Looming Shadows

Taiyo backs off.

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Azuma backs off, heading towards the ground.

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Vega recovers and covers his face using Eagle Fall to quicken his drop. On the ground he slams his fist down, attacking with Lich.

*Euryale's armor cracks & she falls down. Vines grow over her, which she struggles to pull off, rolling around to avoid the Keyblades deflecting off of the walls.*

Th"It appears to be some sort of dark explosion spell. I've no idea what it was, Roatha did not use anything like it before succumbing to the darkness."

R"When you have friends, you fear hurting them. Fear dulls your fangs. Makes you weak. That's why none of you will ever beat me!"

*He hurls an Explosion Raid out of the smoke of the explosion in Thiera's general direction. She of course uses Reflega to shield herself, but Roatha appears behind her as it fades, releasing another Raging Storm & dashing towards her, only to stumble back as he's shot through the leg & arm by some kid of pinkish laser arrow. More of them then fly out from further down the tunnel, severing the vines that Euryale is struggling against as a voice Artexi may or may not recognize speaks from the darkness..*

Vincent<I suggest nobody move before I can discern friend from foe.>
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*He's still blinded. When his eyesight returns, nobody else is in sight & the tunnel is collapsing. Whether it's from them or him is hard to say.*
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*Lilith flies opposite from Safian.*

L"Our attacks aren't piercing the tornado, but it can't keep that up forever! Azuma, where are you going?!"

*As predicted, the tornado eventually fades. The dragon then spits fireballs into its hands & chucks them at Safian & Lilith.*

At first Hinode immediately started to run over and check on Euryale, since her armor had cracked and those vines certainly looked threatening. He soon reached up the Photon Debugger, getting into position to severe those aforementioned bits of plant matter before he was suddenly stopped in his tracks by a voice that he for one certainly didn't recognize. He figured that trying to reason with disembodied voices probably wasn't going to work, so all he gave was a snide comment, "I trust you'll give us a chance to clean up before you start helping the friends and killing the foes, eh?"

*Artexi stops moving as soon as the voice tells her too*

<Hey...it's you! We met before, remember?>

*Artexi's voice trails off at the end*

Nero and Noctis were with me then...
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*Safian nods at Lilith, then flies around the fireball when it comes near her. Safian then begins to fire on the dragon's face. Monu looks around for something to land on so he can use his keyblade*

No one's moving even though this would be a good time to start some blasting.

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As the Heartless isn't following, nowhere. But maybe that could be changed by provoking it, so he flies back up and hits it in the side of the head with his glider, taking a passing swipe.

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He returns to the surface.

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He rolls forward and spins around when he rights himself and hurls his Keyblades while they're on fire at the Neo Shadows.

*Euryale looks at Hideki from her vantage point of lying on her back, holding the Keyblade in a defensive position in front of her face.*

E"I don't think I'd recommend trying. But I don't think anyone's in mortal peril right now either."

Vincent<I do. Back then, I rescued you from the Heartless. Now, the tables seem to have turned. And now I notice, you wear the same black cloaks as the men who've taken control of this town.>

Th"They are known as the Organization, & they've been breeding the Heartless to conquer this world!"

R"Screw Avici, this isn't MY problem!"

*Roatha opens a Dark Corridor, which closes by the time the shots get to it. The blasts illuminate an unkempt man in a red cape, firing from down the hallway, behind a pipe.*

Th"Please, wait, not every member of the Organization has joined of their own volition!"
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*There is now a large sinkhole in the garden. Avici materializes nearby, behind him.*

Avici<What is the meaning of this? Have more enemies discovered that these archaic water channels escape my eyes?>
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*The only option for landing is to fly up to the tower's roof, which is dangerously curved. Lilith swerves & adds her attacks & they actually manage to break the gas mask off, which hurtles towards Monu. Underneath, the dragon's face is basically a skull with teeth set in a wide grimace like that of an Oni. The dragon flies upward, performing another spin attack while breathing fire. This time, Glider-sized tornadoes of fire emerge, tracking the closest enemies.*

L"I think we just exposed its weak spot, but didn't do much actual damage!"
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*He can maybe hit the one on the ground or some far away, but the others have him. They begin pulling him down into the darkness as Shadows swarm over him.*

Azuma flies to avoid the tornadoes.

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Vega: "Yes. One claimed to have used the tunnels to get into the castle repeatedly."

