In A New York Minute: The Blockade

In A New York Minute: The Blockade
Date of Scene:	08 December 2012
Location:	Manhattan - Central Park
Synopsis:	Leida and Ember (Katyna) are tasked with creating a blockade around Manhattan's Central Park Shadow Portal. Our heroes will have none of that.
Cast of Characters:	Skoll Ulfang, Tifa Lockhart, Zia, Ember, Aerith, Zargabaath, Leida
Tinyplot:	In A New York Minute

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Ember has posed:
So here they are again. Manhattan's such a lovely little hotspot for Heartless activity. Certainly there must have been something of interest to the heartless for them to continue coming back here, even after the heroes' repeated attempts to thwart them, many of these quite successful. But tonight..Tonight would be different. Tonight, it was all coming together. Tonight..They surely would not fail.

Under the watchful eye of one Sho Minamimoto, the Shadow Lords were tactfully dispersed to certain key areas around Manhattan..What were they doing? What were they up to? Well, whatever it is, it was something BIG.

Shadow Lord Leida, and Shadow knight Ember suddenly emerge from the portal of darkness along with a fair army of heartless and just like that, panic erupts. People start screaming and fleeing in all directions even as the heartless close in on them. But, they are not alone.

Manhattan is no stranger to heartless attacks however, and Xanatos-equipped military forces are already on the scene, doing their best to protect the people and send them to safety while fending off the steadily growing number of heartless. But is it enough?

Ember silently watches the fiasco as she stands near the portal with a smirk, glancing over at Leida by her side. "Remember. Our orders are to protect this portal at all costs. No one is to come through here. You got that?"

Zia has posed:
After having been 'lost' within the World of Ruin due to one of Reize's map, Zia had finally found her way back to Manhattan with the help of a certain chain-wielding werewolf, only to discover that her world was facing dangers of its own. Normally, she wouldn't care much about the human news, or strange goings on within the city, but things had gone from bad to worse in what seems like such a short period of time. Regardless of her ill feelings for most humans, she can't help but feel that gargoyle need to protect what little remains of her own world.

So, in a rare sort of happenstance, the white gargress had taken to the skies to do sweeps over the city, keeping an eye out for the Heartless, and for their Masters. It's during one of these fly-bys that she glides over Central Park, coming in low over the trees. The sounds of humans screaming and the quick scramble of footsteps that have nothing to do with her is enough to tell her that she has the right place - or at least /one/ of the right places, anyways.

The gargress doesn't know the Shadow Lords well, but there are some who stand out among the masses of Heartless. Before now, she'd never really stepped forward to fight against the comming darkness, and it's something that takes more than a little of her bravery. The white gargoyle lands in a crouch, frightening group of humans already fleeing the scene, folding her wings behind her.

Her form of attack isn't as straight-forward as some might think - as most gargoyles prefer to charge right into battle. Instead, there is just a slight chill in the air. A couple of mook Heartless start to slip here and there, making them easier for the Xanatos goons to take care of. Still, there is something unnatural about it - something that speaks of magical forces at work. Even the way the wind blows seems different than it had a moment before.

Leida has posed:
The portal that opens is like a swirling iris of pure darkness, foul energies and wisps of nothingness rending reality to extert their influence on the world of Manhattan. Heartless of all shapes and forms pour out of the breach, their bodies shifting and adjusting to fit the stage upon which they are the antagonistic stars. Instead of knights and mages, shadowy troopers spill in a tidal wave at the front of the lines, rifles spewing bullets of inky suffering into the arranged defenses and it takes only moments for the reprisals to begin, devolving the entire park into a warzone.

The cavalry arrives next, heavy-set Heartless on low-riding bikes, their bodies draped with iron chains that they swing menacingly overhead. Whooping and cackling, these mounted soldiers blaze out into the streets and begin smashing everything in sight, civilian and soldier alike. The final touch is, ofcourse, artillery. A handful of massive vehicular shaped monsters roll out on spiked treads, crunching pavement and cars beneath their bulk. Heavy cannons raise on hissing pistons attached to their back, aligning their sights upwards before a series of explosive shells are lobbed into the middle of the defender's lines.

The small girl that steps through the portal is completely out of place here, despite her somewhat modern looking body armor. The mutative properties of stepping into another word has shifted her ancient lamellar armor and she wears it as casually as always. Her hazy gaze drifts across the landscape and then up to her companion when she speaks to her, nodding slowly in reponse.

"Yes, I will protect this place... I like protecting things..."

The sudden burst of frigid air interupts her thoughts and a layer of rimefrost creeps up over Leida's side, causing her to glance down at it in curiosity. The ice crystals crackle as they dig into her skin, earning a faint trickle of black ichor but little else.

Light sickly purple energy engulfs her body quickly, turning the ice black and putting a fire in her empty gaze. "Look, it's snowing... how pretty..."

Aerith has posed:
They'd known it was coming. For a while now, actually.

So it was no surprise that Aerith had ended up here in Central Park, her staff in hand and materia shining bright. She wasn't surprised at all at the vast amounts of Heartless, and as she strode forward, her features dispassionate and serene, she set herself for battle.

"This is the best place to hold them," she said to the brunette behind her, clad in leather. "We're going to stop them from taking this location, because it's the one place those who can't fight can escape to." She shrouded the both of them in defensive energies before glancing behind her. "You ready?"

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart was there for that reason too. Aerith had been taking classes from Xanatos, so if anything it would be a good training for the flower girl-turned-strategist. Its not like the logic wasn't sound either, the portal was literally a door into town for those heartless after all. She nods as she watches the shimmering shield surrounding her now "I'm all set. Let's show them what we can do, right?"

She blinks a bit at the mobile artllery thought "Uhm... I hope that was in your plans, I don't think I can punch my way into those. Not with my gloves anyway." She can handle the bikers though, that's not too worrying.

The barmaid stands in front of the portal in fact, when the riders pour out. One, two, three of them find their path stopped with double clothesline and a roundhouse kick, before they can get past her and further into central park. Tifa is strong on the offense, but that strength is always better spent when it comes to protect something.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Things were wrong. Even after meeting with Sassaral, Skoll feels 'wrong' since that recent nightmare. Sure, he'd helped Zia afterwards to get her stuff into the Shard Seekers HQ... and had once again been allowed to witness the terrible destruction that the Heartless bring with them. In such immense quantities, there isn't even a way that he could run decent interference. Against the power of a Shadow Lord, his inner darkness simply doesn't measure up. What is worse, is that the Gaudium Lords didn't care that this world would fall.

Skoll doesn't arrive to Manhattan in the typical way of the heroes that would seek to protect it. Just after Zia's go-over with the icey and windy magic, a black portal opens right besides Ember. It trembles with dark power, after which a massive beast slowly walks through. Black and gray in fur, with feathers and a snarling look, it looks like it belongs on the side of the Shadow Lords. Skoll takes a moment to take it all in - the presence of heartless, and that of Leida and Ember.

He overheard them in that moment, and using that moment of potential confusion, he growls in his wolven manner; "Protect the portal." Followed by a long pause in which he moves to loom over Ember.

It hurts. It hurts Skoll to be near two so deep in darkness. That mental command inside of him tries for force him to subject himself to the rule of these two individuals... let's hope they aren't going to pick up on that. The werewolf twitches his head and neck a little, feeling dread around Leida as the girl talks so 'happily' about the ice crytals. He can't get himself to attack her. So instead, in that moment, Katyna is 'chosen' as he suddenly reaches out with one hand and lets out a sharp howl... and from his howl - the very vibrations in the now cold air... a black and light-blue entity comes forth.

