I'm surprised no-one got that before; that was my intention with The Lyre. It made me need to get creative to win the round; one of my strong points in writing.
Same thing goes for Axle/Athena, they have the crap nerfed out of them at the start and are god mods by the end. But I have something planned to even the score. Stay tuned.
In other news, the holidays are coming up. This is brilliant, as I'll have a 2-3 week interval where I can write, unhindered by studies. Keep that in mind when you plan next round Sorrow; it's the point in which I can focus my full attention on The Ratings War and actually beat the deadline.
1) I sort of have to, what with my inexplicably spontaneous character arc i'm ill-eploying all over the place.
2) I only quit RW3 because it was really the wrong place for Eviljoe as I had made him, If I could rework him and re-inject him, I would.
3) I'm a sucker for the same old mistakes.
Khedive Rex said:
Yeah ... I think you've cracked the code. This makes me sad.
Well it does make sense logically, you hold all the cards because you can make them up as you go, and your opponent has exactly none. It's open to exploitation by your opponents, of course, but where they look stupid causing your characters to fly into the air on a pillar of electrified awesome, from you it's awesome-canon. Add in that you have a better-made character to employ against your own, wheras they have been given a pile of mush to work with, and you're the only one with bullets in a gunfight.
I think that's good, though, it's a viable strategy that makes for good reads, and means that towering word-monster fights can be toppled by a fun little jaunt... it evens the playing field. Now... a character that's got a free range of moves and a kickass character? That one wins the money, proved by Bartelby. But the infinite hand is what's important.
Which is a pain in ass for me, because my characters come with built in powers.
I actually caught onto that detail myself. You'll notice (Now that I'm bringing this up) that I didn't make that mistake again, Julian started out as a straight up swordsman, and he was a pain in the ass to write for in order to have him win. I was really stretching the potential of both Julian's talents and Bartalby's nonexistent foolishness in my round against him. I won't even lie, even I thought that was a dumb way for a battle to end.
But this time around, I made sure to give Ivan a power that would allow me more liberal writing. And so far it's been way easier to create victories for Ivan that it was for Julian. That's not me saying that Ivan comes in and kicks yo ass, lol, that's me saying as a writer, it's easier to make Ivan win than it was for Julian.
Well it does make sense logically, you hold all the cards because you can make them up as you go, and your opponent has exactly none. It's open to exploitation by your opponents, of course, but where they look stupid causing your characters to fly into the air on a pillar of electrified awesome, from you it's awesome-canon. Add in that you have a better-made character to employ against your own, wheras they have been given a pile of mush to work with, and you're the only one with bullets in a gunfight.
I think that's good, though, it's a viable strategy that makes for good reads, and means that towering word-monster fights can be toppled by a fun little jaunt... it evens the playing field. Now... a character that's got a free range of moves and a kickass character? That one wins the money, proved by Bartelby. But the infinite hand is what's important.
Which is a pain in ass for me, because my characters come with built in powers.
I actually caught onto that detail myself. You'll notice (Now that I'm bringing this up) that I didn't make that mistake again, Julian started out as a straight up swordsman, and he was a pain in the ass to write for in order to have him win. I was really stretching the potential of both Julian's talents and Bartalby's nonexistent foolishness in my round against him. I won't even lie, even I thought that was a dumb way for a battle to end.
But this time around, I made sure to give Ivan a power that would allow me more liberal writing. And so far it's been way easier to create victories for Ivan that it was for Julian. That's not me saying that Ivan comes in and kicks yo ass, lol, that's me saying as a writer, it's easier to make Ivan win than it was for Julian.
As a newcoming to the RW III scene, I find myself at a slight disadvantage if only from the point of view of strong character building. However, I would argue that while the Code provides a formula more capable of exploiting the writer the Code is up against, it's also a work-around to enable cheap tricks to win in a subversive way.
In that sense, I'm somewhat glad my character has such a concrete skill-set because it really taxes my capability as a writer instead of exploiting some inherent loophole in the concept. The Code strikes me more as God-Modding than anything else because it's putting the opponent at a statistical and logical disadvantage for the mere fault of creating a character that is also flawed.
By adding that "unknown" element, you're creating a world that's unclear for your opponent. This strikes me as going into the digging contest by saying, "Bring a shovel" while you yourself brings an industrial crane, or maybe a Transformer. The ideal seems like all it's doing is exploiting the contest for the sake of victory, rather than participating for the sake of the contest itself.
It is my hope that every victory I get in this contest comes from excellent writing, not creating an exploit through which to abuse the opposition.
On an unrelated note, do we know when the next set of matches will be?
Yeah..."the Code" is kind of an obvious concept, really. Though I did go in the entirely opposite direction from RW2 to RW3, you'll note. In RW2 I had a cyborg with guns and blades in his arms and other barely-defined abilities, and in this one I have a guy with a sword. He's pretty good with that sword, true, but its not as if he's supernaturally powerful or anything. Like I said earlier, all this discussion of what makes a perfect Ratings War character will be proven wrong if I win a few more rounds with Cazinto.
Ultrajoe said:
Zemalac said:
On a different (but slightly related) subject, I thought you'd said you'd be sitting out RW4. Does this mean you'll be playing once again?
1) I sort of have to, what with my inexplicably spontaneous character arc i'm ill-eploying all over the place.
2) I only quit RW3 because it was really the wrong place for Eviljoe as I had made him, If I could rework him and re-inject him, I would.
3) I'm a sucker for the same old mistakes.
