Corneo's Coin Quest

Corneo's Coin Quest
Date of Scene:	30 November 2012
Location:	Casino Gold
Synopsis:	The first of the keys required to unlock the gates of Serendipity are a set of ancient Casino Coins once won from that fabled place by a legendary gambler who was doomed to lose them all. Thanks in part to a suspicious calling card, Don Corneo has become aware that these coins have ended up in Casino Gold, the mysterious den rumored to herald disaster for the unwary, and/or people wearing hats. Hiring everyone he can to protect him, Corneo will venture there to win back his prize. But can a man so ruled by his vices tear himself away from the game before he loses everything to the darkness?
Thanks to:	To Mica for helping me GM, and to everyone for coming!
Cast of Characters:	Mica Melchiott, Tifa Lockhart, Synestria, Lumeria, Rinoa Heartilly, Aerith, Oriane Guado, Navya, Don Corneo
Tinyplot:	The Search for Serendipity

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Don Corneo has posed:
Don Corneo's luck is limitless tonight.

The Tramdine Fens admittedly seemed like an odd place to build a casino, what with it being a hideous swamp filled with wretched souls and monstrous abominations, and perhaps his adventurous escort experienced some trepidation at the setting, but the Don was persistent. His beloved bodacious Chocolina had assured him that one of the three Keys was contorting the fabric of space-time in this vicinity, and though its effects were obscured -- as though the Casino itself were somehow not fully present, it was all very complicated, so the Don stared at her chest while she talked until the Queen slapped a card over his eyes -- he would be sure to find the Casino Gold here.

Besides, he'd received a personal invitation.

That card of gold -- real, solid gold -- is slipped into the breast pocket of his silk shirt now, right against his rotten heart, as he guffaws loudly, seated before a wide roulette table, where he continues to win again, and again, and again.

Here they are, in Casino Gold. Its extravagant exterior makes for quite the startling transition from the marsh they were all just in. It's vast, seemingly almost limitless, with slot machines and gambling games and all manner of games extending in every direction.

And, oh, right, it's staffed entirely by Heartless.

Of course, these Heartless are quite the genteel and dainty sort, showing no signs of aggression or hunger for hearts, scurrying away at any sign of violence, and clad in top hats, bow ties, monocles, and the like. Occasionally they offer refreshments to the assembled adventurers. Actually, they're quite attentive hosts. Still, it's mildly nerve-wracking.

Behind the main roulette table at which the Don is seated is a huge pile of treasure, and prominent upon it is a battered-looking brown box that the Don gazes at desirously: the legendary Casino Coins which he craves, the first key to Serendipity. He's close to winning them now. This quest is already almost complete. --Or, at least, it will be, if he can stop glancing over to check out all the adventurers escorting him. Who, /mysteriously/, happen to be all attractive women.

"Tifa," the gross little man says, blatantly leering as he looks away from the chips for a moment, "you look /especially/ lovely this evening."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart doesn't look THAT pleased of getting compliments from the Don. How did she get roped into wearing this? Something about acting as a beacon for whatever reason, trying to find that magic coin artifact that the Don was talking about. He assured her that the best way to find it was to try to mingle with the rest of the casino's staff and customers, and dressing like this apparently was part of the way to do it.

Again, WHY DID SHE AGREE TO THIS!?!

Oh well, its not like its not pleasing on her, but its definitely not standard barmaid fare, and definitely not for a casino.

And everyone else escorting the Don got to wear pretty dresses T_T.

Aerith has posed:
"She looks /hilarious/!"

Aerith giggled at Tifa's outfit. Whoever got her to dress like that must either be very happy, shaking their head, or laughing their pants off. She sure was on the edge of doing that herself, opting for her jeans, denim jacket, and halter top, the open-toe sandals all aglitter with clear gems along the straps.

"Be careful Tifa, you might get cooked and eaten at this rate!" She didn't hold back her laughter anymore as she turned her attention back to the game of blackjack. "Hit me."

Lumeria has posed:
A casino ran by the heartless makes Lumeria a bit weary. Of course she can't help but to wonder who owns this place. Still, the slot machines have the girl's interest at the moment. She keeps seeming to lose on them and can't help but to wonder if they're rigged. Still the Don seems to be winning, so maybe the one she's at is just running cold.

Navya has posed:
Mysterious indeed.

Navya has never been to a casino before. She certainly hasn't been to one staffed by Heartless. They creep her out; her fists have clenched a few times as she's debated simply picking one up and throwing it, but she's always managed (barely) to restrain herself.

She also isn't wearing a dress, preferring her blousy pants and short top. It seems to meet the clothing requirements, since she hasn't been thrown out, and it's /way/ easier on her tail. Speaking of, Navya has managed not to hit anyone with it, though she did accidentally take out a glass of water earlier with a wing, which she then felt guilty about.

Navya is currently trying to figure out how roulette works by staring at the wheel until it does tricks or delivers its secrets unto her. It isn't working very well. She was okay until people started putting chips in weird places, like between the spots.

Synestria has posed:
Walking along with Don Corneo with a VERY fixed grin on her face, Synestria actually giggles a little bit as she looks to Tifa. She did look rediculous, but she was a barmaid. She could handle it. She stands a little behind Don Corneo as she looks to Aerith, waving a little bit to her.

However, it's Navya that gets most of her attention. She was curious about the girl as she sits near the roulette table, and how she stared at it. She excuses herself from Don Corneo and walks over to Navya. "Excuse me." She says softly. "Perhaps Blackjack or Poker is more your style?"

Mica Melchiott has posed:
The Casino Gold is a massive building, which seems to expand infinitely in all directions on the inside. On the outside... Past a haze of trees and bright fog, the center of the Tramdine Fens has become a different world. The giant hexagonal building is flanked by massive fountains shooting water into the air, a 'cobbled' entryway and surrounding of silver and gold bricks, a garish sign studded with diamonds and rubies and emeralds and sapphires proclaiming how the casino is... well...

The Casino Gold.

Inside, one can hear the boom of fireworks and the bustle of patrons.

The lights, the sounds, the dingdingding of winning, the groans of failure.

Behind the main Roulette wheel, surrounded by guards is the massive treasure pile. Behind that is the giant floor-to-cieling hexagon of the Cages - containing further untold wealth in gold, gems, jewelry, precious artwork, artifacts of power, just about anything of value.

Atop a pile of garish jewelry and pearls is... a rather battered detective's hat.

Mixed in with the Heartless are shadowy figures in short capes and top hats, feminine in form, whose only discernable facial feature is a white line turned up into a 'grin'. They are the workers, the dealers, the table-runners, and the cage runners who makes sure that everyone is happy, and playing.

