View source for 786/Hunting the Blue Griffin: Humiliating the Count

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2023/11/18
|Location=Game Crown Arcade
|Synopsis=Takashi and Hannah conspire to humiliate the Count. It works, and the Count gains a new 'friend'.
|Cast of Characters=108,40,107,47,71,145
|pretty=yes
}}
{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:108|Hannah Steiner (108)}} has posed:'''<br>Hannah either texts those that know her situation, or otherwise let those interested in the Mahou Fight Club know she's going to need backup to 'strike a blow against a force of murderous evil.' Some may be able to figure out that her target is clearly her Uncle, while other may not. Still, Hannah gives a time, a date, and a place, and even reveals herself in her civilian form to those who may not already know it. <br><br>She's willing to make concessions for today. And then she texts one Riventon of Obsidian. <br><br>Lyra's lead clutched in her hand, Hannah quite simply walks out of the Game Center Crown, tossing away the remains of a milkshake, only to pause at a street corner, leaning against it as if waiting for a taxi. Given the buildings and alleyways in Juuban? Hiding places are many. <br><br>Elsewhere, the greying blonde hair of Count Otto has a hand run through it, the man peering towards the youma that the anonymous tipster has provided. <br><br>"...A shame the sender remains anonymous. Far less incompetent than most on this world. Perhaps I shall pierce their identity und reward them" He ponders, before using his Dark Energy fueled copy of Hannah's Device to scan the area. He grins, the rush of magic filling him! <br><br>"Hah. There she is. Fool." And then he leaps from building to building, gravity chaining him from one place to the other, until he stands atop a water tower, gazing balefully down at his niece. <br><br>A blade, purple and writhing with Dark Energy, is drawn. <br><br>And then he peers to the youma given to him. "Go. Drain them all but leave the blonde to me."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:40|Takashi Agera (40)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Of course, Riventon didn't like Count Otto from the first meeting. Riventon didn't like anyone who is not named Riventon and tries to claim authority, so the clash was inevitable. To that end, he reached out to Hannah Steiner about making sure that, if not solved, the problem of Count Otto could be at least slightly more handled, wagering that she would have an interest. Which she did.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The ambusher is actually the ambushed, thanks to the fact that Otto doesn't really know any subordinates - how was he going to know whether an email was a spoof or not. Whether there was an Obsidian agent Hannah wounded and he wanted to get back at her, or not.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;So the intent has been, get Hannah's uncle to come and think he's hunting her with the help of a 'special youma' - only to discover this youma is somewhat mildly busted, in a sense. A plan to get value out of a failed bit of biotech, maybe get rid of Hannah's uncle or at least stagger him a bit, maybe get a favor owed to him on the sparkleskirt side. The little Daimon Egg floating in a glass case oozes a glistening purple liquid, and Otto's too self absorbed to know this is abnormal OR not how Daimon Eggs are normally provided to agents.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Riventon is nearby, with popcorn, pulling a Hematite on the side of a rooftop and only spending energy on masking his signature from detection. He's not here to help or harm. He's here to watch.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:107|Amy Faust (107)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Amy is being a random bystander outside of Game Crown. At least, that was the plan. It is freaking winter and a sweatshirt over her school uniform isn't cutting it. So she watches from just *inside* the Game Crown, waiting.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Wait, is that someone actually playing the Virtual On machine? Ooh, they're playing Apharmd. She wonders if that's their main... wait, no, focus! Hannah! Watch Hannah.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;A quick glance confirms that this player is using every advanced technique in the book, completely destroying the AI with the close combat tricks that Japan's Virtual On community is known for! She never thought she'd see in action... Some techniques she recognizes, but some of this she doesn't know how it works. What WAS that? WAIT NO LATER! She looks back-- Hannah's still walking. Okay.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:47|Nanoha Takamachi (47)}} has posed:'''<br>Nanoha Takamachi is watching.<br><br>On a floating screen Raising Heart is projecting.<br><br>From 25 stories in the air. She has jellybeans because she put them in Raising Heart's storage compartment for just such an occasion as she let flier fin hover her high in the air. She was waiting, contently, biding her time until the attack started. She had at least, no distractions this high up!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Cho Konishi (71)}} has posed:'''<br>Cho Konishi was... actually not a part of this. She likely would have struggled with the ethical dilemas if she knew just how vengeful Hannah was. Instead, she was planning some vengeance of her own.<br><br>... Okay, it wasn't vengeance. She was actually just kind of relaxing at the arcade, having gotten some credits and was intending to maybe play a game or two. Because, admittedly, she didn't really... She hadn't played many games growing up and so many people liked them, so they had to be amazing! And now she was enacting vengeance on herself. She decided to try the 'VR rollercoaster!' game! And was like 'Oh, I know, random, random, random...' Unfortunately, the random... sucked. Apparently the random defaulted to 'loop'. So after ten loops in a row she was climbing out of the machine, wobbly eyed and vowing to NEVER TRY IT AGAIN! WHY WOULD ANYONE DO THIS TO THEMSELVES?! She collapsed in a nearby seat, unaware that in a few moments...