Ben

The effect of Return From the Different Dimension would still be applied even though Jinzo was brought back. RFTDD does not remain on the field after it is activated, and so Jinzo's effect would not prevent RFTDD's effect from resolving normally.

I'd think it would be rather obvious why to make this into a law. O-o It's a repugnant practice, and many people (yourself included, I do presume) find it so. As opposed to just leaving it as an "unwritten" sort of rule; well, the article stated that several people got away with it simply because there [i]was[/i] no law against it. I'd imagine that's why they made it into a law; so people couldn't do it anymore. That's generally what laws prohibiting things do; they tell people to stop doing them.

Sept. 7 10:50 AM Yabaku28 was wondering about the school dormitories. He didn't have any classes until Transformation, at 2:55. It was still a while off. With nothing better to do, Yabaku28 decided to practice for today's lesson, right in the middle of the hallway. First off, he tried something simple.Yabaku28 put both of his arms out in front of him, where they began to interlock. A rubber wheel shifted into the space between his arms, and he leaned forward to support himself on it. His legs, meanwhile, were also locking together. In a few minutes, Yabaku28 had completed the transition from domestic robot to motorcycle. He revved his engines a couple of times (waking up a goodly number of the students) and peeled out down the hallway. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Aya was determinately slinking around in her fluffy yellow robe, looking for someone to blame for the lack of water in her shower. Her hair was beginning to dry, and that made her angry. She hadn't finished her hair treatments yet! If only there was something around that she could at least [I]substitute[/I] for a shower. That something came flying down the hallway at 90 MPH, braking sharply to avoid colliding with her. The inadequacy of the braking system led to the motorcycle turning head over heels and hurtling towards the wall at the end of the hallway. CRASH. Yabaku28 groaned in the manner only a robot can, and slowly began to transform back to his normal self. His limbs creaked and gears groaned as, piece by piece, he was back into what was almost his normal shape. A small fire had started in his left thigh. Yabaku28's arm shifted a bit, and a showerhead emerged, evenly sprinkling the fire and putting it out. "Sorry about that." Yabaku28 apologized. Aya had slowly and quietly slunk closer to him, eyes squinting speculatively. "The one you've disrupted....will take something from you...." "Uh...what?" Aya inched a bit closer. With a deft swipe of her hand, she had disconnected the latches that held his arm in place. Grasping it by the showerhead, she carefully dragged it away, back to her room. She slammed the door, and Yabaku28 could hear water running. "She just....took my arm..."

"Could you give me a hand, here?" snapped Deciperemon. "She could give you a claw." muttered Fladramon, lightly pawing at his freshly scarred face. "Oh, just quiet down and grab him." Fladramon carefully picked his way over and through the rubble over towards the motionless Rookie. Looking down at Deci's bruised and swollen legs, he arched an eyebrow. "Got into a bit of trouble, did you?" "Do you think you're funny? 'Cause, you're not, really." Fladramon stooped down a bit to pick up Deciperemon. "Hey, hold on a minute. You're not carrying me." "Why not?" "I don't like being carried." "Well, you certainly can't walk." "I can too, just hit me first." "Are you crazy? I'm not going to hit you." "Just do it, I'll be walking around in no time." "No. I won't." [I]"Come on."[/I] [I]"No."[/I] "For Jijimon's sake, [I]I'll[/I] hit him!" hissed Gatomon. "Lightning Paw!" Deciperemon grinned. "Attack Snatcher!" Deciperemon's hands glowed a dark purple, and they instantly snapped up to catch the feline digimon's blow. Her attack completely fizzled, Gatomon stepped back to watch the effects of her handiwork. The purple energy traveled down Deciperemon's body, sealing up scrapes and banishing bruises. When it reached his legs, they shrunk down to normal size and every abrasion disappeared. Deciperemon hopped to his feet. "Let's get out of here."

Dain cut through another dozen or so Troop Dragons. Fighting them was so tedious. His power was raised exponentially from their great multitude, but on the other hand, they seemingly could not be eradicated. So, it was a bit of a stand still if left to hand to hand combat. The Troop Dragons couldn't do any real damage to the supercharged Paladin, and Dain could not overcome the self-supplenishing army. Out of the corner of his eye, Dain could see Flare square off against the Skull Knight. Dain couldn't tell what he was wielding, but it didn't seem to be his normal sword. A Troop Dragon got a lucky shot in and struck Dain in the eye. He hissed with pain, and discharged a wide pulse of energy that drove the Troop Dragons back. They flew back a bit to regroup, and then surged forward again. "Ergh. Enough of this!" shouted Dain. He quickly scratched a diagram in the ground with the tip of his staff. "Dragon Capture Jar!" The markings on the earth flared with a sudden blue light. The earth itself rose up and changed shape, to form a large jug with the face of a Dragon depicted on its front. Dark reddish energy whipped out from the top of the container, and blasted the Troop Dragons. they were all drawn, clawing and shrieking, into the depths of the container. When the last one was in, an earthen lid slid into place over the top of the jar. Dain picked up the jar and tucked it under his arm. Dain went over to where he had last seen Flare, and found him standing over the body of his fallen enemy. The Skull Knight had been sheared in half, from shoulder to hip, with another Skull Knight's sword. Flare was resolutely pulling his own sword from the corpse of another. Sage was leaning against a nearby tree. "Surrender, or [I]die."[/I] came a rasping voice. Dain half-turned to face the speaker, partially obscuring the Capture Jar on the other side of his slim frame. It was a Lesser Fiend, and he had a gand of other monsters with him. Two Giant Orcs, a couple Newdorias, many Souls of the Forgotten, Mystics Clowns, and Feral Imps. More Fiends were emerging from the woods behind the Lesser Fiend, as well. "Join us, and fight Kione. Save our world." Dain's offer was summarily ignored. The Fiends licked their lips in anticipation of tearing the three Spellcasters to pieces. And then perhaps [I]eating[/I] the pieces.... "Kione is nothing to us. We care nothing for the world, nor the things in it. We survive. That is what matters." The Lesser Fiends seemed to be the only articulate creature among them. "Fine then. Let's see how you handle just a paltry bit of his forces!" Dain hurled the Dragon Capture Jar across the intervening space towards the Fiends. The Jar shattered, releasing hundreds of angry Troop Dragons that set about attacking every monster in their path. Which were Fiends. Dain hurried towards Sage, and looped his arm about the old mage's shoulders. Flare took to the other side, and the three hurried off into the night to rejoin the other spellcasters.

