[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISM1z9BSED0][img]https://i.imgur.com/5B3hkEZ.png[/img][/url]

[sub][@Izurich][@Crusader Lord][/sub]

Things were moving fast, almost too fast. If it wasn’t for the adrenaline running through their systems, they wouldn't been able to process it all. 

Merry was running on pure instinct, [s]ultra instinct some would say,[/s] and prepared to drive her palm into the approaching hostile. At the same time, Viper was thrusting her dagger towards her prey's chest. Viper's speed gave her an advantage in this situation, and the full length of her ka-bar meant she could connect that much faster with her target. The blade sunk into Silmeria's flesh, just off center to her sternum. Five millimeters, ten millimeters, and then Viper bent her elbow which prevented the blade from entering deeper. The wound did not go deep enough to reach her heart, but she did risk bleeding out if she moved around too much.

Why Viper hesitated would be a mystery to Merry, but it was because Wukong showed up just in time to thrust her staff into Viper’s back. The upper half of Viper’s bomber suit blew apart, throwing Kevlar and polymer substances everywhere. Even the trauma plate on the front of her suit shredded and fell to the floor in a heap. Now her torso was clad in some tight fitting top that didn’t leave much to the imagination. Not long after, vines made out ki wrapped around her shoulders, preventing her from resuming her attack. Lillia’s presence hadn’t registered to Merry when her palm connected, blowing Viper backwards. 

It was luck that Lillia managed to come through the window late enough that Viper didn’t see her and early enough to stop Merry’s assassination. But there is only so much luck in the world, and Lillia had depleted all of hers. Before she could get off an extra swing, Viper flew backwards, causing her to slam into the monkey woman. This both staggered Lillia and caused Viper to not slide as far as Merry might have liked. The total distance was about a single meter. 

Merry and Lillia’s coms cracked to life with Veronica’s voice. [color=#bd71e8]”The opposition has hired some espers. Be on your guard, agents!” [/color] 

Lillia had fewer opportunities to counter attack given that Viper’s back was pressed up against her. There wasn’t much room to swing a staff at such close range, especially in a narrow hallway. Viper on the other hand didn’t need much room to drag her knife along Lillia’s outer thigh. It wasn't deep, but a laceration like that was going to make running very painful. 

Merry had not noticed Lillia’s position, so there was little stopping her from attempting to put her next few shots into Viper’s heart. Though Viper’s close proximity meant that she just had to step forward and roundhouse kick the front of the barrel, sending Merry’s next shot off the the side. Viper already had her next melody prepared. Her hand was glowing like a yellow ball of radiation. She pointed her finger in Merry’s direction and… Vanished.

It might have taken Merry a moment to realize what had happened. But Lillia could see Viper had blinked to the other end of the hall. It wasn’t possible to hear at their distance, but without her armor, it was clear she was having difficulty breathing. Normally a paralysis attack to the torso could cause someone to momentarily suffocate, but Viper’s resistance to magic enabled her to breathe with great difficulty. Perhaps that was why she decided to retreat instead of attempt to continue fighting. She raised her hand to her head before stepping around the corner. 

[b]”You didn't, say, there were, two!”[/b]

Viper’s breathing would return to normal shortly, but before it did, more guards appeared by the windows in the police station. Unlike last time, they were not stacked “deep” into the building. The top three windows each had a guard in it. One had a military issue anti-material rifle, another had a rocket launcher, and the armored grenadier had returned as well. They hadn’t fired yet, but that would change shortly, as they didn’t waste time getting ready. 

[hr]

[sub][@SilverPaw]@TheGMbby[/sub]

Su was not going to last very long if she just stood there and took blow after blow from the raging brute. Even without magical enhancements, his chain wasn't something she could easily block. She decided to bring the full might of her magic to bear with the most offensive melody she could think of. As he continued to bulldog her with charges, a rock manifested in Su’s hand and she tossed at one of his legs. The stone expanded on contact, transforming into a small stone claw. It dug into his shin, and the newly formed wrist fused with the floor and pulled his leg until he fell onto his back. The claw didn’t disappear either. It was going to hold his leg in the air until something broke it.

[b]”Witchcraft!”[/b]

Despite the spell’s damage being on the low side, it drew some blood. It wasn’t common for melodies to grant powerful physical resistances, but other types of magic did not hold up to the same rules. Especially ones as cursed as blood magic.