The Casino Gold accepts all forms of currency, even moneychanging on the floor. Furthermore, items of 'worth', value sentimental or less direct are accepted, claims checks being offered to reclaim upon winnings.

The Casino Gold prides itself on Service.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith chuckled at Rinoa's quite obvious distaste. "Oh come on, they're cute!" Of course, there's only one reason she's not afraid, and it's that she can't sense any malice from these Heartless. Thus she sits there, playing Blackjack, her shoulders at ease and face back to the frown of concentration. "Hit me." The card shows... and Aerith grins. "Blackjack!" For the second time that evening since she'd started.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart sighs at the comments about her costume, looking at Aerith. She's holdign a platter in her hand, suddenly, she's serving drinks. Nothing special for her, but not dressed like this. But the Don said she should mingle in... although her coworkers are heartless ~_~

She brings the tray with a glass to the Don "Your drink sir." She offers it with the most sincere smile she can muster in this situation. :I

Oriane Guado has posed:
Sneaking away from her guards was far easier than Oriane had anticipated. Hrmph. That is exactly what she gets for forgetting how dishearteningly incompetent her minions were. She will have to punish them later for being so grossly negligent of their duties.

Gone are her priestess robes and holy vestments. The Guado is instead being INCOGNITO by wearing an expensive looking, gothic-styled, ballroom-floor length gown complete with long-sleeves and a jeweled choker. The priestess' stealth gauge is lowered even farther by the fact that she does nothing to hide her green hair, noticeable colored veins, and pointy ears.

The diminutive Yevon Priestess casts her gaze over this particular den of iniquity as she enters it. My, my. Look at all the heretical machina being overseen by well-dressed Heartless. How delightfully blasphermous this place was! A mostly pleasant looking smile appears on the Guado's face as she steps forward towards where Aerith is playing 'blackjack'. "You, common gambler, I must inquire on why you are asking others to 'hit you'? I thought this was a venue where the masses frequent to piddle away their meager earnings. I was most unaware that this....fine...establishment was a place for physical violence as well."

Don Corneo has posed:
"Gwaaa ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

All that can distract the salivating Don Corneo from the bevy of beauties escorting him tonight -- who needs the Honey Bee? -- is his endless string of victories. The Munny is piling up in bags by his seat, and he's rubbing his meaty hands with glee, cackling to himself as the would-be Casanova spins again. The silent Heartless dealer before him shows no reaction to his practically giving the house's treasure away, for perhaps obvious reasons.

"What!?" Corneo explains at Rinoa's comment, taking the moment so slide his gaze up her legs to her body so lecherously it almost /feels/ greasy, never quite making it to her eyes. "HEARTLESS!?! Where!?" He turns, blithely looking past /all/ the Heartless waiters, right at Tifa. "All I see is the loveliest of wait staff. Cheers, babe," he chortles, taking the drink and lounging, even as he leers at her so hard her costume might catch fire.

Whereupon he returns to his game, fixated on his growing pile of chips. He's close, so close he can taste it on his own foul breath. Clutching desperately at his knees, he stares a hole in the roulette table. The Casino Coins, their deceptively simple case open to reveal their glittering interior, are nearly within his grasp--

"I WON!!"

Don Corneo leaps to his feet, barely rising above the table.

"I DID IT!!"

He takes up the case of Casino Coins as they are handed to him and hefts them above his head Zelda-style, laughing mightily. "Gwa ha ha ha ha! It's mine! The Key is mine!" Wow! That quest was easy! Time to get out of here.

The Don pauses, eyes gleaming.

"But... I could still... win more...!"

Eyes reddened with greed and desire, the Don lurches back to his seat, letting the box of Casino Coins drop to the floor in his haste. "More," he rasps as he pushes his chips forward. "Spin again!!"

As he says this, the lights flicker briefly, and the air seems to thicken. An oppressive sensation fills the air. The Heartless wait staff do not change their behavior. But a dark haze begins to rise from the ground, and from the shadows new shapes emerge, clanking suits of armor and wispy floating wizards... all decked out in dress uniforms, of course. Keeping it classy.

"Again!!"

This could be bad.

Aerith has posed:
The flower girl doesn't have to look her way, really. The aura of disdain coming from her is plain enough, but... Aerith turns anyway and gives her a smile. "It's a gambling term. When you ask for another card, you say that..." She chuckled. "And I'm probably going over your head now--"

She pauses, eyes wide. The feeling from Corneo is... not good at all. Especially since a split second later, the lights dim and everything seems to slow down. Aerith slowly puts her winnings down... before turning and putting one of the ends of her staff into a Heartless that appeared just behind her without moving from the stool. Not even an eye blink later, the armored fiend gets treated to a devastating stream of electricity, focused through her metal rod.

"Great, knew it was too good to be true."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart didn't think it would be that easy either. But... she's not dressed to fight! But not like that would stop her either, she can still kick and punch >_< Even in high heels. That might actually be quite the show.

Synestria has posed:
Getting a weird feeling from Corneo as well, Synestria gives him a bit of a look before she makes a face at the heartless that are starting to rise up. She shakes her head, thankful she was actually here. However, She wasn't going to just sit by either. She rolled her neck a bit calmly and took a deep breath.

With a loud hiss, Synestria's form expands, to almost giant proportions, but her legs change into a connected snake tail. Thankfully, the casino has enough room for her form, hissing loudly once more to cast out electricity towards the heartless in robes......

Navya has posed:
"Huh?" Navya hadn't known anyone was looking at her. She straightens up automatically when she's addressed, looking at the dancer. "I'm not playing," she says, with a little bit of a smile because she's /not/ talking to a Heartless. It's a real, normal person, and she likes that a lot better.

If only she knew.

She waves her hand in the general direction of Corneo. "Actually, I'm only hanging around because he's trying to win - hey, Corneo? Corneo - " This is bad. That feeling, and the darkening...

There is one thing Navya was missing when she came in here. It was her gigantic hammer. She couldn't think of a way to make it go with a dress code; she figured it would just be confiscated, and so she didn't bring it. Which means she's unarmed, which means when the combat Heartless show up, she's not got anything to hit them with.

"Uh, be right back," she says to Synestria, before running off. She looks around as she hustles. No, no, no - wait. /Perfect/. Navya's face splits into a grin.

Five seconds later, she is hefting up an entire goddamned decorative palm tree (possibly artificial) with both hands, digging her thumbs into it to keep it steady and trying a practice swing. It even still has the pot!

