World Tree MUSH

    This world has suffered at the hand of magic, only gradually recovering from the devastation and strife a thousand years in the past. Now, in this age of burgeoning technology, there are some who would resurrect this mythic force and attempt to bend it to their will like the Magi of ages past. Could this be the beginning of a broken world's second Renaissance? Or is the world once more doomed to fall into ruin?

    These are the rumblings of people far and wide as rumors and reports of a miraculous discovery filter along the different means of communication.

    An esper? Found in the mines of Narshe? An unprecedented discovery! But what does it mean? Who can help?

    Even the relatively isolated and mistrustful government of Narshe, normally too proud and self sufficient, has reached out; requesting scholars of every stripe, even the arcane. Clearly, this is a tack taken by a government under a lot of pressure. As if outside forces are already on the move to claim what they feel they're strong enough to simply take.

    To any and all responding to the call, the village is a bit subdued and the citizenry quiet, tense. Local constabulary have upped patrols and operations in the mine are at a standstill. The weather is cold, the evening starting to fall to dusk and there's an unmistakable tinge of magic mixed in with the bite of the cold. Elsewhere... 

    Three figures examine the lonely village from a ridge some distance out. Perhaps easily spotted, perhaps not as a sharp wind picks up and rakes this side of the mountain range, veiling all things distant in a swirl of driving snow.

    Scholars had been called, and one such scholar had shown all the zeal in the world to answer that call. She'd even brought friends along, if they cared to be invited at all! What's an Esper? Locals suggest it's some ancient magical creature from a time before theirs, some great war nobody remembers. By all accounts, they sound a lot like Eidolons. That was reason enough to invite a certain child.

    Harley arrives in Narshe wearing her usual scholar style, the brown-ish greens of the coat and grey leather pants probably fitting in quite well with the locals' style. She pushes her glasses up, after cleaning them from some errant snow.

    "I must say I'm absolutely thrilled to be here, but I wish they'd left clearer instructions on where to go," she bemoans at the sight of the large village, though she expects the mine mentioned must be in the back.

    That's where the moutain is and all.

    It should surprise no one she strays from the road, wandering towards the first house in the path at the sight of a coal furnace attached to the wall.

    "They must use what they mine to stay warm. Efficient! Truly people can make any climate work if they think about it long enough. Judging by the architecture I get the impression this world might be ahead of ours by quite a few years, too."

    Maybe instructions on where to go wouldn't have helped anyway, she's going to get distracted by every new thing on the way to the mine.

    Harley is not alone in her arrival to Narshe. Travelling at the scholar's side, via a big yellow bird, is a small green girl. Rydia of Mist clutches the reins of her chocobo as her avian steed plods along, having alternated between carrying the tiny Summoner and the studious bookworm for different stretches of the trip.
    "You really think these 'Espers' sound like the Eidolons?' Judging from what Harley had explained... They sort of do, but Rydia is naturally skeptical. Top it off, the burning smell of Narshe's coal and combustible fuels is making the girl somewhat skittish in her saddle as they approach.
    "Y-yeah... Interesting, I guess." She murmurs half-heartedly to Harley's excitement, as she looks for a place to tie off her bird.

    "The Osaram have... machines like this," Aloy notes. She's also here, but has hitched along mostly because she thought the two might need some protection. Also curiosity, and that part is hard to disguise with her. She's watching the coal firing in some fascination as well. "This must be the start of what makes the machines in my world. I wonder how long until the Osaram have something like this for their own?"

"Saint preserve me this weather is foul! Hail strangers. Here for this esper business?" Comes a loud and rough female voice. Out a way in the distance is another chocobo. Atop it a hooded woman in red robes. Both rider and bird are huge. That's a warbird. 

 Claudia smiles as she spies the group. She pulls out a hip flask while eyeing them up judgingly. A grin makes her scarrs darken. "Queer lot. Who brings a moppet out to something like this?" Said with a hint of disapproval in the two adults.

    Aloy glances back at the approaching bird and does a shrug. She's shivering a little, but she is dressed in a furred armor instead of her normal, so she's not freezing. "Of course we brought her. Both of us are too terrified to say no." Delivered in a deadpan, of course.

