TFFA: The Great X-Mas Caper

[sidhereelmotion]

CMPS. The Maze. Outside S?kyoku Tower.

The sound of singing filled the tank as six girls, two women, one tied-up-crazy-prosecutor, and one whatever-the-heck-it-is belted out the last line of the carol:
"Let's all go out to rescue Zen, and then we'll take a nap!"

"\/\/|-|Ñ @ |\|@p?" asked the Jester.

Konoka patted the Jester, then leaned on its arm. "This circus is hard work, Mr. Clown." She yawned cutely.

Sadly, this bit of wisdom was not shared with Xerxezz, who fled the tank looking for something to kill after the third carol.

The yawn, however spread quote rapidly, infecting all of the girls. And a yawn needed a hand politely held over a mouth and often an elbow stretching out or up or back.

"Oops!" chorused Sidhe and Keiko, their elbows by big red buttons reading "Never Ever Press!".

{SUPER DESTRUCT-O-CANNON ACTIVATED! ENGAGING IN 3... 2.. 1...}

Several things happened at the same time. The tank belched for a beam that, on seeing the wall of the Maze, hit it like the fist of an angry god. And the next. And the next. The effects of the beam could be seen as a line of devastation stretching the miles to the edge of the Maze and ultimately taking the roof off of the Happy Kitty Onsen. The unsecured front of the tank flew up, causing several more buttons to be hit by the panicked drivers. And everyone in the tank screamed and clutched at each other as they saw their lives flash before their eyes - on average it was short and cute.

Upon reaching vertical, the tank wobbled a bit on the back end of its treads before pirouetting and finally crashing down again, treads down. Von Karma, who didn't have anyone to hang on to, found herself battered, bruised, and stretched out over the laps of Joy and Morrigan.

One high-pitched, girly voice kept screaming.

Konoka poked the source and said in a subdued voice, "Mr. Clown, it's done now."

"1 |{n3w 7h47."

 

[Vexarian]

Day 3, Stairway to S?kyoku Tower, 4:31 PM

"Really now?" Vex smirked mirthfully as he rubbed his healed shoulder, "So your going to kill me?"

She quirked one of her eyebrows, while she turned her arm, bringing her Tessenbiki in front of her in a defensive position, altering her stance so as not to be caught off guard.

"Well now, it wouldn't be the first time." He said after a moment, his eyes slitting and bleeding to their feral red coloration as he seemed to hurl forward like a rocket, both spears at the ready.

With a shower of red sparks the two clashed, Chain Spear versus Fan-Blade. After a moment Mikako shifted her position, pulling back onto a defensive stance as she held the man off, he was stronger, she couldn't keep this up.

"Now Die!" Vex yelled as he twisted around, bringing his left hand spear around to strike her, while pinning her blade with his right. Her eyes widened as his seemed to contain a barely restrained lust for blood.

Then she disappeared.

He landed awkwardly, spinning around and pulling himself back swiftly, looking around to see Mikako standing on the opposite side of the room.

"Teleportation?" Vex queried.

"Flash Step." She answered, narrowing her eyes at him.

"No, Flash Shockwave." Vex corrected, and exploded in a flash of light, appearing behind where Mikako stood, while the force threw her into the wall behind them.

He looked over to see her, and blinked after seeing a hole torn into the stone wall. "Didn't think I'd give it that much force..." He mumbled.

"Tetsu Kanpuu Yoshin!", and a rush of wind and metal shrapnel flew from the hole, slamming into Vex, and sending him flying into the adjacent wall.

Mikako flipped out of the hole and brushed her shinigami robe clean, sneering at Vex once more. Meanwhile Vex was bleeding from a multitude of lacerations in his body, and the force of his impact, leaving a crater filled with spider webbing cracks on the wall.

"Got some..." Vex stopped to cough up a glob of blood, "Good moves... Don'tcha?" He pulled himself up, feeling his bones popping into place as the cuts on his body started to pull themselves together, leaving no trace, not even a single scar.

He cracked his neck as he stood up, good as new, much to Mikako's disbelief.

"Time to get Serious it seems..." Vex smirked and disappeared, however his attempt was thwarted when the female Shinigami spun around and sliced through the air with the oversized blade, sending another blast of wind and shrapnel at him.

He skidded to a stop, using his legs and right arm, while his right reached out to his spear.

With several flashes a half dozen Clones were made, unfortunately they were all dispatched with only two of Mikako's Tetsu Kanpuu Yoshin attacks.

Vex dodged several of the blasts in rapid succession, forced to keep a distance in order to do so.

Damn it... He couldn't get close enough to hit her, and if he did she'd just dodge with that Flash Step Technique.

Light Dash doesn't have much use in such a small area, nor does Flash Shockwave.

Mirror Clones dissipate if their form is disrupted in any way, that shrapnel renders them null and void.

He'd have to get alot closer to use Mirror Force or Shimmer Blade.

Split Second might work...

Vex stopped and closed his eyes for a moment, summoning the energy to perform the technique.

Then his back was sheared off, and he completely lost his focus. Fuck! Split Second took too long to initiate!

Shit...

He sluggishly sacrificed several Mirror Clones to defend himself while he healed, and thought. He resumed dodging when she begun to Flash Step around the room and fired her Tetsu Kanpuu Yoshin attacks.

Wait...

That might just work...

He unsheathed his Spears, and hurled them to either side, holding tightly to the chains as they impacted the walls. With a forceful tug he pulled out two massive chunks of stone tossing them in front of him, forming a wall to stop her attacks.

He smirked and threw the spears into the ceiling this time, tearing chunks from it until it caved, littering the room with piles of debris, and a much higher ceiling.

He spied around, searching for the woman, and after a moment a pile shifted, and her blade was revealed, lying flat for a moment before she turned it, having used it to sheild herself.

"Perfect..." Vex smirked and launched himself around the room, storming around the walls, kicking up a tremendous wind, and a cloud of dust. He dropped back down to the center as several clones were left to maintain the contained storm.

Mikako screamed obscenities as she squeezed her eyes closed, her vision obscured by the mass of dust. There was no way she'd be able to launch an accurate attack.

Then she felt a small stone smash against the side of her head, and let out a gasp, that was going to make a welt...

She tried to let out another attack, but the forceful wind dispersed most of the energy, and the weak attack that remained impacted a stone with little effect. Unfortunately for her some of the shrapnel was pulled with the wind, and sliced at her in it's next revolution, a second or so after she sent the spell out. This cost her some shallow cuts, and tore several slices into the front of her clothing.

Then she felt the first, and last strike, sending her to blissful unconsciousness as she fell forward onto a large stone.

The fierce wind slowed to a stop and the clones dispersed, while Vex looked onto the woman. "I asked for a challenge... And I got one."

 

[Zenithos]

Great Hall, Hueco Mundo, ?? AM/PM, Day 3, 20th December,

"Mistress, we have captured the ones you requested." Spike said, bowing elegantly before the Mistress while gesturing at the crystalized captives behind him. Amongst the group of crystal popsickles was Kyon, Naruto, and Sakura. "And we have sent Motoko, Washu, and Mitsune 'back' to TFFA City."

"It took you long enough..." The Mistress said dismissively from her high throne. "Now, what about the Dark Matter sealed inside the hospital?"

"..." Her subjects gave each other rather worried glances, unsure of how best to break the news without heads rolling. "eerr..." was the best they could come up with.

"...well...?" The Mistress raised an eyebrow. "Come now, our yaoist allies were there to support us with the operation."

That's right! Blame the Yaoists!

"We apologize, Mistress. It seems the Yaoists failed to carry out their end of the bargain." Akashi-sensei said.

"...." The Mistress fell silent for a few moments, her expression becoming one of deep thought. Her subjects waited patiently until she finally spoke once more. "I shall speak with the GMF about this, soon. What of those meddlesome TFFers?"

"It was on the news." Spike began. "But...they claim they've captured Zeni...."

"...." The subjects recoiled in fear as a dark, dangerous look dawned upon the Mistress' face as she leapt to her feet. "I AM ZENI! Who dares claim something so preposterous?! So insulting?! I, the Crimson Moon Executioner, am so weak that some ragtag bunch of justice-wannabes can capture me? ME?! Most powerful of the True Ancestors?! The sole heir to the Crimson Moon?!" She roared, shaking the entire hall from the foundation up. "What was it?! Fox News?!"

"It must be a mistake, Mistress. They...." Akashi began, before the Mistress exploded once more.

"A Mistake?! They can mistaken some weakling for me?! ME?!" The Mistress stepped down from her throne, each step a menacing threat to her fearful subjects. "Where is the Jester?! I thought I sent that blundering fool to take care of the CMPS!"

"...oh, zis is most unuzual...hmm, yes, yes, vhere could 'e 'ave...." They heard a low muttering voice echo through the great Hall as a small pair of feet shuffled nervously across the hall.

"...Dr. Kiln...?" The Mistress intoned sweetly.

"...hmmm...perhaps 'e iz tired? No, no, I doubt zhat..." The good doctor went on muttering as he crossed the throne without a glance at the Mistress.

"DR. KILN!" The Mistress roared.

"Oh?" Dr. Kiln did a 90 degree pivot on both feet and gave the Mistress a rather surprised look, as if never noticing she was there. "Ah, Mizztrezz...such a good day, no?"

"....where is the Jester, Dr.Kiln? We sent him in on a mission...now why hasn't he completed it?" The Mistress asked, glaring dangerously at Dr. Kiln.

"....uummmm...." Dr. Kiln hesitated.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

OOC: I have no idea how the tank ended up back on ground level in Sidhe's post, but anyway....

The Tank. Ground Floor, by Sokyoku Tower, CMPS Main HQ, CMPS District, Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:30 PM

"...and this lever controls the gears." Sidhe explained patiently, pointing out the gear lever.

"aH...oK, AnD ThIs OnE?" The Jester asked, pointing at a big red button in front of his driver seat.

"That is a big red button." Sidhe said. "Or at least, it's the BIGGEST Red button as there's so many here."

"Will you get a move on?" The tank commander, Xerxezz, asked, impatiently. "There's so much more things that need to go KABOOM!"

"...ah. i SeE. It iS bIG aND REd. WhAt DoEs iT Do?" The Jester continued.

