[KQ] Bigger A(spire)ations

Trapped. It was trapped, and so it waited. Curling in upon itself like some grotesque, leathery ball, the cage tightened around it. And then the world grew light, grew blinding and hot and there was fire and noise. It grew silent. It concentrated, even as its flesh peeled and sizzled and detonations embedded sharp rubble beneath its skin. Remi's blast of fire had been successful - the group would know that much. Ronin's grenade, too, hit home, and the crackling cage grew hazy with the dust and ashes that erupted from the ground in its wake. Then Roana hurled her bomb and it sailed, sure and true, directly at the demon! Only... Only... When the dust cleared, it wasn't in the cage any longer. No. Fizzing and flickering, as if the effort had put strain upon its systems, the creature stood quietly, its rictus grin a mess of inky blood and jagged teeth. It stood right. Behind. Ronin. With a screech that would disorient the ex-captain and echo up and around the Spire, it raked Ronin's back with a deep slash of its claws. It was a miracle that it didn't manage to snag hold of his spine in the process, else it would have ripped it right out like an irksome splinter. The initiative order is as follows (determined by dice roll): MONSTER, REMI, RONIN, ASH, ROANA. Your turn is roughly 6 seconds long, so keep that in mind when writing your posts. If you want to use your turn to protect someone else, you must have specified that in your previous post. {ATK REMI - HIT} {ATK RONIN - HIT} {ATK ASHETTA- MISS} {ATK ROANA - CRITICAL HIT} {MONSTER - CRITICAL DODGE} At the same time as Roana's critical hit went off, the monster critically dodged it. Madness ensues. Enjoy. {ATK MONSTER - CRITICAL HIT} ENDING HP Monster: 246 Remi: 137 Ronin: 127 Ashetta: 105 Roana: 75 whatever doesn't kill me better run