[OPEN] Mission 155

[soul_mods]

Characters: Open to those who signed up here.
Location: An unmarked cavern system outside Death City.
Rating: Various.
Time: March 18th, sunrise.
Description: Shibusen agents brave underwater caverns to take out the first of three Madness emitters.

Missiongoers pile out of the mirrors early in the morning, just as the first hints of sun start to color the walls of the sandstone canyon red and purple; it'll be the last bits of real light they'll see for at least a few hours. The atmosphere is electric -- there're quite a few new (and old) arrivals who're eager to see some action, but just as many people who're feeling rather more apprehensive… And for good reason.

The only way to their destination is blocked by a few hundred yards of sunken tunnels. Luckily they've been provided with mouthpieces, breathing apparatuses with enough oxygen to last about ten minutes: more than enough time, provided that the guests don't lose their way in the dimly-lit, twisted caverns. It's as easy as following the person in front of them, right?

Upon emerging safely from the pool onto mostly-dry land, they'll find themselves in an immense cavern, illuminated by countless, blue fungi clinging to the walls and ceiling, looking like stars dotting a night sky. Already the first signs of the way Madness has been corrupting the wildlife are evident: the mushrooms exude strange spores that make some people's head pound the same way the increasingly noticeable Madness wavelength does.

As they travel further into the watery caves and explore its many branches, they'll begin to encounter creatures twisted by Madness: moles, snakes, beetles, centipedes, all grown to monstrous proportions, some with a venomous bite that quickly turns their victim feverish and delirious. The more daring fighters can easily dispatch those and delve even deeper, and it's near the source of the Madness, in the chamber housing the emitter itself, that they'll encounter the kishin eggs.

There're dozens of them-- eyeless, white, vaguely human-shaped things, but despite their blindness they have no problem finding their quarry, fighting with claws and exuding their own Madness wavelength. If the missiongoers can stand strong against the kishin eggs and the ever-present wavelength given off by the Madness emitter, Shibusen's specialists will have enough time to shut the machine down for good.


OOC NOTES.
- The event summary post containing all relevant links is located here.
- Make your own threads, but please indicate in your subject line [CHARACTER(S) | LOCATION | OPEN/CLOSED] and, if applicable, if you need a kishin egg NPC!
- The locations are the sunken tunnels, the medics area, the cave system, and the emitter chamber, but only the medics will have their designated sub-thread.
- If you have any further questions, the mod thread on the coordination post is here!

Comments

[draculabackwards]

Alucard spat out his mouthpiece and took deep deep breaths of actual air. The idea of swimming with gear hadn't seemed so bad, but when Raidou had explained how it worked, he'd been afraid to use up all his air.

So he concentrated on breathing and squeezing out the water from his long blond hair. His normal clothes were simply not suited for this mission, so Alucard wore modern clothing instead, which were all in black and long sleeved but decorated with some artwork of skulls on the back.

"I think...I think I will be all right now."

[topgun_textiles]

"A'right." That was the first obstacle passed. All that remained was the true mission. Shaking the water out of his hair, he tried to clear his head and focus on the task at hand.

"Doesn't sound like anything heard us. Let's find 'em and get the jump on 'em, buy our tech guys some time n' a little peace of mind." Maybe it was the Madness getting to him a little, or maybe it was Kanji simply being eager to get started, cracking his knuckles as he kept his ears peeled for any signs of what may lurk in these caves.

He nodded to Tifa. He was okay for now. She'd noticed though, hadn't she? Damn it...

[heart_rhythm]

Then there was no time to waste, once everyone had cleared their heads after the trek through the tunnel. Kanji's eagerness may have been urged on by the creeping Madness, but Tifa felt this was something they needed to get through as quickly as possible as well. The less time spent around these things, the better.

"Let's go, then," she gave a nod in the direction that looked like an outlet to another series of caves. It was impossible to tell which way was the most direct, but they had to get started somewhere.

As they made their way in, she looked over the other pair a little, two she'd seen around but had never really met. It felt good though, to have some back-up from another pair on something like this--you never knew how strong the enemy would be.

[timelessummoner]

They weren't the only ones who wanted to get this over with. Raidou grew tense as they walked and the Madness became more noticable; little voices and sounds that shouldn't be there, things that disappeared when you tried to get a better look. Once Raidou though he saw an entire pond of blood, but on second look it was merely water.

Fortunately he could still tell which sounds were his imagination, at least. All things he remembered from home. Demons, approaching hooves, a lullaby, scurrying of too-large insect legs...

It was the last one that gave him a pause.

"Do you hear that?"

[draculabackwards]

Alucard put a hand on Raidou's shoulder and turned to look away from the party. That way they couldn't watch him attempt to scent the air. There was a lot of water around to block scent and several low annoying voices that demanded his attention. It was hard to concentrate but there was definitely a scent of other around. Along with a scrape across a rock from somewhere above his head.

