[BitPR2] Renewed Revolution: Mortal World III

[Dorizzit]

[Ikari]
Quarry

Katsuo holds Alpha-1 despite the pain, and Tamaki shoots at Alpha-1's wings, prying them out of Katsuo's back but failing to seriously damage the durable weapons beyond a few cracks. Shinji and Chuck, meanwhile, take advantage of the AI's vulnerability to steal into her soul and try to free their friend. And, for the first time, Alpha-1 is silent before Shinji's castigation. Its tricks are spent, its trump card foiled, and its mobility sealed. For a few seconds, victory is within sight for the battered mortals.

A few seconds, and no more.

The first thing that becomes apparent to Shinji and Chuck is that they have completely misunderstood the nature of Alpha-1. Its soul is not that of a human. It is a weapon, a fortress, down to the tiniest atom of its existence. As they try to enter Alpha-1's mind, they find themselves hitting a steel wall, one which promptly hits them back. Breaking into Alpha-1's soul will require focus, precision, and and foreknowledge of its design. This trip provided them experience with the soul entering technique and a glimpse of their target, but cost them something very important: time.

In the physical plane, Alpha-1 begins laughing once more as Chuck and Shinji are hurled back into their respective bodies. Compartments open on both of Alpha-1's legs, revealing two more of the vials. They immediately launch away, flying to each end of the entrapping cube. This time, there is no pause to gloat, no taunts or posturing. The vials explode within a second of leaving their housings, combining with another explosion from the bomb buried under the ground. Each bomb individually could level several city blocks, but together they fill the entire cube with a massive explosion of concussive force and fire, the trap actually intensifying the explosion by redirecting the blast back towards the center. Moreover, each detonation releases a terrible explosion of light and sound, creating a disorienting effect not unlike an extremely powerful flashbang. Finally, due to the third bomb being buried by Shinji, the ground gives way beneath the entire group, sending them falling towards the new floor tens of meters below.

As the bombs explode, Alpha-1 carves off several chunks of her own flesh, allowing it to slip from Katsuo's grasp and Chuck's tentacles. She slithers away into the smoke and dust, unseen for the moment.

[strawberryman]

Katsuo lurches after Alpha-1 for a moment... only to fall face first, his eyes fluttering as the toll of lost blood finally starts to affect his heart's ability to pump to his brain. He falls with a sick splat to the ground, without intervention, anyway. His wounds have thankfully been cauterized by the flames, but he's already lost a lot of blood.

[AnimeKid]

[Ikari]
Quarry

Katsuo holds Alpha-1 despite the pain, and Tamaki shoots at Alpha-1's wings, prying them out of Katsuo's back but failing to seriously damage the durable weapons beyond a few cracks. Shinji and Chuck, meanwhile, take advantage of the AI's vulnerability to steal into her soul and try to free their friend. And, for the first time, Alpha-1 is silent before Shinji's castigation. Its tricks are spent, its trump card foiled, and its mobility sealed. For a few seconds, victory is within sight for the battered mortals.

A few seconds, and no more.

The first thing that becomes apparent to Shinji and Chuck is that they have completely misunderstood the nature of Alpha-1. Its soul is not that of a human. It is a weapon, a fortress, down to the tiniest atom of its existence. As they try to enter Alpha-1's mind, they find themselves hitting a steel wall, one which promptly hits them back. Breaking into Alpha-1's soul will require focus, precision, and and foreknowledge of its design. This trip provided them experience with the soul entering technique and a glimpse of their target, but cost them something very important: time.

In the physical plane, Alpha-1 begins laughing once more as Chuck and Shinji are hurled back into their respective bodies. Compartments open on both of Alpha-1's legs, revealing two more of the vials. They immediately launch away, flying to each end of the entrapping cube. This time, there is no pause to gloat, no taunts or posturing. The vials explode within a second of leaving their housings, combining with another explosion from the bomb buried under the ground. Each bomb individually could level several city blocks, but together they fill the entire cube with a massive explosion of concussive force and fire, the trap actually intensifying the explosion by redirecting the blast back towards the center. Moreover, each detonation releases a terrible explosion of light and sound, creating a disorienting effect not unlike an extremely powerful flashbang. Finally, due to the third bomb being buried by Shinji, the ground gives way beneath the entire group, sending them falling towards the new floor tens of meters below.

