[X] That should do it for now. Report what you found back to Keine.

[x] That should do it for now. Report what you found back to Keine.

[x] That should do it for now. Report what you found back to Keine.

[x] That should do it for now. Report what you found back to Keine.

Updates?

[x] That should do it for now. Report what you found back to Keine.

That sounds like enough information for now, so it's best to go and report your findings back to Keine. Perhaps she will know something of these 'Ptolemoriyas', after all, she and Akyu did work on a joint project concearning Gensokyo's history so maybe their logs might contain some information on the, via their history. With that in mind you get up and head for the door, Mystia taking notice of your exit but not saying anything in response to it.

Being it's around morning time, the Hospital is in it's usual active state now. The rabbits who worked here, however, . A few pass you by as you head towards the entrance, giving you their greetings and such, to which you return with your own, although you don't see Reisen anywhere on your way to the lobby. Perhaps she's busy with something at the moment, she does seem to be in charge of this place anyways.

In the lobby there weren't very many people sitting around, only about 3 or so, and they didn't look too injured, if they were at all, but most of them did look pretty sick so it's best not to bother'em. You reach the outside of the hospital and you come to see an empty lot (save for a few cars and such), you were kind of expecting Nitori to meet you around the front with the Bull-chan, but it is rather early, maybe she's busy with the Metal Slug, or perhaps she isn't awake yet? Oh well, she did claim she was pretty beat from yesterday. Now, if you remember correctly, the school Keine works within, should be about a few miles east of the shopping district, so you can easily get there without riding the Bull-chan albeit a bit later.

Morning is always a peaceful time of day, the low angle of the sun coupled with the soft breezes makes it an ideal time to come out and do outdoor activities, that is if you're a morning person. In that sense, there weren't too many out at this time either (proof that most people, even in the harsh barren lands of Gensokyo, are still lazy), so early shoppers can easily get most of their foodstuffs in no time flat. And for now that seemed to be of what the bulk of the people, that were out, were doing as of now. Either way off to the school, you have a schoolteacher to report to...

(cont.)

Nearing the school's gate you come to see Mokou and Keine standing in front, conversing with one another. The area within the school's front, is pretty much empty with no children to speak of. School may not have started yet, or it's closed up until everyone's sure there won't be any future attack. The latter may prove to be true. "School's closed for right- Oh, it's you." "How was your stay at the hospital last night?"

"It was okay, neck's a little stiff from sleeping in a chair the wrong way though..." You reply tilting you head to one side, a few of the stiffened joints in your neck popping as you did so. It probably would have been best to have snagged a pillow last night. Oh well, stiff neck aside... "Did you guys see the news last night?"

"Why, what happened?" Mokou asked which caught your attention as strange, but you decide to explain anyhow.

"The Nines were captured last night, at least the higher ups were anyways" You answer before you realize Mokou might not have a TV if she didn't see it. Sure she could have fell asleep, but it would be no doubt that the news would run that story once or twice on the morning news once or twice. "I'm pretty sure, you could have saw it too if you were up that late...don't you have a TV, Mokou-chan?"

"Couldn't afford one, but then again I never really did want one anyways" Mokou remarked bluntly as she dismissed the manner as a minor inconvenience, though what she doesn't dismiss is that name you called her by just now. "And I thought told you not to call me that!" She growls to you her face wrinkled in annoyance.

"Sorry, must have forgotten~" You quipped as you shrug nonchalantly, before returning the conversation to the more important matter, turning to Keine as you did so. "Anywho, I just came by to tell you that I pulled as much information out of Mystia as I could this morning, she claims that the Nines weren't really at fault for anything, says that the Yakumo's ran them off their land and labeled them as terrorists"

"I see, I didn't think it was true but it looks like they maybe finally bringing it into motion"

"Bringing what into motion?" You give Keine a look that tells her to elaborate a bit more on her statement to which she does soon after.

"The Yakumo Army has been moving in on land in various areas across Gensokyo lately, it doesn't matter if it's populated or not, if they have their sights on it, they will get their hands on it, even if they have to use force to do so" Keine explained with a sigh "I thought it was only a simple rumor among the few Yakumo supporters who used to live here but, it looks like I was wrong"

"Do you think the citiy's in any danger?" Mokou asked her body now rising up from her relaxed stance on the schoolgates wall. "Those Yakumo's are pretty damn tought, if we have to fight them I say were take up arms now"

"While that is a good motive to take, Mokou-chan, it's not the best one when facing an Army like the Yakumos, first off we don't have as many vehicles as they do, the most we have are 3 Girida-Os, an incomplete Metal Slug, 1 Sand Simon and now a Bull-chan, and I'm sure the Yakumo's will bring with them alot more firepower than that. Second, they will most definetly have more soldiers than we do, Neo Mayohiga is one of the largest nations in Gensokyo 2nd only to Hakugyokuro, so you can imagine how large a regular battalion can be." All of this was tragically obvious, the city had very little combat vehicles to spare at the moment, thus it favored in Infantry but even then there was a high chance that you would be outnumbered. "Still, I doubt we will be in any danger so long as we cooperate with their wishes, if we do then there won't be any attacks from them"

Mokou doesn't seem to happy with Keine's answer, evidence of this was in her annoyed expression and her folded arms over her chest. "Tch, why should we cooperate with them, isn't it because of them that everything's so fucked up around here?"

"It is, had they not rebelled against the Gensokyo Army we could have still known peace to this day" Keine turns her gaze up to you "Anywho, was there anything else you found out?"

"Yeah, the tanks the Nines had with them came from the Ptolemoriyas" You reply leaning against the walls of the fate to the school. "Mystia told me that a woman who went by the name of 'Sanae' came to them and gave them the tanks, saying to 'attack the city and all will be fine' after that the Nines came here and well, here we are now" You looked over to Keine who seemed to be thinking on the words she had just taken in "You know why they would help them out?"

"Well, I'm certain the Ptolemoriyas were probably aiming to gain their trust, they do take a fondness to those who ally themsevles to them, being then they have a chance to recruit them in their religion that they worship." Keine explained before her face frowns up in uncertainty once again. "But even so, with the way things turned out just now I wouldn't think they would just simply waste their vehicles on just any group of people...something else has to be amiss here..."

"Like what, last I heard those guys are always to themselves and never act out on their own" Mokou asked.

"I can't say, the fact that they are such a shady faction only makes it even more difficult to read what they're going to do, I hate to say it but we'll have to wait and see what turns up in the next few days" Keine answered "This also goes for the Yakumo's actions, they've been taking land at random so you never can figure out where they will arrive next..." Well, this doesn't look too good, while the Yakumo factor Keine just mentioned was a matter of chance, and therefore had a probablity of never occuring at all. It was the Ptolemoriyas that seemed to worry you the most, there weren't any hints of what they could possibly be planning to do next.

[ ] Ask her if she has any documents or information on 'Sanea' or the 'Ptolemoriyas'
[ ] Arrange to speak with Heida no Akyu instead. She and Keine did work on that project together.
[ ] Ask the other Nines on the matter personally, visit the area they're being held and question them.
[ ] Well might as well wait it out like Keine said, head elsewhere? (If so specify where you'd like to go next)
[ ] Something else on your mind? (Write-in)

[ ] Ask the other Nines on the matter personally, visit the area they're being held and question them.

[x] Ask the other Nines on the matter personally, visit the area they're being held and question them.

[x] Ask the other Nines on the matter personally, visit the area they're being held and question them.

Updates?

[x] Ask the other Nines on the matter personally, visit the area they're being held and question them.

While Keine may not know the exact details of all this Ptolemoriya business, you have this slight hunch that maybe the other Nines themselves might have a bit more insight on this shady group of religious militants. Of course you'll have to head to the prison to get said info which is near the outskirts of the city just past a place where the woman known as Kotohime resides. You always wondered why she chose to live so close to where criminals were held but then again there's a rumor that she's a police officer herself...even though a rumor such as that has about as much credit as you do in the bank...which isn't really a lot now that you think of it...

It might be a good idea to try and fix that in the near future...

But, low financial status aside; you're going to need to get moving if you want to reach the prison before noon. As you turn to leave, Keine looks up and inquires where you're headed "Oh, are you leaving?" She asked. "Yeah, I'm headed to where the other Nines are," You answer "Figured they might know a little bit more on this than we do"

"I see, well good luck and be careful when you deal with them.” Keine tells to you as she sees you off. Mokou doesn’t seem to acknowledge your leaving and simple continues the conversation with Keine when you walk past her. Was she mad at you for something? Bah, she’s always angry about something so why bother with it. That aside you have more important things to focus on, for one there was the fact that the Nines themselves were captured on the same day (or rather night) they were going to attack. Mystia’s claim of them being shitty terrorists adds credit to this, but that still doesn’t answer the question of why the Ptolemoriya’s told them to actually attack the city. It was obvious they knew full well on what the consequences were for the Nine. It’s doubtable that they did so to get rid of competition, something else had to be involved in this mess. You can’t quite place it, but you’re certain that something smells…and it’s not you either…

Well, maybe it is…you did skip a shower yesterday…

====Human City, Prison - Gate====

It takes about 20 or so minutes to reach your destination, an old prison that possibly was in use way before you were born here. This was practically the only way the authorities of this city were able to contain criminals and terrorists before the Xandu Council came to pick them up later on for further judgment. Despite being inefficient the prison still did it’s job none the less for all these years so no one really questioned it but Keine, who felt that it needed to be re done. No action was taken to renovate the place so people left it as it is and continued on with their lives.

The area surrounding the prison is just as dead as the barrens surrounding the city, the grass is brown and withered, there are also a lot of weeds sprouting about the area further showing the state in which the place was being kept. The chain wire fence that was set up around the perimeter was rusted and worn out from its many years of standing in front of the dilapidated jailhouse. The gates were only half way closed, so you push them aside a little before realizing that normally they would have been shut up tight for the night…unless someone forgot to do so, which is common.

