Tribulations

[Sam]

The violet magic does its thing as the boy's clothes are burned away by the plasma along with his body shifting in all the usual places. His body becoming creamy and smooth and dare I say feminine. The boy's waste began to shrink while the chest begins to puff out into a pair of modestly sized breasts. His face reshapes itself as it becomes more fitting of a woman as his eyes turn into a lovely shade of yellow. Canine ears and a tail appear on the boy while some tight denim shorts that quickly become more suiting as his groinular region becomes hers. As a collar appears on her neck, so does her new personality as the new ditzy demon emerges from the blast.

--------------------------------------------------------

Sam dodges around the older demon's berserk swinging, however he still finds the time to mock him

"Doesn't he make a pretty girl? You must be proud knowing it was because of your actions that she can take her role as the resident ditz demon"

Sam's fingernails on his blue arm begin to glow blue as they grow to become sharp feminine nails. Sam's hair gains a hint of blue as well

"You could use a little altering as well. I'm sure you wouldn't mind having a tendency to pose now would you?

[Jello Shot Mischa]

The soldiers don't find anyone on the roof, the shots having come from inside. Heading into the building proper, they find that all the floors seem to be deserted! If they search, they may find the casings of the bullets fired, these ones having slight traces of infernal energy. Obviously used against the angels. At the very bottom, they find a door into an alley kicked in.

The CTC soldiers make a quick sweep of the building, collecting samples of the casings carefully.

"Let's keep moving... those gangs are going to be coming back here shortly, and if they find us here with these there's no doubt we'll get the blame for it," the sergeant mutters.

Reaching the ground floor, they find the door to the alley! "What do you think, sarge? Ingress or egress?"

"Any other signs of exits?"

Assuming there are none, the CTC squad decides to follow the apparent route the snipers took into the alley!

As for the familes at the checkpoint, they eagerly follow the soldiers to the medical point. Muffinville does have a lot of weird diseases after all, and the gangs likely don't care about the Geneva Convention.

The nuns are still a bit groggy from the electrolasers, only lucid enough to mutter bitterly and weakly struggle.

The medical station is built into an armored trailer, with doors on the sides with steps to allow people to enter and exit. Scientists and technical personnel wearing NBC suits handle most the equipment, although some of the doctors and nurses wear conventional scrubs, in order to avoid scaring the civilians that are brought to the station. One of the doctors, a young woman, greets the families as they arrive. "Hello there! My name is Doctor Serena. You've just arrived, haven't you?" She motions to the steps leading into the vehicle. "Come along with me... we'll get you checked out."

The nuns, meanwhile, are lead to a very similar vehicle, parked next to the command vehicle. There, there are some modestly comfortable chairs, which the nuns are guided into, before the lieutenant steps forwards, accompanied by a young woman with dark hair. "Well, they're probably just low-level mooks... but maybe we'll get lucky," the lieutenant murmurs. "So... any of you willing to cooperate?"

The group manages to escape, cutting it pretty fine as they fly though the CTC's anti-air barrage. THe CTC robots are likely sent scattering all over as the building begins to collapse! Soon, it lays as a pile of rubble on the streets. It was due to be demolished anyway... but there are a pair of boots sticking out from it! Someone was inside!

As the building grows unstable, the CTC robots cease fire, and use their thrusters to leap free! They quickly descend to the city street, intending to rendezvous with the rest of the squad, although the sight of boots makes them pause. One of the approaches the boots and tries to clear away the wreckage, while the other remains on overwatch.

[Restless Lucidity]

"It's a Muffinville fruit, they tend to make people female. We've been trying to get some bishi dust to balance the ranks, but that stuff is hard to find." Julio says with a small sigh. "Well, not 'female' per se. Angels are sexless beings by definition. But, you are very feminine."

"Anyway, we better get those friends of yours some food yeah?" He waves over a nun and whispers to her. She nods and heads into the back, soon coming out with two crates of supplies.

