((Author's Note: The following is room play adapted to post. I take credit on for my character's contributions solely. The rest belongs to the players of the other characters" involved. Some editing has been done by me in order to keep things as clear as possible. Feel free to come to me if you are unhappy with your character's inclusion or the editing I have done!!! Thanks to all the players! I had a blast! For Edward Batten's interpretation of the event, (a much better one than mine it saddens me to point out,) check it out here!))

Prelude:

Over the past few days since Aunty M's arrival to the fair city of Rhy"Din she's been attempting to sniff out her dog of a man. Unsuccessful in her attempts she hadn't given up, but had decided to take the day off from mindless meanderings to hang out in the Red Dragon Inn. She felt a little localizing and perhaps socializing was in order. Her hopes were that someone in the inn might be able to point her in the right direction. Certainly someone would know where her dog of a man was holing up! She not only found what she was looking for but a whole lot more!!!

************************************************* Aunty M steps out of her rented room and heads to the stairs leading down to the common room below. She's just woken up and needs a stiff drink or three to get her going. Rhy'Din has proved a challenge. She's been looking everywhere for her dog of a man and hasn't found hide nor hair. The thought makes her chuckle.

Nudging the dragon hatch open with her snout, the dragoness Icer soon settled onto her favored perch,

Somewhere out front of the inn....The crosshairs of her scope had dropped and rose along with her slow and steady breathing. The sniper scope had found it's visual upon the Red Dragon Inn, while echoing within the far reaches of July's mind the words of her fellow sisters, uttered vital intel.

"....Target. Confirmed." The the Drugunov's crosshairs aimed dead centre to Edward Batten's forehead. This is April. Target is twenty meters. "Rodger. Contacting Mother....Mother" Project Vindiction, can proceed as planned....Yes....Yes." April nodded, and moved to observe the target, silently. "He shall know no fear."

Mai Silverblood runs up the steps into the inn looking around. Clad in a short silk dress in cornflower blue her hair left down her back brushed to a shine her flat ballet pumps silent on the floor heading to the bar.

Icer's ice blue gaze drifted over those below, what few were there.

Down the stairs Aunty M strolls. Hide nor hair, continues to tickle her as she heads to the bar. She gives the impression of a happy grandmother, all smiles and merry laughter. It is the farthest thing from the truth.

Horned head canted, Icer had nae ever seen that woman before, a nod of her horned head given.

Aunty M doesn't know what to make of the Dragon. She stops in mid-stride, her hand on the break of the bar and stares at Icer completely confounded.:: My! How....utterly quaint!

The Playboy seems blissfully unaware as he strolls along the street towards the inn, not really rushing, just leisurely strolling along. Blue-grey eyes sweep the surrounding area at street level, though there's no real alertness in them, just a sort of vapid amusement at the world around him.

Icer gives a smile, no fangs shown, there would be no need.

Silent feet padded against the cobble stones, as a blur of black bolted up the path towards the Red Dragon Inn. Bound in dark cloak and a large hood that animated a strange artificial darkness to conceal the creature's face, it was hard to tell just who or what it was. For it held no sound, and beheld no scent or a single sniff of an aura. It was beyond the flesh. It was....Inhuman. But what could be heard was the all knowing-signs of a sword being drawn, as the Shell of Vindiction came running directly towards Edward Batten. A snake-like voice laughed, broken apart by a synthesizer concealed within the impenetrable darkness. "Slllllice!"

Aunty M looks around at the inside of the inn. Yes, it's big enough to fit the beast, but....really' A bright smile is granted to Icer before she turns and heads behind the bar to search out a bottle worthy of emptying.

Mai Silverblood slips behind the bar grabbing a bottle and glass before depositing her payment into the till. She heads to a table near the hearth settling down taking a satchel from a shadow near by. Looking around she removed some silk and lace followed by a sketch pad and pencils. With a sigh she pours a glass of thick red liquid. She takes a sip gently before settling down to draw.

