2026-07-19: Hounded Down
- Log: Hounded Down
- Cast: Hyousuke Suzuki, Ririka Kawase, Fuuka Yamagishi, Akihiko Sanada, Hitomi Mandai
- Where: An off-trail on Mt Katamatsuri
- OOC Date: 2026-19-07
- IC Date: Wed Dec 12 2012
- Summary: The beast has finally been driven back to its lair. There is nowhere for it to hide, and no place for it to run - this is the fight that will determine its fate. Take care not to grow overconfident, however. There is little more dangerous than a cornered beast...
(|============================= Mt. Katatsumuri ==============================|)
-==================================================== Sumaru City/Vicinity ====-
Mt. Katatsumuri is a beautiful mountain vista just past the city limits of
Sumaru City. The greenery is plentiful and particularly dazzling in autumn as
the colors change. Once a popular tourist destination for hikers, nature lovers,
and explorers alike, it's seen considerably less traffic after the cable car
lift to the mountain's peak broke down. That's not going to change anytime soon,
for the local government has not seen fit to distribute funds to fix it.
Perhaps that's for the best. While it's a beautiful nature site, the only
buildings here are Morimoto Sanitarium at the peak and Goketsuji, a Buddhist
temple, on the inclines. A sanitarium is not a place that any "normal" person
should want to visit, and the monks at the temple probably prefer the isolation
anyway.
But the walking paths remain, some of them wilder than others. One even leads
all the way up to the back of the sanitarium for those with more courage than
common sense. There's also an old, small Shinto shrine along the way whose
offering box is not yet full and can still accept ¥100 coin donations.
BGM: Mt. Katatsumuri - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=odyfd9Q2WY8
(|============================================================================|)
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
OST: Horror Ambience Music 3 (ThrillShowX)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUyrTDvA5SY
During the day, the hiking path was an idyllic stretch of land. A meandering path shaded on all sides by a dense canopy of leaves, the incline was not so great as to deter casual climbers, but still enough that the view from the trail's apex was a sight to behold. During the night, it was as though some wretched abyss took its place, and what had once been picturesque was twisted into something eerie. The peaceful quiet became an ominous silence, its foreboding nature amplified by the impenetrable darkness that stretched all around. The densely-packed trees did little to provide comfort, with their clustered trunks providing ample cover for lurking beasts. Even the air itself warned away the faint of heart, carrying with it the stench of festering vegetation and stagnant water.
Yet Hyousuke trod onwards, for he sought one of those monstrosities stalking the gloom that night. Clad in fibres and plastics of purple and gold, he stalked through the dark with his shotgun held at the ready, finger twitching upon the trigger as he waited for any sign of life to present itself. A shifting shadow, a snapping branch, even the rustling of leaves underfoot - anything that he could latch onto, his head snapped towards, hoping to catch even the faintest glimpse of the predator that had eluded him for so long.
"Careful. It's here somewhere, I can feel it." Hyousuke grunted, his voice almost a whisper as he spoke to whoever had elected to accompany him. "Watch each other's backs. You see anything, say so. We're on its turf now, and it's gonna be pissed." It was a cornered animal, after all. Rather than the intelligent demons and coherent Shadows that could at least be talked to or manipulated, the beast he hunted was a true animal - a feral thing, clawing and snapping at anyone or anything that got too close for comfort.
Yet even now, at what was to be the end of a weeks-long hunt, there was some slight degree of hesitation to Hyousuke's actions. His every step was slowed by caution a degree beyond what was necessary, his aim swayed a fraction of a second slower than he would have liked, and he hesitated despite his words when he thought he saw something lurking in the undergrowth. His were not the reflexes of someone that held no doubt about putting down a savage monster. They were the movements of someone that could not shake that single, lingering, shred of doubt, no matter what.
Even in the face of this, Hyousuke pressed onwards, levelling that barrel of cold and merciless iron at whatever so much as resembled the canine form of his quarry. Deeper and deeper he descended, pushing into the yawning void that was the forest depths, the still air almost suffocating him with the tension it brought about. That was until something shifted in the corner of his eye. It wasn't some branch, bending beneath its own weight, nor was it the shadow of some foliage drifting on an errant gust of wind. When that pale and sickly moonlight pierced through the canopy, the thing gleamed.
OST: Eyes In The Void (Scott Buckley)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYbrvEtwTOc
Two eyes followed the group from the farthest reaches of the dark, tracking their every movement. Rows of fangs lined a slavering mouth, each one white as polished ivory and dagger-sharp. Even its fur shone when caught beneath the fetid glare of the Dark Hour's moon, revealing to the gathered hunters the form of their target. Tall as any man, the canine stalked forward on limbs wreathed in taut muscles, and then again by tawny fur. Stripes cut sideways across its back, emphasised further by how its coat raised in anger and fear, while its shifting postured showed the white of its underbelly. Large as its form was, the beast was nevertheless possessed of a sharp, lean, body, without a scrap of wasted fat upon it. Below it all, claws as keen as knives cut through the dirt and underbrush, carving trenches into the dirt with every padded step it took.
"Wait!" Hyousuke growled, muscles tensing like coiled springs. "Don't attack unless you know it's the real deal, this thing makes illusions of itself!" He waited, finger on the trigger, watching with a hardened gaze. His weapon creaked beneath the strain of his grip, while the cold abyss of the barrel stared back at the snarling monster. Eyes forward, ears pricked, and stance adjusted, he watched the thing like a guard hound waiting for its handler to loose it against a looming threat. He prowled closer, while it stalked through its territory, both eroding the gap between them until each was no more than a stone's throw from the other.
Something moved - but not in front of him. It snapped a branch and rustled leaves beneath its feet, and lunged towards him.
Hyousuke darted to the side the instant he heard it, but it wasn't enough. Razor-sharp claws swept past his torso, carving bloody trails jsut beneath his ribcage. Crimson trailed down his body, heralding a stinging pain that followed a heartbeat later, but even a cursory glance told that it was only a shallow wound. He would tend to it later, when the snarling hound was no more.
"There! That one!" He bellowed, all attempts at subtlety cast to the wind as he fired off a thundering shot. "Take it down before it gets another chance to hide!"
<Pose Tracker> Akihiko Sanada has posed.
The group fan out through the undergrowth, marking a path through the otherwise idyllic hunting trail. Even for someone like Akihiko, the oppressive atmosphere, where the group can just as quickly become the prey... It's testing even his guts.
Akihiko won't run off though. Never again. The beast will die here and now.
They come face to face to the beast once more. Akihiko goes for his Evoker as the beast reveals itself, slashing at Hyousuke. "Oh, no you don't!" He calls out, pressing the trigger to his temple to send out a Zio. He's too late however, and Hyousuke gets scratched, the lightning bolt hitting a nearby tree.
"Damn it!" Akihiko curses as he runs up next to Hysouke's side. "Form up!" He calls out. "That thing can escape anywhere. Be alert!" He casts another spell. "Weaken him!"
