Fandom Distorted Mirror [IC]

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

"G-g-groveling d-d-detected. En-en-engaging package six: dddddooooooooooominaaaaaaaatr-tr-trix...*" The auraless and therefore absolutely mangled bardroid began, but perhaps mercifully died before it could proceed. Unfortunately death for this particular model apparently meant continuing to attempt to rise on mangled components as its jaw opened wide and the Satan protocol lapsed into a neverending death rattle of "10101010101010010100001010101010101010101010010101001-"

The bunker map dropped to her scroll was identical to the one any of the androids would project if requested, a facility resembling a skyscraper only built down into the tundra as opposed to up into the skyline. It was thirty stories deep, with the primary form of navigation being the six elevator shafts built at equidistant points throughout and maintenance stairwells on either end primary intended for use by the androids. The topmost floor was labeled EXIT, grayed out to signify its currently inaccessible state, and the one directly beneath it was labeled PLATINUM, highlighted to signify it was the one she currently occupied. The next two levels were marked ARRIVALS (WENDIGO ENTRY POINT), while a significant percentage of the subsequent floors were blocked off as QUARTERS. The next level of note was BAR/RECREATION, where she had abducted her nap partner/victim from, and following that were TRAINING, ARENA, POOL, LIBRARY, ADMIN, another block of floors labeled MAINTENANCE, and finally the very bottom level marked CONTAINMENT (THE ENTITY).

The hundred yard radius was indicated by a green circle, though its ability to pick out other combatants appeared limited to her current floor rather than extending above or below. Her own blip was green and positioned at the very center of the circle, and five others (with a contrasting red hue) milled about within her map's detectable range, one almost immediately disappearing as it crossed over the circle's threshold. The others were static, most likely waiting to see how their fellow platinum-caliber favorites proceeded; based on the room size and their spacing, most occupied suites of their own.

All save one, who according to the map could well have been in the corridor right outside hers.​

Yang hummed in thought as she stared at her scroll, rubbing the side of her chin, before her eyes squinted at the dot right outside her door. "oooookaayyy...." She murmured, turning towards the door with the same suspicious gaze as her gauntlets slid open into combat form. She threw an errant shot for the android's still screaming head, shattering it with a shell of remorse and mercy for both it and her ears before she cracked her neck from either side.

Whoever this was clearly wanted the Dragon as a partner. Whether it was a fangirl or some other plat tier member who wanted to dunk on some newbies with her, it was time to get back into character or risk blowing the whole point of her suffering through this. She squeezed her eyes shut and slapped the sides of her face, letting her mind wander and dwell instead of focusing on the positive like she usually tried to. How much she missed Blake, how shitty she found this whole bloodbath, and how much she wanted to smash the people who organized it.

Whoever was on the other end got treated to the sight of a very dull frown on Yang's face as the door slid open and she leaned against the frame with her eyes closed and arms crossed, the absolutely shattered remains of the android she'd taken up here ostensibly for fun and pleasure still sparking behind her as she grunted out

"Gimme me one good reason I should open my eyes and not just wait fifteen minutes to make you my bitch and get my first card."

 

[Gus Gungus]

Yang hummed in thought as she stared at her scroll, rubbing the side of her chin, before her eyes squinted at the dot right outside her door. "oooookaayyy...." She murmured, turning towards the door with the same suspicious gaze as her gauntlets slid open into combat form. She threw an errant shot for the android's still screaming head, shattering it with a shell of remorse and mercy for both it and her ears before she cracked her neck from either side.

Whoever this was clearly wanted the Dragon as a partner. Whether it was a fangirl or some other plat tier member who wanted to dunk on some newbies with her, it was time to get back into character or risk blowing the whole point of her suffering through this. She squeezed her eyes shut and slapped the sides of her face, letting her mind wander and dwell instead of focusing on the positive like she usually tried to. How much she missed Blake, how shitty she found this whole bloodbath, and how much she wanted to smash the people who organized it.

Whoever was on the other end got treated to the sight of a very dull frown on Yang's face as the door slid open and she leaned against the frame with her eyes closed and arms crossed, the absolutely shattered remains of the android she'd taken up here ostensibly for fun and pleasure still sparking behind her as she grunted out

"Gimme me one good reason I should open my eyes and not just wait fifteen minutes to make you my bitch and get my first card."

Silence.

Yang could feel that niggling sensation faintly derived from the presence of another unlocked aura, and the even fainter tingle of someone's eyes on her. An educated guess placed them all the way down the other end of the corridor, and her impression was of eyes that fixed on her no less steadily and unblinkingly than those of the starving wolf in the dead of winter who had the serendipity to cross a child's path. It was odd how the aura's spiritual senses could sharpen when deprived of a physical one like sight; they worked in overdrive to try and ensure their wielder's safety. They were no mere vague echoes; she really could feel those eyes on her, the way they ran across her curves and flickered over her arm, how they broke from her for a moment to survey the smoking android behind her before settling back on her in full. Still, no answer came. Five seconds. Ten.

Whether or not she was starting to weigh the benefits of opening her eyes against keeping them shut again, it was around that point that some form of a reply finally reverberated up the steel hallway to meet her. It wasn't a voice, though, and could hardly have been considered encouraging.

A rending, grinding SCREEEEEEEEEEEECH akin to nails on a chalkboard was all she got, only the nails were rusty and the chalkboard was a sheet of metal tearing with no more resistance than tissue paper. They were joined by the poised clomp of booted footsteps that grew fainter as they rounded the corner to the adjacent hallway, and if Yang had opened her eyes by this point the only anomaly in sight from her door was the series of four jagged ridges gouged into the wall that led around the corner. Whoever made them had crumpled the alloyed metal like it was nothing, and they were shallow and grouped densely enough that they could've been caused by anything from blades to claws to even exceptionally strong fingers or a semblance of some kind.

They were also still going, though growing fainter and fainter with each passing second as the same shriek of warped and protesting metal continued from the next hall over.​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

Silence.

Yang could feel that niggling sensation faintly derived from the presence of another unlocked aura, and the even fainter tingle of someone's eyes on her. An educated guess placed them all the way down the other end of the corridor, and her impression was of eyes that fixed on her no less steadily and unblinkingly than those of the starving wolf in the dead of winter who had the serendipity to cross a child's path. It was odd how the aura's spiritual senses could sharpen when deprived of a physical one like sight; they worked in overdrive to try and ensure their wielder's safety. They were no mere vague echoes; she really could feel those eyes on her, the way they ran across her curves and flickered over her arm, how they broke from her for a moment to survey the smoking android behind her before settling back on her in full. Still, no answer came. Five seconds. Ten.

Whether or not she was starting to weigh the benefits of opening her eyes against keeping them shut again, it was around that point that some form of a reply finally reverberated up the steel hallway to meet her. It wasn't a voice, though, and could hardly have been considered encouraging.

A rending, grinding SCREEEEEEEEEEEECH akin to nails on a chalkboard was all she got, only the nails were rusty and the chalkboard was a sheet of metal tearing with no more resistance than tissue paper. They were joined by the poised clomp of booted footsteps that grew fainter as they rounded the corner to the adjacent hallway, and if Yang had opened her eyes by this point the only anomaly in sight from her door was the series of four jagged ridges gouged into the wall that led around the corner. Whoever made them had crumpled the alloyed metal like it was nothing, and they were shallow and grouped densely enough that they could've been caused by anything from blades to claws to even exceptionally strong fingers or a semblance of some kind.

They were also still going, though growing fainter and fainter with each passing second as the same shriek of warped and protesting metal continued from the next hall over.​

The sound startled Yang enough that her eyes did snap open, though not enough that she stopped lounging against the door frame. She held onto her confident frown in the face of someone trying to reenact a slasher movie on her, her head slowly craning to glance down the hallway where the sound echoed down from, eventually jabbing a finger in that direction without uncrossing her arms.

"...Nnnnnnnope. Not followin that."

She flicked her scroll out instead and squinted at the screen, tongue jutting out slightly as she worked through what to do from here. If she wanted to win, her best bet were probably the other loonies on this floor, but leaving everyone on the lower floors without her kinda made her antsy. All of them could handle themselves of course, and most of them probably thought they were just as good in a fight as she was if not better and they were all wrong, but leaving her friends and seething companions in older sisterhood alone to face the bloodbath to come just left a rotten feeling in her stomach; Team RWBY was so good at kicking but because they kicked but together, and she always thought of herself as their shield. Kinda sucked not being able to do that for the others here.