So much for the casual stroll. Edward Batten's head whips around towards the charging figure as he hears the sound of the sword being drawn, and without hesitating he's diving out of the way, a surprised "Whoa!" escaping him. One hand slips under the coat to stroke a seam just so, and suddenly the dark coat comes alive with whip like flaps of material snapping out and around him, covering from head to toe as he comes to his feet.

Mai received a nod as well. Wings unfurled in a stretch, then resettled as Icer's gaze drifted again.

Mai Silverblood bows to the dragon smiling while covering her fangs. With another sigh she returns to her sketch.

Bending Aunty sorts through this and then that. She moves along down the backside of the bar, dismissing many of the bottles simply because they aren't familiar before at last finding one she recognizes. She doesn't even glance at Mai Silverblood, the girl seems otherwise distracted anyway. What an odd place this Rhy'Din is, she ponders as she stands. Her gaze scans the mirror and what does she see but....something happening outside! "Well, well, well, looks like a little excitement out front." She announces to no one in particular as she takes up a glass to go with her bottle and heads to the front door.

Oddly, and totally missed by Aunty M, Mai Silverblood's reflection couldn't be seen in the mirror at all. That will remain a mystery for another day. So much for Aunty M's acute situational awareness!

As Edward Batten comes up to his feet, the material seems to settle and then comes alive again as plates begin unfolding from around his back lightning fast, covering the figure with hardened plates of black and silver. Optic sensors light up as he turns to face his attacker, and there's the sudden up cycling whine coming with it, like a camera flash being charged.

"Tis nothing new?" Icer lazily peeking towards the front window.

Aunty M is happy to find a place to sit on the porch. "Not so rustic after all. It reminds me of New Orleans so many lovely benches and interesting sights." She parks herself on the porch swing and fills her glass with whiskey. The bottle is set aside while she enjoys a healthy gulp or two from her glass, her attention on the lovely little scene unfolding in the street before her. "And what fabulous entertainment! I wonder if there will be blood." She finds this very funny which is obvious by her laughter.

Soon Icer had curled up on that roof, basking, and finally napping. Momma could sleep just about anywhere.

There was never a robot suit to this little mannequin of black. As the sword came hurtling towards the Shell of Vindiction, she quickly bent her knees, flipping herself up and over the spinning sword that cut right through the building behind her, and probably impaled itself into the one behind it, far beyond her reach. Not that she needed that thing. It was just an accessory. As she landed upon her feet, she slipped forward and ran towards the Dark Ranger, her fists bared. Once close enough, she threw her fist - encased in the same fabric-like material her body was covered in, towards the Dark Ranger's jaw. Even if unarmored fist met jaw it had the forced to cripple a stone wall.

Since the woman fighting the robot man had been covered by a cloak, Aunty had assumed she too had some kind of armor. Besides, she sounded mechanical enough so to lend to Aunty's delusion. Aunty still presumes there was some kind of suit the woman had worn. She gulps down more whiskey while avidly watching what happens next.

Even as the Shell of Vindiction is charging forward, so is the Dark Ranger, not content to wait for her to get to him but ready to meet her head-on. Her fist manages to connect, and with that kind of force it knocks him off of his feet, though there doesn't seem to be much of a dent made in the armor - to her it might be akin to hitting a solid wall of titanium, save for a small amount of give. Despite the seeming bulkiness of the suit he twists agilely in the air, the thrusters built into his boots firing and flinging him upwards before he flips over again, head-first to his assailant, fists extended and rocketing towards her at almost supersonic speed.

"OH! MY!" Aunty fans at her face with her empty hand while managing to gulp down her whiskey excitedly.

The Shell of Vindiction's fist throbbed. There was even the distinct crack of bone meeting metal, as the Dark Ranger was flipping by his own accord into the air. A quick laughter came from her, as the visor glowed with her growing bloodlust. She spun to the right, almost just as quick, barely skimming past his arm. In response, she swung an elbow backwards, falling back to direct all of her power onto the base of his suit's spine.

