortable range than his colleagues' up close and personal wizardry. Something he got a needling over from Rubick when he reappeared at the magikoopa’s side.
”My apologies for choosing a safe and reliable option” he replied, words full of vinegar, the mage not at all upset by this insult in the slightest ”I’ll be sure next time to simply annihilate the whole area indiscriminately with little concern for the lives of my friends and family” which was a thing he could do, although the charge time and setup of his most destructive spell was prohibitively long for most situations.
”Besides, his majesty has this in the bag I’m sure” the old Koopa insisted, as they both watched as the royals and shipgirl finally got into range on foot.
Jr and Rika had overtaken the stamina burning Bowser by the time they had closed the gap, with the prince flying up and going for the face while Rika went to try and cripple the legs with her chainsaw bayonet and explosive punches. Together, they brought the queen’s head low right in time for Bowser to arrive. The king skidded to a halt right ahead of her, well, head, then pull back a fist in a massive wind-up, and then, finally, kinetic strike module blazing, slammed a rocket propelled punch directly into Silitha’s battered and bleeding mug, rendering into pulp with this final blow.
”Splat!” went the spider queen, who then swiftly dissolved into ash, leaving behind her brightly glowing spirit and, interestingly and unexpectedly enough, a fragment of a mask.
”Way to go papa!” Jr cheered from on high, before shouting ”That’s right, run! Run you weenies! Run!” as the spider swarm panicked and broke in response to the death of their mistress-mother.
Rika, meanwhile, was more interested in what had been dropped, approaching the mask fragment and saying ”Ooo, is that one of the ones we are looking for?” before picking it up and recognizing its fragmented nature and adding, less confidently ”Or part of it?”
”I dunno, maybe?” Bowser replied as he held one claw on onto and rolled his shoulder, before giving a general order of ”Grab some spirits and then let’s get out of here! I am done with this place.”
The Knight likely had much the same feeling as that last, warning them that there were more spiders out there, which was not good news.
”Eh, we can take em” Jr replied to that, but to which Kamek countered with ”I’d really rather not. We need time to regain our mana and stamina before any more encounters like that young master”
While they had been saying that, the knight had hopped off, insisting they come with him to his camp, but the Troop would be having none of that.
”Yeah nah no thanks. We are heading back that away” Bowser replied, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder back the way they had come, a way neatly lit up by the torches the troop had popped down as the party had ventured into the woods ”and you can come if you like I guess”
”It has light, and has been scrubbed clean of webs, so comparatively to going that way it will be smooth sailing” Kamek agreed, to which Rika added ”Literally” as she moved to skim off in that direction, gliding on the trail of goop also leading the way back alongside the lights.
”Besides, we have friends back that way who we need to link up with again. We’re already wandered way off track after all” Bowser added at last, which most likely put the matter to bed.
”Sorry about that” Rika called back sheepishly, her lost plane having been the cause of all this, but the king waved off her apology ”Eh, turned out fine, and we got a pretty strong looking spirit out of it so don’t worry about it” and in so doing tacitly raised the question of the ownership of said powerful spirit.
Then, a few moments later, after they’d grabbed a couple of the fallen spiders for good measure and stuffed them away to try out with Sectonia’s funny hat (which they still did not know they were going to be being charged for yet, which was going to be a whole altercation that was for certain) they were off. Rika led the way, Kamek and Jr floated above, and Bowser’s spiky shell acted as their rearguard. Mimi stayed with her trainer, while her Mimies, however long they lasted, grappled themselves onto the backs of the accompanying hiveling to give them some tiny and adorable cavalry escorts, which gave Kamek an idea that he would be trying out later.
As they traveled, they were regaled with the knight (who went by Barnabee)’s tale of woe regarding the disposed Vespa and the wretched wasps who had stolen her land and her throne despite his best efforts to defend and/or reclaim it but, unfortunately, the kingdom conquering Troop wasn't exactly the best target for this sort of request.
Or wouldn’t have been anyway, but fusion had had a few positive effects on some of them.
”Saving a queen and kingdom” Kamek, not at all to be found among that number, replied before giving a sniff of a laugh and half explaining that ”That is not exactly our ballpark, so to speak. Quite the opposite, you might say”
Rika and Jr shrugged at this whole thing. The former happy to go with the flow attitude wise and not particularly concerned with the plight of those who she did not know. The latter was not as invested in the whole villainous deal as his dad and caretaker were, yet also while playing the hero did sound like it could be fun, it also sounded like effort and a whole side thing they didn’t have time for.
Which left their response mostly in the hands of the King himself and, perhaps unexpectedly, he did not reject the quest outright .
”Ehhhh, maybe if we’re in the area?” which got him a pair of slightly surprised looks from the other two koopas, and which prompted to gruffly defend his (almost) kindness with ”I mean, we gotta go all over looking for these masks anyway right? …. Plus, honey tastes good” which got a pair of nods of understanding, both of them much more used to the king following his stomach instead of his heart.
”Buuuut first we need to meet up with the rest of the troops, so we’ll get back to that egg temple thing, take a rest” the king was really needing one ”And if they don’t come back for us, we’ll go looking for them” which was a plan that had his family’s approval at the very least.
Kamek Invoke Extraordinary Mount (Tigran Sorceress): Kamek can create magical constructs in the shape of various supernatural creatures to be used as mounts, and only as mounts (the constructs can only follow basic commands and are worthless in combat without a rider, and even when ridden cannot attack in ways not specifically stated). As magical constructs they have no spirits, and have a passive mana upkeep, limiting the number that Kamek can create and maintain at once. Take 10 seconds to summon, meaning they are best prepared in advance.
Big Beetle: a large flightless beetle that can tunnel through dirt and soft stone, can damage harder surfaces (such as walls), grants 40% resistance to blight (poisons, toxins, and acids) and is able to bash aside enemy shields and spears with relative ease, making it easier for its rider to attack said foes in melee.
Cockatrice: a monstrous flightless rooster that is nimble enough that its rider can often get in the first strike when attacked, and can commanded to use a ‘doom gaze’ attack that deals moderate light damage and can petrify (read, stun) a single target for 4 seconds (an entirely mundane human has a 55% chance of being petrified, while magical and light resistances can reduce this significantly. Consecutive stuns last half as long (4-2-1-0)). Both damage and chance to petrify are lower at longer ranges.
Hunter/Dread/Vampire Spider: large rideable spiders. All of them grant 40% resistance to blight damage, can be commanded to attempt to ensnare a close rage target in webs (read, stun) for 4 seconds (an entirely mundane human has a 75% chance of being ensnared, while increased physical defenses reducing the odds of the effect. Consecutive stuns last half as long (4-2-1-0)), and can also produce webs to navigate vertical terrain such as walls. The hunter can leap impressive distances, the dread grants a chance for its rider to poison foes when they hit them with attacks (regular human has 55% chance to be affected, with magical and blight resistances reducing the odds of the effect) and the vampire lightly heals its rider when they attack.
Fire/Frost/Gold Wyvern: Flying beasts. Fire and frost grant 40% resistance to their respective elements, while gold has 40% blight resistance
Obsidian Wyvern: Flying beast, which can camouflage itself and its rider when they are in caves, wetlands, or blighted/corrupted environments, making them much harder to spot at a distance
Bone Wyvern: Flying beast, which empowers its riders attacks’ with brain rot which causes the target to lose some of their current mana reserves (regular human has 45% chance to be affected, with magical and blight resistances reducing the odds of the effect).
King Gryphon: Flying beast, who’s elven affinity slightly increases its rider’s ranged damage and which is nimble enough that its rider can often get in the first strike when attacked.
The plan worked! Jr’s new magics stunned their towering foe, and Rika got to move in oh so close and hit each and every one of her twelve shots!
