Cherry Blossom Training (Open)

Sakuramori:

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The roads in Sakuramori were all long and winding, uphill and downhill struggles.  At every turn, Zachariah nearly fell sick to his stomach from the nauseating cherry scent.  At first, the blossoms’ aroma was enjoyable and somewhat tranquilizing, but as the morning progressed they became more and more agitating.  The night sky still hung over the forest, with the moon’s light still bright.  But, the sun slowly began to peak over the horizon, and Zachariah could feel its energy shining across his skin.  Ever since his last mission in the Spooky Forest, Zachariah had been doing some soul searching, and decided it was high time he started to train again.  He initially thought of returning to the Spooky Forest for some much needed magic practice, but figured Sakuramori would be better on the mind.  The image of all those massacred animals and the traumatic battle with the marionette still haunted him.  He was sure everything was hunky-dory now and decided to leave the Spooky Forest as it was.  He assured himself he would return eventually, just not so soon.  It took Zachariah quite a while to find a quiet and secluded spot in the forest.  By the time he reached the clearing found the small shrine amidst the pink gorge, the sun’s glare levitated well above the horizon.  Though it was still morning time, the warm forest air was humid and filled with pesky insects.

Zachariah shed his pack and his jacket and hung them on a sturdy branch.  This section of the forest felt especially rich in magical energy, radiating from the tiny stone pagoda in the middle of the clearing.  When the morning sun’s rays cast their light on the pagoda, it glowed and resonated, and Zachariah quickly jumped to alertness.  A shrill, gong-like sound erupted throughout the forest, forcing Zachariah to cover his ears in pain.  The ground began to rumble and even the sturdiest cherry trees began to tremble.  Zachariah leapt backwards as roots underfoot became unturned and lashed at his body.  A mountainous, gleaming golem dug up from the ground and reared its smoothened head.  Pink and red lichens covered its wide body, seemingly holding its rocky body together.  Zachariah shakily landed on his feet and took a fighting stance.  The golem was still attached to the ground, its waist and left arm anchored by powerful wooden roots.  He took note of the stone pagoda on the golem’s head, which held in its original position no matter which way the beast turned.

The Stone Golem:

He charged up a Spectral Drill and aimed it towards the golem’s shoulder, but the roots abruptly gave way to the golem’s strength and snapped like a wire.  The sharp and splintering roots lacerated Zachariah’s cheek, leaving a deep wound.  Zachariah grunted with a loud Ack! and fell back.  The golem was faster than he’d anticipated, wildly swinging the tree roots attached to it like a flog.  He hopped into the tree canopy and masked himself in the pastel brush.  Hot Morning Stars emerged from his hands on command.  The heavy orbs of light weighed heavy in his hands, but flew at the beast like a fast ball.  The miniature star made a crackling noise upon impact and released singing flares of orange and yellow sunlight.  Zachariah conjured as many as he could and peppered the beast with blinding light.  The sheer force of the exploding sunlight and heat knocked the golem to the ground.  Under its own immense weight, it collapsed and was unable to stand again.  The crashing boulders forced a thick cloud of dust and debris into the air and stung Zachariah’s eyes as he descended from the trees.

The golem’s stone body made a satisfying clacking sound when he landed upon it, like heels on a marble floor.  He slowly approached the pagoda atop the stone as the dust cloud parted, but the whip of vines forced him to retreat.  Though, the rough vines tied his ankles like a ribbon and forced him to his knees.  They caught a hold of his wrists and bound him.  He could see the sharp tendrils racing towards his body, and fought to free himself.  Wood dug into his skin as he struggled and the spear-like roots did not slow their pace.  “No!” he shouted through grit teeth, and forced small sparks in the air around him.  Small crackles of light flashed and heated up around him followed by auroras of indigo that seared the wood around him.  His magic flowed through the light around him and triggered the Ultraviolent Flash.   He quickly freed himself from the mangling roots and raised his hands in defense.  “Lightspeed Beatdown!” he called out, and his skin began to shine with a rainbow film.  His deft fingers deflected the oncoming roots and he caught the pursuing attacks.  The roots in his hands fought his grip, but he poured all of his strength out and heaved the roots into the air.  Like a hammer-throw, he spun around and launched the roots into the forest and quickly shattered the boulder coming at him.
Several heavy pieces were missing from the golem now and it stood lopsided.  The lack of roots holding it together weakened its stance and it struggled to lift its limbs from the ground.  

