GambolMuse

Far From Home

Floor 1 boss, prior to the battle

The majority of players seemed too timid to even attempt the first floor boss. Given the game had 100 floors it was doubtful the first boss would pose any challenge, correct? On top of that they had the "Beaters", beta players with knowledge of the boss mechanics and the battle as a whole. Yes, Sword Art Online becoming a game with real death certainly made it more intimidating but it wasn't as though they were heading into this blind. Despite those meager reassurances it was almost impossible to rouse popular support for a clearing party, and ultimately only about 50 people agreed to go. A sizable enough group to do what was needed, it just went to show the caliber of person that most players had, which wasn't much.

So where did that leave them now? After having progressed through the rest of the dungeon the group now stood on the precipice of the boss room, staring at an ornate set of iron doors, engraved with what appeared to be Kobolds, and giant golden door knockers hanging overhead. It hadn't been easy reaching this point as combat was quite different now, yet they had managed to get here without so much as a single casualty. Not much optimism could be gleamed from that though, they had only killed trash monsters up until this point and the real battle lay beyond these doors. Knowing what was to come in mere moments the room was tense, barely anyone speaking as players tried to mentally prepare themselves for the oncoming fight. Victory meant getting one step closer to freedom, while defeat meant everyone would be made to suffer remaining on floor one, and only another clearing party could potentially get everyone out of this virtual prison. Simply put, failure was not an option.

"Let's go already... I'm sick of waiting around!" Suto moaned, laying on his back and sprawling out as he stared at the high arched ceiling above, "We got this far didn't we? We can kick the boss' butt no problem! I want to see what the next floor is like!" He didn't get what the big deal was, they had such good momentum coming up here so shouldn't they continue that? Everyone present save a few was acting like they were at a funeral or something, not a single person had died though on their way here. Seriously, they were going to be fine, no reason to get all bummed out and nervous.

Doku rolled his eyes at his brother's complaints, looking down at him as he lay on the floor. "Then run in there and fight the boss one-on-one, I'm sure you'll do fine," he retorted, smirking when Suto puffed up indignantly, "No? Then be patient. We need a strategy for fighting the boss anyways, can't be too hasty." The Beaters had shared their information earlier, best to just go over again though to make certain it was clear. There was reason for concern too even with their prior knowledge of the boss; games in the past tended to change from beta to release, and there was no guarantee this boss was exactly the same. Bravado had gotten them here, but if they wanted to actually make it out alive they would have to keep on their toes.

"Well... How much longer is it going to be? I mean we're right here, we can finish this now and get to the next floor," Suto began again as he sat up and crossed his legs, "Everyone seemed so excited for us to beat this thing, you know? I mean at first people doubted we could do it, no one was showing up to see them off or anything; leaving today for the boss battle it seemed like most of Aincrad had turned out for it, as though everyone believed they were capable of doing this. Suto couldn't wait to return after the battle then with a big grin on his face, able to tell everyone that this game could be beaten and they made progress. "Don't you want to do that? I mean look how bummed out people were when we started this, now people are smiling again!"

Yes, people did seem to be a little more cheerful since this venture of theirs began, but it was still far from over. The hardest part of the whole effort was just beyond the doors here and as the floors progressed so too would the difficulty. It was easy for someone like Suto, always optimistic and fanciful in his view of things to look at this and say it was nothing but up for them, yet they had to be realistic here; floors would become harder, fights would be unpredictable, and people would die. "Well we'll have to give it our all here then, no mistakes. I'm sure everyone will be happy to see our return though," Doku agreed, smiling slightly as he looked to the doors, "Provided we return," he added to himself.

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

Maybe it was naive, but then what was the point of trying if you didn't have a little optimism or naivete? If you always thought it was a moot effort you'd never give it a try, Yumi had to try and be hopeful at whatever she approached. "We'll give it our best, I know it sounds cheesy but we have to do that much. If these people are given a chance they might take it, and we're the best ones to give them that chance." It was nice hearing Takeshi and Shu would be accompanying them down to the planet below; hearing Takeshi spout nonsense and sound overconfident was, as ever, tiresome and annoying. It wasn't just as simple as kicking the bad guys butts here, though it would certainly be some nice vindication after what had been done. A little gentleness might be more important in getting the Beastmen to join them than a show of force.

