Fantasy Avarice:// The World That Never Was (ACCEPTING!)

[Elenion Aura]

Creator, are... you... Mother?
If you would like to think of me that way.
Then I... am... Child..?​

Too much... There was too much... Happening. Why..? Why was this... difficult? Now there was a woman, not as frightening... But she was getting closer. Too close... Too close... Too close!

He swiped at the gulf of open space - steadily narrowing - that separated the Prize, and the passenger, from him, in his space, floating... Suddenly there was a great, awful... Noise. He thought... Maybe he’d screamed? Or perhaps it was just the sound of the Force, emanating out of the scar left behind by the path of his arm. Invisible, it roared and collided, violently, with the Golden Apple - and the woman in her invisible cloud. His will clashed with itself - on the one hand, he desired the object to draw nearer, while on the other, he wished the woman would go away... Go away...

”Go...” He rasped, voice hoarse and otherworldly, “AWAY!”

Ultimately, his desire to be left alone overcame that which drove him to compete in this contest... Thus, the [Capture Object], suddenly unfettered by the force which had once compelled it, fell, hard, and the woman, likely, with it. The wave of force pushed everything away. Everything... Everything... That was when he saw... Wait, what is... What is he still doing here?

For the first time since his attack, as he hung limp and fetal in the air, Starchild noticed the man... Noticed... He was not... dead... Mother... How..? Why..? Why... Won’t you... Die..!

Reaching... Grasping for him... An invisible hand, in the shape of Starchild’s own, only much larger... From below. Drag him... Drag him down... Back to the earth... Pull him away... Away from... Me.

mentions: SniperBus
Euclid Leaf​

 

[CherryTart]

Lorette

Lorette, still standing guard behind Caster just in case any enemies decided to flank them, turned to glance back at her partner with a childish grin "They activate on touch! Focus and you should see it, but it must be really faint for you." She remarked stepping back a few times to her methodical new partner; she was really disliking how defenseless they were. They were in the middle of an arena with almost no cover and their enemies could be coming from any side depending on what they could do the whole notion of it sent a chill down Lorette's back. She had never been in combat before. It was still scary to her and that feeling never left, but she viewed it as helpful it kept her on edge it kept her guard up.

The childish woman backed up closer to Caster they needed to stick together at all costs without her partner Lorette was dead and without Lorette her partner was alone. "Alright! By the way I don't do drugs anymore, so maybe hold off on the dart!" She chimed over not wanting to have to use any sort of intoxication to win as that would only get her dependent then force her into the horrific cycle of addiction... again. She put her back to Caster's figuring that would be the optimal solution of coverage and cringed at the loud noises echoing from the other side of the arena along with a series of explosions. "Fucking scary." She murmured making sure to stay behind Caster back to back. "Why don't we run run run! Then when they follow us they get stuck in my rune trap and hit by your explodey thingies!"​

Interactions: ShadowHounder

 

[Beebasaur]

Mahogany stared at her partner, quickly shaking the confusion from her face, having to catch up with Two's train of thought. They really seemed to jump from thing to thing so quickly, though sadly that was expected considering they were in the middle of a battle field. It didn't mean she had to like it though. Gathering back up her wits, she followed Two towards the window, gulping as she saw what their opponents were doing. Sheepishly she turned back to Two, not wanting to really admit this but knowing it was necessary.

"I don't have very many skills that are well, aggressive. Based on the names of our opponents alone and what they seem to be doing, I'd likely be much better at, well, guarding." she explained. The only two skills she thought might really come in handy would be her water staff, and maybe Puru's tornadoes. From the sound of their names at least one of their opponents, even maybe both of them, were metal based and maybe even robotic. She knew for a fact that water and electronics usually didn't mix.

Turning her attention back to Two, she asked the most obvious question, "What are your skills? I already know I won't be much help past guarding...hopefully one of us is actually able to attack though"

Interacting: Sludge
Mentions: (NPCS) SniperBus

 

[SniperBus]

---
Beebasaur Sludge
Characters: Stanley the Steam Elemental, Dan the Motor Man, Two, Mahogany

Deep from within the other warehouse, the sound of the conveyor belts stopped with a metallic crash of something large falling onto the warehouse floor. Then, there was the clunking of metal feet on metal flooring- and the steam stopped expanding to cover the warehouse. Presumably, the two enemies were on the move. There was another crash as the sign "Penyard's Plant 'Porium Storage" fell to the ground, and then the rusty doors of the warehouse started swinging open towards the street, pushing the now-fallen sign out of the way. Abruptly, there was the sound of a starting car engine, and a large pick-up style truck, battered presumably from falling off the second floor, racing towards the warehouse Mahogany and Two were in. It went over curbs and debris in the street alike, sending the contents of the back of the truck all onto the street- crates full of live, exotic plants sitting in large piles of fresh, fertile dirt.

Though, the cabin of the truck was strangely... empty. No one was driving, yet the steering wheel was turning and the truck was moving semi-intelligently. Pouring out of the exhaust pipe, which strangely was sticking straight up from the sides of the truck, was... steam?
---
CherryTart
Characters: Lorette, Raster

"They activate on touch! Focus and you should see it, but it must be really faint for you." Lorette said to Raster, whom simply nodded. Now that she looked more clearly at the ground, she could see them- faint runes that glowed slightly, shimmering with some sort of magical power. If she was moving at all, Raster wouldn't be able to see them; they were just that hard to spot. As she looked up, she briefly saw the mechanical Vyn in the sky, clearly scouting them out, before he dropped back out of sight again. She grimaced. He was unpopular now, but Vyn was one of those Avatars built by a megacorporation, that had everything going for him- surely they didn't stand a chance?

"So maybe hold off on the dart!" Lorette spoke up, snapping Raster out of her daze. "Right. Right. Suit yourself." She said, popping open one of the dart-shaped vials, drinking it herself. Suddenly, her entire body felt lighter, and her nerve endings felt like they were on fire. The veins all around her body started pressing up against her skin, clearly starting to stand out. Her eyes widened, and the sound around her became duller, as if everything was coming through a crappy 2000's speaker from a child's toy.

