+2 Planning.
PLANNING: 10 / 10
-- BATTLE ACTION --
[The Hound] Do not ask anymore what the dog doin'. Kanaya wondered that, and when she found out, her mind could not recover. Anyways the Hound moves to Q10, and scans a Core Defender.

[Reisz] After watching Ludwig's video on parasocial relationships, Reisz moves to O10 and decides to take her emotions out on the core. She casts Superuser, aiming the center at Q10.

After the Core Defenders go down...
[Bauhaus] Bauhaus moves to N10 and casts MyTurn()!
- Jaunt(): -1 Planning. Bauhaus teleports to Q10.
- Jaunt(): -1 Planning. Bauhaus teleports to R10.
- Help+Flood(): -3 Planning. Ask not what the dog can do for you, ask what you can do for the dog. Bauhaus summons the Flood-boosted Hound on R9, and it attacks to the east.
- Crash+Breach(): -2 Planning. Bauhaus casts the big attack on the Core, hoping that the Breach bonus works on his next action...
- Act+Cull(): -3 Planning. Bauhaus basic-attacks the Core, boosting it with Oil Reserves.
- MyTurn() ends. Bauhaus makes a sheathing action with the Transistor to the best of his ability. He almost hits a wall with it. +2 Planning.

Bauhaus bonks the Core with a counter. +2 Planning.

PLANNING: 4 / 10

Destiny does as is commanded by Tazz's post.

Fall, into the forever reaching void of the expanse. Let the madman's delusions fade into primordial dust!
...guh, I think it's hitting now...

EXTERIOR (LIKE FISH EGGS)
Agent 3: Move first, hit Rangefinder again and move to (J18), attacking Magus 1.
Agent 1: Hit Breaker Drill and drill Archer 2 a new one. Gun down Archer 1.
Agent 2: Gun down Archer 1 as well.
MARI: Hit Weapon Console, fire off Wrath of Heaven at T22, TP into Interior, move to I12, create a new Drone.
HARMONIA: Move to G4, Voltage Up, fire away at Archer 3.
VEDFOLNIR: Bonus Macross Pod T14, move to P12 and attack Magus 1 before double casting Mounted Blasters. Hit PSoldiers 1 and 2 twice.

The Dream of Spark
Daskter moves to (O11)
They give a tiny buff (Pep Talk) to the Hunter.


After Core defenders go down:
Pikemen moves to (P11) to Pole Trust the Core

The Hunter designates a new target: The Core. They move swiftly to (R10) to start crushing the Core into pieces.

Daskter Nanostorm the Core

Echoss + Chi
Echoss nods slowly.
"Hmm... I'm not sure that cutting the belligerents loose will have the desired effect.
Perhaps, instead. If the Citadel's communications are down, the Legionaires defending its walls may need support. If nothing else a communication network not sabotaged by Spark will be welcome I expect.
The Rebellion is no more inclined towards burning down its home than the rest of us, if the leader of the Rebellion were to come with a warning as to what Spark may do when his legitimacy is shattered in the next hour or so...
Well, should the Rebels' final action be to help protect the people of LOCAA when their own leader turns on them in the wake of Spark's illusion being shattered it would go a long way towards soothing the wounds in peoples minds.
Especially in the wake of what will be shown in the broadcast. A lot of the unpleasant things done are... at least more understandable in the wake of Spark effectively opening with the same level of nastiness. It will not be easy either way, but perhaps it will help.
And it has the advantage of keeping the more unhappy elements of the Rebellion occupied with being heroes instead of just told to 'go their own way' which may well send them here in retaliation for what some may interpret as sabotage or spywork.
And then tomorrow when we bring the Glyphs to open up exactly the assault they were all hoping for in the first place that will hopefully be enough to help you keep enough order that we can all stay focused on destroying the Sphere instead of each other.
At which point... at which point disbanding the Rebellion will be easy, because you will have won. Spark deposed, the Sphere destroyed, and the Highchair in the hands of the people of LOCAA."


Something else?


To-do List:
Also hand the Subspace Grocery Box to Cypress when he heads back to the house
Make sure party prep is ready.

BATTLES

"The Scion" moves to N9, activates her special, and casts Shackling Blast on the core. She Virophages all of her debuffs onto the nearby archer.

---

STAETERNA AR

Other Grey Iti. A slighly sticky subject for Star.

STAR: The other grey ones they lack the vision the pull inside
STAR: Her Droplet desired mine skills but to keep herself safe she did not see the value of heroism of art
STAR: they would live happy in their little tower but I cannot be idle when this great unjustice is done you see?
STAR: I do not dis-value their orange state of happy but the sky for me remains blue

---

COOKING

"The Scion" frowns and bites her lip. A single tear wells up in her left eye, but she wipes it away immediately. Marron isn't really picking up on what she's been trying to say.

She can hold it together, she tells herself. Deep breaths.

"THE SCION": I... I... don't want to, ok?
"THE SCION": I don't want to be someone else. I just, want to be me. Like I said earlier...
"THE SCION": ...Sorry. That was too aggressive, wasn't it...
"THE SCION": The Reflector gets to be so many wonderful people, and they all have amazing talents, and then when they turn into me, I'm just this useless girl that can't even cook with you or touch anyone, unless they suppress the things that make me who I am.
"THE SCION": And, maybe it's selfish, and maybe I'm a killjoy, but I don't want to turn into you, or a chef! I want to be your friend, but I can't. Only someone else can.
"THE SCION": B-because... because...

She picks a pillow off the couch and screams into it, before dropping it.

"THE SCION": ...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to...
"THE SCION": This is my fault, I brought it up in the first place, and I didn't think you'd react that way, and...
"THE SCION": I should just go.

...Might want to sanitize that pillow. Or burn it.

Dream of Unity
Move to J14.
Teleport to I10 (Interior).
Move to I7.
Play Soft Chime (Valor).
Channel Magic (Status Pass) Sunderbreak from Calibri to Pionobot.
Power Nap self.

Bergilmir stares at Spark, a look of shock on his face. Then he looks to Chloe, on the verge of death, her weapon sundered. Ever so slightly, a vein pops out of his head.

cA: You... YOU! YOU VILLAINOUS BLACKGUARD! YOU VILE STAIN! WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOU... You...

Berg's face goes dark, a mask of rage. He manages to calm his breathing and steady his hands, a gift learned and maintained through years of training. He hefts his newly acquired hammer, testing its balance in slow, deliberate swings. The entire time, he keeps his gaze locked on Spark.

cA: You will wish that you never hurt her. This I promise. You may be nearly invincible, but this will merely prolong your suffering. You will feel each swing of this hammer, each blast of magic I fire. I will come back, again and again. As many times as I need until you are dust impacted into the dirt.

cA: Venia has kindly told me what has happened in my absence. I know the power you hold, how you use it. I knew you could be cruel, monstrous, hateful, and more. But the levels to which you are willing to take this... To hurt, be willing to kill, an innocent girl simply trying to survive in a world not her own... I have not had an opponent like you in a long, long time. I've learned what to do with beasts like you.

Bergilmir swings his hammer down, shaking the interior of the Dream of Unity.

cA: ...You tear them out by the root, so that their evil may never infect the world again. I shall reach you, Spark the Destestable, and when I do, I will TEAR THAT GLYPH FROM YOUR WRETCHED SKULL!

He then turns his gaze to Chloe, a look of concern clouding his face.

cA: Chloe... are you alright? No, that is a idiotic question. You obviously are not. Do not fear, little one. For I am here again. I vanished, I know not how, and meanwhile you have suffered. Pain... Loss... This I will bear in shame until the end of my days. Spark will never be able to kill me, Chloe, no matter what he tries. Much has hurt you, child, but that shall end today. This I swear, Ymir and the stars as my witness!

I eat a Cele-Melon Snow Cone. I move to N10, and create a Crystal Tumor at P12.

cA: Don't worry, Chloe. I'm nearly there.

Battle: Dream of Unity

"Nice of you to show up, Spark! And thank you for your wonderful demonstration of your true self for all of Sussui. You really went out of your way to elucidate to the public exactly why you're a terrible ruler who's lost all his marbles, you worthless piece of shit. Exactly as planned. I'd balk at why the Praetorians would ever serve you, but then I'd be a hypocrite... But wait, it gets worse-for you!"

There's a Turn order. Respect it, please.

Adria goes first and does the action listed in their post.

Wattle goes second, parks himself at O10, and uses his special, squadsight.

Venia moves to N8, activates Kickstart My Heart for 16 HP, and uses Hope Rides Eternal to shove Soldier4 to R8. The rest of her action comes later.

"Chloe! Don't give up hope and don't let Spark get to you! Don't forget, we're all here for you! And remember that Spark's airship is more important right now than the asshole himself!"

Destiny moves to M11 and nukes S10 with Heat Death, boosted by Candy Corn Liquor handed to her by the Gaia's Guardian. As she's moving, she will also toss Chloe a Heroine's Potion. Wattle's special triggers, and he shoots the Core.

Taeda consumes a Cele-Melon Snow Cone and moves to O9, using Holy Stream on Destiny, Calibri and Chloe-curing or mostly curing all the statuses they have. More importantly, this triggers the last use of His Will Made Manifest, dealing quite a bit of damage to quite a few things. Wattle's Special... Doesn't trigger because that'd be weird.