    Ah, outsiders. That gets a bit of a reaction, especially as one of them starts to meander a bit. A pair of guards with a large wolf in tow appear to greet the first group of travelers. They look intimidating and large with their heavy coats, heavy gaiters, balaclavas. One obligingly steps forward, pulling open his headwear to reveal a rugged, square-jawed face. "We're on visitor detail. Your kid?" He nods at Rydia, not really sure what to make of a young girl with green hair. There was a rumor... Nah. The man rolls his shoulder to seat a slung rifle in a more comfortable position, "Anyway, we ask that you wait. The Elder sends his apologies but we must be sure. And do not shy from Monetka." Without further explanation the guard motions his counterpart forward, who wordlessly leads the huge wolf forward. It simply begins sniffing each traveler in turn, rumbling and chuffing softly before satisfying itself and yawning hugely. "It seems she is satisfied! Well done; we'll be on our way now." The guard offers a sharp whistle to draw the eyes of a signaler perched, "Send for the Elder! We'll escort these last few to where the others are gathered." In a more conversational voice, the guard cracks a grin, "I must apologize. We've been concerned about new arrivals of late and until we can ensure all is safe within the mines and without the walls we will be ready." Then a new arrival?

    The guards look on, the dog making a show of raising hackles and emitting a growl with enough bass to be felt as much as heard. "Monetka, be easy. New arrival, if you are with the rest of the scholars come forth!" The guards exchange looks and the huge wolf shakes off its ill temper, looking on at the rider and her bird expectantly.

    "Well, all technology must begin somewhere, I'd assume," Harley asides to Aloy, finally taking her eyes off the furnace at the sound of another approaching chocobo. An armored one, no less.

    Aloy's not wrong at the quip.

    "That child's power is terrifying indeed, though I brought her because she refuses to stay still regardless. She would have come on her own, no doubt. Her skills as a summoner may prove invaluable in dealing with whatever this 'Esper' is."

    Oh, finally, town guards. With a wolf! Harley seems nervous all of a sudden. Monsters and her don't mix well. Seems tamed, at least.

    And they've got clearance to go on ahead!

    "I am curious, please don't take it as overly prying, but what need has a mining village with armed guards and..." She doesn't say monster but her concern betrays the word when she says "... giant wolves." instead.

    Chalk it up to now knowing what this world's about yet.

    "The Osaram are another tribe from your world, right?" Rydia asks of Aloy as she hops off her chocobo, finding a convenient post to just... Leave him by. She doesn't actually tie the bird into place, the child simply holds up a finger. "Stay. Come when I call you."
    "Kweh~." The bird chirrups in response. Before tilting his head. The smell of another chocobo is in the air.
    "Wark?" The bird twitters, turning Rydia's attention to the new arrival. "Who are you calling a moppet?" She asks sharply, hands setting on her hips as Aloy's comment puts a smug little smile on her face.
    But then the guards arrive. "I'm not their kid, they're my adults." She says to the man, before holding still. Rydia does not shy away from the wolf when it comes to sniff her. Though her Wolfos skin cloak probably smells of bigger, badder, wolf.
    She flat out stares the beast in the eyes, as though challenging it, at first, before given a pass.
    Rydia wants a giant wolf now.
    She's wanted one since snowpeak.

    Aloy's world doesn't have wolves, at least not where she lives, so this is all new to her. Especially giant wolves! She lets it sniff at her, but she's really rather mundane. Some items that can be dangerous, but being a bow and spear user, she's not really different than anyone else. "I'm just here to make sure these two are safe." Yet the way she is staring at all the machinery says otherwise.

    Rydia's question has her nodding, and she explains for her and Harley, "Yes, they're another tribe, but I haven't had very much contact with them. The Carja are good at building... maybe even better than the buildings we see here. But the Oseram know how to work metal better than anyone I've seen in my world. They'd love to get ahold of some of this, just to see how it works. Most of the ones I met were mercenaries, I've never been far into their lands."

    Claudia is given another curious look, but Aloy isn't wary of her yet. More generally, she says, "I don't know what an Esper is. Is this one of your magic spirits?"

Claudia Kinborrow laughs as Aloy mentions their terror of Rydia. "That so? Hah! Good moppets a fierce moppet my mother always said! Summoner? Strange at that age. Settles that then. Dame Kinborrow at your service. I am your new bodyguard mystical moppet!" 

