[center][h3]Deep Ground - the Cornice[/h3]
Level 6 Goldlewis (151/60) Level 5 Sandalphon (77/50)
Blazermate, Susie, and Roland’s [@Archmage MC], Midna’s [@DracoLunaris], Geralt and Zenkichi’s [@Multi_Media_Man], Sakura and Karin’s [@Zoey Boey], Pit’s [@Yankee], Roxas’ [@Double], Giovanna
[b]Word Count:[/b] 2920[/center]

The appearance of a Consul did not take Sandalphon by surprise, but it was hardly something that she or the others could take in stride. With only the appearance of that ominous floating hand as foreshadowing, the Seekers found themselves confronted by one of the World of Light’s hidden masters, some of them for the first time. She herself had seen Y face to face, as it were, just last night, but in some ways it still didn’t feel real. Generally, the various ills that plagued mankind could not be attributed to any one individual, instead being complex and often interconnected societal or systemic issues. That was why suffering proved so hard to quash, as she knew all too well. Here and now, though, she could meet the eyes of a man who’d orchestrated countless plots, stoking the flames of war with lives treated like chaff. It wouldn’t be unrealistic to call him a root of evil. This was a special occasion, and it offered a rare opportunity.

So why couldn’t she pull the trigger?

It made no sense to indulge a villain in conversation. Their words were poison, and any stalling for time could invite extra complications. Last night, she put an ether bolt in Jena Anderson mid-speech, interrupting her monologue. Right now, though, Sandalphon kept still. The fate of Akira Howard still lived in her memory–the suddenness and completeness of her annihilation as the Consul pulled her into his vortex. The archangel told herself that she was merely being logical; if her preemptive shot was statistically unlikely to eliminate the threat, singling herself out for his ire would be a needless risk. At the same time, though, she felt uncertain. Was this…fear? Surely not. Could her fusions really have affected her that much?

Either way, Y didn’t give anyone much chance to focus on him. Instead he called in reinforcements, and not just any reinforcements. The sight of Akira Howard alive and well shocked Sandalphon, but the archangel quickly realized that this -none of these- were her. Just copies, produced through artificial means like cars on an assembly line. And there were [i]lots[/i] of them. As more clones climbed, leaped, or simply fell from their pods, Sandalphon quickly counted the glowing red containers along the hallway’s walls. Six pods per row, four rows per section, three sections per side…if every one contained a combat-ready clone, the Seekers were looking at around a hundred and fifty enemy combatants. And though her negligible red matter contamination meant that she couldn’t see them, she expected that any Neuron officer would come with a legion. The legatus devices strapped to their left forearms all but confirmed it. Sandalphon gripped her staff and steeled herself. This was going to be rough.

When the team moved to engage the clones, Giovanna led the charge, with Goldlewis not far behind. Since many of the clones had already switched their x-batons to blaster mode, the melee fighters were forced to forge through a punishing bombardment of laser shots, all much weaker than the ether bolts fired by Sandalphon’s gunstaff but far more numerous. The legios equipped with Bow Legions seemed happy to remain at a distance, charging up powerful light arrows or raining down flurries of bolts. Still, they were only an annoyance compared to the rest. Once he closed the distance Goldlewis went whole hog, leaving huge bruises and breaking bones with each titanic swing of his coffin. He could fight a whole lot better than these clones, and his enormous height and weight difference gave him a huge advantage, but his enemies’ legions more than made up for it.

Right away Goldlewis wound up fighting tooth and nail to work his way past the legions, which barely registered his weightest blows while plastering him with wounds in return, in the hopes of taking down their masters. With every exchange, however, he found his efforts confounded by some new and dangerous ability. Arm Legions could unleash lightning-quick barrages of punches, fling off explosive bolts from their fingers, grab him, or merge their arms into cannons. Sword Legions could send ethereal swordblades twirling up and down their chains, or execute precision strikes that could cut attacks short. More than once they tried to sever the chain Goldlewis used to wield his coffin like a flail, but luckily the solid metal held. Beast Legions were not only vicious fighters, but also capable of letting off projectiles, tornadoes, or mind-numbing howls. Axe Legions were the worst of all, able to put up barriers to protect their masters or leave explosive axeheads in the ground. And naturally, all of them could bind him and give themselves a free second or two to whale on him with their bludgeons. The clones’ bag of tricks kept putting him on the back foot, and when the veteran gave an inch, his enemies took a mile.

