As Vangus gives me my Libra privileges back, a smaller figure flutters onto the scene, trying to pull Libra away from Vangus!
I told you this was a bad idea, we gotta go before he does that again!!
Libra and the other figure vanish in a trail of bright, twinkling smoke.

Amidst the (IDK whether this place is bright or dark but whichever one it's amidst that), a voice speaks to Vangus.
If Pi Robot or someone of similar authority makes it clear that I'm being hasty, I'll leave you to your own devices. At the moment, though, you're currently putting the website at risk of the same technical errors that prompted a second thread in the first place...
Balanced Libra temporarily deactivates his Ring of Balance, reverting him to Libra*.
...so I'm giving you one chance to undo the lock.

---

*Recap (Regulus Arc): Libra was one of several characters bestowed with Prototype World Rings (original concept from RedBomber, derived from Sonic and the Secret Rings), specificaly being given an empowered ring known as the Ring of Balance. Only with said ring does Libra choose/have the ability to interact with the plot normally; otherwise, he's a meta "plot control" figure like Pi Robot.

With the fight having been continuing for a while, QCF is now blocking a Drain, Mack rushing up and chipping away at its health with headbutts...before grabbing it and pummeling it with a Sword Rain before it can reach the ground!

...yes...

---

YEEEEEEEES!!!
Beaker leaps back, startled by the muffled screaming.
...well, he had no sound-based powers at his disposal, so I didn't think to turn up the soundproofing that much...

---

Zardy sits on a wooden crate, looking forlorn into a piece of a broken window as if it was a mirror.
*sigh*
Look at yourself, Zardy. One person steps in with nothing but a flashlight and an axe...
...next thing you know you're spending four minutes trying to chase off two kids by singing at them, you get blasted in the face by a skeleton freak...
Where did you go wrong?
Zardy's eyes drift toward a microphone on the ground...
...
...y'know what?
Zardy stands up.
I never had to "give them a show". Only thing keeping me from cutting the boy's throat then and there was whatever that girl could do...
I've started off small twice, and it's gotten me nowhere. That girl and skeleton think they can be monsters like me?
Lifting his hoe in the air, Zardy smashes the microphone.
Maybe I just need to remind the high-and-mighties who owns this maze.
As vines begin to erupt around the maze, the sound of a rattling chain echoes through the shadowy air†...

---

Sword Rain RECAP: (Cutter) The user summons a flurry of swords from the sky, which crash down on the target(s) for heavy damage.

---

*Recap: The first and last pages of Zardy's last storyline
† Cablecrow is not a unique indivudual, though I am at least treating one as such to maintain some form of consistency with Vs. Zardy 's second song, "Bushwhack". Otherwise, I'm staying consistent with the Reserved Characters sheet by having them as a whole (and the rest of the ZM cast besides Zardy himself) be usable by anyone.

...
Concrete Man is trembling.
..."boss"?
...th-they said I couldn't...they never said they were gonna keep at...they didn't...they...
Concrete Man hurries down the hill without care for the slippery ground!
Eddie follows with only a brisk walk, still urgent to keep up with Concrete but not nearly as ready to be reckless...
The heck are you doing?! He's gone, you can't just throw yourself at-
You don't know if he's gone, and I don't care, because no worker of mine is gonna have a shallow grave!!

@MegaMan1027 : (OOC: Actually, Bloodmoon and Zalgo are both ch4s3's characters. Robo Sonic was just being very particular in how he was attacking Bloodmoon.)

Only barely flinching from the fireball, Robo Sonic slams the screaming princess to the ground, and turns to Zalgo.
UNIT "ZALGO". SEE THIS MANGLED CHILD AS A SIGN OF YOUR FAILURES, AND WHAT THEY MEAN TO THE WORLD.
He then grabs Comic Punk and slams him to the ground right over Bloodmoon.
AND NEW INSTANCE OF UNIT "PUNK"...TREAT THIS AS A WELCOME GIFT.
Robo Sonic walks away, vanishing without a trace...

Robo Sonic's arm reassembles itself in a second, Bloodmoon's body still stuck to the claw.