"Well, you know... Talk to them too I guess, maybe first. And then if they don't want to listen? Then we kick their butts!" Takeshi declared, smiling before rubbing at his arm, "Uh... I mean the Elites of course, we won't be fighting the Beastmen." Would be fairly ridiculous to get into a battle with the very people they were trying to save. Though they had done that before too hadn't they, back when they were saving Sasha and Ricken. Weird to think of how recently that was, lots had happened then. Talking wasn't quite any of their strong points save maybe for Yumi, and she had that weird thing where she made people feel things so there was that too. Aito seemed to have thought this through too but then it was impossible to understand the majority of what that guy was on about. Something about finding them a new leader or something, which Vegeta didn't seem to like when he said it. Hmph, hypocrites.

They had some semblance of a plan now, so were they good to get going? Yumi was admittedly nervous about all of this yet she had to try and keep confident, especially with Shu now getting uneasy too. "But you know what its like too to be free, even if you have us hounding at your heels every step of the way," she said to Viral, "And... Maybe this can be your purpose? At least for now, to help guide the other Beastmen. I can't think of anyone better than you to do it, any Saiyan can't really understand them like you can." He had a perspective no one else here had, and while she might argue to be one of them Yumi knew she was really just a knock-off at best. Seeing how disdainful Viral was becoming over this she reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder, smiling reassuringly as she gave it a small rub. "Hey... You can explain it too, like I said you've got more experience in this than anyone. I'll definitely try, but I think you're much more qualified to do it than anyone else."

"Yes, well... Qualifications aside, I imagine it's going to take input from each of you in order to ensure this works, so be prepared to put yourselves out there," Aito added, "They should be finished preparing the shuttle by now as well, if you four want to head down there. We've taken the added liberty of sending off some food as well as some items of clothing, think of them as gifts for the Beastmen, a way to show we don't mean them any harm. A very simplistic way of showing one's friendship, but it might just do you some good." It was as much as they could offer the Beastmen in the way of goods, and really anything more complex than clothes or food might be lost on them anyways. Once on the ship, assuming everything went well, they would have to be introduced to any number of objects likely for the first time in their lives. "Do be careful, and use the scouters provided should things take a turn for the worse. We'll be just above the facility and ready to come to your aid should the need arise."

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"It will too work, we'll make it work, just you wait," Yumi said confidently, not going to be swayed despite any doubts, "Well... All they know is this life, right? So maybe if they come with us... If we can show them what else there is, maybe they'll want more? Unless we show them what else is out there they'll never know what they're missing, so it's up to us to introduce them to it!" Whether that meant taking them back to Uuonoe, or leaving them here on this world, someone had to show them what life had to offer. Fighting was fine and all and during a war it was necessary, but that wasn't the only thing that life had for you. Even Viral who spent so much time around others had yet to fully accept that, yet she remained optimistic he would. Hearing Takeshi and Shu would join them as well gave her some confidence, knowing they could fight even if she did slightly worry about Shu being there. "If there are some in the water then we reach out to them too, we don't want anyone to feel left out or alone there," Yumi responded in kind, smiling at Viral as she continued, "Maybe all they know now is this, but they can know more if they get the chance. It's only right they get to make a choice after they've seen what else there is."

Yeah yeah, showing the Beastmen what life had in store was nice and all, but Takeshi knew he had no part in that. All he was tagging along for was to pound in some Saiyan's faces and make those creeps of scientists regret doing such a nasty thing, both to his sibling and his friends; truce nothing, he still saw most of the Saiyans, especially Elites, as the kind of people who were never going to be good. "Yeah we'll be fine buddy, don't you worry! Teams of two and all that, I'll have your back the whole time we're down there," the older boy reassured, patting his sibling on the back, "You're good enough at fighting for sure, okay? I wouldn't bring you down with me if I didn't think you were, you know?" Sure Shu maybe wasn't the most confident of people, but whenever he and Shu sparred it was hard to catch or land any hits on the little guy. He could fight an Elite, he just had to treat it more like their sparring sessions than an actual fight. "If they don't wanna come with us...? Uh... Well I mean they kind of have to, don't they? If we kick the Saiyans out then there's gonna be no one in charge anymore right?"

