After a few moments, a young man with well-kept blonde hair appears on the scene. Monsters like this were his specialty, and something he had no qualms with crushing. Though he almost seems unarmed, with only a small, black cylinder resembling a stun baton by his side, the young adult carries himself with confidence. The man calmly steps forward, approaching the two officers securing the area before asking. "I understand this is the scene? Can I expect any backup on this mission, any information about the monster in question, or shall I root it out myself?"

A young woman with blonde hair tied back in a ponytail would wander up to the scene, she wasn't quite expecting anyone to call on her help here of all places but... Here she is, having been hired to provide assistance for the moment, or more aptly the TSAB was and sent her. She'd gaze over at Nanashi and Leonus before speaking up to the officers. "Good day, I'm Fate Testarossa from the Time Space Administration Bureau. I'd echo the young man's question for a start, though I suppose I can answer the backup part a bit. I'm around at least." Much like Leonus she appears entirely unarmed, but despite that her voice and face seem to indicate she considers such an event entirely manageable. A rampaging beast is hardly the worst thing she's fought for the military, in truth.

Morgana’s feline form lets him be a fly on the wall for street talk. No mere construction caused this nervousness among the humans. Perhaps it would be worth investigating? He decides it wouldn’t hurt to take a look. The black cat takes advantage of his small size and phantom thief stealth to slink past the police. “Mrr~!” He can’t contain a giddy meow.

*The cops stop their worried murmurings and look at the group.* Cop 1: Huh? Are you kids joking or something? Cop 2: W-Wait sir. What if these are those specialists that strange man was talking to us about? The Hunters? Cop 1: Hunters eh? *The first cop scratches his head.* Cop 1: Hmm. I don't know. The captain didn't mention anything about this. But that man was strangely compelling in his argument... *The cop looks back to them.* Cop 1: You sure you people want in on this? It's a dangerous situation, ya know. Cop 2: All the witnesses have told us is that theirs some kind of giant, man eating snake creature in there. Cop 1: We've been ordered not to engage. But, if you think you can do it, just try not to die. It's more paperwork for us if you do.

"Is that all the information you have?" Leonus lets out a sigh, holding his forehead while shaking his head in disappointment before nodding to Fate "Leonus from Thunderstrike Squadron, mercenary group specializing in supernatural scenarios. I trust the TSAB is everything I've heard about and more." With that little introduction, Leonus briefly analyzes the group gathered. None of them looked impressive, but Fate ought to know what they were doing and he'd faced much more innocuous-looking characters anyways. He briefly looks over the cat, as its mere presence isn't enough reason to suspect it yet. With his brief analysis over, Leonus strides forward, first to enter the stadium. He keeps a relaxed stance, but his eyes are open, searching wherever he goes for the first sign of danger.

The Mage just sighs at the police, is this what law enforcement are usually like on this dimension...? Good lord, but whatever, as long as they aren't going to get in the way of her work its fine. "I'm pretty sure officer, yes. I've been running operations against creatures like this, among other things, for quite some time. And a pleasure to meet you Leonus, I'm not overly familiar with your group, but you seem to have your head on straight. I'm going to start running some scans, see if I can't figure out where our target is." She'd mutter something under her breath before a light flashes briefly. Soon enough the woman's outfit is replaced with a long white coat over a blue military dress uniform, and a black axe with a gleaming blade of energy would appear in her hands. Several orbs rush out from the weapon and begin blanketing the stadium in a soft yellow light, aiming to scan the place and hopefully detect any significant life signs and or magical or technological energy sources. Besides that, she merely stays on guard herself while following shortly behind Leonus. And spares a glance toward the strange figure watching, but she won't strike quite yet.

Nanashi steps forth and announces his presence to the rest of the group. "Name's Nanashi and i'm here for what you'd call... personal reasons. I can explain later, but for now, we should just focus on coordinating an attack together. This isn't anything any one of us can handle on our own. I suggest you call in whatever backup you can get right now." With that being said, Nanashi uses his phone to summon a demon uncharacteristically clad in an advanced military battle suit who addresses the group in a harsh commanding voice. "HEE-HO! Alright, you mongrels, if this is truly a mission worthy of someone of MY caliber, then I suggest those of you who aren't battle-hardened veterans turn tail and run off right now!" "I couldn't have said it better myself, Demonee-Ho, mainly because there's no good way to say that."

The TSAB Enforcer is ever the pro on the job, at least when she's actually on duty rather than helping for a whim. And so she wouldn't even take her eyes away from the area in front of them while responding to Nanashi in a calm voice. "Can't say I can get any back up at the moment, the TSAB's reaching pretty thin these days, for a lot of reasons. Yourself Mr. Leonus?" She'd raise an eyebrow slightly upon hearing the demon's bit, that's... Not that odd by her standards, but still a bit odd. Summoning is normal-ish, but that doesn't seem like any normal creature one might call upon. Even taking into account the strangeness of the Expanse and its ideas or myths given shape. "And that's, quite the curious summon you have there. A demon of some stripe I'd wager, but not one I can even guess at. Interesting, if a bit odd. I'll trust you can handle yourself given you seem to have that being well in hand as an ally."

*Fate's scan would reveal a few things. For one, the cops were just as dull as they seemed. The woman with the owl hair pin being interviewed across the street on the other hand seems to be a pretty strong... something? It's like something is interfering with getting a full reading on the woman. The woman glances over in Fate's direction and smiles before looking back to the cop questioning her. Other than that, two powerful magical signatures can be detected with in the Tokyo Dome.* *The two cops would look at the strange demon with an odd look.* Cop 1: Al....right? Cop 2: U-Uh! Sir yes sir! Cop 1: Don't fuel it, idiot. Cop 2: Uh. Sorry sir. *The first cop sighs. He nods towards the Stadium.* Cop 1: Welp, head on in then. We won't stop ya.

