MISSION: BRASS DEVIL, PART 2

[ximilian]

● ● ● M I S S I O N   2 . 2

INTRO • IT'S SHOWTIME • A LITTLE PARTY NEVER... • HEIST IT UP • THE DEVIL'S GOT RED EYES • FYI

// INTRO.  

Having spent some time to gather information about each of the families, learn about the history of Braccia, and agree upon the secret location of the Orb in this city, now has come the time for the Orbers to put their strategies into action. Through some fairly impressive in cognito antics while maintaining their respective covers, the Orbers will have split into different factions to help with the ultimate goal: retrieve the orb.

Orbers from Lionetta have decided to organize a distraction and gather as many of their fellow Lionetta members away from the headquarters as possible. Orbers from Featherstone, led by Tony Stark, Bucky Barnes, and River Song, have slowly been pilfering and assembling some of the weaponry and helpful tech. And Orbers from the Ti’shaaz have slowly been adding fuel to the family drama, stoking the flames between the Ti’shaaz and Lionetta families in hopes of invoking a battle on the same night as the planned heist.

Everyone has a good feeling about the work that they’ve done, the collaborative efforts that have brought them to the climax of their time on Braccia. But the night is still young, and there are many things that could go wrong if there is one misstep, one cog out of place in this seemingly well-oiled machine. It is imperative that every Orber pulls their weight in order for the retrieval to go successfully. But that shouldn’t be a problem, right?

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// PART I.IT'S SHOWTIME  

Eventually, the time for preparations is over — the team has to make their move. The orb is waiting for them on the highest floor of the Lionetta main headquarters… all they have to do is get in.

1.0   Several different smaller teams decide to head into the old mines that lie beneath the surface of Braccia’s hustle and bustle. Those who decide to utilise the entrances further away from the Lionetta HQ, in the hopes of using paths less traveled and making it there unnoticed, will find that their journey leads them into complete darkness. Be sure to watch your steps — as the tunnels you take along here are ones that have been long since abandoned; there are pitfalls where the rock has crumbled away, leaving nothing but a chasm behind. There are also crumbling walkways and rotten wood that sag and give out from underneath your feet when you least expect it.

Aside from that though, there are no purposeful traps laid out — nothing visible to your eyes to stop you from advancing.

For those who decide to use the lit pathway leading straight from the headquarters to the fountain and the back alley behind Cherry on Top — well, at least you’ll be able to see where you’re going! However, the first thing you’ll notice are the blinking red lights of security cameras deliberately planted along the pathway … and for those who are not Lionetta, it may get uncomfortable, real fast. There are traps set along the way that only activate if the person trying to walk past is not a Lionetta member. Sharp blades might suddenly drop down on you from above. Spikes may burst out of from the ground like killer daisies. And a part of the pathway that you’re on could break into neat square pieces beneath your feet, crumbling away until you’re falling into nothingness.

Irregardless of which perilous road the Orbers choose to take, you will all eventually be led towards the same location: a golden door stands before them, the words For a better future carved into its surface. And if any of you happen to have a key (or a copy of it) like the one that Jim and Finn found, it’s to your benefit that it fits the lock perfectly. There’s nothing left but to go through, right?

2.0   The mines are not the only way in, of course: anyone with an official badge like the one that Kovacs managed to snag on a night out will have access to the elevator and will be able to call it to ground level, as well as take it up to the walkway. Or go straight to the walkway itself, and you’ll be able to boldly enter through the front doors as anyone with a badge has very little reason to be questioned … for now, anyway.

3.0   Meanwhile, An’alya has been mobilising members of the Ti’shaaz family against the Lionetta and are currently hard at work targeting the magical barrier that surrounds the Lionetta HQ. Eventually, those working at the barriers will begin to feel the magic within them weaken and crumble away in a slow but satisfying moment of victory. This weakened security allows Orbers with teleportation abilities to simply zip themselves inside — and perhaps with a few passengers in tow! Rhysand will have one lizard-shaped passenger alongside him already — An’alya herself has taken the first opportunity she could, leading the charge as she scuttles forward immediately upon entry, leaving the others to follow in her wake.

But while those teleporting in may have it easy, it’s hard to know where to teleport — you’d better hope that it isn’t in the middle of a guard shift change, or the guards’ break room, or a room locked from the outside ...

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// PART II.A LITTLE PARTY NEVER KILLED NOBODY  

A couple of days before the party, a word-of-mouth invitation begins to travel through the members of the Lionetta family about a speakeasy party with food, drink, and most of all: music. The evening is meant to boost morale and bring the family together, pulling both HQs (lower and main) into an event that has little to do with their daily lives and their grueling jobs. Here they can regale each other with their loyalty and bond to their family; to remember the good times as it were. The party venue occupies the entire ground floor of a building nestled among other bars and clubs of what has fondly been referred to as the ‘entertainment district’. No other signage on the exterior of the building indicates that anything special is happening as the event is very much exclusive.