And yet
It was not enough.
The stun ended, and the still living spider queen cried out, leaping back into the woods and unleashing a hurled wave of spiders, proving in an instant that, had they had the nerve, the little minions could have overwhelmed them at any time. Just as they did now.
”Incoming!” Jr called out in alarm, a moment before he was bodied, not by spiders, but by his Papa who leapt to shield his boy from the incoming torrent. The others were not so lucky, as both Rika and Kamek where washed away by the wave of spiders, both falling to the ground, covered in the wretched creatures
”Nononononono not again!” Rika cried out in dismay, having just experienced this exact same situation only with snakes a short while ago, only now her body being bound by webs instead of living ropes. Her response was flailing wildly. Hullblades and gauntlets crushed and chopped some, while a firing of her maneuvering thrusters caused her to be dragged in-elegantly across the ground and got her even more tangled up.
The frailer Kamek could not even muster that panicked self defense, the old Koopa having to resort to hiding in his shell to avoid having his extremities nipped and bitten by the spider swarm.
Meanwhile Bowser, holding his son to his chest, weathered the storm on his feet, but the spiders still tried their best to web him up anyway, swarming the hulking king and binding first his said to the floor, before weaving their way upwards despite his struggles and the flailing of arms, Dreugh limbs and Tentacruel tendrils trying to bat them off.
”Go” the king commanded as they rose higher, pushing his son’s flying machine up into the air before the arachnids could try to bind them together
”Papa! Hold on!” Jr called out as he floated upwards, raising up his staff to cast the same spell he had halted Silitha with. Yet in the two second interval it would take to do so, he saw the forest light up with exactly what he had feared: a dozen more deep hunters and, following after, a rain of poison that came shooting towards the immobilized Troop.
Then, a shining miracle in the dark world shot forth from the mists: as a striped knight darting through the air, parrying the poison with a golden blade, and who then set his sights upon felling the wretched queen, scoring a mighty hit that blinded several of her eyes.
It gave Jr the time he needed to finish the Holy spell, which sent a blast of light out in a bubble around him, burning though the webs and causing the spiders swarming his papa to drop to the ground like files, where they lay stunned.
As Bowser proceeded to stomp the paralyzed spiders flat, and Jr rushed over to repeat his trick for Rika, Kamek and anyone else who was unable to free themselves, the knight continued to show his prowess. He used his voice to the same effect as Jr’s magic to blast away spiders swarming him, then leapt to and fro with masterful steps, avoiding more deephunter shots, before landing and releasing the bees upon his foes.
”Oh! Oh! Mimi! Copy that!” Jr called out when he saw that final trick, a command which his pokemon who was still riding along with him in the clowncar forced to obey. With a “Mi-miiii” vaguely reminiscent of the hive knight’s signature cry, she also opened wide and released a little flurry of pint sized yellow bed sheet ghosts wearing pichu ear headbands the size of thumb puppets.
These adorable yet miniscule constructs clustered around their creator behind the car’s windshield, awaiting instruction.
Those instructions would have to wait till after the boy finished his own casting, and the holy light washed over the last of the trapped seekers, a thing he finished doing right as the knight leapt back to land at their side for a moment. From there their savior commanded a charge and, without waiting for agreement from them, proceeded to do just that, running at full pelt towards their towering foe.
”Should we, uh, follow him?” Rika asked after a moment of inaction, she herself having just gotten to her feet and still recovering from her second swarming of the day.
”Of course not! I’m the one who gives the orders around here” Bowser replied, before, in the exact same breath commanding ”Koopa troop! Chaaaaaarge!” and racing after the knight, steel capped boots pounding the ground and shoulder cannons spitting shells at the spider queen while he wound up a fist, priming it to give her a good ol sock in the mouth if/when he reached her.
”Huh? Wha? Ok then!” a confused Rika said as she found herself instinctively following after him without a thought of how she was actually going to fight the giant spider sans any bullets or shells, meaning she’d likely be following Bowser’s lead all the way through to the mouth socking end.
Jr followed suit himself, commanding ”Mimi and, uh, the Mimis! Use shadow sneak on all those glowy spitty ones!” as he swooped after the others, boxing gloves deployed, prompting the Mimikyu and her mimikyulings to stick their tendrils into their own shadows, and making it so that the deephunters would have to fear claws in the dark coming from behind them while the hivelings came in from the front.
Kamek meanwhile just sighed, shook his head … and instead of charging just summoned a large rock sized magic fist next to Silitha’s new blind spot inorder to punch her in the face with it.
Jr Divine intervention(B’giotahmo Bravha): grants Jr two white mage spells: Benediction, which can instantly fully and freely heal a target within 30 yards, but which has a two minute cooldown and Holy, which deals damage and stuns foes (for 4 seconds) in an 8 yard radius around him, but has a 2.5 second cast and recast time. Each successively chained stun a target receives lasts half as long as the last (4-2-1-0)
”Stars, that is some ability” Kamek marveled as Primrose’s dance spread the shield he had just put on Bowser to every other member of their party.
Then he promptly marveled at just how durable the spell made his king, for though Bowser was beaten and bruised from being used as a strung up punching bag by the spider queen, when she plucked him from the web like an oversized fly and attempted to chow down on him, not only did the blow not finish the koopa off, it hardly scratched the pigment on his shell.
Then there came a call of ”Cure!” from jr, as he, upon failing to get close to his pa before he was snatched, had instead switched strategy to casting a healing spell upon the battered king. Vitality rushed through Bowser thanks to his son’s new magics, enough for him to give the queen a flailing swat to the snout while she was fruitlessly munching on him. That, plus the fact that she was hardly tickling him with her teeth, prompted her to toss him away … into yet more webbing.
The king got stuck fast again, and was far too disorientated from the toss to do anything about the spiders that promptly swarmed him … and found they had exactly the same problem as their queen, as their tiny bites failed to do much of anything to the reinforced king.
”Shadow minions! To your king!” Kamek commanded, directing the closest two jr clones to help free Bowser. They sped forwards and lashed out with paint, being careful as to not coat the king (they did not neat a repeat of a certain incident) but in doing so leaving themselves open to attack.
Spiders leapt upon the clones … and found that they too, had barriers, which let them ignore the little attackers for long enough that they could pull the king out of the web and try to clear him of creepy crawlies while they themselves died a death of 1000 cuts.
”Son…? Thank you for saving me” the still mentally confuddled from the hammer blows he had taken king murmured as he was rescued by the two shadowy copies of his boy.
Meanwhile his actual son was busy trying to avoid being flattened by the spider queen, who, after she had finished trying to hurt Primrose, had turned her focus to attempting to splat him and Rika like rats.
The prince’s response to this was to hit the deck and drive, little go cart wheels deploying from the bottom of the clown car letting him put all his racing experience into practice as he did powerslide across the ink, causing blue sparks to form at his wheels, and then releasing the stored up power to boosted to avoid the attacks. As he drove, Dazzle the Popolio acted as his double dash partner, leaning out the back of the car and harassing the queen with belts of his disarming voice.
Rika meanwhile took full advantage of the goopy terrain to shipgirl around, skimming across the surface as if it were the sea, allowing her to move any which way she desired. She had to put all that agility to work because the queen quickly focused on her rather than the prince of the racetracks. She drifted and weaved away from the strikes rather than take them, because while being bopped by only 20% of a crushing blow wasn’t close to lethal, it was still dangerous to those who were not built like tanks like Bowser was, even those built like a cruiser like she was.
This went well when she used just her rifle or her lower caliber rigging guns, but when she tried to raise her main gun’s shot count, that was when she ran into trouble.
”Five…” Rika counted her main cannon shot, only for the recoil to leave her movement predictable and letting a blow land on her and break her shields, leaving her with an alarm sound ringing in her ears.
