The Ignihorn moves to E12, tosses Nettle a sap cake, and pokes the Tama.

After Nettle acts, Remiel moves to C13, eleblasters Pillager2 with Ice, and basicattacks the Tama with the +40% damage aura. No MP regained from the attack :chloesad:, but it does deal Glitch equal to the Mana damage.

Nettle uses Cherry Energy on the Observer 23 times. This costs a total of 76 MP (the first 4 are free). With the MP she's received from the Sap Cake and Manabloom Biscuit, combined with the Halo Nectar she's using in the middle of that somewhere, this should put it at exactly 9 HP, and Nettle at exactly 16 MP. She uses 14 of that to cast Shackling Blast on the Pillager, destroying the Thornclump and Observer in the process.

Then, after Remiel acts, she uses Root Domain+ to execute the Pillager as a bonus action (if its downed or in her Threshold). Assuming she successfully does so, this will give her 1 Threshold (third kill in a round) and a bunch of SP.

AI Labs
Woodthorne moves to G14 and attacks the Extinguisher at H14.

<ROUND 282>

First, stats! Ziah re-exists themselves. They do some moderate re-allocations, and that's about it for this section. Cool!

---

Piono does a variety of things. First, the NPC's are commissioned to do a variety of things! Chloe is asked to hunt some Iti, expending 2 slots to go hunting. She nods, grabbing her sword and a few potions, setting off into the woods. Chloe soon returns, dragging the arm of a Jotun behind her. Jotun Arm obtained!

CHLOE: You should've seen it! There was this huge Iti, and I took it down all by myself!~
CHLOE: I climbed up its body, and stabbed in the head a bunch!
CHLOE: Kinda felt like something out of a video game, y'know?
CHLOE: ...Besides the party where it punched me in the face and launched me like, the length of the house.
CHLOE: That's what potions are for though, y'know?

She then deposits 64 Samples into the inventory. She'll be able to do more hunts later, but that should be an alright starting point. Elsewhere, Omorika is commissioned to research the Bileprincess Bag! She immediately gets to work. Elsewhere, a beetle goes to the Endless Gardens, and casually harvests a cluster of let's say... 10 Yggdrasil Splinters? Really, getting them isn't that hard. They're not even noticed, either. Swood.

Elsewhere, over at Magic Club, Echoss expresses some concern for miss Aoki. What does "disciplining" mean? And when was the last time she's had an appointment with an accredited medical professional?

AOKI: It is... nothing that you should be concerned with.
AOKI: I can assure you that it is nothing overtly harmful. Though, I am forced to train until I lose any pounds I may have gained.
AOKI: ...That, and I am forbidden from leaving my home until the process finishes.
AOKI: Though, I am told that this is far better than how Tabletopia treats its idols.

AOKI: As for my medical appointments, I cannot give you the specifics. My apologies.
AOKI: However, I have not been able to attend my scheduled appointments since the dawn of the Sphere.
AOKI: I can assure you that I am fine on my own, however.

Soon, Echoss's attention drifts to Aoki's work with the songbird. Perhaps she's thinking of it too much as a familiar. Rather, this is more of an avatar. While it could be modified, that'd take extensive work and knowledge. If she wished for it to sing with her current knowledge, it would be with her own voice. Aoki quietly nods. As she concentrates to try again, Echoss asks if she's alright.

AOKI: I am in perfect form.
AOKI: Please do not insist that I am otherwise.
AOKI: I am meant to be a pristine idol for the people to follow. Surely, you are aware of this?
AOKI: So, let me re-iterate. I am fine. Nothing is wrong with me.

Somewhat peeved, she begins humming to herself. An azure songbird forms from a burst of sparks above her head, landing there. It stares at Echoss quietly, before opening its beak to speak with Aoki's voice. Aoki's own mouth remains closed

AOKI: Ah, there.
AOKI: This is how it should've been from the beginning. They wouldn't expect any less.
AOKI: ...Thank you for your assistance, sir Echoss.

Upon her head, the bird hums quiet melodies. Aoki's eyes go shut as she enters a state of concentration. Her mouth opens to speak, as her bird continues its melody in her voice.

AOKI: ...Truthfully, I was recruited here in order to inspire the people into further action.
AOKI: Their shining, free idol, taking up arms against the Spherebreakers. How could the people resist supporting her?
AOKI: Spark is deathly afraid of you. I'm sure you're aware.

The bird stops its singing, glancing skyward through the glass celing. With no clouds above them, the sun is free to shine in. The somewhat illusory form of the bird glistens in the light. Aoki's eyes flutter open, their brilliant azure burning into his retinas.

AOKI: This was... not my choice to be made.
AOKI: Nor were any of the choices I took which led me to this point.
AOKI: So, sir Echoss. How does it feel to be free?
AOKI: To be free of anyone that scrutinizes your any move?

Her eyes flutter shut again as she awaits a response. The bird hums idily, betraying the intensity of Aoki's words just moments ago. Chloe meanwhile, gently vibing to the bird's song, notes that his name is Eren. Probably, anyway.

CHLOE: Eren, huh? Do you slay titans, by chance...?
CHLOE: ...Eh, you might not get that.
MAPLE: I like it!
MAPLE: Though, I don't think I've ever heard of an "Eren" on Sussui before.
MAPLE: Then again, I've never heard of a "Chloe", either!
MAPLE: ...Really, foreign names in general are cool!
CHLOE: Even like... a name like Bob?
MAPLE: Bob sounds awesome!
MAPLE: Bob sounds like they'd be a total hero!

Bob the hero! Can he fix it? No, because his abilities are being inhibited by the Thymefield. Boo. Finally, Not!Echoss continues his "battle" against Maxim. He catches the yeeted Devout, then slides across the floor to collect the injured Rifleman. He then clips through the floor, narrowly avoiding a downward smash from Maxim's guillotine-like blade. As they rip their blade from the ground, blobs of... oobleck, begin to drip upon the Eliti from above. Swapping to Ultralight Mode, Maxim immediately absconds, flinging themselves from the hangar, and attempting to find shelter from the horde of... notechoii? Notechosses? Notplural? Whatever.

These Chairians are then placed in the Reception, and given a moment to rest. They're even given a pillow. And a mint! Truly, this is a fancy hotel!

---

Hannah continues her scouting mission! Flying over to Zone 3, she investigates the area. She gives special note to Scale Yggdrasil, observing it closely with her telescope. Oddly, it seems that a small detachment of troops is beginning to arrive. What will they be doing? Perhaps it'd warrant taking a closer look?

...Though, there's no signs of Regalus anywhere. Tough luck. With little cover in the area, it doesn't take too long to determine that he's not in Zone 3 in general. Whew. Elsewhere, in the Sky Labs, a drone accepts Cypress's gift, before buzzing off to go do who-knows what. Or uh, actually, I don't need to guess. They fly off into the Machining and Fabrication station, revealing it on the map. It's a small little workshop, but definitely equipped with everything you need to produce some proper robotics! Mostly due to the Fabricator. That thing seems powerful!

Over at the Southern Labs, Adria muses about how she's going to try and get concrete evidence before she does anything regarding Regalus. Ette bobs her head, her twindrills bouncing with her movements.

ETTE: Good luck with that, miss Adria!
ETTE: I'll tell you anything if I discover anything cool, okay?

ETTE: And... I wonder why your equipment doesn't work?
ETTE: Does the Thymefield not like it? I don't think it dislikes non-weapons technology.
ETTE: ...Maybe the reception's bad?

For all anyone knows, the Sky Labs may have awful wi-fi. But who can really be sure? Finally, over in the Chemical Laboratory, Hannah decides to harvest some chemicals! She obtains a sample of what appears to be called "Lesser Evil", 5 units of Teleportatium, and 5 units of Tainted Ambrosia. She opts to not open that last barrel. That seems like a bad idea.

---

The Calzone Gang continues to do their tasks. While making a transition into a spoiler, Calibri disintegrates a sandwich with his hand. It's very sad. Or at least, it'd be sad if it didn't re-manifest in the kitchen. Chloe meanwhile, pokes around the house. Calibri notes that he took many creative liberties with the layout.

CHLOE: Well, I like what you've done with the place!
CHLOE: If there wasn't a chance for an Iti to barrel through the window, I'd totally have something like this installed in our current base!

Looking through said window, Chloe takes notice of a far-off facility. Calibri notes that maybe she could see it later... or maybe, it'd be better not to. There's some unease in the air.

CHLOE: U-Understood.
CHLOE: I doubt I could get there anyway, but...
CHLOE: I wasn't going to poke around anywhere without your permission, anyway!
CHLOE: Just... disregard the part where I went into the house without your explicit word.

Chloe then helps herself to the couch, jumping upon it. Her comfort levels soar through the roof. She worms her way into the couch a little, and pulls a pillow onto herself if there's one nearby. She glances over at Calibri on the other end of the couch as she cuddles up further into the couch.

CHLOE: Hmm...
CHLOE: Where should I check out next?
CHLOE: ...Assuming I ever find the willpower to get off of this couch, anyway.
CHLOE: so warm~

Chloe lets out a "purr" of sorts as well. This is a good day. Elsewhere, Verdana and Blacklight equip a bike to their Armor slot, and ride it on over to the Endless Gardens. They chat up the receptionist, Hemlock. Have they met before? She shakes her head.