The guard at the post to your left seemed to be asleep at the time, he’ll probably wake up in a little bit. His pay is riding on how well he does his job after all.

[ ] Wake the guard up. He should be doing his job, dammit.
[ ] Meh, leave him be and walk inside. It's his paycheck.

[ ] Wake the guard up. He should be doing his job, dammit.

[x] Meh, leave him be and walk inside. It's his paycheck.

[ ] Wake the guard up. He should be doing his job, dammit.

[x] Wake the guard, he should be doing his job dammit.

Tax payer money goes to this guy's check, he shouldn't be lazing around like the way he is now. You make an about face and walk to the guard's booth and grasp his shoulders tightly, shaking the lazy law enforcer . "Hey, wake up" You say sternly the gaurd snapping awake and spouting nothing but gibberish for a moment before realizing he's no logner asleep and that you were the one who woke him up none the less. Needless to say, he's not too pleased about the latter. "What's your problem!" Are the first words he shouts to you.

Fine treatment towards someone who just saved him from a spot in the unemployment line, oh well not all people can appreciate good deeds, you're all too aware of that from past events. "Look, in case you haven't noticed our city was attacked last night, and the last thing we need is guard's asleep on the job" The gaurd in question doesn't seem to concearned with your words and simple sneer and lean back in his metal folding chair.

"Whatever, what do you want anyways," He says sitting back his arms behind his head the look of agitation still fresh on his face.

Well, might as well tell him what you want, at least now he's doing his job as a gaurd. "You know those Nines are being held here right?" The guard nods for a moment acknowledging your statement to be true. "Well, I have a couple of questions I want to ask them, there are some things that have been bothering me about their accomplises the Ptolemoriyas and I think only they can answer these questions for me."

"Yeah, about that," The guard begins as he scratches behind his ear for a moment and continues. "The visiting hours were changed the night they came here; so now visitation hours start at 3 instead of the usual 12."

Okay, this was strange, visitation hours have been the same for, according to older gaurds, decades on end. More over there have been plenty of terrorists that were apprehended and thrown into this same prison without any need for such a change in hours or anything of the sort. Natrually you ask into this further to gain the truth for such an odd action. "Why would they change visiting hours after god knows how many years just because of the Nines?" You question the guard who doesn't really seem too conearned about the matter, it would appear that so long as he got his sleeep he realy couldn't give two shits about this. "I mean, we've had lots of other terrorists held here before and not once has the hours changed, so what makes these guys so special all of a sudden?"

"Look, that's what the warden told us, so if you have a problem with it take it up with him, don't come spouting junk to me about it" The guard sighs in exasperation before pulling his cap down over his eyes once more to continue his little on the job nap. "Now, if you're done pestering me, then get moving..." And with that it appears that he has dropped off to sleep again leaving you to ponder on what to do next. Your one way ticket to answers was pretty much blocked for now, at least til' three, so if you're going through with the original plan then you have about 5 hours until the designated time. You pause for another moment and snap your fingers in front of the gaurds face a couple of times to see if he's really asleep (no one falls asleep that fast).

No reaction.

Yep, he's out like a light, no doubt about it. That being said, you could probably sneak past him and do your thing anyhow, but then you would have to deal with the others inside who more than likely know of the change in visiting hours as well. In anycase if you were going to do the latter then now was the time to do so, otherwise all you can do is simply wait until 5 hours pass...

[ ] Try to sneak to sneak past him anyway. You'll make up an excuse when (or if) you get spotted.
[ ] Something else in mind? (Write-in)
[ ] Leave and do something else til' 3'o clock.

-[ ] Go back and see Nitori. She also has your stuff now that you think about it...
-[ ] School's out today, perhaps a visit to Keine (and Mokou) is in order?
-[ ] Poke around the salvage yard for a bit. Maybe you'll find something worth looking into...
-[ ] Something else? (Write in)

That seems... a bit suspect.

[x] Sneak in.

What an odd thing to do at this time. I'm wondering if there's someone trying to buy time to shut them up, and if so, would be willing to screw us over while doing it.

[x] Sneak in.

[x] Sneak in.

[ze] Sneak in.

[x] Sneak in

This guy's pretty much out of it and you seriously doubt he'll get up even if you walk past him with a boombox blaring. Now's definetly a good time to sneak your way inside and do what you planned, and even though there were other gaurds here who you're pretty sure aren't as lazy as this shmoe, they probably won't be in very large numbers, the city isn't very populated nowadays and able bodied men are at a lack, due to most being killed in combat during the numerous bandit attacks. Before you make your move you check to see if he's really asleep by clapping your hands in front of his face.

Nope, he still didn't wake up.

With your doubts cleared you casually walk past the gaurd's booth pushing past the gate and walk into the threshold of the old prison. You're met with a rather still calm as you journey along the cracked and beaten path that lead to the main building, the unkept weeds blowing in the breeze as you walked by and if you didn't know any better you're pretty sure the birds stop singing too. Were things about to get tense? Well, no way to be sure, but you're sure as hell's uneasy about this dead silence you just walked right into...

Something wasn't right here...

After what seemed like hours of walking through an eerie silence, you finally manage to reach the front doors of the main building, and waste no time in pushing them aside and entering. Hm, that was easy enough, now time to--

"Hey you!"

Ah, god damnit...

You look up and come to see another gaurd, although this one appears to be female rather than the usual male. The gaurd appears human but, the small horns protruding from the side of her head points to the fact that she was some kind of Oni, perhaps a lesser kind due to the smaller horns (you always thought that the smaller the horns the lower the power they have...which didn't make much differance seeing as to Oni's can still kick your ass 3 ways before you hit the ground even at average strength).

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" She shouts again, why was she shouting anyways? "Who are you, and whaddya doin here?"

Huh, you didn't count on getting caught this fast, but then again there is usually a gaurd. You are about to answer when you notice she has a gourd clutched in her hand, which could only mean she was probably drinking while on the job, kinda common amoung Oni, which is why few hire them if not only for their ridiculous physical strength. Still, that being said, was there a chance that she could be drunk right now? Come to think of it, her voice did sound kinda slurred and 'out there'. This meant you could probably just weasle on by her with only the smallest of lies with no chance for conflict.

"Answer me god dammit!" The oni demanded before taking another chug of her booze and glaring you in the eye again.

"Oh I was late for garud duty today," You answer to the oni in a casual tone, further selling your facade. "I forgot it was my day today and well...I overslept. Heh sorry about that."

"Ah alright, you're probably one of those rookies who's just startin out, so I can't fault ya for not knowin'" The oni sighs and drinks a little more, she holds the gourd out in your direction, offering you a hit of the booze. You politely decline to which she shrugs and contiues on. "'Sides, those Moriyas aren't picky with who they take anyway so you should be awright...just don' lemme catch ya comin in late again, got it!"

Well now, what did she mean by that you wonder. You could ask more into this and hopefully pull info from her end rather than risk going into the prison and running into more (sober) gaurds, however a drunks recollection isn't always accurate (is it ever?) and if you rely on her memory of things somethings are bound to get fucked up and you can't have that, in order for you to find out the truth you needed a flawless conclusion to come to.

[ ] Ask the oni on what she knows.
[ ] Leave it be, she looks pretty wasted and you can't trust a drunk's memory.
[ ] Something else you wish to do? (Write-in).

[ ] Leave it be, she looks pretty wasted and you can't trust a drunk's memory.

[X] Leave it be, she looks pretty wasted and you can't trust a drunk's memory.

Suika~

[x] Leave it be, she looks pretty wasted and you can't trust a drunk's memory.

Yeah, it's best to just leave things as they are, as far as asking her questions is concearned. Sure, she'll pretty much answer anything without the least bit of suspicion (she looks just as mellow as she does drunk right about now, despite what happened earlier), but you can't be 100% certain her answers are going to be what you're looking for, let alone correct. However, one thing's for ceartain something was definately up with this prison, you just needed to find out what and your sure the Nines, where ever they were in here, knew what's going on in here and what the Ptolemoriya's are truly planning to do here or elsewhere.

"Well, I'm going to get a move on now." You announce to the oni following through on your words and heading to the door. The oni doesn't do much in response, the sound of her chugging more of that booze she has is clear evidence enough that she's a little busy to be saying much in return.

You shut the door behind you, and the moment you do, there is an echo. Should this be counted as strange? Damn right it should, prisoners generally make alot of noise when they see someone new come by (god help them if they're female), so actually hearing an echo as loud as the one you just produced is highly uncommon. You begin forward and check the nearest cell; To your surprise, it's empy. You check another...

That one's empty to...what about that one on the left?

...No, that's empty as well...

You pause and look around, and come to see that just about every cell in sight is without a prisoner inside. It's as though the entire prison was just, suddenly abandoned. After coming to realize this, you feel that your initial reason for being here may have also upped and disappeared with all the prisoners that were being held here before them. No wait, that couldn't be, the Nines were considered Terrorists there's no way the big cheese of this run down shit hole would move terrorists.

You stand by and think for a moment, before a loud 'CLANG' catches your attention. Natrually curious that anything would make a sound in a place as deserted as this, you walk to the source of the noise which seems to be just around the corner of the first intersection ahead of you.

You stop behind the coner of the wall, and start peeking around to get a better look at who's out there and what they're doing. It's a group of people, and they seem to be working on something, well not really 'working' but you can see a few of them carrying some things. Although the group of people don't seem to be doing this of their own accord, as another is located in front of them giving orders. You can't quite see who it is but it's appears to be a woman donning a red dress, and (what seems to be) thigh-high boots of some kind. Her hair is green and decorated with these wierd frilly bows of some sort, such a weird fashion sense. You also spy that she has a weapon on her; a Rocket Launcher is what it looks like. This woman appeared to be the one, running the show...what exactly this 'show' is for you can't really say for certain unless you ask her directly, which you were hesitant on...something about her seemed...ominous.