<br><br>Violence.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:108|Hannah Steiner (108)}} has posed:'''<br>The dripping ichor makes as much sense to the Count as any other unreasonable thing on this world. Magic was something he's only knowing of through others, given his lack until being able to wield Dark Energy. Here, he wields it in cold, selfish self-aggrandizement, and that blade of his making mockery of Blauer Greif seems to eat the light around itself with its' dour purple. Everything seems a little more dim, and life seems less joyful. The civilians about suddenly seem to only be able to contemplate the wrongs, petty or otherwise, done to them. <br><br>Two co workers walking beside each other suddenly get in a fistfight, before Count Otto tosses the Daimon Egg into the air, and cuts the glass to let it and its' occupant to emerge into the world, goo and all! <br><br>He leaps down from on high. <br><br>And rather than bother with words, he raises his blade, walking up towards Hannah with intent. <br><br>Lyra barks. <br><br>"...No words for me, Onkel after all those failures? Your depravity is nearly as deep as your lack of manners, kinslayer!" Seethes the young woman, hate filling her voice oh-so-easily for this man. <br><br>Her Uncle seems caught off guard for a moment, unaware of either the Puella on overwatch, nor Nanoha oh-so-high up with her jellybeans. <br><br>Also Cho is around, and even if the VR game sucks, things are about to get so very much worse. <br><br>"Acht. Why bother with words for a useless girl only given prominence by the chance of her birth. Die you WORM!" Comes Otto, hatred just as if not /more/ for his niece. Twin sets of teeth grit. Hannah transforms, and almost immediately draws her own cane-sword from her Device. <br><br>The resulting clash between the two are simple, artful, strong blows. Despite how so many have cautioned her for mercy? <br><br>In the moment, all she can remember is the screams, and the two Devices slice into one another. The blowback rends a line through concrete, sends civilians running, and blows out a single window in the GCC. <br><br>But Otto's Dark Energy proves stronger, and Hannah immediately is driven into a light pole, denting the thing. Otto raises a hand. <br><br>"To my will, youma!" <br><br>Someone might want to erect a Barrier, Hannah is a little busy.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:40|Takashi Agera (40)}} has posed:'''<br>The Daimon Egg shatters along with its case, and detonates into a cloud of pink smoke. When the smoke clears, however, there is a tall woman with an additional four exoskeleton covered arms erupting out of her back, and there's the fact that she has four eyes where normal people would have one, and strange protusions on the back of her thighs and... oh. It's a spider-woman-youma. And not the spandex-clad kind of spider-woman, but just a tall woman with very literal spider anatomyy in places.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;And she looks fine, and menacing, and bitey. Big fangs, dangerous claws, the works. At least, until Otto summons her to his side. She does appear, alright, dashing over right quick. But she looks at him and then at Hannah. And then back to him. And she's fixated on him, and leans in veeeeery close.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"Hi there." she says, grinning like a crazy person. "You have Dark Energy? I'm made of Dark Energy. Isn't Dark Energy great?" Which she punctuates with a little overexaggerated school-girl like 'teehee'.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Oh yes, this Youma is SPECIAL, alright.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:47|Nanoha Takamachi (47)}} has posed:'''<br>Nanoha Takamachi does two things when Otto shows up. The first is that she erects a barrier. The barrier shining into existence with it's magenta color and shunting all the civilians out of the area and leaving just empty buildings.<br><br>She then, secondly, starts laying down fire support, spinning Raising Heart downwards and expelling a barrage of barrel shots, orbs that streak out into lasers between Hannah and Otto, not aiming at Otto directly, but between the two to make a momentary wall of fire, before she'll try to close more distance downwards.<br><br>She doesn't yell anything because she's too high up.<br><br>Maybe Chrono can teach her voice projection later.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:107|Amy Faust (107)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Are those two people fighting?<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;*BARK!*&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The man moving in for the kill is obvious when that's what you're looking for. Amy steps out the door so she can hear.<br><br>&gt; Acht. Why bother with words for a useless girl only given prominence by the chance of her birth. Die you WORM!<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;There is a silent, heatless, shockwaveless explosion of flame around Amy as she transforms, and a freaking *rocket* joins Nanoha's barrage. Fire first, THEN words.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;And she has WORDS.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"That's IT?! You hunt your own niece and you can't even PRETEND to have a good reason for all this?! And you're STILL so dangerous we were terrified of you?!"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Cho Konishi (71)}} has posed:'''<br>Cho Konishi was... actually, it was kind of horrific, if you think about it. She was i nan arcade. Then suddenly EVERYONE was gone, except a few people. And there were EXPLOSIONS! And a weird spider monster outside. If she were... well...