Private/Closed Bootleg Bros. Ultimate - The Sumeragi Campaign

[ArmedBlue]

A new world born of a wish and converging universes.

Landmasses and continents of various formations, shapes, and sizes came with the new territory, with factions of many backgrounds and goals staking their claims throughout. The gaps between each area were just as diverse – miniature oceans, sprawling jungles, mountainous valleys. But in the spaces betwixt, beyond, high above the sky, and deep beneath the earth, darkness lurked. Something unknowable outside these charted areas, destroying anything that dared venture too far from the lands.

Toward the center of this new world, at the edge of the neighboring continents, sat a small island adorned with tropical beaches, and a stretching mountain. Atop it, an angelic metallic structure, shining with golden and white colors, akin to a large clock, a massive contraption. At its very core was the origin of this world, an unparalleled source of power. The Nexus.

Whatever the goals of these factions were, the promise of attaining this fascinating power proved undeniably enticing. A way to be in control, establish supremacy.

And one such faction established itself in one of this new world's many islands...

Cloud-blotted sunlight shone down on a sprawling city torn by decay and conflict. The slums stretched out through much of the landmass, a grey sea of disrepair wherever one looked – raging fires, abandoned buildings, massive piles of rubble, withered flora. At a glance, the inhabitants of this area seemed to be gone or in hiding, but whatever the case, it was a large yet desolate settlement.

Yet the northeastern section of the land held a much different view: a massive, sturdy off-white wall that towered over the surrounding ruins, well over two hundred feet in height. Large supply pipes of some sort appeared to run along the circular wall, slipping through gaps at the top of the structure to fuel a dense, pristine city within, gleaming with bright lights, neon signs, and lofty structures. It was teeming with life, seemingly quite prosperous. And at the city's center? A building even grander than the others around it, a peculiar logo emblazoned on its side, as did some of the nearby structures.

The emblem of the Sumeragi Institute for the Promotion of Human Evolution.

A divide was clear as day. A city fallen to ruin clashing with a bustling metropolis. Worn-down, aged communities obstructing the growth of a new age of peace and unity. Or was it the other way around? And what of this institute's goals?

In a hellish townscape, those few who live on in the face of despair still wish for a bright tomorrow, clinging to hope...
​

---The Sumeragi Campaign---
​

MISSION: AWAKENING

Oppression and uncertainty spreading in waves
Nine souls beat back the distorted light
As the one beneath the mask watches closely
​

Two flashes of light atop a ruined four-story building, bringing forth two individuals. The first, a teenage boy with blonde hair, a black blindfold over his eyes. The second, a pure white wolf, her celestial nature hidden to the human beside her.
​

Enter: TERRENCE BOOM, AMATERASU​

The first sight of this world to these new faces was an unoccupied top floor. Its structure was clearly heavily deteriorated – large holes in the concrete walls were the most immediately apparent aspect of this, providing glimpses into nearby buildings in a similar state, while nearly the entire roof above them was missing, exposing a cloudy sky above. The interior of this top floor seemed to be the remains of an office space, with charred papers, aged desks, and chairs strewn about. Regardless of the cause of this, it was apparent no one had been here in quite some time.

Nothing or no one appeared to greet them immediately, although the noise of vehicles of some sort came from the streets below, and a commotion echoed up from the bottom floors of this structure. Perhaps it was best to address each other first, or as well as a human and a wolf could. Though if one were to take a look outside, it'd seem something – or someone, was falling down from the sky nearby them.

...

The ground was fast approaching, the lights from a faraway megacity fading into the distance. Two blurs of green and red, albeit the same person at heart.
​

ENTER: BOBOIBOY – THORN & BLAZE
​

Compared to the glimpse they'd managed to catch of that futuristic utopia, the city they were falling into looked like it was in quite the sorry state. Structures falling at the seams and fires raging about, clearly in chaos and disrepair. A series of hovering vehicles rushed through the streets below, zipping this way and that – though heading straight to them likely wasn't a priority, as they had a fall to take care of first.

One of the taller nearby buildings came into view, brief flashes of light coming from within. While not exactly ideal, the gaps toward the top of the structure made it a decently appealing landing spot, even if there was still the issue of figuring out how to do so. There wasn't much time left, that much was certain.
​

Three flashes of light a ways underground, summoning three individuals. Two teenage girls, one with dark brown hair and slanted eyes, the other blond with blonde hair and light blue eyes. The third figure was a slightly jaded adult man, his eyes topaz in color and attire mostly black.​

ENTER: FRISK DREEMURR, TRACY RINEHART, TERRY HAGEN
​

The environment around them was fairly dim. A few white lights flickered overhead, providing some visibility – rusted steel floors and pillars were all around them, with a drop off about a dozen feet to their right, tracks running along the ground a few feet below. A little further ahead of them, a small non-functional rotary turnstile, and a staircase just beyond it. This seemed to be a subway station, though judging by its condition, it had certainly not seen some use in a long time.

Not much else stood out in terms of visuals. The sound of droplets falling from the ceiling at regular intervals could be heard, and muffled footsteps and voices came from the floor above. There was no telling exactly who was up there just yet – but seeing as this place was quite unfamiliar, it was probably best to address each other first and figure out what to do next.
​

Two flashes of light in a long and wide grey hallway. One light formed into a circular flaming portal, a young woman in a police-like uniform speeding through in a motorcycle, quickly reducing her speed. The other flash of light, a safe distance from the vehicle, dropped out a brown-haired human mainly dressed in green, a self-made hat adorned with a feather atop their head.
​

ENTER: AKIRA HOWARD, KIWI
​

As the screeching of the bike tires faded, they took in the new environment. The decaying walls around them, once white, had faded into a duller grey, dust gathered along every surface. Chairs, signs, posters, and stretchers lay about in a mess, some missing a few parts or ripped into pieces entirely. A few windows and holes in the walls revealed several rooms along the hallway – inside each was a bed and some damaged equipment. Malfunctioning lights flickered above, with some red crosses painted into the ruined scenery all around them. This was the remains of a hospital, from the looks of it. While the source of all the damage wasn't immediately apparent, the greater damage toward the opposite end of the hallway, revealing a ground floor below, left it more likely that it had been some sort of attack.

For now, no other new faces appeared before them – although there was the sound of vehicles and sirens in the distance. It was probably best to address each other first, figure out where to go from here.

...

Even after fleeing into these worn-down slums, they were still chasing after him. These soldiers were relentless, no doubt about that. A smear of red moved through the streets, three hovering vehicles chasing after the humanoid robot.
​

ENTER: V2
​

Simply outrunning these soldiers didn't seem to do the trick, and as long as they had him out in the open, it'd be harder to deal with these fast-moving targets. A better option could be a narrow alley, an enclosed building, something cramped to prevent the use of their vehicles – the sound of their plasma weapons gearing up again meant it was time to act.

They were fast approaching the ruins of a hospital, a large red cross buried halfway into the earth beside the entrance, which had mostly been blown wide open. Not only could that serve as a way to turn the tide, but there was the potential of finding some blood to refuel. ​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Boboiboy - Blaze & Thorn


.....


"AHHHHH!!"

A pair of voices penetrated through the cyber styled sky, plummeting down directly from the clouds. Thorn, the green clad boy clung onto Blaze, the hot headed punk of the two as the ground threatened them, getting closer by the second.

"Get off me, tree hugger!" Snapped the fire elemental.

"Wahhhh! Shouldn't we try not to fall first?!?"

Thorn buried his face in Blaze's back and clutched tightly, wind blasting up against them on their descent. A stream of smoke and embers escaped the corners of Blaze's lips, clearly getting angry. Right when he was about to slug Thorn on the shoulder-

Fwoosh!

A green parachute unfurled from Thorn's wrists. It was made of spiky plant vines, much like Thorn's namesake. The sudden parachute deployment slowed their descent, Blaze held their punch, looking up at the new plant construct.

"Huh. Maybe crybaby ain't so useless after all."

"I can't see, are we near somewhere to land?!" Thorn spoke in a hurried tone, not wanting to unbury their face.

"Ugh, sit tight."

Rolling their eyes, Blaze looked around, seeing a tall building close by. But more interestingly, signs of conflict below, smoke and rushing vehicles fleeing. The signs of possible battle caught Blaze's attention, fixating on it as the embers and smoke from his lips turns into a steady stream of flame...flame that rose and started to catch.

