Deep Sea Dome

DEEP SEA DOME

Hey look, dolphins! Too bad this underwater dome is placed on the bottom of the sea instead of in an aquarium of fun times. At least theres no spectators around.

Terrain

General - The giant glass dome sits on the bottom of the sea in darkness if not for the massive stadium styled lights shining into the fifty foot diameter ring. The only entry and exit point of the dome is through an airlock located on the floor of the platform. Limited oxygen.

Weapons - None.

Bonus Effects - Damage to the glass dome may result in a red card for obvious reasons. Rescue teams are at the ready.

"..."

It seemed it was a complicated process to get into the THUNDER Deep Sea Dome, as Rage came in through the airlock looking rather soggy and cold. Apparently somewhere along the line someone had tried to figure out the trick to his transition, and they had failed miserably at it. Either that or someone made a mistake with an airlock. Either way, Rage hated large bodies of water, and he hated swimming, too.

"..."

This was really the best they could do?

And against Frozen Flame once again?

"..."

Step, step, step up next to Athan. This whole bloody thing had him in a bad mood. He had become so used to the sounds of cheering audiences and people yelling for teams....

... now all he could hear was the occasional fish bump into the glass.

"..."

Well, he certainly wasn't adding anything to the atmosphere, save for the occasional sound of a drop of water from his clothing hitting the floor. He had been warned about the lack of oxygen - he decided he'd better keep from heating things up unless it was absolutely necessary. He had been playing it smart, at least - keeping the water warm enough to keep from changing him, but not enough to cause it to steam up. At this point there wasn't enough to cause anything weird anyways.

Dashboard Wrote:

Outside of the dome, a bottle nose dolphin watches on. Around its neck is a Frozen Flame shirt someone lost during a vicious jetski wipeout. It seems estatic about the throwdown that's about to take place.

Saddly, the dolphin will never get to see said throwdown.

A shark ate him.

A shark with a Mata Leon chain around its neck, that he stole from a fan...

-who he also ate.

Along with the shark, came a little clownfish, who was angry about Mata Leon losing in the previous round, exactly to one of the teams that is about to fight.

''s**t. I can't believe the judges robbed ML. They clearly won that fight. These Frozen Faggots must be favored or something."

How'd he get down here? Do you really care?

He appeared to be asleep, but he wasn't snoring or chasing things in his dreams.

There was nothing (nice) to say. He wasn't gonna be fighting, and that annoyed him to no end.

Maybe a little more than the fact they were fighting this team again.

That was, unless it was like last round and it depended on him. Again.

It was better to just stay like this for now.

Too bad Rage wasn't Sakura, 'cause Laz could really use a massage right now.

=(

A sneeze echoed.

It was one of those dry sneezes that sounded allergy induced, just before the hay fever caught hold and opened up the nose like a fountain.

Sunstrike looked ready to cry. First, they'd had to get down there, and Lazenca was too miserable to keep him distracted. He had snapped when Sun had held him too tight. Then, they actually had to get in the tank.

Things were very blue. Very dark blue and very wet looking, and it was cold, very cold. That was too many very's for one salamander to take.

Their last round with Fracture had been warm.

Karma was a b***h.

His ears lowered and he sat hiding his face in his knees, back to the curled up form of Laz. Maybe...if I pretend it's like...in the sky, or maybe just covered in blue paint....with fishes....fishes that move with er... magic!

He shivered and kept hold of happy thoughts.

Aquaman swam by, doing a barrel roll.

And was promptly attacked and eaten by a swarm of barracuda wearing Bloodfyre T-shirts.

Sosrly, what the hell?

Somewhere far above the dome a team of Marine biologist were studdying the unusual habits of the inhabitants of the deep. The sights and sounds were odd, unusual and down right corporate sponsored. When suddenly one of them proclaimed.

"WHAT KIND OF FISHARY IS THIS?"

Sun got up and stretched, before sneezing again. Shuffling about, he got his coat on, and grabbed his weapon.

He was still working imaginary kinks out of his shoulders as he stepped forward, looking around at the barrier he tsked.

"Damnit, I apologise guys...it's hard to move fast down here...wanna sleep something chronic..." It was true, he looked ready for a nap.

"Where's tall, dark, and angry?" He was, of course, talking about Vahn.

Sunstrike Wrote:

He shivered and kept hold of happy thoughts.

Were Sun not about to go see about fighting, Laz would've let him actually curl up with him. But Sun was, so nevermind. Rather than speak the obvious about Sun's being agitated about being all cold, Lazenca just lay there and listen to the members sort things out.

Forever.

"Everyone's talking so much. You'll use up all our air talking before the fight."

They'd use up the air fighting, but that was the hand they were dealt. Lazenca's resting in his impossibly large state meant that he wouldn't use up nearly as much air as he should be. As for the rest of them? They could go huff and puff until the time ran out. Hopefully, two decisive wins ended any need to stay down here.

