[MonsterManic]

The professor crossed over to where Jocelyn lay, blacked out, under a tree, and quickly ran a check over her to determine her physical condition. Her Aura was clearly at the edge of depletion, the layer over her skin unsteady and pockmarked with holes, yet she showed no signs of actual injury. While he dearly wished to be able to ask her how she was able to do such a feat, it would have to wait since she obviously couldn't respond.

The next problem was the Nevermore--or, as Prism referred to it, "the feathered fuck"--something to do with her history, as he had read in her report. He was surprised that the team leader wasn't losing her mind from her PTSD, but it was also for the better since they were already one member down. Despite his instincts telling him to help out, he was under orders not to interfere with their battles. Only the scouts could help out--

Even with the Nevermore's looming presence, anyone who was in any state of alert would now detect two additional entities homing in toward their direction. Even if they weren't, they would hear the cracking and rumbling of trees being snapped and pushed to one side, as well as the sound of high-pitched humming, familiar to both Amane and Ferus but much louder and much, much quicker. At the same time, everyone's scrolls vibrated at the same time with the same message: -Evacuation almost complete. The first Bullheads are taking off now. If one looked toward the village, they would see the first of the Bullheads poking above the village walls, making a racket loud enough to be heard even at the treeline.

The Nevermore, still in flight, seemed to be torn between diving for the Hunters down the hill or striking down the Bullheads with a volley of its razor feathers before it could flee. At the same time, the body of a gigantic insect blocked out the sun, casting a shadow upon the group and revealing itself to anyone who turned to look as the Queen Lancer, aforementioned by the scouts. Even that was not the end of it, as the heavily armored pincers of a giant Death Stalker snapped around the trunks of two nearby trees like it was weeding a garden, leaving a swathe of tree trunks in its wake, while its amber-colored stinger swung around like a pendulum on its equally armoured tail.

The team was surrounded on all sides, with nowhere to run to.
OBJECTIVES:
  - Do not let any Grimm destroy any Bullheads
  - Do not let either Grimm into the village
  - Survive until the evacuation concludes, then evacuate safely
TARGETS:
   ● Giant Nevermore x 1
   ● Queen Lancer x 1
   ● Giant Death Stalker x 1

[Moth]

Glancing up reveals the massive, bloated body of a Queen Lancer hovering over the group of hunters. The... the... thing is still somewhere overhead, and a Death Stalker just crashed through the trees. Jocelyn's unconscious, the only sharpshooter in the group who could hit either of the flying targets is useless against one and on her way to the second panic attack, and now everyone's surrounded.

Fucking great.

At least the Bullheads are starting to take off.

The first thing that happens is the empty cylinder of fire dust is popped, rapidly replaced by one of white dust. Swiping her glaive in the direction of the Death Stalker, three massive crescents fly out towards the creature; buoyed by sharp winds, they're aimed to drive ice spikes up into the creature and hopefully by them enough time to do - well, something. This is before the glaive is flipped around, ad the end of the staff is aimed upwards towards the Queen Lancer -two shots fire off as Prism immediately tries to blind the creature. "Amane, we need a distraction with the feathery fuck, it's going to attack the Bullheads! Then when you get the chance, shove whatever fire-related paraphenalia up the thing’s ass, or cloaca, or whatever it has and detonate at will! Coconut, help me move Jocelyn, we need to get her to a more defensible position. You two-" She takes a moment to point to the two scouts. "Help with the Death Stalker and Lancer, they're more immediate right now! Professor, if you feel the particular urge to kill anything, it'd be appreciated!"

Aura: 91%

[Walter]

Coconut had taken the rifle from Amane, though he hadn't really provided much cover - he didn't want to risk it. He didn't know how to operate a bread maker, so a gun was out of his league by miles. He glanced over and watched in amazement as Amane assembled the bomb. Its purpose was clear - she appeared to have understood his suggestion.

It was in that moment that everything got worse.