"Uhhh...Blaze?"

"Fire..."

"Blaze? BLAZE!!"

"Huh? What? What are you on about now?" He growled.

"The Parachute!"

Looking up, it seemed that his spurt of fire had crawled up the vines supporting the parachute, and now the whole thing was going up in fire! Blaze widened his eyes, realizing it wouldn't last long.

"Crap, that'll have to work!"

Blaze held his hand out, giving a quick burst of flames from his palm, enough to act as a thruster to send them towards the building. As they about reached their targe - the parachute snapped! This sent the two falling and eventually rolling onto it through a few gaps in the structure, the hard surface hardly welcoming to them as they eventually spun to a halt.

"Ugh...my head." Blaze snarled, sitting up. "When we find that pitiful primate again, I'll beat his ass myself!"

"Now Blaze, why don't we figure out where we are first? Maybe we can find some people that can help us with directions?"

"Oh okay. We'll just magically find the big shot who owns this tower and just kindly ask where we are and how to get out? And he'll let us borrow a ship while we are at it? FAT CHANCE. Face it leafy greens, we are walking into a fight."

Blaze held out his palms, flames lighting up in them, which Thorn quickly segwayed away from.

"Ooooor we can at least try to ask. Ahem." He cleared his throat before cupping the sides of his mouth. "Helloooooooooo~!"

His voice echoed through the building, carrying in the structure through the spacious halls.

 

[Psymallard]

Akira Howard
The RAVEN captain slid through the portal, quickly coming to a stop. The bike had kicked up some gravel, which went a-bouncing towards the feet of another person. She raised a hand to show peace, and then engaged her bike stand and dismounted her vehicle.

"Where... am I?"

She looked around at the sorry state of the building. She had seen ruin on the Ark, but here, she sensed no redshift. What had brought about this ruin, if not Chimeras? She heard sirens and engines in the distance... this area wasn't abandoned. This wasn't a safe place to loiter around. Especially with what was (assumedly) a civilian here. Remembering her training, Akira straightened up and brushed some hair out of her face.

"Er- ahem... Are you injured at all?"

Her immediate priority was to ensure the safety of this other person. Then, she needed to gain more information on their surroundings. Akira didn't like this, not one bit. As she waited for a reply, she once again scanned the surrounding area- this time with her IRIS activated. No threats. She was starting to feel a bit of paranoia creep up inside, being in unfamiliar territory. Yet, she still managed to push her fear aside, focusing on her duty.

 

[Gamingfan]

"Why the look, ma chéri?"

"Ah, you sensed it as well. Something not of this world, calling your name. And you don't intend to run."

"Hmm? A prophecy before you leave? Let me see..."

"Oppression and uncertainty..."

Amaterasu
Two flashes of light shone above a building, but one remained bright, falling into the building and flooding the immediate area with dazzling, purifying light. The surrounding flora perked up and bloomed, rejuvenated by the light.
And then it disappeared, revealing its origin as a beautiful wolf with a coat pure and white as snow, red streaks painted on her body, and a flaming disc floating on her back. Although the latter two would be invisible to most mortals.
When the light vanished, most of the plants withered again, save for those near her presence. Amaterasu, origin of all that is good and mother to use all, looked around confusedly. She spun around to examine herself, though to an onlooker it would likely look like she was chasing her tail.
How strange. Amaterasu had been weakened, evidenced by the streaks she lost. But she couldn't feel any darkness plaguing her, nor stifling the praise she already had. No, rather it was as if her connection to people's prayers, her tether to the celestial realm, had been severed. She had only felt like this one other time...
Amaterasu shook it off, instead placing focus on her surroundings. Beside her was a human man wearing a blindfold, but the way he carried himself gave Amaterasu the impression that it hardly impacted his ability. Amaterasu patiently waited for him to acknowledge her, her tail swishing back a forth as a substitute for a friendly wave.

 

[PaprusTeuton]

V2

CRASH! V2 slammed into the window at about 50 kilometers per hour. This figure is notable because it is about a dozen kilometers per hour faster than the V model is meant to be able to move, according to it's manual, not that anyone ever read the document except for the people in charge of production and some quality control testers. And the robot in question, of course. Not much to do for entertainment after the extinction of humanity.

But now wasn't the time for entertainment. Now was the time for V2 to run for their life.

Or, well, hide. They had been running (well, sliding) for a few hours now, and the soldiers chasing them weren't letting up. They seemed to only gain more stamina as he ran further, and he swore he heard one calling for a helicopter. Luckily, this hospital which they had found and promptly broken and entered into was large enough that the soldiers wouldn't be able to find them before they found what they were looking for.

Blood. Because Blood is Fuel.

"Blood is Fuel" being the the only one of the 3 messages the V model had heard upon entering Hell that still applied. Blood remained fuel, but Mankind was still alive and chasing them, and Hell was rapidly emptying out. Hell... what happened in Hell? At the end of Violence, they had been dueling V1, that lesser machine, and then...

It didn't matter. They had to find blood. And sliding through the hospital rooms, occasionally firing a rocket backwards just in case, the machine was in luck, because it had found a storage room which still had some packs of blood in it. The machine slid in and hooked themself up, feeling the warm sense of blood pouring into their storage tanks. They knew, of course, that the blood was likely incredibly cold, but it didn't matter- it was the feeling that counted. And the machine began to repair itself, using the blood to fabricate and replace broken parts, fix split portions, and redo it's paint job.


Unbeknownst to the machine, several floors below, it's arrival had been heard by 2 humans many floors below.

 

[Mokko]

Terrence Boom

…What?

Why was he here? He’d just been seconds away from walking into the most high-stakes and important battle of his entire life, but now… he was here. Wherever ‘here’ was.

He couldn’t physically see his surroundings, but with every vibration, his inner mind was painting him a clearer and clearer picture of what was going on. Adjusting the dark cloth that concealed his eyes, he opted to just take in what was closest to him- that being this building he found himself on.

Slinging his backpack off of his shoulder, he took note of the creature that was standing just nearby. Embarrassingly, even with his sensory abilities, he couldn’t quite determine its species, but his running theory was that it was a dog, a friendly-seeming one, at that. In one hand, he held the hilt of a katana, hoping to go and confront all the other sources of commotion shortly… crashing noises, and vehicles… but with the other hand, he rummaged through his bag for some kind of friendship offering to this… dog? DEFINITELY a dog. Right?

The first thing he pulled out of his bag was none other than Tempura- a monster, a Temmie to be exact, that had been accompanying him during his time in China. The two shared a strong bond, Terrence even feeling a deep, parental responsibility for her safety… that was why it was comforting, yet a little bothersome that she’d apparently tagged along for his fight.

“I told you, it’s dangerous…” Terrence informed Tempura, who looked around with a stare of awe.

“WoOoOaH! wE sCrEwEd Up!!!!” she gasped, acknowledging that this was the wrong place for them to be in right now. Shaking his head, Terrence quietly set her back down in the bag, before instead pulling out a small bowl of plain noodles- leftovers from his lunch, popping the lid of the container off and extending it toward Amaterasu.

 

[Captain Cardboard]

Tracy Rinehart

Tracy... Tracy!

A silvery, translucent figure appeared above the unconscious form of Tracy, calling out to the duel student in a soft voice. The blonde teenager let out a quiet groan, and as she stirred the silvery figure faded into the darkness. It felt like there was an intense pounding within her head, and Tracy slowly pushed herself up into a sitting position. The air here was damp and stale, and smelled faintly of mold and rust.

Where... was she?

Her headache slowly faded as Tracy took in her surroundings. At first, the student thought she had somehow found herself back within the sub-basement of Duel Academy, or the old Obelisk Blue boy's dorm. But this was totally unfamiliar. There were no subways on the island. Tracy took stock of herself. She was in her school uniform, the normal yellow skirt, white sleeveless shirt, with yellow gloves and boots. She had her backpack, and her duel disk was on her arm. Tracy tried to think back, tried to remember what had happened before she had fallen unconscious. That's right. There was that last member of the raiders that was causing chaos, the hacker. She had beaten him... then she met up with Bob and Dahlia. The three of them had walked into the Occult Club, she had said hi to Goule, and then...

