Σ Turbulent Distrusting Ice Wall

[trollophoroi]

Who: Fidchell the Prophet and two fateful parties.
What: A prophecy foretold.
When: 11/21, Night
Where: The city formerly known as Lumina Cloth.
Warnings: Mentions of suicidal ideation, violence.



[ Something appears to be afoot in the night-shrouded city of lights, Lumina Cloth. Ever since the fall of Innis and Magus, it has begun to grow colder, and colder, and colder. NPCs begin to glitch in and out of existence as the days crawl along until one day, they are no more, and it begins to snow.

Throughout this entire ordeal, a strange yet familiar figure dressed gaudily in blue and feathery robes can be witnessed watching from a distance.

Everything ices over, the lights flickering out one by one, plunging the entire city into darkness... until... until?

Only after the city has been buried in snow and covered in ice do the lights all snap back on and those who enter the Root Town will discover a horrific sight: Telophoroi Tower has risen high over the frozen landscape at the center of the city, overtaking the rest of the buildings. It is far larger and much more dangerous-looking than before, with more metal, more spikes, and an ominous mist clinging to it from all angles.

There is only one person who could possibly be waiting here.

Approaching the tower will plunge the players into the mist.

Nearly all will find themselves turned around but a few, those lucky few, will find themselves entering the dark, empty halls of the guild @ home once known as Telophoroi. Steps echo, emptiness reigns, no sign of even Cultist Grunty anymore. Those stairs are new, though, and they wind up and up and up towards the very tip-top of the tower.

Do you dare to climb them...? ]

Comments

(frozen comment) SIGN-UP

[trollophoroi]

NOTES OF IMPORTANCE TO COVER BEFORE YOU SIGN-UP

⬣ There will be only up to EIGHT slots to fill for this fight.

⬣ If more than eight sign up, I will RNG all of the slots at 12 p.m. Sunday. Numbers used will correspond to what place the sign-up is in (i.e. first sign-up is 1, second is 2, etc).

⬣ I'm in the CST time zone. The Fidchell fight will begin at 3 p.m. this Sunday and continue until 12 a.m. After that, weekday tagging will happen starting at 7 p.m. - 12 a.m..

⬣ I'll be doing ROUNDS, so once the last action is posted, a new comment will come up with the next round. It'll contain reactions to everyone. Please bold your actions when it comes to fighting/attacking Fidchell.

⬣ Rolling will be the good ol' half-n-half system. 1-10 fails to hits and 11-20 hits with the exception of unavoidable mechanics (these will be noted). This applies to players and Fidchell. There will be no dodge rolls.

⬣ Mechanics will be posted under a following comment as they appear and linked to in the tag they appear in.

AND NOW THE SIGN-UP (form)!

<b>Player Name:</b> <b>Player Contact:</b> <b>Timezone & Availability:</b> <b>Character Name & User Name:</b> <b>Character Class:</b> <b>Core Type:</b>

(frozen comment)

[sicklysweet]

Player Name: Lavender
Player Contact: revelries @ discord
Timezone & Availability: CST, always…
Character Name & User Name: Owen, Owen
Character Class: Macabre Dancer
Core Type: Healing…

(frozen comment)

[trashtier]

Player Name: Seto
Player Contact: SpacePromenade @ Discord
Timezone & Availability: CST, pretty much same hours as you!
Character Name & User Name: Levi Blake, L3V147H4N
Character Class: Adept Rogue (Blade Brandier, Wavemaster, Macabre Dancer)
Core Type: Damage Core + Lily Bracelet

(frozen comment)

[tablescraps]

Player Name: Tuesday
Player Contact: discord
Timezone & Availability: PST, available throughout the week save Fridays
Character Name & User Name: Mithrun / Mithrun1
Character Class: Edge Punisher (Wood)
Core Type: Heal

(frozen comment)

[glassbell]

Player Name: Fuyu
Player Contact: yukinko @ discord
Timezone & Availability: CST
Character Name & User Name: Furin... Fuurin
Character Class: Flick Reaper (Earth)
Core Type: Heal core, No bracelet

(frozen comment)

[fluorite]

Player Name: amb
Player Contact: mognet on disco
Timezone & Availability: CST, whenever
Character Name & User Name: Yuui, Fai
Character Class: Shadow Warlock
Core Type: Healing

(frozen comment)

[legendofthelion]

Player Name: Athuria
Player Contact: athuria @ disco
Timezone & Availability: PST and I can be available through the weekend + the upcoming break, and evenings Mon-Wed
Character Name & User Name: Dehya/FlameMane
Character Class: Edge Punisher
Core Type: Armor core + zelkova bracelet

MECHANICS (DO NOT REPLY)

[trollophoroi]

REMEMBER:

⬣ I'll be doing ROUNDS, so once the last action is posted, a new comment will come up with the next round. It'll contain reactions to everyone. Please bold your actions when it comes to fighting/attacking Fidchell.

