Futuristic An Agent of Maniacles

[Spoiled Bread]

Aria
​

Aria woke in her room feeling dizzy. Seemed like Morgan dropped her in her room, but after she vomitted the wine her memory had been rather hazy.

Wait, what? Did she just sleep? At night? Upon the realization Aria jumped out of her bed, grabbed Mr. Teddi and spins with him across the room.

"I can sleep at night, Mr. Teddi! It's very easy. I just need to drink plenty enough to knock myself out!"

Stop it! You just sounded like a depressed insomniac salarywoman.

"No way, Mr. Teddi. You don't even know what a salarywoman is."

I am NOT MR. TEDDI!!

Having a call from Denton for assembly, Aria prepared herself. Still, by the time Aria arrived at the assembly point it was obvious from the appearance that Aria was still having hungover.

Fortunately, the hungover didn't affect her preparation. She came with her full combat gears. Her communication device was attached to a collar that she wears, to prevent the accident from last mission from happening again. At least this time if the earplug would be snatched from her ear it would end up hanging near her neck instead.

 

[Freikugel]

Fizzy already discusses his role with Denton. He would be a support and backup in case things went dire. He wanted a piece of the action but Denton clearly stated "What you wanna play, the grandma or the red riding hood? With those legs of you? Pffth hahaha good one"

He thoroughly checked his privates after the previous day event. Everything seemed in order yet it still pained him. He would have to get it checked later

However.... His demeanor was different, while he introduced himself as a man with skill and confidence, his face was gloomier, a bit sad even, often he would look at the distance with a expression of guilt.

He had his gun and equipment ready, focusing on he mission will help him distract his mind
This isn't what I expected meeting Denton would be like

He looked at Morgan's back and a shiver travelle through his own, and then he fixated on Sam's back, he wanted to get close to her and chat a bit, but after last day's "failed mission" he wasn't sure what to do. The man was never rejected that badly in ten years, his confidence dropped

 

[Darkling0096]

"I can provide air support. Even if the lumberjack misses, pump anything full of lead and light and it'll die."

Sam knew Fizzy was looking, he'd been slinking around like a kicked puppy all morning. She kinda felt bad, prosthetic limbs were expensive, and they lacked nerves. Surely his bionic kickstand was even more expensive.

 

[Freikugel]

Fizzy replied

"Can a manifestation be shot down by firepower though? Given they follow a set of rules" Said with a calm neutral tone

He actually didn't mind, if he had to fire he will fire. He just wanted a chance to talk with Sam about anything

 

[Darkling0096]

"Depends on whether or not Fey rules apply as well," Sam shrugged. "If nothing else, I can blind and distract it."

 

[Freikugel]

"If it's of a magic source I can disable it temporally"

He pointed at this belt

"This thing can nullify magic and energy for a brief period of time, I just need to get close enough, preferably from behind"

Fizzy however realized that his belt was right above his crotch and one could think he was pointing at his little secret instead.

Wait... That didn't sound right.... Getting close from behind? I'm talking about the belt right? Sam is a smart girl right? I bet she understood I'm talking about the belt

 

[Kinggunlucky]

"Just how big is this wolf? Are we dealing with Fenrir or Fido?"

"Unknown at this time. No survivors so far to tell us, but according to what I've read about Manifestations the size and look of it can vary. It appears this thing has been eating whole...so I assume it is quite large," Denton said.

"Can a manifestation be shot down by firepower though? Given they follow a set of rules"

"It can be hurt by firepower. Fucked up plenty. Not killed," Morgan said.

Denton handed out the maps and began assigning people to their roles. Joe 01 would be taking the role of the grandmother. He'd insisted. Also, the image of a man dressed up like an old hag was something that was to supremely funny to pass on. Joe 01 would be the first to go into the forest, at least a half an hour to an hour head start. Fizzy Roy and Sam were to guide him in, yes Denton did that on purpose, keep an eye on Joe, watch his back from a distance, and patrol the perimeter of the cottage once he was inside..