Protected against the gunners thanks to Zenkichi’s Rakukaja, Sandalphon watched the situation closely as she cycled between offense and support on a continuous, precise rotation. Against one clone, legion or not, any Seeker could triumph easily. Against two, they could certainly manage. Three was where it started to get shaky, and it hardly stopped there. Things looked sustainable at first, with many team members racking up a few kills, or even seizing the chance to power up. Midna strove to even the odds as things escalated, and together Sakura and Karin fought expertly. The reality was, though, that everyone was taking damage, and the situation only got worse as new clones arrived to take the place of those that fell or tired. Blazermate could handle emergencies as they came up, but Sandalphon found herself using her healing skills soon after she built the requisite SP. She changed her focus to getting as many bodyshots as possible to charge her skills faster. As the fight went on, wave after wave of healing radiated outward like divine ripples. As long as she and Blazermate kept it up, the Seekers had a chance–and a certain somebody knew it.

After showing Pit that it would take a lot more than a few measly arrows to send him packing, Y had watched the battle dispassionately from behind, his arms crossed. Master Hand floated overhead, silent and practically motionless. Despite a strong start from the Seekers, the Consul could see the balance slowly shifting in his favor. In order to expedite the process, though, he needed to sever the intruders’ lifeline.

“Officers,” he called out imperiously. “Prioritize the enemy medics. The blue support droid, and the tall woman in white.”

With no will of their own, the clones obeyed. Some immediately sent their legions after the healers, then used their partners to yank their chains and fly in after them. Once close, they attacked with their x-batons in gladius mode for the most damage. Sandalphon was beset within seconds, taking a flying kick to the stomach that almost knocked her over. As she fought to right herself, three legios attacked her at once alongside their monstrous phantoms. She tried to leverage her range advantage, striking with her gunstaff and defending herself with razor wires, but the archangel could hardly fight against foes she could neither touch nor see. Even using Vault to leap upward failed as a Beast Legion locked its jaws around her ankle and dragged her back down to the ground. Meanwhile, the clones with Bow Legions zeroed in on Blazermate to shoot her out of the air. Worst of all, the teammates that hastened to the pair’s aid would be punished for their heroism as packs of clones up to a half-dozen strong rushed to blindside them. 

The sight of the Seekers’ struggle made Y snicker. Singling out the healers, even if it cost him some troops, had been the right move. Once they went down, their allies would all fall like dominos, each death increasing the burden on those that remained until even the strongest amongst them had no choice but to buckle beneath the weight. “Now you begin to see. You were doomed the moment you chose to oppose me. To oppose progress.”

Just a few moments after the Consul said this, his gaze shifted past the fighting, to a lone figure racing down the hall. Confused, he leaned forward and squinted to verify what he was seeing, impossible though it was. After another moment, however, he couldn’t deny what his eyes were telling him. It was [url=https://i.imgur.com/MD6NjjQ.png]Hayato Howard[/url], the hotshot rookie officer who’d been his favorite pawn right up until last night. Caught in the crossfire between the Alpha helicopter and Jena Apotheosis, he’d given his life to make sure the terrorist-turned-monstrosity had been destroyed. Or so it seemed. “Officers!” Y called out again. “Stop that man!”