Innes nods. "Y-Yes... I'm well aware of that..." Her blush begins to die down after a while and she tries to occupy her thoughts more with what Julio had just reminded her of: getting food and supplies to her friends. She has been held up by these people for long enough. But on the bright side, she has ten times the amount of supplies to offer them now... so no matter what happened to her, they would be safe. Though... it might be good to occupy at least some of her thoughts with what she planned to do now. Once she was out of the Choir HQ, she might have an opportunity to get away from them. Or maybe she could stay within the organization and sabotage them somehow... but that would likely turn out to be much more trouble than it would be worth. She pondered all of these things as she went over to retrieve the supplies from the woman who had brought them.

"Thank you most kindly, ma'am." She gives the nun a warm smile. As soon as the method of transportation is worked out and she has the supplies in tow, Innes sets off to deliver them. On the way, she weighs many options and judges the potential consequences of as many scenarios as possible. What if she lashed out against her escorts right now? What if she won, and what if she lost? If she went against the choir, would it put her friends in danger? So many thoughts rush through her mind that she's barely able to focus on walking with the supplies. Only when she finally stops to consider the possibility of her winning a fight against other members of the Choir does she muse on the abilities and power her new body might grant her.

She takes a deep breath and exhales, walking down a narrow, dimly lit road with the supplies. Oh, how she would love to think that she could just worry about all of this later...

[Blaze]

Konoko laughs at this, letting them leave. "Next time I'll tell you lots of stories! Also, tell your leaders that Konoko Hasano says hi and wishes them a good day!"

-----

Wiggles as his nose is pinched. "Ah don' wanna say ahh!" Too late, as he did say 'ahh'!

*The angel quickly spreads her wings and takes flight, leaving Konoko on her own*

-----

Abba grins and rams the uncarrot into Marco's open mouth! Either he bites down or he chokes!

*Nods*
I see, I see... So is Blaze undercover then with them?
And let me be clear, we aren't taking sides this this conflict. We're neutral parties. We help none but those who need it to survive. We attack none but those who threaten us directly.
Understood?

"I gueeeeeeeeess so! I was trying to draw her out, but she never showed up..." Alex mutters, poking her fingers together.

"Yes Boss..."

The violet magic does its thing as the boy's clothes are burned away by the plasma along with his body shifting in all the usual places. His body becoming creamy and smooth and dare I say feminine. The boy's waste began to shrink while the chest begins to puff out into a pair of modestly sized breasts. His face reshapes itself as it becomes more fitting of a woman as his eyes turn into a lovely shade of yellow. Canine ears and a tail appear on the boy while some tight denim shorts that quickly become more suiting as his groinular region becomes hers. As a collar appears on her neck, so does her new personality as the new ditzy demon emerges from the blast.

--------------------------------------------------------

Sam dodges around the older demon's berserk swinging, however he still finds the time to mock him

"Doesn't he make a pretty girl? You must be proud knowing it was because of your actions that she can take her role as the resident ditz demon"

Sam's fingernails on his blue arm begin to glow blue as they grow to become sharp feminine nails. Sam's hair gains a hint of blue as well

"You could use a little altering as well. I'm sure you wouldn't mind having a tendency to pose now would you?

"Whooooooa, that was weeeird!" the ditzy demon says with wide, confused eyes. The older one gives a gutteral growl and charges at Sam, axe swinging at high speeds, the very air being displaced by it slicing grooves in the room!

~it's crazy how much stuff she posted*~

Going into the alley, the CTC can see footprints in the grimy path. They are wide, deep ones with uniform patterns, indicating they were all wearing the same boots. They were going into, and out of the building, leading towards... the building that just collapsed.

-----

The families nod to Doctor Selena.

"Please, the children first." the father says, ushering the kids forward.

The nuns say nothing to the LT, hands clasped together and muttering prayers. They don't seem to be casting any magic though.

-----

As the robots clear the wreckage, they unearth a man clad in urban camouflage, all grays and white, wearing a bulletproof utility vest and a helmet. Slung over his shoulder is a large sniper rifle. He seems to be unconscious, knocked out by some stray rubble.

Innes nods. "Y-Yes... I'm well aware of that..." Her blush begins to die down after a while and she tries to occupy her thoughts more with what Julio had just reminded her of: getting food and supplies to her friends. She has been held up by these people for long enough. But on the bright side, she has ten times the amount of supplies to offer them now... so no matter what happened to her, they would be safe. Though... it might be good to occupy at least some of her thoughts with what she planned to do now. Once she was out of the Choir HQ, she might have an opportunity to get away from them. Or maybe she could stay within the organization and sabotage them somehow... but that would likely turn out to be much more trouble than it would be worth. She pondered all of these things as she went over to retrieve the supplies from the woman who had brought them.

