Event Log: Null Attack

[hadrielmods]

Who: Everyone!
What: The event log for the Null Attack event
Where: All over the city
When: May 29th- ?
Warnings: None

What starts as a normal day will begin to herald in the beginning of the end. On May 29th, you might see something in the sky out of the corner of your eye- blink and you miss it, but there's definitely something there, something that's not any kind of animal you've ever seen. Now that you know to look, you may be paying closer attention to the sky in order to catch the next one that flies past- a ship. A ship that that seems to be designed in a way that might remind you of the Null themselves.

As the days pass, it becomes unmistakable- the Null are here and are scouting out the area. It's time to prepare for an immediate attack and start putting all those contingency plans to good use. Will you gear up for a fight and fall into formation? Will you close and lock your doors and stay inside? Or perhaps there's some other plan that you want to enact?

You'll have time to discuss that on the network later, but now you need to start reacting to the Null's actions- which are apparently to start building smaller encampments around the city as they try to find the way inside. Confusion is holding them at bay for now but it might be time to start building some defensive measures and fortifications, because she won't be able to keep them at bay forever.

When they break in, they do so in a big way- with a massive explosion at Confusion's temple that rattles throughout the entire city. It's obvious that something has happened- and what exactly that something is reveals itself shortly when Null begin to flood the city, having broken through Confusion's protection.

This is when the fight escalates to an all-out war. Nobody is spared, and they're watching everyone from above. What will you do? How will you keep the ones you love safe? How can anyone survive this? All you can do is fight back, all we can do is wait. Good luck, Hadriel.

► This log covers the entirety of the Null attack
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► Please put your character's name and open/closed in the subject line of your starters!
► If you are killed by the Null, please let us know here.

Comments

Guerrilla Warfare Top-Level

[nonscriptum]

[hi-res here]

[ The jungle is dense and dangerous, now made more so with the addition of sticky web-lines and spear traps to deal with the impending, invading force. A week of prep was never going to be enough time, but since when is an imminent battle convenient? For all those who showed interest in using the natural environment to stealthily take out the Null, Nate issued a map, with a bunker (marked with a black star), terrain and tripwires (marked with red X's) laid out as neatly as possible given the constraints.

He attached a list of known guerrilla warfare volunteers for easy identification - though if others wanted to join in, they're welcomed with open arms. No one has the luxury of picking and choosing in straits as dire as theirs. There's also a note on the back of every map, in the event the city is overwhelmed.

If it comes to it, don't be a hero. Self-sacrifice is noble, but the city needs every pair of hands at its disposal.

Good luck. ]

Deputy Pratt

[theweakhavepurpose]

This gun had been cumbersome to arrive with, too big, too unwieldy, and too heavy to use for extended periods of time without killing his shoulders. It had sat unused on the top bunk of his bed, carefully maintained, but out of habit rather than necessity.

That was all about to change.

He had secured the ammo pouch to the side, gorgeously bedazzled from his first day in Hadriel when he'd been so confused about the situation that putting a bunch of pink rhinestones on his M60 had seemed like a totally normal thing to do.

With the map tucked into his pocket he gives a final look at what had been his home for almost a year, a final goodbye should this not go to plan. And in all likelyhood... that's what's going to happen.

One final deep breath and he secures his weapons, trotting over towards The Range, keeping an eye on the jungle around them. He may end up climbing the southwest Guardtower for a better view. As soon as the attack hits, he'll be making sure that everyone gets to safety by keeping a steady stream of bullets on the Null if they're attacked.

He has only a few minutes of ammo for a gun that chews through it at about 500 rounds per minute, so he'll be trying to make it count.

Peter Parker

[itsnotaonesie]

[Peter's largely hanging around out in the jungle. His attention is pretty equally split between herding the Null towards the cliffs on the West of town, keeping his eyes open for people who may need an assist, and replacing any web traps that the Null get stuck in.]

