Zone E -- Highlands

[Karl Jak]

End Day 4, Morning

Begin Day 4, Afternoon

[Sterling Archer]

“Sure, you take Mystique and leave me alone with the creep who makes space-time his bitch. That seems fair.”

The blade end of said creep’s swiss voulge crashed through the tree I’d been hiding behind, balsa splinters spraying as I narrowly avoided being shishkabobbed. My luck was short-lived, however, as not a second later its owner appeared in front of me, this time swinging the ax-end horizontally in hopes of Antoinette-ing me. In a moment of panic I braced my 12 gauge vertically, the steel barrel denting noticeably as it barely managed to stall the heavy halberd. The force of the abomination’s strikes had driven me backward once again, despite efforts. I couldn’t keep this up for much longer.

“How about a little breathing room?” I asked, dropping my sawed-off onto the muddy forest floor as he hefted his polearm for another strike. I reached to my shoulder harness and quickdrew my pistol, firing off a single shot before his glowy greens vanished from view. I took the opportunity and darted deeper into the woods, spindly branches lashing my face and arms as I put distance between us.

“You can’t run from me,” a throaty voice whispered from far too close. I turned quickly to face the ebony visage of its owner. “You’re out of ammunition. This is over.”

“Yeah, I’m also out of patience,” I snapped, throwing caution to the wind and diving forward. I caught the shade around the waist and brought him down hard to the soggy earth with a damp thud. Blow after blow fell upon his glassy face, my bloody fists aching as I struck what felt more like stone than face. Predictably, I soon found myself instead pummeling mud, the coward vanishing from sight for what felt like the hundredth time. “Stay put!” I snarled, glancing around for where he’d wound up.

“If you insist.” The faint words hung in the air for a few long seconds before an audible bang rang out, the ensuing explosion tossing me nearly 30 feet like a discarded candy wrapper.

Groaning, I got to my feet behind one of the million and a half trees in the area. Taking this asshole down a peg would require something with a bit more oomph than a simple bullet or an expertly crafted one-liner. Luckily I had such an oomph-er at my disposal, and just enough auxiliary firepower to bring it all home. Without a moment to waste, I dropped my knapsack against my cover and fished around for the object of my affection. It was time to give the viewers at home a show, and pyrotechnics were sure to boost the ratings. Now I’d just need some kind of a distraction to prevent the piceous prick from miraculously blocking it or vanishing at the last second or something. Wouldn’t that just be a kick in the teeth.

A raspy, anguished cry suddenly drew my attention as something crashed through the brush, tumbling clumsily down the hillside. I immediately recognized the beetle-like wings of my ad-spangled companion as he cartwheeled into view, stopping a few yards from the pompous telepath. Cell was smeared from beak to toe with thick brown-green blood; evidently his own battle had not gone any better than mine. With what I could only imagine was the eldritch equivalent of a smile, the sorcerer stepped forward to deal the final blow. With no time to wax poetic on how much I’d miss the poor roach, I closed my eyes and began to focus as I set my plan into action. Hopefully Karl would allow me to summon in my special toy just this once.

“Tearen!” a familiar copycat’s voice echoed down the hillside. The ax-wielder came staggering through the foliage, grimacing as she clutched at a bloodied shoulder with her free hand. “Look out! He’s not down!”

At once the shade’s ghoulish peepers shot down to Cell’s prone body, the bio-android quickly rolling onto his side with glee in his eyes. His clawed hands, smeared in what now was revealed to be more mud than blood, cradled an orb of pulsing spirit energy. “Your bitch ain’t the only one on the block who can play posssum, 8-Ball.”

Tearen stumbled backward as the insectoid released the blast, the orb slowing noticeably as the former started with his space-time shenanigans once again. Unfortunately for him, that cop-out couldn’t reach far enough to spare him my wrath. On shaking haunches I stood, twenty glorious pounds of Russian anti-tank munition resting over my shoulder. Shoelace-tied to the business end was an extra pound of good old-fashioned American trinitrotoluene. Beaming with pride, I sparked my Syntech-issued flint and ignited the dangling wick. “Fire in the hole!” I cried, depressing the trigger. I basked in the spray of sparks as my rocket took off.

800 words on the nose, according to Wordcounter.
Using Dynamite and RPG-7 on Tearen Wover. 0/2 SP remaining.

Archer scuffled with Tearen, the former blocking and dodging hits while the latter teleported to avoid bullets.
Archer tackled Tearen and punched him in the dome a couple of times, to little effect. Tearen then teleported away.
Tearen tossed Archer with the explosion from Warp Burst.
Cell appeared and played dead for a bit before tossing a Ki Blast at Tearen.
Tearen used Time Manipulation to flee the attack.
Archer launched a dynamite and grenade combo.