⬣ Rolling will be the good ol' half-n-half system for attacks. Helpful support skills do not require rolls. 1-10 fails to hit and 11-20 hits with the exception of unavoidable mechanics (these will be noted). This applies to players and Fidchell. There will be no dodge rolls.

HELL FIRE

Summons a torrent of flames to rain down from above and leave every target within 500 feet. Inflicts an undispelable Fear (inflicted target is frozen in place in fear) and Hysteria (any attack the inflicted target makes will likely hit an ally). This attack is unavoidable and will be followed up by a randomized AoE attack ever time.

While HELL FIRE is in effect, rolls to hit Fidchell become 15-20 and anything under will hit an ally

Once hit with damage (from Fidchell or an ally), the debuffs are dispelled. If not hit, the debuffs continue. Rolls return to normal only for those no longer debuffed.

AREA-OF-EFFECT (AOE)

AoE attacks in this fight can be avoided. They pick specific locations in the arena to hit and a miss to hit your character with which means they avoided being in that location.

If you are hit while afflicted with HELL FIRE, the damage immediately ends Fear and Hysteria by breaking it.

MORE CLONES

A variant of More Goblins that uses the clones of beta testers from the pods along the arena's walls instead. There are not really them, only empty clone bodies made to use as fodder during the phase change of the battle and will parrot Fidchell's own beliefs about Lily's future being a paradise for them.

You are free to choose who attacks your character. This phase lasts three rounds for extended trauma purposes while Fidchell casts... something??? It's a mystery, owo. That said, they only need be hit twice to kill them, so if you take yours out early, maybe go help a friend?

Fidchell is untargetable during this phase.

WAILING WORDS

Wailing Words (Darkness) causes a piercing scream that stuns the party. This skill is unavoidable... unless? Owen is immune to the Dark element, oops.

FACE YOUR FATE (ALONE)

⬣ Once stunned, the pods attached to the side of the arena’s walls (see image) shoot out metal tendrils to capture all the characters and drag them back in. The pods snap shut. Everything goes black.

⬣ They awaken again immediately after blacking out and find themselves in an idealized version of a “future” in Fragment. They will feel dazed and briefly compelled to believe it at first, but something... just isn't right. Did something over that way just glitch a bit...?

⬣ Players of podded characters need to describe what this ideal future is and I will tag accordingly, including increasingly worrisome glitches. They will have several rounds of tags to adamantly call it out as fake to escape.

⬣ Characters already free or outside of the pods can break the pods open to rescue other characters, so if your character would be convinced to stay or you want them to be convinced, do not feel the need to escape immediately.

⬣ There is one additional way for all to escape immediately but that is something players need to figure out themselves p.s. it was Data Drain the entire time.

⬣ Once a character has escaped, they will find themselves alone in the arena, facing Fidchell without the rest of the party. This does not change until all "perfect life" scenarios have been resolved (whether trapped or freeing themselves).

⬣ Once escaped and facing Fidchell alone, the character is debuffed with Face Your Fate (Alone). This is a large damage down debuff.

FACE YOUR FATE (TOGETHER)

Once Face Your Fate (Alone) has been resolved, all characters will find their different arenas merged into one and Face Your Fate (Alone) becomes Face Your Fate (Together). All characters gain a big buff to damage for the rest of the fight (aka everyone gains Advantage - can roll twice and pick the best outcome).

REGRET

Regret causes the enemy to take half damage every time they deal damage to you or a party member. Lasts at least one round. After the first round, flip a coin to see if the debuff continues.

Heads: Regret continues.
Tails: Regret ends.

PRE-BATTLE

[trollophoroi]

[ One by one, the mist opens up for one, two, more people, here and there. They may find themselves parted from whomever they were exploring the frozen city of Lumina Cloth with or, if they were lucky, they may arrive with exactly who they were with; it truly seems random, as if certain people were fated to make it through the mist and those people are:

Owen, L3V147H4N, FlameMane, Fai, Swallow, Hector, Brambles, and Mr_Misteaks.

The doors to Telophoroi Tower lay open to them, allowing entrance to the empty @ home given form in the overworld. Footsteps echo against cold metal as they enter. No sign of life, no sign of even the guild's own Grunty, only a new staircase spiraling along the inside wall of the tower, leading up and up and up and up...

Up until it opens out into a massive room at the top of the tower, similarly designed in that alien-like metal and spikes and tubes, but here, the walls differ. They are covered in what look to be containers. They are human-sized, faintly glowing, and most certainly look like they're capable of swinging open but, currently, they remain shut tight. ]

Welcome! Welcome to my humble abode, you, who would be heroes!