As the bombs explode, Alpha-1 carves off several chunks of her own flesh, allowing it to slip from Katsuo's grasp and Chuck's tentacles. She slithers away into the smoke and dust, unseen for the moment.

Katsuo lurches after Alpha-1 for a moment... only to fall face first, his eyes fluttering as the toll of lost blood finally starts to affect his heart's ability to pump to his brain. He falls with a sick splat to the ground, without intervention, anyway. His wounds have thankfully been cauterized by the flames, but he's already lost a lot of blood.

Tamaki's Argus System beamed an alert to him about an impending build up of energy and then explosion, one he had no chance of dodging. Tamaki grit his teeth in frustration as he couldn't even get to Shinji, Chuck, and Katsuo with the short amount of time till detonation. So he did the only thing he could at the moment.

"Assault Shroud: Fortress Mode active!"

With that shout the tessellated hexagons that made up the Assault Shroud broke apart and rearranged themselves into a superdense pyramid around Tamaki the multiple hexagons that made it up over lapping each other. The barrier took the multilayered explosion admirably and allowed Tamaki to remain undamaged by the blast. However now his Assault Shroud was completely depleted. When the pyramid landed on the floor below with a loud thunk it was dismissed revealing Tamaki inside. Seeing the thick smoke and debris Tamaki immediately activated his Argus System once more. Alpha-1 wouldn't be able to hide her position from him. Dismissing his Fusion Annihilator and re-drawing his Plasma Vulcan's Tamaki made his way over to his friends as the Argus Systems sensors swept over the area.

[Dorizzit]

"Remote detonations successful 3/3. Preparing analysis."

Alpha-1 isn't really trying to hide. Having regenerated her injuries, she floats down through the clearing dust and smoke, high above the ground of the pit. Behind her are...more Steins. Dozens of them. If Tamaki has some kind of advanced sensor in his suit, however, he can tell that these ones are different in design from the previous ones. Less complex, easier to produce, and incapable of firing on their own. They begin to float down into the pit, while the AI hovers above and sweeps the ground with her eyes.

"Targets B and C incapacitated. Target D's power levels suffering fluctuation. Target A has been lost. Initiating scan."

Alpha-1 seems to have gone back into "Robot Mode," although how long that will last is anyone's guess.

[KnightDisciple]

[Ikari Outskirts]
[Quarry]

The explosions were just starting as Chuck regained his senses after being kicked out of Alpha-1's Mindscape. He raised one hand, and the flames licked around him...

************************************************** ************************************************** ********

The dust was still settling. Katsuo was basically incapacitated. Shinji was lost somewhere in the smoke. Tamaki was mostly alright, but still gathering himself. And Alpha-1 had some other terrible plan rolling.

But where was Chuck?

"Dunkelklinge, Das Schwert spaltet Böse."

Oh, there he is. Wings blazing with power, armor singed and cracked but mostly intact, and a giant black glowing sword that's ludicrously sharp in hand.

Said sword is currently just about to slice off about a third of Alpha-1's body mass, including an arm and a leg. Seems like Chuck's not really holding much back right now.

[AnimeKid]

"Remote detonations successful 3/3. Preparing analysis."

Alpha-1 isn't really trying to hide. Having regenerated her injuries, she floats down through the clearing dust and smoke, high above the ground of the pit. Behind her are...more Steins. Dozens of them. If Tamaki has some kind of advanced sensor in his suit, however, he can tell that these ones are different in design from the previous ones. Less complex, easier to produce, and incapable of firing on their own. They begin to float down into the pit, while the AI hovers above and sweeps the ground with her eyes.

"Targets B and C incapacitated. Target D's power levels suffering fluctuation. Target A has been lost. Initiating scan."

Alpha-1 seems to have gone back into "Robot Mode," although how long that will last is anyone's guess.

Tamaki's sensors tagged Alpha-1 along with the whole mess of lesser Steins that she brought with her. Hearing her speak it sounded like two of their number were possibly knocked out. However it sounded like one was still accounted for. That meant that Tamaki needed to keep her attention on him so that the other person could get to their incapacitated members and either get them out of here or heal them up. Accessing his primary weapons Tamaki materialized his Nova Canon.