Zachariah rushed the monster and knocked its remaining arm off with a quaking heel strike.  Morning Stars clung to the monster’s legs and left behind nothing but the main body.  Zachariah punched it, but it did little except crack and make his knuckles ache.  He bounced back and recoiled in pain, “god! That’s harder than I thought.”  The Lightspeed faded from his skin as he relaxed and backed away.  He raised his other hand and aimed his open palm at the giant slab of granite that remained.  The tip of a Spectral Drill formed and twirled violently and sharply.  With a release of his fingers, the drill seared through the air and effortlessly penetrated the stone.  When Zachariah raised his fingers, it swiftly changed course upwards and threw the pagoda into the air.  A single Morning Star flew its way, and hot stone flew throughout the forest, completely obliterated by Zachariah’s magic.  He limped away and picked up his jacket and pack, which still hung from the branches of a tree untouched by the battle.  He warily looked around, then wandered away in search of somewhere safer.

The Creek:

At the bank of a thin creek, he hopped to the sunnier side and hung up his stuff once again.  It seemed safe enough; he sensed no magical entities nearby, and certainly no other golems.  The location was a small clearing with black sand and flowing clear water with a small waterfall at the base.  The cherry trees provided a balanced amount of shelter from the sun and allowed a comfortable amount of light in.  From his pack, Zachariah produced a small mirror he traveled with.  It was nothing special, but allowed him to better judge his injuries.  He hung it on a branch and checked the nicks on his face, wincing each time he removed a splinter.  For a while he tended to his wounds, then rested for a minute by the river before continuing (or officially starting) his training.

WC: 1205/2000

-In the Sakura Forest-

Wearing her Azure Armor over a blue t-shirt with khaki cargo shorts and white tennis shoes, Victoria entered the Sakura Forest because she had taken a day off from running jobs to do something different. She was looking to talk to Florence Manderley, but she was busy treating patients at the local hospital and did not want to interrupt her. Victoria also did not want to get dragged into a job by Octavia Ashford, so the brunette decided to just go walk in the forest. She had her Silver Dagger in her pocket in case any supernatural enemies came out to play, so she was ready for anything.

Well, almost anything.

Victoria could not get over her job to Snowfall Island because she learned a lot of things that she would rather have not learned. Chief among them was that Agent Lacedaemon was developed by using human experimentation, and not all of it was conducted on volunteers. The military on Snowfall Island at first used the local homeless population because no one would miss them. When the homeless population was either all harvested or the few remaining homeless people got smarter about their hiding places, the military then turned to soldiers who "volunteered" for the project to keep their families from being sent to the labs. The more Victoria read about Project Lacedaemon the less she liked about it; the moral compasses of everyone involved in the project were so messed up that she was surprised that they could even find their way to the bathroom without a guide.

Eventually most of the military garrison got fed up with the project and staged a mutiny to stop it. She had traveled through the base and learned a lot about the circumstances that led up to the mutiny. One of the recurring reasons was a lot of dissatisfaction from non-commissioned officers who felt that they were getting cheated out of promotion in order to ensure the promotion of a select few, namely the sons and daughters of high-ranking officers. There was also a growing sense of dismay and disgust that the military would coerce its own soldiers into participating in a project with such a high mortality rate that the average death rate was 15 subjects a day at the project's peak.

People would do anything to get an advantage over others, but the project crossed a lot of lines that should never be crossed. The clients were busy examining the documents she recovered for clues to the location of the head scientist, a man named A. Kerwes. According to a scientist's note, he had betrayed the other scientists and had left them to die in the mutiny to cover his own escape. Victoria was sure that she would be sent to find him soon, but right now she was trying to forget some of the more unsavory details of the project.

Her train of thought was interrupted when she spotted the Sabertooth member named Zach sitting near a thin creek with a mirror in his hand. She decided to forget about Project Lacedaemon and speak to the guy. It looked like he had been in a big fight recently and needed some help.

