Avatar RP VIII: Chapter VII: Timing

[Steel Shadow]

Originally Posted by Teal Mage

Engines revving, the motorcycle riding badgers charged at the pair of Forum-dwellers in the center of their hastily formed ring. Thinking quickly, Teal snatched up Steel's cape, and, with a ripple of Furian Energy, propelled both of them upward. Chains swished just below the place where they had been moments ago, missing their feet by inches. Bikers followed the chains, covering Teal's magical red platform in a chaotic maelstrom of fur, leather and metal.

Blond hair billowing in the (mysterious) space wind, Teal laughed - releasing Steel from his clawed grip to float in space at his side. "Man!" His claws slashed the buttons from his jacket, causing the tuxedo to billow open, revealing a candy apple red button-up shirt beneath it. "I really needed that." A short flash of red erupted along the seem of his tie, causing it break into a mass of iridescent red cherry blossoms.

As the Badger Biker Brigade wheeled beneath them, aligning themselves for another charge, Teal shot Steel a bright look. "Remember Steel," he grinned, winking conspiratorially at the Time Knight, "killing things is a felony on most planets!" The Badgers revved their motorcycles, barking out the last of their latest orders. "And you can't erase them from time either!" Teal added sharply, anticipating the Time Knight's obvious solution.

"But we're not on a... Aw, fine. Lame." Steel drew his sword and half heartedly parried an iron bar wielding motorcycle-badger. Normally this would be a fun filled battle of comedic mishaps and adrenaline pumping action, but since Steel was on the other side of godhood... way way waaaaay on the other side... it just didn't feel the same. Who knew infinite power would be such a drag?

He absently punted one of the critters off it's bike. On second thought, watching it flail about like that in zero-gravity was kinda funny.

Even with only twice infinite power, Teal easily out gunned these Badger-like creatures. As the remaining members of the motorcycle gang wheeled above him, Teal figured it was time for that discussion he'd wanted to have with Steel. Brushing aside his blond locks, the mage laid two fingers onto the Communication Device still securely placed in his ear. "Hey Steel?"

Steel... did things. "Oh god, I can't even be bothered with the narration." He sighed and waved the badgers off. "Time out guys, I need a moment to get back in the spirit of things."

The badgers were surprisingly obliging!

Bikers swept in from the side, and Teal lithely jumped away - a ripple of red force appearing where he had stood. "Look, could you do me a big favor and," The mage's free hand snapped out, streams of scarlet light flowing in its wake. "hop back in time say..." The streams of light grew larger the further away from Teal they flew, until they struck the Badgers, wrapping the pair of them in magically wrought - non-lethal - scarves.

"...oh, fifteen minutes?" He spun, firing off a ball of fashion magic toward another Badger's face. "I'd like you to take a message to me when I'm in the Kurosen Tunnels, killing eagles I think." The sphere exploded, tying the badge, head-to-toe, in pretty red thread and lace.

"Anyway," Teal stopped moving, turning his attention to the (random) mothership that had appeared some distance away, "just tell Past-Me to send the Chaos Nova Shot about...ten minutes into the future when she has to, and about..." He did some quick mental math, "...couple thousand miles up, and maybe another thousand to the right." He shrugged, "I'm sure I'll figure out what I mean."

"And done. Anything else? Teal?" There was no response. Apparently Teal was busy.

Steel looked at the badgers. The badgers looked back at him, expectation in their eyes. He winced. "Look, I'm sorry guys, I'm just not in it at the moment. There's no way to give this scene the real comedic omph it deserves! You know it, I know it." He waved his hand around dismissively, then pulled out The Pipe Of Exposition and blew out some bubbles. "It's not your fault, it's really not. It's me, I'm just to powerful at the moment."

The Biker's faces fell. It was adorable. Like kicking a box of Kittens. Steel immediately backtracked, waving his hands.

"B-but that power wont last forever! How about this. You guys head back down to the planet, start training up a bunch, then in a few Avvies you come back near the start and run rings around me. We can have a big epic fight, a few tasteful slapstick moments, y'can maybe ride some Harleys or what have you, and at the end you'll run off and I'll shake my fist at the sky with a glorious cry of 'Baaadgerrrsss!' and it'll be on! Yeah? How does that sound?"

