Morcels

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The **Morcels** are a race of minor characters in ***Ascent: Trials of Vore***. They are a collective of highly intelligent small, black ball-like creatures - ranging from ping-pong ball to basketball sized with four foggy, black tendrils for limbs and white, dot eyes - led by Mordium, the Overseer of the 3rd Floor of the Tower, of which they also serve as both a key part of the infrastructure and as audience members.

Prior to Ashley Gray's arrival on the 3rd Floor, the Morcels would be collectively handed over to the Golden Gunslinger - or "Double G" - by their former master, though Double G would choose to treat them - Mordium especially - as family rather than workers, coming to be treated as entirely friendly in return. Morcels are generally good natured creatures who set out with good intentions, and whilst this consistently holds true, there are definitely a number among them who are more brutal or combative, as displayed by their active involvement in the 3rd Floor's arena trials, via use of various mechanical monstrosities and equipment sets.

Despite this, however, individuals such as Double G would be quick to try and prove the Morcels weren't the bad guys in a given situation, and Mordium would warn to not attack them. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***

Below is a list of all Morcel characters who are known to exist.

## Mordium

Mordium is the Overseer of the 3rd Floor of the Tower, and the leader of the Morcels, being a larger, bluer Morcel with yellow eyes rather than white when compared to the rest, though he actively chooses to hide this form inside a humanoid robotic suit whenever he is around Tower climbers, for whatever reason. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***

## Shop Morcels

A group of Morcels would be placed in charge of running the infrastructure of the 3rd Floor's trial shop, serving a wide range of functions therein. These included - but were not limited to - manning the demonstration screens for various for-sale items, manning the upgrade station, and providing supply restocks to climbers at the start of arena rounds. The upgrade station Morcels were shown to be capable of upgrading any weapon or tool handed to them - albeit with exceptions in the case of some unique, special or high tech objects - giving off an almost cartoonish "work cloud" while doing so, though this was purely aesthetic and was dropped when the Morcels weren't in the best of spirits.

The climber group containing Ashley Gray would be introduced to this group of Morcels as their first experience with the race, the Morcels coming out of the woodwork from every conceivable nook and cranny after Nuon inquired as to what a Morcel was. Reactions to them would be mixed, rangeing from curiosity from Crow to nervousness from Nuon and Syl, to adoration from Ashley and Growa. Once the trial got underway and supplies had been handed out, this group of Morcels would return to the woodwork, only subsequently emerging between rounds but staying in convenient and out of the way locations when not aiding the climbers with one matter or another, per their jobs, deferring to Double G when there was a situation they couldn't resolve personally.

At least once, Ashley Gray would overhear this group singing about a shop, greed and donations. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***

## Nurse Morcels

A group of Morcels wearing miniature nurse's hats were present in the 3rd Floor's hospital room when Ashley Gray awoke, serving as medical staff. They would ensure her care on Mordium's behalf by ensuring she remained lying down until her back was healed, assuring her she was still in the competition and providing her with the special dark red mushroom and spinach soup intended to do the job of healing. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***

## Arena Morcels

A larger group of Morcels would seemingly be in charge of setting up things in and fighting in the 3rd Floor's arena as trial opponents, though they were seemingly having some trouble with the former prior to beginning due to one of the Monstanks crushing the button intended to start each round of the trial, which Double G would report to Mordium.

These Morcels would serve as the primary opponents for climbers in the trial's first, third and fifth rounds - alternating with the giant women. They would operate a wide variety of heavily fortified mechanical monstrosities and sets of equipment, ranging from helmets and makeshift guns, to robots of various sizes and designs, to tanks, many-legged mortar machines and several types of machine sporting drills, fleeing the arena once defeated.

Some sub-groups of these Morcels would pilot a series of more unique vehicles, providing a wide-range of unique bosses for each Morcel led round. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***

### Monstanks

A Monstank was a design of robotic vehicle comprised of a half-sphere of metal that would tower over most climbers. It would have an almost beachball-like look, comprised of a series of curved plates centered on an inner circle at the top capable of lifting up to reveal a cylindrical cockpit within that would house a singular Morcel. These vehicles were capable of propelling themselves high into the air via some manner of giant spring, serving as both a quick mode of movement and a slamming attack. Some Monstanks also possessed a mortar platform able to fire balls of black tar, usually stored within the vehicle but capable of being deployed through the parting of two of the vehicle's plates.

Three of these vehicles - one black, one bright red and one dark red - would serve as the trio of bosses for the first round of the 3rd Floor's trial. Though defeated, a fourth Monstank would serve as a surprise opponent during the normal attack waves of the fifth round, also being destroyed. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***

### Lorry Mk1.5

The Lorry Mk1.5 was a mechanical vehicle deployed as one of two bosses for the third round of the 3rd Floor trial, ordinarily sent out alone but doubled up during Ashley Gray's group's trial. Despite its title, the Lorry was in fact a miniature train, intended for piloting by a larger Morcel. It would tow a range of carriages, from passenger cars, to flatbeds sporting turrets, to mounted gun emplacements.

Due to the impatience of Growa and her crew, Ashley Gray's group would be forced to combat the Lorry and its partner vehicle - the Driller - mostly blind, without a full explanation of their capabilities. The Lorry would weave in and out of the arena through various gates, though an climbers caught by it - Ferra being a good example - would not be disqualified provided they held on until it returned.