(OOC: I would like to link to a recap of the RP's events as a whole, but there is none, and given how we're nearing 14.4k posts between the two threads it's going to be highly difficult to ever do so; I'm going to have to settle for a doc displaying various battles throughout the RP so I can still give an example of what the RP's like)

The defense and reduced damage change nothing, due to Eraser Disc's ability to remove what was keeping Punk's two halves together from history itself being completely seperated from video game stats.

An Eraser Disc flies right up the middle of Comic Punk, splitting him apart as Robo Sonic continues gouging Princess Bloodmoon's eyes out.

---

Eraser Disc RECAP: (Time/Cutter) The user fires a purple disk of time energy, erasing anything caught between it from time like a temporal sawblade.

Despite the sandy ground, metallic clanging can still be heard loud and clear...directly approaching Bloodmoon, towering over her.
THE LIFE OF A VILLAIN IS AS TERRIBLE AS ONE ALLOWS IT.
ZALGO ALLOWED HIS LIFE TO BE AS AWFUL AS OTHERS WISHED. YOUR CONCEPTION PROVED IT.
A blocky, metallic hand sits on Bloodmoon's head.
MY LIFE IN THE PAST WAS AN EXPENDABLE MACHINE, MEANT AS NO MORE THAN A CRUDE MIMICRY OF A BLUE ERINACEINAE.
BUT I RETURNED. AND I ALLOWED MYSELF A BETTER LIFE ALONG SIMILAR MACHINES.
Robo Sonic tightens his grip, lifting Bloodmoon up and putting her at eye level with him.
UNIT "PRINCESS BLOODMOON". ATTEMPTED BODY COUNT IS IRRELEVENT TO TRUE VILLAINY.
Robo Sonic's fingers morph into salient claws...
WHERE VILLAINY LIES: KNOWING THE PAIN OF OTHERS, AND NEVER LETTING THEM ESCAPE IT.
...two of which plunge themselves straight into Bloodmoon's eyes.

(Common Battle Theme 9 - Similarly Speedy Struggle) ♫ Megaman Battle Network 5 - Powerful Enemy ♫
Mack immediately drops a flame at the front of his field before he starts warping around it, leaving himself open for an EekTrl130...until three small swords fly out of the flame, two of them landing right on GashaAce, the third missing and leaping off the other side of the field!
Mack's foot blades then extend out as he leaps at Gasha himself, cracking one of their panels as Mack tries to narrow the area with fireballs moving in 2-row sine waves...an effort wasted as GashaAce catches him with a Thunder380 and RailGun1100!!

---

Okay, gonna give this another go...
Flipping a small switch on the underside, what was once the shell of a computer mouse - now looking like it was crossed with the animal - plugs a USB cord into Terry's PET, and after a few seconds, rushes to his PC, does the same thing, and returns to the PET to plug in one last time.
Anything happen to the folder, Spark?
Well, uh...
SparkMan pauses a moment to check.
...it took my WideSwrds. Again.
Keep looking.
...wait, are these ElecSwrds?!
Damn straight. Knew if I had anything to move with a cord, might as well be replacements for the leftover Chips I gave you from that dud folder*.
Terry turns to his PC, finding the WideSwrds placed in a computer folder where the ElecSwrds were a few seconds ago, grinning as he pumps his fist.
Man, took long enough! Now all I gotta do is give Q-whatever an update and I'll know what the real meat of this project is gonna be...
(...wait, was this one the chat, or...?)
Terry takes a couple of minutes to find the instant messaging service he spoke to his commissioner with again.

---

As Painwheel finally enters the square, she turns to a nearby Navi, slowly lifting the smaller, blue Navi off her back and into her arms.
She needs help.
The Navi does a double-take at Painwheel and steps back.
Wh-what the-where-
I did not hurt them.
N-no, I didn't think you did, I just...
...do you even know who that is?!

---

(Battle Network 1-3, Battle Network 6, Network Transmission, Phantom of Network, Legend of Network) ElecSwrd120: (Elec, Sword) The user slashes with an electrified sword, covering a 1x3 area in front of them.

---

*Reference: Mega Man Battle Network 4 - The start of the conflict with Terry in this game involves him "fixing" Lan's PET, actually hacking it so it's forced into using the "-Folder". Every chip that SparkMan has used so far besides SprkWav1 is a chip used in this folder.