The badgers huddled together and exchanged thoughtful chitters. One or two glanced at the Time Knight thoughtfully over their shoulders. Said Time Knight just tapped his foot while he waited. After a while it occurred to him he wasn't actually standing on anything, so he switched over to fidgeting with his cape. Soon enough though, the badgers had reached consensus.

One particularly tall critter with a big hat, which Steel assumed was the leader, floated over to him, and struck an intimidating stance. "Meep." It said. "Meep, meep meeep me meep." A deal was struck, and within moments, the badgers had taken their bikes, and vanished into space.

"...How did they understand what I said if they don't speak English?"

---

"Okay! I'm back! Done with the messing around! Anyone up for some team work? C'mon, let's finish this thing off!" Steel's voice called out over the comms network some time later, the Knight having finally found the main battlefield. Hey, 3 dimensional space is complicated, ok?

"Let's see what we've got here. There's Bard in a giant mecha, good for him... There's... A giant... Arhra... Oh... Oh god..." Steel suddenly felt very, very small. "I'm just.. .going to count her on our side, because I really can't process her being on anyone else's right now," he finished quietly, then looked around some more. "There's... the remains of the Azure... great... and... Um. Well. Ok, this will just have to do for now." Steel couldn't make out anyone else. Maybe they were just hiding?

Then Steve broke in, firing back at Arhra, and the time for planning had ended. The laser made it about half of the distance to it's target before winking out. Steel hovered there, glaring at the nameless robot, his sword glowing in his hands. His cape lay flat over his body, not bothering to stir in the non-existant winds that covered the battle.

"Hey, Arhra, Bard, sorry I'm chimeing in late. How've you been?" he asked calmly, sliding his sword back into it's sheath. "Well, I guess pleasantries can wait. How's about we end this Robot? You two have giant mechs, right? Think you can combine them into a super ultra fighting mega zord-mech thing? If you can, that would be just swell, really."

The man raised a hand, pointing two fingers towards the final boss. Lights began to form and circle around them, spinning quickly. "Well, anyways, if either of you has a plan, I'm all ears. If you need time, I'm going to try to distract him now. Or vaporise him, whichever works." The lights were spinning faster now, so fast that they disappeared into each other and formed a ring of light around his hand. "Just, uh, don't get hit by this. It'll probably sting a little." The light was blinding now, matching the stars above and below.

"CHRONO BEAM!!!"

The light lanced out in a focused red beam, spearing right for the robot faster than the smallest measurement of time could measure. Pure time in it's most concentrated form, it burned like it was a tear in the universe. Centuries, millennia, eons, almost infinite time piled on top of one another within it. Whatever it hit would age into oblivion.

He really, really hoped it wouldn't miss.

[Astral Harmony]

"So, uhhh...what're we supposed to do?" Maya asked Armored.
"Let 'em go to town on each other for all I care," Armored, now conscious, shrugged dismissively. "I want all of us, myself included, on repairs. Rigs, mechs, ship weapons, the whole chalupa. If there's something you can't do on your own, get Isis to assist in resolving. Or me. I've got lightning magic that could power the tools we'll need."
"In that case, you're with me down in the STIGMA bay."
Armored nodded then turned her attention quickly to other matters. "Soleen, how's your magic?"
"What, me too?" the sorceress growned.
"Sorry, but with two endgame bosses within a stone's throw of this ship, I kinda need us to push through our exhaustion and get this beast mobile again."
"We're in space. Stones can fly very far out here."
"Quiet, you."

Armored and her B-Force crew got to work on the Azure Aesir, trying their best to do away with all the damage that Arhra IX had done to it with her body and with her Asuras.
"Comms're restored, Captain," Rosalyn said, "Looks like the Element Zero Drive Core is supplying most of the ship with power again."
"Beautiful!" Armored marveled, wiping sweat from her brow. That meant that she could stop using her magic to power the equipment. "I imagine the areas without power probably just have their wires cut or disconnected. Is Isis too busy to get on that?"
"I just gave her the orders. Those areas will have power very soon. We're detected major errors in the weapons systems, especially the PMS Cannon."
"Not surprising. The best way to cripple a ship's offensive potential is to destroy their weapons. Any chance of repair?"
"It depends on what it actually looks like up there. The camera system isn't providing enough details."
"Right. Once the STIGMAs and space fighters are back in operation, we'll go and have a look at it."