She let out a quiet hum and eventually shrugged. The best thing she could do to keep them safe without just meandering through the giant complex and hoping for the best in finding one of them was pairing up with someone almost as badass as she was and crushing the other dangerous people before they ever became a problem. She noted where the nearest room was on the floor that had a dot in it, pocketed her scroll, slammed her fist into her palm with a quiet "lets go" to hype herself up, and strode down the hall for whichever poor soul was about to get saddled by the dragon.

She did at least check the name on the door when she got there, just to make sure she wasn't teaming up with someone named Fuckhands McMike or someone she knew and probably wouldn't like

 

[Indolent]

The next sixteen hours went by in a blur, because I wanted them to and because it didn't seem like any further actions were forthcoming. The more crowded areas of the bunker started to empty out around noon the following day, other competitors forming strategies and withdrawing to seek out secluded areas to begin their hunt. Whatever the various did to prepare themselves during that time, as sunset drew near the next day every individual android once again ceased performing its duties to sputter into a state of eerie immobility, speaking with the voice of one.

"The preliminary round will commence in fifteen minutes. A map of the facility has been automatically downloaded to your scrolls. To enforce the spirit of the partnering mechanic, for the first three hours all unpartnered competitors within a 100 yard radius will be visible as anonymous blips on these maps; So think carefully on whether it's worth seeking out that special someone as others secure the advantage by pairing with whomever's closest. Competitors who fail to secure a minimum distance of 100 yards from other players upon commencement will receive an automatic disqualification, as will groups with prior affiliations who attempt to spread out across a single floor. The victor will be determined by the measure of your souls, not crude attempts at bending the rules. Win or lose, glory awaits those who survive."

There was a chime, and a timer counting down from fifteen appeared in place of the grinning cat avatar on the droids' visors.

"For those who cannot, know that the pit will remember your sacrifice."​

"G-g-groveling d-d-detected. En-en-engaging package six: dddddooooooooooominaaaaaaaatr-tr-trix...*" The auraless and therefore absolutely mangled bardroid began, but perhaps mercifully died before it could proceed. Unfortunately death for this particular model apparently meant continuing to attempt to rise on mangled components as its jaw opened wide and the Satan protocol lapsed into a neverending death rattle of "10101010101010010100001010101010101010101010010101001-"

The bunker map dropped to her scroll was identical to the one any of the androids would project if requested, a facility resembling a skyscraper only built down into the tundra as opposed to up into the skyline. It was thirty stories deep, with the primary form of navigation being the six elevator shafts built at equidistant points throughout and maintenance stairwells on either end primary intended for use by the androids. The topmost floor was labeled EXIT, grayed out to signify its currently inaccessible state, and the one directly beneath it was labeled PLATINUM, highlighted to signify it was the one she currently occupied. The next two levels were marked ARRIVALS (WENDIGO ENTRY POINT), while a significant percentage of the subsequent floors were blocked off as QUARTERS. The next level of note was BAR/RECREATION, where she had abducted her nap partner/victim from, and following that were TRAINING, ARENA, POOL, LIBRARY, ADMIN, another block of floors labeled MAINTENANCE, and finally the very bottom level marked CONTAINMENT (THE ENTITY).

The hundred yard radius was indicated by a green circle, though its ability to pick out other combatants appeared limited to her current floor rather than extending above or below. Her own blip was green and positioned at the very center of the circle, and five others (with a contrasting red hue) milled about within her map's detectable range, one almost immediately disappearing as it crossed over the circle's threshold. The others were static, most likely waiting to see how their fellow platinum-caliber favorites proceeded; based on the room size and their spacing, most occupied suites of their own.

All save one, who according to the map could well have been in the corridor right outside hers.​

Both siblings had strange encounters of their own following their splitting off; there had been the intention to find the others to strike up a conversation during those sixteen hours, a discourse on a stratagem of some kind or something but the circumstances between then and there had been precisely that. For one sibling, she had been stalked, the incident thoroughly enough to set her on edge after managing to rifle out who it was, just a random no name to the shrouded faces that lingered in the crowd when she arrived. For the other, the entity with the wolf's head seemed merely content to affix him in a stare that was evocative of the satisfied predator, content to let its prey be until the need to satiate the pangs of hunger returned. It was a placid expression that belied this feeling. Regardless of that, it had been a fairly uneventful turn of events, both men finding themselves comfortably able to meditate in a way.

Though Hazel's was shorter and more for his recouping his focus, allocating it towards the massacre that was sure to come. For whatever reason, Hazel decided to make a return for the training floor in anticipation of the man's presence, approximating the distance from the dojo via the scroll and settling into a room that was clearly designated as a gym of sorts, consummate in its selection of high end equipment.

He did send Gretchen a message beforehand, a curt message that spoke far more than its limited number did, imploring her safety and reining in her recklessness.

Which elicited an annoyed murmur from her as she shoved the scroll back into the inner pocket of her jacket, amber eyes glancing around her immediate vicinity, that being of the library. It was much more modernized than she expected, considering the aesthetics of the bar, the dojo, apparently what she could envision of the platinum floor, so on and so forth. There still were aisles of text bound in all manners of materials neatly categorized within wizened wooden shelves. But mainly the bulk of the library's content came from its database electronically accessed via its terminals or, apparently, its own check out system with your personal scroll.

"I'd be naive to hope nobody destroyed those in the fighting huh?" She frowned, eyeballing the map to ensure she had the minimum distance because yeah, it'd suck if she were disqualified immediately.

"Hope you're doing well, Brosel." ;-;

 

[Gus Gungus]

The sound startled Yang enough that her eyes did snap open, though not enough that she stopped lounging against the door frame. She held onto her confident frown in the face of someone trying to reenact a slasher movie on her, her head slowly craning to glance down the hallway where the sound echoed down from, eventually jabbing a finger in that direction without uncrossing her arms.

"...Nnnnnnnope. Not followin that."

She flicked her scroll out instead and squinted at the screen, tongue jutting out slightly as she worked through what to do from here. If she wanted to win, her best bet were probably the other loonies on this floor, but leaving everyone on the lower floors without her kinda made her antsy. All of them could handle themselves of course, and most of them probably thought they were just as good in a fight as she was if not better and they were all wrong, but leaving her friends and seething companions in older sisterhood alone to face the bloodbath to come just left a rotten feeling in her stomach; Team RWBY was so good at kicking but because they kicked but together, and she always thought of herself as their shield. Kinda sucked not being able to do that for the others here.

She let out a quiet hum and eventually shrugged. The best thing she could do to keep them safe without just meandering through the giant complex and hoping for the best in finding one of them was pairing up with someone almost as badass as she was and crushing the other dangerous people before they ever became a problem. She noted where the nearest room was on the floor that had a dot in it, pocketed her scroll, slammed her fist into her palm with a quiet "lets go" to hype herself up, and strode down the hall for whichever poor soul was about to get saddled by the dragon.

She did at least check the name on the door when she got there, just to make sure she wasn't teaming up with someone named Fuckhands McMike or someone she knew and probably wouldn't like

I TᕼIᑎK YOᑌ'ᖇE ᑕᑌTE ♡

When Yang rounded the corner and made her way across the expansive level towards the next suite, such was the message she found the carvings leading from her own room's entry corridor conjoined with, scratched into the wall in large, unkempt letters that now looked to have been engraved by a finger with roughly the same level of effort as someone skimming their hand through the surface of water. It was the one good reason she had sought from whoever loitered outside her counterpart's chambers, her secret admirer already having vacated the adjacent hallway and put enough distance between them that their blip skirted the edges of her radar circle where it hovered once more.