[ And, of course, Fidchell. He was perched atop one of the containers but once the players made their way inside, he stood, balanced precariously on it, and stepped off. He does not fall, though. He floats, making a gradual descent to the floor of the wrought metal arena. ]

Here we are, at the very end. Beyond me lies your final obstacle. Are you prepared?

[fluorite]

[ Fai made a terrible assumption, thinking that the other Root Towns would be a safe reprieve from the Net Slum. He knows it the moment he gates in with Yael in tow, only to find the city frozen and Telophoroi Tower looming over just about everything else. There isn't any real chance to scope out their surroundings before approaching the tower and plunging them both in mist... of which Fai finds himself immediately separated from Yael as it parts and he has nowhere else to go but inside the tower.

He had promised not to participate in any other battles, but it seems like fate itself is unavoidable.

And so he climbs up and up and up until he finally finds himself in a massive room with Fandaniel waiting. Of course he was waiting.

This is fate, after all. ]

Prepared to drag you out of here? Of course I am.

ROUND 1

[trollophoroi]

[ And as the last words pass between Fidchell and those present, he takes a step back and with a flourish of a hand, a stack of tarot cards appear held in one, the back of which are marked with that same eye motif that has hounded each Phase throughout all of these fights, the same ones that adorn Fidchell's fancy blue and feathery outfit. ]

It is time, time to set you upon the path to the future you were meant to be on.

[ As he says that, each card begins to fall away from the deck, floating around him, orbiting as though he was their sun, and Fidchell, too, begins to rise into the air. More cards, more and more than the deck could feasibly have flooded out into the air, so many that by the time he's reached where he wants to be, he is hidden from sight, surrounded by this flock of cards, and that's when they begin to glow... and become larger... and change.

The arena fidgets and jerks within everyone's vision, static and code becoming visible in bursts during this time. It's unsettling, threatening motion sickness to those inclined, and then the cards explode out and away, leaving a massive feathery beast, blinking eyes appearing in the tatters of its robes skirt, in their wake.

Fidchell, in his true form, plucks a card from what remains of the deck in his taloned hand and turns it: an image of fire raining down upon the land below. ]

All will burn by the fires of hell.

[ Hell Fire is cast, literally raining a sudden shower of fire from the sky, exploding everywhere, surrounding them, and all are afflicted with Fear and Hysteria immediately. ]

( Please see the updated mechanics! The follow-up AoE is coming in Round 2. )

[sicklysweet]

[Well, this is all very dramatic and all of that, but Owen has better things to do.

So, the first four to accept party invites will get La Torma cast on them, increasing their magical accuracy... Which might help deal with the debuffs going around.]

ROUND 2

[trollophoroi]

[ Fidchell begins laughing at the chaos that Hell Fire causes, his voice booming throughout the tower and yet still that high-pitched giggle so common to him, even now, at this size. ]

Panic! Cower! Your fate comes for you no matter how you fight it!

[ The tarot cards he had held before begin to float again, this time orbiting the hand he holds palm-up as if commanding them to remain there. Even as fire erupts all around him from Fai's spell, licking at and burning his eye-filled skirts and forcing him to float hire as he takes that damage, only to be staggered further by Swallow's Reaper Game, the countdown damaging him for twice she had initially struck with. Well then, ouch indeed.

Still, nothing will stop him from plucking another card at random from the floating deck. He turns it: a storm striking a town with thunder and lightning. PhaRai Rom, lightning striking down from the roof of the room all over the arena. ]

All will be flayed alive by my electric fury!

[ Leviathan is missed (5).
Mr_Misteaks is hit (16).
Hector is missed (6).
Fai is hit (12).
FlameMane is missed (1).
Swallow is hit (15).
Owen is hit (15).
Brambles is missed (4).

Those who are hit by the attack and still under the effect of Hell Fire will now find those effects dispelled by the damage done.

Damage rolls return to normal (11-20 to hit). ]

[secondthoughts]

[ Thank god.

Hector flinches, but he escapes unscathed. Back to business. He turns to Dehya, who he sees also escaped unscathed, and gives her a good thwack with his staff (20). ]

C'mon, we're not doing this again! Snap out of it!

ROUND 3

[trollophoroi]

HRK—?!

[ Great job, everyone, or, well, mostly Owen and Leviathan. While everyone else fumbles or goes for buffs, Owen's paralyze strikes true. Fidchell is left twitching, struggling against the debuff, trapped before he can draw another card from the floating deck, just in time for a massive wave of water and fish to flood the arena, slamming the feathery boss to the side of the wall.

Fidchell remains paralyzed for this turn and takes no other action while dripping wet and still covered in flopping fish that have gotten stuck in his robes.. ]

[sicklysweet]

[heh.


hehehehehe.]

My, my. Since you can’t draw your silly little cards, would you like to see what I draw?