Nothing. Blank.

Suddenly, Tracy realized she wasn't alone. There were two other people here. Tracy quickly jumped to her feet, looking over the pair warily. The first was a girl, close to her own age, wearing a jacket and beanie. The other was a man, mid-twenties, in a black turtleneck with brown hair. Neither were dressed in the cloaks the raiders preferred.
"Who are you?" Tracy said, raising her duel disk defensively. Yeah, as if that would help. No dark talisman or power brand for her, even if she wanted to force these two into a Shadow Duel, she had no way of doing it now. Right now, her duel disk was as useful as a flashlight. Wait, was this a Shadow Game? That hacker had brought her to a weird cyberspace place, maybe this was something similar! "Where am I? Are you with the raiders?!"

 

[Fraseandchico]

The Bard
​

The arrival was...not comfortable, for this ordinary looking minstrel. In fact, for a moment after arrival, they almost looked a little ill. That was, until, they suddenly jumped back a little at the sounds of another person. Looking over at this person, the Bard took a second to catch details and to let them speak.
"Er- ahem... Are you injured at all?" Was what the person said, so the Bard answered honestly.

"Oh! I'm fine, don't worry. What about you, that entry didn't sound the smoothest to me...?"
It was quiet in this hallway, even if it was louder outside, too quiet for the Bard's liking, but their voices at least carried something.
But the silence was shattered rather literally from the sound of it.

"Gah!" The Bard, whose rather unimportant name was Kiwi, jumped at the sudden loud noise of a window being smashed to pieces. And there was noise...up. Lots of it. Someone else? Maybe in a panic... "I think someone else is here." A rather obvious comment. "Sorry, we should probably move, Miss...?" They added, taking a proper look around. The building was...dark, and not just in a lighting sense but rather a sense of uneasiness, like something went horribly wrong here.

...Hopefully, it was not related to whoever was making all that noise upstairs. Kiwi put that thought aside for the moment, though, and looked further down the hallway. It appeared it was further damaged down there, so that was probably the closest thing to a start on a (safe) exit.

 

[DevVoid]

One day, in the (debatably) pleasant town of New York City..
It seemed like just another day for the miraculous magician. Petty thefts were his forté, and there were plenty to go around as there always were. And being the professional entertainer he was, who was he to actually arrest criminals? As Mr. Miracle, Hagen was known for making a humiliating spectacle out of would-be thieves and robbers, turning hostage situations into stand-up shows and armed criminals into involuntary stuntmen for his impromptu performances. Heck, it's why the name of Miracle has gotten so famous - and totally not just because of his actual performances in clubs and theaters alike.

Though as much the man behind the miracle enjoyed playing pranks on unwitting criminals and letting the police clean up after him, Terry had to admit to himself that it was still tiring nonetheless. Entertaining others was in his blood, and he was a born performer through and through.. but the constant adrenaline rushes and knowing that, even with his magic, he was still putting himself in so much danger.. it took a toll on the man. An exhausting one, sure, not at all very trauma-heavy, but still. Being a Hero was some tough work, there was certainly no denying that. And this Man worked enough miracles for one day.

Everything seemed to be going just as usual. Hagen did his thing, went out and acted the fool. And after hours, he passed on the same routine. Stopping by a coffee shop to get the same order, then passing through a shadowed alleyway to swap back into civilian clothing. A black turtleneck sweater for today, and some matching sweatpants. Perfect for some late-night relaxation. And the warehouse the hero lived in was as comforting as ever, all the different props and branded merch of his making his own miracle of nostalgia time and time again. But just when his hand landed upon the door to his private branch of the warehouse, a strange of light flashed his eyes, before..

Pop.

Suddenly, a prison of stone surrounded the man, a wave of cold air had rushed against his face as darkness encompassed him. What, did he forget to turn on the lights again? But as his haze of confusion started to wear off, and Terry's vision started to unblur and focus once more.. he just showed even more confusion. A.. cave? And there were strangers with him, too. Two girls, teenagers by the looks of it.. this day just kept getting stranger and stranger, didn't it? As Hagen was about to respond, he noticed an odd, lightweight feeling in his right hand.. and the fact he was able to clench it into a fist without issue. That meant only one thing..

"My coffee! Noooo!"

Terry had cried out dramatically, a single tear shedding from his eyes. Hagen cared little for the fact that he was in entirely different for all he knew. That Coffee cost him a metaphorical arm and a leg, if New York's inflating economy and outrageous coffee shop prices had anything to say about it. And for what it was worth, it was probably back at his home right now, spilled all over the floor and staining his precious carpeted floor with heated bean juices! But oh well, enough was enough with that. Not like it mattered at this point, as Hagen had then cleared his throat awkwardly and turned to the two. Specifically, the one with that strange disc thing who ended up speaking up first.

"Raiders..? Like.. Indiana Jones? wow, Hagen, that one wasn't even funny-aah, nevermind. Name's, uh.. just call me Miracle. Mr. Miracle. Nice to meet you both.. now that I get a look around here, I.."

Hagen had spoke out, before taking a few paces around the cave, having noted the fact that it seemed to be styled more as a station than an actual cave.. if all the metal, pillars and light had anything to say about it. That's odd.. it didn't look anything like the subway stations he remembered visiting in NYC. Terry himself never used them - god forbid when the day came he had to opt for a train over just teleporting. But.. wait.. an underground cavern, with manmade elements and filled with structures that no ordinary public station would recognizably have..

"Okay.. Either we're about to get our asses kicked by Batman and Robin, or.. actually, I got nothing. None of this looks familiar enough for me to place a finger on anything. Other than the awful gut feeling of being in a strange, new place."

 

[ArmedBlue]

Wrecked Building
​

Thorn's call echoed throughout the building's halls, and for a long moment, it went unanswered.

However, before the two elementals could settle into a different course of action, a series of quick light footsteps resounded from a nearby stairwell, heading up towards them. Deeper, more numerous ones echoed from further below, indicating a decently-sized group was quickly approaching, though the lighter source would obviously get here first.

It took another few seconds for the source of the sound to emerge from the stairwell a few feet from Blaze and Thorn – a young boy about four feet tall, his eyes light blue and short brown hair mostly covered by a gray high-contact sport-like helmet. He lacked a shirt, instead wearing a lime sleeveless jacket and baggy pants, while a distinct yellow bandana hung around his neck. The boy's white shoes squeaked against the floor as he rapidly approached.

"Huh – who the heck are you dudes?!" He called bluntly, distress clear in his face and tone. "Agh, it doesn't matter. We gotta get outta here, Sumeragi's comin' for us!"​

Abandoned Hospital
​

Following the shattering of a window above the policewoman and bard, there was a fast response from the sources of the noise outside. At the other end of the hallway, where a section of the floor was missing, several soldiers armored mainly in blue and green colors suddenly rushed inside the hospital and into the higher floors, riding atop floating jetboards.

"Catch that robot!" one called.

They didn't seem to notice the bystanders, though a small group of on-foot soldiers soon followed, climbing from the ground floor onto the second one. One of these soldiers, donning green armor and a red visor, glanced down the hall, spotting the two. He did a brief double take in slight surprise.

"Hey! Stop right there!"

The man suddenly sprinted closer, a pink energy shield in hand, a metallic orb in the other. Four other soldiers in blue followed close behind, all wielding plasma rifles of some kind. While the purpose of their intrusion was unknown, the fact they rushed in with weapons in hand indicated they likely came in expecting a fight, and it was unclear if they'd deem the newcomers friend or foe.

...

To V2's benefit, the hospital halls acted to slow down his persecutors significantly – the cramped spaces forced some to reduce the speed of their transports, while others opted to dismount entirely and continue on foot. Their reduced pace gave them time to steer clear of the machine's rockets, and they continued to follow the trail of destruction all the way up to just outside the small storage room housing the red V model.

"You have nowhere to run!"

Two soldiers at the front of the pack cracked the door slightly ajar, tossing in a metallic orb each towards V2. After a moment, the grenades would explode violently, before a total of five soldiers would suddenly rush into the room – with three of them firing bolts of plasma at the robot wherever he moved or took cover.​

 

[PaprusTeuton]

V2

V2 was surrounded and in a cramped space. The robot was doomed, of course. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, this was the end.

