Descent [Dark Data]

[Jak Mar]

The Byzantium electrified machine finally fell as a swift wind blew away a giant smoke cloud revealed that attacks by the motley group of ragtag heroes and its makeshift leader could work together as one to beat a common opponent. In one quick movement by the smaller red robot, Jak could only watch as he crushed the dark chip with a glowing energy sword. The strange body language must of told the body language of what the being must of been going through.

Perhaps it was for the best after all that nobody had touched it or used it, but one member of the group seemed to grumble about unused power.

Zedd had probably seen the point of taking a dangerous object for a spin but what would it cost the group in the long run if one of them had used it?

That was the last thing they needed right now as a limited amount of peace had passed through.

Desman simply pushed away the man’s attempt at making sure he was alright, and Mar simply lifted a eyebrow in response. Perhaps the robot had just needed a breather.

Jak was the first to look between his allies. Now was the time to get to know the members of his group that he’d be fighting with..

The knife eared mercenary turned to Dante.

The id part of Jak’s mind muttered “Zedd is perfectly willing to let others take the fall so he can survive. Typical villains.”

The superego closed his eyes and blinked “At least this villain is willing to help the group at it’s moments in need.”

Morene decided to speak up as Jak and Dante eyed each other “So you two actually know each other?”

Jak was caught in a moment of thinking as he turned to the woman of interest at the time. “Yeah, Dante and me were in something called the Hero’s Graveyard. I honestly don’t like talking about it if I can.

However, something else about elven anti-hero stood out, pads that connected all over his body as he had come from some experimentation of some sort.

The hero’s demenior was a bit different the last time Dante had seen him, if anybody bothered to look closer at the older hero, he seemed to have a bit of green tinted skin.

It almost looked like Jak had taken a shower within green eco but it was very unusual.

Morene was the first to notice Jak staring at himself and placed a oddly-timed hand on the mercenary’s shoulder “Are you alright?! You are kind.. Of green.”

Jak squeezed his eyes and frowned, admitting his part in a experiment of Coruscant “I told myself I’d never do this again.”

Dante narrowed his eyes at Mar, “What do you mean, never do this again?!”

Jak frowned “I was a prisoner at home to say the least, not by my own fault anyways. You can connect the dots.”

[Morene Fellon]

Idly, Morene turned her head from Jak, letting Dante and him converse for a while. In the short moment of peace that followed within the group, Morene looked back, almost surprised at how quickly she went from lone wanderer status right into hunter in the middle of a freelance adventuring party.

Well... sort of adventuring, she thought! Closing her eyes, Morene imagined the flayed conqueror, the eco warrior, the Son of Sparda, the robot, and herself, the huntress, walking side-by-side in some sort of dramatic movie shot through the deadly alleyways of Coruscant. Goosebumps ran up the woman's arms; she had to admit, this entire situation was cool.

...Even if a solid chunk of said "adventuring party" disliked each other at the current moment, in which case, Morene could see why. It's not as if the Primes she had described in her head only a second earlier would naturally get along, so she had to thank the Darklings for bringing them together in such a way.

On that note... Morene pondered once more, a sly grin widening across her face as she reached down to her waist, a pocket more specifically.

Perhaps it was just her being too much of a geek, but the broad-shouldered woman couldn't help but take out her journal and begin writing about this! Morene had almost forgotten all about it; not writing about this Omniverse experience from the start was surely a mistake on her part. Then again, the urgency to write about her experiences before death-- the entire point of said journal, was sort of mitigated seeing as Morene technically couldn't die now. Supposedly, anyways.

The men before her continued talking, and Morene lagged behind ever so slightly as she took her rather fancy pen in the same pocket of her notebook and began logging an entry about the Omniverse. It was brief, for the huntress knew there was a much more interesting concept to take note of at the current moment; Nebula. Morene skipped a few pages after tabbing an entire section dedicated to said topics. For now, however, she'd have to focus on her current task. After all, taking down such a creature as Nebula would certainly help in regards to writing about it, yes?

Desman had finally noticed the woman taking note of these things, which he saw a bit redundant as there were, y'know, Liberator Aides on each of their wrists. Not commenting on it however, Desman continued to roll forward along with the group.

All that remained was silence, and tension within the Liberators, as they approached Tier Six. 

430 words.

[Nebula]

The Darklings were dispatched. The dark chip the sergeant of the small squad had possessed was destroyed. And the group of liberators were progressing onward. By all accounts, it was a successful first encounter with Nebula's forces. But the dark chip syndicate was anything but easy to take down, and one of their patrol squads being eliminated was hardly a setback to them.

Onward and downward, into the darker recesses of Coruscant the group went. Now and then, the occasional blip on their radar would alert them to the presence of a lone scout or courier of some sort scurrying by, quite pointedly avoiding the group in a very active fashion. The further down they went, the more frequent they became, until eventually...they stopped disappearing and just skirting around the group.

First it was just one. Slowly trailing after the group. Then there were two. Then five. Then thirteen. Then dozens of them. Lurking just out of sight, trailing and scurrying around.

Finally, on Tier six proper, a larger, more profound signal appeared. Dark purple, pulsing in a way to draw attention. 'STRONGHOLD LOCATED' the radar supplied, helpfully. The base of operations here, in Coruscant, it would seem. Eventually emerging into an uncharacteristically open scene, the detritus and wreckage of the tier cleared away, the group laid eyes on it. A large, open courtyard, before a massive factory. Ditches and fortifications had been set up there, charred and burned by the fires and efforts of battle. Here and there, countless bodies and corpses could be seen, of Nebula's forces and of the Empire's finest. Strewn about and broken, but nowhere near in numbers that would suggest anything approaching a true conflict or even a large-scale confrontation.

The only thing standing between the liberators and the factory, where the signal for the stronghold's entrance was indicated, was a plethora of darklings. Dozens of them, arrayed in a defensive fan around the entrance, weapons ready and trained on the group even as they appeared. Fifty-one pairs of eyes, beady and glowing red, stared at the group.

At least they weren't being subtle about it.

Leeeeeeet's get ready for another ENCOUNTER.

Currently arrayed before you is an entire force of darklings, all arrayed into a single unit: Darkling Base Guard. There are fifty standard soldiers, of varying types of aliens, robots, and other such life forms, as well as a few corrupted stormtroopers and Empire soldiers scattered among them. They are lead by a much more powerful unit, functionally the third-in-command of the Nebula forces here in Coruscant, behind only the Darkling Commander and the Darkloid in charge.

Darkling Base Guard: 50-strong unit, collectively with the following abilities:
-- All total, the 50 units add up to the following stat line: 4/5/4/5. Individually, of course, they will be much weaker, but given their numbers they are a significant threat.
-- They all possess the Survival power. They have the Physical Strength and Ranged proficiencies, and a myriad of weapons at their disposal, both melee and ranged. Some of them may have other weapons, such as grenades and flamethrowers, and thus have the Area Attack proficiency, as well.
-- They are not shy about scavenging things from their fallen allies, using their weapons (or even limbs) to continue the fight, or pick up fallen bodyparts to replace their own damaged ones.


The Darkling Base Commander has the following features:
-- A statline of 3/3/3/3
-- The Physical Strength, Ranged, Area Attack, Remote Control, and Ranged Materialize proficiencies.
-- The Survival, Regeneration (Basic), Basic Super Jumping, Master Acrobat, Burst Movement, Telekinesis (Advanced) and Enhanced Senses (Advanced) powers.
-- Wields a lightsaber, and various Force-related powers, allowing him to fight at several ranges effectively.
-- Possesses a super attack, and a lesser power-up, which will be used at some point during the fight.


Everyone, you have one week to make up to two posts, with 2000 words total between those posts. At any time, I may jump in to make a post of my own, to have the Base Commander direct his forces and make the fight more difficult.

Best of luck, and happy liberating!

[Simon]

Trailing alongside the rest of the self-proclaimed liberators, Dante spared another glance at the beeping accessory now fastened to his wrist. Graciously duplicated from Jak's own similar device, the invention deployed some defensive sheen around the hunter as long as it remained fastened. The built-in tracking radar proved handy as well, and in due time, the motley group obtained a lock on a firm target: a supposed stronghold of darkness holed up somewhere in Tier 6. The tracker led them to said location, an industrial zone refashioned into a fortress of evil. Between the many bodies present, the only ones standing were the Primes, and the Darklings shielding the sole entrance.

And there were a lot of them.

For a moment, the five liberators exchanged concerned glances. None of them had fought a group of foes as arguably sizable and as ferocious as this would be- not within the Omniverse, at least. Dante himself thought back to his battle for the Black Order, and the demons pitted against him. This would be a considerably tough fight, recalling how persistent every Darkling yet had proven to be.