Now, it was cool. And it was wonderful with all the pretty fish (where the heck was the Blazestar whale?) and the low throb of a rock session some leagues away, the dome acting as a lowpass filter... maybe through the two barriers and because of the frequency, they (Kael) couldn't hear it. It was that kinda low throb you got when you stood outside of a club. Oh, memories.

However, he couldn't eat these fish because if he tried, they'd all be flooded and DIE. So with all this food taunting him and compounding his annoyance... he daydreamed about Sakura, Ray, and Teira all giving him a massage.

"^_______________________^"

Ecks X Wrote:

Sunstrike Wrote:

He shivered and kept hold of happy thoughts.

Were Sun not about to go see about fighting, Laz would've let him actually curl up with him. But Sun was, so nevermind. Rather than speak the obvious about Sun's being agitated about being all cold, Lazenca just lay there and listen to the members sort things out.

Forever.

"Everyone's talking so much. You'll use up all our air talking before the fight."

They'd use up the air fighting, but that was the hand they were dealt. Lazenca's resting in his impossibly large state meant that he wouldn't use up nearly as much air as he should be. As for the rest of them? They could go huff and puff until the time ran out. Hopefully, two decisive wins ended any need to stay down here.

Now, it was cool. And it was wonderful with all the pretty fish (where the heck was the Blazestar whale?) and the low throb of a rock session some leagues away, the dome acting as a lowpass filter... maybe through the two barriers and because of the frequency, they (Kael) couldn't hear it. It was that kinda low throb you got when you stood outside of a club. Oh, memories.

However, he couldn't eat these fish because if he tried, they'd all be flooded and DIE. So with all this food taunting him and compounding his annoyance... he daydreamed about Sakura, Ray, and Teira all giving him a massage.

"^_______________________^"

Somewhere, a bit far away, a family was watching HoH in their living room.

"Mommy?" a small voice tugged at her blonde mother.

"Yes Sally?"

The young girl pointed at the TV. "That man has a strange face, its the exact same kind of face that Daddy has when he discusses things in the bedroom with my babysitter."

...

Ten minutes later, the local police station was recieving a domestic violence call.

"Hello? Hi sir. I can't hear you very well, the background is very noisy. You are being beat up by your wife? Yeah yeah, sorry prankster, none of that here"

The officer hung up. His friend asked him without turning around from watching the TV, which happened to have the beach Heaven or Hell fight showing, "What was that Steve?"

"Nothing, just some loser, did the fight between Iron Tits Athena and Crawley start yet?"

"Nope. 10 gold says that Crawley wins"

"Double that, and I bet you that Crawley wins by rear naked butt cuddle"

"You are ON buddy. Loser also buys a six-pack of bud-light"

"I think he was referring to me."

There was a mechanical hiss which sounded out through the entire dome, as the final member of the party arrived, appearing dead center as the lift delivered him upwards from the pressurization chamber below, which remained docked with the actual submarine that had been used to transport everyone to the specially created match area.

It was wild, to be sure--- and the only underwater anything that Vahn had ever seen was the show of the yellowed square man with straight trousers; Robert something or other.

When he had received his FIGHTER information, he had been skeptical about being told to report to Latent's port. He didn't expect to have another go on an ocean going vessel again--- but surprise, surprise--- it turned out he was goin' to be havin' a wet and wild time.

Sort of.

"Why the long face? We all have our parts-- right?" He kept both palms up as he looked to Sunstrike.

No more masks, no more plays. He stood there in his trademark leather coat, the belts and straps on the thing looking more fit for a mental patient, and those hardass boots shining dully in the bluish lighting.

I won't suffer, be broken, get tired, or wasted...

Sunstrike was silent for a long moment, eyes closed. He didn't turn around at the voice, though his shoulders lowered.

Maybe he had been hoping that voice wouldn't come, maybe he was taking stock, or maybe he was just trying not to sneeze again.

Regardless of sentiments and chatter, he'd begin. Life was all too short and enough had been wasted. This was no time to stand around.

Right?

Vahn's palms were up, and he stood in the centre of the ring, proud tall and ready, always ready, for attack. Sun had to seriously move to get to him, so there'd be no illusions or sneak fakes. He'd go from standing calmly to a turn and sprint.

Maybe it was unfair to go straight for the black haired Murmillion without warning, but Sun wasn't playing games this time around.

At the peak of his attack he'd push up from the ground with a squeak from the odd floor, it was a sideways jump from Vahn's flank.

His body led the attack, both arms holding onto the very edges of the quarterstaff.

Sun would yank his body around, using the gravity to pull his arms up and over, so that the broad side of his weapon would arc and drive straight down towards Vahn's head in a red metallic blur.

A calm and collected attack, if a little flamboyant...

Surrender to nothing...

(1/17)

Or give up what I started and stopped it, from end to beginning...

Quote: "The he---"

THRAKKK

No, Sun hadn't sucker punched yet. That was next.

Quote: "Ahh....damn it, that hurt...."