Step 1: Try To Look Really Cool

[For a city boy, Peter was having a pretty easy time adapting to stealthy jungle warfare. His abilities make hiding in the trees and using the environment to his advantage a goddamn breeze, which is probably cheating, but he's super okay with that. He can clear an area in a matter of seconds, leaving piles of robot chunks, crushed processors, and busted Null webbed to trees in his wake. Between his abilities and his ridiculous armor suit, he's like a tiny one man war machine up in here. The first couple days of the attack are fairly smooth for your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.]

Step 2: Okay A Few Setbacks Aren't The End Of The World

[Unfortunately, the Null have that whole hivemind thing going on, so when word gets around that there's a weird spider guy absolutely demolishing their dudes, the Null quickly learn what they need to look out for and suddenly life is kind of terrible for ya boi Spidey. Being prioritized by the murder-bots isn't really ideal, but it's probably something he can use to draw the Null's fire off of someone else, or lure them to the death pit on the west side of the map. That totally counts as a plus.]

Step 3: Totally Beef It

[Eeexcept for when he maybe gets injured (turns out them Null lasers can still penetrate even his armor suit, HAX) and gets pinned down behind like a boulder or something. Then it just turns into "Oh God oh no oh no no no this isn't okay". He could use an assist lads.]

taako | ota

[pocketspa]

[Mostly what Taako wanted out of this was the map. Not that he couldn't get away from basically anything that was being tossed at him, of course- or at least that's what he'd admit to out loud. The last time these guys came through, he only survived death from a lucky break, and Kravitz wasn't so lucky. He may not give half a shit about the city, but he does care about a few people in here that he won't see die, so here he is doing this dumb shit like he's some kind of hero.

Really, what he's doing isn't so much guerrilla warfare as it is appointing himself the head of the Nuisance Committee. He takes to the jungle as a bird, circling around and memorizing patterns and info, and then carefully leads them into wherever the hell he wants them. Which is how you get him swooping down next to you before transforming back into himself with a wicked little grin on his face.]

Hey there's like, a bunch of those fuckers coming this way. You wanna do somethin' fun for this one or can I just like, super dunk on 'em?

[He looks like he has some sort of plan-- if you can call anything Taako does a plan.]

[ooc: Feel free to PM me or reach out at cancerously for additional plotting!]

Nathan Drake

[nonscriptum]

counterattack - jungle

[ They don't have enough people to truly be on the offensive, and they've been at this for days. They'll be at this for weeks. Their strategy involves a great deal of bushwhacking, of utilizing the element of surprise with the density of the environment. Without the advantage of numbers and superior weaponry they are forced to use the cover of the brush or take the high road, the latter of which is Nate's preferred means of combat "maneuvering." He's learned that robots are hilariously bad at climbing. ]

Can't get me up here, can you, asshole?

[ Perhaps unwisely he taunts even as a laser shot crackles past and clips an enormous branch from the tree. The sharp spar of wood cracks over the other branches and the tree sways dangerously as it settles on a fork about a dozen feet below him, over the Null. The barrage of fire continues and Nate swings lower quickly, the heat singing his arm as it passes, and he leaps onto the shattered log to jostle it loose.

He frees it, it enters free fall, and with alarming surprise so does Nate. ]

Oh, crap-

[ It's a familiar sensation. He knocks his elbow and his ribs on the descent (also familiar), and is reaching out to catch himself before that giant red eye can vaporize him when the splintered chunk of wood crunches pointy-end first into the Null. It collapses immediately like a puppet with clipped strings, and Nate only hits one more leafy branch that breaks his momentum before he drops the next ten feet into the dirt.

He lifts his head, watching the dying sparks emanate from the robot, and laughs airily. ]

Gotcha.

field medicine - edge of city

[ The Null come in waves. They're almost predictable now in their regularity, which allows them to be more creative with their funneling, forcing them to the cliffs, playing on the programmed priorities. "Search and destroy" is all they have, and they clearly weren't as prepared for the tactics being used against them in the thick of the jungle.