A safety precaution. If the Big Bad Wolf, for whatever reason, came at Joe. The two have more than enough firepower to at least keep the thing busy if a retreat was necessary.

"Don't get dressed until you're inside the cottage," Denton said. "I know sending you in to be the bait is a strange choice, but you volunteered and the

"Aria you're gonna be Little Red,. The innocence, sweetness. It fits. " Denton said. "Morgan and Joe 02 will be keeping an eye on you, but wolf shouldn't do you harm as long as you're playing into the role." Denton hoisted the axe onto his shoulder.

He looked among the rest of his crew. It took all of two seconds to decide on who was best for the job. Denton tossed the axe in a spinning motion at Kotsu who caught it by the handle with little effort. "You up for chopping some wood? Huh? Attack dog. Kotsu, Owl, Quentin, Vivian, and myself are taking position up there." He pointed at hilltop in the distance. "Owl, you can see through forest. You'll be able to survey what's going on better then any of us. My ghosts will cover whatever is out of your range, albeit with less clarity. Once we get word the wolf has swallowed Joe. 01 is when we make our move. Kotsu you get first shot. Have to get first shot. Gut the wolf, free Joe. After that it's just a question of finishing it for good. Quentin can burn it, Sam or Vivian can shoot it, so and so forth."

 

[Freikugel]

No time to be down.
Fizzy Roy's demeanor, expression and posture changed, he was now focused in the job, and he was a professional

"Sam can you carry Finder on that hover vehicle? I'll go behind you two and be ready to provide cover fire. My leg prosthetics aren't as fast as your vehicle but I can keep the pace. I propose as well to move slow and take cover behind the tree in the areas"

He then communicated to Denton "Roger we'll escort Finder to the designed location. I estimate roughly 73 minutes, I'll be in touch"

 

[Darkling0096]

"The bike seats two, but can carry seven hundred pounds. As long as you don't weigh more than two-seventy, it should be able to handle the weight if on of you sits on the rack." Sam looked at the map. The forest was dense in places, once in hover mode, the bike would have limited ability to keep up with anything.

 

[KotaKotsu]

Kotsu felt the heft of the axe in his hand and a wicked smile formed his face. "Should I be making a Susie from Deltarune joke right about now?" Nobody laughed. In fact, Kotsu was pretty sure he felt confusion by his words. "Fuck you guys, I'm funny." Kotsu said, lifting the axe behind his shoulder with no effort at all. "Do I dress up too, or do I just chop trees nearby the cottage, Villa, whatever we're doing?" Kotsu heard everything, but he wanted to bother Denton by seemingly ignoring him. Hoping to get a rise out of Fizzy too. Kotsu looked at both of the Joe's and nodded. They knew he wouldn't let them die.

 

[mmarage]

"Um... with all due respect, sir," 02 said as he looked at Denton. "we believe that we should be the ones that will be acting as both pieces of the bait. We have our alchemical creation that should keep us safe. We... tested it last night. It... works like a charm, we'll be fine, in fact, safer than everyone else." He concluded. They were fine being the bait and having the highest risk of the team.

01 nodded. "We can relinquish our bombs and medicine so then the team has access to them in the event that they'll need to join the fray. The other stuff is far more simple than what we have in store." 01 said.

 

[Kinggunlucky]

"Do I dress up too, or do I just chop trees nearby the cottage, Villa, whatever we're doing?"

Denton facepalmed. "Goodness. Thank you dog. I nearly forgot." He fished in his bag and brought forth the woodcutter uniform he'd assembled. "For you my friend.

Um... with all due respect, sir," 02 said as he looked at Denton. "we believe that we should be the ones that will be acting as both pieces of the bait. We have our alchemical creation that should keep us safe. We... tested it last night with Kotsu, he can attest to its effectiveness."

"Aria is Red," Denton said. "She fits the bill perfect. Plus, she has the raw strength to handle herself should anything go downhill. You, Sam, and Fizzy best be off. We split up the bombs and medicine among each of the groups"

 

[Spoiled Bread]

Aria​

Aria changed her cloak to the provided red hood. She picked up the basket and looked at the inside. A bottle of wine, a cake and some apples.