Though the Lorry would take damage - most notably from Syl's rockets - it would ultimately be taken out by Ogborth launching one of Growa's pirates at the Driller, sending it flailing it into the Lorry's path, which diverted it into the arena wall. Already on its last legs, the final blow to the Lorry would be dealt by Syl and Peridot, completely annihilating it, the Morcels operating it fleeing. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***

### Driller Mk1

The Driller Mk1 was a mechanical vehicle deployed as one of two bosses for the third round of the 3rd Floor trial, ordinarily sent out alone but doubled up during Ashley Gray's group's trial. Per its name, the Driller was a giant mechanical worm of a sort that had a giant driller mounted to the front as well as 4 sets of tank treads running its length, and was capable of rapidly burrowing. The drill was able to detach temporarily, allowing the use of an internal weapon mechanism capable of firing of giant balls of destructive green energy.

Due to the impatience of Growa and her crew, Ashley Gray's group would be forced to combat the Driller and its partner vehicle - the Lorry - mostly blind, without a full explanation of their capabilities. The Driller would weave in and out of the arena through various holes in the arena, left by smaller drilling vehicles from the preceding waves of enemies. It would also throw large chunks of stone around upon emerging, one of which would strike Ashley Gray in the back, breaking it and - though she would be miraculously healed by Nuon, preventing her from being eliminated - putting her out of the immediate round.

Though the Driller would take damage - most notably by Ogborth launching one of Growa's pirates at it, sending it flailing it into the Lorry's path and beginning a chain reaction which led to the Lorry's destruction - its final destruction would come when it attempted to remove an unconscious Ashley from the arena, being prevented from doing so by Ferra punching it away, knocking the drill off and allowing Nuon to destroy from the inside with a lightning spell.

Following Ashley's recovery, it would come to light that the Morcel pilot of the Driller had deliberately drilled in front of the pirate out of guilt for hurting her, also providing her with a flare gun - despite Mordium's reluctance at letting them do so - as an apology. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***

### Apache Primes

The Apache Primes, also often nicknamed the Four Horsemen, were a set of four armored, Morcel-driven miniature helicopters - the sort that would generally require the use of ranged weapons in combating them - that served as the four bosses for the fifth round of the 3rd Floor trial. Each was a one-seater air vehicle, fitted for war.

One, the War Rager, was red and covered in metal plates. It would carry bombs in glass tubes built into its sides, with "creepy, smiling faces" painted on them. It would also possess forward facing miniguns, mounted on each side of the vehicle, that fired red paint balls of a sort. Its Morcel pilot was known to wear red war paint, to match its vehicle. It was described as being capable of continuing to fight once grounded, the miniguns able to be detached to allow the deployment of tank tracks.

Another, the Death Harbinger, was white and smooth, with scythe-shaped blades curved up at the front for landing struts, for close combat purposes. It would additionally utilize further scythe blades in place of propeller blades. Its Morcel pilot was known to wear white powder, to match its vehicle.

The third, the Famine Caller, was rusted, was able to somehow generate swarms of attacking multicolored flies that - while more of an annoyance on their own in their biting - could prove fatal when being bashed in close quarters by the vehicle. It was decaying to the point that it would be unclear how it was still flying, lacking windows and metal plates, save the the metal wiring replacing the vehicle's front windows. Its Morcel pilot would appear sickly, to match its vehicle, but in reality it simply wore a hat that gave it the appearance of frailty. The Famine Caller's pilot also had access to a flute capable of summoning Baby Min - a large, bug-like entity - in the event the Caller was brought down.

One more, the Pestilence Gasser, was green, and capable of emitting green, non-toxic sleeping gasses that could make individuals sleepy even by looking at them for too long. It would sport cannons - built into either side of the vehicle - as well as various tubes going in and out of it. Its Morcel pilot would wear a gas mask with green tinted glass built into it.

On arrival from shutters behind the arena stands, the four vehicles and their pilots would put on a short airshow as Mordium introduced them, before getting underway and shooting at the climbers present, forcing them out of hiding and leading to various climbers facing each chopper in smaller groups or even individually.

The Famine Caller would be brought down trying to charge Ashley Gray - instead crashing into a wall - followed by the pilot passing out when summoning Baby Min caused the bug's powers to backfire on them. The Pestilence Gasser would be downed by Nuon via repeatedly launching fireballs at it, destroying it by igniting the fuel leaking from the wreck of a Monstank resting close to its crash site. The War Rager would be grounded by Syl and Ferra playing bait with it, allowing the former to cause it to crash. It would activate its ground mode, running over an exhausted Ferra before the same climber recovered, angrily tore half of the vehicle's engine out and launched the Morcel pilot through an arena gate.

The final chopper - the Death Harbinger - would be destroyed at the seeming cost of the climber Peridot, who - after being cornered to the point of surrender by it - would be crushed by the vehicle when a failed attempt to knock the vehicle away by Ogborth brought it down on top of her. However, Peridot would in fact survive, the Morcel pilot of the Harbinger recovering her intact gem and handing it over to Mordium. ***(Floor 3 - Greed and Glory)***