4.0   When you enter the hall, it’s to the sound of brass and percussion and a male’s singing voice to the tune of something you might have heard before. The makeshift stage is set with speakers and lights and a place for a band to really show the room what they’re made of. There are drinks and bits of food and a small crowd of people have already gathered to enjoy the festivities with a greater crowd expected to fill the room for a good time. It might not be anything to the level of Cheri’s birthday gala, particularly when the theme of the party is to celebrate Lionetta, but it’s an impressive feat all the same and the people here have been promised a good time.

Newly recruited member, Newt, is on stage behind a piano with a couple of other locals not associated with any family in particular who have all had to quickly (but enthusiastically) learn a new set of songs for the evening, music from ‘far away cities’. Joined on stage by another new recruit is The Doctor (11) who has a microphone in one hand and appears to be crooning a rather unrecognizable (by this world’s standards) tune. If you spent any time on Earth during the 1980s, you might recognize it though. It’s very catchy.

5.0   The evening seems to go without a hitch, attracting a large part of the Lionetta family to join the festivities through word of mouth. Everyone is just here to have a good time! As the crowd grows, Majima can be found on the floor keeping the party going by refilling the glasses of family members, while making sure no one gets just a little too out of hand. The music continues, the chatter grows louder, and the laughs and sloppy dancing increases with the hours. Sometime after midnight, when the hours feel a little late, you might find some of the Lionetta members trying to tap into their communications devices with the slow and sloppy realization that they haven’t been operating for … how long has it even been? A while now, right? Some of the members can be found shuffling out of the party in confusion, while others shrug a shoulder and go back to the festivities. Suddenly, someone comes back into the room and yells:

’What the fuck’s going on here? My car’s been tampered with! Can anyone else get to HQ? My goddamned comms won’t work.’

There is a flurry of panicked confusion and Lionetta members pausing in their drinking and dancing to check whether what’s been shouted is true. It looks like the ruse might be up. Will you pretend to be like the rest of the family and act accordingly? Confused and unaware of the plot you’ve cooked up? Or will you come clean and try to find an escape route — perhaps helped by those who, on the outside, have been hard at work making sure the cars aren't in driveable condition.

6.0   As if things hadn’t been chaotic enough, all members of the Lionetta family, including any Lionetta Orbers, will hear a sharp, piercing static crackle through your communications devices as Lionetta members seem to have finally found a way to hack their way through the comms-blocking tech that had been keeping them out. Olexa’s voice cuts in and out and it’s clear she’s been trying to reach her family for a few minutes now. Harsh and commanding, there’s a moment of steady audio that comes through every device in the room as Olexa speaks:

OLEXA

— I repeat, Lionetta HQ is under a goddamned attack! The Ti’shaaz have infiltrated, and they are looking to attack any one of our family members. Arm yourselves, protect our headquarters!

If you haven’t made a decision to stay or leave just yet, you’ll find yourself trapped with the other Lionetta as the doors crash open and colourful blasts of magic are aimed at the partygoers and ricochet off of the venue space. Robed members of the Ti’shaaz family crowd the entrance and start to filter in, officially crashing the party and ending the festivities with violence. The Lionetta, however, won’t be cowed to submission and they quickly gather their wits about them to fight back, throwing punches and swinging kicks to try and disarm the other family, dodging their magical strikes.

Here you have a few options: whether you’re Lionetta or Ti’shaaz, you can stay and fight and keep members of both families occupied, or you can find a way out to join your fellow Orbers at Lionetta’s main HQ for the heist.

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// PART III.HEIST IT UP  

7.0   The smaller team that make it inside first will be the one to hit the control room, revealed in the blueprints to be located on the 20th floor — and whether by teleportation or entry by badge, they are let in through the door… but the room is far from empty. There’s an awkward split second as you exchange glances with the guards inside, and then they come charging for you. When the guards have been incapacitated in whatever manner the team deems fit (depending on their level of thirst for blood), they’ll quickly have the opportunity to get the rest of the team in position for the remainder of the heist. Those with a talent for hacking will be able to access the security system without too much difficulty, shutting the cameras off, or programming them on a loop that should hopefully fool anyone looking at the footage elsewhere.