I think creating characters with what I would call "wild card" abilities is a sword that cuts both ways. Ultrajoe said, "It's open to exploitation by your opponents, of course, but where they look stupid causing your characters to fly into the air on a pillar of electrified awesome, from you it's awesome-canon." I would say that's only the case if your opponent is not equally capable imagining the possibilities of a loosely defined set of powers in a workable way. But it is possible to actually make better use of your opponent's character's abilities than you opponent does. Just because a person is capable of imagining a really wide-ranging skill set doesn't mean they are capable of writing it well.
I never really left, just drifted off absent-mindedly.
Ring A Ring Of Roses
A character i'm not attatched to doesn't come to life in my head. And i'll-employing means I've lost control and am spurting my forming concepts out like an over-eager fireman, which is actually not all that bad, because like all of my ideas; They work better in freefall. I'm a serial improvisor. We'll see how it works out, i'm growing attatched to both of my possible characters, because I intend to do them both. We'll see how it works out, I may bring back Vherran just to mess with heads... both players and characters.
They All Fall Down
NewClassic said:
It is my hope that every victory I get in this contest comes from excellent writing, not creating an exploit through which to abuse the opposition.
That's why I was discussing the balance, both skill and cheap thrills have a place in this contest, so no post becomes overly long-winded, and none become short and shallow.
mshcherbatskaya said:
I think creating characters with what I would call "wild card" abilities is a sword that cuts both ways. Ultrajoe said, "It's open to exploitation by your opponents, of course, but where they look stupid causing your characters to fly into the air on a pillar of electrified awesome, from you it's awesome-canon." I would say that's only the case if your opponent is not equally capable imagining the possibilities of a loosely defined set of powers in a workable way. But it is possible to actually make better use of your opponent's character's abilities than you opponent does. Just because a person is capable of imagining a really wide-ranging skill set doesn't mean they are capable of writing it well.
Ah, but they don't have to write their own character well... they have a well-made and sensible character provided by their opponent. That's why head-to-head cheap characters end up being a sort of 'special olympics' round, and word-giants tend to feed each other into towering novellas. Balance be key, methinks.
Still, you're right. Both players enter with the same material, best writer wins.
I think creating characters with what I would call "wild card" abilities is a sword that cuts both ways. Ultrajoe said, "It's open to exploitation by your opponents, of course, but where they look stupid causing your characters to fly into the air on a pillar of electrified awesome, from you it's awesome-canon." I would say that's only the case if your opponent is not equally capable imagining the possibilities of a loosely defined set of powers in a workable way. But it is possible to actually make better use of your opponent's character's abilities than you opponent does. Just because a person is capable of imagining a really wide-ranging skill set doesn't mean they are capable of writing it well.
Point. But interpretation of said abilities can be key. In RW3, your only match was incredibly well-written, no one will doubt it. But it was in part well written because no one really knew what to expect from the tarot cards (well, unless someone researched it I guess.) We didn't get a gimmicky magic tarot from you, and that helped make your story awesome.
In essence, an ambiguous character leaves more room for people to have their minds blown with.
I find that in a lot of fights, a player with a character that has awesome attributes or skills (or a lot of skills) will get a lot more screen time than a player with run of the mill abilities. The opponent gets pushed aside so the protagonist can show off his powers/abilities. These are bad fights for me. I don't like it when I know how a fight is going to go, obviously the poster is always going to make his character win but there should be moments where I feel like the main character is at risk of losing and I want to keep on reading so I can see what actually happens. I also don't like it when a story is a long list of abilities.
When a poster concentrates on his characters power too much the story everything is one sided and I don't enjoy the piece. One might even say that creating a powerful character could be a weakness if you don't know how to use it well.
Was that a hint? Yes. Don't make powerful characters if you don't know how to keep it interesting. Sword strikes that shatter the universe are only good for a short time but the little guy destroying one of the most powerful characters are always very satisfying to read.
Also, isn't this RW:III? I see a lot of people calling it number four for some reason and I don't know why.
Was that a hint? Yes. Don't make powerful characters if you don't know how to keep it interesting. Sword strikes that shatter the universe are only good for a short time but the little guy destroying one of the most powerful characters are always very satisfying to read.
Not really obvious, you characters are just well thought-out and well written. It's a lot easier to write someone else's character when that character is really good.
Not really obvious, you characters are just well thought-out and well written. It's a lot easier to write someone else's character when that character is really good.
I find that in a lot of fights, a player with a character that has awesome attributes or skills (or a lot of skills) will get a lot more screen time than a player with run of the mill abilities. The opponent gets pushed aside so the protagonist can show off his powers/abilities. These are bad fights for me. I don't like it when I know how a fight is going to go, obviously the poster is always going to make his character win but there should be moments where I feel like the main character is at risk of losing and I want to keep on reading so I can see what actually happens. I also don't like it when a story is a long list of abilities.
When a poster concentrates on his characters power too much the story everything is one sided and I don't enjoy the piece. One might even say that creating a powerful character could be a weakness if you don't know how to use it well.
Was that a hint? Yes. Don't make powerful characters if you don't know how to keep it interesting. Sword strikes that shatter the universe are only good for a short time but the little guy destroying one of the most powerful characters are always very satisfying to read.
Also, isn't this RW:III? I see a lot of people calling it number four for some reason and I don't know why.
I actually agree with Daemon on this one. I noticed right off the bat when I was brainstorming for this story that Ivan should logically have not problems defeating Elsewise. Which is why Ivan and Julian are sort of on the opposite sides of problem for me to write. When I was using Julian as my character, I had to struggle in order to come up with a way for him to win, moments of suspense and having him in trouble came naturally when he was so obviously overpowered and outmatched.