It's night now, at the border perimeter behind Peter Parker's line of tripwire and mesh traps, no time for real rest but a time for temporary respite. The torches illuminating the edges of the trees make it easier to see what's coming, should they have missed a straggler or two in the vines and trunks clogging up the area just outside the city. Seated on a rock at the edge of a small fire, occasionally glancing up at the dark wall of foliage fifty yards away, is Nate.

This is the only downtime they've got. ]

You're not hurt, are you?

[ The question might be ironic, coming from someone caked in drying mud and some of his own blood. He's looking forward to an impromptu rainfall to wash some of this off. ]

Got a kit right here.

madness! madness! - the river, june 6

[ Nate didn't anticipate their defenses falling apart so fast, so soon, but shock and dismay were tempered by the searing headache that emitted from Confusion's temple when the explosion rocked the ground underneath them. From afar he could see debris, smoke, or maybe neither, because colors weren't right and neither was his sense of balance. Akin to being hit with a sudden wave of intense drunkenness it took a good quarter-hour to recover and when he did he knew they'd have to fall back.

Nate had hoped it wouldn't come to retreat, had asked Maine to hold off until absolutely necessary, but with all the bunkers located on the east side of the city, they need as many natural barriers as they can manage. ]

Don't wait, just run!

[ The masses of metallic shapes are emerging from the distant side, and Nate yanks a fresh clip from his holster, slamming it into his gun. ]

We don't have time!

wild card

[ After the retreat Nate can be found pulling the same defensive tactics on the east side of the river, and encountering him in the streets or at the perimeter is very high, i.e choose your own adventure! ]

Agent Maine | OTA

[bloodbathing]

option a: before the storm

[ In the beginning, it's mostly a waiting game. Maine stays where he's assigned on the inner perimeter, keeping watch for any Null that may break through. It's pretty boring, actually — which is a good thing, since it means that those on the outer perimeter are doing their job. Maine is accustomed to the 'hurry up and wait' game, so he remains vigilant and guards his sector.

For those that need to rest, this is a safe place to do so. Just let Maine know so that he can watch your back. ]


option b: hold the line

[ When the city defenses fall, Maine doesn't retreat. His mission is to hold the line for as long as possible, and that's what he does. He utilizes close combat whenever possible, preferring to rip the Null apart with his bare (armored) hands rather than waste ammo. When the Null realize this and start trying to stay at a distance, Maine switches to firing grenades.

It's effective. Very effective. Which is why, when Maine's HUD blares a warning that something is trying to hack his neural implant's firewall — an action that would allow them to take over and control his body — Maine isn't surprised. He's just … resigned.

He knew this was a possibility. And he wouldn't have volunteered for this position if he didn't have a contingency plan.

The Freelancer ducks behind cover, pulls off his helmet, and does … something to the back of his head. It's hard to see exactly what. Whatever it is, it causes Maine to shudder violently. A second later, he shoves his helmet back on and rejoins the fight.

Now, Maine fights differently. He targets weak points rather than relying solely on brute force. He manipulates enemy positions so that the Null are forced to cease fire or risk damaging each other. He moves and reacts and calculates with a speed that isn't human.

Unless you're joining him in covering the retreat, Maine won't so much as look at you. ]


option c: bridge destruction

[ Eventually, the situation becomes too dire, and the only option left to slow the Null's advance is to destroy the bridges.

Another person might require explosives to do the job. Agent Maine does not. Sigma helps him conserve energy, mapping out the weakest points in the bridges' support structures. And like the human wrecking ball that he is, Maine barrels into those supports and takes the bridges down, one after another.

It's a job that leaves Maine vulnerable to Null attack. He could certainly benefit from some cover fire. ]


(( ooc: want to do something else? hmu @ twofouroneten ))

klaus hargreeves 👻 ota

[substances]

👻 let's be war buddies (early jungle warfare)

Really, what he wouldn't give for his fucking machine gun.

