Demolition man is old news (Job Zeke/Dimaria)

Job Details:

A task had come to the attention of Zeke as he swung upside down from a chain, as usual. He read over the details and nodded. It seemed some madman with a ton of dynamite was hiding in a mineshaft near the capital. Normally, a job like this would go to the rune knights and indeed that was where this particular job had been intended. However, the garou knights had their own ways of gathering information and had intercepted it. He turned the page over and read some extra information on the back.

'Dynamite reported to be from crates marked with RK. Suspect that the rune knights, or someone in their ranks at least, is supplying men like these. Perhaps so they can look big bringing him in or perhaps to cause a bit of panic and get people clamouring. Its a sure fire way to some extra funds for them, more than enough to afford the price of the dynamite. Based on rough estimates it does appear the rune knights have had a recent expenditure that would equal around the same price as the dynamite, but nothing has appeared as a result of the expenditure. Its not a gurantee the rune knights are involved but its possible.' He nodded as he read the note and flipped down from the chain retracting it into the tonfa.

The issue with taking this job is it had requested a minimum of two mages. Zeke was good with technology, but not good enough to make a realistic mage companion. He glanced about and saw one of the other Garou Knights and walked over. "Hey there...just got handed a mission flyer. Needs two people though. Mind giving me a hand...err...." He was sure he knew the name. The face was familiar, but he just couldn't place it. It was irritating that his old memory loss had come back, but it was a small price to pay for getting rid of the 13th gate. Still, an annoyance. He was working on something to counteract it, but hadn't finished it so for now...people just did not stick in his head. He offered the flyer as way of giving the person the details. However, the person declined and so Zeke sighed and headed off to try and find someone. After a while he sat down with a sigh and spoke out with slight irrititation. "Why is it so hard to find someone to do a job with?"

410 words words

Zeke rose to his feet after a while an idea forming in his mind. He was a member of the Coyote Corps, the stealth divison of the Garou Knights. There task was to stop disasters before the became disasters, but to do it secretly. The other divisions were more obvious, but the Coyote were essentially espionage. As such, even if he was to take this job he couldn't exactly say he was a member of the Garou Knights. He wasn't exactly the best representation nowadays. His once great magic power was nothing compared to what it used to be.  So whilst he couldn't take the job by normal means without a partner perhaps he could take the job by abnormal means. If he went and captured this explosive man and delivered him to the proper authorities of the town then they'd probably give him the reward anyway. He just had to be a little less official about it. Well that suited him fine. He was a coyote.

"Time to go defuse a situation." he said chuckling to himself and heading towards the mine that was nearby. He needed to observe the mine carefully before continuing. The mine was likely fairly deep, but he could at least get a feel for it to some extent. Pulling one of his tonfa from a holster at his waist he began to twirl it causing a faint whistling sound. This sound was then manipulated via magic into a form of echolocation that effectively mapped out the area within 100ft of him, some of which was the mine. The mine however went deeper he could tell. He could see multiple resonant frequencies, several human and several....arachnid. Though there was something odd about the latter he couldn't quite place.

"So...the demolition man has allies. Wish I did....this is gonna be harder than I thought." he mused and began to consider the best option. He couldn't see any other entrances nearby which meant this was probably the only one. The mine itself was a maze of shafts, though fortunately signposted based on his mapping, and there were multiple enemy targets. That was an issue definitely. One entrance meant it could easily be rigged to explode. On top of that a mine was not the best place for him to fight. Then of course there was the maze like structure. It could easily allow him to be out flanked and surrounded. A truly difficult situation and one he wasn't sure how to handle. In the old days he'd just invoke virgos power and sink through the ground like it was water and head towards  the bottom, where the leader was probably located, and take him out in a single blow. That was not an option anymore. Perhaps one day he could use the resonant frequency of the ground to sink through it again, but he didn't have that much power in the tonfas yet. It would be a while before he had found the knowledge and the technology to make them a truly effective replacement for his former magic power. Still, at least they gave him something and something was a lot better than nothing.

