lostcarnival | ⇨ DANGEROUS ENCOUNTERS

With the help of Tyki and Gongenzaka, Susan will manage to get free of the vines, allowing Lauren to carry him away from the combat. The creature attached to the whip will be pulled off the vines and land on its face. Papyrus will manage to knock out the creature that was previously scorched by flames, but the others will not go down so easily.

However, as the ground begins to shake, it may become clear that the creatures don't need to succeed. They only need to buy time.

Cracks begin to form across the stone floor, centralized at a point in the middle of the room. It's now that the creatures start to get excited. Even more than before, they will throw themselves at the group, as if trying to force them back from the door and towards the hole forming in the floor. The stone begins to go soft, shattering into such fine pieces that it runs like soil.

Lion roars a sonic boom in the direction of the rose creatures, but his intentions are already shifting. Mostly because, as the floor begins to break and shift, Steven's face has gone pale with fear.

"W-We..." he tries, but his voice gets caught in his throat. "Y-You guys need to get out of here! That's her! She's coming."

Except, Lion doesn't take that the way that Steven intended. Instead of combining forces with the other people that need to flee, Lion turns from the group and begins to dash away, creating another portal. It only takes a moment for Steven to realize what he's doing.

"LION, NO!" Steven yells, but it's too late. Lion disappears through the portal, and takes all his riders with him.

Joker doesn't think twice as the ground shakes beneath him.

All he does is wrap his arms fully around Susan and bend his knees before launching into the air, wings flapping violently to propel him upwards. It's only with his feet off the floor, joining feathers in the air, does he start to yell out orders.

"Lauren, back, now! Tyki, grab him!" Which leaves- shit, Gongenzaka is far too large to be carried, and Lion is already out of the place. There's only one thing for it.

"Feathers, Leaf again!" He lowers his voice a little, although still loud, with his next orders. "Susan, fire again! We need a path for Zaka!"

Feathers is already unleashing another storm of leaves towards the creatures and their vines, trying to get them out.

"MNH-!? Yuuya-!" Gongenzaka admittedly has a bit of a bias when it comes to the group suddenly rushing away- not to say he isn't quick to turn and reach for where the entire group went. "Steven! Miss Hinawa..!" Such distraction can only last for a moment- it does not take long to realize that the ground beneath his paws and hooves is rather suddenly growing soft, and as he glances down he yelps- somewhat comically jumping back.

"S-Shoot..!" It's trickier to re-find grip on dirt, but if he just thinks of it as sand it's easy enough to start turning around to try and regroup with the others. Steven and Yuuya should be back at the trailers, he wants to think. It's fine. It's...

He tries not to think about the fact that Sans himself was having trouble- after all, Lion vanished in a portal just now, but...

Focus, he reminds himself, galloping awkwardly in the same way he would along a typical dirt path. He growls at the creatures throwing themselves their way, bodily shaking off what manages to actually reach him, and attempting to use his vines to keep them off the others until they're safely out of reach from the plants. Yuuya will be fine. Steven, Hinawa, Lion, will be fine.

...

They'll be fine.

When Joker grabs him and pulls him into the air, Susan is surprised at first, but after a moment he flaps his own wings before trying to squirm away.

"I can fly too! I just, can't carry anyone." Which sucks, but whatever. It's what happens when you're small he guesses.

He keeps an eye on Lauren from the air, so he can be careful not to hit him with his fire, and once he's sure his brother is out of the way he throws more fire at the vines, a stronger attack this time, and for the first time in his life he can't help but wish his magic would go out of control and bring even more fire exploding down on them.

Well fuck. Everything always escalates so quickly and he's obeying instantly with his hand outreaching towards Lauren. He snatches him up with one hand, not caring how much fur he has to grab even if it is in handfuls. Lions have scruffs and he reaches out to grab whatever he has to in order to pull him up with him.

His Power to Choose activates as he chooses not to touch the air beneath his feet. He pulls himself upwards along with his passenger, high above the ground with a startled expression. It evens out, reminding himself to remain calm and his eyes focus on the ground beneath him.

"Jump to me or grab onto me!" he commands towards Gon, his other hand outstretched, "I can carry you if you reach." It's self serving more than self preserving. He'll rely on Gon to reach him if he wants to save his own skin and also to dispatch his own roses clinging to him.

Finally, the shifting of earth stops. From the center of the room, she emerges, like a hideously angry flower. Dual sabers cut through the dirt, allowing her to come from beneath - she looks much the same as before, except somehow palette swapped. Her hair has gone white instead of red, and instead of a simple white stress, she is wearing black armor with elegant white dressings.

Her eyes are rose red as she sets her sights on them. The first step she takes from the earth causes an explosion of plant life, vines and grass growing so rapidly as to cover the ground. Dozens of roses go into bloom as quickly as you can take a breath.

She's looking for something, something she doesn't see. It angers her.

"Surrender to me, beast-kin" she demands, pointing one of her cruel looking sabers in their direction.

Susan doesn't really know who she is, other than a bad guy, but that doesn't stop him from giving her a disapproving look at her demand.

