Endgame Log: The Ice Planet

[hadrielmods]

Who: The characters accompanying [Name] to the ice planet
What: The closed event log for the virus upload
Where: On the ice planet, at the Null communications array
When: June 15th
Warnings: None

It's time. There's a plan that needs to be put into motion, and you're the ones who volunteered to do it. You know going in that it's going to be dangerous - but there's no other choice. This is the end, and it's you or the Null.

Upon arrival, you have a little time to prepare. The Null don't know you're there at first, and once they do there's a delay of a few hours before they're in position to fight back. Now's the time to set up defenses or anything else that might help you stay alive. You have to know the fight will be hard, because they know their lives are on the line, too.

Then, the Null attack. With everything they have, they try to stop you, try to beat past your defenses to get to [Name] and stop it from uploading the killswitch. Fear helps out, and the sky goes dark, but it won't last forever. When Fear flees, that particular defense is gone... along with any chance of getting out of there. Here's where those without courage might break, because it certainly looks like it could be a last stand. It doesn't help that Hope can't reach you here either, that any deaths will not be resurrected during the battle.

But it does end. With very little warning, [Name] completes its task. It goes dark, and as it does, the other Null see their end coming. They cannot stop it, they cannot escape. They crumple to the ground, all consciousness and animation gone from them.

And then you're alone on the ice planet. Tend your wounds, mourn your dead, and hope that someone will come for you before the cold does.

► This log covers June 15th
► Please tag headers of threads with content warnings where they apply
► As this log takes place away from Hope's influence, any deaths will not be resurrected until people and gods are able to travel to the ice planet again. Have fun!

Comments

Aqua

[caeruleae]

defending;

[This is like nothing Aqua has ever experienced before. She's fought, she's been one part of a greater battle, but she's never experienced war. And it all comes down to them; if they don't hold the line, all of them will lose the war.

So she calls her Keyblade and slings every kind of spell she knows, using glacier spells to block the Null with ice and lightning to fry them. But there are so, so many of them, and so many people she has to look out for—people she trusts to watch her back, as well.]

Don't let up! We can hold them back!

surviving;

[And then it's just quiet, and dark. They're alone.

With a gentle touch and what energy she has left, Aqua calls fire magic; the flames are small and meant to warm, not harm. They're nothing compared to the fires of rage she feels inside at being left behind, abandoned. She'd love to turn her Keyblade on Fear next. But he's gone, and they're alone—but still alive.]

All right. Who's injured? We need to hang on until help arrives.

[It will, won't it?]

surviving

[hot_mes]

[Law brushes past her on his way to look for who else is too injured to move, exhausted but otherwise hiding any of his own hurts]

...you can do that? The fire. Is there anything not metal here that will burn?

sorry for the delay, work trip happened

[caeruleae]

It's magic. It burns by its own power. Or...mine, I suppose.

[Which means it has its limits, like she does.]

We won't freeze as long as I can maintain it.

surviving

[sciencelizard]

[It's too quiet, when all is said and done. The ice planet was always the place that scared her the most- being devoid of the gods, every resource she had, staying cramped up for weeks at a time out of necessity, feeling useless again and again and again. And now she feels herself there again- it's quiet. It's over. And all she did is barely survive and kill an entire race.

She was given this power to be a light in the darkness. But Alphys can't say she feels like a light right now.

She finds Aqua a bit later, when the fire is started, and approaches her quietly.]

Hey. Uhm, I... I w-won't take up too much time. I just, uh... wanted to say that. I'm sorry.

[caeruleae]

[Aqua has to believe that the others will come for them. That Fear will regain his strength and return. There's no other choice. And she's glad there isn't, because if she had to rely on her own faith...she's not sure she could. No one had come for her in the darkness, after all. Not on purpose.

She lifts her head at her friend's approach, surprised by her words.]

Sorry? What for, Alphys?

alphys | ota

[sciencelizard]

i. [defending/battle] let me clear my throat / let me catch my breath

[At first, the whole thing doesn't seem real.

The Alphys that first arrived in Hadriel couldn't possibly imagine herself in this situation. Her life was small and tragic- her mistakes, while big to her, felt tiny in comparison to being dragged to a new world under the whim of gods and humanity. Her goal at first was just to keep her head down and focus on staying alive to the next minute, to the next hour, to the next day...

It seems unfathomable to think she's carrying a bonded weapon, her weapon, a gift from her heart, and coming in as a trusted knight to a little bot she saved from death. It all just doesn't seem like it could actually be happening to her, and in a way that's better. It makes it easier when the action starts and she can at least move, staying in the back lines to any that manage to break through and make a strafing run for [Name]. She'll yell when it happens, partially a backup call and partially to let the Null know she still sees them and is standing tall.]