AS: Persona! Akihiko Sanada has used the Almighty skill Tarunda on Hyousuke Suzuki! | Ruin: Akihiko Sanada gains 1 Limit! AS: Akihiko Sanada's turn has ended. AS: Take! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 0 Almighty damage from Akihiko Sanada's Tarunda. | Atk_Dn (Damage down!) added!
<Pose Tracker> Fuuka Yamagishi has posed.
SEES had investigated the tale of the beast stalking the Dark Hour in Sumaru City. They split into two groups to cover more ground - and now, they join Hyousuke to track it down once more. Where he shows no hesitation, Fuuka...
...Has her doubts.
It's behavior doesn't match that of any Shadow she's encountered. Not the coherent ones of Mementos, nor the mindless ones that stalk Tartarus. Even most demons can be spoken with - even if understanding them is a different matter. What is it about this beast...? It seemed mostly concerned with retreating, until they had it cornered...
"...Is this the right thing to do?" Fuuka wonders quietly.
...She puts that thought aside, though. As Hyousuke says, the beast is capable of illusions - they'll need a good Navigator to track it down. Hyousuke calls out the real one, and as Akihiko casts Tarunda...
"Give me a sec, I'll scan it." Fuuka informs them. "Lucia... Let me see past that would obscure my vision..."
She shuts her eyes tight, expanding her senses. She looks, instead, with her spiritual eye - to see past the illusions and discern the beast itself.
AS: Persona! Fuuka Yamagishi has used the Almighty skill Full Analysis on Hyousuke Suzuki! | Insight: Fuuka Yamagishi gains 1 Limit! AS: Fuuka Yamagishi's turn has ended. AS: Take! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 0 Almighty damage from Fuuka Yamagishi's Full Analysis. AS: Fuuka Yamagishi's Strength Scan! Hyousuke Suzuki resists Pierce! AS: Fuuka Yamagishi's Weakness Scan! Hyousuke Suzuki is weak against Light! AS: Fuuka Yamagishi's Support Scan! Hyousuke Suzuki has passive skills Ailment Boost, Dark Amp, Heavy Weapon, Invigorate 2, and Pierce Amp!
<Pose Tracker> Hitomi Mandai has posed.
Hitomi Mandai has been following after the others. Let's be real: mostly Akihiko. Let's also be real: Akihiko is not suffering from this but he's the man of muscle mystery. Hitomi Mandai is not a woman of wuscle wistery. No sir, she is none of those things, not least because two of those words are made-up.
It was, at least, a relief to be in a forest. Is it, though? Ironically enough, Hitomi's starting to get positive associations about Tartarus. Tartarus may be a distortion in the fabric of reality, but like, it's places like forests and asylums where things get *bad*.
Either way, she's still kind of out of breath once they get close, though she does not hunch over. The adrenal dump of hearing the beast, seeing it scream, seeing it *strive* to maul Hyousuke. Does it qualify as a mauling? Hitomi can't tell.
Weaken him, Akihiko says.
Hitomi's eyes turn towards Fuuka. "... What're you thinking?"
Then she twists her hand up in that card-trick fillip of a gesture, and a moment later Tyche appears before her, the Grecian statue gazing mournfully at the Beast for a moment before something emanates outwards. Something loosely pink and energetic. Something confusing.
"Even if it's some kind of innocent," Hitomi wheezes a little, "I'm... not gonna be sad if it gets confused. Seriously, I am *so sweaty*." And it's cold out!! Which makes it even worse!!
AS: Persona! Hitomi Mandai has used the Almighty skill Marin Karin on Hyousuke Suzuki! AS: Hitomi Mandai's turn has ended. AS: Take! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 0 Almighty damage from Hitomi Mandai's Marin Karin. | Charm (Attacker or Ally takes Damage!) added!
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
Ririka is here in her SEES uniform, Amphion already summoned as she hangs back, casting her senses out at the world around her. "Right," she says, as Hyousuke calls out the use of illusions.
Akihiko calls out for them to form up. "Hai, senpai!" She moves into place--still in the back, but closer in formation.
Fuuka calls out taht she'll scan the beast. "Got it, Yamagishi-san! We couldn't get it to stay still long enough for that last time."
"Hang in there, Mandai-chan," Ririka tries to say reassuringly. "Just a little bit longer and we can wrap this all up..." She hopes.
But weaken it. "On it. Amphion! Go!"
Amphion strums his lyre, and a mess of jangly, high-pitched sounds issue forth to try and disorient the unknown beast.
AS: Persona! Ririka Kawase has used the Almighty skill Dissonant Song on Hyousuke Suzuki! | Insight: Ririka Kawase gains 1 Limit! AS: Ririka Kawase's turn has ended. AS: Take! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 0 Almighty damage from Ririka Kawase's Dissonant Song. | Crt_Dn (Critical down!) added!
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Akihiko's lightning bolt might not have struck the beast, but the display most certainly caught its attention. Its dark eyes snapped towards him after Hyousuke shoved it away, and its focus was only tightened when he cursed it with that strength-sapping spell. Slaver, thick and glistening in what little light managed to reach them, lined its maw as it sized up Akihiko, before striking out with claws that shone like polished gems. No sooner had it launched that attack than it retreated, however, deftly moving back like a shadow to strike against its next foe.
Whatever Fuuka's thoughts were on the monster, it did not seem to be of any mind to hear them. All it saw was an intruder, coming there to attack it. To hurt it. To chase it, and never leave it alone until they got what they wanted from it. Maddened by the rage and instinct both, it ignored whatever she said and did, either not recognising that she had scanned it or simply not caring. It pounced at her, heaving the full weight of its enormous body into her, growling all the while.
It did not follow through, but not because it had had second thoughts. Something had begun to twist its mind, and it swayed on its feet, before staggering to one side. Its vision was blurred, and its balance was off. It hadn't been struck, yet it felt dizzy all the same, like the whole world had twisted and distorted around it. Whatever reprieve that had earnt the party was only temporary, for the moment it noticed there was another, the hound surged forward into a snarling charge. Its maw widened into a vicious chasm, lined with the razor-point teeth, before coming down to clamp onto whatever part of her it could gnash at.
Then there came that song. A damnable thing, discordant and disorienting, sending it reeling back with a short and sharp snarl at the direction it had come from. Its eyes focussed on her, snapping swiftly away from Hitomi, sizing up this new and strange thing before it. There was little thought before it howled at her, its voice a booming, bellowing, shockwave that ripped through the air. Smashing waves of staggering force streaked towards her, distorting the air, but its howling was cut off by a vicious uppercut to its jaw.
"Not on my watch!" Hyousuke shouted, barrelling forwards to heave his fist into the monster again, only to be battered back by the flat of its paw. Even without the keen claws digging into his flesh, the beast's strength was prodigious enough to send him staggering back, grunting in pain as he did so. "Come on, big guy! You got nowhere to run to this time!" The words did not feel right on his tongue, and it was there to hear for all that listened closely enough. It manifested as a wavering hesitation to his words - subtle, and overpowered by his stubborn need to fight, but there nonetheless.