(This is a duel between my friend John and I that took place a couple of days ago over AIM. The moves of the game are the same, but the dialogue is slightly different and obviously this isn't how and where we played. I hope you enjoy it, though, because I certainly enjoyed writing it. ^_^ I may just do this same thing with any other duels we have. Keep an eye open.) John logged into the system. Computer data wafted gently from away from his feet as his digital self fabricated itself. Ben was already there, absently thumbing through his cards. They were both pretty relaxed, despite what was at stake in the game they were about to play. It was the highest stake of all. This was to be a duel of pride. For countless duels in the near past, John had beaten Ben. Always before then, Ben had been the victor, cunningly outmaneuvering John?s overt and repetitious tactics. But John had acquired many new and powerful cards, and he had built his deck in such a way that his cards played off of one another; they were alike in theme. Ben had told him that time and time again; themed decks were stronger. John?s new Spellcaster deck more than rivaled Ben?s slightly outdated Beatdown. But Ben was determined to reclaim some of his past glory. ?Yo.? ?Hey.? ?So, did you make up your mind about that trade?? John asked. ?Heh, I?m still thinking about it.? ?Bah.? John spat, disappointed. Then he leveled a finger at Ben. ?LET?S DUEL!? Ben nodded in response, a smile unconsciously coming to his lips. A stadium materialized in a bright flash of light, and the two young men positioned themselves at either end. The holographic generators, rather redundant in the digital setting, hummed to life and cast multicolored shadows over the playing field. The two duelists drew their opening hands. ?Who goes first?? John inquired. ?I?ll go.? Ben said, drawing a card. Surveying his hand carefully, Ben chose a single card and placed it onto the countertop before him. A holographic image of a facedown card wavered and appeared. ?I?ll set one monster in Defense Mode.? Ben declared. ?And end my turn.? ?Fine then.? said John. ?I?ll set two Spell or Trap cards (*Will be referred to as S/T from now on*) and summon Strike Ninja in attack mode!? A dark, lithe figure appears on John?s side of the field, arms crossed and daggers drawn. He is wearing tight-fitting clothing, with bronze signets on his joints and a narrow bronze mask shielding his face. Flanking him on either side are two horizontal facedown cards. John looked at Ben?s facedown monster rather suspiciously, and then ended his turn. ?Fine then. I?ll set one of my own S/T-? ?Activate facedown card!? John declared. One of his facedown S/T rose up, revealing itself. ?Mystical Space Typhoon! Destroy his card!? A sudden vortex emerges from John?s card and engulfs Ben?s, destroying it. The two catch a brief glimpse of a ring of fire before it is eliminated by the cyclone. ?Well done, you?ve managed to destroy my Ring of Destruction.? Ben concedes. ?But, you?ve left your other card open.....to [I]my[/I] Mystical Space Typhoon!? Ben plays the Spell card from his hand, and it races across the field to consume John?s card. ?Damn! My Spellbinding Circle!? exclaims John, watching as the cyclone destroys his trap. Spellbinding Circle could have paralyzed one of Ben?s monsters, rendering it unable to attack, and effectively making it a sitting duck. It was a good card for Ben to be rid of. ?I?ll set another monster card.? A second horizontal card materializes on Ben?s side of the playing field. ?And I?ll end my turn.? ?Ha!? laughed John. ?Your defensive monsters will be useless once I use this card! Raigeki!? A great bolt of lightening streaks across the field. Ben?s two monsters are revealed. One, a purple-haired girl with a third eye in the center of her forehead, and the other, a pink-haired girl dressed in a tunic and holding a golden staff. Both were destroyed by the lightening, breaking into fragments of data. John laughs triumphantly. Then, the woman with the third eye returned to the field as a pale shade, and raised her eyes quizzically to Ben. ?What card do you desire?? she asked quietly. ?Kuriboh.? he replied, after a second of thought. ?As you wish.? The Witch of the Black Forest closed her eyes, and then the center eye blazed open with an eerie green light, causing Ben?s deck to glow. A single card drifted out of the deck, and then settled into Ben?s hand. The Witch?s ghost disappeared. Ben looked down at the card in his hand. Sure enough, it was Kuriboh. ?Strike Ninja, attack his Lifepoints directly!? John commanded. Ben hesitated. He could discard his Kuriboh to protect himself from Strike Ninja?s attack, and not take any damage. Or, he could take the attack on his Lifepoints, and save Kuriboh to use later. Thinking quickly, Ben recalled all of the times where John had summoned monsters much more powerful than the Strike Ninja. He opted not to defend himself just yet. The Strike Ninja ran across the field towards Ben, and then cast one of its daggers at him. Ben watched as it flew end over end, and then struck him smartly in the chest. Ben took a step backwards, wincing in pain as his Lifepoints went from 8000 down to 6300. John smirked, and then ended his turn. Ben draws a card, and then sets a card face-up on the field. ?I?ll summon Zombyra the Dark, in attack mode!? Another humanoid figure, bigger and more thickly articulated than the first, appeared suddenly on the field. His skin was gray, and his features rough. A breastplate of what appeared to be bone covered the creature?s chest, and a blueish material clung to his body. A large red cape flared from around his shoulders. ?Zombyra, attack his Strike Ninja!? The demonic warrior tensed at his master?s command, and then charged across the field, striking the lesser ninja with a powerful fist in the chest. The Strike Ninja exploded into fragments of data, taking with it 400 of John?s Lifepoints. A brief flash of pain crossed John?s countenance as his Lifepoints dropped from 8000 to 7600. Ben?s Zombyra shrunk when it returned to his side of the field; its special ability deducted from its attack strength whenever it destroyed an opponent?s monster. It was weaker than before, and so Ben activated another of his cards. ?Swords of Revealing Light!? Yellow cross-like figures rained down from above the playing field and sharply took their places on John?s side of the field. John would not be able to attack through the swords for three whole turns. Ben?s monsters were safe, or at least he thought. John?s turn was short.?I?ll set one S/T, and one monster card in defense mode.? A single horizontal card emerged on the field, flanked by another vertical one. ?I?ll play Pot Of Greed, which allows me to draw two more cards from my deck.? Ben declared. ?And now, Zombyra! Attack his facedown monster!? ?Ha! I?ll activate my facedown trap card! Magic Cylinder!? John exclaimed triumphantly. Two gaudy-looking party cups appeared on the field in front of John?s monster. Zombyra, already charging across the field, ran into one of the cups. The two cups turned over so that their closed ends were in the air, and then shuffled themselves. One cup tipped over, and Zombyra blindly charged out, attacking Ben?s Lifepoints directly. Ben fell backwards, leaning on the guard rail behind him for support. His Lifepoints dwindled from 6300 down to 4400, only slightly more than half of his starting amount. ?Fine then.? Ben rasped. ?I end my turn.? ?I thought you would.? John smirked. ?Now, I summon my Skilled Dark Magician!? A black robed creature stepped onto the field. Broad shoulder guards extended down to just before his elbows, and a peculiar sort of helmet framed his sallow face. In his hands was a baton, with a golden orb affixed to the end. Energy crackled about the orb, and he swished the baton dramatically as he appeared. ?Next, I?ll play Premature Burial, and pay 800 Lifepoints to resurrect my Strike Ninja!? John?s Lifepoints fell to 6800, and the lithe form of his ninja card emerges from the ground on the palm of a great zombified hand. John?s monsters press tentatively at the swords barring their path. They cannot move them. John ends his turn. Ben checked the status of the duel on the small screen in front of him. John was leading 6800 Lifepoints to Ben?s 4400. But, he only had one card left in his hand! If Ben could somehow get rid of the cards on his field, John?s options would be severely limited. Ben drew a card, hoping for a good card. His eyes widened in disbelief; he?d drawn just the right card! ?Raigeki!? Ben grinned, slapping the card down onto the countertop. A great bolt of lightening streaked out from his field, splaying apart around the glowing swords and then converging again to destroy John?s two monsters. ?****.? John swore, letting his temper get the best of him. He looked desperately to the card in his hand. It was the only thing he had in this time of need. And Ben was about to take it away from him. ?I summon Spirit Reaper!? said Ben, playing a monster card. A diminutive little zombie phased onto the field, garbed in a flowing purple cloak and armed with a large, sharp scythe. ?Spirit Reaper, attack his Lifepoints directly!? Ben?s Spirit Reaper streaked across the field, slipping unaffected through the luminous blades, and brought its scythe down at an arc across John?s chest. It was a minor attack, only depleting 300 of John?s Lifepoints. But, Spirit Reaper?s effect activated. When it attacks a player?s Lifepoints directly, that player must discard a card from his or her hand. John?s last card, Sage?s Stone, fell into his Graveyard. John?s Lifepoints fell to 6500. Ben ended his turn. ?This is the last turn your Swords of Revealing Light are on the field.? John reminded Ben. ?Next turn I?ll be able to attack.? ?John. You?ve got nothing except the card in your hand. Hardly what I would call an attack force.? Ben pointed out. ?Yeah, well. Whatever. I?ll set this monster in defense mode.? A horizontal card appeared on the field. ?I end my turn.? The luminous Swords of Revealing Light gradually fade into nothingness. ?Very well then. I?ll summon Kuriboh to the field!? Kuriboh appears on the field, a small little brown ball of fur with purple eyes and small green limbs. ?Heh, that monster?s not going to do you much good. It?s only got 300 attack points!? said John. ?Yes, well. I?m going to power it up with this card! United We Stand!? The Spell card materializes on the field, showing an image of two diverse hands grasping each other in friendship. Kuriboh grabs the hands of Zombyra the Dark and Spirit Reaper. Its attack points are raised by 2400, up to 2700! ?Now, Zombyra, attack his monster! Once its out of the way, Kuriboh can be ready for a direct attack!? ?I don?t think so.? John laughed. ?Take a look!? Zombyra the Dark was once again charging across the field. John?s monster materializes from its card. It?s an Old Vindictive Magician! Before Zombyra can complete its attack, the sinister little sorcerer in tattered clothing casts a bolt of magical energy at Kuriboh, destroying it. Then Zombyra attacks him, and he is destroyed. Zombyra shrank again slightly, his special ability once again tolling him. Ben narrows his eyes. Attacking with Spirit Reaper wouldn?t serve much of a purpose. 