"They don't need someone in charge, they aren't infantile children, incapable of helping themselves," Vegeta commented bluntly. At least he assumed they weren't hard to say given how Beastmen apparently aged and progressed differently from other beings. He couldn't recall much of Viral's growth, though he did know his brother to technically be older than he was in some regards. "That being said too, as Yumi pointed out this is all they've known for life. Removing the scientists and some sort of direction could lead to their being lost and confused, which isn't going to help their situation any. Ideally they agree to come with us, though I would imagine we're going to need some very compelling arguments as to why that is. Convincing someone to seek something they've no knowledge of isn't easy."

"Which is why we introduce them to new concepts and ideas while on this world, and they draw their own conclusions from there," Aito interjected with a smirk, tapping on one of the consoles as he leaned back, "Krom, would I be correct in assuming they've never been off world, or even outside of the facility? If that's the case then we should bring this ship down once the site is secured, let them see it for themselves and explore. If they decide they're curious and wish to see more then we should allow them to come aboard, and we can worry about logistics after we find some willing companions. Otherwise our only course of action is to remove the current power, and instill something that won't leave them without direction or guidance." Much like how wars went, as one power was toppled another rose in place, sometimes for better though often for worse. Their situation here was precarious as if they did have to put someone else here, be it some kind of leader or establish some sort of rules, there was a very real chance it could backfire and make things worse than it was. "Viral? As a Beastman I feel like it's best you try to argue on our behalf, on what else lies beyond this world. They may take one of their own more seriously than any of us."

"Or me... I'm a Beastman as well now," Yumi added herself, smiling slightly as she reached up and tapped one of her ears, "I mean maybe not a traditional Beastman, but I'm certainly more of one than any of you are, save Viral. Maybe while Shu and Takeshi are busy... Ah... Showing the Saiyans the way out, Viral and I can focus on helping the Beastmen? Or we can do that after the fighting too." Between herself and her friend they could do this, she was confident they could. None of her empathetic link was going to be needed for that either, if two of their own kind could vouch for life beyond the walls of the facility then surely they would be more willing to venture out... Right?

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

Planet X137, just outside the atmosphere

Convincing Krom to reveal the location of the planet proved to be fairly difficult, and not only because he wasn't completely sure of the coordinates. After some trial and error however they managed to locate their mark, a ways off from Uuonoe and most other worlds for that matter. Even tougher still was convincing Korian that there was no need for the rebels to be involved, something which took right up until departure to make clear; too many forces showing up could cause problems, it was best to go light and make due with what they had. A fight was likely to break out, yes, but with everyone aboard they ought to have enough manpower for the task ahead. Now they overlooked the world from high above, its blue atmosphere and expanse oceans like a gem in the pitch void of space around it. Strange that they would pick such a world for this, but then perhaps it was because of its isolated nature they had chosen it.

"So down there somewhere is the facility... And in there are the people being experimented on..." Aito mused aloud, standing at the forefront of the bridge looking down on the planet below. As Krom had pointed out several times there would doubtless be Saiyans stationed there to protect the facility, meaning a fight was all but inevitable. Beating them shouldn't prove terribly difficult given their own strengths, yet what concerned the doctor most was how the Beastmen would react to the violence. Unless they were quartered off somewhere private and out of sight they would no doubt catch wind of what was happening, and in doing so may turn violent themselves, depending on how they responded. "Discretion isn't quite going to work here, even if we send some of us down in a shuttle. But then we can't quite just leave this monstrosity sitting in the ocean somewhere either, meaning..."

"That our best course of action is to send only a handful, and perhaps keep more of us on standby as insurance," Vegeta finished, frowning as he examined the screen before him. They had launched a probe from their ship earlier to scan the surface in hopes of finding the facility, and thus far it had come up short. It was obviously down there somewhere, and logically it should be on ground as opposed to beneath the water, seemed redundant to hide a facility on an already undisturbed planet. "The question then remains who goes down? If we know we're going to be encountering enemies then we need to send perhaps our strongest fighters. But then again... It's not unreasonable to assume someone may notice we're here and come after us too, meaning sending our best off to the surface may not be great." So that still left the question of who to go down? It seemed reasonable to send his father, yet Aito had made it clear he had no desire to go and fight earlier. If he was not an option then that left them with the usual suspects, yet for a group smaller than normal they had to be even more decisive than usual.