"Why don't we run run run! Then when they follow us they get stuck in my rune trap and hit by your explodey thingies!" Raster started to nod at this, it was definitely a plausible idea. But with the liquid from her dart, she was finally thinking clearly. "We can't win if all we do is run. I doubt we have much of an advantage here, except in brain power." She said, turning around to face Lorette. "We have to have a plan of attack- to catch them out before they beat us. I have a few abilities we can use to force them into traps- invisible walls that I can set up anywhere- they're especially good for defense, but, with a little bit of ingenuity, we can do something real with them. For example, if I let go of my control over the wall, it'll fall on it's own- and they can be heavy, if you catch my drift. What I'm saying is.. perhaps we lay a trap?" She said with a wolfish smile.

With this, she started walking towards one of the recent runes, on the edge of the treeline, and moved under the cover of the canopy. From here, she still had a great view of the plateau. Though, for a trap, they needed bait, the trap itself, and a way to finish off their opponents... plus a few back-up plans or ten.
--
Reytian
Characters: Vyn, R3X

"You know, R3X." Vyn spoke up, his stereotypical butler-like, and surprisingly human voice resounding across the plains. "As much as I like the idea of taking a bush up this plateau, our enemies do not seem like the kind to initiate a fight. Your plan isn't some sort of trap, right?" Vyn asked. After a couple of minutes, they were at the top of the plateau, where there was a distinct lack of spider-legged mines that would, say, explode in an unwary traveller's face. "Also, thank you for giving me space when I was landing- I appreciate it. It made it very easy to not land on you."
---
Elenion Aura Euclid Leaf
Characters: Volleyball King, Lost Sword, Starchild, Lucidity

All of a sudden, the world was a swirling mass of wind and sound and everything was tearing at her, trying to remove her from her prize- the capture objective. Not the least of which was the insane rupture of applause and shouting and excitement of the audience, which became extremely restless at the sudden turn of events. This was, no doubt, one of the most exciting things they'd seen- an actual black hole being ripped apart in an utter, staggering spectacle. The dark tendrils of energy were reaching out in all directions, dragging everything towards itself- until it began to collapse, ripping itself to shreds, sending an unbelievably amount of wind and force out in all directions. Suddenly, the black matter itself was dragged painstakingly slowly towards Lucidity. As soon as even a tiny bit of the expansive darkness touched his cane, the rest started flowing directly into it, as if all racing at once to be absorbed into the Godhood of working for Lucidity himself. Then, there was the sudden quiet as the dark matter was all absorbed, pulsating now, living within Lucidity's cane. Afterwhich, the explosion of energy from Starchild- combined with the way the capture objective was constantly changing hands- was an immaculate, excellent display for Avarice. The amount of red orbs in the audience doubled, then tripled, then continued piling more and more until it was practically a red sky above the Avatars fighting.

As Lost Sword was flying extremely quickly downwards towards the basin, her sword came loose, and she grabbed onto the capture objective itself before impacting the basin itself, and rolling around hard in the dirt. She was dazed for the moment, still clinging onto it.

Volleyball King, however, had had enough of this nonsense. "My, for such a big, burly man, where are all your balls? With such a name... Overcompensating for something, much?" At this, he roared, and ran onto the basin proper, before leaping towards the Lost Sword. She was holding onto some golden, shimmering ball.. thing. He recognized it as a projectile, and that would do for him. He picked it up, straining against the surprising weight of it before his entire body flashed over with a red energy, and it seemingly became weightless to him. "OVERCOMPENSATE... THIS!" He shouted, grimacing, tossing up the capture objective with Lost Sword still attached to it. She put 2 and 2 together, though, and quickly dropped from the objective before it came in front of Volleyball King's hand. At this point, he hit it with his open palm, where the was again a flash of red energy, and crackling electric particle effects. The capture objective stopped in midair for a moment, and then the force of the blow sent it flying directly at Lucidity, at near insane speeds.

 

[Euclid Leaf]

- Free-For-All(Item Capture) Arena

...

Lucidity was brimming when the cane absorbed the black hole, shirking his shoulders and smiling to hide the ruggedness he felt deep in his chest. Perhaps he was taking on far too much. No, he was definitely taking on too much. His body wasn't nearly ready yet.

"Haha... You're too much rough... but I think... I think, I like it that way? Huh."

His hands shook as the jacket-torn man took one long breath to gather his breath, his eyes shining a vivid indigo as he lowered the blackened cane glowing with gravitational, cosmic energies. His teeth showed as he heard the roaring of the crowd, nearly shaking in the thundering claps and hoots. Peeling off the excess skin off his forearm, he laughed to himself. All around him was the glimmering of red. It was like staring into the black night, and seeing the stars. He almost lost himself in the sight, if not for the rusty wetness clinging in his throat. He shook his head, ignoring the cries of his failing body. His bony rib cage expanded as Lucidity puffed out his chest and stood straight once more. Yes, it was just a small pain for something greater.

Still, he was not victorious yet. He still needed to--

The Objective entered into his [Aura] like a bullet, quite literally sent spiraling from a cannon spike piercing the sky. He barely had enough time to dart his head, eyes wide in shock. Lucidity did not have enough time to revert one of his commands, nor did he set himself up for a counter-attack. He had taken too much leeway and allowed his opponents too many openings. And this one might cost him dearly. But the energized ball of doom was not the only threat that raced unto Lucidity Another shift in the lower half of his [Aura] signaled that Starchild had begun their next move. He sensed they were distressed, but couldn't focus more on it as he rushed to face the two-fold threats from below him. Reality;Lent only had one command remaining. He had to make it count.

Left with no choice, Lucidity took the cane in both hands and swung it down, screaming the very air out of his lungs. He cringed. It was unsightly and near savage, but with such little time, he needed to be as efficient as possible. This was it. The grand move to end it all. One last bang for the crowd. Best to keep the first performance short, to keep them wanting more. He almost didn't care who won at this point, after hearing the applause.

But of course, that was a lie... More than anything, he...

As he slammed his cane down in the direction of the ball, Lucidity made one last command as the air erupted from his lungs.

"Fifth, and final Command: Virtuous(My Cane); release all of your energy upon impact!"

With any luck, the ball would shoot down into the bottom portal, shot by the force of the energies he accumulated. If not, he had only a few moments before all of his commands would be nullified and he would be at the mercy of the black hand rushing to crush him.

...

Mentioned: Starchild, meme ball king.

 

[Sludge]

//Two
//Arena - [2 Versus 2] Search and Destroy
//Two, Mahogany and 2 npcs
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"I don't have very many skills that are well, aggressive. Based on the names of our opponents alone and what they seem to be doing, I'd likely be much better at, well, guarding." she explained.

