Gash opens a portal to the edge of the cave and Gish helps him drag the trolley of salt through.
L: Once they crossed over, I had to have faith in them. That's all I could do.
"Now what?" he asks, "Do we drag it around the cave? You think there's enough salt to go the whole way."
"Probably not if we're just pouring it," says his sister, "But I've got an idea." The worms nearest to them begin oozing in their direction. "You protect the salt; I'll make the circle."
Gish draws her scimitar and channels energy through the blade. She reverses her grip and runs, dragging the blade through the ground behind her. As she races around the edge, the worms from the mass launch their bile from the sky. Gish deflects the few in her path with a small energy shield and keeps moving.
Ahead of her, more worms crawl forth to block her path with mouths wide open. Gish channels energy through her gauntlet and punches blasts of energy right into the open maws. "Get!" Fire. "Out!" Acid. "Of!" Ice. "My!" Lightning. "Way!" Sound. The energy attacks stream out from her fist and explode inside of each target, disorienting them.
L: Gish once taught me her 'Five Fist Power Punch'. D: What's that have to do with the salt? L: I just mean, I knew she could defend herself.
As she continues to run, she thinks hard. What does she have that could draw attention away from herself? ...Herself? That could be it. She reaches into her shadow, faint as it is in the dim cave, and rips it out of the wall. In an instant, her shadow multiplies and scatter about; each 'her' racing off in a different direction, leading most worms away.
The majority of the undead horde's attention remains on the tower and its defenders, witnessing the desperate flinging of spells infuriates the tallgoblin. She has to work faster, she has to BE faster. She channels more energy into her legs, Stomping up a storm, ripping through the ground, leaving a trail of flame behind her, Gish pushes herself as far as she can.
She can see her brother's position again. He swings his axe, launching cleaving waves through the cretins approaching him. More crawl over their writhing split open brothers and some attempt to burrow under them; the latter being stopped by the metal plating that has covered the ground in Gash's location. There's still enough room behind it for Gash to complete the almost-circle.
As she approaches, another worm lunges for her. She pulls a pillar of earth up into it, the force flinging it head over tail back where it came from.
Gish keeps running, dragging her blade to complete the loop. As her blade reconnects with its starting point, she stumbles, trips, and rolls along the ground.
"Gish!" yells her brother, "Are-"
"DO IT NOW!" yells Gish.
Gash stabs open the bag of salt and as the salt pours into the crack in the ground, he enchants it into a two-headed snake. The senseless salt serpents separate and slither through the scar, spreading symmetrically around the circumference. As it flows, Gash screams a forceful wail at the worms still attempting to navigate the still-living (unliving?) wall, pushing them back off.
Gish stands and opens a portal back to the tower. The duo fling themselves back through and yell, "Circle's ready, Boss!"
L: I don't how they did it, but they ran like the clappers to get it done.
Her original design was more priestly, but was toned down for looking too much like a sentai villain. The outfit on the right is an early draft of her story mode outfit. The note on the right talks about how scary she looks with her hair down, but I don't see it.
She's only depicted playing the flute in the intro of the second game, but I'm glad that concept was there from this early on.
Just a close-up of her pretty face, yeah?
While I'm certain these are all official, I have taken them from FightersGeneration.com. They have some weird ideas about when this game takes place, though. It's in Nineties Japan, not ancient Japan. The Parking Garage stage with the audible car peel out should be a clear indicator.
"Quick, while she's not looking, try to kill me," says Ling.
"I'd love to," says Angustias, "Is this a game to you?"
"Not like your a threat to me." Ling shakes her head.
"What is that supposed to mean?" snarls Angustias.
"She won't kill me. Ya can't."
"Why did you stop running?" Angustias slides toward Ling.
Ling ignores her and sits on the bed. She pulls out her magic orb and flicks it. "I've been trying to save this world again, but ya idiots chasing me making that a helluva pain."
Angustias towers over Ling. "Then why not just walk in. We both know you could have."
Ling continues flicking the orb, scrolling the images on it. "Would either of ya have just let me in? If it weren't her idea?"
Angustias rages, unable to find words.
"Keep hissing, snake." Ling's eyes stay on the images in her orb, scrolling onward.
For a moment, Angustias' hand twitches, as if she intends to conjure her weapons once more, but she relents, glancing back to the bathroom door. "You will not drive my daughter from me."
"Yeah, I know how much that sucks," says Ling. Subtle laughter comes out of the other room, by pure coincidence.
"You're responsible for that yourself, gex," says Angustias, slithering away and positioning herself toward the door.
"No s***e, demon," says Ling, "Don't worry, ya'll have gobs of chances to f**k it up yourself."
"Do you not fear death?" asks Angustias, folding her arms.
"Hard to fear it," Ling continues scrolling though pictures, "When I know ex-act-ly where I'm going." She raises a hand and wiggles her claws. "Viva~ Los Vicios!" She laughs. "So, my daughter's trophy wife's not breaking my legs anytime soon."
Angustias grabs her own face. "What is taking them so long? IS SHE SEWING HER A DRESS?"