"It is the Big Red Button. You never press the Big Red Button. It's there NOT to be pressed." Sidhe explained in her ever-patient tone, as if explaining to a 5 year old that fingers don't go in combine harvesters.

"Ah..." The Jester nodded with great understanding.

He pressed it.

"Very good, Jester-kun." Sidhe smiled encouragingly as the tank began to shudder violently. "You've learnt yet another human trait."

"I DiD? Ooh! Oooh! WhAt TrAiT iS It? PleASe TelL Me!" The Jester asked excitedly.

"It's called utter and incurable stupidity. It's an inherent human trait." Sidhe smiled sweetly as the tank suddenly sprouted wings and jets.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Great Hall, Hueco Mundo, ?? AM/PM

"....I zink my little boy iz....a little...lost..." The Doctor smiled, a little nervously, as he shifted from foot to foot.

"...Lost..." The Mistress sighed, facepalming. "Eterna." She called out wearily.

A girl in black detached herself from the shadows and bowed before her. "You called, dear sister?" She smiled up at the Mistress.

"Find the Jester." The Mistress ordered, rubbing her head in frustration. "Not that I care about the fool...but if he ends up screwing up our plans, it'd be quite a bother."

"Very well. I'll find him within the hour." Eterna said, nodding cheerfully.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

The Grand Temple of Yaoi, Yaoist Realm, 4:34 TFFA City Time

"So, Eterna, are you ready to serve your Goddess?" The Goddess of Yaoi asked from her throne.

"My life for the cause, your holiness." Eterna replied in a monotone voice, her pupils empty and cold. The cold light of the grand temple glinted off her new headband and shackles.

"Then your first mission is to destroy this man they call the Jester." The Goddess ordered. "He is an obstacle to our plan. Or rather...the source of his power is. Destroy him, and we shall be one more step closer. However, make sure your affiliation is not discovered. We are technically allies with the Trollz, after all."

"Understood, your Holiness." Eterna nodded blankly.

"And if you find your sister, capture her if you can. She is not that essential to our plan, neither is she too great a threat with you in our hands. But she may prove a worthy ally if we can somehow activate her command seals." The Goddess said.

"It shall be done, your Holiness." Eterna said.

"Then be off. May the Spirit of Yaoi smile upon you." The Goddess said, raising a hand up towards Eterna.

"Thank you, your Holiness." Eterna nodded.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Vice-Chief's Office, CMPS Main HQ, CMPS District, Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:32 PM

"What?! She didn't speak?!" Rufus Shinra yelled. "I thought you were professionals?!"

"Ve tried!" The man before him protested. "But She didn't even scream vhen ve subjected her to six hours of Paris Hilton."

"Ve tried all ze traditional methodz too...no luck." Another man shrugged. "Ve left her half-dead before the ozer CMPS interrogators took over..."

"...damn it..." Rufus cursed, biting his thumb as he paced around the room. "...leave. I need to think." He said. The men did as they were told, glad that they got off easy.

"I must get to the Crimson Moon before those other bastards." He gritted his teeth. "Smoker, Estella." He turned around to face the Major and Colonel. "I don't care about the other prisoners. Capture them if you can. Kill them otherwise. But we must capture Zeni. She is instrumental to our plans!"

"You were always the slavedriver, Rufus..." Smoker sighed as he lit up two new cigars. "It'll take me...half an hour at most." He said as he turned to leave.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Sokyoku Tower, CMPS Main HQ, CMPS District, Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:35 PM

It felt...strangely nice. For once, she didn't have to make any decisions. She needed only follow Mick and her rescuers. The pulling on the leash was a little uncomfortable, but it made her feel as if she could just leave everything to the one pulling on her leash.

....wait, did that mean she liked the leash?

....

Oh, whatever. It wasn't as if she was any use in a fight anyway.

"....umm....Mick? My hands..." Zen began, noticing that her wrists were still bound tightly behind her back for the execution.

"Be quiet for now, Zen. Just follow me. Besides, I like it better that way." Mick said as they rushed down the staircase.

"...."

"FLYING TANK! RUN!" They heard Vex yell as he rounded the wide stairway in a full dash.

"...what?!" Mick asked, an incredulous look on his face.

"You can wait here and see it for yourself! But I'm out of here!" Vex shouted as he dashed past the two with an unconscious girl under one arm and Epsilon and his sisters on his tail, the latter with panic-stricken expressions.

"....a flying tank? That's as ridiculous as the flying sharks 2 years ago...." Mick began, turning to face the stairway once more....

...only to come face to face with a flying tank...

"I really, really need to send Xerxezz to hell..." Mick sighed.

 

[Mick]

delete

 

[Unknown-common-827]

Maze (or what's left of it), Day 3, 4:41 pm:

With a thud, Zero's mummified body hit the floor before being freed by a lightning bolt, which turned the bandages to ash.

While that was going on, I saw from the edge of my vision Mick grasping Zen and giving her a kiss that brought back some memories from those years ago.

"Well... seems like she no longer needs me," I state softly. I thought I was the only one who could hear it, I was wrong.

"What do you mean, Unknown?" Asked the Brown haired lady in a whisper to my left ear.

"I'll tell you when we get out of this hell," I say to her in a whisper to her right ear. She just nodded her head as I tuned back to the new couple.

'You lucky man, Mick. Hopefully, you and her will last longer than my life with her," was my thought before turning my back to the crowd.

"This way... I believe that tank blew open our escape route and made it much easier," I state to the crowd before I pulled down my hat's front rim and began to walk. Within a few steps, I saw Rin had walked alongside my slow tempo.

'Maybe... just maybe we might have something,' I thought as I gazed further at Ms. Tohasaka's figure as the sun began to lightly fall.

 

[David Alan Abramczyk]

David revved his bike's engine and waved his revolver. "Well then, Tally-HO!" he roared, before biffing it out and along the rubble-strewn path, his companions bouncing and jostling as he gunned his bike off into the distance.

The group stared after him, as a number of bikes and squadcars, all marked as belonging to the Traffic Department of Bokuto Police Station thundered after him...

 

[twin blade]

CMPS Holding Cell, Day 3, 4:41 PM:

STUPID FUCKERS DIDN'T WAKE ME UP! Assholes, all of them! TB thought while glaring at the open door that led to freedom.

Stop complaining! Get out, now! TB quickly glanced around for for the guards.

"Ok, then. Time to leave this hell hole," TB muttered. He started running through the halls, but was stopped by a bunch of guards.

"HEY! You! What are you doing outside the cell!" One of them yelled.

No prob, I can take care of these fuckers. TB thought, before he noticed that he was low on mana.

"Hands in the air! Now!" Another guard shouted.

SHIT! I only have enough for those spells! Fuck... TB braced himself for the impact of the spell, and then shouted:

"YAOI SPELL: RIFLE AND GUN!"As soon as he saw the smoke appear, he rushed through the guards. When the smoke disapeared, five copies of Sasuke appeared. five naked copies, all carrying an AK-47 and showing huge erections.

"This is my rifle," The copies sang, while pointing to their AKs. "And this is my gun," they cried, while touching their mini-me. "The rifle's for fighting, the gun is for fun!" With that line, the copies suddenly dropped the AKs and starting screwing each other like rabbits.

"OH MY GOD!" "GET THE MIND BLEACH! GET THE MIND BLEACH!" "LORD, KILL ME NOW!"

I still can't believe there was a Yaoi Spell 101 class at Roku. Jesus Christ! With that thought, TB started to sprint, trying to ignore the screams of the damned.

 

[Xerxezz]

Maze (or what's left of it), Day 3, 4:41 pm:

Tsuroko pulled her leg back and delivered a strong kick to the twisted doorframe. The frame, the door and part of the wall collapsed outwards.

Tsuroko blinked, looked at her foot, then at the destruction he caused, then back at the foot.

ôMust have been damaged during the fighting.ö Vex said and looked around.

There was a groan of metal and Vex spun around.

The tank was slowly moving towards him at a crawl. Huffing and puffing was coming from behind it.

Vex stepped around the tank and with a twitch of his eye realized why it was moving. Xerxezz, red-faced and with pulsing veins on his forehead was pushing it forward.

ôXerxezz, what the hell are you doing?ö Vex asked with a sigh.

ôNotà leavingà myà tankà behind!ö The redhead answered and used all of his strength. The tank rolled forwards another inch.

ôYou are the King of all Idiots, you know that?ö Vex said.

Keiko looked at the tank, then at the hole, and then at the crushed bodies on the floor. She moved next to Xerxezz and began to push as well.

ôKeiko?ö

ôMustà notà leaveà KABOOMà. factorà behind!ö The young girl said and the tank moved a little faster.

Mick, sitting in one of the jeeps clenched his fist and had to fight down the urge to torch Xerxezz with a fireball.

That bastard was dead the moment they got out of here.

Sidhe looked at the tank, then at her niece and joined them as well.

ôMustà notà leaveà tank-kunà toà thoseà meanies!ö Sidhe saidà cutelyà

ôMustà notà killà Xerxezzà yet!ö Mick whispered to himself and steered the jeep to the left.

ôMaster?ö Von Karma asked as the three figures moved the tank bit by bit.

ôBe useful and help us!ö The irritated redhead grumbled.

ôOkay.ö The Evil Lawyer answered and flexed her shoulders to work the kinks out.

Her whip appeared in her hands and with an accurate strike she cracked it over the redheads back.

ôMOVE FASTER YOU DOGS!ö She bellowed.

ôThis wasnÆt what I meantö Xerxezz yelled back.

ôSILENCE, WORK FASTER!ö Von Karma said and lashed Xerxezz over the back again.

The tank was pushed out of the entrance, and slowly rolled down the stairs and came to a stop in an empty spot on the parking lot.

ôAnd what now?ö Joy asked and looked at the rest of the group. The others were already climbing into the jeeps.

Xerxezz whistled happily and pointed the gas-pump placed conveniently next to the tank.

-------------------------

Parking lot, CMPS Main HQ, CMPS District, Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:45 PM

Sidhe slid into the driverÆs seat and pulled the seat-belt on. The Jester slid into the seat besides her, the co-driver and navigator seat, and Konoka sat down on his armrest.

Keiko and Joy manned the main gun, while Tsuroko manned the co-axial machinegun with a frown, she had to share the seat with von Karma.