Chloe, now armed and feeling very heroic, will apply the Pickaxe Sharpening Kit to herself, before using Heroine's Flash three times-two of them being Bleeding Edge instead, to keep her final position at S8. This will probably obliterate the Core, and most likely obliterate P.Soldier4. Wattle's special doesn't trigger as Chloe is out of range.

At this exact time, the Core is not only exposed, but also has lost all Core Defenders, meaning that it now takes double damage from all attacks directed at it.

"Now! Blow it to smithereens! It's curtain call for Spark's delusions!"

Venia, thus satisfied, casts Material Transfer, using Needle Conjuration to displace it to Q8-where it strikes the Core, then heals Chloe... And then eats a bit of the Princess Special, hoping for a 12 for SP. Seeing Spark there has given her an idea.

Aoki will move into the Interior to K7, uses Dance Your Tune on Venia, and retreat to J6 to avoid Pionobot and others inevitably AoEing the party. Venia will use the Dance and slam-jam a Purge directly into the core.

---

The Central Labs

Once again at the security hub, Venia turns her attentions towards the informant. "... Strange question, but is anyone really going to mind if I take him? Because uh. Yeah. Being willing to sabotage us because he thought we were conspiring with the legion after everything that's happened, uh, kinda crazy."

Assuming the rebels don't really care, Venia snags the Informant, travels to Cellblock Omega, strips him of anything useful he could use to be a jerk as well as his Level 4 Access Card (at last!) and shoves him in a cell, keeping him well away from both Linseed as well as the captured Paretorians. If not... Uh.

---

FINALLY. UNWHISPERING THE ITEMS.

Venia dumps an appropriate amount of Livingwood chips into the tank with the Yggdrasil Splinter, finishing off that tank. Now all she needs is sap.

... After some consideration, Venia decides to start finding this sap by way of the Hybridization Chamber's former channel of Sap. She inspects the chamber and attempts to follow the channel to where it empties out in an attempt to find the Sap.

---

Mariaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

"Animals! Animals! I want the power of FLUFFIES!" Maria exclaims. "I want to be extra sparkly and fluffy and cool, and have all the fluffies! I will destroy the enemy with the power of fluffy And singing too!"

at least her singing is easy to weaponize

---

Yato bonks the Xerophyte with the Antimagic Blaster, since that's apparently a thing we can do (???). After that, Gibbet moves to V5, wraps a noose around the Xerophyte's... arm, and drags him into the Bileprincess Bag, which is also a thing we can do. I don't know how this works. People just wanted me to do it. After that, Gibbet uses their action to have Yato mount, and flies to T5, where Yato casts Eagle Eye on Gibbet, and with Shared Perspective, on themselves.

Battle - Dream of Unity

Calfusion stares at Pionobot's miserably failed attempt to use a super strong gun. The fusion then ruffles their wings and mimes checking a watch, despite obviously not wearing one. After that, they shrug, transition into a flashy pose and a cocky grin.

"Anyway, now that you're done... We act superior because we are superior, Pionobot. Both in terms of potential and intended design."

The fusion cracks its knuckles, the special Sol Aeterna shifting into Star form.

"Whoever made you clearly only thought as far as making a destroyer of everything that moves, kitted you out with some strong weaponry, then called it a day. All of me... We were put together for a more specific destructive purpose, and also given the means to transition out of that."

Calfusion tenses up, the star spinning in their hand... Then he proceeds to slam Pionobot with an exertion so powerful, it'll probably end up cratering the ground around him by sheer force. Specifically to the tune of, oh... (110-114) damage or so, due to a 200% total damage boost and Pionobot's 30% Glitch weakness.

"Since you seemed so eager to test our capabilities, there you go. And that's after the chain of destruction that was dismantling the Thrones. You wanna know how I got to pull that off earlier, Pionobot? By having friends power me up."

The fusion stares down at Pionobot for a moment, contemplating whether or not they're going too far. They move to M4, wings fanning out in a pseudo T-pose, so many eyes opening up along the feathers to stare down at the fallen foe.

"And what about you? Since your creator so specifically zoned in on destruction as your one and only purpose, either you'll eventually run out of things to destroy, or someone will outclass you. As for me, I'm not restricted like that, so once I hit endgame, I can hang out with my friends, maybe go on more adventures with them, so on so forth. What do you have once you've hit your endgame?"

The fusion doesn't wait for an answer, pulling an Eterna Remedy out of the inventory and chugging it like a softdrink. After that, they turn and look across the battlefield, over to Chloe. They're aware of what just happened, so.

"...Ah, that looked painful... You okay over there, Chlo?"

Going by their expression and the fact that Calibri is the most dominant personality right now, the fusion is ready to leap to her defense at a moment's notice. Then, after a moment, he glances across the battlefield again. This time, to Spark. Just don't question how the walls that would normally be in the way have moved aside just for this. In fact, best to assume the walls are being intimidated out of the way by literally hundreds of eyes all shooting death glares in the same direction.

"You will not touch her again."

In contrast to some of their teammates, the fusion still looks more than ready to rumble. Even if some of the flashiness has faded from its form after losing Aoki's superbuff.

---

The Old Pass...?

EN makes an expression of disgust when she sees the Fellbeast dissolve into parasites.

"Eugh. Looks like somethin' tha' crawled outta one o' me cookin' pots... Ya might wanna git behind me, ah'm pretty damn tough."

She pauses to consider things for a while, then fits an Ashen Aegis onto her arm just for the additional security, still carrying the Reactor Rifle. Is wielding two weapons at the same time legal? Probably not for a main character, but she gave up that slot a while ago. Gives her some nice freedoms. After that, she takes point in front of Shelly and advances into the breach, eyes glowing much brighter.

"Le's see wha' 's like down 'ere, then."

---

The Everground

S.E.D, having not much else to do, drives along the wall to apply a Salve to the poor sad and bitten eyestalk.

---

Verdy and Adria

"Alright, see you around!"

Verdana cheerfully waves goodbye. Then, he frowns, sensing something happening to him. Whatever it is, we don't get to see the details beyond a brief flicker of static.

With Adria's departure, the scene changes to...


Receptionist's Hall

...another place. All is silent. Almost too silent. Like someone could reach out and grasp it with their hand. At least, until the silence is broken by footsteps. Quiet, measured ones. Soon, someone is standing with Adria.

"...Man. The timeline abuse this time is doing a number on me. Must be a fusion state side effect. Kicked in just now, too..."

The Calibri standing there looks a little... off model. Too brightly coloured, sporting a large pair of wings, occasionally flickering into a TV-static-like appearance. Whatever concerns one might have, he waves them off preemptively.

"Nothing to worry about. It hasn't been that long yet. Anyway, heard my name. Figured I should drop in."

---

Star Aeterna

"...I see. They wish to use their freedom to simply... live."

A pause. Then, a sigh.

"I cannot fault them for that, admittedly. Perhaps they will eventually come around to a more contributive position on their own. Or perhaps it will take some slight incentive. I recall one of my brothers having involvement in a project to provide a favor for Droplet. Something about resurrection and a Daikon...?"

She trails off, not really having the full context to what she just mentioned, and as such not being able to explain further. On top of that, she's running out of potential discussion topics. There is one thing on her mind, at least.

"...I wonder what is taking them so long over there. While we speak, the others fight, yet the battle has lasted longer than most..."

Auth nods as Omo explains that most people are localised to the Citadel right now, which would make running an election relatively easy in the aftermath of the Sphere.

AUTH: Ah, I see. That makes sense, yes. I suppose that I had expected the towns that were so much further away to remain populated, but perhaps they most of all needed their people moved to the citadel.
AUTH: I wonder what's happening in the Citadel now, given that film that was sent out to the populace. They didn't cut the communications network, did they? I would say that was smart of them.

Auth then reflects on his own experience with elections.

AUTH: I must confess, being near an election which actually matters will be quite a different experience for me. My previous experiences with them have been...
AUTH: Changing the figurehead, so to speak. Insubstantial. And a source of the deepest strife I've had exposure to.

Auth remembers the days of the wars between Cat and Rubbery. None too enjoyable for any involved party. As for the Church of Helix and the Council, Auth takes note of this information. He knows relatively little of Sequoia, so painting more of an image of him is very interesting.

AUTH: That sounds along the lines of what I expected. Having a representative, I mean.
AUTH: I think Taeda would be a good choice in that regard. We have a decent grasp of her personality, in any case. She's been with us since day one, after all. I think she could definitely be cultivated into an excellent leader.
AUTH: If she wanted to, naturally. I wouldn't wish to push any such options onto her if she had no interest in them.

---

Huh, not too much to say this turn. Alright. Achievement Time!

Auth moves to E11, uses a Pick-me-up on the Perfect Soldier, then immediately stabs it with Inkscalibur. He then retreats to F12.

Battle: Dream of Unity - Interior

Irongutta's battle action time! He moves over to K13 and, grabbing the Godhand, yeets it over to P9 with a Skeletal Toss.

Then, after Omo casts Null Somnum on him, he prepares his second action. The extra commotion caused by Spark's arrival and subsequent battle with Chloe has caught Irongutta's attention, especially given that Chloe has found herself in a dire situation.

"So kind of ya to show yer sorry mug at last, Spark! Now ya get the honor of seein' the core of your precious ship get smashed to bits!"