8.0   However, as the other Orbers slowly begin to infiltrate the headquarters, now unseen by any cameras, an alarm blares out, loud and insistent. It seems that the use of the stolen badge has finally been registered and the family have been alerted. Evgen, the officer who the badge belonged to, had immediately reported the missing identification … and unfortunately its use has instantly triggered the alarm system. Oops.

Lionetta officers begin to swarm the hallways and the elevator will immediately shut down (hopefully you’re not inside it as it stops between Level 13 and 14!), so the only way to move forward now is by foot.

Those on the lower floors will find that while there are no traps set in the hallways, the space is now filled with Lionetta guards and officers, all armed with a myriad of weapons: standard issue guns, certainly, but also stun guns, revolvers with bullets that have been enchanted to follow their target, and staves and knives with energy blades that crackle and glow with white light. A number of the officers here are also highly competent in hand-to-hand combat — and though some, like Petra and Mikaela, might be dressed in attire more suited for a party than a battle, they shouldn’t be underestimated. Without effort, they can (and will) make a hair pin, a brooch, or a stiletto heel a deadly weapon. Officers who have familiarity with any of the Lionetta Orbers will advance with an especially personal viciousness — traitors, after all, are not kindly looked upon and deserve the worst punishments.

9.0   In contrast to the lower levels, Orbers on the 20th floor and upwards seem to be herded into a narrow hallway with only one direction: forward. At the end of the path is a set of stairs leading to the next level up and onward, each ascension designed to be slow and deliberate with the flight of steps on alternating sides of the building. The only way to get there is to cross the length of the floor’s footprint.

From Level 20-23, guards and officers meet you in a battle round.

On Level 24 the floor is suspiciously devoid of anyone. Before you can think to turn back, every entrance is sealed with heavy, reinforced steel walls, and a roar that reminds you of the ocean sends a prickle up the length of your spine as the entire floor begins to flood with water. Slowly but surely, it rushes in from all sides to fill the space and unless you have the ability to grow gills … how will you escape? Maybe the how doesn’t matter — only that you do.

On the 25th floor, it becomes apparent to you that the air has a slightly luminous, greenish tint to it … but by the time you open your mouth to warn the others, it’s already in your lungs. It won’t take long before you begin to imagine enemies all around you: sudden attacks are coming out of nowhere, guards aiming their guns at you, alien creatures from the fighting ring snapping their jaws and throwing kicks and punches, clawed fingers trying to grasp at your face. You lash out at them in desperation — and, unfortunately, whoever is in their place in reality.

If you happen to make it past Level 25 unscathed, perhaps breathing in the gaseous substance on Level 26 will be what affects you: pouring out from pin-pricked holes in the walls like pores and colouring the air purple, its potency is much greater than the green mist from the previous floor. Instead of enemies, you are surrounded by the people you miss from home, those who might have been passed in your timeline. They ask you to stay with them, plead with you that they’re worried what might happen if you keep going — they murmur, please, just stay with me here and I’ve missed you so much. From an outside perspective, the sight won’t be so heartwarming: anyone observing you with a clear mind will notice a light purplish frost has started to cover your skin as though slowly encasing you in its substance …

With the aid of magic, air bubbles, or the antidote carefully nicked from the Featherstones, you somehow manage past the deadly, magical traps … only the dangers are hardly over. On Levels 27 and 28 sharp, red laser lines that criss-cross the hallways fill the remainder of the room — only those truly confident in their skill and agility can make it across unassisted. For the less coordinated, however, there is still hope: maybe you are one of the Featherstones and were equipped with the reflection tech made specifically for a situation like this one … or, if you can quickly gain contact (use that network!) with the others in the control room, they can do something about these lasers — if they aren’t still occupied with the Lionetta officers currently trying to take their control room back, anyway.

Finally, making it to the second-to-highest level, you will come face to face with two giant dog-like creatures… with glittering collars around their necks, each with a small tag to identify them. They are Ursa and Altair, respectively. Surely you were prepared for this, right? If you’re a Lionetta, you may be familiar with the alien-dogs and have a better chance of getting past them. If you dare to approach, however, you’ll notice that the ground surrounding them is a crimson mess of fresh blood. They’ve clearly had their dinner already… and the eager looks in their eyes can only be read as such: are you going to be their dessert?

Past the dogs and their matted fur and sharp teeth, there lies the entrance to the top floor — an entrance that only opens through facial recognition … strange, however is the scaly frost that has spread all over the scanner, leaving it non-functional — and the door… wide open.

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// PART IV.THE DEVIL'S GOT RED EYES  

As the two Orbers who have managed to make it before the others sneak towards the door and the stairs that lead up, they will hear two voices: female, both of them, one strained and quiet, like speaking is a struggle; the other, lilting and sugar-sweet.