 Aloy and Harley get a playful wink as she maneuver over to Rydia in guard position. She waves as the guards calm. And tosses a small pack to their feet. Booze is inside. "Nip up lads! Stay warm and Ajora preserve you!" A glance to Rydia as she too dismounts and ties her bird. "Got a name then?" Her grin is smug. "Is it hostile? Or is it not yet awake?" She adds to aloys question. She served with a summoner. It fits with what little knowledge she has.

    The gate's open, the guards are about as relaxed as guards are going to get and nobody's even had a weapon pointed at them. Everything's going great! The guards are all too happy to get on with the handling of civilian types. The great wolf is more interested in the newcomers than the guards and the lone building outside the wall, a modest but stout building of finely cut and heavily reinforced masonry, seems to be the intended destination. "You'll wait here please, there are likely more visitors to arrive. Then we will decide how to proceed. The, ah, state of the mines is currently unsafe. There are monsters, you see." Odd that a group boasting such a beast as a trusted companion would be concerned with such a thing.

    The pair shrug off the bravado offered by Claudia as the dog stoops to sniff at the pack. Good enough by their measure, though the younger of the two scoffs at the discovery of booze. Ahh these foreigners have a thing or two to learn about spirits. The older man collects the pack, "Get warm now, travelers." The dog's ears swivel toward the road. "Visitor detail." The larger of the two men shrouds himself once more in head coverings and with partner and beast companion in tow, trudge forward into the deepening snow to greet the trio of shapes emerging from the whiteout.

    As the guards are shrouded, the sound of their voices is likewise softened. The building blizzard does nothing to muffle a spectacularly loud crack soon followed by the unmistakable rattle of gunfire. A second flash, then the three vague shapes begin to resolve as they approach at speed. First of the three, the pilot's green hair flying in the swirling wind, attempts to advance through the still-open gates. Two more are trailing, clawed arms swinging as the machines lumber with intent for the interior of the city. The outbuildings are of no consequence and their goal should be clear to all.

    Within the walls, the cry of alarm goes out. The machines are surprisingly fast, at least as fast if not faster than a chocobo laden with a rider and their footfalls make a terrible racket to join with the pop-pop-hiss of wild gunfire.

    The mines are monster-infested?
    Harley becomes agitated. More than she already was. This was supposed to be work for scholars! Why does every cave under the sky have to contain pointed teeth and fangs?!

    The worlds are truly all equally awful.

    At least they're taking them somewhere warmer and there's no hold up. Even, some time for introduction! "Ah, Harley. I am a wandering scholar from Troia," she says to Claudia, simple and to the point. Who's this Ajora she keeps mentioning?

    And why isn't she taking notes right now, Aloy's being interesting! "I believe these are just metal ovens with coal in them, and a cylinder that leads inside the house." No, wait, that can't be right. "But the smoke would have to go somewhere... ah... some kind of filtration system? Letting the heat through but not the smoke? Perhaps these metal tubes go along the length of the house but never open up...?"

    She's no engineer. Thankfully this is simply technology to grasp, and she's a nerd.

    And nerds hate gunfire.

    She dives behind a wooden crate full of coil at the sound of danger, peeking up from behind it only after a few seconds. "What IS that?!" They don't look like they're here to mine. And that's some gunfire alright.

    Well, in the wide words of a man she'll once no doubt get along with...

    > Hide

    Rydia gains +1 bodyguard?
    It is not what she expected, but she's not going to turn Claudia away without due reason. "What's so strange about it?" She asks Claudia, before it's time for introductions.
    "Mn. Rydia. Of Mist."
    That is who she is, and she is also very fine with being led somewhere warm while the guards head out to meet more apparent arrivals. Only for the arrivals to turn very, very, violent.
    Rydia jolts at the loud sounds of combat and gunfire, every shot ringing out making the child jump and twitch at the alarms start to sound. While Harley hides, Rydia dares a peek around the corner of the building- only to jerk her head back as the trio of machines blitz on by. She dares a peek back, and cringes at the sight of the guards that didn't stand a chance against the sudden assault.
    The trio of clanking machines make a break for deeper into the town.
    "--They have to be after that Esper thing. Come on!"
    Instead of cowering, Rydia grabs Harley by the scruff and starts trying to drag the older woman with her, after them.

Claudia Kinborrow  lazily tosses a salute to the guards as the group makes for the building. She pauses and frowns as gunfire rings out. "Seems the locals have some unwanted visitors. What say we find that esper? Father knows there's little else here worthy firing a heretics sticker for." 

