We Are Our Avatars XI (Open)

[Kirke]

Hotel entrance - March 4th, Midnight​

Ella slashed a few more times to make aiming easier, then she holstered her sword and backed off into the doorway. She raised her rifle and fired at the giant bear, over the heads of most zombies. She fired again, as soon as the weapon allowed. One bolt might kill a giant bear, but Ella would not accept 'maybe' now.
[hr]

Totten Pond Road, Waltham, Massachusetts. Afternoon. March 4th​

"Pleased to meet you, I'm Carl Haussman." - Haussman said, before continuing; "Well... We don't need to worry about anything coming through, it is a rift in the space-time but it doesn't lead anywhere. It's low-energy, for now at least since it is also very unstable. We aren't in any immediate danger, and it is possible that it can dissipate on it's own. It is also possible that it'll get more dangerous." He sighed, and turned the scanner off. "It's a tricky one, for sure. With the anomaly going on, accurate predictions are hard to come by."

 

[Furioso]

March 4th, Late Morning.

Responding to Candace and Kuki, Raz agreed to follow them.

Midnight

On hearing the commotion, Raz headed down to where Ella was. He was a little slow to wake up, so he had arrived a little late, pulling his goggles over his eyes as he arrived. "Zombies? No way!" he shouted on seeing the scene. He attempted to help Ella out by holding one hand to the side of his head, and focusing his aggressive emotions into psychic laser beams which came from his forehead. Zombies were not a foreign concept to Raz, he aimed for their heads.

 

[Vakra jal]

The Dalahar thing bellows when it sees the bear. Good. Something bigger to test the limits its power. Still emitting a high pitched scream he charged, falling on all fours as he did so. His hooves split the pavement while his claws dug great furrows into the ground. His movement in this form appeared highly unnatural, as he twitched and spasmed uncontrollably. Any zombies he came into contact with are broken my his charging frame,'gored or mauled by his horned head. As he neared the bear his inearthly bellow become lower in tone as he rose up onto two for the final part of the charge.

 

[Silence]

Montreal, Quebec, Canada. March 4th, 2025
- Streets of Montreal -
Around Midnight​

Zombies walked through the breakfast room, and slowly came into the lobby from behind Ella and Raz. They had not reached them yet, but were close. Before them, the bodies of zombies fell on the ground, defeated by Raz.

The bear roared as it was shot, and roared again as it was cornered by the demon and another shot. It slashed out violently, trying to get any kind of damage on Dalahar, but it was dying.

"Ouch." Black said, as his armoured hand started to melt. He stretched out his other hand to Nina and channeled the other spell, the one leeching life energy and bringing it to him. At the same time, the green soil under his feet seemed to move, bringing him farther away from Nina.

Nina was able to free herself from the tendrils. This, however, led to trees growing rapidly all around her, like before, making passing and visibility nearly impossible.
"The forest protects their own." was heard, as all around the jungle began glowing.

 

[Vakra jal]

The demonic growths and protrusions from the Dalahar thing made him tougher than any astartes. He and his brother Gal Vorbak were the image that Lorgar had foreseen as the future of mankind. Fused with crestures of the warp. In this state it was Kyrys who dictated most actions but Dalahars mortal mind could strategise and plan, tempering eldritch fury with the greatest of mortal discipline. Unlike his other incidents he was working together with his demonic side, making him all the more dangerous.

He leapt at the bear. His momentum and bulk sending him crashing head long into the animal, teeth gnashing and claws swiping as he did. If the bear was the same size or much bigger than him he would crash into it, attempting to shift the great beast with his own size and power. If it was of average or normal size for bears in the natural world it wouldn't have much of a chance against him.

The Dalahar thing, despite the ordered presence of Dalahar, could still not think far enough ahead out of the immediate situation. He could not think on how gruesome and deformed he had become, how he now appeared. How those he had known perceived him. How Ella was right to be worried, how the diligence of XPOL was justified. In another situation it might not have been a crowd of zombies he rampaged through but a crowd of people, ordinary citizens who presented even less of a threat than the zombies.

 

[Kirke]

Hotel entrance - March 4th, Midnight​

Ella turned around when she heard the shambling zombies coming in from the breakfast room. "Raz, keep the front door clear." - She said before firing at the closest zombie. She then drew her sword and started slashing her way through them.

 

[Silence]

The bear was about the same size as Dalahar, so he would crash into it. He was able to throw the bear on its side, as it was already deadly wounded. It clawed blindly after Dalahar, about to die.

Ella would be able to carve her path through the zombies into the breakfast room, as they reinforced only slowly.

The bear and all jungle began glowing more brightly, and seemed to shift, receding into one direction, to the building Black and Green were on.

 

[Chungus]

Totten Pond Road, Waltham, Massachusetts. Afternoon. March 4th​

"Do you think these things have anything to do with what's going on at our northern neighbours?" Ellis asked.

"And can we do anything to get rid of these things?" Witmann chimed in.
[hr]

Hotel room, Pointe Saint-Charles, Montreal. Midnight. March 5th.​

"What?!"

Kuki exclaimed at Candace's explanation. Hastily beginning to put their collar on, they asked,

"Who? Why?!"

 

[Furioso]

March 4th, Midnight
"Got it!" said Raz to Ella, as he continued to attempt to hit any zombies getting close to Ella. When Zombies started to shamble up from behind them, Raz quickly tossed a psychic yellow grenade into their midst. Instead of exploding, the grenade released a gas cloud. If successful, the zombies caught in the cloud would see other zombies as Raz.