Go away! I won't let you hurt them!

[And she swings the keyblade right at their center.]

ii. [aftermath] let my heart bleed out til there's nothing left

[And just like that, it's nothing.

[Name] hits the ground and everything is abandoned as she throws herself forward towards them, her weapon gone from her hand and tears welling at her eyes. Alphys presses the limp body to her chest, trying to feel any movement, hear any whirring of machinery, but it's... nothing. It's just nothing.

She failed. Just like that, she failed. It was something and something and she dared to hope that this time something could be different, and it wasn't. It was her getting herself in over her head to something she swore she could handle and people dying because of it.

Alphys stays crumpled over them, clutching the lifeless husk to her chest, and her shoulders shake with barely repressed sobs and the speaking of just two words into their chassis.]

I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry...

iii. [wildcard] it's my day to be brilliant

[Want something else with Alphys or a more specialized prompt? Hit me up via PM or at cancerously and we'll figure something out!]

ii poor Alphys

[hot_mes]

[after Law has seen to fleshy injuries, he comes over to where Alphys is, concerned she might also be hurt, but catches on after a moment what's going on. He stands next to her, close enough to let her know he's there, but not touching her.]

It put its life on the line for us. What a brave creature.

its so much ;A;

[sciencelizard]

[She doesn't appear hurt, not externally. But that's fairly common for monsters; most don't survive severe damage. The danger with them, of course, is that their emotional state is heavily tied to their SOUL-- and their feelings.

So something in her now is certainly broken. But is it even possible to fix?

Tears run down her face, soaking [Name]'s chassis without other care from her. It's all she has to give them now.]

I was supposed to protect them. They, I s-saved them before, I just... I just...

[Her words get lost in a choke of her throat, a little cough through the uneven breath.]

I thought this was supposed to be the happy ending.

aftermath

[soundtest]

[Napstablook has been looking for Alphys and Mettaton just about everywhere, barely escaping each Null encounter. Honestly, it's pure adrenaline and fear that they might've just lost the only two monsters here that keeps Napstablook from crumpling up in a pile after everything they've just witnessed.

They see Alphys hunched over, and their heart rises in their throat. If Alphys is hurt, Napstablook doesn't know how to help her.

They break into a stumbling run, stopping just a couple feet away from her. She's... cradling something?]

a-alphys...?
are you hurt....?

[sciencelizard]

[She doesn't seem to be hurt physically , at least-- a good start. But out of the few people here, they know what it looks like when a monster is teetering on a dangerous emotional edge. Humans can take a million blows to the SOUL and keep going. But monsters, well...

It's so much more common for them to pass of a broken heart.

Alphys' body shakes, pressing something metal into her chest, but doesn't look up quite yet. Her words are still muffled, but since they're close they can make them out.]

I didn't save them. I, I tried everything and I didn't save them.

i.

[mttbrandlegs]

[Mettaton's a little distracted, splitting himself across several tussles, but he's close enough to Alphys to keep an eye on her. Thus, when she calls out, he swiftly goes to her side and even throws a little magic into the fray. If he's lucky, this Null can't tank his electrical magic.

If he is so unlucky however...he's sure Alphys and her weapon will do some damage. Should her keyblade falter...he'll take more drastic measures.

There's no words in the heat of the moment that he could possibly think to exchange; he's determinedly fighting to protect her and Napstablook at this point and it's taking all of his focus but he has to do it. He has to.]

ii.

[unphase]

[it's over.

Tinya can barely believe it, but it's over.

she's hurting over the fact that not even her best efforts were enough to keep Pratt safe and she's squeezing that pain into a small ball that she's doing her best to shove down deep into her heart, but. here's her friend. and she's lost someone, too.

so she kneels down next to Alphys and [Name], doing her best to cover them both with the cloak of her Legion uniform]

You did your best. The best you could do. No one can say you didn't.

Trafalgar Law - OPEN

[hot_mes]

A Hours 1-11

[armed with his nodachi and swathed in winter clothing he never discarded, Law plops himself near whatever terminal Name is going to need to access the Null hive mind and stays there. Yep, even when the first concerted effort to attack begins, he doesn't move. At least, not to fight - if someone is injured he will pull them back and treat them so they can go in again. His pockets are full of first aid supplies and he will use his ability as little as possible.

If confronted, he has a simple response:]

What? I need to rest.