 She crosses herself then takes a long pull of her flask. She doesn't flinch even as Harley bails. "What never heard a gun before? Still stay down. They hurt fierce. Would hate to see that beautiful face with a hole in it!" Wink right at Harley. Horrible Claudia is even amidst danger. 

 "Summoners are a rare thing in my home. Never at your age. Well Ajora sends all kinds I suppose! Honored little summoner!" Oh hey there goes Rydia. Dragging Harley. A laugh then long legs devour space as she swiftly follows. 

 "Fierce indeed! After the godless heathens!" She sounds way too eager with a savage grin.

    Hearing the commotion and gunfire, Aloy is already on the move! Mostly because she sees Rydia heading that way. "I still don't even know what this is, but I'm guessing it's valuable to someone, and I'm not sure I like where this is headed." She frowns. "Those look like Faro machines..." Which isn't far off! Aloy immediately pulls up her Focus to try to get an idea of what she's dealing with, analyzing movements to find out possible weak points in their structure...

    But she doesn't have time! The others are already moving! "... maybe we can beat them there. It'd be easier to lay traps for them than chase them." A ropecaster might help, but against three of them? Not likely. Aloy gives up analysis and bolts after the others, moving at a brisk run.

    The machines can really put on some speed in a straight line. Unfortunately, the trouble emerges that the town is cramped, the ground is slick and the terrain isn't friendly to such mechanized units. Almost like it were designed this way, with funnels and side routes aplenty to confuse the uninformed. Yet, the trio of minature mechs file through like they've got pretty good intel. Battle is joined in earnest! The lead unit crashes into the first hastily placed barricade, rider hanging on with only her legs as she works the controls and directs the mechanical beast she's driving to rake the quickly assembling guards with a blast of pale, shrieking light. Some fall in their tracks, others shriek and dive aside. Resistance is slowing them all down and in the confines of the city it's difficult for them all to fight effectively, so there's a chance to get ahead.

    In fact, looking up, there's loads of catwalks, platforms and miles of piping that crawl about the city like a trees life giving roots. Cuts in the distant cliff face can be guessed at to be access to the mines but anyone that knows even the tiniest bit about mines might shy from that possibility. Wandering around could waste precious time, not to mention the hazards within! Further on, though, there's a much deeper cut into the mountain with an entrance wide enough that it could easily accommodate heavy excavating machinery or something that serves a similar purpose.

    Back to the fight, as the next wave of defenders assemble at a distant rally point, there's a horrible, wrenching shriek from one of the machines and the next barricade erupts into chaos as war mammoths break free of their handlers and begin to rampage and stampede about, sending people and fortifications flying.

    "I'm a scholar, not a warrior!" Harley protests, in vain, and eventually despite the ragging-ons of both a tiny Summoner and an obvious knight, she follows. She even has things to say!

    "As a matter of fact I had not heard a firearm being fired this close before!" She'd seen them, in Kiyohime's world. Heard them fired, from very far. This is different! And as for her own world, she'd managed to largely avoid the Red Wings, lucky her, and there's not much else to see out there as firearms go. Airship cannons, more like.

    As far as she knows anyway.

    As they come up on the suits, it is revealed they have LASERS. Or magic. Or... something inbetween. Does it matter?

    "I would like to point out the town guards have giant wolves and what appears to be trained, hostile mammoths, and all we have are two chocobo! I do not see what we can do to help that they are not already doing better!"

    Nevermind that the guards are getting obliterated.

    No, no, the party insists that Harley follows on some shady catwalks and she has no idea what to do. They can't possibly outpace those things even with all the stops they make to MURDER EVERYONE, can they?

    "Please tell me you have a plan once we catch up!"

Claudia Kinborrow nods in passing to Aloy. "The hunter has it. Trip 'em then stick the lot of them if they don't piss off I say." She's quick to suggest murder this knight. She'll leave the trap plan to Aloy though. She has a tiny summoner and cute nerd to protect. 

 The machines are strong though as they tear through defenders. She eyes catwalks and pipes then that gash in the mountains. "Simple plan Miss Harley. Ambush their pretty heathen clockwork suits then see to the esper! Ajora will guide us to victory! I'll keep you safe! Knights promise!" Another grin and wink. Harley is doomed! She picks up speed on the catwalks. "Don't fall behind. Carry the both of you if needed." She offers to Rydia and Harley. Aloy can take care of herself no doubt.