 

[Vakra jal]

The Dalahar thing brushes off the attack of the dying animal and tries to sieze the crestures throat with its claws, aiming to rip its tbroat out.

 

[Silence]

The zombies were quite stupid and start to claw at each other, but at Ella as well. It made things easier for her, so Ella would be fast to fight her way into the breakfast room.

The bear, already dying and even 'dissolving', had no chance against Dalahar, and just died.

There were still a lot of zombies around, clawing at Dalahar mostly. They clumped and piled up at the hotel building, making an unstable way to go upwards.

 

[Vakra jal]

With a snarl the Dalahar thing released the Bears throat and it fell to the ground. Dissatisfied with the resistance the bear offered he looked around for the sources of this all. It seemed so long ago when the battle started, he had a hard time remembering how it had started. Nothing really seemed important, like all he had ever done was this fight.

He knocked the zombies aside as he looked to scale the buildings. Clawing chunks of the building that Slla was as he did.
When he reached the top however the roof was not strong enough to support his weight and it buckled and collapsed, The Dalahar thing screeching as it plummeted a floor, then another. It crashes down in front of Ella.

 

[ShindoL Shill]

Montreal Streets, Around Midnight

The car Yauna had commandeered approached the hotel, the driver plowing through zombies with no regard for their well-being. When the car was in the midst of the zombie crowd, Yauna climbed out and stood on top of the vehicle, chanting rapidly. A series of dark tendrils exploded out around her, stretching out three metres in all directions and striking all the zombies. Rather than cause physical damage, however, the tendrils would cause rapid necrosis and potentially stun the zombies, in addition to making their rotting bodies weaker.

 

[Kirke]

Ella backed away slowly as she heard something crashing down, and jumped back as Dalahar fell down in front of her. She cussed and coughed - the air was thick with dust. She closed the door behind her and looked up at Dalahar. "Dalahar, is that you?" - She asked, feeling worried. In the same moment, a voice in her ear asked if she was alright, and that they'd seen something big crash down.
[hr]
There was now a great roar of engines as the Skyranger circled the scene. It decided, finally, on setting the troopers down on the rooftop opposite the hotel. "Ready vibroblades! We're going in hot!" - The lieutenant called over the noise, and then the six rappelled down to the rooftop. As soon as they landed, they began to cut at the plant growth to clear an area. Four of them had swords like Ella, the other two had knives of the same make.

 

[Furioso]

Raz continued to try and push back the zombies.

 

[Silence]

Montreal, Quebec, Canada. March 4th, 2025
- Streets of Montreal -
Around Midnight​

With Raz protecting them, Ella and Dalahar had some room to breath, even though the mass of zombies focused on Dalahar were still focused on Dalahar, and were moving towards the hotel now, with no distraction sending them elsewhere. Raz would be able to hold a standstill for now, even though there was a greater mass attacking the hotel than before. On the streets, however, no new ones came after them, and they started to clear up, quickly. Yauna helped a lot, corrupting a huge chunk of the zombies, stopping them in their tracks and making them too weak to move further.

The forest, still glowing, also receded, until it was only at the roofs of the buildings. The ETR-Squad was able to very slowly cut through it, and get forwards, but behind them, the forest grew back together.

Then they, and Nina, felt shaking. They were lifted off the earth, while the forest rose as one, single, being, with the ETR-Squad, Black and Nina trapped in the branches of its legs.

A giant of plants and trees slowly became visible for onlookers, as the forest stepped off the building, and stood, taller than any building, about the size of a high-rise-building.

"Nature takes back what is its own." Greens voice was heard. The branches and tree trunks of the creature were the thickest around its chest and 'heart' area, while arms, legs, and heads looked like tree tops or roots, respectively.

 

[ShindoL Shill]

Montreal Streets, Around Midnight

Yauna stared up at the moving forest in shock, but then shook her head and began chanting again. Four glowing red circles appeared on the roof of the car around her and began to rise up. As they rose up, trails of fire followed behind them, guided by Yauna raising her hands. Once her arms were fully extended, the cylinders of flame, a few centimeters in diameter floated in the air around Yauna.
Yauna then pointed at the giant tree monster, sending all four rods of flame at it.

 

[Furioso]

Raz stopped firing the laser beams, and ran closer to the nearest grouping of zombies. Staying out of their reach, Raz started to swing his fists in punching and karate chopping motions. He wasn't nearly close enough to hit them, but he didn't need to. A giant orange hand, bigger than he was, appeared in front of him, mimicking his strikes.

 

[Kirke]

Outside the hotel​

The lieutenant coughed and then asked, "What the hell just happened? Skyranger, what do you see?" Above, the pilot stared in disbelief before replying; "The damn forest turned into a giant! Echo One, where are you?" "We're trapped in some tree branches... We must be inside the giant!" The heavy weapons trooper grumbled; "Permission to open fire, boss?" The lieutenant nodded his head; "Permission granted! Masks on, everyone! We're burning our way out!" The troopers hastily donned gas-masks and the sniper, who didn't wear a helmet, pulled up a thick hood to protect her head. The three with energy weapons then opened fire, a green laser beam and the lieutenant's blaster rifle outgunned by the rapid-fire blaster cannon. It fired thrice in the same time that the rifle fired once, incinerating wood and leafs. "Hawkings, Tariq, Park! Cut us a way downwards, we need to move!" The three nodded, and using their HF-swords they began making a path down towards the ground.

 

[Drakmorg]

Bleh