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While the Keyblades ricochet, he squirms to break free of their hold.

For a moment, Kyohaku allowed his eyes to dart between the individual who was wearing the cape and the individual whose name he now knew was Roatha. Damn - he had no idea what he was supposed to be doing. He was a man of action, and at this point he wasn't so sure whom he was supposed to be fighting...and for a split second that made him question what Roatha was saying before.

Was he just following the orders of other people?

*Safian soars away from any tornadoes coming at her, then fires on the dragon's face as soon as it stops breathing fire. Without anywhere good to land, Monu dodges any tornadoes coming at him before using Air Gyre on the dragon's back*
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*Artexi laughs icily*

<That was back when Noctis and Nero were still around, wasn't it? Back before all of this shit with Roatha. Binah's-She's right, Roatha's only joined the Organization because of a stupid, selfish wish Nero made a while back. Don't blame him for our mistakes.>

<Too much hope is the opposite of despair... An overpowering love may consume you in the end. A familiar story, but it still doesn't explain why you would ally with the Heartless.>

Th"Their leader is the one who created the Heartless! We are attempting to put a stop to them, but it is something of a time-sensitive mission, so could we please save this interview for later?>

*Metal begins clacking on stone & eventually Vincent exits the tunnel. He turns, gesturing down its length with a metal claw.*

<Fly. Your battlefield now lies before you. The gate of tomorrow is not the light of heaven, but the darkness in the depths of the Earth.>

E"Uh. Okay. Does that mean we can--"

*Thiera pushes herself to her feet & casts Float to race past Vicent.*

E"Ah, I guess you speak his language."
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Avici<I believe it goes without saying that you are now permitted to enter the castle to intercept them.>

*As he speaks, a cage from the Lift Stop floats down.*
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*The dragon swipes a claw at Azuma & swings its tail at Monu. Lilith joins in on firing at its face, but it covers this with its other claw.*
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*The Keyblades bounce off of a few Heartless in front of him & are now headed straight for him. Fortunately for him, Senthose thinks of everything, & a trio of Dusks winds their way through the throngs of Heartless before hacking at those holding him down, prompting the Neoshadows to swipe at them. Of course, other Shadows promptly pile on top of them.*

Unlike Thiera, and perhaps much more like Euryale in this respect, Kyohaku had no ability to understand the other's language but considering that she was using Float to get past him, he figured that it might be the time to follow suit. Naturally he didn't have the ability to float like that, and he figured that his glider never would have fit through that class of a tunnel either, but Kyohaku though that he might as well attempt to race foreword on foot. Maybe this was it...could it be the time that he would finally meet the individual who created the Heartless?

Apparently Float is the way to go for whatever reason and Hitomi being sorceress supreme, casts it on Azuma, Euryale, Taiyo, and Hinode before getting the hell out.

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Azuma dives and attacks the dragon's body.

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Vega gets on the lift.

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Xyukuse recalls the Keyblades, dismissing the Frolic Flame and attacks the mob of Heartless with Slag Assault.

<I...I...Didn't...Couldn't go back to the Order...There was nowhere...>

*Artexi shuts her mouth as the Order leaves, then looks at Vincent*

<I'm an idiot, aren't I?>
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*Monu attempts to fly over the tail and use Air Gyre again. Safian continues firing on the thing's face*

Vincent<I don't know or care what you're talking about.>

*Having been left behind by everyone, Euryale pulls herself to her feet & starts to follow. She stops to look back at Vincent, who turns when addressed.*

E"Hey, aren't you coming along?"

Vincent<What for?>

E"Well, we need someone to show us to the nearest electrical grid."

Vincent<...I suppose I can escort you that far. But once this Organization is purged, I intend to return to my slumber.>

E"Sure, no one's gonna stop you from taking a little nap once this is all over."