With Ivan, I'm having the opposite problem, as Daemon said: when the main character's victory is obvious, the story's no fun to read. Because of this, I've actually been putting a lot of thought into how I am going to make my story a suspenseful read and keep readers attentive and wanting to read more.
Basically, I agree that reading a one sided story is no fun. So a lot of effort needs to be put into creating a suspenseful story that keeps the readers interested.
EDIT: My story's done, I'm waiting for somebody else to post before I slap it down though. And Besides, it's a good chance for some last second revisions. Polishing *here* and change a few words *there*
Not really obvious, you characters are just well thought-out and well written. It's a lot easier to write someone else's character when that character is really good.
I'm really bummed about this one aspect of my win: I won't get to see you write another round. If Sorrow puts us head-to-head in the first round of RW4 (assuming you decide to play) I will be displeased at the repeat coincidence.
The Evil went through the portal, he was looking for a fool to stomp.
He was in a mood, he was talkin' rude: he was ready to do this romp.
And he came across this weird man playin the vynil and spinnin' it fast
And the Evil struck a fearsome pose and said: "Boy, ima kick your ass:
"I'm sure that you don't know me, and i'm sure that i don't care
"But if we're gonna do this thing, then I say we make this fair
"Now you spell a pretty good tune, you freak, but give the Evil a chance
"Help me settle a bet, this is to the death, and lets see who's the better dance"
The man said: "I'm the DJ, and I got no hate for you,
"But we'll do this test, to show I'm best, you bit off more than you can chew"
DJ you best find your groove and get into the beat
'Cos steel surrounds the Evil and you're in for quite a treat
And if you prove him cocky you may save his soul from sin
But if you lose, he'll rip off all your skin
The Evil cracked his fingers sharp and hissed: "Just watch this shit"
And he spun along the stony ground and leaped into a flip
His arms performed the robot as he moon-walked too and fro
Then he began to tap and slide, sparks flying as he goes
And when the Knight had finished, and the DJ's eyebrow dropped
The music man stretched out his arms and the whole damn planet stopped
Groove into the soul, man, dance don't run
Evil's forgotten how to just have fun
So watch me done the dance that's true
Evil, can you fix it?
Up to you.
The Evil sad a bad word 'cos he knew that he'd got served
And he thought about the promise and the life DJ had earned
DJ said: "Johnny don't feel the music, there's a black song in his heart
"And you'd best put down my tape deck, it be easy to fall apar-
And he tried to dodge the table, dodge, duck, run
Evil is a bastard, and pulls his gun
Shooting down the soul man, in the back
If nobody sees it
It's not slack
----------------
That was way more fun to write then it had any right to be. Feedback appreciated.
Ivan could feel himself be dragged away by the divine light, it appeared that his long wait was finally over, and he would finally have his turn to step onto the field of battle. Ivan expected to find himself in an arena, with his foe standing in front of him. Ivan fully expected a direct and fair fight, listening to the rules of honor and chivalrous combat, needless to say, Ivan was caught off guard when the first thing to meet his feet was a massive earthquake. The ground under Ivan's feet roared and erupted in a raging quake, causing Ivan to stumble in his heavy armor and fall onto his back. A nearby house was feeling similar effects from the quake, Ivan watched as it's foundation gave way and the building crashed down towards Ivan. Fear of being crushed captivated Ivan's mind, forcing him to roll out of the way and return to his feet. His footing was still uneasy as he got back up, narrowly avoiding being crushed by a house in the first ten seconds of his match.
Ritualistic and fair combat? With the title of god at stake? Ivan couldn't help but take a moment to laugh at his own naiveness.
Ivan carefully stepped around the town, keeping a diligent eye on his surroundings to avoid another dangerous situation like the one he faced upon his arrival to this town. Luckily, the earthquake seemed to settle down a little bit, Ivan decided that the earthquake was nothing more than a way to set the combatants on edge as they began their fight. As this realization came to mind, Ivan decided that the best course of action was to find his opponent and end this match quickly. So he set about traveling the abandoned town, searching for the person that he was supposed to fight. As he took his trip around the town, he came to realize that the earthquake took it's toll on the place, houses were wrecked everywhere he looked, and although there were many that were still standing, they looked as though they could collapse at the slightest touch. The aftershock of the place, the wreckage, the lack of life, it all reminded Ivan far too much of his own home. It reminded him of the day that the foreign army invaded, taking away everything that Ivan cared about in one fell swoop. And in return, as an exchange for the lives of his entire family and everybody that he had grown up with, Ivan was given the power of the azure star, a power that he didn't even fully comprehend yet.
The pain of remembering that day, the pain of remaining in this destroyed town began to overwhelm Ivan, he wished nothing more in the world then to block that day from his mind, to forget it ever happened. Ivan fell to his knees and began to weep, recalling every horrifying second of that day, He remembered his duel with his blade master, he remembered the siege of the army, he remembered fleeing from the first soldiers, he remembered his power coming alive, and worst of all, he remembered returning home to the bodies of his family. After what seemed like a lifetime of self pity, Ethan got impatient and began speaking to his little brother.
"Hey Ivan, get a hold of yourself, you've got a job to do"
Ivan neglected to look in the direction the voice came from, because if he did, he knew he would see nothing but air, and the illusion of his dead brother's voice would vanish from his mind, something that Ivan refused to let happen.