"Hey Zach. How's it going? Do you need any help?" Victoria asked Zach.

[Word Count: 556]

As he looked in the mirror, he focused only on his small wounds and the tiny, meticulous splinters in his skin.  Amidst the sounds of nature; the birds and creek, and the flowing leaves, he was reminded of the Spooky Forest again.  Although he defeated the marionette of the forest, he still felt uneasy about it.  How did that all happen in the first place? he questioned, but could not come to a plausible conclusion.  The snarls of the werewolves and roaring lizardmen still echoed in his head, as did the image and scent of the small game he had to kill.  How evil must a mage have to be to curse a forest like that?  The golem in the sakura forest reminded him of that night, especially when the vines wrapped around his ankles and wrist.  He had flashbacks of the battle against willow tree, but would rather not picture that fight again.  Though, a different sense of queasiness washed over him, as if someone was nearby.  A familiar voice called out to him, not too far away.

“Hello?” Zachariah replied, but did not turn to see who it was.  He was too distracted by his own thoughts to greet the person.  Zachariah had been so lost in thought he could hardly recognize Victoria’s voice.  He was still mulling over his last job, especially now that he had some quiet moments after that battle with the golem.  The words processed through his head again and he realized someone was calling his name specifically.  Slightly startled, he nearly dropped the mirror.  He was still a bit scratched up on his cheeks and his forehead was slightly stained with blood, but for the most part he felt alright.  He turned around and waved to Victoria.  Seeing the familiar face was quite a relief, even if they were not that close.  I could use a training buddy, though, he suddenly thought, the idea popping into his head.  “You frightened me,” he said, turning red in the cheeks and neck.  “I’m fine.  I came out here to train, but I got into a little scuffle with some beasts in the forest.  Who knew there was so much magic out here.
How are you doing?”


WC: 337 (1542/2000)

"Sorry about that, Zach." Victoria apologized for startling the youth. She was here to get over the Snowfall Island job and the multiple unpleasant truths she had learned about the super soldier project that had once been researched there. She had once considered talking to Florence about it, but she was uncertain if she was sworn to secrecy about what she had discovered and did not want to share details about Project Lacedaemon in case others were encouraged to take up that avenue of research themselves. The mage had not been expressly told that she was to keep quiet about what she had found, but she was fairly certain that silence was supposed to go with the big payment she had just received for completing the job.

"I'm OK. I came out here to talk to someone I know, but she's busy treating patients at a medical clinic, so I won't hold up that kind of important work just to talk about the weather." Victoria told him the purpose behind her visit to Sakuramori. She wanted to meet up with Florence at some point, but scheduling conflicts might make Victoria postpone the venture until a better time. In the meantime, Zach looked like he had indeed went up against of the local forest fauna and had won, but it was clear that the animals did not give up without a fight.

"Do you need treatment for those cuts and bruises?" Victoria asked Zach. She would help him if he needed it, but she would leave him alone if he did not. It was his choice as to whether he accepted her help or not.

[Word Count: 277]

Victoria looked at the wrist wounds that had been shown to her and momentarily recoiled, then recovered her focus and quickly had an idea. While the wounds looked terrible, they were superficial and posed no threat to life and limb if treatment was promptly administered. Fortunately for Zach, Victoria knew just the spell necessary to effect treatment without the hassle of going to a hospital and jumping through flaming hoops just to get an appointment.

"I've got this." Victoria assured her fellow Sabertooth member as the former raised her right hand and pointed the palm towards him. She focused healing magic into a golden ball that she cast at the youth in a Medical Bag spell, currently her strongest healing spell. The ball struck Zach and started to heal his wounds with little delay. In a matter of moments the wounds on his wrists should be healed over and a feeling of renewed vitality should be the first thing he felt from the effects of the Medical Bag spell. Training in Combat Medic magic under Florence was starting to pay off because now Victoria could do more for her guildmates than simply send lead downrange at enemies or be a warm body that followed them around for company. Now the brunette could heal them in the field and keep them in good condition until they could get to more comprehensive medical help.