AS: Weapon! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Slash skill Slashing Swipe on Akihiko Sanada! 2 Hits! AS: Charm results in party damage! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 90 damage! | Aggression: Hyousuke Suzuki gains 1 Limit! AS: >>> You still have 3 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions! AS: Weapon! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Strike skill Crashing Smash on Fuuka Yamagishi! 2 Hits! AS: >>> You still have 2 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions! AS: Weapon! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Pierce skill Gnashing Fangs on Hitomi Mandai! 2 Hits! AS: >>> You still have 1 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions! AS: Persona! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Wind skill Wind Howl on Ririka Kawase! 3 Hits! AS: Hyousuke Suzuki's turn has ended. | Hyousuke Suzuki regains 6 SP from Invigorate! AS: Block Worst! Fuuka Yamagishi takes 42 Strike damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Crashing Smash. Critical Hit! | Blast (Magic and Block Penalized!) added! AS: Block Neutral! Fuuka Yamagishi takes 19 Strike damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Crashing Smash. AS: Avoid Worst! Hitomi Mandai takes 51 Pierce damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Gnashing Fangs. | Paralyze (Physical and Avoid Penalized!) added! AS: Avoid Worst! Hitomi Mandai takes 84 Pierce damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Gnashing Fangs. Critical Hit! AS: Avoid Neutral! Akihiko Sanada takes 22 Slash damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Slashing Swipe. AS: Avoid Best! Akihiko Sanada takes 10 Slash damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Slashing Swipe. Critical Hit! AS: Block Best! Ririka Kawase takes 11 Wind damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Wind Howl. Critical Hit! AS: Block Best! Ririka Kawase takes 11 Wind damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Wind Howl. Critical Hit! AS: Block Best! Ririka Kawase takes 11 Wind damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Wind Howl. Critical Hit!
<Pose Tracker> Akihiko Sanada has posed.
Akihiko manages to dodge and weave, calling upon several years of boxing experiences. Close quarters fisticuffs tend to be his pride after all. Any wounds he takes are brush against him.
"Not bad, everyone! Keep it up!" Akihiko calls out, bringing his evoker to his temple once more. He hesitates for a moment, as Hyousuke cuts the beast off. "Back up, Suzuki-san! Don't push yourself!" Akihiko is still worried about that wound Hyousuke took earlier. When he backs up, Akihiko will take the chance to fire off a Mazionga.
AS: Persona! Akihiko Sanada has used the Elec skill Mazionga on Hyousuke Suzuki! | Ruin: Akihiko Sanada gains 1 Limit! AS: Akihiko Sanada's turn has ended. AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 171 Elec damage from Akihiko Sanada's Mazionga. Critical Hit! | Paralyze (Physical and Avoid Penalized!) added!
<Pose Tracker> Fuuka Yamagishi has posed.
What is she thinking? Fuuka pauses for a moment, frowning. ...It's hard to put into her words - especially not now, when they have the beast cornered. It's lashing out - but who wouldn't?
"...It doesn't feel like an indiscriminate monster. When we pursued it before, it was only concerned with escaping from us, until we cornered it." She comments.
Ririka says that they weren't able to get it to stay still long enough to scan last time, and she nods.
"We couldn't, either. ...I suppose there's nowhere left for it to run to, now..." This time, she's able to scan it. The aura flares to life before her, and she focuses.
"It's very powerful... Beware darkness and piercing attacks!" Fuuka warns. "It's weakness is Light..."
It turns its eyes upon her, and pounces. There's a moment of hesitation - just enough that for a moment, her defenses are weaker. But it does not meet flesh - its body crashes into Lucia's protective globe. Regardless, Fuuka winces. It might not have struck her physically, but she feels like she got the breath knocked out of her. Lucia protects her directly, but she can still feel the force of the impact through her - enough that she's knocked briefly off balance.
"Understood." She nods toward Akihiko. She sensed Darkness before. In that case...
"Lucia... Protect me from the night." Fuuka requests. A protective aura surrounds her, to mitigate her weakness. And for the others...
"...Focus on its attacks. See the way it moves... Everyone... Be careful." Fuuka says. She tries to predict its movements - to use Lucia's divine sight to provide advance warning and give them the information they need to defend against its attacks.
AS: Fuuka Yamagishi spends Limit on Exploit! Fuuka Yamagishi can use another Weak skill this round! AS: Persona! Fuuka Yamagishi has used the Recovery skill Dark Wall on Fuuka Yamagishi! AS: Take! Fuuka Yamagishi takes 0 Recovery healing from Fuuka Yamagishi's Dark Wall. | Dark_Wall (Dark Affinity Up!) added! AS: Persona! Fuuka Yamagishi has used the Almighty skill Divine Sight on Akihiko Sanada, Ririka Kawase, Hitomi Mandai, and Fuuka Yamagishi! | Insight: Fuuka Yamagishi gains 1 Limit! AS: Fuuka Yamagishi's turn has ended. | Fuuka Yamagishi: Blast removed! AS: Take! Fuuka Yamagishi takes 0 Almighty damage from Fuuka Yamagishi's Divine Sight. | Prophecy (Healing in 2 rounds!) added! AS: Take! Ririka Kawase takes 0 Almighty damage from Fuuka Yamagishi's Divine Sight. | Prophecy (Healing in 2 rounds!) added! AS: Take! Hitomi Mandai takes 0 Almighty damage from Fuuka Yamagishi's Divine Sight. | Prophecy (Healing in 2 rounds!) added!
<Pose Tracker> Hitomi Mandai has posed.
"Heh," Hitomi breathes at Ririka's encouragement. "I'm more worried about the big guy." Adjusting her glasses, her attention tries to stay on the Beast despite her usual habit of looking at people when they're talking. (It's polite, you know.)
Besides, there's much more delicious people out there.
The Beast is at bay, and is lurching. Maybe this will be an anticlimax. Maybe that's what Fuuka was seeing, thinks Hitomi, before the Beast looks at her.
Hitomi takes a step back. In hindsight that was really good, because when the Beast comes towards her and snaps downwards, teeth clacking once and then hitting with a crunch at the same time as the propulsive force of impact knocks her backwards --
The Beast lead with claws that might have sunk into her belly.
When the Beast disengages - good thing it has other people to worry about - Hitomi isn't bleeding. She hunches forwards for a moment and heaves herself upright, exhaling.
"These protectors are really good, huh?" Hitomi says to Fuuka, not looking at her. "That time I got shot it actually caught it on the back side, isn't that wild? Anyway, I'm feeling kind of complicated about this creature now because I see what you were talking about and" Hitomi's hand sort of whips out like she's snapping her fingers, barely interrupting the flow of her conversation "I'm gonna say it feels a little personal but also we kind of have a hard time just being rational if we have this guy here and his primary argument is bite, right?"
Deep breath, push it out.
She is a little shaken up, yes.
That little flick of her hands was dice though, which bounce off the forest floor and pop up. The Beast will be delighted to find out they burst like firecrackers (and then seem to fly back in Hitomi's direction), we are sure. Delighted? Yeah, animals love fireworks.