"Why would we do that? That's stupid."

Lauren roars in anger at the suggestion they surrender, before shifting back to his usual form. Now that they have a real target he can do much more damage like this. Gesturing with his hands he casts a spell and suddenly the earth at the fae's feet erupts around her. And if that doesn't work he's happy to try something else.

Jump, or grab. He nods, and though he moves as if to consider jumping, doesn't do the first at all- no, he remembers rather quickly how pathetic a 'hop' that tends to create, if he hasn't got a running start. But he has his vines after all-and if Tyki thinks that grabbing will do it, then-

His vines falter, as the shifting earth ceases to bring forth the Queen herself. The sudden burst of growth throws him off-perhaps not physically, but rather mentally, and he cannot help but feel a tremor of dread.

Despite that dread, he manages to pull within himself an ounce of courage for one reason, and one only- this is the one who is trying to find Steven- the one who will no doubt cut through everyone else in the room if she must.

Therefore, he instead straightens himself as best he can. His leaves and flowers rustling, his body tense- "...To surrender to you now, would be entirely unforgivable to myself..!" he instead shouts, hoping to take her attention for at least a moment. He swore he saw the fire do something, earlier-if it was at least enough for Some to escape, well...

He stares defiantly, and does his best not to move an inch. (It might be hard, what with all the plants that are growing after all.)

This, Joker thinks, is the problem with kids. Kids have no sense of self control, or common sense, or tactics. No, kids see a powerful fae queen and, instead of taking a second to assess the situation, attack her.

This is why the carnival should stop accepting children. He thinks he might bring that up with the Ringmaster, assuming he survives this encounter.

But even if he can't survive, he can at least try to ensure that someone else incredibly stupid does. It's with that thought that he flaps up closer to Susan again and, without any regards for his wings, grabs the boy by the shirt. It's not easy to fling a child through the air, especially one with wings, and it takes one hell of a twist-

But Susan, he is throwing the shit out of you towards that new hole.

"Feathers!" he calls out to the bird, although there's hardly any need. Feathers is diving of his own accord towards the hole, trying to peck through it with his beak. Maybe this time, hopefully, it'll work to at least widen it in its already damaged state.

And in the meantime... Flapping to regain his balance and face the Rose Queen again, he gives a grin that has a tinge of wariness. "Children can be so troublesome, can't they, my fair lady?"

Wow, Joker, rude. Susan is of course not strong enough at all to avoid being grabbed or thrown, and not an expert with his new wings yet, but he has flown a lot before in other forms, and so he manages to right himself - although not before going through the hole. But now there's an owl in the way of going back, and so even though of course he has to get back (his brother is still in there, Joker!), for now he'll just launch more fire at the hole, but from this side.

Most of their objections are nothing but noise to her - the mewling of prey being hunted. She slowly walks in the groups direction, her sabers at each side. Each footstep brings another eruption of plant life, and it isn't long until her roses are already spiraling up towards the ceiling, their petals glowing softly.

Her eyes settle on Joker, hearing him mostly because he's the only one to speak to her with any respect. Her eyes are as piercing as the thorns she grows so liberally.

"Come to me," she says, obviously indicating Joker. "I will have you answer my questions."

Edited 2018-05-15 02:42 (UTC)

He shares that semblance with Joker. Children shouldn't be allowed in the carnival if only for the sheer maturity. The only problem with that is that Lauren wasn't exactly a kid and yet he was still acting just as irresponsibly. He stares with a level of annoyance, his left ear flicking at the sight of both of these kids outright attacking someone of a high level of power and respectability, "Most troublesome indeed."

He doesn't throw Lauren like Susan was thrown but it doesn't stop him from shoving to the side with his power and dropping him near the vines without warning next to his brother. He steps quickly back towards Joker and looks down at Gon. It would be better if the could remain with the other fight.

He's putting on his smile of grace, one he uses around a Baroness or someone he has to impress for the family. He'll even flick his cigarette out of his mouth and extinguish it before it is cast aside. His eyes shift from the Rose Queen and Joker.

Don't you dare, Joker.

Wonderful. This is what he gets for being in charge. Still, Joker won't say 'no'. It's not an option for them... Not with vines overtaking even the ceiling he's been trying to flee to.

Only able to bow because of his unique flexibility, Joker does so in midair... and makes sure to turn his head just enough to peer out to Tyki from underneath his hood. Watch them he tries to mouth to the other man before he rises up. "It would be an honor," he says smoothly, smile a little more self assured, a little more charming. At least, he certainly hopes it is... and he hopes the other's will have his back while he stalls for time. That's all this is.

He won't touch the ground, however. He'll just flap a little closer, trying to stay airborn best he can while Feathers works on their only real escape route. "How might I be of service to you?"

She sticks one of her sabers into the earth, so that she can put out her hand, as a lady would when offering it to be kissed by a gentleman. Her words, however, are more cold than courteous.

"You will offer yourself to me. Then, you will take me to the Rose."

She looks up from Joker's face, to the others. That's right, she knows you're there too - including you, bird creature at the vines.

"The rest will do the same."

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