Victoria was momentarily surprised by his offer to spar, but she would take him up on it. She did not come this far just to walk in the woods with nothing to show for it. She hoped that Zach was ready for what she could bring to a fight.

"OK, Zach. I'll spar with you if want me to." Victoria told Zach. Helping out one of the new guys was not much of a demand on her time. On the contrary, helping out a new guy tended to be time well spent.

[Word Count: 326]

"It's no problem, Zach. I'm always glad to help a guildmate in need." Victoria said to the youth. Thanks to the patience and persistence of Florence Manderley, Victoria could now help people as well as hurt them. The brunette was glad to know Combat Medic magic because it broadened her skill set and let her patch herself up after big fights. It also gave her access to less-than-lethal options so that not every fight had to end in fatalities.

"Yeah, let's start with hand-to-hand first. That's a good place to start." Victoria readily agreed to his request. She did not want to break out her Light Machine Gun first thing because its power and rate of fire would be overkill. Until he expressly gave permission for her to use her magic, the brunette would stick to her bare hands for the sparring match. Hand-to-hand combat would be a lot less destructive on the area than her LMG, Rocket Launcher, or Grenade Launcher.

Victoria took off her backpack and set it in a safe place, then put her Silver Dagger into the backpack so that it would not fall out of her pocket during the sparring match. She kept on her Azure Armor because it would protect her chest and shoulders during the fighting. Victoria then walked a short distance away and faced him.

"I'm ready when you are, Zach." Victoria called to her guildmate.

[Word Count: 245]
[Total Word Count: 848]

Victoria stood and watched Zach spring into action. He literally leaped into action and aimed a knee strike at her torso with remarkable precision given the nature of his wounds. Victoria wore armor on her torso and she could heal away any injuries that Zach might be able to inflict, but why take a hit to the chest when there was no need to do so? That was what her adopted father always told her... never take a hit if one did not need to. Now would be a good time to heed his advice and dodge the attack if she could.

Victoria ducked and leaned to the left, his knee soaring just past her right ear. She took the flurry of fists to her armor and was knocked around a bit, but she suffered no lasting harm. Rather, it seemed that every punch to the armor was hurting Zach's fists a little, which might have been something that she wanted to avoid doing. Maybe Victoria should remove the Azure Armor to make it fair to him because otherwise she could just stand there and let Zach harm himself trying to punch through her armor.

"I came to Sabertooth after the last guild I was in disbanded one day. I had some powerful enemies, so I went to Sabertooth looking for protection and a place to call home. Ryo himself allowed me to join and gave me a place to stay for as long as I followed the guild's laws and didn't make the guild look bad." Victoria answered Zach's question on why she wanted to join. Moments later she was hit by a palm strike that made her stagger back and almost lose her footing, but she regained it and stood up straight again. She wondered how much pain he had suffered after hitting the Azure Armor with a palm strike and decided to make an offer to him.

"Would you like me to take my armor off so that you don't hurt your hands too badly?" Victoria asked Zach in between his martial arts attacks.

[Word Count: 352]
[Total Word Count: 1,200]

"OK, I'll remove my armor so that it's a little more fair to you." Victoria said to him. She obligingly removed the Azure Armor that had seen her through so many battles ever since getting it from a client in Hargeon Town as a reward for defeating Infernal Lord Zupazu and claiming a book from the demon in the underground tunnel. In exchange for a vow of silence concerning the contents of the book, Victoria received the Azure Armor, a special cuirass that was rumored to have once belonged to Carl K. Blaskowitz, a renowned demon slayer and an enemy of cultists of all stripes.

It was clearly made for a man, but Victoria's boyish physique allowed her to wear it with minimal alterations. It provided life-saving protection against both magic and physical attacks while being comfortable enough to wear for extended periods of time. While comfort was secondary to protection, the ability to wear it for extended periods of time was not something to be overlooked. Victoria removed the armor and set it aside along with her backpack at the base of a nearby rock, somewhere where they would not be easily stolen without both Sabertooth mages being able to spot the thief and take action.