He brandished Magnolia once more, feeling adrenaline course through his veins. Irongutta's usually boisterous demeanor quickly shifted to a much more serious one. There was no more bravado, only brutal intent.

"Yer two biggest mistakes were underestimatin' the Spherebreakers and, more importantly, underestimatin' me. When we're done wivv the core, you're next, scrawny! WAAAAAAAAAAGH!"

Irongutta downs some Bottled Luck and activates his special, Waaagh! He closes in the distance to the core - a whopping 7 tiles - by moving to R10, gaining the largest possible boost from Unstoppable Force. The Ork winds up for a massive swing, intent on chunking the ship's core.

Zahlia activates the Weapon Console on D15 to fire Wrath of Heaven on T22, and then moves up to E11. At that moment, Simeon makes his presence on the Airship clear by holding up the Shock Therapist, in on the plan.
"Begin Analysis/Interrogation of Perfect Soldier: Everyone ready? CLEAR!"
After sending a pulse of electricity through the Artificial Chairian, Simeon presses a palm down on it's chest, preventing it from getting up.
"Ah ah ah! I wouldn't do that if I were you. Our defibrillator's quite temperamental."
Simeon observes the intact soldier in his own way, seeking tangential details on how the Creation Glyph was used. He checks qualities such as Grain, Hardness, Growth Rings and the like. Essentially, he checks the biological quality of the Perfect Soldier. Did Spark design them himself, did the glyph "auto-assist" by filling in blanks to realize his wishes? Is the structure of the Perfect Chairian patterned off Spark down to their very Grain? Either way, it would yield fascinating results on the nature(hehe) of Creation Magic.
With that done, he releases the Perfect Soldier with a flourish, allowing Zahlia to Posture Breaker it apart.

"O-Oh, I'm sorry..."

Asha considers reaching out a hand to comfort "The Scion", but that would probably not be a good idea for either of them.

"Well, we don't need to cook to be friends, right? I'm sure if we really tried we could figure something out... but maybe that's something we can work on another time. For now, I wanna do something with Marron and you, not anyone else!"

Hands on hips, she looks very proud of herself for saying this. It's possible she doesn't grasp the situation properly, and equally likely that she grasps the situation very well. Either way, she's inspired to do something fun.

The relinquished Archer stabs itself to below half HP, then For The Causes targeting Pionobot again.

Remiel chug jugs a Ygg Vessel, Cherry Energises the Archer corpse, then swooces to O10 and winds up a Cinderclasm towards the Core.

<ROUND 307>

Adria sends some footage over to her higher-ups. Spark however, sighs. Though his morphed greatbow is still more than ready to nock and fire an arrow at the drone, he doesn't even make a move.

SPARK: As if I care what your leaders think of me.
SPARK: They cannot make a move on the Sphere. All that matters is that you won't be making it out of here alive.
SPARK: If it makes you so mad that I'm hurting this... supposedly "innocent" woman, how would you react if I spilled her guts across the vessel?
SPARK: Would you sacrifice yourself for her, if it meant she could live a few precious seconds longer?
SPARK: Truly. I don't care what you do.
SPARK: It'd just delay the inevitable.

What Spark does care about however, is Adria throwing Chloe a new sword! The Excalibri tumble through the air, prompting her to snag it. Though, she appears to be having a bit of trouble with the sheath. Weapon mechanics. They're a bit weird.

CHLOE: S-Spark!
CHLOE: I said my sword was a tool of justice, n-not used in anger, not used for vengeance...
CHLOE: But now... I'm not so sure. And besides...
CHLOE: This isn't my sword.

Nobody's actually sure if she swore her sword were those things earlier, but she's probably making a reference. Only then does her sword unsheathe, energy crackling from the blade itself. She swings it once in front of her, getting a feel for the weapon. Spark nocks another arrow at her, only for it to meet the edge of her blade. The arrow's cleanly cleaved in two, fragments scattering about the floor. Spark's the slightest bit annoyed with how this woman has another sword. Someone needs to keep these things away from her.

Elsewhere, Adria expresses a few concerns over Mari's safety. But ultimately, it boils down to one thing... would she like to stay at Stasis City? Mari's face grows the slightest bit red, before she begins laughing. A solid ten seconds later, she pauses to catch her breath. Her face glows slightly redder.

MARI: Haah... haah...
MARI: S-Sorry... It's just that I totally, totally misread the situation.
MARI: I thought you were gonna ask to go out with me, or wife me, or s-something like that...
MARI: C-Classic visual n-novel stuff, y'know?
MARI: D-Despite what Xavier might say, he can't hide from the fact that I know his tastes in games! And he likes cushy romance VN's!
MARI: B-But... yeah. Sorry. Totally misread things.

MARI: I'd... love to go with you. You're cool, too.
MARI: I don't have anywhere to go, as you've said, and... well, it'd be cool to go travelling to this "Stasis City".
MARI: But that'd mean I'd need to actually get a job... eh, I'm sure it'll work out.
MARI: And, w-well... i-it'd be nice to have a friend, y'know? S-Someone I can geek out with.
MARI: S-So... Thanks.
MARI: G-God, I feel cringy as hell, t-talking about friendship, and stuff...
MARI: But... maybe it's fine.

She paps herself on the cheeks, knocking her Fluster stat down a few pegs.

MARI: So... uh.
MARI: You got a pamphlet, or something?
MARI: Like, I'm assuming your tech level is pretty damn high, but I don't know how high.
MARI: Anything helps when it comes to travel plans. Though, it's not like I can pack a suitcase, anyway.

Mari pauses for a moment. Something has dawned on her.

MARI: Oh, yeah. Probably something you should know.
MARI: Pretty sure the moment the Thymefield screws off in whatever direction it decides to, someone's gonna come a knockin' for me.
MARI: Y'know about Pane? Godmodder, huge gorilla, I think he's like... a Delta? A Charlie? I dunno, it's been a hot minute.
MARI: Point is, the man has the emotional maturity of a three year old, is pissed that I managed to get away from him, and I'm not sure if any number of baked beans can buy my freedom this time around.
MARI: Any ideas? I can like, go bother Chaos. He can probably do something about it.

Meanwhile, probably to Adria's horror, the three children(?) continue exploring the ashen wastes. While the vault door is made of hardened metal slag, why go through the door? Why not go through the sides? The classic answer to any door-based dilemma. Hannah plops the drill down, and swiftly breaks into the main passageway down into the depths. It's... deathly quiet. Even if she were to head down a couple dozen steps, there'd be absolutely no noise from down below. It's... ominous, to say the least. Dare she venture down further...?

As for the noise pollution the drill's just created, the Meteos, being made of minerals themselves, aren't keen to approach the thing. What is more than keen to jump her though, are the few files of flames around the vault itself. From the smouldering cinders rise... well, Cinders. Apparently, Hannah just ruined their nap. If Xavier's down there in the depths though, do they have the time to fight these? It might be best to divide and conquer. Anyway, something resembling thirty flights of stairs have been added to the map. I hope Hannah's legs are ready.

Next, down / up / wherever??? at the Fell Beast Nest, Shelly's... generally unamused with the presence of the infested Fell Beasts. Not wasting a moment, she immediately purifies the remnants of the beast with a flamethrower, also eradicating the Migi that have just burst from its body. She gives it a few extra seconds of roasting, just to ensure that the threat is gone. Can't be too sure, especially when it's so damn gross. She then creates hordes of illusory Shellys to protect various other entrances where Fell Beasts would emerge. The group that moves in is soon beset by another infested Fell Beast, which is soon burned down in the same fashion as the other. Shelly Prime then equips an Ink Charger, ready to move in alongside EN-913. Will that be enough to deal with the Fell God? One can only hope.

Then, over in a different bit of the timeline, Adria does some crafting! After commissioning Chloe for some Credits (she returns with 500), she buys a Mana Flower from Yung Venuz... while also enabling the Nuclear Throne! What'll this do? Probably something at the same time I decide to enable Slam Poetry. i swear i'm not lazy

Anyway, taking the Moonshocker Crossbow, the Moonshocker Drive, a bar of Mythril, a bar of Eversteel, a Gravcore Ore chunk, 3 Crystaline Conduits, 2 Electrum, and 1 Statipear, she creates the Lunar Ray! Which Mari would 100% fangirl over, and probably make out with if she had the chance. Especially with that swood discount she got on the crafting for style points. Adria also spends some time creating a Scanner Add-On, which is... placed in the inventory? Sure. This uses a Creation Meteorite, a Hyperprocessor, a DJ Turntable, a Plasteel Ingot, and a Television.

Finally, she proceeds down to the Receptionist's Hall. The Chairians there aren't conscious (still), so she opts to just vibe and ready up her brand new PC. Perhaps she will engage in some quality gaming:tm:? Though, she probably has business to attend to. So boring.

---

Echoss responds to Chi. Should she cut the Rebellion lose? According to him, that's probably not the best of ideas. Instead, why not make use of them one last time? When Spark's reign turns against his own people (which it kind of already has), she could go and rally the Rebels to protect the people of Locaa. Then, once all is said and done, the Spherebreakers have won, and Spark has been deposed / disposed, then the Rebellion could be disbanded easily.

CHI: That's... certainly an option.
CHI: While I'm concerned about how the people of Seatopolis would react to having the Rebels working alongside them, I don't think they'd reject the help.
CHI: Our spies know that they're lacking defenders, especially nowadays with how many troops Spark has pulled to fight all of us.
CHI: I just hope our "delinquents" will actually help out, instead of joining whatever sort of rioting the people may do in wake of Spark's misdeeds...

