Free City, Truce - Fountain
A tiered fountain marks the center of Truce, water gushing from its
summit and trickling into a deep, wide basin, wrapped by a ring of benches.
Roads flow like rivers away from the fountain, and houses sprout like weeds
all around them. Not far to the east, the ocean roars in the harbor.

Truce has quietened down considerably over the last few days, following the previous stint that had the City on a higher alert for a short period of time. Seeing no further threat, things went back to normal; on this particular evening, Kyuubey is perched on the back of a bench, attention situated eastward toward the pier and outlying bay.

Unusually enough, Helios is hovering above the fountain already. He seems to be impatiently staring north, as if he was waiting on somebody. "What is taking it so long?"

Nagol can be seen riding down on His Warp Star

Mogwai is kneeling down in quiet contemplation near the fountain

In an effort to enjoy the relative tranquility, Spitfire is half-balanced on the lip of the fountain and casually looking around, wings folded against her back.

It's not unusual to see Finn show up in Truce, not especially after a handful of long days. This particular night ends another long adventure, and he's ready to crash for a while. Not that he doesn't have plenty more energy to spare, of course, if events call for it! Not that he's really expecting to go nuts or anything. He notes a few familiar faces as he approaches the fountain, offering a wave to Spitfire, Mogwai and Nagol. "Hey!"

Tyrranis steps into the square from the north, no emotion readily apparent on his face as he makes his way in. He looks around for a few seconds before he spots Kyuubey, to which a genuine smile appears on his face. The giganto walks over to the odd cat and adresses it. "Wish Granter. It has been too long. I have a seed for you, if you are willing to accept it."

Kyuubey snaps to attention at that moment, apparently having been lingering on the east for quite some time. At that moment of address, however, he turns to face Tyrranis. "Ah, so you've returned. I had a feeling you were merely caught up in something, as it were. Yet you still live, so this is a good sign for us all. Excellent, I shall accept it at once."
Action forced.

Kyuubey hunches down somewhat, the red circular mark on his back beginning to glow softly in preparation for the seed's acceptance.

"Finally!" Helios mutters as the rather spindly, bipedal, and fairly big mechon; the M82, lumbers into the square from the north. It has no discernable face, meerly small red lenses positioned around its head at odd intervals for vision. It has large circular pincers for hands and slowly opens and closes them as it takes up position next to the fountain.

Nagol lands and says, "Good Evening Everyone. Helios, you have the Flux Part?" He then gazes at the Group of people. His gaze falls on Kyuubey for a second, before he then looks back to Helios.

"Where have you been?" Helios says as he glares at it. It seems to apolagetically shrug as it moves slightly.

Mogwai waves to her fellow adventurers "Hey, it's good to see you all here. The gods have blessed us today, we should actually be able to reach the sky palace. I still need to track down it's location though."

"Sure are a lot of people out tonight, but it's nothing new..." Spitfire's lifting her goggles and craning her neck to gaze at the moon, unconsciously extending her wings and smiling. "Besides, it's going to be a nice night, and I don't plan on letting anything ruin it for me." The conversation earns her attention, though, and she looks over, eyelids glinting in the moonlight. "Hey there, guys."

"Sky Palace, eh?" Finn seems interested, naturally. A palace in the sky? Like he'd miss that for the world! He glances over at Spitfire, and he nods to her, smiling. "Hey." He decides to leave Nagol to Helios, since that seems to be something outside of his range of understanding as it is.

Tyrranis pulls the grief seed from the secret place in his baseball bat, and holds it to the air for a moment, as if judging it. Afterwards, he shakes his head, and presents it to Kyuubey. "It is yours Wish Granter, deliver us from it." The giant seems a bit stiff now that he's holding the seed, like bad memories are attached to it.

Kyuubey doesn't request an elaboration, and instead accepts the seed as it is given, allowing it to drop into an oddly-created portal within the center of his back; the seed disappears into it, simultaneous with the cessation of the circular pattern's glow. He sits upright from there, apparently pleased.

Kyuubey casts a quick glance around the founting, specifically at the mechanical.. thing, looming nearby, then back at Tyrranis. "As much of a grand thing it is that you have returned, even without the others, I'm afraid I have no breaks to offer you at this time. There is another Witch present, though she is at the moment hiding. Your Soul Gem would have easily detected this, otherwise."

"They seem to be evolving a little bit, here and there, with the conditions. It's really quite amazing, at times."

Helios looks over at Nagol for a moment. "Ah, yes. M82, if you please?" The large mechon opens up a small storage compartment on its back, allowing Helios to pull the parts out. "Here you go." He hands the components to Nagol.

Nagol takes the Componet and says, "Thanks!" Nagol sits down onto a Bench, and polishes the Star Rod. His gaze sometimes landing on Kyuubey.

Mogwai smiles "Indeed. I visited a floating palace once before in my own world, but that one was in ruins. This one is remarkably intact... and mobile. I've been borrowing a telescope at Akahana's every day to track its movements, and I should be close to being able to figure out its path. Of course, that assumes it's finishing a loop and not doing a spiral or a figure-eight or whatever."

"So. What's going on with you, Finn?" Spitfire, even though she's relaxed, flicks one yellow-furred ear in Kyuubey's direction, though her gaze remains fixed on the moon as it disappears beneath the horizon. "And, even if I'm not eager to interrupt that discussion... What's it about?"

"Okay. Well, if you think we can get up there safely, count me in," Finn grins a bit. Well, of course, his idea of safe isn't quite what Mogwai's idea of safe might be. His attention returns again to Spitfire as she speaks, and he offers her another smile. "Been busy, adventuring! You know, hero stuff." He slowly moves to have a seat next to Spitfire, relaxing after a long day. "I dunno. I don't keep up."