No use whining about it, though, even if Klaus is already tired from a long week of setting up traps with the crew in the jungle. If nothing else, he has the layout of the whole jungle basically memorized by now. He has a handaxe and knives and one really heavy but really spectacular spiked mace. And he has the handgun Drake lent him, with a bit of ammo, which he's going to be saving for special occasions. He's trained with his abilities as much as he can, and he's going over what he's learned in his head over and over as he creeps through the jungle, face and arms camouflaged with dried mud, wearing his green vest and a dirty grey T-shirt, a light khaki bag on his back with some rations and other supplies, moving low and fast and quiet.

Glancing over at whoever he's closest to, making eye contact, he raises an eyebrow and ducks his head toward a log that lies in the underbrush near a clearing they've identified as a small Null encampment. This is the first hit-and-run he's participating in, and he has his hand axe at the ready. Go in, go hard, destroy as much as possible, kill whatever Null they can kill, and get the fuck out of Dodge. Lifting a hand, holding eye contact, he holds up three fingers, and drops them one by one. When only the pointer is left, he points at the encampment, surges out of the underbrush, flings himself over the log (which will make some great cover when they retreat) and charges.

👻 the second shot won't be a warning (mid jungle warfare)

It's been a few days of off-and-on combat, and this is some serious attrition warfare. Klaus is already tired, and it hasn't been a week. It's getting a bit intense in his head, too, because there's not as much gunfire, but there's explosions and screams and smoke and it's reminding him too much of Nam. He's barely slept in days, catching a few Zs here and there but always waking up with nightmares about Dave, about holding him. Thank god the jungle here smells different than Nam did.

Taking a long pull from his canteen of water, back pressed up against a fallen tree, he looks over his shoulder at the approaching detachment of Null, and then the pit trap covered in leaves and branches he remembers being there. Gathering his courage, he puts his canteen away, and pops up from behind the branch.

"HEY, ASSHOLES!!" he yells as loud as possible, "You want a piece of this?!"

And then he turns, skirts the edge of the pit while the approaching Null skitter closer, there's smoke and the smell of fire as they burn their way through the tree, and then the first one is dropping into the pit, gravity and the spikes in the bottom doing their job as they impale the outer casing. Klaus scrambles away, not seeing how many of them fell, or if any of them actually kicked it before sliding behind a thick patch of ferns and into a shallow hole dug under a thick tree root to hide, holding his breath while the Null keep moving, looking for him.

If he happens to see any of his comrades, he quickly gestures them to get over into shelter with him, fast. He's not above sharing a tiny foxhole with a buddy.

👻 let's be collateral damage (late jungle warfare) (cw: injury, ptsd flashbacks, drug references)

He's losing track of the days at this point, but Klaus has always been good at soldiering on through hunger and confusion and pain. There's blood on his face along with the mud now, both dried and fresh running down the side of his face from under his hairline, smudged into the fabric of his sweat-stained T-shirt, running down his right forearm. But he's in control, mostly, serious and focused.

At least until he isn't.

Creeping out of the underbrush, he realizes a moment too late that he's miscalculated his location and he's stumbled right into a Null scout setting up a weapon close to the edge of the city. And he's completely unprepared.

"Fuck."

He's halfway back into the brush before the Null gets a clean shot on him with whatever crowd control brain-scrambling weapon they're carrying. Letting out a yelp of pain, he almost immediately stumbles and lands flat on his face in the underbrush. Feels a chunk of wood embed itself into his shoulder, which wrenches another scream out of him. For a long few moments, he lies in the dirt and underbrush, completely disoriented, incapable of moving while he hears something crunching leaves and dirt behind him. He can't even remember what it is, what it's doing, he just knows he's hurting and scared and he's hearing gunfire whizzing overhead and explosions and he thinks he's pressed up against some sandbags. The jungle smells like Vietnam, and his hands move weakly as he tries to push himself up.

