Magical Lotus - Mahou Shoujou Byakuren - Episode 4, Part 4

[Oldmansour]

>Let's get to the air quickly and get over that lightning ring. Shield ourselves if we don't think we'll be able to make it in time
>Then see if a Violet Lotus at the cloud of poison itself can purify it

>The lightning ring doesn't leave you a great deal of time to mount your blue flying disc and get into the air, only just enough. Your feet tingle as the electricity misses you by but a few inches. Kiku, who had been flanking you, takes the lower road, flattening herself out and letting the lightning pass over her, making an awful lot of hair stand on end.
>You return fire with Violet Light, targeting the toxic cloud billowing out from the flaming biker. The purple light suffuses the cloud and dissipates it into clean, harmless air. And is has a bonus effect as well, as your light travels down through the cloud and strikes Motormaster, making the biker visibly flinch. The flames on the biker's body, however, do not go out, and poisonous smoke begins to waft up from the flames again as your light passes.

>You hear Rin start to encant her flame attack, but Kiku announces, Rin, no! You'll just make the flames on his body stronger.
>I got this. Reisen says in your minds as she says aloud, "Saber: Water Brand!"
>As Poppy's blade starts to glow a liquid blue, Motormaster collects himself. "Shadows..." the biker mutters, before blasting out at you with a jagged beam of black energy. The blast strikes you in the stomach and knocks you off of your disc, down to the ground. But you note as you fall that the beam jumps from you in a chain, down to the ground to strike Kiku on her back.

[DracoOmega]

>Damage assessment, both us and anyone else affected
>If we're at least alright and don't see any other issues that need immediate attention, return fire with a Scarlet Lotus

[Oldmansour]

>Damage assessment, both us and anyone else affected
>If we're at least alright and don't see any other issues that need immediate attention, return fire with a Scarlet Lotus

>If this were an RPG, that blast would have taken off a noticable chunk of your hit points. Your stomach and hips are wracked with pain, as is your upper back from the fall to the ground. Not enough snow to provide adequate cover. In truth, you'd much prefer to lie here for a minute until the aching goes away, but nothing is broken or rendered immobile, so you haul yourself back to a leaning up position. Kiku appears to be in much the same position as you, though she seems to be shaking off the effects a bit more quickly than you. Either the blast was weaker when it hit her, or the fact that she didn't fall to the ground meant she took less damage than you. In fact, she's already back to her feet.

>With you and Kiku dealt with, Motormaster turns their attention to their two airborne enemies. The biker raises his sword again and a pair of lightning beams lash out at Lily and Rin. The electric beam strikes Lily's leaf shield, but instead of charging the shield like attacks normally do, the attack makes Lily's shield explode, and the blonde is knocked from the sky by the force of the impact. White Rose fares no better. She kicks up her flying disc to block the attack, but this offers her even less protection than Lily had, the disc shattering like glass, allowing some of the lightning to penetrate to strike White Rose. Sparks dance over her torso as she falls to the ground.
>Poppy, the only one standing, charges as Motormaster attacks the other two, pointing her sword at the biker and firing a power beam from her sword. Unlike the last time she used that beam, this one appears charged with the watery element of her sword, and the beam strikes Motormaster in his chest, driving him back a step and extinguishing the flames that had been producing that toxic smoke and poisonous embers. But the biker's body reacts to the watery power in a similar manner to the flames you hit him with, and blackish-purple ooze starts to seep from Motormaster's body, coating his limbs and torso like a sickly second skin.
>Poppy doesn't arrest her charge when she sees this, but she does snap her sword out to the side, dismissing the watery enchantment upon it. "We choke the rivers and spoil the streams." the corrupt biker hisses, hurling a blob of toxic slime at Reisen. But his distraction allows you an opportunity, and you make the most of it by unleashing your Scarlet light upon Motormaster. The biker snarls as he eats your red and white bursts of power, and rather than dodging or blocking, he decides to return fire. Motormaster's sword flashes, and a stream of U-shaped electric waves slash out from his sword, at various orientations, stream in towards you.

[DracoOmega]

>Scramble out of the way, throwing up a barrier if needed
>Can we gauge whether Crimson or Violet Lotus seemed to phase it more?

[Oldmansour]

>Can we gauge whether Crimson or Violet Lotus seemed to phase it more?

>Difficult to say. Motormaster's physical reaction was stronger to your Violet light than Scarlet despite the fact that it wasn't aimed directly at him. On the other hand, the first time you hit him with your Violet light, it didn't seem to affect him at all until you supercharged it with Rin and Lily, which makes you think Scarlet might be the better option. At this point, it's something of a toss-up.

