[center][h3]Dungeon Resistance Headquarters[/h3]
[b]Location:[/b] Temple of Khamoon, Al Mamoon, in the Sandswept Sky
[b]Word Count:[/b] 4434 (+5)
Primrose’s [@Yankee], Fox’s [@Dawnrider], Yoshitsune’s [@Rockin Strings], Tora, Poppi, and Big Band[/center]

While at this point Tora really didn’t have much to worry about from such a minor fall, Poppi boosted upward to catch him mid-air anyway. Reunited well above the searing flame of Robin’s Arcfire, the two got a chance to take in a bird’s-eye view of what would soon be an absolute slugfest. In addition to the six Resistance fighters who sprung that ruthless ambush on his team earlier, the spellcasters whose names Tora now knew to be Robin and Tharja further bolstered the enemy line, and that white-robed assassin provided an entirely new threat. Even though Tora and Poppi arrived late to the fight between Azwel, Fox, and Es, they caught a glimpse of the arcanist’s formidable weapon arts, and for a Grimleal lieutenant to be taken out just like that must surely be no mean feat. That made ten enemies by Tora’s math, including Es and (despite his state) Charnok, but not Drippy. Meanwhile, his own team -himself, Poppi, Fox, Big Band, Primrose, Yoshitsune, Skull, and Panther- numbered just eight, since in more ways than one Kan-Ra could not be counted on.

Poppi’s keen optics and even keener processor picked up on the details even faster than her Masterpon did. Among the opposition, two wielded high-output guns and a whopping five could dish out wide-range magic. This dungeon already made for a rather small battlefield, and the column in the middle with foes to either side divided it in half. For all intents and purposes, the Seekers found themselves faced with a firing squad, expertly coordinated to end the battle before it began in a brutal, overwhelming display of firepower. Neither she nor Tora, being the team’s main protectors, could allow the Resistance even a moment’s time to put their plan into action. “Poppi recommend provocation on one side!”

“Tora thoughts exactly, meh!” It was time for the Nopon to knack for attention-grabbing to work. With a decisive strike on one side he could divert three enemies to the far side of the dungeon, giving everyone more room to work with, and allowing his side’s melee fighters to rush down the mages in the middle. Hopefully an ally would follow them to lend a hand, since Dante was already a problem on his own, and he’d have two friends backing him up. There was just one question in his mind: which side to provoke. Unfortunately it appeared as though Robin anticipated such a move, and not just arbitrated the split by sex; both featured one gunner, one mage, and one melee fighter apiece. But there was no time to think critically. Tora pointed to the left, at Dante, Earthquake, and Beast. Physically tougher customers, fewer distractions. “Let’s go!”

Without delay Poppi dove toward the left. As she flew, Poppi popped open the missile silos in his Mech Arms to shower the area with suppressive missiles, hurling down taunts as he did. “Losers, losers! Meh-meh meh meh-meh! Dummy suckypons never beat me! Dirty, smelly, underground losers! Come get slapped by Tora!” His infuriating singsong voice, punctuated by a blown raspberry, instantly got Earthquake to boiling point and pissed Dante off. As the huge man turned to thunder after the Nopon and Dante ran behind, Beast rolled his eyes to follow them. The others could handle the rest.

Still a couple of meters outside of Arcfire’s range, having been used defensively this time, Fox stayed his ground, but readily widened his stance in poise. A snap assessment of the rapidly escalating situation around them told him that they were out of options, not that they were wealthy in them to begin with. He expected things might fall apart like they were, so he had his mind set in advance. With no remaining recourse, it was time to start making sense again, by showing them something they would understand.

[color=5edaf6]“Fine… have it [i]your[/i] way!”[/color] Fox uttered sharply to himself, almost under his breath, then swiftly drew his sidearm to squeeze off an Impact shot meant for Robin. Whether it connected or not, he would have Robin’s unyielding attention, just the way he wanted. If the matchup between them at all resembled what he remembered, Fox would be the best qualified to deal with him personally, and given his vested stake in the mission, that was just how he wanted it. There was little doubt, however, that he wouldn't just be allowed to have him to himself, so he went in mentally prepared for a more lopsided engagement. Either way, his sights were set…

Seeing his allies go different directions, Yoshitsune dashed to the right, drawing his flaming swords swiftly. Because of his wheels, he was faster than most people could react to and attack. He knew he wouldn't reach them unscathed but he could protect his vitals with his swords. On the way he passed right by Es, charging toward the center group, and the two traded a glancing blow. Once close enough, he slid around behind the fleeing gunner before she could reach cover, and with his swords to her neck he turned her to face the Witch Doctor.  "Move and she dies." Using Daisy as a shield, he began moving further from the center, keeping his sight on the others, ready to defend and counter once there other girls made their moves. 

