KAIJU FIGHT #3

[synfluxmods]

KAIJU FIGHT #3

CONTENT WARNINGS: mind control, parasitic worms, gore

▶ 001. POSITIVE THINKING.

The aftermath of the last kaiju battle, has had LILITH researchers scrambling to find an adequate way to combat the aftereffects of the kaiju discovered in the desert. While their research is still very much a work in progress, for now… it’ll have to do. In the early hours of the morning, a message will appear on everyone’s oculars, asking them to suit up immediately and meet at the given coordinates, which will act as the Outsiders rendezvous point. These coordinates lead to an abandoned hotel within 1 mile to the outskirts of the strip.

"The system is updating…

The system is updating…

Downloading: ⇓"

A new update awaits each Outsider on their oculars. There is no option to decline, and right away it prompts you through several steps. This update was all in part thanks to the various dreams that the oculars have been reacting to. The researchers for LILITH figured out a way to combat these pesky mental side effects by forcing the mind into a state of equilibrium. In order to do this, Outsiders will be asked to think of their happiest memories. Perhaps, due in part to everyone downloading this update at the same time, people will automatically feel an odd sensation as they think back on these memories, almost as if their mind is connected to a collective. These memories will leave each Outsider feeling fulfilled, or even a temporary sense of high as the download continues. As a result, Outsiders may feel giddy or a sense of calm. Some may be motivated to talk about their happy memories with others the first time they do this.

▶ 002. BREACH OF THE CITY.

Once the download is completed, there’s zero time to rest. It looks like whatever they found in the desert isn’t interested in just sitting and waiting. They’ve come to the city with clear intentions of gradually infiltrating its borders. Who are they? Why, the missing people of course.

Apparently, as part of the kaijus life cycle, it lays eggs, which then hatch into younger worms, similar to actual earthworms. These young worms, unable to protect themselves, control the minds of other living entities in order to do their bidding and keep their own bodies safe. Once infected, their hosts become vicious and hungry for meat, attacking any living thing in sight and trying to eat its flesh to nourish the parasite within.

It’ll be up to the Outsiders in order to scope out these young worms controlling the people of the desert, while simultaneously knocking those individuals out of commission. In some rare circumstances, there will be no turning back for these individuals; if the young worm actually burrows themselves into the bodies of the controlled, they are no more than a reanimated corpse, and will need to be eliminated immediately. The longer these worms exist within these people’s bodies, the larger they grow, and by extension, the more influence they can exert over a larger net of people.

Instead of the camper vans, LILITH has provided other sleeker vehicles in order to quickly traverse the city. The vehicles are equipped for speed and are meant to assist in getting to the various coordinates LILITH sends out to everyone’s oculars. The coordinates all mark where these “controlled people” have been seen via drone footage.

▶ 003. WORM ON THE MIND.

While the attention will be focused on destroying the monsters that have come up to the city, there will be occasional tremors that can be felt that seem to come from far below— almost as if they were cries from the old city that lay forgotten below. Unfortunately, it’s much worse.

In the middle of staving off the attacks from the mysterious creatures, there will suddenly be the sound of the defense alarm blaring, and without any additional warning, something breaks through the center of the city. This will first be punctuated by the sounds of the building around them crumbling, followed by the clear visual of the large serpentine creature they’ve encountered in the desert. The large sand worm doesn’t even pause to regain its bearings. As soon as it recognizes the presence of other organisms, it begins glowing a fluorescent shade in varying indefinable colors—

Thanks to the updates on the oculars, there will no longer be hallucinations that follow any contact with the worm, however, if one stares too long, they will still be met with splitting headaches and a pressing sense of agitation, so Outsiders are cautioned against prolonged exposure. That said, it won’t always be easy to take a breather against such a large creature.

█ █ █ MONSTER DEBRIEF SHEET
NAME: ALITTA VIRENS
HEIGHT: 400 metres
WEIGHT: 1,900,000 kg
CLASS: Extremely Dangerous
LOCATION: Las Vegas, USA
ABILITIES: Mind control. Although full details are UNKNOWN, its young can take control of human and animal hosts. Once under their control, the hosts will become aggressive and hungry for meat, which is theorized to feed and nourish the young worms until they are ready to emerge.
EXTRA NOTES: According to what the researchers have surmised, similar kaiju have appeared on a much smaller scale and are susceptible to water poisoning and electrical shocks. LILITH has not found a way to fully free the hosts from the parasite, but they can be stunned after receiving multiple electric shocks.

"
YAMAKAWA: Angels of LILITH, please be advised of your roles moving forward. With the city already infiltrated, we will need to be quick."

A brief is sent along with her message.