Cream's eyes widened as both the queen lancer and the deathstalker made their appearances. The Nevermore already had their hands full, but now this? Well, good news was it seemed that the bullheads were finally taking off, and that the scouts were prepared to help out. Bad news was... Everything else.

He swallowed any fear he was feeling and nodded at Prism's orders, handing Amane her rifle back before taking hold of OTN again. He hurried to Jocelyn, choosing to lift the girl up and shoulder carry her towards the treeline, as far away from the monsters surrounding them as was feasible.

"If we can get the nuh- feathered fuck to come down, I... think we got a pretty good shot!" The boy called out once their healer was in relative safety. He then looked towards the rest of the battle - the only target he could easily get to would be a death stalker, but without a way to get through its armor, he did not like his odds.

"P-prism, if your very stupid plan is at all similar to the stupid plan in my head, I-I think we should go for it." He added as he looked up at the beast still flying above them menacingly.

Coco's Battle Stats:
  Stamina: [█████-----] 50%
  Aura: [███████---] 74%

[.]

.

[MonsterManic]

The two scouts seem ready to jump into action, but they still hold position, looking back toward Ferus as if waiting for his command. The professor himself seems conflicted, ready to counter if attacked but not moving. This remains the situation for several precious seconds before he steels himself, his face showing determination. "Restrictions removed, lads. I'll take the responsibility for this. Don't worry about reporting back to Beacon. I won't stand by and let more injuries occur under my guidance."

The two scouts salute, before a strong rush of Aura is detected from the pair and they rush into battle against the Death Stalker, who batted the ice spikes away with a swipe of its claw. Amane's trap works perfectly--the Death Stalker walks over the incendiaries and the flames scorch its underside, causing a screech of pain. It staggers but doesn't go down, and in the next moment the two scouts are attacking the Death Stalker, the mortar launching shell after shell of Ice Dust while the other scout distracts it with twin swordplay.

Amane's bullets punch holes through the Queen Lancer's wings, though it shows no sign of having taken damage. It rears up and fires its massive barbed stinger at Amane, retracting it after it either hits the target or the ground. Prism's own bullets do equally little, and miss their mark--its vision remains unimpared.

The Nevermore made up its mind to engage the person who lit its plumage on fire, and threw another barrage of feathers toward the group from where it was hovering on the hill. Any that would have originally hit Prism, however, are blocked by the shield of the professor, who stood in front to cover the girl from the feathers. "Beacon gave me orders not to interfere...unless the situation was dire. Even if they don't see it as dire, I believe you have proved yourselves already. Allow me."

TARGETS:
   ● Giant Nevermore x 1
   ● Queen Lancer x 1
   ● Giant Death Stalker x 1

Battle Log:
   ● Feather Barrage (5% x 40) covering a wide area on all but Prism
   ● Barbed Stinger (20%) on Amane

[.]

.

[Moth]

Prism visibly flinches as feathers rain down, staring in horror as they embed themselves into the ground - but offers the professor a nod of thanks. Visibly tightening her grip around the staff of her glaive until her knuckles turn white, the small girl takes an unsteady breath. Hold it together Prism. At least until - right, Coco. She offers her team member and unsteady grin as she hears Amane's explosives go off, brutalizing the Death Stalker. "T-think those kinetic grenades can g-get you up there? We'll n-need something you can ride up on so the blast won't hurt, and I can make this kinda shot - and also catch you on the way back down, too."

As Amane works away at the Queen Lancer, Prism moves to help her out - the regular cartridge within her glaive is swapped out as it turns back into it's rifle form, popping in a cartridge colored blue. Steadying her aim by pulling the butt of the rifle tight to her shoulder, she takes aim again - sending two ice-tipped bullets flying towards the bloated bug's head, preferably blinding it, at least somewhat.

[Walter]

Well, this was going to sting a bit.

Coconut could only block so many of the feathers heading his way, three managing to strike his less protected sides and legs. He winced, but stood his ground, raising his weapon once more. He then paused for a moment, before lifting the blade up and smashing it intoa somewhat sturdy looking branch above him. After doing so twice, he manages to lob it off.