While others rushed in to meet their opponents head on, Primrose fell back, making sure her equipment - the mask and watch - was secure. She could sling spells with the best of them, but her main role was as a supporter. Right now she needed to make a quick assessment and see what the best move for her would be. Though she'd expected things to come to blows, the assassin that fell from the ceiling was a surprise. Though not fond of either of the Grimleal captains, Primrose's face hardened when Azwel went down. [i]They're back to their true colors,[/i] she thought. After that first ambush they should have guessed the Resistance would have something like this up their sleeve. Before offering any kind of support to those on the offensive the dancer ducked down beside the flamboyant captain. She didn't know if it was possible to survive that kind of injury without some kind of miraculous power... like the ones the Seekers held.

[color=D34C25]"Do not make me regret this,"[/color] Primrose said to him, her voice quiet and harsh. She placed a hand on her chest and when she pulled it away, a bright pink friend heart appeared. There was a brief, tense, awkward staring contest between Azwel and herself before Primrose plunged the heart into him.

While he pulled himself together Primrose stood up, dark magic pooled in one hand and fire in the other. She hadn't gotten the chance to see the abilities of most of the Resistance members, even the ones she and Band had chased down, but a quick look was enough to tell the mages from the others. Trading spells with her allies in the middle wasn't something Primrose wanted to attempt. Instead she glanced at those on her team that were yet to move up. [color=D34C25]"If any of you are going in, I'll cover you."[/color]

For the moment, however, she could cover Band where he was. After passing by Yoshitsune, Es came in like a hurricane. Her greatsword flashed out to slash the detective across the front, and though he brought up a music stand to block, the crests that followed her attacks pierced through his guard. The swordswoman executed a rising diagonal slash next, followed by a triple revolving strike that carried her into the air. When she came down with a helm splitter aimed for Band’s hat, however, the savvy gumshoe took advantage of the brief opening. He deployed a cymbal defensively to parry to heavy blow, looking unimpressed. “Uh huh.” Before she could change course he jumped off the ground himself and caught her with a soundblast mid-air. “Head hunter!” Out came a huge, noisy Cymbal Crash whose Sound Stun allowed Band to deliver a giant dropkick. Es went flying; for a moment she’d be out of the picture.

Band landed on his back but picked himself up with surprising speed. He sported a few fresh slices and dents but could still fight without issue. “Ain’t nothin’ but a thing.” A fragment of burning Hot Hail hit him square in the hat, and in a hurry he removed it to fan it out. With the Witch Doctor apparently stalled by Yoshitsune for the moment, who was struggling to hold onto the tenacious Daisy, his attention fell to the center. Robin had rolled out of the way of Fox’s Impact Shot and returned the favor with Elthunder, threatening the pilot with electricity. After conjuring a fresh round of Hot Hail to smack and sear the intruders from above, Charnok unleashed a stream of fire, and Tharja hurled explosive hexes of darkness. The three-pronged magical assault forced the Seekers who remained in front to separate, but once the Arcfire that sheltered the spellcasters died down, the Phantom Thieves could move in.

“Get a load of this!” Panther yelled as she ran for the dragon mage, her whip arcing through the air to lash against his scales. With her fire resistance she could challenge Charnok without much worry, and even if his reptile hide brushed off her whip, her other talents made it a favorable match-up. Skull, meanwhile, joined Fox in trying to corner Robin, taking advantage of his own electricity resistance and a raw rushdown style to keep the tactician on his toes. That left Tharja uncontested in her curse-slinging, but only for a moment; without much regard for Azwel’s wellbeing, Kan-Ra stepped forward to take care of her. It was then that Ezio reappeared from hiding, attacking the other Grimleal lieutenant with his sword. He moved with such skill and fluidity that he forced Kan-Ra to divert his attention completely.

Azwel, meanwhile, sat up with a moan. “Ooh, hoo...what in the…?” He blinked a pair of pale yellow eyes a few times in confusion as he felt the part of his neck that no longer featured a stab wound. When he looked up he found Primrose standing over him. “Ah, and here I thought it was curtains. I suppose I have you to thank?” The researcher rose in a hurry, dusting off his robe. “For now, let’s see this little spat through, hmm?” As a stray bolt of electricity hurled his way he called forth a spear and shield of blue crystal.