Xerxezz sat down on the commanderÆs seat and clicked on the radio.

ôYeah, breaker one-nine, this here's the Rubber Duck, you got a copy on me Big Mick? C'mon.ö Xerxezz said and scanned the frequences. The radio crackled to life.

ôAh yeah, ten-four Big Mick, for sure, for sure. By golly it's clean clear to Flagtown. C'mon.ö Mick said, his voice was slightly distorted over the radio, it sounded like he spoke with a southern drawl.

ôYeah, that's a big ten-four there Big Mick. Yeah, we definitely got the front door good buddy. Mercy sakes alive, looks like we got us a convoy!ö Xerxezz said and looked out of the tank. Jeeps were slowly forming up in a long line, heading towards the main gates.

Xerxezz looked thoughtfull for a moment, then slammed an old eight-track cassette into the music system. He hit play and quick drum beat and guitar began to transmit over the radio.

It was the dark of the moon on the sixth of June
In a Kenworth pullin logs
Cab over Pete with a reefer on
And a Jimmy haulin hogs
We's headed for bear on eye-one-oh
About a mile outta Shakeytownà

The thick metal gates were closed, it would be impossible to drive through.

ôI says Big Mick, this here's the Rubber Duck, and I'm about to put the hammer down!ö Xerxezz said over the radio and gave Keiko and Joy a wide grin. Keiko slammed a shell into the cannon and with a clap of thunder the gates disappeared in a fireball.

öCoz we got a little old convoy rockin' thru the night
Yeah we got a little old convoy aint she a beautiful sight
Come on and join our convoy aint nothin' gonna get in our way
We gonna roll this truckin' convoy 'cross the TFFA!
Convoyö

The jeeps soared through the open gates, MickÆs truck taking point. He could see a group of police cars further down the road. Weapons fire was impacting around MickÆs jeep, and he could hear the metallic smatter as rounds were bouncing off the tanks armored hide.

öAh, breaker, Big Mick this here's the Duck and you wanna back off on them hogs?ö Xerxezz asked Mick and nodded to Keiko to put another shell into the cannon.

ôAh, ten-four, about fifty meters or so. Ten roger, them hogs is gettin' IN-tense up hereö Mick answered and slowed down, the tank moved past and took point.

öBy the time we got into TFF town we had eleven trucks in all
But they's a roadblock up on the cloverleaf
And them bears 's wall to wall
Yeah them smokeys 's thick as bugs on a bumper
They even had a bear in the air

There was another roadblock further ahead, and an Apache gunship was flying above them, raining down 30mm cannon shells and hellfire missiles.

ôI says Callin' all trucks, this here's the Duck
We about to go a-huntin' bearö Xerxezz said with calmly.

Weapon fire, ki-blasts and spells erupted from the fleeing cars, one attack managed to clip the tail of the helicopter and it spun out of control and crashed besides the road. It erupted into a spectacular fireball.

The tank simply crushed the cars underneath its track, clearing a path for the trucks.

ôCoz we got a great big convoy rockin' thru the night
Yeah we got a great big convoy aint she a beautiful sight
Come on and join our convoy aint nothin' gonna get in our way
We gonna roll this truckin' convoy across the TFFA!
Convoyö

The cannon traversed and began aimed at a police car that was trying to slam MickÆs jeep off the road.

öAh, you want to give me a ten-nine on that Big Mick? Ah, nugatory Big Mick, you're still too close.ö Xerxezz said in bit his lip in irritation. They couldnÆt fire without sending Mick and company to hell as well.

öYeah them hogs is startin' to close up my sinuses. Mercy's sakes I better back off another tenö Mick answered and hit the breaks.

The police car continued forwards and exploded as Keiko nailed it with HE round. The group of truck and one tank veered of towards the motorway, it would be the quickest way to the slums.

ôWell we rolled up Interstate Forty-Four
Like a rocket sled on rails
We tore up all of our swindle sheets
And left 'em sittin' on the scales
By the time we hit that Shi town
Them bears was a-gettin' smart
They bought up some reinforcements
From the CMPS National Guardö

There's armoured cars and tanks and jeeps
And rigs of every size
Yeah them chicken coops was full of bears
And choppers filled the skies
Well we shot the line
We went for broke
With ten screaming trucks
And longhaired Angel of Death
In a chartreuse microbus

The convoy moved off the highway, and increased their speeds for the final run to the slums. There was a bridge further up, with cars and APCs barricading it. It wouldnÆt be as easy to go through as them as the last roadblock.

ôAh, Rubber Duck, this is Demonbuster. C'mon here?ö Janus voice crackled over the speakers.

öYeah, ten-four Demonbuster.ö Xerxezz answered. Sidhe had once again pressed the big red button and the tank was picking up speed.

ôListen, ya wanna put that microbus in behind that suicide jockey?ö Janus said asked Xerxezz and moved his minibus so that it was right behind the tank.

öYeah he's haulin' dynamite and he needs all the help he can getö Mick answered and followed behind the minibus.

öWell we laid a strip for the TFF shore
Prepared to cross the line
I could see the bridge was lined with bears
But I didn't have a doggone dime

öI says Big Mick this here's the Rubber Duck, we just aint gonna pay no toll!ö Xerxezz said and grinned, the tank picked up speed and headed straight towards the barricade.

So we crashed the gate doin' ninety-eight
I says Let them truckers roll, ten-four

Everyone inside the tank was thrown around as the tank slammed into the APCs and carved a path straight through. The tank came to a halt and the jeeps speed past them. Keiko slammed another shell into the cannon. The turret began to spin around and aimed straight at one of the bridgeÆs support beams.

There was a muted explosion from the gun and the bridge began to collapse.

Coz we got a mighty convoy rockin' thru the night
Yeah we got a mighty convoy aint she a beautiful sight
Come on and join our convoy aint nothin' gonna get in our way
We gonna roll this truckin' convoy across the TFFA
Convoy

öAh, ten-four Big Mick. What's your twenty? SLUMS?ö Xerxezz asked and whipped some blood from his face. The trucks were a far way off and it would take some time before the tank gained enough speed to catch up to them.

ôWell they oughta know what to do with them hogs in there, for sure. Well mercy sakes good buddy, we gonna back on outta here. so keep your thumbs off your glass and the bears off your ......tail.ö Mick answered.

öWe'll catch you on the flip-flop.This here's the Rubber Duck on the side. The bears gone, bye bye!ö Xerxezz cackled.

Only a bit further and they would be able hide in the slums.

 

[Zenithos]

OOC: For information on these two new OCs, a new entry in the registration thread covers their introduction.

Atop a high building with a view on the bridge, 1.7 Km from the bridge, Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:43 PM

"....Holy...." Two CMPS officers watched as the bridge crashed heavily into the river. The painful groan of twisted metal filled the air as a tidal wave surged over the banks. "Did you see that, Sis?!" One asked, her silver hair flowing in the wind.

"Focus on the task at hand, Incarna." The other said, frowning while training her binoculars on the convoy making its way down the road from the wrecked bridge. "Please, I want to be able to keep this job this time."

"Sure, sure, don't worry, Nez-neechan." The one named Incarna gave her twin sister a confident grin as she peered down the sniper scope of the sniper rail gun she had propped on one shoulder on one end (bazooka-style) and the edge of the roof ledge at the other.

"First Truck, Distance 1547 m, lead 22 degrees south 76 Km/h, trajectory correction right 0.44, 43 degrees downangle. Fire when ready." The one named Nez stated.

"Roger that. Firing." Incarna replied, putting the soles of her boots on the ledge and squeezing the trigger.

With a brief, yet powerful sizzle of the electrical discharge, a 15mm high-density depleted uranium round left the muzzle at a speed of 3500 m/s (mach 10), which pretty much renders the lead direction and speed information redundant.

The shock of the immensely powerful recoil would have been enough to cause a dent in metal, let alone a human shoulder. But Incarna merely shuddered under the force before steadying herself once more.

Meanwhile, in the distance, a truck exploded as the bullet ripped straight through its engine and ignited its fuel feed. It lifted up into the air, keeled forwards, before crashing upside-down into the street.

"Target Confirmed Destroyed." Nez reported calmly. "Rearmost truck. Distance 1647 m, target stationary, trajectory correction right 0.23, 37 degrees downangle. Fire when ready"

BZZZZZZT...

The rearmost truck exploded in a similar fashion, effectively blocking off the retreat of the convoy.

"Now, capture the escapees." Nez said, shouldering her rather over-sized XM307 25mm High-Velocity Artillery Autocannon. "...alive, please..." She added, noticing the rather zealous look on Incarna's face as she shouldered her rail-gun in preparation for high-speed close quarters combat.

"What? I'd never hurt a fly!" Incarna cried, sounding hurt.

"Yeah, sure." Nez sighed, shaking her head in exasperation. "Just...try to be a little more subtle this time."

"Sure. Don't worry." Incarna cracked yet another grin as she thumped her chest with her free hand. "Leave it to me."

"...if I had a choice, I wouldn't." Nez sighed once more. "Well, let's earn our pay." She said, before the two leapt up over the rooftops towards the convoy.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Inside the Rubber Duck Tank, A random street, Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:47 PM

"What in tarnation..." Xerxezz muttered, watching as the two trucks burned at the two ends of the street, trapping the convoy in the middle of the narrow street. "Hola Big Mick, we've got burnin' barns both ways. The bears are on high and they've got big'uns."

"Xerxezz, speak in English!" Morrigan shouted. "And what was that?!"

"That was artillery fire! From on high!" David reported through the radio. "They've got siege guns on the rooftops!"

"...no..." They heard Mick's voice. "They've got siege guns in mini-skirts...Xerxezz, on your twelve!"

"I see nuthin!" Xerxezz shouted.

There was the painful creak of twisted metal before....

...daylight poured into the tank as the turret was ripped neatly off the chassis, leaving the occupants sitting like ducks in an armoured convertible.

"Hi there. Do you have a license for this tank?" A cheerful voice asked as a railgun muzzle appeared in front of Xerxezz's face.

"And you...you don't even look old enough to have a driving license." Another, cooler voice said, as Sidhe found herself staring up the muzzle of an HV autocannon.