Two recalled the other team as she listened to Mahogany. Dan the Motor man and Stanley the Steam Elemental were likely machinery based avatars. Mahogany seemed confident in her ability to deal with them. Good.

Turning her attention back to Two, she asked the most obvious question, "What are your skills? I already know I won't be much help past guarding...hopefully one of us is actually able to attack though"

"Well... I have this." She showed her the sword. Calling it a sword was a bit of an exaggeration, it was more of metal rod tapered to one end like an over-sized needle. Weirdly plain, very sharp.

"I stab things like really fast and teleport short distances. As long as the fight is at range zero, I won't lose. Also..."

It seemed like there was more but she cut herself off. She briefly locked her eyes with the fawn through the visor, seemingly taking the measure of her temporary ally. There was a barely noticeable spark of tension, but it immediately went away.

"Eh-he," She rubbed the back of her head. "I am new to this teamwork stuff, so I will listen to you. That's all!"

Someone sharp enough to see through good lies would be able to tell that she wasn't eager to reveal the rest of her arsenal.​

the rusty doors of the warehouse started swinging open towards the street, pushing the now-fallen sign out of the way. Abruptly, there was the sound of a starting car engine, and a large pick-up style truck, battered presumably from falling off the second floor, racing towards the warehouse Mahogany and Two were in. It went over curbs and debris in the street alike, sending the contents of the back of the truck all onto the street- crates full of live, exotic plants sitting in large piles of fresh, fertile dirt.

Though, the cabin of the truck was strangely... empty. No one was driving, yet the steering wheel was turning and the truck was moving semi-intelligently. Pouring out of the exhaust pipe, which strangely was sticking straight up from the sides of the truck, was... steam?

Two turned towards the source of the disturbance. Suddenly the doors of the other warehouse swung open and a truck rushed out from the inside heading straight for them. Was it the Motor Man himself, perchance? Two had seen many avatars but an automobile would be a first.

Two remained sitting in one of the window frames of the second floor. If Mahogany was still around, Two would look at her, her eyes asking, should we do anything about this?
[/DIV]
Beebasaur
mentions: SniperBus

 

[Reytian]

“...” R3X was at a lost of words. That was exactly his plan. “Yes...” he said a little bit ashamed. While running to the top he contemplated on wether or not he should just toss the bush off the side and come up with a new plan or just stick with it. In the end, he stuck with it.

Once making it at the top R3X positioned himself inside of the bush and began to slowly walk ahead of Vyn at a rate of half a foot per fifteen seconds. “Oh yes, I indeed saw the threat of being squashed upon being troublesome,” R3X smiled with a nod but it’s not like it was obvious since only his boots were visible along with an outline of him within the bush. He started to slowly make his way near to the water on the top of the plateau. “Let me know when you see our company. Then faze “Lightning and Fire” will began my fellow brethren,” R3X said before accidentally bumping into a boulder. “AH! You darn fingernail of Gaea!” he loudly whispered while walking past it to make it next to the water. “Make sure to yell if you see them Vyn. For this shall be a day to remember,” the gladiator said excitedly.

Interactions: SniperBus

 

[Elenion Aura]

Mother... What... Am... I..?
You are an Avatar.
Am I the... only one..?
There are many others. With luck, you’ll never meet them.
Others... Like me?​

Wrong. Wrong..? Wrong! What he’d done was... Wrong. Now he was going to... Lose?

The Thing - the thing which he sought - had nearly been his. If it became his, he would win. Yes, those were the... rules. He had let it go, because... Because... His wide-eyes narrowed. Because of the woman. And the man. And the... Another man. They were all... down there. Down there with... The Thing! He should go, too... He must go!

Descending from above, Starchild reached for it once more. But, but... There were... Problems. Moving. It kept moving. Here, with the woman, on the floor. Then there, with the man, in the air. Lazily, his hand followed its haphazard path. He was getting close... But not too close. Not close enough to... Touch. Still, he waited... And watched.

The man - the man he did not know - reared back... He was, large. Larger than the other man... Small man... The large man was, wait... Why? The large man relinquished the objective. Starchild felt... Anger, then. He extended his arm... He would grab it, snatch it away... Take it far away from the large man, the fool...

Then the small man reappeared in his field of vision... Reappeared as the target that the large man had deigned worthy of The Thing. Starchild... Imagined... For a brief moment... The Thing obliterating the small man... Turning him to dust, or red... Powder. He couldn’t realize, then... That it was too much to hope for. The small man, using an energy that felt... Familiar... Smacked the Objective with his stick.

Its trajectory... Altered... And as it hurtled, impossibly fast, toward the portal, he reached... Reached out... Tugged at the invisible strings... Which held all things in their place... The Object’s strings felt like terrible, jagged-edged ropes... Being yanked through his grip... Eviscerating... The flesh of his palm. He pulled. The Object’s momentum lessened... Not enough. It wouldn’t be enough... Not without...

His second hand, emerged from the fold of his waist... His fingers, curled, looked like claws... His hands, a short distance apart, as if they already held the Object between them, began to shake... White hot lines snaked up his arms, bulging, wriggling... He felt as if he might... Shatter...

A meter above the portal, the Object... Halted.

Starchild did not celebrate... Could not. Something, within him, had... Opened... Or perhaps, something had snapped. And, like water burst from a dam... Memories... Memories of a place he’d never been... Of faces he’d never seen... Flooded his mind. Concentration, shattered... Starchild’s hands clutched its head... Its... It...

The Object, unattached, resumed its fall, aided by gravity... Its natural gravity... Toward the portal. Starchild did not notice... Did not care...

mentions: SniperBus
Euclid Leaf​

 

[Crazy Trey-n]

Cosmo
Spectacle Arena, Elimination Free-for-All

The transformation would have stopped Cosmo in his tracks if the sand not slid and churned beneath him, sending him skidding into a clumsy halt. Solder had been an intimidating Avatar to begin with, but this new form was on a different level, even moreso up close and personal as the two currently were.

For a moment, he genuinely considered backing off and waiting out the fight, or possibly even going for one of the others that were still at a distance. Was this worth the pain and suffering that facing this monstrosity ultimately led to? Why continue to fight?

