Teppei glanced at Genji, taking a moment to think on his question. With the secret contact the previous owner of this 'show' made with them, the possibility of there being a way to save everyone who had died or suffered because of it was possible. But, they'd been asked to keep it secret for a reason, and even then the young goblin has his doubt about it. The man had sounded anything but sure he could do it. He shook his head slightly. "If there is, I don't know about it. But it won't stop me from looking still. And no. The only ones we've been on was that one, and the last one. Who knows what other sick ideas they have for next." The stupid dating thing definitely didn't count. It was so dumb.
Movement from beside him caught Roman's attention, and he raised an eyebrow slightly as he watched Neo hopped down and begin to walk off. That wasn't unusual in itself, since it wasn't uncommon for her to come and go as she pleased, but it was the way she was moving that did it. His partner was very confused and a little weirded out.
He followed after her, curious to see what prompted the reaction. Stepping up beside the short woman, he stopped and looked down. The criminal was silent for a moment, taking the time to draw on his cigar as he just stared. Finally, he pointed at Flowey as he talked to his partner. "That flower has a face. And to think I was sure this place couldn't get any weirder. How the hell is a plant supposed to do, well, anything?"
She took a drink in memory of all the ones that Flowey couldn't have. Of course, he did just admit to murdering quite a few people for no good reason...but hey, he was honest about that upfront. Good for him!
Four, Hmph, Lounge
Meanwhile, the sole Intoner in the Nemesis House retreated to the lounge, fed up with the sheer volume of bloodlust coming from her, ugh, "teammates". Fates really were cruel mistresses.
For now, she wanted nothing else than to have a moment of peace and quiet with a good book at her side. Seated on one of the couches, she opened the tome and tuned out the surroundings.
Ironically, the book in question was William Powell's The Anarchist Cookbook.
Auriel - Dojo -> Lounge
After continuing to watch the fight in the dojo for quite some time Auriel found her attention drawn elsewhere at the announcement of a newcomer. He was also apparently... a flower? An evil flower. Perhaps it was a Twinkleroot. If such were the case, then it boded poorly for her allies - the villains had received a truly powerful ally dedicated to nothing but the cruelty of evil and chaos of bloodshed. Most of the humans of Sanctuary could live a dozen lifetimes and never encounter such an evil, and if that were true of her allies, then they would be unprepared to face the vile arcane sorceries of his kind."Very well," she said to Usalia as she started to leave. "I think you may find yourself doing that sooner rather than later. I have only just arrived and not yet seen much of this area. I leave you to that."
Heading out, she passed into a great room of some kind, the same one she had gone through earlier when heading to the practice room. Different from before, though, was the girl with a displeased expression reading from a tome while seated on a wide, cushioned and upholstered seat. She knew from the introductions given by the man-cat that the girl was of the opposing faction, and yet she seemed to be cut from a completely different cloth when compared to the rest of her allies. Mostly due to not seeming instantly violent and mad. That was probably it. Still, enemy or not, the girl seemed to be trying to escape into her book, and they had no reason to come to blows at the moment. If their summoners were to force them to do so later, so be it. Extending an olive branch was no sin, after all.
Auriel, draped in her aura of hope, calmly floated towards Four and stopped near the woman. "What ails you, mortal?" she asked plainly.
Menardi - Cards against augmented humanity
Menardi grunted in pain as she had to give up her left arm. The pain was excruciating, but she pushed the sensation of breaking bones and torn cartilage to the back of the brain, working hard to keep her focus on the fight. Thankfully she still had her right arm, which was the one holding all the cards. With a hurried flourish, Menardi threw every card she had left at Raiden, trying to purchase a breakaway and a moment's reprieve.
The Flame Card went straight for Raiden's face, exploding in a small fireball. At this distance, Menardi had to weather it as well, but her Mars resistance was strong enough that such a thing didn't matter. Hopefully the bright hot flash would hurt his thermal vision as well. The Thunder Card, she launched at his torso, hoping that it'd shock his system once more. Of course, this was not nearly as strong as some of the shocks he'd received earlier, but every fraction of a second helped. Finally, deceptively, she aimed the Frost Card at Raiden's feet. Surprisingly, the Frost Card was the strongest in the Pierrot's deck; she hoped that it would be enough to keep him immobile for at least a couple of seconds.