Undeterred, and assuming it was simply an unlucky blow, she went and tried to follow up with shot ”Six…” only to cry out ”Ow!” as a second blow clipped one of her gauntlets, jarring her arm and sending her stumbling.
”Dazzle, bash her!” came a call as the queen moved to follow up her blow with a grab on the staggered ship girl, only for she herself to be staggered as in the blink of an eye Dazzle had launched himself from Jr’s clown car like a missile, aqua jet and penguin leap combined to turn him into a living battering ram which slammed into her.
Rike got to recover and get clear thanks to the intervention, while Jr sent out a red beam to call back Dazzle back to his pokeball before the queen could try and smash him in retaliation.
As she backed away, Rika fired another shot of her main gun to the tune of ”Seven! ” Only for Silitha to warp away, leaving the shell to sail into the dark forest ”Hey no fair! I need you to stay still so I can blast you!”
”She’s gonna drop again!” Jr reminded her, getting both of them moving again. Koopa and ship both race across the goop side by side, using speed to make gauging where to drop in-order to land on them a tricky proposition. This side by side race also let the pair scheme without calling their plans out loud that the spider matriarch might overhear them.
Kamek, meanwhile, had his own strategy, which was to simply use the fact that the queen hung in the air a moment before dropping to do a teleport of his own to get out of the way. That he started to hover above a planted dark mine every time she warped away simply added insult to injury whenever she did try to get the drop on him.
That left Bowser as the only easy drop target of the troop, but with the shield + his own natural armor, that was simply a recipe for Silitha to get shell spikes stabbed into her as she came down, something she traded for very little damage. Bowser used this to his advantage to ward her away from Rubick, giving her a pain in the foot whenever she tried to land on them.
Then, once she did fall, the four of them laid into her as best they could while also avoiding her as best they could, though the shields did mean they could be somewhat carless.
Kamek used his powerful yet slow magic blasts to harry her.
Junior used an assortment of gadgets, spells and a freshly sent out Mimi’s electroballs.
Rika bladder away with her rifle and rigging turrets (but holding back her eighth main gun shot as part of a plan she and Jr had concocted)
Finally Bowser began to fearlessly jump at the queen rather than out of her way as he had at first, Kamek’s barrier allowing him to damage trade with the mighty queen, while Jr could heal up what little harm he did take reliably.
This dance ended when Bowser delivered a Bowser bomb to the queen’s back, causing her to shriek in pain and warp away once again.
”Hahahaha, take that! With this barrier, nothing can stop me!” the king gloated … right as the barrier flashed on him and vanished, along with everyone else's.
”Hey, what’s the big idea! Put it back on right now” Bowser complained to his mage, who agreed ”Right away sire” before warning him that ”but I can’t keep it up forever” as the mana drained out of him and into another golden shield for the king.
”Doesn’t matter. One more should be more than enough … yeah you hear that! you're going down!” the king taunted out into the darkness. The darkness, in response, answered with a volley six bolts of glowing venom fired from the was of the deephunters Silitha had summoned.
While the rest of the troop took evasive action, Bowser laughed at their insignificant attack … right up until the mix of fire and blight damage pierced right though the shield and dealt its full damage to the king
”Gah-ha!” he cried out in pain as it burned away at his scales.
”Why isn’t it working!” he demanded to know as he got moving, to which Kamek called out ”It’s a physical defense spell, it does nothing against elemental attacks!” inadvertently giving the game away to their foe as she reappeared right in time to receive this news.
As Bowser used Heel the Rabbid supporter striker to recover from the venom burns, Jr came up with their new strategy to deal with the latest variable
”We need to end this quicker in case these things keep coming, so let's pull out all the stops” Jr called out as he swerved to and fro in his go-karting clown car to avoid the incoming toxic rain, the prince dredging to think how bad this could get should the big spider lady call out for aid again.
”Kamek, get the minions to splash the areas where the shots are coming from! Dad, keep moving to not get acided! Rika! I’m gonna try the plan!” he called out.
That last plan deliberately left vague as the ship already knew the details from their earlier scheming and, as the clones swept into the dark and Bowser used short hops to stay mobile, the prince set said scheming into action.
Jr started by casting ”Presence of Mind” on himself to boost his casting and attack speed, before charging towards the queen instead of keeping away from her after her next landing. He held up his paintbrush for 2 seconds as he got closer, before he finished channeling as near to her as he could and cast ”Holy!” causing a burst of pure white light to burst out around him. The aoe spell centered on him washed harmlessly over any allies, but potentially stunning the spider queen for up to 4 seconds.
If it did, Rika followed up Jr’s move by racing close as she dared and calling out ”Eight-shot, all out assault!” as she pulled the trigger of her main gun, fired the 8th shot in a row, and activated the called out ability, unleashing 5 triple shots from the single barrel in quick succession, her closeness and the stun together there to ensure that every last one had the highest chance of hitting as possible without some missing, or the queen warping away in the middle of it.
Thunder roared throughout the cave as the shells unloaded in attack that Kamek and Mimi's accompanying shots paled in compassion too, and then there was the softest click as Rika tried to go for shot 24 and found her main gun’s ammo stores drained. Which put its wells just as dry as she had drained her other guns in-order to get the queen down to half health.
”I’m out of ammo!” she warned, leaving her with having to hope she’d done her part to ensure the kill … or with having to follow Bowser’s suicidally daring head on strategy for attacking for the rest of the battle.
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan: Goblin, 27, 2 years in the Pilgrim's Caravan
Appearance: Rita is about 1 meter tall in stature, and is most often seen riding alongside the caravan clad in a full suit of plate mail, face hidden behind a somewhat battered grilled helmet
History: While goblins certainly have a reputation for being nothing but half pint bandits, not all of their tribes are like that. Some, like Rita’s, live too far away from any roads or towns to do such a thing, and instead practice actual trades. In her case, her home village was one nestled away in a swamp with mushrooms the size of trees, and her people were, naturally, farmers and forages of fungi, as well as brewers and potion makers.
Not that they didn’t play a part in the whole goblin’s are jerks thing, seeing as their main trading partners were other goblins, and particularly those who lived on the edge of civilization causing a nuisance and who didn’t have time for that whole farming thing.
It was during a routine visit to one of those that Rita’s life changed forever. See, she had always had a secret fascination with tales of knights. Not goblin tales of them mind, but ones from looted story books she had gotten her hands on (and which someone had already ripped out all the stories containing goblins in them out of) that she had read near religiously as a child and young adult. Well, it was on that day that the goblin first met one of the knights she so adored
Captive.
That was something that would just not do, so, at night, when no one was watching she snuck in, freed the confused knight, and helped them escape the camp undetected while babbling quietly about her admiration for their profession. Her reward for this? A boot to the gutt once they were clear … and also the knight’s helmet, let behind while they themselves fled.
The kick turned out to help her excuses once the knight was spotted legging it a lot, as she could claim he had totally tried to stop them escaping (a thing the knight successfully did despite said spotting), an excuse that held. For a little bit. Once word of her obsession with knights started to get out, she was already on the run and further from home than she had ever been.
Given that she had grown up in the wilds as a forager, living off the land wasn’t hard, but it was hardly living. So, along with the help of a feral dog turned close companion, she set about following her dreams, donning her ‘gifted’ helmet on her head, and scraps to disguise her species and setting out to do daring deeds.
That was rough going at first, but with dedication, hard work, a fair amount of luck, encountering several open minds that encouraged her to not always hide what she was, Rita has gotten herself to a place she is quite happy with: traveling across the world with the caravan, and seeing whatever adventure that brings her too.