HEMLOCK: I'm afraid not, mister.
HEMLOCK: The name's Hemlock. A pleasure to meet you.
HEMLOCK: As for suspicious figures... haven't seen a thing.
HEMLOCK: There have been more Praetorians entering as of late, however.
HEMLOCK: Gave me some real funny looks for whatever reason. They give me the creeps, sometimes.

She points in the general direction they went. Towards Scale Yggdrasil. Would it be worth taking a look?

---

The Scion does a few tasks. First, taking 10 Everground Flowers and 3 Darkmatter Clusters, they create a sticky coating that can absorb the target's strength. 4 units of Shadowshot Coating obtained! Then, their crafting out of the way, they properly investigate Zone 1. Taking out a hookshot, they fling themselves into the treeline! Watching the world from above, they survey the area... and over in the Ashen Canopy, they spot him. Thank god. That mystery's out of the way now, hopefully.

They then perform a COUNTER™ against Not!Echoss, editing Maxim's state! They protect the Eliti from the masses of goo falling upon him, and vacate them from the area, into the tunnels. With Maxim in tow, they venture down the tunnels. They soon come across a rubble blockade. Maxim surveys the location. It'd be impossible to climb over, but maybe they could force their way through? Of course, that'd be easier if it weren't for the endless stream of chemical-altered steam. Ew.

---

Ziah re-appears! I already processed the stat block above, but welcome back!

---

Venia attempts to Grey Card a Grey Iti! A flash of light illuminates the room, pulling the Iti towards the inventory. However, in that same instant, the creature lunges towards Venia!

???: Please don't touch me no no NO

With a loud "vworp," the Iti teleports straight through the Card and Venia, landing in the hallway. They skitter on all four pointy limbs across the hall and dart into another room, slamming the door. The building rattles ever so slightly. Not quite what the duchess expected to happen. Guess it's time to pursue?

Elsewhere, down (or up?) in the Rosen Forge, Venia explains her situation. She'll need more materials to get things working. Elemental Clusters, Structured Matter, and... Livingwood. Some Order Singularities wouldn't hurt, either. Nia scratches her head. Could she find any of those?

NIA: That's... a lot of things!
NIA: I don't even know how I'd go about getting like, half of them.
NIA: Hm. Maybe I could use my... feminine charm to get some stuff?~
NIA: ...Or, uh, like, convince Cypress to help. He probably has access to some of those things, right?

NIA: But I think we could probably try and use the key to make some Order Singularities!
NIA: I bet if we focused the power all onto one location, we could form one!
NIA: We'd need something that'd conduct entropic energy or somethin'. Like, if we have a concentrated mass of entropic stuff, the Ordo would go and destroy it!
NIA: All of the ordo would converge on that thingy, and probably form into something nice, right?
NIA: Like... we could make a really compressed ball of Rosetainted Metal, or... maybe one of these!

Nia pulls out a Fluxfuel Cell from the inventory. It's like a battery, but flux!

NIA: Shoot this thingy with a Purge!
NIA: That'll probably do it! Explosions in alchemy always create good stuff, right?

...It seems she misunderstands how Alchemy works, but that'll probably do it anyway. She's also told to contact the Author. She bobs her head, waving her arms to invoke a spell.

NIA: Nah. I'll just get like, a summon to do it.
NIA: Go go, Chibi Nia!~

A snowy Chibi Nia forms. She gives it the commands to seek out Auth, and deliver a message. It shakes its tiny little head, then runs off as fast as its tiny little legs can carry it.

NIA: ...I think the Chibi Nia's are smarter now, somehow?
NIA: They feel more... autonomous.
NIA: Maybe it's a transcendence thing? I dunno.
NIA: Or maybe I'm like, applying concepts that Echoss showed off?

It waddles offscreen, probably to be seen in Auth's post a couple lines down. Over with Chaos, Maria begins to fill in some character sheets. It's quite a long, arduous process, but Chaos is there to guide her through it. Mostly because Chaos filled his in at a recordbreaking two minutes and six seconds, achieving a world record in the 100% Character Sheet speedrunning category. Glitch Barrack Obama manifests for all of two seconds to hand him a medal, which he promptly eats. Mmm. Chocolate.

CHAOS: okay, looks like you're almos[t] done
CHAOS: please begin by in[t]rodu[c]ing your [c]hara[c][t]er
CHAOS: for ins[t]an[c]e

CHAOS: my [c]hara[c][t]er is hugepe[c]s m[c]mus[c]learms, and he has huge pe[c]s and mus[c]le arms
CHAOS: his family was ea[t]en by snakes, so he will use his huge pe[c]s and mus[c]le arms to suplex [t]he snakes [t]o death
CHAOS: he is a level 1 wres[t]ler, who is also going to sub[c]lass in[t]o wizard, be[c]ause his brain is as large as his pe[c]s
CHAOS: whi[c]h is [t]o say, he[c]kin gigan[t]ic

There is a doodle of Hugemecs McMusclearms on his sheet. There is a stick figure, who's proportions are tiny compared to his huge pecs and muscle arms. Oh, he also has a nice hat. While not quite as large as his huge pecs and muscle arms, it's quite a tall hat. All TF2 mains would be in awe.

...In addition, thanks to the constant surveillance of Zone 0 through a whole swarm of beetles, it's rather blatantly obvious that Rebecca has buried a bomb beneath the ground. Uh. Someone may want to break her legs. Or don't, because that'd be rude, and probably make Maria sad.

---

Irongutta continues to talk with his axe. To him, she'd always be his buddy. This makes her rather happy. She'd also always be an engine of absolute cutty destruction. This makes her even happier than the first statement. Or maybe it's just additive?

MAGNOLIA: Thank you, Irongutta! You're so kind!
MAGNOLIA: Anyway... could we get going?
MAGNOLIA: I don't like this place. It's like the catacombs, but stinky.
MAGNOLIA: Mostly because my dad was here. That makes it stinky.
MAGNOLIA: The normal catacombs are a good kind of stinky.

MAGNOLIA: Oh! Let's also go and do something fun!
MAGNOLIA: Something that'd you find fun! I wanna find out what you like to do!

Little does Magnolia know that Irongutta's interests likely mostly boil down to "hittin' gits". Not that she'd be against that.

---

Auth and Nana continue their work at the chapel. Auth notes that Hesperian Apples are likely as hard to obtain as a Godblossoms. Nana pauses. He has a whole cider made from apples like that?

NANA: Y-You have... a-an entire bottle of cider m-made from something t-that rare!?
NANA: It takes roughly forty apples to make a nice thing of cider... a-and you just have...
NANA: ...It must taste good, though. N-Not that I'd be able to take a sip, o-or even stomach it.
NANA: B-But... if it's hard to get, d-don't worry about it!

Once Nana's gathered the flowers, the two of them embrace for a moment. Then, a question bubbles up in Nana's mind.

NANA: Hm... you sounded like you had an idea about those apples!
NANA: W-What is it? W-Whatever it is, I'll do my best to help!

Is it time to go on a quest to grow Hesperidean Apples? Will Nana find a way to give everyone on this planet immortality? Probably not the latter, but maybe the former is possible?

Elsewhere, in the Aviation Chamber, Auth successfully bags a Twig. He's given one option to leave: through the vents, back from where he came. Should he return to the Aviation Chamber, he'll be allowed to leave in a peaceful manner. Probably. They comply, worming backward through the vents with impressive speed. They fall from the ceiling, down into the foam pit. They sit there, awaiting further orders.

Approximately a couple dozen meters somewhereward of the Aviation Chamber, Auth continues to work with Sythia. He informs her that there's likely nothing he can do for them. Still silent and still curled into a ball, Sythia begins to cry into her knees. Still with the tablet, Sythia's thoughts are translated. They're becoming increasingly distorted with mental noise, but something's still readable.

SYTHIA: (I-I can't b-believe it...)
SYTHIA: (Redbud... w-waah...)
SYTHIA: (I-I won't... e-ever forgive t-that nasty person...)

...Oh? Might be worth questioning her, assuming you're fine forcing her to dig up some rather painful memories at this moment. Finally, over with Cypress, he presents him with the Rebel Radio. He claims the device, giving it a careful lookover. Soon enough, Cypress nods his head.

CYPRESS: Primitive, low-cost. Standard rebel communicator.
CYPRESS: This item: perfect. Will modify, however. Improve audio quality. Seem more... professional. Leaders: professional.
CYPRESS: ...Usually.
CYPRESS: Thank you. Notify when ready. Myself, I mean.

Cypress rips the face of the radio right off, and immediately begins getting to work modifying it. Poke him when you're ready to carry out the operation? It might also not hurt to detail exactly how you want him to go about it. He's a technician, not an improv master.

...At some point in the timeline, a snow-flavored Chibi Nia runs towards Auth! It runs up to his legs, and... begins aggressively slapping them. Should Auth give it his attention, it'll hand him a handwritten note, before dawdling off elsewhere. Presumably to go on an epic, G-rated adventure where she'll discover the true meaning of friendship. Or maybe she'll just go melt somewhere, becoming Water Chibi Nia. Where she'll then attempt to be drunk by Venia. o-okay

---

<THE CUPS OF CHAOS, ROUND 4>
Not too much damage on the Tamaugachi still. It's a bit concerning, but you still should be able to get in some good damage on it before it descends further! Just maybe get moving: you're starting to build up a lot of stacks of Fourth Nail. Once that begins to build up more and more... you're gonna have a bad time.

