social_linked | [Open] Beatdowns and Beat Drops

[Open] Beatdowns and Beat Drops

You've probably seen posters, both intact and torn, advertising varied clubs hosting someone known only as Mantic0re. Maybe you passed them by, or maybe you've seen one or two of the shows as something of a club junkie yourself. He always arrives as a man in full gear and fully dolled-up goggles with LED lights and color signals, and goes right into his set. But one thing was always notable about him outside of his admittedly stupid DJ name (and in interviews he laughs, nods, and agrees that it's dumb but that's his name and he adores it), and that's the set of cat ears typically attached to all of his headsets, as well as the odd belt with USB cables and cords braided into a tail that seemed to move on its own to plug in another set of music from any manner of drives tucked away within.

But you can't say you hadn't heard his music before. Of course not, if you lived in Tokyo in this day and age. You may not know the name and make the connection, but on some nights, on some ungodly hours, there's a music that plays through the streets. It's a mix of electronica, upbeat house, deep house, dubstep, trap and so many other genres. He can't seem to keep hold of a favorite before playing with another genre.

You can't say you hadn't heard of it because, on those ungodly nights where the shadows decide to prey upon unsuspecting people, that motorbike kicks into gear and the ever-nocturnal DJ pulls down his goggles, kicks on his tunes through speakers attached to the bike. With that soundtrack of his own doing powering him on and a trusty modified baseball bat in hand, "Mantic0re" spends some nights as a vigilante, wrecking shadows with the help of his trusty persona, Neko Shogun. Just as his true self was geared to the gills in electronics and padded leather, so too was the Neko Shogun some odd cybernetic feline that seemed to move and slash in time with the beat.

Powered on his 11 PM breakfast of miso and fish, he revved his bike to life and got comfy before he set off down the streets again. Fingers on the belt, he switched everything on and set off for another night of... thrills? Maybe. It can't be thrilling if it meant people could possibly die.

Let's call it 'night of necessary payback for the kidnapping'. Fuckers. Let's see if anyone needs a hand, nevertheless.

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Even Mikasa knows about the famous Mantic0re's tunes. She may not be as vocal about her opinion as certain other members of the team, but even the reclusive girl has a few of his tunes on her mp3 player.

She also knows that someone likes to go around Tokyo and blasting his tracks in the middle of the night. While nothing particularly harmful, she does happen upon those tunes one restless night that encouraged her to take up tonight's patrols. Compared to the lone shadow lurking about in a secluded alleyway, Death Blossom decides to target that first. Her descent down the apartment building is quick, graceful, as if she'd been practicing such movements for years.

The DJ may notice the girl moving into striking position, twin swords ready to bear down on the shadow once it's close enough...

There's the first sign. Well, he didn't have to go far to get started, now did he? He took his Star seal, gave the card a twirl, and let it shatter on its own before the cyber cat appeared, ready to stri-

...Well, well. He stayed his hand and observed. He didn't know there was a ninja on the loose, but she seemed keen on the shadow herself. He was no thief.

He turned and nodded to the shogun, who brought his katanas together and raised them. Matarukaja, just for you, Death Blossom.

The ninja looks up as she feels that buff empower her, steeling her grip on her sheathed swords as she offers the helmeted man a nod in return. She'll put it to use.

Right away, as a matter of fact. A quick shift in movements and she's already plunging down towards the shadow, eyes focused as a quick unsheathing cuts through the shadow in a cross slash. She lands on a knee and waits for the shadow to dissipate before standing back up and sheathing her weapons.

"So it's true: you're a persona-user as well."

Scratch one shadow. Neko Shogun clanged his blades together and popped back into his soul as the caster nodded, hands down to adjust the volume of the music.

"Better than 'knock-off batman'. I, er, get that sometimes." He casually set the bat back into the straps across his back. The cable tail gave a curious twitch as he turned back to his bike to climb on.

"Didn't know these hunting grounds were taken. Am I in your way?"

"I'd make it very clear if you were."

A very pointed response, but considering the lack of opposition otherwise, the helmeted man is in the clear.

"We've had our eyes on you for some time. I hadn't expected to run into you, but I'd like to see your capabilities myself."

She had him there. He nodded and was glad for his visor. It'd hide the color to his face easily enough. If she didn't want him here, she'd say so! But what'd she mean by having eyes on him...? He had his fame, but there was that other side of him that he'd kept on tight lock and key; that 'Ajani' side...

"Fair enough." He mounted the bike. May as well not break his stride.

"Y-you hopping on?"

She examines the bike for a moment, then decides to join him. Fortunately for her, she's off from school tomorrow, so Death Blossom can afford to stay out later than usual.

The ninja settles in behind him, scarf comfortably wrapped around her neck and veiling the lower half of her face.