Oh, that's going to hurt. From supersonic flight the armored figure get's put face-first into the ground with a solid-sounding crunch of stone meeting metal, sending shards of the paving under him flying along with a showering of sparks. It doesn't seem to have stopped him, though - even as he's coming to a halt he reaches out to grab a leg and pulls hard, pushing to get up to his knees.

"Hope you're not afraid of heights." That grip is like hardened shackles as he gets a foot under him and pushes up, the thrusters firing again to push them off the ground and into the air.

The Shell of Vindiction's leg is taken from under her. Sure it was a simple movement, and she fell back onto her rear. But it took her a second to narrow that purple-visor onto his helm, and stared. She had little nothing to say as she was torn from the ground and up into the air along with the Dark Ranger, who had her in the palm of his hand, quite literally.

The Dark Ranger doesn't take them very far, maybe about forty feet into the air, but it only takes a matter of seconds, and once they reach the appropriate height he pulls her up as he cuts power to the thrusters, swinging her up so she's even with his torso. Letting go of her leg, he drives a pummeling fist towards her midsection to send her flying back towards the ground, shouting after her as he cuts on the thrusters to hover. "Happy landings!"

Aunty M has to stand up and move out from under the porch's awning to get a good view of the sky battle. She hangs on to her newly refilled glass though! Gulping down some whiskey she lowers her hand so she can peer up into the sky. She has to shield her eyes from the glare of the sun. "I hate mornings." She mutters, of course its late afternoon.

The visor flashed purple before the fist was sent into the Shell of Vindiction's mid-section. She hurtled towards the ground, her body completely incapable of escaping her downward spiral. The whistle of her body only grew as she came closer to the ground, and with an almighty BOOM, the ground below her impacted and became quite the inverted dome of destruction, her body even becoming partially imbedded into the earth itself. A contorted, broken wrist was all that sprouted from the rubble, fingers broken and contorted in all kinds of angles.

Aunty M stares at the crater, not sure if she should rush over and....Ah' Help" She gulps down some more whiskey as she debates what to do. "My, oh, my! Whatever should we do?" She asks no one because no one else is there. A few more swigs off the glass and its empty. She doesn't toss it aside, there's still some whiskey left in the bottle. Instead she moves back up to the porch to refill it. "Maybe I should call 911" I didn't see a phone..."

Cutting power to the thrusters again, the Dark Ranger lets gravity take over and falls to the earth, allowing himself a momentary braking thrust to slow the impact so as not to create another crater. As soon as he's on the ground the armored figure walks cautiously over to the place where the body is embedded into the earth, the glowing optic sensors looking over the destruction. "Looks like you missed a step." Leaning over the wreckage, he reaches into the rubble to pull the visor away.

Back on the porch, Aunty comes to the railing to peer over as the robot man bends to remove the non-robot woman's visor. Yes, she is curious too....why not' "One hell of a show. Do this kind of thing often?" She asks Dark Ranger, or rather robot man. Her glass refilled, she enjoys a healthy gulp or two.

The fingers quickly break back into place, the body ripping from the floor unharmed. The Shell of Vindiction's left hand moved to grasp the Dark Ranger's arm. The visor cracked, but still intact, and glowing. "....Or two."

Aunty's eyes boggle again, second time today. Yes, Rhy'Din is proving memorable. "Oh, my! She survived! No need to call 911. Good thing I didn't do that then. Don't fancy dealing with the local law enforcement anyway."

The armored figure starts to recoil as the other pulls herself from the wreckage of the crater, only stopped by the grip on his arm. The whine of the pulse generator in the palm of the hand on the arm not being held can be heard, that hand coming up automatically and aimed at her chest, a pulsing, glowing circle of brilliant light that can be seen there. Still, he pauses for a moment, curiosity getting the better of him for a moment. "Who the hell are you?"

"Now" Now the two of you decide to introduce yourselves?" Aunty stares between the pair of them amazed. That calls for another drink! And drinking is what Aunty does best!