300 Lifepoints wasn?t much to get excited about, and Spirit Reaper?s special ability wouldn?t work when John had no cards in his hand. Ben switched his Spirit Reaper to defense mode to prevent any damage to his Lifepoints. John?s turn. He drew a card. ?I?ll play Monster Reborn, to revive my Skilled Dark Magician!? John?s destroyed monster rose out of the playing field through a gateway of light. ?Now my Skilled Dark Magician, attack Zombyra the Dark!? At full strength, Zombyra would not have been destroyed by the Skilled Dark Magician?s attack; but he was weakened due to one of his special abilities. For having destroyed two monsters, 400 of his original 2100 attack points were gone, leaving him at 1700. The Skilled Dark Magician, with an attack power of 1900, easily destroyed him with a fierce strike of his magical baton. Ben twitched slightly as 200 of his Lifepoints were removed. He was down to 4200. With no other cards to command or use, John ended his turn. Ben drew a card, and then placed it down on the playing field. ?I summon my Giant Orc in attack mode!? Ben?s Giant Orc was a massive gray brute with muscles upon muscles. He wore green pants, with brown flaps extending over his sides, and wielded a massive bone club with two hands. ?Attack his Skilled Dark Magician!? The Giant Orc roared loudly and pounded its unadorned feet across the field. With a wide swing, the Orc struck the Skilled Dark Magician in the chest, causing him to flinch back and explode into thousands of fragments of data. John?s Lifepoints drop down to 5900. Ben?s Giant Orc stumps back over to his side of the field, and then collapses onto the ground, legs crossed and head bent with exhaustion. John?s turn. He draws a card, and then sets it down onto the tabletop in front of him. ?I summon Gemini Elf!? Two distinct female elves appear, locked in a tight embrace. Intricate markings were painted on various areas of their face, giving them an almost mythical appearance. ?Gemini Elf, attack his Giant Orc!? The two women separated a bit, and an orb of magical energy suddenly began to grow between them. Interlocking their hands, they struck the orb and sent it hurtling towards the Giant Orc, who was immediately destroyed by it. ?I have nothing else to do.? John said. ?I?ll offer my Spirit Reaper as a Tribute to summon my Dark Driceratops!? Ben?s Spirit Reaper disappears and in its place emerges a very large, very ugly creature. It has a large reptilian body, with scales and claws and fangs; but it also possesses a bird-like beak around the teeth and a mane of feathers about its head. Short horns surmounted the top of its head, and its eyes glowed red with madness. ?Attack his Gemini Elf!? The great beast let out a ear-shattering mix of a squawk and a roar, and charged at John?s sole monster, destroying it upon the violent contact. John?s Lifepoints drop to 5400. ?Okay, I?m in trouble.? John admitted sourly. ?I?ve got no cards on the field, and no cards in my hand.? He draws. ?Hmmm, this could be interesting. He looks across the field at Ben. ?I could make a huge comeback or just totally screw myself.? ?Heh, you?re still in the lead.? Ben reminds him. ?Yeah, well. Let?s just see. I activate Pot of Greed.? John draws two more cards. ?Well, I?m going to try and stay alive. I?ll set one S/T and one monster in defense mode.? ?I?ll activate my Harpie?s Feather Duster to destroy your facedown Spell or Trap card.? Ben said calmly. A huge gust of feather-filled wind emerged from Ben?s side of the field and tore through John?s trap card, Mirror Force. ?Damn, Mirror Force.? said John, obviously chagrined. ?Now I?ll activate the Nobleman of Crossout, to remove your monster from play.? A shimmering knight appeared, and struck two X-shaped slashes at John?s monster. It disappeared from the field. Once again, John?s field was empty and he had no cards in his hand. Only this time, Ben hadn?t yet attacked. ?Dark Driceratops, attack John?s Lifepoints directly!? The massive beast nodded its affirmation and charged across the field, leaping up over the barrier to deliver a blow directly to John. John fell over backwards as his Lifepoints took a huge hit. They dropped down to 3000, lower even than Ben?s. John drew a card. ?I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior in attack mode.? A yellow figure of interconnecting orbs appeared. In place of hands, it had magnets, and in place of hair was another magnet that stuck out of either side of its head. John didn?t play the card in defense mode because of Dark Driceratops? special ability. Even if John?s monsters were in defense mode, Dark Driceratops could still inflict damage to John through them. And because Beta?s attack points were higher than its defense points, John hoped to take less damage to his Lifepoints by playing it in attack mode. ?I end my turn.? John said sullenly. ?I?ll set one S/T, and then attack your Beta!? Dark Driceratops charged across the field, destroying John?s monster and bringing his Lifepoints down to 2300. John?s turn. ?I?ll set one monster in defense mode and end my turn.? ?I?ll set another S/T, and attack your monster with Dark Driceratops!? Ben declared. Dark Driceratops charged across the field once again. John?s monster appeared in a brief flash of light. It was a fierce-eyed young girl with a mystical green staff. She determinately set her staff in the ground, and then faced her obliteration. John?s Lifepoints dropped down to a mere 700. But, the Apprentice Magician?s staff remained on the field! Somehow, her power lived on! Another Magician emerged from John?s deck, the Magician of Faith, and grasped the staff. Then she laid herself down onto the field, immediately transforming into a horizontal card. Ben ended his turn. ?I?ll play Graceful Charity!? John said determinately. He drew three cards, and because of the card?s text, he had to discard two of them. ?I?ll discard Dark Magician of Chaos, and Buster Blader!? John let the two powerful monsters fall into his Graveyard. ?Now I?ll flip up my Magician of Faith!? John?s pink-haired little Magician stood up on the field, and then zapped John?s Graveyard with her staff. He would now be able to return on Spell card to his hand. ?I?ll bring back my Monster Reborn! And I?ll use it to revive my Dark Magician of Chaos!? A tall, slim figure dressed in dark, dark blue leather emerged from the floor of the playing field, holding a long, equally dark staff. He also sent a burst of magical energy at John?s Graveyard. John could now bring another Spell card back from the Graveyard. ?I?ll take back my Mystical Space Typhoon, and I?ll use it to destroy one of your facedown S/T!? For the third time this duel, a cyclone flew across the field and destroyed a card. ?Ergh. My Draining Shield. I was going to use it to stop your attack.? Ben mumbled. ?Now I?ll offer my Magician of Faith as a Tribute to bring out another powerful Magician! I summon Chaos Command Magician!? Another Spellcaster appeared on the field, garbed in stiff green cloth, decorated by golden-orange lines and orbs. He too possessed a staff, with a glowing orb inset at the end. Dark Magician of Chaos had an attack power higher than Dark Driceratops, and Chaos Command Magician possessed an equal attack strength. John had single handedly turned the duel around. Now he was the one with more monsters, and stronger ones. Ben made a quick move to save his Lifepoints. ?I activate my Trap card, Waboku!? Three meditative women stepped out onto the field in front of Ben?s Dark Driceratops. They were dressed in turquoise robes, and their hoods and collars framed their face, emphasizing their sorrow of facing battle. John?s monsters would not be able to penetrate their magic protection. He regretfully ended his turn. The women disappeared. Ben drew a card. ?How many cards are in your hand?? he inquired. ?None.? ?And are those two monsters the only cards you have on the field?? Ben pressed. [I]?Yes.?[/I] John replied. ?I?ll play my Spell card, Dark Hole!? Ben placed the card down on the stadium tabletop. A vortex suddenly appeared over the field and sucked in all of the monsters. John?s two magicians and Ben?s Dark Driceratops. ?Crap.? said John. He knew that he was wide open, and with only 700 Lifepoints left. ?I?ll summon my Cyber Jar.? said Ben. A small metallic cylinder with teeth-shaped slits appeared on the field. Above the grinning sharp teeth rested a large green orb, somewhat like an eye. ?Cyber Jar, finish him off!? The green orb began to glow, and collected in energy from all around it. With a slight movement of the teeth slits that may have been a grin, Ben?s monster blasted John with a focused beam of green energy, wiping out his Lifepoints. ?You suck.? said John. Then he disappeared in an explosion of data. [COLOR=Blue]John* signed off at 5:41:02 PM.[/COLOR] Ben grinned, and picked up his cards. ?That was fun.? *[SIZE=1]That's not really his screen name, but I'm sure that he wouldn't want random people he doesn't know going about and IM'ing him.[/SIZE]