A squad of clones waiting for their turn at the back of the crowd turned to engage Hayato. The policeman slowed down, a look of horror on his face as he beheld his sister’s face, worn by faded copies running his way to attack. After a moment he shook his head, composing himself, and summoned his Sword Legion to take them on. Blue and red legions clashed in a flurry of sparks and heavy metal, blade against blade. Hayato’s took first blood with a wheeling downward slash, prompting a heavy cross-cut as his legion recovered. Before it could be hit, Hayato pulled his partner toward him, then hurled it right back the next second. It struck with a dual-bladed uppercut as its opponent recovered, flinging the red Sword Legion into the air. That opened the way for an Arrow Legion to zoom forward in a corkscrew dive, then finish with a point-blank arrow blast. After shielding itself, the blue legion pulled Hayato over, who used its arms as a springboard to somersault forward and come down with a crushing gladius blow. He planted his weapon’s tip and used it for leverage to launch a kick into the Arrow Legion’s chest.

The next second, an Arm Legion snatched Hayato out of the air, punched him in the gut, then tossed him up for a two-handed smash. Instead the young man executed a Perfect Call, stunning his attacker as his Sword Legion burst out of him. It whirled around him in a diagonal upward slice, followed by both swinging one another over their heads for a quick chain of overhead smashes. Wasting no time, a Beast Legion lunged at him again and again, but on the third near-miss a Perfect Dodge allowed Hayato to strike back. His partner lashed out like a spinning top against the Beast Legion while he unleashed an acrobatic baton combo on the legionis, and as their assault culminated, the Axe Legion and its controller attacked together. They went on the offensive while protected by rotating red shields, but Hayato commanded his Sword Legion to summon rotating blue blades with Round Sword, and together they beat through their foes’ armor to knock them both back. The next moment all five closed in again, but before they could mob him, Hayato ordered his Legion to use Auto-Bind. It flew out in a circle and ensnared the whole group, chaining them to the ground, before spreading out flat on the floor and spinning forward like a sawblade to take all five out.

Y narrowed his eyes, his attention no longer on the Seekers’ fight. “Hmph. Do you really think you can win?” At his command, even more clones broke off to engage Hayato. They attacked en masse, quickly overwhelming him and his legion, which vanished to recover. Hayato fought back, but it was a beatdown, and once the clones sent him rolling across the floor he could rise no higher than his knees, spitting out blood. As the facsimiles of his sister closed in to finish him, he gritted his teeth and made a vital decision. Grabbing the legion core that clicked and gyrated in the heart of his legatus, he yanked it out, hesitated for a split second, then jammed it into his own chest. Instantly a blinding blue light emanated from him, spreading across his body until it engulfed him completely. When the flare died down, a hulking [url=https://i.imgur.com/feN0qYe.png]being[/url] with long, disjointed claws and flowing hair stood there, neither human nor legion, but something in between.

Beneath his mask, the Consul’s lip curled. “Kill it!”

Instead the fusion lunged, so fast that it almost seemed to teleport. Its claws cleaved through a clone before she could call her Legion. As she fell to her knees, the fusion grabbed her head, lifted her, then bounced her off the ground and dispatched her with a kick. The others tried to fight back, but it wasn’t any use. The fusion unleashed a storm of energy scythes that hurtled through the air like boomerangs, slicing into his enemies, and after flinging them far and wide he threw himself forward in a berserk rage. With incredible speed and power he carved into the clone army, evening the playing field for the Seekers within moments. As the insurmountable pressure let up, they could rally and begin the fight anew. After staring in astonishment, Y realized that his certain victory was about to become a crushing defeat.

“Enough!” he yelled. Immediately, the remaining clones stopped fighting and scattered, fleeing from the Seekers to a safer distance. Hayato’s berserk energy came to a head just after as his legion fusion overloaded, reverting him back to human form. Goldlewis stood his ground with a white-knuckle grip still wrapped around his coffin’s chain, his heart pounding as he gasped for breath. Giovanna leaned on Rei for support as she made her way over, also panting. Though she felt the pain of her wounds more keenly than ever, Sandalphon held fast and worked another miracle, healing the team with Angelic Praise. Everyone watched the clones, and especially the Consul, with great suspicion. Nobody believed this was over for a second.