>Scramble out of the way, throwing up a barrier if needed

>In your prone position, your evasive ability is somewhat compromised, so you throw up a basic blue light shield as you roll out of the way at the best speed you can. Your shield only manages to block one of those blades before shattering, but that's not so bad, as that one was one of the two that had the best chance of hitting you. The other one, the fourth blade, manages to catch you on your left arm before you can get completely out of its way. The lightning cutter slashes through the flesh of your forearm, leaving the skin around the wound numbed while the wound itself screams.

[DracoOmega]

>We can scream later. We need to get ourselves back on our feet.
>Let's try to move towards where Rin is and toss out another Scarlet Lotus as we move - even distracting fire is useful
>We need to coordinate our attacks

[Oldmansour]

>We can scream later. We need to get ourselves back on our feet.

>As you pull yourself back to your feet, you hear the sound of weapons clashing again. Reisen has gotten close to Motormaster again, and has locked swords with him again.  "We feel we know you." the biker says in that echoing voice of theirs. "You seem to be a Lunar Rabbit, and there is but one in this city. But you are not that one. Are you?"
>"You think I'd tell you if I was?" Poppy spits, then agilely sidesteps Motormaster's downward stroke and aims a slash of her own at the biker's ribs. Poppy's blade strikes Motormaster's body and penetrates the layer of ooze but fails to get through the armor Motormaster's leather has become. Even so, you see after she pulls her sword free that Reisen's blade still draws blood from the biker, a faint cut and a trickle of blood the only sign of a slash that, had her opponent been an ordinary human, would have cut them nearly in two.

>Let's try to move towards where Rin is and toss out another Scarlet Lotus as we move - even distracting fire is useful
>We need to coordinate our attacks

>Seeing Rin still struggling to get back to her feet, you make for her as quick as you can. Both you and Kiku seem to have the same idea about distracting the biker, as she roars and charges Motormaster as you fire off your Scarlet light once again. Your shot catches Motormaster in his unwounded side and makes him flinch, not much, but enough to give Poppy a chance to evade his slash and launch a counterstrike. Having learned that she can't cut through Motormaster's skin right now, she thrusts her sword forward at the biker's helmeted head. Motormaster jerks his head to the side, and Poppy's blade cuts through the helmet on the right side of his head. As the biker reels back, Kiku pounces, not directly at Motormaster, but over the biker's shoulder, avoiding contact with his poisonous second skin. As she does, she takes a swipe at his head as well, cutting into his helmet on the left side. Blood flies from both wounds.
>Like that? Rin asks groggily as she starts to pull herself up as you pull up above her. But the success of those strikes is short lived as Kiku screams. The claws she cut Motormaster with are smoking.
>"Is every part of you poisoned?" Reisen snarls as she enchants her blade again, this time with the Earth Brand.
>Her swing fails to connect, though, as Motormaster intercepts her strike and lashes out at her with his free hand, striking her across her armored chest with his fist. "No mere poison." the biker intones as Reisen goes flying back from him. "We are death given flesh."

[DracoOmega]

>Let's try to dowse the poison on Kiku's claws with a little Violet Lotus, if they're still smoking
>Do we think we could join our powers with Reisen so as to enchant her blade with our Violet light in a similar way to her other brands? At least for a short while? That armor of Motormaster's seemed to like that rather less than anything else she's thrown at it

[Oldmansour]

>Let's try to dowse the poison on Kiku's claws with a little Violet Lotus, if they're still smoking
>Do we think we could join our powers with Reisen so as to enchant her blade with our Violet light in a similar way to her other brands? At least for a short while? That armor of Motormaster's seemed to like that rather less than anything else she's thrown at it

>Motormaster is currently standing between you and Kiku.
>You believe so, yes. In fact, you might just be able to empower her sword with almost any of your Lights. But you'd either need to be standing next to Reisen, which you believe would have a longer duration, or have a clear shot at her sword, which might not be doable while she's in melee. Though as she is not, at present, in close with Motormaster, the option is available to you.

[DracoOmega]

>Reisen, hold up your sword!
>Take hold of Rin's hand and, twining our powers together like earlier, let's light up Reisen sword with Violet light.

[Oldmansour]

>Reisen, hold up your sword!
>Take hold of Rin's hand and, twining our powers together like earlier, let's light up Reisen sword with Violet light.

