835/The Gallery Trap

The Gallery Trap
Date of Scene:	10 January 2016
Location:	Mitakihara - Residential District
Synopsis:	An invitation to visit with an artist proves to be the bait for an ambush upon the Waldian princess. When the Guardian Knights and a new friend foil this plan, a new home is gained.
Cast of Characters:	Runealy Waldia, Gaofele Doiru, Amu Hinamori, Solomon Novak, Hinote Kagari, Valeria Barun

---

Runealy Waldia has posed:
When you intend to attract a member of the wealthy elite, it is probably a good idea to have a place they would find attractive. In this case, the locale is a two-story home in the Mitakihara area. Hyper-modern with pristine white walls (with some red accenting in various places), and one side is covered in one-way glass that lets those inside look out while filtering curious gazes from the street. A small stream, flanked by carefully placed rocks, flows along a lawn that features a few trees here and there.

The interior has a fairly classy living room, but this isn't the highlight; it leads to a series of gallery rooms, some with temporary walls and doors placed to help guide people through the artist's exhibit... he was eager to bring in potential sponsors soon. Yet he is not here. Someone else is.

The demon Zuflixal stands in human form, disguised in slacks, a black shirt with a button-up collar, short black hair, and glasses; he looks very much like the previous owner. Rather, the late owner; Zuflixal had studied him and determined his home and work would be a perfect trap; one night intrusion and sudden blow later, he had taken it by force. After that, finding the princess' name among Seishou's students was enough for the disguised 'artist' to invite her here.

It's early evening, with the sun only now beginning to slowly go down. A limo pulls up to the home, driver stepping out to let Runealy exit. She gives a soft 'thank you', then looks back to those with her. This was not exactly according to Zuflixal's plan; he presumed she would come alone. Instead, the princess has invited her friends to come along. None are required, and the invitation was short notice, but she is interested in them being with her as she approaches the door and knocks.

Gaofele Doiru has posed:
Gaofele Doiru might not be a patron of the arts in a traditional sense, but he has noticed that art often says much about the people and places that it's from. And who is he to turn down a chance to learn more about Earth?

He's dressed nicely today -- not a truly formal outfit, but definitely classier than his usual everyday clothes. Even so, it's still an outfit with a decent range of movement; mobility shouldn't come second to fashion, in his opinion. "Nice place," he remarks, looking over the grounds.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu Hinamori is in a rush, making her way towards Seiyou for some meeting or another. School isn't in session but that doesn't stop the Guardians from having work to do. And she is, technically, still a Guardian.

"Amu-chan, wait up!" Miki says unhappily, as they rush around the corner. Amu continues rushing until she nearly runs into someone climbing out of the limousine.

"S-sorry!" She doesn't quite bounce off, but she does have to pinwheel her arms to keep from falling. "Sorry!" she says, then pauses and glances towards the house. "Sugoi," she murmurs, staring at the well-dressed elite as they make their way in.

Solomon Novak has posed:
    Solomon was fairly certain that he was not going to enjoy the evening. Art fell firmly under the category of Not Useful, nor was it something he had any particular inclination towards. The Guardian of Light did not come along for viewing paintings. He came along to spend time with Runealy and his allies and/or possibly friends - Solomon was not sure what category the others fell under, and it was all Hinote's fault.

    Regardless of his reason for coming along, the blonde orphan is dressed a little nicer than usual. In fact his hair is styled, instead of just combed back. After getting out of the limo he wordlessly took his time looking around. It would be easy to mistake it for enjoying the scenery, but Solomon is checking the place out with a far more military mindset. Also he is checking to make sure nobody is on the roof, because that is a Thing that happens here, he has discovered.

    While doing so he spots a pink haired girl arriving at high speed. In fact it looks like she might collide with whoever is coming out of the limo next - oh, it's just Hino, he thinks to himself. If it were Runealy Solomon would have interceeded, but Hinote is on his own.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Hinote Kagari is dressed in a semi-formal suit, a jacket, some black slacks, a tie that's well kept and flat. He looks perfect as he steps out of the limo. He's used to riding in limos--- even before he met Runealy. It comes naturally for him to leave one and look fancy because when your a famous actor's son that's a thing you need to be for pictures and media and all that.

He looks dignifiged.

Until someone nearly crashes into him. He has to avoid by taking a fast step forward and turning around as he huhs. He doesn't frown immediatly. "Oh..."

"Guardian Charas."

"Hello. No need to apologize."

"You're in a hurry. Is something wrong?" he asks as he glances back toward's the gallery.