● ● ●

“So, you’ve been running all this all along?”

“Why yes. Never crossed your pretty head, did it? My Lexie’s been doing such a wonderful job, you see, no wonder you were fooled. And now you’re going to die for it… just like Dnria.”

The two Orbers continue to creep towards the open door, careful not to be heard or detected. It’ll be a strange scene that opens towards them: a dark office, wooden floors looking far older than the building itself must be — expensive furniture, and all of it is lit with a red glow.

In the middle of it all —

“Just like Dnria H’ia? Ha… what an honour, to die like her. Bested by the same person. Ti’shaaz was right to be wary of you, Ruvia.”

An’alya lies on the floor, eyes blood-shot, a trickle of blood staining the side of her mouth. She’s trembling, breathing heavily, like behind every breath is unimaginable pain.

“Oh, honey, don’t think I gave you permission to call me by that nickname. It’s Cheruvia to you.”

Next to An’alya, her red eyes glowing just as bright as the round object that orbits her head in a slow circle, is Cheri...

… or perhaps that should be rephrased. Next to the fallen gang leader stands not the sweet, cheerful club owner, but Ruvia Alonetti: the owner of the Braccia orb, and the founder of the Lionetta family.

Whatever you do next… it's best to be careful. It will crucial to have a plan — because somehow that orb needs to leave this room with you.

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F Y I

• The events in this log take place ICly during one evening, but OOCly it spans the first two weeks of October.

• The ultimate conclusion of the mission and the return to the station will be posted on October 16.

• If you have questions about anything in this log, please direct them HERE.

• And finally, your soundtrack for this log: ♪ ♪ ♪

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▶ NAV

Comments

andromache | the old guard | ota

[oiorpata]

PART I: IT'S SHOW TIME
LIT HALLWAY 🗡 ( cw: impalement)

[ schmoozing with gangs is one thing, but this part? this mission, of actual action? this is where andy prefers to be. joe was always much better at playing parts undercover, and she spare a moment to miss him before getting a move on. her priority going into this is mostly just... try and keep other people safe. she doesn't have to watch herself the same way they do. ]

[ she ends up taking the lit hallway route, mostly because it seems riskier, a path more likely to get them noticed - and she'd rather be able to help her fellow orbers there. it doesn't take her long to question that decision, as lionetta family members move without issues, but andy pinpoints the various security cameras as a problem instantly. ]

[ seconds later, a spike shoots out from the ground, piercing straight through her stomach. ] Motherfucker!

[ maybe she will go catch up to the mines crew. ]

PART III: HEIST IT UP
LEVELS 20-23 🗡 ( cw: blood, violence, neck injury, death )

[ the people are the easiest part. people are the same, they're more predictable than mine shafts or traps in the walls. andy has no qualms about this part, flying into action when they encounter lionetta members. ]

[ unlike how she might have been in the fighting rings, or even on the job with featherstone, andy is a little more ruthless here. she swings her axe, uses a sword, besting anyone who attacks her and leaving a trail of unconscious or dead at her feet. what she isn't expecting, apparently, is a small dagger thrown from afar that lodges itself into her neck. she gags, drops her sword to claw at her neck as she chokes up blood, spitting it down her chin. her body drops next, first to her knees, then to the floor, coughing up a few more spatters of blood before she straight up just... dies. ]

LEVEL 24 🗡

[ the moment the doors seal up, andy is prepared for the worst, though she doesn't know what the worst is until the room starts to fill with water. she has no fear of dying here - but she also thinks of quynh, of repeatedly drowning in the same fate, and she wants to get out. she sloshes through the ankle deep water and feels at the walls to no avail. ]

Tell me someone brought explosives or can use their mind to blow this shit up.

LEVEL 26 🗡

[ soaking and sopping wet from the horror pool on the prior floor, bloodstained from battles with allies and enemies alike, andy enters the next one with with trepidation. soon enough, the air starts fogging with a purple mist, and andy yanks up her bandana, even though she doesn't think it'll do much. ] Shit.

[ it does nothing. it doesn't take long before a familiar face seemingly rises from the waters below, her dark hair plastered to her face, dressed in the filthy gown andy last saw her in. her eyes widen. ]

Quynh?

[ andromache, i have missed you, so much. andy has forgotten a lot of things, but not the sound of quynh's voice, and it echoes in her head like it has for centuries, leaving her frozen to the spot. this is why she's here, isn't it? for quynh? ]

LEVEL 27 🗡 ( cw: dismemberment, blood )

[ the door opens to the 27 floor and she's greeted by the sight of lasers. it's security, obviously, but given the rest of this place, she wouldn't be surprised if they're sharper than they seem. if someone tries to move past her, she holds out her arm to block it. ]

I'll go first. I'm really good at this game. See if you can contact someone in the control room to turn it off, I'll see what's on the other side.