Every emotion leaves Tyrranis' face as he hears the news of a Witch in the area, and he pulls his Soul Gem from his bat as well, looking to it before looking at Kyuubey. "If you would lead me, Wish Granter, I will hunt the Witch and destroy it. It is my duty and calling."

Kyuubey looks slightly concerned at the apparent lack of comraderie available to Tyrranis at that moment, but given the fact that Tyrranis has proven himself multiple times over, this brief flicker of concern fades rather quickly. Instead, Kyuubey hops off the back of the bench, and with a flick of his tail, scampers off toward the east, where the docks lie.

Kyuubey leaves east.

Helios glances up at the horizion where a lone, green star twinkles. "We see... M82, can you confirm the telemetry?" The M82 stays silent, however. It apparently has not recieved whatever data Helios has just recieved. Helios waits for it to indicate that it has recieved the information.

The Blue Kirby watches Kyuubey leave towards the docks. Nagol thinks to himself deeply about some thing in his past. He shakes it off and says, "Ah, a Star Rod Piece is near." He waves goodbye to his friends, and flies on his Warp Star north.

Mogwai looks as Kyuubey walks off "A witch... excuse me, Wishborn, is it possible for others to help you defeat a witch, like how we can help with the Yoma?"

"I suppose I can relate, what with being the captain of the Wonderbolts, and all that." Spitfire lazily stretches her wings, deciding to keep them extended to her sides as she lies down on the ground. "Well, since it doesn't really concern us... You want to know what it's like to be one of them?"

"One of what? The Wonderbolts?" Finn blinks a little. "I can imagine. You fly around all day and beat up bad guys! It's mega sweet, I bet!" In his mind's eye, he's imagining himself with awesome angel wings, fighting bad guy after bad guy. Such is the imagination of youth. "But, I'm guessing there's more to it?" He glances back at Spitfire again.

Tyrranis looks down to Mogwai, and shakes his head. "I am Tyrranis, not Wishborn. That is a distinction I greatly dislike. And, no, you cannot destroy, or even affect a Witch. That is my job." With that, Tyrranis heads east towards the docks.

Tyrranis leaves east.

Mogwai shrugs "Job or not, everyone needs help sometime..." she sighs "One of these days I'll find a way to help them without needing to make a contract"

"There's more to being a Wonderbolt than just giving threats to Equestria a sound thrashing with our hooves. Sure, we're a highly skilled military unit, but we're also known for our airshows." With a shrug, Spitfire's rising to her hooves and flaring her wings straight up before rising into the air lazily. "You might find us similar to an outfit in your world, though I wouldn't know of it..."

"Air Show?" Finn rubs at his chin a bit, but he doesn't pursue it any further. "Outfit? Oh, like a jetpack or something? I haven't found one." Well, that might not quite be the outfit she's referring to. "Not a whole lotta people fly where I'm from. Usually the ones that do are a little bit crazy." He smiles at her. "But hey, uh.. you should take me flying sometime! If, y'know, you've got time."

Helios continues to stare at the M82. "Can you really not recieve the telemetry directly?" The M82 nods almost sheepishly. "Ugh, just connect to the transport and get it from there."

Mogwai walks back over to Finn and Spitfire "Anything new going on with you?"

Spitfire says 'Outfit is also another term for a military unit. But, regardless, we host the Best Young Fliers' Competition in the place we pegasi call home, Cloudsdale. It's a way of gauging the skill of the other pegasi in Equestria, and seeing which ones can join the ranks of the Wonderbolts.'

Spitfire says 'And hey, Mogwai. Not much, really, aside from chatting. You?'

Finn notes Mogwai's approach, and immediately reaches out to snag the Moogle, tugging her into his lap and cuddling her close. Then, attention goes back to Spitfire as she explains things. "Oh, right, right. So only the best of the best get to be a Wonderbolt, huh?" And, not to leave Mogwai out.. "Nothin' new. Just more adventure, of course! What about you?"

Rizar walks into the area, "Hello everyone."

Finally, the M82 nods its head, indicating that it understands the information. "Good, then lets go." With that, Helios and the M82 head south, looking determined.

Mogwai accepts the hug, snuggling up against Finn "Oh, the usual. Asking gods for personal favors, drinking, searching for mana spirits. Nothing too exciting."

Nodding once, Spitfire turns to look up at the sky again. "That's about the most accurate way to describe the Wonderbolts. As for your question... No, you can't ride on my back."

"I've been enjoying going to look for the Mana Spirits, but I'll admit that I didn't feel like I was being much help on the last one," Finn chuckles a little. He doesn't seem that worried or down about it, but he's just making an observation. It was awfully chaotic last time. When he's shot down by Spitfire, he cringes a bit, then grins at her. "Is it a.. weight issue, or a pride issue, or am I just not math enough for you, or..?" Again, he doesn't seem upset or put off, but curious.

Rizar scans the area when all of a sudden his Soul Gem lights up and he begins to stare at it, "Lead me to where I must go," and at that moment it pulls him toward Helios. "I guess I'm following."

Spitfire flaps her wings a few times, propelling herself into the air.

Helios arrives just in time to see a stray dog be flung across the field, followed by a mighty roar! A hulking, gray-skinned creature is suddenly trespassing through the fields, tearing up livestock and the occasional farmfolk alike!

Helios and the M82 stare after the dog for a moment. "M82, engage combat protocols. Target specefied: Yoma. Execute combat mission." Helios orders. The M82's pincers lock together, forming oversized buzzsaws that begin emitting a high pitched, irritating whine as it begins lumbering towards the yoma. Helios fires a laser at the yoma from above the M82.

