<ROUND 241>

The Reflector attempts to manifest Maxim! Or rather, give them a specific statblock. While the arbitrary number that allows more / less Minor NPC's to join you has been increased as of... right now, they'll still need a somewhat more codified statblock in order to join a battle. A "draft" of sorts has been made in the Minor NPC menu. Approve of this, and maybe they'll be able to join a battle?

---

Boshi continues their day-to-day. They bid farewell to the Fisherman, and with a wave, they're off! Boshi then decides to try and scope out the Rebel ships- the Mechonis, the Vedfolnir, and the dropship. He manages to spot them both... enroute to the Sky Labs. That could be bothersome. After probably relaying this to his allies, he's back in the boat, and travels further down into the lake! They don't get very far before they're intercepted by pirates. As you do, right?

Adria meanwhile, is available to witness the wreckage of the Mobile Home. She asks around for a vacuum, while Chloe giggles at her companion's shock.

CHLOE: Eheheheh! The party just sorta... does crazy things like this.
CHLOE: A lot.
CHLOE: Although, normally there's a lot of buildup to a move like this.
CHLOE: Guess we just skipped to the fun part today!

Chloe then looks around the inventory for a vacuum, but to her dismay, she can't seem to find anything to help with the cleanup. She also asks the group what they're doing out there, but it seems Auth has that covered a few posts down! thank mr. author

Elsewhere, in the Everground, Hannah makes her escape! She jumps out of her Durasteel Boots, and uses her Aerodynamic Shield to ride back up to the ledge. She plows through the rubble blocking her way with the Heavenpiercer Drill, ending up at (M165). Elsewhere in the timeline, she finds the Maintenance Hatch for the Bay Doors to the east side of the Sky Labs. Fortunately for her, the hatch is fairly flimsy compared to the Bay Doors themselves. It could likely be corroded away with ease. However, it looks like the keycard reader here can also be used to open the Bay Doors, so to get those open, she'll likely require the keycard... or lots and lots and lots of firepower.

---

Venia threatens Yew. She's being rather serious with her threats. The bow remains unfazed, continuing her spree of laughter at Venia's expense.

YEW: And your attempts to convince me are infinitely more futile!
YEW: I refuse to tell you anything.
YEW: I'm sure you'll get nothing out of me, or anyone else with my gift!

YEW: So! You should surrender!
YEW: Who knows who might get hurt if you try and do something to an innocent weapon like myself?

Yew's eye begins to glow, similar to how it does moments before she fires an arrow. She merely holds it for now, as she stares down Venia. Regardless of how she responds though, Venia then heads up to the Eastern Hub, greeting Cypress and the new lady, potentially oblivious to whatever sort of hell is going on in that room at the moment.

CYPRESS: Greetings, miss Praefortis.
CYPRESS: Request: repeat query? Unable to hear. Iti numbers: high.
CYPRESS: Screaming: very loud. Also distracting.
???: I heard her. Loud and clear.
???: Let me do the talking, alright? I can say more words.

She turns to Venia as she lets loose an arrow, slaying a Pin. Once her eyes meet Venia's though, she tenses up for a moment. Soon enough though, she loosens up, and salutes the duchess.

???: Stella Manchineel, at your service!
CHI: Most people just call me "Chi", though.
CHI: Anyway, look- I'll be able to help once we're done with these Iti, alright?
CHI: Please, assist us! There's not much we'll be able to do for her if we can't make it there!

Venia nods. As the duo of Cypress and Chi prepare for combat, Chairian reinforcements enter the area! Not much, but a few more units to help tip the odds are always appreciated!

- = S T R I F E ! = -

Anyway, somewhere that's already been torn apart by battle, Venia dons a full hazmat suit, and loots some Fell Beast corpses. This yields 3 Fell Beast Tails, 6 Fell Blades, and 15 Fell Beast Hide. She then kicks open the Weapons Cache. Inside, she finds a stash of simple-looking rifles: Self-Defense Rifles obtained! Seems like they were designed by Cypress for civilian use, but were never distributed. Inside, she also finds a few other goodies...

- x20 Plasteel Ingots
- x20 Coilgun Parts
- x5 Mortar Shells

Not a bad haul at all! She also finds the schematics for the weapons in the crate as well- the blueprints seem professional enough. They're also made with surprisingly high-tech materials and techniques, although it's probably nothing Cypress himself couldn't handle. Interestingly enough, the logo of the manufacturer has been cut away from the blueprints themselves.