Well, and one other thing got her there too, and that is the patronage of one Sir Perrywinkle, a small god of knighthood, which she gained in recognition for her daring deeds and strict adherence to the code of chivalry. She is, functionally, a paladin, although as a paladin of a god of knights, this involves less healing and smiting, and more riding fast and hitting things hard.
Personality: Rita is brave, perhaps recklessly so, while being cheerful and optimistic in the face of danger, a combination that is either charming or, given that her occupation is, functionally, killing, manicaly unsettling. She is eager to help whoever and however she can, but is also eager to show off while doing so, having a bit of an ego and a mountain of confidence, which can get in the way of getting a job done right.
That is not to say that she has zero survival instincts (she would not have lived this long if she did not) but suffice to say that Rita can often get in over her low to the ground head and then has to fight tooth and nail to get herself out of it if no-one helps bail her out.
Motivation: Rita’s main passive goal is to simply live up to the idea of a Knight errant, to roam the land in search of daring deeds to be done, and the caravan’s worldly wanderings are a good medium for this at the moment. It helps that she does not need to worry about her species’ reputation among them too, as she is ‘out’ to them, and at this point happily accepted.
Longer term, things get a little hazier. Pure fame and fortune, to an extent. Being knighted. Saving a princess. Basically, having her mimicking of the knightly nobility legitimized. That and maybe poking goblin culture and the perception of it in a direction she finds preferable via leading by example
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools: Rita has remarkable, bordering on absurd, amounts of strength for her size, and she needs it, considering her profession and typical garb and armaments, which consist of some custom platemail, a kite shield and multiple melee weapons from swords, maces, knives and lances.
She uses these from atop the back of her noble steed Bernared, who she has become quite proficient at riding into battle.
Half of this is training, while the other is paladin-ly gifts, which let her break past her mortal limits and grant her a surprising amount of durability to boot (on top of what the armor grants). Other than raw strength and durability, the god also grants the ability to perform quick bursts of speed for dodging or charging proses, allowing the goblin and her steed to ‘dash’ in any non retreating direction. She is also resistant to hexes, curses, and other cowardly deliberating magics.
In return for her gifts, the goblin is oathbound to aid those in need, and to abhor villany in all its forms (though her god is just savvy enough to let her pick her battles rather than forcing her to throw her life away on lost causes)
In a more practical, less violent, set of skills, she has excellent foraging and survival skills, and has a decent knowledge of brewing simple potions (mushroom based as often as not) that can have a number of beneficial effects (typical stamina and strength are the ones she makes the most) as well as some, lets say, fun ones. Her actual cooking of regular food is rather lacking however.
As a goblin she has excellent hearing (even when her ears are jammed inside her helmet), and decent night vision. Also as a goblin, she is also smol, which is still sometimes a problem even if the strength issue has mostly been dealt with.
What They Most Want: For stories to be written about her
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be: Lawful Good
Three Likes: Adventure, sugar and, obviously, all things knight related
Three Dislikes: Getting looked down on, mushroom based foods (they make her homesick) and hailstorms (the way they set her helmet ringing is painful on the ears)
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?: Heart
Worst Fear: Being outed as a goblin while disguised in a place she’d need to fight her way out of to survive
Favorite Color: Silver
Most Like The Animal: Husky: loyal, dependable, and playful
Favorite Time of Day: Dawn. or sunset. They are dramatic
How They Dress: Knight-illy
Favorite Season: Autumn, its just the right temperature
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any):
Sir Perrywinkle: A legendary knight who was deified upon his death, and is now the, or at least a, patron saint of knights. Kind of a niche god, unsurprisingly, and is more often worshiped by the common folk hoping for salvation than by knights themselves(who, being nobles, tend to stick to the bigger ones).
The Gobbler: Goblin god of food and good times, and the only goblin god Rita still considers still worth her time
An assortment of other ‘good’ gods in a far more loose fashion
Race, Age, Time in the Caravan: Goblin, 27, 2 years in the Pilgrim's Caravan
Appearance: Rita is about 1 meter tall in stature, and is most often seen riding alongside the caravan clad in a full suit of plate mail, face hidden behind a somewhat battered grilled helmet
History: While goblins certainly have a reputation for being nothing but half pint bandits, not all of their tribes are like that. Some, like Rita’s, live too far away from any roads or towns to do such a thing, and instead practice actual trades. In her case, her home village was one nestled away in a swamp with mushrooms the size of trees, and her people were, naturally, farmers and forages of fungi, as well as brewers and potion makers.
Not that they didn’t play a part in the whole goblin’s are jerks thing, seeing as their main trading partners were other goblins, and particularly those who lived on the edge of civilization causing a nuisance and who didn’t have time for that whole farming thing.
It was during a routine visit to one of those that Rita’s life changed forever. See, she had always had a secret fascination with tales of knights. Not goblin tales of them mind, but ones from looted story books she had gotten her hands on (and which someone had already ripped out all the stories containing goblins in them out of) that she had read near religiously as a child and young adult. Well, it was on that day that the goblin first met one of the knights she so adored
Captive.
That was something that would just not do, so, at night, when no one was watching she snuck in, freed the confused knight, and helped them escape the camp undetected while babbling quietly about her admiration for their profession. Her reward for this? A boot to the gutt once they were clear … and also the knight’s helmet, let behind while they themselves fled.
The kick turned out to help her excuses once the knight was spotted legging it a lot, as she could claim he had totally tried to stop them escaping (a thing the knight successfully did despite said spotting), an excuse that held. For a little bit. Once word of her obsession with knights started to get out, she was already on the run and further from home than she had ever been.
Given that she had grown up in the wilds as a forager, living off the land wasn’t hard, but it was hardly living. So, along with the help of a feral dog turned close companion, she set about following her dreams, donning her ‘gifted’ helmet on her head, and scraps to disguise her species and setting out to do daring deeds.
That was rough going at first, but with dedication, hard work, a fair amount of luck, encountering several open minds that encouraged her to not always hide what she was, Rita has gotten herself to a place she is quite happy with: traveling across the world with the caravan, and seeing whatever adventure that brings her too.
Well, and one other thing got her there too, and that is the patronage of one Sir Perrywinkle, a small god of knighthood, which she gained in recognition for her daring deeds and strict adherence to the code of chivalry. She is, functionally, a paladin, although as a paladin of a god of knights, this involves less healing and smiting, and more riding fast and hitting things hard.
Personality: Rita is brave, perhaps recklessly so, while being cheerful and optimistic in the face of danger, a combination that is either charming or, given that her occupation is, functionally, killing, manicaly unsettling. She is eager to help whoever and however she can, but is also eager to show off while doing so, having a bit of an ego and a mountain of confidence, which can get in the way of getting a job done right.
That is not to say that she has zero survival instincts (she would not have lived this long if she did not) but suffice to say that Rita can often get in over her low to the ground head and then has to fight tooth and nail to get herself out of it if no-one helps bail her out.
Motivation: Rita’s main passive goal is to simply live up to the idea of a Knight errant, to roam the land in search of daring deeds to be done, and the caravan’s worldly wanderings are a good medium for this at the moment. It helps that she does not need to worry about her species’ reputation among them too, as she is ‘out’ to them, and at this point happily accepted.
Longer term, things get a little hazier. Pure fame and fortune, to an extent. Being knighted. Saving a princess. Basically, having her mimicking of the knightly nobility legitimized. That and maybe poking goblin culture and the perception of it in a direction she finds preferable via leading by example
Skills, Strengths and Weaknesses, and Tools: Rita has remarkable, bordering on absurd, amounts of strength for her size, and she needs it, considering her profession and typical garb and armaments, which consist of some custom platemail, a kite shield and multiple melee weapons from swords, maces, knives and lances.
She uses these from atop the back of her noble steed Bernared, who she has become quite proficient at riding into battle.