Mogwai comes running after Helios and finds a Yoma tearing up the place. She wields a whip in one hand, and a bomb in the other "Looks like I get to help after all."

Gliding along at a casual pace, Spitfire slows only slightly, before pulling her goggles down and frowning as she catches sight of the vicious beast tearing the pastures up. "...oh, awesome. Time to do battle again, huh?" Mindful of Helios and the M82, the Wonderbolt is suddenly blazing a trail through the air. "It's a 'Take this thing out at all costs!' kind of situation, isn't it?"

Naturally, not wanting to be left behind, Finn follows Mogwai and Spitfire, finding that something's going nuts. He's not quite certain what's going on, but everyone is gearing up for a fight, and Finn figures he's got enough energy for one last fight. Would be a great way to end the day! Sword freed, he shoulders it, waiting.

Rizar fires his arm cannon at the Yoma with rapid-fire speed as he gets in front of Finn, "Hey. Can you get that thing from behind while I'm shooting the front?"

Infuriated at the sudden cavalry encroaching upon him, the Yoma grabs a cow and whips it viciously at Rizar in response to firing, giving it enough time to dodge off to one side as the cow gets vaporized, but shrieks a reptilian cry as Helios' lazer pierces its shoulder, sending purple blood flying!

Some of the blood lands on the grass nearby, burning it to ashes with a sizzle and burning away some of the dirt, as well, which remains smoking from the blood's absolute volatility.

Helios fires the laser again, this time sending a bolt of lightning after it. The M82 reaches the yoma at the same time as the laser pierces its shoulder. It engages its buzzsaws and swings at the yoma's face. Helios then flies up into the air to asc as an overwatch.

Mogwai maintains a safe distance from the yoma, lighting one of her bombs and tossing it before starting on an intricate dance "I was willing to let you go, but that cow was the last straw!"

"...ok, that's not good. Note to self: Avoid the acidic blood." The faintest signs of a mach cone can be seen forming in front of Spitfire, even as she flies in towards the Yoma's chest with her front legs extended. "I hope this works... Doing crazy things like this is SO par for the course!"

Blinking as he's addressed by Rizar, Finn nods a little bit. "Yeah, sure, I can do that." He holds up his sword high, and it bursts into jagged crystals. The crystals all seem to have the same color, namely, white, as he slips around Rizar and heads off to flank the Yoma. He's not sure how much help he'll be, but a crystal sword is a heck of a confidence builder.

Rizar yells at Mogwai, "You were willing to let THAT ugly thing go?!" as he continues to fire. This time he begins to aim at the head.

The yoma flings its wounded shoulder around, sending more acidic blood flying in all directions; however, in so doing, his massive fist likely catches Spitfire in the midst of her feet-planting dive, almost like a bat would do to an incoming softball. He attempts to engage further, barely missing the burst of fire from Rizar but ramming right into the Mechon's blades.

This causes the Yoma, severely outnumbered by this point, to cry out again, thrashing wildly against whatever it can get its arms on!

Mogwai yells at Rizar "It's called drama and overacting, Dancers thrive on it." She performs an intricate moogle dance, causing the grass to sprout forth and attempt to entrap the yoma. She regards the bomb disdainfully "There was supposed to be an earth-shattering kaboom..."

"Oh, NUTS-!" The impact from the Yoma's fist sends Spitfire FLYING backwards, knocking her unconscious as she leaves a long furrow in one of the untouched pastures.

Finn watches with gritted teeth as poor Spitfire is knocked for a loop. He gets to running faster, before he leaps into the air, holding that magically crystal-lined blade tight, high over his head, before, with a war cry, the boy brings the sword down and attempts to do damage.. but chances are, he's little more than a distraction in comparison to the others. "YAAA!" Points for trying, at least!

The Yoma attempts to defend itself against this new onslaught, but before it can even get a swing in, the massive buzzsaw from the Mechon cuts through its arm at the wrist, sending its newly-severed hand flying, blood oozing from it as it does; the blood that gets on the Mechon sizzles and burns away at it, causing a nasty, melted-metal stench to issue forth from it.

It's at this time that the Yoma falls to one knee from its wound, not even considering the attack Finn was intending to land at this time. However, something rolls up to it nearby, and it only has a moment to give the sizzling object a glance before it goes off, sending bomb shrapnel right into its face!

The creature abruptly punches itself in the stomach, issuing forth a strange gurgling sound... and activating something in the process!

After about ten minutes, from the crater she'd created with her impact, Spitfire groggily stirs and lifts her head. "...ugh. WHAT in Celestia's name hit me?" Unsteadily, the Wonderbolt gets back to her hooves and prepares to take flight once again.

Mogwai looks at the yoma and backs up slowly "That doesn't sound good..."

Unfortunately, before she can even get off the ground, her wings SNAP loudly, sending Spitfire back into the impact trail with a sharp yelp of pain. "AGH! Just great...! Sorry, guys... I'm out of action."

Finn's attack.. does no damage, as predicted. It doesn't even seem to notice that it took a hit, and the blade, with crystals sharp enough to pierce most hides, seems to do no damage. He kicks off the Yoma's back, and backflips, landing softly. He slowly moves his way over to poor Spitfire. "Need a hand?" He puts the sword away. Seems it won't be of any use here.

There's little warning for what happens next; the gurgling sound issues forth once again, louder, and with a victorious-sounding roar, the Yoma explodes! Pieces of Yoma flesh, not to mention acidic blood, fly everywhere in a contained radious around the blast, including a shining black jewel that is sent careening off into the grass somewhere nearby.