You're too far away to see anything, but you catch a glimpse of something metallic in one of the crates the folks up ahead are carrying. Were they doing work on the prison? Was that why everyone was cleared out? You stick around for about a couple more minutes and hear the green haired woman order the people working to take what they were carrying to the basement of the prison.

They don't seem to be up to anything bad, but it does come off as strange that these people are the only ones running around here while the prisoners, who are usually the first people you see in here, are nowhere to be found. You could easily solve this by asking their supposed leader...or not. You did have something else you had to do here...

[ ] Stick to the plan, ask the woman ahead which Cell Block the Nines are being held within.
[ ] Stick to the plan, find the Nines on your own without asking that woman.
[ ] That green haired woman seems to be the leader of what's going on her, casually, ask her what's up.
[ ] There's another path leading westward, just take that way and try to avoid sight.
[ ] Preemptive Strike.
[ ] Something else? (Write-in)

[ ] Stick to the plan, ask the woman ahead which Cell Block the Nines are being held within.

[ze] Stick to the plan, ask the woman ahead which Cell Block the Nines are being held within.

[ ] Stick to the plan, ask the woman ahead which Cell Block the Nines are being held within.

wtf r u doin

[x] Stick to the plan, ask the woman ahead which Cell Block the Nines are being held within.

Ah, screw what these guys are doing, you had a game plan coming in here and you're going to stick to that game plan until you get what you came for. No distractions. No exceptions. The woman ahead may have been in here long enough to know where the Nines were put last night so she would be the best one to consult on the matter. Still, your resolve aside, something about her...really put you off. Like she had this funky type of aura or something. No matter you won't be in her prescence for too long so there's no need to dwell on what aura she's giving off or whatever.

With your head in the game you, casually, make your way over to the area in which she stood. By this time most of the people who had boxes were already on their way down the hallway headed towards the basement where they were supposed to. The woman was just about to follow behind them, when she stops midway and looks behind her to see you coming up behind her. It's at this time you see her hair is done in a rater weird fashion; it's end being tied up under her chin. People sure are weird these days. "Eh? Who are you?" She asked as she (practically) spun around to face you. "I specifically told everyone to report here so we can move the parts to the basement. I hope you have a good explanation for not showing up." The woman seemed less than pleased about your arrival. Which could spell disaster if something really was going on in this prison.

"I got in late from gaurd duty." You answer, playing the same card you did with that drunken oni. "I wasn't informed that we would be moving parts today."

The woman gives you a rather suspicious look before speaking again. "What rank are you?"

Rank? This was a rather sudden, which one should you choose. Well, the lowest one should be okay, since they're prone to screw ups like this one. "Enlistee." You answer.

"Enlistee?" The woman gives you a couple of inquisitive glances before she lightly shrugs and continues. "Well, I suppose you newer ones have a bit of trouble with getting word around so...I'll let it slide for now. Anyway, do you need something?"

"Yeah, you could say that" You answer with a nod "I need to know where the Nines are held, particularly the Cell Block they're in. I have a few questions I want to ask them, real quick."

"Huh? You mean those 'terrorists'?" The woman pauses for a moment as she appears to be remembering where they maybe. Not a moment sooner, she speaks up with her answer. "Well, they were placed in Cell Block C last I heard, but you better hurry they're going to be re-loacted once we get the ball rolling down here."

"Ah thanks." You say in a gratious tone and proceed to walk past her, but not before that same feeling tugs at you, so hard in fact that you feel your heart skip a beat. Something was definately up with this chick, and it is now that you want nothing more than to be rid of her prescence. You keep walking forward your eyes fixed on the hallways ahead, until you hear the sound of boots clicking on the floor from behind you. You glance over your shoulder and see that the woman is going her own seperate way leaving you to your tasks. It was sort of a relief that she wasn't going to follow you in more ways than one. In anycase you're in the clear, now it's finally time to get the answers you've been seeking.

====Human City, Prison - Cell Block C====

The initial journey to the cell block was rather uneventful as well as eeriely quiet, save for the murmuring voices of a few prisoners who still remained in their cells. It was something to note as everyone else who could have been held here was either released or relocated to another prison, the latter being more plausible than the former but still seems rather odd seeing as to how tehy would at least inform the public when they're locating prisoners. The fact that there was a vast majority missing and that there was no real reason for a mass relocation only makes it sound even weirder.

When you arrive at your destination, you find that this area is also fairly vacant with no sign of any of the prisoners. However, you did hear from others in town that Cell Block C was where some of the worst terrorists were held. So perhaps it's vacancy is due to no one being bad enough to be put here. Even so, the Nines certainly don't belong here, what with how bad they are at terrorism. But this is where that lady said they were so you-

"You really thought I'd tell you where the Nines were?"

You freeze in your tracks and quickly glance behind you to see that same woman from before standing behind you, only this time she's holding her weapon at the ready, and doesn't look as though she'll hesitate to fire on you either. If she actually managed to get a shot off, you're certain that it would attract attention. Rocket Launchers, are incredibly destructive, so she could use this weapon not only as a quick means to dispatch of you, but also as a way to warn the others of an intruder if she somehow missed you. Shit, this is bad.

"I'm not stupid. When we left last night we didn't have any Enlistees in our ranks, only those ranked at or above Corporal could come." You don't say anything in response, you weren't even expecting her to be following you. "I don't like killing other people for no reason...but, I guess some of my misfortune rubbed off on you..." She holds her weapon up, taking aim at your body as she prepares to fire her first shot right through you. You quickly check to see if you have anything on you; all you have is a knife, and your sidearm that you forgot to give Nitori. Not really a match for a chick with a Rocket Launcher but still better than nothing. Unless, you were planning on going about this another way?

[ ] No choice. Time to Run n' Gun.
[ ] Remain diplomatic, there must be SOME way you can get her to stand down.
[ ] Run! You can't win nor can you talk it out. Fleeing is the only option.

[ ] No choice. Time to Run n' Gun.
[ ] Aim for the rocket as she shoots it to try to and blow it up in her face.

[ ] No choice. Time to Run n' Gun.
[ ] Aim for the rocket as she shoots it to try to and blow it up in her face

[x] No choice. Time to Run n' Gun.
[x] Aim for the rocket as she shoots it to try to and blow it up in her face.

[x] No choice. Time to Run n' Gun.
[x] Aim for the rocket as she shoots it to try to blow it up in her face.

There's no getting around it, this broad wasn't going to back down, despite her reluctance to kill others. You see no fair deal to this except for applying force where force was needed, and now was one of those times. You whip out your sidearm, a standard issue Murder .50AE, similar to what male soldiers were given during the times before the Gensokyo Army's collapse. It a bit weaker than your trademark Heavy Machine Gun, but it was still a bit more powerful than most handguns, being in a class with Magnum grade pistols. However, you only have one clip...which is located in the gun itself. The Murder has about seven rounds of ammo per clip tops. So that means you have seven shots to get the job done. No pressure, right?

"You're only using a handgun?" The woman looks visibly surprised with your choice of weaponary (not that you had any), probably expecting you pull out a weapon of equal power or even more. Well, you could have but you forgot to go back and get it. "You realize what your up against, right?"

"I do." You reply not showing any signs of hesitation, your firearm still aimed at her, while hers still pointed directly at you. "The question here is; Do you?" There was one way you could probably win this, but it was pretty risky and you had no idea as to if it will really work, but if you pulled it off...you might just beat this rocket totting broad in the process, although you don't know if you'll be able to keep your cover if you do pull this off without a hitch.

However, your earlier response doesn't seem to bode well with your opponent as she frowns and looks to be rather upset with your choice of words. Well, she asked and you answered so you have no regrets over it. You keep a sharp eye on the woman's movements and as soon as she raises her weapon again you aim for the area in which the rocket will fire from. Not a moment too soon, she launches her opening attack, and you re-act just as quickly as she fired, holding up your own weapon and letting loose several shots at the fired missile that she sent screaming toward you, ready and willing to blow you and everything else around you apart. The high pitched sound of your bullets ricocheting off the metallic surface of the rocket echo throughout the halls as you continue to put led into the rocket that still persists forward.

Somehow, someway, one of your shots manages to clip the missile the wrong way, the bullet managing to pierce through and tear it's way out the other side. The rocket falls short of it's target and, as if in slow motion, falls to the floor below. It doesn't take a genious to know what will happen next, so you turn tail and run in the opposite direction as fast as you could, hearing a final "OH SHI-!" Before you everything behind you is engulfed in an immense explosion, the shockwave from it still enough to throw you off your feet and sending you flying forward face first into the wall ahead, with a force you thought never existed in this plane of space.

You slide off the wall and collapse to the floor, the high pitched ringing in your ear still drowning out any and all sound around you. You can't think straight, you're head hasn't fully recovered from that impact just now...geeze, how fast was you going? Eventually, after a few minutes of laying on a cold prison floor, you manage find enough conciousness to push yourself up a little and open your eyes, the vision you come to see is blurry and disoriented, but otherwise it seems to be straightening out. What you can make out is that the walls of this hallway were all but standing, any cells even remotely close to the explosion were torn apart by the sheer force of it, at what seemed to be the epicenter of the blast was a thick plume of smoke that shourded the location of the woman who fired such a devastating weapon.

Was she still alive? No, couldn't be, there's no way someone can take a blast from a rocket at that range. Still even if she isn't alive you can still take that sweet weapon she has, it could come in handy if some goons decide to show up.

[ ] Go check to see if she's still alive.
-[ ] If she doesn't appear to be alive (or concious) steal her weapon (Rawket Lawnchair Rocket Launcher Get)

[ ] Just move on, that explosion is sure to attract some unwanted company here.
[ ] Check the hole the explosion created see if it leads to a shortcut to the Nines.
[ ] Something else? (Write-in)

[x] Go check to see if she's still alive.
-[x] If she doesn't appear to be alive (or concious) steal her weapon
-[x] Loot any ID, insignia, or credentials

OK!