AS: Weapon! Hitomi Mandai has used the Strike skill Back Shot on Hyousuke Suzuki! 2 Hits! | Aggression: Hitomi Mandai gains 1 Limit! AS: Hitomi Mandai's turn has ended. AS: Avoid Best! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 9 Strike damage from Hitomi Mandai's Back Shot. Critical Hit! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 26 Strike damage from Hitomi Mandai's Back Shot. AS: Take! Akihiko Sanada takes 0 Almighty damage from Fuuka Yamagishi's Divine Sight. | Prophecy (Healing in 2 rounds!) added!
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
"Suzuki-san! We're here to back you up, don't forget!" Ririka calls out with urgency as she sees Hyousuke take another hit. She's with her fellow members of SEES, it's easier for her to remember she's got backup here.
But bellowing shockwaves come to counter Amphion's song, and Ririka grabs her katana from her belt. Her grip tightensas she cleaves into the first blast, violent winds whipping around her as she slices through the first shockwave. She meetrs the second and the third, and by the time the last one dies down she's panting a little, but her hands are steady. "Th-that was close..."
Akihiko calls out the good work, and Ririka calls back, "We're covering you, snepai! Keep it up!"
Fuuka comments on how it doesn't feel like a monster. "We caught it disguising itself as another Shadow before... but... if all it wants to do is escape, why is everyone so concerned about it...?"
"We hought we had it pinned before, too..."
She takes in that guidance readily; she's got her own version of that skill, she's familiar with it and welcomes it. "Thank you, Yamagishi-san."
Hitomi is worried about the big guy. Ririka's kind of concerned about Hyousuke, but Akihiko and the beast are both pretty big, too... And there are reasons to be concerned forabout each. "Yeah, I hear you."
Fuuka's helping them navigate the fight, so Ririka decides to help their defenses. "Amphion! Marakukaja!"
Amphion strums, and fortifying energy flows up from the earth to envelop them all and help bolster their defenses.
AS: Persona! Ririka Kawase has used the Almighty skill Marakukaja on Akihiko Sanada, Fuuka Yamagishi, Hitomi Mandai, and Ririka Kawase! AS: Ririka Kawase's turn has ended. AS: Take! Ririka Kawase takes 0 Almighty damage from Ririka Kawase's Marakukaja. | Def_Up (Block Improved!) added! AS: Take! Fuuka Yamagishi takes 0 Almighty damage from Ririka Kawase's Marakukaja. | Def_Up (Block Improved!) added! AS: Take! Akihiko Sanada takes 0 Almighty damage from Ririka Kawase's Marakukaja. | Def_Up (Block Improved!) added! AS: Take! Hitomi Mandai takes 0 Almighty damage from Ririka Kawase's Marakukaja. | Def_Up (Block Improved!) added! AS: Hyousuke Suzuki spends Limit on Exploit! Hyousuke Suzuki can use another Weak skill this round!
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
"I'm fine! It's just a scratch!" Hyousuke shouted back. He hadn't lied. It was only a flesh wound, and the bleeding - exacerbated by his movement - made it look worse than it felt. It was the still-healing wounds Tsurugi had dealt him earlier that day that Akihiko should have been concerned about. Not more than a few hours old, whatever progress he'd made towards recovery was unwound with every movement, thread by sanguine thread. He still had enough left in the tank to fight, however, and certainly had the strength to push back the beast and leap quickly away.
It was not his body he needed to shield afterwards, but his eyes. A mighty flash of lightning struck the beast, hitting it like cannonfire and ripping an anguished howl from the beast. Already left unbalanced by Hitomi, the blast was enough to knock it off its feet and send it careening into a wall, though there was still fight left in it. Fight enough that it could stagger back up at a moment's notice, and fix its gaze on Fuuka. It prowled, waiting for another strike to come, or for that *thing* that had shielded her to appear once more. But nothing happened. Its twitching gaze recognised that something had happened, but it did not retaliate, even if it issued a warning growl.
Even if a plan to strike had been brewing in its mind, the thing did not get the chance to execute it. Dice fell into the ground beside it, snatching its attention away from the fight for a split second. But that split second was all that was needed for one of the dice to make it flinch away in sudden, burning, pain. It tried to dart away from the other, but with its footing thrown off, it still found itself caught in the second burst. It snarled, teeth bared to savage her again, but refused to strike. Ririka's strumming caught its ear instead.
Bereft of the ability to truly understand human speech, it did not understand that those notes were to bolster her teammates, not beat it into submission. It understood a moment later that it was not a spell directed at it, but the damage had been done. Its momentum had been interrupted yet again, and it reverted back into a defensive stance. Muscles tensed and eyes switching from target to target, it backed up slowly, snapping and barking and snarling at anyone or anything that dared to come too close.
"Don't worry about me, I can take whatever it's got!" Hyousuke said back to Ririka, even as he circled with the beast, prowling around it like a gladiator in the sands. "Just try and lock it down before-"
The hound bolted away, leaving behind no more than footprints by the oppressive darkness. Like a shadow, it slipped into the gloom between the trees, its hulking form vanishing behind trees that should have been too thin to hide it, with a silence that did not belong to such a large and vicious creature.
"Shit, it's doing it again...!" Hyousuke hissed, immediately drawing close to the group, and heaving his arms up into a tight guard. "Eyes open, and watch the trees! That thing could be hiding anywhere!"
The beast revealed itself, once more appearing as two eyes glinting in the dark. Then, it appeared again, manifesting behind the group. Then another. And another. Pairs upon pairs surrounded the group like a wolfpack, closing slowly in on them, prowling closer and closer while Hyousuke studied each with frantic eyes. One of them had to be real. One of them had to have a difference that marked it out as the true target - but which? He couldn't even wait to see which one lunged first. Each struck at the group, and each proved to be an illusion, their strikes swinging through the group like smoke.
In amidst that storm came was a flash of black, however, and claws shrouded in darkness carved into Akihiko before vanishing back into the flood of bodies. Fangs snapped at Fuuka from the side, seeking to rend her apart before the beast sunk back into the shadows again, vanishing behind another illusory copy. Hitomi was next, with one lunging at her from the front, while the beast - the true beast - slammed into her from behind with tremendous force. Ririka was the last, but was given no more mercy for it. It ran at her, swift as the wind, and swiped its claws at her as it shot past the party.
Hyousuke chased after it, firing shot after shot, but each only winged the beast - and, in turn, angered it further. It lunged at him next, gnashing and swiping, only stopping its onslaught when he slammed his elbow down into its snout.
"Damn it... This thing just doesn't quite, does it?!" He held his gun level at it, the barrel trained on its forehead, but his finger only trembled on the trigger. It didn't strike at him again. It bristled with anger, snarling and growling and snapping its jaws, but its posture was defensive.
He shook his head. No time to think about it now. There was a fight to win.