"DUCK," she suggests, as she whirls around wildly towards the floating magicians.

Lumeria has posed:
Well, if it makes you feel any better Oriane, you're not the only one with pointed ears in here. Lumeria's about to give up on the slot machine when she gives it one more pull. Suddenly, the girl's attention turns towards Navya. Oh great, someone who's part lizard. She begins to tense up a bit at that as the reels spin around.

They begin to come to a stop, one 7...two 7s...Her fingers cross as the final reel begins to come to a stop. The third 7 lights up and noise begins to emit from the machine. Coins begin to pour out of it and she reaches out to grab them. There's a sudden poof as the girl seemingly disappears from sight. In her place is a silver frog. The first thought to go through her head is to curse her sister. Suddenly more heartless decided to show up just then. It seems like she has the worst timing.

Mica Melchiott has posed:
The darkness, choking darkness came another shape. One shadowy Mica splits off from the rest, one who had been seemingly watch the whole time, not serving or entertaining the guests. As the Dapper Knights and Classy Wizards emerge, this 'hostess' takes the place of the Roulette Heartless, smiling to Don Corneo.

"Hello, Don. Congratulations on your winnings. You are a very /lucky/ man. You've won so much! Surely you would like to win even more, yes? I've prepared a little entertainment for your friends! They're having the time of their life! But, you see... For you, I have a /special/ high-stakes game. Are you... interested?" The Shadow-Mica wonders.

All around, the Serving Heartless (those in top hats and tailed jackets) still hurry around offering refreshments to the heroes... Even as they kick/punch/laserbeam their heart-deficient compatriots.

THEY TAKE PRIDE IN THEIR SERVICE.

Oriane Guado has posed:
The green-eyed, green veined, and green eyed Guard tilts her head slightly when Aerith gives her the explanation on how to play blackjack. She has absolutely little to know idea what this most likely hopeless gambling addict is talking about. And this poor girl goes into a fit of blood-thirsty rage to attack the dapper Heartless with lightning. Oriane knew it. This -was- an arena for pointless violence. How distaste...and then Oriane realizes that she is supposed to be disguised as a commoner herself. She must now quickly say something before her cover is blown.

"Oh, it...has been quite too long since I last experienced...this most exhilarating act of proving one's dominance over others through violence." That's what normal people say, right? The black dress wearing Guado now promptly turns towards the Heartless mages. How amusing of them to believe they could cast magic spells! It seems appropiate that Oriane Guado teach these Heartless a lesson in magic while 'fitting' in with the crowd by resorting to barbaric combat.

The Dark Arts user follows Navya's smashing lead by summoning a group of green wisps around her left hand. And then with her right, she holds back her hand as if she was about to swipe at the foolish Heartless. Finally, the conductor puts everything together by first clawing with her right hand and then bringing her other hand forward. A green beastial claw materializes out of nowhere to swipe at her new foes before the wisps attempt to fly straight into the Heartless in very classic one-two attack. Oriane then merely waits for the Heartless to die horribly.

Don Corneo has posed:
Don Corneo is breathing heavily, clutching at the chips on the roulette table before him, unfazed by the dealer abruptly being replaced by the hostess, incognizant of the melee raging around him, and having seemingly forgotten about the legendary Casino Coins, their goal, which are now lying in their box on the ground by his chair.

"Yes!" the fat little man exclaims, shuddering with avarice and desire, his piggish eyes wide with glee. "Yes, I'll play, I'll play it all, and I'll win! I can't be stopped! Finally, finally, luck is turning my way again! Gwa ha... gwaaa ha ha ha ha ha haaaaa!"

The more he laughs, the more the dark haze gathering about the ground seems to thicken, and the more Heartless begin to pour forth. Despite the fact the visually the casino extends infinitely in every direction, like a mirror reflecting a mirror, the oppressive sensation increases, seeming almost claustrophobic, as though the adventurers are in fact hemmed in on all sides. The exit remains behind them, at least, but somehow, it seems farther away than before. There don't seem to be any end to these creatures. This is their turf, a reality in which they rule.

"GWWWAAAAAAA HA HA HA HA!"

And the Darkness of a greedy heart feeds them.

Navya wisely calls to the Don, but it seems like he can't hear her; he does not appear to be in any state to be persuaded. Her more forcible approach is much more effective, that decorative palm tree pulverizing two of the floating wizards at once even as Oriane's dark claw tears into them from the other side and Synestria's lightning strikes from above. Tifa's tray-knee combo is devastating, knocking one soldier Heartless's helmet clean off, with its head still inside -- the rest dissolves into dust. Aerith and Rinoa obliterate the soldiers closing in on Tifa from either side. The heroes are fighting well.

Yet even as the Heartless fade into mist, that mist settles back to the ground, from whence more Heartless arise. It's not clear there's ever going to be an end to them...

And their assault is beginning. The soldiers rush in, more filling the ranks as they are destroyed, several lashing out at Tifa as once as more rush past her, their sheer number making it impossible to protect Rinoa and Aerith from the assault of their blade-like appendages, helmets bobbing as they mindlessly charge in, seeking to devour the hearts of the strong. As they do, the wizards ascend above the fray, launching curses at those that have struck them, the air constricting around Synestria, Navya, and Oriane, making it a struggle to breathe.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith gets knocked out of her stool by a charging Heartless, rolling over her left shoulder to save herself any further pain. It wasn't looking pretty, and she glanced over to Rinoa for a moment. No, the winnings would have to wait. Friends in trouble, and strange woman behind her that obviously did not enjoy this place. If she was trying to hide, she was either doing a horrible job, or Aerith was the only one that could sniff her out.

No matter. Time to go to work.

Aerith rolled out of the way as a few tried to trample over her, got to her feet using her staff, and climbed atop the blackjack table. No one complained, they were already fleeing the scene. No one could ignore something like /this/, after all.

Aerith leapt from one table to the next, heading in the general direction of Rinoa and Tifa. Once her jeweled sandals hit the floor again, Aerith tapped her rod on the edge of one of the tables, the metallic hum accompanied with the shine of a materia in one of the slots. "Tifa, Rinoa, rally on me!" Time to do this right.

She cast a protective aura over the three of them once they were all together, and settled into a defensive stance. "Stick together, cover each other's blind spots. We need to get to the Don and snap him out of this."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart is noticing the pattern here, where the heartless seems to be attracted to Don's laughing. And the more he's laughing, the more of them seem to appear "Don! Stop playing, you're attracting them!" Someone needs to give him a good bonk on the head, but she's a bit busy right now.

