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Royal Confrontation (Adrian & Kaya)
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Post by Octavio on Jul 20, 2023 18:29:30 GMT
"So, this is the café you were talking about, Taranza?" Octavio asked, as he looked through the window to see inside the building. The Floral Garden Café certainly lived up to it's name, with both the interior and exterior decorated with a wide variety of flowers. Even the furniture itself seemed to be formed from wooden roots that had naturally grown into the shape of tables and chairs of all sizes. "It looks... pretty nice actually."
"Oh, yes. Whenever I'm in town, I usually try to stop by for a cup of tea." Taranza replied, a warm smile on his face as he remembered his previous visits. "But it simply wouldn't do to go in before our colleagues arrive. Such an act would would be in poor taste!"
That's right, Octavio, Tartar, and Taranza had invited Adrian, Kaya, and their partners to meet them at the café so they could figure out a plan for confronting the brothers' tyrannical mother, Queen Vespa, over lunch. The trio seemed to have arrived a bit early to their rendezvous, however, so they were simply waiting for the others to show up. Setting up the meeting was honestly the tricky part, since Tartar basically had to hack into Tamernet and go trawling through the system to find Adrian and Kaya's contact info (not that the Kokuwamon would admit to this out loud).
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Post by Kaya Matsui and Hawkeye on Jul 23, 2023 3:27:18 GMT
"The Floral Garden Café..."
Adrian couldn't help but read the sign out loud when he and his partner, Shoutmon, as well as their friends Kaya and Hawkeye, had arrived together at the café they were supposed to meet Octavio and his army at. Some time ago, a JewelBeemon and his Stingmon team had attacked their queen's deserter son, and the battle escalated into one that caused significant damage to Rosewood. From Darkness Loaders being involved to the JewelBeemon's queen using loading as a punishment... there was a lot that needed to be done.
"It's a very nice-looking café," Hawkeye said, smiling as he took in the unique architecture of the place.
"There they are," Kaya said, pointing out the three that they were waiting for. There was Octavio himself, the leader of the Xros Army; Tartar, the Kokuwamon-X scientist; and Taranza, Tartar's half-brother that had joined the army after finding out how scummy his mother truly was. The four of them would approach the trio by the entrance of the café.
"Octavio, Tartar, good to see you both again," Shoutmon said, waving to each of them. Then his eyes moved over to Taranza. "And we meet once again... Taranza, right? I don't know if you recognize me, but I'm the OmniShoutmon that took the buggy quintet away. This here is my partner, Adrian Boriker."
"You can just call me Adrian," he said, rubbing the back of his head. This man was fairly tall for a human, and a tad bit larger-set, but he had gotten considerably more fit ever since he Biomerged with Shoutmon. His attire was what you'd expect an adventurer from the modern day to have, with a red shirt, blue jeans, and a white short-cape.
After the group had gone inside and placed their orders for lunch, now was the time for them to talk business. Kaya would be the one to start it off. "I think we should start by you guys telling us more about Queen Vespa," she said, specifically to Tartar and Taranza.
"I agree. From what Kaya, Hawkeye, and Shoutmon told me, not only were those five under the service of Vespa, but they also were in possession of something called a Darkness Loader. What I'm interested in is how the hell they got such a thing."
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Post by Octavio on Jul 23, 2023 4:14:23 GMT
As Adrian, Kaya, and their partners arrived, Taranza made sure to offer a hand to Shoutmon for a handshake with a warm smile. "Ah, yes. I do thank you for making sure they didn't cause any more problems. As for Miss Kaya and Sir Hawkeye, I can only apologize once more for the trouble I unintentionally caused you and your friends. Even if Thresh and his men acted of their own will, I can't help but feel partially responsible for that mess."
As the group found a table inside and placed their orders, Kaya had decided to cut to the chase and ask the two brothers to explain the deal with their mother while they waited for their food. at the mention of Queen Vespa, Taranza's smile quickly faded into a somber expression as he clasped his hands together. "Ah, yes. I suppose that would be the best place to start."
Seeing his brother's tension, Tartar decided to take over for him. "Our mother is a tyrant, plain and simple. She has the ability to control nearby insect Digimon around her, which she uses to rule her hive with an iron fist. Her control is less effective against those of her own bloodline, but that doesn't mean she can't exert some degree of influence on us. I suspect that may even be why you never caught on to her true nature until you came to Rosewood, far from her domain."