"So, uh... Anyone got a plan?" Desman, the crimson robot, spoke up. Jak had given Dante a quick run-down of the different members and their names back up in Tier 4, so he would know what to expect from them.

Zedd, for his part, seemed to take the note of concern as a good point - one worthy of insult nonetheless. "Oh, please. Must I always be the one to devise an actual strategy?" Desman and Jak seemed to scoff at this, while Dante and Morene tried to remain stone-faced and professional. It all came as an annoyance to the former conqueror nonetheless. "Very well, then. I will make it simple: we will spread out and attack the enemy from all sides, forcing their efforts into smaller groups. I trust you are all capable of this?" Zedd outlined very clearly, though not so loud as to clue in the opposing Darklings to the idea.

Dante found himself nodding as the prospect, fingers curling up into eager claws. "Divide and conquer. I like it."

The overlord gave the devil hunter another cursory glare. His displeasure with the man's intrusion of their mission remained evident, but silent. "If the rest of you are having doubts, think of it as your opportunity to prove yourself to me." Jak sneered at the comment, while Dante simply rolled his eyes. As if they needed proof.

"Go!" came Zedd's bellowing command, and the liberators promptly split up. They fanned out across the ample yard, plotting a semicircle around the line of defense. The first Darklings opened fire in response, firing assault rifles and laser guns. Thought the various entrenchments and walls proved rudimentary at best, they still served they job somewhat in shrugging away enemy fire.

As Dante split off, his hands pulled out his own twin handguns, returning intermittent sprays of pistol fire to the Nebula soldiers. Pressing through the hail of bullets and lasers (and was that an arrow in there somewhere too?), Dante closed the gap with a breakneck dash. In a single motion, he shoved both barrels of his pistols into the eyes of one sharpshooter, and pulled the trigger. Two holes exploded from the back of the Darkling's alien skull, scattering bits of gore and bone.

Immediately, several soldiers set upon Dante, a couple brandishing their firearms while the others readied various blunt weapons. Rather than try to fight on the spot, the red-coat swiftly ducked along their perimeter to re-position himself. Ebony & Ivory riddled off several parting shots, nailing another of their ranks in the head.

The mentality seemed solid enough- keep moving, aim for the brains, kill them quickly. Easier said than done, though.

Unperturbed by their losses, the enemy kept pouring forward, slashing and shooting at the intruders. The onslaught just wouldn't let up, and Dante was getting tired of having to dash and dart around in such quick succession. His frustration growing, the son of Sparda leaped into the air and poured gunfire into the masses- but barely managed to shoot down one or two of the enemies, the helmeted ones protected too considerably. Several seconds into his flurry of gunshots, and Ebony & Ivory clicked dry in protest, earning Dante a bat to the head in his sudden exposure.

What are you waiting for?! An invitation? You have all that devil power for a reason, so use it!

No. Not yet. With one hand, the red-coat pulled out Rebellion and hacked it against the melee trooper. With the other, he yanked free Terminator and opened fire, blowing out the Nebula soldier's top half and scattering buckshot into the rest of the crowd. Whipping the lever shotgun around his fingers, Dante fended off two more soldiers with his sword; in the next moment, he dashed away and blasted the two with another scatter of 12-gauge ammo.

In the process, however, the red-coat suddenly found himself in a literal new line of fire- a charred husk of a machine, unloading a gas-powered flamethrower. A tsunami of burning pain coated his body, but Dante forced into action, leaping into the air with streaks of flame flowing off him. This only made an easy target for the rangers among the Nebula troops, peppering the devil hunter with plasma and lead. Gritting through the pain, he generated a magical glyph and kicked off of it, quickly throwing himself out of range for a safe landing.

Now! Do it now!

But he refused.

Cocking Terminator again, Dante stumbled back onto solid ground and whirled around with the barrel. As the pyromaniac machine turned to face the liberator, a high-caliber slug punched a hole through both it and the fuel tank mounted on his back. Petrol poured free from the gaping metal wound as the robot stumbled back, creating the disgusting and very flammable puddle it collapsed in. The instant the pilot light hit the ground, the entire fuel spill exploded into a brilliant fireball, engulfing the wounded firebug and scorching several other unsuspecting Darklings in turn.

Who knows how many of them Dante had actually killed? Those caught in the flames continued to march, knowing no pain and no fear. A spin-click of the shotgun's lever said they would be no more fortunate than the others.

1085 words. Used Rebellion, Ebony & Ivory, Terminator, Air Hike.

[Jak Mar]

Welcome to Jak’s Inferno. The 7 floors of the darkness only described in someone’s worst nightmares. The quadruple crew sped to Tier 6, crawling ever closer to the dark mechanation  known as Nebula.

The industrial sector of Tier 6 smelled even worse in person. Someone like Daxter would get a cheap laugh in at a serious situation. But nobody was laughing in this nightmare.

The eco warrior observed the group, listening for the familiar sound of the liberation devices who would lead them to their next fight. Jak updated the Son of Sparda on everyone who crossed their paths in the group while they observed the tier.. Lord Zedd loudly declared he had to  plan strategically while bolstering comments that would either annoy or serve to fire up the group.

They stopped as a boisterous industrial section, only to find darklings and a lot more surrounded it making the city factory only much more ominous. When the leader talked, people often listened. Jak needed to follow suit and listen, paying attention to what Zedd was explaining.

Zedd’s words beckoned fighting these creatures and making it to the end.

No matter what the villain believed, he had a great planning ability. It wasn’t worded in a way that appealed to all parties.

Desman, carrying his dark sword on his shoulders, eyed the group, shocked at the number of darklings they had to face. “Well, what now?!”

Lord Zedd growled, almost groaning in frustration “Do I have to plan everything myself? Jak raised his eyebrows in annoyance as he couldn’t help but turn back toward the makeshift leader of the group.

Jak could be heard mumbling in the back “We do our best.”

Dante and Morene  listened to Zedd’s positive words and let his insults float to the darklings instead.

Zedd pointed his own long, wooden stick at the darklings “Everybody, what the hell are you waiting for?!”

“GO!”

All the group formed a circle around the large group of inky pool of darklings around them.  This was not going to be a easy fight and Jak tensed, annoyed about it.

The voices inside Jak’s head were arguing over using his dark and light powers:

His superego soul-like form screamed at his Id not to tempt him in this situation.

“What do you mean, he can’t use me in this situation?!”

Light explained to him in a logical situation.  These creatures were completely corrupted  and nothing could be done to save them .

The Id devil-like form muttered “What am I supposed to do? Let Jak have ALL the fun?!”

The angel grabbed the beast’s form “Yes… Yes, you are.”

Jak didn’t have time to listen to his forms argue in his head as he ripped his hand off his forehead as he went back to business.

The fight was filled to the brim with several laser blasts, one Jak didn’t have a good experience with at one time. This time was going to be different.  Jak switched off to his blaster as he shot one of the corrupted stormtroopers in the head. It wasn’t Jak’s first time shooting stormtroopers and this  wasn’t going to be the last time. He aimed the gun at one corrupted stormtrooper as another one tried to shoot Jak. Jak bent and ducked as he let the other laser beam shoot the other completely in the head. These darklings didn’t even care if they hurt each other in the process of trying to kill the liberators.

It took some time to make sure Jak was alright, but his shirt looked like swiss cheese. “FUCK! I got these clothes two years ago!” “COME ON!’

After several shots of the blaster, a clicking of the gun was heard, and he used the butt of the gun as a baseball bat.

He swung the gun and smashed it into another smaller darkling that dared to make its move against him

He cracked it hard against the creature.

“Come on Jak,  you know it's for survival.”

“Stop denying yourself.”

Jak growled and reloaded the blue mod onto the morph gun as another darkling was squashed in the process.

Soon, after some of the darklings had fallen or appeared to be slain, Jak let loose on the darklings with his Vulcan fury, which pushed back some of the creature’s defenses and made a few darklings drop their weapons from grabbing their hands from bullet burn.

Jak had kicked a plasma weapon and was using it as a combined vulcan fury/plasma type combo.

But Jak was forced to strife back as a grenade was about to hit the area a decent amount away from where he was at.

A loud gun-like bang went off nearby as it alerted the group of Liberators. A few beasts had fallen onto the grenade and exploded with it instead of Jak.  

“Well, lucky me.”

It also left a nasty brown mark in some of the area as well.

Desman used his energy sword to cut some of the other creatures who were trying to crawl and get back missing limbs trying to do all they can to cut the liberators..

While he did what he had to do, it gave Jak room to focus on the darklings who crawled on like terminators.

“Fuck, do they have no fear of us?!”

Jak wasn’t sure how many were left, as Darklings kept trying to pick themselves off the ground and repair themselves.

He growled as he took a running jump and hopped over one of the beasts loading the red mod and letting it grow and grow.