"An order is an order, Joes. Don't worry, I'll give this hood to you later." Aria reassured the twins, still thinking they're doing this because of the crossdressing part.

She put up the hood and walked deeper into the forest while speaking to herself quite loudly.

"Mother told me to visit my grandma in the middle of a forest. What should I do, what should I do~" She repeated the lines again and again as she went even deeper.

 

[Darkling0096]

Sam whistled for her bike, and like a puppy it came. "Alright, Joe, we should be able to get to the cottage within a few minutes if we fly over the canopy, but just in case, you two should strap in like the universe depends on it." She declined the bombs and plugged her drones into the bike. "But seriously, though, this thing'll leave nothing between your ass and the ground but air if you're not hanging on."

 

[KotaKotsu]

At first Kotsu ignored Denton and did a double take in regards to his words after the dog comment. Kotsu blinked at Denton, cocking an eyebrow. "You just... Called me your friend." Kotsu said, slowly taking the attire. He was still pissed about Moonlight, but this was better than being called a dog. But Denton knew nothing about him to call him a friend. Kotsu put on the attire over his armor. "Lead the way my Entourage of young fellow wood choppers." He said to Denton and the rest of the group

 

[mmarage]

The two nodded reluctantly, before giving Aria a quizzical look. "Why...?" 01 started as she walked away, but she was gone before he could even get out the rest of his question. He gave Kotsu an uncertain look, before sighing in defeat. He and 02 grabbed their bags and opened them up, showing several glowing crystals, vials, tins, and what seemed more out of place, wrapped up bars. They began walking around and distributing a few of the items to each person.

"The vials can temporarily augment your weapons with elemental effects for about five minutes. Red for fire, green for wind, brown for earth, and blue for ice. For melee weapons just pour it on, for long range weapons, pour it on the projectiles. The smaller vials are potions, use them if you get injured. Crystals are bombs, the color schemes are the same as the vials in terms of the elements that come from them. Just throw them at the enemy, be careful not to break them before you intend to. The tins contain a potent healing salve, they won't be great for massive wounds, but should at least help with burns, cuts, and bruises. Finally the ration bars'll give you an energy boost if you're in need of it. Apparently it also helps mages in that department as well if they've used a lot of magic." The two explained as they handed out the various items.

In the three months that the twins had been sequestered, they managed to synthesize enough for each person to get one of each item. Though the twins kept two of each item that they'd keep in their belt pouches. Except for 01, who entrusted his with 02 for safe keeping since bringing a bunch of elemental bombs into the literal belly of a beast didn't seem like the best idea.

Finally, 01 took a deep breath and grabbed the costume from Denton. "...Be careful, everyone." He said, before he got onto the hover bike with Sam, seeming a little worried as he climbed on the back, strapping in and wrapping his arms around Sam's waist, seeming a little uncomfortable with the close contact. "Alright, let's head out." 01 said, giving everyone one last little wave before they flew off.

 

[KotaKotsu]

Kotsu put away his new toys away in his satchels on his belt underneath the attire for the woodsman outfit. "We'll be seeing you in a bit. I won't let you down." Kotsu said to 01. "I'm gonna save your brother. And I wanna talk to you two in my room. I sent you guys a letter with a scheduled time. Read it when you get back." He said to both of them. "After that, let's hit the amusement park. All of us as a group." Kotsu said. "Like enjoying a reward after a successful mission."

 

[Kinggunlucky]

Everyone departed to their assigned areas. The cottage that Joe 01, Fizzy, and Sam arrived at clearly hadn't seen any usage in years. The walls, counters, and furniture were covered in thick layers of dust, cob webs in every corner. There was an old wooden table in the kitchen, along with a couple chairs. The place smelled of must, mildew, and dirt from where leaves and other green things were beginning to sprout through the floor.