It took a moment for that connection to click in Taranza's mind, but once it did the Silkosamon would facepalm at the revelation. "Truly, I am an idiot for not catching on. But I suppose that was the point, wasn't it? Regardless, I believe I may have a lead as to how Thresh acquired the Darkness Loader. Recently, our mother had negotiated a contract with a Datamon and his men to expand our hive's underground tunnel network for a new factory section. She would not tell me what this new factory expansion was for, but I suppose that could be what it's meant to produce."
"Hm, that factory's going to need investigating, at the very least." Octavio solemnly replied, twirling a straw through a glass of water. "We've seen the trouble that one Darkness Loader could cause. A factory's worth could cause who knows how much more chaos."
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Post by Kaya Matsui and Hawkeye on Jul 25, 2023 3:51:06 GMT
"Taranza, we don't blame you a single bit for that," Kaya said, trying to help Taranza feel a bit better about the situation. "You helped me the most when I lost all my motivation for fighting after Thresh Xrossed with his men. I can't thank you enough for that."
"Indeed," Hawkeye added, "Without your motivation, I wouldn't have been able to evolve to Eaglemon and fight back against the GrandisKuwagamon."
Once they were inside the café and had ordered their food, the group got down to business. Tartar explained that their mother, Queen Vespa, was a tyrant that ruled with an iron fist, thanks to her ability to control insect Digimon nearby. "You're saying that she can mind control insect Digimon? Just like that?" Adrian asked. "Is it a pheromone or an auditory thing?"
"It's a good thing that Yuji and Kazuo aren't involved in this," Kaya muttered to herself.
Tartar then claimed it didn't work as well on those of her own bloodline, but she was still able to get some control in. He suspected that was why Taranza hadn't been able to catch on to Vespa's wickedness until he was far away from the hive.
"She may be able to control insects," Shoutmon said, "but she may have a problem controlling dragons, birds, and octopi. Now that we know what's going on, what's stopping us from going in there and confronting her with an army of our own?"
As for the Darkness Loaders, Taranza mentioned how Vespa negotiated a contract with a Datamon for adding a new factory section to their hive. Adrian thought back to the time when he, Shoutmon, and Luneth fought with Octavio's army on an island to save their companions, Soundwave and Laserbeak. There was a Datamon there, one that blew up the lab they found, presumably so that his work wouldn't be discovered.
"There was something else about the Darkness Loaders," Kaya spoke up, staring at her water glass. "Something about it... it caused GrandisKuwagamon to lose its mind, like the Loader itself was... I don't know, doing something to him. You remember, don't you, Octavio?"
"They're even more dangerous than we thought," Hawkeye said. "We need to not only confront Vespa herself, but destroying that factory should also be a priority."
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Post by Octavio on Jul 26, 2023 19:50:36 GMT
"Her Insect Domination ability is primarily auditory in nature, yes. The buzzing of her wings puts her targets into a hypnotic state where they'll do whatever she desires, be it directing them in real-time or even placing post-hypnotic commands that can be set off by a sensory trigger." Tartar explained, his body twitching as his explanation brought up unpleasant memories from his childhood. "She wasn't above using that to torment me as punishment for... misbehaving as a child. One of the main reasons I ran away and never looked back until recently."
Taranza frowned as he took his brother's hand, while also rubbing Tartar's back. His frown deepened a bit more when Shoutmon asked about going in with an army. "Charging in guns-blazing with a large army likely wouldn't get us very far. She'd simply lock down the hive into a veritable fortress while burying us alive in guards. The hive is basically an entire underground city at this point, with well over a hundred guards. If she equipped them with Darkness Loaders, as well? Well, you've seen the damage ONE did, so imagine what would happen if they used 5 of them? Or 10? Or 20? They'd eat us alive before we even broke through the front gates."
And wasn't the thought of potentially facing a swarm of berserk GrandisKuwagamons a sobering mental image?
"Well, I guess we'll have to figure out how we will be going in, then." Octavio said, contemplating their situation as he added wasabi shavings to his soup after the group's food and drinks had arrived. "I hate having to drag you guys into our business like this, but I don't think we could pull this off without your help. Even with my entire team behind me, we just don't have the strength to do this on our own."
At Kaya's mention of the Darkness Loaders, however, Tartar had his own findings to share as he set the broken remains of Thresh's device on the table. "From what I managed to recover from what's left of this Loader, I learned a few things of interest. For one thing, this Darkness Loader seems to be less efficient than a normal Xros Loader. Thresh merging with 6 Digimon like he did should have resulted in a Super Mega-level fusion, yet GrandisKuwagamon was only as strong as a Mega-level Digimon. The more important detail I found is that this device contained an override function, letting an outside force control GrandisKuwagamon remotely to make him go berserk. Quite an insidious method to enforce obedience, if I must say so."