[ she doesn't like the idea of this revealing anything about her, but it's not like that hasn't happened already tonight. she makes sure everything she has on her is tucked in tight and neat, and then she steps into the lasers with very little hesitation. she's fluid as she maneuvers through them, twisting, bending, almost like a ballerina. ]

[ she makes one small mistake, and it's only because her axe slips from it's scabbard at her back during one tougher bend. she reaches for it without thinking, and the laser slices through her arm; it cuts down into the bone, blood suddenly gushing down her arm as it hangs limply and loose, partly amputated. ]

Fuck! [ she snaps it out, jerking her arm back and saving her axe with the other hand, but her tone is more annoyed than horrified at the fact that she's been essentially dismembered in the middle of a laser grid. ]

PART 0: ???
WILDCARD 🗡

[ hit me up for other or closed starters etc!! pms, romanitas#5368 @ disco, communism !! ]

lit hallway

[majorbiotic]

[Kaidan hears the curse and hurries to find the cause. He freezes seeing a woman with a spike through her stomach. So at first Andy will see a man with what looks like a glowing blue aura. Kaidan drops it temporarily. He doesn't have medi-gel for this, but he's going to do his best to help anyway]

Let me look. I have field medical training.

[At the very least, he can try to stop the bleeding]

[oiorpata]

[ she can taste the blood in her mouth from the internal bleeding and it's a good thing she's familiar with the iron. she reaches around for the pike (it had gotten her from behind), short on breath but trying to dislodge herself. she'll come back to the man's blue aura later. ]

Just help me get it out. [ it'd be great if she could just get free before she fucking dies, spitting out the request through gritted teeth. ]

[majorbiotic]

[Kaidan nods, taking a breath. He grasps the spike]

I'll pull it out on three, all right? One, two, three.

[And with that he takes out the spike. He immediately puts his hand over the wound to stop the bleeding as much as he can while hunting through the supplies he brought along for something that could act as a bandage]

[oiorpata]

[ andy grunts from the brief bout of pain as the spike slides out of her body, but then sighs with relief once it's gone. her vision blurs for a few moments, the blood loss and the gaping hole pushing unconsciousness, but since the source is no longer keeping her wounded, her awareness comes back relatively quickly even as she wobbles on her feet. ]

[ it starts internally, but she can feel her insides churning and slowly starting to repair, though it doesn't stop his hand from being covered in blood. ]

Don't waste any. [ the medical supplies. ]

LEVEL 27

[spacedisaster]

[ Peter has stayed closer to the entrance of the floor, well aware that Andy has impressive reflexes as well as the fact that she weighs less than him. He's studying the patterns of the lasers as they move, and the tension in his jaw is the only sign of how nervous he actually is about what might happen this time. The last floors had been practically torture chambers, and he doesn't expect this one to be any better. He also happens to like Andy, her no-nonsense attitude and how fearless she is, so he doesn't want to see her hurt.

Of course, the universe has other plans and exists to antagonize them.

He barely has time to yell a quick 'No, don't...!' when he sees the axe slip and Andromache reach for it instinctively, before the laser meets skin and bone, mangling her arm. ]

Ah, shit, shit... [ He's seen plenty of unpleasant wounds before, got more than a few himself, but her arm hanging limb like that and the blood pooling under her makes Peter pale. They're in the worst possible place to get medical assistance. And yet, she sounds mildly annoyed...that is the most confusing part. ] Andy, hold in there, I'll try to reach you...

[ There's just no way she will be able to make it back to him with a wound like that. Right? ]

[oiorpata]

No! Stay there.

[ this is probably not the right thing to say, but she's not about to have him sliced up too, especially when he won't bounce back from it like she will shortly. the worst part about this kind of injury is the odd, painful sensations of limbs growing back or reattaching. if she's being honest, she prefers the instant deaths. ]

[ she looks down at her arm, glaring at it like she's offended, and slips her axe back into place to free up her functioning hand. she tucks it under her elbow, grimacing as she waits for the bloodflow to slow. ]

I just need a minute. [ maybe three. ] I mean it, don't move.

[spacedisaster]

[ Peter actually freezes at the command, because contrary to popular belief, he can follow orders sometimes. More often than not, it works if it's a woman screaming at him. ]

You don't need a minute, you need a new arm!...I can't believe I just say that. Sorry, sorry, it's insensitive.