AS: >>> Player not found, or player not in room. AS: >>> Player not found, or player not in room. AS: Persona! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Recovery skill Illusory Ambush on Hyousuke Suzuki! AS: Charm results in party damage! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 90 damage! AS: >>> You still have 3 regular actions and 1 bonus Weak actions! AS: Take! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 0 Recovery healing from Hyousuke Suzuki's Illusory Ambush. | Cloak (Non-Area Damage Mitigated!) and Spd_Up (Avoid Improved!) added! AS: Tandem! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Dark skill Shrouded Strike on Akihiko Sanada! | Aggression: Hyousuke Suzuki gains 1 Limit! AS: >>> You still have 2 regular actions and 1 bonus Weak actions! AS: Tandem! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Pierce skill Mauling Jaw on Fuuka Yamagishi! AS: >>> You still have 1 regular actions and 1 bonus Weak actions! AS: Persona! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Dark skill Wolfpack on Hitomi Mandai! 2 Hits! | Hyousuke Suzuki takes 45 damage from Stress! AS: >>> You still have 0 regular actions and 1 bonus Weak actions! AS: Persona! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Slash skill Swiftclaw on Ririka Kawase! AS: Hyousuke Suzuki's turn has ended. | Hyousuke Suzuki: Paralyze removed! | Hyousuke Suzuki regains 6 SP from Invigorate! AS: Block Neutral! Hitomi Mandai takes 59 Dark damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Wolfpack. Critical Hit! | Haze (Physical and Block Penalized!) added! AS: Block Worst! Hitomi Mandai takes 55 Dark damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Wolfpack. AS: Block Neutral! Fuuka Yamagishi takes 28 Pierce damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Mauling Jaw. Critical Hit!
<Pose Tracker> Fuuka Yamagishi has posed.
Fuuka watches the beast carefully... and for a moment, their eyes meet. She holds her breath. Lucia is her everpresent Guardian - she does not vanish like most Persona do, instead remaining on the field to serve as Fuuka's shield and watchful eyes. She stares at the beast through Lucia's globe - but she doesn't strike.
She hears that warning growl.
"...Please. We don't have to fight." She urges in response. "Can you hear me...? We just want to understand..."
She hesitates - but it's beginning to move again, illusions bolstering itself until it appears to be as if its own pack. Even through Lucia's eyes, it's hard to discern the truth. Its claws swipe across Lucia's globe. Fuuka feels it as surely as if it were across her own skin. She draws in a breath, but endures it for now. She sees, too, the way it halts, even as Hyousuke points a gun at it.
...For now, there's only one thing she can do.
"Kawase-san!" Fuuka calls out. "It's difficult to track alone... but if we combine our talents, we maybe be able to see past its illusion!"
See past its illusions - and maybe come to a better understanding of what they're up against. She shuts her eyes and focuses intently, reaching out to Ririka mentally to join their efforts.
AS: Fuuka Yamagishi has initiated a fusion spell! The spell still requires 1 Strong attacks and Any Magical! Anyone can join!
<Pose Tracker> Akihiko Sanada has posed.
Regardless of the facts, (and so say that Akihiko is simply worried for worried sake), he has to stay focused. This is a dangerous foe, and even a moment's injury can snowball into a disaster.
The beast seemingly multiplies, but Akihiko and Hyousuke both realize the illusions. As the beasts tries to close in, Akihiko is glad to try and give it as much as he gets, using controlled jabs. They dissipate into smoke upon contact.
With the moments blindness, Akihiko reflexively guards, and is slashed at. In the moment the beast is engaged however, Akihiko is glad to return the favour with his own fists, properly this time. "Gah! get back here!"
Then, Hyousuke tries to chase after the beast, and Akihiko follows. "Suzuki-san, be careful! Don't stray from the line!"
AS: Tandem! Akihiko Sanada has used the Strike skill Cyclone Uppercut on Hyousuke Suzuki! 3 Hits! | Ruin: Akihiko Sanada gains 1 Limit! AS: Akihiko Sanada's turn has ended.
<Pose Tracker> Hitomi Mandai has posed.
Hitomi brings a hand up to catch the dice. The thing is running. Hitomi watches it; she is not trying to maneuver, possibly being tired, possibly being embarrassed at being a big rampaging lump of meat, and perhaps because she isn't going to try to hit the thing in the mouth with her hand.
Hitomi watches. She breathes, rather shallowly, but she breathes. She watches -- and when it comes for her, she flinches backwards.
Which means the Beast smashes underneath her and throws her in the air. She lands, again, on the ground, if this time on her ass, and as she does, she can feel her teeth *clack* as she squeezes her eyes shut. It moves on, as it must, perhaps, in the face of this assault, but afterwards she takes a deep breath and pushes herself back up to her feet.
Which, well, this is lucky too, isn't it? It's a charmed kind of life Hitomi lives, even if sometimes it doesn't quite seem that way to her at the time. Right now, it hurts. Right now, she's starting to forget about being scared. Right now, she's *embarrassed*. Right now, she's back on her feet.
"Alright," says Hitomi quietly. "I was feeling a little bit of sympathy about you despite myself but now this is feeling kind of PERSONAL you big hairy asshole," and then she takes in a huge breath. Behind the glasses, her eyes widen.
"TYCHE!" Her hands spread out and raise. The Persona rises behind her again, facing, somehow, directly towards the Beast. Its illusions may shroud it enough for *Hitomi* to not see it, but the statue gets lucky. Or maybe the heart can't truly be fooled.
"Light him up!"
Then follows a sudden shimmering constellation of golden lights followed by a bursting barrage of gold-and-red fireworks, aiming on the Beast. If it loved the dice, it's going to *adore* this kind of an explosive pulse towards a finale, and if nothing else, it might mean it won't notice what Fuuka and Ririka are up to until its too late.
(Hyousuke and Akihiko are being kind of more obvious.)
AS: Persona! Hitomi Mandai has used the Fire skill Explosion of Fortune on Hyousuke Suzuki! 3 Hits! | Aggression: Hitomi Mandai gains 1 Limit! AS: Hitomi Mandai's turn has ended. | Hitomi Mandai: Paralyze and Prophecy removed! Prophecy: 150 healing! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 11 Strike damage from Akihiko Sanada's Cyclone Uppercut. AS: Avoid Best! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 1 Strike damage from Akihiko Sanada's Cyclone Uppercut. AS: Avoid Best! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 1 Strike damage from Akihiko Sanada's Cyclone Uppercut. AS: Avoid Neutral! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 30 Fire damage from Hitomi Mandai's Explosion of Fortune. AS: Avoid Neutral! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 52 Fire damage from Hitomi Mandai's Explosion of Fortune. Critical Hit! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 93 Fire damage from Hitomi Mandai's Explosion of Fortune. Critical Hit!
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
Sure, that one scratch is just a scratch, but Ririka's seen how those can add up... "Just..." She sighs. Maybe right now isn't the time to have a conversation.
There may be illusions at work, but Ririka is a navigator, and she whirls around to meet the slash as it comes for her, raising her katana to block it. There's a brief struggle before she can push back, and she looks around warily.
Fuuka calls for them to combine their talents, and Ririka nods firmly. "Right, Yamagishi-san! I'll follow your lead!"
"Everyone, please hang on, we'll try to pin down which one it is," Ririka calls. She closes her eyes too, reaching out, sharing her particular view of the world, bridging that gap...
If they can understand it, they may know how to get it to stop running off.