<br><br>If not for magical girls, this would be horrific. As it was? She just kind of sighed. Glanced at the machine. Someone enacted a barrier of a no property damage and... a thought occured. All the stuff here got undone when they left, right? So... no. Don't. Don't think it!<br><br>She crouched behind one of the machines and whispered her henshin, before Cure Wukong appeared and--<br><br>... Okay, she was CURIOUS, okay?! Not a thief! She just had to knoooow! If it was going to be undone, she wanted to know! So there was a crash and she punched a fist into one of the machines, ripped out the coin department and pocketed a few of the coins. Why? Because she wanted to see if they'd be there when she was done! It was for SCIENCE! Also, poor impulse control. But officially it was for science!<br><br>She then... picked up one of the machines and just YEETED it out the door at the spider youma! She didn't KNOW it was flirting with a guy, otherwise she wouldn't have done so!<br><br>Then she kind of walked out towards the hole she just made in the side of the arcade. "Hey Red! Uhhhh... so, what are we doing? Is this one yours? Cause I think I have a spider villain thing that might show up, but I'm... pretty sure that's not the Spider Queen." She then pause. "Hey! Spider thing! Are you the Spider Queen? If so, wiggle your top two legs!"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:145|Veronica Perenna (145)}} has posed:'''<br>Veronica has been tracking down another one of the relics, and all the directions this time were really vague and confusing, as if something was deliberately obfuscating them. What was going on here? She has been puzzling onto this for quite a while until the directions finally stabilised this very day?<br><br>Better not to waste this chance. In a blue flash the Princess of Sarek makes her way to the Game Crowd Arcade. Ok, she didn't expect that. Why would they even be here? This is not the sort of place filled with opulence and decadence the youma who possessed them tend to hang out at. In fact this is very low brow.<br><br>Though, that's a problem to solve for later. There are two people fighting here, and one of them is a magical girl. What are they doing, why are they fighting? Luckily she overhears Puella Red talking about the man being willing to do this to his own niece?<br><br>Well, let's try pushing the scales in a certain direction. Veronica points her cane towards the man and a beam of strong moonlight emanates from it, direct towards the man. Maybe that will hurt him? Or at least provide a distraction for the blonde niece.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:108|Hannah Steiner (108)}} has posed:'''<br>At first, Otto grins viciously as Hannah is blown away, and the creature that the daimon egg emerges as! Just the sort of thing to bind a worthless Belkan and let him take off her head! But, just when he's about to attack again? <br><br>Well, the thing is right beside him, taking his word...literally. At utter face value. His brow twitches. He pauses, and /scowls/ right into her face. <br><br>"What are you doing, idiot!? Do not belabor the obvious when the enemy is right there! Drain the energy of the ci..." And then Nanoha's barrier wipes things clean. <br><br>He lets out an irritated sigh. "Yes. Dark Energy is very wunderbar. NOW MURDER MY ENEMIES YOU FOOL!" He screams in sheer wroth, grabbing one of those limbs, and /shoving/ her towards Hannah, only for a rain of barrel shots to rain down, followed by a rocket. The man raises his free hand. <br><br>Monotone words issue from the faux-Device he possesses. <br><br>&lt;Turmschild&gt; <br><br>Perfect Ancient Belkan. A shield appears on his arm, the very same spell Hannah uses, a bold tower shield but spiked and in stark purple. He blocks the edges of the rain of magic from Nanoha, and that rocket hits...And the blast curves away, only gently scorching the magic thing as gravity far stronger than even Hannah's own skill forces it away from him. He dismisses it. <br><br>"Mein reason is for the Throne und how this useless girl has no right to it! I am her superior! I ALONE shall rule und bring Tharkad...No, /THE BELKAN EMPIRE ITSELF/ back to fruition by mein hand!" He doesn't lack of ambition despite his mediocrity. <br><br>He gestures about angrily. <br><br>"Youma! You shall be..." Ugh. His distaste is clear, but offering faux rewards is his go-to strategy. "Rewarded if you suck the juices out of thse ones! Go, indulge und you shall be mein right-hand...spider?" He lets the errant thought go. Good enough! <br><br>Suddenly something big is coming for him, and the Count turns. There's an entire arcade machine being flung at him. His eyes narrow. <br><br>&lt;Fluss: Aufhellen&gt; Comes his Device, and as it closes in? A simple wave of the cane portion of his Device has it slow, and then just hover there. <br><br>Then he aims a blow, smashing the thing directly back to Cure Wukong with a single contemptuous kick! <br><br>"Vermin, do not interfere!" <br><br>But the effort leaves one Princess of Sarek a nice opening to hammer a moonlight beam into his back, the man letting out a howl of more irritation than actual damage, his Barrier Jacket steaming and a part of his cape sizzling away. His attention turns to the Princess. <br><br>Blauer Greif speaks. <br><br>&lt;Fluss: Erhöhen&gt; <br>Hannah has taken the time to pick herself out of the light pole, move around Nanoha's helpful exclusion zone via covering fire, and then is right next to her Uncle. Her sword arm goes up, and crashes down only to be met by a similar blade. <br><br>But there's none of the usual additional strength her spell applies, no gravity in that blow. <br><br>Stunned from the combined mahou's strikes, this gives his Niece the opportunity to grab at the man's throat, gravity enhanced fingers trying to squeeze. Their foreheads all but collide. <br><br>"....I wonder if you are worthy of the mercy they would have me show you!? Cannot even give an appeal to anything other than yourself!" She asks her Uncle, voice meant for him, but in her hatred unable to modulate it. It carries.