"....Big Mick, I see'em..." Xerxezz said aside to the radio.

"Are you ok, Rubber Duck?" Mick's voice crackled on the radio.

"...Negative on that, Big Mick...." Xerxezz replied smoothly.

"I found you..." Another voice giggled cheerfully as the Jester found his face reflected in a katana blade that hovered steadily in front of his nose...the wielder definitely didn't have a shave in mind, judging by where it was aimed. The Jester hazarded a look sideways at the katana's wielder who was standing atop the chasis, silhouetted against the sun. No doubt about it, it was the Mistress' right hand man...err...girl, Eterna.

"Target acquired. For the glory of the Yaoists..." Another voice, flat and monotone, said quietly as another katana blade levelled itself with the Jester's throat from the opposite side. The Jester cautioned a look to its wielder...only to see...another Eterna?! The only striking difference was the headband, collar, and shackles...but...what the heck?!

This Eterna didn't even flinch as the barrel of a rather oversized revolver was aimed at her face.

"Who are you two?" Nez asked, training her revolver in her left hand at the Yaoist Eterna.

"I will not harm anyone who doesn't get in my way." Yaoist Eterna said, aiming a tri-barrelled revolver at Incarna.

"Hey, cap me and your twin gets it." Incarna replied, having whipped out her own revolver on the other Eterna.

"Oh my, so feisty." The Trollz Eterna smiled happily, her own tri-bareled revolver aimed at Nez, competing the circle. "But I'm quite sure you aren't a twin of mine." She smiled at the other Eterna who stared back at her blankly.

"...wait, four Eternas? Or Two Eternas and two Zenis?" Joy murmured, her eyes going swirly.

"....but...Zeni's in that truck with Mick..." Eclair pointed out.

"Hey, you can't be serious!" Incarna cried. "I don't look THAT ugly!" She shouted, nodding at the Trollz!Eterna. "And I definitely don't have any S/M fetishes!" She added, nodding at Yaoist!Eterna.

"I will not kill anyone if nobody gets in my way. I'm only here for the Jester." Trollz!Eterna stated coldly.

"Oh? Likewise." Yaoist!Eterna said, still smiling sweetly.

"If you two don't interfere with our business, I'll let you off easy." Incarna said quickly, fearing that she was getting cut out of the argument.

"While you three were quibbling..." Nez sighed. "Those people have escaped..."

The others looked down, only to find that their targets had vanished from underneath their weapons.

"So, if you'd all please lower your guns...?" Nez asked nicely.

The three other lookalikes did as they were told while still giving each other cautious looks.

"Now, you want that Jester person? Fine. We can spare one escapee, if that resolves our problem. Just let us have the rest, alive." Nez said, making a brave stab at negotiation.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

A small side-street, Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:52 PM

"There were four Eternas...and they were all crazy!" Xerxezz shouted as the entire group hot-footed it down a small side-street, dragging a scorched Vex (who was driving the frontmost truck) and a sizzling Janus (who had been driving the rearmost truck) as well as a few other burnt bodies.

"Wow, when she decides on betrayal, she really goes all out, doesn't she?" Sidhe commented. "I mean, one joined the Yaoists, one joined the Trollz, and the other two joined the CMPS."

"..." Zen remained silent as she followed closely behind Mick, lead forwards on her leash.

"The other two...the CMPS officers...they didn't give off the same aura as Ei-chan..." Eclair said. "And not the same as Zen's either..."

"By the way, that Ei-chan was wearing the same headband as..." Joy began before...

"Halt right there." The group had reached a small plaza, only to be waylaid by the headband-wearing Eterna, her twin katanas flashing threateningly.

"CMPS! Your asses are sooooooo busted!!!" Incarna shouted from behind, her rail-gun trained on the group.

"Trapped, like flies in a web." Trollz Eterna clapped her hands together as she appeared at the mouth of another street leading off from the plaza.

...that left one last street. But as the group ran for it, a trail of 25mm tracers rammed through the ground in front of them, raising dust and dirt high up into the air, causing them to stop dead in their tracks. "You have the right to remain silent. Whether you have the right to live or not, it's up to you." Nez said, her Autocannon smoking.

"Don't worry, all I want is good little Jester-kun back." Trollz!Eterna said, smiling sweetly.

OOC: The following scene was written by Xaosite and edited in places by me to fit into this scene. Sorry, Xaosite, the tower scene ended early so I decided that, rather than letting it go to waste, we could adapt your snippet for this scene.

"Him? You can have him." Janus shrugged. The crowd parted like the Red Sea for Moses, and left The Jester standing there.

The jester pointed at himself, "W~hO, mE*?"

"Yes, you."

"I don't know how the bastard got involved with us anyway!" Vex shouted, dusting the ashes off himself.

"I don't know. He got locked up with us, and somehow..." Mick said, spreading his hands to express his confusion.

Oh, my sister! You are so cruel to me! The Jester had cried out, plaintively, at the Eterna before him.

Konoka walked out of the crowd, standing between The Jester and placed one hand to her hip, the other raised with one finger extended on a scolding gesture. "Now enough is enough! You have all been very mean to poor Clown-san! And are you really his sister, Eterna? Family should supp... urk." This last utterence was cause by a void blade emerging from her chest.

The assembled TFFers watched, stunned, as The Jester raised the skewered Konoka into the air, still impaled on his blade. As her blood ran down his arm, he turnied his psychotic merry grin to them and said, "I@ go#TTa $teLl Ya%, t^He A*nticiPation reA)lly Giv_es y-oUR suDd=eN +BuT iNe(vitablE bet>rAyal `a KiC|k!"

"How... how could you? She, she believed in you! No matter what anyone else said, she had complete faith in you!" Xerxezz cried out.

I know. That is why I hated her so very much, The Jester had said, his tone dark. Rearing his arm back, he pitched Konoka into the crowd, where Soifon darted out and gently caught her. "She's still alive! Quickly, Tohno, cast your healing magic!" "Rrright!"

In an impossible effect, blood dripped down the blade of void The Jester clutched. Throwing his head back, he began to howl with laughter. The assembled TFF forces, now that he was without his human shield, let loose a volley of ranged attacks. He siply raised his other hand, above which floated a cloud of d20s. The volley passed around him, every single attack missing.

"A+wWww, y-OU rOl}led >All oNE_s!" The Jester smirked. Turning his empty gaze to David, he had said something. Thank you so much for infecting me with your worthless emotion of fear. In return, I have a gift. A small sample of my hate.

Using his free hand, The Jester reached behind himself and plunged it into the air behind him, the hand and forearm vanishing. Behind David's head, it reappeared, and grabbed him. There was a flash as crackling dark energies wrapped around his head, and after the Jester pulled his hand back, David fell to the ground, clutching his head.

"What, what have you done... to me!" David moaned. "This, this hate. Is this what you feel? It won't work! I'll resist it!" If anyone was expecting dissapointment out of The Jester, they themselves were dissapointed. "No@," The Jester said, "I# j$usT %wantEd t^O ret+URn tH~e Fa`vOr beFore| I= ki+LLed Yo*u!" With that, he sent a spread of void dice at David. Others stepped up to defend him, but the dice somehow managed to slip past all of them and pierce through him.

"A+Nd -I, la*dieS /aNd Gen)Tlemen, R&oll tWen%tiEs!" The Jester crowed. Belldandy tended to David while Mick charged The Jester. However, his charge was stopped short when a gaping wound appeared across his chest, bringing him to to his knees with a scream of pain. The Jester then darted forward, slashing with his blade, exactly across the wound.

"What, what... did you... do?" Mick gaped out. The Jester just laughed some more. Your relentlessly linear concept of time bores me! I just had the effect come before the cause! You were wounded, then I wounded you! You see how that works? He had taunted.

"That will be quite enough! The mistress has some words to pick with you!" Trollz!Eterna shouted. "She gave some specific orders toEEEP!" her words trailed off into a yelp as she dodged a rip in the air The Jester sent her way.

"I@ cA#re no$tHing %foR yOu^r P&ettY miStrEs*s, n`oR He~R worTH>Less orDe=RS!' The Jester shouted back. My purpose comes from the greated order of the multiverse! Your petty desires are nothing before our grand designs! Your lives, your thoughts, your disgusting perceptions, your beliefs, your gods, everything that you are, it was a mistake! A mistake that I exist to correct! The Jester had shouted.

"It matters not. The Goddess has asked for your life, and I shall take it." Yaoist!Eterna said, her eyes flashing a bright red. "Command: Release seals, 40%. Execute." She murmured as a bright blue glow enveloped her.

"You dare defy the Mistress?" Trollz!Eterna chuckled, regaining her composure. "Then you shall pay! Command: Release seals, 40%. Execute!" She shouted as a similar bright blue glow flamed out from her body.

"Oh well...I tried to resolve this peacefully..." Nez sighed as she threw aside her Autocannon and took out her glaive.

"Let's rumble!" Incarna yelled as she leapt at the TFFers with her rail-gun still in hand.

"...RUN!" Parker shouted as the two Crimson Moon Executioners clashed with the Jester in the air above.

"Holy Shit!" Legacy cursed as the glass windows on the buildings all around them smashed as a shockwave exploded outwards from the Jester, sending the two Eternas flying backwards through several buildings.

"You won't hurt anyone! Not while I'm here!" Shiakou cried as she deflected the rail-gun rounds with a few deft swings of his Arc-EdgeII before charging forwards and leaping high above Incarna, Arc-Edge raised high.

"Think again..." Incarna grinned, before whirling around and catching Shiakou with the muzzle of the rail-gun, sending him flying through another building. "And another bites the...."

The ArcEdge came flying back out of the hole in the building at an insane speed, straight at Incarna. She quickly moved aside, barely dodging the giant axe. Her rail-gun, however, was knocked away by the spinning projectile, causing her to curse, very politely however. "Little girls shouldn't be playing with big axes!"

"Little girl? I..." Shiakou looked down at...herself for a moment. "Oh...Yes, I still seem to be anatomically...different..."

"...but, you're a little girl...with an enormous gun!" Locke pointed out.

"You have a problem with girls and big axes?!" Presea yelled as she sailed over Shiakou towards Incarna.

"Bring it on." Incarna shouted back, pulling out a pair of ninja knives as she prepared to block.