He aimed it toward the ground as soon as it was big, the red  energy wave lifted several darklings off the ground and sent them flying into other bigger creatures who were doing the same as he fumbled to load  another shot as he had to use his speed to duck and dodge more of the same blasts.

But these blasts were coming from a distance. He had hoped he had cleared enough room so those darklings who survived would get another dose of red energy spreading among the ground.

Meanwhile the Strategic villain named Zedd used his own way of fighting to kick off any other darklings around them.  The taller female took the time to back to Zedd and hold off darklings with a combo of moves.

“Watch where you are going..”

Words:1087

Jak used Blaster, Vulcan Fury and the Wave Concussor.  

[Morene Fellon]

Why, of course she was going to kite them! Morene was about to roll her eyes at Zedd of all people having to devise that plan to rid of simple zombies in front of both a demon hunter and a "cleanser of the undead;" a title the woman was proudly given to by the people of her homeland. Fortunately for the flayed man before them, Morene had a lot of patience, and found the man quite charming!

...For reasons unbeknownst to even her, yes, charming. Endless snarling and chaos ensued as the Liberators silently followed up with their plan, Morene clicking her tongue as she did what she knew she did best; kite.

Kite, kite like I was running and gunning a horde of infected, feral wolfmen, Morene constructed in her head, a bit... disappointed realizing she's done just that before.

It was strange, really, she continued to think ever so casually as she raised her rifle behind her and fired from her hip, it's always the normal folks who give me the most trouble.

But, as cocky as Morene thought she was being at the moment, reality hit her as she continued to circle the terribly polluted factory, as did the makeshift lead pipe weapon of a passing Darkling in front of her. The huntress didn't have much time at all to look around at shoot, thankful the Darkling was short enough to find her ankle of all places a target.

Still, even the shiniest of power armors couldn't stop the terrible stinging pain of a stubbed toe, and almighty, she thought, it hurt like one.
...Well, that's how it worked in the Omniverse at least.

Holding back the temptations to swear the lightest and most innocent of swears, Morene put her hands forward as she fell from the sudden strike; her gauntlets skidding along the floor afterward. None of this had Morene worrying up until the point she saw at least a dozen Darklings surround her before she could even put her feet on the floor.

Before she knew it, he huntress felt herself bleed.

The horrifically unnatural stench of her wounds and the Darklings in general were quite headache-inducing. Though, that was the least of her concerns at the moment. Claws dug into her ankles, the feeling familiar enough to the woman, but very unpleasant nonetheless. Stomping of feet filled her ears from all sides; she was cornered. Groaning, Morene raised her arms as the other Nebula soldiers beat at her with whatever weapons they had readily available. Breathing in, Morene really wished she had some better form of crowd control, but...

Exhaling, Morene grasped at her hip; the four Darklings in front of her graced immediately with a wide sweep of her butcher knife of a sword, Judgement. Of course, the attack connected, to varying degrees of success for each of the zombies. One immediately had their jaw sliced open, another their neck, one their scalp, and the last one she barely grazed on the cheek. Of course, none of them had much time at all to react when the woman started hacking at their comrades as if they were bushes.

Her strikes were not as graceful as she usually imagined, definitely. However, the sight of the Liberator slashing away at about twelve Darklings surrounding her was quite the experience for her Prime allies. Zedd, caring less, continued executing his plan very well, Dante clicking his tongue as he realized she didn't need the help he thought she did, but... As for Jak and Desman, they were not pleased with this situation much at all, one or the other worried or frustrated with Nebula's existence at the current moment in time.

Of course, in the tiny, chaotic amount of time that followed, a few things were realized; Jak, Desman and Morene found themselves standing shoulder-to-shoulder, Jak and Des using their Blaster and Cutlass respectively to slice away at the Darklings before them. Something seemed... Off about the eco warrior however, though Morene bothered not to care; the sudden burst in his abilities was pleasing enough to observe.

In the meantime? Zedd, of course caring little for the mooks that found themselves greeting the sudden reality of approaching his lightning rod of a Staff under the storm of his wrath, had painfully gestured to Dante to take care of the guard readily approaching. The commander would have to wait, Zedd thought, mumbling under his breath.

As for the guard, there was no time to wait. Lowly, the beast roared into the heavens of Tier Six, if there was such a thing, and charged forward. The Cyberman that the Liberators had faced beforehand was practically nothing in comparison to this monstrous being, and it'd only get harder from here.

Time seemed to slow down for the huntress, however. Gulping, the woman realized this might have been a bit much to handle so quickly.

Coming back to her senses only a second later, Morene Fellon of Creedmoor grinned ever so lightly. A true test of her abilities finally came.

840 words; Jak used Blaster, Desman used Elemental Cutlass, Zedd used his Staff, and Morene used Judgement.

[Desman Black]

Desman muttered something about Zedd being the leader in reponce to enraged answer he got from his question. Of course that didn't stop anyone once the actual plan was placed out there, which was actually a good thing now that Des thought about it.

Rushing off to the far end of group seemed like a good idea at first, making it so the darklings were trapped wall and the liberators, until the Darklings started to sorround the crimson red robot themselves. Slashing though the odd arrangement of beings didn't seem to help, as the broken bodies or their teammates just picked up the scraps and used them as weapons, nor did the actual weapons they had, as the machine got consintly bombarded with different types of ammunition and edges and the various colored lights threatening to confused the metal skied liberator. In trying to help, the female voice inside Des's head pointed out about a garnade welding enemy, close enough to stop a decent amount of the darklings in their tracks if one was missing fired.

With a charged up Elemental Shot, Desman managed to push quite a few back into it, allowing them to drop the one he was about to throw at the liberators which somehow managed to get grouped together. Everyone was only disrupted for a second before going back to fighting which their fantastical choice of weapons, Jak, Des and Morene seeming to rush past each other fairly regularly, with Dante and Zedd seeming to spread out from the other three with the remaining darklings getting more desperate, a leader with great power even threatening to emerge from within them.

Word count:277

[Morene Fellon]

Things were not looking hot for the Primes at the moment. It didn't take Morene's decent observational skills to notice either; all of her comrades were being bombarded left and right by more and more Darklings, and as time went on, it seemed as if Nebula himself granted them the strength to take down the Liberators. Though, of course, the group of hunters were not about to let that happen; they'd fight hard and true, not to die here.

On the other hand, Morene did end up being one of the few in her group that had noticed the approaching guardsman. Chuckling lightly to herself, Morene found the "man" in the word "guardsman" to be quite the inappropriate assumption.

Of course, she didn't have much time to find amusement in this situation. At the moment, her comrades were at a risk of dying.

Dying.

What does that mean here? In the Omniverse? Morene asked herself these questions, albeit without the time to answer them, seeing as now she was making a mad dash towards the guardsman as Dante approached it with alarming speeds, figuring the two hunters would be better fit for the job than the other Liberators, admittedly. Or, so the woman had hoped, anyways.

Clenching a fist at her free hand, Morene aimed her forearm forwards at the beast steadily approaching Zedd at the moment; the flayed man was standing, underwhelmed by the threat inching closer and closer to him. The beast had no sense of urgency to rush forwards, but... Soon enough, the guard of the factory's gate looked down to find a thick wire running into the gaps of it's strangely proportioned gauntlets; Morene's grapples.

Shooting herself forward, Morene knew she was to brace for impact, otherwise she'd have been greeted with a fistful of dark energy-infused metal. To compensate for this fact, the huntress looked on at Dante dashing forward, shouting a very makeshift plan in the tiny amount of time she had to spare before coming into contact with the guardsman.

"The legs, please!" Morene yelled, though much more gently than she wanted to. Probably over the fact that she was zipping into a giant monster at about 70 miles-per-hour, but thankfully she could see Dante nodding his head at the corner of her eye.

Clicking his tongue, the Son of Sparda drew his sword Rebellion from the air, watching as the monster flew it's free hand towards Morene's face. He couldn't let that connect, not in a million years.

In the matter of a single second, Dante himself had zoomed in the general vicinity of the guardsman in what seemed to be the blink of an eye, placing the palm of his hand on the pommel of his greatsword-like weapon. Pushing it through as if he were driving a nail, the redcoat aimed his sword at the tendons of the guard's legs; a viable weak point to target considering it was one of the few places without thick armor.

With the speed of two vehicles crashing into each other, Morene had closed in on the beast now roaring in pain (if such a concept existed to them), wrapping it's own arm around it's chest. Using the momentum gained, the woman had raised herself above the creature, taking her sword arm and jamming the tip right into what she felt as the creature's clavicle bone. The beast did not have time to react to both of these attacks in such quick succession; it simply flailed until eventually it shook both of the Primes off.