Throwing everyone at the facility didn't sound like a good idea from any perspective, if they went too heavily in then they might risk hurting one of the Beastman in all the chaos. It made much more sense for them to be more crafty about this, send a few who could do quite a lot. And Yumi had a feeling she knew just who to do it. "I'll go, and Viral will too. That's two of us anyways," Yumi offered before smiling at Vegeta, "Oh come on, I can fight too, or did you forget? Do you really think you Saiyans are the only ones here who know how to handle themselves?" she added with a playful wink at the end. Besides she'd already spoken with Viral about this before they'd even made plans to come, it just made sense for them to be part of it. Both of them in some way or another had suffered by this project, and by their efforts it would be put to rest. But in order to accomplish that they needed more people, and so far no one else had volunteered for the job. It wasn't like they had never done something like this before either, so what was the hold-up?

"I'll go, beats the hell out of sitting up here not doing anything," Takeshi said, raising his hand as he spoke before pointing to Shu, "And the little guy will come too, if he wants. Just the four of us should be plenty to take those jerks down." It would be nice in a way too, get back to the simple four man team they had when they first met. Granted quite a lot had changed since then but it was awfully sentimental in a way when you thought about it. "Heh, in fact the four of us might still be overkill, but we've gotta send at least a small team, you know? So just send us on down and we'll free those people in no time."

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"And on Earth humans don't enter the service until they're eighteen, sometimes even older than that. Clearly our experiences are vastly different," Aito pointed out, the differences in their worlds clear as the sky right then. No wonder their views were never aligned and always contrasting with one another, they were polar opposites in many regards. They needed an intermediary member to help with this, and unfortunately the only two he could think of, Shu and Takeshi, were far from qualified to do such a thing. "To be perfectly curt I could give less of a damn what happens once you're with us. I won't bother keeping an eye on you, you're free to roam the ship far as I'm concerned. At any rate much as I might begrudge you for what you've done, it's not my place to pass judgement. That is reserved for the younger fighters who actually had to deal with you, not me." Though they may be too emotionally vested to make a proper ruling on how Krom should be dealt with, perhaps it was for his own good he just be left to his own devices. If nothing else good had come of today perhaps this show of power was an indication of what lay in store for Krom, should he try anything. "Child doesn't only imply age, there's a certain immaturity and lack of growth in some areas too, which most of them have. To no fault of their own, they just haven't experienced everything they should yet," Aito explained carefully, neglecting to add they'd experienced too much in other domains. "I created him to protect people, and to create him in a way which made him adept in any environment. But he was never intended to be solely a warrior, just as we as Saiyans are not just soldiers. We have lives, we have hopes and dreams, calling ourselves just a soldier isn't fair."

What could she do to help? The emotional side proved to be too delicate for her without using a bit of her power, something she still had a very vague grasp of. Psychological? Forget it, she was not trained at all and worried she may do more harm than good, regardless of intent to help. Even the physical injury Viral now sported proved to be too much for her to help with and yet she couldn't just leave him alone. He was her friend, she'd never leave any friend alone, least of all him. "There are people like me who were being worked on, we want to save them. The others don't know about it yet but I'm sure they'll want to too, don't you?" They were best suited for the job, if the rebels did it they might do something unfair with the subjects, or even outright kill them if they were difficult. Hoping to ease the discomfort Viral was feeling Yumi leaned lightly into his side, promptly withdrawing however as it clearly caused him pain. Was his arm hurt that badly? So there was very obviously some anger towards Aito as expected, yet it wasn't fair to assume June couldn't do anything to help. Folding her ears down apologetically at Viral's seething she gave a silent nod at his question, rising to her feet and patiently waiting for him to do the same. "Of course... And if you don't think they can help... Maybe we should go to the ship? Or even the rebel headquarters, they'll have someone there to look at your arm for you," Yumi suggested, giving a small smile as she did, "It's probably just sprained or something, should be an easy fix."