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Post by Kaya Matsui and Hawkeye on Jul 31, 2023 0:13:57 GMT
The group all frowned when Tartar not only explained how Vespa's hypnotic abilities worked, but also how she would use them as a punishment for misbehaving. Kaya especially didn't want to think about what Vespa could've made Tartar do back then. "I'm... I'm sorry to hear that, Tartar," Kaya said. "What she did to both you and Taranza was awful."
"What she's doing is no different than what Grandmaster did," Adrian said. "That's why we're going to work side by side and stop her together."
As excited about the "shoot first, ask questions later" approach as Shoutmon was, it was effectively shot down by Taranza, who stated that Vespa could simply put the whole place on lockdown and bury them alive with guards. And if they did have a Darkness Loader factory, she could arm most of them with the devices, as well. "...alright, yeah, you have a point there," Shoutmon said, slumping down in his seat.
That's when the group's food arrived. Shoutmon dug into his meal like he usually does while Adrian, Kaya, and Hawkeye took their time while eating. Octavio apologized for bringing the group into this mess, but insisted that their army didn't have the strength to take on something like this. "You don't need to apologize for asking us for help," Hawkeye said before putting a bite of ramen noodles into his beak.
"Hawkeye's right. It's much better that you ask for help on something like this, then to be way over your head."
Tartar shared his findings of the Darkness Loader as the group ate. First of all, it seemed to be less efficient than a Xros Loader, considering that Thresh Xrossed with six Digimon yet only got to the equivalent of a Mega level. "Not to mention that two of those Digimon were Xrossed with Thresh accidentally."
Then Tartar mentioned there was an override function in the Loader, letting an outside force be able to make the GrandisKuwagamon go berserk from the outside. "That explains his sudden freak-out during our fight."
"The more I hear about this, the worse it sounds," Adrian said with a sigh.
"I agree," Shoutmon said. "If barging in isn't going to work, then I guess we have to do this the... ugh... 'subtle' way. Adrian and I will act as ambassadors of Rosewood, question Vespa ourselves in a civilized manner... with a plan for when things go awry, of course."
"Then Hawkeye and I can investigate the Darkness Loader factory and destroy it before Vespa gets a chance to use them," Kaya added.
"This will be an incredibly risky plan, I must say. Both sides will likely be in great danger. Tartar, Taranza, what say you?"
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Post by Octavio on Sept 1, 2023 18:41:14 GMT
"Well, we do at least have a plan that could get us in the door, so to speak. If my mother wants me brought in so badly, then let's bring me to her. It would likely be more believable if we have Adrian, Shoutmon, and Taranza bring Octavio, Soundblaster, and me to the hive as bound 'prisoners', under the cover story that the two of you helped capture us after we took down Taranza's guards." Tartar explained, his tone making it clear he wasn't fond of the plan despite knowing it'd be the best way to get close to his "mother".
"Yes, and while we do that, Cecilia, Belle, Soundwave and Laserbeak will sneak into the hive from the outside using the ventilation system. Being mostly underground, the hive requires a lot of fresh air to be pumped in at all times, after all. Luckily, I prepared a map that will help you chart a path to the factory levels." Taranza added, as he handed a folded piece of paper to Kaya. "You must tread carefully, though. The primary factory, where the hive produces large amounts of honey and fruit preserves for export, will likely be guarded by Stingmons, which shouldn't be too difficult to avoid. The one producing the Darkness Loaders,, however, has a much stronger defense: the hive's strongest and most loyal Cannonbeemon, augmented with enhanced armor and targeting sensors, will likely prove to be the greatest hurdle in shutting that factory down."
"I don't think I need to ask this, but as a parent I'll do so anyways." Octavio solemnly stated "Make whatever preparations you need to before we leave. Especially with your families, on the off chance we don't make it back."
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Post by Kaya Matsui and Hawkeye on Sept 7, 2023 3:55:17 GMT
Tartar and Taranza both seemed confident in their plan for getting into Queen Vespa's hive, so to speak. Adrian, Shoutmon, and Taranza would bring in Octavio, Soundblaster, and Tartar as "prisoners" for the queen, while Kaya and Hawkeye would go with Cecilia, Belle, Soundwave, and Laserbeak and sneak into the hive, find the Darkness Loader factory, and destroy it. Kaya unfolded the map as Taranza explained the plan further, which involved what to expect in terms of resistance.
"Hmmmm... okay, yeah, this'll work," Kaya said with a smile as she looked at the map.