[The Humble Sage]

The Sage glanced at what he assumed was the Danteverses’s version of the sun, staring down at the island with a kind of ambivalence that the Sage felt was ironic given the amount of importance that the fans and contestants placed on the outcome of the island’s proceedings. He squinted, the day was progressing quickly, he would need to find a good location to spend the night, one that was more secluded than the campfire he had slept next to the night before. The Sage found himself again disheartened by the sheer size of the mountains that scaled up before him. He could only assume an igneous origin to the island, given its scale and the size of the peaks before him.

That was of course assuming that the island was not created by Omnilium directly. By all accounts Karl Jak had a vast wealth of the stuff at his disposal. Not enough to rival such primes as Aragorn or the Emperor, but certainly enough that such a construction was not beyond his capabilities, was it? The Sage had to admit to himself that he did not know how Omnilium summoning worked when approached on the scale of something like an island. He could only imagine the scale of the necessary power, with that amount of pure energy at their disposal, it was not the slightest bit hard to see how they could become so arrogant and confident in their positions.

The Sage made a mental note to do some research on the subject, though he felt quite confident that the information would not be easy to come by. He would need either friends inside the empire, or friends who knew how to work from inside the empire. That was for later however, for now he needed to find a good place to spend the upcoming evening.

The Sage moves from E5 to E4

[Karl Jak]

Face to Face
Cell & Archer vs Tearen Wover & Malon

Explosions had become a common site on Syntech Island No. 17.

Unfortunately for Sterling Archer and Cell, Tearen Wover had spent nearly an entire year in a verse of hellfire and nightmares.

The eldritch warrior popped into sight next to Cell, who leashed a punch at his adversary’s head.  Tearen avoided the erratic swing and clamped a hand around the digit.  A beat later, Cell’s expression turned to horror as he heard a distinct crack as his hand was crushed like a discarded can of Pepsi-Cola.  The bio-android lashed out with his other fist, but that second effort likewise fell short.  A moment later, Cell was thrown aside like garbage.

Archer, for his part, tried to catch his adversary unaware.  Instead, he was knocked off balance by Malon.  Turning, the secret agent grimaced as the farmhand took the form of his partner.  A moment later, Cell-Malon buried her barbed tail into the man’s left leg.  The blade-like projection glanced off the bone and tore through the meat and flesh.  With the weapon failing to find purchase, Archer managed to half-jump, half-lunge to something partially buried under all the shuffling dust and rock fragments.  Malon pressed forward, but recoiled when Archer rolled over and lifted the shotgun.

“Bang.”

Malon, her form reverting back to her normal appearance, was thrown through the air and crashed against a boulder.  Her body left a smear of blood before she settled onto her haunches.  With his knee nearly sawed apart, Archer had some issue getting to a vertical position, but once he did, he took flight.

[spoiler]
Tearen and Malon win.  They gain Archer and Cell’s pick ups as well as the Item Pick up.

Cell takes 10 9.6 points of Accumulated Damage (-_-) <Includes Major Injury – crushed right hand>
Archer takes 8 points of Accumulated Damage (includes Minor Injury – bum knee)

Tearen takes 3 + 2 = 5 points of Accumulated Damage
Malon takes 6 points of Accumulated Damage (includes Minor Injury – ‘wrecked’ shoulder)
[/spoiler]

[Tearen Wover]

"C'mon Malon. C'mon!" Tearen gasped through grit teeth. Malon limped along next to him, breathing with shaky rattles. Whatever rib Cell had crushed inside of her was becoming problematic, especially given the fact that they were now hiking up an immense slope. The air was already becoming noticeably thin, despite the fact that they were hiking past rows of bountiful fruit trees.

Again, the nature of this island and its absent inhabitants perplexed Tearen. Normally when he traveled into a settled area, he could feel old memories and emotions clinging to the environment. A fight that occurred in a house or a joyous birth left psychic stains on a locus, just as bodily fluids might. Most of the time it was a tad nauseating to have to wade in and around such tumultuous echoes, but here, on this island, it was eerily silent.

Yes. Eerie. Even for him.

Not a single whisper of a bygone moment or silent grievance slipped across the psychic medium. It was more like no one had ever lived here at all, rather than having been forcibly removed. Tearen wasn't sure which possibility made Karl Jak more terrifying. A cough from Malon brought his attention back to the present.

"Rest?" he asked softly. The girl nodded.

The two Primes moved slowly over to a small half-wall made from cobblestone. The eldritch human glanced behind them and couldn't help but grin.

"Malon! Nectarines!" Tearen said with a reserved glee. He mentally plucked a few of the plum fruit free from their boughs and levitated them, using a fold of his soaking robes to form a makeshift bushel. They snacked in silence for a few minutes, with the rain reducing for a drizzle, and then abating slightly. An opening appeared in the clouds, casting forlorn lines of sunlight down upon the glorious vista that spread before them. Tearen felt the sob coming before he heard it.