"Is there a reason you play your music so loudly? It would announce your presence to the shadows."

"Bingo. They hate it. The minute they hear me, they're not chewing on somebody and want to shut me up." He kicked off, and turned down into the street once more. With a touch to the belt, he set the volume near his usual.

His Star card descended again with that rush of power, and he gave it a hard horizontal spin. From it, the Shogun returned and was ready to rumble, following alongside the bike.

"...Right on cue."

It was four of them, descending from an overpass: The hableries rolled and flipped as they made their way down, long tongues slashing at the air. But Yuki'to gave it a minute. No, the music was building, just a few more seconds...

Neko Shogun tensed, and the DJ raised an arm. The beat dropped, and his arm began to move in slashing motions. The cat persona moved in kind, moving like a dart and slicing hableries in two.

As she thinks about it, he has a good point. That would draw the shadows away from innocent people...she'll have to consider that some time.

Even if it goes against her whole ninja aesthetic. It's still something to keep in mind.

There's a group of shadows approaching. Mikasa's readying her blade when she notices that raised arm. A signal? Maybe getting into an ideal position. All the same, a rush of power swirls around her as she summons Demeter, flying closely behind the motorcycle. Once he gives the signal, the persona fires several bufu spells at the incoming shadows while closing in and bringing down her sickle once she's close. It's not as synchronized as Neko Shogun, though shadows are definitely getting rekt.

Bursts of smoke and light followed, and the Shogun was dismissed. That was some swift and fancy footwork, but if a bunch of hableries were their troubles, then this wasn't much of a job.

He took a sharp curve, rounding to one of the main roads before filtering and moving around cars trying to get here or get there, mainly salarymen who work mind-bending long hours and now fighting to get home to sleep at their office or in their capsule hotels.

"Heading for the bridge. Don't know why, but there's always a ton there."

There's a brief moment of wondering why that is until Mikasa notices the salarymen now leaving work and finally at the end of their day. It's long, exhausting work they do...

...And quite a few of them cross the bridge, don't they?

"The bridge sees a lot of traffic during the day. Perhaps they're drawn to its negative energies."

She thankfully never had to drive through it herself, but anyone who has to do so during rush hour? Yeah, it's no question why there's enough anger to lure in shadows.

She desummons Demeter as her scarf waves in the passing wind, her eyes as focused and ready as they always are. The bridge is within sight from here. If she's right and traffic was particularly bad today, they could be in for more than your basic hableries...

She had a good point. That only meant he had to sweep the bridge more often, preferably as the first stop on his route. As a rather nocturnal individual, it was easy enough to be here at Tokyo's "rush hour" of ass-o-clock in the morning, when he typically woke.

He took the turn and was immediately encountered by a number of cars typical for this hellish hour. But he simply filtered between them. Other bikers had the same idea, weaving their way between the vehicles, heads turned to the music. What the heck, that music sounded famil--

He looked up and shook his head. Twins, Towers and Snakes were crawling over the wires and railways of the bridge, no doubt attracted by the stench of so many frustrated individuals trying to figure out what they wanted to do with their lives, pondering going home to their wives or mistresses, or heading for the red light district.

"Noisy enough for this..." He reached down and seemed to detach a piece of the bike from the side. Only it... wasn't the bike. It was a custom-made rifle that flipped various parts that clicked into place, reassembling itself from a storage mode to a fully functional mode. Keeps a guy from getting in trouble with the cops.

"You ready, er.... ma'am...?"

Huh...it seems like he and Mikasa think alike. The ninja was readying her own sniper rifle while the DJ was steering onto the bridge, checking the clip and straightening out the scope. The traffic being loud enough definitely helps, as he points out. He can drive while she shoots.

It was easy enough, learning how to hold a gun and aim properly by just watching other people do it, but her own power couldn't replicate purpose; just the gestures. She had to be good if she wanted to be of use to the team. She had to be ready to glance down the scope and have the target in her sights in a moment's notice. Nothing less is acceptable. By the time the question is asked, Death Blossom fires a bullet up towards one of the Twins, the ominously colored blue bullet piercing the target without much issue. She looks away from the scope and glances around for the other shadows in the area...

...Then again, having a silencer on that thing doesn't mean she shouldn't give fair warning that she's packing heat. The ninja casts a wry look in his direction.

"Ready."

Well, well. Look who's a hot shot. Done with the silly questions, he fought a grin behind the helmet and raised the rifle. A blast of specialized ammunition sent a tower flying, dissolving into smoke before it hit the water below, while another shot kept a snake from deciding whether or not it wanted to slither into the road and cause an accident.

Rising from the middle of the road was a magician, appearing in a pillar of black smoke. It was already winding up, flecks of flame dancing around the wiggling fingers of disembodied hands...

