Beware the Deadly Poisonous Crystallis Hamsters...

[mindofathief]

Who: Duster and anyone who signs up on the OOC Post.
What: Too long has this mighty enemy gone undefeated and free. It's time to capture a Hamster for the Monster Area to earn som crystals.
Where: Outside of Aqures Ixen
When: June 6th, Nighttime
Warnings: Lots of violence.

Today was the big day. The battle of a lifetime. One that had to be won with the strength of a hundred hearts. Or, at least, several powerful Heroes.

For tonight, a band of brave adventurers had to face the killer hamster.

Duster learned that this adorable animal was deadlier than it seemed thanks to the letters he got in return, so he made sure to stock up on potions, eat well, and get plenty of rest before meeting up with the rest of the gang. His ocarina had been cleaned earlier, ensuring that his songs would play clearly, and he had bought sturdier shoes in case he had to make use of his Monk Job.

Tonight, they were either going to bring hope to the world, or Crystallis was going to see more death on its surface.

Comments

MINGLE

[mindofathief]

[For pre-battle preparations and conversations.]

[line_piece]

So... do you want me to tank, draw aggro, heal, buff, or on DPS?

[She's asking Duster, but anyone can answer.]

[mindofathief]

[Duster was the last person she could have asked, judging by his blank stare.]

Wh-- Draw-- DPS? Dragon Point...System?

[He understands "heal" but he can only guess what the others terms mean.]

You're a bard, right? ...I guess you should help raise our strength and all that...

[line_piece]

DPS stands for Damage Per Second. It's a measure of the average amount of damage you're able to inflict over a period of a single second.

[To put it as simply as she can, without getting into the math.]

I can do any of those things. I have nine Jobs maxed, so I can lend support wherever I'm needed most. I just need to know which ones to use.

[mindofathief]

[His eyes widen.]

That does make sense. [He appreciates that Chiaki didn't chide him for not understanding right away.] If hamsters have strong defenses, it's better that we have fewer, stronger attacks than a lot of weak ones.

[21stcenturyguy]

[Santa's slowly stretching his arms, popping joints in that 'too cool to care about the danger we're facing' kind of way. He doesn't actually do any physical fighting with his current job set, but he's a big believer in the illusion of confidence building up actual confidence.]

So, do we need some kinda hamster lure or something? It's gonna suck if we partied up and then couldn't find one in the dark.

[mindofathief]

We just need to look in the right places. And don't pop your joints; it makes you less effective at fighting.

[Duster leans against a nearby wall and folds his arms while keeping an eye on Santa.]

And even if you aren't attacking the hamster head-on, you need to be able to run at a moment's notice. If you want to get ready, you should do some warm-up exercises.

[21stcenturyguy]

[He does not have it in him to readily comply when someone orders him to do something, so he locks eyes with Duster and pops another joint very deliberately. He's not a physical fighter. It'll be fine.]

So where do hamsters like to hang out?

[He's got some illusionist moves if he's gotta retreat, but if Duster wants to see him get all warmed up and sweaty, then Santa might as well make his day. He raises his arms and pushes himself up on his toes, stretching his body as tall as it will go and causing his shirt to ride up just a little. Then he drops back down to normal height and puts a leg forward into a lunge. He usually doesn't like exercising in front of people; doesn't look cool enough. But he likes being contrary, and he's pretty sure he's got the legs and butt to make the motion worthwhile.]

[mindofathief]

[Duster narrows his eyes at the popped joint. Santa was doing it on purpose, he knows it. Hopefully he won't antagonize him during the fight and end up losing the battle.

His eyes follow Santa's movements. The first stretch doesn't warrant a reaction: that's barely a proper stretch, and from where he's standing, Duster can't see much of Santa's exposed stomach.

But it's difficult not to see Santa's butt when he does lunges. He's not even trying to exercise, and it's all to get Duster riled up--]

Rukia met them before, she knows--Look, Santa? [He pushed off the wall and steps in front of him.] Let me show you how it's done. That stance is all wrong.

[He pushes Santa's shoulders lightly, motioning him to stand up straight.]

[damn_juicebox]

You don't find hamsters.

Hamsters find you.

[Rukia doesn't bother to introduce herself, if only because she secretly enjoys their odd exchanges over letters. If he finds out tonight, so be it, but for now, her sole objective is to defeat the creature that has caused her an endless world of grief. She rests the blunted edge of her katana against her shoulder as she stands, waiting for the others to assemble. And that remark about hamsters? Absolutely serious, inside and out.]

They abuse their cute appearance to lure victims into approaching them. They will not be reasoned with, and no amount of coaxing or gifts of food will sway them from their murderous agenda. Be on your guard.

[21stcenturyguy]

...ok. You...haven't missed any medication or anything, right?

[Because Santa's 85% certain this tiny woman is crazy. She's acting like hamsters murdered her family and burned down her village.]

Re: MINGLE

[fearlessherosheart]

[Tazendra is checking her sword's edge, and giving it a final once-over, while humming to herself. She's recovered from her illness and there's nothing like a battle to make her feel back to her old self. ]

Ah, there is nothing like this feeling.

[mindofathief]

Ah, Tazendra! [If there's someone he's happy to see, it's her.] It's good you see you here.

[He sits down beside her, admiring her sword. There was nothing like that in Tazmily, the only swords existing as drawings or modified to shoot out lighting, so seeing a genuine shard weapon being used as it should is a new experience.]

[fearlessherosheart]

[And Tazendra is a firm believer that if one owns a sword, one should be willing to use it.]

I would not be anywhere else at this time.