Shiva, in all her might, corrupted by sheer darkness turns and twists in the air, just as the Werewolf steps out of the way... and suddenly 'backhands' the air, sending a massive wave of black icicles up from the ground towards Ember!

Betrayed? Or had she known!?

Zargabaath has posed:
"As ready as we'll ever be, Lady Aerith." Zargabaath says as he steps into Aerith's beacon of light, drawing his sword. He glared at the heartless from under his helmet, but gripped his sword tightly. He then watched as Tifa bravely dove her way into the heartless. "You shall need a bit of help, Lady Lockhart. Fight with your heart!" He barks towards her.....and he steps forward himself, though a bit slower than Tifa.

Ember has posed:
Well..Ember had been warned about Leida's..Oddities. Of what a trouble maker she can be. So far, since rescuing her from Vespar the other day however, she can only feel curious, maybe even a little sympathetic towards the girl, even if such a feeling is generally discouraged among the heartless ranks. Still. The girl cuts quite a pitiful figure next to Ember's rather intimidating black armour.

Not that she minds. For once, she gets to be in charge. How odd..Leida is given an odd look, and a smirk from Ember when she comments on the 'pretty' snow. Ember however, seems bothered by the cold, and she shivers a bit as she pulls out her sword which immediately bursts to flame. "Seriously? Pretty? Phew, it's getting cold. I hate the cold...And that is no ordinary wind..Look up there!"

Aah, a gargyole. She's never encountered this one before. Apparently a gargoyle with power over wind magics. She can feel it in her bones, threatenning to weaken her to her core. "Heh..Better keep an eye on that one..Could be trouble.."

Of course, while her attention is fixed skywards, Ember is briefly caught off-guard by the 'heroes' coming at her from the ground. "Woah.." she stumbles back, trying to lash out at Tifa after she rushes at her, but she manages to dart out of the way. Then another dark portal appears and she grins. "Ahh, the back-up.."

But then, she's suddenly caught off-guard, when the dark wolf turns *against* her, lashing out at her instead. Her eyes widen in total surprise, even as she brings up her sword to defend the trivial attack. "What...You're betraying me? What the heck's wrong with you?"

How dare he..Not that she ever had the chance to really befriend this particular shadow minion, but..Dammit..With a snarl, she lashes out at him and Tifa, swinging her sword in a wide arc, unleashing a burst of blue white flames in front of her.

Zia has posed:
If her bravery hadn't been put to the test before, then it certainly is as more Heartless seem to pour out of the portal. "Balls." Oh, you can bet that Zia is second guessing getting herself involved just at this moment, especially as a Heartless riding a motorcycle goes zooming past her, its chain nearly impacting her head as it upsets some of her hair and slicks her ears back, letting it come as a narrow miss.

"Oh, lass, whataveye gotten yerself inte this time?" She takes a step back, watching as others who are clearly not from her world come up to join the fray. The gargress's eyes follow the leather-clad girl's acrobatics, the flow of magic that seems to come from the girl with the braid and the man who stands with them. At the very least, she isn't alone, but these humans aren't familiar, so can she really count them as allies? There are no familiar faces until that portal opens, revealing the familiar form of a certain tribal-marked werewolf.

At first, her heart skips a beat - wondering if he really is on the side of the enemies afterall. But no, it can't be, right? It brings a look of relief to her features when she sees him actually make to attack from right in the midsts of the two leading this charge of Heartless. "Be brave." She whispers to herself, steadying herself as she brings the winds around her, holding her aloft as she tries to call them to the aid of those fighting below.

The last thing she wants is to end up getting in the way of the close combat fighting going on around the werewolf and the others nearby, so she sweeps in low, gliding on those currents of air, and as she comes past, the ice from below turns back into water, flaring up lashing out towards Leida's legs. These aren't ordinary waters, though - but the sort that tend to wash clean all it touches. That isn't all that comes with it, though, as a flow of electricity follows, snapping through the water and threatening to shock anyone who steps too close to it.

Leida has posed:
Tifa's brave rush into the Heartless flanks is rewarded with the element of surprise. Her powerful blows unseat two of the biker scouts but the third manages to duck the clothesline. His massive chain comes around, trying to tie up the martial artist's outstretched leg when she goes for the follow up and give her a little joyride around the park on her back.

Leida glances up from her frozen-over arm when the werewolf arrives, the piercing souless glow taking in the furry monster at a glance through sleepy eyes. She feels something different about him but can't quite place it. Perhaps she should say something? But then he might not like her for that. She wants people to like her, so she stays quiet.

Moving languidly away from Ember and wolf, the girl stalks towards the front lines with slow deliberate steps. Her gaze drifts from place to place, watching Heartless and human alike tear each other apart. The heavy thumping of more explosive shells impacting in the park rattles her bones but again, she barely seems to notice.

As she walks a pit of darkness gathers about Leida's feet as if the shadows from all around were being sucked into an ever expanding pool of blackness. Eventually it becomes so thick that it begins to bubble up, rising up her legs like an ooze and lifting her from the ground to carry her forward in its surge. The aura of energy surrounding her becomes more potent with each passing moment and fear and dread become palapable sensations that radiate from her like a bonfire.

"Well... you, you, you, and you... goodbye..."Suddenly the air rends itself apart all across the park, dozens of shadowy arms pushing their way into reality. Wicked talons dripping with venomous hate clutch and flex like newborn babes before turning their attentions to everything nearby. Easily a foot in length, the demonic claws tear and grab at the human defenders. Those who fall prey to their grasp let out hollow screams, their faces twisted in abject horror even as the color drains from their flesh and clothes and then eventually crumble to naught but black ash.

The magical waters engulf the girl and she pauses to look down at them as she feels her magic being stripped away. It is painful, like having someone tug at your very essence and she grimaces, wrapping her arms about herself protectively as the darkness surges up to block the electricty from her body.

"No, no, no... I don't like pain...! It will stain everything red..."

Aerith has posed:
The chilling sensation was familiar to her, all too much so.

It didn't mean she could get out of its way though, and she got clawed at by one of those arms. She staggered backward and prepared to defend herself with a flourish of her staff. "Hello again, Leida..."

Moments later, she retaliated, a burst of lightning aimed at the shadowy hands that struck at her.

Zargabaath has posed:
Burning sensations don't truly seem to faze Zargabaath, not at first anyways. However, he begins to cut his way through the heartless, towards the portal. Pointedly determined to drive them back into the portal.....

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
"I may be a creature of darkness." Skoll answers Ember in an immensely deep voice, with a constant rumble in his chest; his hands' palms are facing up, his claws showing, and his chest heaving heavily. "But that doesn't mean I wish for this world to fall." He then beats one arm outwards in a big movement, trying to show Ember something. "This is the world of some of my friends." Zia, for certain. But also Avira -- though nobody knows that one. Skoll has kept that a secret, well hidden, just as he'd been asked to.

The werewolf then steps back a few feet, not too fast on his feet right now, and lets Shiva disappear back 'into the Ether', as Zia had once described it. He lets Shiva's ice shatter all around Ember however, as that sword comes arcing around and brings those blue-white flames to him, burning through him and drawing some of his energy out of him. The beast staggers back, grabbing for his chest and looking down at the disappearing wisps of flame... before looking into the direction of Leida.

He can hear her speak clearly with those sensitive ears of his, and that feeling of 'wrong' he already carries within thickens... growing... and making him cringe. He hisses between his teeth, glaring Leida's way. He can't go near her. He will have to trust the Gargess - whom he can see flying through the area - to take care of herself for right now. His yellow eyes then glance back to Ember. The way she spoke of him... she sounds dejected. Did he know her?

