World Tree MUSH

    For those not in the know, Anchordeep is a massive and sprawling cosmopolitan city embedded into the tree... It's like, really ingrained in there; having lost the identity of the original world it was from and getting entrench into a branch. It's a vast city of magic and technology mixed together; with all manner of people and races who walk all walks of life.
    Lether is one of those people walking the walk of life right now.
    "Aite, I'mma take the Nimbewright tracker and head out. Who wants to come with?"
    Apparently Dante and Kanna wanted to come with so the three are walking the city streets.
    Rain falls in downpouring sheets and Lether is wrapped up tightly in a waterproof cloaked coat and hood, one hand holding her coat shut, the other holding the Nimblewright detector.
    The city streets are full of violence these days and it's not safe to leave without being armed or going anywhere alone, especially after the Zhentarim attack on Gralhund Villa. It's a bad time to be a member of the Zhentarim in the city, with the Guard hunting them down for the attack on a noble house.
    The streets hustle and bustle but everyone seems to be looking over their shoulder.
    Gold makes people do strange things, and Lord Neverember's half million stolen gold coins sitting somewhere in the city has most of the populace on edge or in a search for the rumored gold while it's up for grabs.
    Only whoever holds the Stone of Golorr can find the vault.
    And that stone is missing, in the hands of an automaton known as a Nimblewright that Lether and her companions are hunting down now...

    Dante practically jumped outta his chair when he heard from Lether. It's a good thing he came prepared, 'cause his coat tonight has a hood and everything for the rain. With how violent things are getting, he's not bothering with hiding his sword or pistols. "Charming place, ain't it?" He says as he tries to keep water out of his face, pulling his hood further across his head. He can see a little skirmish to the east, but unfortunately it's not Dante's problem. If they weren't busy, he'd probably go and join the fun for the love of the game.


TWith the promise of half a million at large, anybody could do anything at this rate.

     Is out, exploring the tree with Syd while absent mindedly just meandering "Oh wait, when did we get to a civillization?" the silver haired woman asks towards Syd, still holding his hands "Oh man, these people wear shoes. Shoot." She grumbles, digging a pair of slippers out of her pack and using Syd to balance while she hoppingly tugs her shoes on. Her nose scrunches in distaste at the shoes. "I guess we really got into that discussion of what material to make the house out of?" she offers towards Syd 
     "Someone is going somewhere. They seem to be looking for something." she asks, laughing chipperly at Syd before waving an arm in the air at the strangers "Do you need more help?" she asks, taking extra time to get a look at everyone with open curiousity.

    Kanna seems... mostly unbothered by the rain. Mostly. She does have a relatively cheap umbrella to keep the worst of it off of her, but even with that, her outfit does not look nearly warm enough for this kind of weather. And yet, she walks on. But she's most certainly not going to go out unarmed, no. As her geta clack-clack down the street, her free left arm rests casually on the blade sheathed at her side. She gives a little snort at Dante's crack, though, but other than that, the redheaded swordswoman remains silent, settled into a state best described as 'casually alert'. That includes giving Beatrix and Syd - two people she doesn't recognize - an openly appraising stare.

    Syd bought some leather earlier and is absently making a hat as Beatrix and he walk down the streets. "Shoes protect our feet, dear. Especially around molten hot steel."
    As they come across Lether, Dante, and Kanna, he ties the last stitch in with his fingers and puts the broad-brimmed hat on to keep the rain off of his face. He looks pretty ordinary as humans go, though the ornate golden hammer strapped to his back is cartoonishly huge. He gives the trio an appraising glance and a polite nod. "Good day." He offers.