If successful, Menardi would break away to the side and disengage, looking for a chance to capitalize on impaired situation. If the cards did not work, however, Menardi had only one chance left; to try to counter what would otherwise be the killing blow.
Join us in our quest to play all RPG video games! Moving on to disc 2 of Grandia!Destroymen, on Live Shows, Bar
"I think you're underestimating the power of public opinion." The politeman smiled slightly at Kage, sipping his drink. "Back in Ancient Rome, a gladiator could win his freedom if he was good enough. While I don't think we can win it ourselves, it would be folly to just get rid of us. There's plenty of time to get the public to appeal to our plight here."
"Just... sit back and imagine for a moment. Let's say you're famous. You score top positions in popularity polls. People buy your merchandise, energy drinks adorned with your face's liking, dress like you, walk like you, write fanfiction about you." Slowly, he finished his pina colada, then put the glass back on the bar and rolled his shoulders. "The producers won't just get rid of you. That would be stupid. Can you imagine the public outrage?"
"To our dear handlers, the ratings are king. If there are no ratings, there's no money. If there's no money, well, that presents a problem. Imagine if they take this show off the schedule, wasting so much spent money and effort into it. It would be a powerful blow to them." The Politeman smiled knowingly. "For now they need us alive, which is why I could now shoot you and you would be back on your feet good as new a moment later. That kind of technology you don't just turn off with an off switch. That gives us time to plan our great escape. Sooner or later there will be an opening, and we will use it like the resourceful folks we are."
Meanwhile the Rudeman contemplated Tira's explanation for the group of Murder Buddies. "Yeah, that makes sense. That brat in green" He gestured towards where Four was a moment ago before she stormed off. "would probably stab you or me in the back if you did something to offend her fucking sensibilities. You know what, fine, fuck it. I'm game." He smirked. "Sign me up on that pain express. And you, shit-for-brains thistle, need to work on your insults." He threw that last one bit to Flowey.
Some dandy in a bowler hat came over and rather openly expressed his distaste for the thistle. "Good question, bub. Whatcha can do other than serve as a projectile?" The cyborg looked down at the evil flower.
Four, Hello, Lounge
Someone approached her. Four hadn't seen this woman - she had a feminine voice, at least - but despite a fairly ominous faceless appearance, she seemed to be genuinely worried about her state of being.
She looked down at her book - which turned out to be a poor read in the end - and put it down. "Forgive me, good stranger. I am simply... frustrated with my plight." She sighed in response, looking up at Auriel. "Between my psychopathic, bloodthirsty "allies" and your team's majority showing me hostility" Her eyes pointedly wandered to where Teppei was. "Majority" was a good word; after all there was Chun-Li and now this woman. "I simply find myself torn in this situation."
"Please, have a seat." Four gestured towards the couch. "My name is Four. It's... it's nice to meet you, I hope."
Auriel - Lounge
Faceless void gazing at the couch, after a few moments Auriel dismissed her wings, setting her feet onto the floor of the lounge."Hope indeed," she said humorously. "I am Auriel, Archangel of Hope." With that, she seated herself on the couch. Not a completely unfamiliar concept, as it seemed to just be a bench-sized chair with cushioning, but not something she had seen in particular.
"For as long as there have been more than two beings in all of creation, there has been conflict," she said. "Frustration is only natural in your situation. Make no mistake, there must be some reason for you to have been selected to represent the forces of evil along with your allies. Likewise, I would not believe in the true infallibility of my own. Conflict, frustration... it is truly natural, but we can strive to go beyond our natures, can we not? Just as there is no reason to accept your fate, there is no reason we can strive for an end to the conflict we are in without succumbing to bloodthirst and hostility. Evil will triumph over those who give into despair, but despair cannot defeat the power of hope."
edited 3rd Sep '17 11:04:27 AM by nman
Flowey - The Loundge "Oh, I assure you, lady, nature has NOTHING to do with me." He really wanted to insult that drunkard while he was at it. What business do she have pitying him when she indulged in making a fool of herself? Still, it would not do to drive away potential pawns amongst the hero team. That sort of person is always open to manipulation, after all.
Fortunately, he had at least two people he could insult as he please. "For your information, I'm pretty sure I killed way more people than you two-bits thugs ever did. And I'm almost certain I'll be immensely more useful than IDIOTS who only rely on their eyes to judge things. Seriously, I could have killed you, like, an hundred time by now if I had wanted."