"How the hell did I get caught up in this?!" Soifon screamed as the Jester crashed into another building above them before another Eterna followed in after him, her katanas flashing dangerously.

"It's called chance." Tohno said with an optimistic grin. "Followers of the God of Dice should know that."

"I'm not a frickin' follower of your frickin' loopy God!" Soifon screamed.

"I thought it was called Murphy's law..." Mihoshi said.

"Don't care!" Soifon screamed in her face as the Jester sent both Eternas hurtling down into the Earth, creating a crater in the street.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

The song selection for this scene, courtesy of Xaosite: The Ultimate Show Dancing Mad Dancing Mad (Black Mages Remix)

 

[David Alan Abramczyk]

In the melee

"Oh my!" Kasumi exclaimed, scooting over through the insanity to Konoka's side. She pulled a first aid kit out of Hammerspace, and began to tend to the injured schoolgirl.

===============

At the Academy, a raven-haired half-demon schoolgirl suddenly froze. "Oujou-sama's been hurt!" she shouted, before extending her wings and flying up, and away towards where she sensed she was. She was followed by a tiny ten-year old in a green suit, who rode on a wizard's staff nearly twice as tall as he was.

 

[knight_of_ni]

"Okay, so I understand making a profit off of the fur coats, but why are we wearing some, it is not as if we are models or anything," Nikolaus asked, wearing a long fur coat, and looking rather uncomfortable about it.

"Yes, I don't see why." Grave asked, also in a fur coat. He seemed to have a better idea of what was going to happen, and was having doubts.

"Well...we are going to go to a bar in the slums, and the fur coats make us look nice..." the first regenerator responded, trailing off at the end. He too, was in a fur coat.

"They are necessary for something, you will find out what later," the second responded, also in a fur coat.

"Last time I went to a bar with you two, I got piss drunk and ended up having sex with a woman I never met before, and who was in fact a cat with a shape changing curse, from, oh, where was it? starts with a 'J'," Nikolaus started, throwing his hands up into the air. Then he started to think about something else for a moment, before voicing his thoughts, "Wait, every time I go out drinking with you two, I can't remember what happens...."

"Well...we have a confession to make..." the first regenerator began.

"That sort of thing happens every time..." the second continued.

"What?!" Nikolaus bellowed, before leveling them both with glares, "alright, details, dammit."

"Well, you are the proud father..." the first began.

"Of various new types of werecreatures, congrats," the second continued.

"We felt, it was our civic duty to find a way to deal with the lack of werecreatures."

"The new werecreatures include: weresharks, werecats, werechickens...."

"You know what, nevermind, just-" Nikolaus began before another explosion shook the car.

"An attack," Grave stated in his monotone voice.

"Wait, let the others deal with it, we must not ruin the coats," the regenerators said in unison.

"We are going...now..." Nikolaus said as he left the car.

"Nikolaus," Suzuka stated calmly as she took to his side while Grave got his coffin.

"Ah, what is going on?" Moka asked as she stepped up to them, "Didn't we already get rid of them?"

"Apparently, we need a more permanent solution," Nikolaus stated as he reached up and ripped the rosary off Moka's neck, not even blinking at the explosion of power.

--------

"Alright sis, nice shot," Incarna shouted over the din of fire, as Nez fired another shot towards Mick, who responded by firing several spells in her direction. Incarna herself was firing at Tsuroko and Xerxezz, the former was dodging around, attempting to get a ki blast in, while the latter was lobbing grenades at Incarna, as well as Joker, when he could get a chance.

"Know your place you insignifigant worms!" Moka yelled as she charged forward, followed closely by Suzuka and Nikolaus. Grave and the two regenerators had taken up sniping positions to aid from afar.

"The hell, we should have just fired on them," Nez yelled.

"Told you so, sis!" Incarna yelled back.

(OoC:...mh, interesting. I think I did something wrong here)

 

[Mick]

delete

 

[Vexarian]

Plaza Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:49 PM

Vex sat on the roof of one of the tanks, looking up somewhat and ignoring the battle, in liu of a steadily growing glow in the sky. He let a confident smirk grace his features, "I always keep my promises..."

Meanwhile, a group of scientists in an observatory were panicking as if the end of all things was coming.

While in the atmosphere, currently hurtling through High-Earth-Orbit, was a gigantic comet, made of equal parts ice, and flame. Of course at the speed it was traveling it did not stay within HEO For long, passing to MEO, slowing somewhat from the resistence the atmosphere put forth, but crashed through to LEO within adequete time.

Once in LEO, from the eye of the comet, one could see where it would land, one could even predict the range of the devastation that would be left.

And with all the fury of a gigantic space rock/travesty to the laws of physics, it snapped forward, and to observers, seemed to hover above it's target for a few moments.

Then it slammed straight down upon the CMPS building, boring through the tower level by level, slowly slightly with each that was crushed from it's weight. Until it finally hit the ground, releasing a shockwave of heat, then a shockwave of cold for several blocks out, while the force created a crater in the location of the former CMPS.

"The CMPS...", Sothinez gasped out.

"Is...", Incarna followed through.

"Gone!" Vex finished with an even broader smirk.

Xero pulled himself up, brushing some nonexistant dust off his pants, "Woot! I'm here!"

"Hold it right there!" Screamed several dozen CMPS officers on the outside of the crater. They seemed for form a ring around it... Somehow?

Although those Turks over there seemed to be a bit busy being gobsmacked rather then trying to capture the guy who just bulled through their whole compound.

Xero looked around for a moment and chuckled uncomfortably, "It was an accident?", he tried to explain while rubbing the back of his head.

"YOU DESTROYED MY CMPS COMPOUND!" Rufus screamed, seemingly hysterical at the thought.

"Your under arrest!" Reinterated another CMPS soldier.

"If I just destroyed your building... Where would you put me?" Xero asked after thinking it over.

After a few moments, there seemed to be a silent agreement among all the officers, and they opened fire.

With a scared yelp, Xero pulled up his Ice Armor, while crouching down, then proceeding to look around, stopping once he spotted a group of soldiers with a jeep behind them.

After slamming his fists into the ground he sent a stream of ice towards the group, and encased them all in blocks of ice. He ran over to the jeep, picked it up, and slammed it into another group of soldiers repeatedly. He then hopped onto a motorcycle nearby, and sped off as fast as the machine could move, blazing down a broad street.

 

[Unknown-common-827]

Plaza, Urban District, 4:50 pm

Unknown! Locke! Stall the enemy, then get the others into groups and get them into the sewers!! Whatever we do we can't let Zen see the Eternas!" said Mick as I turned toward the fighters.

"I'm on it, Mick. Locke! Get down there... we're gonna play a little bit of catch," I say with a chuckle. Locke skidded hurriedly into the sewer.

One by one I took the ladies from that decreped laboratory and lifted them before placing them into the sinkhole where Locke was waiting and finished their trip to the darkness within. All the ladies except for Rin were handed down gracefully. I wanted Rin to be last down, alongside me... per a conversation we had during our little ride a few minutes ago.

Finally, it was the men's turn. One by one, I directed them into the sinkhole until Xerx was the only one, besides me and Rin to be topside.

"I don't want to go into that sewer. I wanna fight!" whined Xerx before I had enough, clamped my hand around his throat and THREW him with as much forse as I could into the sewer, I noticed Locke had conveniently moved and a loud THUD resonated from the sinkhole.

"Did you REALLY have to do that?" asked Rin as I shot a bolt of lightning at a group of idiots who were about to jump me. The poor fools, a shocking experience followed by becoming charcoal as I sent a fireball their direction.

With those... things... now completely char-broiled, I sent a final wall of flames to guard our escape. "Shall we?" I asked Rin. The grin in her features gave me the answer I needed.

Swiftly, I took her into my arms and floated down into the sinkhole.

"Well, seems there's more to you than what meets the eye," she said as I let her regain her footing and balance.

"What we talked about on that motorcycle ride is between us, Rin. You now know who I am and where I am in life. I may have completely lost Zeni those years ago. However, I know that she may be in good hands with Mick. There is little left that can save what me and her used to be. I want you to know that I can move on and that I would like the opportunity to find out where we might go," I whispered to her as I began to walk slowly behind the group. Rin walked to my side and took my left arm.

'Maybe... just maybe things can be joyous once again...' I thought as we walked slowly behind the group.

 

[sidhereelmotion]

Sewers under the Plaza Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 4:52 PM

At times they walked. At times they ran down the dark and slimey passages.

Michael was putting on a brave front, but his injuries were very painful. Sidhe and Zen were on each side, holding him up as they went, but mostly it was Sidhe pulling the other two. Many of the others were following behind them, but Marudashi and Morodashi scampered on ahead.

Sidhe stopped for a moment to catch her breath. Looking around, she asked, "Does anything live down here?"

"This is a sewer. There could be anything here," Marudashi called back.

"From sleeping gods to ravenous beasts," Morodashi joined in.

"There could be lions," suggested Marudashi.

"Or tigers," added Morodashi.

"Or bears," they said together.

"Oh my!" exclaimed Sidhe, expecting monsters to leap out of the shadows.

"Lions"

"And tigers"

"And bears"

"Oh my!"

A tiny smile pulled up at the corner of Zen's mouth, but it went unseen and was soon gone.

"Lions and tigers and bears oh.KYAAAAAAAAA!" Maru, Moro, and Sidhe repeated before something scurried at them out of the darkness.

When Sidhe stopped screaming in Michael's ear, she took a closer look at the furry little figure. "Wait... it's Rat-san!"

Zephyrus groomed his whiskers as he snapped back, "Who were you expecting? Repicheep? On second thought... just follow me."

The rat turned tail and started leading the group down side-passages.

 

[Legendary Legacy]

Above ground...


"Damn it!" Incarna stamped her foot. "How could they all get away like that?"

Nez simply frowned and put her glaive away. Before she could speak, a CMPS officer aproached.

"Sirs," the officer greeted, "The Resistance group has fled into the sewers."

"How appropriate," Nez muttered, gazing into the sewer hole.

Incarna followed her gaze. "Let's follow them. We can catch up easy."

"Let's not be too hasty." Nez disagreed. She turned back to the officer. "That explosion before...?"

"HQ has been decimated by an unknown assailant. Chances are he was another member of the Resistance."