Y crossed his arms, scowling. “It seems you’re all very intent on causing us trouble. I can see why that fool S is so afraid of you. You’ve already slain several Guardians, after all. While their Consuls’ backs were turned, of course. H, X, M, L, A…none so much as lifted a finger to stop you, and now here you are, ready to destroy another Guardian.” He held his hand out dramatically. “Well, the buck stops here. I will not be disgraced like they were. Your misadventures end here!” The Consul snapped his fingers, and two of the Akira clones nearest to him turned to face one another. They lifted their x-batons, then violently struck one another’s necks, killing each other instantly.

All around the Seekers, the clones paired off and, with neither hesitation nor ceremony, executed one another. When they died, their spirits fused with their legions’, the ashes of their bodies corrupting into red matter. The fused spirits then began to fuse together themselves, becoming swollen red-black masses of vividly glowing red matter. “Now you’ll see the true inner workings of legionic fusion!” Y declared, spreading his arms. “Witness the door opening to the future of all humankind!” 

Goldlewis gave a heavy sigh of resignation. “Why’s it always end up goin’ this way with these folks?”

“Hey, if we can hit whatever he becomes, I’d say that’s a step up,” Giovanna joked.

Y activated his vortex, vacuuming up not just the fused spirits, but a vast amount of the luminous green mako energy around him. The more he absorbed, the brighter his body shone, purple energy radiating outward from the glowing core in his chest. “Though I forsook my humanity and became Moebius, I have never forsaken my true goal: the salvation of mankind! And what better time than now, with the enemy at the doorstep and this world’s destructors before me? Behold! Within me, all will become one. Even you! A singular nexus of existence!”

The purple singularity detonated, destroying the bridge around him, and alongside the wreckage it began to fall downward into the giant reactor. Before it could fade into the vortex of green, however, the luminous purple resurged, and up from below rose a huge figure of ethereal, sinuous flesh, his three heads covered in enormous, multi-eyed masks like Y’s own, and his body interspersed by giant spurs of bone. As it arose, Master Hand disappeared, leaving just as suddenly as it came. That left the team alone beneath the glare of twelve giant red eyes as the Consul’s powered-up Moebius form let out a skull-rattling roar. The [url=https://i.imgur.com/GY5DKNn.png]Soul of Ambition[/url] was ready to fight.

“...That ain’t right,” Goldlewis muttered.

[b]”Are you ready, Seekers of Light? To become as gods!?”[/b]

[center][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9N8riifuriI[/youtube][/center]

Immediately, a solar sniper round from Sandalphon’s Eye of Sol slammed into one of his eyes in a burst of flame. “See,” Giovanna said nonchalantly as she assumed her fighting stance. “We [i]can[/i] hit him. This isn’t so bad.” The archangel did not reply, but a fleeting smile passed across her face as she clicked a full magazine into place, then crouched down to better aim her next shot. Once handed his minigun by the UMA, Goldlewis spun up its barrel, and with a scowl Hayato switched his x-baton to blaster mode. It was time to bring Y’s delusions to an end.

[center][h3]The Under - Dawn in Dirtmouth[/h3]
Level 13 Ms Fortune (81/130)
The Koopa Troop’s [@DracoLunaris], Primrose and Therion’s [@Yankee], Sectonia’s [@Archmage MC], Ganondorf’s [@Double]
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1804[/center]

After stepping back out from Sectonia’s chosen hut into the night, Nadia stumbled, her knees almost giving out beneath her. She’d tried to keep herself as cheery as ever during the haircut, but in truth the feral was bone tired. It had taken more than she wanted to admit just to stand up again, and now even staying upright proved to be a challenge. Her stomach rumbled, giving voice to her powerful hunger, but Nadia knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that she’d pass out well before she got the chance to choke anything down. Groaning, she pushed herself forward, retracing her steps toward the dwelling she’d claimed. Listlessly she watched Chucho playing around in front of her as she went, staring at the tireless specter as he chased the mists swirled and scattered by the chill nighttime breeze. The little guy really did warm her heart, but she regretted that she couldn’t curl up beside the warmth of a live dog. At least she probably wouldn’t have a hard time falling asleep tonight, no matter how cold it was. Within a couple minutes, the feral drunkenly lurched into her chosen hovel, clumsily barred the door behind her, and collapsed into bed. Too tired to figure out her designated sleeping bag, she wrapped herself in it, piling up the old tarps and tapestries of the long-gone weaver. Seconds later, Nadia Fortune was asleep at last.