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:40|Takashi Agera (40)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"I'm talking to you, silly. That's what I'm doing." the youma says, reaching out as if to 'boop' him on the nose, beforee he grabs her and shoves her back. "Oh. I have to fight?" she says, looking disappointed. "But they're just so... bleh." she says, turning around and sticking her tongue out at him like she'd just eaten a bad candy.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"But I'm not hungry right now." She says in response to his request to attack the others. "I shouldn't eat if I'm not hungry. That's not good for you. Have you been eating while you're not hungry? That would explain a lot." she says, looking him up and down... when he pauses the arcade machine and returns it to sender! "Otto-sama! You saved me! How noble of you!" she says, clasping her hands.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Hannah and Otto trade barbs and threats and attacks, and the top quality spider-youma just kind of hovers around, and the one time she tries to interject into the fight with Hannah, saying "I can help you, too!" she is accidentally given a small, thin gash. This causes her to start... sobbing, and turn to Otto."Otto-sama!!! They hurt me!!!" she cries out. "Look! I got a scratch! I'm bleeding!!!" she whines with a high pitch into his ear. LOUDLY. "You're not gonna let them get away with that, are you, Otto-sama?"<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She does not wiggle her top two legs.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Somewhere a boy on a rooftop is laughing.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:47|Nanoha Takamachi (47)}} has posed:'''<br>Nanoha Takamachi has reached a more reasonable altitude and looks at the going ons. Is... is that guys youma... flirting with him. How.. how...<br><br>Romantic. +_+<br><br>Yeaaah you go, Spider-chan, you get that silvering fox, you.<br><br>But then she comes to from her dreamy romantic moment. Oh right. F...Fight.<br><br>She levels out Raising Heart... at Otto, because really, that youma is useless and waits for Hannah to have her say before shooting a single shot barret at the man's chest. For punctuation.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:107|Amy Faust (107)}} has posed:'''<br>&gt; I ALONE WILL TAKE THE KING-RANK TITLE AND BLOB INTO AN EMPIRE<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Amy sighs. "I get it. Once you start thinking in territory and dynasties, there's only one way to go, right? But this isn't a game. These are *real people*. Not just Hannah, all the soldiers who you'd sacrifice in your war for expansion."<br><br>&gt; I'LL MAKE YOU MY RIGHT HAND SPIDER<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"Lady, this guy is *obviously* going to betray you, whether he uses you as a sacrificial pawn or has you murdered."<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She fires another rocket. This one airbursts inches before the shield.<br><br>&gt; You ever seen someone catch an arcade machine?<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"Oh, he has telekinesis TOO now? That's great. Just great. Dude, if you have all this power the hell do you need a title for? You could just go *fight everybody*. You think you're great enough to be the emperor? You coulda gone out there and showed them. Forget the Tharkadian crown, you coulda made the Otto empire or whatever."<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Puella Amy smirks. "Unless, of course... you <span class="underline fg_n bg_n ++ u">*know*</span> no one would ever follow *you* because everyone can see how much you suck, so you have to trick them by stealing a title. That's it, isn't it?"<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Also oh hey, Cure Wukong is here! "Hey! Long time no see!" Amy waves as she tries to think of a rocket that can get past Otto's ability to bend things away from himself.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:145|Veronica Perenna (145)}} has posed:'''<br>Well, he is the sturdy kind, it seems. "You are the despicable vermin here, knave! How dare you assault your own blood over a Throne. I can feel the stench of decadence coming from you from all the way over here", the Princess of Sarek reprimands him.<br><br>Literally so. She can feel one of her contaminated relics on his person, which is a surprise since the youma guarding them is no more. Usually, that would have purified them already. Maybe he is just that toxic. That's quite the achievement there, bravo.<br><br>"Hello, Puella Red, thanks for the quick explanation", she quickly says to Amy.<br><br>The youma there is... Hmmm... Quite weird? That's either the least dependable youma ever or the most dependable. Well, that's just how it appears from here. The Princess of Sarek decides to send a mist of shimmering lights the way of the youma. It's a completely harmless spell, and now it's much prettier.<br><br>As for the traitor... Let's try doubling up on it. Take 2 beams this time!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Cho Konishi (71)}} has posed:'''<br>Cure Wukong totally had everything under control.<br><br>Then her arcade machine got thrown back at her. She no longer had things under control. She drew her staff. "Crud crud crud CRUD!" And drove the end into the ground. It extended and grew and BOOM! The arcade machine hit it and then dropped to the ground. She then shrunk it back down to a staff-sized weapon before poking her head around the wreckage. "HA!"