NOT! V2 pulled out their shotgun and charged a shot as they dashed away from the grenades as fast as he could, just barely avoiding the explosions, before tanking several hits from the plasma bolts. After this, they would shout "NEITHER DO YOU!" before ejecting a Heat Core at the soldiers, which would explode upon impact and deal enormous damage!

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Boboiboy - Blaze & Thorn


"Oh! A friendly face! I'm Thorn and that's-"

"Agh, it doesn't matter. We gotta get outta here, Sumeragi's comin' for us!"

Blaze snorted, looking up and down at the newcomer to the scene. The flames in his hand burned steadily as he took a combat stance.

"So what? You afraid of a little action? We can burn them to a crisp before you'd even have time to duck for cover."

While Blaze seemed ready to tussle, Thorn titled his head in confusion.

"What's a...Some-err-ah-gi?"

 

[comic]

FRISK DREEMURR​

zzt. k-zzt.

She blinked, squinting her already slanted eyes. A flickering white light overhead was all she could see at first, and it seemed on the verge of going out completely.

k-zzt. zzt.

She was lying on her back. How had she gotten here? How had...

Frisk raised her left hand to her forehead as her right hand propped herself up on her elbow, the ground hard beneath her. She emitted a small groan, her head swimming with flashes of light. A vaguely green light, but it was growing dimmer and dimmer.

Almost like the green eyes were gone. His eyes.

Bringing her legs up, Frisk lowered her hand and took in her immediate surroundings, recognizing this place as a subway tunnel, but... it looked different than what she was used to. Not because it was destroyed, though it was very much in a terrible state, but its structure didn’t seem like anything she’d seen in Germany, France, or Switzerland.

Frisk’s blood suddenly ran cold. Was she in Russia? Had she somehow already made it here? Why couldn’t she remember? The last thing that happened was... she... she...

Somebody screamed something about coffee, and Frisk winced, bringing her hand up to her forehead once again. It actually hurt to try and remember, but why? Or was it just that loud voice?

It was here that the teen realized she wasn’t alone - around the same moment Tracy had, the girl pointing some kind of arm-worn device at Frisk and a turtleneck sweater guy, demanding if they were with the ‘raiders.’

Slowly, Frisk got to her feet, glancing from the man, to the girl, then around once more, soaking everything in.

“The duel disk can’t do anything, she can’t use it against you like this,” Chara’s voice whispered in Frisk’s ear.

Duel what? Oh... probably the girl’s arm contraption. That was fine, Frisk wasn’t exactly worried about it anyway. Tracy’s frantic response to the situation told the teen pretty much everything she needed to know.

The man responded first, mentioning Indiana Jones and calling himself “Mr. Miracle.” As he looked around, Frisk gave her own answer to Tracy.

“No.”

This couldn’t be Russia, these two people would already be feeling the effects of the residing radiation. Hell, Frisk would, too. So if it wasn’t Russia...

Chara didn’t answer her thoughts for her.

Miracle offered his lacking insight onto their situation, and Frisk cleared her throat. “It’s a subway,” she said, before sounds outside drew her attention. A distant boom, what could have been gunfire... somebody could be in trouble. More Messiah? Maybe they were behind this... maybe... Caesar, or someone else... ugh, she hated that guy.

“I don’t know the answers you’re asking for,” Frisk told Tracy. “But I’m gonna go see what’s going on - and if I can help anyone. You two are free to come with me if you can help, too.”

With that, Frisk hurried her way up the stairs, fingertips tingling with anticipation.​

 

[Captain Cardboard]

Tracy Rinehart

The duelist watched the pair carefully. The more she watched, the more Tracy was convinced that these two weren't raiders. Or at least, if they were, they were in a similar situation she was. The man introduced himself as Mr. Miracle, complaining about coffee and mentioning... Indiana Jones, of all things. A bat-man and a robin too. On the other hand, the other girl seemed more focused. She took charge of the situation, already heading out to try and figure out what was going on.

"Oh... okay..." Tracy said. She looked to Mr. Miracle. Even in this sort of situation, he still found the ability to be polite, introduce himself, and say it was good to meet them. How could he know that? In this current situation? Still, if this man was able to do it, so could she. Tracy cleared her throat, and nodded to the hero. "Ah... Hello. My name's Tracy Rinehart. This place is strange, isn't it? I've never been in an abandoned subway before..."

Tracy lowered her duel disk, and looked around the subway. Even in this decrepit state, there was still information that could be gained. An old subway route list, mostly destroyed. But it gave them the name of their current location. Sapporo Station. Tracy's eyes next turned to a nearby pile of trash. She walked over it, and a quick scan revealed what she was looking for. If this was a subway, they were probably in some sort of city. And people in the city read newspapers.

The newspaper was mostly destroyed and illegible, likely some rats or mice had torn it up for nesting. But there was some that were legible. As Tracy followed the girl, she couldn't help but to gasp at what she read. It wasn't possible... The paper! It said the year was 2134.
"A hundred and thirty years..." Tracy said, her face pale. "A hundred and thirty years..."
Tracy continued to scan the piece of paper. The only text she could really make out was a pair of headlines.

Sumeragi Institute Reports Record-High Profits

Adept Birth Rates Continue to Rise

"H-hey. Hey, hold on!" Tracy jogged forward, catching up with the mystery teen and showing her the newspaper piece as they walked together. "Do these mean anything to you? Sumeragi Institute, Adepts? And the year! 2134, that can't be right!"

 

[Psymallard]

The Officer
The civilian was unharmed, good. She didn't answer out loud when Kiwi reversed the question, already lost in her own thought. A small, slow nod was all Akira replied with as she stared off into space. The RAVEN Captain was soon snapped out of her trance with a shattering noise. Kiwi mentioned that they should move and inquired Akira's name. She answered, "Howard. Officer Howard," yet did not move, as she continued to gauge the situation. The building shook, rocked by a couple of explosions, and the sound of a small army rushing past them in pursuit of an unknown target.

Akira took a defensive stance, but did not draw her weapon yet. They clearly weren't from the Ark, and it was uncertain what their goals were. At least they were human. Remembering the bard, Akira looked back at Kiwi, and then back forward. She motioned for the bard to get behind her just as the footsoldiers took notice.

"Hey! Stop right there!"

The officer raised one hand forth, signaling nonaggression.

"Don't shoot! I am Officer Akira Howard of Task Force NEURON! ...And I'm a little lost. What's going on here- and... where is here?"

 

[Gamingfan]

Amaterasu
Amaterasu watched silently as the man reached into his backpack. It was full of different smells, and none so unique as the creature he pulled out first. For a brief moment, Amaterasu and Tempura's eyes met, and the goddess tilted her head curiously. But Terrence placed her back before pulling out a bowl, popping off the lid and sliding towards Amaterasu. An offering?
Amaterasu gave the noodles a few languid sniffs. As a god, eating wasn't necessary for her, but Amaterasu was no stranger to food offerings. Instead of eating it, the wolf pulled out a small white pouch from seemingly nowhere before dropping the open end over the bowl. There was a faint gulping noise, and the bowl of noodles was ingested by the Astral Pouch. Her tail whipped back and forth as she trotted around Terrence's legs. Even if she didn't eat the noodles, Amaterasu seemed to have accepted the offering and considered Terrence an ally.
Her ears perked as Amaterasu heard voices echo from below, though it was difficult to make them out from the overall commotion. She slinked across the floor towards what looked like the stairs, which were as run down and broken as everything else.
Amaterasu's ears swiveled as she listened more, before she turned to Terrence and unleashed a short, loud bark that echoed down.

 

[Mokko]

Terrence Boom
In the time it had taken for the dog to accept the noodles, all the commotions had gotten a lot more intense and concerning. So concerning, in fact, that T didn’t even really have time to question the fact that she hadn’t even eaten the noodles! Just… kind of… sucked them into some kind of pouch? Just straight up added them to her inventory or something.

“Tempura, you- uhhh…” he frowned. Before, he’d been able to leave Tempura with Mosu and Blair when it had been time to walk into battle, but now he wasn’t sure if it was such a good idea. Without knowing where they were and what was going on, he felt better about just taking her with him. “…keep a low profile, get cozy,” he suggested, before closing up the bag and slinging it back over his shoulder, the hilt of his katana trembling, before it erupted with a blade of shining orange.