...
Concrete and Eddie both begin to step back very cautiously.

Yes, I would like to leave the dungeon. I apologize for not answering last update.

---

Hey, you want it fast as much as we do, he's the fastest we have. He doesn't even slobber.
...
Anyway, have fun with the Core and the random thugs you're standing around.
Tox Man warps out.
Is...is he usually like that?
Guard Hound turns to Gunner and nods as they follow Tox Man out.

...okay, change of plans. Same as before, but anything that looks like it could've made that noise.
Eddie waits for Concrete Man (the one holding their light source) to lead the way, the bulky robot slowly stepping into the dark area the humming came from, taking one last glance at the crystal as he and Eddie walk away.

Concrete Man leaps off the mushroom and onto shore, Eddie right next to him.
Right, so, what're we watching for?
Eddie bobs his head up to gesture to the crystal above them.
Dunno how that thing's been there or how long it's gonna hold. Heck, I dunno if it's even the kinda crystal people mine around here...
Concrete and Eddie begin to hear the humming, looking down the way it's coming from.
Okay, making it clear right now: if we go look down there, we hide the moment we see anything that looks like it's making that noise.

As Arle introduces herself, Schezo catches up to them.
...no, Arle. I heard nothing before you made it hot in here.
Schezo then turns to the Chorus Child.
But for once, she 's right about my name: I am Schezo, the dark wizard!

BatonWoman, GashaAce, and Marshmallow warp down to the path to the unknown P-Cube*, and find a strange translucent path on the other end...
Marshmallow sharpens her scissor blades, murder in her eyes as BatonWoman and GashaAce wait on the main path...
(Event Theme - ♫ Shanghai.EXE - Encounter ♫
...before a heavy sword slams down behind the latter two, the impact launching them to the translucent path, and cutting off the bridge between it and the warp back!
As they land next to Marshmallow, a horned, scarf-wearing Navi drops in...
Mack.EXE: Ha! Fell for it hook, line, and-
Mack's cut off by a furious scream from Marshmallow, panickedly dodging her scissor blades within an inch of his life!
I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR INSOLENCE, YOU LITTLE...!
As Mack tries to make a break for it, BatonWoman and GashaAce instinctively corner him with their baton and bones, repsectively!
WHO SENT YOU TO OUR COMP?!
As the three close in on Mack, the red Navi leaps into the air, blades jutting out from under his feet as he pushes his pursuers away with the force!
Mack.EXE: I'll tell you who: Me! You think I need an excuse to cause trouble?
What, like an excuse would make it better?!
Mack.EXE: Pah! How'd you like to know, bonehead?!
As all four prepare for battle, Mack leaps right at GashaAce!

---

*There is a P-Cube in the alluded area in Shanghai.EXE that can't actually be unlocked, and has no significant area behind it; looking into the game data reveals little to nothing.

As Arle and the Chorus Kid approach the fog, a familiar figure can be seen approaching the fog from another angle!
As the figure approaches the duo, his self-monologue can be heard loud and clear.
This light...it's almost like heaven...no, like rapture, and it seems I am the only one to come face-to-face with it...
Whatever these rapturous bursts are, I will make sure I see them all over my face!!

---

*Recap: Schezo actually debuted alongside Arle on Thread 1, Page 46, Post #6, reserved by TheHighTower, with Schezo in particular last having a speaking role on Page 61, Post #3. Recently, HighTower offered to hand Schezo (among a few other characters who have either been re-reserved by him or are still up in the air) to another user on the Discord server, and I accepted the offer of being the new reservoir of Schezo.

The total addition and subtraction of the attacks against Robo Sonic is enough to knock him back...just far enough that he lands on his feet.
ERRORS IN SUBJECT "EVIL MARIO"'S INTENTIONS: NOT FOUND. METHODS OF EXPRESSING DISAGREEMENT WITH THEM: ENOUGH TO VIOLATE RULE 1 OF THIS OMNIVERSE.
Robo turns to Anti-Chimera, a strange glow surrounding him as he focuses...a glow that leaves him completely unmoved by the G-Max Fireball.
IDENTIFYING EXACT REPLICATED SUBJECTS WITHIN UNIT "ANTI-CHIMERA"...