"Thank you most kindly, ma'am." She gives the nun a warm smile. As soon as the method of transportation is worked out and she has the supplies in tow, Innes sets off to deliver them. On the way, she weighs many options and judges the potential consequences of as many scenarios as possible. What if she lashed out against her escorts right now? What if she won, and what if she lost? If she went against the choir, would it put her friends in danger? So many thoughts rush through her mind that she's barely able to focus on walking with the supplies. Only when she finally stops to consider the possibility of her winning a fight against other members of the Choir does she muse on the abilities and power her new body might grant her.

She takes a deep breath and exhales, walking down a narrow, dimly lit road with the supplies. Oh, how she would love to think that she could just worry about all of this later...

The supplies are transported by two mercenaries that the Choir hired, a red-haired woman and a blond nun. The nun gives Innes a tiny smile, the redhead remains silent as they follow Innes to where the supplies need to be, both carrying the crates with seemingly no effort.

[KonokoHasano]

Abba grins and rams the uncarrot into Marco's open mouth! Either he bites down or he chokes!

Marco does indeed bite down and eat the uncarrot. Choking wasn't really something that felt good, after all.

[Jello Shot Mischa]

Going into the alley, the CTC can see footprints in the grimy path. They are wide, deep ones with uniform patterns, indicating they were all wearing the same boots. They were going into, and out of the building, leading towards... the building that just collapsed.

-----

As the robots clear the wreckage, they unearth a man clad in urban camouflage, all grays and white, wearing a bulletproof utility vest and a helmet. Slung over his shoulder is a large sniper rifle. He seems to be unconscious, knocked out by some stray rubble.

Upon discovering the figure of the man in the camouflage clothing, the two EDU robots immediately notify the rest of the HTR squad... who are at that moment finding the footprints that lead to the wreckage. "Hmm... so they must've been moving into there when the building collapsed."

"Could be an underground access from there, maybe."

"Possibly... all right, looks like our survivor is alive but unconcious. Command, update sitrep. We've found an injured member of this third faction, and are requesting medevac support. We'll secure the LZ as best we can."

"Confirmed medevac request. Now dispatching additional units in support."

Gesturing to his troops, the sergeant directs them to secure the wreckage of the building. The EDU robots continue searching for survivors, while first aid is given to the unconscious man. The squad stays on alert, however, well aware that the gang forces could return at any moment.

Meanwhile, at Diego AFB, another set of vertol aircraft lifts off, carrying additional troops and medics to help with the rescue effort!

The families nod to Doctor Selena.

"Please, the children first." the father says, ushering the kids forward.

The nuns say nothing to the LT, hands clasped together and muttering prayers. They don't seem to be casting any magic though.

The doctor smiles at the children reassuringly, even as she motions for them to sit down on a nearby table for the examination. "So... how are you doing?" she asks the first of them, as she begins inspecting them for any obvious signs of injury or transformation trauma. "Was it scary out there?"

The lieutenant, meanwhile, quirks an eyebrow at the praying nuns, before nodding. "I see. Well, we could do this the harder way..." She motions to one of the techs, who wheels forwards a box containing a selection of hypodermic needles containing a variety of serums. "Or, we could do this the philosophical way." Pulling up a chair, she sits down facing the nuns. "Shall I tell you the truth about those beliefs you so ferverently believe in? Certainly, there are powerful entities out there, ones that one could even call gods. But what if I told you the most powerful of them, the ones who created this world and guide everything that happens, are largely nothing more than children, teenagers, and young adults who are typing away at their computers in the solitude of their basements and bedrooms? No divine wisdom there... merely bored individuals unknowingly creating entire worlds, and then inflicting untold amounts of suffering upon them simply for their mere entertainment? Are those the gods you are praying to now?"

The supplies are transported by two mercenaries that the Choir hired, a red-haired woman and a blond nun. The nun gives Innes a tiny smile, the redhead remains silent as they follow Innes to where the supplies need to be, both carrying the crates with seemingly no effort.