The Azure Aesir brimmed with activity, hopefully to finish in time to contribute towards the final battle.

[Arhra]

It was a fierce battle in outer space.

Suspended halfway between the Earth and the Moon, a handful of spaceships and people who did not care that they occupied a vacuum were locked into a titanic struggle with a big old robot jerk who liked being mean, battling for the fate of the... the...

They did not know what they were fighting for any more; NPF City had been taken out in the opening volley.

So drunk on omnipotence-juice they quite probably could crack the planet in half and fry it like an egg, the NPFers were accomplishing sadly few great and terrible deeds. It was mostly larceny and cruelty to animals.

Steve - quite possibly the SOURCE OF ANGER ITSELF - was just as even more disappointing. He had made desultory efforts at conversation, kicked one or two people and blown up a city. An NPF city. He'd barely even raised his voice.

Bard tossed down his ultimatum. It was nothing short of a death sentence.

"STOP TRYING TO ACT BLASE ABOUT IT, NO ONE THINKS YOU'RE COOL! DO YOU THINK ITS POLITE TO ANNIHIlFY SOMEONE'S BELOVED TOMATOES? THEIR SQUASH? THE MANY VEGETATIONS OF THE ORCHARD THAT THEY PORED THE REMAINDER OF THEIR SOULS NOT IN POSSESSION OF AN ELDER GOD INTO? WELL THINK AGAIN YOU COCKY FUCK!"

Stabs were not enough. Bard had then summoned the Pluto Armour.

The ancient summon tossed Steve away like yesterday's garbage.

At this point, the ruined Valker mothership underwent a bizarre metamorphosis into a city sized Arhra V. Her technological corruption magnified to levels beyond anything it had any right to be, she'd swallowed it whole. Efficiently multitasking, she'd been a filthy copycat and tossed down her own ultimatum, made Dr Ethington jealous, fired off an ungodly number of lasers and sent killer robots to steal AB's stuff.

Dr Ethington was busy with what was possibly scientific action. Overcast was mostly dead. AB was somehow unconscious. Mauve was probably having another soda in her X-wing.

STEVE DID NOT LIKE THIS AT ALL.

Trying to force his cold metal expression into the angriest of faces, he raised his gun and fired a single shot at Arhra V.

Steel interrupted with the power of TIMING. The laser just vanished halfway to its target. What had happened to it, none but Steel knew as he floated there, glaring. The Knight of Time's sword glowed in his hands and his flatly hanging cloak steadfastly refused to billow dramatically in the space wind.

"Hey, Arhra, Bard, sorry I'm chiming in late. How've you been?" he asked calmly, sheathing his sword. "Well, I guess pleasantries can wait. How's about we end this Robot? You two have giant mechs, right? Think you can combine them into a super ultra fighting mega zord-mech thing? If you can, that would be just swell, really."

Arhra V looked aside, cheeks colouring.

Steel had already turned to address the boss. He pointed two fingers towards Steve, lights appearing and spinning around them. "Well, anyways, if either of you has a plan, I'm all ears." he said over his shoulder. If you need time, I'm going to try to distract him now. Or vaporise him, whichever works. Just, uh, don't get hit by this. It'll probably sting a little." The motes of concentrated time had become so fast, intense and numerous that they made a ring of fire around his hand, their burning light searing afterimages onto retinas.

"CHRONO BEAM!!!"

Steve tried to dodge, but probability collapsed around him into a great big ball of hate. All the paths that should have let him get out of the way led right back to where he'd started.

Arhra IX was the culprit, bending space and destiny to screw people over. Before Steve (or, as she had privately named him, Bob) could punch out any abstract concepts, Steel's red beam of dammed time punched him. With a drawn out scream, eternity swallowed him.

"I am Arhra IX, but I need not introduce myself again." Arhra IX began pleasantly. There was no need to hurry - Bob was a captive audience. He'd been trapped by Steel's Chrono Beam for a fraction of a second and it already felt like millions of years.

"Did I not say that, if you were to do wrong, I would end you?" she asked the endboss. "You should have enjoyed your brief existence while you had the chance."

