[OPEN] I'm busy taking stock of all the things that I've forgot-

[thedevilsmile]

Characters: People who're staying behind in the Victoria II~
Content: NOT AS PLANNED.
Setting: All over the goddammed Victoria II... kinda, I guess.
Time: Later in the evening, while TACTICAL INFILTRATION ACTION is on.
Warnings: Horror! Shock! Denial all around for our unfortunate heroes and Kristoph brand of fail. And, uh. Epic trainwreck? I guess

Comments

BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[prodigyheir]

Larsa didn't need to be told twice, and after being assured that the girl, who couldn't be any older than he, was unharmed -- he couldn't have been sure how long she had been in the corridor with the beast, and it never hurt to be concerned for others -- the sword-wielding boy made a dash toward the nearest stairwell that would lead them to the upper level. However, when the girl stopped, a part of him willed himself to slow down.

Throwing his head over his shoulder for a look, the little emperor took hold of her hand with his own gloved one, and squeezed it reassuringly. "You mustn't worry -- I believe she will be fine." Larsa's crystalline eyes were sincere, and his voice never wavered once, no matter how fast his heart beat within his chest. That woman seemed capable enough, and even if she couldn't hold the monster off for long, there was still Al-Cid and the rather tall lady next to him. It would all right. But in the meantime...

"But we must go now. We cannot fight this beast in such a confined space. It is better that we flee to higher ground." There was a tug on her hand, urging her to follow.

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[peoplenpudding]

Millie ushered the two children closer to herself and further from the monster. "Are you two okay? You need to get out of here," she urged. "I'm sure Al-Cid and I can help Miss Susan. Right, Al-Cid?"

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[a_playboy]

"But of course, my dear!" Al-Cid answered Millie with a smirk as he fired another lethal shot into the yeti's flesh, this time piercing it's torso with the bullet. He was quite nervous for the Duchess of Sto Helit's safety, especially since these beasts could easily snap the studious beauty like a mere twig. Being that he is a gentleman, the Erealian prince isn't fond having women thrusts themselves into battle. However, none of them had a choice in this matter since the lack of manpower aboard the ship is evident by the many corpses that litter the hallways nearby. These abdominal beasts slew all soldiers and passengers alike, only a few surviving stragglers remain from the initial attack.

“Move out the way Susan!” He yelled over towards her after loading one of his special bullets within his rifle. The ammunition he just loaded into his gun is perhaps one of the most effective forms of ammo as well as the most dangerous to use in a close quarter situation such this one. Al-Cid knew he could end up wasting an entire belt of bullets before the damn beast finally draws its final breath. Therefore, to speed this matter up, the prince decided it was time to resort to his bag of tricks.

Firing his gun again, instead of another piercing bullet whizzing through the air it was a long blaze of fire streaming out towards the yeti. The fiery blaze completely engulfed the beast, it’s agony vocalized within it’s monstrous roars. The yeti crashed against the nearby walls with enough force to dent the steel. The beast continued to flail wildly as the red flames ate away at it’s fur. It was certainly a ghastly sight for the children to behold but that sentiment is mutual for them all, even for Al-Cid who remained quite calm during this struggle.

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[nohoppityskip]

Susan swung again, ignoring Matilda's shout. The strong upswing snapped the creature's jaw shut, dazing it for at least a moment. Taking the chance and sparing a look back at Al-Cid when he shouted.

Realizing what he was going to do, Susan tried to change her momentum at the last second. Belatedly she realized, as she scrambled towards the wall--away from the creature and Al-Cid's line of fire, that there was no way she could get far enough out of the way in time.

There was a trick to going incoporeal at will, but fortunately Susan had had a lot of practice at it. Holding her ground, one flailing, flaming arm passed right through her mid-section as if she was made of so much air. The only effect Susan noticed was a slight smell on top of the monster-smell as a few strands of her hair were singed off.

Hopefully, she thought, scrambling back towards Al-Cid, no one noticed that...

BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[minorbook]

Matilda looked back at Larsa, listening to his words, and then gave Susan one last glance before nodding. He was right, if anything, she would be more of liability to her and the others if she remained.

Larsa didn't need to encourage her any further. She followed him, keeping up as best as she could with the swift boy, her book trailing behind her, propped and ready just in case they ran into any more trouble. There was no telling what else might be out there, or just how many of these things there were.

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[peoplenpudding]

Well. Apparently Miss Susan had her own magic.

Not really caring about it (after all, magic was everywhere), Millie took aim at the yeti again. "Do you need me to distract it, Al-Cid?"

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[a_playboy]

Despite the fact he is grateful that the duchess has a 'hidden talent', Al-Cid couldn't help as to question what else this studious woman could do. He wouldn't have ever pegged her to be a mage of some kid but it seems as if he should since she obviously possesses some kind of magic power.

"Millie, are you mad?! That thing would tear you apart!" He shouted over towards the saleswoman, just fearing the worst if she planned on using herself as a distraction.

"If anything, we need to lure it away from the children!" That is true since he isn't keen on the idea of a dead little prince.

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[nohoppityskip]

They weren't mentioning Susan's seemingly momentarily incoporeality, so she didn't either. If they didn't ask, she wouldn't have to explain, and maybe they'd just forget about it. Humans were good at telling themselves they hadn't seen what they really had, after all.

She turned, facing the monster with the poker held in front of her, as she reached the others. Fortunately it seemed the children had gotten away, hopefully somewhere safer than here. "We need to get it off the ship too," Susan told the others. It would be away from the children in that respect too. "How do we do that?"