Dodging the flying acid blood rather easily due to his placement in the air, and showing only mild concern for the now-severaly-damage Mechon, Helios sees his prize, apparently having waited for it since the beginning. With little fanfare, he swoops down toward the gem, grabbing it in a magentic field and taking off toward the north, into the sky!

Slowly, strands of darkness come together to form an oval shaped portal from behind Rizar. An armored hand reaches out from the portal and drags Rizar inside. Then, an armored figure steps out from the portal as it disperses into thin air. Dusk grins wickedly as he eyes the mess, "Why, it's just as they said! This works out perfectly! I didn't even have to lift a finger."

Mogwai eyes Dusk with suspicion "Just as who said... mind explaining?"

Spitfire says 'I'd say it's pretty obvious, especially since I can't fly back to the town now, with both my wings - and a few ribs - broken...'

"Err, yeah, I guess so." Not that Finn is a doctor or anything, as he calmly wraps arms around Spitfire and lifts her up. He's surprisingly strong for someone so young, but that might be attributed to the fact that he's always running around and scrapping all day. He notes Dusk's arrival, and is naturally apprehensive. It's clear on his face.

Dusk let out a firm 'Hmph' as he watches Helios fly away with the seed. "It seems I was slightly late. Temporal mechanics in the world of darkness can be slightly off, I suppose. I will just have to find that machine some other time."

Dusk then turns to Mogwai and the others, "And what is this? A bunch of Wishborn pretenders trying to be heroes? Hah! Run along. The affairs of the Wishborn are of no concern to creatures like you."

Dusk shrugs as he grins widely, "But who am I to say such things? I'm not exactly 'one of them' either, hehehehe..."

Mogwai looks offended "This very much concerns us! That thing was attacking innocent people. It's in our best interest to stop their creation and aid in their destruction!"

Sighing softly, Spitfire turns somewhat to keep both her broken ribs and wings from being jostled as she's picked up. "I'm grateful, at least, that you decided to check on me. I'm just worried that I'll be out of action and unable to help while I recover... For Celestia's sake, I'm gonna be sore for at least two weeks EASY."

"Yeah!" Finn is behind Mogwai all the way there. Granted, they didn't seem to be all that helpful or effective, but.. it's about being there.. right? Either way, he's careful with how he carries Spitfire, not wanting to jostle her too much. "Huh? I wouldn't worry about it. I'll totally go out and find you some mega-super potion to help you heal quicker!" He grins a bit at her.

Dusk smirks, "Oh spare me the 'save the innocent!' talk. Life only exists to be harvested, after all."

Mogwai shrugs "That may be your belief, but I believe quite differently. I'll make my own decisions about what's important to me."

"I appreciate it." For a moment, Spitfire turns to face Dusk, shaking her head. "I don't know what you're going on about, but I'm not interested in getting into an argument about it. Ow..."

Finn smiles warily at Spitfire, before he glances back at Dusk. "What do you mean that life only exists to be harvested? That's a really crazy perspective you've got on life there, pal!"

"Your decisions are irrelevant. Much like that pathetic reploid." Dusk then turns to Finn, "Why, it's quite simple! See, I used to think that only souls could be harvested from living beings. But an interesting fellow recently has shown me more..potential. Observe!"

Dusk then sheathes his sword and makes a gesture with his right hand, forming a pool darkness on the grass. Five pairs of antennas slowly rise out from the pool, forming small black creatures with beady yellow eyes. They eye Mogwai, Spitfire, and Finn hungrily..

Mogwai looks at the creatures with disgust "And here I thought I was done dealing with giant ants." She lights another bomb and tosses it at the creatures.

"I managed to survive, SOMEHOW, getting punched right in the ribcage and sent flying into a field, losing my wings. I'm not interested in being turned into food for bugs created by a LUNATIC like you, got it?" With a sigh, Spitfire turns away, closing her eyes.

Finn watches closely as Dusk generates a pool of darkness, and some strange, dark creatures arise from the portal. "What the glob are those?!" He steps back a bit, then remembers.. shoot, he's got Spitfire. He glances up at her. "Mogwai, think you can handle them for a bit? I'm going to get Spitfire somewhere safe!" He shoots Dusk another glare, before he turns and, carefully, makes a dash for Truce.

Dusk grins as he observes the battle, "They're called Heartless! And like souls, they harvest the hearts possessed by living creatures! You three however, as I have already said, are irrelvent."

Dusk then proceeds to open another dark portal, "I have a machine to find. If you survive, you'll find your useless reploid in a pathetic heap in Truce." With that, Dusk enters and the portal closes behind him, leaving behind only creatures behind. As Mogwai's bomb goes off, three of the creatures disperse into thin air, leaving only two remaining. They attempt to circle around her in an intimidating manner.

Mogwai lunges at the nearest one, lashing away at it with her whip. Her antennae bobs around a bit as she tries to focus on "watching" the one behind her.

As the sun begins to usher in the dusk, Mogwai's attack easily dispatches her target. The final heartless creature charges at her with its tiny black claw!

Mogwai dives out of the way, twisting around to strike back in return

Missing its strike, the final creature disperses into the air, fading into the dusk.

Finn returns after a few moments, panting a bit, crystalized sword still hefted, prepared to attack something.. but Dusk is gone, and there's only a single Heartless left, easily dispatched. And Mogwai seems to have little trouble. "Whoa, zang, you're way tougher than I thought you were!" Is that a compliment, or an insult? Best to assume a compliment. With the final dispatched, he finally relaxes. "You okay?"