The corridor was long, the platinum suites so spacious they necessitated perhaps the most intricate level of construction of any of the bunker's thirty floors. The closest occupied one according to her scroll was situated at the end of a hallway identical to the one leading to hers, and the engraved plaque to the right of the door bore the name PRISMA MATCHITEHEW in gold-plated cursive. It was one she recognized from her footage trawl prior to resting, the illusive killer who twisted Remnant's longstanding tradition of color-based individuality into a bizarre, performative malice by adopting the image of a clown. He was the champion of three prior Pit tournaments, with a majority of his matches having ended in lethalities; his only recorded losses came through bizarre, wilful forfeits despite his own aura levels having remained high, and any doubts his appearance may have cast as to his ability had been quelled by the footage of him vanquishing her deranged counterpart of this world in two separate bouts in the past. The first, a semifinal engagement from a couple of years ago, had been about as one-sided a matchup as her fight with Neo during a certain train ride several years hence, while the second had been the actual finalist bout from the most recent competition only a few months prior to her arrival in Remnant Two. It had been a more contested affair, though her own double's aura had still shattered with the apparent clown's in the 20-30% range after his evasive fighting style eventually wormed its way into her head once again.

However she assessed his unnerving vibe, despite a lack of her knocking or otherwise making herself known in any way a muffled voice greeted her from the other side of the door, aura once again tingling from the sensation of somebody eyeballing her through the peephole.

"Helloooooooooo?~"

Both siblings had strange encounters of their own following their splitting off; there had been the intention to find the others to strike up a conversation during those sixteen hours, a discourse on a stratagem of some kind or something but the circumstances between then and there had been precisely that. For one sibling, she had been stalked, the incident thoroughly enough to set her on edge after managing to rifle out who it was, just a random no name to the shrouded faces that lingered in the crowd when she arrived. For the other, the entity with the wolf's head seemed merely content to affix him in a stare that was evocative of the satisfied predator, content to let its prey be until the need to satiate the pangs of hunger returned. It was a placid expression that belied this feeling. Regardless of that, it had been a fairly uneventful turn of events, both men finding themselves comfortably able to meditate in a way.

Though Hazel's was shorter and more for his recouping his focus, allocating it towards the massacre that was sure to come. For whatever reason, Hazel decided to make a return for the training floor in anticipation of the man's presence, approximating the distance from the dojo via the scroll and settling into a room that was clearly designated as a gym of sorts, consummate in its selection of high end equipment.

He did send Gretchen a message beforehand, a curt message that spoke far more than its limited number did, imploring her safety and reining in her recklessness.

Which elicited an annoyed murmur from her as she shoved the scroll back into the inner pocket of her jacket, amber eyes glancing around her immediate vicinity, that being of the library. It was much more modernized than she expected, considering the aesthetics of the bar, the dojo, apparently what she could envision of the platinum floor, so on and so forth. There still were aisles of text bound in all manners of materials neatly categorized within wizened wooden shelves. But mainly the bulk of the library's content came from its database electronically accessed via its terminals or, apparently, its own check out system with your personal scroll.

"I'd be naive to hope nobody destroyed those in the fighting huh?" She frowned, eyeballing the map to ensure she had the minimum distance because yeah, it'd suck if she were disqualified immediately.

"Hope you're doing well, Brosel." ;-;

Hazel and Gretchen both saw a more clustered array of blips on their own scroll maps as they navigated the gym and library levels respectively, though each individual level was still expansive enough that they managed to sequester themselves to the mandated distances comfortably enough. Hazel noted that the dojo he had meditated with the wolf-man in still held a single lone blip, but surely the fearsome figure he had witnessed the day before hadn't remained in his state of darkened meditation without ever once departing for food, water or rest of any kind. Right?

The library was perhaps the most complex labyrinth of any of the floors, and Gretchen had found herself able to peruse the prior tournament records and footage in much the same manner Yang had via its many terminals. It was relatively easy to find a private corner without any other competitors breaching her radius, though before long she found herself approached by a single hovering maintenance bot that hovered over to her and ejected a single laminated keycard from a slot on its chassis.

"TEN MINUTES TO PRELIMINARY ROUND COMMENCEMENT."

The automated voice was echoed all throughout the facility, as no matter how secluded an area each individual competitor had attained for themselves they were approached by the nearest automaton and offered their starting card with an identical announcement before it hovered, stomped or crawled away again.​

 

[MidwayLives]

The fist hit dead on, slamming into her nose and making her blue aura shimmer with the blow, but instead of getting knocked back she stepped forward. Her lack of attempting to dodge or block that blow had been for a reason...namely to get a good chance at grabbing that arm and violently wrenching it in closer, intending to dislocate the limb entirely.

As a professional hitman you had to have some level of close quarters experience. Blanche obviously fulfilled that little prerequisite given his current employment. But it didn't mean that there weren't better and badder dudes out there that could handle what he was throwing out. Case in point him watching as Vernal grabbed his arm.

"You son of a-"

*pop*

It hurt like hell. Of that the bandit could rest assured. But a man like Blanche wouldn't be where he was today if he wasn't used to a little pain here and there. As his face broke out into something of a cold sweat due to the sudden outburst of pain wracking his body, he slammed out with the sole of his boot to dislocate Vernal's left knee with a powerful enough kick. Take an arm, he'd take a leg. It was only fair, right? Stepping back and gripping at his arm, Blanche was internally struggling to keep his composure. He'd let it boil over earlier when she'd first used her semblance on him. The details on how he'd lost his other eye were still a bit sketchy. The only rumors around town spoke of a cigarette being involved however. To lose sight in both eyes even if just temporarily bothered him more than he could ever explain adequately enough in words.

"Tch...O-Oh yeah....That hurt...It really fuckin hurt. You got me good..."

He took a step back and stamped his foot as the pain just wouldn't stop.

"...Was expecting you to eat the punch....Didn't think you'd grab my arm..."

He'd only make a nuisance of himself if he took the brawl inside the bar. Part of him doubted Caile would ever hurt him. Another part felt she had more than enough reason to. With his arm like this and the Null Zone still in effect, all he'd be doing is getting in Char's way. They'd hashed it out on the way here. 'Beyond the Years' would terrorize the people on the block and keep the fight contained within the bar so the Null Zone could work to it's fullest. The two of them both being in the bar rendered that whole plan moot. For them to pull this off, he'd need to be out here and Char would test the kids inside after stripping them of their semblances.

Not to mention that if he got knocked out, there was nothing stopping these punks from running out of the Null Zone's range. A fight in the street against multiple opponents, all of whom Blanche only knew one of their semblances? It'd be an uphill fight for sure. No. No matter what happened, he couldn't just lay down and beg for mercy. Abyss had to do just that to keep the Boss from offing all of them and they'd never forget the emotional sacrifice that took. Like hell he'd repeat it to a stranger like this. She was pretty good for some drunk but she didn't frighten him to his core like the Boss did.

A faceless figure who could make your life hell at the drop of a hat.

Shit was freaking terrifying.

A smile bloomed despite all that.

"...Would probably be smart to call things a draw, huh...? But can't do that....Partner's counting on me."

He grabbed the arm that Vernal had just dislocated.

'Hehehe, isn't it funny Char my man? You got so pissed off that you had to have someone tagalong and it sounds like you're having the time of your life in there. Wish I could say the same. But don't worry about little ol me. We got a job to do and I'll make sure we see it through to the end.'

What followed were the sickening sounds as Blanche tried to forcefully relocate his arm back into place.