"Thunderstrike is the finest mercenary outfit there is. Most clients have a hard time hiring one member, let alone the entire squad. If you ever see more than one of us on a given mission its safe to assume a disaster is occurring. Something that needs to be handled swiftly and silently. And this, well this is nothing." Leonus lets out a faint sigh, casting a quick glare at the strange, battlesuited demon. He preferred to avoid entering combat with one of... Them. But a job is a job, so long as they weren't an obstruction there was no need to mind them. "As Thunderstrike's second-in-command I can easily handle a demon of this caliber." Now that he has the go-ahead from the authorities in charge of this job, the police officers, Leonus walks down to the stadium entrance, keeping an eye out for any potential ambushes along the way.

The feline watches the group chatting with the cops for a while before darting into the dome’s entrance. He treads lightly in case someone or something is nearby. He doubts the monster is at the edge but who knows what else was drawn here? Shadows draw more Shadows and monsters draw more monsters. And hunters, he thinks, smiling to himself. With that girl in that group there’s no doubt about their intentions.

Nanashi nods at Fate, giving her a perky smile. "Yeah, inside the armor is a being that resembles a winter spirit, Jack Frost. The suit it wears was supposedly once advanced military combat equipment used by humans to fight against demons." "Hee-xactly! No one's better suited for this mission than I!" Nanashi then starts to walk right beside Leonus, giving him a look of skepticism as he boasts about his own strengths "Right, well, we want to be as safe as we can. Strength alone won't be enough to make this monster stay dead!"

*Let in by the cops, everyone freely enters the main stadium, entering the grand enterance hall. It's a wide open area, filled with stands selling merchandise and sugary treats for the game, now abandoned thanks to the growing threat, and lavish decor, welcoming would be game watchers in to get ready for the excitement. However, you can barely reach past the doors before a voice behind you shouts.* ???: Wait up! *The woman with the owl hairclip runs up to you. Closer up, you can see that it's not just one Owl clip she has, but also a badge attatched to the right strap of her dungarees and one attatched to the strap of the bag she has slung over a shoulder. Said bag is slightly open, giving you a view of a round, metalic object amongst a couple of books. She stops, panting slightly, and straigtens out her glasses.* ???: Sorry. But, you're here for the monster that's decided to nest itself in this place too, right? *The woman places a hand on her chest, giving everyone an earnest look and a friendly smile.* Athena: I'm a sort of Hunter of the strange, I guess you could say. My callsign is Athena. I'd like to tell you it's a long story, but, really, I just like reading and owls. I was hoping we could work together if we're here for the same reason. You don't mind, do you?

"That is our current objective, yes." Leonus responds to Athena with a sigh. He looks over the woman for a moment. Not very professional-looking, though it was clear they were trying to disguise themselves. The reason didn't really matter though. "So long as you can hold your own I have no issues. Taking 'Athena.' the goddess of wisdom and battle, as a callsign demonstrates confidence, which is a considerable factor." Leonus taps his foot momentarily before giving the woman a quick glance. "Lets hope you can back that up."

Nanashi gives Athena a look that's not altogether unwelcoming but does show some concern in regards to their abilities. "I'm used to working with others, so it's no problem!" He then smiles, a casual air emanating from him as he seems to match paces with everyone around him, not going to far ahead of anyone. "How much do you know about what we're hunting, Athena?"

Morgana hops onto the concessions counter and listens in on the conversation. He’s definitely not doing this to eat the snacks, ignore the crumbs gathering around his muzzle. He’s just... fueling himself while gathering intel! Yeah, that’s it. Once he’s done with his very important quest, he listens for anything out of the ordinary. He still isn’t sure where the problem is hiding.

The Mage would simply nod slightly... Though, Athena. She's done reading up on that Pantheon after her meeting with Dionysus a while back. She has to wonder... "I don't suppose you'd happen to know a different hunter of sorts who goes by Dionysus? Wears a nice suit, uses a lot of poisons and healing concoctions. You kinda remind me of him, what with the name scheme and all." She's not exactly going to out right call the woman out at the moment, but if Athena is who Fate thinks she is then the implication behind those words should be very clear to her. There's also Nanashi's question which she's curious about, of course he asked it so she won't repeat that. "At any rate, like Mr. Leonus said you're correct on our work. I'll trust you can handle yourself as well."

*Athena steps ahead of the group while answering Nanashi's question.* Athena: Our target? Only what the police have told me. A giant snake like creature. I imagine, if it's a known threat, it would have some reason to be here. Maybe some recent event happened to draw it out of hiding or someone summoned it. I've narrowed it down to three. The Lernean Hydra, An Ilyanka or some sort of powerful familiar. I don't have much to go on. *Athena looks back at Leonus, smirking.* Athena: That good enough for you? *Athena gives Fate a strange glance, like she's sizing her up.* Athena: Well we have someone called Dionysus, but he just sits at the bar we frequent all day while the rest of us go off and do our thing. Granted, not much jobs going for we hunters of the strange. He's a bit of a layabout. *Athena stretches, looking towards the double doors leading further into the stadium.* Athena: Been a while since I've been on a job myself admittedly. I work at a local library but trying to get paid leave? Such a nightmare. So, shall we go?

Nanashi shakes his head, possessing a greater understanding of the threat at hand but electing to remain silent on this fact. He travels forth right behind Athena, holding his pistol by his thigh while Demonee-Ho has his rifle pointed upwards like always. "That's good enough for me!" Nanashi would signal to Demonee-Ho who instinctively marches over to the double doors and pushes the left one open slightly with his free hand. He then places the hand he used to open the door on the trigger of his gun, pushing its muzzle into the open space and peaks through the open space slowly for any threats before kicking the door wide open. If, at this point, he found the area to be completely barren, he would start using sign language to indicate the coast was clear regardless of whether or not any of those present could understand him. On the other hand, if he found anything that seemed hostile, he would begin firing at it immediately.