Elsewhere, Venia notes what might've happened to Bass, whilst giving him a few cookies. Bass munches down on the snacks as he chats.

BASS: that makes sense
BASS: yep i totally understand what you're saying
BASS: yeah one-hundo percento

She asks if he can get up. Or move around.

BASS: i mean i haven't really tried
BASS: still feel kinda weak
BASS: do you have any Red Bull™ energy drink
BASS: i don't know what that is but i feel compelled to consume some Red Bull™

An illusory clone of Bass pops through the door, armed with a cup of coffee. The clone seems to be far more stable than the ones that Bass has made before this one- less glitches, less fluxiness... things like that. The clone tosses Bass the coffee cup. It splashes all over his face, and it's scalding hot. He doesn't seem to mind, though.

BASS: mmm
BASS: just what i needed
BASS: y'know is it weird that i can do that still
BASS: thought i'd lose the ability, but maybe... you can come up with a science-y explanation for that

BASS: anyway i should be able to help
BASS: eventually
BASS: just give me a bit more time and i should be good

Bass begins to lick the coffee off his face. Speaking of coffee, Chaos has a cup of coffee now, and is talking with Maria. The young princess looks about, and asks where exactly Ette is. Chaos's arm extends from the shop stall, to the downstairs portal.

CHAOS: [t]haaaaaaa[t] way
CHAOS: [t]here's no [c]ompass direc[t]ion for [t]ha[t] bu[t] jus[t] follow my arm
CHAOS: rumor has i[t] [t]ha[t] my arm is abou[t] as long as daddy's, bu[t] i don'[t] know who [t]ha[t] is
CHAOS: anyway, arm
CHAOS: follow i[t] on ins[t]agram

...Maria's been given the route to ADVENTURE! Much to Venia's dismay, probably.

---

Not!Echoss throws some items into a machine! A Ration and a Salve go into the flux machine out in the middle of the hallway. They slide into the inner workings of the machine, and a cacophony of grinding sounds echo from the box. A minute or so later, the device goes silent. It then hovers up into the air, shoots out something onto the ground, then lands about a foot or so away from it. Not!Echoss picks up the item: Medical Pack obtained!

Not!Echoss also decides to pester Nia some more, handing her the Divine Hammer of Banning and the Endless Blizzard. Nia salutes, and gets to work! 240 credits worth of bling later, she produces the Zero Blizzard and the Occult Hammer of Banning.

NIA: This is incredibly irresponsible, and I'm gonna keep making these even less responsible!
NIA: Maria will love these!
NIA: Venia totally won't let her touch them though, which is understandable!

Finally, Pionobot rides into the Eastern Hub upon a Hoverchair! This Hoverchair is horribly destroyed against the Bilebaroness, splattering both the chair and the Iti in a messy, gooey explosion. He lands on where the Bilebaroness's corpse ended up, dealing (10) damage to it and destroying it. Cypress stares at Pionobot, not really angry or impressed. It's more of an offbeat thing.

CYPRESS: Gambit: impressive. However, a plea. Please cease destruction.
CYPRESS: Hoverseats: expensive. For personnel use. Not as weaponry.
CYPRESS: Do not repeat. Otherwise, damage payments.

CYPRESS: Destroy other things. Less expensive. Possibly better efficiency.
CYPRESS: Thank you.

...Cypress immediately regrets giving Pionobot permission to destroy more things. Oh well.

---

Fran does... something! I'm not quite sure if I can actually respond to this, but it's quite the nice write up! Chara also says something in... something! Unfortunately, nobody's around to hear- Chloe's probably at the Sky Labs by now. (Also, if Chara's in the house, she'll find that she's in the barracks, tucked into bed.)

---

Bauhaus rides a damaged Hoverchair! Despite all of the damage its taken, it still seems to be functional! He rides a few feet down the hallway, at a slow and gingerly pace. Truly, this is the life. The chair is beginning to smoke, though. It's also slowly accelerating. Probably intentional, right?

---

Brutishace politely asks the Receptionist to stay safe. She nods, not saying anything else. She simply watches as Brutishace heads off to the east, and down the hall. As he walks, he tinkers with his gun, fixing a bug with its scaling.

