[OPEN] Mission 157

[soul_mods]

Characters: Open to participants who signed up here.
Location: Nocturne Bazaar
Rating: Gen.
Time: April 5th.
Description: The battle to destroy the last of the three Madness Emitters is upon us.

It happens early in the morning: a strange and lingering air of disquiet, almost imperceptible even to those trained to recognize it for what it is, quickly rising to a mind-shattering crescendo. On the floating island above the city, black liquid bubbles up from the cracks in the cobblestone streets and materializes into tall, thin, clown-shaped creatures. Oversized carrion birds take wing from the rafters of buildings, trailing dust from their dirty wings. The screams of civilians are clearly heard even from Death City so far down below, waking its citizens up from fitful, nightmare-filled slumbers.

The Witches are here!

It doesn't take long for the defenders to rally: Kid sends out the call to arms and, after admonishing all but the most skilled pairs to stay off the island, instructs those attending Mission 157 to prepare to get on the gondolas which still remain the only way to and from the Bazaar.

The streets are not as packed as they were the past two days, but there is no less commotion. The carnival workers and residents, fleeing from the marauding monsters, clearly have no hand in this deception. In between trying to save their lives, striking down the Black Blood-formed clowns and avoiding the talons of swooping bird familiars, the pairs certainly have their hands full.

At the epicenter of the battle is the yellow-bricked fortune-telling building. Waves of Madness emanate from it with an almost physical force. If you aren't careful, you may run into the black-feathered Witch guarding it…

By the end of the conflict, the island is incapable of supporting its own weight. With the help of volunteers shuttling civilians and fighters alike from the Bazaar to the ground, everyone must race back to the gondolas before the entire rock crashes in the sands.

OOC NOTES.
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Comments

[cardfortress]

I already hated those. It’s difficult not to dislike something so pathetic and unnecessary.

[As Mello solves enough sides of the cube to bring out the much needed firepower, Near keeps a close watch on the creatures around them. They need to be very careful here: there are far too many variables at play, and the monsters are only one of them. As soon as his Meister tells him to open fire, Near delivers the much needed lasers, finishing off the creature in question with relative ease.

(It’s slightly odd, how Mello almost doesn’ t have to tell him anything during battle anymore; Near thinks he would be able to figure most-- if not all -- things out by feeling Mello’s soul through their resonance, and how its own wavelength shifts throughout the battle.)

Much like his partner, Near doesn’t let the warmth of their resonance distract him, but he squeezes it for all it’s worth, using it as a shield against the madness wavelength and as a way to enhance his senses. There’s a bird-like creature making its way in their direction, and then another, and the Weapon doesn’t waste any time in pointing that out.]

There are two birds heading in our direction, one behind you and one to your right.

[want_the_world]

[Mello's on full alert to their surroundings, but Near can pick up on things he can't, and he feels his own awareness expand to include the Weapon's sense of the enemies and their positions, so seamlessly that he only recognizes it's happened by how much more he can effectively see.

It's not perfect resonance, but it's the closest they've come to it in battle. Right now, if Mello could choose between this and everything he had in the best days back home, this would win, hands down.

He swings around to take out the first bird, spins to confront the second, and it feels like a martial ballet, like grace and deadliness combined in a way he's never felt before, except rarely, when his gun would feel like an extension of his arm.

This is better.

He's almost positive he can hear Near's sardonic response before the Weapon even thinks it, and replies.]

Don't worry, I'm not getting cocky.

[Screams sound from nearby, out of sight.]

Should we go handle that?

[cardfortress]

[It feels almost like tension disappearing entirely, when his own awareness of their surroundings expands onto Mello through their resonance; almost like stretching his limbs after waking up and finding himself capable of more effective movements after it. It’s odd but pleasant, like many things about their resonance are, and Near quickly figures out that he’s very much okay with it.

He can’t help thinking how odd it is, that fighting feels more like merging together than fighting side by side, these days. It’s a joined effort, obviously, but for the past few times they’ve fought, Near has felt almost like his Weapon form is an extension of Mello’s physical being, with how seamlessly the blond wields him and triggers his attacks.

Near can sense something else, too, something from Mello’s mind: he realizes that his partner actually prefers this over the best that he could’ve had back in their world, and the thought piques his curiosity and makes him want to know more-- but now is not the place or time to be focusing on questions like those, so he tries not to dwell on it.]

Are you one hundred percent sure of that?

[Mello has enough reasons to be cocky, but Near knows he could’ve been acting far worse than he is. Even so, he needs to point it out: getting too cocky and overconfident could get them killed, after all.]

That depends entirely on what is causing that commotion. Can we handle it?

[It’s not that he’s trying to run away, but they have to assess their enemies and know which ones they can fight, and which ones they cannot: it would be suicidal of them, if they didn’t examine their current situation this closely.]

[want_the_world]

Sure we can. Even without the blast at our fingertips. Heh, my fingertips.

[Mello isn't sure yet where the madness wavelength is emanating from relative to them, but as he rounds the corner to assess the situation, he can feel they're getting closer to it. Among the many things he fucking hates about it, the possible tops on the list is how it's different every time. If it always hit him the same way, he could brace for it.

He's not prepared for this.

Shibusen is losing, a sinister little voice whispers in his mind. You're losing, and you're going to die. You and Near and L and Matt and Gemini and Bakura, and everyone you've ever cared the slightest bit about here...

He's always found an answer to despair with action; he's always moved so quickly that he's outrun the worst of it anyway. This hits him hard enough that he thinks he staggers, and loses his sense of Near for a black and reelingly lost moment.

Then he feels like he's dropping back into his body after having been pulled from it, and their resonance is there to anchor him, feeling almost like something solid he can lean against for support.]

Shit. You all right?

[Strangely exultant, dizzy with relief maybe, at how quickly he snapped back this time.

The witches' awful familiars are trying to carry off some of the carnival workers, swooping and diving. Mello mentally squares his shoulders.]

How good's your aim?