[hr]

Though Nadia fell into a deep sleep, so far gone that it would have taken a thunderclap directly overhead to rouse her, her slumber that night couldn’t exactly be called peaceful. She tossed and turned all night, never waking, but never at ease for long. As much as the cat burglar yearned for sweet oblivion, an uneventful skip straight to morning sunshine and restful rejuvenation, her night was plagued by dreams. They lacked consistency and coherency, making little sense to begin with and then shifting unpredictably. Like playing a card game whose rules she didn’t know, Nadia kept getting dealt bad hands. Stitched-together plots, nonsensical scenes, and amalgamated characters left her baffled, and just when she began to get immersed, it would be time for another shuffle. By the time Nadia finally woke up to rays of early sunshine peeking through her domicile’s windows, she remembered nothing.

It took her a moment to recall just where she’d gone to bed the night before, in fact. This was Dirtmouth, the hollow husk of a town where she and the others ended up after the Metro, and where they’d managed to drag themselves after days in the Under. She rubbed her eyes as she thought about their trip. Out of every new acquaintance they made while underground, only one person remained with them: Ganondorf. They’d traded Rubick for him, essentially, and lost Omori along the way. Had that been a good trade? Ganondorf was a real wild card, and he didn’t seem to like her very much, but at least he actually [i]did[/i] stuff. [i]That’s what counts[/i], she supposed, but hopefully he’d end up liking her at some point along the way. That was a secondary concern, though, because today was the big day. Again. She couldn’t afford to roll over and go back to sleep. With all the mask fragments gathered (or so she thought, at least), the time had come to topple a Guardian.

How many days since the last one? After the Orphan, Blue Team enjoyed a day of rest and relaxation. After that, a day of travel, first sailing through the pirate-infested Sea of Serendipity and then rattling through Nyakuza Metro. Had they really fallen into the Chasm, fought through the Womb, and ended up in the Home of Tears that day too? Crazy. Then another full day in the Home of Tears, and yesterday had been a tour of different Under locales from the Hive to Hollow Bough, toppling bosses like bowling pins. So, four days. Realistically speaking, that was incredible progress. Luck really seemed to be on the Seekers’ side, guiding them on the right path. Of course, each day did feel rather like a Herculean labor. Down in the Under, she’d completely lost track of time. It could’ve been a year, for all she knew, and in some ways it sure felt like it. But now the time had come, and if Nadia Fortune was going to help save the worlds today, she needed to get some food in her, pronto.

Nadia stretched her stiff, creaky body, popping bones to relieve pressure and get herself moving again. After that she donned her coat and scampered out into the glorious sunlight. Now [i]that[/i] was a sight for sore eyes, her inability to stare at the sun notwithstanding. Whatever all those people did deep underground couldn’t possibly be called living, not without the source of all life shining down one’s skin, filling the soul with the power of stellar radiation. She’d spent so long squinting in the dark that it was almost blinding out here, but she adjusted quickly, and once she could see Nadia began her search for food.

Already the grand, fantastical landscape of the Chasm was buzzing with activity. Crews of miners had emerged along with the sun to start the day’s work, filling carts with fragments of magic-infused minerals like condessence crystals, noctilucous jade, titanite, and smithing stones. Even the hardiest workers needed to eat, and wherever the most workers could be found, Nadia figured she’d find the grub. She jogged across the Chasm, using her climbing and jumping skills to take more direct paths than most could hope for, and found her way to the biggest camp. [url=https://cdna.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/055/301/028/large/jan-tverdik-quarry22.jpg?1666628160]Reeves Quarry[/url] was where most of the miners -and their hauls- came to be taken care of, divided into living quarters and on-site processing. Juxtapositioned against the workers here, Nadia stood out quite a bit, but everyone was too busy -or otherwise occupied- to give the catgirl anything more than a surly side-eye. She followed the sound of a booming voice toward the foot of the big building, surprised to find herself crunching along a path of quickly-melting snow on the way, and spotted what looked like a big cart above the heads of the crowd. When she climbed onto a stack of stone cubes, however, she realized her mistake.