She nods to Aerith's protective spell "Thanks~" As she charges in for another flurry. She grabs the nearby heartless, and while she has her hands on it, she kicks it backward into the incomming flow of heartless, bowling them over. Well, hopefully that will slow them down a bit at least.

Navya has posed:
Note to self: trees make a pretty good hammer.

Navya spins around several more times on sheer inertia before she finally manages to lurch to a stop, fetching up against something kind of tough-feeling. Muscly. Rough, almost scaled, like her own -

"Oh geez, sorry, sorry!" Navya lurches away from Synestria's tail like she was scalded by it. "I didn't mean anything!" Whirling away, she is caught by the tension in the air, squeezed by magic.

"hrk," is what she actually gets out instead of more words. She can sort of breathe, but the constricting air makes it very hard for her to move. Navya wrenches the tree around, swinging as if it was through water in a slow and deliberate overhand smash towards the closest of the wizardy Heartless. Hit or miss, she's likely to continue into a poker table and send chips and cards everywhere, though - the one thing she's not good at is being careful about that.

She's trying to move towards Corneo, but it's kind of like moving through gelatin. It's not really working very well.

Lumeria has posed:
Lumeria hopes no one saw her transform into a frog. Of course the noise given off by the slot machine and the pile of coins makes that seem unlikely. Still, the sudden arrival of the Heartless might have drawn their attention away. She decides to hop away and try to find somewhere safe. The pile of money throws off her leap, sending her spiraling straight into one of the Heartless.

Oriane Guado has posed:
And that takes care of that. Oriane Guado is just about to turn her back and walk away when a brand new set of wiiiiiiizards appear from the dark mist. Hrmph. Does the weak not know when they are beaten? She will just have to provide the Heartless with a much more severe lesson in magic use. Oriane smiles mischievously towards the Heartless wizards as they begin to conjure their magic.

The Yevon Priestess makes no effort to dodge the consticting cloud that her foes conjure as she is curious on its effects. Noticing her magical defenses seem dampered by this blow, she quickly decides that two can play at this game. The green-haired black mage holds an open palm out towards her foes. A pulsating sickly green orb appears and Oriane gently blows on the orb which sends it flying off at her magical foes. She does not stop there as she conjures a mist of her own to block out her foes. That should suffice for now. The Guado now turns to see who else is fighting these Heartless. Aww. The brutish girl from the caravan appears to be assisting as well as a Fiend in disguise....and a frog(?). Not her first choice for allies, but they shall too be adequate for the time being. "Come, let our -fearsome- group dispatch these vagabonds with haste." She says to her stalwart allies before turning her attention back on the Heartless.

Rinoa Heartilly has posed:
Rinoa unleashes bolts of lightning upon the heartless, but it's not enough to stop them! They rush at her with their blade like appendages, and she attempts to dart out of the way..But they're too quick! She yelps in pain, staggering back, bleeding on her legs and arms as they nearly trample her over. Fortunately, Aerith comes with her protective spell, and hopefully it'll hold against the heartless for a bit.

She nods to the flower girl, moving into formation, standing back to back with the other two. "Gotcha! Let's finish this!" A glance towards the Don causes her to frown a bit. "Seriously, someone has to stop that guy. It's almost as if his greediness is..Feeding them, or something!" However, first thing's first, she's gotta protect her friends! She whistles to Angelo, surrounding him in magical light as he rushes into the sky and howls, showering the three of them in magical protection..

Aerith has posed:
Aerith nodded. "That's exactly what's happening! The Heartless are attracted to negative emotions, and if he keeps this up, we're going to get overrun!" She continues to glance around, looking for an opportunity to attack.

Synestria has posed:
Looking down at Navya, Synestria gives her a small smile, but her attention is elsewhere. She looks back up, and grunts as she's hit by dark energy, but she shakes her head. She lets out another loud hiss, but not at Navya. The hiss is at the casting heartless.......bringing down more electricity.....

Don Corneo has posed:
Don Corneo is insensible to all pleas or requests. Just talking to him isn't going to be enough. Indeed, it's not obvious even violence will be enough; he's too consumed by the game to hear anyone, let alone remember the Casino Coins by his chair that were supposed to be his objective. He remains seated, despite Tifa's words and Navya's struggle to advance toward him. And the more he plays, the more the Heartless advance, bursts of dark smoke in the background suggesting even more are emerging.

Tifa, Aerith, and Rinoa form a formidable unit, the chocobo-clad woman toppling the soldiers like bowling pins as her two allies imbue themselves with supportive magic. Navya's faux tree tears into another floating wizard, causing it to pop like a bubble, as her wildly-swinging tail smashes into a poker table for good measure. Take that, Casino Gold! Oriane's magical orb passes through the mass of magical Heartless, causing their flight patterns to weave and wobble, making them easier pickings for Synestria's lightning, whereupon a frog leaps majestically into the air (??) and-- bounces off one of their hats.

No one knows why.

Nearly half of the Wizards have been decimated, but, as Heartless are wont to do, they show no fear or consternation, mindlessly gathering more magical energy, beginning to assemble a formation of their own. The group of Soldiers are in much better shape, many more of them remaining, but regardless, from the looks of the shapes still emerging from the mist, there may be reinforcements soon. What is this 'Casino Gold'? What is it doing in the middle of a swamp? Is this really a place where a battle against the Heartless can be won?

As the soldiers regroup after being bowled over and continue their rush toward Tifa, Aerith, and Rinoa (and her little dog, too!), simply too numerous for the material artist to fully protect her friends, clawing and slicing without remorse, the wizards begin to pulse with power, a vile sensation emanating from them before a torrent of dark magic is unleashed. The frog which leapt at them, for whatever reason, has attracted their ire, and Synestria and the confident Oriane are victim to the assault. But Navya, though slowed by their magic, is momentarily forgotten, as she's at last able to reach the Don's chair...

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart jumped up to the ceiling when the charge started, avoiding it entirely as she grabs on the expensive looking chandelier. She uses the momentum to slam her feet into the nearest one, hopefully taking some away fromt Aerith and Rinoa's path. She can't do much more than that in this position, as she drops back down.

But what she can do is on the offense. Her fist charges up with bright yellow energies, as she rushes forward into the fray, finding a nice big clump of then, an explosive fist aiming to take out several of them all at once.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith grimaced as they charged again, but didn't make a move. With Rinoa just at her back, she braced herself... and the defensive ward flared to life once the soldier rammed into it. She gritted her teeth, some of the impact making it through, but it was better than nothing. Time to return the favor.

