beat the hustle, better get it right

[doublejumps]

WHO? Genji Shimada (doublejumps), Mamoru Hijikata (amereswordsman), Ryuji Sakamoto (ryuji), Thor Odinson (worthyofthunder)
WHAT? HRHR: The Glitch
WHEN? June, after the eclipse
ANYTHING ELSE? Will edit if there's something other than violence to warn for!

[ It's in the aftermath of the eclipse that it feels as if they can all finally take a breather, at least at first. The Araneans seem calmer than they ever are, behaving as if they're resting after taking in a large meal. A quiet settles over the land around them, and while all of the COST agents have to wear protective gear out here in the wilderness, for a time it feels safer than it ever did within the city walls.

But then, someone has to take advantage, and the attack on the royal family begins. Genji and the other agents can only observe from afar, as only the highest ranked Araneans are allowed in the center of the valley. Still, they have a good viewpoint of the chaos that unfolds, and it's as Genji's watching the Twin Generals work to quell the oncoming mob that suddenly, everything shifts.

Instead of being surrounded by a red, almost desolate sort of landscape, Genji sees nothing but the vibrant green of trees. It's beautiful, but there's no explanation for how he got here, and as he looks around him he sees that he's not alone. Ryuji, Thor, and Mamoru are all here as well. Is it a coincidence that these are all COST agents he's spent some amount of time with during this mission? ]

... Where are we?

[ It's as he asks the question that he hears the sound of steel striking and the yells of Araneans engaged in battle. This is something they can never truly get away from, it seems. ]

Comments

[doublejumps]

[ Thus far they haven't run into any wildlife, most likely because it's all been chased off by the sound of the battle. That's probably for the best. The last thing they need right now is to deal with creatures that they're not familiar with, and be forced to determine if they pose a threat or not.

At this point, Genji doesn't give too much thought to why the Araneans fight. It's simply a way of life for them, and he assumes this is just another attempt at the throne. Take out the Generals who guard the Queen, and House Khah would be that much closer. ]

A thunderstorm? [ Genji can't hide the surprise in his tone. ] Yes, that should work fine. [ He tilts his head up, looking through the canopy of the trees toward the sky. ] But... how exactly are you going to do that?

[ It's not that he doubts Ryuji, but he wants to know what to expect. ]

[ryuji]

[Ryuji rolls his shoulders, like he's getting ready to pull something off that he hasn't done in a while. And it's true, the last time he started calling down thunder and lightning from the sky, it had been actual months.

There was a lot of work still ahead, no matter what path or what outcome this distraction took. His shoulders slump a little bit, his voice a little jaded from all the experience he's had in this terrible fucking spider world, and he hums-]

Magic bullshit, I guess.

[But- first things first, here.]

I'm gonna need some protection or we're gonna have to stealth around so I can channel it. Uh. What I'm gonna do is pretty damn obvious if they can see me.

[doublejumps]

[ Magic bullshit. It's nothing more specific than that, which Genji finds strange if it's something Ryuji himself can do. Now isn't the time to get into a long conversation about his abilities, however, so he'll have to accept that explanation. ]

I'll get us all the way behind them, and then we can move further back to give you some room. I'll guard you.

[ Genji speaks the words with confidence, as he has no intention of letting harm come to Ryuji if he can help it. He already got him into trouble once at the arcade, but this is no longer a matter of fun and games. Their lives are all at stake here, and now that he knows what it's like to die, he certainly doesn't want Ryuji to experience it.

They reach an incline and Genji heads down it, charting out a path for them while keeping half of his attention on the ongoing fight. So far they haven't attracted any attention, and soon enough they'll be in position behind House Khah's forces. ]

[ryuji]

Yeah, ninja man. You lead, I'll follow.

[Man... what he'd give to go back to that day in the arcade and just. Chill there for a little longer. Maybe he really wasn't... really cut out for any of this after all. Not that he doubts his competency in what he can pull off, no- he's a good heart thief, but just. The constant state of war. Not having really grieved enough after the events of Gallipoli. Eren had said that he looked tired, and at the time, he thought that, too, was bullshit. But as he dips down the incline with Genji, letting himself into his friend's protection, maybe, yeah. He was kind of tired.

But it's not the time to drag his feet about it, either. He told Genji that he could provide a distraction, and he was going to do it. As beaten down as this endless chariot of endurance could get, he's not about to let the other down.]