"Dave? Dave!?" he shouts, and gives away his position like an idiot, but any sort of tactic slides out of his head, it's like trying to catch water in his hands. There's just the pressing danger signals going through his head mixed with images of Dave in his arms, bleeding and gurgling and looking at him in terror, and he's sobbing as he manages to coordinate himself enough to start crawling away from the terror behind him, repeatedly crying out every time he forgets his shoulder is injured and he jams the chunk of wood sticking out of his shoulder into something.

He's going to die. If there's no one but the Null here, he's going to die, and he's too disoriented and confused to remember where help might be.

👻 has it come to that? (blowing the bridges / first monster summon)

The Null are in the city now, and there's no more use for the jungle, no more use for guerrilla warfare. Time to fall back into the City, to retreat and blow the bridges. The Null are so close on their tails it's hard to tell how they're going to manage it, how they're gonna slow them down.

Klaus is exhausted. He's hurting and aching and his right ear hasn't stopped ringing for two days, but he stops as someone sets the charges, looking around, chest heaving. Now is the time, he's frazzled and on edge, and everything looks like it's going to fall apart around them. So Klaus concentrates when he sees a monster ghost coming toward the clearing near the bridge, looking disoriented but angry, and Klaus hunches down, he focuses on how fucked they are, how much it's going to suck if they can't blow the bridge because the Null are here, he focuses on the monster and the people he cares about, closes his eyes and pictures them - Drake, the twins, Kyna and Tinya and Drake and everyone he's been fighting with the past week - and how much he's going to hurt if any of them die.

And then his fists glow blue, his whole body starts shaking, and he stands slowly, his fists out to the side, and then other people will see it - a massive Deathclaw, semi-transparent and glowing blue but very, very corporeal. It's different than it was with Ben, because Ben had controlled himself, had used the Horrors himself and Klaus had just been the conduit.

Fortunately, the Deathclaw is angry, the Deathclaw wants to fight, and Klaus feeds it as much focus on the Null as he can. The monster charges the Null, charging over the bridge toward them, swinging its massive fists and using its horn with reckless abandon. Klaus knows he can only hold this for so long, his whole body is tense and shaking wound tight, but he's holding on. And maybe, just maybe, it'll buy them enough time.

kate / ota and closed

[dedikated]

( OOC: starters below! )

by the safe zone / ota

[dedikated]

( The safe zone in the north east of the city has another purpose beyond offering respite for the injured or non-combative: picking off Null. Anyone (Hadrielite or Null) who wanders too close to the space will find themselves subjected to the considerable effects of the Door. The madness, the sensation of blood in their mouths. Disorientation.

She remembers it all too well, and that's exactly why she asked Sorrow if they could make it happen. The effects are strong enough to knock even a Null out of sorts for a while. And she has the best seat in the house — stood atop a building, her bow in hand and her arrows strapped to her waist. There's electric in the air and a smile on her face despite the situation.

One of the only good things about their pursuers being emotionless robots is the fact that it's so much easier to divorce herself from the implications of taking apart a species one arrow at a time. This isn't murder, it's target practice.

Murder requires blood. And these things don't bleed. The tang of metal in the air doesn't set her hairs on end, or make it any harder to breathe. It's just part of what these things are:

Excellent targets. And she always did have good aim — it comes with the territory of fighting in the dark, and the need to always be moving, to never let yourself be hit by limbs nor the spray of blood. It's just made easier with her still position atop the roof, a clear shot on a Null that stutters and stumbles in response to the edges of what is marked as theirs.

She lets loose an arrow and the Null retains just enough of its senses to dart away from it, sacrificing not much more than a limb to the heavy force of a bow that's almost bigger than its user. )

Dammit—

( But, hey, maybe she's given you just the opening you need to finish it off. )

the clinic / ota

[dedikated]

( She can't stay by the safe zone forever, and the problem with standing on a rooftop firing arrows alone is that you make yourself a big, glaring target. Especially when you're lugging a warbow and sporting a topknot of messy, pink hair.

Still, the slice across her gut, bleeding warm and red and coppery, has wiped the earlier smile off her face and replaced it with a thin-lipped grimace and the careful breathing of someone who's trying not to make anything worse.