[Aaaand Owen will cast Temperance Reversed (18), extending the duration of that paralyze.

😘]

ROUND 4

[trollophoroi]

[ Struck, poisoned, electrocuted twice over, and yet even now, Owen chooses to continue Fidchell's embarrassment by extending Paralyze on him. A growl resonates through the arena, his wings twitching and limbs struggling against the debuff that continues to hold him in place.

The fish... continue to flop, many of them finding their way to the floor as they escape his damp robes with little plop flop flop sounds.

Fidchell remains paralyzed and cannot act this round. ]

[gluttoning]

[The tank is still taking a Status Effect nap this round and will not be taking an action.

zzzzzzzzzzz]

ROUND 5

[trollophoroi]

ENOUGH!!!

[ Fidchell finally snaps free of the paralyze debuff with a resounding wail of rage. His wings snap open and flap down, hard, taking him up and away from the wall he had been washed against previously. The remaining fish go flying.

He's been struck and struck, and struck again, his HP bar dipping about a quarter of the way down by now, but now, he is free once more, and he once again draws a card. Upon turning it, it shows darkness, a looming creature with red eyes hidden within it. ]

All will tremble under my terrible will!

[ At this cry, a demon materializes at the center of the arena, extending its own bat-like wings and crying out in unison with Fidchell. A wave of damaging darkness is sent out by Wryneck Pha and, once cast, the demon vanishes into mist.

Leviathan is missed (1).
Mr_Misteaks is missed (1).
Hector is missed (4).
Fai is hit (16).
FlameMane is hit (17).
Swallow is hit (19).
Owen is missed (9).
Brambles is missed (7). ]

Core use 1/4

[legendofthelion]

[Because I don't trust my rolls.

Dehya uses Data Drain Type A: All to give everyone a defense boost.]

ROUND 6 - SEND IN THE CLOWNS-- I MEAN CLONES!!!!

[trollophoroi]

[ Even though he bats Swallow away, the other attacks that strike, continuing to whittle away his HP bar until it hits that halfway point. Halfway there, until the end... the end... but not yet. ]

Oh, Owen, my love, have you not realized it yet? I have no intention of killing you. Damage is unnecessary. I only had to stall until the chambers were ready! Ha! Hahaha!

[ Chambers...? Again, there's that flicker, like a glitch running through the arena, and the pods stuck to the walls begin to glow brighter. The orange glass tops that had been impossible to see through before now become more clear. There are shapes within, shapes of what, though? One more flap of his wings and Fidchell takes himself higher and with a wave of his hand, his cards fan out, taking on that telltale green sheen of a shield to protect him. One taloned hand raises overhead and he begins casting More Goblins— no, wait, that isn't More Goblins at all!

He's casting something called More Clones!

And quickly, too. It finishes in short order, the pods snapping open with visceral squelching sounds and clones, clones of all of the beta testers, alive and dead both, come tumbling out. They are geared as one in Fragment would be and they immediately set about attacking. They will not let the new world be stopped, they claim, rambling out similar lines to Fidchell's own ranting from before.

Don't destroy our paradise! Don't destroy our home! This is where we belong!

Leviathan is hit (13).
Mr_Misteaks is hit (12).
Hector is hit (17).
Fai is hit super hard oops (20).
FlameMane is missed (10).
Swallow is missed (6).
Owen is hit super hard too because he deserves it (20).
Brambles is missed (6). ]

( More Clones has been added to the mechanics post. ])

[sicklysweet]

[HUH? WHAT? MY WHAT?

Well, even if he should probably not think anything of it, something about Fidchell calling him that startles Owen, the dancer needing a moment to buffer which leaves him vulnerable, taking a significant hit from the clown that looks just like Hector.

Ow. He absolutely deserves it, but he's a delicate man! He doesn't have a lot of HP! What he does have, though, is And Then There Were None (16!) which will drop the clone to 1% HP.

He's still very ??????? over Fidchell. Hello? Police? There's been a crime?????? Damn Hien for being a boss so he can't file a report with him.]

ROUND 7 - MORE CLONES CONTINUED

[trollophoroi]

You don't have to! We can take them! We can take them we can take them we can take—

[ The clone of Kara falls into an increasingly insane-sounding cycle of claiming they can take them, too, they can, they can! All while drawing her fists back to begin punching Leviathan (14), over and over, alongside the mantra falling from her lips.

Meanwhile, the fake Mithrun picks up his pace as he approaches Barrett, bringing his sword up as he makes a final lunge towards him, but he misses (4). No more words from him, he focuses sharply after the miss and wheels back around to raise his blade again...

Across the way, Owen's clone just laughs at Hector. ]

But that's what you want everyone to think, isn't it? Good old Hector, standing here, denying everyone else entrance to their real home.