Still, even with the resistance, Zedd at least could see the forces of Nebula were finally waning. Jak and Des were holding off the last remaining Darklings, and admittedly he needed to give credit where it's due towards the two hunters in front of him making almost easy work out of the giant beast.

Laughing maniacally, the conqueror found the rush in his chest to call his allies, as incompetent as they were to him, to battle. Or, rather, to finish said battle.

"THE COMMANDER APPROACHES! We end this NOW!"

680 words, final post.

[Lord Zedd]

The divide and conquer approach had proven effective in the end. The liberators were working their way through the troops, who had become worthy opponents when in great number. Still, the ragtag band of primes were each earning their salt in this brawl. The crowd was thinning, and the metaphorical light at the end of the tunnel was in sight.

Any warrior knew that situational awareness was a valuable part of their skillset. Just as it was important to account for the location of all of one’s enemies, keeping track of allies was just as mandatory. He didn’t mean to be so helpful, but Zedd’s loud and maniacal laughter from the middle of the horde prevented his teammates from forgetting exactly where he was. Whether that was a benefit or not was an opinion that differed from person to person.

Unfortunately for Zedd, his triumphant cackling caught the attention of the Darkling Commander, who made the decision to silence the loudest of them first. The Commander snapped his wrist to his side, brandishing and igniting a red lightsaber blade as he did. A stray Darkling was hurled at him from the side, but the Commander struck his fallen kin from the air. Nothing would slow his advance.

Zedd’s attention was temporarily pulled from the hulking monstrosity. The dark lord drove his bladed staff through the skull of a particularly persistent Darkling, which continued to struggle long after it should have been dead. He slammed his weapon into the ground and pinned the Darkling downwards, forcing the last bit of life from it.

“Minion of the Nebula, cease your futile struggles and give in to the inev-”

Zedd’s taunt quickly degraded into unintelligible squawking as he was struck in the gut by the Commander and launched across the battlefield. After a few bounces and a little bit of rolling, Zedd climbed to his feet. He was visibly shaking with barely contained fury, yet he kept his voice calm as he addressed his newest foe. The others were wrapping up the generic infantry, so it he would have to take the Commander alone, for the moment.

“Oh, you strange being, I don’t envy you and how you’ll spend the final few minutes of your existence,” Zedd slowly spoke through the rage that threatened to burst forward. “I hope you don’t have any absurdly deformed children that will miss you when-”

Once more, Zedd was interrupted. This time the Commander held his free hand upwards and unleashed a Force Push that threw Zedd backwards telekinetically. The screaming overlord once more bounce himself facedown on the street after an exhilarating tumble. This time he quickly rose to his feet and let out a roar of unbridled fury.

“I will learn that sorcery, techno-cretin!” Zedd bellowed as he held his staff upwards, and his skin actually glowed a slightly brighter shade of red. “But I will forget you!”

The challenge was made, and accepted just the same. The Commander broke into a sprint and charged directly at Lord Zedd, who didn’t budge an inch. Instead, he merely unleashed a lightning bolt from his staff and into the Darkling. The bolts of electricity wrapped around him and should have slowed the Darkling down, but it continued its determined charge with no trouble. Zedd also remained unphased, and quickly grasped his staff in the other hand as well. He swung his weapon downwards at the Commander, who countered just as quickly with his lightsaber. The two held their weapons in a firm lock for only a moment.

Zedd kept quiet this time, though whether it was because of an intensive focus or he had simply run out of insults for the time being was anyone’s guess. Instead he pulled his staff back far enough for a good wind up, then slammed it into the Commander’s face. The Commander was stunned, but he still suddenly swung upwards with his lightsaber, dragging it across Zedd’s exposed chest.

The Darkling finally showed an emotion: surprise. It appeared stunned that a direct lightsaber strike hadn’t completely incapacitated its opponent. This look once more enticed Zedd to emit another gleeful cackle.

The two began a brutal exchange of blows. There were no coordinated martial arts-like maneuvers. They were completely out of sync, each getting a free shot in and allowing the other to land their own blow during the recovery period. Zedd was impressed by the creature’s resilience, and certainly noticed that every strike was plenty powerful. As the throwdown wore on, he finally let himself be knocked backwards by a particularly devastating slash of the lightsaber.

The Commander held its weapon ready for another round, but then saw why Zedd had allowed the brawl to end. He was surrounded. Few Darklings remained, and the others were on all sides, and prepared to all strike simultaneously. Once more, Zedd let out a sickening laugh.

“I’ll give you the same choice I gave your brethren,” Zedd announced, showing his mock mercy. “Screaming or grovelling.”

[Nebula]

The base commander slowly surveyed the scene around him, his helmeted gaze providing no insight into what he was thinking. But even a fool would have realized the situation he was in was a losing one: five against one was seldom good odds. They were terrible. Slowly, ever so slowly, the posture of the man took a less hostile edge. The point of his glowing blade dipped, just an inch or two, his head turning back to face front, toward Zedd. And he lowered his gaze toward the ground, his blade dropping another half foot, his free hand going limp, arm falling to his side.

It was the posture of a defeated man.

...the sound he made, however. Was not the sound of a defeated man.

A horrible, artificially modulated and regulated tone, spat out from the muffled, corrupted speakers and projectors of the full-face helmet he wore. Crackling, and full of static, and in impossibly deep, reverberating bass tone. A cackling noise, warbling and shifting in pitch, higher and lower with each successive iteration of the sound. It was not a noise of mirth, or the arrogant laugh of someone who still had more cards to play. It was the last, wordless chortle of a dead man walking.

Mid-laugh, he went dead quiet, and it was a blur of movement. His lightsaber flung out of his hand. Spinning into a bright, scarlet disc, it whirred and buzzed, like a great sawblade as it rocketed toward the redcoat wearing devil hunter. A momentary distraction only.

A gesture of the opposite hand picked up a dozen chunks and shards of his own broken underlings, all sharp edges, sparking wires and black oozing hunks of unidentifiable meat, and flung them at Morene. Disgusting, amateur, easily avoided. But messy, and a good distraction.

A sweep of the leg, throwing up a cloud of dust, and a wave of the hand to launch the airborne grit and particulate into the face of the eco warrior. Debilitating, painful, and unequivocally distracting.

And a swift, powerful stomp from his last remaining limb, sending a rippling shockwave and an eruption of earthen spears and spires, battering and forcing the little robot, Desman, into a defensive retreat to occupy his time.

It all took barely a second, the blink of an eye, and suddenly the theatrics of the 'surrender' and the long, insane laugh became apparent. All a ruse, to buy time to plan out and formulate his last ditch attack. And it had been effective, four out of the five Liberators now soundly distracted, if only for a moment. Leaving him time to launch his true assault on the remaining, fifth one: the ringleader, the one so arrogant and who dared to give him orders.

Baleful red eyes glared from the visor of the base commander's helmet, the lenses seeming to bubble and roil at the heat of rage and darkness brewing up within him. A mangled, distorted snarl screeched from his helmet's speakers, and he lurched forward, the ground at his feet exploding in his wake. Each step was like a thunderbolt, throwing up a huge cloud of dust and ash, gouging out a small crater in the ground, as he made a headlong dash, for the dark conqueror. Dark, viscous flames flared up around his body at the third step, and the air around him rippled and shimmered. An emblem on his chest appeared: the same as had been on the radars of the group's liberator aides. It shifted, rotating ninety degrees and a sharp click-hiss sounded.

He reached Zedd next second, the galactic warlord ready for him and meeting the charge head-on. The impact was monumental, and they both went rolling into the dirt and dust. Zedd's staff was seen spinning away, spinning end over end in a metallic arc to have the sharp point embed itself in the chest of a darkling still clinging to life, ending its existence for good. From the dust cloud, a series of blows could be heard exchanged. No grace, no finesse or fanfare. Just brutal, bone-crunching blows, traded back and forth. The once-great tyrant was unquestionably the tougher of the two fighters, able to take each hit in turn and dish out another in kind. But the base commander, in his frenzied, berserker state, was much faster, his own blows coming in faster, landing three for every two the tyrant struck him for.

For several seconds they went at it, until it was all over as suddenly as it began.

The other liberators, freed of their momentary distractions, regrouped and rallied together. In a series of surprise attacks, staggering the lone nebula soldier, he was pushed this way and that, knocked to and fro by a series of blows and weapons and strikes, leaving him to collapse on the ground, on his knees. "You...will never...best us...Nebula is darkness itself. It has many heads...this is but one of them..." A wet, rasping chuckle came up from the commander. "...but go on...continue your fight..." His entire body burst into flame, and in the blink of an eye, went off in a cacophonous explosion, throwing the entire group flying. It did little damage, but the blast left a dreadful ringing in the ears of them all.

Seared into the ground, where he had been sitting, was a message. 'Our leader will be waiting.'