---

Auth does a few things. First, with the whole Mobile Home situation, he grabs the entire house, and tosses it into the inventory. Mobile Home obtained! It'll probably need to be manually butchered into better, more usable components. With the carcass out of the way, Auth checks up on his party- are both Nana and Taeda alright? They both nod.

NANA: I-I'm alright, thanks to you!
TAEDA: We're both alright! A bit sticky, but alright.
TAEDA: Thyme Matter is easy enough to clean, thankfully!
TAEDA: Unless it animates, but... t-that won't happen, right?
NANA: ...
NANA: F-First thing we d-do when we get home i-is wash off, a-alright!?

Nana desperately attempts to shake off as much Thyme Matter as she can, jumping up and down like a child causing splashes in rain puddles. Once she's cleaned off at least a little bit, she takes Auth's hand, and follows Taeda down the now-opened road. Fortunately for them, no more threats lie in their path, and the trio eventually reaches a chapel.

TAEDA: Here we are!
TAEDA: Think it'll be safe to grow the Godblossoms here?
NANA: I-I think so!
NANA: Maybe we should put up one of those "perception field" things that Omo has, though?

Finally, up in the Sky Labs, Auth asks the name of the Receptionist, whilst also attempting to soothe her through the power of charm. She loosens up a bit more, arms dangling at her side.

MENTHA: It's... Mentha.
MENTHA: I won't be offended if you don't remember it. I can barely remember anyone else's names, anyway.
MENTHA: See you later?

Auth then advances to the East, joining up with Cypress and some of his other allies.

---

<WESTERN WING VENTILATION, ROUND TWO>
While not too much went down this round, the Predators have declared some Hunts! Keep the hunters away from Asha and Crystal, or they might be in for a world of hurt! Also be wary of the Live Specimen Testing chamber: something's up!

<EASTERN HUB, ROUND ONE>
Plenty of foes await you here! The threats on both sides are pretty similar, but what do you take care of first? The Pins? The Saltlings? Both at once? And, while Cypress and Chi are both here to help, there's a fair chance that they could get overwhelmed and killed if they don't recieve assistance in time! Juggling this could get tricky!

Put point in RES.

Nidra:
Go after Piono.
Spawn at N17.
Move to Q14.
Very Sheepy Chimes2.
Use Helix Totem on self. (Schemer)
Last Dream Chimes2.

The scaling of my weapon needs fixing.

---

Reply to Venia

The stuffed koala floats over to Venia, a sleeping Nidra in tow, as if she's being dragged along. The koala listens to Venia speak, then nods. It takes out Nidra's pocket watch and starts swinging it in front of Yew.

If possible, Nidra will simply appear in Yew's mindscape a few seconds after Venia.

Destiny runs into the Eastern Hub battle at J17. A creature with many eyes descends from a holy light at S12. Destiny then moves to E12, where she enters a powerful state, her hair becoming a beautiful silver and her eyes glowing bright green.
"Meet the end of space and time, and discover it welcomes you... coldly."
Droplets of vapor begin to freeze at D10 and the surrounding area. After a few moments, the area completely freezes over, catching Pins 1 and 2 as well as Edges 4. Destiny's appearance returns to her normal state.
Destiny then steps over to D16. Ohmnic 7 suddenly feels like something is watching them...

TL;DR: Spawn at J17 -> Plop Divine Watcher at S12 -> Run to E16 -> Heat Death Pins 1 and 2 as well as Edges 4 -> Retreat to D16 to wall out Ohmnic 7 -> Observe Omnic 7 to setup for damage

Recollection Lake - Boshi

Boshi lowers his telescope as he floats down the river. That's... not great. He alerts the others up in the skylabs immediately. "(Boshi to Skylabs crew. I have news on the Rebellion forces that some of you may find interesting.)"
"(After they bombed the farm, the Vedfolnir and a Rebel Dropship are closing in on the Skylabs. Notably, the Dropship is not of Chairian origin, using technology more akin to a human's. There were also some bulkier, blockier wooden people on said dropship. If you haven't already figured it out - yes, I have reason to believe the rebellion is working with the Tabletopians for some Helix-forsaken reason. It is indeed absurd to think of it. However, remember the Endless Gardens and R4? The firebombings as well that could damn-well prevent the Chairians from ever recovering due to a lack of food... their desperation exemplified by breaking out a literal arsonist for their cause. What's to stop the Rebel-aligned Chairians from allying with those that they despise in a move of desperation?)"