"Huh. Fancy." he says. "Who'd you say invited us again, Runealy?" he asks curiously.

Runealy Waldia has posed:
"It really is!" Rune gushes to Gaofele, having picked up on his comment about this home. "It kind of reminds me of the 'hospital' they have here," she uses that word unfamiliarly, though the concept might be one of those things she left subtle encouragements back on their homeworld to look in to. "Just... brighter, emotionally speaking."

She looks back as Solomon scopes the place out - there is no rooftop ambush, nor even any sort of 'sentry' up there unless he happens to be /very/ suspicious of ordinary birds. "Huh... what do you think of it, anyway?" She's curious how he feels about this home, and may not pick up that he's doing it from a more... 'tactical' concern.

This leaves her gazing back as Amu sprints along. "Wha? Look ou--" Too late. At least the outcome wasn't an outright, head-on collision with Hinote! "I..." She hesitates. Did the artist even give his name? She can't recall. "...a local artist who I think wants patronage." She'll find some careful way to check on his name later.

The door hasn't been answered just yet. She continues to focus on the group, and Amu in particular. "Wait, you know her?" Hinote seemed to, and Rune thinks this newcomer is familiar too. She asks Amu outright: "Is everything okay?"

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu's eyes wide wider as Hinote immediately points out her Charas, and she backs away a step. "Uhh uhh--" but then she looks at all the others gathered, and lets out a little blink of surprise. "You're the princess!" she squeaks out at Runealy, then smiles and dips into an honest-to-god curtsey. This might look a little awkward, given her pleated, plaid blue skirt is only thigh-length. It's accompanied by matching leg warmers, a white shirt and blue tie, and a dashing black dress coat. And a studded belt, because why not.

"I'm Amu," she introduces herself, "Amu Hinamori, from Seiyou. Sorry, I was supposed to meet the other Guardians for a thing, but .."

"But she's late," Miki says unhappily, glowering at Amu. "'We'll go soon', she says. 'I won't lose track of time', she says. Hmph. Amu-chan, if we'd left when I said we should you wouldn't be late!"

Amu turns and glares at her Chara. "Yeah, well, it's not my fault I had to watch Ami! It's not like we could leave any sooner!"

Solomon Novak has posed:
    Even the birds are worth a lookover, but since they aren't doing anything suspicious he doesn't give them much thought. No, Solomon Novak's mind is concerned about answering the Princess' - or rather the Guardian Princess' - question. It's hard to come up with an answer that is both true and one that is halfway social. "I think we're not being ambushed" is something he COULD say, but he's certain she wants a more human response. So he digs into himself and forces his eyes to give one more look upon the place as if he were a normal boy.

    "It... looks nice," he admits in what sounds almost like a grudging voice.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Hinote Kagari looks at the birds. Gives a look, looks back at Amu and smiles. "Yes, she is!" he says.

"My name's Hinote Kagari." he offers as he steps back into line and places his hands into his pockets. "Yeah. Big, fancy place. Huh. Has dad been here before?" he wonders. He just shakes his head. "Eh, not important." he says.

He looks down at Runealy. "Well. She has Guardian Characters. You know, like Hotori-kun? Like him and Kiskei." he says.

He'll follow along.

"Hey...."

"Shouldn't we invite Amu along? She seems to know you on some level at least. Callin you the princess and all." he smiles.

Runealy Waldia has posed:
"That's right, and..." Rune cuts off as Amu bows, prompting the princess to wave a hand side to side in a bit of a defensive gesture, "It's alright, no need to be too formal when I'm not in court. And I'm... really far from court right now. Runealy, Crown Princess of Waldia. 'Rune' is okay too, Amu, and... you are...?" Prompting Miki, perhaps.

A grudging response is at least something. "Thanks for coming along," Rune adds to Solomon. "We used to do this a lot back home. Artists would invite mom and I to check out their work... usually they wanted funding. She gave it more often than not, but sometimes put little conditions on it. Like 'you have to bring in an apprentice and teach them, using this money to tend to both of you.' It was nice. Maybe we'll see something good here too, today."

Hinote adds something that immediately hits a good note with Rune. "Like him?" The mental association is very quick; Tadase is one of her world's saviors, and attaching 'like him' to Amu nets a very quick agreement. "Sure, if she..." a nod over to Amu, "If you want to come along, go for it!"

The 'artist' of the home finally answers, having used this time to plan whether he even wants to go through with this while Rune has several friends with her. Door open, he has decided it's worth a try. "Good evening," he steps back to allow others room to enter. Rune takes a single step in before removing her shoes, smiling to their host as he continues: "Thank you for coming to see my work! I'm honored to have you here," his gaze wanders over everyone in the group, "And can begin the tour any time you're ready."

