Zetaark

"Gate of Babylon?" Ritsu muttered, wondering if her realm had any particular people associated with that term. King of Heroes also didn't ping anything she thought was important, only mentions of heroes who slayed some sort of demon lord or some other such details. Upon failing to find any matches that would aid the situation, she shakes her head before looking at Nobunaga, hoping to get some information from them. "Nobunaga was it? I take it you're familiar with this 'Gate of Babylon' in some way? If so, what could you tell us about it," she asks, hoping to get some idea on what Caster's strongest ability is like.

"Perfect," Sasha says with a grin as she calls her bike and sets herself and Chise inside of it. Using the abilities of the earlier wishes, she's able to both fly with her bike, and be under the effects of full stealth. Deciding that the other two can deal with their piece of the fortress, Sasha flew herself and Chise close to another one, where she attempted to warp the space in the wall temporarily, just enough to get a quick peek inside before putting it back to normal. A strange gap in the wall that fixes itself could be strange to any observers, even if she herself was in stealth. Sasha would continue doing this at different points of the fortress, trying to figure out what might be where.

With a focused aim, Darius strikes the fencer with his dark magic, defeating them and forcing them to exit the field. Cheat Sheet:

Moving first, Belros strikes the fencer, who trades blows with Belros. Though Belros is fast enough to get in two hits, the exchange leaves both of them worn. Idei rides forward and takes aim, scoring a clean hit on the fencer before falling back. Cheat Sheet:

After the party had rested for some time, Madante and another guard came to gather the party. After a moment, the group was moved from the courtyard into a meeting room, where the guard spoke. "Greetings to all of you. I, along with some of the higher ups, have heard Madante's report of the situation. Though your group did run into some unintended detours, you did reach your destination and investigate. And it seems you've picked up some extra members..." the guardsmen states, muttering the last bit as he glances at Madante, who gives only a sheepish shrug in response. "Ahem! In any event, it seems that in a certain basement labyrinth, artifacts of old were present. While we're still looking into their exact usage and translating some of the texts we received, we can say with some certainty that they are involved in demon summoning of some kind. How these ended up in Kabumu we'll never know, but the fact that someone was looking for them was concerning. As such, a squad will be sent out to investigate matters further and attempt to put a stop to any planned summonings," he finishes, clearing his throat. "Now then, your captain here offered to take on the mission, but a few notable individuals were unsure if you were suited for the task. Therefore, to remove any doubt, we'll run you through a little combat test of sorts. Though your lives won't be in peril, this will be treated as an actual combat operation, and you will all treat it as such. And with that briefing done, your opponents are waiting in another courtyard," The guard announces as he leads the party to a set of doors, leading into the courtyard. "Now then, good luck, and show us what you can do," the guard says as the party enters the courtyard and face their opponents. WIN CONDITION: Defeat the enemies. LOSS CONDITION: All player units are defeated. Turn 1 [Player Phase Start] Cheat Sheet:

As the group approaches the Sanctuary, Sasha grins to herself in the moonlight. The atmosphere is fitting, her equipment is ready, and all in all she feels like having a good time as she tries to find this Epithet Card, along with anything else that catches her eye. "Let me know what you find up there with those drones," Sasha tells Immanuel as she readies her bike with her now present flight and stealth abilities. Wishes weren't something she normally worked with, but she certainly wasn't complaining. Once she finished her initial checks, she turned over to Chise. "So then, are you in the stealthy kind of mood today?" Sasha asks, half expecting some comment about efficiency, but hoping she would go along with her idea. ((Wishes are for flight and stealth abilities))

"This was Dackly's work. If memory serves, under certain conditions she can render a foe incapable of combat. This just happens to cause them to turn into a plush. If you want to know more about the method itself, you may want to talk to Dackly about it later," Ritsu explains to Nobunaga, before turning her attention back to LOTUS. "My initial inquiry was primarily to check whether this method of communication would work properly, which we now know it does. And I suppose now we know that Lancer's goals are rather straightforward, for whatever that's worth. At any event, I am curious to hear what line of questioning you want to bring up," she remarks, looking at LOTUS expectantly.

"Hm, a rather straightforward answer, if a bit simplistic. Though honestly I don't know what I was expecting," Ritsu remarks, amused that the Grail was lancer's only primary goal. Then again, it was the point of these grail wars if she recalled, so it made some since, but she expected maybe a few other things to come up. Regardless, she was about to inquire about her usage of the grail before another individual arrived. "If you're looking for Lancer, then she's right here," Ritsu says as she points to the plush Lancer in Isobel's hands.