"(Also, for any rebels brave or foolish enough to be listening in... count the hours. You're far outclassed. And outmaneuvered.)"

...Prior to moving on, Boshi clarifies something to Venia. "(I moreso meant 'akin to human tech', like a distinct lack of magical power. It is, in fact, purely Tabletopian. Couldn't see X-man - I know who you're talking about, don't worry - working with them if he's focused on the Skylabs as well. Plus, it looks to be more of a combustion engine-driven craft, so X-man involvement is highly unlikely.)"

...With that out of the way, Boshi confronts the Iti pirates and their band of mollusks. He takes one look at the ship before ramming into it, yanking out a Giantcutter, and proceeding to slam it into the ship itself with a leaping overhead slash. Of course, this exposes a part of the ship's underbelly, and he drops an incendiary mortar shell down into it before jumping back onto his own ship.

---

House - Adria

Adria stifles a chuckle. That got a smile out of her. "Mhm, that certainly was something, wasn't it..."

She also listens to Auth's spiel. For some reason, he's getting some good vibes from him, and doesn't really know why. Not that she was complaining. "A chapel? I wonder which gods they pray to here... it may pay to do some exploring after all. Also what's a Godblossom?"

Regardless of the answer, it's likely that Adria will tag along, if only for a nice walk and some fresh air.

---

Everground - Hannah

Hannah looks at the room she just left. She shakes her head as she breathes a deep breath. Time for a break, probably.

---

Skylabs - Hannah, but again

Hannah cracks a grin. She pulls out one of her canisters, and cracks it like an egg onto the maintenance hatch, releasing the corrosive material and burning a hole straight through the thing. After one or two more cracked eggs canisters, the hatch is fully burned out. Satisfied, though not entirely comfortable going in without a weapon, she turns to see if Venia and Yew were done-

-Oh dear pecking god, Yew's being an even bigger idiot than she ever thought she would be. She's about to fire at Venia of all people. And yet, Hannah was too cowardly - or perhaps felt she was just too weak in general - to want to step in for either side. All she could do was slip back into her eavesdropping position, and wait...

...She does send a copy of herself down the hatch she just busted open, though. She didn't forget about that. She also takes some time to work on a backup plan, should her bow end up unusable for a time.

(Note: if this doesn't need so many materials or crafting in general, feel free to skip this part)


2

Hannah pokes her head out from behind her hiding spot (the watchtower) when addressed by Venia, and sighs. "...Honestly. I can't believe she'd try. I gave her several warnings about yourself and others, and yet she still acts like a stubborn idiot..."

"I mean, come on, what you're asking for is very basic information! Grr... I'm gonna have some choice words when - ahem, if she wakes up."

On the subject of Yew hurting her or her friends, she gestures to what she's wearing and surrounded by currently. "I know that poisons, corrosives and stuff are dangerous. I didn't make this dress and take these bits and baubles for no reason. If she tries anything on me, she's in for a hell of a shock."

"...But... I am still worried about the others. It's kinda why I slept down in the mines last night, to not only protect everyone else, but also miss Adria. I knew you guys would find a way to get her back without harm, so I left it to them. ...It'd make Dorothy happier than seeing a half-melted aunt."

"(...I should really be more picky about who I work with, shouldn't I... I wouldn't want a harmless owl getting killed. Though I am gonna miss thinking about that little slice of satisfaction I'd get to share with someone when I kill a Mafia.)"

...All that's left to do now is wait, and act should she need to. Notably, she doesn't look all that anxious at the moment. Or she's really good at hiding it. One of the two.

---

Battle - Eastern Hub

For this battle, Hannah equips the Great Hellish Acidblaster.

Regardless of what occurs, Hannah spawns in at (L16), walks to (L13), and Shackling Blasts Saltling3. +3 Buff Levels from Elemental Mastery, ensuring a kill if the whole thing connects. She backs up to (L14).

Battle: Eastern Hub

Venia spawns on J18 and moves to H18. Nia spawns in at J18 and follows her to I18. Venia activates Vigil, gaining Ordo. Nia then activates her Luminous Rose to gain Ordo for 5 rounds at the expense of 10 MP.