No. And then, out loud, "No." Why give in now? Why cast off his own potential just because a new challenge had arisen? He began to reflect back onto his initial days walking this world and remembered what he felt at the time: the desire to see more and the drive to go above and beyond. Backing out of this fight would be a direct contradiction to what he believed his purpose was... to learn everything and anything he could. One of the many chunks of metal that Solder had brought forth with his change slammed into the ground beside the man, reminding him that he'd need to act fast to survive, if he even could.

It had been quite some time since Cosmo had shaped the world itself and he'd hoped that he wouldn't have to show his hand, but desperate times called for desperate measures. A deep breath was inhaled through his nose and he simultaneously lifted one knee high enough that it touched his chest. When he exhaled, the raised leg slammed down foot-first against the ground, reverberating the terrain as a massive slab of sand as tall and wide as Solder rose up between the two of them. One hand flicked towards the slab and it nearly instantly changed from a grainy, beige mass of sand into something slightly darker and far more solid. He would have attempted to change the sand into a slab of diamond or granite if possible, but it would have taken time that he did not have. Sandstone would have to do. Once the material looked as though it wouldn't simply sandblast Solder with a shower of sand grains, he jabbed an elbow in the slab's direction and the motion sent it immediately soaring in Solder's direction at the same speed as his concussive blasts. The effort alone caused him to grunt aloud and was seemingly physically straining; his face contorted to express his concentration with brows furrowed, lips pursed, and though it couldn't be seen beneath the layers of clothing he wore, every muscle was coiled as tightly as a spring ready to burst.

Cosmo made another as quickly as possible after yet another foot stomp, a flick of the hand, and an elbow jab in the air to send it flying - just in case. Perhaps it was due to energy it took, but Cosmo completely neglected to look for the other two combatants, leaving him entirely open to an attack should they send one at him.

SniperBus

 

[SniperBus]

Crazy Trey-n
Characters: Cosmo, Glitch Witch, Gunslaughter, Solder

Solder rolled his shoulders and started, sort of... flexing when Cosmo stopped and hesitated for a moment. If Solder could speak, he would have goaded the man to come forward. Instead, it was Solder that stepped forward, his arm beginning to glow red hot. Already, metal was dripping from the end of the nozzle, landing in the sand with a hiss, toxic fumes rising into the air to mix with the lovely aroma of burning stone.

Solder had long awaited this moment. A chance to prove himself again, to smite down foes in the most glorious event of the year.. to feel the praise that he was once showered with. Solder was one of the long line of Avatars from Avarice://Beta_Patch, when the software was designed as a rudimentary fighting game between monsters. Back then, there was no need to compete for popularity- no sense in being glamorous- all an Avatar had to do was spill blood, and that was good enough. But, companies and corporations noticed a massive opportunity, and Avarice took off, and poor Solder and all of the other monstrous Avatars were left in the dust to rot, forgotten to time. Who would cheer on some monstrosity, anyway? Monsters were just a villain; an opponent to be defeated by a stronger, more suave Avatar- that would take all of the popularity for the fight, all the recognition. Worse yet was that Solder was perfectly capable of thinking, but there was no way to get those thoughts out of his purple murderflesh. As a result, he became an echo chamber for himself; every bad thought he had was amplified by the thousands of failures he had- he was in a system designed to drag him down.

A system

designed

to kill him.​

He became overwhelmed with rage, at all times, becoming a monster among monstrosities, and his emotions were always carried through every inch of his rotting purple fatty flesh. He was abhorrent. He knew that. And he knew, that no matter how many times he won, no one would ever cheer his name- there would be no recognition, no glamour, no fame. The only thing Solder would ever be allowed to enjoy was the booing and jeering of the audience, no matter how impressive his display was.

He just

wanted

silence.​

But silence could only come through blood. A display of force so brutal they would have no choice but to shut up. To stare in awe at him, just as it was in the old days.

He had long awaited this moment- this hesitation from his opponent- the chance to shut them all up. In a single motion, he brought up his cybernetic arm to bear. I will turn you into a paste. There will be no red mist; you will be even less distinguishable than that. You will bear the full force of all of my hatred, and all of my strength. It's nothing personal.

It's just

business.
​

Immediately, he was snapped out of his train of thought by a wall of sand put up between him and his prey. Then, suddenly, it was a wall of sandstone- hurtling into him at immense speed. As it approached, he dug his stone feet into the sand, punching a hole through the wall with his Solder Gun, firing an immensely charged up cannonball of molten steel at Cosmo. Unfortunately, the sand had no purchase or traction, and he was sent flying backwards, over the edge of the pit, crumbling chunks of stone falling down all around him. He landed on his back on the now white-hot stone basin of the pit, the rocky plating on his back providing a momentary safety from the heat.

But, of course, some rocks crumble under weight, and he found himself sinking into the lava below only seconds later.

He only had a second to say goodbye to the only world he ever knew, before he no longer processed anything at all.

"[ELIMINATION - COSMO HAS DEFEATED [AVATAR DEACTIVATED]. HE IS NOW IN THE LEAD WITH ONE ELIMINATION." Yelled the AI announcer.

Of course, there were now other opponents to deal with, as the gunfire whizzing across the arena towards Glitch Witch reminded Cosmo.

Gunslaughter and Glitch Witch were now in a ranged duel. Gunslaughter was a constant buzz of guns being unholstered, shot once, then reholstered, while the Witch had recovered her broom from the Arena's side wall, and was now whizzing around overhead, firing her signature Magic Railgun.
---
Elenion Aura and Euclid Leaf
Characters: Starchild, Lucidity, Lost Sword, Meme Volleyball King

The golden projectile arced towards Lucidity, red-electric sparks trailing behind it as it whooshed towards him. As soon as it reached him, though, he released a tremendous, though quite pitchy, shout and swung down his cane onto the capture objective. Immediately, the black, thrashing energy stored in the cane exploded out all at once, and the ball began hurtling towards the portal, where it slowed down to a complete halt above it. Anti-climatically, it simply... fell. And just like that, the match was over. The arena lingered, and the audience erupted into cheer, confetti springing up from evidently no-where to shower the Avatars. Though, this colored celebration paper was very... hollow feeling. Utterly empty.