CHI: Should I go and deliver the message now?
CHI: If I were to grab Cypress, I could instead transmit an audio-based message, so I don't need to leave the comfort of our base at all.
CHI: But perhaps it'd be better for me to be in person?
CHI: Whatever you believe to be more convenient for the Spherebreakers, I will do.

It might be dangerous to travel all the way to the Rebellion's base of operations. But perhaps it'd be worth it? Sending a voicemail over might be seen as the equivalent of breaking up with someone over text messages. Or breaking up with several hundred people through one group text message. That sounds fun.

---

The Scion has a small freakout. She doesn't want to change. She wants to be herself! Marron is taken aback. She certainly didn't mean to dropkick that nerve over there. At least, not this time! She's fine with kicking people's nerves most of the time. Just not today.

MARRON: I-I'm sorry.
MARRON: I-I didn't r-really know... I-I just... sorta assumed that the Reflector w-was like... one mind?
MARRON: Being you must be r-really complicated, a-and I'm sorry t-that I didn't understand better...

MARRON: I-If you want, I-I can think of a way for you to help us cook and s-stuff without doing anything really uncomfortable!
MARRON: Like... Asha c-can use telekinesis to cook! M-Maybe you could do something s-similar?
MARRON: I-I want to include you too!
MARRON: O-Or we can do something else! Like... board games! Maybe Auth can show us three-player chess?

...Genuine panic. That's what Marron's facing. A bit of a rare occurrence for her, isn't it? Perhaps friendship is serious business. Which, to be fair, it is. :chloehappy:

---

Bergilmir shouts down Spark, calling him a villainous blackguard. Truly though, Spark is incapable of giving a single gorilla at this point. A villain, huh? He can't help but laugh a little.

SPARK: A villain, hm?
SPARK: It's funny, really.
SPARK: I've done nothing but my best for the people of Locaa since the beginning.
SPARK: Then, you lot come around and villainize me and my actions, though I have given my all to the people.
SPARK: Perhaps I'm becoming what all of you wanted me to be so, so badly.
SPARK: A despicable villain.
SPARK: So you can play the hero, for a country that never needed one in the first place.
SPARK: As you've already done everything in your power to hurt me, and my people... I see no reason why I shouldn't play that role you love so much.
SPARK: At least I'll get the enjoyment of watching the "heroes" fall.

Bergilmir swears to "Spark the Destestable" that he'll rip the Creation Glyph from his wretched skull.

SPARK: Come and get it, hero.
SPARK: See if you can even lay your filthy fingers upon it.

Is that a challenge? Too bad he's not the objective of the map. At the moment, anyway.

---

Venia continues to belittle Spark. She thanks him for his wonderful demonstration of his true self; there was no better way she could've shown Spark's rotten core to the world than what he did.

SPARK: Truly. You never shut up.
SPARK: You've already ruined my image, haven't you? Why do you continue running your mouth?
SPARK: Do you really crave your demise that badly?
SPARK: I am more than willing to oblige, of course.

...Venia can hear the distinctive sound of an SP Gauge filling. Who's SP Gauge is it? Spark certainly doesn't have one at the moment. Maybe he's just keeping it in his pocket for now, for when he gets his full boss moveset. Venia also takes a chance to reassure Chloe, telling her to not lose hope!

CHLOE: Of course I won't.
CHLOE: Spark can't stop me. He can't stop any of us.
SPARK: I'll put a stop to you soon enough.
SPARK: You little uprising, your little, pathetic lives... I'll make sure everything stops.
SPARK: Why, maybe I'll make your planet stop, too. Once the Tabletopians have been consumed by the Sphere, why not have all of your people burn, too?
SPARK: Then maybe you'll wish you held your little tongue.
CHLOE: You won't even get a chance to step foot off of this planet.
CHLOE: So, I'll say whatever I want, damn it!

Elsewhere, Venia asks around if he can throw the Informant into Cellblock Omega. One of the rebels in the room shrugs audibly.

REBEL 1: normally i'd be inclined to stop you, but he's kind of a gorilla
REBEL 1: like i don't think anyone would complain if you took him and his insane number of firebombs away
REBEL 2: no complaints from me!
REBEL 3: Put the man in timeout, please.
REBEL 4: He stole my lunch two days ago, and in my opinion, that deserves the death penalty.
REBEL 1: yeah do what you want

...Venia rather calmly throws the Informant in prison. Notably, triggering the loading zone has caused a few small changes around the catacombs. Nothing much, but still.

Elsewhere, over in the Final Forge, Venia loads up one of the tanks with Livingwood Logs, then returns to the Rosen Catacombs to follow the dried channel of sap. It goes a bit deeper into the ground, where Venia finds a relatively... sizable reservoir of Green Sap. Well, it's a specialized kind of Green Sap. Lifeblood Sap obtained in a fairly infinite quantity. That should help!

Finaly, Maria exclaims to Chaos that she wishes to become animal. Or uh, obtain the power of animals! She will destroy the enemy with the power of fluffy, singing, and being extra sparkly. Chaos nods with complete approval.

CHAOS: yes
CHAOS: you will be the queen of fluffy
CHAOS: enemies will [c]ower in [t]he fa[c]e of [c]er[t]ain dea[t]h and fluffy
CHAOS: i[t] will be glorious
CHAOS: now, onwards
CHAOS: we are almos[t] a[t] [t]he nia

Exiting the loading zone, Chaos pops out right near the house. Specifically, on the second floor. Directly into the barracks. Someone may want to fix that hole. Chaos's van despawns, deploying all of its occupants onto the ground safely. Nia, who's been receiving treatment from Chi for the past little bit, happily waves to her visitors. There is nothing wrong with how they arrived, nope.

NIA: Mariaaaa!
CHAOS: mariaaaaaaaa
NIA: ...Why'd you say her name, too?
CHAOS: dunno
CHAOS: i fel[t] lef[t] ou[t] i guess
NIA: Makes sense to me.
NIA: ...
NIA: Mariaaaaaaaaaa!~
CHAOS: mariaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Nia gives Maria the best headpat, much to Chi's annoyance. A good patient should stay still, damn it! She's still unsure of how Nia received these injuries, but at least she's healing up well.

CHI: So... what brings you to my patient today?
CHI: If you keep getting her overexcited like this, her wounds might open up.
CHAOS: maria wan[t]s [t]o be[c]ome a magi[c]al girl
NIA: I see absolutely no way that could go wrong! Sure!
NIA: But... how am I gonna do that?
CHAOS: you [c]an bypass weapons, so maybe you [c]an like, bypass a person
NIA: That sounds... incredibly dangerous!
NIA: I don't even know how bypassing works, really. Maybe I'd accidentally turn Maria into a Spiralfloof or something if I tried that. Who knows what would happen?

NIA: Besides, maybe if Maria wants to be a magical girl, the best thing we can do is a Niabot!
NIA: Or like, what I was before! A person controlling a robot!
NIA: That way, Maria can travel with us, and we don't need to worry about her getting exploded!
CHAOS: ooh
CHAOS: i'm in[t]eres[t]ed
CHAOS: heir of my [c]ompany, wha[t] do you [t]hink?

Would Maria be satisfied with operating a remote magical girl unit? As the upcoming heir of a huge business empire, Maria must learn to make these big, life-changing decisions. Especially the cool ones. What does she think?

---

EN-913 adventures into the nest. Probably adventuring alongside Shelly, the first descent is really quite uneventful. There are many skeletons scattered about the nest, dust caking the bones. Small groups of Migi can be seen clinging to remaining chunks of flesh, peacefully(?) ripping the remnants of the Fell Beasts apart. Soon enough, the sun is out of sight. There's very few signs of life anywhere, save for the swarms of Migi that are generally uninterested in the ground.

It's not long however, until their descent is halted. There's a solid pool of Thyme Matter at the lowest point they can currently reach. It's a bit more... liquid-y, though. While Thyme Matter is typically opaque, this is more like a normal kind of liquid. Gazing in, probably shining a light down, she can see... things swimming down there. Fell Beasts are beavers, after all. What's... going on down there? And how will they advance further down?

Ah, also. S.E.D applies a Salve to a hurting Eyestalk. Their pained wiggling slows. Slowly but surely, they brush up against S.E.D. Friend obtained? Hopefully.

---

Auth reflects on his own experiences with elections. Apparently, they've been the deepest source of strife that he's had exposure to. Omorika raises a leafy eyebrow.

OMORIKA: Truly? How could an election be such a source of strife?
OMORIKA: Our elections have always been fairly orderly. Why, the only way I could foresee an election going so wrong would be if people tied their very identity to a political faction.
OMORIKA: But truly, nobody would be stupid enough to do that, correct?
OMORIKA: I suppose we lack much in the way of political factions, however.
OMORIKA: Tell me, how do they cause so much strife for yourself?

The subject of Taeda then becoming the religious representative comes up once again. Surely, Taeda could be cultivated into an excellent leader. Omorika can't help but smile to herself.