[----RETURNING TO TRUCE...-----]


Free City, Truce - Fountain
A tiered fountain marks the center of Truce, water gushing from its
summit and trickling into a deep, wide basin, wrapped by a ring of benches.
Roads flow like rivers away from the fountain, and houses sprout like weeds
all around them. Not far to the east, the ocean roars in the harbor.

Mogwai puts her whip away and walks back with Finn "I seem to be getting a lot stronger lately... though I'm not sure why. They didn't hurt me, but I'm upset that guy got away. Someone needs to put him in his place."

"If I hadn't been carrying Spitfire, I'd have totally taken a crack at him. But Spitfire was way more important at the time," Finn admits. "Besides, you did awesome by yourself." And, they return to the fountain, where Finn had left poor Spitfire. His attention goes to her, naturally: "I guess I wasn't much help, huh?" This seems to be a trend. "Sorry."

Spitfire is lying face-up atop one of the benches, with heavy bandages covering her midsection and both wings, though she turns to lift one forehoof in a small wave. "Hey, guys... Sorry I couldn't be more help against that behemoth..."

Mogwai resists hugging Spitfire, settling for a pat on the head instead "You're alive, that's enough."

"Yeah, I guess that's true." Especially after Finn had tried to recklessly tackle a monster that bled acid. He settles in near Spitfire and Mogwai. "I'll look for something later on to help with your recovery, but I'm.." Yawn. ".. beat."

Having teleported 4 feet above the fountain, Sweetie Belle cannonballs into the waters of it with absolutly no dignity whatsoever.

Spitfire turns to face the fountain, just in time to get hit by a few drops, which prompts a confused blink from the recovering Wonderbolt. "I suppose so... And wh-"

"I need to work on my teleporting. Sorry about that." Sweetie said with a sigh as she climbed out and then noticed

\
Spitfire says 'Jeez... I must be losing my edge if one punch is all it takes for me to go down.'

Sweetie shivers as she recognized the the flightsuite. "Strong looking wings, windswept hair, a flightsuit that gives colts wet dreams years before they have their first sex ed class. You're one of the Wonderbolts!"

Spitfire says 'Yeah, that's me... Though, given my performance in that fight, I might as well hang up the uniform. ...I'm STILL really sore.'

Sweetie says ' Uh... Trust me you'll get better. In the span of a month you could go from running from imps to defeating some human with long shoulders to feet lenght hair trying to destroy the world.'

Spitfire says 'If you say so... For a few weeks, at least, I won't be flying, until my wings and ribs heal fully.'

Sweetie says ' I know a few healing spells if that would help.'

Sweetie utters the words, 'zatosafy'.
Spitfire looks to be in perfect condition.

Sweetie says ' how's that feel?'

Spitfire says 'Better, but I'm still going to wait. I appreciate the thought, though.'

Sweetie says ' It's the least I could do for another mare that's gotten stuck here. Although if we don't get some colts or stallions here soon I might crack!'

Spitfire says 'Yeah...'

Spitfire returns to staring skyward, sighing.

Sweetie says ' They only Stallions I've seen are in Fort Walla Walla. And they are brainless. The people running that place should read to them more.'

Spitfire says 'Mm...'

Spitfire says '...I'm going out on a limb, and I know it, but aren't you related to one of the Elements?'

Sweetie says ' Rarity's my sister.'

Spitfire says 'Ah, alright. It makes sense...'

Sweetie says ' Rarity is here too. She can't leave because an ugly cat thing called Kyuubey is keeping her under contractual obligations! And Soarin' is lucky he isn't here right now because we're all lonely.'

Sweetie sighs.

Spitfire says 'Hey. Don't worry about that, because, even if things aren't looking good for you right now, there's always a chance they'll change for the better. Cheer up, alright?'

Sweetie says ' everything but the Colt shortage it seems.'

Spitfire says 'Honestly? Look at what happened to me, because of that beast I fought. Have I let broken ribs and the loss of both my wings get me down? No, right?'


[-----EARLIER, WITH TYRRANIS...-----]


Kyuubey stops short at the end of the docks, and even goes so far as to peek over the edge, into the waters below. After a moment, however, he pulls himself back up; just in time, as a crackle of energy sparks to life in the air where he was, coming along simultaneous to the sudden realization that Tyrranis' Soul Gem now has to the Witch nearby.

"Tricky one, this. She was hoping not to be discovered yet."

Tyrranis holds his soul gem up in one hand, and in a moment it melts. Running through his fingers, it hits the ground and then pools around his feet. The giganto closes his eyes, and looks to the sky as dark grey tendrils rise from the ground, grasping at Tyrranis' legs like the souls of the dead, attempting to drag him to their world. Slowly, more and more tendrils rise from the pool, and pull at more and more of his body until they almost encompass him.

Suddenly Tyrranis' eyes open and he lets out a harsh shout, and the darkness is shattered, leaving behind a dark blue hakama in the place of his towel, and his gem now fills in a long thin scar over the top of his heart. The giganto settles back down into a combat stance, holding his weapon at the ready.

Tyrranis says ' I do not care what the Witch is hoping. She will fall today.'

"Of course." Kyuubey backs up a step or three, as the transformation of Tyrranis suddenly snaps a black, swirling portal into place at the edge of the pier, crackling lightly with the same energy the initial spark had generated. Kyuubey merely stands off to the side, looking up at Tyrranis affirmingly.

Tyrranis looks around one last time, before confirming something to himself and entering the portal, his bat still held ready incase something awaits him immediately on the other side.