[like that explains literally anything]

B Hour 12

[The moment Fear blips on out of there and leaves them to their fates, Law springs to his feet in anger. Motherfuck! He can sense the swirling mass of movement outside their defenses, even if they're not life forms, and knows they're about to be beset.]

Everyone stay behind me! If you charge out now I'm not responsible for you. ROOM!

[as if bellowing it like that helps make it bigger. The blue aura bubbles out from him and keeps expanding, further and further until it reaches out of sight. This Room is huge. A few moments later and the Null swarm appears, at which point Law flings the saya of his sword aside and begins wildly slashing the air. Within seconds, the Null that enter sight range just...fall apart, splitting along neat lines into multiple pieces as if cut, which is exactly what just happened. Any Null or portion of a Null inside the Room - and there's a lot of them - fly apart, though their limbs, weapons, and other moving parts continue moving, flailing uselessly as they attempt to right themselves and resume the advance.

Anyone who ignores him and runs past him will also suffer the same fate, but at least it's painless, bloodless, and he can put you back together. Which he will, but not until he gives you an earful about paying attention first.

But he can only hold a Room that size for so long. When it drops, he falls back panting. It's going to be up to others to rush the Null bits and kill the shit out of their exposed processors before the next wave comes in.]

C Up to/past the end

[open wildcard option here - team up to fight with him or beg his attention for medical reasons. He will break off fighting in order to treat any and all injuries, and he no longer has any regard for his own stamina, wildly using his power wherever he can be of use. It's like a switch has been flipped, and Law is pulling out all the stops to keep every one of them alive.

When the Null collapse and die, his first priority is to assess triage and treat anyone who hasn't been taken care of. He can't fight the cold but he can fight blood loss and pain for you.]

Does anyone know how far this base is from the city we were in?

B

[theweakhavepurpose]

[Pratt has been all up in the action. Not exactly on the front lines but right behind them. That's always been his place, right behind whoever's in charge, at the side of someone or something stronger than himself.

He's panting and bloody and his gun is out of ammo at this point and it's so oversized it's not even a good bludgeoning weapon so he's been having to leap onto the Null and stab them with the oversized hunting knife he has.

It's not very effective.

He barely hears whatever it is Law says before there's a giant expanding bubble and..]

Jesus!! What the fuck was that?

[He's plastered against the wall trying to avoid whatever the hell is happening before it fades out.]

Napstablook

[soundtest]

[Fight (?) the null.]

[Out of everything Napstablook's every done in their entire life, this is probably the biggest mistake they've ever made. They're in a fleshy human body that they barely understand, and now there's robots coming to kill them all.

But all Napstablook knows is that this is where Alphys and Mettaton are. And for that reason, here they are.

Napstablook is trying to back away from a Null that has singled out Napstablook. A weak target. Napstablook looks around in a panic, almost too terrified to move. But they reach for a decent-sized rock.]

if... if you don't turn back... i really don't want to do this so please...!

[Tears are streaming down their face, but the Null closes in on them. Napstablook hurls the rock.

It misses.

Oh no....]

[Aftermath]

[After the battle, somehow Napstablook is alive. Their body is covered in cuts and clothing is torn. There's blood soaking their shirt, and they've got their arms wrapped around themselves as they try to comfort themselves.

As far as talking goes, after all Napstablook has seen...

Really not feeling up to it right now. Sorry.]

FIGHT!!!!

[mttbrandlegs]

[The Null doesn't even get the opportunity to attack Napstablook before an extremely aggressive, immeasurably protective robot pounces upon it and literally attempts to rip out its central processor. The look on his face is indescribable, but not inherently aggressive--well.

There's definite anger here. He's feeling violent enough for it to show. But beyond that is an underlying fear that he might not get here soon enough next time and what if he miscalculates and it shoots Blooky?! That of course being an issue he doesn't have to worry about long. The element of surprise has granted him victory here, and the Null collapses, its processor crushed between Mettaton's palms.

His eyes flick to his cousin momentarily, the manic expression not quite gone yet. It's not at them. Never at them. But he can't let his guard down, they're human now.]

Peter late to the party Parker - OTA

[itsnotaonesie]

Some Fightin'

[Peter was no stranger to the whole final stand thing at this point, which actually wasn't helping calm his nerves at all. Shocker. He does whatever he can to help with the upload, and when the Null finally do show up, he at least has something to focus all his nervous energy on. Kicking the shit out of some robots, it's very therapeutic. Until he gets blasted with lasers, anyway. It's fine, he's pretty durable. Mostly.