He looked over at the Hylian girl who resolutely refused to let another heave escape her lips, if only because it had hurt far more than expected. The elder Prime put an arm on her good shoulder.

"Malon. What?" Tearen asked, trying to sound as gentle as possible.

"Oh shut up. You already know." Malon fired back, trying to surreptitiously wipe a tear off her cheek. The Shadow let out a soft sigh; it was true, he did already know. That didn't make finding the words to console her any easier.

"Mal...you're not a parasite. You're not a faker. This is all real, and you deserve to be taken care of." he said, taking a large bite out of his nectarine. He allowed the sweet juices to dribble down his human chin. The tactile experience may of disgusted him in the past, but he didn't take such comforting vulgarity for granted anymore.

"You're not a weakling either. Raw, destructive power is easy to obtain in this world. Your relative lack of it just makes your other powers more plain. Intelligence. Skill. Courage. That last one is very important." Tearen said, speaking a little more loudly. He had noticed a few Syntech cameras buzzing nearby, eager to capture this touching little human moment amidst the carnage.

"Uh huh. Why is that?" Malon quipped, taking a few small bites of her fruit. Tearen could feel that she was not entirely buying his spiel, however honest it was.

"Courage redeems this world, Malon. You make me proud to know you." Tearen said firmly. Malon was silent at first, then let out another sharp breath. Instead of turning into a fit of tears, however, the elven girl burst out into a fit of hitched chuckles.

"Oh man, that is sappy. Is that the kind of stuff that got you out of the Underverse?" Malon asked with a grin. She hastily scarfed down the rest of her snack and hopped off the wall. After adjusting the makeshift bandage Tearen had fashioned from scraps of cloak, she let out a pert sigh.

"I get what you're saying though. I'm still not sure I'm going to survive all this, even with you being so proud of me...but...hey, I'll get as many shots as I want, right?" Malon said, with brightened eyes. Tearen wrapped up their foraged bounty and slipped off the soaking cobbles as well, once again moving to support her as they walked. It was good that she was feeling better, but it would be bad if she strained herself. Tearen allowed himself a chuckle as well.

"Uncertainty can be just as much cause for optimism as pessimism."

And so, the pair continued up the slopes...

Moving Tearen and Malon from E10 to E7

[Handsome Jack]

Unable to find a curse powerful enough for the emotions surging through my mind, Archer and I limp away from our makeshift battlefield. If the fight had turned against us any more than it had, it would have been our graveyard too. It was just a slaughter back there. Sure, me and my pal got a few good hits in, but every time we turned a situation around, that MAN was there with some gimmick to throw it right back in our faces. And at the end of the day it was US walking away from the drop in disgrace and they were enjoying the fruits of victory.

Walking MIGHT be too strong a word, though. With his leg the way it is, Archer is moving at a snail's pace, and frankly I can't do much to help with my hand a mangled mass of bug-meat dangling at the end of my arm. In the end, I crouch ferally and help him to mount the base of my tail. At least we can move a bit quicker that way. Unfortunately, with my hand the way it is, I can't go to all fours, so we're still moving fairly slowly. I'd rather not buck my new pal off.

For a long time, neither myself nor Sterling say a word to each other. We're both lost in thought, thinking of how that fight went wrong and what we could have done to change the outcome. And... frankly, there wasn't a whole lot we COULD have done. We were just outmatched in every way. Children fighting adults. The Saiyan part of me relished the thought of such an overwhelming foe, a benchmark to strive toward and surpass. But the Freeza part of me seethed with rage that I could be so handily beaten by merely two foes. AND with my own back-up.

With little more than the chirp of birds and the rustle of the wind through the trees making a sound, we continue along our way.

Moving from E10 to E11

[Handsome Jack]

You know what's great about being drunk? Even when your body is wrecked worse than a Smart Car getting t-boned by a train and the pain is the only feeling you know... at least it won't be as bad as the hang-over you get in the morning. And right now, me and Sterling are living it up at the little cabana on the beach. It started off a a sullen, stern event as I helped him onto a stool and sat down beside him. But after the first half-dozen shots or so, we both started loosening up. Forgotten were the woes of getting our asses handed to us on the mountain, replace with camaraderie.

“Well, I woulda had them,” I said with a slur, poking Archer in the chest with my wreck of a right hand, the action shooting waves of pain through me. “AH FUCK!”

I'm so drunk I don't even feel the shock. Hell, I didn't even know I could GET drunk, but I guess even Pops ain't perfect.

Gritting my teeth, I continue, “I woulda has em, but YOU jusst had to get in the way, pal!”

With a laugh, Archer slaps me on the back and grins, “Hey! Fuck you! You didn't have shit. If you hadn't been jumping and running all over, we woulda took them out easy as pussy, I mean pie.”