The dining hall is a grand display: many lengthy tables, elaborate chandeliers, fancy crystal 'candles', and cushioned chairs. Jevoi sits at the head of the table with Angustias on her right. Dalini sits on the left with an unimpressed Ling beside her.
Ling looks down the table into the empty room. "Where's the rest of them?" she asked.
"We're eating earlier than usual," says Jevoi, "I don't want to overwhelm Dalini."
"Don't want to be seen with me," accuses Ling, "Or want my eyes on ya?"
Before Jevoi can respond, a chime rings out and four covered plates float to the table.
"Eh, what's this display for?" asks Ling, "Why not some bloke?"
Jevoi pauses, as if realizing something, but disregards it.
The group uncover their food: Angustias has massive steak, Jevoi and Dalini have fruit salads with snails, and Ling has a large insect.
"Dire roach!" says Ling, "Ripper, the lobster of land." She breaks off a leg and begins sucking the meat out.
Dalini begins scooping fruit into her mouth by hand.
"Use a spoon, please," says Jevoi, pointing to the by Dalini's bowl, "It's rude to use your hands like that, Dalini."
"Okay," says Dalini, picking up the spoon and carefully trying to pick up the pieces.
"The fork may be more useful," says Angustias, cutting up the meat before her.
As Dalini stabs a strawberry, she asks, "So how did you meet?"
Jevoi swallows a bite of food and coughs. "That's- that's a bit of a story."
"We got time, Jevoi," says Ling, cracking open the roach's carapace, "And we got a third witness here too."
Gank briefly flickers behind Jevoi with a malicious grin, as Jevoi sighs. "I suppose we shouldn't keep it a secret."
Every normal character in Bushido Blade 2 has a subweapon (except Isohachi who yells loud enough to be a weapon). Mikado has throwing knives.
Look at how Hongou, one of the strongest warriors, is kept pushed back from the strength of the shrine maiden.
Check out the sweet dodge I did by accident while recording Mikado's Skyward Strike.
"Listen fast," says Ling to the still dazed minotaur, "The kids are alive, there's one witch coming, and the second's getting the third. I've infily'ed their coven and ya're brainwashed. Play along."
Sheriff Honeycrisp has several questions. Unfortunately for him, Zingiber footsteps were slowly growing louder. He lies back into the junk pile, feigning unconsciousness.
"Water for the lady." Zingiber presents a chalice to Ling as if it contained wine or nectar.
"Thanks, mate." Ling chugs it immediately.
"Ready to see my work?" Zingiber sways with glee. "My latest I call Marrow Radiance."
"Can ya make him do stuff?" Ling puts the empty cup down.
"Oh," says Zingiber, deflating, "Like what?"
"I was just wondering if ya knew mind s***e."
"That's Gudrun's thing."
"So, she had him blame someone in town, then?"
Zingiber giggles, "Sort of. She let him just pick someone who'd fit."
"Really now." Ling resists the negative urges rising in the back of her mind. 'Think of the kids, Ling,' she thinks to herself.
"Sheriff, walk to the main room," Zingiber commands, "Any ideas, Dr.?"
Honeycrisp rises and stumbles his way out, quietly grumbling all the while.
As the ladies follow him, Ling asks, "I thought coven's shared magic. Are ya all studying extra things?"
"Yeah, the coven stuff is mostly utility: reshaping land, portals, material conversion."
"Sounds like your boss wants a construction crew," says Ling, carefully navigating the misshaped hall, "Any idea why?"
Zingiber shrugs. It wasn't going to be that easy.
"Can ya make the sheriff do cartwheels?"
"Yeah, but why?" asks Zingiber, "I can do soooo much worse."
"Gotta start small, mate," says Ling as they enter the main room again. "If ya do your big evil s***e now, how do ya top it?"
"Point taken," sings Zingiber, "Alright, moo-man, do s-"
"Zinj, I need to talk to ya," says Gudrun, standing by another door. She scowls at Ling. "In private." She looks to the sheriff. "Watch the doctor," she commands.
"Sure, what's up?" Zingiber dances across the room and follows her coven-mate into the darkness.
"Cartwheels, really?" angrily whispers Honeycrisp.
"Ya want her to pull your skeleton out your a**e?" whispers back Ling, "That one's a loon."
"All you b***hes are loons," says Honeycrisp, "Chaotic w***es the lot of you."
"Ya got a f**king problem, mate?"
"Yeah, c**ts like you!" shouts the sheriff.
"Of course, they do, b*****d," shouts back Ling, "They wouldn't hate ya if ya'd stop being a sack of s***e!"
"You diseased s**t!" Honeycrisp steps forward, his figure towering Ling. "Just here to bang the kidnappers."
"B****y f**kwit!" Ling stands as tall as can, glaring into his eyes. "Just mad ya've been saved by a woman; ya hate us so much."
"You barely count as a woman, p***y-sucking lizard."
"Says the cuckold farm animal!"
"What is this language?" asks Ioana, who had slipped into the room unseen.