    It's looking like a bad situation as Rydia drags Harley in her wake to a sight of horror at the barricade. Watching men get cut down with that laser gives the smaller girl seconds thoughts for a second, but it gets worse when mammoths break free and it turns to chaos.
    "No plan!" Rydia admits. "But you're wrong, we have more than two chocobos. I mean you and Aloy are here, right?"
    For now though she WILL settle for the chocobos as she brings her hand up to her lips and blows a sharp whistle. "Chocobo!"
    At the entrance to town the bird hears her. Though she left him untied for a reason.
    "Kweh! Wark wark!" He twitters at Claudia's chocobo, before pecking at the other bird's ties to free him before the pair come rushing.
    Aloy said to try and beat them to the esper. That's Rydia's intent as she hops on her avian steed, and gives Harley a second to climb on behind her, before leaving Claudia her war bird, the chocobos setting off in a sprint along a different path to try and overtake the three machines and their riders. Rydia fairly is certain Climb Anywhere Aloy can keep up on her own or find an even shorter way.

    "The plan is we stop them!" Aloy calls out with a lack of worry. Harley's seen her work, so should know she's probably not actually going to be steamrolled as easily as the others, but she's still not going to try to engage those things directly. Aloy has gotten as far as she has through trickery, traps, and careful sneak attacks.

    So no, Aloy isn't going to jump after the armors right away. She is, in fact, going to do the jump and climb anywhere as fast as she can, using the catwalks to her advantage in a series of leaps and grabs to move above the streets, hopefully faster, in her primitive parkour-style movement.

    It's truly not that hard to pass up the combat and certainly made simple by the clever use of chocobos! From above, it's easy see that the three are managing to coordinate nicely between one another though the suit at the front, mounted by that girl, remains in the lead while the two men in armor provide what cover fire her relentless assault allows. The elevated view also enjoys another interesting effect. The pop and hiss of stray bullets along with the perilous whirring buzz of ricochets is quite clear, hinting that some of the defenders have either lost their minds or might be mistakenly taking the fast-moving group on the catwalks as additional intruders. Whatever the case, the cut in the mountain is easily had. Leaving the yawning entrance the the mine the final obstacle. Or...

    "The intruders are coming! We won't hand over the Esper! Release Ymir!" ... Not. The cold, torchlit glitter of the mine's main gallery is obscured by a blast of dust as a barricade shatters from within and an oddly groaning roar issues forth from the new hole in the wooden wall. A wet grinding noise follows and the source of the awful commotion emerges.

    Whatever it is, it first resembles some kind of massive snail, though its shell spirals all wrong, spikes jutting out all over. If those machines seemed large, this thing is positively massive and appears to be what the locals have been using to help bore deeper into the mountain, certain nerds may conclude. Still, it rears back its head and roars in its bubbly, muted way and begins to advance toward the group of unknown targets.

    Meanwhile, the street fight isn't getting any better for Narshe's guardsmen and without interference they'll make the gallery behind our adventurous group and cause a very awkward situation!

    Harley would absolutely conclude this incredibly majestic THUNDERSNAIL was used to mine, if she wasn't so busy - no she can't help herself, even as she follows along on wobbly, rusty, snowy catwalks.

    "They must use that creature to dig into the mountain! These people are incredibly resourceful!" she says, and surely it must be true. If only they had Magitek-eating monsters in reserve, too.

    She doesn't comment on the plan.

    It's probably because she's really not onboard with 'we'll just bumrush the DEATH MACHINES and stop them'. And yet, it's not like she has a choice.

    But from this high up... she wonders.

    Harley shuffles into her overstuffed bag, and produced one of three glass vials. It contains a black spore of some kind, and she eyes it. Then she eyes the Magitek suits again. Then the vial. She's trying to evaluate if she can make that toss or not.

    "I suppose we'll have to try! I will attempt to pin one of them down, I believe I contained this correctly and it shouldn't go out of control!"
    Wait what, out of control?

    No time, she throws the vial!

    It probably shatters harmlessly against one of the two troopers' helmets. And then the spore inside just... erupts. Into some kind of hellscape of dark vines and poison gas.

    They try to get EVERYWHERE in the cockpit. More importantly they try to rip his helmet off so he has to breathe in the awful gas. And if it succeeds, it'll make a zombie out of him! Not for too long until he either falls apart or shakes the ailment off, though.