“tEmPuRa WiLl GeT cOzY!!!” a muffled voice replied from the backpack. Terrence looked back over at the dog, nodding when she barked, not that he really understood the intent. She had the right idea heading for the stairs, though, and he wasn’t far behind her, ready to confront the voices below.

Best case scenario, they weren’t hostile… but the crashing and explosive noises… didn’t give him much hope.

 

[ArmedBlue]

Wrecked Building
​

The boy's look of concern shifted to one of confusion as he saw not only the red boy's eagerness to battle, but the flames burning in his hand without any damage to himself.

"Wait, you tellin' me you guys are Adepts? How'd ya even get way out here? And you don't know who Sumeragi––"

He was interrupted by the footsteps from below growing closer, now approaching through the same stairwell he had a moment ago. The boy quickly moved behind the two elementals, pointing at where his persecutors would come from.

"Listen, I'm Kyota. Sumeragi's a buncha bad guys, so if you got these powers... attack them and not me!"

With those words, six of the aforementioned "bad guys" emerged from the stairs, their guns immediately pointed towards the three. The three closest ones wore blue and blaster rifles, while two of the ones in the back wore green and held shields. The last of the soldiers was yellow with a green visor, a missile weapon of sorts slung over their shoulder. The Gunners at the front were ready to fire, though after a moment of looking at Blaze and Thorn, their stance eased up ever so slightly.

"Adepts in this sector...?" one of the soldiers muttered. "Kids, hand over that Mino and return to the district at once! Don't make us use force!"

Meanwhile, the yellow soldier and the two Grenadiers beside him turned towards the staircase, having heard a sudden bark and some approaching footsteps. They stood with their weapons at the ready, with the soldier in yellow calling out;

"Whoever is there, come down with your hands up and identify yourself! This is Sumeragi Special Forces!"​

Sapporo Station
​

With Frisk taking the initiative and Tracy and Miracle in tow, the three began to ascend through the staircase in search of answers and people to help. The lights continued to flicker as they headed up – and by the time they reached the mezzanine of the station, the illumination shut out entirely, leaving this level drenched in darkness...

...except for a few beams of light coming from the opposite end of the room. They slowly bobbed up and down – they were flashlights carried by a small group of men, a hulking figure with much heavier footsteps following behind them. The three humans were out of their reach for now, though the light these people shed gave some sense of their surroundings; a few more turnstiles littered the floor before them, while a square platform stood in the middle of the room, the remains of a decorative tree located atop.

In addition, a small silhouette was barely noticeable in the darkness to the three. The figure was fairly small, likely that of a child, though it was difficult to make out any more features from here. In any case, they were in hiding from the people on the other end of the room, using a pile of rubble and some trash cans as cover.

One of the soldiers was in the middle of a conversation, speaking to one of his comrades as he swept the room.

"Seriously, they can find some seriously good hiding places, I tell ya. Minos just get craftier and craftier each time we do one of these. Good thing Sumeragi's building some new tools, ey? Gonna make wiping them out so much easier."​

Abandoned Hospital
​

At Akira's request, the soldiers surprisingly complied, stopping a few feet from the two.

"NEURON...? That name is unfamiliar." the soldier in green explained. "This is sector Xi – the unregulated slums outside of the Sumeragi Institute's district. Only authorized personnel can enter these parts in hunt for Minos and other targets of interest."

A few lights flickered within the man's visor for a moment, before he looked past Akira, locking onto Kiwi.

"As it happens, you seem to have brought one such Mino with you. You must be new around here, correct? We'll cut you some slack if you turn them in. As for you, you'll come with us – it seems you're an Adept yourself, so you may find a position of your own within Sumeragi."

The grip on their weapons remained firm.

"Let's do this the easy way, now."

...

V2's counterattack found purchase – his Heat Core slammed into the shield of one of the frontline soldiers, exploding wildly upon impact, shaking the small room and filling it with smoke. Cracks filled the storage room and the area beyond it – enough damage, and the walls or floor could easily fall apart.

When the smoke cleared somewhat, two of the soldiers remained – one Gunner had managed to slide under a drawer at the last moment, reducing some of the damage from the blast, while one Grenadier had survived the blast thanks to his shield, albeit it was rendered unusable. The Grenadier threw the metal center of the device at V2, before he procured another two grenades to lob at the machine with no regard for his nearby ally, who slipped out of cover with a grunt and opened fire on the war model.​

 

[comic]

FRISK DREEMURR​

The other teen girl trotted up alongside Frisk, keeping up with her brisk pace and bringing with her some kind of ripped up newspaper she’d found on the ground. Frisk accepted it from her, eyes scanning over it for a moment. Then her eyes went over it again as a double-take.

Slowing to a stop, Frisk did a triple-take.

2134...?

And what the heck were ‘adepts?’

She looked at what little she could find of the smaller print, though only bits and pieces were still legible. A few words and short sentences, but something did stand out to her.

‘Evolution.’

Why in the world would that word be in there?

‘Adept Birth Rates...’

Frisk furrowed her brow, mind coming to more than a few conclusions. Maybe the paper was nothing, just an accident, or some joke, or...

...

“Let’s figure out what all this commotion is first,” Frisk decided. Maybe someone along the way would have some answers about all of this.

Yet as they reached the next part of the station, darkness greeted them. Frisk had been wondering why those stairs seemed so long, and why no light came from above. She’d anticipated stepping out onto a street, like the subways she’d seen. This place wasn’t UCA, at least... not public UCA.

“Wait,” Frisk whispered, though it might have been unnecessary as she moved to the wall. Bobbing lights came from the sides of the large and dark room. Flashlights. Friend or foe...?

A voice could be made out, talking about Minos... Sumeragi... and wiping something out. Sumeragi, that was on the paper the other teen had been showing her. They’d have answers. Clearly, they were looking for something. Would it be safe to step out and speak to them?

Hm... maybe they would recognize her? Most people did, considering news agencies had a love-hate relationship with her these days. She was practically a celebrity, and she hated it. Still, it could come in handy here.

“Wait here for a second,” Frisk whispered to her temporary companions. “I’ll talk to them, and if they aren’t friends... Well, I can take care of myself, so don’t worry about me, alright?”

Without waiting for a response, Frisk moved forward, holding her hands up as she did so to appear non-threatening. “Hey!” She got the attention of the men. “I need help!”

Moment of truth...​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Boboiboy - Blaze & Thorn


Sumeragi an evil organization? Seemed legit. The two had faced their fair share of those, seems as if whatever planet they landed on was being terrorized by Sumeragi, which would explain the fire they saw when descending.

"First of all, his name is Kyota, not Mino." Thorn corrected, finger in the air. "Second, like, what he do that made you not like him that badly?"

"And really, guns to capture a little kid?" Blaze couldn't help but laugh at the notion. "Didnt think you could handle him without 'em huh? Ha!"

If they weren't an evil organization, they they'd have a decent enough answer to the Kyota question, if they didn't. Well, looks like the found themselves in another big mess to clean up.

 

[PaprusTeuton]

V2

The war model took a hit from the shield, and then dodged out of the way of the grena- wait, no, it's doing the opposite. V2 dashed into the grenades, timing it so that they would be behind them when they exploded. They exploded, launching V2 forward, the sound of which covered up the sound of the machine revving up the Excalibur arm, which they slashed at the Grenadier with as they flew forward!

 

[Fraseandchico]

The Bard

​

More people were arriving, wearing strange suits and wielding some kinds of firearms. They looked threatening, but not related to what was above, and at least they asked questions first! That was a start.

Officer Howard gave the Bard a look, motioning for them to stay behind her. Fair enough, they decided, stepping back and letting them talk. Everyone was using words fairly unfamiliar to the Bard, causing a small frown, but they looked intrigued nonetheless. Suddenly, it was made very clear that the Bard wasn't exactly welcome here.

But what was a Minos, or Mino...? Still, a clear grip tightened on the strange looking guns, so whatever was the situation with these Minos didn't leave them well-liked.