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu and Miki both look startled at Miki being addressed, but the little artistic Chara recovers first. "I... I'm Miki!" she says, suddenly shy.

"Ran!" pipes up the pink one. "And this is Su," Ran introduces the green one.

Amu glances at the house, then down the road, then at the house. Then she glances down at her watch and makes a noise in the back of her throat. "I'm sure they'll be fine without me," she says, then follows Runealy and the others inside, nervously.

Solomon Novak has posed:
    Amu and the, uh, whatever the other things are, get a look from Solomon. Not a nasty look, just a once-over and a silent acknowledgement that the trio exists. He /could/ say hello to her, but really he's being more social than he's comfortable with simply being here. Solomon also justifies it on the basis that it /should/ be pretty obvious that the lack of a greeting is nothing personal. Really, the fact that he's /not/ glaring at Amu suspiciously, given her magical pals, is a courtesy on his part.

    Then his face softens. To most he still looks like a very antisocial person or maybe a very quiet jerk, but to those who have spent enough time around him, it's what passes as "almost happy" for him. It happens when Rune starts talking about her and the late queen's visits to artists. It actually prompts him to reply to Rune, "Maybe," in a semi-optimistic, or at least agreeable, manner.

    Solomon enters too, but like a barbarian he leaves his shoes on. Really, going barefoot in someone else's home is just weird in his mind. Maybe it wouldn't be so weird if he were used to wearing socks, but he enjoys socks as much as he enjoys helicopters. Which is to say, not at all.

    The artist is then added to the novella sized list of things Solomon does not like. Just because.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Hinote Kagari smiles at Amu. Hinote knows the right things to say- usually- in a conversation. Not always. But something like that gets things nice and smooth. Off come the shoes.

he follows along, politely and smiles back at Amu. "You'll have fun. This should be fun and classy." he asides.

He looks over to Solomon- and manages a short smile at him. He follows along as he huhs.

"...but..."

He says as he whispers to Runealy. "...that's not really a thing on this world..." he says. Patronage, that is.

He bows politely to the artist. "Thank you for having us in your home. I'm ready when the group is." he softly answers.

Gaofele Doiru has posed:
Gaofele Doiru follows along silently, politely removing his shoes and looking at the decor inside of the house.

Valeria Barun has posed:
    With the quiet shuffling of her long dress Valeria slips into the house slash art gallery behind the others, head turning every which way in surprise at the incredible architecture of the place. She's seen artwork and museums before, both back in Waldia with her parents and once here in Tokyo during her previous weeklong stay. This, however, seems to take the cake. "Is this one of your pieces as well," she asks, motioning gently first to the entire space to indicate the building as a whole before more directly at some of the more flamboyant architectural designs. "Had I walked into a room such as this one not long after I'd arrived I might have been afraid the roof would come down upon me." Either that or there was magic being used to help keep it up.

    Prompted to remember Earth customs by Hinote she slips out of her shoes, lifting her legs up one at a time and reaching beneath her voluminous skirt to pluck them off in a single quick motion, setting the heels by the door before wandering further inward. "I would be delighted to begin the tour, speaking only for myself," she tells the artist, whose disguise is beyond her ability to detect, giving a graceful incline of her head.

Runealy Waldia has posed:
"Pleased to meet you," Rune offers to all three of Amu's companions, and then they're inside. The artist host doesn't seem to make any comment upon any Chara. He might see them, but if he does he's trying to act like he doesn't. Interestingly, he doesn't seem to take any offense to Solomon opting to stay with-footwear either.

Hinote's comments draw a surprised, repeated blink. "Huh...? Are you sure?" She really has her doubts about that. "Well, we'll see how it goes." It does make her wonder what else their host might want, if not funding, but this can be found out later.

While eager to make his move, the 'artist' is smart enough to remain polite and act normal as Hinote thanks him. "Certainly. I'm delighted to be able to share my work!"

Valeria piping up prompts Rune to smile back at her, but it's their host who responds with gracious 'embarrassment', "Oh, no, no, not at all. My home was built by others, but I assure you it's stable... roof and all. I've been living here for years!" A smooth lie. "Now, my gallery is mostly my own design but I did have help with implementing the finer points. In any case, please follow me."