Quietly hanging out at the back where the NPF had once been, Arhra IX was ascending to godhood. Three Arhras had not fit into a space meant for one, and it was not a healthy state to be in. She had resolved to solve this dilemma by eliminating all constraints on herself and forcing a spiritual evolution that would result in a single, complete being. It would come at the trivial cost of feeding upon existence itself to fuel the transformation, immense collateral damage and unleashing an all-powerful Arhra upon the universe.

She hung in space like a marionette, vast wings of spirit and degenerate energy reaching for the horizon. Their crack-like appearance was passing as the jagged threads of energy connected and flowed into more organic shapes. The burning red of the Fury predominated but it was contaminated, purple and orange fighting for dominance and the full spectrum of other colours layering in top. Her enormous physical body was the bleached white shape suspended limply at their base, straining to try to catch up with her distended spirit.

"Chance is an illusion and so your fate is sealed. I am playing upon the strings of time and fate to still the song of your existence. All bright futures are beyond your reach. All happy possibilities are extinguished."

She was not happy at him blowing up the NPF. She needed to eat a complex existence of metaphysical significance to complete her change and it had been filling that role. Now she was starving. And so he must die.

"There is no hope for you. That is an illusion too. Everything shall collapse to nothing for you. No-one will even find your grave. I will etch your epitaph upon your soul."

Arhra IX moved. She simply raised her head from its slump a little, half opened her red eyes and looked at Bob. "You are permitted to regret what could have been before the curtain falls. Weep."

"FINE. JUMP ON THE ULTIMATUM BANDWAGON!" Arhra V harrumphed. As a giant robot she had no indoors voice at all.

The white giant glared at her ridiculously more giant robotic twin. "I was just trying to set the mood to something appropriately apocalyptic. Did you see me complaining about your awful speech?"

With a click, a switch was flipped. Something locked away inside the two Arhras was released, blind to the consequences. Words piled up into quivering towers of accusation and insinuation, tension built like a storm between the pair.

"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR TANTRUMS!" Arhra V thundered. "YOU'RE MADE OUT OF AN EVIL SORCERESS, A HATEFUL DEMON AND A DRAGON WHO DOES NOTHING BUT WRECK THINGS! NO WONDER YOU'RE TRYING TO KILL EVERYTHING AGAIN! I WON'T STAND FOR IT ANY MORE! GOBBLING UP EXISTENCE SO YOU CAN METAMORPHOSE INTO A HUGE JERK?! YOU'VE GOTTEN TOO BIG FOR YOUR BOOTS!!"

"What about you?" Arhra IX retorted, voice level. "Your idiotic rivalry with Asheth. Your attempts to steal every shiny thing you see. Your insane jealousy of anyone who threatens your precious ego. Do you have any idea of how tiresome it has become?" her calm facade was cracking. "My patience is not endless! Do you think I'll let you push in and do whatever you want again!?! I say NO! NO NO NO NO NO! NOT! AT! ALL!!!"

Arhra V was momentarily taken aback. "HOW DARE-"

"ENOUGH TALK!!!" Arhra IX shouted over her, "I SHALL IMPRESS HARD TRUTHS INTO YOUR SOFT SKUUULLLLL!!!"

Eroded by uncountable eons, Steve finally emerged from Steel's Chrono Beam. Flakes of corroded metal peeled away into flares of red, his pitted and age worn exterior becoming a smooth bright shining expanse of metal again. He was really beginning to hate these NPF people.

"You know," he said conversationally. "I've -"

"BUTT OUT!!!"

Two Arhras turned as one to destroy the interloper.

On fire and hurtling into the depths of space, Steve knew he'd lost control of the situation. It was time to show everyone who was boss. The programming from the machine he was in was telling him to kill and that's just what he would do.

The Fury possessed robot flipped around and kicked off empty space. Hurtling back towards the NPFers at an even greater speed, he tore into the hull of Dr Ethington's NPF Azure like a crimson meteor. Rampaging into its corridors like the angriest of space invaders, he unleashed his terrible rage on his chosen prey in a brutal orgy of violence.

Timmy, the littlest Science Intern, was dead.

"NOW I'VE KILLED ONE OF YOU! HOW DOES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL!?" Steve roared.

Arhra was too busy fighting herself to noticed, but he'd undoubtedly bruised the precious feelings of the other NPFers.