All those names for the beast mean “Big Snake” to Morgana. The cat stretches then hops off the stand. His little white paws pad against the hard floor as he makes his way further in. However, due to being a seemingly normal cat, the double doors present a problem. He sits down next to the doors and waits for someone to open them.

Leonus lets out a sigh, bringing a hand to his chin while considering the three main theories. "Familiar is a fancy way of saying you don't know, but the other two... A hydra should be easy. Especially if its the Lernean one specifically. Bigger than average, but the most dangerous aspect of a hydra is the variety of forms they can take. Illyanka I'm less familiar with, coming from a less popular mythology means they tend not to appear as often." At least that's the theorry for now. Since Nanashi was eager to take the lead despite wielding a ranged weapon Leonus was happy to let them. They should know what they're getting into, and if not then whatever happened would be their own fault.

Fate is also fine with letting Nanashi take the lead, she's fast enough to get where she's needed if something comes up anyways after all. And the info... "Yeah sounds about right, hydras I'm also fairly familiar with. Illyanka though that's a bit of a mystery here too, at least in specifics beyond being a large serpent creature. Anyways, let's just keep moving for now." She simply nods to Athena's reply about the god of wine, she doesn't exactly buy this woman isn't another goddess but who knows. It's possible that simply took the name for herself, in theory. Either way the Enforcer is happy to keep her eyes out for anything that might attack them.

*Demonee-ho would open the door. However, before he could open fire, the strange noise of a flute can be heard. Nanashi's demon would barely be able to a few rounds before it collapsed, asleep. From the other door, a man emerges with dark skin and a Fedora. Nanashi would easily be able to recognise him.* Such an uncouth welcome. But I suppose I should expect as much from you, Dagda's Kalki. *The man's eyes look over the rest of the party. For someone like Fate, it would be easily to detect the man's power. Not quite as strong as someone like Eris, but still definatly stronger than a mere mortal. The man's eyes stop on Athena.* Krishna: Having fun hiding among the mortals, Athena Athena: I thought I saw you here earlier, Eighth Avatar of Vishnu. So you're behind this, are you Krishna? *The man, Krishna, chuckles.* Krishna: I leave that up to your imagination. You are the Goddess of Wisdom, after all.

Leonus lets out a sigh and shakes his head. Even if Athena's theory was correct, he was hired to kill a snake, not to harass the mastermind behind it. "I'll let you two catch up. My target's the snake taking nest here, not the pest who drew it." With that, he aims to simply walk by Krishna, paying the minor god no heed. He agreed to a contract and would follow it through, for now it was as simple as that.

The Mage just shrugs slightly and follows after Leonus, she can obviously tell this is likely another god but... Whatever. not really within her orders to deal with that at the moment. And this is an actual mission, not some flight of her own whims like that cave incident. "Yeah I'm just gonna go ahead myself, the briefing said I was to take care of this beast not deal with some god." Simply wandering past the mess may not work out though, so she's prepared to defend herself if this attempt of theirs to carry on with the job goes south somehow.

Now instead of a hunt, it’s a game of deities and pawns. He hates being a pawn. Morgana scratches his ear with his hind leg. He’ll just sit here for now. Getting in on this juicy gossip is a priority. Unlike the blonde, Morgana wasn’t tied to any contracts or whatnot. Like a cat, he did as he pleased, so what pleases him now is intel gathering.

Nanashi gives Krishna a condescending look, scoffing at his demeanor. "I suspected as much. How long do you intend to keep up these schemes, Krishna?" Nanashi smirks as Leonus starts walking away, gripping his sword with battle-ready intensity. "Well, someone's eager..." He would take a step in Leonus' direction, maintaining awareness of his surroundings in case Krishna tries anything.

Krishna: Schemes? Do you truly think so little of me, Kalki? *Krishna closed his eyes, smiling lightly. As the others walked passed him, he'd offer no resistance. Instead, however, he offered a warning.* Krishna: That way to your quarry has been blocked by rubble. If you wish to advance, may I suggest going in from above? The door to the left leads up to the stands. You'd have better luck going that direction. Athena: What's your game here, Krishna? Krishna: Unlike you Olympians, hiding amongst the mortals of this world, I don't play tricks. I am here to offer Salvation. Nothing more. Nothing less. *Krishna glanced around at everyone.* Krishna: Will you accept it?

"I don't have time for your petty tricks. I will appreciate the advice, so long as it is good, and if not then you will be dealt with as any who offer false flowers." Instead of actually answering Krishna's question, Leonus takes his advice to look leftward for a door to the stands. He's someone who'll fall for anything exactly once. But best not to see him again if he does.

Nanashi would seem somewhat offended at this point, frowning at Krishna. "No salvation is worth allowing countless innocents to die!" Nanashi would make his way behind Leonus, looking back to Fate and Athena. "Come, we're wasting time talking here."

Salvation, huh? Sounds fishy. Morgana stretches and pads over to Krishna, winding around the man’s legs. He speaks in a low voice so only Krishna can hear. “Well aren’t you charming? What’s a fellow like you doing here? I doubt it’s just a whim.” He lets the humans take the initiative while he chats. He can always tail them after.

*Athena would glare at Krishna.* Athena: Don't. Try. Anything. *Krishna raises a hand.* Krishna: Why would I need too? *Athena clicks her tongue and heads after the others. Krishna chuckles before reaching down and petting Morgana.* Krishna: What an interesting creature you are. I'd suggest you move along. Your allies may need you in the battle ahead. *Krishna heads off through the opposite door everyone else was heading through. Meanwhile, with everyone else, after a short walk through the right hand side, past abandoned consession stands and some dropped accessories, is a stairway up. Sunlight shines in from above. So too echoes a venomous cry of your target.*

“So that’s how you want to play? Oh well. I can play support if that’s what this play of yours needs.” Morgana purrs and slips away to catch up with everyone else. Once they’re in sight, he lags a few feet behind to safely observe. Whatever’s up there, he doesn’t want to be the first to face it.