Aerith pulled out one of her potions, dodged a strike that got a bit too close to her head, and downed it in one shot. She threw the glass at one of the wizard Heartless, trying to knock him off his flight pattern, and quickly channeled the Lifestream, pale green streams of spirit energy flowing toward her, even through the miasma.

The next spell she cast... was much, much bigger.

A grand sphere of flames shot out toward the knight just a foot in front of her, and once it hit, it lit him ablaze and rammed him backward into several more, causing the lot of them to explode. "Keep moving! Head for Corneo and that weird lady with him!" She'd figured it out by now... they had to stop him from playing, and he didn't look ready to quit... so target the dealer.

Synestria has posed:
Grunting loudly as she's hit again by the dark magic, Synestria takes a deep breath as she resists it. However, she turns her magic partially dark itself. Aiming, once again for the casting heartless, she aims at them with a mixture of fire magic, and......other more sinister magic....

Lumeria has posed:
Of course, even when humanoid Lumeria's not much of a threat physically. She gets knocked back into a wall with a splat, before slowly sliding down the wall to the ground. At that point, there's another poof and the elfin girl returns. Of course it takes her a moment to recover from that.

Oriane Guado has posed:
The angry Heartless wizards swarm before the Guado priestess like overgrown and magically enhanced pyreflies. Oriane Guado is unimpressed so far by their antics. They have been more annoying then dangerous. But then, the Heartless unleash a torrent of dark of horrible energy towards Oriane. With a gentle gesture, she summons a magical shield before her but the magic is able to blow right through it. Experiencing the Dark Arts of another or the first time is simply -exhilarating-.

The Priestess is wounded by these magics, but she is not done yet. The Heartless wish to exchange terrible energies with each other, and Oriane is happy to oblige. She raises both hands towards the center of the Heartless wizardry and smiles sweetly towards them as wisps of purple energy swirl together into a large mass before her. "Playing with you has been quite entertaining," begins Oriane as she continues to gather energy until it abruptly finishes and merely converges together now. "Unforunately, playtime is indeed over." And then Oriane's gathered energy streaks out towards the Heartless in a large beam. The purple beam is then enlarged in an attempt for it to swallow her enemies completely. And then to add insult to injury, a secondary explosion rips up through the beam towards the Heartless.

Rinoa Heartilly has posed:
Rinoa takes a breather before she's assaulted again by more crazy heartless! The shields dont do much to protect her as they continue to tear and slice into her already battered body. "No!" she cries out in pain, stumbling to her feet once more.

Angelo barks in concern, rushing to her side, tossing a hipotion at her before he rushes at the heartless, slicing into them. Rinoa struggles to her feet, attempting to follow suit as she summons up a powerful windstorm, raining down white feather shaped blades of energy at the enemy.

"I cant give up now!"

Navya has posed:
Navya manages to bowl over a card table with the arc of the tree, her tail, or both (though presumably in different directions). Whoops. Sometimes she's a little erratic and she has a tendency to flail.

She staggers to a stop not far from Don Corneo, having managed to clear the effect enough to catch a deep breath, if not return to her full speed. She has a couple things to do here.

The first thing she tries to do is grab the Casino Coins, because Don Corneo will be very upset if those go missing later, and it /is/ what she (as an adventurer) is sort of paid to do today.

The /second/ thing she tries to do is edge over to Corneo himself and - well, poke him. She switches to shaking his shoulder after a moment. "Hey! Wake up! You won already, see? We need to get out of here!"

This means she isn't hitting Heartless, at least for a moment. It does mean she catches her breath.

Mica Melchiott has posed:
As Don Corneo faces off against 'the House' in an ultra-high-stakes game of Roulette, the chips fall, and vast sums of money start to change hands. The Don wins. The Don loses. It seems even, sometimes in his favor, but there is a pull, a tug back. The odds start turning towards the Casino Gold. But the Casino Coins, the true objective of this whole game, seems to be utterly forgotten.

The Shadowy Dealer-Mica grins widely, gesturing to the table. "Your bet, sir." She giggles, looking around.

The heart of darkness in this man was incredible, and his greed was almost overpoweringly cloying. The raw power of avarice he held interacted with the shadows of the Casino Gold to create heartless she did not even have to summon, reacting to his terrible greed by providing his friends with...

Playmates.

The Don, and his dwindled stack of chips, faced off against the Mistress of Games - could he keep his cool? Or would he fall into the Casino's trap? Would he bet his Heart?

Don Corneo has posed:
The darkness is gathering.

"Grrrr..." The Don's fists clenches, chips falling from their meaty fingers. How could he be losing now, after his winning streak!? It's impossible. He can't quit, not while he's so hot. Refusing to concede that his luck has turned, he looks around desperately, seeking something to bet that would match the stakes. "I, Don Corneo, will triumph, for the sake of all women everywhere!" Tears in his eyes, he trembles with, let's call it 'passion'. "All those poor women who aren't dressed up like animals and/or insects!" Is he just wishing for lots of costumes? "Ugh... I bet..." He lurches around. The case of Casino Coins is behind his chair, forgotten, but he is beginning to turn about, his gaze almost reaching what had been the entire point of their venture--

"Hmn!?"

Navya shakes him, causing the Don at last to stir, turning to squint up at the dragon-girl with a look of surprise. "Navya, my dearly beloved, whatever is the--" His eyes widen at last. Does he see it, the battle raging around them, the Heartless closing in from every corner, his allies in great need? "That's it!!" he exclaims, turning back toward Mica with a gleam in his eye, pointing at Navya behind him.

"I bet the clothes off her back!!"

His heart pulsing with the force of his most essential vice, the Heartless all around gleam with dark energy, power surging through them. Forming an implacable shield of raw shadow, their numbers packed tightly, attack after attack crashes uselessly against them. The time the heroes have spent fighting this endless number has caused their power only to grow. Is there hope for them any longer? Only Rinoa's windstorm and Oriane's dark magic now seems to have any effect, yet even their strikes do not seem to sufficiently deplete the ranks of the foe.

As the remaining Wizards floating above begin to rain fireballs down upon their spellcasting adversaries, the Soldiers, swelling with new Heartless, begin to bear down on the brave threesome who have been fighting all this time. The mass charging forward from all directions seems endless, and it attempts to simply crush Tifa, Rinoa, and Aerith under their overwhelming weight and blot the heroines from view.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart doesn't like beign crushed! But she can't avoid it this time. Several of them pile down on the chocobo-barmaid, which isn't very pleasant. She grunts as she crawls away under a poker table, and then kicks the table over on top of the heartless "Corneo, stop that nonsense while you're ahead!" She's going to get that costume ripped off her at this rate, as if she wasn't showing off enough already! She turns over to Aerith and Rinoa, her turn to appy some helping hand to her friends.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith cried out in pain, falling to one knee as she gets hit yet again by a massive assault. No. Talking wouldn't work. The one lesson the Don would have to learn was a painful one. They couldn't do it like this, though...