"I had my tail removed, but there's nothing wrong with having or not having one. It's just like how you style your hair, its a preference I suppose." Albeit a preference that involved the removal of a limb, for whatever that was worth by comparison. Despite his trying to reassure Shu it only appeared like he was becoming more discomforted, his tone and posture suggesting as much. Damn it all, he really needed how to speak plainly didn't he? Tch... Only issue there was while he knew perfectly well what he was saying it wasn't easy to put it in simple terms, he never spoke nor learned in simplistic ways. "You may not have to transform though, we'd only need to test to see how music effects your mood and then we can draw conjectures... That is... We can test music and if it helps you calm down normally, then by all accounts, it should help prevent you from transforming or even help calm you once changed. And all I'm saying Shu is that there are always differences, even among the same race or within the same family. Being different doesn't mean someone is lesser however, that's simply life. As for your challenges, they can be overcome with enough effort, and now that we have ideas as to help them it's only a matter of time."

"Yeah buddy, you'll be feeling much better in no time now, just you wait," Takeshi chimed in with a grin, ruffling Shu's hair as he leaned over, "While brains here is busy plugging away you and I can keep having fun, you won't have to worry about a thing. Then they'll come to us with a plan and we can work on it together, okay?" Now that there was actually some sign they could make it work he was way more optimistic about things. And if all he had to do was keep Shu happy, be it playing games or acting silly, then he could do at least that much. "Besides, we've got all the time we need for this stuff now! Which means a hell of a lot more goofing off for us Shu."

Far From Home

No, cuz that's work xD

Far From Home

I figured we'd skip the pre game shit, now I feel like I gotta retroactively add it xD

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"Because children or not they have some sway over the course of events, or was there another reason they were taken and conscripted?" Aito asked with a frown, folding his arms as he questioned Krom, "And I'm certain your judgment of me is very unfavorable given today's events, but I can handle being your charge if need be, unless you'd prefer to answer to someone younger than either of us. Regardless of their ages they are children as I said, they still have a lot to experience before they can ever be considered mature." Some more than others, Shu perhaps had the furthest to go before he could be recognized as an adult. Sighing to himself the doctor glanced to the house briefly, a hand raising to itch at his cheek as he pondered how the youngest boy was getting on. He seemed happier before, perhaps they had finally found a means of making him content. Now they might have a better chance of handling his PTSD, given they had a coping method. "I'm positive he's furious with me right now, both for not apologizing and for acting as I did. That being said I also know he doesn't want me to coddle him or to make every problem larger than it needs to be," Aito explained, "I'll seek him out later and do my best to make amends, but right now I'm better off not bothering him. I certainly don't need a lecture on my own child from a Saiyan warrior."

Yumi found Viral, she just wished she found him in a better state. Sat up against a tree, shaking and dried blood at his nose and lip, clearly not in a very good way right now. Kneeling down before him she hoped she could offer something in the way of comfort as she took his hands, mistaking the shaking for being unnerved. Perhaps bringing up what he and she might be doing would help improve his mood? It didn't appear to, and hearing his response was fairly disheartening. Nodding when asked to be let go Yumi released her grip, sitting down before him and giving her friend a sad smile. "Well you never know, we might not have to fight. If Krom comes with us maybe we can make them stand down instead? Or... If it does come to a fight then we'll be okay. And you'll definitely be helping with freeing everyone, I'll be right there at your side to make sure you do, and you don't get hurt." Shifting herself she moved to the side of Viral and sat next to him, leaning over as her arm laid up against his. "Listen... We should go back and you need to be looked at, just in case. How about we go find June and she can help, okay? And later Aito can apologize for being an idiot."