'Alright then, you've left me no choice Alpha. I'll have to bring the full fury of my arsenal against you. I'm sure you can take it though if these readouts on how quick you regenerated your injuries are accurate.'

With that Tamaki eyed the 12% of meter he had left from the full charge of his Fusion Annihilator. He needed to build up for it again. However the Nova Canon would be an able substitue, more powerful in fact. However the reload time was absolutely killer. Activating the Nova Canon's targeting beam Tamaki tagged the flying Alpha-1. As he did so the weapon passively gathered large amounts of Reishi and drawing in air to act as the Kishi. This elements combined to a roiling boil inside of the machine creating a deadly unstable reaction. Once fully tagged Tamaki pulled both the triggers on the energized passage between the Nova Canon and Alpha-1. The resultant mixture would then shoot at Alpha-1 in the blink of an eye the Reishi and Kishi combination which should have never been would then explode with the force that would not be expected but was potent anyway. Small but intense, that was what Tamaki was going for when he made this weapon. The weapon that he used to once successfully blow through and Arrancar's Heirro and damage them.

(Disclamer: Just for reference this Arrancar was not Jehoel or any of the Espada's. Unless Dorrizit wants it to be.)

[Dorizzit]

"Oh, there you are. I was worried you'd run off! How's that power of friendship thing working out?"

Alpha's wing blades interlock, blocking Chuck's strike.

"I don't even know why you're bothering. You can't win. Shinji is unconscious. Katsuo is dying. You can't hope to beat me one-on-one."

With Chuck's hands occupied, Alpha-1 kicks him in the side, then again, before trying to stab him in the stomach with a dagger in each hand.

"You've lost! There isn't a damn thing you can-what!?"

Alerted to an energy readout on her visor, Alpha-1 turns to Tamaki, his attack almost fully charged.

"Metallisch Ägide!"

Alpha-1's blades disengage from Chuck and form a circle in front of her, a force field projected between them. When Tamaki's Nova Cannon fires, it burns into the shield, halted for a few moments before burning through and punching a hole right through Alpha-1's shoulder. After spending the entire battle disregarding Tamaki, Alpha-1 finally learns a valuable lesson in hubris. And of course, this leaves it open to Chuck as well...

((Tamaki's around as strong as a Vice Captain, right? His most powerful penetration attack could definitely pierce through Jehoel's Hierro.))

[KnightDisciple]

[Ikari Outskirts]
[Quarry]

Chuck twists, and one dagger skips off his armor. The other hits home, but hits only skin and muscle, stopped from going too far thanks to Blut Vene.

And then Tamaki's attack distracts her for critical seconds. Chuck blurs back several yards, his voice level despite the blood slowly leaking down his side.

"Blut Arterie."

Energy surges through his body, and his wings actually begin to retract even as every last drop of spare Reishi in the area is sucked into the young Australian man. He raises his giant sword over his head, all that energy flowing into the blade. There's a quiet moment for a split second, right after Tamaki's attack hits and Alpha-1 is still disorientated.

"Dunkelklinge, Das Schwert spaltet Böse, Putzmitteilung!"

And then the sword of his blade flies from its hilt, aimed squarely at the open back of the hybrid AI in front of him. Terrible black light follows in its wake, a sign of terrible power. But would it be enough power?

[horngeek]

[Ikari; Kuzunoha Compound]

Yuina let go of her daughters, shifting her arms to the handles of her wheelchair. "Are you really? There's a saying that goes, 'war doesn't need one man'. You are still just girls. You won't do much good if you die in your first battle. At the very least I want you to acknowledge that... that... saving innocents, and saving yourselves, might be mutually exclusive in this scenario." It's clear Yuina is taking pains to not just shout at her daughters. She just had much of her extended family destroyed and only now got to know some of her more immediate family members are even alive. Spiritual powers or not, she still consider her daughters just as "innocent" as the hapless citizens of Ikari, and even if it makes her feel guilty and ashamed, right now the lives of her daughters are vastly more important to her than some strangers.

((OOC: Kuroi, waiting for Margrave to react to Caeyrn before Niklaus makes his move.))

"I don't think either of us intends to just leap in with no preparation."