Commander Pleasance has been quoted as saying, "Knowledge is power". Certainly, the CTC appear to believe that information is perhaps the most powerful weapon in their arsenal, and this may certainly be evidence that their belief is valid. A roving drone passing by observes the two mercenaries, relaying that data to the immense data banks the CTC maintains, constantly perused by expert programs and AIs programmed to search and cross-reference data of note. A correlation is found within the visual records, and that information is passed along to analysts who refine the comparisons, and then pass their findings along in turn to their superiors, until it finally comes up on the screens of Commander Pleasance herself.

"Well, well... this is interesting," she murmurs. "Have Skywatch monitor that location. And get me in touch with Special Adjutant Abel."

[Sam]

Sam rolls under the demon's axe swings as he gets ready for his next attack

"What's with all the fussing? Does she not look pretty enough to you or something?

Sam rolls towards the demon and attempts to claw his left leg with his sharp blue nails

[Mendi-chan]

*Mendo cracks his knuckles, stretching a bit... He looks off into the distance.*
Well... the question remains what we should do about this situation... How troublesome...
We have to proceed with caution, lest we drag ourselves into this in earnest. We've already doubled patrols within our borders, but there's no telling whether these angels and demons will respect our sovereignty.

*He pauses, furrowing his brow... and then shaking his head as if dismissing whatever thought he was dwelling on.*
Any suggestions on our next course of action?

[Jello Shot Mischa]

*Mendo cracks his knuckles, stretching a bit... He looks off into the distance.*
Well... the question remains what we should do about this situation... How troublesome...
We have to proceed with caution, lest we drag ourselves into this in earnest. We've already doubled patrols within our borders, but there's no telling whether these angels and demons will respect our sovereignty.

*He pauses, furrowing his brow... and then shaking his head as if dismissing whatever thought he was dwelling on.*
Any suggestions on our next course of action?

Abel looks towards Mendo. "I believe some of our troops have come into contact with a third faction that may be interfering with battles between the two gangs. We also have a tentative location on two of the Exorcists -- the ones named Jean and Logos."

[Restless Lucidity]

The supplies are transported by two mercenaries that the Choir hired, a red-haired woman and a blond nun. The nun gives Innes a tiny smile, the redhead remains silent as they follow Innes to where the supplies need to be, both carrying the crates with seemingly no effort.

Innes, of course, all but expects the silence she receives from the red-haired girl, but... is almost surprised by the response she receives from the nun. She can't help but cock her head slightly... but eventually shakes it off and focuses on walking again. Her resolve to get away from the pair was shaken a bit, though. Something about the red-haired one's vibe... and the unexpected pleasantness of the nun's smile.

Her more serious thoughts of helping her friends and making an escape are interrupted, though, by an urge to giggle at how... completely different these two seemed to be at a glance. One was almost peppy with her smile, the other as no-nonsense as she must have looked when she was talking to Julio at first.

With no better ideas in mind, though, she eventually leads the pair to a small row of houses in a dark, dank section of the city that clearly doesn't receive sunlight very often. She stops in front of one of the houses - a taller one with a single broken window and several tents to its left - and urges the nun and her companion to set down their goods.

"Okay. This is the place." She gives a glance around the area... and sighs. "... all of the friends in question are hiding, I believe. They would reveal themselves for me normally... but with how I appear now..." She pauses once more and glances down at her hands. "... that's quite unlikely..."

[Blaze]

Marco does indeed bite down and eat the uncarrot. Choking wasn't really something that felt good, after all.

True enough, true enough. The carrot is crunchy, but somehow gritty, getting stuck between his teeth. It also has a thin, watery bitter juice that flows down Marco's throat, stinging it as it goes and making his belly feel queasy. The changes begin quickly, body hair being sucked into his body as his hair begins to darken, becoming pitch black as it becomes shaggier. His eyes become hawklike, irises becoming yellow to add to the effect.

~*stuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuff*~

The robots don't find anyone else in the rubble, thankfully. Though that does mean no other of this third faction, at least no innocents were buried. As the medic begins to resuscitate the man, they find that his body armor is quite strong, and managed to protect him from the worst. He has a bit of a nasty lump on his head, and some bruises, but nothing serious.