"Now, hey! We can talk this out, can't we...?" They spoke up, stepping out to the side ever so slightly. "I'm not sure what any 'minos' did to you, but I'm just looking for someone. What is a Minos, anyway - Maybe there's a misunderstanding~?" Behind their words, a slight melody to carry it forward so that it could be heard over the noise upstairs. ...Were they singing to get their point across?

 

[ArmedBlue]

Wrecked Building
​

"Capture? You should know that Minos are to be hunted down and executed under orders from Sumeragi! Didn't your parents teach you anything?" The soldier up front scoffed, his words harsh and filled with a certain disdain. "Unless... ah, you must be among those not from our world."

"They're not gonna listen, bro...!" Kyota warned.

"Men, capture the Adepts for and kill that Mino!"

With the man's words, he and the two Gunners beside him opened fire, unleashing a series of green plasma bolts – focusing most of their attacks on Blaze and Thorn, though aiming a few shots at Kyota behind them. At the same time, one of the green soldiers in the back turned towards the trio, lobbing a grenade overhead that would land beside Thorn, exploding after a few seconds.​

Sapporo Station
​

At Frisk's appearance, the men before her focused their lights onto the girl, and the closed distance allowed her to see their attire more clearly. Three soldiers in blue armor wielding blaster rifles with flashlight attachments on their sides. The larger figure behind them also stepped closer, revealing itself to be a large machine with a gatling gun for an arm and a shield in its other hand, a single crimson light shining from the "head".

"You..." one of them called, and a faint light could be seen flickering briefly beneath his yellow visor. When it faded, he gave a brief signal to his companions, after which the stance of the group seemed to ease up somewhat. "An Adept outside the district? How and why are you out here? Only designated Sumeragi forces should be roaming these parts, young lady!"

They seemed relatively non-hostile towards her, albeit the question of who Sumeragi was and who these Minos they were hunting still remained – as did the small figure hiding out of the corner of her eye, trying to stay as still as possible.​

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Boboiboy - Blaze & Thorn


The situation quickly soured as the soldiers turned to violence, which is a language that Blaze spoke fluently. As they raised their weapons, Blaze blasted off with a burst of fire from his palms to the other side of the room, managing to clear the line of barrels - unlike Thorn.

When plasma bolts began to fly, Thorn was concerned over Kyota, throwing a vine out from his wrist which gripped him by the ankle. Tugging, he would drag him to and across the ground and away from fire and Thorn would drop to the ground, a bolt whizzing across their shoulder.

When a grenade spiraled through the air, Thorn had a brilliant idea. With his free hand, he fired off a second vine which coiled around it, before he lugged it back to where it came from, landing right in the center of the soldiers, half a second away from exploding!

 

[Psymallard]

Akira Howard
Hunting Minos... and this civilian was one of them? This smelled fishy. Akira looked back at the bard. There wasn't a hint of guilt nor malice in her demeanor. The RAVEN operative closed her eyes and took a deep breath, her brow furrowing as she stood her ground. Serve and protect.

"I'm not letting her out of my sight. Not until someone tells me what the hell is going on!"

Akira then reached behind her back, and pulled out a device. It was rectangular, with a handle on one side and a glowing red core. It didn't look like a weapon, and it transfigured itself into a more triangular shape as she slapped it onto her left cuff. The Legatus whirred to life.

[ID CODE CONFIRMED. STARTING UP.]

Akira made no further move, staring at the group of soldiers. She wasn't going to initiate a fight, but she was damn sure ready for one.

 

[Gamingfan]

Amaterasu
The sun goddess trotted down the stairs, stopping to look back at Terrence every now and then. The sounds were getting louder, and she heard someone call up to them as the "Sumeragi Special Forces".

When she finally reached the lower floors, Amaterasu turned a corner and came face to face with three humans, their weapons poised to attack. The sun goddess showed no reaction, selling the idea that she was just some dog before chaos suddenly erupted. Other Sumeragi were locked in combat with what looked like three human boys, two of which were wielding elemental abilities. She saw one of them throw a grenade, only for it to be tossed back.
Amaterasu barked warningly. That was dangerous!
The sun goddess acted quickly leaping over the Sumeragi and firing a tundra bead to intercept the grenade midair, freezing it solid and sending it where it would cause less harm
Regardless of intentions, and origins, Amaterasu had no intention of letting her children die.

 

[comic]

FRISK DREEMURR​

A few pieces of the puzzle were starting to fit in place - or, close to it, maybe.

The men called her an ‘adept.’

2134
Sumeragi Institute Reports Record-High Profits
Adept Birth Rates Continue to Rise
‘Evolution’
“Seriously, they can find some seriously good hiding places, I tell ya. Minos just get craftier and craftier each time we do one of these. Good thing Sumeragi's building some new tools, ey? Gonna make wiping them out so much easier.”

She still wasn’t really sure, but Frisk could draw conclusions. If she’d been detected as an ‘adept,’ that meant they were isolating her SOUL signature, right? If this really was some kind of distant future, then SOUL-bearers had made a comeback... and those without were... being killed? A genocide?? That’s what a Minos must be...

There was no telling if Tracy and Miracle had SOULs, not yet, and there was a small figure close by, huddled in the room. Likely what these men were hunting...

Frisk swallowed and cleared her throat. “Uh, yeah, I... I tried to... explore, and I got lost, I need help finding my way back...”

Oh man, this was totally outside of what she normally did, but maybe she could pull these strange men and their machine away from the others and the ‘Minos.’ Maybe she could learn a lot more about her situation if these guys literally brought her to their own territory.

“Could... could you help me?”​

 

[Mokko]

Terrence Boom
Terrence had developed an idea of what was happening down below, long before he turned the corner on the stairs and it actually came into ‘sight’- the multiple presences down below, the many guns, the fighting…

It sure was lucky that the dog had managed to freeze and stop that grenade from going off, otherwise, somebody would’ve surely been killed…

…

…the dog had done what now??

Shaking his head, Terrence could feel his katana further sparking to life, the magic blade beginning to flicker with excess magic, orange wisps flowing off of its length. He didn’t know what was going on, but if he were to trust his gut, he’d have to say that the horde of people opening gunfire on a group of what seemed to be children… were probably not the good guys.

Wordlessly, he made a series of slashes with his katana through the air, and a series of magical hands sparked forth from the blade, howling missiles of pure magic that rippled with a sunset-like glow. The majority were close-fisted, but some beared an open palm, and they began to scatter. Terrence had no intention of trying to kill anyone in the room, but rather, he wanted to disable and break those weapons, at the very least knock them out of the people’s hands. Normally, in situations like this, he preferred to talk- isolate a motivation, inquire about the enemy, help them find a better way forward... that wasn’t really a top priority at the moment, given that he didn’t want the dog, the kids, or Tempura to get shot by those strange guns.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Boboiboy - Blaze & Thorn


When an explosion was expected, instead came a howling reception. A freezing result that had the grenade clank harmlessly to the ground caught the attention of the plant themed teen, who darted his head in the direction. Just then, another sound came out, gun being slashed at in an attempt to break them all apart. There were friendlies here!

"Oh! Help!" He beamed.

Regardless of the weapons likely being disarmed and the enemy being boxed in, Blaze wasn't cooling off. Instead, he kicked off of the walls clad in a veil of flames as he went in for a rider kick to domino into all he soldiers he could in a straight line to bash them into the wall and ignite!

"I ain't being denied my win baby!!"

 

[Captain Cardboard]

Tracy Rinehart

The student nodded at Frisk's orders, staying in the shadows and watching as Frisk moved ahead. There were others here! Tracy couldn't help but feeling relief. Her first instinct had been to go out and try to get their attention, but this whole situation had been so strange she just decided to do what this other teen told her to do. And it probably was a good thing, too. Those men were heavily armed, with some military grade body armor. And was that... a giant robot?! Just what were these Minos that they were hunting?!

Danger... danger! Enemies!

Okay, that was definitely a voice this time, coming from behind her! That wasn't Mr. Miracle! Tracy slowly looked behind her, and once more was faced with another surprise. A silvery apparition, floating in the air behind her. It was blurry, out of focus, but humanoid.
"Wha... wha... what are you?" Tracy whispered. The apparition suddenly looked down at Tracy, its eyes widened.
"You can see me?" The spirit whispered back.
"Mr. Miracle?!" Tracy whispered to the man, looking around the spirit. The spirit looked over at the hero as well.
"You can see me?!" The spirit whispered. Slowly, its appearance was coming more and more into focus. It was the form of a man, one dressed in silver armor of a knight. He had long, blonde hair, and was armed with a thin sword. Tracy recognized them.