It's hella lucky we aren't chilling on the stool no more (we decided to take a seat on a pretty soggy couch), because we both fall over, wracked with fits of laughter over his slip. Our gaiety (and it's pretty fucking gay, let's be honest) is interrupted as a grey steel box crashes through the roof.

“Huh,” I say as I watch it dangle from the broken ceiling beems via its parachute.

“Neat,” Archer replies in response.

Weren't really expecting THAT, but its appearance brought our harsh reality back to mind. We're still in the game. As much as it'd be nice to spend the next few days in a drunken stupor, and as badly injured as we were, we weren't dead yet. And that meant we could still win. We grab the item from the box and hustle back out into the failing light.

Grabbing the Item. Moving from D5 to E11

[Tearen Wover]

Tearen felt a sudden weight lifted away from him, along with the telltale glow of matter displacement. The elder Prime looked over where Malon had been a moment prior, and his mouth drew into a thin line. Good show, Karl. With a sigh, he bade his tablet to float around to his front, and tuned into the Colosseum live stream. Sure enough, there was Malon, standing in the blasted and bloodstained dirt with nothing but her dress and a brave look on her face.

There was, frankly, no way she was going to stay in the competition, however this fight turned out. He had done his best, but this had always been a very real possibility. At least, he hoped, she would be better mentally equipped to handle the situation. Immortality would be a much more potent salve for the Hylian than the other fighters. Tearen looked over her opposition. Only then did he start to panic. Slightly.

He hadn't been keeping as close an eye on the competition as he would have preferred, but he knew enough to recognize Victor Hendy, the vampire that Malon had warned him about. He had proven his predatory nature with flying colors in his time on the island, and the Shadow had no doubt he would prioritize trying to terrorize Tearen's latest spiritual daughter.

He let out a sigh and continued walking towards the nook between two crags that held Zone E's safehouse. He had hoped to spend the night there, recuperating with Malon and maybe even bathing, but now he had to be ready. Ready to mete out whatever punishment Higgs would deserve after this.

This wasn't to say that Tearen didn't have faith in Malon to perform well. She was a natural fighter and had the stoicism to keep her pain and injuries hidden, at least for now. Tearen also had faith in Victor Hendy. Faith that he would try to perpetrate at least one filthy act of debauchery on her before the fight was over.

But there was one person he had more faith in than anyone else. Himself. Tearen summoned his Omnilium honed powers, and whirlwind of energy enveloped him. Wounds sealed themselves, energy replenished, and when the scintillating episode was over, he was back at full power, ready to fight.

It was time for his finale.

Moving from E7 to Safehouse E
Tearen used x4 Medigels and x9 Elixers

[Tearen Wover]

It had just been a quick stop in the Zone E Safehouse. Tearen wasn't sure what he should be expecting for the accommodations, but he ended up being pleasantly surprised. It certainly wasn't a luxury hideaway by any measure, but it was well stocked with food and other provisions that his human body appreciated, least of all a cot. Tearen had taken a quick nap, allowing himself to fall asleep while going over available intelligence on other contestants. He had to assume that Cell and Archer were going to try and make a grab for the item drop in E4, based on their erratic movement.

He would have to get in touch with the bug if they got too close. He didn't want to waste more energy on sending them packing, especially now that he was back at full power. The elder Prime also kept flipping over to the Colosseum stream to see if anyone had moved yet, but it seemed like the time dilation between the arena in the sky and the island was rather extreme. All the combatants had slowly sunk into ready stances over the course of the few hours it had taken Tearen to ascend to the Safehouse, but past that, nothing had happened yet.

So, after his nap, he felt at liberty to take a quick shower and fix some dinner. He missed Malon's kitchen banter already; the girl truly had a talent for making delightful cuisine from slim pickings. In time, he was due to keep moving north. A sense of loneliness was brewing within his gut, and he did his best to keep himself distracted by mental exercises and meditative walking.

Tearen didn't pay much attention to the scenery; when you have memories of being omnipresent, some things just cease to be spectacular.

Moving from Safehouse E to E6

[Handsome Jack]

Back on the road again and back into the mountains. Why? No particular reason, I suppose. Not like I have a whole lot of good memories of the place. In fact, mostly bad ones. But the tablet had said there was another goodie up for grabs this way, so... even though neither myself nor Sterling were in any particular shape to tussle over it, I figured we might as well give it a shot. Maybe everyone was busy in their own fights and we'd have a free grab on it.

I guess Archer would agree with me, if he wasn't passed out again. This time, I let him get his rest, my tail holding him in place on my back as I trundle off towards the drop; He's earned it. Despite all the drunken bluster, I'd probably be dead if he hadn't been there. As it was, I counted myself lucky to get out with some relatively minor holes in my carapace and a crushed hand. Definitely coulda been worse. Heh... Coulda been better though.