He leads on to a 'room' set up by temporary walls, opening the door to lead in. This first exhibit contains a variety of paintings that imitate the classical Japanese style of painting. Complete with traditional subjects, as samurai and common citizenry of the period are shown. These are not historical originals, merely new works produced by those who have studied the general form. Rune looks impressed by this, commenting, "Some of these remind me of S..." No, keep identities secret. "Akashimaru," she opts for that name instead. "Hinote, do you know much about these?"

The next room houses something very different, surreal paintings in a more western style; broad swathes of faded, autumn-like colors depict people by what might be a fishing dock, or fruit falling from a tree, but it's so unusual that it's hard to be totally sure what any given work is; she prompts Gaofele and Solomon with "...Does that look like anything you know of back home?" Either way, this is not at all like the previous art style... it might be hard to identify this as the work of the same artist.

Then the temporary rooms give way to a longer hallway set up with... a simple green circle painted within a black frame on the end wall, which is itself built to be slanted at a roughly 45 degree angle. This hallway is very dark, with purple lighting swirling along the walls and the circle itself, the wall's angle interacting with the light to cause a variety of unusual 'shapes' and effects. Smoke billows from some dispensers built into the floor near the circle, well away from the group. "Never seen that before... do you know much about this?" She asks that to Valeria, then Amu, with a nod to each.

Their host is currenly busy fiddling with controls, changing up the smoke and light effects to show off several different results.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Hinote Kagari nods. "Mostly sure. We don't call them that. Things like that, you go to the goverment for. Grants." he says quietly.

Hinote follows along as he eyes the pieces...

The Samurai pieces elict and huh response. "Yeah they do remind me of her. These are traditional samurai. So that would make sense they would- since she's kind of like one of those. Well. Samurai would be... Knights of a sort- in ancient Japanese culture. They don't exist anymore, really..."

He says. "Well. Offically." he adds. Because once again.. Akashimaru.

He looks at Surreal paintings and ughs and head tilts. He doesn't like surrealism.

The odd weird light room of purple light seems to make him feel weird.

Ancient horrible feelings of a dance club he went to a year ago well up and Hinote looks a little ill.

"Hrm..." he says, idly as he watches quietly.

Solomon Novak has posed:
    Even Solomon finds the building itself a little bit impressive. It would be more impressive if he wasn't still getting accustomed to this planet's amazing capacity for building. The artist's house is therefor just one of many amazing sights. Rather than commenting on that however he finds himself thinking about what Hinote said - or what he gathers Hinote said based upon what parts of the whispers he overheard and Rune's easier to hear remarks. Supposedly the artist does not want money from her? That surprises him: surprises are one of the things Solomon does not like. As they go through the first exhibit he ponders the matter. Did he not like the artist for the same reason he didn't like most people?

    No, it was something else. Nothing dramatic, nothing particularly threatening, but it was something about the man's attitude. He was too... polished? No, that's not right. But he was a little /too/ good at being polite. Yes, that was it. Maybe he did want something from Runealy. Maybe he was just skilled at it, the way many types of officials were. Still, it's hardly cause for alarm, even with Solomon's paranoia, merely something to keep in mind during any conversations with him.

    It turns out that Solomon does like some things. Something about the samurai appeals to him. In appearance, in the implied lethality of the warrior class. Surrealism, however, is something else he does not like. Out of consideration for Runealy, the invited guest, and anyone else who might actually like it, he does not let his dislike of Surrealism appear on his features. Instead, when Rune questions him and Gao, he gives a simple shake of his head.

    But the smoke and shapes and stuff? Is that even art? Yes, it is, he concludes after a little while; Solomon is forced to admit that there is skill and purpose, or at least intelligence, in the display. Still, whatever this style of art is, he is not a fan of it either.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu follows along, eyes widening at each display. For the first time in perhapss her entire life, Amu and her four charas all agree that the only description for everything they are seing is, "Sugoiiiiii." Yep, art apparently is well-appreciated by Amu and her Charas.

When Rune calls on Amu for her opinion, she starts and looks down the corridor, then tries desperately to look cool. "Uh ... it ... looks kindof like a really fancy karaoke machine?" she suggests. Yeah, that's not looking cool, is it?

Valeria Barun has posed:
    Valeria pauses for a moment, looking curiously at the artist as he reassures her the building isn't going to fall down. After a moment she smiles and offers a little nod. Well, she did mention it, maybe he thought she was legitimately worried rather than just making a point? She returns Runealy's smile, following the small group as they're led to various exhibits.

    The traditional paintings get her attention right away, and she moves up to look at many of them closely. "Is this what this-" she almost says 'world' bur realizes that might be hard to explain, or at least confusing to their host, instead offering, "'nation' looked like before all the technology?" 'Technology', a very good catchall for the amazing wondrous inventions of this world, she has learned.