And hovering above it, just a foot off the ground, was another dark chip.

Encounter complete! You have access to the Nebula headquarters in Coruscant, and to the final step of your mission in this verse.

Everyone involved suffers 4 damage, and the following additional effects:
-- Jak suffers an additional 2 damage
-- Desman suffers an additional 3 damage
-- Dante suffers a Minor Injury: Scorched
-- Morene suffers an additional 1 damage
-- Zedd suffers several Minor Injuries: Pummeled

The injuries do not add additional damage, merely explanations for the damage sustained.

There is a dark chip left over, from the remains of the base commander. You may deal with it as you all see fit. The factory headquarters, and the portal to Nebula Space, lay open and waiting for you. Everyone has three days and 600 words to decide the fate of the dark chip and to progress onward. Best of luck.

[Lord Zedd]

As always, Lord Zedd remained unimpressed. His allies, his enemies, the battlefield... even the streetlight over there was an annoying drain on his patience. For as much as he hated pretty much everything, though, the sight of another dark chip was truly interesting. It held the power to turn insignificant secondaries into machines of war. What could it do to someone who was already powerful?

Jak raised his gun, preparing to blow it into oblivion like the last one. All of a sudden, Zedd snatched his ally’s wrist and lowered the weapon. Jak, and the whole party, looked to the one who fancied himself the leader of this little soiree.

“I think I’ve seen enough destruction of raw potential,” Zedd said in a remarkably calm tone. “They’re getting stronger, and I believe the time has come to turn their power against them.”

“Look what it did to them,” Dante commented, crossing his arms. “How do we know it won’t make one of us a mindless slave like them? Better to just get rid of it.”

“Because we are not fragile minions,” Zedd countered, while Jak snatched his wrist from the dark lord’s grip. “An all powerful being like me could easily handle its influences, and most of you should manage well enough. I implore all of you to reassess upgrading the robo-”

“You use it, then,” Morene interrupted another tiring rant.

“...What?” Zedd stuttered, and hesitated a bit.

“If you’re so certain you can handle it, then you take the chip,” Morene outright challenged him, now. “That way we don’t have to worry about anything going wrong, since you’re so great.”

Zedd turned to face Morene fully. “I do not use the the tools of the subordinates. I provide them.”

“Then I guess we’ll just get rid of it,” Dante said, nodding to Jak and Desman.

“Wait!” Zedd snapped as the two prepared to attack the chip, once more. He let out a groan of annoyance. This was a lot easier when he could just conjure up a loyal slave out of whatever the Power Rangers had left lying around. Unfortunately, drastic times called for drastic measures. “Fine. I will take it.”

Zedd snatched the chip out of the air, and looked at it in the palm of his hand. He could feel power radiating from it in several pulses. If he were to activate it, it would certainly be a boost. But for all his talk, he really didn’t know what to expect from the Nebula’s corruption. He would refuse to let it dominate him, that much he did know.

“Is this really a good idea?” Desman asked Jak, watching as the dangerously unstable individual commandeered the dangerously unstable power source.

Jak sighed. “Probably not.”

467 words.
Lord Zedd has taken the Dark Chip.

[Morene Fellon]

Not much was to be said after that.

Morene felt a bit amused cornering Zedd in such a way, though it wasn't exactly satisfying to see. There was a slight worry in her gut that at one point, this would turn for the worse. The metal-clad huntress also noted the ominously silent, barely standing factory in front of the Liberators not helping the mood at all.

Saying something along the lines of this is an obvious trap would even be considered smarmy among the group; of course it was. Nebula, whoever this being was, was laying out a little path for them to follow, and everybody knew this. The convenience of it felt so intentional in fact, Morene herself felt a bit overwhelmed at the power this creature must have had over them.

... Silence; the Primes looked at each other, walking towards the factory, and the portal that found itself in the center.

Then again, Morene thought, sighing, I do have a bit of a reputation for foiling perfectly constructed plans. She finished, looking on at the her comrades before her, heroes and warlords alike.

Certainly, they do as well.

Which is why they strode forward, flinging the doors of the building open. The area was dead, oozing with the remains of Darklings at every corner. The urbanized tone of the factory itself was too much for even Morene to bear, the pollution it created not helping whatsoever.  

A few corners and doors passed by the Liberators, and it didn't take long for the group to eventually run into the portal, waiting in the midst of concrete ruin and deathly unfiltered air.

All of the Primes stopped moving, observing the dangerous tear in existence that would allow them to enter what Morene assumed to be Nebula's dominion. They looked at each other again, Jak deciding to speak up.

"We ready for this?" the eco warrior's ears swayed as he turned his head to ask the question in hand.

Dante was the first to respond, of course. Itching to end this once and for all, the Son of Sparda chuckled. "Ready as I'll ever be."

The woman in the group took no time to answer with words, however. Through the bodily language of eagerly progressing forward and reaching an arm into the portal itself, Morene might as well have said "me first!" as if she were a child wanting to be the first in the family to open presents on an important holiday.

412 words.
Morene progresses into the portal.

[Jak Mar]

Jak was this close from destroying the other dark chip via his gun.

“Damnit, Zedd, Again?!”

Jak’s annoyance was showing and he pulled his wrist away from the leader of the group.

The group’s toughest challenge ahead lied in the mysterious factory in front of them. A simple tear would lead them toward Nebula itself.

A dangerous silence dared engulf anyone who got too close if it was broken but nobody said a word.

Pain on Jak’s face tended to hurt a bit, the eco warrior preventing himself from scratching it every so often.

Jak covered his mouth with his handkerchief, hoping to help this group get out alive.

Dante gave a quick nod at Jak and in return, Jak felt like he was ready as he watched Morene enter the portal and grasp at his guns.

“Hope Omni and the Precursors watch over us in this fight.”

It gave Jak time to have his eyes adjust to the darkness of the place in general. So many darklings in one place.

Light Jak seemed to be tickling Jak in a way, wondering what was on his mind.

“Jak, what’s up?”

“My friends… what if?”

The angel seemed to put a hand on his shoulder and said “They’ll be fine.”

That reassured Jak only a little bit before he nodded to the others and walked forward.

“Guys..”

The few that stopped eyed Jak. "Yes?"

"I just want to say it's a honor fighting with you."

Jak entered the portal

[Simon]

The devil hunter released a bated breath his chest had unconsciously been holding in. The dust had settled, and every enemy was revealed to have been put down in short order, fodder and mastermind alike. Picking himself off the ground, Dante's hands swiped over his clothes, dusting off grit and debris from the sudden detonation of the enemy commander. Everyone looked a little worse for wear after the battle (Dante and his coat seemed especially charred), but they all seemed in good health otherwise, thanks to Regal's devices. Zedd's plan had ultimately worked out, much to the liberators' relief- all except the former overlord himself, of course.

Only one matter left demanded to be addressed: the Dark Chip over the ominous remains, shining and animated like loot begging to be grabbed. The liberators knew better- even Zedd himself, who bore no intention to use it on himself. The other four surrounding him were arguably more adamant about not being a victim to Nebula's tools, especially for the sake of playing a lab rat. So those four came to an unconscious agreement; if the conqueror so dearly wanted to make use of this dark power, he should do so himself.

Allowing him to do so, however, might not end up being the wisest of decisions in hindsight. Only time would tell, though.

Curiously, not a one of them exchanged further words. Desman had started walking, then Jak, and in due time all five of the liberators were pressing on to the factory's double doors. The hands of Nebula were expecting them, and so these warriors could only march forward with conviction: a group determined to go beyond what their enemy expected.


The double doors of the facility were pushed aside with a creak, and the team was bombarded not with weapons, but stench. Rank scents of oil, metal, and pollution practically fogged the atmosphere of the main factory floor. Not a creature lay in wait, the only life being the droll of fluorescent lights and outdated machinery. The obvious path seemed straightforward enough- no need to split the party to find the core. A cacophony of footsteps echoing off each other provided all the noise of the liberator team as they moved ahead.

It didn't take long to locate what they were presumably looking for: a large portal, forged from material and debris of the factory. The structure competed with the Omniverse's own gates in design, but the ambient vortex of swirling darkness outed it as something else entirely.

As Zedd raised his arm, the Liberator Aide on his wrist went off in alarm. The radar of the device became fizzled and distorted, as if the device itself were being interfered with. A voice alighted instead:

"Warning: Dark power concentrations at overwhelming levels. Accurate scanning capability exceeded. Exposure will have unpredictable results."

The overlord looked back up, witnessing Jak follow Morene headfirst into the dark portal. Dante and Desman both had hesitated upon hearing the message, though still poised to move in. They exchanged glances while Zedd uttered some alien curse.

"Uh... hm. That could be bad," The devil hunter offered in admission. Hopefully said results would not include long-lasting or permanent effects.