AS: Ririka Kawase has joined Fuuka Yamagishi's fusion spell! The spell is ready! AS: Persona! Fuuka Yamagishi and Ririka Kawase has used the Almighty skill Abeyance on Hyousuke Suzuki! | Insight: Fuuka Yamagishi gains 1 Limit! AS: Fuuka Yamagishi's turn has ended. AS: Ririka Kawase's turn has ended. | Ririka Kawase: Prophecy removed! Prophecy: 150 healing! AS: Take! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 0 Almighty damage from Fuuka Yamagishi's Abeyance. | Omen (Damage in 2 rounds!) added! AS: Hyousuke Suzuki spends Limit on Exploit! Hyousuke Suzuki can use another Weak skill this round! AS: Hyousuke Suzuki spends Limit on Blood!
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Fuuka's words fell on deaf ears. Whether enraged, frightened, or both, the thing took heed of neither her words, nor the tone they were delivered with. It struggled against the party, lashing out and leaping around, throwing attacks out in a desperate frenzy, its eyes wild and teeth bared.
Even in that frenzied state, the beast still held control over itself, and moved with preternatural agility for something of its size. It was a fact Akihiko was to learn the hard way after the first clean hit. Its pupils darted towards the other incoming blows, and with a short growl of effort, it threw its body back until only it took only glancing blows from his onslaught.
What Akihiko's strike lacked in power it made up for in being a distraction. So focussed on moving away from the bludgeoning blows was the beast, that it failed to notice Hitomi until it was too late. It saw the statue looking towards it, but instinct ruled its mind, and it could not fathom that she had merely been bluffing. Any inkling of it was cast from its mind the moment it saw the array of lights cast by Tyche, and every iota of strength it had was dedicated to fleeing the blasts.
The first blast threw it off balance, landing at its feet. The second threw it off its feet, hammering into its side with a mighty burst of light and noise. The third detonated in its face, driving it into the ground with a crumpling thud, leaving it struggling to its feet and defenceless against what the navigators levelled against it.
It did not notice some of its illusions flickering as the spell was woven, and its magicks began to take effect. It could not see, past the smoke and dirt cast into the air by Hitomi's salvo, that some of them grew faint. In the dark of the night and the heat of battle, such things might have been difficult to see at first, but they only grew more intense with every passing moment.
"Whatever you're doing, it's working!" He called out to Ririka and Fuuka, not acknowledging Akihiko's concern openly, but backing up at his command. "We keep the pressure on, and we'll finally stop this thing! Count on it!" Not 'end this thing.' Not tear, or rip, or rend, or break, or any other pejorative he had spat at any number of his human and demon adversaries. He would *stop* it. Consciously or not, it was a word he had chosen.
He watched the beast, waiting for it to act. More illusions? Ripping fangs, or tearing claws? Another display of feral magic? He knew not what to expect, but he could see - even from that distance - that the thing grew more desperate, and frightened, and furious, with every second they remained.
There was no skill in how it lunged at the party, swinging wildly while sending the last of its illusions in to try and cover its mad tacke against Akihiko. There was no primal finesse to its assault against Fuuka - just the deafening cry of a cornered animal, demanding that she turn tail and flee its home. There was no precision in its maddened state, as Hitomi was shown when its claws - doused in black and terrible energy - swiped down to carve away at whatever it could reach. And there was no restraint in its bites, as it sought to rip into Ririka, its fangs gleaming with the spit that ran between each.
It reared back, readying another round of illusions to fill in the gaps left between the fading images around it, but Hyousuke shot again to distract it. But the pellets did not strike its face. A few missed almost completely, grazing its fur and sinking unceremoniously into the dirt, but the rest hit against its shoulder. One might have thought he'd missed, were it not for how he had clearly aimed that short-barreled shotgun at that spot on it.
AS: Persona! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Recovery skill Desperation on Hyousuke Suzuki! AS: Charm results in party damage! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 90 damage! AS: >>> You still have 3 regular actions and 1 bonus Weak actions! AS: Take! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 0 Recovery healing from Hyousuke Suzuki's Desperation. | Atk_Dn and Crt_Dn removed! AS: Persona! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Dark skill Wolfpack on Akihiko Sanada! 2 Hits! | Hyousuke Suzuki takes 45 damage from Stress! AS: >>> You still have 2 regular actions and 1 bonus Weak actions! AS: Persona! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Dark skill Threatening Roar on Fuuka Yamagishi! AS: >>> You still have 2 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions! AS: Tandem! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Slash skill Shadowed Slash on Hitomi Mandai! 2 Hits! | Aggression: Hyousuke Suzuki gains 1 Limit! AS: >>> You still have 1 regular actions and 0 bonus Weak actions! AS: Tandem! Hyousuke Suzuki has used the Pierce skill Mauling Jaw on Ririka Kawase! AS: Hyousuke Suzuki's turn has ended. | Hyousuke Suzuki regains 6 SP from Invigorate! AS: Block Worst! Fuuka Yamagishi takes 41 Dark damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Threatening Roar. | Panic (Damage when using PersonaTandem!) added! AS: Block Best! Hitomi Mandai takes 38 Slash damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Shadowed Slash. Critical Hit! AS: Block Neutral! Hitomi Mandai takes 54 Slash damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Shadowed Slash. AS: Block Neutral! Ririka Kawase takes 86 Pierce damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Mauling Jaw. AS: Fuuka Yamagishi spends Limit on Shift! Akihiko Sanada can use another Weak skill this round! Hyper (Next Attack BoostedIncoming Damage Down!) applied to Akihiko Sanada! They both receive 8 SP and 30 HP! AS: Ririka Kawase spends Limit on Shift! Hitomi Mandai can use another Weak skill this round! Hyper (Next Attack BoostedIncoming Damage Down!) applied to Hitomi Mandai! They both receive 8 SP and 30 HP! AS: Block Best! Akihiko Sanada takes 30 Dark damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Wolfpack. | Haze (Physical and Block Penalized!) added! AS: Block Best! Akihiko Sanada takes 30 Dark damage from Hyousuke Suzuki's Wolfpack.
<Pose Tracker> Akihiko Sanada has posed.
Akihiko at least, catches the beast on one, but whiffs continually. The beast charges at Akihiko, and he braces for the hit, tanking it effectively.
"You won't get away!" Akihiko calls as he loads a special clip into his evoker. He presses it to his head, and casts Heat Riser on himself. With a sudden burst of speed, Akihiko launches himself at the beast, using his lightning augmented fists to wail on the horrifying beast.
AS: Akihiko Sanada spends Limit on Psych! AS: Tandem! Theurgy! Akihiko Sanada has used the Elec skill Lightning Spike on Hyousuke Suzuki! 3 Hits! | Ruin: Akihiko Sanada gains 1 Limit! AS: Akihiko Sanada's turn has ended. | Akihiko Sanada: Hyper, Prophecy, and Psych removed! Prophecy: 150 healing! AS: Akihiko Sanada spends Limit on Shift! Fuuka Yamagishi can use another Weak skill this round! Hyper (Next Attack BoostedIncoming Damage Down!) applied to Fuuka Yamagishi! They both receive 8 SP and 30 HP! AS: Hitomi Mandai spends Limit on Exploit! Hitomi Mandai can use another Weak skill this round! AS: Hitomi Mandai spends Limit on Psych! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 83 Elec damage from Akihiko Sanada's Lightning Spike. Critical Hit! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 64 Elec damage from Akihiko Sanada's Lightning Spike. AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 83 Elec damage from Akihiko Sanada's Lightning Spike. Critical Hit!