[ And then the clone strikes forward towards Hector again, fans whirling sharply through the air, but whatever Hector does next is enough to move him out of the way just narrowly (11).

Back over at where Fai faces the clone of Yael, his words are met with a cruel smirk. ]

Ha, you're right. [ And then with both blades swinging in again, the clone strikes at Fai, only to miss as well (8). ] In that case, hold still! I'll drag you there kicking and screaming if I have to!

[ Shoka and Dehya end up having two very different experiences with the clones here. One swings in with a weapon but misses Shoka (3) while another jabs at Dehya with a blade, striking true, ripping at skin and flesh viciously (18). Brambles scurries away from an attack of a clone as well (10).

As for Owen, as is appropriate for a dancer both in-game and out, he gracefully evades Hector's Clone as he takes another swing with his staff (9). The Hector clone seems somewhat offended at being told he has to do better! Wow??? ]

[threatmewted]

[If she sees any familiar faces: no, she doesn't, because they aren't her people. Just more stupid enemies getting in her way from her goal.

She'll call out to everyone else:]

I'm gonna take out as many as I can in one sweep, so get behind me unless you want a faceful of water!

ROUND 8

[trollophoroi]

[ Shoka's watery attack goes off as most of the party gathers up behind her. It sweeps the arena clean, the clones being washed off their feet. Those already damaged, die on impact, and the rest? Washed away by the water towards the far wall.

This includes Levi and Barrett, along with that Kara clone. At least it drags her off of Levi, saving him from additional punches. The two brothers will find themselves deposited at the wall of the arena, under the still open — but now empty — pods. They'll find themselves among the corpses of those already dead, and find that the remaining clones, too, appear to be failing.

Their pleas for everyone to listen, to give in, to join them in the correct world, the perfect world, trail off one by one. ]

Bravo! Bravo! What a show this has been! But now it is at an end! They were not wrong, you know. The way to paradise is... here!

[ And with the last word coming out as a loud, triumphant declaration, voice booming throughout the entire tower, he casts Wailing Words. A wave of darkness has accompanied his exultant cry, causing everyone except Owen to be stunned. ]

Hahahaha! Ahaha! Now off with you, one and all! Into your new homes!

[ As if on cue, those pods? Remember, the ones that were still open? Lash out with mechanical tendrils, dripping with the same goo that the pods seem to contain, seeking to snag the stunned combatants where they stand (or lay).

Owen, however, has a chance to dodge. ]

( Mechanics have been updated and will continue to be updated during the rest of this 2nd Phase! Please keep an eye on them! )

[gluttoning]

[Well now he's soggy and hurt and getting dragged out from a bunch of dead people that he knows and recognizes and he can't move so

]

ROUND 9 - FACE YOUR FATE (ALONE), PART I

[trollophoroi]

[ Dragged away into the pods, one and, well, almost all, and once they are inside, the pods snap shut one after another, all save the one that Fidchell bids to remain open for one certain troublemaker still out on the (dance) floor.

For those within the pods, everything fades to black, light, sound, and feeling all fading away... for a moment, only a moment, and then...

You awaken. Maybe you wake up in a cozy bed, maybe out in a warm and sunny field, maybe somewhere else; there's no limit. You awaken where you would find yourself the happiest within Fragment, the fight having faded from your mind. Everything feels fuzzy, and strange, like you may have been daydreaming or even having a nightmare.

Where are you? Are you alone? What is your perfect life to live, here, within Fragment? What are the dreams you have for your future here?

As for those who remain outside, Fidchell can only gaze down upon Owen with an irritating smugness about him. Now only faced with one enemy, he allows his shields to fall away. Fidchell is now targetable and he folds his floating cards into his hand, snapping them back into a deck. ]

I do not need to presume. I have my ways of knowing. Still, here you stand before me, all alone, no matter who you think will return. If you give up now, I could plead your case to Lily, allow you to return to the fold.

( Mechanics have been updated! Please be sure to read them closely! )

[threatmewted]

[She wakes in the house she shares with Hector, naturally.

Her reflexes are such that she bolts upright as though expecting a fight but... obviously, that's not the case. All is peaceful and well, just like it always is.

Why would it be any different?]

Weird...

[She'll rub the sleep from her eyes and hop out of bed, already doing the annoying young person thing of pulling up her menu as she walks and picks her outfit for the day. She's free of responsibilities and, most importantly, free to go wherever she wants and do whatever she wants. It's just a matter of deciding what, exactly, that turns out to be.

After selecting a casual skin, she decides to fire off a message to Fuurin.]

Swallow: Hey, what are your plans for the day?

ROUND 10 - FACE YOUR FATE (ALONE), PART II

[trollophoroi]

You only have yourselves to blame for the clutter that the beautiful world I offered you fell to. I cannot work with such flawed materials.