    Regardless of success, Harley goes D: D: D: as she realizes what a terrible idea weaponizing that was.

    Okay, maybe they're going to need to help out. It isn't the first time Aloy has seen machines cutting through troups like a knife through butter. Sadly. This time, though, she isn't sure she has the time to plan a strategy to get around the whole 'slaughter' issue. On the upside, there are 'only' three of them.

    "Right, I guess we'll just need to find a way to hold them off a little longer," Aloy mutters, nocking an arrow as she lands on one of the ledges above. Her acrobatics need to come to an end if she is-

    Actually she's balancing along one of the handrails as she gets into a better position, taking careful aim with an oddly-shaped arrow. It's a Tearblast arrow, the same thing she used against Aily... but this one is being used for its intended purpose. She lets fly at one of the armors, trying to drive the arrow into one of the plates... where it will hum for a moment before exploding outward, trying to pry off and tear away valuable components like, hopefully, weapons.

    She shoots, but then a moment later she turns and stares at Harley. "Did you use THAT?"

    "I contained it correctly!" Harley answers Aloy, a bit panicky and perhaps not giving the impression she knows what she's talking about. "I used goblin saliva and sahagin scales to weaken their effects within acceptable ranges! It should prevent the spore from being able to take root in soil and grow!"

    Should.

Claudia Kinborrow blinks a bit as Rydia whistles and in come the birds. Claudia's kwehs gruffly as it thunders up after the smaller one. Up goes the knight an she flicks the reigns. "Yah! Charge like a lucavi nips your hind bird!" She orders then she's speeding off with Rydia. 

 "You really are something moppet! Be a right terror when you're grown! Pray we both see the day mmm?" 

 Then she falls silent as bullets fly. Cursing the guards she takes one scrape but doesn't seem to notice the wound in her side. Survival first. Then there's a snail of monstrous size menacing them. Grin! Claudia neatly dismounts and holy magic as well as ki fill her hands and feet. Taking up a fighting stance she sticks near scholar and caller. "Saint keep the righteous!" 

 Then Harley hucks zombie hell vine gas. "Fire in you yet Miss Harley! Rrrraaaahhhh! SAINT AJORA'S CROSS!" 

 Fist slams to the ground and earth shatters only for a wave of holy ki to erupt to crash into a zombie mtek soldier. It is merciless and savage.

    The people of Narshe are putting everything they can in the way of the three magitek suits. The issue is the magitek suits are just pulling out all the stops left for them. So when faced with the giant thundersnail, Ymir, Rydia halts her chocobo and hops off again as...
    "Harley... That vial."
    Harley is judging the throw.
    "Harleyyyyyyy..."
    Did she contain that zombie spore properly?
    "Harl-"
    The scholar throws it. No time to think, just time to act now. While the Thundersnail presents a distraction for the armors, Rydia draws her breath. And she lets it out in a shout.
    "Goblins!"
    Her voice echoes for a moment and there's silence for a beat following. Before four mounds rise up from the earth. And from the dirt four squat figures with green skin, spointed ears, and sharp teeth emerge. One squawks at Rydia, who immediately barks an order back at it.
    In an instant, the girl and the lead goblin devolve into a violent and bickering argument. Insults and curses are flung back and forth, someone calls Harley a name. Another says something about Aloy's mother. There's a colorful comment about Claudia. Rydia hisses something about the goblin's pay being docked and that ends the fight in an instant.
    "Now go and scrap them!" The girl orders, and the four goblins charge the other soldier's magitek armor to try and dismantle it while he's still inside.

    It isn't until late that things go south for the raiding party. The trio cut through the city's defenses like a scythe through wheat. The two armored soldiers were confident, their lead... strangely calm in spite of the chaos. Then one of the soldiers is hit! His machine slides to a stop and the second turns, hesitating his advance. "Wedge! Damn it! Wedge! Hey freak, gas those idiots and secure the esper! NOW!" The soldier urges his machine forward, noticing the hit and then the source of the shot. "Cheeky little-" BOOM. The mech rocks from the blast, staggering several steps to the side as an armor plate is compromised along with most of an arm. He's still in the fight though and that second mech swings around to bring that front cannon to bear. It hums, glows, waves of heat begin to emanate from the aperture-

    Then the stifled, strangling and slowly turning Wedge makes a decision. With his last conscious thought he pulls something loose from the lower reaches of the machine's cockpit. Whatever it is is obscured by Claudia's cleansing holy attack, destroying the undead soldier and knocking the unpiloted magitek suit back a step. It glows brilliantly for a moment and then there's a sharp crack before the entire suit releases its magic charge and explodes violently.