With that done, Venia spawns in a Dollhouse on D17, right in that Ohmnic's face. It now has to contend with some strange multi-legged dollhouse, filled to the brim with decisively annoying but distinctively wimpy dolls, which also blocks its ZoC and possesses a whooping 100+ MHP total. The Dollhouse's stats are here. Venia also scan-pings the Ohmnic with Hat, gaining a stack of Heart for the act on top of her regen stack.

Meanwhile, Nia uses her big brain power to somehow bamboozle the security system on the nearby console into submitting to her will and declaring her the ultimate wizard of Locaa, worthy of all magical power, and thus theoretically indefinite Enlightened6.

"Oh, uh, uh, hang on a sec, everyone." Venia says. "Five credits says, uh, the NaClestial's here, and that he's the, the smoke. Let me just, y'know, try something."

Venia then clears her throat, faces the direction of the fountain smoke on the ceiling, and starts shouting.

gorilla

"YO! YOU! NACLESTIAL! THAT'S RIGHT! YOU LITTLE SMOKY-gorilla COOKIE CUTTER META-SLAVED BRONZE RANK gorilla BOY! YOU LITTLE BABY LEAGUE NOOBLET! DID YOU FLUNK OUT OF ITI KINDERGARDEN BECAUSE YOU WERE A DUMBgorilla, OR AN UGLY DUMB gorilla?! EITHER WAY QUIT IT WITH YOUR GODAWFUL HIDING YOU LITTLE gorillaLING! WE ALREADY KNOW YOU'RE HERE! AND IF YOU'RE NOT AND YOU JUST GOT GANKED TO HELL, GODgorilla YOU MUST BE EVEN WORSE THAN MY ALREADY TRASH-TIER EXPECTATIONS TO GET KILLED BY LIKE TWO RANDOM PEOPLE! YOU GONNA FIGHT US FOR REAL OR YOU GONNA PLAY KIDDIE CAMP FOR gorillaWITS WHILE WE GANK YOUR WHOLE TEAM? COME ON!"

Venia is barely containing her laughter, hopeful that she's found the real deal and hasn't just talked her mouth off to a load of smoke.

---

Bass

Venia nods to Bass and heads out of the room. Wow, simplicity! She'll probably return to taming and training Gibbet next update...

---

Boshi

...Because in this one, she's too busy catching airwaves. She gets into the system. "... Backup a bit, just to clear the air. I suspected Tabletopian involvement with the Rebellion since square one, too well-equipped and well-organized to be just the downtrodden. They likely wouldn't have enough education to field even a single Mechonis without at least a bit of support from outside. But are you saying that's human made craft, or can you confirm it's a Tabletopian craft? Tech levels vary across the cosmos keep in mind, human-level can mean sticks in the mud or incomprehensible super-sciences. Lemme narrow it down-does it appear consistent with any of the X-man's designs, like aerocores 'n' such, or do you think it's pure Tabletopian?"

She's not referring to the marvel superheroes, but Xavier Elem, and figures that Boshi would probably pick up on that.

---

Yew

Venia glares at Yew, then relents a glare reluctantly, closing her eyes with a deep sigh. "Interesting. Dissapointing. I suppose I'll concede, you won't tell me, for now anyways. Maybe you'll change your mind," Venia says, starting to trail off and begin muttering vague but accepting displeasure and otherwise giving up on the matter.

And yet she has not given up at all. Wordlessly, soundlessly, she channels last dream through her arm and into the Whispering Bow. Being directly in contact with Yew, lacking any visible or audible tell due to a lack of telekinetic force, and unbound by traditional battle rules regarding minimum distance for spell usage, Yew shouldn't even realize what's going on until she's unconscious and unable to attack.

Once she affirms Yew is unconscious for real, instead of just faking it, Venia stops her muttering and turns to the party. "Nidra, Hannah, over here!" She says, careful not to raise her voice too loud, and keeping an eye on the eye as she stretches out the cast, sustaining as much of a duration on Yew's slumber as she can. She opts for vigorous waving in their general direction instead.