Ergh....I've been busy. Sorry. [I]Okay then.[/I] Here's what I was sort of getting at with my posts. After destroying Kione's wagon train of supplies, Dain and the other Spellcasters set out to meet with the other Leaders of the Alliance. Freed the Matchless General and Sengenjin have taken up a position near Mount Gaia to keep an eye out for any major activity. In the more present-time scenario.... Using the Thousand Eyes Idol, the Spellcasters find out that some renegade Fiends were prowling through the forest, and were making to attack the already weakened force of Spellcasters. Adding further to their troubles, a Troop Dragon patrol was passing nearby. The patrol would surely detect their presence and attack them as well. So, Dain and Sage cast a spell that switches the places of the Troop Dragons with their Spellcasters. Unfortunately, the spell did not include Sage and Dain in the transportation, so they were left to fend for themselves against a self-replenishing mass of Troop Dragons and a bunch of Fiends. Flare was off scouting the area when the teleportation took place, so he was left behind as well. Night Assailant (Deathbug's character) comes in at some point in the confusion and attacks the Thousand Eyes Idol. At the very least, he takes out several of the Idol's eyes; perhaps he even destroys it. Flare stepped in to aid Sage, who was faltering against a Giant Orc. A Skull Knight stops him, and the two become engaged in a fierce sword fight. Two more Skull Knights show up. Sage takes care of the Orc on his own, and then turns one of the Skull Knights against the other two, using up most of his available magic. Dain, meanwhile, has engaged the Troop Dragons. It was his thought to keep them occupied while the Fiends arrive, and then he would leave the Troop Dragons and Fiends embroiled in a free-for-all. I think that covers most of what needed covering. ^_^;; If you have any other questions, feel free to post them here or send me a PM, or something.