"AAAAAAAAA-"

~~~
​

Neo gritted her teeth as the electricity jumped to her and the force knocked her backwards, her aura flaring as the energy coursed through her. Her feet hit the ground and almost immediately left it again as she dived straight down and forwards, slipping underneath Char's vicious swing as the splinters flew over her head. Even for her size there was barely any room between Char and the wall, but she slipped past with graceful ease at the same moment Char felt something hook around his leg.

"-HAHAHAHA!"

This kid was sure fast as hell on her feet!

His swing went wide and obviously missed it's mark with the sword being pulled back from the chasm it'd left in this particular wall. Bits and pieces of wood that'd been chopped into little more than splinters fell to the floor and as Char prepped for his next move, he caught something out of the corner of his eye. She'd gone and done it again! She'd got one over on him!
​

Neo Yanked her umbrella upwards as she stood out of her roll, intending on pulling Char's leg out from under him with the handle of Hush, before twirling it back around in her hands, flicking the blade out of the top, and twisting towards Char's fallen form to impale it into his aura from above if he'd fallen.

Ugh! If he wasn't having so much fun he'd be pissed about having been knocked on his back twice by a damn kid.

Still, what he could get from this silent wonder was that she reminded him a lot of himself as a cocky punk. It was almost endearing in that way. Even if the pink part of her hair still reminded him way too much of Aurora for him to be completely 100% onboard with her. ...Plus there was something else he'd been thinking about since they'd started fighting.



What that was would have to wait a minute though. Meeting Hush's blade with his own, literal sparks flew before Char was able to force Hush off to the side. The blade digging into the floor right beside Char's downed form instead of his aura. Neo wouldn't have had to worry about yanking it free though. Char was already on alleviating that little problem, nice guy that he was. Rising to his feet, he held Riot Breaker in his left hand and moved to knee the diminutive huntress and hurl her through the wall he'd just carved a nice chunk out of, Hush going along for the ride of course! Placing his foot back onto the floor, he reached for his jacket and snickered.

Damn thing looked nice but try as he might to fit in with the rest of the other teams like the Narcotics Team who always seemed to lavish themselves with the money they raked in, Char always just felt like some kinda overgrown monkey in any attempt to try and dress fancy. He'd use his split of the checks the Hitman Team got to buy breakfast, lunch, dinner and refurbishing for Riot Breaker. Nothing overly materialistic or unnecessary: a guy had to eat right? With that in mind, the jacket was flung to the floor and abandoned.

"Hahahah, not bad kid! Not bad at all..."

Char was eager to continue the fight but as Blanche's screams of pain reached his ears, he froze. That wasn't right now was it? Blanche had been sent here to accompany him and the enemy(Black's kid and friends)were supposed to be trapped in here thanks to his mist threatening to turn them into old geezers and grams if they stayed outside for too long. None of them could have slipped out of here undetected, right? The Null Zone negated any semblances from working! So was there someone on the outside who'd gone and attacked the guy? Someone they hadn't been informed of or taken into account?

....

He couldn't leave this fight as is. It'd be a damn waste of energy and just downright disrespectful to the little lady who'd been fighting so hard. He didn't sheath Riot Breaker but he tapped it's blade against the ground as he held up his free hand. "Hey kid, time out for a sec huh?? I got a question I wanna ask you before we keep going at it. S'not one you need words for so feel free to answer if you want. But from the way you've been fighting and enjoying this like I have to the fact that I don't sense any bloodlust from you...You and your buddies didn't off Malachite did ya? Aurora figures you did and my comrades and I bought it. Who wouldn't believe that Black's kid wouldn't do something like that y'know? But I...just don't get that vibe from you."


"...Er, I know that probably sounds pretty weird coming from a guy like me. But my partner-the guy you just heard screaming-and I aren't here to kill your pal."​

 

[MyrtenRose]

As a professional hitman you had to have some level of close quarters experience. Blanche obviously fulfilled that little prerequisite given his current employment. But it didn't mean that there weren't better and badder dudes out there that could handle what he was throwing out. Case in point him watching as Vernal grabbed his arm.

"You son of a-"

*pop*

It hurt like hell. Of that the bandit could rest assured. But a man like Blanche wouldn't be where he was today if he wasn't used to a little pain here and there. As his face broke out into something of a cold sweat due to the sudden outburst of pain wracking his body, he slammed out with the sole of his boot to dislocate Vernal's left knee with a powerful enough kick. Take an arm, he'd take a leg. It was only fair, right?

That attempt at an attack was avoided. Technically speaking.

The moment she noticed the leg starting to move and her aura forewarned her of an incoming attack, she used the still maintained grip on his arm to throw him aside before that attack could get anywhere close to landing. :|

Okay so less a dodge and more a preemptive maneuver of her own...same difference. She didn’t really play fair, but when he got up after that...she just let him. Allowed him to talk some. Her attention was more on her nose just then, how bad it aches after taking that punch head on. If she’d been auraless that definitely would have been a broken nose. Maybe a lost tooth or two.

Though, by the time he was starting to snap his arm back into place, she was already striding over to him and she made it as clear as she could that she didn’t really give a single damn about playing fair. Namely, by swinging a powerful kick of her own aimed for his crotch.​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

I TᕼIᑎK YOᑌ'ᖇE ᑕᑌTE ♡

When Yang rounded the corner and made her way across the expansive level towards the next suite, such was the message she found the carvings leading from her own room's entry corridor conjoined with, scratched into the wall in large, unkempt letters that looked to have been engraved by a finger with roughly the same level of effort as someone skimming their hand through the surface of water. It was the one reason she had sought from whoever loitered outside her counterpart's chambers, whoever was responsible already having vacated the adjacent hallway with enough distance to skirt the edges of her radar circle where it hovered once again, static. It was as close to a 'good' one as she was going to get from whoever she had made the demand of.

She gasped at put a hand to her chest as she rounded the corner and saw the message. "Aww! Thank you, random stalker!" She called out down the hall in a voice that was way too sincere to actually be sincere, before she snorted and rolled her eyes. "Cute. I'm not cute. I'm hot as shit."

Another clever ruse in case anyone was listening in. She knew she was both.

If whoever had the strength to treat the walls like play doh essentially marking her as prey did anything to dent her confidence, it didn't show as she crossed her arms and bit her lip while she eyeballed the clown's door, not initially responding to the hello. This guy eh? For all her skill, she knew there was such a thing as bad matchups; She felt assured she'd handle herself better against him than the garbage fire had in those reruns, but partnering would me she didn't have to.

The counterpoint was that she'd be working alongside someone who was definitely a lunatic instead of a bog standard criminal who was just really good at what they did. She wasn't sure she'd be able to keep herself from intervening if he went full on murder clown on people while they were supposed to be working together.

But again, if she could be next to him instead of watching out for him, it was gonna be that much easier to make sure he didn't off someone she actually cared about....

She shrugged and gave the door a light rap regardless of already being greeted See weiss she could have manners and gave a wave towards the peep hole. "Sup, chuckles! You wanna partner up this time, or you got eyes for someone else? I've already got at least one stalker up here apparently, so that's neat!"

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

What that was would have to wait a minute though. Meeting Hush's blade with his own, literal sparks flew before Char was able to force Hush off to the side. The blade digging into the floor right beside Char's downed form instead of his aura. Neo wouldn't have had to worry about yanking it free though. Char was already on alleviating that little problem, nice guy that he was. Rising to his feet, he held Riot Breaker in his left hand and moved to knee the diminutive huntress and hurl her through the wall he'd just carved a nice chunk out of, Hush going along for the ride of course! Placing his foot back onto the floor, he reached for his jacket and snickered.

Damn thing looked nice but try as he might to fit in with the rest of the other teams like the Narcotics Team who always seemed to lavish themselves with the money they raked in, Char always just felt like some kinda overgrown monkey in any attempt to try and dress fancy. He'd use his split of the checks the Hitman Team got to buy breakfast, lunch, dinner and refurbishing for Riot Breaker. Nothing overly materialistic or unnecessary: a guy had to eat right? With that in mind, the jacket was flung to the floor and abandoned.

"Hahahah, not bad kid! Not bad at all..."