Step by arduous step, I climb higher into the mountain range. By now, the solid buzz I had going on has turned into the beginnings of an alcohol-induced migraine. With my good hand, I rub my good eye and sigh. This event has NOT been kind to me. Everything was coming up Cell in the beginning. Grabbed a couple items, stole another. Solid work on my part. Then I got robbed by the Caillou and Seamus McAsshole. Right after that, BAM! Sucked into a fight against Sterling and Blueberry. We start hanging out after that, but aside from a few good drops, when we split shit went right back to hell. I'm beginning to think Karl doesn't like me. Especially after checking the ol' Power Rankings and see the huge drop he gave me. I went from 7th place right down to 16th and the fucking fight hadn't even been settled yet! I had considered giving him a piece of my mind about it... but decided the hassle of trying to hold the tablet and type on it with one hand wasn't worth it.

Anywho, continuing on!

Moving from E11 to E9

[Tearen Wover]

Tearen skidded down the sheer face of the cliff, leaving a trail of upset stone and dust in his wake. It wasn't completely vertical, so the ex-enigma was able to use fits and spurts of his telekinesis to help balance an otherwise precipitous descent. The shadows were beginning to grow long in the tangerine light of sunset. Tearen always found the sky was most impressive right after a storm, especially one that had lasted as long as this passing monsoon.

Gulleys and ledges were splashing with rainwater, the ephemeral torrents guiding his path. Based on the signal that Syntech was graciously providing, the package had fallen somewhere in this small, elevated valley between two of the larger peaks. There was mild forestation amidst the silent crags, but otherwise the landscape was fairly open, at least feom Tearen's vantage.

His thoughts returned to Malon as he caught a glimpse of the distant Colosseum looming on the other side of the far mountain. Some time after leaving the safehouse, Tearen had given up on trying to check in on Malon's progress. It wasn't until he had been on the outside of one of the Abyss' mysterious time bubbles that he was able to appreciate the bizarre nature of the juncture extensions.

Had he more time he would have tried to plumb the depths of these temporal secrets, but as always, time itself forbade it. The ex-enigma caught sight of a purple glint out of the corner of his eye, and turned to see the Syntech package laying in a scenic little overlook, where a temporary stream bled off into a hundred foot drop. A nearby camera drone buzzed closer as Tearen picked his way towards the conspicuously well-arranged parcel.

He made extra sure to show the Syntech logo on the canister before cracking into it.

Moving from E6 toE4
Acquiring Item Drop

[Handsome Jack]

Oh good. Archer's awake again. It'd be nicer if he wasn't still drunk. Guess not everyone can enjoy a genetically superior liver, though he's probably happier without it. I know I would be. Fortunately, the last dregs of the hangover had passed before Sterling awoke. Unfortunately, now the full-force of the pain that the alcohol had been suppressing had come back with a vengeance. It honestly felt like I'd been through a meat-grinder... like I had been tenderized like a steak.

My pal reach around my shoulder and stares at me for second before reaching out and poking the stuffed animal I'd shoved into my eye-hole.

“Heh...” he chuckles groggily. “Eye Bear Touch.”

“Hilariouss...” I murmur in reply as I push on into the mountains. We had a lot of ground to cover if we were gonna have a chance to snatch up that item before anyone else got to it. I try to quicken my pace a bit, but if I was able to, I can't tell the difference. Aside from the fact that I've been carrying Archer on my back for a good few kilometers and being heavily injured as I was, I was still tired for the extra effort I had put into out-speeding the two jokers who'd spanked us like naughty children. To be frank, I just didn't have a whole lot in me anymore. By this point, I was practically pushing on through sheer willpower than through any sort of physical strength I possessed.

But push on I did. The alternative was to lie down and accept death, and there was no DNA within my being that would allow me to accept surrender. Better to die on my feet than to live out my days in safety and cowardice. These thoughts drive me further north.

Moving from E9 to E7

[The Future Warrior]

The city started to thin out. Buildings went from a looming forest of concrete, steel and glass to woods of brick and structured timber, and then they fell off altogether, just a few outliers here and there. Scattered buildings at the edges of the collection of (abandoned) civilization. Yeah, that was a good way to describe it. Graowr was pretty sure that was like something out of a book. She'd never read any books, of course, but...that seemed like how somebody might put it in one.

With the city behind her, the landscape gave way to grassy plains for a short distance. Then to rocky ground. Sand and gravel, and a gentle incline, rising sharply into a steep embankment and leading on up into the slopes of the mountains. For the second time, Graowr found herself stalling at the prospect of climbing something so high, without her flight to assist her. Her breathing still came out in ragged puffs, anger and frazzled nerves keeping her from really resting or recovering well, and the prospect of going for a mountain climb wasn't helping matters any.