* * *

Meanwhile

As the AB and her crew rushed to repair the Azure Aesir, they could probably have guessed that they were being watched keenly and closely by intelligences far removed from human. Calculating eyes watched them and slowly but surely drew up their plans against AB and her B Crew.

"We let them mostly fix the ship, and then we take it off them!" the Type-E ASURA explained.

The vaguely angelic and disconcertingly life-like quintet of robots that Arhra V had manufactured was huddled together, planning out their next move. The Type-E was supposedly their leader and for unexplained reasons had an uncanny resemblance to the adolescent body her maker had been stuck in for most of the Valker attacks.

The stringy globs of a tarlike substance and occasional shaved badger floating in a loose ring around them spoke of how they'd dealt with badger horde: they'd turned the Type-D loose and she had used her Conversion Polymer on them. Her guns were designed to fire it; a ravenous, murderous substance that converted almost everything it touched into more of its degenerate matter. It did very little to the badgers themselves, but in the Type-D's own words, it didn't work on anything that had a soul.

"Why bother?" the Type-C said sourly. "That naked space elf destroyed most of it and the maker's forgotten all about us, hasn't she?" The Type-C had been designed for high speed combat and the hazily defined role of 'biological interface' which probably explained the charm ability but not the nihilism.

"Because it's what we're here for." the Type-D cheered. Not even a sadly inconclusive brawl with a frost magic using berserker could bring her mood down. An armoured plate was clamped over the huge gash Rachel's tomahawk had torn in her shoulder. "No matter what enemy. No matter what ally. Blasting through everything with maximum destructive power."

"We should proceed with our original objectives." the Type-B agreed, voice soft and toneless. Designed as artillery, the tall, light blue haired gynoid was propped up in the Type-A's lap as the pink haired support unit repaired the extensive damage Steve's kick had inflicted. The Type-A had harvested some of the spent Conversion Polymer and processed it into the technoplasm the ASURAs were composed of as feedstock for repairs.

"It's decided then!" the Type-E announced.

Unsure of how much the Azure Aesir's weapon systems had been repaired but unwilling to give them any more time, the ASURAs charged at it to begin a boarding action, intending to force the hand of the Aesir's crew.

[Bard The 5th LW]

Due to a mixture of factors, from fury to engame, Pluto Armor came out differently. Mixed with the Ancient Summon of a New Jersey garage from the future, it grew both in size and in destruction. The mechs size increased something-fold, its motions more fluid, its paint more firey, and its flag still Communistic. Its immense weight overpowered Bob/Steve (Bard had decided to name him Joe from now on) and it launched him across the battlefield.

"ULTIMATE JUSTICE!" Bard shouted from the cockpit, pumping an arm in triumph.

"Hey, Arhra, Bard, sorry I'm chiming in late. How've you been?" Steel asked calmly, sheathing his sword.

"Its been here and there lately," Bard responded with a simple shrug of the shoulders.

"Well, I guess pleasantries can wait. How's about we end this Robot? You two have giant mechs, right? Think you can combine them into a super ultra fighting mega zord-mech thing? If you can, that would be just swell, really."

"I suppose its possible," Bard said looking away, "but do I want to? And does Pluto want to?"

"Bluffing is an important act of all strategies." The Machine responded in a deafening roar with a Jersey-esque voice.

"Alright, then the answer is sorta," The summoner concluded. "Okay actually that doesn't make sense. Sorta need to disregard some of the quotes he spews out. Think I'm just gonna follow my heart and ice this bitch. I'll get to you later Steel." He clearly wasn't ready to forgive the time traveler for the whole communist thing.

"NOW I'VE KILLED ONE OF YOU! HOW DOES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL!?" Steve Joe roared, having freshly killed one of Ethington's poor interns.

"You can ask him yourself after I send your ass to Hell!" Bard said as the steroid infused mech began to make its way towards Joe the endboss. Scanning across the array of valves, pretty lights, knobs, and lever, Bard found exactly what he needed. Off to the right of the control array was a red button, with a label reading Long and Painful. Wasting no time is slamming this key, Pluto Armor's right arm was suddenly turned inside out, revealing an array of blodes, from small to big and dull to sharp. Scissors, chainsaws, butter knives, even a slightly sharpened spoon, were all there. The left arm miraculously grew bulkier, and gained kung-fu grip!. From his chest came a Gatling Gun loaded full of pissed off wasps. He was ready for action.