[ Still alone with Fidchell, each and every one of the beta testers who had arrived at the tower to face him — save for the two who remain slumbering peacefully in their blissful retreats — stands alone before him as he blames them for the failure and then rises up higher into the air again, the green shields raising once more to protect him. ]

No matter. One does not stop their good work to save you all from yourselves after a single failure. I shall beat you all into submission and start over again!

[ And thus does he let his cards fall from his hands once more, plucking one at random as they begin to orbit his taloned hand all over again. He turns it: once more, the thunderstorm striking the village. PhaRai Rom. ]

All will be flayed alive by my electric fury!

[ Electricity crackles, lighting striking down from where it gathers at the ceiling of the arena all over. Strange, though, isn't it? That he's using an area attack when you face him all alone?

Leviathan is missed (3).
Mr_Misteaks is hit (17).
Hector is missed (3).
Fai is missed (9).
FlameMane is hit (11).
Owen is missed (10). ]

[legendofthelion]

[Dehya braces herself against the strike, gritting her teeth.] You can't compare that to reality at all! Good or bad, an illusion is just an illusion. I don't need to run from what's right in front of me.

[Dehya extends her hand, bracelet forming around her wrist and aims her Data Drain right at Fidchell.]

ROUND 11 - FACE YOUR FATE (TOGETHER)

[trollophoroi]

[ One, two, three, four data drains hit four different Fidchells in four different arenas, though Fai's attempt with the spell attack of his own glances off the green shields around the Phase. It's a strange thing to watch, as across every arena, one by one, pieces of Fidchell are ripped away.

One wing, another smaller one, the loss of both forcing him to land on the arena floor heavily with an enraged scream. One of his head wings, part of another wing, the data that create them torn away into naught but strands of code.

The shields drop and the arena rumbles, the entire tower shaking, and as Fidchell begins to shriek at them, all the different Fidchells in unison across all the different versions, all the different possibilities of the arena, there's a glitch.

One second, you all stand alone, and the next? Together.

With the use of Data Drain (multiple), all of the pods snap open, expelling the last two remaining occupants to the floor.

Shoka and Brambles are now free... and also covered in ooze. Ew. ]

No! No! I could have made this world perfect! Perfect and wonderful and safe for all of us! Amon could never do that! Amon was pathetic! Useless! Worth nothing! THIS IS NOT OVER!

[ Face Your Fate (Alone) has been removed. In its place, a gleaming buff, giving everyone damage up, aptly named... Face Your Fate (Together). ]

[threatmewted]

[Waking up and - oh. Ugh, that's right, she was working a shift, wasn't she?

Honestly going from a peaceful normal day to a boss fight isn't anything new outside of the ooze (gross), so if anything she's just feeling extra pissy.]

Ugh, pain in the ass-

[She rolled an 18 and will be using that to hit Fidchell with a Reaper's Game - guaranteed crit attack after a 7 second countdown. He can ponder the very certain future awaiting him as that telltale red 7 appears over his head and counts down the seconds.]

ROUND 12 cw: vague reference to suicide

[trollophoroi]

[ Following up the Data Drain and the loss of his wings comes a barrage of damage. Worse yet, the ring of fire bursts into life around him, trapping him in place. Here he is, unable to move, flee, escape the barrage of words — and damage — coming his way. ]

Lies! Delusions! You bothered to recall because you pitied him! You thought him accomplished and yet he still sought to throw his life away! Fandaniel was nothing! Nothing but a wound that could never heal!

[ More damage, more words, when Owen appears before him to deliver even worse. His debuff strikes true and though not all of it applies, it's enough to get him to fumble his cards, some even falling into the flames surrounding him. Fidchell will not be able to attack this round. ]

Memories... memories? That was... the point... to stop. To make everything stop.

[ He's weakening, that much is clear, but then the unexpected happens. Even Fidchell had not foreseen this, head jerking to the side to observe Leviathan walking forth... and turning on his friends. Ha. HA! ]

Ah, so you have reconsidered. Excellent.

[trashtier]

[If Leviathan can hear Fidchell, he doesn't show it. For the time being, he's nothing but a shell to be used against his allies.

Once a traitor, always a traitor.

After threatening Barrett back with his sword, he changes its form back into a staff. AOE is much more convenient when you have so many targets, after all.

(So long as you ignore the fact that he only hit one person last time.)

Flames begin to stir above him as he raises his staff once more. In the process, his bangs are pushed around by the wind, and...is that a mark on his forehead? Odd.]

V̸̢͇̕u̶̲̪͗l̵̘̊c̴̘̰̚a̸͈̫͗n̶̜̫͔̉ ̵̧͈͛R̸͔̪͇̅f̷̗̘̉͋.̸̱̩̀̈̂ͅ

[The flames converge into a huge flaming bird and it instantly sweeps over the party.

