Then she hesitated. It was the tall, thin, white-clad aide lady, her long blonde hair disheveled and her glasses lopsided. Blossom groaned, getting to her knees. Blood's eyes widened, her finger's twitching. The aide, probably late-twenties, stood out like a sore thumb before her. But for Blossom, still, there was nothing. Emptiness. A blank. Stealth to her radar. Blood seethed. The woman straightened her glasses and spotted the glowing hand extended at her. She did the first thing she could think of doing and screamed. She tried to skirt out of the way but Blood, impatiently, turned the attack meant for Blossom on her instead. It caught the fleeing woman side-on, her continued screams seizing in her throat as her arm, shoulder and side bulged, shredded and exploded into a thick, blackened ash which dissipated into nothingness. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she fell backward, tumbling over the windowless edge. Blossom watched her tumble, horrified. She spun, her face pale "WHAT THE HELL!?"

Blood was livid, short of breath from her sudden exertion "Why... can't I do that... to YOU!?"

"She did NOTHING WRONG!"

"She was an accessory to the abuse and mistreatment of futurekind. Of MY kind! That makes her more than deserving."

Blossom's teeth grit so hard she thought they'd crack "You're insane!"

"One day I'll be able to wipe out all of you." Blood glared at the small assembly of remaining normals "ALL of you! Without even lifting a finger! One day I'll-"

CRACK across the face. Blood crumpled like a wet sock, Buttercup's fist a blistered red across her knuckles. She shook it a couple of times, grinning defiantly "That day ain't coming."

Blossom's face was still ghostly-pale "D-Did you see what she did?"

"Yeah, and she can't do it to us. Be glad, ok? We don't have time to worry about what she's able to do. She's not the real problem here."

"Sora..."

"Mhm. Hope Bubbles is having more luck than us."

"You know she went to her?" Blossom asked in surprise.

"She was here when I was, earlier, and she ain't here now. Where else would she go? She's way too caring about her, but that might be the only thing that'll get through to her. She's dumb enough to put herself in danger for that... how's Ms Piper?"

Blossom whirled, forgetting about Tabitha for a moment and feeling horrible for doing so. But Tabitha was already on her feet, adjusting her dark blue skirt and rubbing a large bruise on her arm. She seemed completely stoic once again. Blossom wished it was as easy to ignore the pain her own body was feeling. Tabitha peered over the top of her sunglasses, her icy eyes remaining emotionless "I believe that it's a fair assessment to say that this is getting out of hand."

Blossom chuckled nervously "This really isn't how we expected to be spending this afternoon."

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Bloodsguar Studios member

WE ARE ALL GRIDS

Bitch got deservingly socked.

Get it? Cause she crumpled like a wet sock...? Sock?

...

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Oh, I get it!

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Jim Carrey gif is so full of win.

Ok, so random aide cops it just so Blossom and everyone else knows first hand what Blood is capable of. Piper finally states the obvious, and I'm guessing that we should be returning to Bubble's POV pretty soon.

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Spirit. In every language in all the Realms, surface and Underdark, in every time and every place, the word has a ring of strength and determination. It is the hero's strength, the mother's resilience, and the poor man's armor. It cannot be broken, and it cannot be taken away. - Drizzt Do'Urden, Ranger of Mielikki

QU: +10 rep

I would love to shift the view to Bubbles right about now.

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QU: +15 rep and a cookie

I wouldn't mind sticking with Blood for a little bit longer.

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Tabitha turned her eyes to the man she kept butting heads with "Mr Davroe, I believe it's time you move to put an end to-" a red aura seized Tabitha's body, lifting her off the floor. Blossom gasped, grabbing onto her just as she was flung across the room, striking the table with the side of her knee and toppling head over heels to the other side, taking Blossom with her. Buttercup spun but Blood's shoe shot out and caught her in the ankle, dropping her to her knees.

