[center][h3]SOU Hideout[/h3]
Level 11 Tora (103/110) Level 11 Poppi (103/110) Level 1 Goldlewis (6/10)
Midna’s [@DracoLunaris], Geralt’s [@Multi_Media_Man], Pit’s [@Yankee], Blazermate and Susie’s [@Archmage MC], Sakura and Karin’s [@Zoey Boey], Raz’s [@TruthHurts22], Bede’s [@Crimson Flame], Roxas’ [@Double], Benedict’s [@Dark Cloud]
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1297[/center]

“Not sure,” Giovanna told Midna. “Doesn’t happen much. But recognizing a fusion outright is practically impossible. My guess is they’d be checking for any big differences between the current you and the you in your gridPrint whenever you get inspected.”

Peach gave Benedict an encouraging nod when he mentioned the possibility of helping. “That’d be great. When it comes to saving the world, we need all the help we can get, and you’ve already shown us you’re a man of many talents. If there’s anything from your position in the government you can share that might help in our search, please let us know!”

With Jessica’s scoop on the layout of the city’s eight Sectors and N’s Other forecast in mind, the deliberations continued. Susie approached the subjects at hand with a unique perspective, one that blurred the line between offering concrete solutions and singing her Haltman Company’s praises. Casually, almost matter-of-factly, she mentioned that her own corporation, which supposedly harvested planets and possessed a solar system’s worth of resources, could not only out-compete the Shinra Electric Power Company but also take over the city from them, which sounded fanciful at best. She did present one intriguing possibility, though: that it was Shinra with a link to the Dystopiascape’s Guardian, rather than the Ever Crisis. Hopefully, Goldlewis mused, her theory would amount to nothing more than a shot-in-the-dark guess at a worst-case scenario.

“In addition to the mountain of paperwork it takes to open a brand-new company here,” Goldlewis told her, “You’d need to get vetted by the city council. Background checks, approvals, the works. Takes weeks. Just ain’t possible for an off-grid, not in the amount o’ time we got.” Susie’s true proposal, however, concerned DespoRHado Enforcement. She wanted to ally with them rather than Neuron or Psych-OSF as Goldlewis recommended. Midna and Raiden -one he assured the group he wouldn’t fly off the handle- both chimed in with their doubts, but the latter provided a little extra information he happened to be privy to. It was as Goldlewis feared; unlike Psych-OSF, which actively recruited any suitable candidates they could get their hands on, or Neuron, which promising police cadets could transfer to, DespoRHado was highly selective. Raiden would consider biting his tongue and helping them if push came to shove, but it sounded to Goldlewis like climbing into a pit of vipers.

Peach summarized the situation best, however. “If working with this company is a last resort, and going against them is very dangerous, it might be better to just leave them alone in the meantime.” She rested her head in her hand, thinking. “That, or we could try to follow their deployments. Collect rumors, get an idea of how they work from a distance, and trash some machines in the process. Hmm…”

The Others seemed to intrigue Blazermate, although she missed her guess about what they were. “They are not undead,” M replied. “As mentioned before, we know very little about them, other than their connection to the Extinction Belt in the atmosphere. The answer sort of took the wind out of Blazermate’s sails when it came to her interest in the Others, leaving her indifferent, but Raz kept his focus on the subject. In fact, it seemed that the names provided by Dr. N ignited something in him. “That’s good news!” M said. “It would appear that this group is a hidden treasure trove of prior connections.” He gave Blazermate another thorough look for good measure. “I don’t believe I’ve seen any robots like yourself among the Machines, but there are many variants, so keep an eye out.”

Midna latched on to Raz’s suggestion. She observed that the boy would probably be a perfect OSF candidate, but in the interest of not leaving him to fend for himself, the Twilight Princess proposed that the group take advantage of today’s Other forecast by joining the Scarlet Guardians on patrol. She did admit that the path to stardom might not be so clear-cut, but Goldlewis didn’t hate the idea one bit. He gave a sagacious nod and tapped a finger in her direction. “I reckon that might just be y’all’s best bet. When it comes down to it, helpin’ folks and savin’ lives is what’s important, and the Psych-OSF knows it. That’s why they value strength so dadgum much.”

Poppi crossed her arms, recalling information on the city. “It sounds like we should pay a visit to Sector 3 then. Suoh, right?”

