The Glitch IV - Inversion (Ch. 1)

[SirNitram]

"And here I hadn't practiced rock throwing yet." Albert said as he scrambled to heft the newly arrived weapon. It was a touch heavier than what he usually used, but his size and strength, both immense, would allow him to use it. "Time to see how long we last.." He grunted as he literally spun, performing a shot-put style spin for extra power as he hurled the hammer back along the path it came, and the attackers who were no-doubt closing.

[LadyTevar]

Leah stared at the huge hammer, then looked around in dismay. She knew they shouldnt' have stopped, she knew it she knew it! "Goddess Innara, Bless and Protect your children!" she cried out, invoking a circle of protection around the party that would give them all bonuses to their missle deflection, spellsaves, and prevented evil creatures from approaching close enough for melee attacks.

Unfortunately, she forgot that Matthew had confessed that Sir Ottoman was an Anti-Paladin.

[Comrade Tortoise]

"No, if I recognize these, they are from Super Mario Brothers... on crack"

[Dark Silver]

Albert's hammer flew upwards, a beautiful shotput if there ever was one, which arced into the air.

Shortly before being cut down by a massive, metallic boomerang which made a sound much like a helicoptor. Heavy wood and metal shards desended on the ground, as the first of the Warhammer's lept into the air, visible to them all for the first time.

It was a hulking, massive beast, every bit the size of Thog, it's flesh was thick, knotty looking even from the distance, it's joints containing protruding spikes, and the heavy shell on it's back looked thick enough to take any punishment. It's head thuogh, was the worst. It looked as if it was enclosed in nothing but a bone carapice, slots of it's red eyes.

It landed only 30 feet from the entire group, quickly followed by the other nine.

As if in one, the ten Wahammers hefted thier weapons, struck a pose, and a weird, slightly techno beat resounded in the air. "Stop! Hammertime!" was heard from the entire group of Null, as they performed a brief dance reminscent of M.C. Hammer from the 1980's, and a flurry of hammers where thrown at the little group of people.

Ten hammers flew straight on, Auron and Yuffie leaping front, thier weapons flashing to try to deflect the mammoth constructs of wood and metal. Auron missed one of his sword swings, and the hammer hit him with the sound of a thunderclap.

The samuri flew backwards and impacted into a stone, his body crumpled. Yuffie on the other hand, managed to use her agility to leap off the hammers, and took on one of the Dewmthrowas, her own star weapon deflecting the massive metal boomerang.

Witht he first rain of hammers, Vash woke up, gun in his hand, as he took aim and fired, bullets deflecting the hammers away.

[Charon]

Matthew saw his targets. Dear God, what were those things? When the song broke out Matthew was even more confused, wondering why the hell these creatures were dancing, and what the hell it was they were dancing to for that matter.

With the first rain of hammers Matthew turned to Leah. "Leah! Check on Auron! Get him back into this fight, we'll need him!"

Matthew looked back at the hulking creatures. There was no way he could charge those and live. Maybe they would get closer though. Here was hoping. Matthew took a step back and gave as much of a defensive posture as he knew.

[LadyTevar]

This was just another battle, Leandra told herself, focusing on what came naturally to a cleric in a mass battle on Zion: Buff and Heal. Let the others worry about fighting, Leandra would worry about keeping them up and able to fight.
"Mother Innara, wash away this child's wounds!" she prayed, directing the full force of a Cure Serious into Auron's crumpled form.

it even let her forget for a moment the stupidity of HammerTime.

[SirNitram]

The hammer splintered in the air, but Albert was already pulling his next thrown weapon.

One of the bags he had been making.

"It's not fireflower.. But chew on this!" Albert yelled at the dancing(DANCING?!) Sledgebrothers as he chucked the first at one, and then the next. He'd run out far too fast, but as sparks and flames erupted from the impacts, he hoped it'd even the odds.

[Comrade Tortoise]

Justin once again invoked words of power, and conjusred a storm of lighting. The moment the clouds had gathered, a massive stroke of lighting lanced down from the heavens towards one of the Warhammers.

[Dark Silver]

While Justin was weaving his spell, the first of the Errors rose from the ground next to him. Quickly followed by another, and another. A low hiss issued from thier mouthless forms, as they leapt on the druid, dark claws flashing.

The Warlock, meanwhile, was getting a similar treatment, Errors and a Dewmthrowa moving to deal with his minions. The metal boomerang sliced through the skeletal constructs like a hot knife through butter, as the Errors rushed in on the one commanding them.