Aerith stood on shaky legs, one of her materia flaring to life, and her senses tingled at the dire situation Synestria was in. She cast a hasty healing shroud around the two of them, adding Rinoa to the mix in hasty fashion. "We can't take much more of this... someone give him a good smack and tell him the game's over! We got what we came for!"

Synestria has posed:
Hissing at the fireballs hitting her, Synestria takes a beep breath at the attacks hitting her. She was hurting and quite fed up. With another loud hiss, she's bringing her own fire down upon the heartless. She smiles at Aerith as her healing takes some of the burns away.....

Rinoa Heartilly has posed:
Rinoa barely recovers when she gets viciously assaulted again.."Oooh.." She stumbles again, bleeding heavily, struggling to hang onto a nearby wall..Or grab at a glass of champaigne as the crazy heartless hostesses continue to mull about like nothing's happening. "Don, you gotta stop!" She shouts between labored breaths. Angelo looks concerned at her, tossing another hipotion her way before rushing at the heartless again in full force.

Finally Tifa and Aerith come to her aid and she smiles at them gratefully, feeling some strength returning to her battered body.

Navya has posed:
What.

"No he doesn't!" Navya yelps, her face reddening. "And even if he does /I/ don't, and they're my clothes! He doesn't own them!" She talks more quickly as she gets progressively more embarassed, and slightly higher pitched.

Still red-faced, Navya decides, "Okay, you have /really/ had enough of that. That's a rule - never let your passions rule you to the point of - of - " She pauses. "I forgot the last word. Too much! Anyway, you're coming with me!"

She tries to solve this the simplest way she knows how - she bends down, grabs Corneo under the arms, and simply tries to heft him up. She grabs the Coins too, or tries to. "Off we go!"

Lumeria has posed:
Lumeria finally manages to recover from transforming and being attacked. Of course at this point she's pretty beat up as she gets back onto her feet. At least she could use her magic again. She notices Synestria and chokes up a bit. Lizards and now snakes...just what she needed. She was going to keep her distance from now and focus on taking care of her own injuries.

Mica Melchiott has posed:
The Shadow Mica seems to 'look' without eyes at Navya. There is a pause, and then a shrug.

"Fine." Mica says, almost boredly. "Your bet is accepted." There's a wicked grin that spreads across her face. "This should be quite interesting, Don Corneo."

As Navya grabs the Casino Coins, what everyone came here to get, Shadow Dealer Mica snaps her fingers and gestures to the table. "Your roll, Don."

The color and number are called. The dice rolls around the roulette wheel as shadowy tendrils spiral around Navya, mirroring the spin of the wheel.

Don Corneo... Calls wrong.

And a CERTAIN SOMEONE's CLOTHES poof off in a cloud of decency smoke, before a rather burly heartless bouncer graciously puts a towel over her shoulders.

Oh, and her clothes appear on the massive treasure pile, next to Mercade's hat.

"Anything else to bet, Don Corneo?" Shadow-Dealer-Mica wonders, rubbing her thumb and forefinger together with a big grin on her face.

Oriane Guado has posed:
Oriane frowns when she sees that her Dark Flare did not obliterate her foes. These Heartless were seemingly unceasing in their antagonizing. This is becoming most upsetting to the Guado priestess. And to make matters worst, fireballs begin to reign down from the sky towards her and her unlikely allies. It is quite hard to move fast in a floor length dress and Oriane ends up getting knocked back by the fiery blast. The extremely pale black mage takes a moment to steady herself before reaching for a small potion that had been hanging on the necklace that she was wearing. The potion is quaffed and thrown onto the ground with a shatter. It was time to stop holding herself back as these Heartless were proving to be quite draining.

The green-haired goth now begins chanting a few words lowly to herself which encases her entire body in a black fire for a brief instant. Her eyes now focus on the Heartless wizards before her. This is just in time for her to see Synestria wipe them out in a flare of her own. That's the spirit! You fight fire with fire.

The remaining Heartless are now regarded by Oriane with a look of distaste on her face. Physical brutes. She shall enjoy destroying each and everyone of them. Using both her hands, Oriane begins chanting once more as she gathers dark energies around her. "The time has come to punish the Wicked!" She shouts nonchalantly with a smirk crossing her lips. It looks like nothing is happening at first, but then a meteor full of dark energy comes crashing through the roof towards the remaining Heartless. The Guado mage does not stop there, but also sends another conjured claw across the room towards the Heartless to hopefully knock them up into the descending magical comet of malice.

Navya appears to momentarily decency impaired before a towel is offered. Is this truly what commoners do? Get naked and beat each other up? The outside world can sometimes be so confusing. Why can't everything be simple like studying how to conjure dark and forbidden magics?

Don Corneo has posed:
"Barnacles!" curses the Don, as he shakes his fists, upon losing. "I mean--" Realizing what a win-win situation he's put himself in, Corneo begins salivating all over again as he turns to look at Navya-- who has covered herself with a towel /just/ in time. "Gahhh!" All is lost! "Noooooo! It's not over!" He begins kicking and wailing as Navya scoops up the precious Casino Coins and then hefts the fat Don up, who is not the lightest of weights but nothing she can't handle, even if the fact that he's actually struggling against her makes it a little harder. "I bet her virg--" His balding head slams into the corner of a poker table, causing his eyes to cross. "--gurghh--" Alas, he is in no condition to spin wheels now.

And just in time. As the towel-clad Navya begins to forge her way toward the distant exit, Don in tow, the last of the Wizards are obliterated by a surge of Synestria's powerful magic, her teamwork with her allies at last resulting in a momentary respite. Yet the darkness beneath them continues to brew, promising more Heartless should they continue to tarry. The heroic threesome of Tifa, Rinoa, and Aerith manage not to be overwhelmed by the Soldiers which have raided them, and Oriane's dread sorcery blisters into nothingness those which dare approach, Angelo bravely taking down another. Yet though their ranks have thinned somewhat at long last, their momentum is seemingly infinite. Onward, onward they march!

Gathering their forces again, the Soldiers close in from almost all sides, a thin path to those distant doors all that remains not overcome by dark troops. Their masses surge forward, crushing all before them underfoot, threatening to trample anyone who gets within reach! Will it be possible to reach the exit in time?