Or, maybe not, she was having fun just sitting around and idly commenting on random people's conversations. Even if they swore a lot more than her, it was still banter. Banter is good. Speaking of a lack of convincing banter, lil' flower was still trying to talk the talk, and Suika wasn't gonna let that last comment slip by so easily.
"So, if you can go and kill them a million times, why don't you?" Suika looked down at Flowey with a suspicious eye. "Nobody can die permanently here, they just come back. If you wanna show that you're as tough as you think you are, I'll count. Kill Mr. Destroyer a hundred times."
Flowey - The Loundge
Well, well, well. Seems that drunken so-called "hero" took his boasts as a challenge. And why not take it? It would pass time, and it would be interesting to fight someone who actually remember being killed. Still, it would not do to just challenge the big lug openly.
"... Because we're supposed to be a team, remember ? I mean, do you tackle your teammates when you play football, or what ? I personaly can't stand looking at double-face here, but..."
While Flowey was talking, numerous magic bullet formed behind the rude Destroyman's back, placed as such that they would be unseen by someone facing him. Upon his last words, the bullets regrouped toward the superhero wannabe's head, intending on finishing him in one shot.
Four, This Lady Is Worth Talking To, Lounge
"All I can think of is the folly of our captors." Four pouted a little childlishly. "They let that goblin animal to be a Hero, but he is more ruthless than the worst brigand. He would not listen to reason; nay, he wouldn't even considering listening."
"Thank you for listening to me. Though we ended up on opposite sides, you are a person to treasure, Lady Auriel." She didn't really know what an archangel was, but the name carried enough splendor to be heard. "You went out of your way to engage me, after all." Four smiled a little.
Destroymen, It's On, Bar
"I'd be careful throwing these kind of boasts and insults around." The Politeman chuckled as Flowey started bragging. "That icecream-colored lady looks like the second most dangerous person by the bar." First must have been Nobunaga, but she was currently out of commission.
"Hey, kiddo, how about you fuck right off?" The Rudeman meanwhile snarled at Suika encouraging the flower to do something really stupid. The flower however was already trying to find a way to sneak attack him. He knew that song and dance all too well himself. Unlike him however (presumably), Destroymen could not attack stealthily without a set-up. "Like he would be dumb enough to pull this kind of shit, right he-DESTROY BEAM!" Turning his head rapidly towards Flowey, a laser beam shot from the device at Rudeman's temple, going straight for the flower.
That left him open to the attack and then left him crumpled on the floor. Here was hoping that a mutual kill could be achieved.
Auriel - Lounge
"You are too kind, we have only just met and I am simply lending you my ear," Auriel replied to Four, with a slight laugh. "Or as close to an ear as I can get." It was nice to see that there was at least one enemy that was personable, rather than possessed by maddening voices or who wielded evil magics. Still, as pleasant as she was, it seemed as though the goblin hero had someone found a way to invoke Four's ire, given what she was saying. She would have to resolve this issue, it seemed."I am sorry for what you have been put through before," she continued. "That was before, though. Now I am here. You seem as though you have more of a story to tell, and now that I have seated myself, I suppose I may as well continue to hear you out."
Flowey - The Lounge
Flowey quickly dodged to the right as soon as his opponent declared his attack, because if you gain anything by fighting monsters and their magic, it's reflex. However, the beam still touched his left leaf, leaving it completely burned off. While it didn't have any real use, that still angered him even further. At least he learned that "Destroyman" can only project his attacks from his body and that he spoke their name like in one of those stupid cartoons. Plus, he suceeded in killing the bastard. He went to back to his falsely cute face.
"... who am I to decline such a friendly request, right ? So, do you want us to come meet him when he respawn, or do you prefer waiting for him here ? I'm fine either way!" Then, the flower's expression changed into a skull-like grimace.
"And don't get the wrong idea, I'm only doing this 'cause it seems fun to do, not to prove anything to anyone. I'm not an idiot: I'm not going to play while we're competing. So, don't even begin to think that you can use me to your advantage, understood ?"
Chun-Li, Dojo
"You're probably right, Soma, but this dojo was the most useful idea I had at the time to wish for," Chun-Li nodded in response to Soma's pessimistic conclusion.
Juri, The Bar
While Suika was distracted convincing Flowey and the two Destroymen to fight, Juri attempted to get Suika in a headlock. Juri knew this violence between villains had to be nipped in the bud quickly.