Whenever I try to log onto Myotaku, I get an error screen. Now, this is the first time this has happened on this computer. Just last night, I was able to log in, read and post just fine. But now, whenever I try, I get an error screen. That's what comes up, if it helps any. [i]Edit: The problem has been fixed, and the errors have been removed for your own privacy reasons.[/i] [i]-- Justin Blessing, theOtaku/OB Staff[/i]

The way I see it, Solidus, your character can either support Freed at Mount Gaia (as he's a Warrior.) Or he can be with Joan somewhere of your choosing (in keeping with his Light alignment). All of the Leaders will be on their way to the Alliance stronghold, all except Sengenjin. He is with Freed at the base of Mount Gaia, as it's the Earth monsters' turn to keep watch over the mountain. Kione hasn't done anything major in quite some time, and the constant vigil is kept so the Alliance has advanced warning of anything. The Alliance stronghold is set mostly underground, as aerial dragon attacks reduced much of the original fortress to rubble. The Legendary Flame Lord and Octoberser spend much of their time there, as their reduced forces make them able to offer little aid besides organization and planning. Underwater rivers and lakes run throughout the subterranean stronghold, and Octoberser's troops maintain security. The Fire troops maintain a small degree of security above ground.

That can be handled pretty much as you want to, Kane. Just be sure you take into account a momentary fatigue. He'll get his strength back quickly enough; he's just cast a major spell, though, so he's a bit woozy. Sage is one of the premier Spellcasters, he'll regain his powers soon enough to be able to help Flare.

September 5th, 11:00PM Yabaku28's opened his eyes. It was late, and he'd had no interaction with humans since leaving Master Ooguchi outside of the girls' bathroom. While he could surely have remained in sleep mode until the following day, Yabaku28 enjoyed surveying the grounds at night, when the other students were at rest and the campus was quiet. Only, the campus wasn't quiet. Three mecha-pilots were at the school's football field, tossing a large scrap of junk metal around. They were making an awful lot of noise, and Yabaku28 couldn't see how anybody could be sleeping with that ruckus going on. So, he strode over to the field and looked up at the nearest of the three mechas. "Excuse me!" he whispered urgently. When his first attempt failed, he tried again, slightly louder. "Excuse me!" Again, he was frustrated by failure. Failing, in turn, to get the attention of the other two pilots, Yabaku28 set up a plot to disrupt their game. When the hunk of scrap metal they were throwing around passed overhead of him, Yabaku28 stretched out his arms to their full extent and grabbed the corroded alloy firmly. Rather then halting the flight of the large object, though, Yabaku28 was merely taken along for the ride, and haphazardly crashed into the windshield of one of the mechas. The pilot arched his eyebrows, and flipped on his windshield wipers. Yabaku28 crumbled to the ground in a tangled mess of extended arms and blue-paneled misery. "Hey guys!" the mecha-pilot boomed loudly to the others. "What's the vending machine doing out here?" "I don't know, but my jock straps have been in there ever since the coach took away my locker last year." Yabaku28 reeled in his extended arms. Opening a panel in his left leg, he found, sure enough, several old, filthy, and generally disgusting pieces of athletic wear. No wonder he'd never gotten a date to the Prom... Yabaku28 tore out the offensive materials, burning them with a blowtorch that sprouted from the top of his head. A cloud of disinfectant suddenly sprayed out from every panel of his being, and he directed a particularly strong stream from his index finger into his right leg. The thought of festering human garments held in his inner workings gave him shivers. Humans could be so revolting. The three pilots had emerged from their mechas, and were now eagerly standing before him with quarters in their hands. "I wonder what he's got for sale." "Heh, probably your [I]jock straps![/I]" "Yeah, whatever, just put the money in." If there was one thing Yabaku28 hated more than people who put quarters in him, it was jocks. Well, technically not jocks in general, just the ignorant morons who did stuff like show off, brag, and play scrap toss in their mechas near midnight. Yabaku28 himself played several sports, actually, but-- CHINK. [strike]The first shot had been fired.[/strike] The first [I]quarter[/I] had been dropped. With a savage bellow of fury, Yabaku28 erupted into a huge mass of guns, lasers, missiles, rolling pins, and confectionary sugar sieves. The hapless mecha pilots retreated, dropping their change and heading in the direction of their suits. Yabaku28 swatted one of them with a rolling pin, rolled him couple times, and sprinkled sugar on him. He disintegrated the shoes of another, and then clobbered him with a ladle. A bit of parsley dropped onto his head, finishing him. The third managed to reach his mecha and quickly scrambled inside. When he finally reached the controls, the boy found that Yabaku28 had disappeared from sight. His friends were still lying on the ground, motionless and looking vaguely appetizing. Then suddenly, the right arm of his mecha disappeared, to be replaced by massive stalk of celery. The legs in turn disappeared also, to become matching carrots. The mecha collapsed, unable to maintain balance. The pilot scrambled out of his mecha to find Yabaku28 playing a Frank Sinatra song while systematically converting his mecha to vegetables before his very eyes. The right arm became a hefty asparagus, and the body and shoulders were blasted into a various assortment of smaller vegetables. "Like my Veggie-Ray?" Yabaku28 asked pleasantly, arching his modified arm back with a flourish. "Healthy eating never was easier." The pilot ran off, gibbering almost incoherently. "Mecha....gone...[B]vegetables[/B]....life...ruined!" Yabaku28 went back to his outlet next to the vending machines and plugged himself in. He chuckled slightly before finally shutting down. He had gotten back at some jocks, made a few bucks in spare change, and provided the on-campus students something to stare at when they awoke. Giant vegetables, heh.

I look forwardto watching the rest of the various fencing competitions. I watched the Men's Individual Sabre finals this morning, and it blew me away. [spoiler]Italy's Aldo Montano won the Gold, with a 15-14 victory over Hungary's Zsolt Nemcsik. Vladislav Tretiak of Ukraine took the Bronze. The bout I watched this morning was amazing. Nemcsik got an early four point lead, but Montano came back to take the lead 12-11. Nemcsik tied it at 12, and the finalists went back and forth with the next four points, finally settling at 14-14, with the Gold Medal going to the next legitimate touch. Nemcsik retreated slightly on the final play, and Montano thrust forward to make the touch and win. He was very excited, and executed a front flip before jumping into the arms of his coach. :p U.S. did not fair too well in the Men's Saber. Earlier on in the competition, Keeth Smart, who last year became the first American fencer to be ranked No. 1 in the world, stumbled earlier against Montano and lost 15-7. Ivan Lee, who like Smart is from New York and first learned fencing at the Peter Westbrook Foundation, defeated Gianpiero Pastore of Italy 15-9 in his opener, but then had to face four-time gold medalist Stanislav Pozdniakov. The Russian dominated the bout, taking 12 of the first 16 points. He won 15-9. Jason Rogers of Los Angeles lost 15-3 in the round of 32 to Luigi Tarantino of Italy. Vladislav Tretiak of Ukraine defeated Dmitri Lapkes of Belarus to win the bronze. Lapkes had beaten Pozdniakov in the quarterfinals.[/spoiler] Some of this information was posted directly from MSNBC's website.