█ █ █ MISSION ROLES:

✖ GROUP ONE: Those who fulfill this role will need to be equipped with brute strength and the ability to survive the attacks in a city that is the midst of being destroyed. They will also need the stamina to keep the worm at bay as the others complete their tasks before also gathering to exterminate the kaiju.
✖ GROUP TWO: With strong mental fortitude, these individuals will be expected to clean up the group of controlled individuals; not all will be able to be saved, and the ability to make that distinction is imperative for this role. Those who appear too far gone will not be able to regain their senses. They will need to be killed.
✖ GROUP THREE: This group will be concentrated on being able to property evacuate the citizens that remain in the city of Las Vegas. Preferably those who are quick on their feet, or are able to stealthily circumvent the dangers in the city in order to get the people to safety would be ideal for this role.
✖ GROUP FOUR: Those with support skills or a medical background will be expected to assist those in the other groups, whether by healing, additional abilities, or by assisting the other groups as needed.

Note: Roles can be decided by the characters themselves as to what they figure is appropriate and most fitted to their skill set. Everyone will eventually fight the worm (so this does not affect the fight mechanics of the worm itself) and people can also jump from one role to another.

▶ 004. LET'S WRAP UP.

The areas the worm has traversed leaves the ground above it weak and unsteady. Due in part to this, those who have evacuated will need to remain in the shelter until further notice. As a result, it’s up to the Outsiders to clean up the city. Aside from the large gaping hole in the center of the city that they can’t address immediately, they are first expected to get rid of the carcasses of the larvae.

Each Outsider will be provided with a suit and will even be given hover packs to scale down the side of these large holes. They will also be given traditional ropes and lines for those who want to get creative with scaling, or who simply didn’t make it there quickly enough to grab a hover pack (with the destruction to the city, some supplies are still in transit). They will be expected to review each carcass and tag which ones can be sent to the lab for further review, and which should simply be discarded as being unusable.

A coordinated effort is needed to adequately dispose of the largest kaiju. The alitta virens will need to be cut into several thousands of pieces, and so work needs to begin immediately. It’s not like the people can return to everyday life with a giant serpent-like entity laying on top of their city. Outsiders should be particularly cautious with it; even when dead, as it still seems to have strange tendrils inside of its body that appear to be writhing even after its death.

▶ 005. AFTERWORD.

Welcome to our third kaiju log!
Feel free to NPC your characters' fights with the smaller kaijus. The main fight with the largest one will be determined via a HP-based system (See below). Feel free to ask any other questions below!

All tags on this log are worth 2 points.

EVENT BREAKDOWN (CLICK TO EXPAND)

1. POSITIVE THINKING: LILITH has updated everyone's implants and encourage them to think of their happiest thoughts to give the technology the mental boost they need. Some characters may feel high or giddy and want to express their happy memories to someone else.

2. BREACH OF THE CITY: The worm larvae have a parasitic nature and are taking over the bodies of civilians. Outsiders are tasks to seek out those affected, killing worm larvae or civilians with parasites who are beyond help.

3. WORM ON THE MIND: The largest worm breaks through the ground in the heart of the city and Outsiders are encouraged to attack within their arranged group.

4. LET'S WRAP UP: After the sandworm monster is killed, Outsiders will be tasked with clean up efforts.

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Comments

[the_fourteenth]

[Raidou really expected him to go, but in this moment now, with Katsuki's hand stretched out towards him, he knows that was a foolish thing to think.

Those words hit home, and there are some emotions he's only holding back on expressing on his face as he looks at that hand. Briefly, his eyes flick back to the approaching group. He can't keep wasting time. Katsuki should really go.

But he can't turn down that offer, either.

With a solitary, strong nod, he finally releases his grip on the steering wheel and grabs Katsuki's hand, so he can be pulled quickly from the vehicle. No sooner is he out that he's drawing his sword.]

[blastedass]

[He could have gone. He knows his strength and he knows the kind of gap between his and Raidou's. And yet, a boy with green hair and eyes with no strength or skills at all, was the only one who charged forward as every person and hero stood still, to rescue a proud, explosive young man caught up in the tendrils of a villain. I want to be a hero.

Who is he to stand in the way of Raidou's heart? They both know there's a risk here. Raidou might have convinced himself it's safer to stay back. But Katsuki's not convinced. There are still things the summoner can do. They've fought together before. They can do it again here and now.

Raidou takes his hand and Katsuki pulls him out of the vehicle. He makes sure the summoner's got the keys with him before kicking the door shut (don't want any weirdos getting in there and trying to run them down). The sound of metal drawing from sheath is always going to be cool.]