OMORIKA: Hm, to think that one of my Arbormancy students would be considered for a seat on the Highchair...
OMORIKA: Or rather, to think that one of them would be considered capable enough... it's quite satisfying.
OMORIKA: I'm proud of her. I'm sure she'd be a great leader, too.
OMORIKA: ...Though, she is the slightest bit... zealous, I would say. We may want to watch that.
OMORIKA: Word knows what she'll do to those who disrespect Helix.

OMORIKA: Hm. Should we ask for her opinion once the Sphere falls?
OMORIKA: The pressure might be a bit much for her to handle, given the current presence of the Sphere. This knowledge would certainly be a lot to bear, and at a time like this... it may be completely overwhelming.

Good point. When do they mention this? Maybe Taeda's enough of a pro to handle this sort of thing already. Who knows?

---

Irongutta calls Spark "scrawny". Given that he's currently actually quite the chonker whilst in his power armor, this confuses him the slightest bit. Magnolia also decides to chime in with the taunts, rather happy to do so.

MAGNOLIA: You're short, Mr. Spark!
MAGNOLIA: Muhahahaha!
SPARK: ...Are these the idiots my armies have been losing to?
SPARK: I can't believe this.

...She certainly has the spirit. But that power armor is certainly giving him at least an five inches. Maybe the man is short, and she's just struck a serious nerve. Nothing much happens, though.

---

Asha navigates a dangerous social situation! A rather worried Marron clings onto Asha's shoulder. She murmurs quietly to her, words slightly trembling.

MARRON: I-I'm a bit worried...
MARRON: I-I keep h-hurting peoples feelings... a-and I seem to be really good at it, t-too...
MARRON: Does... d-does this make me a bad person?

Marron still does want to do something fun, though. She's just a bit worried, is all. Okay, maybe she's more worried than a "bit", but it's not that awful. Just maybe give her a hug. She could always use one.

---

<THE DREAM OF UNITY, ROUND 10>
The Core of the Dream of Unity has been destroyed! A wave of energy rocks through the ship, engulfing everyone in a momentary period of weightlessness. There's the slightest bit of major shock in Spark's eyes. What. How did you do that? The core was only vulnerable for a single round. The vessel trembles. In an instant, the entirety of the Dream of Unity begins to plummet. The gravitational forces of this pin everyone to the ceiling. Save for Spark, who manages to bind himself to the ground with a bit of magic.

SPARK: I.
SPARK: I gorillaing hate all of you.
SPARK: But ultimately... it's okay.
SPARK: We're all going to die together, anyway.

From the tip of Spark's helmet, the Creation Glyph begins to shine violently. Rays of light spew out in every direction, somehow physically clinging to the walls, floors, and everything else.

SPARK: IT'S TIME WE FINISH THIS.

Blades shoot from the lines of line! They're unlike any weapons anyone's ever seen before. No real shape, abstract blades- it's more loose energy than anything. The strands of light snake around the room, ripping into the air with its razor sharp blades. Reality trembles as the blades phase through reality itself, leaving cuts in space!

SPARK: DISAPPEAR!

Arms shoot from these tears, ensnaring the limbs of everyone! One arm for each limb. They tug violently, not threatening to rip anyone apart, but... it's impossible to resist their pull. Into the tear of reality, the rift between worlds. Spark too, has these arms ensnare him, a cocoon of limbs building up around him as he's pulled into a tear.

Immediately, everyone emerges into a dense forest. Not far south is the Citadel's walls, obscured by row after row of trees. Up in the sky, not too far to the north, is the Dream of Unity, beginning its violent descent towards the earth below. Fortunately, it looks like it won't crash anywhere near here. That's a relief, at the very least.

There's another pulse of Creation energy. The trees around the party wither and wilt, shrinking into the ground. As they become little more than stumps, they rip open, torrents of stone emerging from them and forming a standard brickwork along the floor. The forest soon clears, becoming... what appears to be a ruin, of sorts. A freshly made ruin. In the center, near a few archways, Spark sits very calmly upon a tombstone.

SPARK: This is it, Spherebreakers.
SPARK: This is the end.
SPARK: This is the Grave of Civilization.
SPARK: A tomb for you, me, and everyone else who's lives you've ruined with your "heroism".

One more pulse of Creation energy rushes from the Glyph. The engines on the Dream of Unity visibly fire, steering itself as it falls. Entering full blast, the Dream of Unity begins to rocket towards the battlefield.

SPARK: With the end of my dream, comes the end of your dream.
SPARK: The end of the dreams of the people you've doomed.
SPARK: The people... they may think of this as cruel.
SPARK: But, with what you've done? What cruel fate you've forced upon everyone?
SPARK: This is but a mercy killing.
SPARK: You cannot stop this.

Drop pods descend from the sky, crashing around Spark. Praetorians deploy around him, ready for combat. A few familiar faces, Kanzan, Trombe, Rufa... and then that Twilit girl, who you don't actually know, but appeared in a cutscene. Spark clears his throat. He's still deathly calm.

SPARK: Men.
SPARK: Kill the Spherebreakers. Every last one of them.
SPARK: This is my final order.
TWILIT: Your... final order?
TWILIT: I... don't understand. What do you mean?
SPARK: I mean what I mean, Twilit.

SPARK: Join me, for this last crusade against the Spherebreakers.
SPARK: The destroyers of civilization.
SPARK: Those who have ended the world.
TWILIT: You... can't be serious.
RUFA: i mean, there's rioting in the streets
RUFA: maybe he's right?
RUFA: maybe they found a way to end... things. everything.
KANZAN: To think, everyone is in danger because of this filth...
KANZAN: Disgusting.
TROMBE: I... this can't be possible.
TROMBE: But... I won't disagree with your orders, my lord.
SPARK: ...So.
SPARK: Let us put an end to the Spherebreakers, once and for all.
SPARK: They cannot get away with this.
SPARK: They shall not get away with this.
SPARK: Their bodies shall line this place.

SPARK: This is the end of the line.
SPARK: If we shall burn, you shall burn with us.



You are accosted by...

SPARK
The False Chairheir

PLAY - Gywn, Lord of Cinder (Dark Souls)



<THE END OF UNITY, ROUND 10>
This is it. You versus Spark. Some of your allies haven't been dragged along with you, which might provide a few complications. In addition, the Dream of Unity will impact with the battlefield in seven rounds, instantly killing everyone here and quite possibly in the Citadel as well. If you kill Spark, perhaps there'll be a way to stop the Dream of Unity from crashing into the planet? Whatever the case... this'll be one hell of a battle.

Do your best, Spherebreakers. All of Locaa is counting on you.

Oh God Spark Please Stop Kicking A Hornet's Nest

Adria gives Spark a loud 'hmph' as the entirety of the Spherebreakers dogpile the Core, and Spark does the equivalent of nothing to anyone.

ADRIA: CUTE.
ADRIA: Not only are you a disgusting excuse of a person who would dare say that to my face, and the faces of everyone else, but also a complete IDIOT.
ADRIA: As a certain human girl once said...
ADRIA: FANTASTIC PATTERN RECOGNITION SKILLS, SPARK!

As the core is destroyed, the dream of unity plummets, and Spark grabs everyone, Adria could only scoff.

ADRIA: Oh but it gets EVEN BETTER.
ADRIA: This planet has some EXCEPTIONAL quality materials, I must say!
ADRIA: And as a result of said materials...

She pulls out a brand new railgun. Dark blues and bright, pale yellows adorn this new weapon. Beneath its coat appears to be several rare materials, such as Eversteel and Mythril. Several components from the Moonshocker line of weapons also adorn this new weapon. Within it, a Mythril-coated bolt shaped vaguely like a railgun round. And for good reason; similar coils to the one on the Exosuit are used, permitting the bolt to reach an extreme velocity and equally impressive penetrating power. Power regulation and boosting from the Drive, and the receptivity to spells of the bolt inherited by the Crossbow make for a horrifying combination.

And one that would make any tech nerd jealous.

ADRIA: MY SHINY NEW WEAPON JUST CAME IN!~
ADRIA: Would you and your entourage of WRETCHES like to be my first test subjects?
ADRIA: Rhetorical question, OF COURSE YOU WOULD!
ADRIA: AND THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO STOP ME!

As she's pulled into the End of Unity, Adria Respecs! Heavily!

As she enters the End of Unity, she's decked out with her new railgun. Though she clearly had to make a few sacrifices to get it around the tier limits.

ADRIA: YOU THINK THE THREAT OF A OMNICIDE-SUICIDE IS GONNA STOP US!?

ADRIA: TRY IT, ENEMY OF THE FUTURE!
ADRIA: I DARE YOU!

ACTUAL ACTION

After her respec, Adria spawns in at (M16), moves to (Q13), and loads up an Overwhelming Smash with Full Power To Weapons, gaining all of the loading buffs, along with the buffs from Fervent Emotion, bringing the total up to +11 Buff Levels. Scary.

She also repairs her Exosuit, using 5 Chocobars in the process. They're just snacks, okay? Repairwork costs a lot of energy!

The Exosuit starts charging Overacceleration Round again.

---

The Wastes

That was easy. What's not so easy is the fact that four Cinders decided to show themselves-

...No, wait, three. Sophia instantly darts toward the one at (AC134), leaping into battle with such speed that it's blink and you'll miss it.

She momentarily stops directly in front of it, draws her blade extremely quickly, then immediately strikes the thing before sheathing it, landing on the other side of it.

Cue dramatic bisecting animation as Thyme Matter or something spurts out of the two halves of the Cinder. Yeah that went well for that one, didn't it?