*So they turn to continue. As more Heartless approach the party, Vincent pulls an [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] from his holster & obliterates them each with a well-aimed shot to the head. The Heartless came from one of a number of dark tunnels, most of which are blocked off by gates. The gates are, in turn, connected by pipes to crystals jutting out of the wall.*
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*The cage closes & travels upward on the energy line before entering a port in the castle wall. Once he's inside the hub of the Lift Stop it drops to the bottom level & deposits him in front of a descending staircase.*

Avici (Intercom)<This is as close as the Lift Stop, & therefore I myself, can take you to the tunnels. The intruders should still be down there somewhere. This is the only direct entrance to the aqueduct system, but there may be unknown breaches into the basement levels.>
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*As he can't jump, pretty much all he can do is let his arm fall, so the attack is much smaller & weaker than usual. The Neoshadows keep up with occasional kicks & slashes at the Dusks harassing them. Of course, for every Heartless they destroy, more swarm out of the ground.*
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*The dragon is still blocking its face, but its gauntlet starts to come loose, so Lilith adds in her attacks, knocking it off, & a plate around its tail pops off after Azuma & Monu attack it. Its claw is also just bone, but curiously, its actual body seems to be made of tangles of rusty chains.*

L"If you can't get to its body, aim for the straps of its armor, or even its wings!"

*As if responding to that, it flaps to raise higher, simultaneously sending a pair of tornadoes at everyone who was just attacking it. It moves its hand & adds a stream of fire from its mouth to set them ablaze.*

"I can't wait to get my hands on that grid!" Kyohaku sneered again and kept running along with the others as he knew that this guy must be on their side at this point. After all, it seemed like he hated the Heartless every bit as much as they had. "Anything I can do, or want me to keep hands off for now?" He knew only all too well that the real fun would start once they got to the electrical grid that she had mentioned before.

As apparently Euryale isn't or wasn't following, Taiyo turns back to go retrieve her, grabbing Euryale's hand when she does and carrying on back the way she came from.

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Azuma flies to avoid that nonsense, flying around back to hit its wings.

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Vega: "Affirmative."

Vega continues on his way, noticing the apparent lack of security or even reserve forces inside the castle.

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Xyukuse turns his Keyblade about and begins playing it like a ukaleleh.

Let's hope I'm making the right decision...for the first time in a while...

*Artexi enters the dark corridor, heading to Twilight Town or whatever Nero was taken*
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*Both Monu and Safian swerve to avoid the tornadoes and fire, then Safian continues firing on the thing's face, while Monu uses Air Gyre on some of the straps*

*Euryale is a bit weirded out by this, so she frowns & pulls back slightly. Vincent heads up to one of the crystals & presses it. When he does, there's a low-pitched "dong" noise, it glows, & then there's a massive groan as the gateway shifts aside to block one of the other tunnels & allow access to the previously blocked one.*

Vincent<This is partly how I prevented the Heartless from following.>

Th"The other part being shooting them, I presume?"

Vincent<No. As you can see, this gateway is electrically operated. You now know how to operate them. The 3rd gateway will lead to a side-passage. That contains your electrical switchboard. Beware, for the security system shall become increasingly aware of your presence as you approach the more modern parts of the castle. As will the Heartless. I trust that you wouldn't be so foolish as to invade without knowing the location of the main computer chamber?>
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*As Vega is following the tunnel, he notices that someone has sealed off the gateways, & also begins to hear a man's voice echoing off of the stone walls. It's deep, but somewhat cracked, as if he hasn't spoken in years. The Heartless must also sense something, because they come streaming out of nearby tunnels to follow him. This close to the castle entrance, there are even some Devastators, floating in their aerial form, arms rotating around it as the disc at the bottom moves to & fro, scanning the area.*
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*The sound waves tear through everything attached to him, including the weakened Neoshadows. Being slightly healthier, the Dusks are just knocked off, where they float in the air, twitching oddly. Wary, the Shadows back away from Xyukuse, but take advantage of the Dusks' incapacitation to launch onto & start tearing into them.*
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*It moves its wings to the side to continue firing on them, albeit the tornadoes are getting smaller. Those who stopped to attack--so basically everyone--will have a difficult time dodging. Lilith tries to go lower, at which point it slams its tail into the tower roof, the hammer creating a rock slide heading towards her.*
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*The Dark Corridor [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] her in an underground tunnel system. But unlike the tunnel system in Radiant Garden, this one is dry, relatively well lit, & while smaller, somehow more open. Should she walk around, she'll notice that the walls & floor are paved with stones of warm colors & the paths wind in interconnecting square patterns around support pillars. Every so often, a path will branch out to an exit with a neon sign above it depicting a numeral; 1, 2, 3, etc. While she's walking along, she probably notices dried blood on her nose, swelling in her face, & a general pain throughout her upper body. Something may be broken.*

Monu:<LILITH!>

*Headless of whether or not he gets hit by the tornadoes, Monu moves to use Air Gyre on the rocks in an attempt to break the larger ones up. Safian attempts to dodge, but covers herself in her leaves to minimize the damage*
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*Artexi pulls her hood down and starts looking around*

Well, fuck.