<br><br>... The youma was flirting with the guy. And her eyes lit up. "Oh my gosh! Are you two an evil couple? I haven't fought one of those before!"<br><br>She then glanced to Amy and nodded. "Hey. Yeah, been busy, council stuff, you know. So, we punch him, right?" she asked, motioning to the guy. Then... she threw out a few hairs! They prompty turned into Wukongs and THREE of them tried to rush Otto! One going for a clothesline, one trying to trip and one trying to punch!<br><br>... The other eight of them just lounged about.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:108|Hannah Steiner (108)}} has posed:'''<br>Otto's face is redder than the sun right about now, because this Definitely-Special-And-Powerful-Youma is... <br><br>He can't come up with a description. For the single time in their lives, both Steiners seem /flabbergasted/ at the mere existence of an unwordly creature just /leaking/ sheer worthlessness. <br><br>"N...Nein, I did not save you, beast!" Comes the older man. <br><br>Is he playing hard to get!?!? <br><br>His extra-redding about 'saving' her might even come across as a blush!!!! Spider-chan and Count Otto ship sailing!?!? <br><br>"Just...cease whining und let us fight /as one/!" He declares to the sadly bleeding, crying and /LOUD/ youma! <br><br>Then there's the small matter of his Niece's fingers. Which dig in, and he's choking. <br><br>His forehead slams into hers', and Hannah uses the force to duck a blow that would have taken off her head by sheer dint of Lyra's swift hiss. <br><br>Which is directly followed an airburst rocket, sending him toppling into the Barrier-saved dirt. <br><br>He coughs, and hops up with a spryness far beyond a man of his age. <br><br>"Und what else is there for those born high such as meinself?" He says, rubbing the indentations on his neck offered by Hannah. <br><br>"An Emperor marches with soldiers, fool! They shall come with that pitiful Device she wields as a measure of State! You know nothing of our politics, or our past, I alone shall rule everything! ...Do you truly believe mein weak little Niece would not do the same once upon the Throne? Lesser than meinself, but still desiring power!" He asks of Amy. <br><br>Hannah's brows fold, but she doesn't directly counter. <br><br>With a yell of rage, a blade meets those twin moonbeams from the Princess of Sarek, and the darkness on his cane-sword doesn't so much batter them out of the way, as simply /devour/ them like a black hole. <br><br>Nanoha's strike then smashes right into his chest, the useless youma not at all helping him deal with /so many/ opponents. This one seems to actually hurt, sending him flying back straight into the lightpole that he'd knocked his niece into. <br><br>The relics /shine/ with accumulated hate on his person, the man thinking of them as mere trinkets. Like a toxic waste dump of pure rage! <br><br>A cane bashes into the Wukong going for a closeline, then a foot smashes into the one trying to trip him. But the third gets a blow into his nose, and there's this sound of impact! He howls. <br><br>Then he headbutts the illusion into pieces. <br><br>Gasping at this point, he stares at the crowd around him. There's a sudden wave of Dark Energy, and Hannah is lifted into the air through sheer power! <br><br>She chokes, teeth gritting, even as the man holds back his Device. <br><br>Several &lt;Turmschilds&gt; rise into place around him. Interlacing layers of gravitic and dark-energy magic slowly form an unholy Lance of sheer enormous power. Despite the uselessness of his youma and the many foes before him? His gaze is only for his Niece. <br><br>"Die as your worthless parents did..." He growls hatefully. <br><br>Hannah chokes, but lets her Device go, which floats in the air. <br><br>Her hand pulls in ever-lapping motes of gravity, crawling and enhancing one another. Both spells are reaching critical peak! <br><br>&lt;Alpha-Streik&gt; Comes Otto's faux-Device. <br><br>&lt;Fluss: Akkretion&gt; Comes the true Device of old Tharkad. <br><br>Hannah can't speak. But Blauer Greif and Lyra both ping and hiss entrieties to those gathered to help her before its' too late!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:40|Takashi Agera (40)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"But you did save me, Otto-Sama. You protected me and everything. You're so much more noble than you look!" she protests. Of course, she can't exactly converse with Otto for most of what continues on, just kind of occasionally trying to get his attention, and unfortunantly for the Count, sometimes succeeding.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Thanks to the Princess of Sarek, though, she is -sparkly- which matches the sparkles in her otherwise empty eyes, and just makes her even more distracting overall. "You killed her parents? That's so... mean..." she asks, her face looking crestfallen for a moment. "You didn't invite me?! I LOVE killing! I'm very good at it. I was MADE to kill and hurt." she says, despite clearly having existed for about ten minutes, during which she did no killing or hurting except in the form of headaches for Otto.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"Oh! Oh! Yes I can help you!" she says as the spells are magnifying. "Let's fight as one, Otto-Sama!" she says, grabbing his arm and looking intently at the swirl of magical energy. "Together! We will destroy your enemies! And then... then you will get a dashing and fancy HAT. I will make it for you." She is not providing any assistance whatsoever in the magic war. In fact, she's occasionally tugging Otto's arm with her excitement. "You will look better in a hat."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Cho Konishi (71)}} has posed:'''<br>Cure Wukong really.... was about aware of what was going on as the spider youma, to be honest. But that was OKAY! Because she was siding with Red and even if she didn't know what was going on, monkey bullshit usually meant just doing what you had to do.