    The next exhibit indeed shocks her by virtue of just how different it is. She's not at all sure what to make of the surreal paintings at first and, in fact, has a very hard time believing it's the same artist. No, she doesn't think they're being duped, but rather she's amazed at the versatility that this one person is able to offer. "Incredible," she murmurs more about the artist than the artwork. She moves close to one of these as well, this time actually looking for the artists signature and trying to remember what it might have been on the previous ones.

    The hallway... well. This isn't what she would call artwork herself so much as what might be a surreal attempt to make someone feel like they're inside one of those previous paintings. She shakes her head to Runealy's question before slipping up quietly beside her. "I think just one of these is enough for an entire world," she whispers into her cousins ear, her lips curling into a small amused smile, the young lady fully surprising the giggling laugh she feels bubbling up.

    That would be rude.

Runealy Waldia has posed:
"That sounds kind of like how she put it, I think," Rune comments back to Hinote on the samurai display. Solomon not being familiar with much of what she was asking about is actually totally fine by her; it was a long shot by the princess, who often doesn't recognize much of anything due to her sheltered life and others often do pick up on things she didn't.

"A what? ...Wait, no, I've had others mention those to me before," Rune adds to Amu. "Guess I need to see one in person soon, if this is how they look. It's kind of neat!" That Amu seems excited by the display has drawn her in to wanting to see more of what she and the Charas think of these things as their enthusiasm spreads to the princess.

Yet Solomon's misgivings and Valeria's inspections for signatures may prove to be well-founded... Valeria may well have noticed that while some signatures matched, not all of them did; their host might not have quite the versatility he's trying to imply. Valeria's remarks about this being 'enough' are met with some mild disagreement though. "Well, it's kind of scary looking, but it /is/ something I've never seen bef... aah!? Wha!?"

She's cut off by a very piercing ringing noise, as their 'host' finishes adjusting the display to trigger a smoke alarm nearby. Lights flash everywhere, additional smoke dispensers activating to fill much of the room. It's very loud, near-blinding, and disorienting.

"You walked right into this! I, Zuflixal, claim victory for my kind!" A shout heard over this din, as the artist's form begins to waver and shift. It quickly solidifies in to a figure of pitch-black leathery skin, with yellow glows for 'eyes'. Large bat wings unfurl from its back, and one arm has a single thick, long claw extending from its forearm. The other does not have such a blade, but does rise to point at the distracted and alarmed princess. A simple shout from the monster creates purple-and-black icicles in front of its hand, which then fly toward Runealy!

Gaofele Doiru has posed:
The art displayed is certainly of a mixed lot, although it's mostly enjoyable enough for Gao to look at. The final part of the installation is a bit too abstract for his tastes, but to each their own.

The sudden reveal of the demon, however, is definitely not to his taste. The forester pull his bracer out from inside his jacket and slides it onto his arm, saying "To protect the lands, I am Guardian Gao!" There's a flash of green, then he slams his summoned quarterstaff into the floor, shouting "TREE!"

A tree erupts from the floor, emerging just in front of the charging Zuflixal. It's not close enough to upper-cut the demon, but it's definitely an obstacle between him and the princess, and that's the important part.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Hinote Kagari is mostly 'enjoying' the last art piece.... and then smoke alarms go out.....

...Zuflixal? That almost sounds like a demo------

"TO PROTECT JUSTICE I AM GUARDIAN HINO." there's a callout in the smoke and fog as there's a bright orange transformation flash.

There's other Knights closer to the Princess. He has to trust that they'll get in front of anything thwiping through the smoke. For now...

He's sort of crashing towards the sound of that voice- longsword drawn and trying to smash into it with a half-leap---- swinging the sword into what he hopes is the demon- and not an illusion or a trick or a trap.

He's hoping he doesn't miss!

Solomon Novak has posed:
    Signatures and labels are for people who actually care about art, or at least the artist. Or people who are trying to feign interest. Feigning indifference instead of disapproval is as far as the blonde Waldian boy is willing to go. He hopes the art will be over with soon. Or that they will have an excuse to leave.

    Maybe Solomon just got what he wished for. Or maybe not: he's still having trouble sorting which alarms mean what. Was this detecting a thief? He hopes so. Alas, that does not turn out to be the case.

    The demon gets as far as "Zuf-" before Solomon shouts the words to activate his transformation. "To push back the darkness, I become Guardian Sol!" There is a small chance that this is not a demon, but some human being or other magical creature whose name is phonetically similar to demon names. In that case, this is overkill. But it turns out that his paranoia is right on the money in this case.