*She heads in the door labeled 1*

As ain't no one is snarky enough to say that's what they're doing, no one says anything.

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Azuma flies towards the ground. Not that it's likely to follow.

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It's likely there's no way to contact Avici who is too incompetent to open a gate anyways. Someone chose the wrong team.

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Xyukuse gliders up and goes through everything, heading to the castle.

Turning around slowly, Hinode took the time that Vincent offered when speaking to Thiera to have a look at the structure around them. He wasn't quite sure what was going on in that conversion, considering that he couldn't understand the other male, but he did feel that at least one thing had needed to be said for the time being.

"Keep in mind that I think I should be able to take care of anything involving computers or semiconductors. No matter what, it's what my home was made out of." He wasn't entirely sure if it was appropriate to bring that up at the moment, but he had decided to anyway.

Th"He means that he used to work at the castle."

Vincent<I wasn't going to ask & you are a dreadful liar.>

*Euryale takes a break from staring at where Taiyo has a hold of her in a conflicted fashion to look up at Vincent.*

E"How'd you know that she was lying?"

Vincent<Aside from the fact that I once guarded this very castle & do not recognize him? Everything else. But I don't care what you're doing as long as you remove the Heartless. They disturb my slumber.>

*He starts to head down a side tunnel so Euryale yanks her hand free in order to grab his cape. Vincent dully looks back.*

E"Oh no, you're not getting away without helping us!"

Vincent<If you want. But you will regret it. Just look at what happened to this castle while it was under my protection.>

E"Can someone cast a Don't-Be-Such-A-Downer spell on this guy?"

Th"There is no such thing. Just try to cooperate, this is where the real fight begins."

*As if on cue, all of the gates open. In the distance, they can see the Heartless approaching. There are some larger purple ones that weren't there before.*

Vincent<He knows where we are.>
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*It's too dark to see the Order at this distance, but the Heartless seem to know where they're going. At Vega's side, the Devastators emit electricity as they drop to the ground, swinging their legs down to support them & rearranging into the shape of a tank.*
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*Even though probably nobody wants him back, nobody stops Xyukuse from entering the castle wherever.*
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*Lilith's Glider is battered by rocks as it falls to the ground. The dragon actually does follow, doing a bit of a flip in an attempt to bash Safian's Glider with its tail & knock it down as well. As it approaches the ground, it rolls up & starts spinning, exhaling fire to become a living meteor.*
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*Door 1 leads to a large, fairly open terrace filled with 2-to-3 story houses, a road similar to the ones she's seen so far winding between them. As it's a residential section, the few adults that are out are doing odds & ends around the house, tending to small gardens or doing repairs. Preteens & teens can be seen running through the streets, which is surely totally safe. As a modern city, there's a fairly wide range of clothing, but shorts or pants made of denim & brightly colored shirts with patterns or designs on them seem to be preferred.*

Work at the castle? If that was going to be his cover from Thiera, then he was just going to accept it. Maybe Vincent would buy it...not that he would know. Turning about, he took heed of the Heartless that were assaulting them and started to narrow his eyes, "Just tell me what to do, Thiera and I'm ready to go to work."

This time he wasn't going to screw around. She was right when she said this was going to be the real battle. These new creatures certainly looked tough, but at this point he'd also learned a lot himself. "I may not be ready...but I'll give it everything I've got."

Azuma flies to avoid the attacks coming his way and lands, Keyblade equipped then hope it lands or at least hits the ground.

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Then it's time for some maxing and relaxing.

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On one hand those are intruders, but on the other hand they're not the one's he was sent inside to find.

So while the Heartless won't be able to deal with them, he continues with his objective.

*Artexi heads out into the street, then heads over to the nearest adult. A worried expression crosses her face*

<Excuse me, could you tell me where I am? I'm not from around here and got lost.>
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*Monu dives after Lilith, attempting to catch her before she hits the ground. Safian attempts to dodge the tail, then divers after the dragon sends her razor leaves and laser shots at it, hoping to ether hurt or distract it*