<br><br>In this case, it meant... Frowning when suddenly her clones ran off. "Uhhhh... where are you..."<br><br>"We'll be right back!"<br><br>"... Well, that's worrying." She, unfortunately, needed to worry about the things! The battle! She held up her stick and then paused. No. It didn't call for this. Instead... she could do agitation. Getting involved in a stick fight when there was a laser beam battle going on was an ill fated idea. However, there was one thing she could do that only she could do as well as her.<br><br>Agitation.<br><br>She walked closer to the battle and, rather than attacking... "Hey, Spider Youma? Are you sure a hat? Don't you think he'd look pretty dapper in a scarf? How long would it take you to make something like that? What kind of hat do you think would work best with his hairline?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:145|Veronica Perenna (145)}} has posed:'''<br>Veronica chimes in on the fashion debate. "Hey, hats are pretty dapper on just about anyone. Especially top hats. You can't go wrong with those. Now, I know a hatter my parents employ..."<br><br>She is about to go into a tirade about the subject when her eyes fall on the cane the count is using, leaving her to turn up her nose at it. Now, what if...<br><br>"Eww, what do you have there? Really, you are so close to having something good, but that purple just won't do. You need it to be pure ebony with a silver handle, just like mine."<br><br>She turns up her own cane towards him, intending to have him look at it. If he does, she releases a blinding glare from it, which would take effect for some minutes.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:47|Nanoha Takamachi (47)}} has posed:'''<br>Nanoha Takamachi , still skybound, but closer to the ground insists. "a classy fedora." she says, finally as she notes the two fighting, she orders Rasing Heart into cannon mode. Which means she's about to get down to business. She takes aim...<br><br>"DIVINNNEEEEE!...." she calls out, Raising Heart charging up as she calls out. "...BUSTAAAA!" before a terribly large lance of energy comes down from her location down hopefully, into Count Otto's location.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:107|Amy Faust (107)}} has posed:'''<br>&gt; Oh I missed a bit where Hannah claims her friends want her to show Otto mercy.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"What? No, I didn't ask for that! I killed Flowey, man, and I'd do it again! He's the only thing I did." Whatever sentiment she's trying to convey is probably lost in pop culture references from NO nope not thinkin' about how many years ago Undertale is nope no nuh-uh on with the fight!<br><br>&gt; Well what ELSE am I gonna do, nobles gotta conquer!<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"Basically anything a person could want?! You're some rich noble, take up a hobby and get all the nicest stuff, find a girlfriend... or boyfriend and know your beloved shall want for nothing! You don't have to take from or hurt anybody, you can take your winnings of birth and *live like a count*!"<br><br>&gt; Do you really think Hannah won't sacrifice millions of soldiers for that sweet 'reform the Holy Sankt Empire' cheevo?<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;That *does* give Amy pause, for a second or two. "...Not once she gets to know some of the soldiers. She'll find a better way. She won't commit atrocities for her dreams."<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The fight continues, until Otto is force choking Amy's girlfriend.<br><br><span style="color:#d7d75f">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &#123;<span style="color:#d70000">&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;</span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&#125;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span><br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She holds out her arm, the launcher suddenly a big tube strapped to it, firing one big rocket that breaks apart into a *bunch* of anti-tank mini-missiles, each one airbursting into piercing lances of plasma.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Amy doesn't wait to see how that pans out. The launch tube and cloak disappear as a bunch of new pieces appear on her costume in splashes of pink sparkles, armored boots and gauntlets supporting missile racks on each arm and leg, and more on each shoulder. Steiners *and* Grys-Vok players alike can appreciate the dozens of little missiles launching from Puella Red like she's a mecha musume, arcing every which way to come at Otto from every direction at once in two dome-shaped waves. Between the scattered cluster-missile and the two waves that's three chances to adjust airburst distance or guide around obstacles as the soul of a Puella Magi burns will into violently high-energy physics.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She acted so fast there was no time to think of banter. What is there even to say? This man has threatened the one closest to her more than any Witch.<br><br><span class="bold_fg_w bg_n ++ hw">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;+---------------------------------------+&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&#124;<span style="color:#FF8700">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><span class="bold_fg_y bg_n ++ hy">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>&#124;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&#124;<span style="color:#FF8700">&nbsp;&nbsp;[<span style="color:#d70000">v</span>FIGHT]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><span class="bold_fg_y bg_n ++ hy">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; [ MERCY]&nbsp;&nbsp;</span>&#124;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&#124;<span style="color:#FF8700">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><span class="bold_fg_y bg_n ++ hy">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>&#124;<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;+---------------------------------------+&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span><br><br><span class="bold_fg_w bg_n ++ hw">&gt;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; I&nbsp;&nbsp;k n e w&nbsp;&nbsp;y o u&nbsp;&nbsp;h a d&nbsp;&nbsp;i t&nbsp;&nbsp;i n&nbsp;&nbsp;y o u !