Shadow Labyrinth - Buried Alive
Walls of dirt and underground debris line a narrow, shadowy passage
that runs toward the north, jagged in its presentation and studded with
fallen clumps of earth and rock. The sound of burrowing can be heard here
and there, both distant and closeby, and there is no sky overhead; inky
blackness fills the ceiling space.

The ground rumbles lightly here and there from something large constantly tunneling through it, occasionally shaking some loose dirt from the walls.

Tyrranis looks from side to side at the dirt walls, his eyes wide for a moment before they settle. He spends a moment breathing steadily before the gem filling in his chest glows, and his bat fades into nothingnes. Around his fist, the color drains, turning quickly into grey as odd holes appear across his body. Soon, color returns to Tyrranis' hand to find it now encased in a black leather glove, with cruel spikes along the knuckles and back of the hand.

Shadow Labyrinth - Buried Alive
An intersection of sorts presents itself here, forming a harrowing
cross of caved-in earth on the ground leading in any of the main cardinal
directions. Wavering shadows block out visibility down any of these
passages, and along with the aforementioned sedimentary clutter, various
skeletal parts have begun to surface and poke out of the dirt walls; a
grinning skull in particular leers down at you from above, dead eyes
watching silently over the area. Despite being blotted in shadow, an
extremely boisterous racket, -almost- sounding like it could be music, seems
to resound from somewhere down the eastern tunnel.

Tyrranis frowns, and turns his head to the side, putting an ear to the air. The noise coming from the east interests Tyrranis, as it is soemthing that should almost totally not be coming from the underground. He moves in that direction, fists held up in a boxing posture.

Shadow Labyrinth - Noisy Tomb
A magnificant coffin is raised up and embedded into the earthen wall
boundary, a fancy sarcophagus of ceramic and gold lining that would likely
give off a lustrous sheen is not for the fact that there is next-to-no light
in the area. A raised crucifix is planted dead-center in the middle of its
lid, that of which is slightly ajar; a very loud and potentially aggravating
classical waltz is playing from inside, providing an unorthodox (and
extremely out of place) clash with the otherwise-gloomy underground makeup
of the area. Nearly unnoticeable, a single word can be made out at the top
of this coffin, embedded in the ceramic at the head.

The music drowns out most every other sounds in the immediate area.

Tyrranis is cautious for a moment before stepping closer into the room. He peers at the sarcophagus and notices the slight gap in the lid, and, curiosity overtaking him, tries to get a better view of the inside.

The lid is only barely open, pretty much just enough to get the music out; its placement on the wall prevents most-sized heads from actually being able to crane around in that direction to be able to look inside it, as a result. Not without opening it further, anyway.

Tyrranis raises an eyebrow at the lid, and steps back before calling out, raising his voice to be heard over the cacophany of noise. "THE DEAD SHOULD BE SILENT."

The music doesn't respond, and nor does anyone else. It just... keeps playing. Like whoeever (or whatever) was doing it was not even listening to Tyrranis. Or couldn't, perhaps.

Tyrranis reaches out with his gloved hand, and with a firm expression, grabs a hold of the lid before attempting to pull it open with a single wrench.

The lid suddenly flies open with little effort (except for that which Tyrranis exerts), slamming against the other wall as it does, and revealing...! ...a gramaphone, sitting on a small wooden board, nestled against the inside of the coffin. It plays the waltz continuously, without end, now considerably louder that the lid has been opened.

A small switch on the side seems to be of the on/off variety.

Tyrranis looks at the gramaphone with a raised eyebrow, and studies it for a moment, considering the possibility of some kind of odd witch trap behind the whole thing.

The oldstyle player cranks out its music with careless abandon, seemingly set in a strange "forever mode", starting back over once it finished the previous playthrough.

In the end, Tyrranis grasps the door of the sarcophagus again and pushing it gingerly, but firmly, closed. "If you think I will disturb the last rights of a person for no reason, you are mistaken." Tyrranis turns and scans over the walls. "I will find you Witch. Let us see if you can stop me."

The sound of music is muffled once again as Tyrranis closes the lid, much, much quieter than before, but still definitely audible in this immediate space, for now. There doesn't seem to be anything else of immediate interest, otherwise. Unless you like dirt.

Shadow Labyrinth - Buried Alive
An intersection of sorts presents itself here, forming a harrowing
cross of caved-in earth on the ground leading in any of the main cardinal
directions. Wavering shadows block out visibility down any of these
passages, and along with the aforementioned sedimentary clutter, various
skeletal parts have begun to surface and poke out of the dirt walls; a
grinning skull in particular leers down at you from above, dead eyes
watching silently over the area. Despite being blotted in shadow, an
extremely boisterous racket, -almost- sounding like it could be music, seems
to resound from somewhere down the eastern tunnel.

Tyrranis relegates himself to wandering the Witch's maze in an attempt to hunt down the monster.

Shadow Labyrinth - Silent Tomb
An oversized coffin lies sentry against a mound of compact soil and
general compost at the western edge, backed by a swirling wall of shadowy
nether. The lid looks cracked open and barely ajar, and the casket itself
is in a sorry state of disrepair and neglect, splintered and busted in
various locations. The earthen walls widen significantly at and around this
spot as they narrow back in toward the east, as if declaring this specific
location set aside for this lost burial site alone. Almost unnoticeable, a
small, single word is engraved at the head of the coffin, in raised
lettering.

Tyrranis looks upon this coffin as well, and shakes his head. He does not spend time attempting to speak here, instead he places his hand on the edge of the tomb and carefully pushes it shut as well, attempting to not exert enough force to damage the lid of the coffin.