"Hmm?" Nanashi finally notices the cat approaching the group, turning around to take a step towards it. "Sorry for the delay, but i'm just gonna take a second to shoo this cat away. I'd rather not have its soul stolen by the Divine Powers." Roughly, Nanashi walks up to the cat and attempts to first kick it from the side. If that doesn't discourage it, he would then attempt to pick up the cat and toss it in the direction of the nearest exit.

Morgana pouts. He’s not just going to be shooed away. Maybe he can make a tactical re- “MEOWOWOWOW!” Cat, meet foot. Morgana manages to land on his feet. He arches his back and glares at Nanashi. How dare this man harm his beautiful self? When he’s picked up, he unleashes all his fury and attempts to claw this guy’s arms and face off.

Nanashi isn't an idiot, thus when the cat starts swiping at him he instinctively drops it, completely relenting and backing away in order to sustain as little injury as he can. "Oh well, it is just a cat, after all." He then ignores it and resumes his travel up the stairway, peering into the path ahead for any visual sign of the enemy.

Leonus shakes his head and sighs before remarking "Quit harrassing the feline and focus on the mission." With Nanashi still leading the way, Leonus follows up the staircase. Other than the minor scolding he remains silent, with little else to remark upon.

Athena: If the cat wants to come, let it come. *Athena sighs before heading up the stairs. Upon reaching the top, there are two ways to go but both lead into the stands of the stadium proper. Upon emerging into the light however, you are met almost immediately by a stream of Flames.* Athena: Watch out! *Athena swiftly pulls a shield from her bag and uses it to defend herself from the flames.*

"Fire-breathing." Leonus remarks while pulling out the small, black cylinder attached to his belt and flicking a button. In an instant, a thin, crackling blade of electricty sparks from the end of the device. Leonus swiftly swirls the blade in front of him, causing the fire aimed his way to funnel towards his weapon, only to be quickly absorbed and analyzed. As the weapon absorb's the firey energy, its blade changes from a spark of electricity, to one of fire, all the while maintaining its long, rapier-like form. "Cheap, but not particularly effective. I recommend we split up to surround the target."

The Enforcer, who's obviously been here the whole time. Doesn't want to play at defending herself quite like Athena, being in a single place is anathema to Fate's fighting style and instead, she'd move with the nearly impossible to track speed she's known for. Flames sailing right by and only manging to just barely do a bit to her Barrier Jacket as a few stray embers slam into her. This evasion also has the effect of taking her well into the sky, aiming to get above their foe as she nods to Leonus. "Makes sense, it can't hit all of us at once if we aren't in the same place... In theory, I'll try and cover everyone from up here." How she even be easily heard is questionable, but she can. And the mage would aim to apply a fairly simple attack as her first move, a single electrical beam rushing down through the air without too much effort behind it. Simply testing the waters as it were at the moment. Not sure if you want us to do these but, it can't hurt. Action: Lighting Blast, Medium Elec to one foe. A nice lightweight starting attack.

Morgana does the reasonable thing and uses Athena as a meatshield. Once the flames die down, he attempts to make a dash for the stands so he can get a higher perch. He’ll even climb the walls if he has to... even if he’s still aching from that kick. Morgana will remember this.

A small fly would cling to Fate just barely losing her as she sprinted, seeming to smoke and simmer from the wave of fire but oddly it's form would not burn away, seeming to regenerate as it was disintegrated. Now floating in the air with her the figure would move away slightly before returning to their full size, wings attached to their back that seemed reptilian in nature with pale scales. Most of their body would already have regenerated with the only true indication of damage being in their clothing, specifically the dark colored clock they were wearing was damaged. Revealing another dark outfit underneath that seemed more skin to a military grade bodysuit and silver colored hair under their hood. "I see...I wasn't prepared for that. Do you have a clothing repair tool I can use?"

Not having any efficient means of evading or blocking, the flames strike Nanashi's armor, dealing neutral damage to him. He personally seems unfazed by this, his gaze focused on the direction the attack came in as he sends a large shard of ice back in the same way. "Everyone, try using different elements to find the enemy's weakness!" Action: Bufula, Medium Ice to one foe. I'm doing smirk mechanics on weak hits and crits.

*Fate and Nanoha attempts to attack would be met with the opponent moving it's heads apart, cauing both to fly in the stands behind it. Locking eyes with you is twin serpentine heads attatched to a lizardlike body. Flames drip from each of it's heads, one looking and Nanashi, Fate and Leonus and the other looking at Athena and Morgana.* Athena: Huh. So it was the Hydra. *Athena looks across the stands to Leonus and nods.* Athena: Then let me get it's attention for you. See if you can behind it. Careful though. It does have two heads. *Athena presses forwards, pulling a spear from a compartment in her shield's back and growing it to full length. Then she leaps in the air, tossing her shield the Hydra and landing in main pitch before catching it.* Athena: You said you could handle something like this, yeah pretty boy? Let's see how your skills back up your mouth. -Battle Start. Vs Lernean Hydra. Player Phase- Athena: Shield Toss (Heavy Physical damage to all foes) OOC: Usually this is the part where I tell you to use element and attack strength (IE Medium Ice) to make it easier for me to keep track of, but Nanashi and Fate are an update ahead of me.

No time to waste. It’s showtime! An inky substance surrounds Morgana as he leaps back. When he lands, he’s perched on the edge of the stands in a bipedal form: a black cat with a leathery body resembling a catsuit. His eyes which were once blue are now a sharp red. “Look alive! Keep its attention scattered!” He doesn’t do anything to help and instead focuses on observing the hydra. Action: Imagine fighting. This update was made by the navi gang.