***

Denton wished he could have gone to the forest. The urge of seeing this thing was strong in him, anticipation for action. He wondered if this how men like Kotsu felt. A hunger for chaos. No probably not. For all the violence the man was capable of dishing he seemed like a good person. Moral. Upstanding. Owl was being strangely quiet. He imagined it was the one night stand she engaged in. The ghosts he'd had traveling around last night were kind enough to inform of him of her disgusting amount of alcohol consumption and how Kotsu visited her. All very interesting. He wondered if they were planning to kill him?

Denton checked his watch and shrugged.

If they tried it here maybe Vivan would throw in with him. Maybe. Quentin would be a good ally. The man's ability had the right amount of literal firepower to be dangerous to just about anyone, but him and Kotsu seemed some what chummy.

Denton looked at the team he assembled, then back to the forest below. "So how is everyone liking the Vineyard so far? I believe its an improvement over Moonlight Falls."


***

Morgan stumbled over a root that was sticking out of the ground, only saving herself by managing to brace up against the nearest tree. It sent a wave of pain through her, as if a professional wrestler managed to put her brain into a bear hug. She grunted. Hopefully this job wouldn't take to long. Hopefully. Killing this thing seemed overly complicated, like some insane God made it up on the fly cause he thought it sounded cool.

On the bright side she liked Aria a hell of a lot more then the rest of the team save for Denton. The girl could drink. Morgan wondered if vampires got hungover. Watching Aria was pretty easy. Stay far back, stay in the woods, keep an eye on the red cloak.

Aria stopped, clearly distracted by something, although Morgan and Joe couldn't get a clear view. Morgan help up a hand for Joe 02 to stop moving. She thought about patching through to Aria, but decided against it.

***

Ten feet in front of Aria, off to the side of the path, stood a man...or what would appear to be a man if you were looking at a distance, but up close there was no mistaking what he really was. A wolf with gray fur. A lit cigar between his lips. It stood over six feet tall, in an upright human like position, furry legs bent inward, it's paws some of weird combination of a wolf's and man's. The only article of clothing he sported was a leather colonial type jacket as red as Aria's hood.

He sniffed the air, took puff of the cigar, and looked at Aria. Piercing yellow eyes. "Hey, how's it hanging?"

Aria was surprised at the figure in front of her, not only because he had more humanoid figure but he also smoking a cigar. Is this really the wolf in the tale??

Regardless, Aria smiled at the man-wolf and answered his greeting.

"I'm good, sir." She unconsciously called him, 'sir'. Seeing him smoking in front of her with those sharp eyes, reminded her a bit of some of Alucard's tobacco customer.

The Wolf quirked brow. He sauntered over to Aria, walking with a level of elegance one would think impossible given his strange legs. He took another puff of his cigar, then held carefully between his fingers. "Pretty strange place to find a young thing like you. So a what brings ya out this way toots?"

The way he walk, the way he talk, it made Aria nervous. So strange. She's looking around trying to spot Morgan so she could calm herself but she couldn't. If this was just a simple matter of fighting the wolf she wouldn't be as nervous and as confused as this, but that's not what the order was.

Right, she still had the order.

"I'm going to deliver these foods to my grandma, sir wolf." She lifted her basket.

The Wolf eyed the basket, then circled around, going behind Aria, eyes shimmering with admiration at her rear region. "God damn," he muttered with a grin. "Grandma's house, huh? You need a lift or something? She live close?"

"N-no, err, I mean. Yes. I mean NO!" Aria faced the wolf again. His stare, she was familiar with it. It was the stare of a hunter eyeing their prey. Just like what she did to those preyshumans centuries ago. Her instinct told her to fight, or flight. She chose to back away and run from the wolf. She couldn't think straight. Was it the hungover? Or the unexpected situation? She didn't know.

"Mother told me to visit my grandma in the middle of a forest! What should I do? what should I do! Morgan, what should I do!" She spoke through her earplug while running aimlessly into the forest even deeper.