Death Blossom is quick to turn her attention towards the magician ahead and place a bullet towards whichever part most resembles a face. It won't be good if they keep appearing on the road like this. She doesn't have any spells that can help him avoid hazards, but...

The ninja takes a moment to dig through her things. She may have an item that'll do the trick. A Super Sonic is crushed in her hands as the item's magical effect takes hold, granting that boost to evasion. She's...actually not sure if it'll help with the steering, but it's better than nothing.

He grit his teeth. They'd been getting more aggressive lately... what was going on? But he had to make a plan and quick. He needed to dodge this magician, but that'd bring him close to this car here, but if he just kicked off of it a bit... No, that was risky, especially with the added weight of a passenger, his calculations would be way off-

Something reached a brand new clarity in his mind. This way, then that, then smoothly past. Then he can loop back and take some shots.

As the magician reeled from the shot to the face, that Agilao lost, Yuki'to lowered his body and hitched the gun, gave it a twirl and fed a bit of spirit into it. He took a sharp left and cut off the car moving along, and sent a spray of ammunition at the base of the magician. If they wanted to keep the people safe, he needed to keep this thing's attention for as long as possible as he righted himself and readied for a sharp U-turn.

"Hang on, okay? Gonna get rough for a beat."

At the warning, Mikasa holsters her rifle and leans forward, starting to brace herself for whatever the DJ has planned. This particular shadow's being a nuisance, moreso than the others. Standing in the middle of the road hurling spells at people? It had to go as soon as possible. And while that first shot may have connected, the ninja isn't ready to leave it at that.

A tight grip rests on the handle of one of her blades.

"I can attack it directly if you drive close enough to it. At these speeds, it could be devastating."

"Got it!" Well, their plans lined up nicely.

He sped past the magician and cranked back, throwing weight back while he felt a good half-centimeter of his boot's lining grind against pavement. With the screech of rubber, he sent the bike into a tight U, rather than finding a slow, loping half-circle to reach the opposite direction. The vehicle was hurtling back the way they came in moments.

This time, he headed right for the thing as it slowly began to turn around...

The ninja's grip tightens while the bike sharply turns around, her eyes focused on the idle magician. Good. The repositioning has left it unaware and all the more susceptible to attack. Though both blades are sheathed, Death Blossom prepares to strike with one of them as the time quickly approaches. Iaido, as she researched a few times. Quite devastating in the hands of an expert.

Or someone who can mimic them.

Her hand are both on the sheath and the blade's handle. As the shadow is turning around, the first thing it may see, aside from the bike speeding past it, is the ninja's strike to cut it in two.

"Nice!" The shadow felt corporeal against the blades, but halfway through the strike, it seemed to give way to smoke and nothingness, the tall figure dissolving just as all others had to them, and to the others. The floating figures stopped, seemed confused, and slowly began to drift away...

Yuki'to grunted, drew his firearm- wait... that was a grappling hook.

"I'm gonna let this thing drift into park and head off for the stragglers before I lose sight of them."

...There's bikes that can do that? That's...actually very handy. He's very well-equipped for someone who works alone...well. Presumably works alone. The group has Gil providing everyone their stuff; does this guy provide for himself?

Fascinating.

The ninja sheathes her blade and once again readies her rifle. She doesn't have such climbing equipment on her, but damn if that means she's calling it a day right now. "I'll cover you."

He withdrew with the nudge of a switch, hit of a kickstand and a lock of the steering bar, propping his boots against the seat of the bike before kicking off of it. The bike continued onward for a spell, but it eventually lost its momentum and puttered to a stop. It reeled, but then it was right atop its kickstand.

Yuki'to had gone on ahead, raising the hook and firing it off with a blast of smoke. The rope sang as it hurtled along before it caught on one of the bridge's upper beams. A clasp of the grapple base to his belt and a pull to render the rope taut, and he seemed to fly, retrieving his rifle once more.

If Hoops-chan ever wanted one of these...

....As nice as it would be to have a bike this fancy, there's actually very little to gain from trying to steal it. For all she knows, he might've installed something to detonate it or make it drive back home on its own. Plus she does fine enough on foot.

What's really a concern is that settling atop a parked vehicle with a loaded weapon in hand is sure to get her busted by the police. The ninja decides to hop off the bike to climb the bridge manually. There's a ladder to get her started and a few feats of athleticism to put some distance between her and the ground. Not as much space as a grappling hook would provide, but it's enough to do the job.

In fact, the distance lets Death Blossom kneel into a sniping position and take a few shots at the shadows getting away. Even if they turn to attack her, they'll have to try and get close to do that...

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[Open] Beatdowns and Beat Drops

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