Blood rose, furiously. Both her cheeks were bruised, now, and slightly swollen with dried and scabbing blood caking her temple and forehead. She saw Buttercup's next move before it even happened and as the jet-haired youngster tried to spring back up, Blood's hand clamped itself on the back of her neck. A brief flash in the darkness but to Blood it was familiar territory. Buttercup choked on her own breath as Blood let go as swiftly as she'd caught her, doubling over once again as violent coughs racked her body and made her dizzy. A swift kick buried the toe of her shoe into Buttercup's gut. Where her own psychic powers couldn't venture, physical strength could still prevail. It was her privilege to see Buttercup squirm on the floor between coughs and groans, clutching the stomach that had been soccerballed against her spine as her trashed lungs tried their best to take in air. She was resilient. Stubborn. She'd be down for mere moments. But a moment was all Blood needed to cut the head off the proverbial human snake.

She pounced onto the table, the powerless Normals taken aback by the sudden confusion. This man, Davroe, was like a big fat turkey waiting to be plucked, stuffed and roasted. Blood grumbled. Now she was hungry. She stared him down, his guns useless and his complacent words less effective still. His aides and staffers, men and women alike, cowered behind him and his uniform like he was some kind of patron saint. She wondered just what she could do with this much larger, squishier mass of unresistant flesh. She raised her arm, a grin spreading across her face and cracking the dried red ooze that was splashed across it.

Davroe stood his ground, arrogant even in the face of his annihilation "What is the meaning of this!?"

Blood smirked, her voice hushed from her lips but all-encompassing within the mind of each Normal that stood before her. Some flinched, some backed away. Davroe, besides a small facial twitch, did nothing to respond to the words that echoed in his mind "You're outdated, old man. This is no longer your world. Talisman and I - we're making a new one!" her hand lit up, its glow reflected in Davroe's eyes. Still they showed no fear. He wasn't arrogant, Blood realised. He was just too stupid. There was no point wasting words on him - no final speech of victory, no witty or wise one-liners. The glowing psychic corona around her fingers lit up as she seized every atom in his body at once. With a simple thought, she-

The room was lit a brilliant magenta for only a second with a roar of noise and wind accompanying the sound of shattering wood. Blood was whisked away amongst the flare, blasted out the side of the building by the wave of energy that had erupted from Blossom's outstretched hand. The thunderous boom and blinding light faded to echo and daze. Blossom slumped to her knees, staring at the floor as she felt herself going numb. Her fingers had already lost all sense of feeling. She glanced up, seeing the result of her brief outrage. Slightly rear from centre, the table smouldered, the width of her blast vaporising the oak and scorching the edges of what remained. She sucked in a deep breath and, with more of a cough than and exhale, spat out a cloud of frozen air that smothered and stifled the small flames before they could grow bigger.

Buttercup staggered to her feet, one hand still upon her stomach. She flashed a brief smile at her sister in silent thanks as Blossom nodded in equally-mute response. With a groan and an 'urk', Buttercup floated off the edge of the building, in chase of the girl who'd been forcefully ejected. Blossom felt like flopping onto her stomach and falling asleep, then and there. It was only the reassuring hand of Tabitha, who herself had seen better days, that brought more comfort. Blossom's cheeks paled again. She mightn't get a nap, but she felt sure she might hurl from the exertion.

Davroe wandered forward, staring down at what remained of the conference table. The half closest to him was still standing and intact. The far end, meanwhile, was nothing but blackened timber and ash upon the floor, smoking and steaming from Blossom's quick firefighting. With a glower, he murmured in a tone far less oppressive than what he'd taken a liking to "What the hell was that about?"

Tabitha steadied Blossom, ensuring she didn't faceplant from exhaustion. She winced, her back aching badly from her impact with the wall "This little one saved your life. That's twice now, by my count."

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WE ARE ALL GRIDS

Damn it Blossom! At least let Blood finish off Davroe first!
.... But on the other hand, it looked like Blood was gonna vaporize him. That just won't do, I wanted to see him squirm.

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Spirit. In every language in all the Realms, surface and Underdark, in every time and every place, the word has a ring of strength and determination. It is the hero's strength, the mother's resilience, and the poor man's armor. It cannot be broken, and it cannot be taken away. - Drizzt Do'Urden, Ranger of Mielikki

Second. That man has pissed me off enough. I can't stand arrogant people like him.

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Is Davroe pulled from the past? He acts like a typical 90s military general-with-pole-up-his-ass.

I want a Nick Fury for a change.

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Hahaha, that would be so much epic right there.