“I hear ya, but gettin’ there’s the problem,” Goldlewis advised. “We got too many people to fit in both cars, ‘cause we need whoever they’re registered to along for the ride. Plus, it might attract too much attention.

“Why don’t we split up? Half to Suoh to meet the Scarlet Guardians, and half to Detroit to see what we can find out about DespoRHado and the Hermit,.” Peach suggested. She glanced at Sakura, her expression apologetic. “Sorry, but…maybe we could stop by Inkopolis some other time? I’m sure it’ll come up eventually, and when it does, we can try some sports together!”

Tora waved his wings. “Tora want see pinnacle of mechanical engineering in Midgar, meh!”

“Not to be a stick in the mud or anything, but wherever you’re all going, you’re out of luck when it comes to crossing plates or levels without a gridLink,” Giovanna mentioned. “Unless you plan to go on foot or sky-rails, you’ll need to get scanned no matter what vehicle you’re in.”

At that, Jessica gave a slight smile. “While you all were out getting dusty on Kunad, we weren’t just sitting on our asses here. We got in touch with our friend from Night City, and he started hacking up some blank gridLinks. Even now he’s hard at work making you into upstanding members of Midgar society with forged gridPrints.” She shuffled her papers smugly. “Speaking of, we’ll need to take official pictures of you all, and work on your histories. If an Agent shoots you a question about your workplace, we can’t have you blubbering out whatever comes to mind.”

“It’ll be about an hour judgin’ by his last update,” Goldlewis confirmed. “Then, we can set out. Me in my hummer with whoever’s headed to Suoh, and Giovanna can drive the rest down to Detroit. Y’all gotta get your own rides sooner or later to keep the feds from crackin’ down on us, but we can handle it for now.” Goldlewis stood, gesturing around the meeting room. “So, make yourselves comfortable. We got tea, coffee, biscuits…”

“The biscuits are for Rei.” Giovanna interjected.

“Uhh…” For the briefest of moments, a look of worry passed across the cryptid collector’s face. He swallowed. “R-right, heheh, just kiddin’. Movin’ on, we got spare clothes if ya need. Dress shirts, suits, an’ so forth. On the cheaper side ‘cause it’s standard issue but it’ll help ya blend in. Since this place used to be a police station, we even got a rec room, and a locker room complete with showers. Kinda barebones, but it makes for a fine hideout. Use whatever ya like.”

“Meh, meh. This all very complicated. Makes Tora glad am not leader.” Tora swiveled and hopped down from his chair. “Hooray for downtime!” he sang. “Over here Poppi, Tora want look at new parts. Been while since last diagnostic too, meh.” The two went off to find an unused office to tinker in, but not after Tora stopped by the counter to grab some snacks. 

“Once everythin’s ready we’ll head out,” Goldlewis said. “We can both seat six. See ya in a li’l bit, folks.” He went to get some coffee himself, wearing a smile. He had, in fact, been kidding, but thought that making it seem like he ate a dog biscuit would be funny.

[center][h3]Suoh[/h3]
[b]Sector 3 Upper[/b]
Goldlewis, Peach, Raz, Pit, Roxas, Bede, Sakura, Karin, Midna
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1317[/center]

After Goldlewis led Peach -who’d exchanged her futuristic getup for one of the office’s spare sets of work clothes- and five others down to the garage, he roused the beast, and in short order the American’s massive and fittingly-named beige [url=https://i.imgur.com/SCw8DY8.png]Patriot Mammoth Hummer[/url] roared out into the late afternoon sunlight. Formidable and impressive, it rumbled down the motorway in the direction of the Shinra Building at Midgar’s center, since the interplate highway tunnels in its facility would facilitate the quickest travel between sectors. Just traveling in this vehicle, more like a tank than a car, made Peach feel unstoppable, and with Goldlewis at the helm plus her new gridLink fitted snugly around her wrist the Princess hoped that she would be. The Sector 7 highways wound back and forth around buildings and districts, less confusing and grandiose than Kunad Highway’s routes but not by much, and the passengers got a good chance to scope out this section of the city.