YUFFIE | OPEN

[thegreatninja]

[Yuffie's ready with items, extra blades and a few spare things that might come in handy. She has a few yards of rope, if only because rope is awesome. She isn't looking to underestimate it.]

Plan? Do we have a plan? I think we need a plan...

[She's no interest in dying.]

[confidentia]

[ Neither does Ace, since even being well-acquainted with the entire process of dying doesn't make the perspective of failure any easier. Each of them has their own plans to attend to, and the sooner they get the task done, the better.

The amount of equipment Yuffie has brought is... certainly impressive, so Ace stops to give them a better look. ]

I believe we're still waiting for everybody to gather up. [ So much rope. He's seen her ninja skills at work before, which brings a question to his mind. Hasn't she just claimed to have mastered all of the skills at her disposal? That could certainly work in their advantage, if it was true. ]

Yuffie, wasn't it you who had made that announcement over the Mognet?

[thegreatninja]

[Yuffie blinks, looking up at Ace.]

Yeah. I have access to more than just two jobs but most of what I can do is still straight damage and I have a feeling that a Hamster is going to be immune to most status effects and spells.

[Hence the items and the worry.

The rope is just for fun.]

Rukia | OPEN

[damn_juicebox]

[Rukia is a grim and silent figure near the outer ring of the group. Her katana is sheathed at her side, as she can't use it properly so long as she's a Beastmaster. Instead she has a whip coiled near her waist, and a freaking velociraptor snorting and tilting its head with a few soft whuffs as it constantly tests the air for new scents.]

[All of the furs and heavy leather from her combined job of Beastmaster and Santa Claus make it very easy not to get cold, especially as the night is somewhat warm to begin with.]

[She waits patiently for the others to assemble, her arms folded, strands of black hair shifting in the evening breeze.]

This time I must not show compassion. I must not show mercy.

[She lowers her head, her brow furrowed into a frown.]

No matter how adorable it appears, if I show any hint of weakness, it will destroy me. So I must not pet it.

[Maybe she'll convince herself, maybe she won't.]

open

[charming_jerk]

We got a lotta Bards here. I got all Bard songs 'n stuff, but I'm almost done with Dragoon too. So I can either support or be on the front lines.

[He's fine with whatever.]

Y'know, I can never get over the idea of hamsters bein' horrible death machines here. Back home they're, like, $5 pets you give to 8 year olds, 'n they do nothin'. Just dig around and shove shit in their cheeks and run around inside wheels.

[mindofathief]

[Johnny echoes a lot of Duster's sentiments, only with "Monk" replaced with "Dragoon".]

I'll be on the front lines, too, but I have Bard just in case we need more help. [But on a serious not, Johnny does not understand the danger he's walking into.] I was told these hamsters are deadly monsters, more powerful and more fighty than any kind in any other world.

They're not pets. Something happened to turn them into killing machines. [Evil science? It has to be evil science.]

[charming_jerk]

Yeah, so they say, right? It's just so weird to me. None of these monsters are in my world except for these guys. Makes me wonder if they came over with some old Hero at some point, 'n turned into this somehow. Gettin' turned into super hamsters when on another planet.

[Like sme sort of Superman situation maybe?]

BATTLE

[mindofathief]

[The Heroes set out in search for a Hamster....

Please keep this to a single thread, the hamster will be run by the mods.]

[damn_juicebox]

[Twice, Rukia has faced a hamster. That's twice more than anyone should ever encounter such a dreaded fiend. The first time, she was new to Crystallis, and wasn't aware of the threat. She'd approached gently, kneeling down with an offered hand.]

[It savaged her.]

[The second time she was called to fight one by Cid in exchange for a new Job. It called a wave of hamsters to devour them alive, and it's only by a stroke of sheer fortune that the three of them managed to escape unscathed.]

[Tonight will mark the third, and final, encounter. Twice she attempted to reason with them, believing deeply in her heart that they can't be nearly as vicious or cruel as the legends say. Twice she was proven wrong. Tonight, she will not underestimate her opponent. Tonight, she will capture it with her Beastmaster abilities for the sake of a crystal that will uncrystallize an entire region.]

[TONIGHT IT MUST END.]

[melodiesboss]

[ After hours looking for a hamster in the depths of the night, they would stumble upon a dead Malboro. The gigantic and deadly creature had been ripped to pieces and what was left of it... Well, it wasn't a pretty sight to say the least. It was as if someone had attacked the creature with relentless fury and power. Judging by the surroundings, the Malboro hadn't even had a chance to fight back. It had been utterly destroyed within moments.

And yet, there was a noise within the remains of the monster. Was it still alive...? It couldn't be. And yet something stirred, something screeched. And before long something popped out from the once dangerous mouth of the creature: a Hamster. It looked unharmed and perfectly fine and in fact it seemed surprised to smell the presence of other creatures around.

And truth to be said, it didn't look like much. It looked like just another hamster. Cute, fluffy and very pettable. It didn't look like something that would harm someone, ever. And yet if the signs were to be believed, it was what had brought the Malboro down, effortlessly so.

And lo, the ferocious beast turned its attention to the newcomers, standing on its back legs. It looked at the Heroes of Light with curiosity, but didn't do anything. For now. ]

[iknowtheconsequences]

Start with the buffs, before they unload any damage on this thing. That was the plan, right? While the Bards are tuning up, Kaji casts the Scholar skill Enlightenment on the party. Doubles everyone's attack strength. And then he holds position and waits, staring at the tiny creature. What the hell is wrong with this world that this thing is going to kick their asses?