*after Buttercup throws his pistol out the window*
"Missie, you have 5 seconds to fly out there, get my gun back, and unbend the barrel before i do it myself and beat you to death with it."

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Spirit. In every language in all the Realms, surface and Underdark, in every time and every place, the word has a ring of strength and determination. It is the hero's strength, the mother's resilience, and the poor man's armor. It cannot be broken, and it cannot be taken away. - Drizzt Do'Urden, Ranger of Mielikki

Now THAT's what I want to see

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Davroe scoffed "Ridiculous. There was no need for her to..." he trailed off, noticing something slipping out from under Blossom's tattered school vest. A medal, with a familiar pointed star shape. Custom-coloured ribbon and bar across it. He'd seen several in his career. Suddenly, he found reason to grin a little "Star of Induction, eh? My life and continual guidance of this operation was guaranteed by the swift actions of a recognised citizen initiate. That's not so bad, I suppose."

Tabitha scowled but did her best to hide her revulsion at the pompousness in Davroe's voice. She didn't have one of those stars - she didn't need one after having sworn an oath to community safety and service. But Davroe saw the girls, now, as nothing more than a commodity. Another underling to his command. Even when that strange psychic girl had almost turned him into a red mush, he still thought himself the king of the hill. Martinets were all the same. The old commissioner was a similar story.

Davroe gestured for one of his aides to come forward "You!" he told the brunette "Set yourself up - you have manual control right?" the aide nodded submissively, carrying a black briefcase with both hands. Her namebadge read 'Candice' but he never took time to get to know the contractors "Where's the other one? We have two of them, right?"

"Yes sir, I have both interfaces" was her reply "but the Arbalest controller was... well..." her voice faded off. She cleared her throat and slowly added "One moment sir. I'll get the second one."

"Will your weapons work against something that you haven't the slightest idea how to fight?" Tabitha said with a growl in her voice.

Davroe approached her, reaching for the star pinned to Blossom's undershirt. She squirmed in Tabitha's arms as though trying to get away from him but he took the medal in his meaty fingers and regarded the guilded star analytically "Be it our tools of war or powers of a nature unexplained, they serve the same purpose. And so long as she and others like her have these, then they are in our service. If that allows us to prevail, so be it. This is still my operation. If you've nothing to contribute, Ms Piper, then stay out of my way. For the purpose of this continued situation, I hereby order you to relinquish your guardianship of this girl to me." His glare was malicious and though Tabitha stood her ground there was, by rule, absolutely nothing she could do to defy his instruction. Blossom made more uncomfortable sounds, too weakened to do much more than hide her face from him "Is it true you saved me, little girl?" Davroe chuckled "There's not much I understand about you. But perhaps... when Arbalest blows Talisman out of the sky, I'll have saved the lot of us." he eyed Tabitha maliciously "There's a medal for that, too." he winked.

"How do you expect to do THAT!" Tabitha hissed at his tone, the overconfidence in his voice so obvious to her senses that it almost sickened her.

The aide had returned, the two briefcases popped open. Each contained a large display screen in the top half and controls on the bottom. Lights and buttons flickered invitingly. Davroe hadn't touched one of those for years. Not unlike the nuclear arming devices afforded to the President in a time of crisis, these suitcases contained every capability necessary to wield a deadly weapon. The aide - Cathy? - took a seat behind one of them and the words 'Manual Override - Lockbow Control Released' flashed up. The second screen was black, green text scrolling across it reading 'Full Automation'. Davroe spun around to the remaining assembly - reps from the other firms who still had their earpieces and micro-radios at the ready to co-ordinate their men on the cityscape below them. "Prepare all your forces for a full assault on the Talisman sphere. I want total readiness, NOW!" he boomed. The reps dissolved into frantic chattering into their comms devices as Davroe rounded upon the brunette aide once more. "Carmen, right?"

"Candice." she said timidly, a tiny control stick fitting neatly in her pale hand as she piloted something immensely bigger than herself, far above.

"What do we know about these things and what they can offer?"

"Um... well, S-Sir, field experience has shown that Talism-man is susceptible to electromagnetic discharges. Lockbow and Arbalest are... um... both armed with EM weapons, Sir."

A smirk spread across Davroe's face as he glanced up at Tabitha who still held Blossom in her arms protectively. He knew she knew. But he voiced his intention anyway "Does Arbalest have a manual override?"