His primary focuses are defending [Name] and doing some crowd control with his webs. He's careful not to web up any of his teammates while he sticks a bunch of Null to the ground and to each other, and any Null that slip through his webby defenses are quickly dealt with. ]

So, show of hands, who else is really tired of getting shot with lasers? I am never gonna get these scorch marks out of this armor.


Aftermath: Victory nap. Or, y'know, coma. Same difference.


[As durable as Peter is, he's still been fighting pretty much nonstop for several days. Even if his wounds do heal way faster than an average human's, there's still only so much he can take before he has to throw in the towel. Battered, bruised and bleeding, he's been fighting past his towel-throwing point for hours by the time the Null finally go down. Once he realizes they aren't getting back up, he goes down, finally succumbing to exhaustion and way more injuries than anyone should be able to power through.

They won. It still sucks because they're stranded on the shitty ice planet, [Name] is dead, Alphys is super sad, everyone's probably injured and Peter's unconscious, but hey! That still totally counts as a victory.]

Aftermath

[hot_mes]

[don't mind the doctor making his rounds, making sure everyone is okay. If Peter comes to at any point, he'll find Law crouched over him, making sure every wound is bound and clean and determining in his own way whether the guy is at risk or can just sleep it all off. Hey dude 'sup.]

[theladyofhighever]

[Mariane is fully armed and armored and is giving it all against the Null. her Grandmaster Frost Rune is of little use here, but the Grandmaster Paralysis and Grandmaster Slow runes are helping her trouble the Null enough to allow the young rogue to do some damage.

she's been hit by a laser in the upper right thigh and right calf. strangely, it didn't hurt as much as she thought it might and it seems the heat of it cauterized the wounds. it's enough to make her favor her left leg a little and detract from her usual speed of attacks, though, which is upsetting.

she doesn't raise her hand as she's currently delivering a riposte to the Null she's behind]

It's grown rather irksome, yes. How many times have you been hit?

[unphase]

[Tinya's out of her usual sundresses and back into her Legion uniform for this. not just because it's better for this climate, but because it makes a point, at least to herself. between the White Triangle, Jacob, and the Null, she no longer believes that everyone deserves a second chance. and the Legion's rule against killing is wrong.

there are some kinds of evils that need to be stopped. permanently.

and that's what she's doing, swooping in to offer an assist to anyone who needs it, but looking out for three people in particular. everything but her hands (which she needs to cast magic or wield her katana) are phased, so]

I haven't been shot with any! [and she's sort of. hovering within a Null, her unphased hands driving her sword into it] And I plan to keep it that way!

[theweakhavepurpose]

Defending
[This reminds him a lot of back home. Wave after wave of fighting with barely any time to take a breather. He's been out of ammo for hours now, his machine gun discarded somewhere because it's not even good as a bludgeoning weapon being so bulky and awkwardly shaped.

At this point he's got his hunting knife and he's been in a lot of fist fights and that's literally all he's got going for himself. He's been in Hadriel for almost a year now, so he's not as emaciated and weak as he was when he first showed up, but his stamina has limits and every so often he'll back off from the front lines and try and compose himself.]

I shoulda been keeping track. Then we could have compared kill counts later or something.

The Weak have been Culled
[It had to happen. Pratt is only human, and he brought a knife to a robot fight.

Before [Name] completes their task, he goes down. Tossed aside as if he's nothing more than scraps. Maybe his death bought them some time, maybe no one even noticed with the battle going on all around them. But Pratt is crumpled in a pile off to the side with several holes in his torso, and he's not getting up again.

The weak have their purpose. He understands that now.]

Deputy Pratt more like DEADputy Pratt

[itsnotaonesie]

[There's only so much chatting that a dead body can do, but know that Peter absolutely just sits next to dead Pratt after the battle for a few hours sobbing his tiny little heart out.]

[unphase]

[Tinya's back in her Legion uniform. it's much better suited for this climate and wearing it is kind of symbolic to her. that her world's beliefs are wrong, that not everybody deserves a second chance. and she's taking a stand by coming here to prove it.

though, she really, really, really wishes Pratt had stayed behind in the city. as brave as he is, he's still a normal human with no superpowers or special skills. she's keeping close to him, phased except for her hands with which she can wield her katana or cast magic.

which she's currently doing, throwing acid splash after acid splash against a pack of oncoming Null to keep them from getting too close]

Does the winner get a prize?

Mettaton | OTA, will match style

[mttbrandlegs]

FIGHT

After all this time, Mettaton had come to a realization. The life here in Hadriel, both times he'd been here, he had been directionless. There's been nothing that he felt comfortable with anymore--not entertainment or being himself at all.