It doesn't matter. He must defeat this woman so that the people of this town may be more safe. He lowers his body to the ground, getting on all fours, and digs his heels in before howling once more! A vapor once more comes from his lips, this time forming a massive white-and-gray wolf before him... which then runs straight at Ember and tries to bite at her arm and drag her along the ground in order to knock her into Leida! He could at least help indirectly!

The beast then quickly looks towards the others here - the other 'allies' he has in this fight. Sadly, he recognizes none... and he's too afraid to make their acquaintance right now.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart is in the heat of the problem here. Right between the two bad guys, it would seem. Probably one of the worse places to be, as they decide to each attack her in different ways. She can't do much more than try to avoid them, but that drain attack manages to take away some of her fighting spirit. "What do you want with this place, people here have done nothing to you all!" Looks like Aerith knows about Leida at least. She looks over as Zarg also offers her some helpful boosts. She might need those.

But since these people were intent to trampling over town, she doesn't think that simply talking their way out will be helpful either. So she keeps on the offensive. The next biker that zooms next to her gets a twirl, grabbing it by the arm and then launting it right at Leida, who seems the bigger issue right now. Slamming the biking-heartless into her, Leida might be surprised to find a hard-toed booted kick coming her way even before she could do something about the bike crash.

Ember has posed:
Ember narrows her eyes at the wolf. "I dont want this world to fall either.." She says softly, softly enough for only the wolf's ears. "But if this is the only way to survive, to avoid death..Then I will take it! If you're gonna fight them, then you're my enemy too.." She smirks, "And to think you had honor. Guess I was wrong about you!"

Friends, huh? What an interesting concept..Did she have any friends in this world, other than the shadow lord Fessner, who had suddenly disappeared? Or perhaps Morgan, who had defected and left the heartless - left her..Or even Hati, another wolf like Skoll..Could even she be trusted? What of Maira, Faruja and Avira? Were they just friends, or tools, people who would get in her way..People who would eventually try to kill her?

"Heh..friends arent' forever, you'll just end up dying to defend them..Been there, done that!" With a defiant yell, Ember swings her blade in a series of horizontal arcs towards her foes, sending out rings of purple flames as she does so, hoping to heat up the place a little...Followed by an explosive burst of fire bouquets along the length of her sword!

Zia has posed:
Seeing the way that the shadowy arms seem to grab on to those fighting and those trying to escape. It's the darkest sort of magic that Zia has ever witnessed. It stuns her enough that she nearly flies straight into one of those tendrils, but folding her wings and dropping like a stone seems to let it go over her, grasping at thin air where she had been a moment before. Her wings snap open again just as the ground comes hurtling up at her, and somehow the gargoyle manages to keep herself from face-planting as her first battle maneuver.

It's not easy to avoid them and stay skyborne, but up here she has more of a chance of keeping out of the way of the marauders that still battle with Xanatos's defense squads on the ground. With the melted water and ice still causing trouble for the Heartless, it seems a fitting place to try to make their job of protecting the portal just that much more of a pain. Where the water had flown, it begins to freeze over again, and this time it is very obvious just where that power is coming from. The flow of the ice seems to follow the gargoyle's path through the sky.

There is more that follows, though. This time, rather than just that single blast of slow-moving electricity, there is also a sharp gust of powerful wind, sweeping up Heartless left and right, dragging them up into the air and twirling them about in what is possibly the equivalent of a massive supernatural tornado. The energy isn't just set at them, though. It narrowly avoids the group around Ember and Skoll, trying to keep the two Shadow Lords appart so they can't coordinate attacks. At least, that's the plan anyways - and perhaps if she can toss the other one up into the air, she can disrupt their battle strategy.

Leida has posed:
The magical lightning blasts into the evil arms with concussive force, shattering two of them with Aerith's ancient might. They vanish in swirls of black mist, leaving an acrid smell behind in their wake, a mixture of ozone and sulfer.

A few of the laser-wielding soldiers manage to fend off some of the demon arms as well though many fall prey to their soul-leeching touch. Every time a soldier crumbles, his life force stolen away, a shimmering orb of purple energy rises up out of the offending claw and drifts through the air back to the small girl, infusing itself with her aura. Each orb strengths her, the darkness thickening in intensity, closing up holes that the heros have breached in its defenses.

The girl continues to shudder and hold herself, a shell of solidified darkness holding all of the attackers at bay. For every blow landed upon its surface a deep pained hisses echoes through the air from nothingness. Leida twists and turns inside her cocoon as the sympathetic wounds tear at her soul.

The heavy biker crashes into the shell and the impact is enough to crack the defenses long enough for Tifa to land a solid kick straight to the girl's back, which sends her hurdling forward onto her face. With a cry of rage, the shadows retalitate at both the boxer and the wolf, slashing them with their dark claws.

Before they can return their attentions to their host, the shadows are robbed of the girl as she is ripped from the pavement by the magical winds. They pool of darkness shoots up like a geyser, embracing Leida up to her waist and holding her fast against the tempest as she covers her ears and shakes her head.

"No... I don't like this place! It's scary...!"

The nimbus of fear around her suddenly flares, erupting into a column of purple fire that shoots into the sky. The light it emits is pure evil and as it washes over the soldiers and the Heartless, they begin to twist and writhe as their worst fears and horrors assault their mind even as their souls begin to rend apart.

"No...! Please don't hate me...!"

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
"This world's fall would not make you any more or less able to survive!" Skoll answers Ember in a roar of anger - answering something that others might not have heard. Her attempt at getting her 'claws' deeper into this wolf succeed however when she refers to his honor. The beast squints his eyes. He is certain he does not know this woman, yet she knows him. "YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT HONOR!" He rears back on his hind legs and points angrily towards Ember. "This is honor! To protect those who can't help themselves! I will fight you - for the sake of /them/. And if you feel you will die if this world does not fall, then I will fight for you sake too! And in this case, that means knocking you OUT!"

And in that moment, the werewolf rears his head up, and howls a mighty howl, and summons forth a strangest of creature. A little dark chipmunk like critter shows itself even as Leida lashes back against his formerly summoned Fenrir - which is forced out of existance by her dark magic. There's an obvious and immediate feedback upon Skoll in that moment, who grabs more fiercely at his chest even as the little critter he'd summoned just moments before shines a strange 'dark light' upon everyone...

Let's hope people cleaned their clothing properly before coming here...

And that the park doesn't show strange white spots.

Aerith has posed:
The dark energies swarm Aerith, slamming into her with visceral force. But just as she is knocked down... She manages to get right back up and keep walking forward. Injured, sure enough... but still moving. And the injuries are well-in-hand as a burst of healing magic surrounds her. She looks up at the girl, now trapped in a funnel of wind, her features twisted into a grimace.

This wasn't the way things were supposed to go. She'd have to endure it for now.

Zargabaath has posed:
"KEEP IT GOING TIFA!" Zargabaath barks out towards her, thankfully having cleared some of the heartless from around him at the moment. However, fire does burn over his armor, but while he doesn't make a sound, it does slow him down for mere moments.

Ember has posed:
Ember is momentarily distracted by the battle at hand, as Ledia suddenly cries out in fear, purple flames erupting from her. "What the.." She blinks, "Leida, pull it together..Dont give in..You must be strong! They wont defeat us..We'll beat 'em!" bringing her hands skywards, she calls upon the dark forces, surrounding both herself and Leida in brilliantly glowing red energy, strengthening and protecting her.

