[action in Oerba]

[tosavecocoon.livejournal.com]

[ The idea had been to check out Oerba to see how the tree looked and then scoot back to Luca before Light and Fang started missing them. That was before Vanille had gotten there and sensed something isn't right. She steps into the village again and frowned. ]

Something's wrong. [ She turns back to Serah though, and puts on a smile. ] Welcome to Oerba! Come on, all of you! The tree's in the center of town!

[ Little do they know what's waiting for them. ]

Comments

[focustrigger.livejournal.com]

I can!

[Swell that it's the new girl to fighting that can? Serah sounds unsure when she says it. Theoretically, yes, she should be able to cast Slow from the reading she's been doing, but she's not actually tried it to any great extent yet...]

Slow!

[Nothing.

And, more urgantly this time:] Slow!!

[And... seemingly nothing. Until it lifts a foot - but, in slow motion now, unbearably taking its time.]

[rebelpugilist.livejournal.com]

[At least the fact that it's moving in slow-motion gives Snow plenty of time to move out from beneath the shadow of its foot, avoiding getting stepped on with a pretty comfortable buffer zone. He goes back to assaulting its front leg immediately.]

Thanks, Serah!

[tosavecocoon.livejournal.com]

I can! That's what I was doing!

[ She's just had a bigger plan. ]

But if Serah can Slow it, I can do this!

[ Her next Dance takes hold and suddenly it's Haste for everyone as long as she's dancing. No one has to worry about spells wearing off. ]

Is everyone okay?

[ Because even if they aren't getting stepped on, the front legs still do damage with every stomp. It's like trying to stand on an earthquake and every so often the thing interrupts Vanille's dance. ]

[holyjudgement.livejournal.com]

Yeah, but I can't keep this up forever--!

[Even with the Haste and Slow and protective spells in effect, Hope has to heal everyone with each stomp. Serah's support helps him, but he knows they're not doing enough damage with only Snow on the offensive.]

[focustrigger.livejournal.com]

[Serah smiles broadly over at Snow. Really, she'd much prefer her fianceé intact, so Slow is definitely a helper in that regard.

Haste takes her momentarily by surprise, but she quickly adapts. It's more so Hope's remark that hits home. They can heal, they can buff, they can debuff, but... there's only so long they can do that. And the Long Gui isn't going down anytime soon.]

-- if worst comes to worse, then... we'd have to find a way to retreat.

[Not until then, though. She said she'd help protect Oerba.. this certainly counts.

Still, she switches back to throwing out Blizzard and Fire again.]

[twistedjudge.livejournal.com]

[Retreat is never an option - mostly because on Gran Pulse, retreat usually still means death. The strong survive and the weak perish, no one really concerned about fair play.]

[There's a growl coming from the clouds above them now, high up enough that the sound is small and the creature making it isn't immediately visible - but that changes very rapidly as something dives through the cloud cover, arrowing straight for the battle with a devastating roar that grows louder by the second. The speck separates into two parts, one much smaller than the other, and suddenly a fiery energy laser is stabbing down from the sky directly at the Long Gui's head. Bahamut sustains the attack as long as he can before swooping off to the side, and that's when Fang follows it up with a vicious landing after a very high jump, straight on the thing's neck.]

When we get out of this you all are all dead!!

[fulminous.livejournal.com]

[ As if to puncuate Fang's arrival, the Zantetsuken appears out of nowhere, spinning like a razored boomerang at the giant turtle's front legs, landing a nice blow on them both before returning to their master who easily catches them with one hand, the other resting on the neck of the horse she's riding.

She jumps off the horse, landing next to Fang and hands the blade back to Sleipnir, who takes it and transforms back into Odin. Stancing, Lightning doesn't look at him, but her words are directed right towards him. ] Snow, I swear I will kill you myself if this thing doesn't get us first.

Sorry, worst month ever.

[rebelpugilist.livejournal.com]

[Snow looks alarmed at the threats, and his face shows it -- though he doesn't let up on his assault of the Long Gui. Can't afford to get distracted.]

Hey, why is this suddenly my fault?! [Of course he's going to be blamed. According to Lightning, it's always his fault.]

you and me both ;o; ♥ /clings to

[tosavecocoon.livejournal.com]

[ The sudden appearance of Light and Fang brings a lift to Vanille's falling spirits. She'd been getting just as worried as the others. She restarts the Dance, letting Haste affect the newcomers, too. She'll worry about how mad they're gonna be later. ]

It's not his fault! Don't blame him!