Unperturbed but still quite annoyed, Zedd waved his staff to shoo aside Dante as he stomped forward. "Then we will exercise caution, and think before acting!" The mastermind grumbled, forcing himself through the portal with a triumphant stride.

Dante wanted to say the statement was ironic, coming from Zedd, but the certainty of it seemed lost.

598 words.

[Nebula]

NEBULA SPACE: ENTERED

Through the swirling, purple-hued gate that poured darkness off of it. One by one, the group of Liberators charged through it. It was every bit as unsettling as one of the standard gates between verses. A feeling of weightlessness, the world going topsy-turvy, spinning on its side crazily. And then a feeling of deep, oppressive suffocation, complete darkness. Crushing pressure, searing heat, and then nothing. Spat out into stale, musty air. It was dim, only a few, flickering lights giving any illumination at all. The darkness and warped nature of the place was already evident. Powers were thrown off. Devices ceased to function like they should. Weakness set in. The entire world seemed tilted slightly, thrown askew and at an angle.

Distantly, the sounds of intense battle could be heard. An occasional explosion, and a shuddering in the ground.

The group scarcely had time to gather their bearings, before they were bathed in a blinding glow. Two pinpoints of light, gleaming in the darkness like eyes. Shining, like spotlights of impossible intensity. Blue lights lit up along the ground, and more lights slowly flickered on overhead. A deep, reverberating rumble shook the area, as it was revealed to be another factory. Or the husk of one, gutted and transitioned, hastily and in a slapdash manner, into a bunker of some sort. Fortified, armored. Pockmarked and damaged, small craters and holes marring the floors and walls.

Where the eyes had been, there sat, on a throne of steel, with wires and cables ranging from smaller than a finger to nearly the size of an arm running to and fro all over it, another Cyberman. Like the group had encountered before, but adorned more ornately. Nearly a full head taller. Two more cybermen marched out of the darkness on either side, standing at attention to either side of the throne. Even sitting on the throne, the central figure was nearly as tall as its two compatriots.

"WE ARE THE CYBERMEN. I AM THE CYBER-COMMANDER. WE SERVE NEBULA. GUARD THE GATES." The voice that spoke was heavily synthesized. Sharp, grating. But measured and clearly articulated, the voice of an actual, living being projected through digital means, not some simple construct. "YOU ARE INTRUDING. YOU WILL BE DESTROYED. AND YOU WILL BE UPGRADED." Dark, purple flame sprang up in the eye sockets of the Cyber-Commander, and the eyes of his underlings both.

"DE-LETE." came the voice of the one of the left, both hands lifting, an arm cannon rising over each clenched fist.

"DE-LETE." intoned the one on the right, both hands rising up, crackling with electricity.

"DEEE-LEEEEETE!" the Cyber-Commander screeched, a powerful field of blue energy roaring to life around his throne.

BOSS FIGHT!

DARKLING LEADER: CYBER-COMMANDER

Cinematic Event!

You are now officially in Nebula Space. As stated in the rules, the following limitations are now in effect:

The following powers are completely Nullified in all Nebula Space zones:
-- Shapeshifting
-- Growth and Shrink
-- Mimic
-- Hive Mind
-- Phasing
-- Foresight
-- Time Manipulation
-- Regeneration and Healing

The following powers are Limited in one way or another in all Nebula Space zones:
-- Flight is restricted to only about fifteen or so feet off the ground. Super Jumping is likewise restricted to Basic.
-- Fusion is restricted to Basic
-- Enhanced Senses is limited to 20 meters
-- Insight is limited to direct line of sight only, and will only tell you a general sense of how strong a target is compared to you, as well as identify any moves if you have seen them use it before.
-- Telekinesis is limited to half the range of Basic level
-- Teleportation is limited to Basic level


IN ADDITION, unique to the Nebula Space in Coruscant, the following effects are active. They override the default effects, wherever there is a conflict:
-- Enhanced Senses and Insight are nullified completely
-- Communicators and Mobile Dataverse Devices cease to function
-- Everyone will gain the Teleportation power, at a Basic level


Party Actions:
-- Zedd: Defensive. Dark Chip will be used. Super Defense as needed.
-- Morene: Aggressive. Be distracting. Take the aggro.
-- Jak: Defensive. Ranged. T1 Power Up.
-- Desman: Defensive. Study the situation.
-- Dante: Aggressive. Harry the opponent. Goad them into melee, kite them with ranged attacks.


Expect the encounter to be written up within 24 hours.

[Nebula]

The declaration of the Cyber-Commander and his cohorts surged the party of Liberators into action to respond to the threat.

One Cyberman lurched forward, much more articulated and swift in its motions than the one fought previously, its electrified hands curling into fists. A fast, lumbering run had it tear across the dank, dusty factory floor to crash headlong into the fray against the group, sending them scattering and into their own formations. The eco warrior bore the brunt of the initial charge. Hammer-fists, sparking with lightning and leaving crackling, humming streaks of blue-gold light in their wake, swung with tremendous force. Each one would have been a devastating hit, likely flooring the long-eared combatant. But the nimble movements, the quick footing of the elven man let him evade the paralyzing, deadly strikes for long enough. Long enough for the devil hunter to spring up behind the mechanical assailant, the blade of his sword carving a screeching, clattering arc across the metallic plating. Not enough to do damage, but enough to throw off the frenzied assault and let Jak roll into a dodge to finally get out of reach, springing up several feet away and bringing his morph gun up, a well-placed shot of blaster fire eliciting a sharp pwang as it caught the Cyberman in one of its eyes, making its head jerk back crazily.

"Come on! That all ya got?" the red-coat devil hunter quipped, hopping from one foot to the other. The comment was met with a fierce, spinning backhand from his cybernetic opponent, which he ducked under. Close enough to make his silver hair stand on end from the ensuing whoosh and static charge in the air, but enough to avoid having his head turned into a bell.


The remaining Cyberman had zeroed in its target on Morene. A targeting reticle had rolled out from behind its head, sliding into place over its left eye. Slowly, with measured strides it had taken off to its right, both arm cannons raised and letting fly a continuous volley of energy blasts. A steady, dull basso rumble, and an accompanying thwoomp came with each shot, and a cacophonous boom as each one impacted the ground, or the far walls, tearing out more craters and huge chunks from the already decrepit, crumbling structure. Each shot was carefully aimed, but the measured, steady cadence of the shots made it easy enough for the huntress to leap, duck, dive and dodge out of the way, closing rapidly in on the shooter. The closer she got, the more difficult it became to dodge the shots, the Cyberman's methodical, plodding pace carrying it in a wide circle and the measured, unbroken cadence of its shots making finding the chance to dodge or avoid them, while still getting closer exceedingly difficult.

A distraction, just enough to interrupt the onslaught of plasma bolts, came in then. In the form of an energy bolt from out of the blue, impacting the Cyberman gunner in the head. The damage was negligible, but the wash of energy over its visual systems threw off its targeting. Two shots went wide, sailing in crazy, arcing patterns over the Huntress's head and let her close the distance completely. Her shortsword came out in a flash, and a dizzying series of quick strikes pelted the cybernetic combatant, eliciting a shower of sparks and a harsh, ringing clamor of metal-on-metal clanging, screeching impacts. A strangled, distorted cybernetic screech went up as the cyberman staggered back under the attacks, cannon-bearing arms coming up in a futile attempt at defense. A pitiful, wailing cry, mangled and warbling with the distortions of its distress went up from it. The huntress didn't let up, continuing the attack. Harassing, prodding and driving it back. Keeping it from firing again, seeking out a weak point to inflict some serious damage.


The two supposed leaders of each side of the engagement remained still, their attention locked on the other. Staring, wordlessly, while the battle sprang up and raged around them. "Do you intend to remain sitting there, while your underlings do all the work for you?" the dark lord demanded. The Cyber-Commander gave no response. "....so be it, then, mechanized monarch." And the galactic tyrant lifted his staff, thrusting it forward to unleash a bolt of energy that would surely devastate the immobile cyber-leader. But no such bolt came. "...what?" Zedd snarled, looking indignantly from his staff, to the Cyber-Commander. He raised his hand, intending to launch the bolt of power from there instead. A weak, sputtering fizzle of power flickered to life, but scarcely made it a foot before dying. "What is the meaning of this?!"

The only response was a brightening of the glow in the eyes of the Cyber-Commander, and twin beams of energy lanced out. Needle thin, and piercingly bright, they struck the ground just to the left of Zedd, and swept across the area at a sharp angle, raking across the tyrant's body from left hip to right shoulder. A blackened, burned streak was left in their wake, and a wake of agony, but the skinless warlord only tightened his grip on his staff. "Whatever pitiful machinations you have employed to reduce my powers, machine," he said threateningly, raising the arm bearing his Liberator Aide. "...will not be enough to stop me from dismantling you, like so much scrap!" In a blink, the dark chip contained within the device went to work. A surge of darkness sprang up around the dark dictator, starting around his arm, and spreading to cover his entire body. And in a flash, his entire form erupted into a blazing conflagration of bright, violet flames. Manic laughter came from within, a stark, red glow lighting up and blazing clearly visible from the visor adorning Zedd's face.