She glances over at Tifa then, "Sorry, but that's for us to know and you to find out! If you leave now, you wont die. But if you continue to fight us, we'll kill you. Simple as that!" She smirks, "It's such a waste of life to stay here and defend all these people. If you'd just surrender, you wouldn't have to die!!"

Finally, Ember turns back to Skoll, ember eyes narrowed. "Heh, I know plenty about honor. I know what it is to watch those you care about dying to protect you..I wont go the same way as them, fighting something I cant beat! If you can't beat 'em, join em! What a pity that your anger couldn't be channelled in more productive ways.."

She crosses her arms in front of her then, trying to defend herself against the attacks that come her way. "Come on then! Kill me if you think you've got the power! I'm not afraid to die.."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart is not in a very good position, stuck between the two it seems. She's getting hit from both sides, repeatidly at that. Even as she tries to move away, they seem to be coming after her! She looks back over her shoulder when she feels the regenerative magic used on her. From Skoll, who she doesn't know of yet, and Zarg. She nods to him "Alright then, not giving up that easily!" She rushes in, trying to pick off Leida. If they can take one out, it should be easier at least from there on. She rushes in, opening in with a sliding kick, hoping to make her lose balance a bit, before sliding on her back and sending Leida airborn with a powerful two legged upward motion. Sending her in the air is only the first part though, as the barmaid jump right up after her, and showing some of her athelic prowess, grapples her to slam her down into a powerful piledriver. The meteodrive lives on.

Zia has posed:
At first, Zia had simply thought the actions of the strange girl commanding the Heartless and those shadowy arms of death were some sort of ruse. It's just the sort of thing that someone would do to play on the sympathies of those protecting the innocent. It's also just enough to have her hesitate. The winds draw back slightly - enough to hold the girl in place in the air, but not enough to continue doing outright damage. This is probably a mistake that a more seasoned fighter wouldn't make, but this gargoyle is not used to such things.

It is Skoll's howl that snaps her attention back to the fight and away from the screams of the girl before her. The strange light that the little magic rodent shines causes her white skin to glow faintly. An odd feeling runs up her spine, causing gooseflesh to break out over her arms. Whatever it is about the wolf's dark magic, it seems to react with the darker parts of her own spirit - causing her eyes to flash that crimson of an angry female gargoyle.

This little reminder about the battle comes just at the right time, as the screaming girl lashes out with that flare of purple fire. It's dangerous, and some part of her that resonates with the darkness can sense it. As the one that the others seem to call 'Tifa' launches up into the air to join the fray, and then down again, Zia steels herself, trying not to let her sympathies overwhelm the fact that these people were hurting others. She'd seen humans die at this girl's hands, and while she cares little for them, they are still a part of her world, and that means they're worth fighting for.

So, the gargoyle shifts, following the winds to dive in towards Leida, using her power to not only reflect some of the darkness back at her, but then, in the distance, a great roll of thunder rumbles. From out of an almost clear sky, clouds begin to form, followed by a bolt of lightning which arcs out of the night, trying to drive the girl back down to the earth.

Leida has posed:
Tifa's powerful kick slides home against the pillar of blackness holding Leida in the air, giving her a surface to propell herself into the air. The harsh driving winds of Zia's magical assault still batter fiercely here but she has enough time to pluck the girl from the protective dark ooze and fall back to the ground, bringing her cringing target into the ground with a sickening thud.

The girl hits head first and a splatter of black fluid stains the pavement, her body going limp in Tifa's arms. The air itself screams, a nail-on-chalkboard sound that resonates deep within the minds of all present. The black ichorous shadows rush over and push Tifa away with sheer fluid force, scooping up the fallen Shadow Lord in the demonic arms to spirit her away to safety.

But Zia, once again, foils their plans. The searing bolt of lightning strikes her catatonic body like a lance of white fire, blasting a hole completely through Leida's body and striking the pavement beneath. The sheer trauma to her body forces the girl to spam, eyes wide. She tries to scream but only an empty gasp comes out before her eyes roll up into her head again.

Fear grips the shadows for a change as their host is brutally assaulted. Only its power holds her lifes thread together now and it surges up again, soaking in the magic granted by Ember to fuel its own dark powers. Shadows quickly fill the hole like caulk, sealing over the wound and spreading out to soak into Leida's body like black paint. Slowly, the wounds she's suffered begin to close over, flesh reforming before their very eyes as the shadowy claws renew their assault on the defenders, desperate for the life energy needed to bring her back from the brink.

Aerith has posed:
But no, Aerith wasn't focused on Leida. Instead, she was focused on something else...

Those arms that tried to suck the life away from the soldiers, her allies, her friend... she struck at those, making an attempt to keep them at bay. Aerith channeled the Lifestream, pure streams of pale green racing up her arms and legs, through the staff, and into the materia imbedded within her weapon.

In the next instant, a blaze of flames shoots from her left hand, the sphere of light and heat and force ramming into two of those skeletal arms with intent to blow them apart.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
People dying and screaming, and Skoll is just there, being angry and upset about this whole mess. The werewolf growls angrily from deep within as Ember just keeps on talking. "You confuse honor with foolishness. Unlike some of these people - I stand a chance. Unlike some of these people..." He slowly stalks forwards to try and overcome Embers' sheer dark presence. "I won't /die/ from such petty things like you." He truly can look imposing if he tries.

Her comment about his anger, and that of 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em'... well, it only angers him further. "Not only do you know nothing of honor, you don't know anything about /integrity/ either. You are the worst of the worst." He then tries to grab for Ember, in an attempt to lift her off the ground - if he /can/. If she would be momentarily stunned enough by his words perhaps. Or simply due to his sheer strength alone.

Either way, the ground beneath her begins to rumble. He waits for the others to be well out of the way - before he lets a howl once more and moves back - letting go if he managed to grab her at all. "I WILL NOT KILL YOU!" He then shouts. "Instead, I will make you pay by teaching you a lesson!" The ground rumbles harder... shaking... the earth begins to split near Ember.

"Rise! From the deepest depths of the earth! Swallow this earth." He moves a hand down towards the ground, letting out a second howl. "COME FORTH!"

Then suddenly, the earth splits up. And amidst the night, an /ENORMOUS/ entity comes forth.

"JORGAMUNDR!"

True to its name, an absolutely gigantic snake breaks out of the ground and attempts to swallow Ember whole, to sink her into the depths of darkness and suffocate her within its bowels during its ascend to the heavens... only to fall down towards the ground once more and shattering the fragile wall of dimensions and leaving once more - either way leaving Ember in its wake as it fades away.

Zargabaath has posed:
Taking a deep breath, Zargabaath starts to make his way forward again, slow and ponderous. Since the armored one's attention was taken up by the werewolf, Zargabaath steals a glance to the sky when he hears a crack of thunder. Focusing once again on his target, he grips his sword in both hands, which begins to glow with a bright white light. He then raises it high above his head, and brings it down upon Ember......hoping to end her role in this fight.....

Ember has posed:
Ember's eyes darken further. Phew, this puppy's got a short fuse..But apparently this isnt the wolf that Hati was searching for. What a pity, she'd be happy to bring his head back to her as a trophy..She clenches and unclenches her fists, only momentarily distracted by Leida's screams as she's assaulted. "Seriously, three against one? How..Unfair.."