The whole time she didn't tear her eyes from the yeti-fied monster, waiting for it to regain its senses and attack them instead of just flailing.

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[peoplenpudding]

"Normally, I would say we lure it out with a trail of breadcrumbs or cake crumbs," Millie replied, "but I don't think that's going to work with this thing. Maybe if we insulted its mother, or got a really big net!"

Monster-trapping wasn't Millie's forte. Assessing the damage done by monsters, on the other hand, was. She would have to write home to her family and get monster-trapping advice.

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[a_playboy]

"For the love of the Gods, can someone make a somewhat decent idea?!" Al-Cid grumbled before loading in another round of that mana-infused bullets. To be quite honest, trapping the beast wasn't apart of Al-Cid's idea. He was more looking forward to just killing the foul fiend rather than trapping it and letting it lose as if its some furry woodland creature. This is why he opted to use one of the more electrically charged mana bullets for his next shot.

"Hm...?" The faint sound of water dripping down from the pipes that hung over their heads caught Al-Cid's attention.

"Electricity can be conducted by water, yes?" He asked with a devious smirk appearing upon his roguishly handsome face.

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[nohoppityskip]

Frowning at the insinuation that her suggestion hadn't been of merit, Susan took another step back, looking around the hallway and trying to remember what she could about the layout of the rest of the ship.

"Quite well," she answered his question quickly. Basic physics, something she knew quite well. "Ice doesn't though," she added, pointing out this limitation. "We have to wait for that to melt--or flood the corridor."

That was unlikely...right?

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[peoplenpudding]

Looking up at the water pipes, Millie started feeling frantic. "We won't for that ice to melt," she stated. Come on, Millie, think! Your head's not made of metal!

Metal? Wait a second.

"Al-Cid! Do you know how to charge my ammo and Miss Susan's poker with electricity? Or do you have a mana crystal? I don't keep one on me!"

BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[prodigyheir]

( ooc: fail, I has it. )

Once both he and Matilda were a good distance up the stairs and away from the scene below, Larsa, who still kept a grip on the girl's hand, skid to a stop, concerned eyes glancing back at where they'd run from. "I do not think the fiend will reach us here," he spoke assuredly, panting lightly from his ministrations. "But Al-Cid..." The brunet shook his head and left that matter alone, soon after facing the girl he'd pulled along.

"I apologize for not being able to reach you earlier." He reluctantly released her hand. "Your name -- Matilda, isn't it?"

BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[minorbook]

Matilda was a little out of breath when they finally stopped and she put her free hand to her chest, the other instinctively curling around Larsa's hand a little more. She too, twisted around to look down where all the cacophonous noises were coming from. Her brow knitted in worry, but she had to believe that the others could handle themselves.

She wasn't sure what to do. A part of her still wanted to go down and help; but they had just finished leaving that place, and she was sure the others wouldn't be particularly happy to have them return so soon. They might just get in the way and make things more troublesome for them.

The girl bit her lip in thought and she her head, pulling both her hands to her chest at Larsa's apology. She smiled, a genuine smile despite all the chaos still going on.

"No--do not apologize. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here at all." Now it was her turn to be apologetic, "yes, but I'm afraid I didn't catch your name."

Re: BEAST OF THE HALLWAYS

[a_playboy]

"The poker?" Al-Cid's gaze instantly shifted over towards Susan's rod for a moment. Putting two and two together, a crafty plot was formed between the three of them. Or so he did have a plan once he realized he didn't have a single electrically-charged mana-bullet in his ammo case. In his haste, Al-Cid sloppy yanked out ammo from his room not even realizing he took a handful of fire-infused bullets. Fire is all fine and dandy when dealing with smaller beasts but if he fires another shot into that yeti, this whole ship could go up in smoke.

"...I've been bested tonight." The Erealian Prince mumbled darkly before glancing over at Millie and Susan again. "I advise the two of you to get going." Al-Cid replied while holding his rifle towards the yeti again.

"This might get a little messy." Well, if he is going to die for the sake of two beautiful women, then Al-Cid Margrace will die a happy man.

"Go on! Flee while you can! This hall will be engulfed in flames!"

Sorry for the tl;dr guys ^_^;;

[nohoppityskip]

"Run?" Susan looked at Al-Cid incredulously. He seemed to think they'd been beaten and were done for. Of course what he didn't know (and what she would have preferred to keep secret still), was that Susan still had at least one trick up her sleeve. She would have preferred to keep it a secret still, but that was swift seeming impossible. And there was no way she was letting someone else sacrifice themselves when there was still something she could do. "I think not."

Lowering the poker, she snapped her fingers just the once. At once, the world began a slow-down, graying out until Susan, in her own monochrome way, was the only moving thing in the hallway. Things were always a little eerie when she stopped time for herself, but she was used to it. Concentrating with her eyes closed, her appearance began to change. Her black dress darkened even more, becoming a little more low-cut with just a hint of black lace at the bodice. In Medusa-like strands, her hair twisted itself into a very impressive looking up-do.

But most importantly, the poker in her hand (though it didn't have any special properties in and of itself) had been transformed into (slightly less recognizable than the scythe, but still with a skull-and-bones motif on the hilt that gave it away) the sword of Death. She hoped her grandfather could forgive its loan for one night; he was unlikely to be reaping any kings, and it would be best to avoid him having to come to retrieve his grand-daughter from this mortal coil.

Opening her eyes, time started up again, the yeti-monster raging into life before her. To the others, her transformation would have been completed in an instant, the dress and sword appearing instantly. "Time for plan b," she stated grimly, the overtones of the Voice already beginning to creep into her speech.