"CONGRATULATIONS FIGHTERS OF ARENA 112-3B! AVATARS STARCHILD, ID 3042001, AND LUCIDITY, ID EFV - 102B99 HAVE WON AND WILL MOVE ON IN THE TOURNAMENT!" With this, the audience cheered again, and another shower of confetti began to rain down, this time accompanied by the sounds of firework explosions. Seconds later, surprisingly desynced- probably network latency, you can never get away from it- the fireworks themselves exploded in the air above the arena, raining down with trails of colored celebration fire.

"URGH!" Screamed Volleyball King, whom hit himself in the face as he heard that he had lost. "IDIOT!" He screamed, doing it once more. Then, he began to stamp his feet. Lost Sword simply sat on the ground, shaking her head. "Is a leaf's only purpose to fall?" She whispered, looking up thoughtfully. "Of course not. There is more yet to come, my story is not yet finished." With this, she actually, just, straight up vanished with no trace.

Lucidity and Starchild both receive a popup in front of them, in the form of a holographic screen:

You won! [1st/2nd] Place!
Popularity Reward: [+92]
Next tier of tournament unlocked!
Due to this battle's Spectacle Rating, you have been selected to join the [2000-5000] popularity range battles!
Press [OK] to be warped to the waiting room, or be transported in 59.. 58..

 

[Beebasaur]

Mahogany listened to Two talk, frowning ever so slightly at her partners supposed hesitance. It was clear she'd cut herself off, though for whatever reason Mahogany had no idea. So far Two had seemed a very confident Avatar, though she had very limited experience to call upon, so cutting herself off based on embarrassment like she seemed to imply felt unlikely. Of course, Mahogany was noting if not empathetic, and it wasn't in her nature to pry.

This all paled in importance compared to the steaming truck that was rushing towards them, making ground towards their base much faster than Mahogany would have liked. Her assumption seemed to be right, at least one of them was mechanical based implying that she could likely take care of them using her water staff. The other thing she focused on were the plants that were violently falling out of the back of the truck, their ceramic pots and plastic containers cracking and shattering loudly. This was good! Mahogany understood plants, she could even control them, this might be her lucky break.

Carefully chewing on the bottom of her lip as she thought, she turned back to Two, offering up some sort of plan. "Well, your teleportation is good, really good. Do you think you could get to their base and take out their object alone?" she asked, pausing for a second before adding, "Puru can head with you, he knows a few good skills that may help. I'll stay behind, if I can get to those plants I think I could build a wall...?" Mahogany trailed off, waiting for Two to give some sort of input.

Interacting: Sludge
Mentions: NPCS SniperBus

 

[Sludge]

//Two
//Arena - [2 Versus 2] Search and Destroy
//Two, Mahogany and 2 npcs
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Carefully chewing on the bottom of her lip as she thought, she turned back to Two, offering up some sort of plan. "Well, your teleportation is good, really good. Do you think you could get to their base and take out their object alone?" she asked, pausing for a second before adding, "Puru can head with you, he knows a few good skills that may help. I'll stay behind, if I can get to those plants I think I could build a wall...?" Mahogany trailed off, waiting for Two to give some sort of input.

"I think we are better off sticking together. We are a team and, uh, being together is important." Two slid back onto the floor and as she talked she quickly circled around Mahogany soon ending up behind her.

"Look. We fight, work as a team and then ba-da-boom ba-da-BING!.." As she almost yelled out the last part, three things happened. First, Two clutched onto both of Mahogany's shoulders from the back, hoping to prevent her from turning around.

Second, an ability exploded into a flash of red particles behind Mahogany's back. There were now two of Two standing behind her.

Third, a window shattered as the new Two jumped trough and out of sight.

Exfiltration complete. Her unfounded optimism shined as she slid back around Mahogany and said "...one thing leads to another and they are gone! The item will be ours."

OOC context: Two does not want to reveal the ability that lets her clone herself. She attempts to (clumsily) split herself outside Mahogany's view, in order to infiltrate the other team's warehouse without revealing her trump card.​

She impatiently clapped her hands together. "Let's not dilly-dally. They are coming, Mahogany!"

Beebasaur

////////////////////////////////////////////////////

//Two (clone 1)
//Just outside the first team's warehouse

Two's second self leaped out from the warehouse window and landed down onto firm pavement with the grace of a brick. She groaned. Pieces of glass scurried around her poor attempt to stand up.

She hurried towards the nearest car and proceeded to slowly make her way towards the other team's warehouse. She kept low as she followed the outer edge of the map, hiding behind rubble and broken cars.

SniperBus [/DIV]

 

[Crazy Trey-n]

Cosmo
Spectacle Arena, Elimination Free-for-All

Almost miraculously, the wall of sandstone hit it's mark and Solder was sent plummeting into the pit, just as planned. What wasn't planned, however, was that Solder would fire one last blast. Cosmo was far from prepared and saw it at the last second, attempting to sidestep, but not getting quite far enough. His feet carried him only a margin of what was needed to avoid it, allowing the molten slag to slam into his left shoulder and coat his entire arm. The impact sent him reeling backwards so hard that he was flung to his back and for a moment he thought that'd be it.

Then, the pain set in. It rippled through his left arm and shoulder like a wildfire almost as though every nerve had been set ablaze. Cosmo refused to cry out; instead, he clenched his jaw, let out a nearly silent growl, screwed his eyes shut, and resisted every single urge to reach over with the other hand and grab at the source. Eventually the pain dulled and he knew without knowing that the arm was likely gone, now a part of the liquid metal puddle beside him.

He couldn't recall ever feeling a pain like this. An overwhelming pain. His body rolled over and the one good arm he had left propped his body up, allowing him to stare down at the sizzling puddle of metal that contained his arm. It was gone, replaced by a burning sensation that would never go away. But it wasn't real, was it? It'd come back? Was this real?

What remained of his shoulder seared with an agony that quickly made it's way to his mind. His thoughts and the feelings welling up in his chest weren't unlike the sea; thrashing, wild, without restraint or regard for what was unconventional. He saw the sand of the arena between his fingers and the white strands of his hair cascading down around his vision - at some point the knot pinning it all up had come undone. Then he saw things flashing within his vision that he didn't recognize: a notebook like his own but far less worn; blue eyes, as blue and as cold as ice; a tree so large that it must have seen an endless number of seasons; and for just a moment, a glimpse of the featureless face of Mk-1.

Cosmo had lost control of his mind.