<AI LABS, ROUND 3>
Cappa has arrived. Please pray to your local deity that he does not smash you to bits. Thank you.

Continued reminder that there are beetles monitoring all of Zone 0
Additionally, beetles set up in areas around Zone 1, outside of Regalus' sightlines but close enough that should he relocate he can be tracked.



Magic Club:
Echoss sighs.
"I apologize if I have been impertinent but... well... I suppose I do not have authority here, but what you're being put through is considered a form of slavery in certain other places. And I've seen a significant number of cases much like yours, and been directly involved in dealing with some of them as well...
Regardless of whether or not the people who keep you on a short leash think you have to keep up a facade of well being at all times you are, at the moment, not being monitored. You are free to speak your mind in present company, and more than that those you are speaking with care more about your well-being than the projected public image 'they' insist on.
I am only vaguely aware of your reputation, as my research was cut short before I came. Any other spherebreakers who are not natives to Sussui know even less about you if they know anything at all.
...I suppose I'm rambling again. My apologies."

She then asks what it's like to be free. Echoss hesitates for a moment, then sighs and responds.
"Truthfully, I am probably not the best person to ask that. While my situation is in no way as unfortunate as yours... I've spent most if not all of my life being scrutinized by others.
By birth I have enough power flowing in my veins to threaten entire polities. By... 'adoption' so to speak I am royalty. And despite the fact that my homeworld has long since turned to ash and dust... I have even more eyes on me now than I ever did before. Even during my time as an adventurer, there was always someone watching me, critiquing me, waiting for a weakness to pry me and my reputation apart for their own gain.
As ruler of... well, that's an explanation for another time, but politics, posturing, appearance. It is all of paramount importance. The ordinary people must see me as someone they can trust to look out for their interests. My own assistants and underlings must see me as composed and competent, or at least useful as their superior. My peers in the political landscape must see me as cunning, intelligent, and powerful. Should any of those masks crack too much or fall for too long..."
He shakes his head slowly.
"Sorry, that was rather unsolicited.
What I should probably have started with... is I empathize. While I have not personally experienced what you're going through... I know what it is like to have your hands tied by the necessity to keep up your own public image, if not to have other breathing down your neck to enforce it personally.
That being said... it is liberating, to make your own choices. To be able to do something just because it's something you want to do, or because it would be nice to experience something new.
To know that what you accomplished was because you had the wherewithal to accomplish it yourself, as opposed to because you had no real alternatives.
While joining the Spherebreakers was perhaps not the smartest thing for me to have done... I'm still glad I did it. It has been... difficult. Heart wrenching at times, making my own mistakes with regards to people I care about personally. But it's been worth it."
He pauses for a moment again.
"I cannot define the choices you make for your own life, Miss Aoki. I know they are few in number at present, but I recommend making the most of them.
While this likely is not too helpful coming from one of the Spherebreakers, if there is something I could do to help, let me know. Chances are good that if we successfully prevent the Sphere's detonation it will be possible to get in contact with me again even once the Spherebreakers as a whole disband."

Pionobot chuckles at Chloe's remark.
"Nah I get it. Guy who was taking care of me insisted I catch up on certain stuff with regards to Earth pop culture. It'd take way too long to explain why but, suffice it to say that I at least know a lot of the references.
That being said I've never been there, seems like a pretty miserable world to live on in all honesty."
Pionobot stops for a moment, contemplating Maple's words on names.
"Question; do you have knowledge of LOCAAn etymology? Most worlds have history behind any given name, a linguistic trail that tells the story of where it came from and why it was used.
Most Chairian names encountered thus far seem to be arboreal in nature when translated to human languages, would this hold true in their origin as well?"


Battle:
Pionbot stares vacantly at the Saint's response. His eyes flicker.
"You're joking.
The fact that Spark's a clown who stole the throne through slight of hand and then threatening to torch anyone who disagreed aside..."
His eyes flicker again.
"Heh, no point arguing with a punk like you though, is th-"
Pionbot voice fritzes out and he clutches his head for a moment. Then rolls his eyes as he pulls his hand away.
"Since this is apparently some kind of joke, I guess I'll give you some feedback on your comedy routine."
He pulls a tomato out of his pocket (mechanically it's one of the lumipods but shhhh it's a tomato) and then flings it across the battlefield, splattering it across the Saint's face. This pops their divine shield, but since the tomato juice has no negative effect besides mild humiliation it probably isn't removed.
"And for the record? I'm an offworlder, I don't qualify for your afterlife."

Action:
Item action, throw Lumipod at the Saint.
Wait for Maple and Chloe to take their turns, then move to E12 and basic attack Cappa (Armistyx passive means this attack has Armorpierce3). Then, Poetry Pamphlet is expended. Chloe is given Autorevive3 for 3 rounds, Pionobot is given Enchant Element: Who Cares? for 3 rounds and is relocated to C11. Pionobot then uses Unreconciled Stars to CONSUME the Enchant Element, removing it and giving himself Mending15 for 3 rounds.
Also since why not, Pionobot spawns a basic attacking Chronoshade of himself on C12.



The Return of the TODO List:
Buy Rapid Response research next round.
We need a lot of low-tier straight damage consumables (Searing Bomb replacements, Clockwork Bombs, Fragapple Grenades, and Crystal Bomb Shells are the most obvious, but near equivalents would work as well. Important thing is being able to be used for cheap extra damage for kill confirming)
We need more Shocktip Coating. If people have ideas for things equal to the shocktip and webmix coating (item applied weapon enchant) then making those would also be really appreciated since we basically just need it for swapping off disadvantageous elements more than switching to good ones.
Glyphs need to be examined
Once Magic Club ends, Echoss goes and talks to Droplet
Ping me on discord if there's something else you think would be useful.

A Chaotic Cup
Daskter jumps to the edge (H9) to cast Creation Singularity centered on Harpy4 with manafuelled2. Alloy atleast only takes half the damage.
They quickly switch to the Air/Ice Sniper to snipe the 4th Harpy down. (2 times if the first failed to kill)

After the Ignihorn moves.
The Vanguard leaos down (I13) to do an overhand slash on Tama while they fall down.
They Risposte.

Nettle uses Sing Unto Me to drag the K4 Harpy corpse onto Venia's tile. She then moves to D10 and attempts to meditate. She also Blesses Daskter.

Battle - Cups of Chaos

Hannah uses Shadow Blend, moves to (O16), multistabs Thornclump3 (this is affected by Maxim's buffs, including their Armorpierce), uses a Searing Bomb on the Thornclump to finish it off, and retreats into (N17) to pick the Warpmelon.

Maxim shoots the Tamura with the Elemental Sniper (Fire), moves to (M18) (affected by Hannah's Swift), Tendril Pulls to the Hivemind, lands at (K18), harvests both the Evervine and Warpmelon nearby, retreats to (M19), switches to Heavy mode in preparation to take a beating.

Mari should probably use one of the Warpmelons to catch up.

---

Hannah's Scouting Mission

While flying, Hannah receives a message from Terrence about the ongoing situation. She gives a brief sigh.

HANNAH: ...Well peck.
HANNAH: I'm gonna need to seriously hurry up with that backup plan...

What that backup plan is remains to be seen. However, given that she's around Zone 3, she notices a few things. First and foremost was Verdana. It looks like he's searching for someone. She contacts Michaela to see if she knew anything. Fortunately for her, she does. He's looking into the library murders, and is searching for the killer. While he was absent, the killer was indeed revealed to be a 'someone'. No squad. Hannah figured out pretty quickly that it was exactly who she thought it was.

She decides to get in contact with Verdana through comms.

HANNAH: You're looking for the killer, aren't you?
HANNAH: The one who did the murders at the library?
HANNAH: I have a funny feeling we're both after the same person.
HANNAH: Regalus Hemmors. Tyrant emperor of the Sanguine Empire from a "far-flung future". Full-time peckneck.
HANNAH: Try to reign in your desire to annihilate him right away. The guy's practically immortal until we can find his weakness, if he even has one.
HANNAH: And don't try and sneak too close to him, he can see you even if you're literally invisible behind him.
HANNAH: Believe me, I already tried. He noticed me as I was running under the shade of the trees and bushes, and hit him right in the eye with an arrow. He saw me, let himself get hit, then got right back up like it never happened.
HANNAH: Be extremely careful.

HANNAH: Oh yeah, he's currently at the spot where Chloe first portal'd in. So avoid that area until we're ready. We'll keep you posted.

Secondly, the Praetorian platoon. Why were they hanging around the tree? She decides to try and fly around to the backside of Scale Yggdrasil, ensuring that she remains at a distance. Mirror!Hannah continues looking down at the base of the tree. Was there anything behind the tree? Or was it just an ineffectual patrol?

---

Central Labs

>Miss Adria.
>Get in here. Immediately.
>You are going to love this.

She bursts into Machining and Fabrication. She takes a moment to shoot the terminal that's been Iti-ified with a Static Overcharge-loaded bolt, before getting a better look at the place. Iti aside, it's an engineer's paradise. Loads of parts for working with. Tools for quickly and efficiently making parts. Adria has a wide grin on her face.