"Hmm, no base response. I suppose an inquiry must first be made," Ritsu notes as she sees that Lancer did not type out anything on her own. She figured that Lancer probably wouldn't be too talkative, but this confirmed it, insofar as slightly more casual conversation is concerned. "So then, outside of attempting to return to your original state, do you have any goals or aspirations or...things you care to do here?" she decides to ask, figuring that this could work as a base to Lancer's temperament for now

Elizabeth to P12, heal Yuel. Yuel meanwhile moves to P14 and zaps Marine C

Ritsu couldn't help but chuckle a bit at the mental image of the plush lancer kicking around LOTUS. Even if it was probably unlikely, it was still an amusing thought. "Well, with logistics and the threat of Lancer getting the upper hand on LOTUS covered, I suppose we can continue," Ritsu remarks, trying and failing to hold in a chuckle as she hands the plush Lancer over to LOTUS and his handler.

"Well, through a series of nodding, I was able to confirm that Lancer is still contracted to something in this form. However, communicating entirely through head nodding isn't particularly efficient, so I was seeking a way for Lancer to better communicate. Something you may be able to do," Ritsu remarks, looking at LOTUS. Hopefully, this idea would work and a proper means of communication could finally be established. As amusing as her questioning session was earlier, Ritsu was more than eager to find better methods of questioning.

"Hmm, though I have some vague ideas of people who might help, I'm afraid I'm not familiar enough with the whole group to think of anyone specific," Ritsu responds, disappointed that she didn't possess the sufficient information for this project. Shortly after however, a woman who appeared to know Edmond had arrived. "I am Ritsu. I'm unsure if we've been introduced properly before." she says before looking at LOTUS. "I wouldn't say I personally was waiting for LOTUS, but he may be able to help us with something," she announces, holding up the plush lancer towards the pair.

P13, zap sword guy

"Heck if I know. If they were competent, that just makes their decision even more baffling. And if they weren't...why not use automatons in the first place?" Sasha answers, still miffed by the myriad design flaws in those exoskeletons. "Anyways, enough about the Card Emperors. About these mononoke. From the general info I got before coming here, they had assault rifles or something. And your recent briefing having them as just mundane doesn't exactly give me a great idea on what the heck I'm supposed to be expecting. For all I know they could have some weird tricks like those luchadors from last week. So, got any more info on them by any chance?" Sasha asks, leaning back in her chair.

"And that is why the thing pisses me off so much. If it had even a marginally bigger shard fitted into it, the person wouldn't even be necessary. But no, for whatever reason they decided that they had to have a person in it and that it had to kill them. I can't claim to know what their thought process is for that," Sasha answers with a dejected shrug.

"Out of curiosity, how destructible even are these special cards anyhow? If they're the kinds of things you could just tear apart or burn, that just seems really underwhelming to me. Regardless, actually getting the card would probably be the best way to go about things," Sasha remarks, somewhat curious about the nature of these cards. She then turns her attention to Chise after hearing the second part of her plan. "If the plane is any indication of their competency, they aren't the greatest at playing the card game. Then again, I'm not familiar with the rules, but that doesn't matter. As for the killing them...well if the card emperors send people in those exoskeletons that will technically be done for us. Still makes me a bit miffed that they don't just use automatons though," Sasha remarks, muttering at the last bit, her distaste for the exoskeletons and their design ever present.