The Cyber-Commander recoiled, just slightly, straightening up his posture atop his throne. "DARK INFLUENCE DETECTED. POWER RISING. UPGRADE IMMINE--" the command never reached fruition.

A massive wall of fire roared across the factory. Like some massive, predatory beast, it rose up and crashed down over the throne of the Cyber-Commander, spiraling into a twisted, towering inferno with explosive, thunderous force. The few windows still remaining in the factory blew out, as the rush of flames blew everything around the cyber throne flying, and the swirling mass of flame, flickering and crackling, staining and scorching the floor black, continued to roar and wreak its toll on the throne of the leader of the enemy engagement. A harsh, stuttering cry went up from the flame-shrouded monarch, one of clear agony and pain. The other two cybermen staggered back, hands lifting to their heads. They writhed, movements jerky and unsteady. Stumbling this way and that, and piercing noises, full of static and filled with shrill, whining feedback noises.

The sheer pitch of the noises of agony made the Liberators draw back, just for a moment.

"DE-LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEETE!" came the voice of the Cyber-Commander, screaming through the pain. The blue glow of his eyes shone through the towering inferno, and with a crushing noise, and a smell of ozone, the dark flames were ruptured, shattering like glass. "YOU WILL BE UPGRADED!" From behind the throne, an array of weaponry sprang up. Plasma cannons, similar to the arm-weapons of its underling; a huge barreled weapon crackling with electricity, several weapons bearing similarities to the blasters of Imperial storm troopers, and what looked like a flamethrower weapon. The eyes of the cyber leader shone brightly, threatening to unleash its eye lasers again.

The remaining two cybermen regained their composure, and immediately lurched back into battle. Dark flame sprang up around them, eyes blazing red as they both intoned, simultaneously. "UP-GRADE IN PRO-GRESS."

Cinematic encounter over.

Boss Encounter time!

No damage sustained, beyond superficial injuries.


The Cyber-Commander has the following stats and abilities:
Stats: 4/6/0/6
Proficiencies: Physical Strength, Ranged, Area Shield, Remote Control, Ranged Materialize, Debuff
Powers: Survival, Regeneration (Advanced), Insight, Mimic

It has a wide array of ranged weapons at its disposal. It also has a range of shielding abilities, both for itself and its allies, as well as summoning bolts of darkness from the ground and from above to strike targets. It is constantly surrounded by an energy shield, which will weaken but not outright nullify attacks. It is also currently heavily damaged from being blasted by Zedd, with the dark chip. Lastly, it is worth noting that it is completely immobile, bound to its throne.

The two cyber-guards have the following abilities:
Stats: 3/4/2/2
Proficiencies: Physical Strength, Ranged
Powers: Survival, Regeneration (Basic)

They have nothing special about them, save for their sheer hardiness. They have a weakness in that they share the pain and damage of their commander.


Everyone has up to two posts, up to 2000 words, to deal with this threat. You have one week to make these posts. Have at it, and happy hunting!

[Simon]

There was no way to be certain of what the Liberators would find on the other side of the gate. Many ideas came to the veteran devil hunter's mind, and were quickly quashed by the memory that this place was not the world he knew.

The truth, to no surprise, turned out rather unpleasant. The landscape of the factory seemed to twist and bend in motions that would make a weak gut roil in confusion. Further disorientation came from a distinct lack of ability the Liberators suddenly found in themselves. Dante especially was bothered at the sudden disconnection to his amassed armory- only his link with Rebellion remained, however tenuous.

The warriors pressed on regardless.

More of those particular robots awaited their approach. Their circuits pulsed with evil and anger, burning with desire to undo the intruders before them. The two guards flanking the commander stepped forth to deal judgement.

They would not get far.

Dante had raked his blade against the melee guard's armored hide, and was moments away from a counter-attack when the Dark Chip activated. Roaring from Zedd's grip, a lash of dark energy reacted to the distorted space and swirled into a maelstrom of unholy fire. All three machines screamed in digital agony, a noise grating to the ears. Unwilling to face another inferno so soon, Dante stepped back, shielding his face with one arm.

As suddenly as it began, it stopped.

The devil hunter seized the moment, and with a burst of movement connected his blade to the Cyber-guard's head. His hefty blade dented one of the right-angled bars crowning the steel skull, but made no further progress. Dante quickly yanked on the handle, drawing a crude cut with the tip before the oversized toaster could react.

The red-coat doubled back, aside a wary Jak, surveying the evolved situation. Oh, goodness, that's a lot of guns. "Think you can handle that big one?" Dante nodded his head toward the Commander hurriedly. "I can keep the guards off your back."

Jak glanced aside in a moment of incredulity, but his body started to ripple with his own brand of dark energy. "I'll do everything I can," the Eco warrior replied, adopting a sure-fire determination and lurching his body forward into a sprint. With that, Dante smirked and turned back to the matter he had enlisted into: the swinging electric fists of the incoming Cyber-guard.

Like before, the half-devil just barely ducked under the haymaker, sparks ruffling at the tips of his pearly locks. Stepping past the machine's stance, Dante forced all his weight into his sword and whirled around. As the Cyberman looked back, its gaze met with the singing head of Rebellion as it crashed into the chrome dome, knocking it forward one step. This guy was tough, Dante would give it that.

The Nebula agent wheeled about in an attempt to backhand the interloper, but the target no longer stood there. He was instead traveling several feet into the air, somersaulting forward. Without an object lodged in its skull, the inbred oven shot a burning glare up at Dante, their fiery eyes meeting mid-flip.

"DE-LETE!"

Dante landed with a crack of tile, straightened up, and deflected an incoming punch with the edge of Rebellion. "You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Came a quip from Dante's lips, a devilish sneer on his face. The taunt rang on uncaring sensors, the enemy robot pressing on as methodically as ever.

This dumb robot seemed to contend with Dante's own agility, but it lacked the finesse and dynamism the devil hunter bore. So long as the son of Sparda could just keep the minion's attention, he felt confident it wouldn't be a challenge to keep busy.

After having two cross punches and a straight punch batted away by Dante's sword, the dark droid reared up one more. Instead of aiming for Dante, however, it faked out and curved its electric gauntlet toward the Liberator's weapon. As soon as it made contact, the sting of a thousand volts shot down the demonic steel and arched into the owner's grasp. With a cry of pain, Dante let go and backpedaled with both feet, putting slight distance between himself and the bastard toaster.

"You son of a-," the devil hunter spat, nursing the jags of pain overwhelming his right arm. He grit his teeth as the son of a hair-dryer clasped around Rebellion's handle, lengths of thundering energy cascading through the stolen weapon. With a thousand-yard stare and a new, electrified weapon in its grasp, the metal monster began to lumber forward, one dastardly stomp at a time.

"DE-LEEEETE!"


"I heard you the first time!" Dante retorted, frustration lining his movements.

He had mere moments to consider his options. He could recall the weapon, as his link to it remained intact, albeit faint; it would probably be just enough for one good tug.

He weaved under a wild swing aimed for his neck, the thunderous slash trimming down his sparking strands of white hair.

Trying to disarm it any typical way was going to hurt himself a lot more than it would hurt the machine. With a sturdy coat of armor like that, any plain fisticuffs would end in a similarly painful manner.

Dante dashed aside to avoid a swing to the chest.

He recalled how the robots all shared pain, and tried to steal a glance at how the flashy scene of the throne was playing out. Only an eyeful of lights were processed before the electric sword came singing back around. His attempt to divide attention cost him dearly, as the swipe for his stomach found purchase. Only a nick of the tip, but the hundred sparks were the salt in the wound.

"So how are you guys doing-?" Dante seethed out above the cacophony of the battle, torn between trying to see the condition of the others and figuring out how to get his sword back from this stupid iron-head.

1029/2000 words.

[Desman Black]

"Delete!" How came that's all they ever said, not that it really mattered, the robots were too dump to kill any of the group anyway, if that is what 'Delete' meant. That's what Des thought as he observed the battle, the others allowing him to came up with a strategy, and he found the one he needed.

The Cyber-Commander had entered into a death stare with Zedd, their eyes glowing brighter by the millisecond, soon their weapons would fire at the dark lord, and they sure had an awful lot of weapons. *phzz* A sudden burst of light appeared from overhead and behind Zedd, if any bothered to look there at that moment they would have seen the shot was fired by a free-falling Desman seeming to disappear  in a near intend, the shot he fired hitting right on target at the head, what was left after the shield anyway, but that's all that was needed. The sliver robot's calculations were thrown off just enough to allow the ones that didn't miss to be easier for the dark lord to dodge.