As soon as Tyrranis' hand touches the coffin lid, a suddenly burst of imagery fires off inside his head, consisting of several erratically-placed images that flicker in and out, one after another after another. However, they all have something in common: they all revolve around the massacre taking place at his village, a long time past. Giganto left and right are brutally slaughtered. No one is spared. Each image he receives is there for only a moment's time, and there is no order in which they play; they continue to do so for as long as his hand remains on the coffin's lid.

Tyrranis pulls his hand back as the coffin's lid shuts, not before, and steps back from the tomb and the images it summons forth. He does not, however, appear to be emotionally torn, instead the giant states simply. "Genocide is genocide." He turns his back and continues back into the maze, gloved hand clenched.

Shadow Labyrinth - Buried Alive
An intersection of sorts presents itself here, forming a harrowing
cross of caved-in earth on the ground leading in any of the main cardinal
directions. Wavering shadows block out visibility down any of these
passages, and along with the aforementioned sedimentary clutter, various
skeletal parts have begun to surface and poke out of the dirt walls; a
grinning skull in particular leers down at you from above, dead eyes
watching silently over the area. Despite being blotted in shadow, an
extremely boisterous racket, -almost- sounding like it could be music, seems
to resound from somewhere down the eastern tunnel.

Tyrranis leaves north.

Shadow Labyrinth - Buried Alive
A massive stone slab is wedged into the middle of the passage here,
worn and cracked from the apparent passage of time, but still sturdy and
steadfast. An embossed, skeletal face sticks out of the center of the slab,
screaming silently at everything in front of it with an open jaw, emptiness
seen within. The sound of burrowing is very audible here, something large
and heavy heard tunneling through the earth on the other side of the stone
obstruction.

The stone obstruction is set in place, but as Tyrranis approaches it a loud rumble issues forth from the walls on either side; something seems to have triggered it otherwise, and it gradually pulls into the wall, disappearing into a hollowed-out spot and providing entry into the room beyond.

Shadow Labyrinth - Heart of the Unsung Heroes
You've just entered what appears to be a HUGE underground nest of some
kind, compeltely made up of various materials one might find underground:
decayed wood, small stones, clumps of soil, and all suchlike things.
Massive holes bore into the walls on every side, which forms a wide interior
'sphere' that would apparently act as the center of the nesting ground. The
ground rumbles almost nonstop here, as something, or some things, burrow
through the dirt and soil, occasionally knocking pieces of it free of the
walls.

As Tyrranis enters the 'nest', two pairs of gleaming red eyes peer out of any given pair of holes within the room's hollows. A subtle hissing noise can be heard from each of them, along with increased burrowing sounds that not seem to be heading in his direction from the outside!

Tyrranis looks around the room calmly, noting the large wide open space. His feet slide out into a wider stance, and he puts his hands out. At this moment, color seeps from the space inbetween, and for a small distance past his hands, until it becomes a solid grey. Then, color returns to the area as several places on Tyrranis' body dent suddenly before snapping back into place. The giganto grips the newly summoned weapon, a huge metal ball attached to directly a pole in both hands, and calls out. "Come! I will

Tyrranis says ' finish your battle before you feast, Witch! Fight me!'

With a crash of bursting earth, two fairly large worm-like entities come tunneling out of the walls, flying toward the air at Tyrranis! Their 'faces' are grotesque and only vaguely feminine, and segmented bodies make up the rest of them, a good 10 feet or so in length from head to end.

One of them flies at Tyrranis head-on, sharpened teeth gnashing in attempted bites! The other comes in, at nearly the same manner, from his left side, mouth open wide to try and tear a chunk out of his flesh!

Tyrranis slams his foot down, and swings the large hammer in his hand from right to left with utterly massive effort. It is all but obvious that he wants to slam the weapon into the side of one worm's body, and carry it through to the next one, using his brute force in place of defense. The success of the gambit depends however.

Opening her mouth wide, the first worm-witch attempts to bite down on Tyrranis' head, only to be SMASHED in the side of the second segment of her body! Her shrieking form collides erratically with the second one as she is sent careening off to the left, taking the second one (though with minimal damage, as it were) with it just quickly enough to prevent Tyrranis' weapon from actually connecting on the second intended hit.

The first worm-witch writhes on the ground briefly, apparently injured a significant amount from that blow; the second one, however, quickly wriggles free of the former, tunneling into the earth and creating a new hole as it burrows out of sight (but not out of earshot or mind).

Tyrranis falters in his weapons follow through as the witch's teeth rake his skull, and the large hammer resounds a loud 'Thoom' as it slams into the ground. Tyrranis reaches up with his ungloved hand and wipes at his brow, attempting to keep blood from flowing into his eyes before lets go of the hammer and dashes forwards, right gloved hand pulled back to slam into the first witch, should she stay in place.

With the second worm-witch tunneling around elsewhere, the first one attempts to get back into an "upright" position; its second segment oozes black fluid consistently at this time. It manages to flop over onto its front, only to have Tyrranis' fist suddenly buried in its initial wound! It screams shrilling from this, apparently very capable of feeling pain!

It squirms raggedly to try and free itself, gnashing back at Tyrranis' face with its wickedly-long teeth!

Tyrranis grins almost cruelly, and, as the soul gem embedded in his chest glows, greyscale tendrils shoot up his arm and into the witch's wound along his glove. Tyrranis twists his fist inside the witch as it rears to snap it's teeth in his face, and the tentacles form into wicked strands of barbed wire to twist along with his arm.

The tunneling of the escaped worm-twitch suddenly shakes the ground under Tyrranis' immediate location, as though it were coming straight up from under him! The arm-impaled creature, flopping about like some kind of pathethic annelid, and actually jerks toward the wall, attempting to take Tyrranis with her as she tries to get a hold on the wall and burrow through it with him in tow!