[ He's nervous, okay? The last floors had been A LOT, and he's sick of seeing people he likes and cares about get hurt like this. He looks around them, staying on the edges of the room, but trying to think of something that could help her in some way. Shit, shit shit.... ]

[oiorpata]

[ it's moments like these where she misses her boys the most, where she both remembers their own freak outs over disgusting injuries and appreciates their various jokes about bone reveals over the years. ]

I'm working on it. [ she somehow sounds both dry and bossy without being sarcastic. ]

[ it starts in the bone, in the way it slides back together like a puzzle piece before the tissue starts to knit itself back together, sealing it over and disappearing the flash of white. she briefly grimaces as it essentially reattaches with a little crunch, the blood still dripping down her arm to the floor, though it finally starts to slow as the muscle begins to stitch together again too. ]

level 20 - cw: panic attack (i hope this is okay!)

[petsthedog]

[Shinjiro's not sure what he expected. It shouldn't be a surprise for people to die on these missions. Viveca had all but warned them it was likely.

Still, there's something of a difference between seeing So-Yeon fade away into nothing in Gyeongje and watching someone choke to death on their own blood in front of him. It reminds him a little too viscerally of blood in his own lungs before he woke up on the station, and it only gets worse when the woman goes still.

Shinjiro freezes, staring at the corpse, but his mind isn't there. He's in another time and place, staring at another woman's mangled corpse as she lies crushed and bent and broken out against the caved in roof of her house, gushing rivers of blood that soaks the roof tiles crimson. He stares at her, and though there are no daggers in his own throat, he can't breathe. There are enemies here who surely want to leave him in the same state, but they're reduced to so much white noise at the back of his mind as he crumples to his knees, shaking as he stares blankly into her empty eyes and the blood that leaks out her throat.]

it's totally fine! c:

[oiorpata]

[ the thing about her healing is it doesn't usually start until the obstruction is removed. it's easier with bullets: their bodies tend to just spit them out, but like how quynh simply drowns over and over and over, the wound can't close if it's still open. it tries, but the blood pools and drips to the floor, struggling against the knife. ]

[ it takes longer, but the dagger is on the smaller side. while the man is caught in his own head, andy's body pushes the blade slowly out of her neck, and it clatters on the floor. ]

[ however, it still takes time and her death lingers, the internal damage closing up first and the blood-flow thinning ]

[petsthedog]

[Perhaps the only thing that keeps Shinjiro from joining Andy in death is a small stroke of luck; the guard that had attacked her watches Shinjiro crumple on the ground shaking and hyperventilating, and summarily dismisses him as not even worth the trouble of killing, and goes off to investigate some loud noises from other intruders on another floor.

Shinjiro, for his part, does not notice how narrowly he avoided dying a second time, nor does he notice the clatter of the dagger until it skitters a little across the ground and bumps against his knee. His shaking slows a little, though his breaths remain ragged as he lifts his head. Has he finally gone entirely mad or is the wound on her throat bleeding less than it was? And wasn't the dagger lodged in there a minute ago?

He struggles a little with his own voice, but very, very quietly, he eventually manages:]

Are you....alive?

[oiorpata]

[ her eyes flicker. she breathes, softly, and her jaw twitches. her skin is stained with her own blood, but the wound is vanishing and andy is slowly regaining consciousness. she misses his question, the voice too low, her mind not entirely back to being alive even as her body revives. ]

[ she draws in a sharp breath suddenly, seconds after the hole from the knife seals itself up. her hand moves, pats at the ground as she seeks a sense of balance, and only once she finally lifts herself up at the elbow does she notice she has company. ]

[ well, shit, he looks a little horrified. ]

Fuck. [ she rolls her jaw again, then spits out some excess blood lingering in her mouth. at least she answered his question by simply moving and speaking, even if she doesn't realize it. ]

level 20-23;

[kovach]

[ he'd wanted to watch her in a real fight ever since he saw her piece together that axe in a machine, her selection hinting of something a little more experienced than just anyone who's learning a few moves on how to fight. even in the battle arena, she'd stepped out with little injury, like they didn't even touch her, while he'd been nearly mashed to pieces by steel-laced knuckles.

the way she moves, it's like a warrior, almost like the grace and flow of a well-practiced envoy, and if he didn't know better, he might've thought she was one of them resleeved into a new body. even here, while he brings up his gun, pulling the trigger on a few guards, tossing his fist to knock down the ones that come his way, he can still see her move in the corner of his eye.

it's why he sees the moment it happens, maybe even before, as his envoy instincts catch the movement of the guard that swerves to to toss the dagger. he sees it happening but he's too far across the room to stop it, the scream still in his throat before the blade pierces right into her neck. ]