    The blast sense the second suit reeling as it lets fly with a beam of fiery death, slashing at catwalks, cave walls and the lumbering snail.

    The first rider, intent on orders alone, obliges by swiveling mid-stride and from some weapon or another begins to discharge a cloud of smoke that shines like an oil slick and reeks of poison, at the very least. Standing from the back of the machine, the girl hurls a spray of fire in the face of the snail as she attempts to smash past the colossal mollusc and on to the mission. As ordered. Nothing more.

    Of course, all hell is still breaking loose. The damaged snail roars, retreats into its shell and in addition to reeking of the sickly sweet aroma of poison gas, the air will /also/ begin to stink of ozone. Poor Biggs, roaring in protest as his armored mount is stripped from under him, tumbles to the ground, pulling a knife from his belt to ward off the goblins before he also attempts to make a break for the room beyond the building electric dynamo. He knows what's going to happen. It's not good if the way he's running is any clue. Then, arcs of electricity claw outward from the shell of the beast, squealing and hissing as they vaporize stone, wood, bits of variously dismantled armor... the flesh of anyone who happens to be too close. Seeya, Biggs.

    A stray Fire Beam cuts through the catwalk Harley was using, leaving a large gasp in the metal where searing hot pieces of catwalk are still gooping down to the ground below. She couldn't be frowning harder if she tried at the thought those machines can just so casually fire those things. She's just happy she wasn't in the direct path, even if she's now on a broken catwalk.

    The poison gas is problematic though.

    Harley jumps onto a roof, not wanting to remain in open view. She half-chokes on the foul hair, reaching into her bag to pull a gleaming blue and green potion out. She chugs the antidote down like her life depends on it (which given her constitution it really well might).

    And then she takes a few moments to breathe, hiding behind a chimney from the blasts of electricity and the detonating suits of Magitek Armor.

    That thundersnail is unexpectedly powerful.

    And yet that final suit of armor tears through on its mission. That's not good. The scholar looks down from her roof, seeking some kind of ladder or pipe she can follow down. She shouts to the others: "I will catch up, you will run faster without me!"

    They really will, she's not very fast.

    On the bright side she can make a quick detour to look at what's left of those machines while at it. Curiosity prevents her from doing otherwise.

    Where the goblins go after tearing apart the magitek armor is a mystery. They crawl back into the earth from whence they came and disappear, leaving Biggs to face dow n the snail on his own. That won't be a winning fight for him, will it
    Rydia, however, coughs and sputters, collapsing to her knees as she catches a stray gust of poison mist. Her vision blurs and her head swims. But she picks herself up, staggering. She waits for the beast to discharge before realization sets in.
    The third armor unleashes fire into the snail's face.
    Rydia yelps and immediately backpedals away from the blast.

Claudia Kinborrow squints as she assesses the situation. Goblins two dead soldiers and a weird girl gassing them. Angry Thunder snail. At least Harley is out of Dodge. "Saint be with you Harley! Don't die! 

 With Rydia in a panic she tries to pick up the girl. "Come on Rydia. Ni losing it now moppet." She'll hug the girl protectively if allowed. With her free hand she picks something up! And uses the martial skill honed for ages in Ivalice. One rightly feared on the battlefield. 

 Plonk! A rock goes flying for the female mteks face. Hard. Monk hard. 

 "Hey hunter! Got any tricks? Owe you a nip if we make this one lass!" Despite the tight spot she is full of good humor.

>> SUMMARY[Claudia Kinborrow] >> Throw Rock

Claudia Kinborrow is also choking on said gas. Her skin burns. "Bah! I hate poison spells! Choke on chocobo feathers you cheating wench! She yells at the Imperial.

    Losing footing like that is not safe, but Aloy catches herself, and then assesses the situation as the beam lances all over the place. "Uh oh..." Yeah, fire is something that Rydia isn't going to help with, is it? And the stranger, Claudia, is already attacking and making the situation more hectic. What's Aloy to do?