Tyrranis feels the Witch attempt to start forwads, and slams his foot down to hold her advance back. Inside the witch's wound, the barbed wire twisted around Tyrranis' arm catches at the meat of both beings, and bites deep into Tyrranis' own flesh before dragging slightly. The giant, however, lets out a furious bellow and attempts to drag the worm witch backwards to the place he had been standing.

The worm witch attempts to pull into the tunnel, but as Tyrranis' arm bites even more deeply into BOTh of them, the reserves of her strength begin to dwindle; she isn't able to fight off the combined power of Tyrranis and his granted powers, and is helplessly reeled back, still squirming and flailing, toward Tyrranis' command. HOWEVER.

At that moment, the ground near Tyrranis suddenly bursts open as the second worm-witch makes a re-entrance, cackling in an odd almost-human way as it flies into the air, trying to catch Tyrranis with a snap-whip of its 'tail' end!

Tyrranis looks blankly at the second witch as it bursts from the ground, and states simply "Shit." before the worm's tail slams into his side. The attack launches Tyrranis towards the rock wall the first witch was attempting to dig into, only to be slowed for a moment by the barbed wire lodged inside the first witches wound. Not even it however, can stop him, and the greyscale magic is pulled from the hole in the witches side before shattering upon the air.

Tyrranis impacts the wall with a thud and a loud grunt, before sliding down it, his right arm slick with his and the witch's blood, and his own blood now falling down into his face, into his eyes. The giganto groans for a moment, before fully sitting down on the ground, and holds his left arm out before him, almost weakly, and the air around it slowly loses color, fading to grey.

The witch, now significantly torn up at the wounded location, wriggles a bit weakly on the ground nearby as Tyrranis finally lets it go; it seems to be trying to merely get away at this point, but even then does so at a pathetic pace. Elsewhere, the second, pretty-much unharmed Witch-worm hisses spitefully at Tyrranis, coming down to the ground so that she were relatively eye-level with him, baring her revoltingly-fanged mouth; she approaches slowly, calculatedly.

Tyrranis watches the witch approach, and smiles at it, with all signs of being completely weak. The weapon summoning falters for a moment, color seeping back in before Tyrranis lets out another grunt, refocusing his efforts. Across his body, a number of old scars suddenly unseal, blood running from them again as the call for arms is accepted by his own magic. The weapon, however, still doesn't show. Instead, Tyrranis spits at the second witch before calling out to it. "COME ON THEN!"

The Witch-worm looks as though it were going to lunge, but then Tyrranis spits at it; a disgusting Giganto loogie that hits it right in the face. It screams angrily at this provocation, and rears up about halfway of its fully length, coming down upon Tyrranis from overhead with its fangs glistening, ready to bite!

Tyrranis' grin threatens to split his face as the witch rears back and lunges forwards, and the giganto completes the summoning of his weapon, a large and well-used spear, that Tyrranis grips in both hands and braces the shaft against the point where the wall meets the ground. "Got you."

With as much momentum as this witch-worm put into her attack, even if she HAD seen this coming, there'd be no way she could stop herself at this point. A gross -squelch- sound issues as the spearhead pierces the roof of the creature's mouth upon impact, her own movement forcing the spear up through the head and out the back of it in a sick display of impalement. She doesn't even have time to scream, at that point.

However, due to the force in which she WAS charging, the rest of her body goes along for the ride, even if rapidly growing devoid of life; suffice it to say, Tyrranis now has a ten-foot worm carcass now flying at him, glinting teeth shuddering to a halt as the head slides down the length of the spear shaft.

Tyrranis looks dispassionately at the incoming mass of Witch carcass, and opens his mouth to curse again before a grey shimmer lights the rapidly shrinking distance between them. A sick crunch, and the sound of magical force shattering sounds before the second witch's body finally stops moving, underneath with, for the moment, Tyrranis does not move.

Nearby, the secondary Witch squirms about pitifully. It drags itself a few more feet, before its own mortality catches up to it, and it grows still, finally succumbing to its own wounds.

Tyrranis is still motionless for a few moments before grey tentacles creep over him. The small tendrils creep across his flesh, over his chest before rearing back and slamming in, piercing the giganto's body and the bones beneath to shock the giant back into conciousness, and keep his chest from collapsing. Having been roughly awakened, Tyrranis coughs wetly, blood coming from his lips as he struggles to move the Witch from atop his body.

Tyrranis stands, using the worm Witch's body as support, and looks slowly across the room, attempting to work sense into his somewhat addled brain.

Following the Witches' demise, the room's dank atmosphere gradually begins to deconstruct, giving way to beams of light that pierce the dark room from some outside source! Eventually, enough light shines into the area that it dissolves completely, basking Tyrranis in a blinding sphere of white light..!

Truce - Pier
The pier turns a corner here, offering an unobstructed view of the
endless waves lazily rolling across the Western Sea. In the opposite
direction, the homes and shops of Truce stand all abreast along the
coastline. A fixed telescope is bolted into the corner of the pier,
pointing northeast.

And gradually the surroundings return as they were, the smell of the bay coming back into the real world as quickly as the vision can be adjusted; glinting on the ground nearby, two shiny black jewels glimmer and glint, awaiting for their new owner.

Curiously, Kyuubey is nowhere to be seen; probably had some other business to attend to.

Tyrranis bends down, stiffly, to collect the jewels, and without bothering to dispel his magical form just yet, he moves slowly down the alleyways of Truce, aiming to end back home.