[center][youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HNIqR0KpCI[/youtube][/center]

This wasn’t a cart, it was a sled. It was the size of a small building, and judging by the smoke spiraling upward from its chimney, it possessed its own mobile forge. Instead of suitably huge dogs it featured a team of oversized [url=https://i.imgur.com/hoS6NJ3.png]snow golems[/url] tethered to the front by leads, the movement of which across the earth left trails of snow that the huge sled could glide on. That voice she heard before, bellowing for hundreds of feet in every direction, belonged to a [url=https://i.imgur.com/CQlp1y7.png]mountain of a man[/url] who could only be described as a walrus with legs, complete with tusks. Right away she realized that this smith wasn’t selling food, but she stayed a minute to watch anyway–Muk’tuk was putting on quite a show.

“And this! One of my very finest cauldrons!” Muk’tuk hoisted what must have been an impossible heavy [url=https://i.imgur.com/fOhTvhR.png]turquoise basin[/url] with just one gloved flipper, using the other for emphasis. “It came to me in a fit of PURE INSPIRATION! That night, I could hear my ancestors speaking to me. Through my MUSCLES!” He flexed his huge tattooed arm, his bicep bulging through the outer layer of fat. “And they told me: seek DEPTH! A cauldron made in the merfolk style, forged of abyssalite! Every detail, lovingly engraved. You see, it looks like a FISH!” He held it sideways above his head like a priceless relic so that his customer could see it properly. “And for my people, you understand, fish are special! We LOVE them! If the ocean is the cradle of life, then this is the mother of all cauldrons!”

Muk’tuk managed to make the sale just before the customer ran out of patience, raising his product’s price by extolling its craftsmanship and using his sheer enthusiasm to seal the deal. After a bit more haggling in order to sell off some furniture, cookware, and tools, the crowd dispersed, and the walrus let out a sigh of relief. “Hooh! That’s all of them…for now!”

Nadia sidled up to the sled, making no bones about how impressed she was. “Quite the silver tongue you’ve got there, big guy!”

The artisan chuckled, his belly shaking. “You flatter me! I have full faith in my products, each and every one. Not just as commodities, but as works of art! I merely try to open my clients’ eyes to their virtues!” Though Nadia couldn’t see the smile in his eyes thanks to some very scruffy eyebrows, the upturn in his mustache clued her in. “What can I do for you, my feline friend?”

Nadia shrugged. “Dunno. I don’t need any works of art right now actually, I was dying for something to eat and just followed the crowd.”

“Dying, you say? Goodness!” Muk’tuk made a big show of concern in a joking manner. “Well, we can’t have that now! Wait right there!” He disappeared into his sled. After a moment, he appeared with a squat, cylindrical can, which he extended to Nadia. “Here! I don’t barter, but when clients come angling for a discount, they bait their hooks with fish! As it turns out, there CAN be too much of a good thing, hahaha!”

Nadia accepted the big can, her eyebrows raised both at its weight and its price. “For free? You spoil me!”

“Think nothing of it!” Muk’tuk raised his mitten and tweaked his mustache slyly. “Or rather, think of Muk’tuk, next time you need something made! Wood, metal, and bone most of all, it matters not. All merchants need money, but for me, the relationship is more important! Build a strong enough ‘ship, and we can conquer even the roughest waters!”

The feral grinned. “Well, I’m sold! If my friends need anything made or fixed up before we head down, I’ll send ‘em your way!”

After waving goodbye, Nadia ran over to the nearest corner she could find. There, away from prying eyes, she wolfed down the fish, devouring every last morsel. Not her typical breakfast fare, but she was starving, and this helped take the edge off. “Hah…” she breathed, pleased but hardly full. With such a big day ahead of her, nothing short of a feast would do.