"Nobleman of Crossout?" Tracy asked. The knight's face lit up in a joyful smile, and he nodded quickly.
"Yes! Tis I! Lady Tracy, I never thought this day would come that you can see me!" The knight whispered happily. "Alas, our celebrations will have to wait! Those men in the tunnel ahead are bad news, you must be ready to fight!"

 

[DevVoid]

Terry Hagen
Well yes, duh. It WAS a Subway, that much he could tell already - it just looked so.. strange, in comparison to what he knew of stations like this one was supposed to be. It did certainly have a kind of feel to it, that Hagen had to admit to himself. Still, the man just silently followed along the two girls, taking his sweet time to adjust to his new surroundings. Strangely enough, that light left him feeling.. oddly invigorated? It's like.. it was a strange feeling. He wasn't the same kind of tired as he was in his world, now it was just.. a daze, really. It certainly didn't help that taking the stairs up made the group run into.. a really odd-looking bunch of.. what? Soldiers? Mercenaries? Crazed Gunmen? Well they certainly weren't gunning them down, so scratch that last part.

And there he was again, Terry's head turning as he glanced inbetween the silvery ghost of a man the disc-carrying girl was talking to, and the other who was trying to coax out information from the armed gang. It was.. a new type of experience, that was one to say. But.. oh man, wait.. was that a ROBOT?! Oh, goodie. It's as if this day couldn't get any worse.. Hagen had only hoped that this was one was not like the last machine he fought, which almost blew up half of New York with a nuclear blast. That guy.. bionicle or whatever its name was.. now THAT was a handful.

Stuck between a metaphorical rock and a hard place, the magician had placed a finger upon his chin in contemplation. What was he to do? Try to help one with those armed forces, or the other investigate whatever that knight dude found? Well.. there WAS also a third option. His gut feeling already told him that this was probably going to end badly soon, and that 'end' being a clash. But there was one third party he needed to take care of first.

Utilizing the cover of darkness, the master of miracles scooched into nearby shadows and seemed to vanish into thin air the moment he was left out of sight. With a twirl of his form, Terry re-appeared by the small silhouette, well-adapted to the shadows by his already-dark choice of fashion. He'd already spotted her during his sightseeing - a hero like him could never just gloss over subtle movements in the dark, after all. What'd be the point of vigilantism if one cannot be vigilant in the first place? Hagen had then crouched in a subtle way besides the trash this small stranger used as cover, sitting to appear casual without looking at her to give her away. With the same tone he took up when assuring victims as Mr. Miracle, a quiet whisper escaped his lips.

"Please keep calm. I can help you, but I will need your help first, okay? Can you tell me everything you know about where we are, and what's going on?"

 

[ArmedBlue]

Wrecked Building
​

Chaos was breaking out now – Blaze soared overhead while Thorn remained on the same side, moving Kyota to relative safety, before he lugged the grenade back at the soldiers. It was suddenly intercepted by a blast of ice just before it could burst, falling to the ground nearby, now useless. The three soldiers toward the back stared at the wolf in confusion for a moment, when a burst of orange energy swept across the squad.

Magical fists both open and closed slammed into each person, the two in green activating pink energy shields to protect themselves, while the blue Gunners in front took the brunt of the attack, weapons either breaking in half or being knocked out of their grip. The yellow soldier, however, managed to keep both his stance and weapon, even as the fists left dents along his armor.

"Seize him as well!" the soldier from before commanded, glaring at Terrence. "Do not––gah!"

He was suddenly interrupted by a fiery kick, Blaze's follow-up attack slamming into all three disarmed Gunners. His speed and power carried them all towards a nearby wall, igniting a small but flashy explosion upon impact, putting them out of commission.

The soldier in yellow, meanwhile, aimed his larger weapon towards Terrence, green panels at the front of the launcher sliding open – before a singular missile shot out, thrusters on its back flaring to life as to propel it in the blindfolded boy's direction. Should he move to evade it, he'd find the projectile to adjust its trajectory rather quickly, following his movements closely.​

Sapporo Station
​

The soldiers stood there for a moment, the expressions behind their visors difficult to discern. Finally, the supposed leader of the squad let out a sigh, and he and the others moved aside for Frisk to pass.

"Geez, not how I expected my day to go..." he groaned. "What were you thinking heading out this far, not to mention taking the subway tunnel? Some of our supply trains still take these old routes, you could've been run over!"

Sumeragi's soldiers illuminated another staircase back from where they came with their flashlights, though some natural light seemed to be coming from beyond the top of the stairs. The exit – or rather, entrance – to the station must have been just past there.

"Come quick, this is still a combat zone. Better hope you don't get into too much trouble once we're there."

Meanwhile, the little one in the shadows stumbled backward slightly at Miracle's sudden appearance. Thanks to Frisk's actions, though, neither of them were spotted. It took a moment for this person to respond, and when it came, the voice was one of a nervous yet slightly taciturn little girl.

"...I got split up from my friends on our way home, so I hid here. These are the slums where us Minos live," she whispered. "Once in a while, Sumeragi comes through to kill any survivors they find. Just 'cause we're not Adepts like them..."

Although her appearance was hidden in the darkness, Miracle could see the girl's head turn to look up at him. She was shaking a little.

"You're not an Adept, are you?"​

Abandoned Hospital
​

"...That's too bad. Hard way it is, then!"

With Akira refusing to stand down, the green soldier sprung into action again, leading with a shield bash aimed at the officer. The soldiers behind him rushed closer, taking aim before they all opened fire, bolts of plasma flying through the air. While they were predominantly aimed at Akira, a few of the projectiles drifted closer to Kiwi, who was clearly the biggest target for these members of Sumeragi.

"We'll teach you not to side with an inferior species!"

...

Excalibur swiftly dug into the body of the soldier, violently ripping it into pieces, showering V2 in blood. The soldier behind him, meanwhile, was caught in the blast of the two grenades that had been tossed at the machine, ceasing to move. The blast also destroyed a section of the storage room floor, revealing a drop off into the level below. Things had just died down here, but a couple floors down, the sounds of a new battle began to ring out.

If any more blood was what he wanted, it'd be the most obvious place to go to.​

 

[Psymallard]

Akira
"!!!"

Out of everything, Akira hadn't quite expected a shield bash. She raised her arm, the attack impacting the armor covering her forearm. The force behind it knocked her off her feet, sliding backwards. Still reeling, she looked back over to the soldiers, and noticed that they were getting into a firing formation!

The officer's first instinct was to go towards her bike and use it as cover- then she remembered that she was responsible for another person. Without a second thought, Akira got to her feet and rushed in front of the bard. She stared down the barrels of the plasma rifles and raised her left arm, activating the Legatus.

With a roar, an alien beast with red, rocklike skin clad in obsidian armor tore out of the device and came to a halt, floating in the air. It was bound to the Legatus by a leash, which took the form of an ethereal, red chain. As the rifles began firing, two long, thick blades materialized from the Legion's forearms- blades that it then used to block the incoming fire.

From behind her Legion, Akira conjured her X-Baton in its Blaster configuration and returned fire. The rapid-fire blasts from her weapon were nonlethal, and would be similar to, if not slightly less potent than rubber bullets. At the same time, Akira began to move, using her free hand to usher the civilian into one of the hospital rooms.

 

[comic]

FRISK DREEMURR​

“Yes, sir, sorry... I- it won’t happen again...” Frisk tried to appear small. This was going... honestly much better than she’d expected. Maybe she should do this more often. Well... maybe not, back where things were still familiar, seemingly in the distant past, everyone and their mother knew who she was. That probably put a damper on infiltration possibilities.

As Frisk meekly moved past the men, and they followed her from behind, she dared not cast a glance over her shoulder to see if Tracy and Miracle were still out of sight. Hopefully they’d be okay on their own... the soldiers did mention this was a warzone.

Admittedly, Frisk was starting to feel a little torn about her little plan now. She had no idea if the people she’d just met could defend themselves, or if they’d be targeted by these soldiers and their organization. There was just so many variables filled with uncertainty...