[quote name='Boba Fett][color=green']In seventh grade, Ben and I used to verbally duel, or something to that effect. He'd say he attacked me with something Digimon related and I'd counter with something Science Fiction related (Usually Star Wars related). I was such a goof back in middle school?[/color][/quote] Hey, [I]hey[/I], it wasn't always Digimon related. Occasionally I'd get some insight from some other Fox Kids or KidsWB shows. :rolleyes: I remember that quite often it ended in a stalemate, as you would always leave for the bus before I could finish kicking your sorry butt. =P

So far, the only people who have contacted me and still want to participate are: Solo Tremaine, Deathbug, and Kane. So, that's who we'll go with for now. If anybody else wants to join, they can sign up. Whether or not they participate depends on their sign-up. Now, onto the story. [B]Deathbug:[/B] If you can, try and get away from Mount Gaia. Infiltrate the Council's stronghold, or something. Or you can repel Freed's forces. Or both. Whatever, you're sort of a free agent at the moment. [B]Kane:[/B] Sage is slightly winded from the spell, and is caught unawares by the Giant Orc. He isn't actually struck, but shaken. It is dubious that he can destroy the Giant Orc on his own, except with a simple Trap, maybe. Paralyzing him somehow could work as well. [B]Solo Tremaine:[/B] Flare's entangled in a swordfight with the Skull Knight. The Skull Knight will be getting reinforcements soon, so best to take it out as quickly and skillfully as possible. Flare's fellow lieutanant, the Archfiend Soldier may come into play, as it's likely he would not have agreed to leaving either. Go with that as you want to. More Fiends will be arriving shortly, so it'd be best for the three Spellcasters in the area to be heading out soon. The Troop Dragons travel in a large swarm most of the time, and somehow replicate themselves when one is destroyed. Dain is holding their attention while the Fiends get closer. As soon as the Fiends all arrive, Dain, Flare, and Sage ought to leave and let them fight it out. The Dark Magician is commanding the Spellcasters that had been Shifted to where the Troop Dragons were.

Dain hurled a Thousand-Eyes Idol into the air. In the darkness of the night, it was unlikely that such an act would give away their position. The Idol's eyes, however, were attuned to the dark and could see in every direction at once. It was an invaluable scouting maneuver, and caution was necessary at all times. The Fiends came out at night, and not nearly all of them had pledged their allegiance to the Alliance's cause. The Idol came falling down into the center of the forest clearing, blinking its many eyes. One of the Skill Dark Magician's caught it, and brought it to Saggi the Dark Clown. Saggi was the only one among them who could interpret the winking of the Idol's eyes; it's only form of communication. Saggi signed back a couple times with vague hand movements. The Idol's blinking grew more agitated, and Saggi grew slightly worried. "It says that there is a large squad of Troop Dragons heading to Mount Gaia a couple miles to the west of us; their outermost scouts will surely detect out movements. Also, various Fiends are closing in behind us. They've got Giant Orcs with them." Saggi looked up. "We're in trouble, guys." Dain quickly went through the spells that he knew, searching for one that would be most effective in this situation. "How much time do we have?" "The first of them should be here in half an hour. The Idol says the Skull Knight was moving particularly quickly. He should arrive earlier." Fantastic. A Skull Knight. Who knows what else they had coming? Besides the Idol, he amended ruefully. But they didn't have time to get an exact account of every Fiend in the forest. They needed to get out of their, and fast. "Sage!" he called. He'd need some help with the spell he had in mind. It was very difficult, but would work out quite nicely. If it worked. "Yes, Dain. What is it?" Sage said, having carefully tread his way over. "I'm going to need your help with a spell." Dain outlined the plan quickly, and then ordered all the Spellcasters to form up close together. They did so, eying their two leaders warily. Several questions had been brought up, but there speakers were quieted. So they all stood together, numbering probably slightly less than forty monsters. "Ready Sage?" Dain asked quietly. "Ready." The two mages stood solemnly. Sage faced the nervous group of monsters ahead of them, and Dain was looking off into the west, a very faint pull of magical energies keeping him aware of the Dragons' whereabouts. Dain concentrated his magic on his bladed staff, and Sage held up his wooden staff. At the exact same moment, the two mighty Spellcasters cast the spell. [B][I]"Creature Swap!"[/I][/B] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Flare watched from his hiding spot just outside the clearing. He was no stranger to magic, and he suspected this sort of move from Dain. Two different hostile forces in close proximity; hostile to [I]each other[/I], even. It fit too nicely to pass up. Their force of Spellcasters had been teleported several miles to the west of their original location, and the dragons had been transplanted in their place. So, instead of their hardened Spellcaster troops, Dain and Sage faced a veritable horde of Troop Dragons, with Fiends on the way. What would happen to them? Dain's plan became apparent, as his staff began to glow. The ethereal glow continued to spread, though, until Dain's whole body was infused with a misty purple aura. He had momentarily forgotten, Dain took strength in the presence of Dragons. And with so many present at one time, Flare would hate to be against him. Dain crouched down for a moment, and then leapt forward and swept his blade in a long, smooth horizontal arc. The staff's end sheared through a good dozen of the Troop Dragons, and the aura of force around the blade injured several more. He cut through them with great swaths of the staff, the Dragons putting up a pitiful resistence to his magical onslaught. But still, more kept on coming. From nowhere, it seemed, the force continued to swell despite the enormous casualties Dain was inflicting. BAM. Flare turned quickly to see a Giant Orc, it's bestial frame outlined by the magical flare of Dain's battle. The Dark Sage was off to one side of it, having been narrowly missed. Flare stepped out of his concealment to aid the elderly magician, but was grabbed from behind and swung around. His blade swung instinctively, finding itself ground against the cold steel of another sword. The Skull Knight hissed.

I've been playing Unreal Tournament 2003 on my PC. It's been a pain, because the game keeps freezing up at random moments. So, I'll restart my computer and keep going. What really sucks is when it freezes right in the middle of a match, when I'm ever so close to winning. One time, I had actually won the match, but the computer froze before I could acknowledge it. So, now I have to go and play the match all over again. So, yeah. That was pretty frustrating.

HorusFireDragon, I don't see any hint of Spell Negation in the entire Main Deck. The only three I can see are the Horus Dragons in the Side Deck. You'd be in a bit of a bind if your opponent pulls out a Dark Hole and then Reborns one of your monsters. Especially if they used an MST on one of your three un-chainable Trap cards first. Heh, that's all I've got for now.