Nez sighed. "Then I suppose right now the best thing would be to regroup, gather up our remaining forces, and come up with a new plan then."

"Affirmative. We will convene at the Outskirts Base in ten minutes." With a final salute from both parties, the man took off.

"This wasn't how my first mission was supposed to turn out," Nez muttered to herself.

"So what n-?"

BOOOOOM!

"d$IE Yo*u @LOL(i B%ITcHES^!"

"FUCK OFF, CLOWN!"

Nez hung her head. "We should probably stop them before they cause any more property damage, but..."

"Pardon me, please?"

The two officers looked up just in time to see a green-haired girl in a bikini touch down in front of them.

"Have you seen my Shampoo-darling?"

The sisters shared a look. "Haven't seen any," Incarna stated. "And don't call me 'darling'. I don't swing that way."

The comment seemed to confuse Lum. "Pardon, datcha?"

"Are you a member of the Resistance?" Nez asked.

"...I don't think so." the oni answered.

"What about the person you're looking for? Is she one of the terrorists?"

Lum turned angry. "My Darling is nothing of the sort! She's a kind-hearted wonderful person who freed me from my enslavement! And I have to find her and make sure that grinning fool hasn't defiled her innocence!" She seized Nez by the collar. "Tell me where they went, datcha!"

"Settle down, Miss," Nez said, firmly removing herself from the grip. If the girl was against the Resistance and wanted to help her 'darling', maybe they could get her to their side as well. "We already know that the group has escaped into the sewer system, but if you will just be patient, we-" She was cut off as Lum squealed in triumph and embraced her.

"Thank you thank you, datcha!" the oni cried before releasing her and diving headlong into the hole. Nez also fell to the ground, a victim of a rather harse (though inadvertant) zapping.

"Should we follow them now, sis?" Incarna asked, apparently oblivious to her sister's pain. "If they're taking hostages, then we should get them out before they kidnap that girl as well."

"S-s-somehow, I th-think s-s-she'll be f-fine," Nez stammered, trying to shake off the electricity coursing through her as she stood up. "Let's just get to the base. The sooner we get reorganized, the easier it'll be to take them all down for good."

...

"O@#WW! nO B>ItiN%G, yoU] wh$ORe!"

"Then give up and come along peacefully, you bastard!"
-----------

In the Sewer...

The group trudged along quietly, performing the TFF version of the Pied Piper. (In TFF, the Rat leads you!)

"Are you sure no one has a little flute for him to play?"

"Shut up, LL."

LL crossed his arms, pouting. Everyone was so serious and grumpy all of a sudden. Geez, a few people get stabbed, blown up and forced to walk through sludge and it's like the world has ended.

"Where are you leading us, Rat?" Unknown questioned.

"And how much further is it?" Mick added, giving a supportive look to Zen.

"Oh god, it's in my boots!" Epsilon grumbled.

LL sighed; why couldn't Xaosite have been here. He'd have conjured up a rat-flute to help cheer everyone up. At the very least, his presence would cheer up his 'harem girls'.

Shoot, after everything else that had already happened, what else could-

"Darling!"

"No, you didn't let me finish!" LL shouted to the heavens. "I was gonna say: What else could I do to cheer everyone up!"

And then he was slammed into the wall as the amourous oni made her beeline for a terrified Shampoo.

 

[Xaosite]

In The Sky, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:04 PM

"H=eH#ehE%H^aH&ha~H`hAH*!!!" The Jester laughed as he seemed to skate through the sky, his feet leaving tears in the air. The two Eterna's chasing after him grinned as he was headed straight for a building.

Those grins vanished as he vanished from sight, disappearing through the building's wall as if it wasn't even there. The two floated by the building, staring at it in consternation.

"How did he do that? This is a perfectly ordinary building." Yaoi!Eterna said.

"He used no spell, no powers, no nothing. So how did he...?" Trollz!Eterna asked.

"O-H, pO*Or, Po+oR ]liTtlE gIr>ls! S#O yOUn%g, ^sO verY_ fOO~LISH!" The Jester's head and arms popped out of the side of the building, grabbing the two by their collars. Resuming his mad laughter, he zoomed back through the building, all of the walls and other objects passing through him, but slamming into the two Eternas he held.

Bursting out of the other side, he clapped his arms together, slamming the two together. He then dropped from the sky like a rock, dragging them to the ground, where once again he vanished through soild concrete like it wasn't there, leaving his opponents to create another crater in the ground.

Outside the rim of the crater, The Jester emerged from the ground, the two Eternas bursting up, brushing rubble and plaster off. "What the hell are you talking about, you crazy sonofabitch? We're over 16,000 years old!" Yaoi!Eterna yelled.

"Y#oU $don'T lOO%k a^ D&ay o~Ver 14,5_98."

"Shut up! What the hell do you mean by us being too young?!?" Trollz!Eterna shouted back.

How old is this world you stand on? How old is the star this world orbits? How long, do you think, it has been since the Big Bang, when everything came to be? How long, do you think, it will be when everything comes crashing together, and it all ends? Your 16,000 years are a mere drop in the bucket! Everything you see, everything here, in the grand scheme of things, has such a short existence that it's nothing more than a blip on the grand timeline. The Jester had said.

"You forgot one thing, buddy." Trollz!Eterna smirked.

"W+hAt's tHa-T?"

"We got you monologing!" Yaoi!Eterna said triumphantly. With that, both Eternas shot forward, striking The Jester together in what is commonly referred to as an 'X-Slash.'

"Aa_Rr|Gg}Hh#!! YOu@ LiT+Tle b~iTcheS!" He shouted, clutching his chest. Whirling around, he formed a void sword in each hand, glaring angrily as well as he could for someone without eyeballs. Which he was surprisingly good at. He knelt forward to ruch forward, but hesiteted at the last moment.

The vampire pair, who had been ready for his reprisal, glared angrily at him. "Well?!?!" They shouted simultainiously.

Just waiting for the right moment, The Jester had said.

As the two growled and stood ready, he cried out, "D*inG! Pie#S $aRe U]p!" and rushed forward. However, he vanished, and reappeared right behind them, swinging his swords out and delivering brutal blows to their backs. As he rushed by, a pair of his hands appeared out of nowhere, grabbing Trollz!Eterna by the ankles and yanking her down into nothingness.

Yaoi!Eterna, noting this with alarm, charged forward, only to have The Jester leap into the air, plunge his hands into the sky, where they vanished, and pull a surprized Trollz!Eterna out. Flipping head over heels, he slammed the two Eternas into each other once again, bowling them both back into the crater. As the pair struggled back to his feet, The Jester popped his head over the edge and said, "IF` it'%S #YouR cl]One, i+S It| hom/OsexualiTy oR& MasturBa>tIon?"

The two burst out of the crater yet again, noting worriedly that the wound they had deliered earlier was healing itself. The Jester let go of his swords, which vanished, and instead formed a swarm of dice around him. "Y+oU cA#n't wIn$. I%t'S ju&sT noT~ a| RO+ll I'{lL lE/t Y>ou mAK*e!" He taunted, and readied himself for their next attack.

 

[sidhereelmotion]

Deeper,Sewers under the Plaza Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:12 PM

Flee. The frogs' limited intelligences knew how to do that. They fled down the crooked tunnels and across stagnant pools, trying to get away from the creatures that dragged behind them. In the greater depths, far below the city and the sewers, some dark malevolence called to them,
"COME TO ME. BRING THEM TO ME."

Inside the belly of the beasts, Zen and Sidhe bounced around in the vertigo of the soft, wet darkness. The captives' struggles were weakening as the slime that covered them began to rob them of the ability to move and even their holds on reality.

"COME TO ME!" commanded the Malevolence, and the frogs obeyed.

They went faster down into the dark. But as they went, the impulse to obey started to weaken against an older instinct. Hunger. It had been long, far too long since something so succulent had come down from above. It would only take a little effort, and then the digestive juices would...

"NO!" screamed the Malevolence into their minds. "THEY ARE MINE!"

The frogs fells to the ground writhing, jerking the two holding the leashes forward. Locke came to a rolling stop, but Mick got a face full of frog snout.

Locke chided, "Mick, kissing it won't get you a princess." He brought up his Mod Staff and took a target shot at the frog's groin. It gave a long croak then slumped over."

The other frog, gave out a croak that might have meant "You're a lousy kisser!" and then keeled over in disgust.

Mick and Locke quickly cut open the frogs and pulled the girls out. They were dripping with slime.

"Mick, you have to see this, " Locke said, as he wiped the slime off Sidhe's face.

Mick looked up from tending to Zen and saw the collar that was now on Sidhe's neck. "Oh rats!"

Sidhe stared into space and happily chirped, "Purple!"

In a sad, small voice Zen said, "Buggrit, Millenium, Hand & Shrimp."

 

[Zenithos]

In The Sky, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:10 PM

"You shall submit! You shall die by my hands!" Yaoist!Eterna shouted, a slight edge now apparent in her monotone voice, as she launched a beam of concentrated dark magic at the Jester.

"I aM ThE AlPHa, ThE OmEGa, hAvEnT YoU LeARnED YouR ABcS?!" The Jester laughed, easily dodging the beam which struck a building behind him, cleanly cleaving it in two diagonally.

"You shall return to the Mistress and receive her judgement, you traitor!" Trollz Eterna shouted as she slashed at the Jester with her katanas....only to slash through yet another building behind him as with a slight shimmer he was gone.

"I TiRE Of ThIs GaME..." Trollz!Eterna looked around wildly for the source of the Jester's sigh.

But she was late in noticing a gigantic oblivion Kirby rush out of the building behind her before swallowing her whole.

"NoW...FoR YoU..." The Jester grinned as he reappeared right behind a surprised Yaoist!Eterna.

"Never!" Eterna cried, spinning around to attack...only to get her headband locked in the Jester's vice-like grip.

"Ugh!" Yaoist!Eterna only managed to thrash for a little while as the Jester tightened his grasp on her headband, smirking all the while. "You shall find retribution!" She spat. "You shall..."

"ReTrIbUTiON?!" The Jester laughed. "I aM ReTRiBuTIoN!" Just then, Eterna let out a painful ear-piercing scream as her body began to jerk and twitch violently.