Nearby, the angels and demons soon tire again, having fought all out. They slink away once more, only a few survivors, bodies littering the street and buildings. The rescue effort hopefully brought ample bodybags.

-----

Over at the checkpoint, the child, a small girl around 5 with a gap in her smile nods to the doctor.

"Yeah, it kinda was... but we're safe now, right?"

As for the nuns, the youngest one had a vein throbbing as the lieutenant begins his lecture, snapping as he finishes.

"Ridiculous! God will strike you down for such blasphemy!"

One of the others gives her a hard kick in the leg, her thick-soled shoes making it painful.

"You will not get anything out of us that easily, so you may as well start with the drugs." she says calmly, nodding to the needles.

Sam rolls under the demon's axe swings as he gets ready for his next attack

"What's with all the fussing? Does she not look pretty enough to you or something?

Sam rolls towards the demon and attempts to claw his left leg with his sharp blue nails

The demon tries to pull his leg back, but still takes a little scratch. He glowers at Sam, fists clenching so hard it breaks the handle of his axe!

"I hope maggots eat your eyes!" he roars as the ditzy demon giggles. "I hope he turns out cute~!"

*Mendo cracks his knuckles, stretching a bit... He looks off into the distance.*
Well... the question remains what we should do about this situation... How troublesome...
We have to proceed with caution, lest we drag ourselves into this in earnest. We've already doubled patrols within our borders, but there's no telling whether these angels and demons will respect our sovereignty.

*He pauses, furrowing his brow... and then shaking his head as if dismissing whatever thought he was dwelling on.*
Any suggestions on our next course of action?

Abel looks towards Mendo. "I believe some of our troops have come into contact with a third faction that may be interfering with battles between the two gangs. We also have a tentative location on two of the Exorcists -- the ones named Jean and Logos."

Alex shakeshakes her head... and gasps at Abel.

"You doooooooooo?! Where, I wanna find them!"

Innes, of course, all but expects the silence she receives from the red-haired girl, but... is almost surprised by the response she receives from the nun. She can't help but cock her head slightly... but eventually shakes it off and focuses on walking again. Her resolve to get away from the pair was shaken a bit, though. Something about the red-haired one's vibe... and the unexpected pleasantness of the nun's smile.

Her more serious thoughts of helping her friends and making an escape are interrupted, though, by an urge to giggle at how... completely different these two seemed to be at a glance. One was almost peppy with her smile, the other as no-nonsense as she must have looked when she was talking to Julio at first.

With no better ideas in mind, though, she eventually leads the pair to a small row of houses in a dark, dank section of the city that clearly doesn't receive sunlight very often. She stops in front of one of the houses - a taller one with a single broken window and several tents to its left - and urges the nun and her companion to set down their goods.

"Okay. This is the place." She gives a glance around the area... and sighs. "... all of the friends in question are hiding, I believe. They would reveal themselves for me normally... but with how I appear now..." She pauses once more and glances down at her hands. "... that's quite unlikely..."

Both the mercenaries give a nod, placing the supplies down at the indicated splot. The nun gives a small smile and hugs Innes gently, stroking her hair.

"Aww... do you want us to stay so you can talk with them?" she asks, her voice not mocking, but soothing, gentle... it sounds like she means it. And the redhead doesn't deny her... but she does draw her sword as a low, evil chuckle fills the air.

[KonokoHasano]

True enough, true enough. The carrot is crunchy, but somehow gritty, getting stuck between his teeth. It also has a thin, watery bitter juice that flows down Marco's throat, stinging it as it goes and making his belly feel queasy. The changes begin quickly, body hair being sucked into his body as his hair begins to darken, becoming pitch black as it becomes shaggier. His eyes become hawklike, irises becoming yellow to add to the effect.

"Ew... why do those carrots taste so gross, man? Can't they be made to taste better?" Squirms as he feels the changes happening.

[Restless Lucidity]

At the nun's words and soothing gestures, Innes is stunned into silence. Her eyes widen slightly and she gives her a lingering glance before she responds.