Aerith has posed:
Aerith gritted her teeth as the insanity pressed around them. Someone had successfully grabbed the Don though, and her senses picked up the hasty exit. "Let's go, go, go!" Aerith prepared yet another spell, potentially her last, and flung it toward the Heartless, making an attempt to cover their egress...

Synestria has posed:
Seeing the Heartless rush after all of them, Synestria saw a good oppotunity for a really good Flare attack. As the explosion hits though, the heartless literally trample over her, and she doesn't move for a good while. She's even draped over her own coils with her eyes closed.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart watches her friends falling around her. During the last attack, she had the reflex of grabbing the nearest heartless and using it as a shield, while it was flaying trying to get free. But that was too late for it. It barely does the work of shielding the barmaid before dissipating.

She has to bring that those things down, and oson, because they are starting to trample everyone severly. She charges up, vaulting off the poker table to slam with a double-feet stomp, rolling into a sweep kick attack to try to disperse the darkness as much as possible before they regroup again.

Navya has posed:
Navya suddenly feels rather drafty.

"Aack!" Navya nearly drops Corneo in her haste to cover herself - momentarily unnecessary because of smoke and shadow, but who knows how long that'll last? She grabs for the towel, wrapping it around her waist like a skirt, while her wings curl around her sides and chest; they're just /barely/ long and flexible enough to manage this.

This may be why Don Corneo ended up with his head bounced off a table. She'll never tell.

Carrying the Don and the Casino Coins, Navya starts to hustle for the door. Her face is bright red; she's blushing so hard it's actually partway down her shoulders and chest. "THIS IS NOT WHAT I SIGNED UP FOR!! Come on, let's get out of here once you guys finish those up!"

Oriane Guado has posed:
As the dark embrace of her otherwordly magic leaves her, Priestess Oriane Guado is quite drained. She had put everything in that attack and her reward is a near life experience thanks to these Heartless. It seems that those of the mundane physical are much more resistant to the dark whispers of this particular black mage. Her overestimation of her own power renders her helpless to stop the advancing Heartless horde.

But Oriane knows that even now is not the time to let dignity escape from her. "I loathe to admit it, but I have learned the lesson of 'gambling' a moment too late." And with one last curtesy, Oriane is trounced by the stampeding Heartless, thrown several feet, and left in a quite undignified state of being sprawled out on the filthy casino floor.

Lumeria has posed:
Well, now the snake woman is no longer a threat, Lumeria feels a bit at ease. Still, she better deal with this before she gets sent back to the floor as well. Balls of light start to rain down on the remaining Heartless, as she tries to finish them off before they can manage to do the same to her.

Rinoa Heartilly has posed:
The battle is getting brutal and going south fast! Many heartless fall, but it seems many more remain! Rinoa is still unsteady on her legs, but not about to give up just yet! Glaring angrily at the heartless, she musters what strength she has left and calls Angelo to her side.

Magical energy glows around her and her dog as she murmurs a spell to suddenly cause Angelo to grow to five times his size. Leaping on his back, the two rush into the air, surrounded by a magical aura of energy, then start to FLY again and again at the heartless, zipping across the casino like a massive shooting star!

When she finally lands shakily on her feet, Angelo snarls angrily, lashing again and again at the heartless, trying to stomp 'em dead!

Don Corneo has posed:
As Navya struggles toward the exit with the precious Casino Coins and the useless burden that is Don Corneo in tow, the Soldier heartless seem unstoppable, the Don's dazedness doing nothing to prevent their feeding off his black heart so long as he remains within the bounds of Casino Gold.

Spells crash against the masses of armored dark knights, but the darkness forming about them is forming a formidable shield, deflecting Lumeria's valiant attempt to tear into them with her magic. Tifa continues to fight relentlessly, knocking several Heartless to the ground with her sweep kick, their helmets all aclatter, but there is only so much she can do alone. Rinoa leaps upon an oversized Angelo and lays waste to all the dark entities who dare approach, crumpling them like tin cans, stomping them flat until they simply dissolve into dust. The heroines are fighting fiercely even as the black miasma continues to gather, and thereby successfully guarding Navya's retreat. But for how long can they continue to stand?

This becomes the vital question, as the Soldiers' endless charge continues, as though unstoppable, seeking to trample further of the ladies to the ground, until none are left to bar their path to the Don and the banquet that is his heart.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith, barely able to move, covers her eyes as the attack bears down on her...

And then it doesn't hit.

Of course once she opens her eyes, she witnesses Tifa lying there, struggling to get up. It doesn't take her long to realize what just happened, and her eyes narrow. "That's it. I've had enough of these things." With a will born of righteous fury, Aerith strode forward, her right hand extended, materia glowing fiercely. Screw it, this was their last shot.

She fired one blast after another of frozen magic, aiming to incapacitate anything that moved and swung at her friends.

Navya has posed:
Navya has managed to cart Don Corneo away by this point.

She is also having to use her tail to hold up the towel. It's kind of embarassing. "I'm going to get this casino back for this," she mutters to herself. But she doesn't throw the Don back in.

Even though he probably deserves it.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart made her attack and came back just in time too. She's hurt, but Aerith is in even worse shape honestly. The strong charge from the heartless hits her, but she pushes Aerith out of the way at the last moment, managing to save her friend.

Tifa's pretty hurt now, barely standing after the charge, but she's not down yet. "Let's finish it for good Aerith, there's no more miracles." She rushes into the group, punches and kicks flying, trying to take down what's left before she's taken out as well. For her and Aerith there's likely no 'next round' awaiting them.

Don Corneo has posed:
Incredible! Against all odds, the valiant heroes obliterate the last of the Soldier Heartless with their combined powers! The forces of Darkness within Casino Gold have been quelled...

...for a moment.

The haze around the women warriors and their fallen allies has begun to thicken all the further, so it might be unwise to tarry any further in this forsaken place. But Navya has almost made it to the exit, at least-- until a pack of Heartless emerge from the smoke in front of her, Shadows dancing gleefully as they begin to surround her.

Could this be the end, just when all seemed won?

Mica Melchiott has posed:
The Mica clone at the Roulette wheel raises a hand above her head before its fingers hook 'under' her neck, tearing free the shadows like a cheap cloth disguise. And then there is Mica, in her (palatte-swapped) glory. Her black silk top hat, with a red band, her black cape with white tips accented with the suit symbols in various colors, tipped with bells, her white gloves, etc, etc.