    Guardian Sol is too far away from Runealy to intercept the attack. So while he feels bad about having to trust one of the others to protect Runealy from the attack, he feels REALLY good about what he is going to do next.

    Killing demons is one of the few things he loves to do (which is sad because he's only ever done it once before). In this case? He's rather well suited to the situation; to counter the darkness and fog, and to try and incinerate the piece of filth that deserves to die a thousand deaths and rot in hell forever, he all but bellows,

    "SOLAR BEAM!"

    To which a massive beam of light lances out of his outstretched hand towards the demon, threatening to-oh **** Hinote get out of the way!

    Well, it MIGHT not hit Guardian Hino.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amu is impressively confused when the demon begins breaking out of its shell. "What's going on?" she asks confusedly.

It's Miki that snaps her out of it, with a very vocally frustrated, "Amu-chan! He's some kind of youma!"

Amu blinks in surprise, then shakes her head clean. "Right. Miki, let's go."

"Atashi no kokoro, Unlock!" A brilliant light engulfs the pink-haired girl, and Miki tips her cap before her egg closes around her. Amu holds her arms out to embrace that egg as it merges with her body. "Chara Nari: Amulet Spade!"

She stands in stockings and shorts, draped in a ruffled shirt with long tails, bearing a tall paintbrush like a spear.

Amulet Spade rushes into the mist and lights show on Guardian Hino's heels. "How can you use art to try and lure people like this!" Amulet Spade calls, upset. "It's cruel to pervert the dreams of artists for such a thing! Real art comes from the heart. Colourful Canvas!" she calls, sending a wash of magical paint towards the demon.

Valeria Barun has posed:
    Smoke, piercing noise, bright flashing lights in an already confusing, surreal roomscape. Valeria mentally chides herself for not paying closer attention. She'll have to remember that when the Guardian Princess is being asked to a place to be significantly more on her guard than if she was simply visiting of her own volition. They should have come ahead of time and made sure it was safe beforehand.

    As for the actual situation- Zuflixal's disorienting trap does a rather good job of throwing her off balance. If he hadn't shouted his intention before transforming he might have actually caught her completely unawares. But since it seems the demons of Waldia can't seem to help but preemptively gloat she realizes what's up just in time.

    "To protect our future, I am Guardian Vale!" Another flash of light that fills the smoky room and her white and green dress is gone, replaced by one that is white, purple, and partially armored.

    As soon as the transformation is complete she steps between the voice and Runealy while raising her shield. Gao's tree can probably handle the icicles but it's so foggy she's not taking that risk right away.

    Guardian Sol's beam of light does a really good job of banishing the fog, or at least lighting the area up enough to see more than just glowing yellow eyes in a sea of fog. She levels her sword at the demon almost like she were holding a wand, energy crackling over it before a bolt of lightning shoots from it and towards the demon. Soon after her shield is once more raised.

    "Be careful," she shouts for Amu's sake, not knowing much about the girl or her powers, "Demons can be incredibly powerful, and only get more dangerous as they're injured!" That's how it seems to have been in the past, at least.

Runealy Waldia has posed:
TREE! ends up springing through the floor with good timing, its rising branches deflecting the ice... some icicle shards end up stuck inside TREE!, others get knocked into the ceiling. Zuflixal growls, angered that his ambushing shot has been foiled; his advantage is gone, his best chance of quickly securing the inevitable release of his sealed kind must now give way to a direct battle.

Hino's blade meets Zuflixal's long claw with a metal clang. He guessed right on where the demon would go, but its defense was ready to meet him. This is actually an indirect success... Hino is forcing him to split his attention.

This divided defense proves costly when the Solar Beam surges forth. Zuflixal raises his free hand to spray 'dark-energy' icicles at it, but something he normally would have been able to equal or meet with his own firepower is instead able to get through, melting the demon's barrage with only a modest loss of power as a result! Zuflixal stumbles backward with a pained hiss, parts of his skin melting into dust that mixes with the smoke.

"How?" The demon is hurt, but more than glad to meet Amulet Spade's question with a sinister answer. "It's simple. I needed a chance to finish off 'her highness', and the pampered twit blundered right into it with a simple invitation for her 'special attention'! It might taken ten or twenty years, but if she falls... we will be free in time. All of us!"

His wings flap to disengage from the sword-clash with Hinote, preventing a direct hit by Spade's paint... but her aim was true, and this is indoors. He can't get very high, so her spray washes over its legs! The 'dust-sizzle' effect repeats here, though its form solidifies immediately afterward. He lands, but is clearly favoring the leg that didn't get hit by as much paint as the other did.