Victoria was returning from setting the armor and backpack aside when Zach asked the question concerning which guild she was once a part of. She felt that enough time had passed where she could discuss the matter without much fear of retribution. Besides, she was now strong enough to survive most attempts on her life and had enough lethal and less-than-lethal firepower to fight back with if things got ugly.

"Have you ever heard of a guild called Black Rose?" Victoria asked Zach. She was not sure if he had ever heard of them because their disbanding occurred a while ago and some new guilds had arrived on the scene since that time. She might have been one of the only Sabertooth mages outside of Ryo to have heard of the guild.

[Word Count: 345]
[Total Word Count: 1,545]

Victoria was secretly relieved to hear that he had never heard of Black Rose. That was good news because him never having heard of the guild spared her from having to answer inconvenient questions, questions like what secrets she had been entrusted with by the late Guild Master. When she had first joined Sabertooth, she had politely told Ryo of her vow of secrecy and he had graciously accepted her polite refusal to give up any of Black Rose's secrets. Victoria decided to let the matter drop and continue the training match with Zach. She kind of liked the guy, but she did not want to compromise her vow to Black Rose's Guild Master unless Ryo himself pressed her.

Victoria hoped that it never came to that. She kind of liked Ryo because he had accepted her, Samantha, and Marceline into the guild and had helped them find jobs that kept them out of the reach of the Corlones. She also liked how he encouraged independent thought and initiative in guild members instead of making them defer to him on every little decision in the field.

Victoria began to try to block Zach's light punches and mostly succeeded. She was a lightweight who lacked the staying power to go toe-to-toe with another mage but could dodge attacks fairly well and punch above her weight class with either her magic or her fists. What she could not dodge her Azure Armor could absorb. The ideal was to not get hit at all, but if she had to take a hit the Azure Armor gave her some much-needed durability to stay in a fight.

The brunette noticed Zack looking at the blue armor and decided to change the subject to that instead of the guild she had once belonged to. He looked like he wanted some armor of his own. Maybe she could help him get it one day.

"Do you need some armor for yourself?" Victoria asked Zach. She was not too concerned about taking hits during this match because she could heal off any damage she took. She could also heal Zach after the match was over.

[Word Count: 363]
[Total Word Count: 1,908]

"OK. Me, I'm kinda twiggy, so I use it." Victoria said to Zach when the latter politely refused her offer to help him procure some armor to his liking. Victoria was a twiggy young adult, so she needed armor to help her go the distance in a tough fight. Zach was a physically fit guy who knew his way around a gym... she could see why he would not have as much use for armor as she did. To each their own.

"OK, I'll try and put up a fight without hitting too hard." Victoria replied to Zach's encouragement to begin hitting back. However, there was one problem. Most of her magic involved using weapons and unless he responded in kind there was no way she could justify using her own firepower. She could use Taser Spark, but the spell would still be overkill because it could stun him for awhile and this was a friendly sparring match, not a fight to the death. Victoria would have to go go hand-to-hand with him.

Suddenly the fellow cast a spell called Ultraviolet Flash, one that caught the brunette off guard. She was unable to do anything before she was momentarily blinded and received a first-degree burn from the light-based spell. Zach apologized profusely for the accident and the brunette took it in stride because the damage was easily healed. Her right hand began to glow gold as she prepared to cast a Field Dressing spell on herself that could heal the damage and remove the burn effect.

Victoria cast the spell on herself and healed off the damage like it had never happened. It was a good thing that she had studied the magic because the hours spent under Florence Manderley's tutelage were paying for themselves. The newly healed Victoria turned to Zach.

"It's no problem, Zach. Stuff happens." Victoria said to him, her blurry vision and burned skin all but recovered thanks to the spell. She did not hold any ill will towards him because accidents happened. This was a sparring match, after all.

[Word Count: 355]
[Total Word Count: 2,263]

Victoria saw Zach pull out a sword that he had been keeping in reserve, which meant that she could now use some of her Re-Equip magic without fear of breaking the rules of the sparring match. However, her arsenal was still limited by considerations of how much force constituted proportionate force. Some would argue that Zach using a sword enabled her to use any weapon she could bring out, but Victoria needed to be realistic. Zach did not deserve a Rocket Launcher or Grenade Launcher round to the face.