Half of this is training, while the other is paladin-ly gifts, which let her break past her mortal limits and grant her a surprising amount of durability to boot (on top of what the armor grants). Other than raw strength and durability, the god also grants the ability to perform quick bursts of speed for dodging or charging proses, allowing the goblin and her steed to ‘dash’ in any non retreating direction. She is also resistant to hexes, curses, and other cowardly deliberating magics.
In return for her gifts, the goblin is oathbound to aid those in need, and to abhor villany in all its forms (though her god is just savvy enough to let her pick her battles rather than forcing her to throw her life away on lost causes)
In a more practical, less violent, set of skills, she has excellent foraging and survival skills, and has a decent knowledge of brewing simple potions (mushroom based as often as not) that can have a number of beneficial effects (typical stamina and strength are the ones she makes the most) as well as some, lets say, fun ones. Her actual cooking of regular food is rather lacking however.
As a goblin she has excellent hearing (even when her ears are jammed inside her helmet), and decent night vision. Also as a goblin, she is also smol, which is still sometimes a problem even if the strength issue has mostly been dealt with.
What They Most Want: For stories to be written about her
If They Had a DnD Alignment, It Would Be: Lawful Good
Three Likes: Adventure, sugar and, obviously, all things knight related
Three Dislikes: Getting looked down on, mushroom based foods (they make her homesick) and hailstorms (the way they set her helmet ringing is painful on the ears)
Do They Follow Their Heart or Their Mind?: Heart
Worst Fear: Being outed as a goblin while disguised in a place she’d need to fight her way out of to survive
Favorite Color: Silver
Most Like The Animal: Husky: loyal, dependable, and playful
Favorite Time of Day: Dawn. or sunset. They are dramatic
How They Dress: Knight-illy
Favorite Season: Autumn, its just the right temperature
What Gods/Spirits/Whatevers They Worship (If Any): Sir Perrywinkle: A legendary knight who was deified upon his death, and is now the, or at least a, patron saint of knights. Kind of a niche god, unsurprisingly, and is more often worshiped by the common folk hoping for salvation than by knights themselves(who, being nobles, tend to stick to the bigger ones).
The Gobbler: Goblin god of food and good times, and the only goblin god Rita still considers still worth her time
An assortment of other ‘good’ gods in a far more loose fashion
wordcount: 4,179 (+5) Midna: level 8 EXP: //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////(143/80) Location: SOU Hideout - Suoh Warp Charges: 1 (+1 from fight reward)
Virgin Victory teleport room Top of the Split mountain Outside the Convent of Our Lady of the Charred Visage Tostarena Town
Sakura Level 9: 07/90 Karin Level 4: 27/40 Location: Suoh Word Count: 4,179 Points Gained: 5 New EXP Balance--- Sakura Level 9: 19/90 (pending) +6
Karin Level 5: 03/40
(pending) +11
Midna had to cover her mouth to hide her sniggering regarding Sakura’s blatant bias about wanting to check out the sports center.
”I don’t know how your lot got on over in the ocean, be we’ve managed to build plenty of good reputations in the desert…. and then ruin them by dropping a giant worm out of a mountain” Midna replied to Karin’s relief at maybe having a good reputation in town for once, doing so mostly as a joke. She had to wonder how badly things had gone for her before however, the princess unaware that the fighter was somewhat new and she already knew about all the bad reputation events the Karin had been involved in.
”As long as entire towns stop being rallied against us, I will be more than happy.” Karin said.
”Oh!” Sakura ran over and shook Midna on the shoulder, trying to find the words. ”Oh, uh- uh- Midna-san, uh- the- the radios. The radios!” She glanced around at everyone and stuck her hand in the air. ”I have six radios. We should give radios to everyone here who wants one. Walkie-talkies. They fit on your belt or in your pocket and we can talk to each other! Easy squeezy lemon peasy.”
Either way, with agreement from all who cared to ‘vote’ afterwards, operation “find Raz’s friends and punch some Others” was a go. As was poke around the area Desperado and the Hermits where in for info.
Midna got to look a little smug about her plan being picked up, even if it wasn’t the most complex or inspired one. She was, however, still a bit skeptical about the whole Desperado, but she had to put her faith in Riden and take him both at face value, and assume he knew how to handle them.
After that, they had some down time as they waited to get some fake credentials to make navigating around the city easier. And legal. Or, seemingly legal anyway. Mention of needing pictures, and also that there was a shower, prompted the princess to swiftly claim one of the latter to deal with the built up dust and grime that had come with fighting for her life atop a speeding truck.
While in there she had a shower thought and so, after exiting, once more clean, and picking out the one outfit that actually fit her ( she was mildly surprised and rather please that there was even an option), she found a spot to summon a moogle and check a hunch she had.
She and the little fluff ball talked for a little bit, and then once they were done and he was gone, she relayed what she had learned to the group: ”Good news, the people who looked like they got lost in the metro made it, just, uh, to somewhere called ‘Edinburgh’ instead of the places they where meaning to get too”
After that, the suited up princess checked in with the id creation, got the disappointing news that they would not be able to register her vehicles using this method, and then got a crash course in modern occupations while they figured out her cover story occupation. Princess was sadly not a valid option.
Meanwhile, Sakura and Karin also needed their pictures taken. Sakura smiled big for her picture, and Karin settled for an ever polite-yet-restrained smile. Karin naturally insisted that she be marked as something like a financial analyst. Sakura settled for ‘arcade worker’ because she already did that job back home.
Sakura and Karin both were down for punching monsters, but there was only so much room in both teams and if they were going to split evenly, they would have to go to Suoh. But they couldn’t complain. They could use the downtime to relax and rejuvenate and explore the city they were probably going to be spending the next few days in, or more. Plus, Raz wanted the back up.
After that was all sorted, Midna the courier helped herself to some tea (which mainly resulted in her stomach reminding her that granola bars were not a meal, and then after that it was time to go.
Midna, of course, went with the team headed for Suon to see her own plan through. To get there, the princess of twilight slipping into the shadows within the unstoppable Hummer to avoid taking up a seat, which left her unable to take in the sights (hard to see out the windows when the light was coming in through those after all) and so she spent most of the time either napping or pestering people to describe what it was they were gawking at out of the windows.
That feeling of missing out did not go away when they got to the town of psychics, as to everyone but those the place was made for, it was rather drab looking, at least at first. While there were more interesting things for those with mundane eyes to be found, the princess paused before moving on to get a second opinion.
She mounted her wolfos steed first, basically to get any bystanders used to the idea, and then summoned one of the Psynumbra Initiates strikers that she had claimed from the monastery and asked them ”Describe it to me”
The masked cultist scanned her gaze across the mental graffiti “All the powers of the mind, and they spent it on covering every surface in advertising … I don’t know whether to be appalled or impressed at how feeble minded consumerism has wasted their gifts'' which Midna found harsh, but somewhat reasonable. The follow up was not, as the woman who had embraced suffering and entropy and called both gods turned her dead eyes to the princess and told her “this whole place needs to be dragged screaming into the abysse” with absolute sincerity, and with what Midna was quite sure was an implication that, if they initiate had her way, it would only be the first to go, followed by the rest of the world.
”Alright that’s enough from you” the princess said after a few moments of staring down the cultist, waving her hand and dismissing the malevolent specter.
She shook her head, regretting asking anyone but Raz what the deal was, before looking around and realizing that she’d lost track of the only gifted one among them.
”Guess I’ll just find my own way around. How hard can it be?” she resolved, before tapping her heels against her mount’s side and taking a ride through the street. She got lost almost immediately in the sprawl of small businesses, but they weren't exactly a bad place to get lost in, other than the fact that they were a drag on her funds, as after a few minutes she was down a bunch of gold.