[x] Go check to see if she's still alive.
-[x] If she doesn't appear to be alive (or concious) steal her weapon
-[x] Loot any ID, insignia, or credentials

[x] Go check to see if she's still alive.
-[x] If she doesn't appear to be alive (or concious) steal her weapon
-[x] Loot any ID, insignia, or credentials

[~] Go check to see if she's still alive.
-[z] If she doesn't appear to be alive (or conscious) steal her weapon
-[e] Loot any ID, insignia, or credentials

Huh. Looks like this has fell behind quite a bit. Well, I have no one to blame but myself for that. To those who still keep up with this, I apologize for the post lag and I'll write up an update for it in a bit.

I seriously need to get this story rolling again anyway...

>>20764
Hooray!

I think?

[x] Go check to see if she's still alive.
-[x] If she doesn't appear to be alive (or concious) steal her weapon
-[x] Loot any ID, insignia, or credentials

That blast could have easily taken her out of commission, she was the closest one to it after all. Although it's difficult, you pull yourself from the floor, your vision still not straightening out, and walk (as straight as you can) over to where you think the woman would be laying, or at least where you think her remains would be. Stepping through the evanscening smoke you come to see that she wasn't blown apart, more or less, she was blown away from the initial blast zone. You're not sure as to if it's a good thing that she's still alive or not, but seeing as to how she was trying to kill you (and her comrades, who may very well share the same sentiments) you chalk this up as beneficial.

You walk over to the woman's downed body and check to see if she is still living or not, to your surprise she still has a pulse although it's barely going, she'll probably be out for quite awhile so you're free to roam as you please. Oh wait, you don't have to simply walk away from her body, she does have a powerful weapon on her, alot more effective in a fight than your simple Handgun, that's for sure. Oh well, she isn't going to be needing it any time soon so youreach down and take the missle launching weapon for yourself, there are about 10 more rockets left in the weapon which is more than enough if you play on the conservative side.

Hmm, you realize that your theivery doesn't have to stop there, for anything else she has on her, is yours for the taking. What these 'anythings' are can only be determined on what the lady is packing. So instead of moving on forward, you continue to feel around on the woman to see what you can get off of her. You eventually manage to pry loose some things that look to be of some interest to you, one appears to be a bandanna that was similar to what the Nine goons wore only it beared a more elaborate insignia, being that of a snake that appears to coiled around a frog, what exactly this symbolizes you're not entirely sure but you did hear that the Ptolemoriyas were connected to those two specific animals for some reason. Another item you loot from her is what appears to be some form of ID as it has the woman's photo pictured on the left side.

It reads:

Hina Kagiyama
Rank: Sergant Major
Ptolemoriya Army - 13th Youkai Platoon
Commanding Officer: Sanea Kotiya

These could prove to be useful down the road, especially sinceyou have more than enough reason to believe that this place is under Ptolemoriya influence. Still, all this aside, your mission has yet to change which means you still have to find those god damn Nines. You tie the bandanna around your arm so is to blend in with any others who may be snooping around in this prison, and think of which way to tred down. The blast from the rocket Hina shot off, has created a hole in the wall which leads to another hallway. Can't say for certain if that's where you'll meet the Nines but who's to say?

[ ] Continue forward through this Cell Block.
[ ] Head through the hole instead, it could be a shortcut.
[ ] Something else? (Write-in)

[ ] Continue forward through this Cell Block.

[ze] Continue forward through this cellblock.

[x] Continue forward through this Cell Block.

D BLOCK D BLOCK D BLOCK D BLOCK

[x] Continue forward through this Cell Block.

The Nines should probably be a little further up, which should take you to Cell Block D. Hina wouldn't have led you down here for nothing...well, actually she was going to kill you not long ago. But really at this point, you're just willing to settle for anything, after being shot at with a fucking rocket having to finally see those idiot terrorist would make your day a whole lot better right now. But, let's take it slow, no use in getting exasperated over something like this, but it's really annoying the amount of shit you had to wade through just to see them. Having enough of this Cell block for one day, you walk off with Hina's weapons and other equipment. The insignia should be enough to cover you in case some of them Ptoles get suspicious but the ID might help in another situation, what that is you'll figure out when you get there.

In anycase it's best to make yourself scarce before any of the other Ptole grunts show up...

====Human City, Prison - Cell Block D====

Even though, you're confident that the bandanna tied to your arm will deter any suspicions the enemy might have, it's still in your best interest to avoid sight. Luckily you don't run into anyone during your walk to the next Cell Block, but you're sure that will change since that explosion wasn't neccisarily the quietest thing in the prison. Besides that, this Cell Block is rather different compared to the last one. For starters some of the cells were wide open, almost like someone just let all their occupants out...

Could the Ptolemoriyas be using the Prisoners for something?

Who's to say, but this assumption may not be too far off base, judging by what you're looking at now. Leaving that alone for the moment, you continue onward, being sure to check each of the cells for the people you wanted to meet, and so far, each of the ones you gaze into comes up empty. Still there's quite a few more left before you reach the end, and there was also another row above this one as well, so you're confident you might find who you were searching for.

It takes a while, but after looking around the block you come across 2 rather young lookinf girls who were residing in the cell nearest to the end, one of them looked to be that green haired girl from the news, complete with the anteenea and all (although, you have a hard time figuring out if she really is a...well, 'she' due to the way she dresses). The one next to her also sported green hair and looked to be the 2nd fairy that was pictured on the news broadcast last night. No doubt about it, these guys were Nines, or rather 2 of them, the last 2 you're not sure as to where they might be. They could be elsewhere in the Cell Block, but if that were true they would have been close by with their other comrades.

"Eh, what do you want?" The bug(?) girl spoke, looking up to you from where she sat, the fairy next to her glancing up to see you as well.

"You guys are part of the Nines, right?"

"Yeah, what of it?" Geeze, this girl seems like she's in a rather bitchy mood.

"Wriggle, please, so him some respect," The fairy advises to 'Wriggle', her gaze locking on to the bandanna tied on your arm before she continues. "He's one of them."

"I don't care, that just gives me all the more reason for me not to respect him." 'Wriggle' remarks with a sneer as she looks back to you, her eyes not letting up on the amount of anger they showed before. "So, you here to give us more orders from that bitch Sanae, or what?"

Well, you did find some of the Nines, just not the one ou was hoping to talk with. Still, Wriggle's animosity toward the Ptolemoriyas is a curious thing to look into, perhaps it could also help in shedding some new light on what the Ptolemoriya's agenda truly is and what it means for this city.

[ ] Talk with these two (Perhaps reassure them that you're not one of "them").
[ ] No, you'd rather see the one who's in charge. Ask where their leader, and the other Nine for that matter, is located.

If talking with Wriggle (or the fairy) is fine, then...
-[ ] (What do you want to talk about?)

[x] Talk with these two (Perhaps reassure them that you're not one of "them").
-[x] "I'm not actually one of them y'know. I just took the armband off one of the soldiers when I shot her rocket down."
-[x] "Hell, I took her ID card as well. Take a look." Show them Hina's ID card.
-[x] Ask them about why they're working for the Ptolemoriya's.
-[x] Ask where you can find their leader. You need to talk to her as well.
-[x] Tell them Mystia is in the hospital in stable condition.
-[x] Ask them where the keys to their cell might be. If it does turn out they've been played as patsies by the Ptolemoriyas, then their testimonies will be vital.

[x] Talk with these two (Perhaps reassure them that you're not one of "them").
-[x] "I'm not actually one of them y'know. I just took the armband off one of the soldiers when I shot her rocket down."
-[x] "Hell, I took her ID card as well. Take a look." Show them Hina's ID card.
-[x] Ask them about why they're working for the Ptolemoriya's.
-[x] Ask where you can find their leader. You need to talk to her as well.
-[x] Tell them Mystia is in the hospital in stable condition.
-[x] Ask them where the keys to their cell might be. If it does turn out they've been played as patsies by the Ptolemoriyas, then their testimonies will be vital.

[x] Talk with these two (Perhaps reassure them that you're not one of "them").
-[x] "I'm not actually one of them y'know. I just took the armband off one of the soldiers when I shot her rocket down."
-[x] "Hell, I took her ID card as well. Take a look." Show them Hina's ID card.
-[x] Ask them about why they're working for the Ptolemoriya's.
-[x] Ask where you can find their leader. You need to talk to her as well.
-[x] Tell them Mystia is in the hospital in stable condition.
-[x] Ask them where the keys to their cell might be. If it does turn out they've been played as patsies by the Ptolemoriyas, then their testimonies will be vital.

[ze] >>20930

[x] Talk with these two (Perhaps reassure them that you're not one of "them").
-[x] "I'm not actually one of them y'know. I just took the armband off one of the soldiers when I shot her rocket down."
-[x] "Hell, I took her ID card as well. Take a look." Show them Hina's ID card.
-[x] Ask them about why they're working for the Ptolemoriya's.
-[x] Ask where you can find their leader. You need to talk to her as well.
-[x] Tell them Mystia is in the hospital in stable condition.
-[x] Ask them where the keys to their cell might be. If it does turn out they've been played as patsies by the Ptolemoriyas, then their testimonies will be vital.

Ah, these two will be just fine for now, you doubt things will remain as quiet as they are now so might as well cut your loses until you find the leader and the other Nine. However, first thing's first... "I'm not actually one of them y'know. I just took the armband off one of the soldiers when I shot her rocket down." You told to the both of them motioning to the armband in question. "Hell, I took her ID card as well. Take a look."

Wriggle doesn't seem like she'll be dropping her apprehensive expression any time soon, but she also looks as though she doesn't see you as an enemy any more either. Still, in order for you to get everything out of them, trust was a key factor in this. Which the fairy that accompanied wriggle seemed to give you (although you're sure she too is a little cautious). In anycase, nows the time to finally get some answers. "Do any of you mind tellin' me why your workin with a shady group like the Ptolemoriyas?"