Leviathan is targetable, should anyone wish to attempt to subdue him that way.]

ROUND 13

[trollophoroi]

[ Hit, hit, hit, and then... healed? The last, unexpected, and Fidchell can only gaze at Owen before he skitters away to dodge being questioned for his bizarre actions. While he and Leviathan both are dragged into Hector's spell, Fidchell goes from immobilized to immobilized again, but this time he finds he can resummon his cards back to his hand.

Good.

He draws one with a quick motion and raises it up high, it turns towards them, the marking on it plainly visible: moving strands of data, dashing up and down the surface of the card.

For the barest of moments, he turns towards Owen, as if planning to use whatever terrible spell that means on him, but at the last second, he decides against it. He... changes fate. Is that allowed? Is he allowed to just... decide something else, when fate dictates another?

No. He will not be distracted.

Instead, he snaps around to point the card at Barrett, before he can actually reach his brother. ]

BEHOLD, THE ULTIMATE POWER OF THIS WORLD! DATA DRAIN!

[ This attack is unavoidable.

It feels as though invisible forces wrap around Barrett, yanking him up high into the air, and the data on the card that Fidchell drew unravels, splitting off into one of Cubia's bracelets, drifting and glitching about Fidchell's wrist as he aims the blast.

Barrett is afflicted with Seal, Hysteria, Blind, Frozen, Burn, Charm, Poison, and Confusion and slammed back into the far wall of the arena from where he'd been yanked up to and bound in the air by the blast itself. ]

CORE USE 1/3

[threatmewted]

Barrett!

[Hopefully Fidchell calculated for the fact that Shoka's going to data drain him to do some healing. Specifically: Data Drain Type H: Status Removes all status effects on allied players in the Area.]

ROUND 14

[trollophoroi]

[ As all save Dehya turn their attention toward the disaster that's befallen the two brothers, Fidchell laughs. Even as she strikes him, hard, with flame and force, knocking him back across the arena a few paces; Owen may want to move out of the way there. After, he tries to take flight again but it's an effort for nothing; their previous Data Drains have torn away too many of his wings and he remains as bound to the arena floor as the rest.

Even then, he laughs, manic and wild. ]

Scurry, scurry! Rush to save their lives! Aww, I knew you would, so I didn't hold back! Hahaha!

[ Again, he draws a card and turns it. It shows a man bent over, crying, miserable, and that one he directs towards Fai (15). ]

Thou shall regret thy infuriating existence!

[ Targetted, Fai will feel a chill of dread run through him and a debuff appears for him. It is called Regret and its tooltip claims that for any damage Fai deals to Fidchell, he will receive half of that damage as well. ]

( Mechanics have updated, please be sure to read about Regret! )

[fluorite]

[ That chill feels so familiar and yet foreign all the same. Reaching back through his memories doesn't answer why he feels like this either.

He looks at the debuff, reads the tooltip, and takes no action for this round. Fai won't be doing anything reckless, not after he's promised Yael to act with caution. ]

...Any damage I deal to him, I'll take half. [ He pauses. ] So do whatever you can.

[ He won't be attacking. ]

ROUND 15 cw: impalement

[trollophoroi]

[ The laughing comes to an alarmingly abrupt stop when Barrett's lance strikes him from afar, lodging itself not only in but through Fidchell's chest with a resounding clunk of metal piercing metal. Fidchell lets out a cough after that, shocked and turning his head to stare down at the lance impaling him, nailed to the wall with it.

Now, he doesn't have blood, not necessarily, but something does indeed begin leaking from such a dire wound. It's data. Data begins leaking and spiraling away into the air until it fades away. With one taloned hand, he clutches his chest and hunches over, bearing the brunt of all the attacks that follow; Shoka's Reaper's Game, Levi's spell, Dehya's follow-up strike against him. ]

Close... [ Fidchell wheezes out laughter again with the word and raises his head once more. He grips the haft of the lance and yanks it out. More data spills, flowing away from the hole left through his chest, but he discards the weapon without a second thought. ] So close. Finally, to my end, the fruition of..͡.̈́ th̿̍i̍s̛ u͝n̔͌͞av̊͞ó́͐i̕͠da͐͐͊̐͗b̛̽͊͒̃l̛̛͆͒̑é̐͆̀͞ f͌̂̉́̚u͗̌̊̔̀t̊͐̅̽͒u͛̇̽̓̆r͑͆̿̊͝ĕ͛͗̆̈́.̈̅̓̏͞.̈̉͂͐͝.̑̀͗̆̑

[ But not quite the end, not just yet. He draws yet another card, even if his movements are jerky, trembling, and turns it. Once more, the thunderstorm striking the town with lightning. ]

Á̯ll̦̰̐͗.̙͓̍̃.̗͓̋̽.̰̞͛͌ w͔͉͊̊i͚̽l̫̟̂̽l͔̊ b̛̼̮̿e͕̓ f̢̠́͝l̟̎ą̑ye̗̙̋̃d͎͇̑͝ ả̢͖̀live̮̕! Bȳ̘̥̾ m̙̥͋̀y̫̆ e͔͌l͓͗é̟c̬̊͐͟t͕͐r̡̛̠̓i̜͂c̺͖͆͞ f̹̊u͓̥͋̈́r̦̈y!̳̖͊͗

[ Again, at the ceiling of the arena, a storm gathers and strikes down with crackling lightning.