"Its a simple matter really." Leonus scoffs from the right side of the stands. The hydra obviously focused on flame, so it wouldn't help as a weapon enhancement. With this in mind, he briefly flickers his blade off, then on to reset it to lightning as he jumps down into the main arena. "You heard the feline, keep the heads distracted for a moment, it'll be far easier if I can get close." With his orders given to Fate and Nanashi, Leonus circles around the area towards the backside of the Hydra's body, looking for the first opportunity to sprint forward and get up on the hydra's back. Attempting to climb the hydra, not really a damage thing yet.

Nanashi shakes his head, opting to stand in the back and performing another ritual on his phone to summon Megami Norn. Action: Summon

The Enforcer simply nods to Leonus for now, she doesn't see anything wrong with his and the cat's thinking for the moment so that will work just fine. Taking a page out of Nanoha's playbook for a moment she'd conjure a barrage of numerous small balls of lightning, any single one would only inflict minor damage upon the enemy but there's about a dozen in total split between both its heads as she prepares to begin dodging whenever it begins focusing on her. "Got it, I'm pretty good at evasion so I don't mind drawing most of its focus onto myself." Action: Seeking Lightning Balls: Minuscule Elec X12 split between both heads.

-Enemy Phase- *Distracted at first by Athena, the Hydra is caught out by Fate's sudden burst of magic, allowing her to hit most of her attacks, with a few flying into the stands across the stadium. Upon feeling Leonus attempting to mount it, the beats tail rises up and swings at him. The heads in the meantime glare down at Athena and Fate. It's dagger like teeth shine before they lunge forwards, attempting to take a bit out of Athena and Fate.* Moves Tail Strike (Medium Physical damage to all foes. Only Leonus is in range to get hit by it.) Devour Whole (Light Physical Damage to 2 random foes. Heals self equal to damage dealt Targets: Athena and Nanoha) -Player Phase- *Athena raises her shield, causing the head targetting her to ram into it. She then pushes forwards, following up with a few rapid spear thrusts to the creature. She glanes around, watching where everyone is, before turning her attention back to the foe before her, content that everyone's alright for the time being.* Passive Effect: Aegis of Athena (The first attack to hit Athena is blocked) Attack: Spear Strike (Medium gun damage X3 to one foe. Target: Lernean Hydra)

Morgana’s impressed with this ragtag group. For a bunch of random hunters, they’re working together quite well. “Lightning and physical attacks work out! I wouldn’t try fire against this thing, so experiment with other stuff if you want!” Nobody seems too hurt aside from that strange man(?)’s clothes. He’ll jump in if someone’s taking too much of a beating later.

15723 would stay floating just a little above Fate, staying out of attacking range. Yet they'd still turn to them and start speaking. "Warning: The unidentified creature is currently trying to consume you. Evasive actions are advised."

"Hm, troublesome." Leonus remarks as the tail begins to rise upwards. The young mercenary takes a quick backstep to earn a little time to react, before ducking backwards to allow the tail to swipe over him. As the tail passes, Leonus gives the hydra's tail a quick swipe with his blade. However, rather than clash upon its scales, the electricity arcs off to give the hydra a painful jolt, while analyzing and reacting with the creature's life energy to determine its weaknesses ++Action++ Attack: Scraping Strike - 1x Medium Elec to Hydra Passive: Adaptive technology - upon a successful hit Leonus's weapon changes from Elec, to whatever element the target is weakest to.

Nanashi holds his right hand out, a wave of energy swirling around in the center of the Hydra's body and tearing at it. Afterwards, Norn uses its magic to hasten time for everyone, making it as if they just did an hour of training without knowing. Nanashi: Zanma, Norn: Luster Candy

-Enemy Phase- *The beast's fangs sink into Nanoha's shoulder before the both heads recoil in pain from the others attacks. Upon striking it, Leonus would feel holy light channeled in his weapon. The beast grows angry at the assault from all sides, sending an earsplitting roar across the field before raising both heads into the air, fire gathering in it's mouths, and sending a flood of flames across the field in front of it.* Moves Screech (Medium Wind Damage to all foes. Lowers Defence) Fire Breath (Heavy Fire Damage to all foes. Misses Leonus due to his positioning.) -Player Phase- *Athena winces slightly due to being the closest to the beast when it roars, causing her defence to falter enought to get licked by the flames.* Athena: Everyone! Hold Fast! *A strange light is emitted from Athena's shield. THe Hydra's two heads glare down at her, as rage grows inside of them. Meanwhile, everyone else would feel protected. Like they were wrapped in a suit of armour, despite being able to move just as fast as before.* Moves Athena's Blessing (Casts TAUNT on self. Raises all allies Defence by 1 stage. TAUNT causes all single target attacks from all enemies to target the person afflicted with it.)