"And what is a good Saiyan then?" Vegeta asked rhetorically, holding up a finger to keep Shu from answering, "Father and I are Saiyans, and yet we're also scientists. Are we good Saiyans because we're scientists, or are we good Saiyans because we're decent people? If we're good Saiyans because we're decent people, then that makes you a good Saiyan too. Our people aren't just all about fighting and power, contrary to what your father and his men might have you believe. It takes more than that to be a good Saiyan, or a good Beastman, or Kaesstrian. It all depends on how you are as an individual, not what others are like." Honestly who was Shu even using as a metric to measure himself against? The Saiyans in their group, while some idiotic, were good people and arguably a good Saiyan for it. If the King and his men were what Shu was comparing himself to then it was foolish, that was like comparing apples and lemons. "Big differences? Yumi is a girl, you are a boy, those are huge differences, but are they bad? Differences are not negative Shu, it's a fact of life, and everyone is different from one another. It's imperative that you understand we don't think anything less of people for being different, that's just not how we operate. As for the problem..." Vegeta paused, frowning as he debated on how best to tackle the touchy subject, "When you become angry you transform, that's the only thing we need to work on. And we will, I think we have a solution to it in fact."

Dragon Ball: Legacy (Mogtaki and Vena Sera)

"And you do realize the rebels value the cooperation of my son and his friends? I'm sure if we put our word in to transfer you they would do as we asked, unless they want to risk losing our cooperation. And given everything I've heard that these children have done so far they're owed this, if not more." Krom would be treated better in their custody more likely than not as well, they had somewhat more ethics than Saiyans did; Korian could argue he stood against the Saiyans all he wanted, but ultimately he was one of them, simply with a different idea of how things should be run. And yes he was a Saiyan himself, but then he was raised on Earth and valued things that most Saiyans seemed to hold no regard for. Furrowing his brow at Viral's absence the doctor sighed when Krom pointed out what he'd done earlier, looking at the Elite indifferently. "He knew the risk of doing what he did, so it's not logical for me to feel bad for his decision," Aito explained, sighing however as he rubbed at his head, "That being said... I'll check on him when he returns, assuming Yumi can bring him back. I'm sure he knows I hadn't intended to strike him, I have no ill will towards him."

Now was not the time for Viral to run off somewhere, he could be hurt from that attack by Aito. It wasn't terribly hard to track him down after a moment of walking, between his scent and that of his blood it only took a couple of seconds. Stepping through the woods she managed to find him sat up against a tree, smiling yet concerned as she approached. "Hey... You didn't have to go running off, they're done butting heads," she said as she stopped before him, kneeling down and looking at his hands. He was shaking, was that for any reason in particular? Reaching out and taking both of his hands in her own she closed her eyes, trying to convey a more relaxed sensation as she settled her own breath down. "We're going to go help people who were part of that project, people like me. And I think you and I are going to help them a lot," Yumi explained, opening her eyes and smiling kindly to her friend, "We're going to go and help a lot of people, isn't that great? And no one else will have to go through it anymore."

"Excellent, then as soon as we have time I'll go and set that up for you. You may need to wait a little while though, I have to get the music together before you can listen to anything." Not to state the obvious but their selection on the ship was likely limited, depending on what was brought from Earth. He didn't think anyone was terribly vested in music in their group, chances were they only had a handful of tracks if that. Music seemed to do a good deal for Shu, but what of everything else? How had his mood been in the last few days? "Did he now? Well that was nice of him," Vegeta remarked with a glance to the older brother, surprised he'd actually gone out of his way to do something, "And Shu, differences aside you are still a Saiyan, and you're still your brother's younger sibling. Being different doesn't diminish any of what you are, and those differences are not all necessarily bad. At any rate we're working to help you cope with some of them, particularly how you transform, and we're getting close to a solution. In fact I think today has given me a very easy yet effective fix to our little problem."

Adelon: Steeling the Faith [Open!]

So he'd kind of hoped to knock out the woman with that spell, yet she didn't even get the slightest bit bruised from his attack. Darn it, maybe he was going to be stuck fighting her after all. "Heh... Thanks," Ethan laughed nervously, his hand snatching his sword from the pouch. With a flick of a button the blade extended to its maximum length, expecting to have to fight if he was to get out of this room. Gripping his sword he slowly shuffled towards the stairs as Danica stared him down, hoping she wasn't sincerely going to fight him. "Let's let bygones be bygones and just go our separate ways, huh? I don't want to hurt you." No sooner had he said that though did the woman lunge at him, prompting Ethan to raise his own blade to try and intercept her strike. So much for that.