Compared to some of the crowded skylines the Seekers saw on the way in, Sector 7 seemed pretty normal. Even the [url=https://i.imgur.com/6nUYlDW.png]busiest parts[/url], full of office buildings and apartment complexes interspersed by elevated railways, pipelines, and roads offered room to breathe. True to Jessica’s rundown, much of it seemed to be residential, and out of the thick of it lay numerous [url=https://i.imgur.com/Jrzz6MC.png]smaller boroughs[/url]. As Goldlewis steered his mighty machine down the highway, his passengers spotted a number of interesting vehicles as well. They saw an [url=https://i.imgur.com/dDLwlpA.png]Apocalypse Sasquatch monster truck[/url], a [url=https://i.imgur.com/qzlh5BM.png]wooden train[/url], [url=https://i.imgur.com/WMswvgJ.png]hover cars[/url], [url=https://preview.redd.it/hagd3hn8gsg51.jpg?auto=webp&s=7bb3bffbd0bab9579ae15f0a3588e7449ccaa643]hovercraft[/url], and a [url=https://i.imgur.com/xb5zRRf.png]super stroller[/url]. Peach even glimpsed a rocket-propelled [url=https://i.imgur.com/D2A99OZ.png]bathtub-mobile[/url] as it cruised by. She did not, however, see any overt signs of danger, or even unrest. It must be nice for the people to be able to go about their lives as if the Ever Crisis did not exist, the princess figured, but it might be hard to get to the bottom of things. As her team got closer, the colossal Shinra Building only towered higher, standing like a colossal engine above the rest of the city’s tallest landmarks.

About forty-five minutes and no fewer than five security checkpoints later, with plenty of tension but no sign of any problem with the new gridLinks, the hummer emerged from the [url=https://i.imgur.com/sqyk2FE.png]final tunnel[/url] into Sector 3 upper, Suoh. To most of them it seemed stark, almost barren even, a jungle of glass, concrete, walkways, and multi-lane avenues full of empty spaces, full of people but missing something. To Raz, however, [url=https://i.imgur.com/EykpI1C.png]this place[/url] was a sensory overload. Visions covered every last building and available surface, like a million television screens everywhere he looked, and most of them were ads. Anything that didn’t need to be solid, from street signs to crossing guards, wasn’t. The boy’s eyes glittered with the light of countless psychic displays that only he could see.

A few minutes later Goldlewis parked his hummer in the lot of a complex full of trendy-looking stores and restaurants, unable to be dazzled by their brilliant Vision displays. “For folks like you,” he said to Raz. “It’s a whole ‘nother world compared to what folks like us see. Everythin’ from top to bottom ‘round here’s designed with psychics in mind, which means it ain’t easy if you’re a dud.” He snorted. “Hell of a word, ain’t it? But people prefer it over ‘mentally inept’.” He popped open the door and climbed out, then headed for the trunk. “Still, when it comes to killin’ Others, ya don’t need powers.” From the back of his hummer he withdrew the Area 51 High Security Coffin, which he slung over his shoulder like a knapsack. “A good arm and a little gumption are enough.”

Peach joined him, and the group headed out to the sidewalk. Pedestrians and cars crossed back and forth, but without the means to see the signs most of the newcomers would need to resort to either guesswork or the raised bridges to get across the streets. They could see the surveillance systems, though. Every fifty feet there seemed to be another cluster of black cameras pointed in various directions, dotted with harsh red lights that gave them a pointed stare. They stared down at the tasteful sidewalk tiles, hedges, trash cans, and bus stops, listening quietly to the citizens. Passers-by, many decked out in futuristic techwear, spoke about all sorts of subjects either with one another or alone, using Brain Talk. A number of them mentioned ‘Otherfall’ elsewhere in Suoh, worried about the repercussions there or the possibility of such an occurrence here. All the way down Main Street, a walled plaza with an open gate led toward a big, almost citadel-like structure topped by a enormous [url=https://i.imgur.com/7KsqOr8.png]glass brain[/url], its triangular panes all tinted red. Or perhaps, scarlet.

“We’re tourists from Sector 7,” Goldlewis said aloud to explain to the others, rather like a G-man. “Let’s wander around some and see what we find, hm?”