Char was eager to continue the fight but as Blanche's screams of pain reached his ears, he froze. That wasn't right now was it? Blanche had been sent here to accompany him and the enemy(Black's kid and friends)were supposed to be trapped in here thanks to his mist threatening to turn them into old geezers and grams if they stayed outside for too long. None of them could have slipped out of here undetected, right? The Null Zone negated any semblances from working! So was there someone on the outside who'd gone and attacked the guy? Someone they hadn't been informed of or taken into account?

....

He couldn't leave this fight as is. It'd be a damn waste of energy and just downright disrespectful to the little lady who'd been fighting so hard. He didn't sheath Riot Breaker but he tapped it's blade against the ground as he held up his free hand. "Hey kid, time out for a sec huh?? I got a question I wanna ask you before we keep going at it. S'not one you need words for so feel free to answer if you want. But from the way you've been fighting and enjoying this like I have to the fact that I don't sense any bloodlust from you...You and your buddies didn't off Malachite did ya? Aurora figures you did and my comrades and I bought it. Who wouldn't believe that Black's kid wouldn't do something like that y'know? But I...just don't get that vibe from you."


"...Er, I know that probably sounds pretty weird coming from a guy like me. But my partner-the guy you just heard screaming-and I aren't here to kill your pal."

A quick flick of the wrist put Hush between Neo's body and Char's knee, but the impact was still enough to put her through the wall and into the kitchen on the other side of the hallway. She grunted at the sharp bite of wood against her back, but she landed in a graceful backwards roll that she came out of with a low lunge to the side, disappearing behind one of the kitchen's countertops.

Unsurprisingly, no words answered Char, but neither did Neo's head poke back out from behind the countertops, the only sound the low hum of his own weapon and its occasional sparking, along with the music still coming from the scroll discarded behind him.

2:10

 

[Gus Gungus]

She shrugged and gave the door a light rap regardless of already being greeted See weiss she could have manners and gave a wave towards the peep hole. "Sup, chuckles! You wanna partner up this time, or you got eyes for someone else? I've already got at least one stalker up here apparently, so that's neat!"

"Ohhhhhhh?~ That's scary..."

When the voice gave its reply it was delivered in the form of a sustained, melodic lilt. Not entirely unlike her retort to the mystery stalker it was too sincere not to feel insincere, too concerned to sound truly concerned, too outright friendly to feel anything other than creepy. A quiet smack of the lips followed, then a period of silence like he was weighing over the pros and cons of her proposal when it came to its capacity to affect his enjoyment of the carnage to come. The man was as elusive and enigmatic as they came, yet even just from watching his past fights Yang could tell his motives weren't terribly complex. He was a blood knight. Someone who simply relished the thrill that came with engaging in sport like this, whose only true pleasure in life came through pitting his skill, semblance and wits against others of note to see whose proved strongest.

As tacky as he looked, he really was quiet terrifying. He didn't seize circumstantial advantages or take cheap wins. He invited his opponents to make the first move. He allowed them to rally their very best offensives against him, just to prove he could overcome them anyway. And if he took a shining to someone, saw the potential in their growth to the point that killing them in the immediate could've been considered wasteful, he was liable to let them live where so many of his bouts ended in swift deaths. The likelihood of him actually caring about whatever award was on offer was slim; if he attained victory in this particular tournament, it wasn't difficult to imagine him going straight to Weiss with the winnings and using it as leverage for a shot at her.

"You were much yummier to fight the second time we met than the first, you know. Such a lovely semblance...~♡ You weren't even worth scoring originally, but last time I gave you eighty-three points. Developing so much in only a few years is almost unheard of. The average for this tournament is sixty, maybe seventy... most huntsmen and huntresses don't even have the potential to reach fifty. They're the ones I kill quickly... So boring... But there's something special about you. Hmmmmmmmm...~♡"

Gauging the amount of aura another person had was someone anyone trained in the use of theirs could do, and sometimes they felt... Different. They personified an individual's soul, after all, and for particularly strong ones it wasn't uncommon for a surface echo or impression to register along with a more general measure of their ability. Her own teammates, for example. Ruby's was purity. Blake's, bravery. For better and worse, both versions of Weiss were the embodiment of defiance, and Yang herself was sheer, indomitable strength; though the last time she had encountered her counterpart hers had felt... wrong.

The door slid open, and there was only one word appropriate to describe what the man standing there embodied.



Malice.

"Our last fight was quite a few months ago. Have there been any... more~ improvements...?"​

 

[MidwayLives]

A quick flick of the wrist put Hush between Neo's body and Char's knee, but the impact was still enough to put her through the wall and into the kitchen on the other side of the hallway. She grunted at the sharp bite of wood against her back, but she landed in a graceful backwards roll that she came out of with a low lunge to the side, disappearing behind one of the kitchen's countertops.

Unsurprisingly, no words answered Char, but neither did Neo's head poke back out from behind the countertops, the only sound the low hum of his own weapon and its occasional sparking, along with the music still coming from the scroll discarded behind him.

2:10

Cutting through a chunk of the wall to make room for himself, Char stepped on through. Geez, for such a nimble looking kid she sure as hell made a big hole when he'd punted her through the wall. As fun as this was though if Blanche was in danger he had to tend to that. Which meant trying to wrap this up as soon as he could. It pissed him off but if gods forbid something happened to him? Char would never hear the end of it from Violet and the boss lady. That was ontop of what Aurora would think about the Hitman Team not only failing to accomplish their mission but one of them being killed in broad daylight? It wouldn't be a good look and they were struggling for even the slightest bit of scraps at this point.

"C'mon kid. I know that wasn't enough to knock you out. Up and at em."

Given the fact that she hadn't immediately lunged out to try and take a stab at him, Char was starting to lean towards 'yes' for the answer to his question. This kid wasn't a killer. If Malachite was dead then it meant someone else had to have pulled the trigger. Which was it's own can of worms that Char admitted he wasn't smart enough or diplomatic enough to weed his way through. The facts on the ground were that she was dead and Lil Pinky here had apparently taken over the joint.

The seconds continued to click on by.

"You know being polite is one of the key features of a well adjusted person...I mean look at me." He grumbled as he looked from side to side with Neo still refusing to show herself.

Sheesh, was this place always a dump or did he mess it up by knocking the kid through the wall? Evidence pointed to the splinters of varying sizes scattered across the room.

Alright, if the kid wasn't gonna nod her head or anything then it was clear: She just wanted to fight. No talking, no answering, just kombat.

He stomped his left foot down hard enough to crack the tile underneath. Riot Breaker's electricity grew in intensity as he swung outwards. Cleaving straight through one of the countertops and demolishing a good chunk of equipment and wares that happened to be on said counter. Watching as it all sailed through the air, Char watched as the chunk of what was now debris crashed to the ground trying to see if he could spot Neo behind it. No semblances meant that if she wanted to run away, she'd have to make a break for it and try bolting. Which he wasn't gonna let happen so long as he was breathing.

They both wanted a fight. Now it just came down to who wanted it more.
​

Okay so less a dodge and more a preemptive maneuver of her own...same difference. She didn’t really play fair, but when he got up after that...she just let him. Allowed him to talk some. Her attention was more on her nose just then, how bad it aches after taking that punch head on. If she’d been auraless that definitely would have been a broken nose. Maybe a lost tooth or two.

Though, by the time he was starting to snap his arm back into place, she was already striding over to him and she made it as clear as she could that she didn’t really give a single damn about playing fair. Namely, by swinging a powerful kick of her own aimed for his crotch.

*snap*

It'd taken a great deal of strength and an even greater amount of willpower but he'd done it.

The scream that leaped past his lips were proof enough.

"AAAAAAAHHHHH! Fuuuuck!"

The stomping fit that ensued actually managed to knock Blanche's eyepatch off due to his thrashing around.

The wound it revealed wasn't anything too graphic.

Just a sign of what it took on the road to becoming a gangster.

"Oh man...Oh MAN did that hurt..."

But he did it! All without needing to get in Char's way/call for his help.

Watching as Vernal approached and his aura tipping him off, he bemoaned his status in life.

'How is it that I was the one sent here to help Char and instead I'm the one getting pulled on and kicked like a punching bag?' It was just part of his philosophy on why his semblance was so horrible. Life sucked in the long run so enjoy it when and however you can. Getting your arm dislocated was probably up there in terms of things that sucked about life. Reaching for his pistol, Blanche pulled it free and fired right as Vernal's leg came swinging up-