[color=D34C25]"Don't mention it,"[/color] the dancer told him, [color=D34C25]"at least not until we all make it out of here alive."[/color] Her gaze was concentrated on the battle in front of them, arms up and magic flying through the air to intercept as much as possible the rain of fire that Charnok had been sending down on them. Once the reptilian switched tactics she was free to launch a spell here and there where she could, sending handfuls of dark magic sailing toward their enemies, but while most of the resistance engaged in combat and focusing on others Primrose planned to make the most of the time she had now. 

The first step was [i]Sealticge's Seduction[/i], that divine dance that allowed the benefits of one's buffs to be shared among teammates. Primrose was confident in her movements in the midst of battle, and when the dance was completed she bestowed the blessing upon herself. The next step was a seamless transition into the [i]Mole Dance[/i], with some help of a battle point boost. It spurred Primrose into faster movements, and when her low twirl came to an end the whole of the Seekers and their allies found themselves with a lot more defense than before. 

Fox quickly shone his shield to turn around the initial shot of Elthunder and followed it on swift feet back to its caster to cover his approach. Dodging his own spell still left Robin having to somehow stop Fox's boots from meeting his chin, cheek, temple or torso. The tactician blocked as best he could the unrelenting series of kicks, and though the blows stung despite his defense, he was quick to snatch Fox in a swirl of magic and throw him backward toward the central pillar. Skull came up in the break between the two veteran Smash Brothers to see that he wouldn’t have a second’s respite, only to have his efforts brushed off and thrown aside the way of Fox. Shortly following recovery, Fox suffered dead weight knockdown from Skull bodily impacting into him. Before he got back to his feet, he dove for the Thief to throw them both out of the path of a stray great ember falling their way, then rolled to standing once more.

While he couldn’t pinpoint it exactly, Fox could tell there was something different about Robin, as he could from when they first encountered him there. An uptick in martial capability, perhaps? Whatever it was, chances were that he got something else from [i]someone[/i] else, and that meant there was more to even the subtlest changes, he figured. He was keen to find out himself; get a better feel for it in personal combat.

[color=5edaf6]“Leave him to me,”[/color] he calmly told Skull as both of them stood ready to try again. [color=5edaf6]“You take the other two,”[/color] referring to the two mages that attended the tactician.

“Someone ought to give Tora and Poppi a hand,” Band suggested. Seeing Robin turn away Skull’s bludgeon with superior technique and deftly kick the boy straight into the thrown Fox, he deployed his big pedal to try and knock the tactician off his feet. “Giant Step!” In a feat of awareness, however, Robin blocked low and suffered only a momentary distraction. Then came Fox from overhead, bounding over Big Band in a full twist layout to drop feet first down at Robin with a drill stomp aimed for his head.

[color=D34C25]"I've got it,"[/color] came the voice of Primrose from nearby. There was a sheen of sweat on the dancer, the combo of her performances and fire spells from both sides contributing to that. With a quick intake of air to catch her breath, Primrose slipped back and away from the others to get a better vantage point before going in to help the Nopon and Blade.

While this was happening, Es landed near Yoshitsune’s gambit. The artificial girl looked upon the hostage situation with dispassionate eyes. Since the samurai had turned to face the Witch Doctor, his back was to the Seekers, and thus to Es, as well. She saw only a chance for an easy kill. Es dashed forward and came about with an enormous cleave of her greatsword, aimed for Yoshitsune’s back.

Dropping his swords, Yoshitsune yelled for Kamui again, using his slowed perception to grab Daisy by her collar and spin, throwing her towards Es. With as much speed as he could gather, he grabbed his swords just before they hit the ground and raised them, blocking Es's slash before it hit him or the gunner. This, however, left his back facing the Witch Doctor. With all his strength, he pushed the opposing swordswoman's blade up and back, hoping to knock her off balance, before spinning again and rushing the mage. With his swords sheathed again, he attempted to grab the third woman's shirt to throw her on top of the other two.