"Do YoU FeEL iT?! Do YoU LiKe It?!" The Jester cackled. "YoUr VeRy OwN PeRSonAL HeLL FoR 96 WhOlE HoURs. WhAt DoEs It LooK LikE?! YoUR WorSt FeArS, YoUr DeEpEsT SoRRoWs, yOuR LoVeD OnES DyInG AgAin AnD AgaIN AnD AGAIN?!" He threw his head back and laughed maniacally, watching with glee as Eterna's eyes bulged out of their sockets in an expression of abject horror.

A good 5 seconds later, Eterna fell limp in the air, before the Jester released his grip on her headband, leaving a slight crack on the crystal adorning the headband. "AnY MeRE MoRTAl WouLD HaVE DiEd...AnD YeT YoU SuRviVeD...No MaTTeR...AwAiT ThE EnD In ThAt StaTe...FeEblE, BRokEn, FoReVeR LoST!" He laughed once more as Yaoist Eterna plunged towards the earth.

 

[David Alan Abramczyk]

TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:10 PM

Unknowingly, David had just been tended to by Belldandy, and was getting to his feet. He rubbed his head, and looked balefully into the sky at the Jester. He opened his mouth to speak-

At that momet, Eterna landed on him, driving him into the ground like a railway spike into a sleeper.

"Ow." he said simply, shaking his head as he looked at the girl in his arms.

 

[zerohour]

With a yawn, Zero returned to consciousness. Blearily looking around, his sleep addled mind was cionfused at what he saw. Hadn't he been in the shrine? And wrapped in bandages?

How did he end up... wherever the hell this was?

"So, where am I, and what did I miss?"

 

[JiigarGhen]

Sewers under the Plaza Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:07 PM

Janus had fired off a blast of darkness in an attempt to stop the frogs from taking the two girls, but it had been reflected by some sort of power almost immediately after he shot it off. He had a few seconds to think before his own attack knocked him for a loop.

"Why does this always happen to me?"

It seemed as though he had been out for only a minute, but he awoke in a place of utter darkness; somehow, however, the darkness was glowing, though without any light. Before Janus could investigate his odd new surroundings, however, a voice like the sound of a stone coffin lid slamming into place sounded from the darkness.

AH. YOU MUST BE THE NEW RECRUIT.

A figure Janus had never expected to see materialized in front of him. A black-robed figure, taller than most normal humans, holding a scythe glowing with an eldritch blue light.

FORGIVE US FOR THE RATHER ABRUPT METHOD WE USED TO CONTACT YOU. IT'S THE POLICY NOT TO DIRECTLY TOUCH THE OTHER 'S UNIVERSES, BUT WE WISHED TO INFORM YOU OF YOUR NEW DUTIES.

"And you're Death, I would presume? What do you mean duties?"

YOU HAVEN'T NOTICED? YOU ARE THE NEW ANGEL OF DEATH, ARE YOU NOT?

"Wait, what? I didn't agree to that when I made that deal!"

IT MATTERS NOT. YOU ALREADY HAVE THE POWERS WITHIN YOU, NOW YOU MUST TAKE UP YOUR DUTIES.

"Don't I get any say in this?"

Death appeared to think about this for a while.

NO, NO YOU DON'T.

"Fine then, I'll do it, but do I personally have to end the life of all dying people on the earth, everyday?"

IF YOUR UNIVERSE IS AT ALL SIMILAR TO MINE, THEN NO. YOU MUST BE PRESENT AT ALL HISTORICALLY IMPORTANT DEATHS, HOWEVER. YOU WILL FIND, IF YOU WISH TO, THAT YOU MAY SIMPLY SPLIT YOUR CONSCIOUSNESS INTO TWO, AND SEND HALF OF YOURSELF TO DO THE HARVESTING.

"Thank you, that is good to know. Ah...before you go..."

Death was already turning to leave, but he stopped at the hesitant tone in Janus' voice.

YES?

"Do you have any advice for me? About the whole Angel of Death thing?"

For years after, Janus could have sworn Death grinned. Well, even more so than usual.

THERE IS NO JUSTICE. THERE IS JUST US.

--------------------------------
Sewers under the Plaza Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:13 PM

Reawakening back in the sewers, Janus blinked. He was upright and moving already. How in the world...

A yell from ahead brought him out of his thoughts as to how his body had managed to stay moving.

"Damn it! Why the hell does everything bad happen to women I love!"

Skidding around a corner, Janus realized he had finally caught up with Mick and the pair of frogs. Well, Mick at least, the frogs were definitely not doing any more running away.

"Mick...what happened?"

"We stopped the frogs, but now Zen and Sidhe are...well, just take a look!"

Looking down at the two, who seemed none the worse for wear, save for being a bit slimey, Janus was about to inquire what exactly was wrong with them when Sidhe looked at him oddly, chirped the word "Birdy!" and glomped him.

"Ack!"

"Birdy!"

"Buggrit, millennium hand an' shrimp!"

"Sidhe, stop that!"

Even as Sidhe proceeded to try and glomp him to death, Janus groaned. Would they ever get a break?

 

[locke69]

Sewers under the Plaza Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:17 PM

Walking behind Mick by a meter or two with the Project Innocence girl that I freed (in a post that I really should finish), I noticed that Sidhe-chan was still out of it in sorts. Sighing as I rubbed my forehead, I increased my walking speed until I was walking with Mick and his group.

ôMick, at this rate CMPS, if they ever get down here, will be able to catch up with us in no time.ö I stated this, making sure that my tone of voice did not inflect any tones of disapproval, having no desire to cause Zen anymore pain should she take that as blame towards her. ôIt would be more effective if someone was to carry Sidhe-chan, piggy-back style, so that we could increase our speed, even by a little bit.ö

Glaring at Locke, Mick growled, ôDo you think that I would allow that?ö

As I raised my arms in a placating manner, ôWould you allow us to get caught? IÆm one of the weakest fighters in this group, it was through sheer luck that I made it this far. As it is, IÆm one of the few that you can trust.ö Mick just increased the level of his glare. ôOr would you rather have that Angel of Death carry Sidhe-chan?ö

Mick quickly relented after that, though with Sidhe-chanÆs giddiness and slight mobility issue, she was quickly placed on my back.

As the group got underway at a slightly faster pace, Sidhe-chan started swing her legs and calling me a horsy. The only thing I could do was bear with it and the pain as one of her swinging legs hit me where I hit that one frog with the one hit point. Luckily I was use to being kicked there because of my bastard cousin and his willingness to fight with everything trick he knows, so the pain subsided quickly or was ignored quickly.

 

[Zenithos]

An alleyway down the street from the CMPS HQ Ground Zero, Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:22 PM

"How is it going?" Nez asked wearily to a tramp sitting at the edge of an alleyway.

"Not good..." The tramp replied, typing furiously on what looked like a notebook computer that was propped up on a conveniently flattened trash can.

Nez looked around at all the other tramps gathered in the ruined alleyway. "....this is it?"

"Pretty much..." The tramp sighed, taking off his hood to reveal blazing red hair. "The others are either out busy doing damage control...after that little escapade of yours..." He said, giving Nez and Incarna dark looks. "...or out doing whatever. As for us, we're just exhausted from removing valuables from the rubble."

"Like your new office, Reno?" Incarna asked with a smirk.

"Shut up." Reno snapped. "You think it was fun sifting through all the crap?" He asked, pointing at the smoking ruins just down the street where the CMPS HQ once was.

"....this counts as a valuable?" Incarna asked, pointing at a large keg of beer by Reno's side.

"Hell yeah." Reno nodded. "This here's grade-A Scotsman Lager."

"...whatever. What are you working on there?" Nez asked.

"Look for yourself." He said, turning his laptop to face Nez and Incarna.

"...what the...?" Nez muttered.

"...FRACK?" Incarna gasped as she peered over Nez's shoulder at the screen. "....what is this stuff?"

"It's the data from the hospital." Reno said in a low voice. "I got it from Xerxezz earlier and hid it away."

"....hmmmm....and Chief Danzo was quite in a hurry to see these people executed before they even began investigating the hospital...." Nez murmured.

"I have a feeling Armacham's shit is involved..." Reno muttered. "And I have a feeling those people got a little too deep in the shit and began stinking up the place for Armacham...."

"Speaking of shit, Reno, what did you...." Incarna began.

"Not a word about the smell, Incarna. I flew through a flying septic tank if you must know." Reno muttered.

"....hmmmm...there might be more to this..." Nez murmured.

"We must get to the bottom of it! Justice must prevail!" Incarna yelled.

"...why do I have the feeling I'm not going to last long in this job..." Nez sighed.

"You're going to do the stupid thing?" Reno asked.

"...." Nez facepalmed and shook her head, sighing.

"Now you see why I need the booze?" Reno sighed.

"...."

"Hey! That's my beer!" Reno shouted as Nez emptied the Keg into the nearest sewer drain.

"Yeah? Not anymore. It belongs to the fishes now." Nez replied as she tipped the last few drops in. "....I blame this on the beer, Reno."

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Sewers under the Plaza Central Urban District, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:25 PM

The group trudged on through the sewage, fighting off the occasional man-eating frogs, wayward zombies, and other amphibians and undead pedestrians of the underworld. All the while, a bright and cheerful atmosphere was maintained by Zen and Sidhe's continued slime-induced comments.

"Horsey! Horsey!" Sidhe cooed as she continued on kicking her legs on Locke's back. "Giddy up! Yay!"

"Buggrit, Millenium Hand and Shrimp, I swear, it's cutting me'own throat. Now, BURSAAAAAAAR! Confound it, where is that blasted Bursar?!" Zen muttered darkly as she trudged on behind Mick. "Quack...quack...quack..." She added, disconsolately.

"....how many people's Zen channeling now?" Janus asked aside to David, who had caught up with the group. Behind him Belldandy had the still unconscious Konoka carried on a convenient flying stretcher.

"....perhaps an entire asylum?" David suggested. "...it certainly sounds like it."

Suddenly, a torrent of some sticky yellow liquid washed down from above, drenching Zen, Sidhe, and Locke completely.

"...it's yellow and it's a liquid and it came down the drain...." Soifon said, scrunching up her nose as she moved away as far as possible.