<Pose Tracker> Fuuka Yamagishi has posed.
No response. At this point, Fuuka doesn't expect it - but that doesn't mean it isn't worth it to try. It's always worth it to try.
And as Fuuka and Ririka join their efforts, they have a better time tracking it through its illusions.
"It appears so..." Fuuka replies to Hyousuke. 'Stop', he says - not 'end it'. ...A part of her is relieved to hear that.
To her, the beast unleashes a threatening roar. She flinches. A part of her does want to flee - but she can't. Abandoning this now would be...
...She has to see it through. The darkness-warding curtain Lucia provided her before holds strong, and Ririka's fortifying Marakukaja provides stability.
"I'm sorry." She apologises. She hears Hyousuke fire - but she sees him miss.
...Or maybe he hit exactly what he intended to?
"Lucia... Ease our spirits. Wash away this darkness that blinds us." Fuuka requests of her Persona, her other self. Lucia spreads her arms, and a wave washes over everyone present like water. It's like cool, refreshing rain on a hot day, providing relief and succor.
AS: Persona! Fuuka Yamagishi has used the Recovery skill Relaxing Wave on Akihiko Sanada, Hitomi Mandai, Ririka Kawase, and Fuuka Yamagishi! | Fuuka Yamagishi takes 90 damage from Panic! | Insight: Fuuka Yamagishi gains 1 Limit! AS: Take! Fuuka Yamagishi takes 0 Recovery healing from Fuuka Yamagishi's Relaxing Wave. | Vigor (SP restored on end of turn!) added! AS: Persona! Fuuka Yamagishi has used the Recovery skill Me Patra on Akihiko Sanada and Hitomi Mandai! AS: Fuuka Yamagishi's turn has ended. | Fuuka Yamagishi: Gains 10 SP from Vigor! Panic, Dark_Wall, Hyper, and Prophecy removed! Prophecy: 150 healing! AS: Fuuka Yamagishi spends Limit on Shift! Ririka Kawase can use another Weak skill this round! Hyper (Next Attack BoostedIncoming Damage Down!) applied to Ririka Kawase! They both receive 8 SP and 30 HP! AS: Take! Ririka Kawase takes 0 Recovery healing from Fuuka Yamagishi's Relaxing Wave. | Vigor (SP restored on end of turn!) added! AS: Take! Hitomi Mandai takes 0 Recovery healing from Fuuka Yamagishi's Relaxing Wave. | Vigor (SP restored on end of turn!) added! AS: Take! Hitomi Mandai takes 0 Recovery healing from Fuuka Yamagishi's Me Patra. | Haze removed!
<Pose Tracker> Hitomi Mandai has posed.
[stop] it. Even now, Hyousuke wants to [stop] it.
It must be said that Hitomi, too, has a competitive streak, but while it's close to a vicious one, it's not the same. His words are perhaps a neuro-linguistic spell, and so Hitomi changes, just the tiniest bit, as the Beast comes closer. Hitomi stares at it.
And it is not Hitomi who moves, but Tyche. The great statue almost seems to pirouette (did one arm move) and the blow smashes against it. The Persona crushes against Hitomi, and it cracks, momentarily fragmented, but Hitomi's flesh isn't torn, her skull isn't shaken, her blood isn't shed.
Most of the anger and pain leaves her under Fuuka's ministration. Hitomi focuses on the Beast.
I hate its damn illusions, thinks Hitomi.
Her eyes narrow.
But what if.
"Tyche!" Hitomi says, and the Persona appears, and it floats like usual (if subtly more cracked-up looking) and there are two sudden bursts of flame downwards to bracket the Beast. She's not aiming to miss but they are a little off set: Hitomi might be figuring the Beast has to dodge at least one.
EXCEPT...
"Hey," says Hitomi.
From momentarily behind the Beast, on a backdrop of red. The Dark Hour's sullied moon gleams off one lens of her glasses as she leans a little to the side.
"It's a big mistake to assume you're the only one who can use misdirection."
"I can trick you into being in the wrong place, too," Hitomi concludes. There is a snap of her fingers, in between which is a small tube of something blue which momentarily splashes onto her hand. Then there's a shrieking blur and a column of flame that aims to consume the Beast in incinerating force before it can react!
Well.
Poach the Beast. Actually, that's a good term. Context appropriate. Lightly poached. Fair, after all, is fair.
AS: Persona! Hitomi Mandai has used the Fire skill Double Agi on Hyousuke Suzuki! 2 Hits! | Aggression: Hitomi Mandai gains 1 Limit! AS: Persona! Theurgy! Hitomi Mandai has used the Fire skill You're Burning for Me on Hyousuke Suzuki! AS: Hitomi Mandai's turn has ended. | Hitomi Mandai: Gains 10 SP from Vigor! Hyper and Psych removed! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 133 Fire damage from Hitomi Mandai's Double Agi. Critical Hit! | Haze (Physical and Block Penalized!) added! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 148 Fire damage from Hitomi Mandai's Double Agi. Critical Hit! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 155 Fire damage from Hitomi Mandai's You're Burning for Me.
GAME: Save complete.
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
"We'll keep it up, Suzuki-san!" Ririka calls back. "I think we're starting to figure out which ones are the illusions now." With Fuuka she keeps the Navigator link open, sharing their combined sight with the others.
She catches that word, too. Stopping is good. This thing only fought when backed into a corner...
But the beast lunges once again, and Ririka tries to catch the jaws with her Jatana, bracing the back of the blade with her other hand as she struggles, trying to stay on balance. "Get-- down!" she spits out through gritted teeth.
She's exhausted, and this battle is taking far longer than she'd like. They're doing the best they can, but...
And--there! "I think I see an opening-- I'm going to take it!Amphion! Let's make an opening!"
Amphion strums, and Earth Break is cast at the gbeast, and then Ririka points her Katana. "Now--strike! Double time!"
]Doiulders are torn from the earth and flung at the beast, hoping to catch it at just the right moment.,
AS: Ririka Kawase spends Limit on Exploit! Ririka Kawase can use another Weak skill this round! AS: Persona! Ririka Kawase has used the Almighty skill Earth Break on Hyousuke Suzuki! AS: Persona! Ririka Kawase has used the Earth skill Magna on Hyousuke Suzuki! AS: Persona! Ririka Kawase has used the Earth skill Magnara on Hyousuke Suzuki! AS: Ririka Kawase's turn has ended. | Ririka Kawase: Gains 10 SP from Vigor! Hyper removed! AS: Take! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 0 Almighty damage from Ririka Kawase's Earth Break. | Earth_Break (Earth Affinity Down!) added! AS: Avoid Best! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 44 Earth damage from Ririka Kawase's Magna. | Bind (Magic and Avoid Penalized!) added! Haze removed! Explosion! 15 damage! AS: Avoid Worst! Hyousuke Suzuki takes 174 Earth damage from Ririka Kawase's Magnara. | Bind (Magic and Avoid Penalized!) added! | Hyousuke Suzuki is unable to continue fighting!