Endure.
When he rose to his feet again, his movements weren't his own. He could see and feel, but the way that his vision sought out the distant outlines of Gunslaughter and Glitch Witch wasn't the will of his own. Neither was the way that his lips contorted into a sinister grin, nor the way that his hand outstretched with fingers splayed at impossible angles.
Endure.
The sand beneath Gunslaughter began to roil like a stirring beast with the intent of burying him beneath it. At the same time, a vortex of lava rose from the pit, swirling and simmering before launching at Glitch Witch.
Endure.
None of this should be possible. He was a passenger in his own body forced to watch as the attacks he'd never been able to do before attempted to claim their victims, yet he wanted it to stop. He needed it to stop. It had to stop.

Somehow he willed his voice into existence to utter a single word. "Stop..." The attacks immediately ceased and for Cosmo, everything went black.

* * *​

A Pub, Somewhere

The smell of strong ale, the sounds of clattering glass and stomping feet, and the sight of a dancing giant of a man were the first things that assaulted Cosmo's senses. Apparently the respawn had placed him in the middle of a tavern, judging by the numerous drunken patrons and the cheap wooden bar lining the wall behind him. His arm was back, there was no pain, and he was in complete control of his mind and motions once again. All he could manage now was a weary sigh. What just happened, and what would happen next?

SniperBus

 

[Beebasaur]

Puru, who had been spending his time slowly hovering around the room was immediately pulled back to attention. He A.I was simple, and as such Puru wasn't able to think very complex thoughts, he was however able to record and more importantly, rely information to Mahogany. He turned around, refocusing on the two avatars who were conversing loudly by the windows. Many things suddenly started to happen, none of which escaped Puru's notice even if he didn't understand their importance. Ending with the other avatar suddenly duplicating themselves and jumping out the window in a crash of breaking glass. Unaware of the sheer importance of what he saw, he started humming a melody that had come to his mind, and hovered back to Mahogany's side.

Many things had all happened at once, too many for Mahogany to even try to comprehend what was happening. All the while Two talked on, closing off the chaos with a loud clap which pulled Mahogany back to her senses. Without warning she grabbed Two and pulled her down, glancing around fearfully for some sort of projectile which would have broken the window. "Agreed, if we don't hurry they'll break in!" Jumping back to her hooves and glancing out the broken window. The truck was getting closer, still leaving a trail of plants behind it. This was it, if they waited too much longer the truck would be too close.

Without even thinking Mahogany grabbed Two by the wrist, throwing both of them out of the open window, landing with a thud on the pavement. Puru nonchalantly floated after them, still humming his familiar tune. Mahogany on the other hand was quick to get back to her feet, hurriedly looking around for some nearby foliage to build their wall with. She had her water staff, that could slow them down, but the wall was top priority. It gave them 5-ish minutes of relief, more than enough time to come up with a better plan. Pulling out her staff, which had been cleverly hidden in her long hair, Mahogany turned towards Two, desperately awaiting help.

Interacting: Sludge
Mentions: NPCS SniperBus

 

[SniperBus]

Reytian
Characters involved: R3X, Vyn

“Make sure to yell if you see them Vyn. For this shall be a day to remember,” the gladiator said excitedly.

"YELL." Vyn yelled factually. He was standing at the edge of the plateau, and had locked eyes with Raster, whom was standing confidently in the middle of the woods. Something was.. off about those two, but whatever it was, Vyn was certain he could handle it. "Aye, R3X, what did you say your skills were again?" He called over his shoulders. Vyn had crossed the plateau to scout ahead while waiting on R3X, who was shimmying along at barely a snail's pace. "Anyway, the two of them are just down there." Vyn said, pointing a judgmental finger down at towards the canopy where they waited. "It's probably trapped, but, that's whatever. I'll take it headfirst and still take the two of them on, just you wait."
---
Beebasaur Sludge
Characters involved: Two, Two 2, Mahogany, Puru, Stanley the Steam Elemental, Dan the Motor Man

Dan the Motor Man was just about to crash into the other team's warehouse. Once inside, he and his dastardly partner would find and destroy the other team's core with the dusty compactor they found in the corner of their own warehouse; ideally, the two warehouses would be identical. Suddenly, the glass of the second floor shattered, and someone dropped down, booking it to their warehouse. Whatever. Dan thought. Not like they'll find our core anyhow, hidden in the only place they'd never look: the compactor! Ahaha, we're so clever.

Suddenly, three more flung themselves from the window, and a wall of plants grew around the front of him, which he then promptly rammed into at top speed. The impact was so jarring it sent Stanley flying out from under the hood, whom then went straight through the plants and materialized on the other side. Meanwhile, Dan the Motor Man (in truck form) was spinning his tires, trying to force his way through the wall. He attempted to reverse, but the plants simply wrapped their leafy appendages around the wheels. As such, he went back to gunning against the wall at full speed. Meanwhile, Stanley did what he did best, and began shooting bolts of steam and Puru, Two, and Mahogany.
---
Crazy Trey-n
Characters involved: Cosmo, [REDACTED], Glitch Witch, Gunslaughter

Glitch Witch and Gunslaughter had a brief fight while Cosmo was busy with Solder. Just as Glitch Witch was going in for a killing blow on Gunslaughter, the ground underneath him trembled and shook, knocking him down onto his back. As he fell, he spread his arms to either side and emptied both of his weapons of all of their ammo, a sort of hail-marry. He then dropped his guns and laid on his back in the hot sand, arms spread in a "hit-me-already" gesture. "You know, Glitch Witch- my defining feature is that I simply don't care. Just end it already, and make it quick, would ya?"

The Glitch Witch sailed over him as he fell over, her broom planting in the sand behind him. "You fuckin' know what?" She said, standing up, rage filling her entire body. "I'll make it whatever I fuckin' want to. You gotta be shittin' me, that you're giving up so easy. You have any idea how much of a fuckin' waste of time you're bein'?" She picked up her broom, spinning it around in her hand as she stepped towards him. Suddenly, the lava from the pit rose and coiled like a snake, and lurched towards the two of them. Just before it hit her, it stopped suddenly, and dropped immediately to the ground, sizzling mere feet away. A grin spread across her face. "You know what, shitfuck braindead degenerate bastard-brain? If you won't even do me the decency of fighting me.." She stepped forward and started beating the everloving shit out of him with the broom, until pieces of his armor and helmet were popping off, at which point she picked him up by the shirt collar and dunked him, headfirst, into the hissing lava mere feet away.