As Leonus withdraws his blade, it begins to glow with a solid white light, free from impurity. Holy, that is. Before he is able to call out, the young man has to cover his ears to protect from the sound. A direct attack he can defend from pretty well, but there's not much he can do about noise. "tch, how vulgar. The beast is vulnerable to Holy attacks, if any of you have light-based weaponry, this would be the time to use it!" His recommendation given, Leonus steps forward towards the creature's rear before making four rapid thrusts of his sword, each time the blade strikes the Hydra, it floods thier body with holy energy ++Action++ HP: 90% Rapier flurry - 4X light Holy on Lernean Hydra

“It’s weak to - oh, he’s one step ahead of me. Get all your Bless skills up and ready! Lemme give ya a hand! Andras!” Morgana leaps down and surrounds himself in blue flames. An owl-headed humanoid grabs the cat and uses its feathery wings to glide towards Fate. A healing aura pulses towards her, then cat and Persona fly back to a safer spot. Action: Dia (light heal to Fate)

Fate by this point has indeed taken note of the weakness to holy, it isn't her usual thing but... She can make it work, and after getting a decent bit of time to prepare a spell she's managed to simply alter one of her more usual skills while aiming her now calling out weapon towards the hydra. It's also meant that the thing managed to land a decent blow on her while charging up though, which the cat's healing only helps with somewhat. Bardiche: "Firing now, Holy Trident Smasher!" Three massive beams of gleaming white energy would blast forth from her weapon without even another second of warning, simply rocketing across the field at insane speeds and engulfing the beast in the massive divine power now being channeled from her beam-ax in the form of three large energy beams shaped much like the name would suggest, a trident slamming directly into the foe unless it manages to evade somehow. Action: Trident Smasher, heavy elec 3 times to one foe. Though in this case, it's heavy Holy 3 times. HP: 90%.

"Tch!" Nanashi's body is scared as the flames start burning away at him, nearly killing him at that very moment. However, using his last remaining strength, he holds his hand out and propels a shining beam of light at the Hydra. After it strikes, the clock on Norn body spins backwards, reversing all physical harm done to all allies. Nanashi: Hamaon (Heavy Holy Damage to One Foe. Smirk: 55% kill on normal enemies) Norn: Mediarahan

-Enemy Phase- *The Hydra is pelted by holy energy, flailing wildly under the pressure, it's heads fall to the ground. Athena narrows her eyes.* Athena: Here we go... *Slowly, the tail beats the ground twice. Steam spreads across the Hydra's body as it rises back up, eyes glowing. It leaps backwards, crushing the stands behind it before sending a wave of flames forwards again, this wave hotter and more intense than before.* Moves Regrowth (Grants self Lernean Blood for one turn. Lernean Blood enhances all abilities and neutralises all weaknesses) Fire Breath+ (Deals Medium Fire Damage X3 to all foes) -Player Phase- *Athena grits her teeth as the flames wash over her though is unable to penetrate her shield. She glances around at everyone, trying to see how they are through the red surrounding her. With a growl, she presses forwards, charging at the beast and smashing into it with her shield.* Moves Shield Bash (Heavy Physical Damage to one foe. Low chance to inflict DAZE)

"Alright, remember to avoid its heads. The creature seems to be getting desperate now." Leonus remarks as he leaps aside, well out of the hydra's way as the creature leaps backwards. Soon he would have to deal with its fire breath, but energy-based attacks are easy for him. Just as before, Leonus swirls his blade in front of him, causing it to gather and absorb the Hydra's fire, and using it to imbue his weapon with fire. Once he's absorbed the creature's energy, he makes a quick lunging thrust at the hydra's leg, choosing to alter his weapon aggressively rather than passively ++Action++ Energy absorption - nullifies one energy-based attack and changes his weapon's element to that of the attack Lunging thrust - medium fire at Lernean Hydra. Passive adaptive technology - as before, upon striking an opponent his weapon reads it for any weaknesses and changes elements to match. In case of a creataure without weaknesses, it settles for a neutral type.

“Meowowow! Hot!” Andras flutters back to the uncrushed stands and starts healing its master’s burns. It takes a lot out of Morgana just to stand up on the bleachers. Leather catsuit and flammable fur didn’t do him any favors against that attack. “I got careless... I’ll focus on support now! I don’t see a weak spot anymore so hit it hard or debuff it!” Action is... healing himself. No big stuff here.

Nanashi screams in agony before abruptly stopping, disregarding all distractions to focus on how best to defeat his opponent as he channel magnetite into himself. Norn was near defeated by the fire but just barely survived, using its half-depleted mana reserves to rewind time for the party once more. Nanashi: Concentrate Norn: Mediarahan

Tch, the vast waves of flames manage to force Fate onto a proper defensive. Even she can only dodge so much, and failing to dodge is worse than actually blocking here so... A cartridge full of magical energy clicks out onto the ground as she begins chanting under her breath and a yellow barrier of magical power rises up around her. The flames sear into her magic for a while, but as they die down she'd be left only mildly hurt and heated up a bit rather than in horrible agony or the like. It doesn't especially give her any time to keep pressing the attack though for the moment, but that will happen soon enough. Regardless of what their foe decides to use next, she'll be going on the offense full force. Action: Defenser Plus, massively reduces the damage of all attacks for a single turn. HP: 85%

-Enemy Phase- * Though Athena's attack would stop the stream of Flames, Leonus' attack wouldn't seem to anything to it. But then again, when was attacking a fire breathing beast with fire ever a good idea? Not even flinching at the hit, the Hydra would retaliate, one head lunging down at Leonus with it's venomous fangs while the other eyes the holy powers of Norn and angrily shoots a fire ball at it for daring to undo the damage the beast worked so hard to achieve.* Actions Venomous Fangs (Medium Physical Damage to one foe. Moerate chance to inflict POISON Target: Leonus) Flame Ball (Heavy Fire Damage to one foe. Target: Norn) -Player Phase- Athena: Look out! *Seeing the Hydra lunge at Leonus, Athena would hurl her shield to him. Somewhat mystically, the shield would stop infront of Leonus and deflect the attack before returning to it's masters arm.* Athena: Be more careful. One good hit is all it needs to finish even you off, Mister Expert. Actions Athena's Protection (Removes Athena's Passive for 1 turn. Blocks the first attack that would hit one party member this turn. Target: Leonus)

“Phew, thought you were a goner there, Sparky. Athena, keep up the tanking! We got squishier members than Sparky so help them out!” Morgana would normally call people by their actual names but he literally forgot Leonus’s. He hops from paw to paw anxiously as Andras continues to heal him. More healing. Yay.