Not that all of it had been poorly spent, as the princess was now full of noodles and that was good. Less good was the cheap watch she had been scammed into spending several hundred gold (or zenny technically, but fortunately there was no need to mess around with exchange rates) on, due to her lack of familiarity with that kind of technology. Still, it did tell the time, so at least it did it’s job
The main event of her wanderings was when she spied a place called Paradise Lost sauna, the Twilight princess finding herself drawn to its dark atmosphere … that and her curiosity as to whether a sauna was like a spa.
In the front lobby of this place were the pair of street fighters, Sakura and Karin. Before Raz tracked down his friends they were doing some tourism of their own, but not before ending up a light sparring session in the middle of the street. Karin had to force herself to shut down the battle on the grounds that attracting attention too early would be a bad move. Since they were both looking to rest up before moving on to find the psychic friends, they wound up here, at this weird looking sauna. But Karin recognized class when she saw it.
”Ah!” Sakura said when she made eye contact with Midna. ”Hey! It’s Midna-san. Are you here for the sauna, too?”
”No, I imagine she’s here for the movie.”
”...shut uuup.”
Midna could not help but smile at their banter, before confirming that ”Yes, that’s why I’m here. We checked out this place called Shangri-Spa in the city town we visited, so I thought it would be fun to make it a thing to visit some other city’s spas and baths as well. Plus, the atmosphere is very nice on the eyes” as much as she admired the aesthetic, the light adverse princess also ment this literally.
She then had a thought, and had to ask ”What’s a ‘movie’ anyway?”
Karin frowned, her sharp wit now lost on Midna.
Sakura scratched her head. ”You don’t know what a movie is?” She asked. ”You’ve probably at least seen something like it by now. It’s a moving picture that can make noises, and people tell stories with them. There’s little reels with all the pictures that they put in a big projector. Or sometimes on tape that goes in a little box which you can bring home with you. It’s tech. I don’t know the specifics.”
”Well, essentially-”
”I don’t have enough room in my brain for whatever you’re about to start telling me, Karin-chan.” Sakura waved Karin’s explanation away.
”Oh right, those things I see” Midna said, at least getting the picture somewhat, although she still did not get the specifics of the joke due to not knowing how those illusions (as she interpreted them) could be used for entertainment purposes. Even without the details, the gist/energy of the joke had translated perfectly fine however.
After that, there was a bit of a pause in their talking as they checked into the sauna, or rather, what it actually was, which was a bathhouse, and got to admire the interior decoration. It had a gothic style right out of vampire fiction, as if they had just been invited into some secluded sun averse noble’s abode, and was decked out with dark wood, ornate rugs, candelabras, lamps with fancy lampshades, plush chairs, gilded mirrors, and big paintings, all of which gave a stylish yet haunting atmosphere to the palace.
And that was only the foyer/changing room. After they’d swapped out their outfits for towels (with Midna doing her best but ultimately failing to hid the mottled healed burn look her torso had), and Minda had stashed their valuable possessions away, they exited out of the ‘mansion’ and into the ladies section of the sauna
Styled after a rock pool filled with a water who’s mineral composition made it look more than a bit like blood. It also had a vision that made it appear that the room opened up into what looks like a vista of a sprawling ruin that extends infinitely into a starry night, covered by giant, softly glowing spike, though unfortunately for them none of the 3 ladies could see it, leaving them with a much less impressive blank wall where the projection was.
Still, the water was warm and inviting, and so the trio eagerly joined the a number of number bathers in the pool.
The princess slipped in first, sighing as the warm rejuvenating waters washed over her body ”Ahhhh, I‘ve needed this. Beats those weird shower things by a mile”
Sakura happily sank in the water, the twin tails of her headband floating clinging to her shoulders. She left the radio in her sneakers which were at pond side. Karin, meanwhile, reached her arms up and undid her ribbon. Daintily, she lifted it off her head and dropped it on a nearby island of rock, where it hit with a heavy thud.
”It is adequate.” Karin surmised.
”The red water is kinda badass.” Sakura mused, cupping some in her hands. ”If a bit, uh…”
”Macabre?” Karin offered, smirking.
”Yeah, that’s it.” She splashed it on her face. ”’A blissful death. Sink into the peaceful gloom after the end.’” She quoted the place’s grim tagline. ”If you say so!” She sank all the way down to her chin and closed her eyes.
Karin kept her hair out of the water, resting her arms on a nearby rock.
”It feels … homely. Not the water, but everything else is just, more familiar to my world than outside” Midna admitted, as she floated on the water’s surface, only her face poking out as she enjoyed soaking every inch of her body in the relaxing and rejuvenating waters
Karin watched them both for a moment, before focusing on Midna’s floating little face. ”You lived underground, then? That would explain your complexion.”
”Hmm? No, I lived in a place called the twilight realm where it's always, well, twilight. Like the town, but a fair bit darker shade of twilight” Midna explained simply before giving a slight correction ”But I also ment, well, the technology. We didn’t have all these cars and guns and whatever all the roads are made from. It's a bit overwhelming at times I’ll be honest.”
”I see. Well, I’ve never seen any magic before, either, so I suppose we both have some things to get used to.” Karin said.
Sakura peaked one eye open. ”I dunno-” When she opened her mouth some water got in, briefly interrupting her. She sat up a little straighter. ”I dunno, Karin-san. You know Dhalsim? He calls it yoga, but… that guy gets weirder every time I see him. Besides, everything I’ve seen in the World of Light is kind of like something I’ve watched a cartoon about, or seen in real life.” Sakura says. ”Except it’s turned up to eleven. At least I don’t have to do any more algebra problems.”
Karin considered this. ”Fair point. I suppose we are lucky in that way. By the way, Miss Midna, the roads are made of concrete.”
”Well it’s impressive stuff, this con-crete” Midna said, wondering to herself how it was made, while also being presented with more questions such as ”Are those fireballs you can throw not magic?”
Sakura shook her head. ”Nope, not magic. That’s ki!” Sakura said proudly. ”It’s a form of energy within all living things. With enough training, you can harness it. We call ‘em fireballs but they don’t actually look a lot like fire if you get a close look at ‘em. I guess the name just kinda stuck.”
”If you can call what Sakura did training.” Karin said.
”Hey-!”
”I kid, of course. Just this once I must make myself explicitly clear.” Karin said, with emphasis.
”Good.” Sakura said, crossing her arms, satisfied.
”Sound a lot like mana to me” Midna said, before thinking for a moment before correcting herself ”Although I suppose if it is training rather than study then it probably is different” and then asking ”What kind of training was it anyway?”
”Push ups, sit ups, and plenty of juice.” Sakura said succinctly with a smile. ”And I did this a bunch of times.” She mimes the motion of the Hadoken.
Karin pinched her brow. It wasn’t fair.
Midna had to agree.
There was a little lul then in the talk, during which they soaked and the two dignified ladies sulked a bit about how Sakura had come into absurd power though push ups… and, admittedly, lots and lots of hard work and dedication.
After a bit however, the inevitable topic had to come up, which was, well, work.
”So … how are we feeling about this whole …. Things? I have to admit, it is a bit more daunting than being pointed at a mountain and told to ‘go there’ even if said mountain basically froze us all to death. Was the ocean stuff anything like this or?” Midna asked, ceasing her lazy floating and actually taking a seat while they discussed more serious matters.
Karin was only on the ocean for a short while, but from what Sakura had said of her first mission as a Seeker, it wasn’t good. She looked at Sakura with concern. The brunette for her part bit her lower lip and stared off into empty space for a moment.
”It was…pretty bad, Midna-san.” She said. ”It wasn’t anything like this. It was a big war, and a very big boat full of horrible people. And I got turned into a little kid. It was definitely the worst day of my life.” Sakura summed up, never being very closed off about her emotions.