"Yeah, I'm sorry brother"
His brother's voice did the trick, because Ivan quickly rose to his feet. Ethan's voice became softer as he continued to support Ivan
"Listen, if this place bugs you that much, then smash through your enemy and say goodbye to this horrible place"
Ethan had a point, if Ivan were to defeat his enemy quickly, then he could leave this destroyed town and never look back. Ivan couldn't help but be pleased that Ethan stayed by his side, his older brother always had a logical voice and would fill in for Ivan's rash actions. He had no idea what he would do without Ethan around to give him support and wisdom. So with Ethan standing just over his shoulder, Ivan set out to find his opponent with a new found resolve, determined to stomp on whoever it was and be out of this godforsaken town with absolute resolve. Several streets passed by, showing more and more wreckage along with less and less hope of anybody being alive other than Ivan. It didn't take long before Ivan turned a corner to see the only other living person in the entire town. He was standing in the middle of the road, seemingly basking in the solitude. He turned to Ivan with a sort of smile, the first words out of his mouth caused Ivan's gut to turn on itself.
"I like the ambiance around here."
Ivan's eyes widened in shock, who could possibly like being in a pit of despair and sorrow of this place's magnitude? Ivan said nothing, and the other man continued to speak.
"Being alone, without any signs of anybody else for miles. The solitude is so... relaxing, don't you agree?"
Ivan's hand fell to the pommel of his sword, he stepped forward with an aggressive and angered tone in his voice
"I could never enjoy being in a wretched place such as this, the stench of pain and despair is too overpowering"
The other person turned to address Ivan for the first time in their meeting, and from a first glance Ivan could tell that something was very abnormal about him. Not that Ivan expected a normal person to be involved in a tournament such as this, but regardless, something about this other person send a bit of a chill down Ivan's spine. The other man continued to speak, responding to Ivan's rather grim statement.
"I should of figured that nobody other than me could appreciate the values of being alone. Anybody that lived a regular life would be unable to see the values of such things."
Ivan's rage at this statement began to get the better of him. How could this person possibly just say that Ivan lived a 'regular life'. If this man's mission was to provoke Ivan into a rash assault, he was pulling it off with flying colors. Ivan's blade emerged from it's sheath, and he pointed it forward with the tip facing the other man, the anger in his eyes was apparent.
"Are you part of the tournament? Do you seek the title at stake?"
The other man shrugged with a bothered sigh, as though Ivan's drawn sword meant nothing, and they were still having a civil discussion
"Me? I'm just an angel's yes man, but yeah, I'm in this tournament, the name's Elsewise."
"Then you are my enemy"
Without waiting for a response, Ivan charged at Elsewise, planning to put the man down with one strike. However, he quickly realized that things rarely go according to plan. As Ivan took his first few steps towards Elsewise, the ground beneath their feet began to rumble and quake with a violent roar. The return of the earthquake caught both combatants off guard, sending both of them stumbling violently across the road. Debris from the nearby destroyed houses began launching at the two of them, one decent sized piece caught Ivan in the shoulder with enough force to slam him into the ground. If Ivan wasn't so focused on the pain, he might have counted his blessings that it wasn't his sword arm that got hit, if he wasn't already on the ground struggling for stability, he may have realized that Elsewise was putting an abnormal amount of effort into avoiding the smallest of cuts or being hit at all. But as things were, Ivan was focused on the pain of his right arm and getting out of the way of even more oncoming debris. As he weakly got to his feet, it came to his attention that Elsewise had fled the disaster zone, but Ivan couldn't afford to spend focus on that right now, the natural disaster that was tearing the town apart captivated his attention for the time being.
As the ground beneath his feet continued to try and bring Ivan to the ground, Ivan began channeling some of his azure star power through the bottom of his feet. He used the bright blue energy as interceptors for the shock of the earthquake, which allowed him to move and walk normally. Ivan realized this was a rather unorthodox use for his power, but he considered the ability to walk on stable ground again an unmatched blessing in a place like this. However, Ivan was well aware that this blessing had a rather catastrophic drawback. As he stepped through the city, and even when he was standing still, Ivan could feel his energy drain from his body, he could feel the azure star cut into his stamina and cause fatigue at a dangerous rate. If Ivan were to continue to use the power to intercept the shock of the earthquake for a large amount of time, the results could be disastrous. In the end, Ivan used this drawback as one more reason to find Elsewise again and end this battle as quickly as possible. Ivan braced his injured arm against his breastplate while his other hand clutched his sword, and he set about this doomed town to find his enemy.
.........................
Elsewise was stumbling out of the way of yet another falling house when he came to realized that he didn't like the ambiance of this place very much. Before the earthquake hit, Elsewise would have been content to stay alone in this place. After the kind of life that he had been bought up in, solitude was honestly the greatest blessing that he could imagine. But then that weird knight guy had to come along and ruin it for him, rude bastard didn't even introduce himself before he was swinging his sword. Regardless of what that rude knight was doing right now, Elsewise's mind was focused completely on the earthquake around him, it was a disaster for him in it's purest form. Because Elsewise was built in a lab and not actually human, his body didn't heal in the way that normal humans did. Even the smallest cut would just stay open and bleed all over the place without scabbing over. To help compensate for this, the scientists that built Elsewise made his body repairable by his own hand. To describe it as simple as possible: instead of his cut's healing over time, Elsewise has to sew them shut himself. However, in a natural disaster such as an earthquake of this magnitude, finding time to heal his wounds would be nothing short of impossible. And as for a safe place, Elsewise didn't even want to think about the odds of finding one of those.
Elsewise was just thinking about all of this when the sound of clanking chain mail rung out behind him. He turned around to see the rude knight charging at him, completely unaffected by the raging ground beneath their feet.
.........................