"Now now, hero... I think you had way too much to drink," Juri laughed maniacally at Suika. "It's about time you sober up."
"You've proven yourself, so you don't have to do what she says anymore," Juri glanced over at Flowey and referred to Destroyman. "But you and those other guys can join me in beating her ass."
Wizard Needs Food BadlyRyuko - Absent for no longer (Lounge -> Dojo)
While everyone else made small talk with each other for the time being, Ryuko was simply more content with channel surfing on the TV, resting up for whatever challenge that may follow next. An action movie here, a talk show there, a televised fight elsewhere and a ever growing feeling of boredom crept up to the scissor blade wielder. After it seemed that she flipped through all of the TV channels she could think of, she sighed and lifted herself up from her position from the couch. She took notice of the Dojo adjacent to the Lounge and walked over to look it over. At first glance, it looked like a genuine training area for the Heroes (and Villains) to use during down times like this.
She let out an impressed whistle walking through the Dojo. "Now if we wanna fight each other, we now have a place to settle it. I guess this'll be useful to shut some people up over here if they get too annoying..." Ryuko muttered taking in the new room.
Your works are one trope short.Tira had been about to reply to the flowers question when others asked what she had intended to, what could he do. And thus, he demonstrated. Tira broke out in a mad chuckle as the Destroyman died.
Ohhhhh, that was funny! Ok, both of you are in then!
Juri then had an interesting idea of her own, one Tira swiftly latched onto.
Oh, good idea! Ok, who wants to play a game? First one to show me what color that Oni thing's blood is wins!
The combination of the flame card and thunder card proved effective, causing him to first stagger back, yelling in pain, and then get stunned by the thunder long enough for the ice to do its work. Enraged, he attempted to yank his legs free, and then just reached down and started smashing the ice with his metal fists. This action would keep him occupied for several seconds, during which he would be open for another, hopefully final attack
edited 3rd Sep '17 8:15:52 PM by Meanken
Four, Lounge
"If you wish to spare your time on me." Four smiled, a little self-depreciatingly. "I am no one special."
It seemed her "teammates" could not control their bloodlust even now, if the sounds of fighting from the kitchen bar were any indication. "We even have a room for sparrings now, and yet they still insist on spilling others' blood in other places..." She sighed, shaking her head. "What would you want to hear, Lady Auriel?"
Destroymen, Lounge
"Well, I suppose that's how things are." Finishing his pina colada, Politeman shuffled off his seat and turned over to Suika. Juri was already having her own ideas and he couldn't help but frown a little. "Now now, why don't we handle this like good sports?" He suggested with a laugh, though it didn't seem like he was planning to stop the purple martial artist's doing. "I was thinking a handshake for starters."
Meanwhile, something quite like "Destroy Cannon" could have been heard from... somewhere not too far from here. Point was, an energy projectile screaming with power flew all the way from this undisclosed location, aimed to take Flowey's head (well, "head") clean off.
The Rudeman followed soon after, and with a running low dropkick of all things, to stamp out the annoying weed.
Soma, Dojo
"Oh no, don't take it the wrong way. I do like that we have one now." Even if from the sounds of it, someone started fighting nearby already. Ryuko meanwhile shows up, though it seems she has the same idealistic idea that Villains would let themselves be invited inside the dojo to begin with.
"Anyway, looks like the fight's coming to a close."
Flowey - The Lounge
The drunken idiot actually counted! Oh yes, this would definitely be a fun way to pass the time. Furthermore, this actually impressed the pig-tailed lady. He bowed, as if he had just finished putting on a show.
"Thank you, thank you, ladies. I'll be there all night. Now then, there's still ninety one death to go !"
But then the leggy miss grabbed the alcoholic and told him to stop. On the other hand, what Tira proposed looked fun too, but he wasn't the kind to just stop something he started.
"Aww, come on, it's just a little, harmless game. But, if you want to kill her, I'm all game! After all, I can always do the rest of the kills later. Now, how should I ..."
He instantly turned around when he heard the shouting. Upon seeing the fireball, he quickly ducked under it. Thanks god this guy was too stupid to have normal, non-name acompanied attacks. Flowey's toughts were promptly interrupted by a boot stomping his face.