Her Grenade Launcher could fire Bean Bag Rounds, so that made it a bit safer to employ than some of her other weapons. She could also employ Taser Spark since it was less-than-lethal, but she did not want to use it in a friendly sparring match. Victoria's musing on what weapon to use was interrupted not by Zach making his move, but an outside force arriving on the battlefield. That outside force was a giant eight-headed snake that was sand-colored with black eye shadow around its numerous eyes.

The snake was as tall as the trees and was equally thick. Victoria did not have to hesitate in employing her arsenal against this snake. High explosive weapons were out of the question, but weapons like her Shotgun and Light Machine Gun were safe to use since they could not start a forest fire. Victoria brought out her Shotgun and aimed it at the beast when Zach jumped in front of her to protect her. She lowered the weapon to avoid a friendly fire incident and thought about what to do next. Should she run for her armor or do without it in order to stand by Zach's side?

Victoria decided to stay where she was and forego the Azure Armor. She was of high enough power that the beast did not pose too much threat to her. She was more worried about Zach getting hurt while confronting the giant snake.

[Word Count: 335]
[Total Word Count: 2,598]

Out of instinct, Zach would always forgo his safety for that of his teammates in battle.  It wasn’t his first time fighting a beast of such size.  But he was never one to underestimate an enemy, no matter how much experience he had with it.

“Go! Grab your armor, quick!” he demanded, just as the orochi came down on him with his fangs.  Zach took a deep breath and closed his eyes, quickly parrying the eight fangs racing towards him.  He used the sword’s Realm Cutter ability to slice in every direction, blocking each bite with little difficulty.  With each of his windy swings, the blade sang with a loud clang against the orochi’s teeth.  Magic surged through his blood and sizzled around him, and when he gazed upon his hands he saw the familiar rainbow film around his skin.  You’re doing it again, he chided himself.  Now he knew why his reflexes were so much sharper; he’d activated his Lightspeed Beatdown spell.  A side effect of the spell was enhanced speed and strength, often the necessary turning point of battles.  Though, the spell also caused his skin to be enveloped in a rainbow-colored light and his hair began to shine with different colors.

While Zach might not be able to handle the might of Victoria’s arsenal, he would certainly still try...even if it meant third degree burns everywhere.  But, explosions in the face would have to wait for now.  Though, to handle the snake Zachariah would need much more firepower than the Bifrost Blade and his basic spells.  He noticed the snake begin to tire and saw an opportunity of weakness.  With a long cleave, he temporarily incapacitated the snake and went to regroup with Victoria.  He scrutinized a plan for victory that would require their concerted efforts.  His first thought was to blind the snake with an Ultraviolent Flash and land the killing blow with Victoria, but he didn’t know how much punishment the snake could take between the two of them..  However, he didn’t know what weapons of mass destruction Victoria hid under her sleeve.

“Alright,” he sighed and temporarily deactivated the Lightspeed Beatdown to conserve energy, “What tricks do you have?”


Word Count: 365 (3568)

Victoria obeyed Zach and hurried to grab her armor while Zach kept the giant snake's attention fixated on him. She sprinted and reached the armor without incident, but she needed to hurry so that her guildmate was not fighting the beast alone. She set her shotgun on the ground and struggled into her armor with considerable effort on her part. Once it was on the brunette leaned down, seized her weapon, and rushed back to Zach's side in time for him to ready a spell for use against their scaly antagonist.

"What kind of tricks do I have up my sleeve?" Victoria asked Zach. Where should she even begin? There was the shotgun, the silenced sniper rifle, the rocket launcher, and the light machine gun, and all of that was part of her magic of choice. Her second magic gave her access to a grenade launcher, a submachine gun, and a tranquilizer rifle. She could also shoot concentrated magic bullets from her hand or shoot a ball of electricity that hit like a taser.

"Let's see... I can fire traditional buckshot or a solid slug shot, which lets me use my weapon like a makeshift rifle." Victoria told him before aiming at one of the eight heads and firing a round of magic buckshot at it, striking it near the nose. The snake's head hissed in anger and turned towards her.