Watch my back. I'll watch yours.

[Before heading forwards towards the approaching group, locking his bracer in place with a solid ka-chunk!]

[the_fourteenth]

[Raidou doesn't have fear of any enemy, and if he was out here alone, wouldn't hesitate to approach the shambling groups of mind-controlled victims. It's the idea of his failures causing others to get hurt that he can't shake.

It makes him want to push himself even harder, when doing such a thing is what gets him in trouble in the first place. He's used to throwing himself in front of all danger without a second thought. Now that there are second thoughts, it's changed everything.

But is his inaction saving himself from harm preventing others from getting hurt on his behalf, or causing them to work more without his presence? Raidou can't tell, not yet.

Time to test it.]

Right. I won't slow you down.

[A lot of the victims of the worms haven't been infected yet, though it's hard to tell one way or another. Still, deadly force is not what he's going for, and so he flips his sword in his hand to the other side. He dashes towards the group, intending to use the flat of the blade to subdue them.]

[blastedass]

[Katsuki has much the same thoughts with Raidou. Despite the way he snarls at his friends for being willing to sacrifice themselves so others don't have to, he's a complete hypocrite in action, hating the idea that his weakness or mistakes could lead to problems or dangers for other people. He'd take all of these on by himself if he thought it would save more lives.

But it won't. This is a team effort and he refuses to hamstring himself over that. Raidou's hesitation says a lot about the mental state the guy's enduring right now. It's not going to help end the threat. In the end, they're damned if they do and damned if they don't. Protecting someone else always risks yourself... and sometimes even the person you want to protect.

Heroes are insane people too.]

I'll hold you to that. [Raidou's never slowed him down when they fought together. Katsuki rockets in alongside him and crashes another explosion into the group, sending the first wave flying. He sticks near Raidou, aiming to knock out their opponents with the same strikes as before, bouncing from one to the next. The quicker they lay everyone out, the quicker they can start inspecting them.] Go for their clothes too if you can!

[That'll make it easier to tell who's gone and who's in the process of going.]

[the_fourteenth]

[It's a wonder Raidou could ever have doubted himself, with how he immediately charges ahead without a second thought. Those thoughts will continue to haunt him, but he has to put them aside for now. There are people here who need him.

These foes aren't even particularly difficult to deal with. Shambling zombies hungry for meat, the only advantage they have is their number. But they're not clever or have difficult abilities to defend against, just tenacious voraciousness. The only tricky part is dispatching them without killing them. He also has a perfect weapon to deal with the clothes, a precise enough swordsman that cutting away shirts and jackets would be no problem for him. He can dash ahead and take care of that while Katsuki came follow through with whatever needs to be done with the unfortunate victims.]

[blastedass]

[One way to combat doubt... is to prove how unfounded they are. Katsuki knows it's not a battle won in one moment. But the more evidence of Raidou's strength and ability he can cram against those self-doubts, he will. Shut up those thoughts until they're easier to ignore, or counter with proof.

It's not a kaiju they're dealing with here. The aggressive zombie things aren't hard to dispatch. Katsuki's an expert in taking down enemies without killing them, despite the explosions going off everywhere. He uses them to keep distance, evade, and reposition himself for more knockouts. If he spots a worm on someone, one harsh explosion takes care of it, albeit those people are going to need some medical treatment to deal with the puncture wound and light burns as price for freedom.

He kicks another aside, then aims his hand, cups the other in front of his palm, and fires a concentrated explosive beam, sniping it past Raidou's shoulder to crash into another pair of civilians. The summoner can put down the last three.]

[the_fourteenth]

[Raidou can trust Katsuki enough that he doesn't have to worry about getting caught up in the explosions. He can stick to his own path and stay out of the way.

The closest any of them get to him is one of them making a grab for his shoulder while he's looking the other way. He responds with elbowing them hard to the gut, turning forward to hit the other approaching one with the flat of his sword, before turning back to the other to hit them over the back similarly. They go down, and now all are on the ground and accounted for.

He quickly sheathes his sword, and turns to his friend.]

I'll bring the car here. There are already so many here we need to get back.

[Or maybe Katsuki wants to take the wheel this time.]

[blastedass]

[Watching Raidou fight is akin to a masterful samurai slashing and cutting down his foes in swift perfect motions, making the close-range combat additions of elbow strikes and smart raps with the sword come across as a master dealing with worthless rabble. Sometimes he wonders if Raidou ever uses his scabbard to fight. That's a common trope in samurai movies...

Once the final pests are done, Katsuki takes over removing any more of the worms, bouncing from one person to the next atop a flurry of explosions that jerk downward in telltale places he needs to fry a parasite. Thankfully these things aren't as fast as those fucking wasps from the simulation. He clears the last one and walks out of the smoke while Raidou sheathes his blade.]