"Y-Yessir, voice activated, Sir..." Candice whimpered. A much better pilot, he hoped, than a talker.

Davroe's grin spread widely, turning him into a striking resemblance of a smug, uniformed toad. He moved behind the Arbalest controls and cracked his knuckles, leering Tabitha with a victorious glint in his eye all the while. "Then wait 'til Talisman gets a load of me!"

"Um... us, Sir..."

"That's what I said."

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Bloodsguar Studios member

WE ARE ALL GRIDS

"Then wait 'til Talisman gets a load of me!"
By god, that line just made me want him dead so much more...... and my room is full of sharp knives and daggers as well.....

EMP barrage being reflected back through spacial distortions in 3... 2...1...

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Spirit. In every language in all the Realms, surface and Underdark, in every time and every place, the word has a ring of strength and determination. It is the hero's strength, the mother's resilience, and the poor man's armor. It cannot be broken, and it cannot be taken away. - Drizzt Do'Urden, Ranger of Mielikki

You see a dangerous, possibly unstable space-time fluctuation, which you know might explode.

And your first instinct is: Shoot at it?

Thank god he didn't find an armed nuclear device on the street, cause I'm sure he'd pull out his gun and start shooting at it.

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Nah, that wouldn't work. Fallout 3 says so. Still, would a nuclear warhead do the trick or inexplicably make it bigger? I doubt Sora doesn't know what's going on out there.

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The Life and Times of Shad Staydamind PPG fic; finished. part 1/3
Dual Minds Think Alike PPGD fic, part 2/3; finished (trilogy is on an indefinite hiatus)
Hidden Angels Original, ongoing fiction. (also hiated. Stupid college!)

Fallout 3 physics.

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On the outside, the sphere didn't seem all that large. Even as it grew and consumed everything around it, Bubbles figured she'd be able to fly the entire diameter in under a minute. But it had been fifteen minutes. Maybe more. She had no way to tell. The inside of the disturbance was nothing like what was outside. She'd held her hand before her face and watched her skin ripple and swirl. The air smelt acrid and burnt and metallic but was otherwise breathable. Everything seemed stained a tint of gold. She'd tried to reach the nearest building remnant or edge of the sphere itself, only for it to be lost amongst the distortion. It would then reappear over her shoulder far away, shifting places almost at random. She didn't like being in here. But she wasn't the only person inside.

Something spiralled in front of her as she floated in the direction she thought was upward. "There it is again." she murmured. Whirling like windmill blades, the strange, piecemeal object floated past as it rearranged its shape erratically. Bubbles watched it in silent fascination. It was clearly made up of various objects absorbed by the sphere. The amalgam before her contained a street sign, metallic arms stretching off it as it spun like a top before breaking apart and reattaching bits to form something new. It couldn't decide what it wanted to be. Bubbles had a shrewd idea why that was. Another spun behind her (or was it the same one?). Everything around her seemed to move on its own without notice. Bubbles gulped. Maybe it was herself that was moving...

She stopped her steady climb; Perhaps she'd been going down all this time!

Nothing made sense in here. Only one person would be able to explain how this all worked.

"Where are you?" she muttered, timidly.

What if she was stuck here forever? What if she could never get out!? What if-

A sudden, searing burst of red overwhelmed her vision, making her recoil in fright as something extremely hot scorched by her left side. The crimson streak of light forced the golden hues away for only a moment, the distorted space retreating from the lethal intruder. Bubbles glanced down at herself as she saw the natural colour of her skin and clothes return as the laser's light faded. Then, as it receded, the distortion closed back in again, clouding and blurring her vision once more. They were still firing on the sphere from the outside. They probably didn't even know she was inside. Bubbles pursed her lips with a huff. Was that the answer to this? Fight against it? Bubbles didn't want to risk being absorbed and torn to pieces like that strange object from before - there it was, in the distance to her side! Why did Sora have to make this as difficult as she could!? Frustration from her lack of progress welled inside. Sucking in the acrid air she let out a scream of anger. Then she clapped her hands to her ears as her surrounds coalesced back upon her furiously.

"Nnngh..." she groaned, her own voice reduced to a dim echo by the ripples consuming her "not a smart idea..."