Wriggle however isn't quick to answer the question in full, clear evidence given by her hesitation to respond in anyway after you asked her this. You frown a bit at how uncooperative she's being and decide to speak up about it. That is until the green haired fairy steps in and does it for you. "It's okay Wriggle," She says in a calming voice. "I think...we can trust him."

Wriggle remains still and looks up to you, as if waiting for you to justify the words of her comrade, to which you nod and give her a friendly smile. "She's right, y'know."

"Fine, You wanna know why we follow those Ptoles huh?" Wriggle spoke folding her arms over her (non existant) chest. "To tell you the truth, all of us DON'T want to follow them, we all know how crooked they can be, especially their leader..."

"Who, Sanae?"

"Nuh-uh, some other broad, I dunno her name but she's the higher ranked than Sanae, apparently the one pullin' all the strings," Wriggle says as she waves her hand in a dismissive manner. "To my knowledge, Sanae is like...her errand girl or something." Hmm, so Sanae isn't the true leader of the Ptolemoriyas. If that's the case then who is, and what are their motives for leading the Nines here? "Anyway, after the Yakumos jacked us up, and all the other nations labled us as 'terrorists', we needed a place to lay low. The Ptolemoriyas, or at least Sanae, claimed she could give us that protection, if Cirno were to attack this rundown city and kidnap some girl named Akyu." You ignore her comment on calling your home rundown and listen to her explanation intentivly. "The rest of us didn't know that it would be this messed up of a town otherwise we wouldn't have taken the job, not like we had much choice in the matter."

"Did they threaten you into doing it?"

"No, my guess is that they've been watching us the whole time and knew we couldn't refuse an offer like the one Sanae gave us...unless we wanted to be caught by the Xandu Council and sent to...Jigoku." Jigoku? that...sounds new. In all your life of living here you didn't know there was a place like that, but seeing as to how the Xandu Council is tied behind it your obliviousness toward it is justified. It would appear that terrorists who are caught and found guilty get sent there, which could be the Nines next stop if they proved they weren't guilty.

"So, from what I'm hearing, they knew Cirno would say yes to it even if she didn't want."

"That about sums it up," Wriggle says with a sigh before she continues. "But, Cirno's retarded, so even if she didn't want to say yes, she still believed they would help us out."

You pause and raise an eyebrow. "You serious?"

"Dead serious, the girl doesn't even know how to add right without someone helping her." Huh, that's...interesting, to say the least. So it would appear that the Nines (or at least, Cirno) is at fault for being stupid and not fully understanding the situation. Still, that said you may be able to easily sway her views to see the truth behind the Ptolemoriyas. "Anyway Sanae gave us weapons for the job; tanks, guns you name it, but I knew something was up, those Ptoles never get involved in anything too risky for themselves, so I checked one of Girida-Os." Wriggle goes quiet for a moment her face contorting in anger. "Turns out they were all rigged. I dunno what it was exactly, but it was definetly something that wasn't supposed to be there if someone was giving them up as weapons."

"So that means..."

"Yep, they were playing us for suckers." Wriggle growled, her tone mirroring her angry expression. "The Ptolemoriyas were only using us, they weren't going to keep their promise to protect us, matter of fact I'm starting think they actually want us to get captured."

"I see." "Where's you're leader at, we need to talk to her about this too."

"She's in the basement I believe, the Ptoles let her and Rumia out hours ago. I'm not sure why they have her down there but they 'claimed' it was to help them build something." The fairy spoke up.

"Not that they would be of any help" Wriggle quipped in.

"Shush, Wriggle!" The fairy hissed to the insect girl behind her, the girl in question mumbling something under breathe before the fairy continued. "Cirno's...a stubborn fairy, so it won't be asy to convince her that the Ptolemoriyas can not be trusted."

"I'm can be stubborn too, so it doesn't matter." You replied with a smirk. "Are you 2 the only ones who don't trust'em?"

"Not really there were others, but...when it came time for the mission to begin we didn't see them with us anywhere, I think Sanae had them taken away...or killed. Sanae claimed they were taken to their Headquarters where they would be trained and later reunite with us once the job is done, but I doubt that was true..." The green haired fairy answered, sounding rather upset about the last fact of her comrades being taken away, then again who would be upset about that?

"And I'm guessing you two managed to get past this by playing them for stupid?"

"Indeed, it was really all we could do, Thank shinki it actually worked." The fairy sighed, before she looks to you once again. "By the way, is Mystia okay, she seemed to be the most...divided on this matter?"

Ah, you knew that question was coming, you didn't know how the two of them would initially react to the news of her being put in the hospital thanks to you and your buddies but if they got upset about it, you could always play the 'We did it out of self-defense' card. "Well, we...sorta put her in the hospital," You chuckle nervously, and come to see Wriggle standing up in a threatening manner and the fairy looking to you in shock. "But she's in the hospital now, and on top of that in stable condition too, so don't worry. Matter of fact, she's the one who helped me realize that something else was afoot."

"So she decided to join our side again then." Wriggle muttered, evoking you to give her a puzzled look to which she quickly picked up on. "You see, Mystia's been really conflicted on which side she should take, at first she was with us, but when Cirno told everyone not to second guess Sanae's order or else they would be cast out of the group, or worse, killed and when she heard of Daiyousei's assumption of what happened to the other guys, she must have gotten scared at I guess you beating her sorta opened her eyes to the truth...or something."

(cont.)

"I suppose so," You shrugged "Anyway, you know who has the keys to your cell, since I have this bandanna on I can probably get them from somebody and let you guys out."

"Uhm, last I checked one of the grunts had it, she wolf tengu had them...I think" Daiyousei(?) explained, before pointing back down the hallway you came from, which possibly would lead to the area you needed to go. "You might be able to find her somewhere in the next cell block, that's where most of the grunts hang out to relax while they're on break."

"Huh, that's rather conveinent." You remark hoisting the Rocket Launcher onto your shoulder and glancing back to the two Nines. "You guys stay here, I'll be back later, alright."

"Gotcha." Wriggle nodded "You know, you're not half bad...for a human that is."

"Ah, don't compliment me just yet, I still have to stop a shady terrorist faction from blowing up the city." You chuckle as you turn to head to the next Cell Block.

====Human City, Prison - Cell Block E====

Since the entrance to this section wasn't very far from where you were, it obviously doesn't take you very long to get here. Upon entering you see that the area isn't heavily populated but houses a few of the Ptolemoriyas' most of them wearing casual clothes like your own while a few are sporting the standard uniform, green milirary fatigues with the bandanna wrapped somewhere on their body. Luckily, you can pass yourself off as one of the casually dressed soldiers and hang out here no sweat.

You look around the area and see a young woman standing near a jail cell conversing with two other guys, or rather the guys were just standing beside her and talking amoungst themselves while she simply listened. Hm, she must not be much of a talker, oh well, that doesn't matter, you see that the young woman bears the wolf like ears and tail that fairy told you of and better still you see sets of keys dangling from her waist. She also seemed to be dressed in a combonation of the military attire the other soldiers wore and casual wear, her pants being cameoflauged and her top being that of a simple white t-shirt. You also note the rather large blade weapon sheathed to her other side. However, you might want to be careful on how you talk to her, being you have no idea as to what rank this woman. It's best to simply, play it cool and talk to her in a casual manner and hope she'll believe you're a Ptole.

"Excuse me." You spoke as you make your way to the wolf tengu's side, the tengu in question turning to you with her undivided attention. "I want to ask you something real quick, is that alright?"

"That it is," She answers with a nod. "What do you want?"

Before you begin, you recall that tt would be a wise endeavor to word your request in a manner that won't evoke any suspicions from her or the others around her.

[ ] (Write-in)

[ ] Talk in hushed and conspiratorial manner: "Do you really think it's safe to leave them there? While they breathe they're a massive liability, even if the other two still have some use. And even if we're sure to do it later, you know until then, some idiot is going to raise drama because he wants to 'play' with them, and that's no good for morale."
[x] "Look, I can be very discretionary. No accountability. One pulls a razor blade from under her tongue, and 'boom' self-defense... except a rocket launcher isn't a precise killing instrument. One of the things I like most about 'em. 'Boom!' Heh."

Updating this none the less to those (if any) still interested.

[z] Talk in hushed and conspiratorial manner: "Do you really think it's safe to leave them there? While they breathe they're a massive liability, even if the other two still have some use. And even if we're sure to do it later, you know until then, some idiot is going to raise drama because he wants to 'play' with them, and that's no good for morale."
[e] "Look, I can be very discretionary. No accountability. One pulls a razor blade from under her tongue, and 'boom' self-defense... except a rocket launcher isn't a precise killing instrument. One of the things I like most about 'em. 'Boom!' Heh."

>>21556
You're damn right I am.

>>21556

hooray!

[x] Talk in hushed and conspiratorial manner: "Do you really think it's safe to leave them there? While they breathe they're a massive liability, even if the other two still have some use. And even if we're sure to do it later, you know until then, some idiot is going to raise drama because he wants to 'play' with them, and that's no good for morale."
[x] "Look, I can be very discretionary. No accountability. One pulls a razor blade from under her tongue, and 'boom' self-defense... except a rocket launcher isn't a precise killing instrument. One of the things I like most about 'em. 'Boom!' Heh."

"Do you really think it's safe to leave them there?" You scoot a bit closer to the wolf tengu and start talking in a quieter tone. "While they breathe they're a massive liability, even if the other two still have some use. And even if we're sure to do it later, you know until then, some idiot is going to raise drama because he wants to 'play' with them, and that's no good for morale."

The wolf tengu gives you a weird look, but overall doesn't seem to object with your choice of words too much. She may even agree with them if you were lucky, but you don't know this for sure as she basically remains silent and motions her head for you to go on with your proposition.