Natsuki thinks. "I don't particularly think I'd be able to look in the mirror in the morning if I did nothing."

Hinata looks at their mother. "Besides, we're not going to just be left alone anyway. With my combination of powers, we're going to attract interest anyway. Have attracted interest."

[Dorizzit]

When Chuck releases his final strike on Alpha-1, the insane Quincy cries out. This isn't a cry of pleasure, or excitement, or hatred, as it has been every other time. This is a scream of agony, of surprise and indignation. Chuck's attack neatly impales the Quincy, the sword stabbing easily through her back and erupting from her chest. The attack then explodes outwards, tearing Alpha-1 apart from the inside. The scream reaches an extraordinary pitch, then cuts off abruptly.

When the smoke clears, Alpha-1 is gone.

The Steins lose power and begin to fall from the air, crashing into the ground and disintegrating. Blood and pieces of Alpha-1, too, rain down on the ground, slapping wetly onto the stone. Her head, the largest undamaged part of her body, impacts last, rolling for several feet before coming to a halt, her visor shattered by the fall. There is silence.

It is not the victory that they wanted. But it is a victory. The battle is over.

Spoiler

Show

No it isn't.

[AnimeKid]

When Chuck releases his final strike on Alpha-1, the insane Quincy cries out. This isn't a cry of pleasure, or excitement, or hatred, as it has been every other time. This is a scream of agony, of surprise and indignation. Chuck's attack neatly impales the Quincy, the sword stabbing easily through her back and erupting from her chest. The attack then explodes outwards, tearing Alpha-1 apart from the inside. The scream reaches an extraordinary pitch, then cuts off abruptly.

When the smoke clears, Alpha-1 is gone.

The Steins lose power and begin to fall from the air, crashing into the ground and disintegrating. Blood and pieces of Alpha-1, too, rain down on the ground, slapping wetly onto the stone. Her head, the largest undamaged part of her body, impacts last, rolling for several feet before coming to a halt, her visor shattered by the fall. There is silence.

It is not the victory that they wanted. But it is a victory. The battle is over.

Spoiler

Show

No it isn't.

Seeing the attack succeed and the damage done to Alpha-1 from it Tamaki's eyes widen. There is an explosion and then Alpha-1 is no more. Gory pieces rain from the sky as Alpha-1's head comes down last and rolls to a stop near Tamaki's feet. Looking down he releases a heavy sigh at seeing that in the end it came down to having to kill Naito instead of free him. This is the most emotional fatigue that Tamaki has ever felt in a long time as a single solemn word echos from his lips.

"Dammit."

[Frozen_Feet]

[Ikari; Kuzunoha Compound]

"I don't think either of us intends to just leap in with no preparation."

Natsuki thinks. "I don't particularly think I'd be able to look in the mirror in the morning if I did nothing."

Hinata looks at their mother. "Besides, we're not going to just be left alone anyway. With my combination of powers, we're going to attract interest anyway. Have attracted interest."

Yuina crosses her arms on her lap and narrows her eyes. "Speaking of which... where have you two been for the past three months?"

---

[Streets of Ikari; at the base of a building]

Is that a silvery salvo of missiles headed straight for Niklaus?

Why, yes. Yes it is.

Well, there's a lot of things that could happen next, primarily depending on how smart said missiles are. If they're following a simple ballistic trajectory, they'll hit the ground where Niklaus just was, annihilating the phone with a red light blinking on top of it. If they're guided, their tracking system might alert them to the fact that their target just apparently vanished from the face of Earth, meaning they might be able to swerve around before they hit anything, allowing them to circle in the air until they can relock on something. Which way do the chips fall?

[Kuroimaken]

They fall towards the part where they're just smart enough to go after whatever trace of silvery dust remains on Niklaus's clothes.

[KnightDisciple]

[Ikari Outskirts]
[Quarry]

For long moments after the explosion and screams, there is dust and smoke obscuring Chuck's position.

When Chuck releases his final strike on Alpha-1, the insane Quincy cries out. This isn't a cry of pleasure, or excitement, or hatred, as it has been every other time. This is a scream of agony, of surprise and indignation. Chuck's attack neatly impales the Quincy, the sword stabbing easily through her back and erupting from her chest. The attack then explodes outwards, tearing Alpha-1 apart from the inside. The scream reaches an extraordinary pitch, then cuts off abruptly.