If Elsewise was caught off guard by Ivan's power, he both hid it well and was swift to adapt. Ivan swung the blade at his shoulder, but Elsewise was able to use the violent rumbling to his advantage as he allowed it to throw him out of the sword's course. After this, Ivan continued to attack as his body started to slowly fail him, he had to struggle in order to maintain his power's stability while he rushed forward to strike at his enemy again. Ivan was well aware of the fact that if this fight went on for very much longer then both his power and his body would completely shut down. With this in mind, Ivan swung his blade at Elsewise's neck while the man was still getting to his feet from his tumble. Elsewise responded quickly by falling back down to his knees and ducking his head, which sent the blade right over his head. As the quaking grew even more violent, Ivan's power slipped and he crashed back down to the ground. Because Elsewise was walking across the floor while the quake was weaker, he had an easier time adapting to the newfound power of the earthquake. Ivan failed to notice that he was looking around, but he returned his attention to Elsewise just in time to see him rushing away down a nearby street. Ivan forced himself back to his feet, but he didn't reactivate the power, using it at this point would cause more harm that it would good.
Had Ivan been thinking normally, he may have realized that Elsewise was leading him into a trap. Was he not fatigued to the point where his mind was breaking down, he may have seen several large buildings around him as he gave chase. But as things stood, Ivan's whole mind was focused on the fleeing Elsewise, and striking him down before the city became even more brutal and violent. Elsewise came to a rough halt where two roads met in an intersection, there was a large house still standing at each corner, which was another detail that Ivan failed to notice because of his fatigue. Elsewise rushed as quickly as he could to one of the nearest houses stepping through the threshold into the front door and exiting out the back as quickly as possible. As he planned, the rude knight ran through the front door in chase, but lost sight of his enemy as he went through the back.
Ivan made one vital mistake in this process, he stopped and began looking around what remained of the house without noticing the straining walls and the cracking foundation beneath his feet. As he continued to investigate the house, Elsewise was putting distance between the doomed house and his own body. Elsewise watched as the house fell over onto itself with the knight still inside. Elsewise, however, made the mistake of being a little too cautious of ensuring his victory. After the house collapsed, he made his way over to the wreckage instead of heading for the front gate. When he stepped out onto the wreckage, he saw a light blue glow hiding under the rubble. As he began to pull the wreckage away to investigate, the glow suddenly erupted in a repulsing wave, knocking away everything that fell over onto him.
Ivan chalked it up to a miracle that he was able to muster together the energy to form a shield, and that he had willpower to repulse it in am aura, Ivan couldn't even imagine what was going through his mind for those last few seconds. He got to his feet, holding his head as pain equal to a thousand swords stabbing into his forehead rang through his brain. Ivan stepped out of the wreckage with a pair of legs that couldn't hold their own weight up, let alone all of Ivan and his armor. The earthquake sent him to slamming to the earth on his back. The ever growing strength of the earth's fury began to split the ground apart the ground that Ivan was laying on. He let out a pained groan as his head rolled to the left, where his eyes stopped on an unconscious Elsewise, who had been blasted away along with the destroyed remains of the house that served as a trap for Ivan.
His vision began to blur and blacken as Ivan gave up on consciousness. Ethan's voice remained out of sight as it rang out in Ivan's mind
"If you pass out here, you're going to die"
"..."
"Ivan, you and I both know that you can't afford to die yet, you've got a job to do"
"Ethan..."
Ivan's mind took over his body, commanding the broken down body to get to it's feet and get out of this damned town. Ivan's body had no choice but to submit to his supernatural desire to survive, and with the last of the energy at his disposal, Ivan made a full dash out of the city as the last of the streets began to splinter apart and fall away from one another under his feet. He didn't stop until he was several yards away, where he fell down onto a calm hill that was unaffected by the rage of the earthquake that tore apart the final remains of the small town.
Was Ivan more diligent, he may have been worried about what became of Elsewise. Were he more cautious, he may have avoided the entire disaster altogether. Were Ivan more conscious, he may have put more distance between him and the town. But things being the way they were, Ivan collapsed on the hill once he knew that he was safe. He was naive when he arrived at the town, and his last conscious thought before the darkness took over was that he would never have that luxury again.
Alright, as usual I'm going to beg the lot of you for feedback.
Anything you didn't like about the story, feel free to speak up so that I can improve it in the future
The Evil went through the portal, he was looking for a fool to stomp.
He was in a mood 'he was talkin' rude: he was ready to do this romp.
And he came across this weird man playin the vynil and spinnin' it fast
And the Evil struck a fearsome pose and said: "Boy, ima kick your ass:
"I'm sure that you don't know me, and i'm sure that i don't care
"But if we're gonna do this thing, then I say we make this fair
"Now you spell a pretty good tune, you freak, but give the Evil a chance
"Help me settle a bet, this is to the death, and lets see who's the better dance"
The man said: "I'm the DJ, and I got no hate for you,
"But we'll do this test, to show I'm best, you bit off more than you can chew"
DJ you best find your groove and get into the beat
'Cos steel surrounds the Evil and you're in for quite a treat
And if you prove him cocky you may save his soul from sin
But if you lose, he'll rip off all your skin
The Evil cracked his fingers sharp and hissed: "Just watch this shit"
And he spun along the stony ground and leaped into a flip
His arms performed the robot as he moon-walked too and fro
Then he began to tap and slide, sparks flying as he goes
And when the Knight had finished, and the DJ's eyebrow dropped
The music man stretched out his arms and the whole damn planet stopped
Groove into the soul, man, dance don't run
Evil's forgotten how to just have fun
So watch me done this dance of dance
Evil, can you fix you?
You not true.