"CONGRATULATIONS FIGHTERS OF ARENA 112-3C! AVATARS GLITCH WITCH, ID 9860789, COSMO, ID MK-2, AND GUNSLAUGHTER, ID 00940324204209w3948932427347324961266263423492342346826357123c2496126626342349234234682635347324961266263423492342346826357123c24961266263423492324204209w394893242734732324204209w39489324273473232420420912347132591923592379879269127631767631762717111162631626415412371137113711371337133777325481893203409123597123509325623646023046012340126034 HAVE TIED AND WILL NOW BEGIN A TIEBREAKER!" "The fuck you mean there's a tiebreak?" Glitch Witch turned her head to where Cosmo was standing- he was now taking a dirt nap, covered in fresh bullet holes from head to toe. "You've got to be shitti-" And then, she was cut off by the Arena teleporting her to the new arena.

[Glitch Witch wins the Tie-breaker by killing Gunslaughter and Cosmo (whom is passed out), with no resistance]

[As what happens with people who lose the tournament and have no respawn set, Cosmo was teleported to a random location in Spectacle.]
---
A Pub, Somewhere

"AYE LAD!" Said the massively built bartender, slamming down his beefy arms onto the bar. As he did so, all of the patrons picked up their drinks in unison, the unlucky few that didn't received a shower of liquid from their liquor of choice. "ET SEAMS YE FAND YARSELF DAN AT 'ME BARRR." With this, he bent down deeply over his bar, raising his to look at Cosmo, whom was sitting several feet away. "WHEY NAW'T SET YERSELF DAN 'ND TAKE A LOOOK AT THE BAH'ULS HAPPEN'N IN THE ARENA? ORR PARE-HAPS, YOU TAKE A LOOK DAN THER-" The bartender gestured to his left, where a holo-screen menacingly glowed with several dangerous jobs that could be taken by Cosmo, if he so wished. "ORRRRR, IF NAN O' THAT IS DIGGIN' YER FANCEH, MAYHAPS YOU FIND YERSELF WANDERIN THE SITTY? I HEAR THERE'S ALWAYS ADVENTURE AROUND EVERY CORNER, AND GOING OUT THERE IS BOUND TO MAKE SOMETHIN' HAPPEN. What do I know, though, I'm just a bartender." He said, stopping his very bad, very fake accent. He then sat on his barstool, staring blankly at Cosmo as he polished a glass.

 

[Reytian]

The bush suddenly jumped to turn into the direction of Vyn when yelling. What felt like an eternity for him was actually just a minute of waddling over to Vyn. When peeking out of the bush to see how much farther he needed to go, he saw that he was actually going in the opposite direction. "AH bullocks, Zeus strike me now," the gladiator stood up from his hiding place and freed himself of his 'costume'. R3X then walked right over to his robotic brethren looking to where the judgy finger pointed. "Well my plan is ruined. It was fully reliant on them arriving here after us. As of my skills, well I'm an excellent combatant along with a super secret transformation that a very special someone, like thy, gets to know," he then whispered to Vyn on what his special ability was like a child at a sleep over telling secrets.

"Now if you think it's a trap shall we take the bait? Or shall the bait take us?" what that meant probably only made sense to R3X. "I shall be up for anything," he quickly pulled out his pistol and aimed it toward Raster, then pretending to shoot it dead center in the forehead with a gun sound. "For my bullets do not reach, which is saddening. I must be honest with your brethren, I do not want to go through their labyrinth. But do not see much of a choice. We shall not dine tonight in valhalla, or whatever the hell that viking told me before I struck him down. So long as we work together, we shall achieve greatness," R3X said while looking at the small one of the two. Raster seemed like a trapper in the waiting room but what was her special attributes? "Well, I don't know about you but my ass is starting to get sweaty in this armor so let's make this quick," he was metaphorically speaking as the sun blazed down upon them. R3X then started treading down the plateau. "Damn combatants, making us walk to much. Shall Anubis way their hearts heavy for such cruelness," his amor clinked with every step. Another reason as to why he didn't want to sneak attack. It would give them away in an instant. "Come, we have a competition to win."

Interactions: SniperBus

 

[Euclid Leaf]

- Free-For-All(Item Capture) Arena
...

"CONGRATULATIONS FIGHTERS OF ARENA 112-3B! AVATARS STARCHILD, ID 3042001, AND LUCIDITY, ID EFV - 102B99 HAVE WON AND WILL MOVE ON IN THE TOURNAMENT!"

Lucidity smiled to himself, landing on the grassy platform before a bright light began to spread from all around him. But his smile wasn't as bombastic as it had been.

It simply laid on his face. He took a long breath before gazing up at and around at the crowd, spinning his body on the boned cane as he took all of the sounds and the feelings in. The roar of voices almost overwhelmed him, and all he could do was bow his head and allow the massive wave wash over him. In his spacial bubble, it was like a symphony of sounds and shapes rising and falling, crashing and collapsing. In truth, he couldn't tell left from right with so much disturbance. It was strange. He always felt this was where he was meant to it. But there was something off about it. Even though he was basked in the lights and confetti and fireworks of victory, he couldn't help but feel a bit numb. The reactions of the participants made him chuckle some, and he hummed the chant of the crowd as the sounds began to bob and warp in the flux of pixels that spiraled around him. But Lucidity was quite tame and mild. For once, he didn't act his usual flamboyant self, nor was there much of the usual dramatic parading. He simply took it all in. Simply... just.

The pale eyes then pointed up at Starchild.

"Second. I came in second." Lucidity muttered, laughing as he said it aloud. This was probably what made him act strange. Technically, they both won. But the last one to 'touch' the objective was none-other than Starchild. There was no doubt.

Suddenly, Lucidity puffed his chest out and he pointed the cane towards the floating figure in the sky. His classic smile was returned, and now he laughed.

"Today I admit my defeat, Starchild! But may we meet again! Perhaps a duet is more fitting a stage for what the both of us do best! Two grand acts conjoined -- Two magnificent creations fallen from the very stars and pitted against one another! Both placed here for a goal greater than life itself, and neither able to back down. Our next face-off will be a Duel attended by the Fates!"​

He turned and struck a pose with his cane, swinging it over his shoulder. "So don't drop out, until then. Okay? I command it. So it must be."