Can you see Mamoru or Hammer guy?

[He positions himself back a bit, trying to stay under as much cover as possible. Bright, luminescent blue fire begins to circle around the outline of his mask as he holds it against his face, ready to rip it off and summon his persona.]

I'm ready when you are.

[doublejumps]

His name is Thor.

[ Not that it matters so much, but it's good that they all at least know each other's names if they're going to jump into a dangerous situation together. Genji has made sure that they're carefully positioned behind a grouping of trees, and he peeks out here and there to watch House Khah jump in and out of the fray.

He can just barely make out the Generals further back, but it's difficult to see much when there's all this tree cover.

What can't be missed is the way that the ground suddenly shakes, followed by the distant booming of thunder overhead. Genji snaps his head around to look at Ryuji, almost thinking for a moment that he's already started, but that must have been Thor. It seems the two of them have some things in common.

Still, this is the perfect way to disorient the fighters. Genji stares at the fire surrounding Ryuji's mask, knows that he's readying himself, and nods sharply. ] Now!

[ryuji]

[It's noted - he probably should've asked before dissolving as a team of four and into their smaller units, but he was being selfish and cautionary, peeved that they wound up here without thinking of or adding an actual solution to the fray that they've found themselves upon. Not excusable, but- right. Thor.

And when it becomes apparent that they both have similar types of powers, Ryuji's relatively surprised. It could honestly work out pretty well- a show of lightning in the front, and one in the flank, enough to make the army think that they're being pincered on both sides by a group of similar forces.

Ryuji takes the signal as Genji offers it, ripping the mask off from his face as an almost corporeal form comes to life above his body- a legend that would be very familiar to anyone from the eastern regions, as Seiten-Taisei (or Sun Wukong), begins to float above him on a cloud. The same mythological trickster that had fought his way into heaven to gain his own immortality. Ryuji stretches his hand outward, as his persona's arm matches like a puppet on strings. A long staff raises outward from the god, as he calls unto the heavens to part the clouds and lightning begins to pour down from the sky.]

MAZIONGA!

[And from several points across the field, the terrible display of magic begins striking down at random places, taking on a few of the guard and ripping into them. As far as magic goes, it's absolutely the strongest Ryuji has, and even though he's been a pacifist working under the guise of a thief, it's one of the few times in COST that he's ever used this power offensively in any capacity- especially on something that wasn't a shadow or a cognition that didn't technically exist in this world.]

[doublejumps]

[ It goes to show how little Genji really knows about Ryuji, as he isn't at all expecting him to summon a being to carry out his bidding, let alone one that seems to be the spitting image of Son Goku. Genji, professional and experienced as he is, can't help but be distracted for a moment as he stares up at the figure in awe. It's as if one of his storybooks from childhood has come to life.

More than that, there seems to be a connection between Ryuji and Goku, and this is all something that Genji will need to get more detail on once they're out of this mess. With the sheer amount of firepower on their side, he's hopeful that they can make the best of an unexpected situation.

As the lightning strikes down from both sides of the battle, some of the members of House Khah finally take note of them, with Genji stepping forward to grab their attention. As they'd hoped, some of their forces get redirected to deal with them. The Araneans are smart enough to realize that leaving themselves vulnerable to a flank will spell out their end.

Genji turns back to Ryuji again, and nods firmly. ] Good, it worked! Now let's go!

[ He breaks out into a run through the trees, intending to split up House Khah's forces and give the Generals, Mamoru, and Thor some breathing room. ]

[ryuji]

[Oh shit.

Tootaloo, bitches, they're. They're going to run like the wind. He follows Genji in front of him, blazing a path for Ryuji to follow- and although the other is far faster than he is, the punk is doing his best to keep up. The distraction was provided, as promised; now all they had to do was make it to safety before they get chomped down by spiders.

That heart to heart about fairy tale heroes will have to wait, as they make way through the thick under hot pursuit. The stress on his bad leg becomes warm and cramped, and he feels himself tripping before it happens. Coming at his maximum speed, he tumbles forward, picks himself up, and tries to figure out how much room is left between him and the Araneans.

He waves his hand backward- he's okay, really. One more ace up his sleeve. He saw himself using this magic in a dream once, and although he's never tried it in practice, he knows that personas only require the will and cognition to make stuff happen. As long as they're far enough from Thor and Mamoru, it's enough, so with a shout, he summons once more as the visage of the demon monkey king rises above his head.