The Evil sad a bad word 'cos he knew that he'd got served
And he thought about the promise and the life DJ had earned
DJ said: "Johnny don't feel the music, there's a black song in his heart
"And you'd best put down my tape deck, it be easy to fall apar-
And he tried to dodge the table, dodge, duck, run
Evil is a bastard, and pulls his gun
Shooting down the soul man, in the back
If nobody sees it
It's not slack
----------------
That was way more fun to write then it had any right to be. Feedback appreciated.
I'd like to note that Charlie Daniels' considerable girth moving at any speed is lethal on impact, so just employing him was bound to leave somebody dead. I didn't so much shoot you with him as allow nature to take its course once he arrived.
And here's my entry! Any response on how I can improve my writing would be insanely appreciated. Thank you.
You may have heard of one hero?s quest
Who lost all of those whom he held dear
But he held a power so great and faced every test
True, he would one day face dangers and fear
His journey would one day be fully told
His heroism praised by brave and bold
But no hero wins all battle he fights
The journey may end, no more see his light
But this hero?s end shan?t come from freak?s hands
Scroll down, dear reader, to hear of my plans?
Elsewise sighed angrily at the Grim Reaper?s rhyming. It would be a lot easier to understand what the plan was for this first fight, if Azrael wasn?t always keeping him in the dark.
Azrael smiled and gazed upward, as if coming out of a trance, ?Oh, don?t worry, my dear friend. I?m just working on a bit of poetry to soothe your unnatural mind.?
Elsewise groaned deeply. ?You know, Death, it?d be easier to trust you if you had a definitive personality.? Azrael rose an eyebrow in puzzlement. ?One moment, you speak in awkward English, then, you become sarcastic and melodramatic, next, you?re speaking in iambic pentameter?? Even Azrael?s appearance seemed to change over time?He was, at first, dressed in a business suit. Now, he wore a black robe and had seemed to grow?bigger. At every fight?s end, he seemed to grow stronger and stronger.
Azrael only continued to smile, ?The day death grows a straight face and set style is the day that man?s figures how to cure his mortality. While we?re at it, why don?t you either shut up or be a wiseass. Pick one and stick with it.?
Elsewise shrugged, ?Apologies. My data is imperfect, based off three different personality types of the scientists who created me. As a result, my personality tends to become rather?erratic.?
?Well, that doesn?t matter now,? Azrael laughed. ?The important thing is to win this fight.? Elsewise and Azrael walked to the center of the arena towards a glowing blue portal. Elsewise looked around him, concernedly. ?Um...where?s my opponent??
Azrael only smiled, ?He was so anxious that he leapt in before you. He was really eager to fight, you see.?
Elsewise?s face grew distraught. ?But, I didn?t get a good look at him? How do I know who I?m fighting??
Azrael took a step back, ?TAKE A GUESS!? he cackled, before kicking Azrael into the portal.
Elsewise fell on his back into a crowded road. The people seemed intent on leaving quickly. A large wagon driven by a small family, originally speeding away from the town, stopped in front of him once Elsewise dropped in their path. A man picked Elsewise from the ground and started pointing towards the town and speaking almost incomprehensibly. Elsewise couldn?t understand a word, but the man was clearly panicked and didn?t have much time to waste. He merely saved the monologue to his memory and thanked him. Elsewise started walking towards the town but the man yanked him away from the path by the arm. It was clear that town was not a safe place to be. But, Elsewise was dropped here for a reason? He had to figure that the town was the arena?
He pulled away and after the man yelled at him a little while longer, he left with his family and drove over the hills away?
The walk to town was only a mile and a half. Elsewise managed it in ten minutes to work his way to the center of town. The townspeople seemed less panicked than those leaving, even on the verge of celebrating. Such contradiction seemed something to be concerned about, but too much concentration on it may give the enemy a chance to strike. He hadn?t seen anyone out of place, but the town was small, so he had to have been around somewhere? He wandered into a crowded building, from where he heard much shouting, singing and commotion.
Elsewise wandered into what appeared to be a bar. He sat at the front, the bartender staring at his robes and bandaged face curiously. He muttered something to Elsewise, but again, the language barrier prevented Elsewise from response.
??E?s asking you what you want to drink, mate?? said a bar patron beside him. Elsewise turned and sighed in relief at a fellow English speaker in the bar. The man was tall, red-haired, and spoke with a low and gruff tone. His clothes were torn and ratty, but his look was friendly enough. He shook off the question. He had never drank alcohol before and now would be a lousy time to start.
A minute?s conversation revealed the man?s name to be James Sullivan, a former doctor that had come here to investigate the medicinal factors of a local plant that grew nearby. The plant went extinct several weeks ago and his research was deemed worthless. Drinking his sorrows away was the only thing that still gave him any pleasure while still on leave.
?So, why are some of these people leaving in such a hurry? And why is everyone else celebrating??
James chuckled, ?Ge? this, mate. A local witchdoctor...doctress...whateva... lived on the outskirts of this town for 75 years, making up curses and potions and what not. Well, it turns that she hated this village with all her heart. An angry mob killed some ol? boyfriend o? hers or somefing after he killed some girl in a rage? Anyway, in her dying hours, she walked in the front of her shack in circles, speaking in tongues and dancing wif the demons, placing the mutha of all curses on this little town. Some left afterwards to escape her dying wrath. Others celebrate that she?s dead and gone. The mayor fifty years ago once hinted that the town wasn?t too prosperous because of the ?non-Christian activities of certain lil? hermits? and from age 25 to age 75, no man, woman, or children in this village trusted her.? James finished his soliloquy with a large gulp of ale.
?So, the town is cursed? Isn?t that just superstition??