Meanwhile, a lot slower than Sophia's reaction time, Dorothy faces the Cinder at (AI134) and swipes an air-charged hand to her left, towards the water pool. A powerful gust of air blows the Cinder and the loose ash underneath it into the nearby water, instantly dousing it. rip

Meanwhile, Hannah was about to go help, when she receives a call. From Adria. She boops her ear. While time may be slowed, the conversation is displayed in full.

HANNAH: Yo.
ADRIA: Hannah, can you go and retrieve Xavier from the Glyph Vault? It should be-
HANNAH: Way ahead of ya. I already busted it open.
HANNAH: ...But who's this Xavier?
ADRIA: Chloe's Brother.
HANNAH: ...O-oh.
HANNAH: O-oh god.
HANNAH: Hopefully I-I'm not too late.
HANNAH: Thanks, Addy, I'll get right into it!

Once it ends, Hannah relays the new info to the other two.

HANNAH: You were right, Dorothy, someone's down there!

Dorothy gasps.

DOROTHY: W-wuh-
HANNAH: I want you to take my drill for now! Keep those dumb rocks at bay for a bit longer!
HANNAH: I'm going down!

Hannah doesn't give Dorothy a chance to respond before she tosses the drill to her and is gone down the stairs, hurrying as fast as she can carry herself.

Dorothy hides behind the drill, just in case... meanwhile Sophia's fine with just dodgin'.

---

The Glyph Chamber

Hannah runs. And runs. And runs down thirty minizones of stairs. How long will this take? Who knows?

Once she does make it to the final floor, she sits on the bench to heal and save her progress before the boss fight in the next room books it straight into the next room.

---

Mari

Adria... seemed a little confused at Mari's sudden laughing fit and blushing. Well, until Mari explains herself.

ADRIA: O-oh.
ADRIA: ...Hehe... Hahaha...

She can't help but blush and laugh a little herself. While she doesn't go as long or as hard as Mari did, she still ends up with a big, stupid grin on her face along with a mild fluster.

ADRIA: Hehe... haah... ohhh my...
ADRIA: I-I certainly... didn't see that coming!
ADRIA: B-but yeah, nothing like that, goodness no!

Adria sheakes her head rapidly and clears her throat, trying to knock her own fluster down a few notches.

ADRIA: A-anyway, that's great to hear!
ADRIA: I think you'll like it a lot!
ADRIA: And don't worry about jobs and losing valuable game time, we've got several things in place to facilitate living. For example, localized time dialation for homes allowing for increased time partaking in your hobbies. Not to mention almost all jobs are on a "work when you want" basis, so you won't get penalized if you wanna just not for a few days!
ADRIA: And no, none of these basic living features cost a dime, before you ask.

ADRIA: And yes, we have Wi-Fi. Fast, high-quality Wi-Fi too!
ADRIA: And even if it goes down for whatever reason, you probably wouldn't notice a thing. It'd be rerouted, fixed, and returned to normal automatically and before you know it!

ADRIA: I should be able to get a brochure or something for you fairly easily... it'll just take a bit.

Mari then brings up the topic of Pane, and Adria stops dead in her tracks, knocking the fluster and smile right out of her.

ADRIA: O-oh.
ADRIA: That... could be a problem...
ADRIA: I've heard snippets about Godmodders, but nothing concrete.
ADRIA: What I have managed to read, though...
ADRIA: T-they're... horrifying.
ADRIA: And even now I can't remember much... just that they're generally very dangerous at the best of times.

ADRIA: So we'd definitely need some way to deal with them.

ADRIA: Chaos was the one who initially broke you out, correct?
ADRIA: They might have something useful. Or know something.
ADRIA: ...I hope.

She very specifically looks to her left. Odd. Maybe she thought Chaos was randomly gonna be there or something.

Shrugging, she pulls out a phone and contacts Chaos. Or if Chaos is indeed there somewhere, she just speaks with them directly. If they overheard everything, skip this next part.

ADRIA: Hi, so about this "Pane" character...
ADRIA: I wanted to take Mari with me back home. Give her somewhere nice to live you know?
ADRIA: But of course having a potentially hostile Godmodder back home is cause for concern.
ADRIA: Any ideas on how to go about that?

Once that's over with, Adria looks at Mari's gear. Her coat and that solar generator.

ADRIA: ...Mari, do you mind if I take a look at your equipment?
ADRIA: I think some of it's well past due for an upgrade.




((Mari should equip both of these ASAP.))

Adria hands both items back to Mari.

ADRIA: Upgrades complete!
ADRIA: Sure, one of them was more or less an aesthetic upgrade, but isn't that still an upgrade when we really get into it?

ADRIA: Hopefully you'll get some good use out of these.

...Adria then remembers something important. Something to show Mari.

ADRIA: Oh, yes, on that project I was referring to earlier...
ADRIA: Check this out!

She pulls out the Lunar Ray for Mari to gush over.

ADRIA: Eversteel outer shell, unbreakable by nature!
ADRIA: Coils of similar design to those on the Exosuit Railgun!
ADRIA: Folding design for easier carrying!
ADRIA: A massive bolt fused from Gravcore Ore, the bolts of the Corssbow, and encased in Mythril!
ADRIA: Temporal reloading for the massive bolt!
ADRIA: Powered by the Drive primarily of your design!
ADRIA: Spell loading turned up to 11!
ADRIA: Gravcore to reduce weight!
ADRIA: And a paintjob telling its targets the force of what they're about to be hit by!

ADRIA: ...Truthfully, the only reason I hadn't made something like this back home was because of the lack of readily available materials.
ADRIA: And the lack of suitable materials in general. Like, nothing like Gravcore or Eversteel has been found there.
ADRIA: That's not to say there isn't anything useful, it's just... different here compared to there I suppose.

Adria gives Mari a little time to soak it in.

ADRIA: Once the Thymefield allows us better gear, I'll be sure to get you something on par with this thing at least!
ADRIA: Damn tier limits, always ruining everything...

...

ADRIA: ...Speaking of big, impractical forces of destruction crafted by our own two hands...
ADRIA: I feel like we should make that Antimagic Bomb now.
ADRIA: Want to join me?

---

Fell God Hunt

Shelly indeed sticks behind EN, seeing as she's significantly tankier. Of course, she doesn't allow any creatures close.

They then get to the pool of Thyme Matter. The clarity of it makes it seem like some sort of mixture. She's almost insulted at how simple this has been so far, only to be stopped by a liquid.

SHELLY: Don't know what I expected.

SHELLY: So we either a) go into it directly, not recommended in the slightest, b) kill everything and anything submerged in there with high-powered electricity, could work, but that's a big pool, c) burn everything off, and if that works, wait, or d) drain the entire thing off into some other part, might be hard.

SHELLY: I'm partial to option B, then D if needed. Though maybe we'd want to dig downward from here after. Maybe.
SHELLY: Heard my daughter made one hell of a drill earlier. Bet she wouldn't mind if we used it later.

While she doesn't consume any materials, Shelly places a Nanostorm Drive next to her and some Crystalline Conduits into the pool. She flicks the simple device on, hoping for a decent outcome. Or beavers swarming her and EN's faces. If it doesn;t work out, she just shoves the materials back into the inventory like nothing happened.

---

Fusion

Adria seems to be working away on the computer, typing up designs for what appear to be basic robots in the format provided by the Scanner. She seems to be picking up on it quickly enough.

Once Calibri appears, she takes note of his current appearance and such, responding to him.

ADRIA: ...Huh. So that's the effect of timeline-related abuse on the Fusion...
ADRIA: Interesting. Not the most useful, but interesting.

ADRIA: Anyway, hi. I'm Adria, if you hadn't heard already.
ADRIA: ...Small question, and related to the prior comment, my niece came by with a disc from you. She asked me to repair or finish the fusion.
ADRIA: Right now, I'm practicing a little on this... computer, I guess. Hooked up to a disconnected scanner and such. I decided on it after discussion with your brother, Verdana. I wouldn't want to botch it because of an easily-fixable error, right?
ADRIA: Anyway, I wanted to ask if there's anything substantial that I should know before tackling it.
ADRIA: Hopefully, something that could aid with design.

She stops working, and looks over at Calibri, frowning slightly.

ADRIA: One thing I am worried about is the possibility of a "complete" fusion becoming... a little too permanent, yeah?
ADRIA: The merging of souls and bodies like that might have the side-effect of creating one entirely new conscience instead of three separate ones...
ADRIA: How founded are these fears?

Echobot respec since Eren's currently evil. Link

Echoss+Chi:
"I believe it'd be best to go in person. For one thing, the 'delinquents' will need to have an eye kept on them. If you're there to manage the 'rescue mission' it is much less likely that tensions will result in someone ruining the whole thing by 'accidentally' firing on legion positions.
And you can ensure that more level heads are keeping watch over those more inclined to ruining things with petty spite.
For another sending a pronouncement like "we're about to end and win the war, and will be disbanding after" remotely is... not a good decision.
Please trust me, great announcements like this need to be done in person, morale is important and it will be important to keep your soldiers in line for the final stretch."