"Aria stop running. I have eyes on you and him. He's coming for you.," Morgan whispered. "You tell him where Grandma lives. You tell him up the path in a cottage. He should back off. Do not go with him, though. I repeat. Just play along and he should back off."

The Wolf's heavy hand fell on Aria's shoulder before she could get much further. "Woah, woah. Honey. I don't bite. I mean I do, but only when the broads ask me to, heheh. Look. Maybe we got off on the wrong foot. The name's Marty Wolf, from Saskatchewan." He produced ID and handed it to her. The picture on it showed 'Marty' giving a toothy smile. He was an organ donor. "My car is over there."

Somehow, quite strangely, without Aria, Joe or Morgan noticing. A beat up and rusty white van with tinted windows appeared. It was parked off the road a few feet away.

"So does Grandma live close?"

Aria calmed herself after she heard Morgan's voice, at least she's not alone. Why was there's a van nearby?? Why the wolf had a business card??

"Yes, I guess grandma live nearby." Aria pocketed the ID card and gave the wolf the direction to the cottage, just like what Morgan told her.

"Cool, cool," The Wolf said, flicking his cigar away. "You want a ride? I mean we could hit up your Grams house. Drop your shit off. Let me take you out. Your ass is like fire."

Aria glanced at her rear. It's not on fire.

"Say no," Morgan whispered to Aria.

The Wolf's ear twitched.

"No." Aria answered firmly. "Thank you for the generous offer but no."

The Wolf scowled a nasty hate filled scowl. "Sorry to bother you then." Aria watched in disbelief as he sauntered off into the direction of his van, got it it, and started it. Actually the rust bucket took three tries before it started running smoothly. The Wolf peeled out of his parking spot and drove up the road in the direction of the cottage.

 

[mmarage]

The twins looked at Kotsu and blinked a few times, seeming to not really understand what an amusement park was... or that they were actually being invited somewhere. "Oh um... yes, we would like that a lot." 01 said, smiling nervously. Of course... he might not be making it back. But he let that thought hang in the air as he began riding away.

02 looked at Kotsu and the rest of their group. "Alright, we should hurry and move." He said, he felt... better being reassured by Kotsu that they'd be rescuing his brother. He... didn't seem like that bad of a person... 02 would stick close to the back, his bow strung around his shoulder and a set of pouches on his hip. He was sure this would be more than enough to help take down the wolf. But... if it would be enough to save 01 and Aria... well... that was another problem.

He followed behind the others as they began making their way to the cottage, he felt on edge about the entire thing. Like... something bad was going to happen, it was all going to just go wrong...

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01 arrived at the cabin shortly afterward. He got off the hoverbike and walked inside. He let out a soft sigh as he kicked off his shoes, hiding them away as he slipped on some pink slippers. Thankfully the costume consisted of slippers, a flowery nightgown, and a pink cap with locks of gray hair spilling out. It took him only a few moments to slide the entire disguise on. He reached down and rolled up the cuffs of his pant legs to ensure that they wouldn't be seen. He then made sure to tuck his hair beneath the cap, checking in a mirror to make sure that nothing was amiss. Thankfully, due to the nightgown's flowing nature, he was able to keep his scythe clipped onto his belt loop, though he twisted it to make it go vertically, instead of horizontally. While it dug into his back, it didn't poke through the nightgown. Should things go South, then he'll have his weapon on him at the very least.

 

[KotaKotsu]

Kotsu started singing and humming to himself while chopping the occasional tree. "I shall save the child and the elderly woman by slaying this foul beast!" Kotsu said to himself in a stereotypical heroic bravado voice. He was hoping to get a snicker out of a couple of people in the group. But mostly to cheer up Owl since she looked so down. He wanted to see her smile again.

Exzalia

 

[Exzalia]

Owl doesn't even register his voice, she walking aimlessly behind her head pointed to the ground her shoulders drooped, muttering to her self.

"Stupid. stupid, stupid girl." She says under her breath. She didn't even pay attention to what they were doing she was just following after them while scolding her self.