James sighed and looked deeply into his bottle. ?Prolly?Not sure? I couldn?t care less if this damn town is cursed. Nothing left for me here or anywhere?I?m better off dead?? James was clearly upset at his losses since coming here and Elsewise wasn?t exactly the master of comforting people.
?Well, an?way, that?s all in the past. The future is on its way?and I?m sure it?s brighter than this dark hellhole.? James tried to joke. ?So, what are you here for, my fine bandaged friend??
Elsewise took a moment to think before simply confessing, ?I?m here to fight someone.?
James smiled, not the reaction Elsewise was expecting, ?Isn?t that a coincidence? Ivan is here to fight someone too! You?d love him, mate. Real nice kid? Where?d that bugger go?? James looked about before resting his eyes on a kid in knight?s armor? Well, ?kid? wasn?t a great description of him. He was gigantic. Ivan turned to face James and ended up staring eye to eye with Elsewise. Ivan pulled his sword and Elsewise pulled his dagger.
Everyone around them stopped in place. James stood in between the two of them. ??EY ?EY now mates? let?s all relax?? Ivan and Elsewise stared each other down in silence. Suddenly, an eruption of sound was heard nearby. At first, it sounded like a thunderous crack, and then grew into a panic of screaming and crying. Several went outside to investigate the noise and James lost his footing in the rumble of sound. Ivan stepped forward and slashed down onto Elsewise, who only narrowly blocked the blow with his dagger.
Ivan?s arm reeled back and it seemed as if he was going to throw a punch, but suddenly his arm began to grow an orange-like tint. Ivan?s arm forced forward into Elsewise?s chest and his ribs may have cracked. Elsewise flew behind the bar and straight back into the wall before falling next to a panicking bartender. Elsewise felt his ribs quickly. None were broken. He wasn?t hit by a natural blow but the pain was real? He was going to have to watch for that attack.
At that moment, the ceiling collapsed from above them. The floor underneath them cracked with uproar and both fell to their faces. The building was falling to pieces above them and nature was a cruel referee. Ivan pulled James out of the crumbling building out to the entrance and Elsewise slipped out the backdoor with the bartender in tow.
Elsewise looked upon the destruction and carnage around him. Men, women, and children screaming- some in fear, others in agony. Their home, their world, however long it took to build, was crumbling in a matter of moments: The difference between existence and nothing. This sad bit of poetry would have to rest on someone else?s mind; more important business was at hand.
Elsewise quickly dropped the bartender to the ground and scurried up the quickly collapsing building. Though not the smartest idea, the building would provide him the higher ground needed to win this fight. He leapt his way to the roof and looked down. He saw his opponent rushing into a home. AHA! Clearly, he was looking for another weapon to defend himself with. Cowardly dog? Elsewise leaned down closer to see what his enemy was going to take from his ransacking.
About half a minute later, Ivan left the home holding several large objects over his shoulders. Heh, the dirty human ransacked the home of its valuables apparently? He dropped the bags onto the ground and?they got up and ran? His opponent had rescued an elderly couple from their crumbling remains of a home! This was? unexpected. Elsewise didn?t want to fight someone that didn?t deserve death. Elsewise looked down and sighed. He was presented targets before and he had killed them all the same: Rich, poor, good, evil. This was no different? He wished he could believe that. He hopped off the building in front of ?Ivan.? If he was going to fight someone pure of heart, he was going to have a fair fight.
Ivan quickly turned to face his present enemy. The two combatants stood silent as the world came crashing around them. Elsewise?s highly advanced ears picked up something so light, it was almost unnoticeable. Ivan was muttering to himself, so lightly that even those running by him inches away wouldn?t have even noticed. He was muttering ?They?re depending on me?I can?t lose?I can?t lose??
Ivan thrust his arm forward and the orange glow burst like a shot from his palm. Elsewise shot to the right and dashed forward. He wasn?t thinking too deeply now. He was just running on adrenaline. Elsewise?s dagger swung forth and collided with Ivan?s sword. Elsewise?s dagger slipped past the blade and shot forward into Ivan?s heart. Tragically, Ivan was no novice. He dodged narrowly to the right so the dagger merely swung deep into his shoulder. However, Ivan?s armor took the brunt of the blow and the knight looked barely fazed by the wound.
Ivan?s hand began to glow and it seemed to stretch around his sword. Elsewise tried to take his dagger and defend himself but the blade had stuck in the knight?s armor and was irretrievable. Ivan swung down and Elsewise could do nothing but avoid the blow.
Elsewise fell back in shock from the strike. Elsewise?s arm dropped to the ground, disconnected from the rest of his body. Ivan laid his sword to the creature?s throat. ?SURRENDER! I do not wish to kill you!? The knight said. Elsewise wasn?t sure whether to be impressed or disgusted- literally, his mind was unable to fully comprehend his perception of this man. Even in victory, the knight showed a compassion for his fellow human, and was giving Elsewise the chance to live to fight another day.
An offer Elsewise wasn?t going to accept.
Elsewise?s needle ripped forward from his left hand and cut a line into Ivan?s face. The knight fell back from surprise at the sneak attack. Elsewise?s left arm and right leg surged forward. The arm wrapped around the dagger and the leg pressed into Ivan?s gut. With that bit of pressure, the dagger came free. At that moment, another rupture struck through the city and buildings began to collapse all around them. With the knight distracted by the chaos, Elsewise slipped his dagger and needle back on his person, grabbed his severed arm, and ran. The attack kept Ivan off balance, but wouldn?t keep him down for sure?