Ember moves to help Leida but that damn wolf stands in her way still. "You really know nothing about me, wolf! But I know a little something about you.." she smirks, "Of course, you wouldn't kill me, that'd go against your precious 'honour', and yet, what would be the point? You know I'd just come back and fight you again and again. And maybe the next time you'd die. Better to kill your opponent while you can, rather than spare them just so they can finish you off next time!"

And then she's suddenly grabbed and she winces in pain, gritting her teeth and shrieking out in pain as the massive snake swallows her, spewing her out in a bloodied but still alive mess, a few moments later. "Ugh..." Ember staggers, using her sword to push herself to her feet. "You're strong..To fight so fiercely to protect these people..What is it that gives you such strength?" She snorts, "Your friends? Your honor?" She grins, "I dont wanna kill people, I only wanna survive. But it'd be a waste to kill someone like you. Maybe if I knock you out, it'll be enough.."

She readies her next move but pauses, glancing skywards as storm clouds and dark green light fills the sky. "Huh..Guess it's starting.." Whatever 'it' is.." Zargabaath attacks her then and she yelps, staggering back, pieces of her armour falling off..She grits her teeth, struggling to stand straight, and dark energy begins to gather around her..

"You are so wrong, Skoll. If I hadn't surrendered so long ago to the darkness..I wouldn't be alive today! Honor..Integrity..Such lofty, noble things. But in the end, it's not about right or wrong, it's about who lives or dies! The fiery red aura continues to burn around her, lighting up her dark armour, tinting it a shade of red as she draws her eyes skywards. "Darkness..Come to me..Lend me your power..Ultimate..Darkness!!"

Her sword suddenly grows massive in her hands as orbs of dark magic rain down upon her, drawing into her weapon, with a fierce battle cry, she lifts into the air, swinging her massive sword in an upward spiral fashion, unleashing a powerful wave of fire and darkness over a good area around her..

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart's eyes narrow down as Ember takes out that huge dark sword. Well, that can't be good. She jumps back, arms crossed in front of her head, but she can't get out of reach of it in time, despite all of her speed. The sword crashes down, engulfing the area in dark fires, and yet the barmaid manages to jump out of it... but not without showing severe burns all over her skin and clothes. She slumps down backward against a rock behind her, her legs giving out "Ugh..." And then finally slumps to the side, unconcious. Guess that was a little too much for the barmaid to take in a single attack. Oh, she's still alive at least.

Zia has posed:
With the girl seemingly catatonic on the ground, it seems silly to beat a downed Shadow Lord. She has little real knowledge that something worse could be in store for her. Zia is not yet so experienced with these dark creatures to realize that things aren't always what they seem. Still, better safe than sorry when it comes to making sure that they don't regather their strength.

Above her, the skies still roil both from the wolf's summoning, and Aerith's magic, and Zia's own call to the winds, but it is not to this storm that the gargoyle calls - not yet. For now, she uses her magic to break up the water again letting it flow back to liquid, seeking to flow over the downed Shadow Lord and capture her within the ice.

This is not some great display of power, but that same slow sort of elementalism that she has shown thus far. The gargress is cautious, and uses the time she has to catch her breath. Of course, even in the air, she is not without dangers. every time that she comes in close enough to the ground, the Heartless leap at her, try to catch her up in chains, and one even manages to catch one of her ankles before the speed of her flight rips it free from its hand.

There is more to her flight than just staying out of the way, though. Every pass seems to be summoning up more clouds, deeper, rolling thunder. It is an ominous looking darkness that spreads over Central Park, but it is not brought by the Heartless, but by those protecting Manhattan. Then again, maybe just staying out of the way is a good idea, especially as the quite loud Shadow Lord ends up summoning up that wave of fire and darkness from her sword. Yeah, that would have hurt.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
There's a pressure rolling in. Skoll can feel it. It makes his entire body tremble. The darkness that /chains/ his heart grows thicker, more powerful, and seems to literally /hurt/ the Werewolf even as he stands there. One can see him biting down hard while baring his teeth. Again, he is forced to step back a little, even going so far as moving his clawed hands to try and ward off some invisible force that is grasping for him...

Grasping for him and trying to entice him, trying to get him to turn on his allies. But without the Lords being present, he can resist... he must resist! He won't let it happen! That nightmare! He can't let that happen here! And Ember speaks to him. "I won't kill the innocent... or a Lady. But if you are here to kill the innocent... you are neither..." Skoll answers her, while wincing. "But far more... an enemy undefeated and taugh a lesson can become the far greater ally." He barely manages to utter this.

He continues to stare angrily at her, and when she speaks, he just shakes his head. "My honor nor my friends bring me strength. What brings me strength is a long time of training my body, and a curse that was placed upon my very soul. But this curse helps me defend the people I care about. So I will accept it as a blessing." He adds, "And guess what, you don't need to kill people. You can just... /walk away/. Go! Hide! Run away. Be safe." He makes an underhanded motion with his hand.

"For your task of knocking me out is impossible." The beast then bites down again... as the girl suddenly speaks his name. "How do you!?..." He calls out, his eyes widening in surprise. Her words strike at his heart, as if she were using actual knives to stab him. And as her sword grows massive and she swings it down and brings darkness and fire around him, the beast is literally dropped to his knees and shoved back. There's a massive claw-marking that leads a path from where he once was, and where he is now. Pushed back.

He's gasping for air, red flashing in his eyes, the dark impulses and the mind-control trying to take over. Visions flash before his eyes, that nightmare springing up in his nightmare time and time again. Trying to escape these visions, the beast jumps to the air and brings his fist up... and then lets a massive 'dark wolf' flare out from his fist down towards the girl in an attempt to knock her over and grab her sword. He has no words to speak to her. He can barely breathe under this pressuring darkness. And with the stars fading in the skies under the green clouds' might...

Leida has posed:
Another ripple of shadowy artillery shells bombard the thinning defensive line as the massive siege engines sit unmolested in the rear ranks, the explosions destroying Heartless, human, and demonic claws alike in their uncontrolled destructive glee. A few of the scouts remain intact, buzzing around the outer edges of the fight and smashing the soldiers with their heavy chains when they stray too far from the pack. The main assault force has been decimated but the defenders probably aren't faring much better themselves.

Another volley of powerful magic from the flower girl mage disentigrates more of the hideous flesh-rending claws, leaving only a handful to swipe and clutch amid the fighting forces, occasionally pulling a soldier into the air and draining him of his precious life which flows back to the girl as tiny wisps of purple light.

The gaping hole in Leida's chest slowly grows smaller with each passing moment, the darkness focuses on reforming her wounded body. The bite of crackling ice rushes over it again and it screeches like a wounded animal. Frost spreads over the surface of the dark ooze, crystalizing it, and thin rays of evil energy shoot out of the refracting surface like lasers up at the floating gargoyle to shoo her away.

Soon the girl's eyes flutter open and the arms push her upright, setting her down shakily on wobbling legs. She stumbles fowards and looks around, not quite sure she's still in the same place she remembered. If she's even aware of the horrible injuries she sustained it doesn't seem to show for she doesn't even bother to check on their status.

"Everyone is dying..." She gazes across the park and the scenes of battle, scenes of heroism and tragedy unfolding in a dozen places at every moment. It looks like this thought might be upsetting to her as she takes a few more steps forward but then she simply exhales and looks away with a faint, "Oh well..."

As if her calm dismissal were a cue to unleash their rage, dozens more arms burst from the air all about the park glowing with purple fury. They dig into everything present, friend and foe alike, siphoning away power and life to restore the injured girl. The entity melded her with has no care for the plans of others, for their feelings or expectations. It wants only to survive and to spread the darkness upon which it feeds through misery and suffering.