With his unique ability Yoshitsune managed to intercept the slash from Es before her greatsword could carve into either ally or enemy, but in attempting to leverage his physical might against the girl’s the samurai found much sterner opposition. As evidenced by the way she slung around a weapon bigger and heavier than herself like it was an umbrella, Es possessed inhuman strength, more than enough to counter Yoshitsune’s attempt to break her poise. His struggle demanded both hands, allowing Daisy to free herself in an instant, and she wasted no time. The freedom fighter lashed out repeatedly at close range with her elbow, targeting her assailant’s chest, jaw, eyes, throat, whatever she could reach. Her retribution only stopped when Yoshitsune turned to address her, but not just in order to keep her shirt out of the man’s clutching hands. An explosive zombie summoned by the Witch Doctor blew up right behind him in a concussive burst of flame and viscera. Even if the bravado with which he charged into them suggested otherwise, it was clear that Yoshitsune could not fight all three at once.

Luckily, he didn’t need to. While leaping forward to for a plunging attack, Es twisted mid-air just in time to block a runaway freight train of brass and steel. The weight of Big Band’s heavy Brass Knuckle sent her skidding as he arrived in dramatic fashion to crash the party. “Back on the beat!” Knowing full well he’d be hard-pressed to contend with Es, he went on the offensive anyway to take the heat off his ally. With the Witch Doctor throwing jars of spiders and Daisy shooting on the run, however, he’d still have plenty to deal with.

As Daisy leveled her gun at the samurai, he was quick to respond with a dive out of the way before rushing her again. As she'd try to keep her aim on him, he'd get close enough to slash at her weapon, knocking it off center if not knocking from her hands. With the chance, he'd aim a kick to her head, using the metal surrounding the top of his wheel to knock her unconscious. As fast as Yoshitsune was, though, he had yet to develop an appreciation for the technology of bullets, and when the going got tough Daisy wasn’t above spraying. A handful of shells had struck the samurai by the time he struck at her weapon, some just glancing blows but a few putting painful dents in his armor. Still, he managed to take her by surprise almost as much, and though his kick didn’t knock her out it did topple him long enough to turn his attention to the conjured spiders and toads now swarming him.

Swinging his swords as fast as he could, Yoshitsune sloshed at every spider and toad that got close enough. He was also spinning his wheels to spin himself in circles, crushing any that were too close. He seemed different after his Kamui ended just about halfway through the tiny beasts. 

In the midst of the steel whirlwind a new threat appeared. A zombie bloated with dark magic barreled into the mayhem, and with Yoshitsune’s Kamui down, his defensive options were limited. By the time the noxious undead exploded in a gruesome burst of foul magic and rotten blood, the Witch Doctor was filling the air with firebats. Jars shattered at Yoshitsune’s feet, leaving sharp shards to pierce his wheels even as the corpse spiders scurried forth. She enjoyed total control of the battle, polluting the fight from a safe distance to wear the samurai down in a punishing battle of attrition.

[hr]

On the other side of the battlefield, Primrose arrived to find Tora and Poppi under duress. Fighting three strong at once left the duo struggling to defend themselves, let alone attack. Though Beast looked every inch the bruiser he amplified his brute strength with magic; flares of electricity and blinding light broke out as he hurled himself into combat. Earthquake’s massive size combined with his weapon of choice, a length of chain with a sickle on one end and a weight on the other, presented a constant problem that proved difficult to stop. Of the three Resistance fighters, however, Dante claimed the title of most dangerous. He wielded a wide variety of weapons with casual skill, switching and moving faster than Tora and Poppi could adapt. Only the fact that he seemed to be toying with them gave the dynamic duo an advantage, but even when not serious Dante provided a serious threat.

Tora and Poppi managed to hold out by taking the offensive with the blade’s evasive QT mode, striking out against their foes to keep their enemies from controlling the battle. In this way they avoided being closed in and annihilated, but they lacked the burst damage to put any of their opponents down, and sooner or later the damage would add up on Tora. Upon seeing Primrose, however, Tora tried to keep his elation to a minimum. With the Resistance fighters’ attention squarely on him, Primrose could do whatever she wished.

The dancer's eyes flashed between the three threats. The effects of her dance should last a little longer, so with that thought in mind she lifted a hand and began to conjure her wide range spell. The dark magic began to form under the Resistance member's feet, hard to notice in the dim light even if their focus wasn't on breaking Tora down. Catching her comrade's eyes, Primrose gave a sharp nod and then closed her fist, the [i]Night Ode[/i] erupting beneath their enemies' feet. 

Her plume of dark magic hit Earthquake and Beast full-force, effectively spit-roasting the heavy-hitting pair from below. Beast growled as he reeled from the sorcerous burst, while the giant ninja went as far as to release his kusarigama with one hand and massage his loins with the other, hopping up and down the whole time. “Ooh, hoo, hoo! What in Sam Hill!?”