Fairly close by stood the most popular restaurant and place to meet on main street, [url=https://i.imgur.com/HH4mWhY.png]Musubi’s[/url], featuring peppy music and ever-changing Vision menus. On the right-hand side lay Vision Town, a cluttered and twisting market street open only to foot traffic full of small businesses all jostling for attention, including some [url=https://i.imgur.com/NBLc29w.png]outdoor food courts[/url]. Farther along lay Sumeragi Tomb, a mixture of [url=https://i.imgur.com/yBaEAKC.png]Japanese shrine[/url] and [url=https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8WifTEi3aKY/maxresdefault.jpg]mausoleum complex[/url]. On the left stood Anemoiapolis, a multiple-level pool complex-slash-escape room that danced with Visions of sea creatures, Paradise Lost sauna with its unique dark atmosphere, a department store for techwear apparel, and Aquarius Hydroponics Garden, a health center and natural grocer. Behind the parking lot lay a route to a multi-leveled courtyard surrounded by apartments that looked almost [url=https://i.imgur.com/qBlPFPa.png]bleak[/url] without psychic sensitivity, although the citizens walking and playing with their dogs there lent it some extra life. And of course, in between there lay countless other boutiques and things squeezed into every last nook and cranny, like laundromats, workshops, and outlets from Hope Station, where Psych-OSF personnel and approved citizens could ride Maglev trains to traverse the city. With a lot to take in and explore, the Seekers set off.

Anyone who ventured up the steps of Sumeragi Tomb, though, might find something especially interesting. In the first shrine tear, with its structures surrounded by some of the only verdure to be found this deep in Suoh, stood a distinctive five-man team. A [url=https://i.imgur.com/0Rzgb9I.png]young man[/url] with a sword across his back and his [url=https://i.imgur.com/Wfvl87k.jpg]brown-haired friend[/url] stood comparing fortune’s they’d just received from a stall, though neither looked especially pleased. Nearby two girls, one [url=https://i.imgur.com/4sbvf80.png]bespectacled[/url] and her companion [url=https://i.imgur.com/3mpzcbK.png]pigtailed[/url], stood complaining loudly about something or other, while a [url=https://i.imgur.com/3lnnGlR.png]teen with a topknot[/url] attempted to make use of the shrine’s peace and quiet for meditation. All five wore black techwear with red accents, with thin orange cables looping around and through their garb.

[center][h3]Detroit[/h3]
[b]Sector 8 Lower[/b]
Giovanna, Tora and Poppi, Raiden, Blazermate, Susie, Geralt, Benedict
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1024[/center]

While the others drove the length of Sector 7’s highways to reach the interplate tunnels, Giovanna steered her run-of-the-mill [url=https://i.imgur.com/UsnFOMQ.png]SeeD personal Carrier[/url] the opposite way. Tora sat on Poppi QT Pi’s lap, ostensibly to free up another seat for his teammate, although he seemed happy to lean against his companion throughout the ride. Their team made for the outer edge of the plate, where a station would allow them to ride a speedy Maglev train down the wall to the city’s lower section. The guards on duty didn’t give their gridPrints a second glance; clearly, the SOU’s contact knew his stuff. Giovanna parked her car in a secure area, and once squeezed aboard public transport, the Seekers hurtled one Sector over to the lower part of 8, known as Detroit. Their route was neither scenic nor comfortable, and in fact they needed to take a little extra care -or be a little extra menacing- to avoid any potential thieves who might take advantage of the situation.

As Giovanna explained on the drive there, pickpockets weren’t the only dangers the newcomers might face in public transportation; certain thieves employed devices called skimmers that could trigger monetary transfers from the accounts attached to hapless citizens’ gridLinks in close quarters. While such devices wouldn’t net any ill-gotten gains from accounts with falsified numbers, having strangers realize their bankruptcy would certainly do them no favors, so watchfulness was an absolute must. In sectors where digital technology reigned supreme, a skillful hacker could achieve just about anything. When Giovanna told him this Tora made a mental note to ask about that later, and resolved to keep a sharp eye out.