    The huntress is brash, but not foolhardy. She's already scanning both armor and snail with her Focus. It's unlikely she'll get much of use from the snail, but the mechanical parts might give her some useful info. She's up a little higher, so it takes longer before she starts to cough and choke on the oily smoke. Long enough that she can form a plan.

    "Harley! Rydia's in trouble, catch her!" Catch as in, make sure nothing happens. With the scholar behind them, that should be fine, right? "I don't have too many of these, but..."

    Arrows come out. No, not shot, not yet anyway. Aloy actually nocks three arrows at once onto her bow as she stumbles, then skids to the side, her perfect dash ruined by a cough. Even through the irritating smoke, though, she manages to get enough of a glimpse to take aim with all three arrows and... let fly.

    This payload isn't explosive, not in the same way. No, this one has the arrowheads burst, the three releasing a massive static charge into whatever they penetrate. She's firing to disable the armor. Maybe with its opponent down Ymir will move on... or at least let them get to safety.

    The chaos of battle is a helluva thing. Hard to describe, truly, harder to understand. Impossible to understand when your mind isn't allowed more than enough thought to follow orders. Luckily, for the mysterious girl at least, her orders were broad enough that she's allowed a glance back to check for pursuit and of course get a look at the snail and the violent arcs of electricity spitting from it. Irrelevant. She turns away, skirting the monster and blasting through the remainder of the tall wooden barricade to the objective that lies beyond. The wood is thick and heavy, enough to make even her cutting edge machine pause as it rips the remainder of the barricade down. Nevertheless, her armor is scorched and pitted by the arcing of the angry thundersnail and there's a few sharp hits that she takes notice of and each static pulse is enough to cause jerky hesitation enough that she's once more forced to raise up in her seat to peer over the exhaust- Only to be rewarded by a stone to the brow. She accepts the hit unblinking, a new gash bleeding freely down her face before she turns away and drives on into the gloom.

    What awaits is a sight that would astound any who behold. A creature, some manner of multi-limbed bird serpent trapped in irregular but perfectly transparent ice.

    From within, in the time it takes for pursuit to gain ground, there's an ominously rising sensation almost like static in the air. First, the lingering poison is banished as if blasted away by a scarcely felt shockwave. There's a flash immediately following that, a sound akin to rending metal and then a brief, pained cry- Then it's all gone. Even the massive thunder snail appears to have had its fill of the fight and it scrapes its way down a side tunnel - far away from these awful scents and sounds. Soon, all is quiet.

    Within, is the esper on ice as promised- along with the lone surviving combatant, her armor twisted and scattered as if it too had contained an explosion. She's face down, only visibly injured from the rock toss and breathing.

    "L-Let go of me!" Rydia IS in a panic. The blast of fire was close enough to set her off as soon as she saw it, and she tenses in Claudia's grip when the woman tries to hug her. Physical contact and the last Summoner of Mist just does not mix well, as the group makes it past the Thunder Snail.
    "Is... Is it over?" Rydia is not doing so hot. She's shaken, nauseous, and feeling kind of miserable.
    And then she sees the esper. The winged beast frozen in ice, majestic and terrifying to behold. A fantastic creature that can only rival the Eidolons themselves. She's left staring at it for a long moment before she even realizes the girl is still there, face down.
    "We... Can't just leave her here like this..."

    Harley detours by Rydia, when Aloy yells. It's probably for the best. She hands her an antidote and a potion, tries to urge her to hide in a corner and wait for the smoke and flames to pass.

    She motions for the guards to come help her, what few of them are still standing and able to respond. A wounded child should get their attention!

    Nope, nevermind, Rydia is storming off.

    Harley rubs her forehead in frustration. Fine, tiny child, walk to your doom again. She'll be right along.

    And as for her own curiosity, she'll pocket what few gleaming scraps of crystal she seems to be able to spot in the wreckage of one of the Magitek Armors. It's not much, but maybe it'll give insight into how to defeat them if they were to run into them again?

    No time to ask around, gotta catch up and help tend to two green-haired girls apparently.

    Well that was a mess. Aloy is coughing the last of that smoke out, and she really doesn't know what the bright light is. "Rydia, are you all right?" That's her first thought. At least, until she realizes the soldier is still alive.

    "I agree," Aloy says, though maybe for different reasons. She's thinking 'interrogation' really. But before that can be done, first aid and the like. Aloy glances at Claudia, not sure what the scarred woman will do, but... "I think we can take her with us. See what she knows. Either into town or to Kaipo."