"Now, this is such a sight. But I'll never have customers if they're /driven off/ by rowdy upstarts. I /rule/ this casino. This is /my world/. And no heart of darkness, no foolish, fat, slovenly man, no matter how rich, will /ruin/ the experiences of those that step foot within /my/ halls." She declares, pointing an imperious finger at the knights. Spotlights appear from nowhere, highlighting her as she does this.

The gates yawn wide, as 'her' heartless stand at the door, handing out warm hand-towels scented with lemon, more /solid gold/ business cards (One for each person, and they're practically forced upon those leaving), and offering small goodie bags of rich chocolates and flowers and complimentary casino coins so that they can come back and play.

Mica, for her part, snaps her fingers, as the spotlights focus on the Heartless.

"You're annoying my /customers/. And I am in the business of /keeping/ customers. So, please, girls, come back! Enjoy some games on the house. Service is my forte, and fun is my garuntee."

"Now get out of my casino, Pests. You're not treating my /valued patrons/ with any sort of respect."

As she speaks, the spotlights shine intensely on the Knights... And then a brilliant golden light, like a thousand sparkling treasures beaming down to scour the heartless from the casino floor. All the while, Mica's just standing there, conducting the laserbeam spotlights, as they scour the floors around the heroes.

Dusting off her hands, Mica smiles happily at the battered heroes. "Will that be all for you girls today?"

Rinoa Heartilly has posed:
Rinoa glances around as her allies desperately give it their all. It seems she's not the only one standing on her last legs, and she staggers to the ground after stumbling off Angelo's back, the dog rapidly shrinking back to normal size. "Ugh...Gotta stop it.." she raises a shaky hand to summon a spell, but...She can barely focus. Then the combined attacks of the others are thankfully enough to drive them away.

"Oh, thank Hyne!" She murmurs, before her head hits the floor, too weak to move, but stubbornly refusing to pass out entirely.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith collapsed, falling to her knees, her staff the only thing supporting her weight. She glanced toward the woman who'd just saved them, thankful for her intervention. Aerith glanced toward her winnings for a moment... and sighed. "I think... I'll cash out. Quit while I'm ahead."

Lumeria has posed:
Lumeria takes the offered gifts. She's not being greedy if they're giving to her willingly right? She looks at her earlier winnings and picks up a few coins from it. She figures she can get away with that much without transforming again right? She's going to find somewhere to clean off and sleep after all of this.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart sighs as she moves to help Aerith up. She's pretty tired too "Yeah, cashing out..." And she wants to get out of that costume too...

Corneo gets a kick in the butt on the way out.

Navya has posed:
Navya /may/ have had to use Corneo as a weapon.

Fortunately, that was made unnecessary when the spotlights appear. She slowly lowers the Don, at least a few inches, and looks suspiciously at Mica's Heartless. She gets a card, somehow, and a hand-towel, also somehow, and even a bag of chocolates, despite not having really enough hands to hold it everything in; she feels like she ought to be juggling things.

"I could use my clothes," she says, looking down at where her wings are still covering her chest and face red as a tomato. "Back, I mean."

Synestria has posed:
Waking up a couple of minutes later and seeing the heartless defeated, Synestria takes that opportunity to slink out of the casino. She's still wary of showing her true form in public, especially as large as she is. DEspite what Aerith might think, her people are still considered monsters by most people.

Aerith has posed:
Synestria doesn't pass Aerith's notice, though. Quiet as she is, there are some people you can't sneak past. The flower girl casts a glance at... wow, was that her true self? Aerith smiled as Tifa helped her out the door. She looked splendid, almost graceful.

She placed a hand on Tifa's head for a moment. "Hang on... I won all that fair and square, y'know. When I said cash out, I meant it." She turned her head to look at what she know recognized as the owner. "Could you take care of that for me? I'd appreciate it."

Oriane Guado has posed:
Vivid green eyes flicker open as Oriane comes to. Ugh. Is she on the FLOOR?! The gothic priestess struggles up onto her feet and dusts herself off. Black is a terrible color for attracting dust. She is entirely filthy right now which makes Oriane quite perturbed. Oh, and she almost died too.

Oriane is oddly not so much effected by that. She is rather obsessed with the topic so being so close to it herself is invigorating. Tch. And not one person stopped to assist her. Then again, she was dressed as a commoner (in her mind) so such ignorance of her plight is to be expected. With a huff, the priestess bundles of up the skirt portion of her dress and makes her way towards the exit.

Oriane makes particular note of those remaining. When the tides have turned, they shall suffer the same rudeness as she has should they ever pass out at their feet. The haughty and arrogant priestess is then acosted by more Heartless minions at the door. Why would she need such trivial riches? Oriane stands up straight, takes the goody bag, and then proceeds to toss it into the swamp as soon as she is out the door. The less reminders of this embarassing encounter with her own self-destructive pride, the better.

Mica Melchiott has posed:
Mica raises an eyebrow at Navya's response, seemingly mentally counting something, before counting something on her fingers, then shrugging.

With a snap, the clothes were returned in a sworl of darkness, though there is a mischevious grin on Mica's face.

"What, was the towel not nice enough?"

Navya would find that a fair chunk of her winnings had mysteriously (or not-so-mysteriously) disappeared.

As for Oriane....

Mica walks next to her, patting her shoulder lightly. "Miss. Might I interest you in a stay in the VIP lounge next time you bless us with your presence? Personal tables, high skill games, and a private wait staff... For someone of your upbringing, nothing less."

She grins. "For now... I must clean up. Ta-ta!"

Aerith has posed:
Aerith chuckled and pushed off from Tifa. "I'll be fine... let me go do this myself then. Hopefully the cashier's still open.

A few moments later, not even a minute, and Aerith smiled as she walked out with her hard-won munny. This should help the bar out a bit, right?

Aerith has posed:
Aerith chuckled and pushed off from Tifa. "I'll be fine... let me go do this myself then. Hopefully the cashier's still open."

A few moments later, not even a minute, and Aerith smiled as she walked out with her hard-won munny. This should help the bar out a bit, right?

Navya has posed:
Navya lets out a sigh of relief.

Then she reaches around and adjusts the pants slightly. Ugh, wedgie. "Thanks," she says, still red-faced but letting her wings uncurl. "I, uh... it's good to be modest!"

Of note is the fact that she has not put Corneo down, because she doesn't want him to run straight back into the casino.

Don Corneo has posed:
"...mmmgh..."

Corneo, semi-conscious, mumbles in Navya's arms.

"...all the girls... dressed... like chocobos..."

Never give up on your dreams, Don.