    Lether abruptly halts in her tracks when her party is approached by Beatrix! The lizardfolk girl clears her throat awkwardly when the offer for aid is given because well...
    How easy is it to tell anyone that she has THE one biggest clue in the whole city for finding the lost half million gold?
    "I think we're good." She mumbles vaguely under her breath, trying to pay no mind to the bloody skirmish down the street and pull Dante and Kanna along when...
    The detector in her hands goes off beeping and chirping and really LOUDLY AND OBNOXIOUSLY alerting the party to something in the next alley.
    "..."
    That's even more awkward as everyone makes it to said alley they come upon a sight in the rain.
    Several men in soaked black leather armor and black coats are beating up on a humanoid figure made of bronze. The Nimblewright tries to fight them off valiantly but ultimately... It's pummelled down and the men in black yank it into a nearby black van. Everyone has just witnessed a literal kidnapping.
    Lether curses loudly and foully. Neviah would be mad if she were here.
    Because as the van starts to speed off she starts running after them but...
    Well that's not going to work for her.
    Thankfully there's an unattended motorcycle nearby, a horse drawn cart just sitting there, and slick, sleek nice black car pulls up and the owner gets out and conveniently forgets to lock his car up in the process.
    Plenty of vehicles for commandeering in the heat of the moment, right?
    Right?

    They come around the corner just in time to see their mark shoved into a van and absconded with. It's almost comical timing, but for a moment all Kanna can do is stare in disbelieving bafflement. She glances between the van, then Lether, then Dante, then the van, then Syd and Beatrix, then the van again.

    "...shit. I kinda liked this umbrella."

    And with no more ceremony than that, the redheaded samurai tosses the umbrella aside, and rests her now-free hand on the grip of her sword, using the left to hold the sheath in place. "Call me Crimson Wind. Crimson works. I'll see you when you catch up." And in the next heartbeat, she's off at a run... a run that very quickly proves to be just as fast as the van. Maybe even faster.

    Dante reluctantly follows along Lether and Kanna when the beeper gets his attention. "Eh? Think we got a winner, kiddos." He says eagerly, a grin forming on his face as he tries to approach the bronze man...and then the poor guy gets stolen.

    "Well, shit." He says while watching the van speed off. It's when he notices Beatrix and Syd that Dante gives 'em a wave. "Hey, you guys came at a weird time." he says with an easygoing smile. "Dante. Demon hunter."

    With introductions done, Dante then looks to Lether. "Dibs on the bike." He says before rushing towards it, and after comandeering it, Dante's speeding off towards the van while whooping in delight.

    The silver haired woman seems unbothered by being sopped watching the situation like a predator. " Syd, do you want to borrow that ground vehicle? I'm curious how fast that larger vehicle is and if I can keep up with it but feel like many of the humans would be terrified of me and might get me bombarded with their weaponry." she admits, she cracks her shoulders, reaching to touch the roof of the car, clicking her claw like fingers on it. 
     She breathes in and out "feels like metal." She pauses, looking at Dante "Beatrix, the witch and my darling husband Syd, breaker of infinity." she offers, looking at the glass window of the car. "Yeah let's just borrow it, I'm sure this is a just cause?" she makes a noise that's similar to a song bird's chirp at Lether with a small smile. "Would you care to ride with us? Syd, I have an idea." she offers, making a punch gesture with a grin. She still hasn't figured out you shouldn't just take a car.

    Syd just smashes the roof off a car with the huge hammer and hops in the driver's seat while Beatrix is chatting at him. By the time she's talking about it being a just cause, he's figured out how to hotwire it. Its engine roars to life.
    "All aboard!" And the car starts rumbling towards the van, complete with any passengers who may have decided to jump in.

    Lether is a fast little blighter. But she's not fast enough to keep up with a speeding getaway van.
    Unlike Kanna Ouji who IS fast enough to keep pace with the car, maybe even outpace if if she wanted, but the roads aren't empty, there ARE other cars in the way and before too long the van pulls off onto an onramp that leads to a highway.
    Dante snags the bike while Lether spits curses as she's left behind only to turn to...
    Beatrix and Syd.
    She eyes Beatrix. She eyes Syd.
    She eyes the car.
    Syd smashes the roof off the car and hops in the driver's seat.
    "Good enough for me."
    So what if you shouldn't just take a car...
    A car is getting taken right now as Lether hops into the passenger seat in a crouch, tugging a dagger from inside her coat with one hand while she holds onto the dash with the other.
    The kid doesn't even bother with her seatbelt as the party takes off after the van onto the highway.
    It's as Kanna, closest to the van from the start, gives chase that the men inside realize they are being followed. So they open up the van's back doors, two men in black can be seen crouched over the unconscious Nimblewright and they draw iron.
    Guns, not blades tonight as their handguns report with loud kracks and pops every time they pull the trigger and try to gun the samurai down behind them!