(There is, and always will be, the vague taste of panic in the back of her throat, trying to spread through her chest and pushed down by a litany of logical reminders. There's no time to panic, not right now.)

Thank fuck the clinic is nearby, and she half-stumbles through the door, clutching her stomach and gritting her teeth, heading for a cabinet that should hold something to clean up and stitch herself back to — well, not full health, but close enough. Something where she isn't in danger of bleeding unconscious or feeling the bile in the back of her throat rise as her hands run slick with blood.

Who has time to wait for actual volunteers for this place when you're perfectly capable of doing it yourself?

(Kate. Kate does. Tell her she's being stupid.) )

sharon / closed

[dedikated]

So, you ready?

( You wanted help controlling your powers, Share-bear? She's got your back. In part because her weapons are a limited stock, in part because there's way too many Null in this part of town and why take the hard route when you can set shit on fire?

Kate's eyes are glowing white again, and her fingertips spark with flashes of lilac, the flares gradually dimming to a glow. She's got just the juice they need to make this happen. )

steak / ota and closed

[battlebound]

( OOC: starters below! )

the outskirts / ota

[battlebound]

( A battle is where Steak's most at home, and it should be no surprise that he's immediately in the thick of things. The trip to the Null's mining colony was a success, though he still thinks Fear took them out of the battle too soon, and now there's another fight to be had.

If Steak really could control fire, most of this jungle would be burned to a crisp through nothing more than his excitement at a real challenge in battle. Swords drawn, he charges the nearest group of Null with nothing more than a wing and a prayer to get him through it by the looks of things.

Well, that and a whole lot of combat talent. Swords slide into Null centres with efficiency and an iridescent bubble glows around him every few seconds, absorbing the damage they try to sink into him.

It's a matter of moments before the first small group are felled, and Steak breathes a sigh of satisfaction. Good. That's a few down. )

Who's next?

( Maybe, my good man, that one that just darted behind you, and Steak turns around just in time to block its attack with his sword, shoving up at it in an attempt to shake it off balance. Red eyes look past his current opponent even as he does, attempting to gauge any potential threats, or any potential allies or damsels. If you catch his eye and appear to want to fight something, Steak will gesture to the heavyweight Null monstrosity with his head — give him a hand in making quick work of this, there's others coming.

If you don't? If you look scared or in danger? Steak finds the strength to push it back himself, to strike his blades fast and fierce into the body of his opponent to down it and charges over, ready to take on the next one. )

red wine / closed

[battlebound]

( Even Food Souls get injured. And these two more than most, with how often they throw themselves into battle. Thankfully, the jungle is dense and there's space enough to collapse against a tree with a wince born of exhaustion of too many Null. There's no Support Souls here for them, but they're hardly unaccustomed to that, Steak reaching for some of the first aid equipment he keeps tucked away in his coat. )

You need some?

( There's an injury on his calf that needs bandaging, but ultimately, Steak isn't too badly off, all things considered. )

alphys | ota

[sciencelizard]

[She was here for the last time, too. Alphys remembers the disbelief of the Null tunneling through the rock walls, nowhere to run as Delight let them into the city. She wishes she could say she knows how this one's going to end, that the future could be mapped out into something happy.

Really, she doesn't know what to think. All she knows is, for once, she wants to live long enough to see it.

Thanks to a gift maybe too gracious for her, Alphys has something she can do here though, a future she refuses to give up on. So if you find yourself cornered by a Null, or otherwise around the Lab needing help, you'll suddenly hear her voice ring out.]

H-Hey! Stop!

[In her hands, she seems to be clutching an oversized key with a chain on the end to a cat-faced keychain and looking mostly terrified, if the shaking of her voice is any indication. But she's taking a stand. She's finally doing something.]

I won't let you hurt anyone!

[She's still looking towards you for backup, though. She may have a few moments of bravery, but this isn't something she can do alone.]

>FIGHT >ACT >ITEM >MERCY
♥FIGHT

[ooc: Feel free to PM me or reach out at cancerously for additional plotting!]