The lighting bolt which struck one of the Wahammer's knocked on it it's backside, with a loud thud which shook the ground. The others were still in the middle of thier dance routine, as another set of hammers appeared in thier hands, and where hurled at the group. No sooner had those left thier paws, than another set reappeared.

The thermite pouched Albert throw had mixed effects, some impacted the hammers, causing them to explode into melted slag and ash, while others caught the hammers on fire, becoming flaming projectiles.

Some few though, made contact with the Wahammers, the explosions rocked the foothills, and waves of heat radiated from the explosion sites. But at lest one of the Null's had been taken out by the thermite.

[Rukia]

"HOLY SHIT!" Rory screamed as the fist wave of hammers came raining down, she watched in shock as one hit Auron and sent him flying. Everyone was leaping into action and she hadn't a clue what to do. She watched for only a second more before climbing up in a tree. These guys were too big for her to fight one on one... she'd have to even the odds. She jumped from branch to branch and positioned herself over one of the Sledgebrothers. Jesus they seemed so easy when she had played Super Mario Brothers so long ago.... but thoes spikes looked pretty dangerous now... She'd have to land in-between the shell and head. And the dancing didn't help either.

-Oh god.. I'm gonna die...- She drew her sword and prepared to jump.

[Shark Bait]

Ted made a small motion advancing his warriors forward in front of him and his mages ready to engage the approaching enemy. His mages’ bone jaws ground and snapped together as they cast their spells seven of the hammer wielders were struck by bolts of ice slowing their movements. Finally Ted locked eyes with the large gruesome looking behemoth and focused his thoughts of fire and pain, forcing them into the beast. He felt the rush of mana flow out of him something he had come to know in the past several days. Deep inside the creature a fire began smoldering at first but quickly growing in intensity which would burn it from the inside out.

[Comrade Tortoise]

The little fuckers were all over him. Clawing and biting. This was not good. He could feel blood well up in new wounds. He used his hands and staff to beat them off of him. Little bastards. The moment he started to get the better of them, he had to throw himself out of the way before a hammer impacted his skull. He could only hope it hit one of them

Hopefully that would dislodge some of them

[Charon]

Matthew dived to the side as one of the hammers crashed into the ground where he'd been. Scrambling to his feet he looked around. Justin was in trouble. Running forward he pulled back his sword to strike away at the creatures that were wrapping themselves around him and then stopped. Three days practice was not enough to try something as stupid as that. Letting go with one hand he reached out and grabbed one of the swarming creatures, throwing it off of Justin and quickly swinging to cut it in two. He repeated the process, attempting to clean the creatures off of his ally.

[LadyTevar]

The healing spell didn't wake Auron, but it did seem to keep him alive. Leandra thought quickly, a brief debate between Heal and Attack spells... but the arrival of the lesser monsters made the choice for her. Time to go briefly offensive.

"Innari, Blessed Mother! Cleanse these defilers with your Holy Fire!!" she chanted, raising her hands to the sky. In answer, fire rained down from above, pouring over the boomerang-throwing monsters, searing them.

[SirNitram]

The sound of battle behind him reminded Albert he was on his own. At least one had fallen, but the meagre supply of 'firebags' had run out. He knelt as he moved, mentally trying to time the rhythym of the enemy dance as he grabbed the fallen Null by the legs.

They had all called him crazy for investing points in the Really Throw Anything class feature.

He needed a bit of a swing, but the giant, spiky-shelled creature hurtled towards one of the attackers a moment later. But he needed more ammunition, and he wouldn't be lucky with avoiding enemy weapons forever.

[Agent Fisher]

Jack rolled to his left, dropping behind his horse, his right hand draw his sword, the other grabbing his shield.

An error popped up next to him. He swung his sword at the midsection of the creature.

[Dark Silver]

The dance routine had broken down, and the Wahammers rushed forward, still hurling mutiple hammers as they went. Vash had reloaded his gun, the gunshots ringing out as bullets knocked the hammers of course. There was only so long before he would miss though.

The thrown Wahammer had impacted into one of the others, sending it flying back, with the resounding sound of the shell upon shell. They stayed on the ground for a mere moment, before they both flew up into the air, then down, disappearing into the earth.

Rory, meanwhile, had hit it lucky. While she couldn't bring her sword down right, her feet landed between the spikes, and the bone carapice, right on the Wahammer's neck. She immediatly bounced up into the air, then back down again, as the Wahammer seemed to hope up, and die, as it's corpse followed it's companions. The little rogue landed on her feet, looking shocked as hell, before she scrambled away from the fight. No way she could pull THAT off again, and she instead went to help Ted.