Not!Echoss helps some children:
Not!Echoss materializes in the crater near the Hat children.
"Never fear younglings! I... KNOW WATERBENDING!"
Not!Echoss proceeds to flail about, doing a bunch of different moves that are most certainly not waterbending. Completely unfazed as iti are generally likely to be, the cinders rush towards Not!Echoss.
And are completely blasted away by the firehose jets of water that pin-point target on each of the advancing cinders from the large puddles of water formed by the crater.


House Cleanup:
Echoss pokes his head in the room that Acacia is rescuing, his voice low to avoid waking Acacia up if she's asleep.
"Pardon for the interruption but should I do something specific with Miss Aneura's old body? I was intending to bury it with a sapling planted on top as I believe is the usual custom in LOCAA, but wished to double check.
Sometimes people have preferences for the usage of discarded physical forms, and it seems rather silly to give a full funeral to someone who survived."


Echoss Rejoins the (Active) Party!
A bit over half an hour ago...
Echoss walks up to the portal, and pulls the wheeled pallet out, revealing a smooth, robotic body.
"...funny. I did not think that we would be testing this out so soon.
Let alone under circumstances like these.
...let's get this thing finished up."

Echoss reactivates the long-dormant INFINITE CRAFTING WORKS
Echoss hooks up the last pieces of the Echobot, and equips it with the gear, both newly crafted and old. Finally, a butterfly flutters from his hand into a small compartment within it, settling in.
It is done.

Battle:

Combat Action:
Echobot spawns in at (J16) with the keyblade in ranged form, he then pauses as Irongutta spawns in early (got permission on discord), Echobot then casts Eagle Eye with Shared Perspective on himself and Irongutta. Echobot then uses Alter Reality to exchange the Empowered from its hat into Enlightened.

Echobot then hands out Buttered Mollusk (benefits from Know How To Use It and Deep Pockets) with his two item actions to Gutta and Yato (once Yato spawns in at least). The first duplicate buttered mollusk will go to Aoki if it happens, if BOTH buttered mollusks get duplicated somehow the second dupe goes to Cal.


To-do List:
Also hand the Subspace Grocery Box to Cypress when he heads back to the house
Fix the hole in the wall that Chaos made.

STAR TIME

I respec to the final character sheet on this page: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pEJ...#gid=1361462781.

---

BATTLES - END OF UNITY

After the resolution of the below conversation and after Calibri uses Reckless Revenge, Star touches down on the battlefield in a rainbow flash.

Setting Sol Aeterna to Star form (fittingly enough), they land at G18, move to D19, and use Backstage and Back Again to teleport to C15 before flying to F15 (in order to max out the bonus from their trait). They basic attack Calibri and then throw an Infinisyringe at him, both receiving a 40% Stellar Wind buff. Finally, they switch Sol Aeterna to Gladius form.

---

STAR AND SOL AETERNA ARE REQUESTED ON THE BATTLEFIELD

Star looks puzzled.

STAR: A battle?
STAR: I was not told: how, momentous~
STAR: Perhaps we should watch from

Suddenly, out of a spawn point portal staggers the prime instance of "the Scion," eyes solid black pits. The plant life around her wilts and dies, and nearby individuals feel bile rising up their throats. She falls to her knees and rakes her fingernails against her flesh, inscribing cuts that immediately pop and boil. She screams out to the entire house, a strange, alien voice overlapping her own.

"THE SCION": SPARK IS HERE.
"THE SCION": My magic... doesn't do anything against him!
"THE SCION": SEVEN ROUNDS UNTIL THE END.
"THE SCION": Please... get in there and...
"THE SCION": KILL THE BASTARD.

Star recovers from their bout of nausea and grips Sol Aeterna firmly. A pair of rainbow wings extends from their back.

STAR: Your siblings are in danger then?
STAR: It is as the dreams foretold
STAR: the end of all things.
STAR: Are you prepared yellow blade
STAR: because i know I am not.

---

ASHA/MARRON

"The Scion" struggles to meet Marron's eyes.

"THE SCION": I'm... no good at telekinesis...
"THE SCION": My magic doesn't really work for fine motor tasks... it needs to be released in big bursts, so I don't think that would work.
"THE SCION": I... guess we could try a board game? I-If you're sure you want me...
"THE SCION": (I don't think three-player chess is real in most universes, but...)

It seems like everyone has forgotten about Dawn. Hopefully they're not being strangled by Taeda somewhere.

---

ZONE 5.5

The Reflector, curious, heads to the third floor of the Central Labs and flies north, since we haven't seen that room yet for some reason.

Battle - End of Unity

Well. That was a confusing array of events. Calfusion shakes off the dust, stretching their various sets of wings, their many eyes blinking a few times. They take a look around the new battlefield.

"Man, that was a trip..."

They then realize that they've been put to extremely low HP. Like... six. That's not a whole lot of HP for anyone, especially someone of their total magnitude. They visibly frown, feathery eyebrows appearing along their wing-eyes to mimic the gesture.

"What the hell did Pionobot do to me... He hasn't dropped by here, at least. Better get to work."

With that, he recognizes a magnificent opportunity...

USING THE FREE RESPEC
Calibri: -1 MMP, +1 SPC
Verdana: +1 MMP, -1 SPC
Spell swap: Nothing Ventured -> Reckless Revenge (scaling: +40% damage when below 50% HP, Vengeance modifier)
Calibri perk swap: Purger -> Alter Reality

Now for the battle action...

Calfusion spawns with the Special Sol Aeterna currently in LANCE form on G16, moving to D13 and chugging a Bottled Luck. They take a moment to analyze the situation, then spot a familiar face near the back of the crowd. Their expression visibly brightens, and so does the rest of their body in a more literal sense.

"Oh hey! Rufa! Been a while. Don't mind the whole me-being-12-feet-tall-and-glowy-and-obnoxiously-overdecorated. That's just a fusion special thing. It's pretty cool, heh. I'd elaborate more on the fine details if we weren't on opposite sides in the middle of a fight. Maybe that could be a hangout plan or something. If you're cool with that. Anyway..."

They lean a little closer, eyes all focusing on Rufa. Normally that would be quite scary, but honestly the combined gazes just look like curious multicolour puppy eyes.

"Last time we met, you kinda ducked out a little earlier than I expected. So I'll ask you what I wanted to ask back then... Why'd you join up with Spark, anyway? I can't really tell what you see in him."

It obviously hasn't occurred to the Calfusion that Spark is currently in earshot. But hey, Rufa's a praetorian, he's probably got a reasonable answer lined up already for moments just like this.

At the same time, a few of Calfusion's wingeyes glance over at Kanzan, staring in unison. They all blink simultaneously. The rest of the fusion's various gazes follow suit. There's a pause.

"...Well, this is awkward. You're not too mad about the thing that happened earlier today, right...? Eh, we can probably talk that out later. Or you can just call me filth five hundred times, that's pretty much what I'm expecting anyway."

With that ramble over, the fusion remembers what they're meant to be doing, facepalming and sacrificing 15 HP to their plushie to gain Ordo.

As one more step of preparation, Calfusion uses Alter Reality (which can be whatever he wants) to change his Empowered9 to Enlightened9. That should be all the steps. Let's tally them up.

5 points of intellect. 9 buff levels - one from Verdfort, two from Lance Sol Aeterna, two from Ordo, four from the Enlightened9 he just altered into existence. Combine that with 133 MHP and 1 current HP. The hour is nigh. Calfusion becomes embraced by an aura of raw overwhelming destructive power.

CALFUSION CASTS RECKLESS REVENGE.

Between all the factors aforementioned, this translates to a 446% buff to their next basic attack.

"Someone's gonna witness the raw essence of destruction real soon."

After all that, there's still one more thing to do. Calfusion guards, taking their AC to a whopping 32.

"Now then... HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOTS, SPARKY BOY!"

---

The Old Pass...?

EN conducts some thoughts, mostly centered around how they're going to get all that thyme matter out of the way. She has an idea soon enough, pulling a piece of Disgusting Food out of the inventory.

"...Man, tha' ain't look nice. E'en ah can see tha'."

After a moment spent grimacing at the thing she's holding, EN then takes a proper grip on the Disgusting Food, moving back a little in preparation, and hurling that right into the thyme matter-