She recalled her tablet map, and the item drops. The ones down in Zone C and Zone D had already been claimed. The one over in Zone E had only dropped a little while ago...not even an hour ago yet. Maybe she could get to it, if she hurried. And besides, even if she couldn't...the map had said there was a safehouse out this way. She'd follow along, climbing and picking her way through the mountains, headed toward the middle ground. If the item was still there when she got about equally distant from it and the safehouse...she'd risk it then.

Otherwise, she was going to the safehouse. A bit of rest and a nap sounded good right now. And maybe something to eat wouldn't hurt. It had been a while since the fish she'd been gifted from God Enel.

Moving from C3 to E5

[Handsome Jack]

“Hey bro!” Sterling says from astride my back, nudging me lightly to get my attention.

“Yeah?” I ask in response, glad that he's gone from totally wasted to mildly buzzed by now.

“So, that item we wanted? Yeah, it's gone now.”

I have to fight the overwhelming urge to let loose a string of expletives at our bad luck. Partially because I really don't want to deal with any more pain than what I already got on my plate, but also because it'd probably shock the shit out of Archer too, and he also doesn't need any of that shit. And it'd probably suck more than usual, what with the semi-congealed blood all over both of us.

Seriously, we look like Ebola victims here. We look so shitty that we'll probably be shot on sight as undead before anyone bothers to realize we're just a couple of barely conscious platonic man-friends who only sometimes do gay shit like riding each other. Distantly, I feel like some tall, angry Scottish priest is probably watching this and wishing us death/an eternity in hell. But it's all platonic up in this bitch. Just a couple of best friends taking a stroll and whispering in each others ear. No big deal.

Well, now that the item got snatched up, we gotta come up with a different plan. Lingling tells me there's a safehouse nearby where we could rest and plan our next move. Honestly, I'd rather keep moving, but maybe they got a shower and some medical supplies there. Papa Piccolo's genes ain't been working their magic here, so I'm gonna hafta settle for some old-school action. I just hope Archer knows first-aid, cuz they only thing my Computer Mom bothered to teach me was a bunch of fighting techniques and that I should murder Goku. Bitch didn't even teach me basic math.

With a sigh, I trundle my ass off towards the Safehouse.

Moving from E7 to SHE

[The Future Warrior]

She hurried along. The rain was somehow...less intense, out here away from the city. Maybe it was starting to let up or something. Maybe it was just the lack of fog and confined airspace from buildings lumbering and looming all over the place. Maybe it was just that she was focusing more on the actual climbing and keeping her footing steady on the mountain path and not worrying about the rain. Or maybe she was just really thinking too much into all this and it was the same as it ever was. Who knew? Who cared? Not her. Definitely not her.

All she knew was that she was starting to quickly come to a surprising conclusion. It really...wasn't so bad up here. A little off-kilter and the footing was uneven, but no worse than dealing with the terrain after a typical battle where ki was involved. A few errant ki blasts or one bad clash up close and personal could leave a battleground much rougher to navigate than this was. Heck, as long as she kept aware of things, she shouldn't' have any difficulties up here at all!

And to think. She was worried.

She did pause, after a while, to hop up and sit down on a boulder, checking over her tablet and map again. A frown creased her expression as she did, seeing the item just up north had been snatched up already. "Aw...dang it. So much for that!" It was disappointing, but it did certainly narrow down her options. She now knew just where she was going. Right for the safehouse. A good nap, and some rest to plot out her next move. Wait out the next item drop and then rush out to try and grab that, before trying to track down the angry guy again. She wasn't going to let him run next time. She couldn't. That'd be like letting God Enel down AGAIN!

She couldn't take that.

Moving from E5 to E6

[Tearen Wover]

Tearen had been walking almost nonstop for several hours, which wouldn't have been a problem if not for the fact that his insides still felt like they were on fire. That blast of spiritual energy from Cell had been the perfect thing to match his phased form, and though he liked to think that the damage would have been worse had he not turned incorporeal, there could be no guaratees. Fortunately, Tearen had an objective, and an objective was all an ex-enigma needed to become unstoppable.

Much of what he had learned while on the Nameless Planet had revolved around rejecting a material reality made further binding by the loathsome laws of civility. When he hadn't been learning how to bend space and time, however, many of the lessons had focused on such values as perseverance, the ability to make a decision, and the intuition to deal with unforseen occurence. Malon's abduction into the Colosseum was one such occurence, and it put Tearen back into the mind of a survivor.

More than a survivor. He was an apex predator, and all apex predators have the capacity to work as a team. The Shadow had been watching footage from inside the increasingly ruined city to the east, and had settled on a new Prime ally he could potentially work with. He had long been a fan of their outlook and persona; it would be a nice opportunity to work alongside them.

Of course, the movements of Graowr and his most recent sparring partners had not gone unnoticed. The azure girl was uncomfortably close to his position, and based on what he knew about her, she would be more than eager to fight him just for the sake of it.