<Pose Tracker> Hyousuke Suzuki has posed.
Akihiko's first strike left the beast reeling, the surge of electricity working in tandem with the force of the blow to stun it. It stumbled back, helpless to avoid the other two blows, each of which struck like bolts thrown from the heavens themselves. Its legs splayed, barely supporting the weight above them, but the flurry of strikes had not dimmed the fire in its eyes.
But that fire was no match for Hitomi's blazing wrath. With whatever strength was left in its tattered body, the beast practically threw itself to one side, a short and sharp snarl cutting through the air as pain shot through its muscles. What had been intended as a distraction struck true, singing the whites and browns of its hide a charred black. Wracked with pain and robbed of strength, it could only try to limp feebly away when the culmination of Hitomi's strategy drowned it in an all-consuming pyre.
There was a moment - no longer than a heartbeat - where it looked to Fuuka from behind the flames. There was anger, yes, but there was more. There was desperation in its expression. There was whimpering fear. There was almost a plea for help - or a warning to leave. Whatever it was, Hitomi burnt it away before it had a chance to set, and Ririka's onslaught bludgeoned it out of the beast.
There were no illusions left to protect it, no shadows in which it could hide, no cover behind which it could fling itself. Its defences brought low by Amphion's spell, its feeble attempts at evasion were met with Ririka's boulders, and it topped sideways into the open.
Right within Hyousuke's reach.
Hyousuke fixed the beast with a piercing, fiery, glare. His body, burdened by the injury and exhaustion of this fight and the the battle against the fencer, struggled to hold itself upright beneath its own weight. His fists were clenched tight, nails digging into his own hands so harshly that it felt like they would carve through the gloves of his armour. Even his breathing was not spared. His lungs screamed for oxygen, and his chest heaved with every ragged breath, before releasing in a growling exhale that shook his throat like a quake.
The beast stared back at him, dark eyes gleaming in the pallid moon. It tried to raise to its full height, but the hunters' relentless assault had robbed it of all but the faintest motes of strength, of which it clung desperately to. Its claws, slick with blood and dirt, sank into the forest floor whenever it tried to brace itself, visibly tightening the muscles in its legs in the process. Its breathing made its exhaustion clear for those that could not see the other signs, with great steamclouds rolling past its fangs, jaw left slack as it tried to suck down air into its heaving lungs.
The tension turned the air to glass, and Hyousuke felt like any single movement could shatter it. The two watched each other, still and quiet save for their desperate attempts at clawing back some measure of strength, waiting for their foe to move. To act. To do something they could counter. The moment stretched out for what felt like an eternity, until finally, they moved. It was hard to say who had leapt forward first, but it mattered little. Only barest fraction of a second lay between one's action and thje other's, and it was only a blink before they were entangled in a savage melee.
The beast howled in pain as Hyousuke sent his fist crashing into its jaw, knocking its head sideways, before another vicious blow struck down at the top of its snout. It retaliated, lunging out with with its claws outstretched. It swiped across his stomach, a hair's breadth from eviscerating Hyousuke, before snapping its jaws down like a trap to seize the arm striking down at it. Hyousuke clenched his teeth and braced against the pain, fighting it back so that he could hammer his fist back into the monstrous jaw.
He was a warrior, trained and armoured and bestowed with supernatural powers. It was a vicious, snarling, beast, warped by forces beyond its control. And yet, there they were, scrapping in the dirt, blood and sweat and spit spattering into the ground and turning it to mud. It was a brutal and ugly mess, reducing them both to little more than animals. Only when a decisive, cracking, strike rang out did the entire debacle come to an end, but was not some triumphant feat of strength and determination. It was a single, unceremonious, strike thrown out by Hyousuke in utter desperation.
He stood, bloodied but unbowed, panting as he watched the whimpering thing collapse into a crumpled heap. But before he could land the finishing blow, the beast began to change. Bathed in gentle, yet all-consuming glow, what had once been a howling predator shed its form, leaving Hyousuke standing back and watching cautiously. Limbs shortened while claws blunted and retracted, fur lengthened and shifted to a golden hue, its maw shortened until it was a shorter thing ending in a wetted, black, nose... By the end of it, the thing did not even vaguely resemble the beast that had once plagued them.
He watched, not relieved that the battle was over, but horrified that it had resolved in such a way. He was silent, stunned into it by transformation, despite how his jaw shook in some vain attempt at speech. The silence was not broken by a whimper, however, but a shout.
"STOP!" Hyousuke cried. His was not the voice of a commander, but a desperate man throwing himself in front of an injured hound. "Wait! There's- There's something wrong! Kawase-san, Yamagishi-san, I need- Anyone, I need healing! It's... Oh God, please..."
He tore the mask away and cast it aside, not caring to see where it landed. A glove followed suit, tossed away so that he could place a bare hand against the small, gold-furred dog laying unconscious by him as he kneeled.
"It... It's still breathing... It's still alive..." Another silence, once more only lasting the span of a heartbeat. When he spoke again, however, his tone was hardened, bolstered by steely determination in spite of the wavering that could still be heard beneath. "Get me to the Velvet Room. We need to go. NOW."
<Pose Tracker> Fuuka Yamagishi has posed.
The battle draws to a close. Not with glorious triumph, but with vicious reality and the dawning horror of their opponent's true form. Fuuka gasps, hands clasping around her mouth.
She looks to the others, as Hyousuke shouts for them to stop. Healing... Can they heal this? Healing spells only work on those Personas... does the supernatural still cling to this dog enough for that to work. She hesitates - but she'll try anyway.
"Lucia... Please." Fuuka requests - and Lucia sprinkles the waters of healing around, to tend to everyone's wounds. And when Hyousuke asks them to get him to the Velvet Room...
"...Let's find the shortest route, Kawase-san." Fuuka says.
<Pose Tracker> Ririka Kawase has posed.
Ririka pants as she has Amphion send off the final spell, watching as the beast they've been hunting is laid low. "Okay... maybe... maybe now we can... contain it, I guess? Or..." She glances to Fuuka. "... maybe we can scan it together, and figure out--"
But right then the beast and Hyousuke leap for each other, brutally brawling until they're both scrapping in the mud. ""Suzuki! Hyousuke!" she shouts, alarmed. "It's already down--"
But she watches in amazement as it starts to change. "That fur... We found that fur where it slipped away from us!" But Hyousuke asks for healing, and Ririka hesitates. she's thinking the same thing Fuuka is.
But they don't lose anything by trying, right? "Amphion. Diarama." She glances to Fuuka and nods. "Hai." Ririka reaches out and starts to play her keyboard as she starts to search.
With both of them working in tandem, they can get moving all that much faster.