There's no word for this spell yet, since it hasn't been created or used before. All it needs then---]

MAZIONRISA!

[Does it work?

It sure as hell does - the spitting image of Goku holds his staff out, frightening in its presence as electricity pours forth from the hilt outward. Particles of earth begin rising unnaturally in the air as the climate changes to a damp heat, humidity becoming empowered with electromagnetic energies as a wall, as tall as the eye can see and wider then the peripheral horizon, begins to form, cutting off their retreat. The land below becomes seared as the netting takes place, and as one brave member of the mighty and noble house tries to pass through, they're disintegrated seamlessly.]

W...whoa. D'you--- It's a giant bug zapper!!! WOO-HOO!!![Okay, this is cool and all, but it's also draining his magic pretty powerfully, so he's going to have to resume that run- leaving his persona's image to stand guard of the wall as it begins to move backward, destroying the earth beneath it.]

ALRIGHT! WE'RE OUTTA HERE, GENJI! [You know as they say, out of the pot and into the frying pan. This gambit was all the juice he had left.]

[doublejumps]

[ It's true that Genji would be able to move at a much quicker pace, even jumping through the trees to propel himself forward and keep the Araneans guessing, if he didn't also have to keep an eye on Ryuji. He'd told Mamoru and Thor that he would watch over the younger COST member, and he intends to keep his word. So he manages his pace to make sure that Ryuji doesn't fall too behind, and when the teen slips, he's quick to halt and turn back around to make sure he isn't caught by one of the spiders.

As it turns out, Ryuji really doesn't need a caretaker. He summons Son Goku yet again, pulling forth a spell that's truly spectacular. It's a giant wall or energy barrier of some sort. Genji would have guessed it was made of hard light, though it hardly matters -- it's shredding anything that tries to comes through it, which means that at least for now, the Araneans can't get to them, and they've already run far away from the rest of their contingent.

Genji assumes that the spell won't last forever, which means that they need to keep running. He nods and races through the woods at Ryuji's side, shooting glances behind him to make sure that the wall is still in place. ]

That was incredible! That being you summoned -- is it really Son Goku?

[ Possibly cooler than summoning a spirit dragon, the jury is still out on that one. All the same, Genji is impressed with the tricks that Ryuji's had hidden up his sleeve all this time. ]

[ryuji]

[In the thick of their shared safety, they've begun spilling out into the wilderness that spanned as far as the eye could see in every direction. There's not much left of his SP, his magical resource that allows him to call his persona to begin with, and that much becomes quickly apparent as blue particles float like tiny fireflies around his mask, and it dulls on his face, useless. Taking out a bandaid from his pocket, he opens it, and affixes it to his arm, rolling the sleeve of his outfit up enough to do so. It's... a magic item. It'll slowly patch some energy back into him, because right now? He feels spent.

And a little discouraged, but he's doing his best to try to hide that behind his exterior, one that's built of determination and steadfastness. Honestly, he's never had to actually kill a living thing since coming here. There wasn't really a reason that it ever had to happen. Spider or not, it was still life. He'll deal with it later.]

Kinda? It's more like a piece of my soul that's latched onto his myth. I dunno if it's... the real thing or anything. But he's how I fight, basically.

[Their pace can slow a bit, right? No one would be dumb enough to follow after someone that could do that to their army. Or maybe Thor and Mamoru were strong enough to use the pincer attack to their advantage. It was hard to tell at this point, now that they scattered.]

And uh. Dude... where... where are we?

[doublejumps]

[ A piece of his soul? Genji has spent much of his recent time (before COST recruited him, at least) putting thought into the concept of a soul and what it meant, so he finds that explanation fascinating. He can't fully understand what Ryuji means, but he'd be interested to learn more.

That should probably wait until they're not stranded in the middle of the wilderness, however. Genji wants to see them safely back to civilization first, and then they'll have plenty time to discuss the meaning of "soul." ]

A good question. [ He mentally scrolls through the options on his BCE, but there's no map loaded up for this area. ] We need to find a way back to Ythaway, if at all possible. We should take this opportunity to explore while the others finish the fight.

[ Of course, there could still be Araneans pursuing them, but Genji's senses are sharpened for anyone who might come after them. He presses forward, using his sword to cut gouges into trees so they don't get turned around. It will also be a trail for Thor and Mamoru to follow, if need be. ]