&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</span><br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Shut up. I won't sacrifice everyone else's happiness for his.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:108|Hannah Steiner (108)}} has posed:'''<br>The spider....is an elemental /terror/ of sheer annoyance. Despite herself, even /Hannah/ starts to laugh as she dotes upon her Uncle, at least until she deigns to say she was made to kill and hurt. <br><br>Okay that would hurt more if she wasn't both incompetent, persistant, loud, and utterly ineffectual. In fact, Hannah sadly feels this weird sort of /charm/ from the annoying creature that so torments her Uncle, even as she's up in the air and struggling for breath. <br><br>By the Sankt has Riventon delivered on their deal! <br><br>"Y...you know...maybe you should listen to her Onkle! I think you have a lover in the making!" Taunts Hannah with a grin, just to add that much more to the objective, helpfully reminded to her by that Silly Spider. <br><br>Humiliate, not kill. She'd almost lost the plot, really. <br><br>She sends a spark of gravity up the gravity-chain given to her by her Uncle, and she can suddenly breathe again. <br><br>"C...cease this foolishness youma! Devour them! Kill them! PROVE TO ME THAT YOU ARE USEFUL!" He screams at her, before turning about to try to grab the spider. <br><br>To most, it's like he's ready to drain /her/ for Dark Energy rather than unleash her to the mahou. ...Or to the romantics or silly spider brains, is he trying to pull her in for a smooch upon the battlefield!?!? <br><br>"....Another Device!?" Comes the Count, turning away from his fool of a youma, right towards the Princess of Sarek. He screams as that brilliance hits his eyes. Hannah can /feel/ that radiance on her skin, and yet is savvy enough to take advantage of it. <br><br>Her Device easily plots a course of attack amidst the eye-scouring light that she doesn't fear at all. Instead she calls it her ally. <br><br>The blade of Blauer Greif slashes at that gravity-lance known as Alpha Streik. She knows it well, after all, and introduces that mere vibration that interrupts its' fragile nature while summoning it. Rather than unleash her own attack? She jumps backwards, making way for the pure pink radiance of a Divine Buster from on high. Count Otto focuses his shields upon that blast of Pink Apocalypse, but one after one fails to hold, until all but the last remains. <br><br>A deft, fancy boot smashes into it, causing the shield to explode, ablating some of the magical force. <br><br>But not all, and the remaining blast has him smashed down into a crater! Only for the rest of his own Lance of Gravity to collapse against himself, in a wicked parody of Hannah's own debacle while fighting Hematite! <br><br>Barrier Jacket sizzling, he leans on his cane, and stands up like any good stalwart Belkan. <br><br>A sword goes flying, and it's the Count's turn to bleed. <br><br>The blade of Hannah's Device /thunks/ into a faux-wall, and the older man rubs at the wound, almost a mirror image of the one Norie has given to Hannah. But the hesitation lets him live. <br><br>It seems she's still unsure whether to kill him or not, her hand still trembling from the attempt. <br><br>And then Amy Faust commits to the glorious overkill that is Puella Magi Missile Massacre, and puts her full on firepower onto him. He's not match for Hannah's actual skill with a sword, but his pure emotional energy has him weave that blade into a sheer /wall/ of strikes that slash down all but the last single airburst that shoves him back, and two final missiles that end up kicking him into the air, only to land on his feet, entire body smoking. <br><br>His Barrier Jacket is writhing with Dark Energy. <br><br>False Device floating around him, he raises a hand, and tries to simply choke his Niece. <br><br>She smiles, his hand grips her neck, and she punches that gravity well right into his stomach, sending him straight through the fake GCC, only for the Count to pull himself up. <br><br>Annoyingly, with a new spider youma beside him. <br><br>"...Just a little closer, mein Niece. Und you would have been upon the seat of Empire. Do not deny it." He taunts, before reaching out, duskporting himself and his useless new youma away! <br><br>Hannah shudders, and stumbles towards her blade, pulling it out of the building and rubbing two fingers against her<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:108|Hannah Steiner (108)}} has posed:'''<br>Hannah shudders, and stumbles towards her blade, pulling it out of the building and rubbing two fingers against her Uncle's blood upon the weapon silently.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:40|Takashi Agera (40)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The youma is in fact, highly useful for its intended purpose. Flustering, frustrating, and vexing the Count Otto. Now he had someone who annoyed him the way his presence annoyed Takashi Agera. "You... you don't think I'm useful?!" she says, her bottom lip quivering as he reaches out to grab her, right before the blinding flare engulfs the two of them. And then the light around them is brilliant pink, and the two of them are trapped together in a crater. She gets up much more slowly than the Count. She cowers behind him for the airburst (and is thusly pushed back when he is, and knocked down when he's bushed away. "You're... hurt?" she says, as though questioning the reality, the mere possibility of the situation. "Otto-sama is... hurt?! How?!"