ADRIA: These fabrication machines... I didn't expect something so advanced in here!
ADRIA: Oh my, I am going to have a field day with this stuff!

She immediately gets to work toying with the fabrication and machining apparatuses to get a feel for using them.

---

Southern Labs

Ette

Adria softly chuckles at Ette's assumptions. Ette suddenly feels like she's accidentally stumbled into a lesson.

ADRIA: Hmhm... well, not exactly.
ADRIA: The communications technology is perfectly operational.
ADRIA: The more... exotic technology, however, is varying degrees of useless down here thanks to the Thymefield.
ADRIA: See, much of our technology is temporally operated, meaning that we manipulate time to help perform tasks.
ADRIA: For instance, rapidly growing crops or allowing more time for fun stuff in between work.
ADRIA: The technology that would be employed here would be investigative technology; reading the pasts of a certain individual or set of individuals, essentially.
ADRIA: Everyone and everything makes a mark in space-time whenever they do anything at all. It's invisible to the naked eye. For this technology, we capitalize on that aspect.
ADRIA: The Thymefield doesn't like it, however. Primarily, I think it rejects certain things so that our lives within the field aren't trivial. Though I suppose that might be obvious...
ADRIA: And the device I just mentioned would make finding answers trivial.
ADRIA: So... I have to rely on more traditional methods.

She sighs.

ADRIA: Anyway, I'll let you know if I hear anything.
ADRIA: Please stay safe, Ette. And may the timelines be kind to you.

She bows, and walks... behind a root. Should Ette check, Adria is nowhere to be found...
...well, she's still at the picnic, but that's likely about to wrap up.

Calscape

Sophia remains firmly planted on the ground, even as the big lad starts chatting. She's used to big scary things that are actually nice.

She nods at the Goleyeath's question.

SOPHIA: Mhm! I'm Sophia!
SOPHIA: I'm just explorin', it's a cool place so far!
SOPHIA: You looked kinda lonely so I stopped by!

Chemical Labs

Hannah pouts.

HANNAH: peck off I do what I want!
HANNAH: Also I need to hurry up.
HANNAH: ...I think this might actually be a gas though. Better be careful. And use something that's not an open vial.

HANNAH: Let's see...

Hannah fishes around in her pockets and pokes at one unit of Hardened Glass. It appears in a puff of shadow, and with carefully-applied heating, eventually gets formed into a different sort of flask. She inserts a stopper that expands when the tank's sampling valve is inserted into it, and seals shut the moment it's taken out, which works supremely well for keeping stuff inside the flask. There's also a standard valve installed into it just in case. It has a flat bottom to stop it from tipping.

She takes the new flask and shoves it onto the valve connected to the "no" tank, forming a tight seal. She also places a conveniently-sized log beneath it to keep it stable. She then gears up in the best poison-resistant equipment she could find.

Finally, she opens the flask's valve, and then, ever so slowly, opens the "no" valve, keeping a very close eye on it, and being ready to shut off the valve at the slightest hint of something going wrong.

Once she gets an adequate amount of "no", she shuts off the sample valve, then closes the flask valve. She slowly pulls the flask and accompanying stopper out of the sample valve, before finally stuffing it into the inventory.

Regardless of the outcome, she decides to hit up "The Scion" through comms.

HANNAH: Yo, Sci? If you're not busy I'd like some help with something.
HANNAH: Got a lot of... interesting substances from the Skylabs' Chem Lab. Also got a sample of Tamaugachi Toxin before we started fighting the beast itself.
HANNAH: Long story short, I want to mix up another poison, since the original one was compromised by you know who, and the fact that it might not last very long. Mostly as a backup plan.
HANNAH: So here's what I'm thinking:
HANNAH: A poison that causes as much pain and suffering as possible while being ludicrously, functionally, impossible to remove, all without killing the target outright.
HANNAH: 'Course, I'm not much of an expert, so I definitely want a bit of help setting it up.
HANNAH: You with me, buddy?

--2--

Hannah receives the Scion's response.

HANNAH: Ah, don't worry about mom. Her and I smoothed things out already. She already knows that we're making it, and is okay with it.
HANNAH: Ven can go stick it to herself though. Actually, she's the sole reason why my mom acted like that.
HANNAH: Mom just wanted it to be over smoothly, is all. Arguing with Ven is a painfully good way to derail a conversation.

HANNAH: But yeah, meet you... uh...
HANNAH: ...
HANNAH: Oh, there's a deserted island in the middle of Recollection Lake! It's far out enough that there's no chance for the emperor or anyone to find us. Even has a place away from the elements!
HANNAH: I'll meet you there?

With that done, Hannah slips away from the various crowds in both the Skylabs and house. She slips through the back, avoiding detection from any of the family members. Then, she slips her way through the forest, to a nondescript part of the river.

Not wanting to make much of a ruckus, Hannah uses the raft and the raft alone to row her way upstream, to the island with the fishing hut. She then gets a bunch of useful stuff set up in the hut for chemical work. She also shoves the raft back in the inventory, in case the Scion also wants to not cause a ruckus.

Once done, she waits patiently for the Scion to arrive.

---

The House

Sophia returns to the house! Or perhaps it's a Timeclone like what Adria's got. That's likely the case, given she's still in the Calscape.

Anyway, she returns via the portal, walking back to the workstation to finish up her project. She passes by Cindy, who was acting a little weird, but nothing out of the ordinary as far as Sophia was concerned.

She finishes a few moments later. From the looks of things, it's a seemingly simple umbrella. Notably, however, the actual umbrella part is made out of iron, and the "point" at the very tip was a gun barrel. One of the umbrella bits has a bit of glass, acting as a window. It looks like it's a cross between a riot shield, rifle, and umbrella. Effective at all ranges!

That being said, it's not really usable in its current state. The mechanisms aren't all in place, meaning that this is merely a prototype. Not a serious prototype either. Just something to keep Sophia's skills fresh.

SOPHIA: All done! Break time!

As it turns out, a "break", according to her, was heading to the second floor and laying down on the roof, sunbathing and taking in the clouds. She seems quite content.

...Though she does overhear Terrence and Echoss talking to Rebecca. She decides to roll closer, not really making herself visible to either of them, but still able to listen. She's... confused... what are they doing?

---

The Library

Another Sophia Timeclone appears near the entrance of the Library. That being said, she is a little taken aback by the dragon standing still as stone near the entrance of the library.

She slowly approaches the entrance. The dragon doesn't move... except for a simple nod.

FEYNSIK: Be not afraid, young one. I'm merely on lookout for someone.
SOPHIA: U-um... okay?? Um, who exactly?
FEYNSIK: A criminal. There's been a dual murder.

Sophia blinks. She suddenly gets really nervous.

SOPHIA: Um, um... w-who got murdered?
FEYNSIK: ...It's the folks you met toda-

The dragon doesn't even finish his sentence before Sophia's running straight towards the library, crying and screaming.

SOPHIA: NO! OHHH NONONO! NOOOO!
FEYNSIK: ...I should've invested more into social skills...

The dragon goes back to his watch. While ineffectual at the moment, it would still be a good idea.

Sophia, meanwhile, frantically runs to the crime scene, skidding to a halt as she stops by the group of corpses. She's... not happy about this. She's not happy about any of this. Very not happy. She looks down at the deceased, shook. She recognizes the two, not realizing that there's a significant absence of the third...

SOPHIA: N-no...

She remembers that she wanted to return to visit sometime. Actually, that was the reason she came over to begin with. They were nice. They sounded like fun to hang out with. She leaves for a few hours, and then this happens.

She falls to her knees, in tears. And there she sobs. And yet...

SOPHIA: ...nnnh...

...she felt something. Anger. A lust for vengeance for her fallen newfound friends. More than any girl should reasonably have. Stronger than anyone should reasonably have. She starts screaming, first low, but quickly going so high pitched and loud that one could mistake her for a banshee.

SOPHIA: aaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEHHH!!!
SOPHIA: I'M GONNA peckIN' DESTROY WHOEVER DID THIS!!

She slams the ground with her fist. Unexpectedly, there's a minor, very localized tremor as she does so. Fortunately, she finds herself getting a bit too angry, and takes a couple deep (yet very angry) breaths. That's when she realizes: there's only two. There were three Scarlets before.

She looks around... and notices Auth up on the balcony. The last one's probably upstairs. She hurries on up.

The moment she lays eyes on the last remaining Scarlet, her anger melts away for now. In fact, in it's place resides immense amounts of concern. She doesn't hesitate to jump on Sythia and give her a big ol' hug. Sure it's like hugging a log, but Sophia doesn't care. No words. Only crying and a big, warm hug.

Destiny moves to G8. She observes the Royal Guard before Phase Shifting with them and moving to J5, proceeding to hack the main Console via Level ? Keycard.
Chi loads another Paralytic Abasia and shoots the Royal Guard after Destiny moves.

--------------------------

Destiny examines the Glyphs for any extra add ons, particularly anything that could be a recall glyph. If nothing appears on the surface, she uses her cool Seer of Space powersTM to examine the Glyph inside out for any such devices.