"Dunno of it'll carry me, but it's gonna have to!" he calls out as he pulls his transportation device slightly up the hill. He's getting a bit winded now, but if this works, they'll all have earned a good rest. He then looks up at the bird, then back to his team. He takes a deep breath and strides further up the hill. His plan is simple, really - if he heads this way, the bird will probably want to defend the hill which it had been perched on earlier. That's what Coco would do if he was a bird, anyway.

Then, he'd have to run back before the bird ate him. Seemed simple enough.

"You guys ready?" he asked, his face betraying every bit of fear and doubt going through his mind at that moment. But well... If there was ever a time to show off, this was it.



Coco's Battle Stats:
  Stamina: [███-------] 30%
  Aura: [█████-----] 59%

[MonsterManic]

The nevermore lets out a piercing shriek, then begins a dive toward the now exposed Coco, aiming to simply ram its entire body weight into the boy and flatten him like a steamroller. Its mind registers the tree branch and the odd-looking device, but it's too primitive to know what it's used for or what consequences it may bring.

Feeling that its stinger had missed, the Queen Lancer started retracting the barb, unaware that a unwelcome object had been attached to it during the vulnerable time it had been away from its body. It wasn't until the stinger was fully inside the body did the throwing star explode, blowing chunks of its body up and causing it to make a nightmare-inducing noise. The pain distracted it from Prism's Ice Dust bullets, bringing shards of ice to life in front of its eyes and blocking vision, causing it to flutter haphazardly. Lastly, the grappling spike from Ferus's shield is fired, piercing deep into the Queen Lancer's abdomen, before the professor gives one giant heave and brings the whole Grimm to the floor. It vibrates its wings in an attempt to elevate itself, but the spike keeps it grounded for now. The five-round burst thuds into the thorax section, further amplifying the damage already racked up on the Grimm.

The Death Stalker, already on death's door from the incendiaries, was in the process of having every single limb on its body frozen to the floor via the liberal applications of Ice Dust from the mortar. The extra bullets stuck the stinger's attachment point but didn't manage to dislocate the whole thing completely.

TARGETS:
   ● Same as last post

[Walter]

Huzzah! The plan had worked!

...oh, crap. The plan had worked.

Cream 'eeped' before turning tail and running back towards the branch. The Nevermore was definitely going after him, which should make the rest of the plan rather easy. Well, about as easy as getting blown up and launched onto a massive flying bird beast could be. He ran over and grabbed hold of the branch, lifting the back end to allow for the explosive to lift it into the air once it went off.

"Blow me!" He shouted as the grimm got closer and closer to where he was standing. With the other grimm mostly dealt with, he'd now have to rely on his teammates for liftoff. If things go awry... well, he chose not to think about it too much.

Coco's Battle Stats:
  Stamina: [███-------] 30%
  Aura: [█████-----] 59%

[Moth]

Prism freezes at the Nevermore's cry, her spine going ramrod-straight; the tears are starting to visibly budding on her eyes again, her small form shaking. Falling feathers, highlighted by fire - but the body of the Queen Lancer slamming into the ground distracts her enough to make her jump, pulling her out of the beginning of the panic attack, and to hear Coco yell - well, that was rude.

"A-amane, detonate!" The small faunus manages to shriek the words, getting them out with only something of stutter - and thankfully spotting one last chance to be useful. With shaking hands, a vial of yellow-charged dust is withdrawn from her pants pocket, inserted into the back of Hawk Eye's blade - and with one final burst of strength and a strong updraft, gains enough ground to take over the Queen Lancer's head. With a twist of the neck of the glaive, the blade cackles to life with electricity, and Prism fires off a shot from the end of her rifle - aiming to drive the blade deep into the unarmored part on the back of the Lancer's head.

Aura: 91%

[.]

.