<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Truly, the Count may have tried to teleport without her, but she was clutching onto his shirt and fretting at his neck wound.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:145|Veronica Perenna (145)}} has posed:'''<br>It didn't take Otto long to recover from the glare, but Phantom Thieves got to Phantom Thieve, you know? That's why Veronica is right beside him in her ethereal state after all the attacks have finished laying destruction in his direction, sneaking her hand where he is keeping the engraved set of throwing daggers. '''The Vexated Count's Knives''' acquired!<br><br>She leaves in their place her calling card for him to read, just a little bit of mockery. That's the least that jerk deserves.<br><br>Turning visible after the Count takes his leave, Veronica waves to Puella Red and the others. "Hello, Puella Red, hello new friends, are you all right?" Her concern is in particular directed at Hannah, who was the one being chocked. That vile count certainly didn't spare blows.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:71|Cho Konishi (71)}} has posed:'''<br>Cure Wukong was... not entirely sure what just happened. Who that guy was. Of course, almost on cue...<br><br>Wukong's clones returned! Well. All but one. The last one had to get to their ice cream serving job. But the rest of them returned!<br><br>... With hats. So many hats. Which... didn't make much sense now. But they brought the hats! Wukong just... face palmed and shook her head before whipping her staff out to burst them into little tufts of pink hair. "Uhhhh... sorry," she said sheepishly. "So, errrr. How you been?" she asked, giving a nervous smile.<br><br>Though, once the barrier went down, she checked her pockets!<br><br>... Coin was gone. Sad face.<br><br>"So, uhhhh... yeah. I'm fine. A bit confused, but I'm kind of used to that by now. So I just try to go with the flow when things like this happen. How are all of you?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:107|Amy Faust (107)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;All of that. She poured more into that than she had against any Witch, and he STILL survived.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;He's still trying to choke Hannah!<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"NO."<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Amy thrusts her hand forward as another wave of missiles launch.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Hannah punches. He goes flying. The missiles curve after him.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;...And then fly through thin air after he duskports, crashing into the barrier's copy of some nearby building.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<span class="bold_fg_y bg_n ++ hy">[<span style="color:#d70000">v</span>FIGHT]</span><br><br>&gt; You can't! He's gone!<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<span class="bold_fg_y bg_n ++ hy">[<span style="color:#d70000">v</span>FIGHT]</span><br><br>&gt; And he'll come after Hannah <span class="bold_fg_w bg_n ++ hw"> a g a i n&nbsp;&nbsp; a n d&nbsp;&nbsp; a g a i n !</span><br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<span class="bold_fg_y bg_n ++ hy">[<span style="color:#d70000">v</span>FIGHT]</span><br><br>&gt; . . .<br><br><br><br>"...Don't listen to him. Becoming Queen doesn't make you a monster." Amy walks towards Hannah. "You don't have to be like him. Your heart is filled with more love than I can understand. We all have a little darkness in us. That doesn't mean we have to listen to it."<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Speaking of darkness, Amy glances down at her wrist:<br><br><span style="color:#d7d75f">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &#123;<span style="color:#d70000">&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;&#124;</span>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&#125;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span><br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Her costume returns to normal and she covers her soul gem with her opposite hand before remembering that Hannah can't see it anyway.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;...Well, the others can see it. She de-henshins, hiding it as a pendant under her clothes. She turns to the other princess, and to Wukong. "I'm fine. As much as one can be when someone tougher than a Witch is hunting the only person who could love someone as messed up as me."<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She resumes walking up to Hannah to hug her, pressing close and closing her eyes. "I don't know how. But we'll stop him. Not just for us. Not just for anyone he'll drag into the crossfire. For Tharkad. For your *people*. And for everyone he'd make them hurt. Someone like that ruling an entire planet... As long as I can act, I won't let it happen in my light cone."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:145|Veronica Perenna (145)}} has posed:'''<br>"I am all right, just surprised when the trail I was following lead me here. That guy was a nasty piece of character. What was up with him anyway?" asks Veronica. "Besides the Throne thing, I mean. That youma he was employing was extremely odd, if helpful to us."<br><br>With a flourish and a bow by holding her top hat in her right hand, she introduces herself to those who didn't know her yet. "The Princess of Sarek, at your service."<br><br>"Oh, that was your girlfriend", she repeat when Amy shares that information. "This must have been quite the stressful fight then", she says with a concerned frown, giving her redheaded ally the worried look she had just given Hannah.<br> <br>
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