Jacqueline fought Rottweiler cautiously, though not to the point where she was just waiting for him to slip up. As soon as it looked like she was committed to her swing, Rottweiler brought up his metal detector to catch the pick just behind the head of the weapon. It made an electric squeal as it detected the presence of metal. The intent was clear, he was going to step in close where he wouldn’t have to worry about getting hit from her pole weapon. But Jacqueline had anticipated this, and was not only stepping backwards, but was preparing a melody as well.

Beam attacks fired instantly, and are subtle enough that a magic user needs to be paying attention to spot them. Rottweiler might not have been that, but he did understand how magic worked and was able to see what was going on. He stepped off to the side, escaping just as a stream of rust flakes cut him along his rib cage. He hopped backwards before Jacqueline could drive her pick into his head.

[b]”I guess you won that exchange.”[/b] He drew his [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFjoOOPU6Xo]pistol[/url]. [b]”I wouldn’t mind sparring with you some time, but alas...”[/b] He aimed his pistol at Jacqueline, before swinging his arm over and firing several rounds into the cages to his right. Two convicts collapsed as the shots ripped through their cranium. The next cell had a businessman, who Rottweiler skipped in favor of the two convicts in the next few cells. The businessman looked shaken, but was unhurt.

Lada’s head shot up when she saw the spray of crimson in the four other cells. Her hands remained clasped together, and again, her cell lit up with eerie red hues. The corpses of the four men dehydrated as red strings of vermillion crept out of their bodies. In just a few seconds, they were little more than powder and bone. She was chanting words from a long forgotten language, and the blood strings shot out to every corner of the jail, filling the air with a red mist.

Jacqueline and Su could feel its effects. This was a spell designed to enthrall those in an endless rage. The espers and those who had been blessed by blood would not feel the effects much, but the inmates? Those already giving into their hatred? They fell victim immediately. 

Then Rottweiler gave a single command. 

 [b]”Open the gates.”[/b]

The cell doors all swung open, and the room was about to be flooded with pissed off inmates. Rottweiler stood in front of Lada’s cell with his baton drawn, seemingly prepared for whatever Jacqueline would try next. 

[hider=specs]
[center]32 | Female | Gemini | Steel Gaze
Bipartisan | Handgun, Greatshield | Physical | Bullet Window
Dragon Breacher | Kevlar Vest 
Debris | Wind | Locally Sourced
[Storm , Flight ], Push, Pull, Build, Purify, Restrain, Damage

DAMAGE: D | SPEED: E | SENTINEL: C | 500

[Bronze projectile][Pull][Restrain][Damage]

PHYSICAL: D | ARCANE: D | CHAOS: E | 292[/center][/hider]

[hr]

[sub][@FamishedPants][@OwO][@mantou][@ERode][/sub]


Fires! Butlers! Guns! Oh my! Nobody wanted to stand in the center of Sofron’s spell, and no one would blame them. Sofron himself just looked on with mild disinterest as the espers scurried around. 

Samuel stood his ground a bit longer than the rest. He pulled one of sofron's goons, causing him to spray the other goon with a few bullets. Maybe he died, maybe he was still alive, but it was clear he was out of the fight. Sofron aimed his machine gun at the esper and fired. The spray of bullets was inaccurate, but he managed to hit Samuel with a bullet before he retreated to cover.

[color=0099a6]"Try to aim straight, master Kent?"[/color] 

Aria stepped into the staircase with Samuel. She prepared a melody to give Apollo a bit more time to escape. As soon as Mamba got to the last step of the stairs, she went into action. The flows of mana twisted around them, locking their entire body in place. As strong as Aria tried to make her melody, it shouldn’t have had such a potent effect on an esper or magi. So Mamba likely did not have any kind of arcane resistances. 

[b]”Why you-!”[/b]

But wait a second, the hallway was on fire…

Didn’t Protector drag a bunch of guns that way?

POP! POW! RAKKA-TAKKA!

The guns pulled to the foot of the staircase started to go off. Protector’s shield would be able to take some of the damage, but they would need to retreat further down the stairs to avoid becoming bullet cushions. 

Fortunately there would be little problem with that since Klava had blinked into the hallway with the tear gas. She flung it Sofron’s way before charging him head on. As mighty as an esper could be, most physical forms of harm were difficult for them to deal with. That included the smokey substance found in tear gas. Certainly shooting through a smoke screen at anyone on the other side would prove to be tricky as well. Nothing would impede Apollo as he swung out the office window to a better vantage point.