S̶͎̜͂̇͑͋Ṯ̵̨̮̭̬͚̙͚̲͍͕̘̭̋̾̇̌̋̌̉̆̾̐͝ͅA̷̰͋̈́̃̇̆̄͋͐̍͋̄̓̅̈͋C̷̡̡̠̘͓̦̼̪͔̮̀̊̋͐̈͛̓̀̚͜͜K̴͕̹͒͋̇̌̾̍̈͑̐̃͝ ̵̢̟͍͔̬̖͕̻͔̪̲̙̲͑͊̈́̀͊̔̾̽̚͜͝Ó̵̫̩͉̰̤̹͎͙̠͉̥̪̜̹̲́̈́̈́̿͗͐V̵̨̯͈͚͇̗͈͇͓̒̄̏̾͌́E̶̢̨̡͍̲̠̻̱̳͉͑̇̒͒̒̓̈͌̍̒͗Ṙ̸̡̧͙͈̻͇͙̖̹̬̦̼̙͉̪͗̿̀̓͊F̸͔̐͑͊̋̏̉͆͂̋̿́̊̇̑͠ͅĻ̴̧͉̘̠͉̓̃̏͋̌̉̋̿̐̊̿̓̚O̵̡̮̪̓̌̀̀̈́̉̋͝W̴͚̝̬̯̟͎͋͗̂͋̃̅̋̇͑̓ ̴̙̩̫̺͈̅̎͂͘͝͝Ẻ̵̛̜̲̰̹͙̜͔̭̘̞̒̑̽̂̈́͌̆͗̽͘͘͜R̸̫͆̎̽̾̓̈͆͒̈́̚͠R̴̢̨̨̜͉͙͈̫̺̠͊̔̌̈́̔̀̇͠ͅǑ̵̟̙̻̰͖̙̫̤͙̻̄̃͐̒̒́̿́̓͆̚̕͝͝R̴̠̭̼̰̙̿͌̈́̈́̅̀ ̸̢̗̠̥̭͉̳̫͌̊͘Ś̸̰͖̼̣̾̀̽ͅͅT̵̮̖̺̻̜͆̎̈́̃̐͛̀͛̊͘͠A̸̙̞͖̹͓͗͊̃̕Ḉ̵̳͖̺̪̘͇͂̇̒͛͂̓̕͠K̸̫̰̓̔̒̓̔͊͑̉̊̚͝͠͝͝͝ ̵̨̺̱͈̘̭͛̅̊̍̀̉͋Ơ̶̹̅́̏̽͑̈́̋̀̈́̓͂͛̚V̴̢̖̲̮̝̰̖͚̭̞̣͑E̷̡̼̘̣̥̳͓̟̪̽̽̿́͂̓́̍̏̀̕͝R̸̨̻̩̟͚̪̺̪̠͉͑͗̃̌͒͆͐̾̅́͛F̴̗͗̀̀̍͒̍̒̒̐̅̈́͑̕̚͝L̶̡̙̦̰͓̼̯̭̩̺̟͓͉̈̉Ớ̵̞͑̏̆̌̈́͋̽͋̓̕̚̚͠W̴̬̪̖̥͛̍͗̉̍̆̈͐̐̀̎̀̽͜͝ ̸̗̯̔͒͒͋̂̃̇̍͛̄̽̆E̵̟̩͎͈̪͛͐̽̒̈́̔̇͑̅̆̏̅̕͝R̶̢̧̹̘̩̲͎̘͈̻̰̞̼̉̂̇̈́͐̓͛̒͛͝ͅR̸̢͇̦̟̝̥̟͇̳̉͑̏͆͂̅̋̄̀̆̉̀́̌̕Ȍ̵̡̨̗͙̱̘̭͍̣̹͍̉̇̈́̀̿͗̑̆͒͠ͅR̸̙͉͈͖̘͌̇̓̓͆͜͝ ̵̛̻̹̳͕̱̘͇̮̤͍̤̒̆̌̈́̂̒̊̿͜͠S̵̡̪͎̟̯̭̫͚͓͙͉̖̪̫͂͑̊͑̎Ṱ̴̢̡̺̲͔̗̯̯̼̈̈̀̾̓́̌̂̚͜A̶̛̤̟̝̱̎̾̿̒̑́͝C̴̮͚͖̫̯̰̠͌̔̎͋̈͜K̶̡̬̱̫̝̰͎͈̦̠̖̼̳̀̃͜ ̵͙͕͔̥̠͒̄̈̈͊̌͑͒͗̊̇̓O̶͈͚͇̿͒V̶̡̨̬͔̻͈̤͓̫̀E̷̡͍̯̤͈̗̤͊̌͊̆̍R̵̢̞̥̦̰͋̍F̸̢̛̛̼͕̂͂̅̎͊̄͋̈́͋̍̃͘͠L̸̢̺̦͉̯̭͈͍̫̞͔͍̭͛͒͆̀̓̀̌̒̾̓͊͜͠͠͝Ơ̴̢̢̞̟͕̖̳̳̲͚̙̋͜W̶̺̄̂̊͛̇̐̐͒̚̚ ̶̧̢͙̟̲͇̪̓̔͋͝E̸̡̨̢̠̥̩̼̗̣͎͓̫͎̤̔͆̒̑͑́͋̈́̈́̌̚͝R̵̢̧͔͕̠͖̐͗̾̈́̈́̒̊̅́̃͠͠Ṛ̶̨̳͚̞̩͕̖̈̈́̊̍̈͂͒̉̄̋͑̓O̷̤̙͎͓̟̜̐̐͊̏̀̾͊R̷̭̊͆͌͜͝



Whatever that fusion of "putting food anywhere near EN", the carnival's atrocious cooking, and literal killer spice would've been like, it seems to have been quietly removed from the timeline before anything could happen. With that hopefully settled, EN dusts off her hands, then sighs.

"Honestly, ah don't trus' tha' t' work e'ery time, ya might wanna git a Null Slicer or summin'. Jus' delete th' thyme straight-up an' all tha'."

---

The Everground

he drone appreciate contac :3

---

Receptionist's Hall

Calibri's flickering image chuckles quietly.

"Anything substantial... You probably can't see narration, but if you could, you'd probably have noticed something weird about the fusion. They're starting to become an independent entity, to a degree. Sure, the one going on right now is still primarily myself, but honestly..."

A pause, and he glances away for a moment, then makes a noise that roughly translates to "I'm probably going to regret this but I'd regret it more if I didn't bring it up". After that, he turns back to Adria.

"I might've... omitted a few details from Chloe and Sophie. Didn't want them to worry about me. But... yeah. If things were left unchanged and the current state of affairs maintained its course, there'd be very strong odds the three of us would eventually cease to exist as... y'know, ourselves. Just end up being parts of that fusion."

Beat.

"Don't ask how that'd work with Lato still being a weapon. It's... complicated."

---

Star Aeterna to the battlefield

Lato's form flickers briefly when she detects the Scion. It's not clear if that's a flinch-equivalent or if that's just her way of acknowledging the other woman's presence.

"Hmm. It appears we will be watching the battle from... closer than anticipated."

For a moment, her humanoid form fully manifests, Lato flicking her raven-dark ponytail in a probably-stylish manner. She sports a rather eager look in her bright yellow eyes, and the frills of her apparel seem more flush with colour than usual. Then, in another flash, her manifestation is gone again, the lady having reverted back fully to her weapon form.

"Duty calls. It matters not if we are prepared, only that we rise to the occasion as best we can."

---

:)

Ah, the lovely background sights and sounds of a beautiful forest. The scent of flowers fills the air, the rustling of trees in the wind echoes all around, accompanied by a reasonable smattering of birdsong. Perhaps even the rushing waters of a river, just to add to the mood. Truly, it is a tranquil-


The niceness is abruptly cut off by the sound of an extremely large truck speeding past, some kind of song blaring out from one window as trees crash to the ground and break apart in its wake. And as we take a look at the comically oversized metallic arm resting on the windowsill, with that huge square shape, we get a sense of who this guy is.

"Sup, bitches, bet you never thought you'd be seeing me again."

Engie continues his drive, while also taking the time to listen in on a headset that was clearly built for a normal human's head, reasonably interested in the things he's being informed about. Or maybe a Venia timeline copy is just vibing in the passenger seat and talking directly to him, who knows.

"Hmm... Sounds a lot like you're not confident enough in your destiny. Not, like, the literal goddess destiny, I mean the more abstract concept that basically hints you'll eventually get that win that you guys have worked so hard for. And trust me, it's been a while. It might seem like it's been less than a week for all of you, but... yeah, more time has passed than that. Still, sure, I can pass on a message or two."

He turns his attention to the "road" ahead, and by road I mean "it's covered in trees but the truck don't give a truck". Through all that obstruction lies his destination.

"In fact, I'm already on my way there."

Tabletopia.

...They're probably not ready for an Engie drone to drive into town with a big-ass truck that has his own name plastered on the side, since that's not generally something one actively plans around, but it shouldn't be of too much consequence. The dude is literally just there to take in the sights for a while, and also find the nearest important-looking person to provide information to.

That, and despite his nature, he does have some level of respect for speed limits, so nobody's getting run over today unless they try to bodyblock the truck for whatever reason.

Anyway, once he does find someone who looks vaguely important, he parks the truck, which stops immediately with no questions asked. Then, he awkwardly clambers out the window, falling onto his lack-of-a-face and getting back up without missing a beat. But how will he phrase the important messages...

"Hi. Don't know if any of you have been watching, but GORILLA's going down over in that other nation place. The guy running that show, Spork or Sparkles or whatever his name is, has gone absolutely insane and is currently fighting like two dozen people who I sort of am acquainted with. Also, while I'm like 90% sure this timeline isn't one of the ones where it succeeds, the Sphere (that big dome thing) is set to explode soon and wipe out a third of everything in existence when it does."

If necessary, Engie hands over a case file with disturbingly accurate accuracy in regards to what's been happening during the entire course of the Spherebreakers's adventures here, as well as a strange number of possible futures, in which a concerning number do in fact support his statement regarding the sphere's explosion and the death of a third of everything. Then, he continues.

"The long and short of it is you guys might want to pick up your civilization and move away from the area just for a while, make sure that if things go wrong, you don't get wiped out by it and all that. I'm sure y'all've got that kind of capability covered, but if you need anything, I'm literally too rich to care about consequences so I can probably chip in some of my own supply of resources or ships to help out."

...Does it detract from the moment if that rap song instrumental keeps blaring in the background? Maybe. But then again, consider what Engie is and who he is as a... erm... an entity. Even in his silliest moments, you kinda have to be wary.