>Reisen hesitates for only a moment, before raising her sword over her head. "We'll see about that."
>Rin joins your power with yours, and you send your enhanced Violet to Reisen's sword. Rather than simply enchant her blade, though, your power leaps up the length of her sword, overriding her earth brand, and extends fully six feet, more than doubling the length of the weapon with your power.
>Unfortunately for you, Motormaster returns your beam with one of his own, and a massive column of lightning blasts from his sword at you and White Rose. Rin manages to put herself between you and the blast but neither one of you has the time to evade the massive lightning beam.
>The next thing you know, you're lying on the ground again, with someone lying on top of you. There's smoke rising from both of your bodies, and you can smell the odor of burnt flesh. That shot must have made you black out momentarily. Someone is crouching near you, calling you name. You think it's Lily, but it's hard to be sure. There's a dreadful ringing in your ears.

[DracoOmega]

>Try to pull ourselves back together

[Oldmansour]

>Try to pull ourselves back together

>Easier said than done. The pain wracking your body is incredible. You can feel you've been burned on your arms, shoulders and legs. If Rin hadn't taken-
>Oh, gods, Rin! That thought snaps your mind back to reality faster than a splash of cold water. The kasha is lying unconscious on top of you, face-down, and you're certain the burns on her body are even worse than yours.
>"Not so fast." Lily advises, her concerned voice only somewhat managing to pierce the ringing in your ears. "That was a bad hit you took."

[DracoOmega]

>How is the battle going? Can we tell?

[Oldmansour]

>How is the battle going? Can we tell?

>Reluctantly taking your eyes off Rin, you turn your attention back towards Motormaster and your comrades. You're in bad shape, but Motormaster is even even worse shape. The sight that meets your eyes when you look upon the biker is a gruesome one, as his entire left arm and a decent chunk of the left side of his torso is lying on the ground, having been cut away from his body. And yet, despite this, Motormaster is somehow still on his feet.
>Reisen and Kiku standing in front of and behind him respectively. Kiku has resumed her human form, and while her left hand shows what you'd describe as acid burns, but she and Reisen are in no worse shape than you left them. You can't have been out that long. If you had to guess, Reisen took advantage of Motormaster turning his power on you to attack with that Violet blade of her. Obviously it had serious impact.

[DracoOmega]

>Still, we can't let them do this alone
>Do we think we could use our power to heal our wounds more actively?
>If not, just try to at least get back to our feet. Be very, very gentle with our poor Rin....

[Oldmansour]

>Do we think we could use our power to heal our wounds more actively?

>While you have demonstrated the ability to heal in some forms before, it usually takes the form of removing corruption or reversing damage that is 'pure evil' type damage, for want of a better word, or some of the effects the Champions have demonstrated. This current damage came from raw electricity, and while its user was most definately evil, the lightning itself was not.

>But you do have an idea. You might not be able to heal yourself, but there might be something you can do for Rin. There's risk involved, but the thought is there, and you are certain it would work.
>Your power, like your heart, is selfless by nature. And the physical and emotional connection you share with Rin is uniquely profound. You could use your power to heal her wounds. By donating your energy to Rin, you could reverse the damage inflicted upon her by Motormaster. To use an analogy, it could be considered a kind of magical transfusion. It might work with Lily, and you're less sure about Reisen and Kiku, but it would most certainly work with Rin.
>The problem is the exchange rate. You're not sure how much energy you'd have to use to get her back to full health, but you do know it would be a LOT. You could easily pass out again, and for much longer, if you give too much.

[DracoOmega]

>As painful as it is to see her like this, we can't afford to do that while we're all still under threat by something which our power has been the most effective against. We need to end this as soon as we can, so that we can help her.
>Let's try to get back to our feet again.
>Is Reisen's blade still enchanted with our Violet light? Or was that expended in the attack or lost when we lost consciousness?

[Oldmansour]

>As painful as it is to see her like this, we can't afford to do that while we're all still under threat by something which our power has been the most effective against. We need to end this as soon as we can, so that we can help her.
>Let's try to get back to our feet again.
>Is Reisen's blade still enchanted with our Violet light? Or was that expended in the attack or lost when we lost consciousness?

>While you have formulated a new ability, present circumstances prevent you from utilizing it comfortably. So you reluctantly decide to, with Lily's help, move Rin gently off you and get back to your feet.
>The enchantment has worn off. Whether it was consumed in the attack (it WAS the shorter duration form you used) or faded when you blacked out is unclear.