From where he stood, the alien being outline of cosmic light truly looked... divine. His eyes shone and a thought popped into his mind for a moment. Maybe there wasn't much difference between the two? In the end, isn't it the one who wins the one who basks in the sacred light of the all-seeing eyes? Those red stars. Besides, there was no arguing with outcomes. Such things are the very will of the Fates. The watchers from the grand beyond. Weren't they?

With one last laugh, Lucidity shrugged off the thought and allowed the light of the [Teleportation] to swallow him.

...

Mentions: Starchild.

 

[Sludge]

//Two
//Arena - [2 Versus 2] Search and Destroy
//Two, Mahogany and 2 npcs
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Without warning she grabbed Two and pulled her down, glancing around fearfully for some sort of projectile which would have broken the window. "Agreed, if we don't hurry they'll break in!"

"Eh?" Two replied, "ah right!"

Without even thinking Mahogany grabbed Two by the wrist, throwing both of them out of the open window, landing with a thud on the pavement.

"Wha?" The confused avatar felt a tug on her wrist and the next moment she was flying through the air. It took her a bit to realize what her teammate had pulled off. The meek appearance was just a front, the fawn was hiding some beastly strength.

Two hit the ground, soles grinding against the concrete to a stop. Finally she let out a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, three more flung themselves from the window, and a wall of plants grew around the front of him, which he then promptly rammed into at top speed. The impact was so jarring it sent Stanley flying out from under the hood, whom then went straight through the plants and materialized on the other side. Meanwhile, Dan the Motor Man (in truck form) was spinning his tires, trying to force his way through the wall. He attempted to reverse, but the plants simply wrapped their leafy appendages around the wheels. As such, he went back to gunning against the wall at full speed. Meanwhile, Stanley did what he did best, and began shooting bolts of steam and Puru, Two, and Mahogany.

She felt Mahogany's eyes on her. Interpreting it as a sign of indecision, she smiled and gave her a thumbs up.

Two's sword cut through a knot of steam before her body shot towards the perpetrator like a bullet. Her needle spun angled circles, slicing through the shower of projectiles. Each step, an acrobatic feat.

A leap, three more, a somersault over a car right before coming nose to nose with the enemy. All eyes on her now, she slipped up a laugh before bouncing up three meters into the air.

Like a circular saw, the girl's body spun diagonally at the elemental. The blade froze in place upon the landing, before uncoiling in the opposite direction with a sharp blast of wind.

"Hey, fam. How about we go get a drink after this," she winked at Stanley from above her shoulder, preparing for retaliation. "Ah my bad, that would be a crime for a cloud."

[/div]
Beebasaur
SniperBus

 

[Elenion Aura]

Starchild.
...
Starchild, answer me.​

You won! [1st/2nd] Place!
Popularity Reward: [+92]
Next tier of tournament unlocked!
Due to this battle's Spectacle Rating, you have been selected to join the [2000-5000] popularity range battles!
Press [OK] to be warped to the waiting room, or be transported in 59.. 58..​

Won.

Starchild hung there, limbs curled around itself. It had won. Won... Was that all? That was all there was.

Mutely aware... Of the ticking down of the timer... It made no sudden movements. It made no movements at all. Its wide eyes darkened, clouded, its gaze far-and-away. Until it heard the voice. Eyes, suddenly, snapped to attention.

The man... He had a name. Starchild knew it. Lucidity. The man was speaking. His words, bombastic, grandiose... Kind? They sounded, to Starchild, like a kindness. They sounded... Like a promise. In Starchild’s mind, the words sounded like, “We’ll meet again.”

Starchild hopes that were true, and held onto that hope until the lights swallowed him whole.

mentions: SniperBus
Euclid Leaf​

 

[Beebasaur]

Mahogany couldn't help but watch in awe as Two got to work, attacking the more imminent of the two threats. Just because she was a pacifist didn't mean she couldn't appreciate the grace her partner was displaying, while she had seemed strange at first Mahogany could see, she certainly knew what she was doing. Stanley seemed to be exactly as his name described, a man made of steam. It was interesting for sure, but not something new, he must be some sort of elemental. Course that did mean the likelyhood of her being to help her companion was very slim, her plant wall would last at least another three minutes and it wasn't as if she had to upkeep it as it would wilt away once the five minutes ended. Of course, based on the sound of an engine on the other side, she knew it had done it's job.

An idea sparked in her mind, it was risky sure, but if it worked well it could really help her out. She didn't even have to look for Puru, while she wasn't aware of it Puru was programmed to gravitate to her side when she thought about him, as he had fluttered to her shoulders only a few seconds earlier. "Puru, could you help deal with Stanley? Oh, and tell Two to be prepared for me, alright?" she asked her trusted familiar who gave a small nod.

Out of nowhere Puru began to sing, softly, so soft it was unlikely anyone but herself would hear it. "Mahogany dear you must watch out, something wrong is happ'n about," he began, causing Mahogany to furrow her brow. This was strange...sure Puru had sung to her, normally warnings, but everything so far seemed like it was under control. "Beware the girl with visor of green, for she is not what she seems." he continued only furthering Mahogany's confusion. "I'd watch your back if I were you, for she's not one but really two!'" With that Puru floated off, leaving Mahogany in a state of pure confusion.

Shaking her head to pull herself out of it she watched her familiar summon one small tornado sending it towards the steam man who was pulled into it's grip. Puru then proceeded to tell Two to "brace herself" or at least something to that extent. Hoping that Two would have time to figure out what was happening, Mahogany rushed her, the loud clip clopping of her hooves leaving the ground as she landed on a very unprepared Two, still managing to get the leverage she needed to throw herself over the wall, landing with a crash on the hood of a struggling car. Her hooves were loud as she struggled to stand upright on the car, who was putting up a pretty good fight.

"Let's see how you handle this!" Mahogany exclaimed, pulling out her staff and using it to pry open Dan's hood exposing his engine; Mahogany knew very little about cars, she kinda knew the wheel made them go but beyond that it was all Greek to her. She did understand that cars did not like getting wet, and dumping a few gallons into his engine certainly counted as getting wet. Her wall wasn't going to last that much longer, if this didn't work they were likely in trouble. Pointing her staff directly at the moving parts of the engine, Mahogany watched as water began to spew from it's tip, drenching the likely important parts. Not wanting to waste any time she pulled out her dagger too, raising it as if to stab and cut up his parts.

Interacting: Sludge SniperBus