[color=0099a6]"Back up, master Kent!"[/color] 

Master Kent did as he was instructed. He aimed his weapon where he thought Klava would be, prepared to fire, only for some huge faceless douchebag to fly out of the smoke. Apollo caught him with his man catcher and kept charging, carrying Kent all the way to the opposing wall. Kent was likely suffocating and had a broken neck, but Apollo didn’t stop running until he got to the window and Kent was thrown out of it, falling to the pavement shortly afterwards. He didn’t even scream as he fell. Sofron turned his head towards Apollo, then looked back at the smoke where Klava was emerging. He could shoot, but Klava was a swift esper and he wasn’t guaranteed a hit. His position had been surrounded. Yet he didn't look deterred.

[color=0099a6]"Fools, to take me on you must fight like a bear!"[/color] He picked up the light machine gun and kicked the catering cart into Klava to slow her down a bit. Then he balled his hand into a fist and drove it into the ground. [color=0099a6]"Balewulf!"[/color] 

The distorted howl of a wolf echoed through the building before a pair of jaws popped out of the floor. They were the width of the hallway and swift to close, which didn’t directly hurt anyone but made the air quite warm. In the wolf's place were floating bits of burning coal that filled a portion of the hallway. Klava could feel her skin drying out and peeling in a matter of seconds. Though worse than that were the burns that spread across her skin. Eyewash was not enough to keep her eyes moisturized, and if she lingered here for too long, she’d have second degree burns all over her body. 

Despite this, Sofron himself seemed to be impervious to the melody’s effects. He raised his gun to block Klava’s next strike before throwing his shoulder into her. If Klava was betting his instrument glamor was weaker than his genre, her hunch would prove to be correct. The tear gas would overtake them soon, but it seemed he was willing to wager his melody would have her out of the fight before it mattered. 

Meanwhile back at the staircase, Aria and Samuel could hear more chatter.

[b]”Did the tear gas go off?”[/b]

[b]”Why don’t you take a look, Adder?”[/b]

On the platform below them, another individual in bomb disposal armor appeared. He was holding a light machine gun and was starting to turn the corner. Just behind him was King Cobra, who was much faster to notice the espers in the stairway. 

[b]”You imbecile, get back!”[/b]

Cobra pulled backwards on Adder before dropping a grenade at their feet and hurrying down the stairs. It looked like a tear gas grenade, but it sprayed a distinctly [u]yellow[/u] colored gas into the air. The espers had a few seconds before the smoke reached them. 

Though behind them, Solfron’s spell had gone out, but it still managed to set fire to the second floor. The sprinkler system hadn’t kicked on yet, but a disgruntled Mamba managed to free themselves. Judging by the bullet holes in the front of their trauma plate, they were hit by a few stray rounds.

[b]”The barbecue… It started!”[/b]

With a laugh, he charged down the stairs with his cattle prod leading his attack. 

[hider=Important notes on Sofron’s “Balewulf”]
[Diamond touch][Full Extend][Zone][If Foe][Damage X]

The Damage note has a grade of “A,” which means that someone with A grade arcane defenses will take full damage after six seconds. Every grade below that will quicken the effect by about a second. So C takes four seconds, D takes three, and E takes two. The zone is filling up twenty feet of the hallway’s length, but doesn’t quite reach the opposing wall where Apollo is. That’s roughly six meters for those of you who don’t use the imperial system. Balewulf’s damage over time is equivalent to a [Damage] note, but all over your body. 

Everyone hit by Sofron’s melodies are also under the effect of “Baleful Flame,” which makes it so that your next melody can’t cost more than 50 mana.
[/hider]

[hr]

[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oMNwI4Gyq0][img]https://i.imgur.com/rtlB6LL.png[/img][/url]

[sub][@The World]@TheGMbby[/sub]

If it was a three v one, the Ape Gang could take on any rookie esper, any time of the day. Even in a two v one, their chances were pretty good, with a combination of monkey-tactics and their superhuman strength. But in a one v one? All the strength in the world did not make up for the fact that magic was bullshit, and Instruments were even more bullshit.

The bees that shot towards Tetrad were mere distractions with the surge of shrapnel that shredded them to bits, and though the longsword-ape tried to close the distance in that moment, a blast of blue glitter sent him floating upwards instead, feet kicking against the air like a cartoon character. There was nothing so cartoonish about what happened afterwards though. At only E-rank damage, it took a sustained, bloody burst of Pit Boss to turn a hunk of meat into a hunk of less attractive meat. The spell ended, and so did the furry’s life, his sword clattering onto the ground.