No! [ he roars it out, knocking out the guard he's been wrestling down with a hard, bone-breaking punch to the face, scrambling back to his feet as he picks up his gun and shoots the dagger-tossing guard in the head without a second thought.

he races across, heart pounding in his chest as his knees slide to the ground beside her, his clothes instantly staining with the blood that flows from her neck, catching those last moments of her choking before she stills completely. bringing a hand behind her head, he lifts her up, cradling her against his arm as his other fingers pull carefully at the dagger. his first thought is that there's no point in saving the sleeve, not with this damage, but he remembers how she hadn't even known about stacks, and realizing there might not have been one in her neck to be destroyed. even if there had been, with where the knife had pierced, it'd have been sliced through. ]

... Fuck. [ it's a whisper, breathless from the fighting, his fingers still pressing firm to the wound like he could undo it somehow. but she isn't breathing, her eyes wide and open, and he stares down to her, memories of that hopelessness in losing his people at the battle of stronghold flowing back in. it's not like he hasn't seen death a million times, plenty of it caused by his own hands, but no matter how much he's witnessed it, lived through it, it still grips him like an ever consuming disease, eating away at his soul until eventually there'll be nothing left.

swallowing, he closes his eyes, taking a moment to mourn yet another to add to the ever-rising number in his lifetime. ]

[oiorpata]

[ andy is, obviously, oblivious to kovacs's struggles, because she is dead. unbeknownst to him, it is just a temporary death, one he inadvertently helps speed along when he pulls the knife out before her body does it for her. ]

[ the blade dug in deep for such a small weapon, and so the healing starts internally first, her throat and veins closing up inside, the tissue reattaching, re-growing. the bleeding slows, whether or not he notices, thinning out into a trickle. after a few more moments her eyes shift, the light returning and pupils flickering back to life even if she isn't wholly conscious of what's happened yet. her lungs pull in a small tuft of wheezy air, and the hole in her neck starts to shrink. ]

[kovach]

[ he knows he's eventually going to have to move, to leave her behind to keep moving forward. there's only so long he can spend in a critical moment to mourn for a lost ... friend? in truth, he didn't know her very well, just enough for a few exchanges here and there, with a shared appreciation and understanding of weapons and fighting, along with plenty of jokes regarding his age.

but it doesn't make it any less upsetting to see her dead. she seemed a good person and a reliable ally.

when he's about ready to set her back down gently to the floor, he can feel a shift of the blood beneath his fingers, head lifting when he hears the quiet wheezing of breath, and he scans her face, her neck, seeing the wound gradually closing itself up. ]

What the fuck?

Level 24

[morethan084]

[Fighting people was something Daisy's used to, so the last few levels were a walk in the park for her. You know, minus getting banged up a little. Entering this level, however, Daisy notices just how empty it was, but it's too late to turn around now.]

Well, it's not explosive but--

[Daisy raises her hand and aims her power. The steel wall starts to concave in, the sounds of the rushing water almost as loud as the sound of the steel being crushed from her power.]

[oiorpata]

[ despite andy's clothes telling the story of battle, she isn't injured at all. maybe the quickly rising water will wash off the blood. thanks for the potential bath, lionetta. ]

[ it's already up to her waist by the time the other woman replies, and andy looks over at the noise and the apparently now collapsing wall, sloshing through the water to the opposite side to get further out of the way. ]

Yeah, something tells me that'll do the trick.

[morethan084]

[Between the water filling up the room quicker than she imagined, and the fact that she's definitely not at full strength with her powers--

It's taking Daisy a lot longer than she'd like to get them the hell out of here. Stopping when a shooting pain runs up her arms, Daisy's jaw goes tight as she looks around the room to see if there's anything they can hold onto.]

Now would be a great time for the Hulk to make an appearance.

[Daisy mutters to herself, her clothes heavy from the water surrounding them makes it hard to stay afloat. Especially with the water now creeping up to her chest.]

Grab onto whatever you can find!

[Daisy shouts as she focuses on the steel wall again while hopping in the water to keep upright.]

lvl 20-23

[whitestonelives]

[Percy's well-used to seeing people going down by now, to seeing his own teammates bleeding out in front of him. But there was always the chance of being able to bring them back up again afterwards with a Revivify or a resurrection ritual, something that isn't possible here. For a second, as he watches Andy fall, Percy's heart claws into his chest, the terror seizing him for the briefest moment.

Then the anger kicks back in, and the next moment Andy's killer's head pops out of hiding, Percy blasts him with three shots from Animus. Then he rushes to Andy, yanking the dagger out of her and futilely trying to cover the wound, ripping a strip of pink cloth from his very pink jacket to try and bind it up.]