526 words

Magic:

Zeke had sensed the approach of the woman. After all, she was within 100ft of him and he hadn't yet shut down his echolocation as he was trying to memorize the layout and positions of the people. Tactical things like this did stick in his mind. People and faces? Especially names relating to faces...those really didn't stick in his mind. He didn't turn at first because it might be that she was just coming this way by coincidence and might head off on a different path. 100ft was quite a distance with lots of ways someone could go. However, they did eventually approach and he turned to see a woman with part of the underside of her breast exposed. Just enough to reveal a rather familiar guild tattoo. It was a member of Blue Pegasus, the guild he used to be the master of before losing his power and changing his appearance. It was unlikely he'd be recognised straight off, especially if the member hadn't been present when he had been. He'd had trouble keeping track of the members, and that was before his memory got bad. Well, after his memory was bad originally and before it got bad again a second time. People really did like messing with his head and his soul. It happened far too often. Still, at least now he was free to do what he wanted.

"Hey there. What brings a member of the guild of heroes out to a mine by Crocus?" he said with a faint smile holstering the tonfa for now. They were the source of his power, but he didn't need them out to use all of his abilities so he was fine for now even if she did turn hostile. "Rather far from from aren't you?" He paused and tried to wrack his mind. Did he know this woman? Surely, someone with this kind of attire would of stuck in his head even as an echo of a memory? Or an echo of an echo perhaps? But no, nothing came to mind. "You lost or something? Happy to show you the way back to town." It occured to him at this point that perhaps the job flyer had gone to the guilds as well as the rune knights(or the garou knights as they'd intercepted it). So perhaps she was here for the same reason he was? Perhaps she'd even had a similar thought and decided that she could handle it solo.

He could sense magic power in her greater than his own currently, but he no longer had Exposition and as such couldn't tell what power she actually possessed. It was something he'd sent back to Malkariss. He could not guard it any longer in his current state. Besides, if he understood his new magic well enough then eventually he'd be able to use resonance to identify magic types. Or at least so he hoped as that would be rather useful. Still that was the future and not something he could steer. Briefly he wondered how Tikaani was doing. Had she retained her celestial spirit status or had she lost it like himself and returned back to Malkariss permanently? He had honestly been surprised when she hadn't returned. Still, he couldn't blame her too much. He wasn't the man he once was.

"Or maybe you've come here looking for whats supposed to be down in the mine?" he hinted trying not to tell her exactly what was down the mine. He didn't want to be too obvious about it, but he hoped his hunch was right. Another person to help, particularly a person he'd rate as about C class, would be very useful on this task. They could watch each other's back and he could test out his communication technique in an enclosed environment like a mine. Still, if she wasn't he was pretty sure he could cope. Well kind of sure. Maybe 10% at least. It was a risk, but the other knights had been busy and he hadn't found anyone.

If she wasn't here for the same thing he'd guide her back to town or whatever and then head in alone. He had to stop this from becoming a disaster. Explosives in a mine was not good. Powders and various things in there could explode and cause a chain reaction. Mankind had weakened the ground to get ores and who knew what weaknesses they had caused. It could even cause a quake if the explosion was big enough, deep enough and in the right place. Crocus was nearby and had a huge population. If a large enough quake was triggered...it could be bad. Then of course there was the rune knight angle. If they had funded this guy he needed to find out and find who was responsible. Or at least report it so the garou knights could investigate. That was part of his job after all. Yes, even if he had to go in alone he had to go in. It couldn't wait. There was too high a risk involved.

842 words

The member 'Dimaria Stark' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

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'Monster Dice' :

"Zeke Roslyn. Nice to meet you" he said and was surprised when she asked how he knew about the guild. Blue Pegasus was one of the most famous guilds in all of Fiore, perhaps in all of the world. The only one perhaps more famous was Fairy Tail. Or perhaps the term was infamous now as they had become a dark guild. That wasn't something he'd seen happening, but it had. "As for the guild and its mark...it isn't exactly a secret. Anyone familiar with the guilds would recognise the guild mark of Blue Pegasus. They aren't exactly a small guild. Now if you were from...oh I don't know....Mermaid Heel or something...now that would be more surprising if I knew it...unless we were in Mermaid Heel's home town of course."

Much to his delight, though he tried not to show it, she was here for the job or at least a job involving the mine shaft and that was enough for him. They could certainly work together. It would be odd working with a member of his former guild, but nothing he couldn't handle it. However, before he had a chance to pass on any information or even reply in response to them joining forces for this task she had done something perhaps a little foolhardy but so in the spirit of Blue Pegasus, or at least in his own spirit when he was a member. HE generally ran in foolishly without thinking to try and finish the job as quickly as possible. However, with his power now that wasn't an option and so he'd been trying to plan a strategy for this. Her on the other hand. Well, she had just leapt into the mine shaft without looking. Based on his map she should be fine as the drop wasn't sheer, like it was in some mines, and sloped down so at most she'd have a small drop and then be on a slope.