"RICHAAAAAAAARD!!!!!" Was the battle cry that the Mech somehow bellowed through the empty vacuum of space as it began its charge on Joe. The Garden (and NPF/Timmy) would be avenged in a glorious display of JUSTICE.

[PyrosNine]

Dr. Ethington could do nothing but stare at the intruder aboard her ship, and his fresh kill. Stare, and turn and stare equally at the fridge that contained the all important Haagen Daaz.

Stuck on that fridge, drawn with crayon, was Timmy's last report.

It was a squiggly line graph, showing how much made him happy within scientifically approved percentiles of happiness.

Cookies amounted for 30%, while 40% went to the joy of being able to perform science with Dr. Ethington who he believed to be the most swell person in the world. 15% went to the knowledge that his parents were still waiting for him back on NPF (which totally would never explode) and the rest went to Higgs bosons and not being murdered by an evil robot.

For once in her life, Dr. Ethington actually gave a damn about a lab assistant. She wasn't comfortable with it, and it was like walking in heels for the first time, but it was something she was willing to feel the full ramifications for.

She took off her glasses and smashed them at her feet.

"I'll make you pay for this!"

Fire Goddess of Science Asheth got to the furybot before Bard, and entangled it in the same hair that destroyed it's not as powerful predecessors. Ripping it's limbs aside and out of the way, she struck him where it hurt!

U-U-ULTIMA DISRESPECT!

The furybot was sent flying out of the ship, through a hole that nearly caused the entire craft to decompress if it weren't for such great shielding.

Asheth pulled out her Iphone.

Mauve's X-wing suddenly had a pop up.

"Quick! Mauve, listen! There's a secret emergency weapon I installed on your ship that synchronizes with the NPF Azure! Not the Aesir Azure, whatever, my ship! Hit the drink machine's buttons in the proper order of deliciousness!"

In preparation of Mauve figuring out that the red kind tasted bestest, Asheth hit her own buttons, going from Caramel Crunch to Rocky Road and finishing with Deep Fudge Mint Chocolate.

Then she stacked the ice cream to the side and hit the "summon magical music apparatus." button.

Now all that needed to be done was a quick costume change!

...but first! Ice cream!

[mauve]

Hey! Mauve was NOT just sitting around drinking soda!

She was also eating a cupcake.

The Mauve Mage sat in the cockpit of her awesome new x-wing, stretched out in the pilot's seat so her shoes rested on the dashboard. The soundtrack to TRON:Legacy played through the ship's speaker system as Mauve lazily watched the events unfold outside. She could go out and help, but.... Daft Punk and chocolate cupcakes, people. Mauve had priorities.

"KKKSSSSHHHT! ....Quickly, Mauve.... listen!" The mage's attention was drawn to an intercom on the dashboard. A vaguely Southern and sciencey voice interrupted the sound of French dudes in robot suits making electronica music for a semi-decent Disney remake.

"Hi Asheth," Mauve said, not really sure if she could hear her. "What's up? I'm kinda busy right now--"

"Emergency weapon hidden onboard--"

"And hey, my schedule just opened up. I am all ears."

The fire goddess of SCIENCE gave Mauve some instructions and then signed off to eat ice cream. Pfft. Mauve didn't have any ice cream.

"Well co-pilot Pyros, shall we see what sort of madness awaits us, or should we pretend we didn't hear her and finish these cupcakes?"

Kitty Pyros remained predictably silent.

"My thoughts exactly." Mauve pulled a pair of shades out of her pocket. She opened them with a flick of her wrist.

"Eighteen thousand miles from Chicago. Half-tank of gas. I'm in space, it's dark, and I'm wearing sunglasses." She grinned. "Let's roll."

Mauve slammed a fist down on the soda machine: Ruby Red! Orange! Lemon-Lime! Pepsi! YEEAAAAHHH!

A secret compartment opened on the dashboard, revealing a glittery microphone.

Shit was about to get real.