Nanashi chuckles at Morgana's comment, confidently smirking. "What, you mean you all can't just summon gods and legendary heroes?" He then turns back to the Hydra, holding his hand out and unleashing a blindingly powerful holy light. As for Norn, they take the damage, nearly incapacitating them on the spot. With the last of their strength, they enhance the abilities of everyone present, taking enough magical power to infantilize the threat they pose. Nanashi HP Full MP Moderate: Hamaon (Damaging) Norn HP Low MP Very Low: Luster Candy

Leonus lets out a faint chuckle before responding "A knight never retreats, no matter the cost. While I appreciate the assistance, its wasteful to cover for me." As for his blade, having struck the hydra again the weapon alters itself, turning from a blazing brand to a sword of pure, holy light. with Athena's assistance Leonus is easily able to remain in melee range, stepping forward to aim a flurry of thrusts at the hydra's main body Action - rapier flurry - 4x light Holy on Lernean Hydra

Fate just sighs a bit, nothing is focused on her though so... Time to keep up the pain. Holy magic seems to still be working. B: "Divine Zanber!" Only a few moments pass as her next attack begins, the armor she's been wearing shifting form to a black bodysuit that is decidedly less armored looking than even her fairly light protection of before. Her weapon would also take the shape of a rather massive blade which is gleaming with powerful Holy energy and extending itself to be much longer. With an impossible speed that's even greater than before she'd quickly slash the massive weapon straight into the hydra, aiming to pass through each of its heads and all the way into the base of the thing's body with the magical power now radiating off her weapon. An attack made to punch through defenses and shatter barriers, and hopefully one which will hurt a great deal here too. Action: True Sonic Form, greatly raises hit/dodge rate and attack power, greatly lowers defense. Divine Zanber: Normally Zanber would be Severe but suddenly switching elements means a downgrade. Heavy Holy X2, ignores the resistances and defenses of the enemy.

-Enemy Phase- *The Hydra rears up and screeches at the sky, suddenly sending out a shock wave that knocks back the group in Melee range, possibly staggering them from the sudden force. It's skins glows red. It brings it's heads together, flames igniting in it's mouths. It seems like it's channeling a powerful attack.* Actions Damned Cry (Miniscule Wind damage to near by foes. High chance of STUN. Targets: Athena, Fate, Leonus) Blackfire: Set up (Reduces damage taken by 1 stage. Nullifies own Weaknesses. Grants self SHIELD for 1 turn) SHIELD: Negates a certain amount of damage. If broken, temporarily weakens the shielded party. -Player Phase- *Athena would hold her shield up to lessen the push back from the Hydra's cry.* Athena: This is bad. Where did a Hydra get this sort of power? Could it be... *Athena shook her head. No time to worry about that now. Light grows in Athena's Aegis as she slams it to the ground. All allies would glow slightly, increasing their defences from the current assault* Actions Aegis of Athena (Grants all allies WALL for 3 turns) WALL: Increases Defence to maximum and gradually heals affected targets

Nanashi pulls out his gun and fires poisonous rounds at the shield Norn goes up to the shield and straight up just starts punching it. Nanashi: Shoot Norn: Attack

“It’s charging something big! Get ready to guard!” Morgana hops from paw to paw on the edge of the stands. He suddenly pauses and squints at the snake. “Actually... if you hit it hard enough, you might break its guard! It’ll be a gamble though!”

"Tch, cheap trick isn't it?" Leonus takes a quick step backwards before flinching as a result of the cry. It was pretty obvious where this was going, so the young man brings up his weapon once more, ready to intercept and absorb the attack that seemed to be coming. ++Action++ defend - reduce damage incoming

The wind manages to slam into her and do... Very little, she's almost stunned for a moment but a small jolt of power rushing out from her device automatically gets the woman moving well before their foe finishes charging. B: "Trident Smasher!" Once again a mana cartridge slams out from her weapon as the woman grits her teeth and feels pain flowing through her, but the pain isn't enough to stop the massive three-pronged barrage of magical power gleaming with raw electrical from blasting out towards the Hydra, aiming to impale the thing straight in its center, the mana output flowing off Fate and her weapon at this point is massive beyond anything she's done up to now and would fly towards the foe faster than any of the projectiles she's used in this fight before. Action: Trident Smasher: Severe Elec X3, does not ignore resistances or defenses. HP: 70% after attack and cartridge damage.

*While several members of the team brace themselves and others desperate attacks are absorbed by the beasts scales, the flames grow larger and larger in the Hydra's mouths. As it's about to strike however, the soft hum of a flute sounds across the battlefield. A bright light flashes and the Beast rears in pain. One head collapses in the dust, the other weakened.* Are you having difficulties? * Sitting in the bleachers in the far side of the arena is Krishna, looking more interested in his flute than in the actual battle. He offers the group a warm smile.* Athena: Krishna? I've completed my task. I thought I should come a lend a hand. Athena: Your task? Let's talk later. The beast is moving. Actions Krishna: Moxigita (Heavy Almighty damage to one foe. Chance to Inflict GRAVITY) Gravity: Reduces Attack by 1 stage and reduces the amount of moves the inflicted party can take by 1 (minimun: 1) -Enemy Phase- *The remaining head, rises up, it's eyes glinting with rage. It bares it's razor sharp fangs, opens it's mouth and strikes.* Athena: What? *The beasts head tears through the neck of the defeated head. Almost immediatly, the stump thrashes about as it mutates. From where the single head had been, two more take it's place, joining the surviving head. Three sets of eyes glare down at the party where there had once been two.* Athena: Where the hell did it learn to abuse that? The chaotic energy that spawned it gave it increased intelegance. I shall explain after, but for now we must banish it. Athena: Agreed *The Hydra's heads each act independantly, striking out at a differant target. One eyes across the field, launching a fireball towards Norn yet again. The second strikes out at Leonus with Poison tipped fangs. The Final one let's out a screech, echoing across the arena.* Hydra's Unique Passive: Lernean Blood (Revives Self when defeated once per battle. Grants self 1 extra action upon revival. Grants self permenant Lernean Blood buff.) Fireball+ (Heavy Fire Damage to one foe. Inflicts burn if it hits. Target: Norn) Poison Fangs+ (Heavy Physical damage to one foe. High chance of POISON Target: Leonus) Screech+ (Heavy Wind damage to all foes that lowers defence by two stages) -Player Phase- Athena: I'll trust you just this once, Eighth Avatar. You won't be disapointed. Dagda's Kalki can attest to my skills. *Krishna gives Nanashi a smirk before playing a song on his flute, filling his allies with strength. Athena, meanwhile, tosses her shield at the middle head once again.* Krishna's Passive: Avatar (Krishna is immune to all status debuffs and ailments. Boosted stats can still be decreased, but he can’t drop below base stats) Krishna: Combat Tara (Increases all stats by 1 stage) Athena: Shield Toss