Runealy blinks as Vale stands in front of her with shield ready. "Th..." A cough as she shakes her head clear of some smoke, "thanks!" Vale's lightning is met with Zuflixal swinging his claw at it, which actually manages to deflect some of the surge... but much of it swirls around the natural weapon and shocks his arm, prompting him to clutch the wound with his other hand!

"Summoning Princess' Tiara!" Runealy finally joins in, able to finish coherent sentences now that she's had a moment to cough free of the smoke's influence. Jeweled headwear appears in one hand, "The Line of Succession... transform!" It's brought to her other hand, which places it on her head in the same motion. A flash of red light brings her into full magical garb, wand ready. Having to aim between some of TREE!'s branches, Runealy must settle for peppering Zuflixal with a few thin red beams from her wand. He blocks one outright with his palm, an icicle stops another, but the third one is a glancing hit to his side.

Gaofele Doiru has posed:
Guardian Gao quickly swaps to his bow, leaving the summoned tree to slowly fade out on its own. Dashing around Zuflixal, the forester Knight tries to outmaneuver the demon, forcing him to split his attention further.

"Bramble Grasp!" Gao calls out, firing an arrow. It splits into radially linked thorny vines, seesking to wrap around the demon, limiting the mobility of his arms and legs.

Solomon Novak has posed:
    There is entirely too much talking, and not enough demon being brutally murdered, for Sol's liking. Thankfully Guardian Hino didn't get hit by the solar attack, but he doesn't want to chance that a second time. Therefor he springs forward, unsheathing his broadsword as he does so and shifting it into a two handed grip - one less suited for maneuverability, but more useful for up close total offensive action. He may be shouting a wordless battle cry that may also be made of up 90% pure anger - he's not really paying attention to that part right now. All that his mind has room for is the wellbeing of his allies and coordinating his efforts with all the other attacks - of which there is a considerable amount flying around. He's willing to even take some hits from his allies however, rather than bide his time waiting to strike, so that they can chop the demon into pieces that much faster. What's a little fire and brambles at the cost of speeding a demon off this mortal coil?

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Guardian Hino clashes against demon claw blade and he jumps back two feet as he hrmphs.

"FIRE BRAND!" he calls out. His sword lights viciously on fire--- he isn't going to risk launching horrible beams of blazing heat death in such a confinded space- instead, he leans in again, chasing after the demon trying to dog him and hit him with a horribly flaming blade- which should hopefully increase the power, and damage, he's able to do.

He aims to lean into his strikes-- trying to get up in the demon's 'bussiness' as it were.

Valeria Barun has posed:
    As a general rule Guardian Vale switches up her attacks, weaving ranged and melee together. This isn't strictly required, but it helps keep her from becoming too predictable to an opponent- at least one who hasn't seen her back-and-forth style before. Normally this is about the time where she'd leap forward, bound off the tree, and try to stick a lightning empowered sword right through the demon's chest, but she's also noticed just how much demons tend to focus on Runealy, and this is one fight where she's not about to leave the Princess to fend for herself.

    That means she stays firmly rooted in place. A second lightning bolt might work, but the Demon would probably expect that- or so she thinks. Is she over thinking it? Maybe, but she'd rather not find out she's -under- thinking any kind of fight with a demon.

    She looks over to Amulet Spade, whose paint attack seems to have been more effective than her own. An ally they can rely on? That... might be just the ticket! "Amulet Spade," she shouts- it's a guess, but that's what she pronounced upon transforming, right? "Your brush," Waldia luckily does have paint brushes for her to recognize, yes, "it is a formidable weapon in its own right, yes? I believe you have what it takes to make the difference. Please go send that abomination my regards!"

    Her sword once more flares with crackling lightning energy, but rather than just leveling it at the demon she swings it, gritting her teeth a bit since she's winging it a bit here, and sends the lightning contained within the blade to the tip of Amulet Spade's paintbrush in a crackling arc of electricity. It's not an instantaneous thing, because she's really pouring as much as she can into it, and soon the bristles spark and snap with the given lightning.

    Hopefully that paint on it isn't flammable. ...or maybe hopefully it is!

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amulet Spade starts to draw her hands together in a heart shape, sensing the end of this demon is at hand. But when Guardian Vale calls to her, the girl stops and glances over her shoulder. "Yes?" she replies to the question posed, but then Guardian Vale is throwing lightning at her.