[unphase]

[Tinya's only heard of the Null from first hand accounts of those who have fought them before. she has a katana, which she's actually not bad with, and she's been strategically phasing and unphasing to avoid attacks and so far, it's working.

that's when she hears Alphys yelling in a tremulous voice for the Null to stop, causing her to immediately fly in the direction of Alphys' voice, landing just in time for Alphys to yell at them that she won't let them hurt anyone.

she lands at Alphys' back, to keep her covered from that side]

I won't, either! [she turns her head towards Alphys] You ready for this?

[restinglichface]

[Thankfully, Alphys isn't left waiting too long for backup to arrive.]

Atta girl! Kick their ass, Alphy!

[With her new abilities, Lup's been all over the jungle fighting back the Null, using the full extent of her powers to keep these people she's come to care for safe. There's been talks of detailed plans for weeks, more tactful strategies to pull out last minute and take the Null by surprise, but Lup's been in a fury since they'd set foot in Hadriel, and now she's choosing to go all in at full power instead of anything more cautious and careful.

She just needs to end this. To keep everyone safe. To get back to Barry. That's all that's important.

By the time she appears at Alphys' side, hands wreathed in flame and looking manic, Lup's already been roughed up, blood dripping heavily from a cut on her brow. Her hair comes undone from her braid as she whips her head around to face down the Null.]

That's new. [A flick of her gaze down to Alphys' new weapon before she's staring down their enemy again, lips curling into a too-confident grin.]

It suits you.

[toiletseat_girl]

[George should be in the Clinic, safe from the Null. but she's not.

no, instead of the thick of things with Hattoi Hanzo's sword.

he said in the movie that if god encountered the sword, he would be cut.

she's banking on that right now.

she yells at the Null]

Keep on coming, you assholes! More for you for us to kick your asses!

[for once, she is not afraid]

[caeruleae]

[Aqua is not about to let her new apprentice face this alone. There's been little time for teaching, and none at all for many of the more advanced lessons she remembers from years of tutelage. Strength of heart will have to carry Alphys past the point that Aqua can, but they will face this darkness forever.

She fights close by but with plenty of space between them, loosely covering the monster's back, just as Aqua trusts hers to be watching as well.]

To your left!

[There's another one coming from a different direction, but Aqua flings her free arm in its direction and hurls an ice spell, freezing it so deeply that it shatters with a strike of her weapon.]

inquisitor trevelyan ; ota

[closerift]

[ She thinks of the early days, when Cullen and Thom and Dorian and Cecily herself stood around their makeshift War Table within Hadriel and made plans for fights much less dire than this one. She thinks of them and feels the faintest relief that, maybe, she'll be able to see them again soon. ]

Come on. [ Cecily stands in front of Hope's temple, bow clutched in her two hands, expression set and serious. This is a long time coming, and she's ready to give whatever it takes to end this war. The Inquisitor steels herself, exhaling slowly, eyes trained on the horizon as she waits for the attack to arrive at Hope's doorstep. The last time she'd fought here, trying to protect Hope, she'd died for it.

Not again. Not if she can help it. ]

Come on! [ She yells out into the air as the Null begin to appear, and though a healthy dose of fear does course through her, stronger than that is the surge of hope. Hope that they can all make it through this, somehow, and stop the Null once and for all. Return home, maybe.

Home. She'd been there not too long ago, but it again feels like an eternity. Hadriel has become as much a home as Skyhold, and she has to defend it. To defend the people within it who'd made it a home...

Cecily fires an arrow into the first Null, and her fight begins. ]

[outofthefire]

[Cecily isn't alone. a short distance away, Laura stands preparing to fire her own arrows at the Null. no one can say that she's not taking this seriously, since she's wearing a cammo shirt and green pants, the better to try and blend in with her surroundings (she hopes)

it's taking every bit of her courage to face down these things. she hid the last time, not knowing enough about the situation or the people to take a stand.

things change.

she flashes a quick grin at Cecily before yelling at the oncoming Null] Come and get some, you assholes!