Morgana’s ears perk up. “Uh, thanks? Didn’t expect you to actually help. No offense. Just surprised. A-anyway, we know that cutting the heads is a bad idea. Either knock ‘em senseless or go for the body!”

"There's no point in worrying about it. The thing will adapt." Leonus immediately jumps backwards, swinging his blade to intercept the head charging for him. Unfortunately, his weapon is entirely energy. While it would fill the hydra's body with holy energy, it doesn't actually stop the head, which manages to sink its fangs into his leg before Leonus slashes it away. "Tch, careless of me. So long as it stops at one..." As with the original screech, Leonus currently doesn't have a real defense against sound-based attacks, forcing the young man to cover his ears and take a deep breath, focusing his efforts on the hydra as he slowly raises his rapier once more. Though he refuses to show it, they mercenary has taken quite a bit of damage by now. Action: Focused stance - charge, doubling damage next turn. hp ~~ 35%

Nanashi returns Krishna's smirk, seemingly in a mocking manner. "Yeah, he's been a huge pain in my ass countless times before. Not sure how much I want really want him as an ally, honestly..." With that said, Nanashi frowns as Norn is gone, reduced to ashes. In their place, he summons a large creature known as Wilder Nue. Action: Summon

The sound would of course be tricky to dodge... But with a hastily made magical barrier that renders herself mostly unable to hear it while blocking out the waves largely, Fate manages to evade the worst of it. It still manages to harm her a bit given said barrier was made by her weapon automatically in haste, but it doesn't make the lowering of her defense stick which was the barrier's main point. She'd also glance down towards Leonus before muttering a curse, the young man would find healing magic rushing through his body in an instant. It's not exactly her area of expertise, but it should keep him from passing out or getting any truly severe injury for a while longer at least. "Ugh... Thanks for the assistance I suppose, this thing is to be sure, tougher than I'd have expected it to be." Action: Auto guard: blocks secondary effect and lightly lowers damage. Physical Heal: restores 35% to one ally, target Leonus. HP: 55%

-Enemy Phase- * The Hydra glares around the stadium before leaping into the air and crashing back down in the centre of the field, shaking the whole stadium. It swings around, lashing out at everyone at ground level with it's tail before launching a barrage of flames all around it from it's three mouths.* Actions Quake+ (Heavy Physical damage to all foes) Tail Swipe+ (Medium Physical damage to all foes. Chance to Knockdown those hit. Nanashi, Krishna and Morgana automatically dodge it) Fire Breath+ (Deals Medium Fire Damage X3 to all foes) -Player Phase- Quite the relentless beast, is it not? Athena: Tell me about it. Shesha is still far more of a pain in the ass though. Oh absolutely. I do trust my dear friend to be just the correct amount of, as you put it, a pain in the ass. *Krishna chuckles. He raises his flute to his lips and plays a tune that seems painful to listen too. The Hydra growls at the music. Meanwhile, Athena bursts through the flames.* Athena: Become stone. *The bronze eyes on Athena's shield open. The Hydra, however, proves to quick to be caught out by the Gorgon's Gaze for too long, though an uncomfortable feeling still racks it's body* Actions Krishna: Venomous Raga (Decrease all enemies attack by two stages and chance to inflict POISON/IMPERIL) Athena: Medusa’s Gaze (Deals Heavy Curse damage to one foe. Chance to inflict STONE) IMPERIL: Lowers foes Elemental reisitances by one stage. Strengths become neutral. Neutral becomes weaknesses, etc. Does not affect Physical, Gun, Ailment or Almighty resistances.

“Alright, I’m coming in hot! Those burns still hurt like a...” Morgana’s growls are muffled by Andras’s whirlwind. It and Morgana fly into the air, then Morgana lands on the Persona’s shoulders. The feline points at Leonus. “Here’s some help, Sparky! Dia!” A healing glow surrounds the mercenary, somewhat mending the wounds he’s received. It’s not a panacea, though, and it doesn’t help any poison that might have gone into his system. Action: Dia (small heal to Leonus)

Leonus lets out an irritated sigh. It reflected poorly for a knight to need help, but with all this healing coming his way the weapon in hand quickly gets to feeling as light as ever. "Worry about yourselves!" The young man shouts as the hydra leaps into the sky. He takes this chance to run under the creature, jumping upwards and springboarding off the creature's tail midswing. As before, the young man swirls his blade in front of him to absorb the creature's fire as he descends towards the hydra's back "Revert!" His blade switches from the blazing red of the hydra's flame to its original lightning form that faintly glows white as he attempts to strike the blade deep into the hydra's back, sending electric energy straight into the creature's body. Lightning Strike: Heavy Elec. Also getting up on the Hydra's Back. Hopefully.