As bright and cheery as she was, Tearen was not in the mood to adopt another daughter figure in this competition. No. Now it was time to show the entire Omniverse the type of power needed to survive the coming tide...

Tearen moved from E4 to E5

[The Future Warrior]

Eventually, the blue majin was forced to abandon her boulder-top perch and resume her trek up the mountain. It was not an easy climb for much longer, the relatively easy to manage ascent growing more and more steep, and more and more uneven. The damp ground started to become less dirt and rock over stone, and more just...stone. Damp and wet, slick from the slackening rain, and treacherous to navigate in any kind of hurry. It was exactly the sort of things that Graowr hated. It forced her to go slow, if she didn't want to end up slipping and stumbling every few paces.

And it only took two or three trips and faceplants into the wet, rocky path to force her to wise up and pay more attention, forging a slower, steadier path. It was irritating, and her face was locked in a perpetual frowning scowl, but she put up with it. And despite the slower pace, her progress was actually much improved. Less quick, of course, but also much less stumbling and slipping along among the unfamiliar territory and layout of the ground. She was starting to lose any sort of respect and feeling of familiarity she might have been starting to build up for mountains and climbing them. It had been replaced with a sense of loathing, and a deep feeling of discontent and disgruntlement. She wanted nothing more than to be done with this climb, and reach level ground. Preferably out of the mountains altogether, but just in the safehouse would do.

She let her mind take to wandering, to distract from the dull, dreary nature of the mountains. Sure, it was probably quite a view to be had if she were to look, but...well, as she started to get high up, the height (along with the unpleasant number of slips, trips and falls from before) had re-asserted her dislike and fear of heights and climbing mountains.

Thankfully, after only a few (dozen) minutes of such things, she snapped out of her daze to find the safehouse just ahead. With a spring in her step, she scrambled for it, hopping and bounding across the last bit of ground to reach it.

Moving from E6 to Safehouse E

[The Future Warrior]

Inside the safehouse it was...quite a bit different than the others she'd seen so far. Maybe just because it was built differently than the others, given the location, or maybe because she was just actually, earnestly tired this time when she stumbled her way in. It was honestly pretty hard to tell. All she knew was that right about now, it looked like the best place she'd ever seen. There was plenty of in here to just hide away somewhere if someone else came along, it was out of the high mountain chill and the persistent drizzle that hadn't entirely let up yet, and best of all...there were more supplies to be found. Not many, as if people had been coming and going and taking them as they did (which was to be expected, perhaps) but there they were.

Given the time of day, and her own state of more than mild exhaustion, she opted to take full advantage of the resources. Chief among her needs was some rest, maybe a nap. Then some food to quell the unpleasant gnawing in her stomach. Majin really did like to eat quite a lot, especially sweets and candy which she had had...just about none of since getting to the island. And her lack of eating properly (by majin standards) was starting to come back on her with avengeance.

Such was the state she was in when she came across two people she didn't expect to see. Cell and Archer. With a mouth full of hastily assembled (and even more hastily consumed) sandwich, she had stumbled upon them. And just stopped dead in her tracks, taking in...well, their general state. They hadn't looked great, when she last saw them, but...good gracious. She just couldn't hold back the obvious question. With a loud, cartoon-like gulp the rest of her impromptu meal vanished down her gullet, and after wiping off her mouth on one glove she spoke up.. "What HAPPENED to you guys?!"

Cell was the one to speak up, as Archer just brought both hands to his head. "We fell down ssome sstairs," the bug-man hissed, one remaining eye narrowing in a stare of contempt. When the diminutive majin just stared back at hime, wide-eyed and confused, he let a disgruntled sigh slip past his beak. "We got in a fight. And we losst. Bad." He held up the hamburger-in-waiting that was his right hand for emphasis. His tail flicked up, gesturing at Archer's leg, where it had been torn open. "As you can ssee...we got ffFFFFFFFFucked up." There was only a faint spasm as electricity arced over his body from the jolt this time.

"Wow. It must have been somebody pretty strong, if they beat you two so badly..." Pink eyes were wide as saucers, in some mixture of shock, concern, and unabated wonderment. It didn't take Cell's saiyan genes to recognize the look in those eyes. "Maybe we can find them again, so I can—"

"NO WAY!"
"HELL NO!"

Two voices spoke up in strained unison, giant roach-man and bedraggled agent both fixing her with a look of utter disbelief and anger.

"Not going anywhere near that freak again!" Archer said firmly. "Took everything we had and it barely even slowed him down."

"And I ssorta like having all the limbss I sstill have un-mangled," Cell added, turning away.

"Oh." Graowr just deflated slightly, her eager and excited energy rushing away as quick as it had come. "Yeah, I guess...maybe going after him again wouldn't be that smart. So, uh...what should we do?"