Venia breathes in a bit, calms herself down, and looks at Hannah with concern once she arrives-likely first given proximity. "Sorry Hannah, uh, Yew's being very uncooperative for a question that would theoretically mean she, and others, uh, you know, no longer require other people to move, or such. I can guess why, but, uh, yeah. She's just unconscious, now, just unconscious. Very unconscious. I am going to be uh, looking through her mind to find the information I need, on her, uh, creator, Magnolia's father, so like, Longavea and Boxican and others can like, be free. Nothing harmful, I've done this dozens of times before and mum's the word on anything else I'll dig up."

She presses her free hand to her temple. "... I know it must really suck, but, like, I'm really not comfortable with Yew. I'm no paragon of morality, that'd be just, like, hypocricy, use what you think you have to-the only reason I'm interfering is aside from the info, uh, well. Yew has a mind of her own, opinions of her own, a will of her own-and I really don't want to have her, like, shoot an ally, or one of your friends, or god forbid yourself, because of some dumb disagreement like this. I'm not making a final call on anything, but like, uh... I'd consider a replacement. Uh, I could get a custom order if nothing appeals, but... Yeah, uh. I'm sorry, I just can't take this risk. I don't want that, haunting me."

"...Uh. Nidra, keep Yew unconscious while I work, and see if you can't help me while I do the work on the side if you can, unless you want to steer. Uh, I can probably do the sleeping thingy if you'd rather try your hand here. Uh, Hannah, uh, if anything goes really wrong, you say you stole her back from me and that you're gonna hide her so I don't kill her, clear?"

"... Sorry. I know it's not pleasant."

Assuming no extraordinary objections or deviations from presumed actions occur, Venia uses the Golden Dream Ring on Yew, and delves into her mindscape, Calm Mind Shard ready to defend herself if need be.

---

Mariaaaaaaa

Maria follows the hand, giggling all the while with her menagerie in tow, and does not hesitate to wander directly through the portal, appearing on the airship, hopefully in the midst of someone, anyone really, as Maria (and Cushion) adjust to their new environment.

"I didn't know this was here. It's like a secret cool room! And it's movin', up an' down, up an' down, up an' down. I'unno what all this is, and I don't see Ette here, but mister Chaos wouldn't lie to me, so I'mma look around."

A pause.

"HELLO?! ANYONE HERE?!" she shouts.

Not!Echoss steals the item combiner from the rose cult lair, sticking it into the inventory for future use.
Also he crafts like, three tornadopetal bombs, assuming we have the resources for that.



Eastern Hub: (Before joining battle, put a point into SPC)
Pionobot sticks a three point landing at K9 from his trick with the hoverchair, and switches his scythe to INDIANA JONES REFERENCE-SCYTHE (earth element).
He turns and points at Chimes 1, casting siege spire altered by Elemental Mastery to be Air element instead of Earth. The ground rumbles underneath it, and before it can move a massive blast of air erupts out of the floor, scattering the pieces of the Chimes.
Satisfied with what was hopefully a clean kill, Pionobot whips out an ink-wrought veil and curls it around himself, applying Elecveil4 because there's no other elements it can roll.

Also he responds to Cypress:
"Ah, uh. Sorry.
I'll refrain from breaking more stuff then."

Move to Q15, attack Lamia2 and Migi1 evenly.

Before Generic moves, I use Tend to remove Emboldened, granting him Invigorated1.

I then move to W12 and fire a round from my Golden Revolver at Predator5.

BATTLES

The Mirror Reflector moves to W10, Scans Predator 5 (the thing's AC means the damage does not matter), then retreats to W9.

The Reflector moves to W10 and casts Suffocating Hatred on W8, inflicting Fear.

The Ohmnic Threat
Daskter moves in to (K15) to summon a Conscript Leader on (M15)

Settings: Crushing Attack

Brutishace sinks his remaining skill point into STR, then peeks his head out from behind the wall and draws his gun.

He enters the fight in the Eastern Hub, spawns at J18, moves over to G18 and shoots at the seventh Ohmnic with Blight Blast to help Destiny out, then retreats to H18.

With Brutishace's Electric weakness and these Ohmnics' high range, he's definitely at a disadvantage here, even with his high bulk. He will need to tread carefully.

Auth nods, relieved that the others are doing okay. He himself is, rather unfortunately, also positively caked in goo. This is probably going to require a proper change in outfit. Not that... anyone would really notice, given Auth's wardrobe consists primarily of one outfit.