"Witness my dream..."

Aerith has posed:
Aerith's eyes widened as her senses screamed bloody murder, forcing her to turn toward Tifa as she smashed against a nearby rock. "Tifa!!" She sprinted toward the barmaid's location, only to find the arms... coming back. Again, and again they struck, seemingly without cessation. Souls cried out to her as they were stolen away by this presence, this evil that was all sorts of /wrong/.

No.

Aerith's eyes narrowed in fury as she reached Tifa. The Voice whispers; another is in danger. Focused, she channels her will through the Restore materia in her staff, and begins the process of getting a few people at least somewhat together again.

Zargabaath has posed:
Grunting at the combined attacks from both Shadow Lords, Zargabaath seems determined to take ONE of them down, at least. However, he goes after the both of them, using the very lightning from the air and striking them both!!!

Ember has posed:
"Heh..." Ember rises on one knee when she completes her attack, looking indignant, triumphant even..But dammit, that annoying dog is still standing! How? Is he really more powerful than she is?! "I will defeat you! I'll show you what real fear is! You dont know anything..What the price of honor is!" She frowns, "Killing someone who cant defend themselves..I could never do that. I can barely even control any of these heartless, but still..I'm not gonna try and fight something I know I cant beat!"

She pauses a moment, chuckling when he speaks about teaching her a lesson. "Teach me a lesson! Hah! I've already been taught a lesson..Plenty of 'em! Lesson number one! If you wanna survive, become stronger! Even if you run, they will catch you. Even if you hide, they will find you! In the end, the only thing that matters is being stronger. That's why.."

Ember closes her eyes, feeling the dark power rise within her, twisting her thoughts. Fessner taught her well, even if he had compassion within him. But still, it wasnt enough to make her as strong as the other Shadow Lords. She twists to the side, hoping to avoid the next attack that comes her way, but she still gets struck, and she stumbles back. "You sure you have it in you still to defeat me?" She grins, seeming to enjoy this. "c'mon, come at me with everything you've got. Show me that hatred..That anger! If I can beat you, that's one step closer to achieving my ultimate dream!!"

She's momentarily distracted as Skoll and Zarg come at her again, slashing her sword this way and that to defend their attacks. Still, Ember backs away, towards the portal, charging her sword with what little power she has left. It bursts alight in brilliant amber flames. "We have to protect the portal..It's our priority!" Ember stumbles back towards it, but finally the accumulated wounds are too much. Too much to sustain as she draws her energy into that blade. She stumbles to the ground suddenly, losing consciousness. Is this the end for her!?

Zia has posed:
After managing to escape the reach of the strange girl for such a long time, it does seem inevitable that she would eventually be struck down by that magic. The gargoyle raises her arms, shielding herself against the force of it. As it hits her, though, the feeling of sorrow and darkness nearly blocks out the world around her. Her wings draw inward, in what is a clear sign of a winged creature having somehow lost the ability to keep themselves in flight.

The ground comes towards her, but it isn't the ground that the gargoyle sees before her eyes. Instead, it is is a thousand moments of her own misery that the force of Leida's magic seems to bring back to the forefront of her mind. Then, something breaks through to her. Her wings flare at the very last moment, leaving her taloned feet to skim along the ground, slamming her into a couple of heartless as she struggles to regain altitude.

"Wha in the name o' Merlin..." She mutters to herself, trying to get her head to clear. It's then that she hears the rumble of the thunder above her. Yes, this is where she is. That was long ago. Wiping a bandaged hand across her eyes, the gargress tries to stop the flow of tears from those memories, but it's a fruitless effort. Her strength is better left to calling the storm that roils above, waiting for her command.

"Spirits o' light 'n thunder, heed my call. Send these Shadows back te the dark where they belong." With one talon, she etches a rune into the air, which glows breifly before spreading up into the clouds. It flashes there for a moment, and then all hell breaks loose. This is a sort of strange controlled chaos. Lightning slashes down from the skies, but seems to avoid those fighting on the side of 'light', hail pelts the ground, causing Heartless flee. In the center of it all, the eye of the storm - is the white gargress, red eyes glowing.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart feels the restorative energies rising her out of her state. Her eyes slowly blink open, trying to focus back. Oh, right, she was fighting, and now an angel is taking her to paradise. Or not, actually its Aerith. She rolls back up with a grunt "Okay, that wasn't nice... Thanks Aerith." She grrs. As long as she can stand up, she can fight. She moves up, pushing herself up on her own knee, and then finally up. She clenches her fist, which starts to glow as she concentrates what's left of herpower "Let's end this before it gets even worse."

Pushing a foot against the rock behind her, she launches herself at Leida, sending her explosive fist down to finish it off. Noone is able to withstand another round of this, from the looks of it.

Zargabaath has posed:
Zargabaath wasn't looking too good at the moment. He backs off for a few moments, resting.

Leida has posed:
A torrent of pain assaults the small girl, breaking her from her madness-induced vision of a world filled with darkness. The scathing assault of demonic claws breaks and grows lax as her attention is ripped away, metal and thunder blasting at the barrier of darkness shielding her from harm.

Leida lifts her arm to shield her face like a child shying away from danger and a shadowy claw rises up to block the deadly assault, claws creating a protective umbrella against Zargabaath's retalation.

The powerful magical storm, provides another challenege, however. Heartless scamper about in all directions, trying to flee the deadly ice and lightning but the magic is too strong and a large portion of the remaining forces perish in dark mist. Even a pair of the massive artillery cannons suffer their demise in the wrath of this tempest and their deaths are puncuated by billowing pillars of fire and force that blasts everything nearby to the ground.

Unable or unwilling to comphrehend the concept of self-preservation the remaining few monsters regroup and surge up for one final push, handfuls of explosive shells falling haphazardly around the park. Leida in counterpoint is forced back, taking a painful step away from the jagged bolts of lightning that tear into the shadows and her body.

Ember's final words cut through to her and slowly, the girl lowers her arms and glances out over the scene of devasation, over the faces of the soldiers driving her back. This wasn't how it was supposed to go.

"Yes... I must... protect this place... because I am... a good girl..."

Gathering what little strength she has left, Leida rushes into the face of her attackers, eyes narrowed in concentration. She swings her slender arms at the air, as if to bat them aside and massive shadowy claws rise up to mimick her actions, carving into anyone who gets in her way.

"I must do as I was told... I don't want to be alone again..."

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
What is that painful feeling? Skoll, having launched his attack and still being in the air for a moment, quickly looks to the side. There, just too late, he notices Leida bringing the might of her magic upon the world around her. The arms that suddenly burst from the air 'out of nowhere' grapple at people. Being in the air and all, he's left to their fury as they grab him, digging their dark nails into him, and chanin him where he hangs in midair! The beast cries out in pain as the darkness seeps into his wounds and weaken his grip on his will. In that moment, he can think of but one thing to do.

He pulls his arms towards himself while he watches Ember fall to the ground and speak to him the words of what he'd believe to be but one thing. "You speak more cowardly than an Omega!" He yells at Ember, which then moves over into a roaring; "GET OUT OF MY SIGHT." And in that very moment, a dark portal opens once more. A man, dressed in black armor - tall, with elven ears and horns crowning his hair walks out into the field and stops besides Ember. This man - whom Zargabaath would recognize by form, but not by name - grabs hold of Ember and lifts her up. To Leida, he calls out; "I will take this young one with me. You can follow whenever you are done 'playing' with your newfound 'friends' here." He calls out, before he disappears again through the park's central portal.