*BANG*

​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

"Ohhhhhhh?~ That's scary..."

When the voice gave its reply it was delivered in the form of a sustained, melodic lilt. Not entirely unlike her retort to the mystery stalker it was too sincere not to feel insincere, too concerned to sound truly concerned, too outright friendly to feel anything other than creepy. A quiet smack of the lips followed, then a period of silence like he was weighing over the pros and cons of her proposal when it came to its capacity to affect his enjoyment of the carnage to come. The man was as elusive and enigmatic as they came, yet even just from watching his past fights Yang could tell his motives weren't terribly complex. He was a blood knight. Someone who simply relished the thrill that came with engaging in sport like this, whose only true pleasure in life came through pitting his skill, semblance and wits against others of note to see whose proved strongest.

As tacky as he looked, he really was quiet terrifying. He didn't seize circumstantial advantages or take cheap wins. He invited his opponents to make the first move. He allowed them to rally their very best offensives against him, just to prove he could overcome them anyway. And if he took a shining to someone, saw the potential in their growth to the point that killing them in the immediate could've been considered wasteful, he was liable to let them live where so many of his bouts ended in swift deaths. The likelihood of him actually caring about whatever award was on offer was slim; if he attained victory in this particular tournament, it wasn't difficult to imagine him going straight to Weiss with the winnings and using it as leverage for a shot at her.

"You were much yummier to fight the second time we met than the first, you know. Such a lovely semblance...~♡ You weren't even worth scoring originally, but last time I gave you eighty-three points. Developing so much in only a few years is almost unheard of. The average for this tournament is sixty, maybe seventy... most huntsmen and huntresses don't even have the potential to reach fifty. They're the ones I kill quickly... So boring... But there's something special about you. Hmmmmmmmm...~♡"

Gauging the amount of aura another person had was someone anyone trained in the use of theirs could do, and sometimes they felt... Different. They personified an individual's soul, after all, and for particularly strong ones it wasn't uncommon for a surface echo or impression to register along with a more general measure of their ability. Her own teammates, for example. Ruby's was purity. Blake's, bravery. For better and worse, both versions of Weiss were the embodiment of defiance, and Yang herself was sheer, indomitable strength; though the last time she had encountered her counterpart hers had felt... wrong.

The door slid open, and there was only one word appropriate to describe what the man standing there embodied.

View attachment 735199

Malice.

"Our last fight was quite a few months ago. Have there been any... more~ improvements...?"​

Yang had a pretty good picture by now of the Dragon's life, but how she carried herself and what she did in these present times were still sort of a mystery. She knew she was a bit of a mystery, and there was a whole air of dangerous mystique around the name of The Dragon. After meeting both flavors of her, it was pretty clear it wasn't because the other her wasn't as loud and unsubtle as she was, it was just a lack of survivors. Just how much did the rest of the underworld know about what had happened to her in the last few months? How common was the knowledge that the terrifying (snort), no nonsense dragon had descended into a life of debauchery that matched her wanton bloodshed?

Maybe she was playing this wrong, but....

She leaned against the wall next to the door, and while she didn't bite down the shiver of danger that coursed through her spine as she met this man's gaze, the way her eyes were lidded and the smirk on her face made it so it looked like a far different flavor of involuntary motion than it actually was.

"Sorry Chuckles, think I might actually score lower than higher this time. Met a girl who put me down so hard it woulda made you blush-" she said as a pulse of red light coursed up her arm beneath the fabric of her glove "-and it really kinda put things into perspective; I'm fuckin over this Strongest or Nothing shit, over the whole stoic badass routine. I'm here to enjoy both the wins and the losses, whatever flavor life wants to throw at me. So." She continued, her smirk turning almost wry in the face of the pristine killer before her.

"Think I'm still your type, or should we try and pretend we never made this little eye contact?"

 

[MyrtenRose]

Watching as Vernal approached and his aura tipping him off, he bemoaned his status in life.

'How is it that I was the one sent here to help Char and instead I'm the one getting pulled on and kicked like a punching bag?' It was just part of his philosophy on why his semblance was so horrible. Life sucked in the long run so enjoy it when and however you can. Getting your arm dislocated was probably up there in terms of things that sucked about life. Reaching for his pistol, Blanche pulled it free and fired right as Vernal's leg came swinging up-

*BANG*

The force of that shot and the close proximity she found herself in meant two things. One, that shot definitely hit. And two, it definitely hurt. Her aura shimmered once more, no telling how much more it could take before it was broken, and the former maiden herself stumbled back a few steps with a pained grimace on her face. "OW! Motherfucker! What the shit you fucking lowlife asshole, what the HELL happened to no weapons and just a good old fashioned brawl?! Fucking shit for brains lying asshole bastard..." The cursing went on for some time, her choice of words more than enough to make a sailor feel inadequate. Though as her mouth ran along with all that, her eyes glared daggers at Blanche and her legs pushed her forward in a lunging spear tackle like she was Adam Copeland, trying to take Blanche to the ground. More than that, she tried to rip the gun out of his hand.

If all that worked, she went even further while she had him pinned against the ground. Her free hand moved to take a solid grip of his stupid goddamn hair and yanked tight, while her other hand with the pistol came down repeatedly as she savagely pistol whipped his face in a blinding rage.

 

[Gus Gungus]

"Sorry Chuckles, think I might actually score lower than higher this time. Met a girl who put me down so hard it woulda made you blush-" she said as a pulse of red light coursed up her arm beneath the fabric of her glove "-and it really kinda put things into perspective; I'm fuckin over this Strongest or Nothing shit, over the whole stoic badass routine. I'm here to enjoy both the wins and the losses, whatever flavor life wants to throw at me. So." She continued, her smirk turning almost wry in the face of the pristine killer before her.

"Think I'm still your type, or should we try and pretend we never made this little eye contact?"

"That's a shame.~"

Nothing in the clown's outward demeanor appeared designed to threaten, unnerve or otherwise evoke any kind of negative feelings from Yang. By all accounts he was just happy to be here, posture coiled and elegant like a King Taijitu's, hands clasped with fingers interlaced behind his back in an image evoking a bashful schoolgirl of some kind as he rolled his tongue along the edges of his teeth and let his lower lip curl with sympathy.

So it was difficult to say exactly what it was about the man that made him so chilling, the intent radiating from his soul's physical manifestation notwithstanding. Maybe it was uncanny valley, how his conversational demeanor had something ever just so slightly askew in contrast to the overtness of nutjobs like Adam Taurus or Tyrian Callows, who wore their sickness on their sleeves. How it invited one's brain to ponder just what was wrong with the soul residing within, and what it might have been capable of in the heat of something darker.

There also wasn't a single trace of light in those eyes. Not one spark. They were the dullest thing about him, a flat and lifeless gray that didn't once blink, shift, or otherwise waver from Yang during her pitch, the crinkles of mirth in their corners deepening when she finished up and he swayed from side to side in an elegant pretense of thought.

"There was a big gap between you and the very strongest though, so it's good to be realistic.~♡ And don't worry about having to deceive anyone.~ We have 'til the starting whistle to decide... If our eyes meet after that, it seals the deal. We all have to start in our own spheres, though..." His right hand curled up, its fingers splayed extravagantly before a rapid prestidigitation snatch had his scroll appear in its palm, map open. Beyond Yang and himself, two other blips populated his own hundred-yard radius, one on the fringes she recognized by its positioning as her stalker while the other flitted around the midway point with rapid movements as the garish jester pouted. "Such elaborate rules... I think they were supposed to be confusing. I had to ask one of these androids to explain again before they started making sense... I wonder how many others didn't bother, aha.~"

The laugh was one of amusement but no joy. Speaking of the automatons, his eyes flicked away from her at last to regard the one approaching them, metal boots clanking its way up the hall until it stopped dutifully at the doorway and chimed in an informative tone.

"TEN MINUTES TO PRELIMINARY ROUND COMMENCEMENT."

There was a quiet whir followed by a keycard ejecting from the slot in its visor towards Prisma, which he caught and flourished into the deck of more general playing cards he spontaneously produced in a graceful magician's shuffle between palms. It turned towards Yang, extending her starting card towards her in turn as Prisma swiveled his gaze back towards her with another smirk that could've been described as amicable; however wrong it may have felt to ascribe such a word to someone like him.