[Shyria Dracnoir]

Shyria's tiny reptilian mind was both confused, terrified, and quite angry, not the least because she was so confused and terrified. The Fury energy had done a number on her higher brain functions. The past minutes were little more than a blur of explosions, technological monstrosities, and the occasional badger (although the latter were quite tasty). Eventually, as she started to come down off the Fury high, flight took precedence over flight, and she took off to hide in a nearby asteroid belt.

Her conscious mind finally pieced itself back together, only to confront the sight of the ruins of her adopted hometown drifting through space, a city sized Arhra chewing out several other Arhras of various sizes, and various other NPFers charging the endbosses as the NPF Azure blazed in the distance. She knew what she had to do...

But before she could do that-

*BANG BANG BANG* The hull of the X-wing shuddered for a moment.

"HEY MAUVE!" Shyria called out over the racket of various endgame shenannigans. "YOU HAVE ANY ASPRIN?! OR MAYBE SOME COFFEE?! MY SKULL'S RINGING LIKE A CHURCHBELL!"

[Overcast]

"Bard."

The voice of the Boxheaded man crept on the inside of Bard's brain, scraping at his psyche because for some reason telepathy was always unreasonably loud. The Box flew in the absence that was space, crude stitches holding it together. OC had returned, sorta. His form just his little Box, incapable of shunting a body out from the hastily cobbled portal. An annoyance he could have dealt with if he could abandon this Box and make a new one. But with no holes and the Box his anchor he was stretched thin and forced impossible,

"Bard, I need you. The universe needs you."

The creeping voice urged him to grab the Box, carefully, not to look in the opening at the bottom. Not to leave him drifiting alone,

"I have a plan. But I need your help..."

The plan to save the everything. If they could get to it first, but he needed a hand. Boxes don't just move themselves you know.

[Astral Harmony]

This Post's BGM: Dungeon of the Giant

"So, uhh...Captain?"
"Not now. We need lights, Maya."

Armored Bishoujo, Maya the catgirl mechanic, Celeste the Retronian engineer, Rosalyn the hacker, Kira the Galefrost Amazon, and Aya the catgirl ninja managed to enter into the massive metal frame of Arhra V. Their position put them around the base of V's spinal column, if she had one.

Maya, piloting one of the two smaller STIGMAs, activated the lights so that they could see.
"You want to ask me why you only have non-combat equipment on that STIGMA, right?"
"I've gotta lotta more questions than that, Armored."

Armored looked around, then motioned the squad to move forward. "When Arhra V merged with the Valkyr Mothership, she made a rather quick transformation into what she is now. I have a hunch that she didn't do it as efficiently as she could have given lesser time constraints. Therefore, in order to stop that robot that destroyed the city, we're going to help Arhra V power up some. With our individual skills and the supplies we've managed to smuggle inside, we should be able to stop all this violence and hijinks."
There was a long silence between Armored's squad.
The Maya sighed. "You're slipping, Captain."
"Huh?"
"Your ideas these days aren't nearly as crazy as they used to be."
"Eh, comes with age. So don't ever grow old, girls. C'mon, let's go."
"Where's our first stop?" Celeste asked her.

Armored frowned. "Dunno. Rosalyn, can you bring up a holo-GPS for us?"
Rosalyn typed a simple command into her arm-mounted computer and brought up a holographic image of Arhra V's interior. Armored gestured towards the "The Valkyr Mothership can't produce an unlimited amount of power like one might hope, but with a little rewiring...oh, in the chest section, and we might be able to increase power efficiency, letting V accomplish more with less."
"So we're off to Arhra V's bust," Maya said. "Armored, would I be allowed to fight if we encounter some kind of security?"
Armored nodded. "Yeah, use the fuel/spark technique."

The fuel/spark technique was the simple idea of spraying the enemy with flammable liquid (like fuel, of course) and then igniting it with a spark like from an arc welder. Maya's STIMGA was equipped with the necessary tools to do that, though those tools were meant for maintenance of Arhra V's systems.
Armored gave the "move out" command, and the six women began to follow the directions in Rosalyn's holo-GPS to Arhra V's chest.

-----

The Azure Aesir was in better shape than before, but not by much.

The thrusters were back up, but the afterburners were still not working. The jump drive was inoperable as well.

Most of the weapons were back online, but the PMS Cannon was going to take several minutes to charge its next shot and they couldn't prepare a reserve shot. It took most of the independant power supplies to keep the weapons available and the kinetic barriers running.