Thanks to the maglev’s blistering pace, it wasn’t long before the train slid to a stop in a terminal station. The heroes exited to find themselves well and truly in [url=https://i.imgur.com/ghMqxeA.png]Detroit[/url]. Even in broad daylight the plate up above cast a heavy shadow over the undercity, exacerbated by the hazy atmosphere up above to douse the industrial expanse in perpetual twilight. Tora needed to look out toward the land beyond the city limits to remind himself it was still day, though what he saw brought him only cold comfort. Outside Midgar stretched miles and miles of desolation. Lesser cities’ remains stretched all the way to the Valley of Ruins between the Dystopiascape’s border mountains, and those blocky, overgrown highrises sagged together like aged tombstones in an unsettling manner. Out there lurked the Machines, and whatever diabolical engines gave rise to those unyielding mechanical hordes. He and his Artificial Blade  stood there for a moment staring out into the distance, imagining an entire army of the red-eyed, soulless robots the twins exhibited in their slideshow. Tora reached out for Poppi’s hand to squeeze it, and she squeezed back. Together, they would show the world the difference between mass-produced junk and Noponic automata.

They caught up with Giovanna and the others a few moments later after they stopped at an overlook on the station’s right side. To his shock Tora looked out across a massive hollow basin that stretched hundreds upon hundreds of feet further down into the ground, lined on all sides by towering buildings. This orange-tinged [url=https://i.imgur.com/7xgaWUg.png]urban pit[/url], full of buildings laden with rust, stretched all the way to the greenish smog, tangled pipes, and dark, craggy towers of Sector 1’s Zaun, and it continued a good ways into Detroit as well. “Impressive, huh?” Giovanna asked, her tone nonchalant. “Well, that’s Zone 09, AKA Quarantine Valley, an autonomous exclusion zone. It’s been that way for longer than just about anyone remembers, but I got curious, so I looked it up. Twenty years ago, the biggest Chimera outbreak in Midgar’s history left the streets a corrupted waste, so people live on the rooftops. Its corruption levels are off the charts, and Redshift is rampant, but it’s contained, and so are the citizens. Nobody in or out, officially anyway. Between it and the Sector 7 Slums, though, they’ve got the Ever Crisis salvage industry cornered. So a lot of stuff gets by on the sly. Pretty good chance we’d find some Hermits down there, if you ask me.”

She crossed her arms and turned to her new allies to give them an overview of their own situation. “Well, we don’t have my car anymore, and unless you feel like hoofing it through one of the most dangerous undercities in Midgar we need a way around.” She pointed out some elevated [url=https://i.imgur.com/70lEms1.png]metal rails[/url] that snaked between the buildings nearby. “Bingo, sky-lines. The monorails don’t run anymore, so we should be fine to hitch a ride. Of course, we’d need sky-hooks to do it. Maybe we could convince a local gang to give us some.”

Tora blinked, surprised, then smiled. “That awful nice of gang!”

“Figure of speech,” Giovanna snarked while Poppi reprimanded her Masterpon’s naivete with a poke in the forehead. “Though, the most important thing is figuring out where we’re going. Out to the ruins to fight Machines, or deeper into Detroit to check out the PMC. Let’s scope out the place, see what we can make of it for now. Just keep in mind, things are a lot looser down here than up top. Stay on your toes.”

Tora widened his eyes innocently. “But Tora not have toes!”

“Now you’re just trying to be annoying…” Poppi nudged him. “Masterpon.”

As the team turned away from Quarantine Valley toward the streets, the undercity confronted the team with a [url=https://i.imgur.com/3z8ARyz.png]shiny veneer[/url] best exemplified by the brightly-lit Limb Clinic up ahead, but those streets belied a cramped, cringy underbelly, and the facade quickly gave way to [url=https://i.imgur.com/gnqZmHY.png]dingy back allies[/url], [url=https://i.imgur.com/hWfkOsa.png]trash-ridden courts[/url], and even a [url=https://i.imgur.com/k4MydbF.png]solid waste landfill[/url] where much of the Sector’s outmoded or unsalvageable trash came to rest.

[center][h3]The Caves[/h3]
Level 10 Nadia (69/100)
Therion’s [@Yankee], Sectonia’s [@Archmage MC], Jesse’s [@Zoey Boey], Omori’s [@Majoras End], Ganondorf’s [@Double]
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1177[/center]

[center][hider=For Sectonia]You have acquired:
[b]Coin[/b] x2
[b]Worm[/b]
[i]A sturdy little wriggler. It can be used as fish bait, or placed in a farm it will help till and hydrate the soil around it, increasing the growth of crops slightly[/i]
[b][url=https://i.imgur.com/gfnFHaJ.png]Hopper[/url][/b]
[i]A metal storage device that can collect things that fall into it (or pull items out of storage above it) and transfer them into whatever its lower output port is attached to[/i][/hider][/center]

With the Duke of Flies well and truly slain and the boss gates open again, the rest of the Seekers could trail inside to rendezvous with the trio that mopped up the Basement. Sectonia, Omori, the Knight, and Therion all made it, a few fresh cuts, burns, and bruises on display but nothing to write home about. Nadia didn’t see the Adventurer, but then again she didn’t remember him jumping down through that chest to begin with; maybe after the incident with those giant flies he figured he’d be better off adventuring on his own. Considering the nature of the Seekers’ mission, Nadia couldn’t blame him. Better to have new acquaintances quit than bite off more than they could chew and end up…well, dead.