"Oh great. I only pissed it off." Victoria commented before firing a Solid Slug at the eye of the head she had targeted last time. It moved away at the last second and the shot struck the neck of the head to the right. The head hissed and bared its fangs in a clear threat display as Victoria took a step back. This was not going the way she hoped it would.

"That didn't work either." Victoria dryly remarked. She was trying to bring down the snake without burning down Sakuramori Forest with explosives, but the shotgun was just not strong enough to do anything other than annoy it. She would need to bring out something stronger, but what non-explosive weapon should she bring out next? The sniper rifle did not have quite enough punch and a tranquilizer rifle would only annoy it even further, so using the Light Machine Gun might do the trick.

Victoria dispelled the shotgun and brought out her Light Machine Gun. It seemed to be her go-to weapon lately. It had gotten her through quite a few jobs and came into its own when she was badly outnumbered, which was distressingly often since she usually worked alone. The rapid-fire weapon was about to get her and her guildmate out of another tight spot.

[Word Count: 457]
[Total Word Count: 3,055]

Victoria watched Zach spring into action by casting multiple spells at the giant snake. Zach was relatively weak compared to her, but he showed that he was able to make effective use of what he had. However, without her help it might not be enough for them to get through the fight. Victoria would show the snake that her Light Machine Gun was not just a bulky noisemaker. She was about to introduce it to the business end of one of her most effective weapons.

She aimed at one of the head that thought she would make a good snack and opened fire. The rounds of her weapon did not punch all the way through its thick skin, but they were annoying the serpent and forcing it to ignore ignore Zach long enough for him to come up with a plan for them to win this fight. The head that she had shot at aimed carefully and spewed a gout of saliva at her. Victoria lowered her weapon and raised the Caduceus Shield with her left hand; the golden shield blocked the saliva with ease and the unpleasant projectile dripped to the ground, where it demonstrated a mild corrosive effect by lightly burning a patch of grass where it had made contact.

In the meantime Zach had finally come up with a plan to win the fight before both of them became snake food. He planned to use a spell called Spatial Reflector to increase the power of her projectiles and give them enough velocity to punch through its scaly armored skin. Victoria was all for that since that meant that she would not have to use explosive weaponry which could cause a forest fire with a single projectile that went off course.

"OK Zach, I'm game. Let me know what to do." Victoria voiced her willingness to go along with Zach's plan. He had better make it fast because her plan to distract the snake had worked a bit too well and now it was starting to focus on her.

[Word Count: 343]
[Total Word Count: 3,398]

"OK. Here goes!" Victoria said succinctly before aiming for the Spatial Reflector that Zach had summoned and steadying herself. She was not just going to fire a few bursts. She was not going to fire a Five-Round Burst. The brunette was going to give the eight-headed serpent everything she could throw at it, which meant that she was going to fire until the barrel glowed red hot. By the time she was finished there would not be enough left of it to make a pair of snakeskin boots out of.

Victoria took a deep breath and aimed carefully at the Spatial Reflector, then squeezed the trigger and held it down. The Light Machine Gun began slinging lead at high speed and at a high rate of fire, two aspects of the weapon which made it perfect for Zach's plan. With its power boosted by the Spatial Reflector and the snake held in place by Zach's other spell, it did not matter if each round of the Light Machine Gun was not armor-piercing. The power boost could easily let each round punch through the snake's hide with little resistance, which was exactly what was happening to the hapless serpent.

Victoria fought the recoil and held down the trigger to ensure that the serpent was completely perforated before the barrel overheated and forced her to cease firing. Round after round went into it and made it writhe in pain and jerk about in a grim parody of a dance, but the brunette did not let up. It was only after at least 100 rounds had pierced the snake and the barrel of her weapon was literally glowing red did she stop firing. It would have to cool down before it could be used again, but with what happened to the target another prolonged burst should not be necessary.

"I think I got it." Victoria said to Zach, dispelling the Light Machine Gun so that it could cool off. The brunette had another spell on standby if the sustained weapons fire was not enough to slay the beast. Should she have to use the spell it would drain a good deal of her magic power, but its sheer power and ability to punch through armor would be worth the cost to defeat the enemy.

[Word Count: 387]
[Total Word Count: 3,785]