 

[Kinggunlucky]

Granny Joe

Now that Joe had gotten dressed in his disguise, he walked over to the bed and took a seat. He could feel his heart pounding against his chest, knowing what would be coming next. He lied down in the bed, wincing as he felt the cold metal of the scythe digging into his back. He sighed softly and just waited there, his hands clinging to the sheets. God he hoped that the wolf was too stupid to realize that he wasn't actually an old woman.

Joe noticed out the window that a white van pulled up. Then he saw what got out. A Wolf that walked upright wearing a colonial leather jacket. The Wolf peered in the window obviously noticing Joe, who at this point was questioning the nature of reality. The Wolf produced a crowbar from seemingly thin air, stuck in the window, and tried to pry it open. No luck.

"Fuck," The Wolf said.

The Wolf resorted to smashing the window glass apart, sticking his furry hand inside, and unlock it from the inside. He managed the window up, crawling his large frame through, and fell on his face. Before Joe could speak The Wolf popped up, put on his best 'nothing was wrong smile, and leaned against the only table in the room. "Sup?"

Joe just stared at his intruder as he began breaking into the house. Just what the hell was life right now? Here he was, sitting in an old lady costume, watching a bipedal wolf man breaking into a house he was pretending was his, using a crowbar that just appeared out of thin air. He winced and resisted the urge to pull out his scythe and just gut the wolf before he could even get back up... but it was too late. He blinked a few times as he looked at the wolf.

"Crud! What do old women say? If I sound too young, he'll know for sure!" He thought as he looked at the wolf. He smiled nervously. "Well er, hello there, sonny! What can I do for you?" He asked, trying to make his voice sound like that of an old woman. He... was not the greatest at impressions. He ended up coughing as he croaked out the words. "This is how I die." He thought.

The Wolf rubbed his hands together, pulling forth a smartphone from his pocket, and setting it on the table. "Had myself a nice little chat with that fine ass Granddaughter of yours. Bitch ain't put it out. So thought I'd come here. Pay you a little visit. See what's up." The Wolf snorted. "Gotta say I'm a tad disappointed. You're pretty ugly for a woman. I seen way better old broads."

Joe kept staring at the wolf, feeling very disturbed. This dude wanted to sleep with 'her' 'granddaughter' and now he was going to sleep with her 'grandmother' instead. He noted the smartphone that the wolf set down on the table. He looked at the wolf and gave a slight shrug, seemed this thing was as dumb as bricks if it thought he really was an old woman. "And I've seen far more majestic wolves, honey." He said, giving the wolf a deadpan look. Of course that was a lie, he'd never even seen a wolf before. So by default, he was the most and least majestic wolf he'd ever seen. "Now, if you're done insulting an old lady and her precious granddaughter, how about you get out?" He asked.

"Heh, I'm not getting out," The Wolf replied. "I'm getting in." He hit a button on his phone and 70s sexy time music started playing, The Wolf's hips started swaying as he tore free his jacket, a hungry grin on his face.

And Joe screamed.

 

[KotaKotsu]

Kotsu sighed quietly. "Yo, Denton. Be square with me, where's Carmille?" Kotsu asked, trying to take his mind off of his own problems by worrying about something else to not think again. "She lost all of her limbs, but... Shouldn't she be healed by now? She healed quite well from feeding off me. And we have more than enough blood to feed her. So why ain't she here-" Kotsu picked up the sound of a scream in the distance. "Uh..." Kotsu radioed into Aria's ear piece. "Did... Did you hear that?"

 

[mmarage]

Joe 02 was walking with the rest of the group and was just listening to everyone. When he heard the screaming off into the distance, he just froze. "...Oh god he's being eaten right now isn't he?" He asked, not being able to bring himself to think about what must be going on in that cabin right now. What terrible things his brother must be facing. Was he being chopped up into bits first? That wolf wasn't exactly the biggest thing around...

 

[Freikugel]

As the wolf showed up, Sam and Fizzy studied the scene from the distance carefully hidden

All that Fizzy could muster was

"What the fuck? "