    The other cars on the road aren't as big an impediment for Kanna as they might first seem. It doesn't take long at all for her to just hop up a couple meters and start springing from car roof to car roof. But that brings its own challenge. Aside from the challenge of making people swear and honk with every roof she touches off of. No, the main challenge is that hopping like that is enough of a slowdown that she has to actually start working, hard, to keep up. The young woman frowns a little, eyes darting here and there, before she settles for simply taking a long, gliding leap... up to the nearest building face. And just running along the vertical surface, taking it as a chance to play catch-up.

    By the time her sandals touch back down on the highway onramp, Kanna has made up the ground she lost. But now there's another problem, and one of an entirely more lethal sort. They're pulling guns. Running over open ground the way she is, Kanna makes a laughably easy target unless she's willing to start swerving to and fro, which would do a good job of killing her speed again...

    ...so why's she grinning?

    TING!

    TING! PLINK!

    The bullets that veer off to either side aren't even considered. But those that come close enough to be a threat? One after another, the divine ronin whips her sword back and forth, and sparks fly with each bullet she parries out of the air. She's stopped trying to close the distance entirely; at this point, she's just keeping pace and parrying bullets out of the air. Almost as if she's...

    "Hah! You guys are pretty good shots, this is getting kinda fun!"

    ...showing off.

     Is weightless looking as she hops in "Thank you, my kabocha." She stands in the back seat, ears perked, watching Dante take off and the Samurai run "Gosh, she moves like a Night caste I used to know back in the Spiral." she mumbles. She seems fine with using the seats to brace herself. "Syd... move closer, I wish to strike that vehicle. Also projectiles." she mumbles, focusing now. 
     Her pointer and middle finger go up infront of her lips, the language of thaumaturgy coming out in a hiss like series of sounds. She's up to something, perhaps something stupid, violent. Her free hand is tapping a rhythm into Lether's seat, as if a religious ritual. Her arms seem to be very faintly beginning to ebbingly glow.

    The motorcycle revs to life as Dante guns the throttle, gleefully hooting and hollering as he follows after the van. Good thing someone left the keys in this thing, especially considering the circumstances. With abolutely inhuman reaction time and agility, Dante is weaving and dodging any vehicles in the way, even ramping off a truck that was left on the street irresponsibly while striking a pose like a cool guy should.

    "WOO HOO HOO! YEAAAAAAH, BABY!" He's having fun, it's been too long since Dante got to show off this stuff while on adventures. He catches up with Kanna easily, grinning at her while throwing up the horns, and then he draws Ivory as gunfire greets him and the others.

    He wasn't expecting guns, but this city takes all kinds it seems. "You guys should be usin' crossbows! God, the tone of this city's all over the place!" He taunts, as he opens fire on the van. He doesn't shoot at the guys per say, but he does take aim at the van's tires. Dante's not too worried about the bronze guy, he'll probably be fine after a tumble.

    Syd's half-filled circle castemark glitters in the rain as he drives like a mad-man in the topless sedan. The supernaturally enhanced driving course includes: two wheels, drifting, bootlegger turns, and driving in reverse for stretches. The reaction from the other drivers on the road are probably pretty rude. Honking, curing, obscene gestures...
    "Yeah yeah, I'm driving like a jerk..." At least Syd is avoiding crashing into other vehicles. "We're never going to catch up, we got any alternate routes to cut them off?" They do have the biggest vehicle out of the three pursuers. The engine screams as he steers it through an intersection.

    Kanna, a samurai, very notably Ninja Runs through an incoming hail of bullets. The men in the back of the van are given a brief moment of pause before they hastily discuss things with each other.
    And one of them pulls out an assault rifle.
    hte rate of fire picks up by an intense degree by the time Dante pulls up and tries to shoot the tires.
    These guys can't have that, and that might be why a second black van appears on the road. The guy in the passenger seat DOES try to skewer Dante with a crossbow win passing!
    "There! Take that alley!" Lether points out to Syd. The alley is just wide enough for the car and it gets the trio out of the main thrust of traffic while Lether holds on for dear freaking life. Once out the other side of the alley is another convenient on-ramp for the highway that puts the car ahead of the two vans.
    Lether looks to Beatrix.
    "I'm gonna do something dumb." The 'gator girl says with a grin from ear to ear. Because it's during a stint of backwards driving that Lether clambers onto the hood of the car-- and leaps into the path of the oncoming van.
    Scrambling onto the hood of the van she's holding on for dear life again before she kicks through the windshield, knocking out the guy in the passenger seat and landing herself in the cab with the Zhentarim driver.
    "... Hi."
    This is about when a guy with a rocket launcher pops out the back of he second van. He's going to try and take out Kanna and Dante in one well-placed explosion!