"Look, I can be very discretionary. No accountability. One pulls a razor blade from under her tongue, and 'boom' self-defense... except a rocket launcher isn't a precise killing instrument. One of the things I like most about 'em. 'Boom!' Heh." That should probably give her a good hint of what you wanted her to think.

"So basically you wish to end them, is that it?" The wolf tengu ventured, as she rubbed the bottom of her chin for a moment, contemplating on your words and what would happen if the Nines were indeed killed off. "I myself do not like having them around, they're wanted by too many other nations AND they know things we don't want others knowing. If I were in command, I would have them shot as soon as they were 'captured'."

"Here." The wolf says flatly as she hands you the ring of keys, her fingers wrapped around the one key that apparently was the one that opened the cell Wriggle and Daiyousei were held in. "Make it as discreet as you say."

"I intend to." You smirk as a means to sell your facade on the situation. Although, it looks as though you would still have her support on letting the Nines out nevertheless. With keys in hand, you take your leave of the area and head back from wence you came. Things were finally going into motion and if it remained quiet, and went this smoothly, you'll be out of here by lunch, which is good, for you're feeling rather hungry. Come to think of it did you even eat breakfast?

(cont.)

====Human City, Prison - Cell Block D====

The trip back is quick and pretty much an instant deal, since the cell holding Wriggle and Daiyousei wasn't too far from the entrance to E Block. Still you had to hurry this up, going this long in an enemy stronghold without getting caught is rather unnerving in it's own right, and by this point you wanted to get what you could out of the Nines and leave before something happens and you end up just as trapped in here as they were.

"There that didn't take long now did it?" You told Wriggle and Daiyousei a bit of a chortle chasing after your words as you begin unlocking the cell doors for the two sittng inside.

"Just open the cell." The none too amused insect girl chided as she rolled her eyes, apparently not in any mood for your friendly jokes.

"Alright, alright geeze...you're just as bitc--er, I mean, touchy as Mokou-chan." You stumble a bit with your words as you barely catch yourself from calling Wriggle 'bitchy', truth be told the two share some similarities, although you have to say that Mokou is far more aggressive than Wriggle, even if you didn't know what she's capable of. Not a moment sooner, the barred doors of the jail cell emitt a rusted 'click' sound and the henges creek as the cell door swings open allowing Wriggle and Daiyousei to roam freely once more. Well...almost, so long as they stuck by you, they should be fine...

"Alright, anybody know where the basement is," You inquire to both Wriggle and Daiyousei, thinking they might know a little more of this place than you do. "I've never really been in here, so I got no clue as to where to go..."

"I...think I know where it is," Wriggle hesitantly spoke up being the first out the cell, with Daiyousei following close behind, the fairy in question cautiously looking up and down the hallways to make sure no one was around to see them. "When they took Cirno and Rumia some Ptoles, took them straight ahead, so if we go in that direction it'll lead us to the basement...I guess." 'I guess'? That wasn't good enough. Still, you can't blame Wriggle or Daiyousei for not knowing of where it was. Either way, this meant that the basement was either down the hall where you first met Hina or was further into the prison past that hammered oni chick. So that meant you had to go back to where that oni was stationed at and head deeper into the prison from there.

"Eh, that'll have to do for now, so let's keep moving, I'm getting a more and more uneasy the longer I stay in here." You tell the two girls as you walked ahead, idly scratching your stomach. "Plus I'm getting kinda hungry..."

"Oh, hold on a second..." Daiyousei chimed in as you and Wriggle halt mid-walk to see the fairy dig in the pockets of her blue dress pulling out lint and coins, before she finally managed to whip out a small bag of peanut butter crackers. "It's not much, but I saved some of these for when me or Wriggle needed something to eat. Think of it as a thank you for letting us out."

"Ah, thanks...'Daiyousei', was it?" The fairy nods silently as you accept her offering and almost immedieatly open them up to feast upon they're peanut buttery goodness. You take a bite into the crunchy snack, the creamy peanut butter instantly melting into your mouth the moment it hits your tounge. The fact that the crackers themselves were cheddar flavored actually made the snack that more enjoyable, who knew peanut butter and cheddar could go so well with one another. Truth be told, you never really ate crackers like these before, but when you have nothing else, why complain?

It takes a good hearted person to give a stranger their last bit of food the way Daiyousei did, and when you think on it, you're starting to see why the Nines shouldn't be labled as bad guys. They were harmless. All their troubles having been started by no one else but the Yakumo Army. You can't help but feel a little sorry for them...well, at least now you're helping them out a bit.

====Human City, Prison - Cell Block C====

The walk is fairly quiet save for several conversations you hold with the two Nines that accompanied you on your journey to the basement. Daiyousei seemed like a rather person to be around in general, having a reasonable, and kind disposition only faltered by that of a timid streak. Wriggle is a bit moody for you, but you only attribute this for going through alot of shit as of late...or she could be 'riding the red tide' like most women do this time of month, but you're not sure if a bug girl such as herself goes through such things. Still she seemed okay to talk to so long as the subject at hand fairs well with her current mood.

As you and Daiyousei laugh a bit at one of Wriggle's annoyed reactions to you messing around with her, you look up and freeze with a crack still hanging out of your mouth. No matter how hard you try, you can't take your eyes off the corner that you were starring a hole through. Why you this was, is fairly simply...

Hina's body was gone.

"Hey, why'd you stop?" Wriggle questioned as she walks into your line of sight and looks around, attempting to see what it is that caught your attention. Unfortunately for her, she was unaware of your short scrape with Hina earlier on, so she had no idea that her body was supposed to be laying in the corner and that it being missing was a really bad sign. "Quit day dreaming and let's go, you said yourself we have to keep moving."

[ ] Tell Wriggle and Daiyousei to stand by while you go look for Hina alone. You can't risk them getting in the way if another fight breaks out.
[ ] Look for Hina with Wriggle and Daiyousei at your side. If she's indeed looking to start Round 2, then you'll at least have a little back up with you.
[ ] Did she set traps? Split up and search the area for some...just in case.
[ ] Keep moving forward, but stay alert for anything sudden. Tell Wriggle and Daiyousei to watch your back as well.

[x] Keep moving forward, but stay alert for anything sudden. Tell Wriggle and Daiyousei to watch your back as well.
- [x] Tell them there should have been a corpse here, and that they likely know now that their security has been breached.
- [x] Inform them that you managed to get the key to their cells by convincing the senior NCO you were going to execute them: They should have no pretensions about their worth to the Ptoles and are essentially now fighting for their lives.
- [x] Arm them with whatever weapons you can spare or find. You've no choice but to 'deputize' them as members of your militia.

Assume worst case scenario. They know you were there, and that you'll be after the Nines' leader.

For the Nines, rescuing their leader and their own survival will be foremost on their minds, and Mystia's fierce loyalty indicates they're unlikely to turn tail and run when their leader is captured. They also want revenge for being set up.

Keine might be incensed that you armed wanted felons, but when you're up against what is essentially a covert attack from another nation's military, the particulars of one's local penal code tends to get left by the wayside.

[x] Keep moving forward, but stay alert for anything sudden. Tell Wriggle and Daiyousei to watch your back as well.
- [x] Tell them there should have been a corpse here, and that they likely know now that their security has been breached.
- [x] Inform them that you managed to get the key to their cells by convincing the senior NCO you were going to execute them: They should have no pretensions about their worth to the Ptoles and are essentially now fighting for their lives.
- [x] Arm them with whatever weapons you can spare or find. You've no choice but to 'deputize' them as members of your militia.

[x] Keep moving forward, but stay alert for anything sudden. Tell Wriggle and Daiyousei to watch your back as well.
- [x] Tell them there should have been a corpse here, and that they likely know now that their security has been breached.
- [x] Inform them that you managed to get the key to their cells by convincing the senior NCO you were going to execute them: They should have no pretensions about their worth to the Ptoles and are essentially now fighting for their lives.
- [x] Arm them with whatever weapons you can spare or find. You've no choice but to 'deputize' them as members of your militia.

[d] Keep moving forward, but stay alert for anything sudden. Tell Wriggle and Daiyousei to watch your back as well.
- [a] Tell them there should have been a corpse here, and that they likely know now that their security has been breached.
- [z] Inform them that you managed to get the key to their cells by convincing the senior NCO you were going to execute them: They should have no pretensions about their worth to the Ptoles and are essentially now fighting for their lives.
- [e] Arm them with whatever weapons you can spare or find. You've no choice but to 'deputize' them as members of your militia.

[x] Keep moving forward, but stay alert for anything sudden. Tell Wriggle and Daiyousei to watch your back as well.
- [x] Tell them there should have been a corpse here, and that they likely know now that their security has been breached.
- [x] Inform them that you managed to get the key to their cells by convincing the senior NCO you were going to execute them: They should have no pretensions about their worth to the Ptoles and are essentially now fighting for their lives.
- [x] Arm them with whatever weapons you can spare or find. You've no choice but to 'deputize' them as members of your militia.

The only reasonable option is to keep moving forward, and keep your eyes peeled and your ears alert. You probably should have done something with Hina's body the moment she blew up, but then again you ran the risk of getting busted if you stayed behind too long. However, this must mean that the Ptoles know that they're security has been breached and is working in the shadows to fuck you up, or something like that. Either way, you don't know what to expect, and it would be stupid to just rush in with no plan of action first. Still, you do have some back with you at least...it may not be much but it's better than being in this alone, that's for sure.

"Wh-what's going on?" Daiyousei questioned, as she moved in front of you, growing concearned with your lack of movement and your overall astonished expression. "Did something happen?"

You hold your hand up and motion her and Wriggle to follow you. "Keep quiet and follow me." You tell them in a low but serious tone, letting them know that something was definetly up. "You see...there was a body here, the body of the Ptoles' Sergeant Major to be exact, and since she's gone I can tell you that this means they know they've been infiltrated..."