"By the way, if we end up fighting again and it's true you started backsliding..."



"...I'll kill you this time."

There was nothing actually different about his tone or inflection, but somehow the lethal intent rolling off his aura tripled in intensity with that sentence as its haunting miasma slammed into Yang like a ton of bricks. It wasn't something the aura did naturally this time, and it begged the question what exactly the exotic killer might've been doing to cause it as he licked his lips before finally proceeding at the end of a weighty five seconds, Yang's heart rate higher than it had been regardless of whether she managed to put up a decent pokerface or not.



"I bet you're messing with me, though. So cruel when girls tease like that... There are all sorts of rumors swirling about you. Whispers that something's wrong with the Dragon... Or maybe it's finally right?~♡ Oops."

He brought his fingers to his mouth, checking behind her up the corridor for a moment as if he'd said something scandalous. It wasn't long before his eyes found their true target, though.

Yang's covered arm, which he lightly prodded his other hand's pointer finger towards as his head cocked slyly.

"You must get asked this by all the boys, but can I see what's under there?" ♡​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"Where the FUCK did that thing even come from?"

Many miles away and back inside the kingdom borders, a particular smooth criminal bartender in a particular strip club/hole in the wall shrugged listlessly as he took a nervous-but-subtle step back from a particular employer. With all these broads making him antsy over the last couple of days one might've been led to believe he was some kinda pussy, but he wasn't. She just had that look in her eye right now. The one that usually meant bloody stuff was on the way.

"N-no idea, I swear. Guess it goes ta show one day without Cookie and already the vermin are gettin' in, hah? The ones that ain't good business anyway, ahahaha, ha." She didn't bite. "Ya want I should call in an exterminator, boss?"

"Nah..."

She walked over to the table she'd just split in two with a hefty toss of her woodman's axe, narrowly missing a particular stoat by a margin close enough to shave some of his whiskers off.



"Think I'll deal with the little shit myself."​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"Dude's trashing our bar... Shouldn't we reveal ourselves?"



"Shh. Neo's being awesome," Mercury brushed off her concern, munching on a jumbo sized bag of peanuts he took from behind the counter after kicking everyone out as they both just casually followed the chaos and stuck to its periphery. They weren't even making any effort to stay hidden or anything. Neo could see the duo standing right there, both flicking her grins and a pair of encouraging thumbs up in sync the first time she looked over. It was just the other guy who couldn't, nor could he hear them, because illusions were like... so broke.

"True, I think she needs this. FUCK HIM UP, NEO!"

"AND TRY DO IT IN ENVIRONMENTALLY NONDESTRUCTIVE WAYS, UNLESS IT'S COOLER THAT WAY THEN I- Y'know what? Not even gonna backseat fight, just do your thing."

Note: This post didn't happen​

 

[MyrtenRose]

The supposed Bandit King of Vacuo and his brazen lack of shame had pushed her into stalking off for somewhere more isolated, dramatically lowering her chances of running into any more ludicrous individuals. The irony in it being a lack of shame that made her leave was not lost on her, but...seriously? Exposing yourself like he had? Even for her, that was pushing it. Beyond pushing it, really. Not that she had much time to dwell on it. As she went past numerous quarters, up more than a few levels, and as the silence grew more and more heavy the further isolated she got...they saw fit to show up.

They tended to do so at the worst of times.

Such as when she was alone with her thoughts. Without someone real nearby to draw her attention, they showed up to make up for it. The second she turned a corner, she was greeted by a old friend. The phantom of her team leader stood there, leaning against the wall. A ghost that she knew that only she could see. Yeah. Turns out having your brain basically tossed in a blender under the supervision of a mad scientist didn't exactly play nice with one's sanity, though she had done her damnedest to keep the problem hidden. Grey Kiran, or rather the ghost of him, flashed a bold smile as his eyes settled upon her. His voice echoed within the confines of her mind. Hey there, partner.

"...Grey." She returned the greeting in a low whisper as she passed him by. The ghost, not taking the hint, pushed off the wall and fell into lockstep with her, his every stride matching hers. So, you're in some real shit right now, huh?

"You could say that."

A tournament of killers and thieves and other less than reputable folk...why am I not surprised you got yourself embroiled in something like that?

"You're not surprised because you can't be. You've been dead for decades."

And yet, here I am. He countered with an insufferably smug tone. She could practically hear the smirk emerge on his phantom face. I don't know for how long I'll be here this time, it's your mind that brings me to...not-life, after all. He put it as casually as he could. So I'll just be as direct with you as I can be: what exactly is the plan here, hmm?

"Who says I need one?"

That's it then, huh? No plan? You're just gonna wing it?

"Why not? It's what I do best. I improvise...and I survive. I always survive." She finally turned back to face him, walking backwards as she did so.

Liadan...that's the way of thinking that got us all killed. As the last word of that rang in her mind, the other two members of her once upon a time team emerged into view, flanking her old team leader. There was no response on her part to those words, the only thing that came out of her mouth just then was a halfhearted greeting. "Teale, River...welcome to the party."

Long time no see, Lia. Teale gave a two finger salute while River eschewed any words, instead going for a hug. Or as much of a hug as a phantom of the past could give. After a few seconds, she reluctantly returned it, nevertheless aware in the back of her mind that it looked like she was hugging empty air. "So this is what I owe the pleasure to, eh? You're worried about me."

You always did have a knack for provoking that kind of feeling. River pointed out.

"...Touché." She turned away, resuming her stride. The three of them matched her step for step, keeping pace with her no matter how fast she went.

Seriously, Liadan, you are immortal, can be invincible...but that doesn't mean you're undefeatable. Grey continued to nag. As your encounter with Carnelian illustrated.

Oh yeah, that was one hell of an asskicking! Glad I got ringside seats for that!

Tock scowled but said nothing.

More than that, the rules for this thing also made clear you can't go at it alone, no matter how much you may want to. You need an ally, a partner in this. Have you any ideas for someone to try to reach out to in that regard?

"Not...really." She admitted with a bitterly carefree shrug. She truly hadn't. The only one that had remotely come to mind had been Ray and...no. The poor bird was still as lost as ever, putting faith in someone who didn't deserve it. "I'm just gonna let the chips fall where they may."

What about a plan, then?

"LOOK!" She suddenly bellowed with a voice laced with irritation, whirling around on all three of them with an expression that likewise burned with frustrated anger. "Improvising is just the way I tend to roll these days. I'm sorry you guys are decades behind on realizing that, but it is what it is. Whatever comes at me, whatever happens in the shite to come? I'll deal with it when it arrives. Not by making some plan that'll probably fall to pieces at the first obstacle!" She hissed. The croc faunus didn't leave them any chance to respond before she continued. "Now, I know you three ghosts may have the best of intentions but since it is my head that you're invading? I will greatly appreciate it if you would kindly FUCK OFF!" She stormed away after that fierce yell, and though she didn't see them go, the three phantoms of her former team did indeed fade away after that.

After a good minute of not hearing any of their voices, she allowed herself to slow down and sigh. It wasn't like it was bad, seeing them again...apart from the whole thing being completely fucking mad and utterly bonkers, but aside from that insanity...it wasn't that bad to see old friendly faces. That said...

It had been so long she genuinely wasn't sure if those phantoms sounded anything like the long dead teammates whose faces they shared. Tock stood there frozen for a moment, paralyzed by how depressing that thought was. Before she could move again, yet another voice echoed in her head, but it wasn't any of theirs. Tock briefly winced, her expression growing more guarded after. That voice, it didn't belong to a dead person, not technically speaking...but the times she represented were probably buried, unlikely to ever return. The crocodile faunus turned, lifting her gaze to meet this other not-really-there person's own stare.

Yellow eyes met yellow eyes. Hello, Liadan. A younger looking Sienna greeted, the white grin she gave standing in great contrast to her dark skin. There was so much friendliness and warmth in that smile. So much so that just for a moment, a brief second, Tock desperately wished she was real. But she wasn't and Tock knew it. The croc took a few unsteady steps backwards before she just slumped against the wall, folded her legs in and crossed her arms, just fine with waiting there until the fight for survival started. The phantom tiger slid down to sit just beside the croc, and in a rare display of vulnerability, a tear or two slid out of Tock's eyes.

The minutes dragged on so painfully slow from her perspective.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