When the smoke clears, Alpha-1 is gone.

The Steins lose power and begin to fall from the air, crashing into the ground and disintegrating. Blood and pieces of Alpha-1, too, rain down on the ground, slapping wetly onto the stone. Her head, the largest undamaged part of her body, impacts last, rolling for several feet before coming to a halt, her visor shattered by the fall. There is silence.

It is not the victory that they wanted. But it is a victory. The battle is over.

Spoiler

Show

No it isn't.

The dust and smoke clear, and Chuck is crouched on the ground, blood slowly dripping onto the ground from his side.

His Vollständig is gone, the power having been expended in that final attack of his. No glow surrounds his body, though those with keen enough senses can tell he has at least a bit of Blut Vene running, presumably the reflexive level his body has been trained to provide. One of his goggle lenses is cracked, and the mask over his mouth and chin is half-shredded, partially exposing his mouth as he pants for breath, one hand holding his wound, the other keeping him from toppling all the way onto the ground.

Alpha-1's head rolls to a stop just a few feet from Chuck's position, her sightless eyes seeming to stare into his own. It takes him a moment to register this, but when it does, he gives a sound halfway between a shout of surprise and a choked sob, scrabbling backwards on the rough gravel before he ends up on his butt, his back against a pile of rubble. He sits there, his eyes not really leaving the disembodied head for now...

"I'm sorry, Naito. But...you're free now..."

Seeing the attack succeed and the damage done to Alpha-1 from it Tamaki's eyes widen. There is an explosion and then Alpha-1 is no more. Gory pieces rain from the sky as Alpha-1's head comes down last and rolls to a stop near Tamaki's feet. Looking down he releases a heavy sigh at seeing that in the end it came down to having to kill Naito instead of free him. This is the most emotional fatigue that Tamaki has ever felt in a long time as a single solemn word echos from his lips.

"Dammit."

He looks over at Tamaki, his voice dead, even as some of the blood from the thing that had taken over one of his friends settled on him from the air. Chuck seems extraordinarily weary.

"Tamaki...I'm not in great shape. I don't think I can even stand up right now. Please...can you find Shinji? We need to get him, and Katsuo, out of here. And, uh, probably me, too. That stab didn't puncture anything vital, but it hurts like a snakebite."

Considering he's from Australia, that's not exactly a comforting statement.

[horngeek]

[Ikari; Kuzunoha Compound]

Natsuki blinks, as her mind gets taken back. She'd been so glad to see her mum again, then been side-tracked.

On the other hand, Hinata sighs. "Um. Like I said, already attracted attention."

And she started to talk, telling their mother what had happened to them.

"...and then we arrived at where the house was."

[AnimeKid]

[Ikari Outskirts]
[Quarry]

For long moments after the explosion and screams, there is dust and smoke obscuring Chuck's position.

The dust and smoke clear, and Chuck is crouched on the ground, blood slowly dripping onto the ground from his side.

His Vollständig is gone, the power having been expended in that final attack of his. No glow surrounds his body, though those with keen enough senses can tell he has at least a bit of Blut Vene running, presumably the reflexive level his body has been trained to provide. One of his goggle lenses is cracked, and the mask over his mouth and chin is half-shredded, partially exposing his mouth as he pants for breath, one hand holding his wound, the other keeping him from toppling all the way onto the ground.

Alpha-1's head rolls to a stop just a few feet from Chuck's position, her sightless eyes seeming to stare into his own. It takes him a moment to register this, but when it does, he gives a sound halfway between a shout of surprise and a choked sob, scrabbling backwards on the rough gravel before he ends up on his butt, his back against a pile of rubble. He sits there, his eyes not really leaving the disembodied head for now...

"I'm sorry, Naito. But...you're free now..."


He looks over at Tamaki, his voice dead, even as some of the blood from the thing that had taken over one of his friends settled on him from the air. Chuck seems extraordinarily weary.

"Tamaki...I'm not in great shape. I don't think I can even stand up right now. Please...can you find Shinji? We need to get him, and Katsuo, out of here. And, uh, probably me, too. That stab didn't puncture anything vital, but it hurts like a snakebite."