Leviathan is missed (2).
Mr_Misteaks is hit (17).
Hector is missed (4).
Fai is missed (7).
FlameMane is hit (17).
Swallow is missed (2).
Owen is hit (13).
Brambles is missed (7). ]

[secondthoughts]

[ Hector looks on in near horror as he watches the data-blood spill from Fandaniel. Twinges of pain tug at his chest as he grits his teeth; seeing "Fandaniel" in this much pain isn't...something he wants to keep watching. But they have to do this. It's the only way to save him. ]

It's not the end. [ He doesn't know if the way he growls this, through clenched teeth, actually makes it to Fidchell—Fandaniel, but he doesn't care. It's not going to be the end for him, or them. Fandaniel will come back, and they can start looking to the future, and...

...

He needs to do his job. Rather than embarrass himself and waste an action like last time, he whips his hand into the air for LaRig Gaem, allowing the SP of everyone near him (sorry Owen) to regenerate over time. C'mon. They're so close to freeing him. ]

finale... 1/2

[trollophoroi]

[ All of these final attacks, striking at Fidchell and stealing away from him his last handful of hit points. Worse yet, the words they sling, all trying to get through, to break through to...

Fidchell falls, the flow of data now coming from cracks that begin to form in him. He hunches down low, cushioned by his robes, the eyes that had been within them blinking out one by one. It's over Owen that he curves himself over as if to safeguard him from the barrage being flung at him. ]

Ả̡l̚ͅl̼̒ I h̳̖̓́a̟̪͛͞ṿ͒ḛ̽̓ͅ ev͖͘e̤̐r̹̄ w̤̍an͍̊ť͖e̛ͅd͔͊.̨̊.̨͎̋̍.̧̐͛͢ w̱̔͛͜as̮͍͐͞ t̯̑h̛͔i̝̚s̳͗.̟̺̿͠..͎̖̈̽ t͓͊o pr̛͍ot͖̖̅̕e̖͕͑̊c̢͊t s͙͈̃͞o͉͌m͇̚eõ̬n̳̓e̡̛.̠̇.͌͜.͂͟ an̟͕̄̀y̤̥̅̌o͘͜ne.͔͕̂͘.̀͜.

[ Fidchell's voice glitches, growing quieter, less booming, but his sorrow breaks through at the very end. No, not his sorrow, but...

Fandaniel's. ]

Bŭ̖t̝͋ ̡̀Ï̝ ̟̂c̝̈́a̟͠n̳͑'̝̅t̛̤...͓̕ I ͉̓c̯̆ȯ̮ul̡͞dǹ̨'̥̒t͈̂.̈́ͅ.. not Met̖̃ei̛̬o͇̒n.̡͑.. or ͙͝Hie͎͊n... not even Lily...

[ Bit by bit, Fidchell begins to crumble apart, though not into dust, only into data, and feathers, such bright blue feathers, and then the Phase in his entirety falls apart into nothing at all, data and feathers flooding the arena to an extent that everyone else in it will be momentarily blinded by them. ]

2/2

[trollophoroi]

[ But when the field of data and soft blue clears, wind scattering the feathers off across Lumina Cloth, what those eight souls who had gathered to face Fidchell will discover the cruel metal arena and its pods are all gone, torn away along with Fidchell's data, leaving them standing atop a platform in the now rapidly thawing chill that had taken the root town over, under a wide and gorgeous starry sky.

The viciously wrought metal that had been underfoot is now a field of soft grass and flowers, so many flowers, of so many colors, but blue, the blue ones stand out so brilliantly, as if they themselves glowing in the moonlight. ]

...I think... I was just... never... good... at saving people... heh...

[ The man left in Owen's arms where the Phase had collapsed to is most assuredly Fandaniel, though his hair is longer, his body thinner from months of disuse, his clothes a soft white shirt and pants and socks, what one might expect a hospital-bound patient to have.

There is a moment, but only a moment, where he is there and solid and alive, though too exhausted to move, and then the next? The next it'll become all too clear that the data that had been spilling away from Fidchell?

It's also spilling away from Fandaniel himself. ]