The serpentine-chuckle was twisted and distorted by the synthesizer. The visor cracking further as the helm had become drastically damaged from the fall. "....Someone, who is very much in love with you. You, that suit....That brain..." The visor turned to Aunty M. Then stared. "Shut up, old bat. Go dribble in a corner somewhere..." The visor turned back to Dark Ranger, "And now I have you, exactly," the fingers curled tighter around his arm, as an array of pulsing electrical circuit-like patterns spread across her black-fabric suit. It was leeching into the Dark Ranger's suit, looking to suck the power out of him.

Aunt gives a mocking toast to the woman in love with the robot man, but stays right where she is. Watching and drinking. "Look at that. Declares her love than tries to leach the life right outta him!" A sweet smile accompanies her commentary. "That's women for ya. Youngsters. Just you wait, girly, one day you'll look in the mirror and see me smiling back at ya." This amuses Aunty to no end and she busts out laughing raucously.

The Dark Ranger's head snaps down at his arm, her hand, making the connection right away. Fortunately there's a lot of power, and he has extensive reserves. The whine cycles up out of hearing range as he overcharges the pulse generator and fires a charged particle burst at her chest from close range.

The burst caused the Shell of Vindiction's body to shudder, her body rocking from the impact - but she made little movement from beyond her gripping his arm, to grasping at his hand desperately, keeping the connection, locked into place. This was not just some attempt to leech his power. No. Something was pushing to invade his suit. Something that had a voice. Let me In. It whispered. Clearly, her ribs were cracked, she was hunched over somewhat, breathing desperately, but she refused to let go. "Taste, your own medicine..." She lifted her free hand up, and pressed it against his chest. The pulse that was absorbed by her suit was sent back down her arm, and into her palm. Right back at him.

Aunty goes to refill her glass, but alas, her bottle is empty. She tosses the bottle over the railing onto the street, along with the dirty glass. "Hmph." She looks at the pair still battling, then to the door, debating mentally if she should grab another bottle or stay and watch. "The pair of you stay still, I don't wanna miss anything, but my bottle's empty." Yes, like they are going to stop battling one another while she fetches another bottle. Riiiight.

Aunty rushes back inside the inn....dashing for the bar....well, if one her size can dash....No need to root for another bottle, she knows where the good stuff is stored now. She moves right to the cupboard and claims another bottle. Standing she grabs a fresh, hopefully clean, glass. Then as fast as she can she makes for the porch.

There's a surprised-sounding grunt that escapes the Dark Ranger as he's rocked back by that shot, making him fall back a step. The arm being gripped twists in her grasp as his hand comes around to lock his own grip on the feminine figure's arm, and that single step back is turned into a twisting motion as he pulls hard, trying to fling her away now.

"Yes! This is power!" the Shell of Vindiction lifted her hands to take another shot, as the contact still leeched the power from his suit. But was thrown away in the instant she was ready to release her second cloned blast back at the Dark Ranger. She was flung, skipping against the cobbled stone until she pressed a hand onto the ground. Flipping to land upon her feet she skidded backwards until she came to a stop against a wall her back pressing firmly against it. "Hurt me more!" She cackled her arms out wide.

Huffing and puffing, so human of her isn't it' Aunty puts on a good show! She rushes back to the porch and flings herself down on the swing, perching the glass in her ample lap while quickly unstopping the bottle. She turns to the battling love-birds hoping she didn't miss too much. "What I miss?" She asks of no one, because, yet again, no one else is there. "Oh, dear! I missed it!" She sighs with disappointment as she pours herself another drink.

"Come on....Give me a good reason not to use your powers against you..." The Shell of Vindiction lifted her fists close to her face, mana-arching between fingers and helm. "....Give me more!"

"My, but your little girlfriend seems a bit masochistic." Aunty says to Dark Ranger is an oh-so-casual manner. As if they'd been life long friends. She enjoys a healthy swallow or three of the whiskey, to calm her racing heart. All that work just for a drink! "They seriously need waitresses in this place!"