[quote name='ChibiHorsewoman][color=darkviolet']2.) I now look 7 months pregnant so I can also call what I suffered a pregnant moment.[/color][/quote] Please forgive me for being out of touch, but are you [I]actually[/I] seven months pregnant, or do you just [I]look[/I] like you're seven months pregnant? As for those "Jessica Simpson" moments, people I know call them "Brain Farts." You're talking about something, and then you just totally lose your whole train of thought at once and forget everything you just said. It's really weird, and I've noticed that it happens often to people who talk particularly fast.

September 5th-1:00PM [I]Bringing optical sensors online...[/I] Yabku28 opened his eyes. It had been a long summer, and he had enjoyed his brief hibernation. The school was practically empty during the summer, and so Yabaku28 had hidden himself somewhere out of sight to wait for the new school year. His final school year, in fact. After these last four terms of school, he would finally be free of the place and get the information he sought! The sound of rushing water brought him to his senses. Just where was he? He had forgotten where it was he had hidden himself to sleep. He unplugged his charger plug from the wall's outlet. Yabaku28 probably cost the school hundreds or thousands of dollars in electricity for all the power he constantly used to keep himself running. An image of the Principal raging in his office over the latest electric bill flashed through his mind. The thought would have made him smile, if he were physically able to. Instead, the lower panel of his face sort of shrugged itself slightly under his chin, and a LED display made a small arc. It was the best he could do at that point. Satisfied that he had overcome a communications boundary, Yabaku28 searched for a door. His large hand found a doorknob, but it wouldn't turn. Locked, or jammed, or something. Yabaku28 kicked it down, with the uncaring attitude of both a robot and a Senior. He took a step out the door and noticed something jingling around his midsection. Glancing down, he noticed a small quarter receptacle had been affixed to the front of him, and a larger dispensation machine beside that. But it didn't look like the vending supplies Janitor Takahashi had tried to force on him before. What was going on? Somebody screamed. "AAAAAHHHHH! THE TAMPON MACHINE IS ALIVE! RUN! RUN! RUUUUUNNNNNN!!!!!!!!" Yabaku28 turned in time to see several girls running desperately out of a door at the other end of the bathroom, and several more stumbled out of hastily unlocked stalls to run after the others. Yabaku28 didn't move any further, but immediately detached the tampon dispenser and the quarter machine. Fainter screams could be heard from outside in the hallway as well. [I]"What the-? He's got a camera!"[/I] there was the sound of several dozen pairs of feet running away and an assortment of doors slamming. Yabaku28 decided that his best course of action would be to leave the girl's bathroom and resume his regular haunt down by the vending machines. There was always an extra outlet there, and the humming of the other machines put Yabaku28 at ease. He determinedly strode out of the bathroom, and heard a small "click". Looking down from the top of his seven-foot frame, Yabaku28 spotted Master Ooguchi lying on the floor, with a camera angled upward at the entrance of the bathroom. "Oh, it's just you, Yabaku." he said, coming to his feet. "Thanks for your...uh...help in...uh...testing the fitness of the females in our school." he grinned, and shifted the camera until it was behind his back. Yabaku28 shook his head and marched down the hall towards the vending machines. He'd never understand humans.

I just put together a new post-ban Skill Drain Beatdown deck. It's more for fun than for competition, but I got bored with my regular Beatdown. It runs a lot of Effect Monsters, actually, but most of them either resolve in the Graveyard (and thus are immune to the effects of Skill Drain) or I [I]want[/I] them to be negated. [B]Tribute Monsters[/B](3) Machine King Dark Driceratops Zaborg the Thunder Monarch [B]Monsters[/B](17) Kuriboh Giant Orc x3 Zombyra the Dark x2 Mystic Tomato x2 Jirai Gumo x2 Exiled Force Witch of the Black Forest Slate Warrior Sangan Archfiend Soldier Newdoria Blindly Loyal Goblin [B]Spells[/B](16) Scapegoat x2 MST x3 Dark Hole Book of Moon United We Stand Graceful Charity Pot of Greed Rush Recklessly x2 Axe of Despair Monster Reborn Nobleman of Extermination Nobleman of Crossout [B]Traps[/B] (7) Skill Drain x3 (EDIT: I added a third one that I pulled today. I wasn't drawing it often enough to be really effective) Jar of Greed Magic Drain Waboku Magic Cylinder The Tributes are all meant to be okay without effects, but better with them. Although, I may not mind Zaborg's being negated in some instances. Machine King is the only unsearchable of the three. Chances are I'll be playing this deck in an area where the ban isn't enforced, so wish me luck. :p Any questions, comments, and/or suggestions are welcome and gladly accepted. EDIT: *limps back* It seems that I was the only one who adhered to the ban list. I didn't stand much of a chance against people who kept Raigeki'ing my monsters and Imperial Ordering my Equips. So, until I find a tournament where the ban list is enforced, I'm switching out a few cards to make this Deck pre-ban. [B]Taking out:[/B] Book of Moon, Blindly Loyal Goblin, Scapegoat, Nobleman of Extermination [B]Putting in:[/B] Raigeki, Harpie's Feather Duster, Cyber Jar, Change of Heart