Considering he's from Australia, that's not exactly a comforting statement.

Indeed, not comforting in the slightest. Tamaki nods at Chuck upon hearing his request though.

"Of course. With my sensors I should be able to find them relatively quickly."

With that Tamaki turned and started walking towards the debris. As he did so his Argus System once more activated piercing though the rubble to find and tag any humanoid lifeforms. Once he found them he would proceed to use the Crisis Arm to dislodge any debris atop them and free them before dragging them back to Chuck's position.

[Frozen_Feet]

[Streets of Ikari]

Following the trail of dust would make the missiles think their target is underground, or behind the walls of the adjacent building. As a result, most of them crash or detonate near them, while one manages to correct its direction and flies after the shadow of running man that has no man actually casting it. It would catch it, too, but the unnatural shadow glides over the corner of a building and at the same moment, a torn frieze overcoat is jettisoned from it. The missile hits it and then detonates, in whatever manner it is designed to.

---

[Ikari; Kuzunoha Compound]

Yuina looks contemplative and concerned after hearing the twins' tale. "I don't like the sound of this Von Geister person. He's... why'd he have to be freed in the first place?"

[horngeek]

"He wasn't forthcoming about that."

Natsuki sighs. "To be honest, I don't particularly trust him either... but he didn't have to free us either, so there's that."

Hinata nods. "But... like I said, I don't think we're going to be left alone whatever we do, mum."

[strawberryman]

Katsuo is relatively safe, not piled under rubble or anything. However he does have several deep wounds, and is bleeding. It's hard to tell from this angle if he's breathing.

[5a Violista]

[Somewhere in Ikari]

As a Quincy, it's obvious that he can curve his arrows mid-flight. They are, after all, made out of reishi.

He doesn't even bother to shoot down the missiles; Niklaus can take care of himself.

Caeyrn actually likes being close-up. In spite of his spirit weapon being a crossbow, that's never stopped him from hitting things with it. It's much better than being shot at by guns.

However, he lets his Spirit Weapon disappear, so he can shift the Steele Sneider from his right hand to his left. As Margrave charges, the young actor leaps to the side to dodge the charge. "Now we're talking," he says in his native tongue. The smile and expression on his face is pretty clear, though.

He places his right, gloved, hand behind him to grab more Steele Sneider.


[Somewhere else in Ikari]

Miya notices the sky and the earth, how it feels strange.

She picks up her pace.

[Kuroimaken]

Caeyrn might actually come to regret that decision. There are two basic reasons.

One, his opponent doesn't NEED a bigger reach. Fighting at range or not is a matter of convenience for Margrave.

And two, he doesn't want to risk losing sight of either of them.

So when Margrave's hand slides over the coffin and one of its ends grows a gun barrel, and that gun barrel turns to Caeyrn, that's when he knows the real meaning of 'brought a knife to a gun fight'.

Luckily for him, the shower of bullets - which are spiritual, mind you - is short-lived as Margrave dives off the side of the building.

[Frozen_Feet]

[Ikari; Kuzunoha Compound]

"He wasn't forthcoming about that."

Natsuki sighs. "To be honest, I don't particularly trust him either... but he didn't have to free us either, so there's that."

Hinata nods. "But... like I said, I don't think we're going to be left alone whatever we do, mum."

"Are you sure you are free?", Yuina asks with a furrowed brow. "It could be there's still something... something... in your head. The Kuzunohas will have to check you out." Yuina sounds rather disgusted at the very possibility.

---

[Streets of Ikari]

Caeyrn might actually come to regret that decision. There are two basic reasons.

One, his opponent doesn't NEED a bigger reach. Fighting at range or not is a matter of convenience for Margrave.

And two, he doesn't want to risk losing sight of either of them.

So when Margrave's hand slides over the coffin and one of its ends grows a gun barrel, and that gun barrel turns to Caeyrn, that's when he knows the real meaning of 'brought a knife to a gun fight'.

Luckily for him, the shower of bullets - which are spiritual, mind you - is short-lived as Margrave dives off the side of the building.