AUTH: Alright. I'm glad you two are okay. I don't think this stuff is going to animate, don't worry.
AUTH: It's a relief that this stuff comes out easily. Not that it's terribly comfortable to have it soaking through my outfit to begin with.

He then turns to Adria, since he does have an answer for that question prepared.

AUTH: I think it's a fairly safe assumption that it's devoted to their god, Helix. I don't really know what he's about... I remember that when we were fighting the Husk, that the idols that represented him avoided hurting me... and that Dome's couldn't hurt me.

Auth chuckles wryly when Nana says that the first thing they're going to do is get cleaned up when they get back.

AUTH: The motion passes without objection. As easy as it might come out, I hope it doesn't stain...
AUTH: I think I have a change of clothes around somewhere, at least. Probably more comfortable.

He groans after, ever so slightly, as he attempts to wring as much Thyme Matter out of his coat as he can without taking it off. He smiles, though, as he takes Nana's hand as they walk towards the Chapel. When they get there, Auth takes a course around the outside of the building, looking for any obvious faults that might be a hazard. Assuming none are obviously present, Auth walks back inside with a thumbs up.

AUTH: Looks good, at least in terms of a "will it be safe here" question. If you have any other concerns... I assume Chloe and the others who came to see the Mobile Home will be along shortly. Taeda, I trust you'll be able to work with them to set the place up until Nana and I get back?
AUTH: You're in charge. I get to pick, based on the absolutely no power vested in me. Other than "This expedition was mostly my idea".

Auth then turns to Nana, once they've got a chance to sit down.

AUTH: Alright, now that we're here, here's the plan. We're gonna go back to the house and get cleaned up. After that, we're gonna go to the Endless Gardens to use the projection box out there. The reason for that is because I need to speak with your sister about what she managed to do with the Fluxblood we gave her. That, and I figure you might appreciate the opportunity to see how your siblings are doing.
AUTH: It shouldn't take too long to actually grab the flower once we get there. I think. It is, admittedly, not the sort of thing you can account for, given the Rose Cult is involved, but I don't think it will take very long.

---

Battle!

Auth spawns on K16, and casts Perseverance on himself.

AUTH: The Pin on the far side looks like it's going to aim to hijack the lockbox. Someone needs to take it out before it can get there.

WESTERN WING VENTILATION:

Remiel notices the Siren is attempting mind control. "Two can play at this game. If one were to call this 'playing', at least."

Remiel disables Raindrop that Fell to the Sky, moves to S6, and casts Relinquish Will on the Siren.

==BATTLE==
Crystal moves to O13 and performs a one-two combo on Predator 3; first a basic attack, then a Dust Blast, shifting all the momentum to it and thus knocking it back to K13!

He retreats to P13, keeping the Enchant.

Pope Bill moves to S13, then uses Burrowing Rally to move to L13. Next, he basic-attacks Predator4; this also means that damage is dealt to Predator3, due to his Shard Storm passive!

Asha moves to O15, Railgun Diplomacy's the Tamura, then retreats to P15.

Irongutta moves to L13, cleaves through Predator3 with a basic attack and uses Magnolia's Dance of Destruction to move to K13 and attack Predator4 as well!

<ROUND 242>

Boshi makes use of his background as a high-seas pirate! Wait, does he have that background? Who even knows? Anyway, he promptly barrels into the enemy vessel, impacting it! Combined with a slash from his Giantcutter, the enemy vessel takes (30) damage! The impact also deals (10) damage to his own ship. He then detonates an incendiary mortar shell within the ship, giving it Burned5 for four rounds.

The alarmed Iti crew begins to man their battle stations! And, given the proximity of his ship to theirs, some pirates quickly scramble onboard, and begin trashing the place for (5) damage. Deal with them, quickly! He'll also need a plan to deal with the approaching Mollusks- maybe some reinforcements would be prudent?

Then, Adria decides to tag along with Auth on his journey. Chloe opts to join in as well, seeing as she doesn't really have much better to do. It'll be a fun little journey, which'll be continued in Auth's post.

---

Venia attempts to sleep Yew! Venia's sleep magic overcomes the bow quickly, Yew only being able to let out one panicked shot into a nearby wall before drifting off to sleep. She sleeps peacefully, her eye barely stirring. With Yew out for a few moments, Venia is free to organize an operation. Nidra will try and keep the bow under. Hannah will evacuate Yew if something goes really wrong.