Ben knew that Grim was right, but what could they do about it? All they had were a bunch of powerless Sensers, a small force of chameleon-clones, and the mottled group of clones that made up his group. There was another force of clones on the other side of the caves, behind the human base. Armadillo-clone and chameleon-clone forces, a few still recovering from their last battle. Unfortunately, they had no way of contacting those clones to make any sort of coordinated effort. Ben looked around. His chameleons and Grim's Sensers all had ranged weapons. Some had daggers or hand axes strapped to their sides, but not enough to make hand to hand combat a particularly effective tactic. He considered their few options, talking over random ideas with Grim. "Alaris should be coming soon with more troops, but that still doesn't really help us. The human psychics will be able to overcome just about any purely [I]physical[/I] force we can muster." "Are you the only one of your kind, Ben?" asked Grim suddenly. "What do you mean by that?" Ben said quickly. "I mean, are you the only chameleon-clone who is also a Senser?" Ben quickly cast his eyes over the Sensers, who had taken up positions among the littered corpses and sat waiting for some command. Gorilla-clones, different kinds of bear-clones, other aquatic clones, and several other kinds. But there seemed to be very few reptilian Sensers, and none of them the chameleon variety. "I don't see any, Sir." Ben replied uncertainly. "As I suspected...." Grim murmured. He stared off into the distance for a moment, his beady eyes seeming to search for something. "Sir...?" "I've got a bit of an idea, Ben, although I'm not quite sure how well it will work. It involves you, obviously, and it may just be our only chance at the moment." "I'm ready, whatever it is." Ben clenched his fists in anticipation. "If you were to change your skin to match the cave wall, you may be able to get past the regular human guards undetected." "But Sir, the psychics-" "Do not interrupt me." Grim said calmly. As always, his face showed little or no emotion. Ben shut up instantly. "If you were to clear your mind of all thought, you may be able to deceive even them. If you could lock your thoughts and memories away in some small corner of your mind and shield them, you could possibly get inside and locate the generator. Maybe even stop it." Ben looked at him uncertainly. Did he have it in him to do as he was asked? [I]Was[/I] he even [I]asked?[/I] Or was it an order? Was there any other way? "Is there any other way?" Ben's voice was almost plaintive. Crystal's ears piqued when she heard this. Was Ben trying to dodge responsibility? She walked nonchalantly over towards the two, and pretended to inspect the claw of a fallen scorpion. Jedgar was still sitting from the hanging root of some massive tree, aloof from everyone else. He was busily munching on something that one of the Sensers had handed up to him. It smelled suspiciously like fish. "Just about the only other option is for us to retreat, and abandon those forces across the way to be slaughtered." Grim was very blunt, and Ben realized that the other clones had no way of knowing about the human reinforcements. A good deal of them were his own friends and distant relatives. And he was sure that Alaris had many acquaintances among his own forces as well. They would all be gone if he was to just pick up and leave. "Fine. I'll do it." Grim nodded. "The rest of us will do whatever we can to assist you. We'll harry them with arrows and bolts and the like. We may even be able to salvage some of these armadillo-clones' siege weapons." Ben wasn't listening, though. Already he was concentrating all of his mental focus on cramming all of his thoughts, memories, ideas and feelings into some imagined "box" in his mind. He then erected mental defenses about the box, covering it with some sort of emptiness, some undefinable void of thought. The task was indescribable, as was the feeling it brought about; the lack thereof, actually. The only thing remaining was a shielded thought of the mission ahead of him. Acting on that one thought, Ben ran towards the end of the sheltered entryway they were situated in, sliding to a stop just before giving himself away to the humans. He slowed his pace significantly, so as not to make any sound, and went on his way along the cave wall towards the base. His body instinctively shifted to accommodate the colors of the cave around him. His world had vastly simplified itself. Past the guarded thought of his immediate mission, Ben's body was running on instinct. At this level of thought, the humans were the predator, beings ready and eager to kill him. He was prey, easily dispatched; speed and stealth almost his sole resources. [I]"Get to the base. Find the generator. Avoid being seen."[/I]

I've always wanted to see a match between fools who call themselves "unbeatable". :p I, fortunately, am not so immodest to say that I am unbeatable. I've been beaten on many occasions, and I do sometimes struggle with three level 9 CPUs. *shrug* I'm not the best, and neither are any of you, I'd wager (EDIT: Except maybe Desbreko =P). But enough of my [I]holier-than-thou[/I] sort of talk, on to the game! If I had to pick one character that I was best with, I'd probably say Donkey Kong. I think he's got the lightest weight of the physically powerful characters, and he's maneuverable enough in the air with his Up+B Special. I play with just about every character, depending on what sort of mood I'm in and who I'm facing. I use Falco the least, with Fox a close second. Heh, I don't think I'm fast enough to keep up with Fox, and Falco just annoys me for some reason. To play quasi-seriously I'll use DK, Link, or Samus. But to have fun, I'll use everybody else. The Ice Climbers tend to annoy a lot of people, heh.

The Dark Sage nodded, sagely, and sat down on one of the rough field chairs that the Spellcasters had brought with them. His bones creaked slightly as he eased himself down, and he rested his staff across his lap. "What happened?" he asked bluntly. "I blundered." Dain admitted sourly. "I should never have ordered a strike with only our Spellcasters. Among our kind, there are few who have worth outside of their magical prowess, and the Lunatite quite effectively rendered everyone useless." "Not everyone." the Dark Flare Knight murmured. Dain nodded in acknowledgement of his younger cousin. Flare had lost nearly all of his magical abilities in a fierce battle against a renegade faction of Machine monsters. A Spell Canceller robbed him of his spellweaving heritage. Rather than give in to despair, Flare took up a sword and shield for himself and continued to fight alongside his brethren in a different manner. In the raid on the wagons, many a Fenrir had fallen to his black and crimson sword. "What do we do now?" asked the Dark Magician irritably. "We've got a reduced force here within an hour's flight of Kione's fortress. If we stay here, we risk the possibility of being wiped out by a dragon attack." "We wait here under the cover of the forest until I receive word that Sengenjin's forces are in place for the next raid." Dain replied. "And how soon can we expect that?" demanded the Dark Magician. At that moment, the Strike Ninja walked in through the front flap of the tent. The tent's occupants started noticeably; none of them had noticed the elusive ninja leaving. Unperturbed by his less than warm reception, the ninja padded his way over to Dain and whispered something into his ear. Dain nodded, and then stood up. "Freed the Matchless is in place near Mount Gaia. We move now under cover of darkness. The Council meets at dawn three days from now."

Now that you've mentioned it terra, having the psychic dampener at the same base that Crystal and them are all at already would be a great idea. We'll do that. :p [I]What exactly is going on at the human base where Ben, Rena, and Crystal are, anyway?[/I] Ummm....the humans are stationed there threateningly. ^_^;; Honestly, I didn't have any specific plans in mind for them. They could be a foothold for more human forces to enter the caves, or they could just be a reconnaissance place. It hasn't really been determined. [I]Are the humans still inside?[/I] Yes, and there are more of them there than before. A relief force composed of Kione and his psychics intervened while the armadillo and chameleon and fox-clone forces were attacking. For the sake of convenience, let's just say they came through the tunnels behind the base, broke through the clone forces, and took back the base from the tenuous hold of the clones. All the clones in the base were either killed or got themselves out. They're now back in the tunnels behind the base, waiting for further instruction and taking potshots at the humans on the base's perimeter. [I]Is there any way the Sense leader and his troupe could be heading toward the same base ... in which case we could join with them and have a point ahead of us (to destroy the psychic dampener)?[/I] Yeah, we'll do it that way. :D Okay, first thing's first. [B]The psychic dampener has to go.[/B] While it is in place, Kione and his troupe of psychics can pretty much run the battle however they please. As soon as the Sensers can use their powers again, the tide will turn to the extreme. The Sensers' attention will shift to counteracting the psychics and the rest of the clones can attack without any psychic interference. Humans don't have much in the way of armor or close-range fighting, so if any force of clones gets in hand-to-hand combat with the humans, the clones will surely win. The first step for them is to get past the laser barrage, which is the humans' standard tactic. Human reinforcements will assuredly be coming from somewhere at sometime, so feel free to play with that a bit. The cave scorpions are pretty much out of the picture for the moment, as we've probably wiped out half the population so far. >_>;; Any more of anything can be discussed right here. I'm off to post, or something.

[QUOTE=Kane][SIZE=1]OK here's my second riddle. You are in a cold house in the winter. It is dark. You have one match. There is a candle and there is a wood burning stove. Which do you light first?[/SIZE][/QUOTE] That's an old one. :p [spoiler]The match.[/spoiler]