Meanwhile, somewhere else, Destiny receives Terrence's message. She responds.
So it is time, then. Be ready for me, I am quick and I am silent. I am ready on your mark.
Destiny pulls out the poison, and dips her daggers in, then sheathing them.

Skylabs - Picnic and Magic Club

"...Magic club is probably starting to wrap up, huh."

Calibri takes a look around to check if there's anything left to do. Or anything left to watch. If there is, that'd probably be a good idea to engage with. If there isn't, though, it might be time to put some plans into action...

---

Zone 3 - The Endless Gardens

Verdana nods in acknowledgement.

VERDANA: No suspicious people other than Praetorians. Got it.
BLACKLIGHT: ...While unrelated to what we're supposed to be doing, that does raise a good question.
BLACKLIGHT: There was plenty of time to reinforce earlier. Yet they've only arrived now...

Blacklight would continue speaking, but the phantom cuts himself off and glances upwards, then taps Verdana on the side. Verdana blinks, then checks communications. There's a pause as he takes in what information Hannah has to provide. Then, one of Verdana's eyes twitches. Something he's been told does not sit well with him.

VERDANA: ...I see.
VERDANA: ...
VERDANA: While it's very tempting to fly over... Fine. I'll wait.

Another pause. A closing of both eyes. An inhale. Then an exhale.

VERDANA: ...Stay calm, think positively...
BLACKLIGHT: Hm. Maybe we should do something else while waiting for the call to arms.
BLACKLIGHT: After all, there's those Praetorians, there's the other people around here too...
VERDANA: You know what? Sure. Anything to distract from the... seething rage I'd rather not be feeling right now.
BLACKLIGHT: Then we are in agreement.

The pair soon wander off. More accurately, Verdana wanders off, while Blacklight spends a moment staring at a flower before being dragged along behind him. The albino takes a brief detour to stare at Acacia's house.

BLACKLIGHT: ...Why are we staring at this house?
VERDANA: It belonged to Acacia.
VERDANA: ...I hope we get around to resurrecting her soon.
BLACKLIGHT: You seem oddly regretful about the death of someone you had basically no interaction with.
VERDANA: I have my reasons.

Then, back on track to where they were originally going. Namely, up to Yggdrasil's Approach. Sensing that things might get annoying if he just walks out into the open, Verdana settles in the flowers nearby, Blacklight faceplanting into the ground and turning into a flat 2d shadow. It's bright enough outside that the 2d shadow is barely visible anyway, so no worries there.

VERDANA: Hmm...

Verdana then takes out a pair of binoculars to get a better look at the situation, also putting on a very generic device called a Listening Device, made to amplify sound. Might as well spy on what the Praetorians are doing, and hopefully get to listen in on their conversations.

---

The House

"..."

EN facepalms, realizing that Rosalind has not been paying attention at all. Better figure out a way to handle this child. She's about to speak, but then pauses for a moment to listen to something someone else has to say. Her expression remains neutral. After a moment, she refocuses her attention back onto Rosalind.

While she could just gun the kid down right here and now to solve the problem the easy way... well, she'd feel bad doing that. Plus it'd probably be seen as a diplomatic incident in at least some places, and while the company could probably bureaucracy a way into letting her escape consequences, that would be one more unnecessary problem on top of many others. Better find a way to resolve this peacefully and fake-obliviously...

"Right, uh... hmm... Kay, so, ya really wanna keep flyin' tha'? Cause if so, we might 'ave t' take it elsewhere fer a while. Can't 'ave ya crashin' int' thin's 'round 'ere, y'ain't gonna learn much proper pilotin' tha' way. Lemme think 'bout a better place fer ya t' train..."

A pause as EN thinks about things. She's pretty sure she overheard something about things happening in the Outskirts, the Library isn't necessarily safe, the Gardens are a bit occupied at the moment, and the Skylabs are really far away. That really only leaves one place.

"...Maybe we can go visit th' Ol' Pass, tha' place shoul' be safe 'nuff what wit' e'erythin' dangerous mostly cleared out now. Reckon tha' coul' be fun?"

---

The Everground - Cups of Chaos

S.E.D performs battlefield analysis. Things are moving too quickly. It needs to catch up, fast. And there's only one way it can think to do so... As such, S.E.D starts its action by turning gravity back on, promptly landing on Harpy2's head. At special request from... someone else, it then grabs hold of the Harpy corpse at O4 and hops over to T2, dropping the corpse directly below itself. S.E.D then obliterates Harpy2 in a hailstorm of basic attack shots.

Having completed its action, S.E.D proceeds to plummet downwards, making a comical whistling noise as it falls. Then, given the corpse it dropped down there earlier, it makes a squishy sound on impact with the dead body. Hopefully Hannah moved out the way before the corpse landed, otherwise that's gonna be real uncomfortable.

Cups of Chaos
Move to I10.
Channel Magic the Tamauga and Alloy.
Power Nap self.

BATTLES - AI LABS

Turn order: Chloe -> Maple -> Pionobot -> Irongutta -> Chemist -> Destiny -> Chi -> Eph -> Omo -> "Scion" -> Woodthorne -> Blademaster -> Nana -> Zahlia

Chloe moves to G12 and basic attacks Cappa, with By Your Side active. She retreats to F11.
Maple moves to H12 and uses her special on Cappa (slashing damage mode), with an extra +50% damage and +5 CRT against Cappa (but not the Blossoms) because Chloe attacked Cappa. She retreats to G11.
The Chemist waits until after Irongutta's turn, then basic attacks the Saint from M11.
Chi waits until after Destiny's turn, then uses Paralytic Abasia again and shoots the Royal Guard.
Omo moves up to J18 and casts Null Somnum on the Scion, then retreats to J19.

"The Scion" moves to H13 and casts Shackling Blast on Cappa, consuming the corpses of Blossoms 2 and 4, Splintershot 1, Halberdier 2, Morph 1, and the Extinguisher (and regaining 42 HP and 30 MP from Lay to Rest after the casting of the spell). The blast gains 1.5 buff levels from Ordo, 3 buff levels from Elemental Mastery, 2 buff levels from manafueled, and 1 buff level from the plague debuff on "the Scion."
On her second turn from Null Somnum, she moves to F13 and casts Sapping Sigil centered on C13, possibly destroying two more Blossom corpses and regenerating some MP that way. As a bonus action, she copies the plague on herself to Cappa. She then retreats back to G13.

The Blademaster moves to G9 and basic attacks the Royal Guard.
Nana moves to H11 and basic attacks the Royal Guard.

---

ZONE 0

Slightly suspicious, the Reflector casts Mirror Image. Their mirror heads down the basement hallway, closely investigating each of the rooms in turn to make sure Cindy hasn't interfered with anything -- especially Linseed's cell. Meanwhile, the main Reflector takes off after Cindy, following her around at a slight, but not too large distance. No explanation given.

---

ZONE 1

Having spotted Regalus, "the Scion" sends in his coordinates to the rest of the group while keeping a close eye on him through the binoculars, making sure he doesn't leave her sight. She then receives a transmission on comms from Hannah.

"THE SCION": Um... you want my help?
"THE SCION": Even after Venia and your mom yelled at us last time?
"THE SCION": You haven't even really met me before, haha...
"THE SCION": You know what, sure!
"THE SCION": It'll be fun to watch him squeal.

---

ZONE 5

Confronted with a rubble belt, the Reflector decides to scout out the area. They head east, leaving a trail of random pieces of rubble down the hallway so they can find their way back if need be, looking for a way around.

Eph hops around the corner to R10, casting Glitchform Last Dream again, this time on the Royal Magus. Afterwards he retreats to Q11, getting ready to figure out how to use the console.

The Ignihorn waits until Venia acts, then uses the Warp Ring to teleport Auth to G8, then uses the Swift to move to J12 and basic-attack the Tama.

Then, Remiel deactivates trait, moves to K13, and basic-attacks the Reborn (using the Ignihorn's +40% damage).

The Cups of Chaos, and they are Chaos

Venia moves to F7, dragging the Harpy Corpse along with her. (If they fall further than F7 due to the absense of people, that is not a problem.) Venia will use Hope Rides Eternal to move Auth to E8. Venia doesn't have any real reason to pursue the Tama, so she Guards.

The Alloy chugs two uses of the Yggdrasil Vessel to heal off the damage from the Creation Singularity, then punches Tama-Unavoidable damage, baby! As it hasn't moved, it gets +1 MOV on retreat, which it uses to move to H14. It picks the Wingfig from the vine before falling down to the Goblet below.

---

The Forge

Venia... Waits patiently with Nia in the Forge for Auth to arrive.

---

Gray Iti part two

Venia watches the Iti board themselves up in the room. She still doesn't really get what's happening, though, but resolves to apply a bit more caution. This time, she knocks first.

"Hey, uh. Sorry about earlier, I was just, uh. You really shouldn't be in this house, but I know a place you could be welcome at! A, uh, gathering of disconnected Iti like yourself. The card is their symbol, I was just, trying to take you there. C-can you come out?"

---

Mariaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Maria's character sheet has been entirely written with either the word 'Venia' or shortened versions thereof.

... Maybe she should get a phone call or something? Or maybe this is the secret top-tier build guarenteed to kill Charon and win the game? Who knows? Uh. I don't.