Elsewise breathed heavily as he leaned against the wall of a barely standing building. His severed arm rested between his torso and the wall, and he continued to bleed regardless. He was less proficient at sewing with his left arm than with his right, especially when things were going so hazy from the blood loss, but he would have to make due. He whisked the needle in and out of his arm and voila! His arm was reconnected to the rest of his body. ?Thank you, fake nervous system?? smiled Elsewise, as his arm slowly reconfigured itself to the rest of his body.
The chaos around him was growing fierce. People were crying and screaming from the aftershock of the earthquake. Things were chaotic and it would be hard to find anyone in this mess. Luckily, Elsewise had managed to catch Ivan?s scent?
He sprung from building to building with great agility and overlooked the knight. He was angrily scouring the city, in search of what he believed to be his prey. The knight sat directly below the predator, trying to regain his bearings.
Just drop down and slit his throat, Elsewise thought bitterly to himself. He can?t fight what he doesn?t expect. In that moment, another tremor struck. Several children running after their mother only a few steps ahead, stopped to catch their breath as a building towering over them began to fall. Ivan quickly sprang forward and fired orange into the building for several seconds as the children ran out of the way. Ivan sat back quickly, exhausted at the expense of his stamina.
Elsewise rubbed his eyes in anger. Why doesn?t he just carry an American flag and a box of Wheaties wherever he goes? Ivan was the good guy in this round and he was the cannon fodder, Elsewise sighed as he leapt down in front of Ivan again. Not this fight?
Ivan looked in surprise at Elsewise and his re-attached arm. Elsewise knew how to take him on now. The orange energy blasts weren?t too bad one at a time, but in succession or at length, they took a toll on the knight. Ivan, still tired from his energy blast toward the building, fired a wider beam toward Elsewise. It was still exhausting, but it would guarantee a hit. Elsewise didn?t move.
The blast closed in on the creature and still Elsewise refused to budge an inch. The blast cleaved through the air without sign of deceleration. Suddenly, Elsewise?s legs seemed to cave in upon themselves and his body seized up, his legs ducked straight to the ground and body fell straight down. The beam flew over him and cleaved into a falling building. Ivan, in his fury, fired several focused blasts all towards the acrobatic monster. He wasn?t even focusing his energy, he just wanted Elsewise to die. SWING! One flew past Elsewise?s shoulder. FWOOSH! Another flashed between Elsewise?s legs. BAM! Elsewise?s head was nailed by a blast from Ivan. A confident look flashed on the knight?s face and he sat down for a moment to gain a moment?s respite. He had won?
?Or so he thought. Elsewise wasn?t even knocked down by the blast. He merely fixed himself back to a normal standing position. ?That hurt a lot more when you were at full strength,? Elsewise cackled. If he wasn?t the good guy, he must be the villain. He would play his part, since Ivan played his own so well. Ivan panicked. He charged forward with his sword straight forward to pierce Elsewise?s heart. However, without the knight?s stamina, his speed was gone, his strength failing him. Elsewise sidestepped the blow and the dagger disappeared into the chest of Ivan?s armor. However, the dagger didn?t stick this time?
The blade pierced through Ivan?s chest and he fell to his knees in agony. The pain and the exhaustion were more than the human body was meant to take. The monster leaned down to look upon the hero?s visage. ?I?ll tell you what?? Elsewise said, doing his best to play the part of the villain. ?Lick the scum of my boot and I?ll let you live??
Ivan didn?t take a moment to respond, or he wouldn?t have, were his lungs failing him. ?Go? to Hell?? His arm surged forward and fired one more blast of energy. It cleaved straight through Elsewise?s stomach and he fell to the side. The knight, however, seemed to fall against Fate?s cruel humor. The blast continued into the building across from him and it fell straight down. The knight did his best to slip away but no man would have had the dexterity.
Part of the building fell the short distance atop his legs. At full strength, Ivan would have had the strength to push the stone out of his way. Now, he had barely the strength to lift his arms. He cursed himself. He had failed those who put their trust in him, even after death.
Elsewise breathed heavily from the ground. No reason to save him, he thought to himself as he crawled over to the building. He tried to kill me from beginning to end, he pondered as he lifted himself up to the building. He limped over to the kid under the building and whispered, as talking in his condition was impossible, ?Don?t?worry, kid?just help me push?? Elsewise wasn?t sure why he was trying to save the knight. Maybe he didn?t want his world to lose someone who thought of others even in times of mayhem. Maybe he though this was what SHE would want him to do. Maybe his circuits were fried from the hole in his stomach. Elsewise grunted with all his remaining strength as the building came off of Ivan, who used his remaining energy to kick with his legs before falling unconscious.
Elsewise looked down on the kid. He was still breathing?barely? Hopefully, the kid would do some good in this world, he thought to himself as his breaths became softer and softer. He fell against the building with his hands shaking as he fiddled the needle out of his pocket. His hands failed him as the needle fell from his hands to the road beneath him.
I don?t think I like being the villain, he thought to himself as the world turned dark around him. I don?t like it at all?
Devon Warner vs. Rahk-Tahl
Location: Earthly: TORRENT
Nothing like some good ol? white-water rafting, eh? Little Class 5 rapids, gigantic waterfall, asshole on another raft trying to kill you?
Keep your footing, keep your life
Elsewise Ipswitch vs. Malcolm Lynch
Location: Hellish: BLOODSPORT
Combat masters? abilities aren?t wasted when they go to hell. This enormous arena, reminiscent of the Roman Coliseum, is packed to the brim with demons itching to watch the damned go at it.
Careful. Some of the demons might decide to make the fight a little more interesting.
NOTE: Due to the number of forfeits, I?m increasing the deadline. You now have ten days.
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