Skoll continues to hang in the air, forced to watch Ember being taken away, and then lifts his head up. Zia! He watches the girl getting hit, forced towards the ground. Yet he can't seem to speak her name. If he called her out! What if the Gaudium Lords were watching! What if...

The beast bites back tears.

And one more howl brings back the little rodent of magic, shining its protective light upon the area even as people once more come under attack by Leida's devastating and sickeningly dark attacks - before Skoll finally gets some of the strength back to resist and start his descend back to the ground.

Aerith has posed:
All right, that was enough.

Aerith pulled out one of the vials she'd brought with her and downed it in one shot, then turned toward Leida. "I think that's enough..." She took a few steps forward and, without looking, aimed another strike at one of the artillery pieces. It was almost finished... and what Leida just said had confirmed something.

"...You're not alone."

Zargabaath has posed:
Zargabaath may have backed off to take a breather, but a breather was all he needed. He's back in the fight, and his sword is glowing white again. This time, he completely throws caution to the wind and rushes Leida and looks to strike her down with the most powerful of the holy techinuques he had!

Leida has posed:
The central artillery piece takes the lightning bolt to its exposed core and goes up in a massive explosion, it's death throes wiping out the other two diabolical machines and most of the Heartless.

The blast launches brick and tree shrpanel in all directions and a large wedge section of splintered wood spirals at bullet speeds into the Leida's back. Caught midstride the girl's eyes go wide and she staggers, falling face-foward towards the pavement. Only the intervention of the last remaining shadowy arm prevents her from planting into the pavement and it cradles her gently, lifting her up.

Dark oozing tendrils extrude from the arm and wrap about the offending projectile, yanking it free from her body with a gurling pop and shadows surge in to fill the wound as before. However, she has no energy left to fight back.

As the knight brings his holy blade down upon her, Leida turns her face away and buries it in the arm like a frightened cub even as it curls over her body to shield her from as much harm as possible.

"I'm... so tired..."

Zargabaath has posed:
Bringing the blade down upon her anyways, Zargabaath shows absolutely no pity, no remorse for her. She was an enemy, one controlling the heartless. After the explosion of Holy energy, Zargabaath stands up, gazing his helmed head down upon her. "Vae Victus." He growls out. He then turns VERY Sharply. "LADY AERITH! See to Tifa. Get her healed as soon as possible. I want a camp set up here guarding the portal!" He then looks up to Zia. "YOU! I need your eyes in the sky! Giva us a warning if anyone....ANYONE is coming our way. If it remotely looks like a heartless, or a dark knight....give it your best shot....AFTER yelling for back up!" He then looks to other members of his own contingent who stayed out of the fight. "Get this portal open to Archadia! I want troops in here ASAP! MOVE!" He then looks to Skoll. "I don't know who you are, but thank you for your help. I hope you'll fight with us when we push the heartless out of here."

He then raises his sword as Mickey yells for everyone in the city to hear. "STAND TOGETHER! WE WILL BEAT THEM!"

Aerith has posed:
Aerith smiled, even as Zargabaath struck her down. He might not have had remorse or pity... but she did. She knew what Leida was... and it wasn't what Zarg had defeated. "Then rest. You, more than anyone, needs it." She glanced toward Tifa, a mild frown on her face. Even before Zarg barked his orders, she stretched out her staff, touched it to Tifa's forehead, and healed her. "Silly thing..."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
And down goes the barmaid once more. Trying to bring the fight to a stop, she put herself in the line of fire again. And it didn't stop her entire, her failure is complete on this round. She was about to fall over again when Aerith's cures come and help her out, gratefully. She sighs, rubbing her forehead "Thanks again, sorry about that." She looks to the others, that aren't really in much better shape than she right now.

Zia has posed:
Communing with the power of the storm is something that may not leave the land below unscathed, but it seems to do well enough in driving away some of the weaker Heartless. Still, it drains much of the gargoyle's energy, leaving her a bit wobbly in the air. Zia hovers there, flapping her bat-like wings, checking the landscape below for signs of the others.

It's while she's making a fly by that she notices that light, and it draws her blue eyes up towards the skies which are already clearing a bit as her magic dissipates. Something about that light seems to tug at her heartstrings. For however short the time lasts, Zia watches the light, slowly coming to land on the ground, wings folding behind her. "Wha was tha?" She asks in her Scottish brogue, still trying to shake that voice that called them to stand together.

Then, she turns back towards the fray, looking at the destruction that she'd managed to rain down. There is a very good reason that the gargress rarely uses her powers, because this is what happens. At the very least, most of the defense squad had managed to get the civilians out, but those who remained in the middle of the fray may have ended up as collateral damage to that last, powerful outcry of her elemental abilities. Of course, most of them seem fine, because this is just that sort of story.

On the ground now, Zia races towards the form of the werewolf, running on all fours for extra speed. "Are ye alright?" She asks, but already she knows he's hurting. The gargoyle has no healing powers, but she can rest with some solace that it would take more than this to really harm the werewolf.

It's just then that the blade-wielding man starts to shout at her. Her eyes narrow. "'n jus' who are ye te go orderin me around like some page at yer beck 'n call?" She turns her attention to him, "Try askin, works much be'ta." Still, she isn't erally about to argue the matter. The fact is, he's right and she knows it. They do need a scout in the skies, and if the Manhattan gargoyles are busy elsewhere, at least she can help by lending her strength here.

Her arm reaches out to touch Skoll's in a brief show of concern, and then she pushes off into the air. "Ah'll scout." Her wings snap open, borne up by a wind that wasn't there a moment ago, sweeping her off to survey the skies - and maybe figure out where that light had come from.

Skoll Ulfang has posed:
Light! Finally, light arises in the skies and that roar of King Mickey's brings some hope back into his heart. He's never met this particular mouse personally, but he recognizes the voice none-the-less. There's even a shimmer of light momentarily at his side, as the little 'mickey mouse' shaped keychain. That last bit of fall brings him safely on his feet and the beast falls to his knees, huffing in pain, red lines along his body showing that he's been wounded greatly.

Zia soon makes it to his side, and the beast rumbles a painful sound before swallowing this sound back to push away any shows of pain. Upon hearing her words of concern, he stares her directly in the eyes for a moment. Something he did very rarely, and certainly not this close. It has a certain sense of... intimacy to it - at least from this mighty beast. "I'll be find." He growls, before slowly coming to stand up and looms over her at his full height.

He then nods his head to Zargabaath. "I will need some time to recover and get away from the darkness..." He says, and then looks off towards the pillar of light. "I am going to move closer to the light you just saw." It's obvious after all, seeing as he /came from a portal of darkness/, that this werewolf is deeply bound to the darkness itself. He then moves a large clawed hand out towards Zia as she reaches to him, and touches the top of her hand. "I will be fine. That was some amazing fireworks there... sure you are not pulling your own stuff out of the 'ether'?" He muses, before he starts moving towards the light with his big hulking body.

"Be safe." He calls back... and then moves to all fours and runs off... afraid that if he stays too long around Zia... in this dark a place... he might do something terrible.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith turned toward Leida, concern written all over her face. She headed toward her broken body and did something that Zarg probably wouldn't like. It wasn't like she didn't have a reason though, and she called him over. "What I'm about to do will confuse you." She placed a hand on Leida's forehead and willed her healing materia to work. "Tell me... did you notice her gesturing? Pointing? Making any sort of motions or signals?"

Zargabaath has posed:
Zargabaath says, "Sorry Lady Aerith, but I was too busy trying to stop her from attacking us." He then reaches into a pouch and pulls out a red card. "And I'm going to remove her from this battle if I can. The last thing these shadow lords need is someone helping them." he then raises the card above his head......and he'll dot it too....