"We?" Archer and Cell asked, again in unison.

"Well, you know...you're kind of really injured and beat up and stuff. I feel bad for kinda running off like I did before, but we should join up again! Maybe we can get you somewhere to get some help."

"Yeah, yeah...we're not going anywhere yet. Not without some rest." Archer had put his face in his hands again.

"Yeah...some rest would be good. We can stick around here for a while, then head out! Maybe...we can go back to the city. There's some more people there that I teamed up with, and they're really strong, I can feel it. We can work it out there!"

No one even had the strength to refute or question that line of thought. They just scattered, settling down to rest for at least a few hours before grudgingly getting up to set out. They weren't really in any hurry, really, so they had plenty of time as far as they knew.

Graowr, Cell and Archer: teamed (back) up.
Moving from Safehouse E to E6

[The Future Warrior]

Eventually, all was said and done and they departed the safehouse. A little more rested, and in one out of three cases, more refreshed as well. A surly sort of mood was hanging over the group as they trekked back down the mountain, along the path that Graowr had just trod a few hours ago. She was in higher spirits again, at just the prospect of reuniting with some allies, even if they wren't exactly friends. She'd seen what they could do, fought against them in the Colosseum, and that hadn't been anywhere near the full extent of what they were capable of. She could just feel it. They would be valuable allies to have at hand, that much she knew. And maybe...just maybe they could help her take out that angry jerk if they ran across him.

God, just thinking about him made her head hurt with the remembered anger of letting him get away. Her fists clenched and she had to grind her teeth against each other to keep from screaming about it. It just wasn't fair! If she was even a little stronger, a little closer to what she'd been capable of before coming to the Omniverse...it would have been enough. If nothing else, this whole time in Dante's Abyss had done one thing for her. She now had a definite goal in mind. Getting stronger, at any cost, when she got out of here.

"Your ssilencce is appreciated, but conccerning," Cell spoke up after they'd been tromping warily, wearily down the mountain for what felt like hours.

"Oh, sorry! Don't worry, it's nothing." Graowr looked back at her companions, with a smile and nodded her head. "Just...thinking about stuff."

"Oh, jeeze...alert the media, she's actually thinking!" Archer said, throwing his hands up in mock disbelief.

"HEY! I think about stuff! I think about stuff a lot!" She looked back forward, hunching her shoulders. "I still don't get what was so funny about his shotgun, from before..." she mumbled, mostly to herself.

Graowr, Cell and Archer: moving from E6 to E5

[Tearen Wover]

After spending some time resting in the disheveled opulence, Strazio was able to pull himself out of bed, scabs and scars cracking and snapping as he did so. Tearen was tempted to try and help the furious warrior to his feet, but Rockwell still didn't quite trust the Shadow completely. At least, not insofar to the point that he would have been willing to let Tearen coddle him. The elder Prime was quite certain that helping a teammate out of bed did not really qualify as coddling, but he understood that Strazio was still fevered and weary. He would give the battlemage the space he needed, for now. Besides, there was a very real possibility that they would be fusing in the near future; that tended to be a pretty powerful icebreaker.

"So what's the plan?" Strazio growled through chapped lips, sucking down one of the nectarines that Tearen had in his knapsack. The eldritch Human pulled out his Synpad and pointed to several subzones on the map. Two health item drops and one of the big ticket items they were supposed to be hunting.

"Mm. I don't like it." Straz said, gesturing at C8.

"I just got out of that clusterfuck, I'm not about to jump back in half cocked."

Tearen nodded.

"I agree. D7 is out. It's basically falling on top of Gildarts' head."

Straz chuckled. An abrasive sound that really should only ever be directed towards enemies. At least, it chafed Tearen to the point he leaned away from the fury-fueled brawler ever-so slightly.

"What, you don't think you can take him?" Strazio asked, flashing a still-bloody grin. The session of temporal healing had only been able to repair the most critical of Rockwell's internal injuries. He still coughed up clotted blood on occasion.

"Already did, once. Don't feel like wasting the energy."

"So, E12 then?"

Tearen tucked the pad away and nodded.

"Yeah. Let's get you topped off and then we can worry about knocking some heads in."

Strazio nodded silently, offering a frown of approval before kicking open the front door to the suburban palace. As they set out into the growing twilight, the angrier Prime cast a forlorn look at the glimmering lights of the city. Tearen's mouth twisted into an apologetic half-smile.

"It's okay, Strazio. Gamzee would unders-"

Strazio clocked Tearen straight in the jaw. It was a gentle reminder, by his standards at least, that they weren't at that kind of level of familiarity quite yet.

"Will you stop that?" Strazio growled, jogging down the steps. Tearen wiped a smear of blood off of his chin and laughed in spite of himself. Okay...okay.

"Well stop thinking so loudly."

"Fuck off."

Tearen and Strazio moved from C4 to E5