Nora had quite a bounce to her step as she entered the arena, remarkably cheerful and excited despite the serious and perhaps lethal nature of the struggle soon to come. That was Valkyrie for you. Though, that was not to say she was going to take it lightly. Ironwood's words, how he had repeatedly stressed how dangerous this tournament usually turned out to be, it certainly wasn't lost on deaf ears. She was going to give it her all from the start. She had to. Not just for her enjoyment, which was lesser among her concerns, not only to survive, but also to maybe get one step closer towards returning home. As interesting as this had been, as cool as her new friend Gretchen turned out to be...she missed home. So much. Nora's stride came to an abrupt stop, the handle of Magnhild thudding against the ground. The ginger quickly gave one last look-over of her weapon. Made sure it was up to 100%, checking up on the new armored gauntlets she wore were equally prepared. Both were.

That done, she grinned before at last looking around at the arena she was in, both to see if there was anybody present who could be a potential partner and to study this arena. "Huh. Not bad, all things considered." It was no Amity Arena, but as far as shady underground stuff went? Not bad at all.

Robyn, meanwhile, was still lingering within the bar. She only wished this place had better food. If on the off chance this was indeed her last day alive, she would have liked a much much better final meal. Oh well. Her gloved hand rubbed at her forehead before taking one last drink of water. She somehow doubted there would much be time for a water break once this thing started. After that, she stood up and turned to go, make sure that she was in a position that met the distance requirements. Her thoughts went through what many others likely did as well, a good possible partner, strategies for the battle, and even thoughts of what she would do if she managed to actually win the prize. How to deal with the complicated situation with Weiss Schnee.

Whatever those thoughts were, only she knew.

Raven still sat, as unmoving as if she were a stone statue. The huntress's eyes were closed as she meditated.​

 

[Gus Gungus]

That done, she grinned before at last looking around at the arena she was in, both to see if there was anybody present who could be a potential partner and to study this arena. "Huh. Not bad, all things considered." It was no Amity Arena, but as far as shady underground stuff went? Not bad at all.

The arena was something of a special case where the floors were concerned. It was built across five levels where most of the bunker facilities only occupied one, and with the exception of the backstage areas constructed under the floor it took up every corner of the space it occupied. Which gave it an interesting caveat for this particular preliminary, being that multiple competitors could occupy the same room at the starting pistol without violating the distance requirement. A few prospective duos had made their plans around that, sequestering themselves at remote points in the vast chamber's architecture to await things kicking off so they could partner up directly with someone of their choosing, which meant as rooms went it was perhaps one of the most likely in the entire bunker to descend into chaos from the word go.

Some trash talk echoed down at Nora from above, lobbed at her by a young lady in daisy dukes and a plaid crop top tied into a knot at her abdomen as she planted a boot against the balcony railing and cupped her mouth, tail swishing rapidly.



"HEY GINGER! YEAH, YOU!!! COOKIE 'N I ARE GONNA DESTROY YA!!!!!! WE'RE GONNA MAKE SURE YA ACTUALLY DIE!!!!!!! WE'RE GONNA KILL YOU IN TEN MINUTES IF YA DON'T PONY UP YER CARD RIGHT AWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!"



That... hadn't been discussed at all...​

 

[Gus Gungus]

Robyn, meanwhile, was still lingering within the bar. She only wished this place had better food. If on the off chance this was indeed her last day alive, she would have liked a much much better final meal. Oh well. Her gloved hand rubbed at her forehead before taking one last drink of water. She somehow doubted there would much be time for a water break once this thing started. After that, she stood up and turned to go, make sure that she was in a position that met the distance requirements. Her thoughts went through what many others likely did as well, a good possible partner, strategies for the battle, and even thoughts of what she would do if she managed to actually win the prize. How to deal with the complicated situation with Weiss Schnee.

Whatever those thoughts were, only she knew.

That didn't stop the only other soul in the bar from staring at her like he was privy to each and every one of them, the silent, casual gawker in an all-black bodysuit a few of them had seen meandering around since they arrived as he drew in good long looks at all of them. It had started with Gretchen, and the mercenary had worked his way down the list one by one as they each found themselves with a second shadow at one time or another in the leadup to the carnage. Mind games, analytic tactics or just boredom; whatever the motive, he wasn't saying.

His mask was partially peeled up now, exposing a bushy upper lip as he took a relaxed sip of scotch and waited.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"HEY GINGER! YEAH, YOU!!! COOKIE 'N I ARE GONNA DESTROY YA!!!!!! WE'RE GONNA MAKE SURE YA ACTUALLY DIE!!!!!!! WE'RE GONNA KILL YOU IN TEN MINUTES IF YA DON'T PONY UP YER CARD RIGHT AWAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

That... hadn't been discussed at all...

"Oh YEAH?!"

Nora roared back, sounding not the least bit concerned at the threat of violent death as she slung Magnhild in grenade launcher form onto her back. Her fists thudded together in a decently loud boom that managed to echo considerably throughout the arena, with sparks of lightning erupting from her eyes and further bursts around her better illuminating the smirk on her face.

"CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! WHEN THE CLOCK STRIKES ZERO, OUR EPIC BATTLE SHALL COMMENCE! I CAN HARDLY WAIT!"​

 

[MyrtenRose]

That didn't stop the only other soul in the bar from staring at her like he was privy to each and every one of them, the silent, casual gawker in an all-black bodysuit a few of them had seen meandering around since they arrived, as he drew in good long looks at all of them. It had started with Gretchen, and the mercenary had worked his way down the list one by one as they each found themselves with a second shadow at one time or another in the leadup to the carnage. Mind games, analytic tactics or just boredom; whatever the motive, he wasn't saying.

His mask was partially peeled up now, exposing a bushy upper lip as he took a relaxed sip of scotch and waited.

Nope. And so she just walked out of there. So long, creepy staring mustached masked man.

"Can I help you?"​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"Oh YEAH?!"

Nora roared back, sounding not the least bit concerned at the threat of violent death as she slung Magnhild in grenade launcher form onto her back. Her fists thudded together in a decently loud boom that managed to echo considerably throughout the arena, with sparks of lightning erupting from her eyes and further bursts around her better illuminating the smirk on her face.

"CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! WHEN THE CLOCK STRIKES ZERO, OUR EPIC BATTLE SHALL COMMENCE! I CAN HARDLY WAIT!"

Her tail started swishing faster. Damn, she was supposed ta roll over...

"COOOKIEEEEEEEEeeeeeeee, FORGET THIS CRAZY BROAD OKAY?! HEY! HEY BUDDY! GET READY TA DIE IF YOU DON'T FORK OVER YER KEYCARD LIKE, RIGHT AWAY!!!"

She cupped her hands and instead passed the baton of trash talk over to the cloaked, hooded figure sitting all the way at the opposite end of the arena to Nora, disquietingly still. Both hands were on his lap clutching the hilt of what could only be presumed to be his weapon, and as his gaze rose in response to the callout the folds of his hood fell slightly to expose the eyes that burned within.

Spoiler

That... had to be the scariest fucking faunus any of them had ever seen. It wasn't even clear what the hell he was beyond red and painted with some form of tribal markings.

"...N-nevermind!"​

 

[Gus Gungus]

Nope. And so she just walked out of there. So long, creepy staring mustached masked man.

"Can I help you?"

He sarcastically raised his glass.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

View attachment 735714

Her tail started swishing faster. Damn, she was supposed ta roll over...

"COOOKIEEEEEEEEeeeeeeee, FORGET THIS CRAZY BROAD OKAY?! HEY! HEY BUDDY! GET READY TA DIE IF YOU DON'T FORK OVER YER KEYCARD LIKE, RIGHT AWAY!!!"

She cupped her hands and instead passed the baton of trash talk over to the cloaked, hooded figure sitting all the way at the opposite end of the arena to Nora, disquietingly still. Both hands were on his lap clutching the hilt of what could only be presumed to be his weapon, and as his gaze rose in response to the callout the folds of his hood fell slightly to expose the eyes that burned within.

Spoiler

View attachment 735715

That... had to be the scariest fucking faunus any of them had ever seen. It wasn't even clear what the hell he was beyond red and painted with some form of tribal markings.

"...N-nevermind!"​

"Awww, giving up so soon??" Nora didn't bother hiding her disappointment, though there was some relief behind it. If more opponents in this thing could be frightened off like that, this would be a lot easier to handle. She doubted it would be the case with this other guy though, her eyes swiveling to look over at who Miss Daisy Dukes was yelling at now. Frankly even she felt a little intimidated at the sight, the guy looked even more ominously scary than even Tyrian had with those psycho expressions of his. Even so, she did her best to not let it show as she bounded over towards the guy in a friendly manner. "Hey there! You need a partner, mister...?"​

He sarcastically raised his glass.

"No I don't work here, you aren't getting a refill from me."​