The Dewmthrowa gurgled as the heat welled up in it, but the Errors had already lept onto Ted, claws digging past the flimsy cloth and tore into flesh. It used it's boomrang as a sword, slicing down at the warlock.



On a rise above the battle, the Rogue, Sedin, watched the battle. The group was winning, and they had others protecting them. Soon, he would have to become involved.

"WWAAAAAAGGGHHHHH!!" he shouted, raising the dark saber into the air, and the Null's seemed to become more ferocious in thier assault.

[SirNitram]

As the two Sledgebrothers went down to his throw, Albert was out of ranged weapons. He grabbed his warhammer, gritted his teeth, and met the coming charge as the 'WAAAGH!' cheer was taken up. He was the only one that stood a chance in straight melee with these brutes, so he had to stop them.. And their Dark Rider.. before they broke forward.

His massive, two handed weapon swept forward with mighty swings..

[Comrade Tortoise]

Justin knew his freind was in trouble, his best friend since...god as far as he could remember.

He called down a bolt of lighting on the Dewmthrowa, and muttered the incantation of another spell in the process. Ted began to grow thorns over his entire body

[Charon]

Matthew stopped helping Justin as the Warhammers came in, the sound of a charge filling the air around them. There was something else here, something worse than these creatures. Rushing towards the cart Matthew grabbed a hold of his shield, blood beginning to pump through his veins at an increased rate as adrenaline began pumping through his body. He yelled back into the night as he stepped back, putting the cart between himself and the monstrosities, that might just give him the few seconds he'd need.

[Dark Silver]

Auron down, Vash holding the line as best as he could, Yuffie locked in deadly combat with a Dewmthrowa, in seemingly mid-air, and the Wahammer's rushing in to finish the job. Error's were nearly everywhere, more than enough to overwhelm on thier own.

They were doomed.

That was until Sheik appeared overhead, shouting out a spell, as a wall of flame sprouted between the Wahammer's and the humans.

The ninjaesque boy landed next to thog, and pressed something in his hand, a clear block with a smiling star shape in the middle. "Use it" she said, as she rushed towards Leandra, hurling a clear box with a blue flower towards Matthew, "Squeeze the box til it breaks" she shouted in instructions, and rushed to help Auron.

[Rukia]

She stood next to Ted, "Uuuh that thing isn't dieing." She didn't waste any time before charging at it, she swung her sword and made a direct hit with one of it's arms. The bade should have gone through like a hot knife through butter but only made a large deep wound. This made the thing madder. It was slowy incinerating but not quick enough to get a hit off on Rory. She was knocked to the ground. She lay there for a sec, but the Dewmthrowa had other plans, it rushed towards her. She jumped to her feet and as the thing ran to her she dodged it and periced its side.

[SirNitram]

It took Albert a few seconds to realize what the clear box was holding. Then, he grinned. He tossed the clear box into the air, and sprang up, a hand uplifted. When the fist impacted with the box, the star was released, and his body began to flash and glow, trailing motes of light.

The Wahammers' first clue something was wrong was when the Half-Giant plowed through the flaming wall and through them, causing them to bounce and vanish as if taken out in mortal combat. Albert barely slowed down: He was gunning for the rider, and as the Star Power sped him up, he raced towards the 'leader' who had been charging moments before.

[Charon]

Matthew stood confounded as the wall of flame came up and Sheik appeared. He almost didn't catch the box as it was thrown to him, dropping his sword to do so. Matthew simply stared at the box for a moment in confusion before realization crossed his face and he smiled. Crushing the box a surge of fire burst around Matthew. As the flames died away Matthew had changed. Where before his armor had been a deep ebony and dark blue it now shined with a radiant white, the spikes and straps a brilliant fiery red. In each of Matthew's hands rested balls of fire. Grinning ferally he looked up at his targets.

"Now then, where were we?"

Throwing out his arms he released two fireballs which careened through the air, passing through the fire wall only aided the flaming projectiles as they screamed burning hatred towards the Warhammers.

[LadyTevar]

Leandra stayed with the strategy that worked on Zion Mobs and bosses. Heal, Attack, Heal. Absently she had to wonder why the Circle of Protection wasn't holding the creatures back, but that was something to think of another time.

"Mother Innari, may your healing rain wash over us, your children all!" she prayed, summoning her most potent mass healing spell to hit the full party, Sheik included now.