"....ah, t'is beer." Xerxezz said, taking a taste with a finger.

"....he knows best." Joy said, nodding in agreement.

"....you sure have a lot of guts, tasting that...." Mick muttered.

"I blow things up on a daily basis." Xerxezz shrugged. "It doesn't take that much more."

"A gift from the Gods?" David asked.

"Thank Xaosite!" Mihoshi cried.

"...down a drrrrain though?" Tohno asked.

"Must be raining beer up above...." Vex muttered. "Damn it, we always miss out on the good stuff."

"...I'm wet..." Sidhe said, licking some beer off her lips. "...hmmm...beer's good for slime." She noted.

"Well, the slime's gone so Zen's quiet again..." Mick said, looking back at Zen's sullen face.

"HALT who goes there!" A voice shouted as a number of flashlights lit up in their faces.

"Agh! I didn't know the frogs can talk!" Locke shouted, blinded by the light.

"It's because you kissed them earlier." Sidhe pointed out.

"But it's not...." Morodashi began.

"Prince Charming..." Marudashi finished.

"I didn't!" Mick yelled.

"Shut up or I'll shoot you where you stand!" A man in a black trench coat trudge up to them and raised his flashlight to light up the ceiling to allow the TFFers to see him clearly while aiming a shotgun at the group. "Now...state your business, highlanders!"

"Whoah there, friend..." Parker began. "I'm a fellow slummer, and these people are with me."

"Parker?" The man muttered under his breath. "And....you..." He turned to Zen. "Oh...it's only you, Zen..." The man sighed. "...just whut'z that getup?"

"Shut up, Frank." Zen muttered, subjecting the man to a rather cold stare. "And what's a card-holder doing guarding the entrance?"

"...cause he's the pimp with the pimp stick?" Xerxezz whispered aside to David.

"No, I ain't..." Frank seemed a little lost for words for a brief moment. "...well, things ain't really cool at the mo'. We heard'a some commotion up in the highlands and it's gotten the slummers a little jumpy, as if they aren't on the edge as it is. Me and the boys, we heard of a group of highlanders coming down this way...so I had to come and keep things from turning ugly, see." He coughed. "By the way, Zen...you're persona non grata at the moment in the slums, you know that?"

"No." Zen shook her head. "Why?"

"They think you kidnapped the bartender." Frank sighed. "What's more, without him around, the slums are now on the verge of riot. The gang bosses are overstepping their boundaries and a gang war's not far off. Anyway, all in all, Zen, any slummer here will kill you as soon as look at you."

"Can't the inner circle do something?" Parker asked. "We can hold an inner-circle meeting and..."

"That's the thing. The card-holders have all gone missing, except for me." Frank said. "...well, and you, Parker. The thing is, our cards are too low level to call the inner circle to order."

"Then I call one." Zen said.

"Call....wut?" Frank asked.

"I'm calling the inner circle to order." Zen said. "It'll just be the three of us and the slummer leaders, but I can still call them to order."

"....what? Sorry, Zen, only a card-holder owning a Spades card can...." Parker began.

"I'm the holder of the King of Spades." Zen said. Silence fell.

...before Frank spoke up. "...prove it..."

"I would...but..." Zen sighed, indicating her bound arms. "Sidhe, if you please? Just under my hakama..."

With deft fingers Sidhe managed to slip out a rather worn yet still shiny playing card bearing the King of Spades.

"...must've been one happy King...." Unknown murmured, to a rather strange look from Rin.

"...it's..." Frank murmured. The card emitted a slight bluish white glow as Zen bit it and held it up in her mouth to Frank. "...it's original...but it's been lost..."

"Mmmh..." Zen gave out a muffled grunt.

"...err, right, ok. We don't ask questions about where it came from, off course. I'll call the gang leaders to order." Frank said, scratching the back of his head. "In the meantime...tea and biscuits?"

The TFFers gave each other knowing looks.

"Oh, ok, delicious cake and nitroglycerine then." Frank sighed.

"Capital!" Xerxezz and Janus clapped.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZ

The Slums, Underneath TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:35 PM

"Whoah!" Zephyrus looked around in awe as the group left the tunnels to enter a gigantic underground city. Up above a gigantic disc supported on hundreds of unbelievably tall support pillars formed the sky over the city.

In the middle of the disc was a gigantic pillar, one far wider and bigger than the rest. It was perhaps big enough to house several sky-scrapers. Indeed, it looked like a tower in itself.

"We'll go straight to the TopHat." Frank said, nodding at the central pillar. "We've already called the inner circle to order. They'll be waiting for us."

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

inner circle, The TopHat, The Slums, TFFA City, Day 3, 20th December, 5:48 PM

The summit room was quite simple, despite its ominous name. It had a circular table with 16 seats, most likely for the card-holders, situated up on a raised platform in the middle. All around the platform, up against the walls, were more seats, presumably for the representatives of the slums.

...sure enough, what seemed like gang leaders, warlords, and clan heads filled up the seats to bursting.

"I need shelter for my friends for the night." Zen said, shortly, without any preamble. "And I want the slummers' full cooperation in saving the city."

"OUTRAGEOUS!" One of the clan leaders screamed as he shot out of his chair. "You kidnap our bartender and waltz in here like you own the place and suddenly ask for our help?!"

"Three syllables...I'm impressed." Frank muttered. "Shut up, Mack, you're talking to the holder of the King of Spades."

The entire room suddenly exploded in angry whispers before another gang leader stood up. "Look, I don't care what happens to the city or the slums, but I've got territory to defend!"

"Defend?! DEFEND?!" Another gang lord roared as he shot up straight out of his seat as if propelled on springs. "You've been stepping into our territory! You call that defense?!"

"You've got your men all lined up on the boundary to my territory! What right do you have to protesting?!" Another gang lord shouted.

Before long, the entire room had burst into a cacophony of fiery accusations and even fisticuffs.

"...good thing we're nice, civilized, peaceful people, eh?" David said aside to Upgrade who nodded in agreement.

"Yeah." Vex nodded in agreement, giving a rather over-zealous gangster behind him a very potent haymaker. "Indeed.".

"QUUUUIET!" Frank roared.

The entire room froze mid-squabble. Some paused with fists and kicks in mid-air. Some even had their guns half-way out.

A rather loud KATHUNK pierced the heavy silence, drawing everyone's attention to Xerxezz and Legacy who were trying to hide a rather sizeable flamethrower behind their backs while trying to kick away the napalm tank under a table.

"Ok, look, we'll settle this the usual way. In the arena, tomorrow. If Zen can clear out all everything you throw at her, using whatever means she wishes, then you will accept her as the holder of the King of Spades." Frank said. "That way, not too much unnecessary blood is shed. C'mon, guys, for old time's sake...for our arena champion..."

"...." The gang leaders all looked at one another, before giving Zen an appraising look, smiling, and nodding in unanimous agreement.

"No rules. All's fair. High stakes. Deal?" The frontmost clan-leader said, standing up once more.

"Deal." Zen said, nodding curtly. Handshakes were not needed in the slums. Bonds were built on blood down here.

"Zen, what're you doing?! You can't even fight in that condition." Mick hissed as the gang lords and clan leaders all shuffled out of the court.

"I know I can't." Zen said, nodding.

"You won't live through that!" Mick cried, gesturing at the door that closed behind the last gangster. "Not in your condition!"

"I don't need to." Zen shrugged while fiddling with her the shackles on her arms but to no avail. "The conditions state that I clear out everything, no matter what it takes. I don't have to be standing at the end to win."

"Zen....it's your life! What're you wasting it for!"

"Precisely, Mick, this is my life." Zen said, looking back up at Mick. "And this is the least I can do with it. Now let me do my part. You will do yours and save the city."

"Zen, can't you live your life for yourself for once?" Mick yelled in exasperation.

Zen merely sighed and picked her leash up with her mouth before gesturing to Mick to leave.

Mick, sighing in frustration, grasped the leash and together they left the room.

"He said, 'All's fair', right?" Xerxezz asked aside to Unknown, raising a suggestive eyebrow.

"Aye, that he did." Unknown nodded, with a knowing grin.

"He said 'no rules' too...which means no referee...my kind of game!" Legacy smirked.

"Why can't we settle things with rocks, papers, and scissors?" Sidhe sighed.

"Because you know brute force tops all three." LL grinned.

"You don't need to worry about Zen though." Frank said. "She and her sister have both been arena champions for a good 2 years now."

"...excuse me?" Twin Blade asked. "...did you say, champions?"

"Yes, they were first found here in the slums." Frank said. "Those were harsh times. The Halloween Battle just ended and everything was in ruins....it was finders-keepers at the time too." He sighed. "But Zen and Ei-chan proved themselves in the arena and eventually bought their freedom. Then they proceeded to win the freedoms of some of the war orphans who ended up down here. Didn't stop there too. Went on to become the biggest earners in slum history."

"...eh? So that money...?" Xerxezz murmured.

"She earns all her money down here. One or two battles a week, and she earns 10% of the bet profits." The Vigilante said, nodding. "What? You couldn't really be thinking she can earn all that money being a shrine maiden..." He added, seeing the rather strange look on Xerxezz's face.

"....but she's all tied up and her powers are...." Twin Blade began, only to have his mouth clasped over by Janus.

"Eh, what he meant to say was that Zen's giving them a slight handicap." Janus laughed nervously as he dragged the muffled Twin Blade away.

"If you want to rest, the accommodations in my district are at your disposal. Tell Zen I'm betting on her tomorrow." He winked. "It's a sure-fire win anyway."

"Yeah, sure!" Janus laughed as he dragged Twin Blade out the door. "Toodles!"

"What was that for?!" Twin Blade coughed as soon as the TFFers were out in a desolate alleyway.

"Nobody here needs to know about Zen's condition." Janus said, looking around at the other TFFers. "So..."

"Tomorrow, we're going to be really nice members of the audience, right?" Vex asked, smirking.

"Yeah, we're going to be model supporters with the hats and fingers and things." Ray nodded in agreement.

There was silence for a bit before...

"So...we can't appeal to heaven..." LL began.

"....so we raise hell..." Xerxezz grinned. "No rules people."

The TFFers all started to giggle rather uncontrollably, before breaking out in mad maniacal laughter.

 

[Mick]

........