She looks a little confused at first, and then realises what's happening as her brush begins to absorb the energy. "Sugoi," Amulet Spade whispers, then whirls the brush around her in a bit of a flourish before charging in, drawing the weapon up high with both hands.

"LIGHTNING SPADE"

There is a brilliant flash of energy as Amulet Spade unleashes the energy driven into her brush by Guardian Vale. She pours all of her own heart into the attack, too, driving it forward inexorably into the demon.

Runealy Waldia has posed:
Zuflixal is fairly nimble even on wounded feet, in part thanks to his wings. A quick flutter lets him 'hover spin' a few inches above the floor to face Gao, claw slicing through most of the vines with ease. Most... not all. A few slip over its shoulder, and begin to dig into the monster's wings! This brings him back fully to the ground, robbing him of his primary advantage.

Sol's blade prompts Zuflixal to begin fighting him more directly; his long claw clashes with the sword, and a few more exchanges try to slip a blow past him but Zuflixal mostly finds himself on the defensive here. Runealy uses that opening and rushes in with her wand emitting a yellow energy ray in front of itself as a 'blade'... albeit one not even as powerful as any given Knight's sword. It's nonetheless something she can use with some discrimination, avoiding hitting any friends as she runs in to swing at Zuflixal's sides and connects with a modest blow before leaping back to give others room to attack, returning to Vale's protection in short order.

Hino uses this opening, and this time his sword strikes Zuflixal cleanly. The demon staggers back several steps, claw swinging wildly in an attempt to force Hino back from any follow-up blows... but the wound, as flames linger on his form, is a serious one.

Vale has given Amulet Spade a very interesting boost. Zuflixal snarls at the pair, lunging in to swipe dark-ice at Spade... but the 'lightning-spade' has the reach advantage here.

It strikes first, thrusting in and catching his momentum. The demon makes a series of choking noises as it tries to conjure up more ice, but the only word it eventually manages is "Im... impossible...!", before blue fire bursts along its body, then it crumbles to dust.

The lightning also seems to have mercifully shorted out the display controls here, putting an end to the alarms, smoke, and light-strobing.

Gaofele Doiru has posed:
Guardian Gao swaps back to his quarterstaff, then fully unsummons what's left of the tree. "Well. That was... lively," he remarks, pacing around the room. He doubts that there's any other demons present, but he doesn't intend to de-henshin until after the rest of the place has been checked.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Guardian Hino steps back and watches as the demon...crumbles into dust. He nods a bit and looks around. "Everyone okay!?" he calls out.

When it's clear the danger has passed---he puts his sword back into it's scabbard.

He looks around. "Alright. I'm going to go look around and find out who or what is here and if there's anymore danger. If you hear me scream something, it's probably danger." he says as he begins to leave, unless someone stops him... he stops mid stride. He turns to Amulet.

"Thank you for your help, Amu-san!" he smiles appreciativly.

Then he turns back to leaving- once again, unless someone stops him.

Amu Hinamori has posed:
Amulet Spade lands on the ground in the dust, sending it flying everywhere. She flourishes her staff, and then Miki pops back out doing cartwheels inher excitement, leaving Amu Hinamori behind in her blue skirt and tie again. The pink-haired girl stares at the dust around her, then looks up tot he Guardians. "What .... was that?" she asks, confusedly.

Valeria Barun has posed:
    Guardian Vale flourishes her sword as the demon erupts into blue flame, smiling a little and calling, "Very well done, Amulet Spade!" She thought it would be effective, but she didn't realize it would be -that- effective. There's something to be said for Runealy and four Guardian Knights and even outside help though. It isn't as if the demon, now disintegrating into dust, wasn't hard pressed to it's very limits and beyond by the others. Still... that Amulet Spade was able to deliver such a decisive blow is impressive. She won't be forgetting that soon.

    Now that the danger is over she walks over to the pile of dust the demon became. She looks down, turning her eyes downward without tilting her head. In fact it tilts up a little bit. An armored boot steps onto the edge of the pile, grinding some of the dust. "Exactly what your kind was meant to be," she murmurs to herself.

    That moment of darkness passed she puts away her sword, shield remaining strapped to her left arm, and turns to Amu. "That was a demon. They are vile, cruel, and violent creatures who seek only to sew havoc and discord. In times long past the used to hunt our people for sport. Given the chance they would do so again and reduce this world and every other to ashes."

    Okay, maybe the gloomy moment wasn't quote over yet. She offers a smile, "But we're not about to let that happen, are we? Thank you very much for your help, it is greatly appreciated. Even a weak demon can be deadly if given the opportunity to strike."