[and with that, her first arrow flies]

[theladyofhighever]

[while Cecily may be making herself a more obvious target, Mariane isn't far away, hidden behind a thick tree and waiting for the Null to get close enough to engage.

she has her blade and dagger drawn, each equipped with a Grandmaster Frost Rune, a Grandmaster Paralysis Rune, and a Grandmaster Slow Rune.

she also has her small supply of a acid flasks and acidic coating as well as the magic learned from Taako, so she's. not exactly hopeful?

but ready and prepared for whatever comes.

when the Null make landfall, then she'll strike]

[pocketspa]

[His circumstances ring much different than hers. Hadriel has never been home for him; his family comes and goes, and he's never once acknowledged the liches up top as anything but what they were. Emotion sucking beasts, intent on turning them against each other for their own gain.

But... if he dies, Hope gives him a second go. He has a precious few people he wants to protect. And also, the Null have murdered nearly everyone close to him at least once. This is absolutely an association of convenience- he isn't fighting with the gods as much as he is against the Null, to put an end to this nonsense he's been stuck in for two years.

At least he'll never pass up an opportunity for a real fuckin' slam with the people he enjoys.

Cecily's arrow hits, and the second it does, a massive fireball comes crashing down onto the squadron of Null; to the untrained eye, it looks like her arrow suddenly exploded. But Cecily will know better by now, and if she angles her head up, she'll find Taako sitting on the edge of a roof and spinning the Krebstar in his hands. He yells her direction, a big grin on his face as the Null try to regroup.]

Go on! Got 'em warmed up for you!

[Asshole.]

Jo Harvelle | OTA

[knifecollecting]

[The first few ships make her nervous. It's justifiable considering her own death, and how many others died last time they visited. She would also probably not admit the feeling.

She stays close to home for a long while. She meticulously cleans her inherited pistol, cleans and hones her knives. The process calms her, but doing it on the kitchen table might not calm her housemates.

It would make her feel better if she had kerosene. Some makeshift firebombs would be useful, but she doesn't think the alcohol available would work well enough. It could start a flash, but the Null are metal. Not enough to stop one of them.

Jo finishes late in the night and chances a quick nap on the couch before readying herself for the fight.

She moves through the city with caution. It may not be an invasion quite yet, but she's not willing to die already. Or ever, if she can help it.

Anyone she sees, she heads for to get information on what they know. The Null have infiltrated the network before. She's not certain they aren't listening now.]

AIR RAID SIRENS

[volitaunt]

Poe and a small group (Nate, John Sheppard, Lup, Lucretia, and Finn) will be teleporting aboard one of the big Null ships with Fear's assistance, and using Nate's ability to read the Null script, will locate one of the big weapon's caches aboard. Using Lup's ability to open portals from one place to another, they'll hop from one large ship to the next, setting off Null bombs in the weapons storage area with the goal of doing as much damage as possible/eliminating some of the Null's military advantage. Given the whole hivemind thing, the goal would be to destroy 2-3 ships before using Lup's ability to teleport them safely to the ground.

THE SHIP

[volitaunt]

[ Getting on board is surprisingly easy--Fear teleports them in, and as soon as it's clear that no one has fallen over a railing and onto the decks below, he disappears. It's quiet. Disturbingly quiet, after the noise and the chaos of the battle below. Like the hall of some ancient metal library, where a wrong step could bring the place down around their ears.

(Watch where you're going, Nathan Drake.)

There are a dozen corridors to look down, only occasionally punctuated by computer terminals, access to which could give the boarding party away at any time. Proceed with caution and don't die right away or you'll ruin the rest of the mission, gosh.

(On board a large ship, they would find 50-70 Null troops (some in the process of being repaired or built), extensive weapon stores, a huge stockpile of parts and materials for repair, and an area specifically dedicated to repair and creation of more Null troops. [Each] ship would have computers and many sensors dedicated to tracking movements on the planet....) ]