Myrdwyn's patience paid off, as she managed to parry the wraith's blow with enough force to knock it back, causing its weapon to be knocked away. While the creature was momentarily staggered, Myrdwyn ran her lance through its feet, causing it to drop to the ground. Finally, in one quick movement, Myrdwyn drove her lance through the wraith. At first it didn't appear to react much, and it attempted to retaliate, but as it did so the shadows around it began to fade away. The wraith struggled for a moment after, before finally fading away, leaving the armor in its place. Once the creature was slain, the convoy man began to move towards the chest and open it. "My my, this is..." he trails off as he pulls out a few ancient looking books and what appeared to be a scepter, which emitted a purplish glow. After carefully examining the contents of the book, he frowns. "So this is what they were looking for hmm? That's rather concerning. But that will be an issue for another day. For now, it is time to leave this place with our spoils," he says as he puts a hand on the pedestal next to the chest. After a brief moment of nothing, the room is filled by a bright light, and the inhabitants feel themselves warped away. -------------------------------------------------- Outside of the mansion where the others were, a bright light appeared at the door, through which Myrdwyn and company arrived through. "Gah! What the..." Madante yelled, startled and brandishing his blade before seeing who came through. "Oh, you all. What happened in there?" he asks. "I will explain later. For now though, we move to Versidia. The guard needs to know about what we have found here, among other things." "Alright then. Time to go then," Madante mutters as he and the rest of the crew move back to the ship, with their next destination being the capital city of Versidia. -------------------------------------------------- Chapter 7: The Royal Test After leaving the island of Kabumu, the group made their way to the capital city of Versidia. Upon docking, Karik and his mother offered to look after the still unconscious Cadence until she recovered. In the meantime, the rest of the group went to the royal castle. After Madante explained to the outer guards of the castle who they were and their purpose, they were let inside the castle. Inside, they were greeted by another guardsman, who escorted the group to one of the castle courtyards, where he began to speak with Madante. "So you are the crew sent out hmm? I'm glad to see you in one piece, considering all the things we've heard about your misfortune. Though it seems that there are a few extras that I see with you," the guardsman remarks, muttering the last line. "Yes well, a lot of things happened during our journey you see," Madante begins to explain before the guardsman holds up his hand. "Yes yes, that's why you're here. Now then, I'll need you to come with me and give a full report on what has happened. As for the rest of you, you may feel free to rest here in the courtyard. Your commander here needs to give a briefing of what's happened, and then we'll determine what has to be done next. With that said, enjoy yourselves," he remarks with a half smile as he takes Madante with him to another part of the castle. The courtyard itself was rather quaint, with a few trees scattered about and a fountain at the center. Outside of the group, there were a few others simply lounging, while others were moving through the courtyard to other places.

As Myrdwyn executed her plan, she did in fact manage to parry a few strikes from the specter as it attempted to counter her jabs. However, the creature had a bit more mass than a bundle of shadows in armor would let on. As such, it held its ground, and the two proceeded to trade blows from there. The creature seemed more adept than the prior skeletons, but the shadows around it began to dissipate just a little with each passing blow.

Moving forward, Myrdwyn and company reach the next room, which contains the armored skeleton from before, but completely engulfed in shadows. Behind it, there was a rather ornate chest and a pedestal next to it. Seeing the group arrive, the shadows engulfed the armor, creating a shade-like enemy, which drew a lance and took a stance. "Well, it seems we're nearly through with this place. Once this creature falls, we should have no further complications," the man crones, with a hint of relief in his voice.

The skeleton saw Myrdwyn attempt her charge, and attempted to hold its ground. Unfortunately, Myrdwyn had notable mass, while the skeleton, even in armor, was still just a pile of bones. As such, it was sent flying by the charge, landing close to the opposite wall, near a passage. Though the armor was relatively intact, the skeleton was beginning to fade away. As it did however, a mass of shadows began to pull the skeleton, armor and all, through the passage and into the unknown. "Well, it seems that is where the floor guardian rests. And likely our way out," the man informs Myrdwyn, as he prepares to move through the passage.

"So I take it you're our contact for this? Neat," Sasha remarks as she calls for Chise to come with her into the room.

"I don't know what they were thinking when designing those things. The exoskeletons were basically controlled by a set of curses for all its functions, and a small shard would have been enough to just run the thing normally. They didn't even need to put people in the thing, but what can you do?" Sasha responds. "Anyways, about this flying fortress. How do we plan on getting there, and what are we bringing. And for the record, I'm not sure I'm going to rocket bike all of you over like I did with the plane."

"Wasn't too hard to get a hold of one really. I knew one of the guys who showed up after the plane landed, so I got to look through the thing. Heck, he basically asked me if i wanted to take a crack at the thing," Sasha says with a somewhat smug look. "Anyways, turns out the exoskeletons were more or less curse-ridden death traps for the wearer, and really cheaply made to boot. They didn't even need to use actual people for these things, but apparently they are either really cheap people or just want to watch others suffer. Though considering the armaments weren't too bad, I'm willing to lean more towards the latter option," Sasha shrugs, internally groaning at recalling the abomination that she examined.

"Challenger One just seems like one of those corny stage names if you want my honest opinion, but that's not my place to judge," Sasha shrugs. "As for the Card Emperors, I have a lot of questions regarding their competency. Sure, they can get to the places they need to, but once they're there they don't have a great track record. That and I'm pretty sure their backers are cheap little buggers if the exoskeletons were anything to go by," Sasha mutters, reminded of her little examination earlier.