    A crazy motorcycle comes screaming up the Anchordeep Expressway, and Kanna can't help but shoot him a side glance and a broad, fierce grin. She almost looks disappointed, though, when the goon squad stops shooting for a second.

    Then they break out the automatic. And the Crimson Wind actually has to start trying.

    Bullets pockmark the road around Kanna as she parries at inhuman speed, but her expression is much more focused now, staving off the assault and starting to push herself closer towards the van bit by bit. It's a question of getting in close enough that one burst of speed will close the gap, without running out of steam before she can get there - but, as the rocket launcher comes out, an idea pops into her head.

    "HEY, BIG RED! LAUNCH ME!"

    That's all the warning Kanna gives. Then, she surges ahead slightly, before twisting her body and leaping sideways. The change in direction, combined with the loss of forward speed, should send her on a perfect arc straight towards Dante, with her sandals drawn up and ready to plant on... well, whatever Dante intends to use to launch her.

    Dante weaves through enemy fire with the contempt of a guy who sees everything in slow motion. At a point he even starts shooting the bullets out of the air, .45 caliber slugs smashing through them and knocking them dead. And yes, he doesn't bother reloading. That's for people who don't have demon magic.

    Dante tanks a crossbow bolt and grunts, noticing it skewer his wrist. "Motherfu-" HONK HONK!

    Unimpeded by this injury, Dante opens fire on the next van to try and blast the crossbow wielding thug. Speaking of blasts, he notices the rocket launcher and his cool blue eyes go wide for a moment, but Dante just stows his pistol before he reaches out to catch Kanna.

    Then, Dante winds up as he spins around on his bike to build up momentum. Then, like a shotput, he hurls Kanna with all of his strength. "Go long!"

    And the instant Dante throws, Kanna pushes off, adding force to force and launching the crimson samurai like a rocket. The aim is perfect, sending her straight towards the van and the oncoming rocket - and as the two projectiles pass one another in mid-air, there's a flash of steel and a shower of sparks. Particularly fast eyes might be able to see the halves of the rocket spreading apart for a fraction of a second before they go off.

    Kanna keeps her blade out, and as she reaches the back of the van, she uses the first goon in her way as a 'landing pad'. It's just unfortunate she 'lands' sword-first.

    Syd does some mental calculations while looking behind him... to drive, weaving. Keeping one hand on the wheel, he nods to Beatrix and hefts the hammer. "Time to drop the hammer."
    The tires screech as the car turns to face the right way.
    There's a road shattering boom as the hammer slams down onto the asphalt, sending the battered car up into the air sideways and upside down, hurtling over the first van. "Go Bea!"

    Why does it smell like freshcut grass? The question answers itself. Beatrix's arms expand violently, getting thicker and longer, turning white then green then in places earthy brown. Tendrils of sorcerous menace wrap her arms as they go up, fingers splaying elegantly as dainty blossoms and thorns begin erupting out of her flesh. The brambled hands look menacingly ready to absolutely duke it out. 
     "Blessings of the Wood Dragon are ready to be bestowed when you are in position." She comments to Syd. "I'm going to dig into that thing's flesh." she comments, green mist coming out of her mouth as her circular caste mark glows, flower petals getting dragged off in the rushing air. She waits for the moment Syd gives the go sign, swinging the heavy thorns down to try to dig in and get a grip on the roof of the first van. No hesitation. She is commited to the disaster currently unfolding and is treating this whole situation like they've done this before. A lot. She latches as hard as she can and digs her feet in, growling and groaning at the effort being given to the plan.

>> GAME >> Beatrix spends an Edge for: Thorns of the Wood Dragon - for opening sardine can like vehicles!