The heroes spent a few moments to collect themselves, which gave them a chance to catch their breath, commiserate and complain about the awful stuff this place confronted them with, and top off their health via Sectonia’s regeneration aura. Still, they couldn’t dilly-dally forever, and even if they’d rather not plumb the depths of this vulgar dungeon for even worse horrors, there didn’t seem to be any other ways out save an ascent back up through the entry tunnel into that pest-filled mine. Once she finished her stretches, Nadia sauntered up to the trapdoor. “I’ll take point again. I’ve flung myself into danger twice already, no point in mixin’ things up now.” She jumped, tucking her knees against her chest and clasping her arms around them. “Cannonball!”

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/yfeQ8TX.png[/img][/center]

Dark. Dank. Spotted by leaks and weeds. The Basement didn’t have a lot going for it, to be sure, but at the very least it [i]had[/i] been conspicuously well-lit for how few actual light sources it featured. In comparison, the Caves seemed even less inviting. Nadia sidled out from beneath the hole to make way for the others, her ears perked up for any hint of what might lay beyond this room’s four exits. It smelled as if she’d exchanged the despicable odor of offal for the sickly-sweet reek of decay, which might not be a whole lot better, but given all the nastiness she’d experienced in here so far the feral would cherish every blessing she could get.

[center][b][u][url=https://bindingofisaacrebirth.fandom.com/wiki/Caves]The Caves[/url][/u][/b]
[img]https://i.imgur.com/B5OWdBs.png[/img][/center]

As the others made their way down, many being less light on her feet than Ms Fortune herself, Nadia took a sneak peek at the surrounding chambers. To the north lay a large room full of different kinds of maggots, many of them with freakishly human little faces, and some of them even sported one on each end. Just watching them wriggle and writhe around made Nadia’s stomach churn, and with a shiver she rotated to the next door. In there she counted six scarlet [url=https://i.imgur.com/hBGzfh2.png]Boils[/url] sitting among the rocks, swollen to the point of throbbing, while three [url=https://i.imgur.com/J2mp3d8.png]Mr. Mimes[/url] traipsed around with skinless heads tugging their bodies around via sinuous, elongated necks. “These things belong in a horror flick,” she hissed, gritting her teeth. Aside from the enemies though, she spotted a familiar sign above the door on the other side. [i]Another shop![/i] With a whole eleven cents burning a hole in her pocket, Nadia wanted to see what was inside.

She turned around to face the group just as the last of her allies entered, that being Sectonia, who being too big to fit through the shaft needed to warp through the tunnel from one floor to the next. “There’s a shop through here!” she called. “I’ll handle this.”

The curious cat stepped inside, and the door slammed shut. Though they lacked eyes to see with, the Mr. Maws whirled to face her and stumbled her way. Rather than wait for them to close in, Nadia made a beeline for one of them, racing on all fours past a couple boils toward a corner that had none. They belched out showers of blood tears at her, but by the time they fell she’d already left them behind, and in just a moment’s time she’d reached her first target. The Mr. Maw launched its head at her with unexpected speed. “Hey now!” she snapped, stopping short to block. “Don’t lose your head!” She jumped and slashed through the extended neck, then airdashed forward to come down with an axe kick on the body. It proved stronger than its counterparts in the Basement, however, and survived to start gushing blood from its neck. Worse still, an awful, raspy snarl from behind her made her ear twitch, and she whirled her head around to see the now-detached Maw floating toward her.