Bracing for their blades to meet Ethan became immensely confused as Cecil darted between him and the woman, racing past them and down another flight of stairs at the other end of the room. Where in the world...? Blinking in confusion he watched after his friend as they vanished down deeper into the ship, hearing yet another set of footsteps then coming down the stairs. Expecting maybe a bandit to be in pursuit of the Machina a lump formed in his throat when he instead saw Amuné on the steps, putting herself in just about the most precarious position possible. This woman was dangerous, why was she here? Silently waving for the Ydran girl to run away he knew he couldn't let her be hurt, fearing the worst if the woman went after her.

Taking advantage of the woman's momentary distraction Ethan extended his left arm and released the catch on his coiled wire, shooting it at the floor behind Danica. Then, using his magic he quickly pushed himself to the right and swung the chord along, tripping her up in the process at least for the time being. After retracting the wire he glanced back at the stairs, not sure if he should go after Cecil or try getting Amuné out of here. The best he could do for now was just keep the woman busy, either option left someone else in trouble. Once Danica was down he rushed over and tried to keep her there by holding his sword down at her throat, having no real intention to use it other than intimidation. "Just stay right there! No one has to get hurt here," Ethan warned, finally looking to Amuné, "Go downstairs and get Cecil, you two get back up on the deck. I'm fine."

Damn it! How had she left herself so open? If she hadn't had to save that idiot of a healer then she wouldn't be in this mess, being dragged along like a carcass with a chain at her neck. Trying to pry the metal from her throat Nymira found it impossible to do so, the chain too tightly wound and heavier than she'd realized. She could try to melt it, which would mean burning herself in the process though. Placing the flat of her hands against the steel she prepared to do such a thing, but stopped herself short when the chain suddenly went slack. A quick glance back and she saw Zander had taken his staff to the bandit's head, drawing blood and causing him to drop his weapon as he staggered back from his fallen tool. Coughing and gagging Nymira pulled herself free and struggled to her feet, nursing her bruised neck before giving the healer a nod of thanks. He might be a moron, but he was a moron who had saved her.

"Fleeing isn't an option... There are too many enemies..." the Dimuran managed out weakly, coughing again as she glanced back at the men in suits. They were now all engaged in fights with bandits, and disconcertingly they were making quick work of the men. Those would have to be their priority then, if they wanted to even consider escape that was. But first... Nymira looked to the bandit leader and dashed at him, driving her shoulder unceremoniously into the space between his legs and causing him to stumble back even further towards a post on the deck. With him leaning against it for support she dragged up the chains, bringing them over and hastily swinging them around the post to put the man in binds, albeit temporarily. Now perhaps they could focus on the new combatants. "There's only a handful of them... But where are the others?" Ethan had still yet to come up from below, and both Amuné and Cecil had gone down as well. So that left her and Zander then to fend them off? Not terribly good odds.

These bandits were little more than common thugs, they could barely even fight. That may have something to do with their having magic to use as well, but that just went to show what having resources did for you. If the four of them could just walk into this fray and take control of it then it totted the superiority of their weaponry. After dropping another man to the ground with his prod one of the men turned to face off against another bandit, yet instead found himself gasping as a dagger was thrown at him, slicing through his free arm and leaving a deep gouge in its wake. Swiveling his head to the side he saw Nymira darting towards him with her other dagger in hand, taking a swing at her with the prod and missing. Stepping back to avoid the dagger he reached out despite the pain and grabbed her arm, wrenching it to pry her grasp from the dagger. Trying to electrocute her again he cursed when she ducked beneath him, then released her when she kicked out his knee and tried to capitalize by slamming her elbow into his temple. Nymira found herself at a serious disadvantage however as it wasn't just one on one, but one on four.

A hand shot out and grabbed Nymira's shirt from behind, lifting her from her feet and throwing her aside into the wall of the ship. Using his glove he fired off a quick series of ice shards to kill her, annoyed as the Dimuran threw out fire to melt the attack. Forming more ice he tried it again, watching as Nymira scrambled along in a crawl to avoid them, running off and taking cover behind a stack of crates on the ship. What a pest, at least now she had no weapons on her. "That one's a Magi, be sure to grab something as proof of the kill for when we go back," the man instructed, turning his arm then on Zander and casting another ice attack, shooting to kill.