---

Cypress

"Hey, Cypress, quick question," Venia says, just kind of walking up to Cypress normally. "I'm starting to wonder about those Praetorians... The way they just teleport back to safety. With the state of Locaa as it is, though, I reckon that their gear is mightily expensive... If we could disable those recall runes, we could destroy that gear and permanently cripple Spark's honor guard. Have any idea how we'd go about that?"

---

The Family Hemmors

Venia gets the message Terrance set, and through similar means, sends another.

VENIA: I wouldn't put it past Regalus to ask them to help. Then again, I wouldn't put it past the three of them to come to the same conclusion he did independently and try to appease him preemptively... Ugh.
VENIA: I understand it's not exactly going to make things easier, so I'm not going to obligate you or anything. I know what I signed on for and at this point doing anything else is stupid. But...
VENIA: I'll just keep it simple-Regalus and me are... Controversial topics. Assassinating him is going to be more so, nevermind the legal implications. And Regalus, unlike me, has a ton of fanatic jackasses willing to crucify anyone for scratching him.
VENIA: Anything that makes it less controversial is worth the effort to uncover for me, when dealing with that down the road.
VENIA: This isn't just about killing him-it's about protecting Maria and others. Any proof that Regalus is unfit to be a father, or any theoretical proof that he's not just reacting to me but is actively threatening others, is going to be something I can use to justify my actions later on in a court of law.
VENIA: Just to clarify what that means... The fact he did "X" bad thing is one very strong piece of proof by itself, but just as strong is the fact he did it maliciously rather than ignorantly.
VENIA: As an example, this won't just be the fact that he most likely killed Redbud. As far as he should know, those three were random Rebels, and thus enemies to us. I definitely didn't inform him to the contrary-which means that if he did know, that would be seriously useful.
VENIA: Proof is proof no matter when we get it-but if it looks like we took the time to make an ironclad argument, instead of constructing it after we did it, it'll look even better.

VENIA: ... Yes it's stupid. I hate political nonsense like this, which is exactly why I'm asking for this.
VENIA: Stupid diehards won't be convinced, but if there's proof, they won't be able to convince the 99% of more reasonable people predisposed against me while they're at it.
VENIA: This is why I'm going to say that you don't have to do this. Really, all he's done already is enough that I can mount a good argument for my defense later.
VENIA: I can't really 'repay' you guys either, I'd already be giving it to you if I had the ability to do so.
VENIA: I know it won't amount to anything in our current time, success or failure. But it would be really useful to me, and mean a lot.

VENIA: ... Oh! And I realize I probably should have said this sooner, but they do have communicators, uh, like me.
VENIA: Not like, secret ones! Just like... I guess the closest comparison would be a cell phone? It should be obvious if they're talking through it to one another, is what I'm saying.
VENIA: If they're using it, they'll look like they're talking into their wrist or something.
VENIA: It's kind of something you just... Forget about, or assume-it's practically omnipresent from where and when I'm from. Sorry for not talking about this earlier.
VENIA: Something tells me that they weren't using them before though.

As the Scion identifies Regalus, Regalus himself moves north, not especially appearing to care about the area he is currently in. You should probably figure a way to scan him-one that doesn't tip him off that you're nearby or scanning him.

Rosalind seems a bit agitated by EN's sudden shift-a bit of a pout. "Oh, if you insist! ... I don't know where the, uh, 'old pass' is. You can lead the way, can't you?"

As the Reflector "tails" Cindy (which isn't exactly difficult given the room's size and the fact she's not exactly moving fast, opting to marvel at all the sights), the Mirror's investigation in each of the rooms reveals that nothing is out of order with anything in any of the rooms.

Rebecca seems to only get more shaky as Terrance speaks. "R-really. This is normal, for me! Normal. T-there's-"

She then jumps out of her skin again when Echoss appears. "AH!" She yelps as he appears. Echoss speaking only somewhat calms her down-replaced, inexplicably, with a look of mild apprehension to go with near-total terror. "M-mind altering Iti? Y-you're, uh. Mind-altering. Uh. You're. Uh. You're sure of that?"

Rebecca is edging-closer towards the house, less like she's readying up to bail (given the direction) and more like she's trying to appease the duo as slowly as possible.

---

Welp, Crapaflapnasti, I don't really know what to do

After everyone has acted, Zahlia uses her special. Or rather, Simeon acts.

From somewhere in the room, he uses the Helix Relic, increasing the intensity of the Empowered buff, before materializing a Hard-Light Rifle. Pointing it towards the Royal Guard, he takes the shot just before the Thymecurse renders the foreign weapon useless.
"Gotcha."

Move to O12
Use Helix Relic
Use Si-Ops on Royal Guard

The Forge

"Yeah, good idea Magnolia. This place is kinda dull now anyway. We can step out fer a moment, but we're gonna 'ave to come back to help get The Forge workin' again."

As he walked out of The Forge and into the top of The Passage, Irongutta pondered Magnolia's question. "Wot I do fer fun, eh? Easy: Hittin' gits and buildin' stuff! Bein' a mek is practically in my blood, after all! Though uhhh, hm..."

Further than that required a bit of extra thought from him. "Hmmm, those times I worked wivv R-8 to blow things up was pretty fun. Normally I care more about practical applications, but that crazy git knows how to make an explosion look good! Plus that grenade launcher he fixed us up wivv has been a blast, eh? Maybe we could go bug him?"

Battle: AI Labs

Irongutta uses his ridiculous speed to move up to L8 and uses his Rose Bomb with some Restraint (begrudgingly), centering the blast at N6. Following up, he throws a Fragapple at the same spot.

Lastly, he barks some orders at the Chemist to whack the Saint with a basic attack. "Oi! Get yer arse in gear and clobber that grot!"

Auth thinks for a moment... and slowly nods. A nod that implies that more than a bottle is possessed, just not on his person.

AUTH: Mm. It's not like it goes cheap, either, given the effects. It just happens that I have some friends who know how to make it...
AUTH: It doesn't actually taste alcoholic, truthfully. The actual taste is... difficult to describe, but I would say it's extremely fruity. But it's more than that...
AUTH: In more esoteric terms that you'd have to just try it to understand, it tastes of life. I know full well how unhelpful that statement if but you'll have to take my word for it, because it's really hard to describe in a useful way.

Auth thinks loudly, apparently quite conflicted on this relevant topic.

AUTH: It... might be possible to bring some here in a useful manner. Maybe.
AUTH: The thing is, the Hesperidean Apple trees can only grow in... not-quite-sunlight. They shrivel, unprepared, on the Surface, but require light similar to the surface to grow. There's a couple of places in the Neath where this is possible...
AUTH: Well, there's two. The first is at the foot of the Mountain of Light, and the second is in Parabola.
AUTH: Now, I've had this suspicion for a couple of days now, but I think that it might be possible to open the mirrors on Sussui. I've noticed that your sun doesn't seem to have the effect on Parabolan objects... and people, that it ought. But I'm not sure if that's because of the Thymefield or because of something to do with the aforementioned sun.

A Parabolan expedition may, or may not, be on the table. Auth does seem to know where the apples grow, at least.

---

Auth, having been in reality outside of the vents the whole time, is standing outside the foam pit when Twig comes out of the vents.

AUTH: Come with me, please. The ship is this way.

Auth then leads Twig out into the foyer, conveniently past the picnic should anything of interest happen there. If not, Twig will be brought outside the Airship that the Spherebreakers arrived on, and instructed to wait (since Aoki will also be leaving that way, and it's easier to have them both leave at the same time).

---

Auth allows Scythia her space, conveying a deep sympathy for having lost what appears to be all her friends. Auth has a very deep understanding of what that is like, not that Scythia would know or have any reason to. Still, he understands how devastating those feelings are...

And something interesting was said.

AUTH: Scythia... if you're okay with it, and I truly will understand if you say no, but...
AUTH: We're looking for the man who did in your friends, and you're probably the only person who knows exactly what happened right now.
AUTH: If you're okay with it, and please don't feel pressured to go back and tell us what happened if you really don't want to, could you tell us what you remember?
AUTH: Anything you're willing to tell us will be valuable for identifying and locating the murderer.

---

Now for some new things!

Auth steps back in light surprise when Terrence appears rather suddenly (or, at least, what he would consider sudden while with Nana). However, he tries his best not to reveal that immediate sudden alarm.

AUTH: I suppose, I don't really mind going to mind somebody to stop them causing any damage.
AUTH: Give me a moment, I'll be there soon.

Auth glances to Nana, to see if she wants to come along on this child-minding mission. One way or another - he doesn't really think he has time for the leisurely walk that he used to get out to the church. Instead, he decides to fly over the trees and land outside the house, near YV. Perhaps it's a little close but it's a fairly easy place to land, with plenty of plausible deniability. He looks around, after landing, for Echoss and Terrence, who he expects to see in the area.

---

At the same time, and yet, at an entirely different time altogether, Auth finds himself under extremely mild assault by a Chibi Nia. Auth looks down as he feels his legs gently attacked, to see the aforementioned chibi who is clearly trying to get his attention.

AUTH: Hello, may I help you?

Upon receiving the (likely somewhat moist) note, Auth watches the Chibi Nia leave, and then reads over the note. He wasn't expecting anything like this, of course, so he's curious what could need his attention.

---

And finally, for a Battle Action!

