melodiesoflife | Event || The Night of the Thirteen Moogles

[The sight of the Reaper makes Ven start -- but then he remembers what was said after that terrible fight and notes the whip. Beastmaster? Right. They'll be okay (on that front, at least).

Despite the scare, Ven takes a second to shoot Yuna a concerned glance, having noticed the shake in her voice and body before now -- and sees her face.]

Yunie...

[This man... he's important to her. If she's as reluctant to fight as Ven was just a little bit ago--]

If it gets too tough for you, go! I can keep 'em--

[Yeul casts one of those odd spells this time, and Ven's forced to leap aside. Furniture gets knocked about by the magic and he narrowly avoids getting clocked by a chair, sliding to a stop on the tile and immediately reversing direction to launch himself at her.

Like Sora, the girl's just a victim -- but Ven can't let that slow him down this time.]

[Yuna shakes her head at his concern. She doesn't want to but seeing her friends used for this only makes it worse.]

I've fought... [She feels a tremble run through her as she tries to focus.] ...my friends before. I won't let them be used like this.

[Another tear falls down her cheek as the reaper silently moves forward, his hand reaching out towards Caius as it casts.]

Ven!

[She turns as the furniture is thrown about. While Caius is occupied she might be able to help.]

[Ven doesn't miss Yuna's response, but there's no time to dwell on it. They might not be able to beat these two, but they can try to hold them off while they think of a plan. If only there was a way to keep them trapped in this building--

As he nears Yeul, Ven activates Flash and disappears -- reappearing behind her a second later and throwing out a sweeping kick at her knees. He's still being too merciful -- he should have struck with his Keyblade -- and while the girl does hit the floor, she casts another dark-aura spell on the way. It misses Ven and hits the ground, but the tile explodes forcefully enough to send him tumbling down the hallway all the same.]

[Yuna leaves her pet to fight and runs towards Ven. Her gun is raised at Yeul while a bright beam hits the girl in the chest. There is no way for her to see if Ven is okay after his tumble, her focus is already split and she isn’t sure how long she can hold on.

The black hooded pet is handling Caius so she just needs to defeat Yeul for them to be safe again. She looks at the small child, her eyes taking in each small delicate feature. They were friends but it wasn’t here that they met. She had stayed away from Yeul giving the girl a chance to live a free life. Now she doesn’t know what to say to the young girl.

Her lips form an apology but the sound is lost to the ambient clutter of fighting.]

[The tumble itself isn't terrible, but after getting trashed by Sora a little bit ago, it doesn't take much to whittle away at Ven's remaining strength. Everything hurts as he forces himself up, more chips of metal falling from his tattered armor.

This isn't going to work -- he won't be able to sincerely hurt these people, even if they are strangers. That girl, especially, unarmed and looking so vulnerable...

As soon as Yeul's down, Ven forces himself forward -- every muscle screaming, the gash in his right arm throbbing, and his magic reserves burning as he forces another couple Flashes to join Yuna at the head of the hall again. With Yeul and Caius both distracted for the moment, Ven chances a look around -- left, right, behind, anywhere for anything they could use--

--and then his eyes go up, and he notices the second story walkway. An indoor balcony of sorts, it's just an extension of the hallway on the second floor -- and it's right over Caius and the Reaper, specifically.

Ven shifts his stance to throw out his free arm, his gauntlet cracked and scraped.]

Yunie, get behind me! I'm bringing it down!

[Just the balcony, hopefully -- and not half the hospital -- but they have to trap these Heroes somehow.]

[Yuna is already stretching herself thin and had Ven’s command she drops her beam. Yeul now reeling from the blow turns towards the sphere hunter as she runs. Even without her attacking Yeul seems reluctant to leave Caius’s side, as if the pair is joined through something stronger than their urge to kill and fight.

Yeul’s hand rises towards Yuna, small fingers uncurling as Yuna moves next to Ven. She doesn’t care what happens to the Reaper but she does feel a little bad for it. Before she can reach the safety of Ven’s side a blast of energy hits her square in the back. She’s lifted off her feet and set flying towards Ven, missing him by an inch and then slamming into the wall.

This is not a very fun fight.]

Now Ven!

[Her voice is strained and she stays slumped against the wall as Ven acts.]

Yunie--!

[He starts to lose his focus, turning towards her to try and help -- but her cry snaps him back to the situation at hand and he whips back around, glaring hard at the overhead walkway as he aims and casts Combustion. The result is immediate, and loud: plaster and concrete explode with a roar, splintering and dropping down towards the cursed Heroes. Dust and debris go flying. Something sharp grazes by Ven's face, slicing hard over his cheek before he can shield himself.

Large chunks of the ceiling, upper walls, and second story floor come down with the balcony, making a bigger mess than Ven intended and effectively causing a small cave-in that blocks the hallway entrance -- but it's not enough to threaten the integrity of the hospital's standing (not yet, anyway) because the rest of the room remains standing. He doesn't stay to see how the Heroes take it; he bolts back towards Yuna, sliding to a stop at her side.]

Hey! You okay?

[Yuna has a thin layer of debris covering her as well as a few thick pieces of drywall and plaster. She coughs as Ven stops at her side and slowly tries to lift herself. Small fragments fall off her while shallow gashes cover her arms. She looks over at the pile of rubble and after seeing no motion a soft sigh falls from her lips. She wants to cry and scream and shout but instead she keeps it inside waiting for this nightmare to end.

Her gaze looks up at Ven and seeing her friend’s face she smiles.]