...

No, she could do better by getting on the inside and finding the root to all of this. If this really was the future, maybe she could undo and return to her time.

Frisk tried to hurry to prevent any chances the soldiers might have in hearing or catching sight of Tracy, Miracle, or the hiding figure. She even purposefully stumbled a few times to sell her “woe is me” act and keep the men focused on her well-being.​

 

[Gamingfan]

Amaterasu
The grenade fell to the ground, inert. The Sumeragi soldiers shared silent looks towards Ammy, who seemed to simply be panting obliviously.
Then Terrence leapt into action, carefully taking down the soldiers by disarming them, prompting an approving "woof!" from the sun goddess.
The wolf turned to see a yellow soldier take aim at Terrence and crouched into a battle stance. She gave warning bark as they aimed his launcher, but it was unheeded. The soldier fired away, and Amaterasu charged forward. Just as the missile would sail over Amaterasu, a floating streak of ink appeared in front of the projectile. In the next instant, Amaterasu's Power Slash would strike the missile, sending it back towards the soldier, somehow without detonating it!
Amaterasu would tackle the man, mainly to push him under the missile. Even the rough landing would be softened by the grass that suddenly grew underfoot.
But his firearm did not receive a similar mercy. Amaterasu would swap her Solar Flare for the Trinity Mirror, and as she used her strength to prevent the man from firing again, the reflector would slam against the missile launcher to render it unusable!

 

[Mokko]

Terrence Boom
With the gun-wielding enemies effectively taken out of commission by the rowdy and ablaze boy, and the dog protecting him from the incoming missile and the one who fired it (Terrence was beginning to think that this wasn’t actually an ordinary dog), he was free to turn his attention toward the two shielded ones.

He was suspicious. What sense did it make to have defensive units like that in the back? He had to assume they were more than just the shields they were using, so he didn’t let his guard down, stepping deeper into the room, hoping to deal with the last two of these goons as quickly as possible.

“You’re outnumbered,” he pointed out, holding the hilt of his katana up, the flaring orange blade obscuring his mouth as he spoke to them, the vague, flickering forms of more orange hands reaching out from within the core of the weapon, wanting to break free- threatening to emerge to beat down this pair, depending on how this negotiation went. “Do away with the shields, tell me where we are and what’s going on, and stop attacking groups of children- and you just might not have to get hurt like your friends did,” he offered- not an unreasonable handful of requests, surely. He was hoping to harvest some information from these people, if possible, while still making sure none of the children… or the unfathomably powerful dog… or Tempura, could get hurt. Not that they weren’t all clearly capable of fending for themselves to some extent.

One thing he could tell, was that he wasn’t facing off against the Messiah… so what WAS he up against?

 

[PaprusTeuton]

V2

Wrenching the shield from their body, the War Model listened to the sounds of battle coming from several floors below. Reasoning that there would be plenty of blood below, V2 spent some time collecting and processing the blood around it, before jumping above the hole and slamming down. The robot determined that the speed of it's slam would be enough to punch through several of the damaged floors and reach the battle, where it could kill any Sumeragi it saw.

 

[Shen: King of Digimon]

Boboiboy - Blaze & Thorn


"Children??" Blaze hissed at Terrance, pointing to himself with a thumb. "I'm a whole ass man! Who are you anyway??"

Blaze stared daggers at him, his fist igniting once more, his teeth gritting as he prepared for another possible altercation. In the meantime while Blaze interrupted an interrogation, Thorn and wandered up to Amaterasu, kneeling down to them as they had protected the group.

"Hey doggie, you here to help us?" He asked. "Thanks~!"

He reached a hand out to pet the pupper on the head, despite the circumstances unfolding around them.

 

[ArmedBlue]

Wrecked Building
​

Amaterasu's tactics were once again successful, the wolf tackling the soldier to the ground while the missile sailed overhead, detonating against the opposite wall, its homing properties seemingly disabled. Bits of debris fell to the ground from the explosion.

"What kind of dog of dog––" the man grunted, struggling against his savior – before his missile launcher was suddenly knocked out of his hands, bent out of shape. At the sight of this, one of the green soldiers moved to keep Amaterasu and Terrence away with his shield, while the other took out a grenade, preparing to throw it towards Terrence. At the boy's words, however, he held off on it.

"So you don't know, huh... This trashy city is what the Minos call their home – what's left of 'em, anyway," the grenade-holding man replied. "As members of Sumeragi, we're under direct orders to hunt down and kill any survivors we find. Being superior, it's natural that Adepts like us should do away with them."

Despite the self-proclaimed superiority, nothing about the soldier's looks was noticeably different from a regular human. He let out a scoff.

"If you want this squad to retreat, so be it, but you'll be making a mistake by siding with Minos. More of our forces will just come back stronger, and you'll be crushed just like any who've tried to oppose us before. Join us, and you'll be spared of that fate."​

Sapporo Station Entrance
​

"Yeah, yeah. Kids these days..."

The soldiers (and robot) followed close behind Frisk, leading up the stairs and finally outside the station, where a cloudy grey sky met their eyes, and the sharp smell of a flame burning nearby lingered in the air.

Compared to what Frisk may have been expecting well over a hundred years into the future, the city that she had emerged into was, put simply, in ruins. It was a landscape of desolate buildings, homes, and shops, some fallen to decay – while others were practically reduced to rubble, destroyed by attacks that could easily have been either very old or very recent.

Also very notable was the sight of corpses littering the streets. About a dozen were in sight just in this area alone, consisting of people of various ages and appearances. Adults, young and elderly – some accompanied by teenagers or even children. The wounds they'd succumbed to were also varied – holes punched through multiple by weapons likely similar to those of the soldiers, others charred by flame, and a few missing a limb due to some sort of blade.

As the grim sight set in, the soldier from before moved in front of Frisk, leading the way. From here, they could see a massive structure not too far in the distance: an off-white wall that stood tall and wide, evidently serving to keep any intruders out. A single building towered above even said wall, an unfamiliar emblem plastered on it – though it was the same one that the soldier had on the back of his uniform.

"Once we get to the wall, we'll get you properly identified and taken home afterward," the man spoke. "What was your name again? Any family or guardian to contact?"​

Abandoned Hospital
​

"What in the world is that thing?!"

At the sight of the Legion, most of the Gunners turned their focus to it, though it showed no clear signs of damage. Only one of them attempted to slip some shots past it and towards Akira, though her returning fire slugged into his armor, forcing him back somewhat. Similarly, two of the Gunners nearby him were also struck by the officer's blaster, knocked onto one knee.

"An impressive Septima!" the green soldier, evidently the leader of the bunch, remarked. He took cover behind his shield, before he rolled the grenade in his hand low to the ground, aiming to slip it under the Legion and in range of Akira, where it would then explode brightly. "Something like that could easily grant you a high position in our ranks!"

Just after the man's words, there was a loud crash nearby him – pieces of glass and rubble flew out from an open hospital room nearby him, the culprit a familiar robot that he and his men had been chasing before.

"You blasted machine!" he called, instinctively turning toward V2. Even as one of Akira's shots slugged into his side, he lobbed another grenade in the second V model's direction.​

 

[Fraseandchico]

The Bard

Turns out, the soldiers hadn't been very willing to talk. Officer Howard had made her position clear, and so had those attackers, prompting a hail of...very strange fire.

"We'll teach you not to side with an inferior species!"
Those words made Kiwi wince a little, mildly confused. Thankfully, Officer Howard blocked the attack going her way and summoned some sort of massive beast out of her device, blocking the plasma with blades. When the Legatus began to move and ushered Kiwi towards a room, it seemed right to follow, so they did. Upon ducking into the hospital room, they let out a small sigh of relief once out of the way.
"Phew...Thank you, Officer Howard!" With a smile returning to face, they thanked their protector. "I hope everyone there isn't too hurt-"

They saw the projectile item. The Bard...didn't recognize it, but something felt bad about it. And Akira had protected her, it was right and kind to at least try and help. With a deep breath of air, the Bard raised her voice with a hum, a note of music beckoned by wind that shoved the Grenade away, far behind Akira and the Legion. But before they could act further or speak, there was a loud crash, and words of a "Blasted Machine", stunning the Bard in that instant from the noise.