If someone doesn't stop him....."

Leida has posed:
Leida's body lies in a haphazard heap on the ground, inky black ichor that doesn't quite look right for blood pooling on the concrete below. The half-healed sharpnel wound leaks down her back while Zargabaath powerful blow is etched across her torso, a deep rent through both metal and flesh.

She puts up no resistance as she is touched and the healing energy work into her body, causing the wounds to glow with green light. There is no more sensations of negative energy coming from the girl. Her demon has withdrawn, deep into her soul where none but the most powerful of sorcerers may touch it or even know of its influence. For now, she is just a girl.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith pointed her staff at him. "Please..." Her voice rose a bit in an attempt to make him stop. "Show some restraint. For me." She looked down at Leida. "Can you hear me?" She smoothed her hair away from her forehead. "Hey, can you see me?" She looked back up at Zargabaath. "I know this girl. We met once, and that one time was enough to determine that she doesn't control the Heartless at all. No, she's not even in control of herself." She looked back down at her. "She's stabilized. I can't sense that overwhelming darkness in her, for now. You do realize what that means, right?"

Zargabaath has posed:
"That is we separate her from the shadow lords, it's possible she'll help us against them. I hope you're right, Lady Aerith. Her fate is sealed if she harms those under my command." He then points to her. "That includes you." He then moves towards the Archadian Soldier contingent that work feverishly to get another portal open for Archadia.....

Aerith has posed:
Aerith nodded. "Don't worry... every explosive can be defused." She smiled at Leida. "Just need to know the right wires to cut." She delivered another burst of healing magic. "Come on... open your eyes..."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart moves over to check on the unconcious girl. Well, they were beating up on her moments before, but right now, doesn't look any different than any of us really, doesn't it? She sighs a bit "So you think she's not bad?" She looks over to the other two. "We can get her to a room if you think there's no danger. Better than the middle of the park."

Leida has posed:
The girl stirs at the touch of the hand and the magic but her eyes remain closed, her breathing shallow but even in deep slumber. Most people wouldn't even be alive from such wounds so it's not terribly surprising that it might take her some time to recover. Looks like they'll just have to wait to get their answers.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith nodded and pulled her hand away. "She's not bad... look at her, Tifa." She stood, wiping her forehead with the back of her right hand. "She's afraid, and in the midst of a despair I can't even begin to imagine." Her eyes narrowed. "Something's feeding off that, and I intend to find out what it is."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart nods, even though she's pretty weakened, she's still trong enough to carry the girl with her "Let's get to a room then, shall we? If anything you can keep your healing on her over there at least."

Aerith has posed:
Aerith trailed behind TIfa to the nearest hotel, secure in the knowledge that they'd locked down Central Park. Part of her felt drawn to that light that was still in the direction they walked away from, but she would investigate later. Right now, there were some questions to be answered, especially if she wanted to find out the exact nature of the puzzle before her...

Who was Leida, how did she get this... thing... inside her, and how, if at all, could Aerith drag it out into the light and beat it to an inch of its otherworldly existence?

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
If anyone can do that, it'd be Aerith. Although, leave the pounding to the barmaid.

Aerith has posed:
Moments later, a two-bedroom suite was set up for a few nights, and Aerith settled down on the couch while Tifa put Leida somewhere a bit more comfortable than on the ground. "Hey, we did okay out there, right?" She wasn't too sure about that, it got a bit dicey at the end. Especially with Tifa jumping in like she had, without rest...

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart nods, phewing a bit. "Well it was rather tough... Thanks to your healing I'm still up though." She didn't do it to charge blindly either, but because she wouldn't stay sitting while the others did the work either.

Aerith has posed:
Aerith shook her head and glanced over at her friend. "No thanks to you." Flower girl sighed. "Look, I know that it's gonna take sacrifice to win this thing, but there's a line to draw when it comes to doing that. You'd think getting knocked out once would be a deterrent to doing anything else," Aerith chuckled.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart rolls her eyes a bit "What else did you want me to do, stay sitting and wait for it to happen? If anything, every bit counts too." She sighs "I know what you mean though, but still." She sits on the side of the bed, raising a leg to hold it against her chest. "I was unlucky to have been caught between the two at the same time."

Aerith has posed:
Aerith shrugged. "Anything's better than just jumping back in and getting yourself half-dead again. But you're right, that was a bad situation." A frown marred her otherwise upbeat features. "I was lucky not to have caught the attention of that other lady..."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart sighs and nods "Well its a good thing, you're the healer, at least you got out of it well enough." She slumps backward on the bed, looking at the ceiling. "What did you think about it all anyway, what were they here for?

Aerith has posed:
Aerith shrugged. "Isn't it obvious?" She stood and peered out one of the windows. "Don't believe a word of what that lady you fought told you, by the way. The Heartless can be beaten, contained. They're predictable, they follow a pattern, and if you disrupt the pattern you win." A pause. "As for why they're here, I can name two reasons. First of all, strategy. Manhattan, Xanatos in particular, has a technological advantage that rivals that of Shinra. Baron wants it, and they'll go to any means to get it, even if they have to stand on a pile of ashes." She looked at Tifa from over her right shoudler. "Second, this is revenge for David's interference at Balamb. That part of it is pure self-interest."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart hms, but nods "Yeah, it makes sense. They don't appreciate when outsiders get the way, so they eliminate them so it doesn't happen, right?

Aerith has posed:
Aerith nodded. "Right. And if the pattern still holds, they're going after Archadia next, once Zarg's fleet gets here." She smiled. "I have to say, I didn't think he'd agree with our arrangement, but he did. If he wasn't here, we'd be in more trouble than we are now. But this presents his nation with a problem in the fact that a big bulls-eye is painted right on their doorstep."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart sighs and nods "Yeah, but I think everyone's at risk in one way or another, so I guess its mostly pick your poison here. What consequences are you able to live with.

Aerith has posed:
Flower girl shrugged again. "As long as they're able to defend themselves, there's not much they can't do. Still, it'd be unfortunate if we couldn't help them out in their time of need, as Zargabaath is doing now, right?" She stepped away from the window and joined Tifa on the bed. "So what do you make of Leida? I mean, now that you know what she is... or at least, know a little bit about what she is."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart tilts her head "I'm not sure what she is. She didn't seem herself during the fight, but nothing that works with those things really seem in their right minds either...

Aerith has posed:
"That's the common thread with these people, isn't it?" Aerith looked behind her, toward Leida. "But this one... she's different. The other ones can control the Heartless. I'm not too sure how, but they can. Her on the other hand..." She shook her head. "Her problem was there long before her world was taken by the darkness. She doesn't control whatever this is. Matter of fact, I'd say she's not in control at all... until now of course, when that thing inside her is quiet for a precious few moments." When Leida said she was tired, she wasn't kidding.

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart nods "I see what you mean. I guess she was the one being controlled then. Can those things really do that?"

Aerith has posed:
Aerith shook her head. "No. The Heartless are people who have given in to fear, despair, greed, rage, or hate. Those emotions attract darkness, and once darkness takes over, there's not much that can be done." Aerith sighed. "Leida has fear and despair... but she's not a Heartless. No, what she's got is something else. Something worse." She shook her head. "I don't know what it is, and that scares me."

Tifa Lockhart has posed:
Tifa Lockhart nods, sitting up on the bed and patting Aerith's shoulder lightly "It'll be alright, you have friends to support you after all."