If Rudeman were to listen to the foot where the flower was crushed under, he would hear mumblings that would somewhat ressemble "YOU IDIOT". Not even a second after that, numerous thorny vines came out of the ground, surrounding him. They quickly moved to try ensnare him and lift him off the plant. If they were successful, he would then see Flowey, looking damaged, with a completely maniacal smirk on his face.
"On second tought, it seems this IDIOT wants to have his second death happen RIGHT NOW, and I'd be happy to grant his wish."
Auriel - Lounge
"You spoke of your grievances with your allies and my own," Auriel said to Four. She knew full well the sorts of conflicts that allies could get into - Tyrael and Imperius could never quite seem to agree on things throughout all of time, always leaving her with the unfortunate duty of getting the two by figuratively, and literally, cracking the whip. Still, she could handle the Angiris Council, she could handle the squabbles of a few mortals."I have not been here for your previous encounters, but I will be here for future ones, and I will bring order. What troubles have they caused you?"
Four, Ranting, Lounge
"Nearly all of them are murderers, brigands and marauders." Four's face twisted into an ugly grimace for a moment before she shook her head. "There's also the soldier, Kage. He thought it is a good idea to shoot the princess, whom we needed untouched and well."
The Intoner leaned forward, rubbing her temples. "Ah, let me explain. We were supposed to capture the princess and bring her to pirates to win. My intention was to ferry her to safety herself. I do not trust pirates, be they in the air or on water."
"The other team brought her back to safety, but then that... that cutthroat saw fit to shoot her, for no other reason than petty spite. His only saving grace is that he is not unlike the ones at the bar there." Four gestured towards the scene. "They're not animals, they're not monsters. They're filth. They're a stain on the world's boot."
"As for your team, I cannot fault them for opposing us, especially during the competition itself. Thus, it is only the goblin that I am uppity with, for the reasons I've mentioned before."
Destroymen, Oh Nooo, Bar
It was a good thing that Rudeman came prepared. "I'll turn you into rabbit fucking food! DESTROY POUND!" Refusing to back down, the cyborg slammed his fist down into the floor, launching a shockwave in a small radius to hopefully push the vines away as he continued grinding his sole on Flowey's smug face.
The polite counterpart seemed content with staying where he was.
edited 4th Sep '17 1:08:19 PM by FergardStratoavis
Auriel - Lounge
"Even the greatest amongst us can give into wrath and fury if left unchecked," Auriel told Four. Realities may have changed, but it seemed as though people were the same all over. Put two Angels - or humans - in a room together and you'd have them fighting over three opinions."Often, we find that the matters we concerned ourselves with are not those over which we fight, and result in tragedy. I will attempt to open a dialogue with my allies to see how you have been treated. Just because we are told that we are to be enemies does not mean we are enslaved to the whims of our captors. Indeed, friendship seems as though it may be the highest form of rebellion." She gave a glance at the direction the sounds of fighting were coming from, but it seemed as though she were needed here more than elsewhere.
"You must not be overwhelmed and remain strong in your convictions - hold onto hope and it shall not abandon you."
"You can't just stop and start, flower," Suika said to Flowey while he was being ground to dust and she was being headlocked, "you said you could do it all in the time it took you to get here. You're well past that! Don't go making bets you can't keep, you little weed."
Such a scathing criticism from Suika could never be ignored, and surely Flowey was feeling doubt deep within himself now.
Now, getting past that, Suika gladly accepted the handshake from Politeman and said "Hey, I'm Suika, can't say I've met you before. Do you want this to be a fight-fight or do you just wanna try and beat me up while I sit here?"

Kage - Never Get Involved In Local Politics
I snorted.
"Yeah, they probably won't keep us here that long. And when it's over, what do you think happens? Win or lose, you think we get a fragging medal and a pile of money for showing up? Like as not we'll either be kicked back to right where we were, which for most of us, was pretty fragging wretched, or it'll be a bullet in the head. The crowd won't care. So either way you want it, if these pit fights run on to the end, we're screwed. And new people every so often just means even if it was possible to get to trust each other, we wouldn't."
I might've said something about the other augmetic guy's dig at me, but I wasn't about to backtalk Smiley again. The flower was telling some crazy story about being stuck in some kind of warp-prison for who knew how long and it finally snapped and decided killing whoever he had to to get out was the sensible thing. I wouldn't call it wrong there, I'd just wonder why it hadn't figured that out sooner. But I'd leave it to Smiley to decide about whether he was crazy enough to get into the gang.
A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent upon arriving. -Lao Tzu