[center][h2]Geralt of Rivia [/h2]
Frozen Highlands- The Midnight Walk
Lvl 15 Geralt (262/140) +6 Collab XP -> (129/150) 345% -> 360 % OL Charged (Lvl 2)
Word count: 594 words [/center]



[center][hider=New Ability for Geralt][b]Original Burst & Mystic Arte[/b] (Paladin)- Unlocks the Burst Arte Blazing Pillar Smash. Comboing from an arte or Sign attack, locks the target with a sigil that unleashes a pillar of holy energy, dealing many hits, before knocking the enemy free with a demon fang which carries them away. Any level of Overlimit allows Burst Artes to be used, but they grow in power with each level of Overlimit. Also unlocks the Mystic Arte Radiant Dragon Fang. Combo'd from a Burst Arte or advanced Arte (such as Guardian Field or Holy Lance), Geralt gathers holy energy within his weapon, then unleashes it in the form of a trio of energy dragons, which carry the enemy upwards before dropping them to the ground. If the triggering ability lands successfully, Mystic Artes can only be blocked or cancelled by an equivalent, Ultimate-level ability or transformation. Mystic Artes also require at least level 3 Overlimit in place to be used.[/hider][/center]

To say Geralt was disappointed that most of the Reindrix had been killed would be an understatement. “Damn. Must’ve been a [i]hell[/i] of a monster.” He grumbled, trying to hide his disappointment in the others. He, Heismay, and Roxas had their own issues with Vauban, though they dispatched him in fairly short order, as evidenced by their return being second. Mokou and Sectonia were both powerful, and with Blazermate practically eliminating any worries about incoming damage, they’d be able to easily dispatch anything they came across. 

While the group waited, Geralt pulled out the droid spirits he’d been carrying and quickly crushed them. 

[center][hider=Items Obtained][b]Titanium Alloy[/b]
A bundle of highly durable alloy made of rare metals. Very useful

[url=https://i.imgur.com/sWPPJhM.png][b]IRONMAUS Arm Gear[/b][/url]
An armguard reinforced by decent-quality parts scavenged from robots. Provides decent defense and stability and a slight increase to punching power

[url=https://cdna.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/019/269/276/large/chenfeng-march-fs.jpg?1562744782][b]Black Steel[/b][/url]
A high-quality, well-used tactical ballistic shield. In addition to being extremely durable, a trigger built into the grip on the back can be used to briefly electro-charge the shield (~.5 second duration). If the shield is struck during this time, its force will be absorbed, nullifying chip damage and providing the Charged Defense buff, increasing defense by 40% for 8 seconds. The electro-charge takes 5 seconds to recharge and does not recharge while Charged Defense is active[/hider][/center] 

The materials were obviously useful, even if he wasn’t entirely sure what the metal alloy was. Transforming into LCCB Assistant Manager, he looked over the shield and found it satisfactory. Equipping it, he sent the bundle of metal, the armguard, and his old ballistic shield to the Armory via the transport spell.

Soon enough, the hypertube began to open, and Sandalphon even had an idea for replacing their Gleaming beasts of burden. He had to admit that it was a good one, as well. Avoiding that major flaw would make the rest of the journey a lot smoother. 

The way the hypertube operated was just another bizarre thing that Geralt would have to deal with. When Eve sailed off to it on her blade, he let out a tiny laugh. How bizarre. He followed after her before the cart, transforming into the armored LCCB Assistant Manager with its bullet-resistant shield. He dropped the shield to the ground, kicking it into the hypertube and jumping onto it like Eve had her sword. He was quickly pulled in, zooming after Eve and Adam’s drone.

Behind him, the stagecoach slowly trundled into the tube as the obstacles ahead began to appear. These earned a flat look from Geralt, and a simple whispered, “of course.” Before he began emulating Eve’s movements, stamping down onto one edge of the shield to dodge an incoming shipping container. 

Rapidly after that, things got even more complicated. A Skulling launched itself from the wall of the hypertube after Geralt, tentacles outstretched to take hold of his face and suffocate him. He quickly lifted his pistol, firing a pair of rounds into the Naytiba’s body, sending it off course and flying past him. Of course there were monsters here, too. The ride quickly devolved into a saga of dodging random debris and shooting at the monsters that revealed themselves, including some that exploded upon their payloads being shot. When he first shot a Cymul that reflected his bullet back into his protective vest, though, Geralt put that one firmly in the ‘Avoid Only’ category and put his efforts into dodging them rather than destroying them. 

One advantage of not being on the stagecoach meant that Geralt was able to control his own maneuvering, and that made evading danger much easier than it would have if he had remained on the bulky carriage. That made evading the Cymul much easier, and with his reflexes he was only unlucky enough for a single Skulling to attach itself to him, trying to pin his legs together and immobilize him before infecting him. Geralt simply holstered his pistol and grabbed the thing, ripping a few tentacles off its body as he yanked it off and tossed it into the hypertube with disdain. The tentacles writhed violently for a few moments, trying to take hold, but he was quick to remove and dispose of them as well as he continued to surf down the tube.