"Wait, so they know we're here now?" Wriggle says, her tone of voice shifting to that of nervousness. At this point, she probably had every right to be antsy about this. It was essentially 1 armed guy and 2 unarmed low level youkai, the odds of you all surviving a full on attack of the Ptoles is...unlikely at best. "Then why did they, just let us out now, last I checked they wouldn't let us out of their sights for five minutes."

"Not really, I convinced the NCO girl that I was going to execute you guys and she gladly handed over the keys to your cell after that. According to that wolf chick, you guys know alot of shit they don't want getting out, I dunno if it was just her opinion or if the other goons think the same way, but it's the latter then you guys are pretty much a liability to them." You tell the fairy and insect as you peer through the door ahead and looking around the hallways of the prison to see that it was as vacant as it was the last one, which only succeeds in making you more uneasy about this situation. Never the less, you gesture for Wriggle and Daiyousei to continue forward the moment you confirmed that the coast was clear. "Still all that should go without sayin' that you all are fighting for your lives now..."

"B-but, we don't have any weapons to fight with," The panicing Daiyousei pointed out in a hushed yet hurried tone. "How are suppose to defend ourselves against them with no weapons?"

"Don't worry 'bout that, I have a few weapons on me, it may not be much now, but it's still enough for when we find better gear. I have no doubt these guys are packing some stuff somehwere...otherwise I wouldn't have gotten this ol' girl." You gesture to your newly acquired Rocket Launcher which will no doubt help in this endeavor. The blast radius on one rocket alone is enough to clear out a good number of enemy units, plus cause some damage to heavy duty machines like Metal Slugs and/or Girida-Os (if they have them). Still you should decide on who gets what, you could hand over your fire arms to them while you settle for you knife, but then there's the risk of them not knowing how to aim and totally fucking everything up in terms of countering any enemy fire.

Daiyousei should get...
- [ ] Rocket Launcher (10 Arms)
- [ ] Murder .50AE (5 rounds of
or
- [ ] Combat Knife

Wriggle should get..
- [ ] Rocket Launcher (10 Arms)
- [ ] Murder .50AE
or
- [ ] Combat Knife

---------

When this is outta the way, we'll finally be heading into some action, so get ready~

Daiyousei should get...
-[x] Combat Knife

Wriggle should get..
-[x] Rocket Launcher (10 Arms)

Daiyousei should get...
-[z] Combat Knife

Wriggle should get..
-[e] Rocket Launcher (10 Arms)

>(10 Arms)
No idea what you mean by this.

>>21775
Arms = Ammo in-game.

See top area of pic.

Daiyousei should get...
-[x] Combat Knife

Wriggle should get..
-[x] Rocket Launcher (10 Arms)

[x] As soon as you get a heavier weapon, hand off the handgun to Daiyousei.

Wriggle sends them diving for cover, and Daiyousei flanks them while they've got their helmets over their asses. You can lay down effective cover fire for Wriggle once you get a HEAVY MACHINE GUN or the like. If the fairy can fly, or even glide, then you'd want her to carry as little weight as possible.

Daiyousei should get...
-[0] Combat Knife

Wriggle should get..
-[1] Rocket Launcher (10 Arms)

Huh. I remember this one. I was wondering when we'd get to Cirno so we can explain to her exactly just how fucked she is, using the analogy of a condom.

"A condom is a convenient little thing that allows you to fuck over people without getting anything dirty on yourself. After which, you dispose of when you're done."

If you wish, you can go harder and deeper than that. That's just the barely penetrating the surface here.

>>23117

It's too bad that Blazing Vangogh updates only twice a month or so.

Daiyousei should get...
-[x] Combat Knife

Wriggle should get..
-[x] Rocket Launcher (10 Arms)

You were right before when you said you didn't have much on you in terms of weapons, but giving them what you had was definately better than simply going in with two unarmed 'allies'. Yes, youkai were generally tougher than most humans, some being able to take more than a few shots which makes that the key advantage over some armies (human to youkai ratio that is), but you doubt these two were that strong...well Wriggle maybe, but Daiyousei didn't look like she could take too much punishment in and of itself. Even so, she's a fairy, and they're pretty agile, and speedy. Plus, they're capable of flying around so a lightweight weapon such as your Combat Knife is perfect for a unit like her.

"Here, take this." You say to the fairy, pulling out the knife and offering it to her, while you kept watch up ahead. "If anyone suspicious tries to hurt you, or do something funny to you, don't be afraid to use this." Daiyousei hesitates for a moment, but she nods and takes the knife in hand, examining it's razor sharp edges and taking care not to touch them.

"And what about me?" Wriggle chimed in as she nudged you in the arm to get your attention, "What do I get?"

"Don't worry I didn't forget you." You reply with a roll of your eyes. Indeed you didn't forget about Wriggle, for she would be hauling around what would literally be the most powerful weapon the 3 of you had at the moment; the Rocket Launcher. You hold the missile launching weapon before the firefly taking care to keep your eyes in front of you in case any stray Ptoles were roaming around. "Careful with these...if you misfire you might blow us up too." You warn the bug girl who snorts and rolls her eyes in response.

"I'm not going to misfire. I'm not stupid, you know." Being stupid doesn't mean you don't have itchy trigger fingers, Wriggle...

Ignoring Wriggle's comment, you motion them to follow and the lot of you continue down the eeriely quiet hallways of this old prison. The strange silence that hung in the air, isn't the only the that comes to unnerve you...the lack of activity also does a wonderful job of making you paranoid of what was around the bend. It just seemed so unsettling that your enemy knows you're here, but isn't doing anything about it to kill you or stop you in anyway. You know they're out to get you, or rather they're coming for you...so why are they not acting on it, do they not see you as a threat?

No, you took out one of their general...there's no way they would take such an action sitting down. Perhaps they were merely waiting for you to get to a certain area of the prison before they unleash all hell on you. Either way you look at it, you have no viable way of knowing what the Ptolemoriyas were up to, or what they were planning. The best you could do was simply lead Daiyousei and Wriggle to the basement, reunite them with Cirno and Rumia and hope nothing bad happened on the way there. As you continue to think on what you're enemy could be up to, you feel the sudden tug on your jacket and look back to see Wriggle grabbing onto you, Daiyousei was behind her crouched and keeping an eye out behind the both of you, the knife held to her side lay ready to take whatever action she could against any Ptoles that came your way.

"Hey..." Wriggle whispered to you getting you to gaze at her to catch a glimpse of her anteenea twitching about in a subtle manner. Huh, so they do move...how interesting. "Do you hear that?"

You pause for a moment and listen in to your surroundings, at first there doesn't seem to be anything going on and all you can hear is the cold wind that blows through the prison halls, the howling it creates enough to chill you to the bone, well it was pretty cold in here...

However, as the seconds pass, you also begin to hear the sound of someone talking in the distance. Just as Wriggle said. You walk over and slowly peer from around the bend of the wall and come to see a group of soldiers standing down the hallway. You have no doubt they're Ptoles, and that means this way was blocked...until, at least, you came up with a decent plan to by pass them. Otherwise, you can always keep straight and hope you can sneak past them and that the same path takes you to the basement. The soldiers weren't really doing much, simply conversing with each other about various junk and basically keeping watch over this hallway. All of them were armed it seems, mostly with Machine Guns (they appear to be smaller than the average Heavy Machine Gun), and you think you spy one with a bazooka. Oh geeze...

"Damn...we got Ptoles down the east hall." You whisper to your 'comrades'. "And they're armed to the teeth too..."

"How many are there?" Daiyouse whispered back, trying to keep herself as calm as she could.

"About...5, they're not doing anything but talking now though..." You whisper back as you return your gaze to the two youkai, and the only back you had in this situation. "We could probably blow them all away with one rocket...but then we'd alert more to our position." Which was something you really did not need.

"Then what else can we do?" Wriggle whispered back, her tone rising a little to that of annoyance. "It's the best option we have, plus we can steal their stuff for ourselves for later. I dunno about you, but that's MY plan..."

[ ] Agree with Wriggle; you should strike first and steal their weapons/gear, hopefully you can overpower them with what you have.
- [ ] Wriggle should issue the opening attack
- [ ] Daiyousei should issue the opening attack
- [ ] You should issue the opening attack
[ ] Keep straight ahead and try to sneak past them. It's a good idea to conserve what ammo you have...
[ ] See if you can trick this bunch into thinking you're one of them. Maybe they'll fall for it and let you all through...
[ ] Gotta better plan? (Write-in)

[x] Agree with Wriggle; you should strike first and steal their weapons/gear, hopefully you can overpower them with what you have.
-[x] You should issue the opening attack.

[x] Agree with Wriggle; you should strike first and steal their weapons/gear, hopefully you can overpower them with what you have.
-[x] You should issue the opening attack.

You updated!

[x] Agree with Wriggle; you should strike first and steal their weapons/gear, hopefully you can overpower them with what you have.
-[x] You should issue the opening attack.

The rocket launcher would be overkill and most likely destroy everything we'd be trying to go for.

The knife is out because I don't like the thought of putting Daiyousei in danger.

[x] Agree with Wriggle; you should strike first and steal their weapons/gear, hopefully you can overpower them with what you have.
-[x] You should issue the opening attack.

Hooray!

[x] Agree with Wriggle; you should strike first and steal their weapons/gear, hopefully you can overpower them with what you have.
-[x] You should issue the opening attack.

[x] Agree with Wriggle; you should strike first and steal their weapons/gear, hopefully you can overpower them with what you have.
- [x] You should issue the opening attack

Well, you truthfully had no other choice, but to agree with Wriggle on this one.

As easy as it sounds, keeping straight is nearly impossible to pull off without being spotted by at least one of the Ptoles. Tricking them would probably work, but in truth this depended solely on how gullible they were. If Hina's actions before were any indication, you're sure there are some that will be able to flip the script and trick you into thinking you've fooled them only to corner you in a tight area and quickly kill you, Wriggle and Daiyousei off.