"We may wish to find secure ground for battle," Alucard said, holding up his arm.

[topgun_textiles]

"Ain't just you," he noted to the detective. The skittering of chitinous legs was definitely not some Madness-induced trick of the ears, and it was a sound he'd heard before battling the massive insectoid Shadows.

But Kanji didn't want to waste any more time. The sounds drew closer, but whether they were discovered or not he couldn't tell.

"Chamber's a little cramped, but it'll have to work. Ready when you are, Tifa!" Kanji was more a front lines kinda guy. He was ready to head right in and throw the first punch right into that buggy mug before it had a chance to make its move!

[heart_rhythm]

Taking his cue, Tifa reached out to him and transformed into her weapon form. Instantly through their resonation, she knew the Madness would get to be a problem before long. It had never affected her as much--sometimes not at all. But Kanji took the brunt for them both.

Now that they were ready, she focused her attention on the sounds above them, tense and ready for anything to swoop down at them. Vaguely, she wondered about the form Alucard would take and if it would be difficult to fight close quarters with.

[timelessummoner]

Raidou took Alucard's hand, knowing the dhampir would transform without a command. The area wasn't ideal for a sword, but they would manage.

The sound was coming closer, growing louder and louder; by now it was impossible to mistake it for any sort of normal insect. Something large was blocking the light of the fungi growing in the ceiling.

Raidou narrowed his eyes. Even in a different world, it seemed he wasn't going to get away from giant bugs.

[draculabackwards]

Alucard transformed into his broadsword form without any effort. Their resonance twitched with the effect of the Madness swarming all around. He could still hear the voices trying to tell him to give up. He had no idea what kind of voices Raidou was hearing.

We'll need to be quick and with no mercy.

[topgun_textiles]

The transformation of both Tifa and Alucard painted the walls with additional light, and Kanji quickly took stock of what room he had to deal with before he felt the weight of the Premium Heart at his right hand.

"OUT OF OUR WAY!" He roared, bringing his focus inward despite the sounds in his head. That deep gray soul sparked and flared, temporarily driving away the darkness - he had another soul to worry about now, and he would not drag her down, damn it - as he fired a Soul Descent into the ground, trembling the chamber to try and bring this thing down, whatever it may be.

Should it fall, he'd greet it with the swing of a fist into the dark mass.

[heart_rhythm]

Instantly when the chamber began to quake, the air was filled with the loud, almost slicing sound of sharp wings, the remaining light picking up the sight of a monstrously large beetle speeding down towards them.

Tifa was reminded of the large spiders and ants that had swarmed the city not that long ago; apparently the Witches had a thing for mutilating insects. Holding tight to Kanji, she prepared herself for an attack, keeping the other pair in her sight as well.

[timelessummoner]

Raidou held his arms out for balance as the ground shook. When he looked up again, the beetle was making a beeline for them, quicker than one would expect of a monster of that size. It would trap them all in a corner if they didn't move; he broke into a run, slipping past the beetle and moving away from Kanji and Tifa. With attacks coming from two sides, the monster would be at a disadvantage.

[draculabackwards]

Alucard resonated well enough with Raidou that they could backdash around the monster and hack it from behind. He relied on Raidou's improved swordsmanship to find a way to clip a few of its legs off. Even in cramped quarters, Raidou was performing admirably.

You will make me feel inadequate with the amount of skill you are showing.

[topgun_textiles]

That beetle wasn't so big. He'd fought Shadows just like this before. They always had a tough defense in that thick outer shell, but it was always a matter of breaking through or wearing it down before it wore you down with its devastating attacks.

Kanji dove left, those spindly legs landing where he once was. nothing about this felt like a kishin egg, however... maybe this was another witch familiar? He couldn't tell, but like everything else, it would be crushed! With a snarl he took advantage of the fact that the dark even gave the beetle some trouble, its body bumping and scraping against the hazardous stone walls as it turned to try and gore any soft body it could with the massive horn attached to the face. Kanji planted a foot against the flat of that horn when it was swung in his direction, and kicked it away, following it up with a downward hook into its mug with the blue crystal of the Premium Heart.

He was feeling that little flame burning deep in the pit of him. If he kept this up, he could wreck this thing's shit with a Beat Rush!

[heart_rhythm]

It felt like almost nothing to fight this thing compared to some of the kishin they'd fought already. But Kanji was charging in like there was no difference; it was a quality she admired about her partner. No matter what the fight, he never put in any less effort. But Tifa wanted to make sure he didn't exert himself too early when they might have stronger foes waiting.

Supporting him and holding strong to their resonation, Tifa murmured quietly through their connection, "Let's just finish it quick and move on. There are kishin eggs ahead."

[timelessummoner]

Kanji's attack clearly hurt; the beetle made an attempt to scamper back and fly away. This was a bad move on its part, as it had to open its hard shell to uncover its wings, leaving its rear unguarded.

Raidou wasted no time driving his sword deep into the monster's back.