[oiorpata]

[ if she was any bit aware instead of dead, andy would just be annoyed at such a cheap death. she lays there, oblivious and bleeding out, her body still. ]

[ but percy helps her out, removing the knife and allowing her body to start its healing process faster. while he's trying to patch up the wound, the wound begins to patch itself up instead. the muscles shift, reconnecting, and her throat and windpipes seal up internally. it thins the blood flow under his hands, and there's a slow rattle of air pulling back into her lungs once its pathway has been fixed, though the skin around the hole is still open wide, allowing an obscured view of the internal healing, should he look. ]

[whitestonelives]

[Okay what the fuck. He has seen something like this before, sure, but always with someone else helping the healing process along with a Cure Wounds. He blinks at the rapidity of the healing, shocked, hands stilling in the process of trying to bind up the wound. Oh, and this was a very expensive jacket.]

...I have so many questions I'm going to ask later. [Because what the fuck. But the second Andy comes back to life, he'll stand up and offer her a hand to help her up.] But first, are you all right? [Because when Percy came back from the dead, he was incredibly tired and couldn't fight a kitten even if he wanted to. He's not sure if that's the same for her.]

heist it up — level 20-23 ;

[lateness]

[ The Doctor follows a group of his own family members back to the main headquarters, feigning ignorance that he’d had any idea what was going on or why. He stays near the party for as long as he can, tries to keep the remaining Lionetta from leaving, but the unexpected attacks from the other family and Olexa’s voice commanding them all through their earpieces had sort of buggered up those plans, making it difficult to make up a reason to stay.

So off he pops into a fellow Lionetta’s car (after he’d checked on his friends), hoping he might be of more use at the headquarters, even when he is absolutely against fighting of any kind. He evades the usual questions, makes a few light-hearted jokes, keeps his mouth shut where talk of Olexa is concerned, and then he splits away from the group as soon as he can the moment they arrive.

Getting as far to the top of the building as possible is the Doctor’s goal, and as he climbs each floor to disarm as many weapons as possible, dodging punches and missing kicks, he thinks he’s actually doing a rather bang up job of it. He is equipped with nothing but his silly little screwdriver (which has been effective enough against most of the weapons but does nothing for physical attacks, unfortunately) and as he makes his way up to Level 20, he starts to come into contact with some of his fellow Orbers, all of them of similar mind. Help each other, get someone to the top, someone who could lay claim on the orb they need to complete this mission.

He very nearly trips over Andy’s body as he dives for cover from a blast of gunfire, arms over his head and the woosh of his trench coat following behind. He hasn’t quite clued into the familiarity of her features until it’s too late, hadn’t seen her fall, but it wouldn’t be the first time he’d lost someone in battle. (And he hates that he knows what it feels like with almost too clear an image.) Hearts stop for a moment and he nudges at her shoulder, his voice soft when he speaks. ]

Andy? Come on, then — you’re all right, eh?

[ They're just words to fill the silence, his pursuer gone to find some other prey to hunt.

It isn’t that they know each other all that well; a handful of conversations were all they had at best. But the Doctor (loathe as he is to admit it) attaches easily, found himself fond of their interactions, and hadn’t seen any of the other Orbers in such grave danger … certainly not … something so permanent. Humans were always so fragile, the courage in their hearts too strong for them to bear.

It’s a useless effort, perhaps, but still he tries to find a heartbeat or some sign of life in her with his screwdriver. If he could do something, he would — of that he has no doubt. ]

[oiorpata]

[ so many dramatics about her dying that she would ignore even if she was alive. ]

[ she does not respond, obviously, but by the time the doctor is hovering nearby, her body pushes the knife out, and it clatters to the floor. the blood stops gushing, slowing into more of a trickle. all the healing is internal first, the tears in her windpipe and esophagus closing up, allowing her lungs to pull in their first breath of air in a few minutes. it's a whistling sound, accentuated by her eyes flickering back to life, clear signs that she is not dead. ]

[ her fingers twitch, like they're searching for something to hold, though her body is still limp as circulation returns, as the hole itself in her neck continues to knit back together. ]

[lateness]

Oh, well that's new.

[ The Doctor pauses, sitting back on his heels with one hand occupied with a screwdriver, the other steadying his crouch against the flooring while he only vaguely keeps an ear out for the fighting around him. It hasn't stopped, of course, but he's been left alone for a moment. That's good.

He watches Andy then, watches the way the knife clatters to the ground, leaving her wound which isn't a wound at all anymore; he watches the way the blood suddenly seems to stop. Everything ... somehow undoes itself.

Interesting. That's — definitely interesting. ]

What sort of human are you, anyway?