Aa. I'll make sure nothing comes after this group. [Nope, Raidou's driving this time. Besides, he's a hell of a lot better when he's going slow, so Katsuki doesn't doubt him with that. But there's no way they're going to get all of these people into the car...]

[the_fourteenth]

[It's always pretty amazing to Raidou how precise Katsuki can be with his powers. The crowd is dispatched in a matter of seconds between the two of them.

Raidou nods, and his eyes flash gold for a moment as he pulls up a call to the other Outsiders nearby.]

I'll bring it around. I'm calling for another car to come by. Make sure those that are infected are... stable.

[Both of them know what it comes to if it's too late. Quick as ever, Raidou dashes back towards the car and will bring it around. That will give Katsuki time to look the victims over.]

[blastedass]

[It's not just his powers that can be precise; Raidou's gone through the lot of them without leaving limbs and blood all over the place. Katsuki glances to the side when another loud crash is heard. Shattering glass, voices yelling, then the noise of battle. Sounds like other Outsiders are taking that group...]

All right. They're need a trailer if they want to get everyone. [Just something to comment on before he crouches beside another of the victims. Quickly inspecting for an entry wound proves this guy's clean, then off to the next one. The third one in earns a harsh snap of his explosions. Hopefully the ones that are too late won't be many.]

[the_fourteenth]

[Raidou brings the van around quickly, and hops out to rejoin Katsuki. He was really hoping to see no other action would need to be taken, but it seems some of the victims were not so lucky. He regards Katuski's work with a grim look, hand on his sword in case he's needed to help.]

They should be here shortly. We can wait until they arrive to start moving them.

... Do you want me to take over?

[It's bleak work. Katsuki shouldn't have to take the burden.]

[blastedass]

[It's not easy. He's seen death before, but his life's been blessed to have not seen it anywhere near often. The first time he ever had a death of someone he knew was Midnight-sensei. Others in the war had fallen, but they were names and faces, some heroes he knew factually... Innocent civilians, however... Katsuki focuses on those who can be saved so the number of those who can't are as low as possible. He works fast, efficiently, and determined. Sorrow and frustration are only distractions right now.

He looks over to Raidou when the other boy returns.]

Aa. I've gone through everyone in this direction. [Raidou can help him with this. No resistance to it.]

[the_fourteenth]

Alright. Start taking them to the vans. I will check the rest.

[There are only about a half dozen left to check. It's hard to say if only one of the six being infected is lucky or unlucky, but Raidou doesn't want to think about it too hard. The body writhes and undulates unnaturally as he approaches it, and that's all the sign that's needed that the worm inside has grown too large and taken over. His sword makes short work of both the body and the worm. Both, to be on the safe side.

Once done, he'll join Katsuki in getting everyone safely loaded as the other van arrives.

He says nothing as they work. Their other two missions had blessedly low body counts. This time it much different.]

[blastedass]

[It says something to their relationship that Raidou doesn't get yelled at for giving Katsuki an order. He picks up two of the less injured people, one thrown over his strong shoulder and the other hiked under his arm, then heads towards the van. His free arm (with a tilt of his body to make sure Extra A stays on his shoulder) pops open the back of the van. Gonna put the back seat down flat, then sling Extra A off his shoulder, catch her in his arm, and put her in the van with a few careful nudges and shifts. Extra B follows, laid out on the dropped seat and van rear. It looks like a really morbid slumber party... or a nap.

He's on his way to get two more when meeting Raidou. The look on the summoner's face tells him they lost one. It was a good hope, but reality's not kind. But it's their duty to save the five they can. It matters to those five.]

Whenever the leader of these shitslugs shows up, I'm gonna blow it to smithereens.

[the_fourteenth]

[Raidou only nods, as he leans down to gingerly scoop up one of the unconscious in his arms. The one they lost has a simple slash to the neck to take care of the problem. Had to be sure any other worms can't get access to the brain.

Raidou gives Katsuki a dark look with a nod, as he heads towards the van.]

Give it a few extra for me.

[blastedass]

[Together, it's not hard to load the five into the van. Katsuki thinks about the sixth, but it's likely not a good idea to have five people, alive, and one of them wake up, already traumatized from the attack, to find a corpse lying with them.

Besides, without knowing everything about the worms, they can't risk the damn thing somehow emerging from the dead if it randomly comes back to life. IF... but not risking it.

He accepts that dark look, dipping his head in agreement.]

I'll give it hell for you.

[Want him to bring you back a souvenir?]