Unfortunately, Dante avoided the attack, having been fighting so casually that he picked up on Night Ode’s tell. He shot Primrose the middle finger but turned his attention back to Tora and Poppi, and when Beast rejoined him that left only Earthquake against the dancer. When he saw her, however, the massive Texan seemed to forget his pains in lieu of remembered rage. “You again!” Weapon at the ready, he stomped Primrose’s way. “Where’s yer big fella? Ain’t gonna hide behind ‘im this time? Guess I’ll go lookin’ once I get done moppin’ the floor with ya!” Leering, he held his weapon’s chain in both hands, one below the blade and the other below the weight. “Almost a waste, messin’ up such a purdy thing. Once yer on our side, maybe I’ll show ya a different kind of action, geheheh! Yagh!” With a yell Earthquake sent out his chain sickle, a soaring crescent arc.

[hr]

Back at the dungeon’s front, things only got more hectic. Once redirected by Fox, Skull provided just the teamwork and extra punch Panther needed to really start putting a dent in Charnok. The hooligan’s new kanabo beat out the dragon mage’s staff by a long shot, and though Charnok managed to escape the two-pronged assault with a rocket launch, things quickly took another turn for the worse. Panther and Skull moved both in sync and at high speed, cornering their foe away from his allies.

Amidst a flurry of bludgeoning and whipping he brought all his firepower to bear in a desperate last stand, but to no avail. With his arms crossed in front of him Skull powered through both Hot Hail and flamethrower, building up electricity, until he reached full charge and called upon Captain Kid to release a shower of thunderbolts. In the middle of the lightning storm Skull delivered a revolving bat slam that just about left Charnok senseless, followed up by an upswing string enough to launch him into the air. “Up to you, Panth!”

“Okay, let’s get serious!” At that moment Panther swept in, stylishly using her whip to swing down and deliver a double kick that drove Charnok into the wall. A torrent of fire breath scorched her in a last ditch attempt, but Panther would not be deterred. Snake fangs flashed as she leaned in to bite into and rip free a mouthful of scales on his forehead, then with just one hand on her whip pressed barrel of her submachine gun pressed into the raw flesh. “I won’t hold back!”

A moment later she descended to the ground in a shower of ash and embers. Charnok’s spirit landed beside her, and her friend wasted no time giving her a hi-five. “Dude, that was sick!”

Panther spat out a few red scales and returned the high five. “Thanks! Jeez, my heart’s beating like crazy. I didn’t even think before going to bite him. Must be the snake lady in me.”

“Well, keep it up, ‘cause we’re not done yet,” Skull pointed back at the fighting. “Let’s move!”

While they’d been beating down Charnok, Fox had been gaining ground against Robin. Even with the tactician’s brilliance, this was a bad match-up. His foe possessed both the speed to constantly rush him down and the tools to counter him at long range. At first he’d been able to keep Fox at bay, but starting with that drill stomp things went downhill. Somehow, Fox seemed able to anticipate what he could do. Without any allies to coordinate with, he could only do so much. That left him with just one option, even if it meant inviting further pain. “Tharja! Pair up!”

The dark sorceress acknowledged his summons by unleashing a trump card against Kan-Ra. A well of darkness formed beneath him, and from the purple-black puddle reached clawing arms to sweep away his sand, rip his bandages, and gouge his aged flesh. As he struggled to free himself, his other opponent Ezio reappeared. He plunged a hidden blade between Kan-Ra’s ribs, taking him to the ground and allowing Tharja to jump to Robin’s side. Before Ezio could finish Kan-Ra off, however, Azwel leaped in with a swing of his conjured axe. “Let us do this properly!” Ezio narrowly avoided getting bisected, then dove out of the way as Azwel hurled the axe like a discus. He launched a crossbow bolt as he rolled, then rose with sword in hand to find Azwel ready with twin scimitars. The researcher grinned, primed to relish his revenge in a display of martial prowess, and the assassin sighed. “You should have stayed down.”

Once in a Pair Up in the support position, Tharja could no longer be attacked, instead boosting her partner’s defense and evasion in exchange for only being able to attack as a follow-up to his own. Robin began phase two with a wave of Elwind air blades. Tharja’s Hex welled up beneath Fox a moment later, able to punish him if he stood still to use his reflector. The mages shared a bond even deeper and more hard-fought than the one between Panther and Skull, and as Fox would soon find out, together they were more than the sum of their parts.