Auth has been moved from where he is now to G8, thanks to Venia and the Igni. From there, Auth floats to K11. After reaching K11, Auth Liberates the relevant Reborn.

Woodthorne moves to G12, drawing his golden revolver and firing a shot at the Royal Guard.

<ROUND 283>

Echoss converses with Aoki. He tells Aoki that at the moment, she is not being monitored. She is free to speak her mind. Silently, she bobs her head up once, then down once. A courteous nod.

AOKI: ...I suppose that I am not.
AOKI: Though, word will get out one way or another.
AOKI: If I eat too much, it will be reflected in my physique.
AOKI: Those which I have tried to confide in have spilled their secrets, one way or another.
AOKI: Truthfully, I am not even sure if I am able to trust you.
AOKI: But... I have heard of your deeds. And I suppose you lack a reason to tell anyone about this.

AOKI: Am I really a slave, however?
AOKI: While I am but a tool in someone's great game, I seem to have more options available to me.
AOKI: And yet, were I to rebel against the system... would they kill me? Or would they find a way to shackle me down?

She sighs. When she asks Echoss about what it means to be free, she's ever silent as he explains his situation. Really, she could've picked anyone better to ask. His entire life, he's been scrutinized by others. He must wear many faces to suit the needs of those who watch him. But, at the very least, he can sympathize with her constant need to adapt to the public's image. But, joining the Spherebreakers... he's glad he did it.

AOKI: ...The Spherebreakers.
AOKI: What drove you to stand by their side?
AOKI: As you are royalty, I am surprised that you yourself would be here, and not an army of royal... "slaves", so to say.
AOKI: Was it a desire to break free? Or something more?

...Echoss has likely answered this question many times by this point. Probably sensing this, she tacks on a little more.

AOKI: ...Or, what drives you to stay, rather?
AOKI: Is it a sense of duty? Loyalty? Friendship?
AOKI: ...Fear?
AOKI: To stand solemn in the face of overwhelming odds takes the strength which I lack.

With a gentle stretch, she claims a bottle of water. She smacks her lips once before continuing.

AOKI: I am... likely souring the mood of this picnic.
AOKI: My apologies. I am usually meant to be more sociable during times like these.

She sits there quietly, intermittently taking sips from her bottle. Elsewhere, just across the picnic blankets, Pionobot asks Maple if she knows much about Chairian etymology. Apparently, most Chairian names are arboreal in nature, at least when translated to human languages. She shakes her head, but still interjects with what she knows, anyway.

MAPLE: Huh, well... I know a little bit.
MAPLE: It's tradition to name your children after their species of tree. It's not enforced or anything, but most people adhere to it.
MAPLE: Theeeeeen there's someone like Spark, who I'm pretty darn sure had parents who hated him. Naming your child after a firestarter? That's like, a bad omen waiting to happen!

MAPLE: We know of a few races beyond Sussui, and sometimes, we make use of their arboreal naming schemes as our own names.
MAPLE: Like... "Maple" isn't a usual name! Apparently my name comes from Earth!
CHLOE: It does!
CHLOE: There's this place called Canada! It's flag has a maple leaf upon it!
CHLOE: I live there, actually.
MAPLE: Huh! It's good to know I already have fans!~

Maple beams towards Chloe as she winks. Finally, Terrence sends out a wave of hummingbirds across Locaa to scout out some nerds. One of them arrives near Auth and Nana, the latter of which jumps about half a foot in the air when she sees the creature appear. She nearly flops over onto the Godblossoms, but course-corrects herself to instead plop down right next to the planter. Green in the face, she sits up to look at the hummingbird.

NANA: W-Waah! You s-scared me!
NANA: I-I thought the Godblossoms w-were going to be a-attacked...
NANA: And I guess, I-I thought I was g-going to be attacked, t-too...

NANA: B-But... I guess Auth and I c-could come help.
NANA: If there are b-bad people roaming a-around though, h-how do we know they won't come for this chapel?
NANA: C-Could... could you keep watch over it f-for us?
NANA: If someone a-approaches, I want to be back here a-as soon as possible!

That shouldn't be too hard, right? It'd make the Nana happy. And that's always good.

---

oh lawd that is a post. UMMM, anyway, Boshi's Daycare Service sans Boshi does a lot of things. And I don't mean "boshi is a funny skeleton", I mean "boshi is not there". For all I know, Boshi could be a funny skeleton now. Life can be a cruel mistress. A cruel mistress with an addiction to funny skeletons.

Anyway, Hannah does a flyby of the Praetorian platoon. Flying around the backside of Scale Yggdrasil, there's nothing of interest. So, she instead returns her attention to the patrol. It seems that they're waiting for additional troops to arrive. One of the Praetorians, likely the ringleader of this operation, is holding a "WANTED" poster. They show it to the team. Far as Hannah can tell, they won't be moving out for a bit. But who are they going after? She decides to zoom in on the poster. It... actually shows a few people.

Four people, actually.

Upon it are the faces of Lutea, Beluta, Hemlock, and Carrot. It is unknown why they would require such overwhelming force to go after four lonely, likely not combat ready Chairians. The ringleader then produces an incendiary device from their pouch. Looks like it's not meant to incinerate targets- just sort of brutally burn them, is all. Fortunately, the laws of dramatic timing™ mean that these folks likely won't move out until the current battles have wrapped up. So that's nice. Or maybe something could be done before they move out? Who knows.

Meanwhile, over in the Sky Labs, three instances of Adria faff about and have a great time. The first nerds over the machines in Machining and Fabrication. Such wonderful devices! She inspects them- while they do require keycard access, she has a Level 2 card lying around, so that's not an issue. The machines here seem to be of Chairian make, though exposed bits of wiring and machinery show that Tabletopian parts have been incorporated into this construction as well.

Beginning with the Fabricator, she loads in the schematics for a Hyperprocessor. It asks for an Iron Ingot, a bar of Electrum, as well as a chunk of Arkalloy. She gets to watch the machine print the device out, magical tools implementing the proper enchantments for the processor to work properly, as well as fitting the circuitry into place. It's a joy to watch, and she claims a perfectly normal Hyperprocessor! She gently slots it into the inventory. How nice. Perhaps she could try and tinker with it to get it to produce other useful items? The only issue here is that the machine is rather slow, taking about ten minutes to produce this one processor. Still, though. It's quite mesmerizing to watch!

The second instance of Adria gives Ette an explanation on why her communications stuff might not function. Ette does her best to listen and understand, blindly bobbing her head as she gives her lesson. A single droplet of sweat rolls down her face. What sort of witchery is she talking about? It sounds fun, though. Time travel. She'd totally abuse it to go back in time and make sure that Marron got to wife Asha immediately after leaving Chaos's mindscape, instead of being forced to meet here on Sussui. Though, that probably breaks many, many rules of time travel.

ETTE: I... don't really get it. Sorry!
ETTE: But basically... the Thymefield is being mean, right?
ETTE: I bet you can find a way to work around it, though! Good luck to you!

Ette waves goodbye to Adria as she heads off to do who knows what. I mean, she'd probably know what that was, had she properly understood what she had said earlier. But she didn't. Anyway, the final instance of Adria... is not within my jurisdiction. Sidequests are interesting legal territory. cool cool

The secret fourth instance of Adria, whom we call "Hannah", pokes around in the Chemical Labs. She grabs a thing of Hardened Glass, and shapes it into a flask specially designed to obtain what might potentially be a gas within. She opens it up, and an inky black fluid immediately shoots into the flask. It fills it up ever so perfectly. Oh god, what is this? This can't possibly be safe. 5 units of Void Liquid obtained! A droplet of it splashes upon the floor. It burrows cleanly through the ground, making a hole through the bottom of the entire goddamn island. Eek.

Finally, the secret fifth- nah, this joke has run its course- Sophia investigates the Library. There's been a murder! How surprising! Or at least, it is to her. This murder's probably all over Spherebreaker social media at the moment. After a moderate freakout that stretches out the boundaries of the webpage and lets me scroll more to the right than I usually can, she vows vengeance for the two fallen Scarlets.

This anger fades to nothingness (for a moment, anyway) as she finds the last remaining Scarlet. She runs over to hem, and gives them a big ol' hug. And probably obtains a few splinters. The silent Scarlet, Sythia, is... unsurprisingly silent as she hugs her back. Sythia's expression changes, doing her best to put on a brave appearance for Sophia.

---

Regalus vibes as a bunch of people prepare to jump him and probably ruin his day. regalus did nothing wrong

---

Destiny investigates the Glyphs! Do they have any sort of Recall Glyph sort of technology built into them? Far as she can tell... the Glyphs do not have any sort of thing like that built into them. They cannot be used to recall, or be recalled to. Deciding to save the party a bit of time, Destiny uses her powers of space to investigate the Glyph for any such devices!

While she fails to find anything on the Glyph, she does somehow manage to find out that the Glyph Chambers... all have a recall location built into them. Someone could warp to all four Glyph Chambers in quick succession if they needed to gather them up. She has a feeling she knows who might've set that up. At the very least, it means the Glyphs they do own aren't in danger. Just maybe the last one. The Creation Glyph.

Nothing bad will come of this.

---

The Calzone continues to zone. It's here where Calibri mentions something about the "void room" to Chloe. She blinks twice, sitting up from where she's sunk into the couch.