    IT's unfortunate. For that guy in the van in the path of Kanna's sword.
    Crumpling like a sack of potatoes with a katana in its chest the guy goes down after Dante launches Crimson Wind and she neatly clips the incoming missile in half in an incredible display of agility and reflexes.
    The guys in that van don't really stand a chance but they train their weapons on Kanna anyway.
    This is a bad idea and will likely end in some disarming.
    Ha ha ha.
    Lether is currently in the cab of the first van and it starts swerving violently as she tries to wrestle the wheel from the driver. Unfortunately poking him in the ribs six times with her dagger makes him slump FORWARD and die with his foot on the acellerator. But it's okay as Syd launches his car and Beatrix calls upon her sorcerous knowledge to start tearing the roof off the van.
%This allows Lether into the back compartment with the Nimblewright.
    A cursory search says the thing is dead and destroyed, but the 'gator girl's eyes light up when she pulls something from the mangled corpse as the van skids to a halt slowly, too damaged to continue its momentum.
    Lether hops out the back of the mangled van and swings onto the back of Dante's bike in a smooth leap.
    "Time to bail. We got what we need. Kanna meet you back at the house." She calls over before motioning for Syd and Beatrix.
    "We're ditching. You should do the same. Don't let the Guard catch you. Meet up at Trollskull Manor. You've probably got a lot of questions."
    Time to ditch.

    Dante smells a lot of grass, but that's not important right now. While Dante hurls Kanna at the second van, he sees Beatrix rip open the first van so Lether can hop inside. Dante matches speed behind the van and takes the hint, preparing himself for Lether to hop aboard. He swirls around so Lether can straddle the bike and grab on tight to his back with one fluid motion, before he throttles the bike and peels off down the street. "I gotcha. Getting sick of the rain anyways." He nods curtly, riding off like a bat outta hell on the bike.

    "What in the Fair Folk's vanity is a trollskull manor?" she eyes Syd, detangling her hands from the van. She shakes out her hands as the magic fades off, despite having plenty of time left on the spell. She looks at the damaged automaton and frowns at the gator girl, tsking before hopping up and into the van to grab the bronze man. "Wasteful. Got it." she mumbles, darting back out to dump the automaton in the backseat. "You'll have to help me fashion a sled to drag that machine home." she offers, leaning to peck Syd's cheek "I knew you'd want it, Sunshine." she offers, rubbing her knuckles, sitting and digging in her bag to find a nail file to get metal out of her nails. "He's sick of the rain, I'm thankful every time we get to feel it on our flesh. It's one of my favorite feelings, are you getting cold?" she asks cautiously, remembering that Syd isn't as resistant to cold as her.

    If Kanna were nicer, she might give the poor bastards in the van a disbelieving look. She might give them a warning. She might have said something like, 'Are you serious? You saw what I just did, and now you're in sword range.'

    But Kanna's not that nice.

    There are a few more showers of sparks outside the van, as in the tight confines of the vehicle, Shinsatsufuu cleaves through not just limbs, but the van walls behind them. But at least she doesn't go for the lethal option! ...except on the guy she used as a landing pad. Poor dude.

    It's as she's flicking the blood off Shinsatsufuu that the redhead sniffs a couple times, then says, "Why's it smell like grass...?" She can at least hear the commotion from the other van, but for now, she focuses on the henchmen in front of her. But with them more or less sorted out, the Crimson Wind doesn't have much else to do here. She's about to swing out and start looking for another ass to kick, when Lether calls out from Dante's bike. "Gotcha, I'll see you there." A pause. "Have Lif get the wok ready! We got leftover rice, I'm making stir fry."

    Syd was already eyeing the marvelous construction of the nimblewright before Beatrix put it into the car. "Well, we can probably throw a trenchcoat on it to make it look like a person." Trollskull Manor gets logged into his head, figuring it's probably some kind of important and impressive building to have a name like that. 
    Nevertheless, he glances at Lether. "We're new in town, what direction is that?"
    Afterwards, the car's engine purrs as he guides it down into a dark alley, where he'll woefully dispose of the marvelous machine by melting it. It's on foot from there, with Beatrix and a nicked nimblewright.