"Um... perhaps that would be best..." She's on the verge of blushing as she summons those words. She continues, "I never would have expected a member of the choir to be... so..." She pauses again and the redness of her cheeks intensifies. "... gentle."

And once she had gotten that final word out of her mouth, the chuckle resonates throughout the area. Innes almost literally spins around to face the direction the voice had come from. She looks around as thoroughly as she can before turning to face the nun again. "... dost thou have any idea as to what that might have been?" She doesn't wait for a response before continuing, "And does it pose any sort of threat to my friends?"

[Jello Shot Mischa]

The robots don't find anyone else in the rubble, thankfully. Though that does mean no other of this third faction, at least no innocents were buried. As the medic begins to resuscitate the man, they find that his body armor is quite strong, and managed to protect him from the worst. He has a bit of a nasty lump on his head, and some bruises, but nothing serious.

Nearby, the angels and demons soon tire again, having fought all out. They slink away once more, only a few survivors, bodies littering the street and buildings. The rescue effort hopefully brought ample bodybags.

The medic motions to the other troopers, and as soon as the reinforcements arrive, the unconcious man is loaded onto one of the vertols, to be transported back to Academy City for treatment and questioning. He is accompanied by an armed escort, though, and lightly restrained just in case he regains conciousness midflight.

Meanwhile, the remaining troops do what they can for the people that may have remained in the area, sorting out the bodies left behind into two separate piles for the gangs to deal with. They aren't about to potentially provoke them by carrying away the dead for burial, but at the same time, aren't about to leave them intermingled to set off more fights. Instead, the bodies are left respectfully in two separate locations, with no line of sight to each other.

Over at the checkpoint, the child, a small girl around 5 with a gap in her smile nods to the doctor.

"Yeah, it kinda was... but we're safe now, right?"

As for the nuns, the youngest one had a vein throbbing as the lieutenant begins his lecture, snapping as he finishes.

"Ridiculous! God will strike you down for such blasphemy!"

One of the others gives her a hard kick in the leg, her thick-soled shoes making it painful.

"You will not get anything out of us that easily, so you may as well start with the drugs." she says calmly, nodding to the needles.

The doctor returns the child's smile. "Oh, you're quite safe. We'll make sure of that," she says, before quickly checking over the readings from her medical scans of the child.

The lieutenant, meanwhile, gives the kick-loving nun a tight smile. "Very well, if you insist..." She motions to one of the techs, and a guard steps forwards to hold the nun's arm down as the tech prepares an injection for her. The lieutenant, meanwhile, pulls up a chair, turning it backwards before sitting down to face the youngest nun, resting her arms on the back of the seat. "In the meantime, why don't you and I talk a bit, about the nature of reality and existence? Religious types seem to love discussions about epistemology and ontology." She tilts her head slightly. "Or does your religious transformations not include an education in the philosophical bases of your beliefs?"

*Mendo cracks his knuckles, stretching a bit... He looks off into the distance.*
Well... the question remains what we should do about this situation... How troublesome...
We have to proceed with caution, lest we drag ourselves into this in earnest. We've already doubled patrols within our borders, but there's no telling whether these angels and demons will respect our sovereignty.

*He pauses, furrowing his brow... and then shaking his head as if dismissing whatever thought he was dwelling on.*
Any suggestions on our next course of action?

Alex shakeshakes her head... and gasps at Abel.

"You doooooooooo?! Where, I wanna find them!"

Abel nods at Alex. Reaching into her pocket, she pulls out a small datapad. Accessing it for a moment, she pulls up an aerial map of the city, and scrolls over it until she locates the row of houses that the red-haired and blonde-haired mercenaries had been observed at. The display opens up two additional windows with ground-level photographs of the two, with arrows pointing to their current location on the aerial map.

"We observed these two in transit in Muffinville... their appearances seem consistent with Logos and Jean, although they currently appear to be cooperating with one of the gangs." She holds up the datapad so that both Mendo and Alex can see the images.

[Sam]

The scratch does not do anything at the moment but the demon can feel an unfamiliar presence in his scratch mark. However Sam takes advantage of the demons' demonstration of anger as he begins to attempt scratching him all over his body

"You're getting so angry you've broken your tool. Well I guess it won't be the only tool breaking away... hehehe sorry couldn't help myself.