"What if on the off chance that Vespa sees through our little charade?" Adrian asked. "If she's anything like you're making her out to be, she's no moron. And there's no way that I'm comfortable with having her send you three to a prison ward without a good way to bust you out."
When Taranza mentioned a Cannonbeemon would be guarding the Darkness Loader factory, Kaya and Hawkeye both tensed up, as the last one they faced was infected with a virus known as ExD, which had turned it into a walking (or rather, flying) abomination. These stunned looks were not lost on Adrian and Shoutmon.
"Are you two okay?" Adrian asked, raising an eyebrow and crossing his arms.
"Yeah, we're fine," Kaya responded, trying to sound perfectly calm. "So like Taranza said, we shouldn't have too much trouble if we encounter the Stingmon guards. Hawkeye was able to make Thrash look really dumb, remember."
"It's the Cannonbeemon that we should reasonably be worried about," Hawkeye said, putting his wings together in thought. "Tartar, Taranza, do either of you know any weaknesses that the armor or sensors will have? We'll need any kind of advantage that we get in case we need to fight."
Octavio asked the group to make any preparations before they left... including talking to families in case they didn't make it back. "Don't talk like that, Octavio. We're all making it out of this. Got it?"
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Post by Octavio on Apr 15, 2024 17:03:22 GMT
"She won't just send us to the prison ward." Tartar explained flatly when Adrian questioned whether their ruse would work or not, his claws clenching the edge of the table hard enough to make the wood creak from the stress. "No, if she's still the same as she was while I was growing up, she's not going to be satisfied unless she deals with me personally. Getting her to buy our ruse simply gives us a chance to strike while her guard's relatively down."
Seeing Tartar's tension, Octavio patted his comrade's back while gently prying the Kokuwamon's pincers away from the table before he damaged it. After letting go, Tartar simply stared at his pincers with a distant look on his face for a minute before snapping back to attention. "Sorry about that."
There was a moment of awkwardness before Taranza decided to change topics by answering Kaya's questions about the Cannonbeemon guarding the Darkness Loader factory level. He did see how Kaya and Hawkeye reacted to the mention of the Cannonbeemon, and simply chalked it up to them probably having a bad experience with one in the past (which was mostly true, anyways). "The Cannonbeemon was only recently upgraded and is still considered to be in its 'prototype stage', meaning it shouldn't be at full power yet due to its cybernetics still needing to be fine-tuned. Its weapons and armor should now be comparable to that of a Mega, but the weight of the armor will slow it down. Your best option? Distract it from multiple angles so it has a hard time keeping up with all of you. You'll also want to get in close, since it lacks the ability to fight in close-quarters like that."
"Our guys will handle the distraction, since they won't be able to Xros when they're so far away from my Xros Loader." Octavio added, the latter part of his sentence laced with a bitter tone as he swirled his drink. "Those four will be the most vulnerable people in this operation, which is what worries me the most.".
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Post by Kaya Matsui and Hawkeye on Apr 19, 2024 3:34:01 GMT
Adrian didn't like the way Tartar said his mother would deal with him personally. He didn't know Tartar very well and honestly thought the guy was a little bit creepy and unstable, but that didn't mean that he deserved anything along the lines of torture. Especially from someone he once called his mother. Adrian clenched his fists tight. "I won't allow her to have her way. If she even remotely harms you, Shoutmon and I will Biomerge immediately and get all of you out of there."
"And throw away an entire plan?" Hawkeye asked. "Just like that?"
"Yes, but until then, we'll follow the plan. We still have to question Vespa about the Darkness Loader, since one of those Stingmons from before did end up revealing to Shoutmon who they got it from. Kaya, be sure to take pictures in there. If this plan works, not only will a Darkness Loader factory be shut down, but we'll also have the evidence needed to bring Vespa to justice."
"Right, picture taking, got it," Kaya confidently said with a nod. Taranza then explained how the Cannonbeemon was still considered to be in a prototype stage, and not at full power, so it'd be comparable to a Mega in terms of strength. Distracting it from multiple angles and getting in close would be the best chance of success against it. "Um, one problem: Hawkeye's a ranged fighter. He doesn't really do up close and personal."
"That's right; my powers come from the elementally-charged feathers that I can fire at will. They aren't well suited for close quarters combat. What would you suggest, in that case?"
"Well, you'll just have to improvise then, Hawky," Shoutmon said as he finished up the last of his food. "Now, what are we waiting for? Let's head on over to this hive and shut the Darkness Loader operation down for good!"
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