It shouldn't be surprising. After everything that had happened and how hard he had been fighting to level himself out from all of the problems his space field trip had brought...it was more than a little hard to go back to the person he was.

Perhaps...this was what he'd needed. Talking didn't help, and neither did simple, meaningless tasks like shopping or cleaning or trying to create entertainment venues when those were hardly anything that mattered. What he'd needed was as FIGHT. Despite improvements he'd made that had dropped his LV, he still had a coldness in his SOUL that hadn't been extinguished. He still had pain that kept that scarf wrapped around his neck as a reminder, and as a protective shield that no one would ever understand.

Despite everything that had happened in Hadriel...it's still the him he hates.

He takes that hatred of himself out on the Null, and the ice in his heart makes it so easy to tear limbs off, to fire off magic and kick holes in the bots. But most of all, as he approaches a Null, the thing that keeps his Level of Violence from raising any higher is the simple fact that although he's enjoying this and he's good at it...he's doing it to help Alphys and protect both her and Napstablook.

He has the strength for this. He will expend it all.

As a Null approaches another of the stranded group though, his protectiveness extends to them as well, and he lashes out at the other robot with a swift side-kick. The sound of metal reverberates as boot meets what he can assume is torso.

"It's not nice to sneak up on people," Mettaton says coldly, the corner of his mouth twitching. His boot presses into the Null's armed appendage, using the weight of his body to crush their weapon. "What are we going to do about that?"

He looks up--the question isn't for his enemy. It's for you. He's in this with everyone, right? So it's time for a little teamwork.


ACT: Defend


It's been hours.

Mettaton's been fighting for hours, and his internal battery is not lasting as long as he needs it to. He knew it might not, of course. But he didn't realize how long this was going to take.

After so many fights, all being a mixture of teamwork, victory and retreat, the damage is starting to show. There are more cracks on his chassis than he even came to Hadriel with, one of his shoulders is splintered halfway, and there's gashes and dents on his arms and boots. The cracks on his SOUL container have weaved a dangerous web, barely sustaining at this point.

He sticks close to his family, but co-opts himself into the battles of others; he's simply too spent to do it on his own, and there's no point wasting time to get healed. Mettaton's in this to the end, and no one can fix a robot in time.

He accepts that as he jumps into another fray.

"You look as if you could use some backup, sweetheart! Don't worry, I'm here to help!!"

It sounds so self-assured. Funny joke, right?


THE END (Closed to Alphys and Napstablook, cw; death)

As expected, Mettaton didn't hold up until the end. He was armless at this point--one had been pulled clean from the very port it connected and discarded by a Null. Mettaton had fought without it for a while too, despite everything. The second was severed three-quarters up and the electrical impulses still jolted from what remained. He'd ignored it.

He'd fought til his last, and although he didn't realize, he had failed to reach the end of the fight by only about an hour or so.

Because he didn't know, all that he could think about was how he'd failed to protect Alphys and Napstablook adequately. Others would protect them, he was sure, but that didn't mean that he hadn't failed in his duty nonetheless. Amongst all the error readouts and the internal diagnostics that he was far too tired to filter though, he couldn't help but feel this was all a little too familiar.

Last time he had died this way...everyone had died before him, and that had caused him to lash out. He knew Alphys and Blooky were not likely to make that decision, or at least he could hope. Alphys had grown so much stronger, she could fight back if she wanted.

Actually...

He's a little happy for her. That she's come so far, even if her weapon does look a little silly.

As he lay in the snow armless and unable to move, keeping quietly to himself as he waited for the inevitability of his already strained SOUL giving out, he wishes for just one thing: That they don't see him like this. Alphys has enough to worry about, and after everything he'd told Blooky, he didn't want to leave his death in their hands to top it all off.

Mettaton very rarely gets what he wants anymore, but he can hope.

you know what option

[soundtest]

[Blooky had been unsuccessful at staying completely out of harm's way. While they aren't hurt enough to need immediate medical attention, there's scrapes and bleeding gashes from the numerous Null encounters.

Honestly, it seems like all they've done here is run. They feel like they shouldn't have bothered coming here at all.

But those thoughts get pushed out of the way when they see a figure in the snow. Napstablook cautiously walks forward, seeing if it was someone that they might be able to help this time. Instead, what he finds is worse. So much worse.]

met-mettaton...

[The name is stuck in their throat for a moment. Napstablook drops down, trying to lift their cousin out of the snow as best as they can. At least they're trying to lift his face out of the snow.]