/snugs for everyone!

[holyjudgement.livejournal.com]

Light!

[Hope is both surprised and relieved to see both her and Fang. He layers on Protect on the two of them before they can be devastated by the Long Gui's attacks.]

Vanille's right -- it's not Snow's fault! We all wanted to go.

[But he doesn't have time for more talk, and focuses on casting Shell on them both next.]

[fulminous.livejournal.com]

[ Lightning is greatful for the buffs, and she uses them to her fullest extent, charging in and slicing at the Long Gui, Odin on her heels. ] We'll discuss this later! [ She grunted with the effort of rolling out of the way of the looming shadow of the Long Gui's foot, coming to stand a couple of feet away. ]

Right now saving your asses is the important thing!

[focustrigger.livejournal.com]

Fang! Sis!

[The appearence of Fang and her sister brings too things - relief for the boost in strength and numbers, and guilt. Getting into trouble, for one thing, them having to come help them out of it... that was precisely what Serah had been trying to avoid.

Also, Snow getting the brunt of the blame. She visibly winces, before casting Slow on the Long Gui again, as it attempts to speed up once more, but is once again delayed.]

[twistedjudge.livejournal.com]

That's why I said you're all dead! [Unlike Light, Fang isn't concentrating solely on Snow - she knows Vanille way too well to think she didn't have a massive hand in the planning, and Hope and Serah desperately want to prove they can take care of themselves. If anything, Snow is just along for the thrill of the ride.]

[But that can wait. Bahamut roars and swoops around, stirring up a cyclone with the beating of his wings and performing a swooping dive on the Long Gui. Fang, meanwhile, charges up a Dragon's Crest attack and sets it loose right below the monster's feet, watching the explosions as it's caught between multiple attacks at once.]

[rebelpugilist.livejournal.com]

[If nothing else, Snow does appreciate Fang's being equal-opportunity. But Lightning was right. Now really wasn't the time to be pointing fingers, they had to worry about getting past this guardian. Moving a few paces back to put some space between himself and the beast, he charged up a Demi Shock attack.]

In any case, we appreciate the help!

[tosavecocoon.livejournal.com]

[ Vanille didn't answer any other words, just concentrating on Dancing. Bahamut and Odin's attacks, though, reminded her of something else: She could summon, too. Why hadn't she thought of that before? She pondered calling up Hecatonchier, but shook off that thought. No, she needed something more impressive. She needed Anima.

Activating the gemstone, Vanille called on the more powerful Eidolon, the one she had never actually seen in person before. With a roar, Anima came to life next to her, massive in stature, even compared to the Long Gui before them. Reeling her head back, Anima blasted the creature with Pain, while Vanille charges up her specialty: Death. The ability didn't actually take the creature out of the running completely, but combined with everything else, it was enough to make the thing's legs buckle. It hit the ground with a surprising jolt. ]

Now, guys! Hit its head with everything you've got!

[holyjudgement.livejournal.com]

Vanille, what is what thing?!

[Hope can't help but gawp at the sight of Anima, nothing like her usual Eidolon. He hadn't even figured out how to summon Alexander in this world yet -- not counting Alexandria's winged guardian. Distraction aside, though, this was their chance to take down the Long Gui before it got back to its feet.

Tearing his eyes away from Anima, Hope cast Last Resort, his strongest spell. Balls of light lifted up and slammed into the monster, one after the other and creating small explosions where they struck.]

[focustrigger.livejournal.com]

[Hope's not the only one staring at Anima, but for Serah, it's not simply awe. There's something about the Eidolon that seems familiar, deja vu... why, she doesn't know. But, it does make her reach for her arm, to the ghost of a l'Cie mark, one that she no longer wears.

Still, the jolt is enough to bring her back to her senses, almost knocking her to the floor, but Serah does manage to keep her balance at the last minute, and to hear the instruction loud and clear.]

Got it!

[Whilst she doesn't have any strong spells to speak of, but her spell casting increases in tempo as she concentrates, naturally helping the damage factor the beast receives. Slow, Fire, Blizzard, Thunder, repeat.]