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Bloodsguar Studios member

WE ARE ALL GRIDS

Oh really you think Bubbles?

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Not gonna lie. When I read "A sudden, searing burst of red..." I honestly thought it was Blood for a second. And as much as I want Bubbles to find Sora, is Sora in any condition to have any "visitors"? For a while I thought she let her in until rereading revealed that Bubbles basically barged in. And lived, apparently.

_________________
The Life and Times of Shad Staydamind PPG fic; finished. part 1/3
Dual Minds Think Alike PPGD fic, part 2/3; finished (trilogy is on an indefinite hiatus)
Hidden Angels Original, ongoing fiction. (also hiated. Stupid college!)

"You shouldn't be here." came a very familiar voice "You've never experienced this before. You're gonna get hurt."

"S-Sora!?" Bubbles yelped, her own words struggling to reach her ears.

"I don't want you in here." Sora's voice commanded, coming from all around and yet nowhere "Leave. Now."

"I... I don't know how!" Bubbles admitted. Every time she thought she'd found the edge, the distortion seemed to stretch on and on. With everything swirling and spiralling around her, she was beginning to feel woozy. "How long have I been stuck in here?"

"Thirteen minutes, forty-eight seconds." came the voice, a little chirpier than before. What signs of depression in her tone were slowly fading as she spoke to her friend once again. "Are you lost?"

"I'm trying to find you!" Bubbles responded, the volume of her voice making the space around her quiver again.

"No, you're not."was the response. To Bubbles' surprise, the distortions around her suddenly drew away and she could smell fresh air once again. Light streamed upon her face as, in front of her, a hole opened up like a tunnel, leading to the familiar visage of the city beyond. Sora was permitting her escape. Bubbles took a deep breath which shook her body with unsteady tremors. Then she turned her back on the tunnel of amnesty Sora had offered her.

"I'm not leaving you."

"I won't allow you to stay!" Sora's voice boomed like thunder from the fluidic energy around her.

"Or what!?" Bubbles retorted "You'll melt me down and absorb me like you're doing with the rest of the city? What's happened, Sora!? What happened after I left you to find your brother? I hope it's not what I think it is. But I know you need someone right now. That's me. Let me come to you!"

"Bubbles, you're so stubborn."

"Yeah, I get that." Bubbles growled "But I'm not the one letting my anger and pain destroy a whole city!"

_________________
Bloodsguar Studios member

WE ARE ALL GRIDS

Wow. Sora is still capable of conscious thought. I thought she'd have gone mad with grief by now.

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Spirit. In every language in all the Realms, surface and Underdark, in every time and every place, the word has a ring of strength and determination. It is the hero's strength, the mother's resilience, and the poor man's armor. It cannot be broken, and it cannot be taken away. - Drizzt Do'Urden, Ranger of Mielikki

I want to agree with you, but Bubbles is there and Void Erasure is still running. And that gap is just asking for an intruder, whether it be Blood or a plasma strafing. Either its left open long enough for Bubbles to change her mind (yeah right...) or she closes it when she senses something incoming. But does Sora know what's going on out there or is Blood's self-righteous delusion on Sora coming to her senses on her terms just that? Self-righteous delusions I mean.


http://maneshi.deviantart.com/art/Crims ... -244271024

You know the usual. Not so much a direct chapter illustration but something inspired by an awesome maneuver executed by a sane-by-comparison Sora earlier in the fic. Unfortunately, this is the last due Maneshi is closed.

_________________
The Life and Times of Shad Staydamind PPG fic; finished. part 1/3
Dual Minds Think Alike PPGD fic, part 2/3; finished (trilogy is on an indefinite hiatus)
Hidden Angels Original, ongoing fiction. (also hiated. Stupid college!)

Haha, nice Shadow. So many bullets and missiles...

But anyway, I suspect that opening will also give a certain dick a chance to attack. That is, if he's stupid enough to do it anyway.

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Considering his track record, I wouldn't be surprised if he did.

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Spirit. In every language in all the Realms, surface and Underdark, in every time and every place, the word has a ring of strength and determination. It is the hero's strength, the mother's resilience, and the poor man's armor. It cannot be broken, and it cannot be taken away. - Drizzt Do'Urden, Ranger of Mielikki