The whip ape fared no better against Marrie’s own advance, her healing magic stitching together the wound of her arm as she sprinted towards him. Though the maximum speed of a whip exceeded that of sound, the whip had no versatility either, dependent solely on linear strikes. All it took was for Apex Predator to meet one of those whip strikes with its own blade, and the whip was cut in half. The throat was opened up with steel teeth soon afterwards, a spray of hot blood baptizing Marrie as the whip-ape gurgled out a last [i]“return…to…monk-”.[/i]

But as for the last two apes?

[b]“Bullshit.”[/b]

Regina had had enough of this. This job didn’t pay nearly enough for the amount of bullshit that was continuing to be heaped upon them, and thankfully for her, she didn’t have much of a reputation as an freelancer to worry about anyways. With another Blink spell, she teleported out of the warehouse, then out to another building, and gracefully made her exit…leaving the brawler-ape and the spear-ape to set their sights on the remaining two espers. Hooting and hollering, and yet weirdly not sounding all that vengeful or sorrowful, they made the long trip back towards the dynamic duo.

Meanwhile, the Queen Bee, her subs’ volley of honeyed water going wide due to the wrecking ball that smashed apart a wall, was truly incensed now. Not only were there property developers here, but the primitives seemed to think that it was totally ok just to ignore her! She was a threat too! She had tons of crazy magic at her disposal! And yet these peons, these Neanderthals, these pissants thought they could ignore her! Well, not if she had anything to say about it!

[b]“C’mon ya crazy bitch,”[/b] the businessman said, tapping his fist against his hard hat, [b]“get goin’ already. This ain’t ro- BURLGHDGBURLBUGHHHH!”[/b]

A pressurized blast of honey water shut him up as the Queen hoisted the super soaker of one of her fallen men, one of her eyes glowing a brilliant blue. Just as soon after, a fresh crowd of bees surged out, each one of them angry and validating their Queen’s own anger. Seeing this, the man paled and ran, his custom-tailored Italian shoes slapping against the ground hard as he started doing laps around the perimeter of the warehouse. [b]“Fuck shippity fuck! I only eat organic you psycho! Damian! Bring this place down!”[/b]

From the cockpit of the wrecking-ball crane, a gloved hand extended out from the side and flashed a thumbs up. With a renewed roar, the bulldozers surged forwards, one towards the Church of the Hive and the other towards the Esper-Ape melee, while the wrecking ball swung into a devastating uppercut, smashing into the lights and beams of the building and sending all that deadly debris raining down on those below.

[hr]

[url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4Pzx1NDTtI][img]https://i.imgur.com/OYSa6cT.png[/img][/url]

[sub][@Majoras End][/sub]

The lightning arced about, easily catching both of the smaller crab raves in its blast. While an attack that had roughly the same punch as a damage note might not be lethal to a human, that was not the case for the much smaller crabs, and not when applied all over their bodies. Their tiny little eyes fried into cinders, and their shells cooked under the moderate force of Fable’s attack. Both of the mini raves totally lost their legs, and their larger forms fell to earth. While Fable’s spell did hit a decent sized area, it didn’t penetrate deep enough to shock all of the crabs. But they shouldn’t have been a match for Fable’s rapier once he closed the distance.

But these were not two legless crabs, these were hundreds of crabs pretending to be two legless crabs. When fable thrust his sword, he did manage to kabob five of them. But then no less then twenty small pincers bit into his sword. The two damaged grab raves merged to become whole, and Fable soon found his weapon held in the grasp of a massive shelled terror! It gave the boy’s sword a sharp tug to force him to stumble forward. Then it attempted to take him out with a savage right hook. And on that right hook were no less than ten crabs with their claws pulled back ready to deliver an uppercut.

Meanwhile, the doctor continued their dance of evasions. The Crab Rave was getting closer. Forty meters, thirty meters, they would be a problem for Fable before long. 

[color=baddab]”Try this!”[/color]

The doctor swung her massive saw blade at the Crab Rave and it cut through! All the way through, separating it into two halves and- Oh, there were two smaller-yet-comparatively-massive crab raves now.  

[color=baddab]”You’ve gotta have a weakness somewhere...”[/color]