Bay 12 Games Forum

13-18

Zoanthrope Engaged
[Now Playing:~The cyborg fights~]
So, Ai decides to use Yamato like a glorified baseball. You're pretty sure you've seen this in a comic book somewhere, but it's not like you have any other options; a bottlecap wouldn't get past the Zoanthrope's defenses, as far as you know, and you're not quite sure picking up a nearby car would in fact not cause undue damage to some poor guy's car or some poor student's house. So, you two figure, throwing Yamato at it would work. After all, it worked against the spider Zoanthrope, right?

If Ai was anything, she was an excellent thrower.

The dragon-bat thing tries to dodge the attack, but between Yamato being blasted right at it by a college student with the arms of a professional boxer and the force of a cannonball and the sheer speed of Yamato, it finds it a little difficult.

Yamato focuses for a moment. A decisive blow could end this fight as soon as it started. Aiming for the head was a bad idea; these creatures were once -were still- people. Decapitation was not an option. Neither was destroying its limbs; you didn't know if it'd grow them back upon transformation back to human form, but you didn't want to chance it. There was only one option; a single, crippling strike to the wing.

His blade cuts keenly, finely through muscle, sinew and metal like a hot knife through butter.

The wyvern lets out a horrific screech in response, Yamato's momentum leaving him unable to stop, as an unholy loud scream disorientates him, sending him flying onto a roof with the sheer force of the screech. But the damage is done; the creature, still in flight, is noticeably slower, struggling to flap its wings as some oily amber fluid leaks out of the wound Yamato left. The jet engine embedded in its back also seems to be in overdrive now that one of its wings is badly injured.

It still isn't defeated though, and it wants blood. Turning towards Yamato, it swoops towards him, seeking to take advantage of his stunned state, preparing to follow up its stunning screech first with scorching winds and then an assault with its claws.

Furthermore, it seems like the screech attracted enemies to the group, as you hear the sounds of nearby, frenzied flapping wings; potentially the smaller bats from yesterday. They'll be here soon, so it seems. Luckily- at least, from a certain point of view- you're joined by Haruko, flying in nearby, leaving the others back at the hospital to deal with whatever showed up.

---

Main Group
A few minutes pass uneventfully. Nothing seems to come up. All is quiet on the hospital front. Too quiet. Your skin is probably crawling a little bit from just how quiet everythng seems to be. Some nurses come and go, along with some doctors, as the night shift staff begin to take over from the day shift. After all, it wasn't like a hospital closed down for the night, even in the face of the threat of imminent Zoanthrope attacks.

You do see an increased presence of Eden Foundation personnel as the night darkens, though. Now that the hospital's a target, they're redirecting resources to protect it, or so you hear. Then again, a organisation like Eden with staff all over Japan stopping Zoanthrope attacks must get relatively overstretched. Two in particular guard the main entrance to the hospital; not that two goons with helmets and guns could stop one of those Zoanthropes on their own, but at least people felt safer.

Then, you hear Lapis.
Do you see anything? I sense.....something. I can't quite get a read on it, but it seems like it's coming from...the back of the hospital. I can't tell exactly, but there's a huge chance it might be a Zoanthrope.

Wait.....no. I detect a second signature. It's one of the same Zoanthropes as you dealt with yesterday, away from the hospital. They're airborne, and two streets away. You're going to need to split up to deal with it, and quickly. Spica and I will deal with that one, the rest of you decide where you're going!

As Lapis warns them, the guards at the front suddenly start barking over comms and running towards presumably the back of the hospital. Things seem to be kicking off, but you're going to need to divide and conquer.

Meanwhile, with Ai and Yamato....
This mini-shop was, by all standards, absolutely and totally ordinary, stocking all the things anyone could need in one tiny package. It was a cheap shop, given it was in a student neighborhood, given that the shop wasn't far from the Medical University of Touto, to which Touto University Hospital was attached, the very same hospital you've decided to take a break from staking out. The clerk's a friendly enough guy; about Ai's age, looks a little familiar, pretty much average Japanese university student. If average university students wanted to take you aside for a moment and talk to you how the mole people were putting chemicals in the water to make more mole people.

So, on balance, probably not an average university student.

Instead, getting bored of this inane babbling, you walk outside. As for Yamato, you suddenly feel your sword start warning you of imminent danger. Very imminent danger.

And then a loud, piercing screech fills your ears from above.

A bat-like monster flies around in the sky above you, presumably one of the Zoanthropes the others fought last night. A mean-looking creature, its body seems like a bundle of lean muscle and steel tubing, what appears to be a jet engine sticking out of its back, covered in scales, fur and what-have-you.

So, on the Ai Kamijou Urgency Scale of "who cares" to "a minor annoyance", somewhere close to "annoying buzzing fly". On the Yamato Sato Urgency Scale, probably a little higher up.

Still, it's something better than listening to a guy whine about mole people all night.

---

"Wait. WHAT, exactly, is Sakurako doing at the gym that needs a healer? That's not your usual rehab session, I take it?"

"It's.....fine. If it's any consolation, I'm a little new to this stuff myself, you know?"

Faith opened her mouth... and then her face slowly turned an interesting shade of red, the blonde half-American rapidly relinquishing her grip on her boyfriend, her arms moving instead to cover her blushing face. ”Oh my God... I can’t believe I didn’t think about that, _{stupid things, augh, sorry, that’s embarrassing.}”

Minato reaches out to pat her on the shoulder comfortingly.
"It's alright. Just....y'know, I'm not used to.....cute girls hugging me willingly."

"We should, sure. Uh....how you holding up?"
Minato was trying to ignore the fact that his very busty girlfriend's bountiful bosom was currently pressing very softly into his arm and he wasn't quite sure it was working.

"You'd be surprised.

..........yeah. We probably should."