“Ooh, you spoil me.” She raised her arm to drive her elbow into the Maw, then thought better and flipped away from the Gusher she’d created to land on a rock, her brow furrowed. [i]So if I cut the neck, they just become two enemies,[/i] she thought. [i]Well, it’s not the only one.[/i] With a sweep of her arm she created a Copycat from her blood, which stepped forward to smack the Maw with a headbutt before carving it up. It then raced off to deal with the Boils, while Nadia remained in the Boil-free zone to deal with the bigger issues. She pulled out her chains and jumped, somersaulting through the air like a buzz saw to hack the Gusher apart. When she landed, she held the chains up and swung them in a circle around her not unlike Jesse’s new orbitals. Her anchors struck the Mr. Maws again and again, and even when they broke up into more enemies they just kept walking into Nadia’s blender. Soon enough they gave up the ghost, and the feral checked on her Copycat.

Her doppelganger had eliminated the Boils one by one, methodically pummeling them down into pulp so they couldn’t grow back. With her Copycat heavily damaged and contaminated by the Boils’ filthy blood, she didn’t want it back, so it eventually just melted down. Just one foe remained, and Nadia went after it. She baited a blood shower, then moved in to reduce the last Boil to a stain with a quick combo. A single coin dropped as the doors opened. “All worth it,” Nadia sighed as she collected her loot, then used the key from the big room in the Basement to proceed into the shop.

A stony corpse sat in there, stooped forward as if sleeping with a fire on either side of it. In front lay a heart for three cents, a yellow pill for three, and a [url=https://i.imgur.com/C7E6u3A.png]glowing prism[/url] for fifteen. There also seemed to be a donation machine, but the feral didn’t so much as give it a second glance. “Ooh, some kind of gemstone?” she bubbled excitedly, squatting over the device. If this could light her way in the dark, she’d be set! Unfortunately, she was ‘light’ on cash as well. “Aw, nuts. Only twelve. Just you wait though,” she poked the corpse in its forehead. “I’ll be back when I get fifteen!” With that she turned back to see what the others had gotten up to.

[center][h3]The Colorless Wood[/h3]
Koopa Troop’s [@DracoLunaris], Primrose’s [@Yankee], Rubick’s [@Scarifar][/center]

A veritable horde of slavering, eight-legged arachnids descended upon the Seekers, masked by the mists, the grass, and the pitch-black silhouettes they loved to hide in. Just the noise by itself would have been the stuff of nightmares, but while this situation would have been curtains for any other hapless wayfarers, it turned out to not be quite as dire as it first seemed.

The Koopa Troop belted out firepower using a variety of elements, and to their barrage Rubick lent his magical strength. With Primrose’s Peacock Strut elevating their power even further, they laid into the spiders as they swarmed. The destruction of their webs by the gunk-slinging Juniors meant that the weavers could no longer descend through the open air, and with those lines not so easily restrung the heroes quickly cut down on the spiders’ means of approach. This in turn funneled them into more predictable routes. Brain-rattling sound waves and frigid, movement-impairing gusts impeded the crawlers’ advance, and the heroes could begin to secure their position. Once the walls of fire and trenches of paint around them fried the first couple dozen spiders into foul-smelling husks, the horde kept its distance around the Seekers’ dangerous perimeter, surrounding them on all sides but unable to advance. A handful of intrepid arachnids rappelled down from the trees above, but Kamek’s efforts meant that only a couple managed to plop down among the defenders. In short order, they managed to turn an overrun into a standoff, and all things considered the situation didn’t look too bad.

Then Rika shot at the giant spider. There came an odd flash of bright blue that turned to purple and then black, spread out like webbing from where the spider lay, and it disappeared. A brief moment passed, and then another, much brighter flash went off–directly above the Seekers’ encampment. One second later [url=https://i.imgur.com/W1P3kA3.png]Silitha the Brood Mother[/url] slammed down into the Seekers, indiscriminately scattering them, their defenses, and many of her own children. “̴H̸y̶a̴h̵!̴”̸ she shrieked, her voice raspy and garbled. “̷H̶o̵l̸d̵ ̵s̷t̴i̸l̶l̵,̴ ̵l̷i̷t̴t̷l̷e̵ ̷o̸n̷e̵s̸!̴ ̴I̷’̶l̶l̴ ̷m̶a̸k̷e̷ ̵t̵h̷i̷s̶ ̶q̸u̶i̶c̸k̷!̵”̶ She teleported again off to the side, then lunged forward with a double-smash of her forelimbs aimed at Bowser.