"Wow," mutters the diminutive deputy behind her.
Mr. Gamma ready to rock this world.
Mario Kart World Waluigi 🌹💜
I like the idea of a marilith (or any multi-arm) wielding a random assortment of weapons at once. Practical? Probably not. Cool? Hell yes.
Hi everyone! I wanted to show you some monsters I've been doing for MorvoldPress' project: my takes on a Copper Dragon, a Marilith, and a Storm Giant.
You can get the full-resolution images for your own use on their Patreon patreon.com/morvoldpress
And you can commission me directly on my ko-fi https://ko-fi.com/haclif/commissions
Let me know what you think!
Mikado sadly only knows one of the possible throws. With the Naginata, her signature weapon, she can break her opponent's neck. I can cheat her into using the others, but let's talk about a Story mode oddity first.
Neck breaker demonstrated by a fully battle damaged versus Mikado on a clean story Mikado.
In the second game, all four limbs and the torso can be damaged. This is marked with either bloodstains or bandages.
Story damage is in the game's files and code, for all six starting characters' versus outfits and the four unlockable characters from Slash mode, too. This is despite that none of them should be in Story mode.
Uno Reverse Card! This is what Mikado's story outfit looks like with all five damage points.
Mikado, that illegal! You can't use throws in Group Battle Mode!
"What do I do? What do I do? What do I do I do?" chants Gank, walking in place. The unconscious child on the floor continues to bleed from her arms in front of Gank. "Right, blood. I have to stop the blood," she says to herself.
Gank begins running around the room looking for anything that could help her situation. As she paces about, she licks the blood from her own claws.
J: I can see you struggling to keep your mouth shut, Mum. L: I wasn't saying anything.
"Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?" Gank searches frantically for the salve she knows is somewhere in this room. "I know ya keep it somewhere here; ya suck at healing, mom." She spots a box sitting beside a shelf, and throws it open. "Jackpot."
The box contains potions, powdered medical herbs, and other supplies. "I'm going to get caught the next time she checks this thing." She grabs the salve and a towel and races back to the bleeding child.
J: Why didn't you grab the potion? G: You were bleeding; I was panicking. L: She was, like, fourteen.
Gank slathers it over Jevoi's arms, desperately trying not to cut her further. She then wraps the towel around the limbs and pushes gently on them. She feels the slowing rhythm of Jevoi's heart.
"I think this was how it worked. How'ya feeling?" she asks and receives no answer. "Yeah. That makes sense." She looks at the blood drying on the floor and has an idea.
Dipping her claw in the blood, Gank begins painting a magic circle around Jevoi. "It's like this, and this," she says to herself. Her claws shaking, she manages to etch the runes she knows. "Okay, okay, okay." She slaps the circle, the spirits of the cave answer the call and pulse life through Jevoi's body.
"All I have to do now is..." Gank looks at the bloody evidence still around here. She sighs.
Gank begins licking the blood off the floo-
D&J: EUAGH L: Why? G: Ya don't have room to judge me. I know where ya put your tongue. J: No, eeegh.
To repeat: Gank begins licking the blood off the floor and a primal urge rises within her. The soft meat of a helpless animal is right there. It must taste so good. A rare cut from so far away.
"No, focus." Gank throws those thoughts away and keeps at the floor.
L: So, on the topic of rituals: outside we were blessing the land.
The two continue to stare into the vast cosmic tapestry above them.
"I'd have thought a mortal would have seen this before," says Angustias.
Jevoi shakes her head. "We don't have stars down under."
"Aren't you from the Sesbia Archipelago?" Angustias tilted her head to the side.
"No, Inner Glow," says Jevoi, "My nana is from Sesbia, but I hatched in a crappy goblin town called Rankedge." She suddenly looks about nervously. "Eh, where are you from?"
"Brutalidad, Sathanica," says Angustias, "It's a city in Hell." She looks down to the stars below. "More like a big fort, honestly. Completely underground too, obviously."
L: Right, at the edge of the eternal war? A: The very same.
"What brought you here?" asks Jevoi, "I'm here from fighting a ghost."
"My cousin-" Angustias tries to say, but is cut off by the sudden intrusion of Luminița, and a spider crab making out, blindly throwing themselves through a nearby door.
L: Tell me more.
"Let's find somewhere else," says Jevoi, annoyed. She opens another door in. "Is this cor-"
Lurentooz has Tanglepork's head lodged into her mouth. The sheriff's body, half-undresses, twitches and kicks. Magic shifts between the duo. Lurnetooz eyes release purple sparks before her pupils break through, staring at the intruder. She attempts to speak, lifting her arm defensively. "Ah kahn ehkslayn."
"Don't bother." Jevoi shuts the door. She turns around, but Angustias has left. Dejected, Jevoi returns to her room to sleep; her knife not far from her hand.
D: You just left her? A: There's more to the story. Hold on.
Old enough to remember the NES. Pathfinder 2E DM. Fascinated by folklore, religion, mythology, and occultism. World's biggest Bushido Blade 2 fan. Really liking what's happening with indie animation lately.
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