Desman himself had just appeared above the head of the commander and slashed down as hard as he could, of course it was more of an annoyance then a serious pain, especially when the 5-ft tech genius had started sliding down the throne, which to be honest, didn't take very long in hindsight.  "You will be upgraded." The cyber spoke in such a way that Des couldn't tell who it was directed at.

A sudden pain rose up Desman's body soon after, causing him to flinch. His response was an appropriate one of getting up in the air again. "UaAhhhHh!" The dark lighting had cme down from above just as quickly as the one's from the floor did, having Des's free fall to the ground be involuntary and unbroken this time. A shallow thud could be heard as the robot hit the ground, the hunk of metal doing the equivalent of heavily breathing in and out.

"So how are you guys doing-?" The sound of Dante's voice nearly startled Des after the attacks that had just hit him.

"wEl, Yu knoW, aPArt froM my TeChNOlagY bEiEng on tHe frITz anD haVINg bEen BeAten to uH puLp." Des joked as he pushed himself up of the ground. "I coWLd be bETter."

'And of course my speech unit is also out of whack, great." The metallic red prime thought to himself as he rushed back towards the commander and Zedd, shooting in rounds as he moved. 'Guess I have to fix that after we're done here.'

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[Jak Mar]

The group of ragtag heroes, showed more fight than the others, showed in the willpower of those liberatiors still standing.

The darkness portal seemed to absorb into Jak’s body into eco as the group faced the hardest boss they had ever faced so far. Grinding signs of factory gears seemed to move against each other as the hard sound of metal could only echo in the space.

Jak, holding a brief grasp on his gun, if by luck or pure skill had shot one of the commander’s personal guard’s eyes. This made the Commander screech in pain. This made Jak back up and frown only to almost be squished by a fist barely dodged by rolling around the ground.

The damage on the eco warrior had started to take a tole on the long eared man and he could feel the smell of dark eco and sweat dripping down his starting to tear clothing.

Jak didn’t have too much time to react as a blast of evil fire came out in a single devastating blast toward the unsuspecting metallic commander and its cohearts to screech leaving a sense of tinnitus in everyone’s poor ears.

The long eared anti-hero muttered something under his breath as he rolled across the floor, leaving one of the Commander’s fists to smash into the ground, giving him time to shoot his gun again. “Good timing, Zedd.”

The skinless leader might of been dark enough to not care or just chose to keep eyeing the fight in question. Instead, he was eyeing the red painted robot strangely, having a idea.

Desman was raising his energy sword as it kept the guard off Jak while Dante and Morene were attacking the other guard. This gave Jak a good idea at the time, but it was risky.

The eco warrior could feel tears of his shirt coming off and he could feel the familiar sting of sweat and dark eco dripping down his body as the tense sensation of dark eco and the rainbow om was mixing was crackling around his body.

Before Zedd and Desman could finish their argument, everyone heard a roar fill the room with echoes and the long eared hero was no longer standing there, but a familiar form that anyone who met Jak would of known.

The steady cracking of dark eco crackled around the dark monster determined to crack some machines into pieces. The beast had also felt a lot faster. The commander was his job but he had to get over to those weapons and destroy them.

“DE-LETEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!” The metallic beast cried hearing the roar.

The commander was trying its best to stop the beast from obtaining said weapons. Dark Jak made his way as there were electrified punches at the smaller long eared beast, only to swipe at air.

Dark Jak was using all four limbs as his feral attitude seemed to take over. It was focused on crushing and destroying now.

The others were causing pain to the guards, making the leader feel pain even more, making it harder for the Commander to focus itself on Dark Jak.

A fist slid across the floor at a vain attempt at trying to clear Dark Jak away but it ended up smacking its own throne and smashing some of the weapons instead.

The beast smirked and started to squeeze a weapon in his hand, hard destroying them one by one.

Desman made his own attempt trying to avoid the Commander as well, speeding up when needed to.

He sounded a bit funny as he was jumbled a bit but nobody didn’t seem to mind.

[Morene Fellon]

Not many words were exchanged between the Liberators, but a plan was formulating.

The plan? Simple, Morene thought, breathing as she ran forward in the void.

Take out the weapons.

At least, right now; and so she did. Or tried, rather. The chaos unfurling in front of the huntress was almost overwhelming for her. Morene wished she had time to think about what was going on, but the only thing on her mind and in her vision at the moment was the Commander sitting upon his flimsy throne, which happened to be full of guns and shield generators. Perhaps she'd have to drop the usage of the word "flimsy."

Holding her breath, Morene counted to ten, circling the center of the void the Primes found themselves in. Des and Zedd had the same idea as she did, or... So the huntress thought. Immediately, both the robot and flayed man aimed sights at the Commander. She sighed, keeping her movements as quick and silent as possible. Hugging her blade tight to her chest, Morene closed her eyes for a second, feeling the stress Nebula's domain put on her body.

She wasn't exactly sure what it was, but she didn't much care at this point. Rushing forward, Morene narrowly avoided a few energy shots from a nearby Cyberman, jumping onto the seated Commander a second later.

More shots followed, but not to worry. Using her free hand to grasp at the Cyber-Commander's face, Morene used all of her body weight to pull down the metallic figure to the ground. Rather, tried to; the huntress did however manage to shield herself from the oncoming blasters being vollied at her by the other Cybermen.

She was hoping it'd do more damage than bounce off the thing she was currently grappling, though.

"Jak, sweetie!" Morene called out, the most forced of smiles on her face.

"Wh--?!" the now-feral elven man looked over, almost being hit by one of the Cyberman's punches being directed at him. Thankfully, the barely-controlled Jak had time to listen in as Dante smashed the droid attacking him with the pommel of Rebellion. The clever usage of the blade impressed Morene, but... later, she thought once again.

On any note, the huntress took a second to crawl over the Cyber-Commander's shoulder and stab down at the gun-like device on his arm, continuing, "could you please aim at the arm for me?"

He wasn't sure what it was, but... even in this barely controllable state of being, something about her voice soothed him. Just enough to give her a quick nod in reply; a wave of anger influenced by his dark form rushed through the man as the noises of robotic voices, guns and blades colliding increased in intensity.

Breathing in, Dark Jak gritted his teeth, growling as he rushed forward. Morene closed her eyes as the Commander continued to wrestle with her, and her grip loosened. A knot tied in her stomach as she watched a Cyber-Guard push Zedd to the floor, before immediately doing a 180° and storming at her.

Almost preparing to jump off, Morene felt herself knocked back by a sudden, albeit small explosion following Jak's absolute savage clawing at the seated Cyberman's arm. Closing her eyes again, Morene instinctively launched her grappling hook to the ground, planting her feet on the floor. The huntress could barely hear the Commander's distorted voice saying "DELETE" once more as it held onto it's now injured wrist. Almost right afterwards, Morene smiled as Dark Jak immediately smacked away the Commander's arm as it attempted to repair it's now broken gun.

"Oh, dear," Morene mumbled as she turned to see the guard preparing to attack her.

Keeping a fist to her chest and hiding her blade from the oncoming Cyber-Guard, the woman began sucking air through her teeth in frustration. Morene wouldn't let that fist hit her. Launching her right leg forward, the huntress found the sound of her boot's heel colliding with the Cyberman's gut slightly amusing. Though the droid barely flinched, it gave the woman enough time to take her free hand and sock it in the head, pushing it over while it was dazed.

Fully expecting it to kick at her as soon as it got up, Morene took a step back as soon as the soldier of Nebula went for her ankles. The huntress coughed, gesturing to the bot and getting it away from her comrades.

"Come, nuisance--" 

"DE-LEETE!" 

The Cyberman immediately interrupted the woman currently towering over it, so loudly in fact the woman was taken aback by the horrid noise it made.


"...Alright, then," Morene groaned. Not wanting to waste her time further, the woman jumped onto the bot, feinting a stab to the side. Completely unaware of what was going on beyond what she could see at the moment, the woman smirked as the Cyberman she was on top of fell for her bait. Rather elegantly, Morene moved her arms away from the droid attempting to grasp at her weapon, using that time it gave her to to stab into it's chest.

In the short seconds that followed, the Prime could see fully the trouble her Liberator allies were getting into. Zedd was currently attempting to assault the Commander, Dante helping to detain the guard previously attacking Jak, Desman assisting Zedd in his noble attempt to keep the throne-seated Cyberman from repairing itself...

Sighing again, Morene stretched her neck, hearing a bit of a pop, right before going back down and "choking" at the Guard beneath her as it fixated it's gun on her.


This is going to take a while.

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