CHLOE: A... void room?
CHLOE: T-That... doesn't sound like something anyone normally has in a house!
CHLOE: Then again, my brother did have like, an entire freaking secret laboratory... so I guess who am I to judge?
CHLOE: But... if you don't want me to visit, we don't need to.
CHLOE: Most house tours tend to ignore like, the attic n' junk, y'know?
CHLOE: Especially if the attic has... s-something sinister!

CHLOE: But... I wanna see the... viewing room?
CHLOE: I don't know the way, so... mind showing me?

Chloe hops up from the couch, stretching as she stands. There's a few gentle cricks and cracks from her body, but she's soon ready to go! Should Calibri get up as well, she'll move behind him and follow him JRPG party member style.

Elsewhere, over in the Endless Gardens, Verdana makes use of a Generic Listening Device to attempt to listen in on the Praetorians. Let's see what they're saying over there...

PRAETORIAN: ...has received some intelligence.
PRAETORIAN: These Chairians have been aiding the Spherebreakers in their efforts.
PRAETORIAN: ...Those Spherebreakers are manipulative gorillas. So many Chairians have been led astray by them. Turned against their own people.
PRAETORIAN: Our objective is to capture their allies, and make an... example of them.
PRAETORIAN: Show the people what happens if you sympathize with the Spherebreakers. Bolster the loyalty of the populace by any means necessary.

Word. One can only imagine what it means to make an "example" of someone. It involves fire, doesn't it? It totally involves fire. Why wouldn't it involve fire? Classic Spark. jerk

---

The Reflector investigates a rubble barrier. Or uh, they investigate the area around the rubble barrier, opting to just find a way around. Heading east, then some distance north... it seems they've made their way around the barrier! That was easy. They soon come across the array of Iti nests the engineer talked about. Well, perhaps not so much Nests, as much as there are full Vesperia there. Getting through that might be a pain.

Causing a full-scale combat down here probably isn't that viable. Either run past, or see if you can just roleplay-battle your way through? Or maybe you can do something silly. Who knows?

---

Venia and Nia vibe in the forge. They do be vibin'. Nia turns to Venia, a question on her mind.

NIA: Oh, so you plan to become the new queen of the Rose Cult, right?
NIA: Can I be the subqueen? Or princess? Or something?

NIA: Buuuut, more importantly, how do you plan to do things?
NIA: Like, I don't know gorilla about leading people.
NIA: All I really know about this sort of thing is that people tend to get angry, and then the people invent a guillotine!
NIA: You have a good plan to do this, right?

Fortunately, should things go horribly wrong, the both of them are likely immune to guillotines. Meanwhile, elsewhere in the timeline, Venia opts to take a different approach with the grey Iti. They knock on the door, speaking from behind it. From behind the door, a wispy, crackly voice speaks up.

???: Please don't come in, please don't touch me with that card
???: I am, I, I, I don't want to go back there
???: I just wanted to meet the Spherebreakers and now you are an angry green person trying to stuff me into a card and bring me back to miss Droplet
???: She doesn't care about my art or the Sphere or HIM she just wants me to fight Rebels for her
???: Please angry green person just leave me alone

...Angry green person? Is Venia a green person? Her text is certainly green. Perhaps Venia's just been spray-painted green or something. I don't know. Just then, someone manifests behind Venia. It's Chaos. He has a cellphone, which he slots into place behind Venia's ear. That's not how cellphones work, but alright.

CHAOS: hello you have a [c]all
CHAOS: wai[t] one se[c]ond

Chaos stands still for a few moments. Venia, examining the phone closer, it's not even on a call at the moment. Elsewhere in the space between dimensions, an Ender Pearl lands on the top of the van where Maria is camped out. Chaos warps right back, and clips through the ceiling of the van, next to Maria. He pulls out an old-timey rotary phone, and immediately calls the cellphone with it. Should Venia pick up, he'll pass the receiver to Maria.

CHAOS: here's a venny
CHAOS: when you're done, you [c]an make a no[t]-minmaxed [c]hara[c][t]er
CHAOS: legally speaking your s[t]a[t]s [c]an'[t] be le[t][t]ers un[t]il [t]he la[te] game
CHAOS: and having mul[t]iple le[t][t]ers on a single s[t]a[t] means you've been re[c]ognized for your skills in re[t]ail

Chaos politely waits for Maria to talk with Venia. He's not a savage, after all. He'll wait for Maria to be ready before they play Snakes and Ladders Sixth Edition. Finally, elsewhere on the map, Venia asks Cypress if it'd be possible to disable the teleportation runes on the Praetorian's equipment. He nods.

CYPRESS: Certainly. However, slightly difficult.
CYPRESS: Teleportation runes: magical. Electromagnetic Pulse: ineffective. Spell suppression: singular. Silence effect. Affects individual. Won't stop equipment.
CYPRESS: Not simple task. But possible.

CYPRESS: Two options.
CYPRESS: One. Target rune containment. Difficult. Rather resilient. Risks killing target.
CYPRESS: Two. Anti magic field. Tabletopian invention. Suppresses magical abilities.
CYPRESS: Latter: more viable? Requires technological components. Also magical components.
CYPRESS: Will require fabricator. Machine specific components.
CYPRESS: Won't take long. Assuming fabricator access.

Anti-magic fields, huh? Chairians must absolutely detest those. It might be handy to have in combat against Praetorians... and maybe just in combat in general.

---

Irongutta explains what he does for fun. This happens to be hitting things and building things! Magnolia's eye sparkles with excitement.

MAGNOLIA: Those are both lots of fun!
MAGNOLIA: I'm actually really good at building things, you know!
MAGNOLIA: The Rose Cult made a lot of weird things, but I made some really weird things!
MAGNOLIA: Like, I made the big butterfly statue things that defended the First Sin's place!
MAGNOLIA: Then they got destroyed, but I think destroying things is as fun as making things!

He then proposes that they could go and bug R-8733.

MAGNOLIA: Ooh, yeah! Let's do that!
MAGNOLIA: I wanna thank him for the shooty thing. The bomb shooty thing. Y'know!
MAGNOLIA: ...What's a grenade?

Magnolia has a lot to learn about the art of explosions. Anyway, the two of them go off to visit R-8733, who is likely still at the Sky Labs or something. I have no idea. I've lost track of not only time, but space as well! help

R-8733: Oh, hey.
R-8733: What are you two up to?
MAGNOLIA: I dunno! I was told we were gonna bug you!
MAGNOLIA: We don't seem to have any bugs on us, though.

Magnolia also may have a lot to learn about slang terms.

---

Auth explains Hesperidean Cider to Nana. It's also not cheap! Nana considers asking just how loaded Auth is, but that'd be rude. Not that she'd properly understand how much an "Echo" is, anyway. Nor does she know that Echoes are a concept that exists. It also apparently tastes like life.

NANA: The taste of life...
NANA: Is that like... the taste you normally taste at all times?
NANA: The taste that just sorta... floats around in your mouth?
NANA: I-I mean, I guess that's not a fruity taste, so... n-nevermind!

Auth then explains how he might bring Hesperidean Apples to Sussui. Though the trees wither in true sunlight, they can grow in specific places in the Neath. He theorizes that he might be able to open the Mirrors to to reach Parabola. Or something.

NANA: O-Open... a mirror?
NANA: I don't know what mirrors do in the Neath, but the most that happens here when you "open" a mirror i-is that it shatters into a million shards!
NANA: M-Maybe we're just doing it wrong, though?

Chloe meanwhile, feels the hairs on the back of her neck twitch. She feels an explanation coming on. A few moments later, Terrence arrives. Auth silently asks if she'd like to come along on this mission. Cautiously, she nods. If he's going to fly though, she'll probably need to catch a ride. Hang from his legs or something. Who knows?

Elsewhere, up in the Sky Labs, Auth leads Twig out towards the ship. He's silent as ever. He can't help but wonder if he's going to be sent to a gulag or something. Or maybe he's being forcibly converted to the Spherebreaker's side. He probably wouldn't be too surprised if that happened.

Down in the Whispering Library, Auth asks Sythia what happened. How were her friends murdered?

SYTHIA: (T-There was... a-a bad man...)
SYTHIA: (N-Not a Chairian. N-Not a Tabletopian.)
SYTHIA: (He l-looked nice, b-but then my f-friends started acting w-weird...)
SYTHIA: (I-It's... a-all a blur...)

A bad man. Probably no relation to the bad god man™, but still bad nonetheless.

---

The game apologizes for the delay in producing this update, and adds some apologems to the inventory. 160 Primogems obtained...?

---

<THE CUPS OF CHAOS, ROUND 5>
The Tamaugachi hasn't taken much damage, and many of you are quite badly poisoned due to Nail. You may need to pick things up in terms of DPS, or risk decaying. A round where Tama detonates multiple people would be INCREDIBLY unpleasant at the same time though, so try not to make yourselves too open to that.

<AI LABS, ROUND 4>
Good progress against Cappa so far! They've loaded up ice-elemental rounds however, so you may need to change how you deal with its deadly attacks other than "use Chloe". Unless you think she can do it. She's pretty powerful. Other than that, try and clean up the remaining Chairian forces! It'll save you some grief.