As Margrave does, the barrel of a really big rifle with a similarly intimidating bayonette sticks out from a shadow on the wall, aiming at his back from the end of the alleyway. There's a loud boom, like shot from a cannon, as what amounts to an anti-tank warhead is shot, though by the time the sound reaches Margrave, it will have already hit him if it is to hit at all.

[Kuroimaken]

The shot DOES hit Margrave, but not in the back.

No, it blows up his head instead. For whatever reason, he had slowed down his descent, perhaps to better scout the situation on the ground before he hit it. The impact sends him spinning, but when he lands, he lands on his feet, his head already reforming, a sight disturbing enough on its own.

His arms bend backwards to give Caeyrn a little bit of return fire as well.

[horngeek]

"Yeah, I agree on that. I don't think there is- but yeah, could be something we can't see from this viewpoint."

Hinata nods as well. "Well, um, there is one thing he left behind..."

She focuses for a moment, before pointing at the other end of the room. "Hadō 4, Byakurai."

And a bold of lightning shoots out from her finger, leaving a scorch mark.

[Dorizzit]

[Ikari]
The Pit

From out of sight, a Ransōtengai wire whips out and connects to Alpha-1's head, then begins dragging it back along the ground. Dozens more also spin from the shadows, attaching to the scattered scraps of the Quincy weapon and likewise dragging them over the jagged stones to a central point. As the pieces of the insane AI begin to converge, they start to merge together, fitting back into a single whole like a jigsaw puzzle. As this slow process plays itself out, the still-unconnected head giggles, lolling to the side on its wire.

"That...that really hurt, Chuck. I didn't think you had it in you to try to kill me like that."

Alpha-1 is still in several (large) pieces, but she'll soon be completely restored.

[KnightDisciple]

[Ikari]
The Pit

From out of sight, a Ransōtengai wire whips out and connects to Alpha-1's head, then begins dragging it back along the ground. Dozens more also spin from the shadows, attaching to the scattered scraps of the Quincy weapon and likewise dragging them over the jagged stones to a central point. As the pieces of the insane AI begin to converge, they start to merge together, fitting back into a single whole like a jigsaw puzzle. As this slow process plays itself out, the still-unconnected head giggles, lolling to the side on its wire.

"That...that really hurt, Chuck. I didn't think you had it in you to try to kill me like that."

Alpha-1 is still in several (large) pieces, but she'll soon be completely restored.

For a few moments, Chuck can only stare in abject horror, his half-torn mask making it clear his mouth is hanging open in shock.

Then a flashbang Ginto and two high-explosive Ginto fly toward the center of the string-construct that is Alpha-1 right now.

"Tamaki, get Katsuo and Shinji and run! I'll hold her off!"

The unspoken assumption was that said holding-off would be lethal, but at this point Chuck didn't seem to care. With no small amount of effort, and a fair bit of blood, he got to his feet, planted them in a wide stance, and managed to conjure up twin machine pistols.

He started taking shots with them, but his aim, normally incredible, was not very good, and his rate of fire was much-reduced from what it had been earlier.

[strawberryman]

(Quarry)

...am I dead...?

Katsuo could feel nothing. After he hit the ground, all was black. But not exactly. He could see things around his body. But they were hazy. Out of focus.

It was hard to see in the chaos. But... the ghostly figure of a Plus has formed above Katsuo... it's Katsuo himself. The soul chain, still attached to the body. The plus still seems to be in the daze of being shunted out of his body in near-death... but then he looks down in shock. There are no words.

He looks up. His eyes open wider. And he grits his teeth.

"--inji and run! I'll hold her off!"

But he doesn't know what to do.

And yet, he does. There's still some life left in his body. Quaking with anger, denial, and determination, he pulls on the chain.

And then disappears. There's a beat. And then Katsuo stands. Stiltedly, and his head lolls at a unhealthy angle, his eyes glazed over, his brain still not fully operational. He takes a step towards Alpha-1's reforming body... and his heart fails, shunting him back out.

But he pulls himself back in.

And again.

And again. Every time, staying in for another moment more. The links creak and crack, but the chain holds.

Before Alpha-1 has fully reformed, despite the wounds and the fact that Katsuo should really be dead...

There he stands. His fists clenched, and his eyes fierce. He has only one thing to say.

"...not... alone... Chuck."