”But when I got turned back into my normal self, I felt strong again. The Guardian was scary, too, but not as scary as that big boat. We destroyed it.” Sakura looked at Midna again.
”So despite everything, we still won. I don’t think it can get as bad as it was on that boat. In a weird way, I feel stronger than ever.” Sakura said.”Saving people- saving someone in particular named Bella, too- felt better than all the bad things, y’know? Made it worth it. As long as we can save people, we should keep going.” Sakura nodded to herself.
”I dunno how hard this is going to be, but as long as we stick together we’ll be okay.”
”At least it was only a day,” Midna said in relation to the curse, vaguely pointing to herself, before pursing her lips and taking it back ”Sorry, I shouldn’t say compare things like that. I’m glad you made it out ok and have recovered from your ordeal …. And it sounds like you where a real hero over there” the princess said approvingly, and with just a hint of nostalgia in her voice, before she added: ”and I think real genuine heroes is what this city needs most of all. So I’ll be counting on you, while also having your back every step we take through this tangled web”
Sakura blushed, rubbing the back of her head and wrapping her arm around her towel. ”Thanks.” She laughed apologetically. ”I think the Seekers have got plenty of those. You can count on me, Midna-san.”
Karin smiled. ”Enjoying saving the world, Sakura-chan?”
”I-I dunno. Maybe? I think I’m doing pretty good overall.”
”With myself on board things shall only improve for the Seekers. For the first and only time in history, I wish you would have defeated me earlier so I could have joined you on that accursed ship, Sakura-chan. But we’re united now. And I believe my example will push you to greater heights.” Karin set a hand on her chest, proud.
”Yeah, me too.” Sakura said, genuinely. ”You woulda kept me grounded. I got all caught up in my own head pretty fast. But, hey. I’m the veteran Seeker. I helped destroy a Guardian. You’ve got a long way to go before you catch up to me, rookie. Isn’t that right, Midna-san?”
”mmm hmmm, looks like you’ve got a ways to go till your on her level again if you haven’t even faced a guardian yet” Midna agreed teasingly, before adding with faux haughtiness ”We can review your contribution to the team again one you have punched a big worm or something”
Karin raised an eyebrow, seemingly unamused by their wit. ”That’s the second time today you’ve brought up this alleged big worm. Did you want to brag about killing a giant worm? I will allow this boast in the spirit of diplomacy. Feel free to demonstrate with your hands that it was: ‘this big.’”
Minda tapped a rock, pulled the fourth of the fused shadow out of a portal she formed on it, plonked said helm on her head, and then summoned a small shadow hand and held it up above her head while she linked both other hands together and declared that it was ”Thiiiiiiis big … and by ‘this’ I mean the cannon shells we shot out of a train mounted cannon to even tickle the big worm. It was deku nuts”
”...I see.” Karin said, looking up at the demonstration. ”Deku nuts indeed. No wonder people were so upset with you.”
”Yuck! Still, wish I coulda been there to see it. I understand why we split up all the time but sometimes I wish we could just go around as a big group of like…thirty, or whatever. It’d be kinda funny. ” Sakura said.
”Fortunately it mainly just spooked people … and destroyed a bunch of railway tracks, which in hindsight was lucky because we had no idea that was what was going to happen when we rang a massive bell at the top of the mountain… So, if we’ve learned anything, it’s that we need to be a bit more careful this time” Midna admitted. They weren't in a mostly empty desert, after all, and every stray mistake had dozens of people on the line, which was daunting.
”As for a big group, eh, we’d probably start getting in each other's way at some point. I mean I know i’ve been having to hold back, or at least be more careful, in a team than I am when I am on my own” she pulled off and put away the fused shadow, which was the main thing she had to be very careful with to avoid slapping friendlies.
”Plus there’s the whole speed thing we need to do now … but yeah it would be pretty funny” she admitted at last
”Woah. Yeah. We’re kind of in a big city so, let’s avoid any mysterious bells of power.” Sakura said. ”But I bet that Galeem thing is gonna be feelin’ real stupid when we all show up after all it’s Guardians are toast.” Sakura said, punching the air before emergency catching her towel.
”I am more interested in these Consuls. Not quite Guardian, not quite Galeem itself, yes? I suppose they are just his minions. I imagine we will have to defeat all of them, as well.”
”We might, though is it just me, or is it strange that apparently they just haven’t been a factor, and then they suddenly make two moves one after the other? Did we get lucky? Were they just complacent? It’s not like part of Galeem’s force wasn’t aware of us with that hand showing up before the guardian, so why now? What changed?”
”Well…” Karin begins. ”I did join the Seekers.” She points out.
”Oh, shut up!” Sakura says, shoving Karin on the shoulder while Midna quietly laughed.
”Ohoho! I am only kidding, of course. But that is a good question. Perhaps one or two guardians getting destroyed is within acceptable parameters. But three or four is worrying. I think you are right, Princess Midna. Complacency. They strive for a world of total control and lack of free will, after all.” Karin says.
”I suppose … well, guess things will only be getting harder than here on out” which was not a prospect she was looking forward to. ”and if we want to get anywhere we’ll need to work out how to go on the offensive against them … not sure how we do that though, other than asking around to see if anyone has seen any red helmeted people around” she said, mostly joking about that method, though she didn’t exactly have an alternative.
”It is not anything we cannot handle. If their power was so overwhelming they would have exercised it by now. Instead they must rely on trickery and deception. Perhaps if we capture one we can find out what hole they are hiding in.” Karin said confidently.
”Sounds like a plan” Midna agreed before thinking for a moment and recognising some irony about the situation ”Iand not one we’re gonna pull off soaking in a bath, lovely as this has been” she said, while standing up and stretching and then concluding ”So how about we hit the streets again, and see if the rain looks to be coming in soon or not?”
”Very well. I feel refreshed.” Karin agreed.
”Let’s go. After this, I feel like I can work triple time!” Sakura said, squeezing the water out of her headband like it was hair.
After that, it was a quick pop back into the changing rooms to redone their clothes and they were off. Well. almost. The place was cleverly set up to filter exiting through a gift shop, and so they, or at least Midna got briefly distracted by the selection, and by a quick chat with the proprietor of the sauna, a woman named Coco who happened to also be staffing said gift shop. Compliment for the experience (and money for a bottle of very nice smelling ‘blood’ shampoo) paid and the trio of ladies were back out on the streets, ready to have the clean and rejuvenated feeling the soak had left them in ruined by the upcoming rain and violence that was to come if the plan came together.
Jr’s plan of action worked like a charm at first, especially thanks to Primrose lending them her aid and bolstering the power of Rubick, Bowser and Dazzle’s sweeping AOE attacks. Those laid waste to swaths of unseen foes, while the carpet of goop the prince and his clones produced created an exclusion zone where their foes could not tread safely or swiftly. They could still repel down, but Kamek, after summoning the clones, made sure to swat any incoming bugs down with magic blasts as soon as they came into view.
”I am a Genius!” Jr declared once the plan had held steady for a few moments …. And then right on cue everything went wrong as Rika’s volley of shells sailed towards the giant spider … and it promptly teleported right on top of them. Literally.
”Oh no!” the ship girl cried out as she realized what she had done, firing her maneuvering boosters to dash out of the way as the massive spider came careening down from the sky, its arrival heralded by a blinding flash and then a deafening crash as it landed amongst them.
Jr, his doppelgangers, and Kamek managed to swoop out of the way as well, though all the fliers were sent spinning by the resulting pressure wave of the queen’s landing hitting them. Bowser, not built for such swift motions, could only duck down and be stomped on. Right on his spiky armored shell.
It still hurt, but at least he wasn't going to be the only one suffering from the exchange. The one that came almost immediately after however, was one he did not want to meet head on as well, as the giant demonic spider teleported to the side and then came charging in to perform an over-head strike with her big meaty claws.