With this in mind, Venia whips out the Golden Dream Ring, and accesses the mindscape of Yew with Nidra's help...



Finally, Maria follows Chaos's hand through the portal, ending up within the Airship. It's a rather cramped space, with this size of airship likely not meant to contain this many lethal weapons. Still, there's at least enough room to move around- doubly so for the comparatively small Maria! It's actually rather snug for her. She then begins yelling, asking the heavens(?) if there's anyone here. She hears some step-stomping on the deck of the ship, and a ray of light crashes through a trapdoor that's suddenly been flung open.

A Chairian woman steps in, decked out in personal flight gear. It's Maple! She waves hello to the small princess, doing her best to fit within the tight compartments of the airship.

MAPLE: Oh! Hello there! How'd you get here?
MAPLE: It's dangerous down below deck, y'know! Lots of explosives and stuff!
MAPLE: Here- let's get you some place safer!

Totally oblivious to the existence of the portal, Maple directs Maria to grab hold of her back (piggyback rideeeee), and with as much caution as she can muster, jets out of the trapdoor. She lands on the front deck, setting Maria down gently.

MAPLE: There we go! This is much safer!
MAPLE: Welcome to the Sky Labs, lil' one! It's really pretty up here, dontcha think?

MAPLE: Hm...
MAPLE: I've seen you around, but I don't think we've met!
MAPLE: I'm Maple, heroine of these shattered skies! And what's your name, lil' one?

Maple sits down cross-legged on the deck, probably putting herself at an equal height with Maria. I don't know how tall Maria is, but Maple isn't all that tall either.

---

Not!Echoss takes the item combiner! He grabs it, and shoves it directly into the inventory. Flux Forge obtained! It seems to be an item under the "What" category. He then attempts to auto-craft some Tornado Bombs, but it seems like that the "quick craft" feature was actually removed some time ago. Still, this produces three bombs from 2 Tornadopetals and 12 (2) Iron Ingots. How? Magic!

---

Auth continues his trek to the chapel. As a result, a map loads up for the place. Chloe tags along with Adria, cheerily greeting Auth as she comes near.

CHLOE: Heya, Auth!
CHLOE: Great work with that Iti back there!
CHLOE: I have no idea how you did that, but it was amazing!
CHLOE: I'll stick with you, just in case something else like that comes along! Okay?
NANA: T-Thank you, m-miss Elem!
NANA: The additional protection i-is appreciated!

After a quick scouting of the Chapel (revealing no real hazards other than glass shards), Auth plans to split up into groups- Chloe, Taeda, and Adria will see if they can set this place up, while Auth and Nana will go and check a few things. Chloe nods.

CHLOE: Leave it to us!~
TAEDA: You can count on us!
TAEDA: ...Although, what do you mean by "set the place up"?
TAEDA: I don't think there's much work I need to do, unless you want me to try and secure this chapel.

Then, heading to a broken window, Auth and Nana discuss their personal plans. They'll go get cleaned up, and then visit her sister! Nana nods calmly and politely.

NANA: That sounds nice!
NANA: I hope they're doing alright...

Nana bobs around on her feet, ever so slightly nervous. Meanwhile, Chloe and Taeda are already discussing plans for whatever it is Auth has told them to do. Something.

---

<WESTERN WING VENTILATION, ROUND 3>
As it turns out, there was a rather large Fell Beast in the Live Specimen Testing Chamber. Known as a "Fell Behemoth", it's a hulking monstrosity that'll take a whole ton of effort to take out! It also hits like a truck, and in a cone. Either focus it down, or deal with the Predators first!

<EASTERN HUB, ROUND 2>
The NaClestial has returned! This time, it's come here with t h i c k MHP, a Basic Attack that can crush you violently, and other bonuses! Taunting him to attack a specific target would be a good way to control his aggro. As for other focuses, some vents have opened on the map! Xenos (may) spawn out of them until they're destroyed or sealed, so get on it!

Move to O11, Toxin Coating(Poison), Spirit Blade(Mana Leech). shoot Fell Behemoth 3 times, shoot Lamia1 4 times.

Woodthorne moves to U13 and tames the Woodwisp. He then uses terraform to turn T11, T12, and U10-12 into ventilation shafts.