[MonsterManic]

With force unexpected from a person her size, the blow from Prism drives Hawk's Eye deep into the back of the Queen Lancer's head, splitting flesh, bone and cartilage to penetrate deep into the skull of the Grimm. It flails and thrashes, but eventually stills and starts fading away, the ashes floating upwards and away on the winds of victory.

With the grappling spike now freed, Ferus instantly retracts the spike, before turning and raising his gunlance high above his head in one swift motion. In a blatant display of strength and a triggering of his Semblance, he smashes the entire bladed length onto the carapace of the Death Stalker, cracking the thick armor and embedding the blade in the weak flesh, before discharging one of Grimm Repetoiré's shells point-blank. Instant obliteration. It doesn't even make a sound, the force of the discharge blowing every trace of it, even the ashes, into whatever hell it crawled out from.

Meanwhile, the kinetic charge blows, sending the branch and its unfortunate passenger soaring sky-high straight at the Nevermore's left wing joint. Flying too fast to change course, it's unable to pull up or react to anything Coco might pull out of his sleeve.

Amidst all the noise, confusion, and slaughter, a shot rings out. It's not muffled like Amane's assault rifle, or loud and clear like Prism's sniper. Prism would feel another rejuvenating, calming wave of Aura, albeit meagre, wash over her like a weak wave breaking itself on a beach. If she cared to turn, she would see a deathly pale Jocelyn lower her rifle and give her the weakest, most vulnerable yet unrestrained and comforting smile, before once again falling into unconsciousness against the tree, her Aura fizzling out and fading.

Jocelyn's Combat Log:
  ● Aura: [----------] 0% (5% to Prism)

TARGETS:
   ● Queen Lancer x 1 (Impaled by Prism)
   ● Giant Death Stalker x 1 (Obliterated by Ferus)
   ● Giant Nevermore x 1

[Moth]

Despite her quaking form, there’s a small shaky grin on her face as the Queen Lancer dissipates beneath her blade and she hovers back to the ground, stance unstable. Hearing the bombs blow, she purposefully doesn’t turn to see Coco rocketing skyward, but raises her glaive in a cheer. "C'mon Coco, fuck that thing up! You've got this, dude!"

The small muffled noise is heard barely, and Prism feels the wave slow, cool calm literally wash over her being - turning in an instant to see Jocelyn’s rapidly-disappearing grin before she collapses back down, the somber moment accompanied by the rapid beeping of her scroll to notify her a team member’s aura has fallen to zero. There’s a look of horror on the faunus’ face as she acts automatically, her rifle firing off so she rockets forwards - timing the distance perfectly so she slides to her knees next to the downed healer. Immediately checking her pulse, she’s still alive, thank fuck, just incredibly, incredibly unconscious.

Prism kneels in front of her prone form, wings slowly extending outward and upwards to form an oval of shade  over Jocelyn's prone form in the early morning light. The green-blue iridescent feathers shimmer with almost a white sheen - she’s concentrating her aura to body-block anything else that’s thrown their way, whether it’s more Grimm or flying feathers from above. Not sparing a glance from Jocelyn to keep from incapitating herself again, Prism calls back to the professor. ”Ferus, she’s hit zero! If you’d like to put that massive shield of yours to use again, it’d be appreciated over here! Or Amane, please - I need to assure she isn't hit, by anything, but I can't just leave Coco to hit the dirt!”

Aura: 96% (+5%)

[Walter]

"FUUUUUUU-" Coconut screamed out as he flew through the air. His teammates may be used to taking off like this to some extent, but he sure as hell wasn't. While the branch helped quite a bit, he still felt the explosion slam into his back but gravity kept him flat against his vessel. He had to fight against it in order to raise his blade - just in time to have it slash into the bird's wing right next to the joint.

Whether or not the blade goes through, Coconut's next move remains the same. The boy grabs hold of the creature's massive feathers in order to stay on the bird - if the thing starts going down, he'll have to let go and hope that Prism catches him before he plummets to the ground. If it doesn't... Well, he'd have to stab it until it dies.

Coco's Battle Stats:
  Stamina: [██--------] 20%
  Aura: [████------] 44%