The only forward is to go through these guys, besides, if you manage to kill them, you can take whatever gear they have on them and use it for yourself. Judging by how you only have a 3 weapons on you two of which had only limited ammo in them, you're going to need to extra firepower these guys'll drop.

...Provided you could kill them first, of course.

"Alright..." You breathe in, steeling your nerves for the fight to come. "I'm goin in..."

"Are you sure, I mean...I DO have a Rocket Launcher and all." Wriggle remarked motioning toward the very weapon she spoke of. Apparently having such a powerful piece of equipment has given the bug girl some added confidence in her ability...even though you're not even sure if she has a lick of combat training...or if any of the Nines do for that matter.

"Yes, but we also need to stuff they have and if you blow it up with one of your rockets, then we don't get squat." You respond as you peer around the corner and notice the enemy has yet to move from their positions, the lot of them still talking. You're not sure what they're talking of, but just as your about to shrug off their meaningless conversation you hear one of the Ptoles speak the name 'Nitori'...or at least, you thought it was the name 'Nitori'. The Ptoles have no reason to know about the kappa girl so maybe it was just your imagination...maybe...

Enough stalling though, if you were to continue and get the hell out of this, you had to get past this...

You peer from around the corner and bring your gun up taking aim at the most dangerous unit, the Ptole with the bazooka. If you can take him out, then the others won't be so hard to take care of...well, maybe not...you were still out numbered...

Without any hesitation, you fire several rounds out into the crowd of chatting soldiers, the lot of them being taken aback by the sudden break in silence. You manage to nail the bazooka totting Ptole right between those goggles of his, the green wearing soldier not even letting out a cry of agony as he tumbled to the ground a trail of blood spouting from his forehead as he fell. You do manage to hit another Ptole in the forearm, but to your dismay that also means that he isn't dead...

The soldiers don't even wait to exchange any further conversation with one another, before they have machine guns in hand and already unloading on your position. You duck your head back around the corner as the barrage of hot lead ricochets and chips off the stone walls that protected you, Wriggle and Daiyousei. You're not sure how many rounds you have left in this gun, but you had to make these count, if not then it would all have to be up to Wriggle and her Rocket Launcher to take out these goons. The Ptoles eventually cease firing and the moment they stop, you hear foot steps nearing where you all were taking cover. You throw yourself from around the corner again and fire 3 more rounds into the oncoming group nailing the wounded Ptole twice in the chest, the gun totting mook collapsing to the floor in the middle of his sprint and sliding forward a few feet. The last shot misses the group entirely and only seems to hit the bars on one of the nearby jail cells. Well shit...

You aim to try this again only to hear a discouraging 'click' emanate from your handgun, which could only mean one thing...

Before you can even curse at the horrid luck that suddenly befell you, a spray of bullets whiz past your head and you duck back behind the corner for cover. "Knew I shoulda brought more with me..." You growl in frustration, wanting a good second to kick yourself in the ass for actually forgetting to bring extra ammo. To be fair, you had no idea you'd be here fighting off a terrorist group from another nation...but still, one must always be prepared...especially in these turbulent times...

"What are you talking about?" Wriggle says, her voice raising in nervousness at the frustrated words you uttered earlier before she eventually figured it all out on her own, the bug girl's eyes growing wide with shock. "Wait...don't tell me that-!"

"Hey...I only had 5 rounds in this thing..." You conclude to Wriggle, holding up your now empty hang gun for emphasis. You hear footsteps closing in on your position and immedieatly you know you're running out of time.

[ ] Looks like it's Wriggle's turn! Order her to use the rocket launcher to crush the opposition.
[ ] Tell Wriggle to use the Rocket Launcher to try and intimidate the Ptoles, maybe they'll back down once you spook'em.
[ ] Daiyousei should distract them and allow you and Wriggle to wipe out the remaining mooks.
[ ] Retreat and try to lose the Ptoles.
[ ] Retreat and try to ambush the Ptoles.
[ ] Gotta better plan (Then let's hear it in your write-in)

----

FYI: 3 remain, all of which carry Machine Guns.

So many ways, so little time.

Strategy expert where?

>Metal Touhou: Magic Vehicle-002
>Update

WAIT WHAT

Anyway...

[x] Daiyousei should distract them and allow you and Wriggle to wipe out the remaining mooks.

[x] Daiyousei should distract them and allow you and Wriggle to wipe out the remaining mooks.

>>24827
REJOICE

[x] Daiyousei should distract them and allow you and Wriggle to wipe out the remaining mooks.

This will do.

[x] Daiyousei should distract them and allow you and Wriggle to wipe out the remaining mooks.

OKAY

Update's almost done.

Thanks for hanging in there (to those who were).

[x] Daiyousei should distract them and allow you and Wriggle to wipe out the remaining mooks.

Okay, so you ran out of ammo, you can still take care of these guys no problem. Well...maybe it will be a bit more difficult seeing as you don't have much to defend yourself now, but hey you had a Rocket Launcher and if things went south then you knew you had at least one more weapon left to use. You can hear the Ptole's footsteps getting dangerously close now, and the fact that you knew you couldn't head back the way you came made this a fight only situation. "Daiyousei." You say to the nervous fairy who looks you in the eye upon hearing her name. "I want you to distract the Ptoles and me and Wriggle will try and take them out."

"But...they have..." Daiyousei begins, clearly showing signs of hesitation. Which is understandable, she was practically unarmed after all...well save for that there knife, but you had doubts she had the guts to really kill anyone...it didn't look to be in her nature...

"I know they have guns, but we don't have a choice." You tell Daiyousei. "We'll make sure that you get outta this okay, don't worry." That was the best you could do for her at this point. Everything else depended on her and if the Ptoles weren't as trigger happy as some rouges turned out to be. You gesture the fairy to make her move and she nods strongly as she gets up and starts beating her wings. Ah right...you forgot she's capable of flight...this could make things alot easier then...

"They're here." Wriggle announced, her antennea wiggling about atop her head. You look back to Daiyousei and throw a silent hand signal forward, the fairy responding with as strong a nod she could manage and taking to the air. "...Hope she gets out of this okay..."

"We'll make sure that she does, trust me." You tell the insect youkai as you see Daiyousei fly above the Ptoles the moment they come within your sights.

"It's that fairy from the Nine Squad, take'er down!" One of the mooks shout to his comrades, the lot of them fire upon Daiyousei from below. The fairy squeaked as she used nimble aireal movements to dodge the bullets as best she can the Ptoles not letting up in their assault until they could see her body fall to the floor in front of them.

You couldn't waste time. Now was the time to strike. If you hesitated Daiyousei would be in danger of being shot down plus the Ptoles would focus their firepower on you and Wriggle if they downed the fairy...

You say nothing. You throw yourself forward, focusing on one thing and one thing alone; taking down those three Ptoles in front of you. You handgun maybe useless as far as bullets are concearned but it would still make for a good weapon if you needed it. As soon as you get within grabbing distance of the nearest Ptole grunt, your wrap your arm around his head and place another around his neck. The Ptole, surprised by the sudden action, . He struggles but you don't let go...

Letting go is the last thing on your mind...

Your palms clasp tightly on his forehead as your arms tremble, your muscles putting everything into twisting the Ptoles neck to it's breaking point. You can feel his free hand frantically beating against you, the gun he held now silenced as it waved around in his hand. No matter how much he pounds on you, no matter how much it hurts, you still don't let go. Nor do you cease in pulling at his head...

You barely notice Wriggle managing to spook the other two grunts with her Rocket Launcher, the insect using the opening to bash one of them in the face with the butt of the launcher she held.

You have no idea what happened after that.

You know this guy has a knife...and you know that if he manages to get a hold of it then he'll jam it where ever he can to get you to let go of him. With a sudden rush of adreneline, you forcefully pull the Ptole's head around, a sickening sound of bones being snapped ringing in your ear as the grunt falls to the ground...motionless...

Your eyes dart to his gun and, without a second thought, you grab it and aim it straight toward the other Ptole who was focusing on killing Daiyousei. You see Wriggle trying to keep the mook she was fighting from plunging his knife into her chest...she was losing. You fire upon the Ptole atop Wriggle first, the insect youkai bracing herself as the body of the green wearing aggressor convulsed and flopped off her body.

The last Ptole looks back and sees his comrade fall, he draws his gun to you but notices that the corpse of yet another of his allies is laying in front of you. Dead.

The Ptole makes no other movements...he simply shifts his head from Wriggle (who now had BOTH the Rocket Launcher and the Machine Gun in hand) and then back to you and then back up at the fairy who held the combat knife in her right hand. The Ptole seems to get that he is surrounded and outnumbered, but what will he do now that he knows this? You're not sure, but you hold your ground and keep the machine gun pointed toward his torso, Wriggle doing the same with the machine gun she picked up from the other Ptole.

"Dammit..." The Ptole hissed, seeing the difficult situation he was in. You had already won this scrimmage, with only one enemy left to deal with you could use this chance to squeeze out any other useful information he might have locked away in his head...or you could simply off him and keep going. After all, you were certain that the Ptoles knew something was wrong by now and could be sending more reinforcements down this way as you stood here.

"What're you doing?" Wriggle says in a loud whisper. "Aren't you going to kill him?"

[ ] "The other two Nines, they're in the basement right? So where is it?"
[ ] "What are you Ptoles doing here? What's your plan?"
[ ] (Got something better to ask? Write it in here)
[ ] Ask nothing. Just kill him.

----

I really need to work on my choices here...

[X] "The other two Nines, they're in the basement right? So where is it?"

If reinforcements are coming, there's only time to ask one question, and the grunts might not know the bigger picture. The faster we find Cirno and Rumia, the sooner we get out of here and warn Keine.

[x] "The other two Nines are in the basement right? Where is it?"

[x] "The other two Nines, they're in the basement right? So where is it?"