Yeah. You okay?

[She is more worried about him and as frightening as it is she’s used to getting hurt and dying in Crystallis. Not that she enjoys it but her own well-being has never been at the forefront of her thoughts. She’s always put others first and even now she has the tendency to do that.

Yuna moves to her hands and knees before almost falling back to the ground. She looks down at her ankle which is slowly turning black.]

It’s just a bruise.

[She reassures Ven as she stands before he can even begin to protest.]

[The sight of her injuries worries him -- not that Ven can really talk, as bruised, battered, and bloody as he is -- but he lets her stand, holding his hands out for support if she needs it. He shoots a glance back at the rubble.]

I don't know how long that'll hold 'em. We need to get outside and figure something out. [There are several side and back exits that the cursed Heroes can use, not to mention any windows... Something needs to be done about that.] Can you walk?

[One hand rests in Ven’s as she steadies herself. It hurts but it’s not as bad as it could have been. A really strong potion or a heal spell will have her right as rain. Her eyes flick over Ven’s injuries for a moment before looking back at the rumble.]

Yes… I don’t know what we can do. They’re strong.

[Not to mention that they are at a disadvantage in numbers at this point.]

And if it’s all of them? Can we really fight them all?

[There are many that Yuna knew in Crystal stasis, both from this world and her last. Her two toned gaze lands on Ven and the worry she feels in evident. Yuna might be older but she doesn’t know what to do besides fight and fighting doesn’t seem like a good option.]

[He's quick to shake his head. Ven might be impulsive, but he's not stupid.]

No, we can't. I think the only thing we can do is try to keep them from getting further into the city. If we can't fight 'em...

[He frowns over at the blocked hallway, then up at Yuna. He has an idea, of sorts, but he wants to make sure she's all right first.]

C'mon, let's get you out of here -- we'll find a healer if we can.

[Yuna feels like there is an end to his train of thought. She steps up next to him and takes his hand as they head towards one of the side exits.]

I'm fine. Tell me what you have in mind.

[She limps a little but it's only for a few yards. After that she's able to seemingly walk normally though that doesn't mean the pain in any less. She's just slowly getting used to it.]

[As they go, it looks and sounds like other Heroes are turning up on the scene, too. It's a relief, somewhat, but it doesn't do much for Ven; he still can't contribute much.]

I don't think Ghostbuster's any good. My other Job's Time Mage -- if I go alone, I should be able to move fast enough to stay ahead of 'em. I can lead 'em around until someone stops whatever's causing this.

[...He never claimed it was a smart plan, okay. It hinges heavily on how well he can manage his energy, for one; Flash and Haste will keep him a step ahead of most enemies, but overdoing it will get him killed quick. He's aware of that, but there's not much else he can do as he is.]

[Yuna shakes her head.]

There is a lot of them. You can't do that alone.

[She pulls an Ether from her pocket and hands it over to Ven.]

Take this but find others if you are going to do that. It might be better to try to keep them in the Hospital and then see how many have traveled into the city. We need to keep the people safe.

[These things seem determined to attack people.]

[He opens his mouth to argue, but her offering stops him. Instead, he nods solemnly.]

Right... If you wanna stay here, you can tell the other Heroes what we've seen when they show up. They need to know what they're up against.

[Ven moves to take the bottle, but he intentionally does so in a way that has his hand covering hers. As easygoing with physical contact as he is, it doesn't make the gesture any less meaningful; he's worried. The look he gives her is equally parts concerned and apologetic.]

I don't think I'll be any use in small spaces like that. It's better if I try to track down the ones who've already gone ahead.

[Yuna looks down where there hands meet and gives him a confident smile. She wishes that she could promise that they'd both be okay but she can't make that promise.]

Please be safe. I'll try and block the exists here and warn the other heroes.

[She pauses, chewing nervously on the inside of her cheek.]

It isn't them Ven... I mean, I know they look like our friends but they aren't. They wouldn't want to hurt people like this.

We can save them.

[For a second Yuna thought she might cry but she pushes it back. This isn't the time to feel sad, even so she's worried. Dying might not be permanent but it's painful and she doesn't want Ven to experiance it.]

I know.

[It's a quiet agreement -- he knows it's not them, not really, that they wouldn't want to be used like this, that they need to be saved just as much as anyone right now.

It's what makes this so hard.

Likewise, Ven can make no guarantees about either of them. It's frightening, more so because he's seen death up-close -- and Yuna dying in front of him once was more than enough. It shook him then and the thought shakes him now, working alongside the mystery of Ira's fate.

No promises, but... Ven can give her a smile, which he does, even though it's sad. If nothing else, he doesn't want her distracted by thoughts of his wellbeing.]

We'll figure it out. And I'll be okay. [He tilts his head -- and repeats her own words of weeks ago back at her.] I might not be the best, but I'm pretty good.

[He gives her fingers a reassuring squeeze -- and casts Haste on her, renewing the buff.]

Stay safe, Yunie.

[Yuna laughs softly, the smallest puff of breath exiting her lips as she looks at Ven. She remembers saying those words to him and somehow they give her hope now.]

I will.

[She'll try her best to stay safe, she doesn't know how her death at the hand of the reaper might have affected Ven. She doesn't know what happened after that point but she's glad to see that he's so strong now.

When he pulls away she watches him go, her thoughts pulling down darker roads though there is still hope in her heart. A single tear rolls down her cheek but she quickly brushes it away before she truly begins to cry.]

Event || The Night of the Thirteen Moogles

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