>"Your killing days are over." says Reisen to the wounded biker, brandishing her sword before her. "You've gotten away with it for too long."
>You hear Motormaster's breath leave their body in an angry, hurt groan. There's no way they couldn't be hurt, not with everything you've done it them. But the biker is somehow still on his feet, and more worryingly, the wound in his torso is not bleeding. In fact, you can't see internal organs or veins at all. Just a blank black mass of something that might be flesh or it might be goo. "We have endured death. We have endured imprisonment. We have endured birth. We have endured life. We have endured killers. We have endured heroes. And we will endure you." The black mass bubbles like boiling water and expands, filling in the parts of the torso that Reisen had cut off, as well as growing a new limb.
>But there's something odd about that new growth, beyond the demonstration of the growth itself. The new growth is nearly devoid of the corruption of the splinter. It resembles nothing more than inert matter, with barely any trace of the black thorny lines you've come to associate with the splinter. It is almost as though Reisen's Violet blade didn't just cut away Motormaster's body parts, she cut away their corruption, at least a part of it.

[DracoOmega]

>Inert matter? Does it not look human, then?
>Have we got another enchantment in us, since that last one certainly seemed to leave a dent in it

[Oldmansour]

>Inert matter? Does it not look human, then?
>Have we got another enchantment in us, since that last one certainly seemed to leave a dent in it

>Not beneath the surface.
>Maybe in a moment or two. Reisen and Kiku both seem to have the situation in hand, at least for now. There doesn't seem to be an immediate need for you to jump back into the fray. Unless something changes, you should take the opportunity to get your wind back.

[DracoOmega]

>Then let's try to get our wind back

[Oldmansour]

>Then let's try to get our wind back

>"You sure you're okay?" Lily asks worriedly as you pull your fangs back in, leaving Motormaster to your comrades for a moment.

[DracoOmega]

>"I can't afford to not be okay."

[Oldmansour]

>"I can't afford to not be okay."

>Gently, Lily slips her hand into yours. "I figured you'd say that." she says with a smile. "But take your time. I'll keep you and Rin safe."

>"Endure THIS. Saber: Frost Brand!" Poppy enchants her sword again, pale white energy surrounding her blade, but Motormaster responds before she can take more than a step forward. The biker's visor flashes and a beam of purple energy blasts out at Poppy. The rabbit manages to get her sword up in line with the beam just in time, but the force of the blast stops Poppy dead in her tracks and spins her backwards.
>Chrysanthemum strikes as Motormaster has his attention on Reisen, invoking and launching a silver spear at the biker, which impales Motormaster like a skewer. The biker lurches forward but still stays on his feet, and turns Kiku's attack back on her. The spear stuck through Motormaster corrodes and splinters, and bursts of metallic flak fly from Motormasters' torso at Reisen and Kiku. The tiger manages another casting, erecting a wall of iron in front of her to block the splinters, though not by much as they barely stop before penetrating the wall entirely. Reisen doesn't escape quick as unscathed. She dives and rolls to her left but some of the flak catches her on her calf and foot.
>She comes up on one knee and points her sword at Motormaster and unleashes a blast of icy energy, not at Motormaster's body this time but at his head. And this time the biker simply ducks beneath it rather than take the hit and absorb the element. His visor flashes again and unleashes another blast of energy, this one catching the rabbit on her right breast and throws her to the ground.

[DracoOmega]

>When we've joined power with our allies, the result has been more than simply the sum of those powers. Lily is still relatively intact, right? Could we sort of proverbially lean on her energy without simply taking the same amount from her? To sort of shoulder our burdens together with strength greater than either of us alone (particularly our poor battered self)?
>Barring that, can we at least fire a Violet Lotus at some blind spot in Motormaster's position, aimed for the part of him still obviously corrupted?

[Oldmansour]

>When we've joined power with our allies, the result has been more than simply the sum of those powers. Lily is still relatively intact, right? Could we sort of proverbially lean on her energy without simply taking the same amount from her? To sort of shoulder our burdens together with strength greater than either of us alone (particularly our poor battered self)?
>Barring that, can we at least fire a Violet Lotus at some blind spot in Motormaster's position, aimed for the part of him still obviously corrupted?

>Clarification request. Did you wish do to this in the context of transfusing healing energy into Rin?
>A blind spot, no, not from your current position. Motormaster would have to turn to face Kiku for you to be sure you were out of his line of sight.

[DracoOmega]

>Clarification request. Did you wish do to this in the context of transfusing healing energy into Rin?

>Not necessarily. Even just bolstering our collective selves until the threat can be neutralized and we can tend to her wounds properly.

[Oldmansour]

>Not necessarily. Even just bolstering our collective selves until the threat can be neutralized and we can tend to her wounds properly.

>That may actually be possible. Though you'd have to stay pretty close to Lily to get meaningful results, perhaps even in direct contact with her.

[DracoOmega]

>Let's explain that to her and give it a try