The king could not dodge roll, side step, or block the titanic blow. But he could still do one thing, and that was jump good. Straight up.
Defying gravity and the spider queen both, the king’s stubby legs sent him sailing up over the spider’s attack … and right into the webs strung above them that had been two high for the troop to consider clearing.
Bowser became stuck by his shell, dangling in the air above the brood mother, and likely drawing her children to him like moths to a flame. Yet, if he had his way, then just like that flame he would burn all the bugs that came to him. The king unleashed screeching sound from all 6 of his turrets, his new position above his friends and family meaning he could unleash all 360 degrees of his firepower without worry for friendly fire. He also blasted off a flurry of spiky missiles from his shell, forcing the spiders above to run a gauntlet of explosive spines if they wanted to try and attack him.
Heeding Kamek’s earlier warning, however, he did not unleash his flames upon them also, so as to not risk engulfing them in an inferno via setting first webs and then trees alight. The queen however, below in their clearing they had made, presented no such fire hazard, and so she received a dose of firebreath in a (likely vein) vain attempt to dissuade her from plucking him from the web like a tasty fly.
None of this would free himself, which left the rest of the Troop to deal with his predicament.
”I’m coming papa!” was Jr’s immediate response once he’d corrected his flight and taken stock of the situation. The prince soared upwards in his flying machine to clear yet more webs with more goop in-order to try and free his dad. Riding in the car at his trainer’s side, Dazzle unleashed the bright pink sonic beam that was his disarming voice at the prince's command, the sonic attack being used to try and clear spiders in a way that would not collaterally hit the king the way his icy wind would.
As Jr flew he called more commands to the others ”Kamek! The little spiders! Everyone else, the big one”
Rika was already on this, the ship girl sailing across the goop patch and unleashing fire upon the spider queen, cannon batteries barking, machine gun chittering, and main gun roaring as she counted that final weapon’s shots under her breath ”Three… Four…” while also mentally eyeing her dwindling ammo stores with worry.
Kamek meanwhile half followed the prince's instructions. He made the shadow clones spread out to try and clear more room on the ground with their imitation paintbrushes, splatting web, ground and spider alike as best the could though needing to be more spread out due to the queen in their midst likely left them more vulnerable than they had been when doing this earlier. The mage himself, however, used his time to cast ”Sphere of Protection! upon his king, causing a blue shimmering barrier to form around him, that would massively increase the king’s resistance to physical harm. Such as the physical harm being smashed by those massive hammer claws could cause.
wordcount: 1,152 (+2) Midna: level 8 EXP: //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////(138/80) Location: SOU Hideout Warp Charges: 1 (+1 from fight reward)
Virgin Victory teleport room Top of the Split mountain Outside the Convent of Our Lady of the Charred Visage Tostarena Town
Midna sat back and listened for a while after giving her suggestions, giving a nod of agreement/approval to Geralt when he found a use for the hermits she’d missed.
Then came a fresh deluge of info for her to take in:
They got a rundown of all the areas that made up Midgar which was interesting mostly academically at the moment in Midna’s estimation, though she both made a mental note to get an actual map of the place as she commented ”Looks like Galeem had fun stitching this place together, assuming each and every one of those was a city in and of itself … and assuming it even has a concept of fun”
They also learned that getting around it might prove tricky, both due to how big the place was, and with how travel was restricted by the regime. She had a small thing to offer on that front of course: ”Between the two bikes .. that we have left … and the warthog, we can move something between 5 and eh let’s say 8 people vehicle wise. So not enough, but it’s a start. Though, will them not being ‘registered’ to anyone cause a problem?”
Next up, fusion. It was already here, and that was concerning. Had they been told, and if so, by whom, she had to wonder. Or was it simply that, in a city of innumerable souls, it was inevitable that someone would try to do something with the spirits of the fallen, even if just to see what would happen? The latter might be more likely, but it would likely be wise to investigate the former on the side, if they got the chance.
”I suppose, if I were in charge, it’s not exactly something I’d want to encourage. The risks of mental instability and potential to encourage murderous behavior are both… something that would need managed” she had to admit, though she wasn’t sure if she, as princess, would outlaw like Midgar had, but it seemed like a thing that would need regulating. That said, they were in charge, not her, and as such, her present existence was in and of itself a crime.
”So, how harsh are the punishments, how rigidly enforced is the law and how good are they at spotting fusions? Because, well, I have a fair few” the veritable chimera of a woman asked ”and it’d be good to know how low a profile I need to keep as a result”
As for her own ideas, well, they got lightly let down. Avalanche weren't much of a force in the city, so not much use taking them on. Other than poaching their best, she still thought that might be a good idea, depending on what their ranks were like, powerful individual wise.
It also looked like you did need some kind of innate ability to detect the Chimeras, so at least for her, that was a no starter. Though maybe they could get some of the others into that group, such as Geralt.
As for making their own mercenary company? Well, while Susie seemed like she would be a boon if they went that way, it also seemed like it would be a pain in the neck to go through even just the application process. Given that there were now forces directly arrayed against them, they didn’t really have time to sit about waiting for whatever gargantuan bureaucracy needed to run this place to do its thing.
As for the bot’s other ideas, well, ”I’m not sure if giving Despirado more power is the best idea, given that they seem to be bad news. The state the city is in now might be exactly what they want, eternal war wise, but if we solve the crisis, then, well, it sounds like they’ll not be happy about that. Unless you think you can do some kind of successful double-cross if they try something I guess?”
”I’ll be honest, incredibly powerful companies are not something I’m used to dealing with. Lords, ladies, kings and princesses, sure, but a company that can control a city housing nations worth of people? absurd” she had to admit ”But if you think you can come up with a way to get deep into them or Shinra quickly, then go for it. Just keep in mind that we have an enemy that is actively working against us now, so we need to act quickly, before they find us, and initiate whatever their next ploy is”
That was really the rub of it. The clock was ticking till the next Consul action, and they needed to act swiftly and decisively. It was in that mindset that Midna was thinking when two things slotted neatly into place together: Raz’s history with some of Psych-OSF’s Scarlet Guardians, and the answer to Peach’s question about the weather.
She bit her lip, ran it though her mind, then grinned and stood up to make her second attempt at a proposal:
”So. New suggestion. If you” Midna indicated at Raz ”Know the people in OSF, and where part of what it got cobbled together out of then we, or at least you, have a real good in there. Skillset wise, and post freeing them wise” she wasn’t saying anything new here, of course, but she did have something to add.
”Now we could try having you apply, but that would have you on your own, and it would probably take forever to climb up the ranks and the rest of us don’t exactly fit in with their whole psychic fighters deal. So. instead. We salvage my whole making a name for ourselves plan vs the robots, and instead go take a walk in the rain and go make a splash”
”Put together our own team of five and see if we can inject ourselves into the limelight right away with some daring heroics. I can already hear the town criers calling out the tale to the people: ‘Mysterious travelers from a far off land have heard the people’s cries, and have come to save the city!’” she put on some airs while giving her predictive announcements, before having the grace to look a little embarrassed about the corniness of it before she cleared her throat and added ”or, something like that”
Then she shrugged and admitted ”I mean it might not work the way I’m envisioning it, could be they’ll just get annoyed at us intruding. But we need to get an idea of what we’re up against sooner or later… and it’ll mean Sakura gets to punch something instead of sitting around kicking her heels”
Then, after a few moments she added one last thing: ”Also, you know, us getting out there will most likely save some lives” not doing so as an afterthought to her other points, but because it was a forest she thought they might need focused back on, as it was one that it was all to easy to lose sight of while scheming about the particulars of what to do about all the individual trees.
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