He twirled his tonfa again as he was about to follow and then paused. Her descent hadn't gone unnoticed. Three of the figures had begun to converge on her location. Each was coming from a separate shaft and would meet at the tunnel she was in. It would be hard to spot all three. He focused as he headed in after her. Dimaria. Watch out. There are three people coming to you, one from each tunnel, and each looks to be armed with dynamite. He would explain how he was doing this in a bit, but for now he had to hurry and hopped down into the shaft after her.  As he ran he saw from one of the tunnels a small red stick. Without hesitating he swung his tonfa like a bat and sent it straight back at the offending man blasting him back. The other tonfa was still twirling and so he could tell via echolocation that the tnt thrower was down but not out. Suddenly, he stopped the spinning and a chain launched out piercing into the explosive bandolier of one of the other two men pulling it off and straight towards him. Now there was only one left who was an immediate threat. Just whisper or speak under your breath whilst focusing on me...I'll hear it. Let's use this to plan without them knowing He observed the bandolier for a moment. The dynamite strapped to it was marked with the letters RK. It might not actually the rune knights, but it did point at them. He'd have to keep at least one stick as evidence if he couldn't bring in the big bad guy alive.

He looked at the man who was patting himself frantically looking for anything he could use as a weapon. Realising he had nothing left he turned and began to run. Zeke quickly sent out a chain again swinging it this time so that it worked kind of like a whip. It curled around the foot of the man and then was retracted tripping the man and slamming him into the ground before dragging him backwards towards Zeke. He might not be as powerful as he once was and these weapons were still unfamiliar, but he was still highly skilled. Though of course left him one tonfa down for a bit, but with only viable opponent he wasn't too phased. He had an ally after all and he was sure even the lowliest Blue Pegasus mage could take on a single opponent. He had faith in them. Besides, she was stronger than him magically  though whether her skill was stronger wasnt't clear. If they couldn't handle this opponent he did still have one tonfa available and a whole lot of dynamite.

784 words

Magic:

Zeke watched as the woman took the life of one of the men. Like Fairy Tail it seemed that Blue Pegasus were all to ready to take life. If they were not careful the magic council might reclassify them as a dark guild as well. It would be something he would have to anonymously mention to the guild master. Perhaps via letter or perhaps via proxy. The freezing was perhaps an unintended side effect of her weapon which did seem to have some magic power imbued within it. However, the second slash that broke apart the ice was not something that could be said to be accidental. It could also not be said to be needed. He slammed his tonfa down with a precise blow to knock out the one he'd been dragging towards him. It was at that point that the other one came up twirling dynamite at the end of a rope. An explosive bola. Now that was an interesting tool. What he wasn't expecting was for Zeke to suddenly run towards him and leap through the air flipping round to grab the explosive  bola and hurling it back at the man. It twirled around his body and collapsed in, but did not explode immediately. When it did explode was when Zeke hit the man feet first and sent him flying down the hall using a chain he'd embedded into the ceiling to pull him back.

[color=teal"Do us both a favour and don't get back up. I'm not in the mood for nonsense."[/color] he said with a note of frustration in his voice. He would not kill again unless his hand was truly forced. That was why he had forsaken the blade and taken up a new weapon, the tonfa. It was a blunt weapon capable of killing but it was far harder. It was a weapon designed for non-lethality. "As for you..." he said pointing back at Dimaria. "...I'd prefer it if we didn't have to kill on this job. I'm ok with it if our hand is forced, but there is no excuse for wanton killing. We are not dark mages after all. We should represent the good of the world." With that he holstered the tonfa and walked towards the central tunnel. "This tunnel, from what I can tell, leads the furthest down."