[Dorizzit]

[Ikari]
The Pit

One of Alpha-1's arms, now fully reassembled, twists on its string so that the open palm is aimed at Chuck and Katsuo. First, as Chuck had seen her do once before, she defuses the Gintō in the capsules he throws at her, rendering them harmless and inert. Second, her brow tightens in concentration. And all of the AI's blood on the ground, of which there is a truly impressive amount, begins glowing.

"Rot Venen. Akt Gottes."

As the blood vanishes, nothing initially seems to happen. When Chuck fires his guns at Alpha-1, however, the bullets simply stop in midair and then fall straight down to the ground, never reaching her. Her smile, somehow, splits even wider. At no point does the reconstruction process stop. It whistles.

"Damn, Katsuo, that's pretty hardcore. Didn't think you had it in you. You want to know what Naito always thought of you? You were a disappointment. Naito always just wanted to fight you, to really see what you were capable of. Then, she figured out that you just didn't have any guts. Of course...surprise, surprise...obviously Naito was wrong. Takes a lot to shove yourself back into a corpse. Trust me, I know."

"After all, by now one of you has to have figured out there's something wrong with my regeneration. Even the strongest Hollows can't recover their internal organs. I can do...considerably more. One part of it-" One of its disembodied hands holds up a single finger. "-is my unique stature as a Quincy/Hollow hybrid. In addition to the basic regeneration pattern, my body is specially engineered to absorb Reishi from the surrounding atmosphere and then convert it back into kishi to restore lost flesh. Speeds the process up a lot, too. It's all thanks to this!"

A small, black lump of what might be Hollow flesh drops from its string into Alpha-1's attached hand.

"This is the Devourer Engine. A replacement organ for my heart, crafted with technology and sorcery from the condensed soul of a very specific, very useful Hollow. It serves as the source for my Hollow side. Binds it right into my body as well as my soul."

She plunges it into her open chest cavity, which seals back over the organ. With her other hand, she holds up a second finger.

"Second, I'm not as...reliant on my body as most mortals. No Chain of Fate or anything. If the body takes on fatal injuries, I can just wait for it to fix itself; the body is designed to protect my soul very well if its not completely destroyed. And, if need be, I can help recovery the process along."

Plucking its remaining arm out of the air, Alpha-1 attaches it to the corresponding stump, completing her recovery. She then sits on a nearby rock.

"Of course, there's limits. Converting Reishi to Kishi is hard even with the right technology. Using organic processes? There's a limit. If I try to do it too much in one sitting, my body will just collapse. And let me tell you, regenerating my entire body from scraps like that? That's f***ing hard. So congrats. I can't really regenerate and I'm just about out of Reiryoku, too. Wasn't exactly being conservative. Having too much fun."

She spreads her arms in a half shrug, smiling unpleasantly.

"I'm out, you're out...what next?"

[AnimeKid]

Ikari
The Pit

Tamaki was in shock at seeing what was happening with Alpha-1. Not even Arrancar who specialized in Regeneration could pull off such a feat. What was it that could allow Alpha-1 to pull this off. Hearing Chuck's plea he opened his mouth to begin to object. Then Katsuo did it for him. Tamaki looked down, surprised that his friend was even conscious let alone speaking. Then Alpha-1 started talking. Rather than interrupt her Tamaki listened carefully, committing every word Alpha-1 said to his memory. Once she finished Tamaki processed everything that she said before storing away to go over in detail later.

"I'm out, your out...what's next?"

"I'm not," Tamaki says as he steps forward. "I'm still relatively able to fight at full capacity. It would be in your best interest to surrender. Your continued existence hangs in the balance. Especially if your running on empty. I'm betting even stopping Chuck's bullets like that was a last ditch effort instead of it being the piddling prospect that it used to be for you."

[Dorizzit]

[Ikari]
The Pit

Alpha-1 looks suddenly at Tamaki, as if she had forgotten his presence again.

"Oh, right. You. Well, guess I'd better surrender, lest I face the wrath of Tamaki, master of pretension."

Something about her words makes it seem like she's not being sincere. Probably the dripping sarcasm.

"Do you really think that Chuck here would let me live after what I've done? That Naito would? Oh, no, there is only one end for this fight. Complete annihilation."