388 words

The member 'Dimaria Stark' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

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'Monster Dice' :

As they proceeded he heard too the faint scuttling, chattering sound. He paused briefly and twirled his tonfa once more forming a new echolocation map. They were about 30ft down now so this would give a further view. What was up ahead wasn't a group of people talking. No, it was a group of those strange arachnids that he hadn't quite been able to place. Something was strange about them, but what it was he had no clue. They were no ordinary spiders and they were scuttling about at high speeds. Much higher than he'd expect from even a real spider. They were also quite a bit larger. He knew a lot of people had issues with spiders in general. It was the eyes and the way they move generally. He focused and sent the whisper into her mind again. "Heads up there's a bunch of large spiders up ahead. Something's off with them." he said to her and began to pick up his pace a little. Men using explosives serving an expert on explosives using potentially explosives from the rune knights supply. Now, what could the spiders have and why did they feel so off and yet so familiar. Then an idea came to mind. It felt similar to the explosives that were being used by the knights. "Keep your distances if you can...they feel like...dynamite?"

It wasn't really that useful a tip. He wasn't even 100% sure about it. Why would the spiders's be explosive? It wasn't that they had explosives strapped to them or anything simple like that. They themselves felt like explosives. However, he couldn't think of why a spider would develop an explosive trait. Unless...they'd been exposed to magic. Was it possible that someone had enchanted the spiders as a defensive measure of sorts? That would mean someone, perhaps the expert himself, was a lot more dangerous than they'd originally thought.

316 words

Zeke was thrown forward by one of the explosions. The damage was pretty hefty as it threw him straight into a wall hard. Of course, the reduced the number of spiders, but it was still enough to throw him off. If this had been the old days he would of just blasted them all with magic and this blow would of been nothing, but this wasn't the old days. All he had was a pair of tonfas that could fire chains. He quickly swung one back and to the side and firing a chain out that pulled him out of the way and onto the roof avoiding another spider. He kicked off the roof and swung down his other tonfa firing a chain off that pierced one of the spiders through the thorax destroying it instantly as it exploded. There were still more though and he only had one ranged technique. A technique he had been hoping to save for the explosive mage, but it seemed he had no choice.

He whistled charging his body with resonant energy and suddenly four bullets of sound fired off hitting other spiders and causing them to detonate. There were still a few more left, but it shouldn't be too hard to bring them down. "Do whatever you can, but keep your distance. It seems they explode when hit or if they get to close. I'd say try to keep 20ft away minimum." he whispered manipulating the sound so it appeared directly in her head. This was mostly so they wouldn't be detected, or at least he wouldn't. So far they would know of Dimaria due to the screams, but didn't know she had an ally. Or so he hoped. Anything like that was and ace up their sleeve.

Word count: 294 words

Magic:

Zeke managed to knock away a few of the spiders with a clever whip of his chains and then fired off a few resonant bullets to hit the others. Of course, things exploding within an underground space was generally not going to lead to good things and the tunnel they had come from collapsed. Fortunately, this blocked off the spiders and allowed him to chase after Dimaria who seemed to suffer from some kind of arachnophobia based on her reaction. That or she saw it as a losing battle and decided to flee and set up some other attacks. Of course, there was the potential risk that the mine itself would collapse, but it seemed whoever built the mine had been quite clever and used winding structures to strengthen it. Thus a collapse in one or two areas would not be too big a deal.

He quickly moved through the mines and found Dimaria next to an unconcious man covered in dynamite and other explosives all of it marked RK. His resonant frequency was a lot stronger than the others they had faced. What's more it also had a familiar feel to it. It reminded him of the spiders. "So you are the one who enchanted the spiders? Not just an explosive experts, but an explosive mage. Good job you knocked him out Dimaria." he said with a nod towards her. "Fighting him in this environment would be pretty tricky." With that Zeke sent out one of his chains and wrapped it around the man in several ways essentially preventing movement. With that he picked up the man and began to lead them towards a different route.

"Had to seal off the way we came, but based on what i've mapped out this should lead us to the surface" he said and fortunately he was right. In fact, he was more than right and this lead them out much quicker than the way they had came. Before they handed over the man Zeke searched him using his echolocation. It wasn't really designed for this and he'd need to work on it so he could use it in this fashion. However, it allowed him to identify a small note and when Dimaria wasn't looking he pocketed it for reading later. Soon after the man was dumped with the guards and they received their rewards.

"Well i'll catch ya later Stark." With that he extended a chain and swung off into the night heading for a nearby cave which would lead him back to the Garou Knight headquarters. He had information to report and a note to analyse.

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