The staff exploded into the air as he released it upon connection, spinning straight upwards even as Sun came back to earth in a crouch.

Vahn Fah Wrote:

I don't know what's gotten into you...but if your going to come at me like that, then I got no choice but to respond in kind!"

As if following a dance routine he'd come around again, spinning on his metal clad leg and bringing his fist straight down, and across Vahn's exposed jaw as he reached for the blade at his back. Sun's shoulder and arm were thrown into the punch, other hand held up towards his face for balance and defence, with no reserve or thought of the damage he'd end up doing to his hand or knuckles.

Sucker punch.

He let his body naturally rise to a stand and he caught the weapon tightly in his good hand as it came spinning back to earth, glaring at Vahn angrily.

FASTER!!

A new day is coming,and I am finally,

free!

(2/17)

Sunstrike grinned and blew along his knuckles, letting the cool air ease the ache before closing it up in a fist and shaking it in a purely mocking motion of...well, you know.

Proving that he thought Vahn had just been mentally whacking off instead of paying attention.

It may be true that Sun knew most of Vahn's strengths and weaknesses, but worse, sometimes he just knew exactly the right thing to get underneath that dark skin.

Now the sword was out, but that didn't bother Sun as he tensed and then sprang towards the other man. Fully expecting to meet Vahn coming at full speed in his direction as well.

Run away, run away, I'll attack

Vahn Fah Wrote:

He hadn't exactly been expecting this kind of tenacity to say the least--- and for some reason he had come in here thinking Sun's team would just forfeit and allow his to advance, thus keeping both in.

As wonderful a thought that was-- seriously, it would've been nice if for nothing more than entertainment and the chance to have a tiebreaker match-- the mermaids would be trilling their laughter.

"LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL"

Hu--- Being grabbed and not following through with the push, he was instead sent right back down anyway.

The floor was coming up fast, and right now not having both hands free was a hindrance. But one he could live with at the moment. Fortunately he would land on the side of his left arm, teeth rattling a bit.

Right now though--- he was annoyed.

And it wasn't because of the trio of tunafish deciding to laugh for no reason. Everyone was smoking something. Or these waters were just ******** up, because he found it hard to believe that all the life in the sea were schmucks.

Rolling to his back, he would push his body back up and actually aim to stab towards Sunstrike with the rapier; since he placed himself into a seated position and if Sun was still holding onto his leg while on the floor with him. The intent was sudden and flared as he wasn't holding back on the lethality of the move.

If avoided, the tip would actually pierce the floor, showing how much power the sudden thrust had.

TIMER: 14:00

He had actually been expecting the blow to miss.

It was a surprise that his blade actually penetrated the other man, and for a second-- his thoughts were derailed.

In that window of opportunity, Sun managed to actually pull Vahn towards him with a yank. Since the Fang had run Sun through the side-- then the tip would find itself lodged into the floor if enough force was applied to it--- force that wouldn't come as Vahn was backhanded and sent to the side a bit, his right arm still tied with Sun'.

"Funny-- you look kinda angry." He came back in with a left hook, stepping in as he slammed the hit home, unable to untangle from the arm lock and use his sword.

TIMER: 13:00

WHAM

Both feet connected, and any grip he had on his blade was forcibly lost, as the pressure to the top of his chest blew him backwards.

His right hand got cut up from the Fang's unique cup guard, due to the way he was forced to relinquish the blade, and he went skidding along the floor on his side, before stopping completely.

Beads of sweat were running down the side of his neck, even as he fought to regain stolen breath, coughing harshly a bit.

Hardly the look of a self proclaimed badass to be sure.

"....." He was raised slightly off the ground, one knee resting and the other lifted a bit as both palms lay flat on the ground. Dammit...hard...holdin' back. I just wanna light up...just want to let it all go... but I can't... might as kiss it all goodbye.

He was using everything in his will power to stop his blood from igniting, trying his best to not let the adrenaline in his body activate the flame glands which would basically flood into his blood stream, whereupon contact with oxygen would cause them to erupt into the blackened flames of destruction that he was known for.

He'd been disarmed, but it still seemed like Sunstrike was suffering the worst of it at the moment.

Getting back up to his feet, he stared to the side, noticing that the earlier discarded quarterstaff was right there. Not thinking much of it-- he bent down and scooped it up, giving it a firm twirl above his head, before firmly grasping the hafts.

"I can't exactly let you show me up, now can I?"

TIMER: 12:00

Sun spat blood and wrenched the sword from the ground with a few sparks. Palm flat against the blade, he didn't seem to register as Vahn triumphantly picked up the staff that was usually the salamanders constant companion.

He ran his hand down the flat side, covered in blood, then violently slashed to the left, spraying the liquid in a red mist in a line against the floor.

Deep breath and forwards, low and fast, sword almost completely behind him as he darted in, half due to the wound to his side, half to throw his opponent off again.

Once there he'd yank the blade in an arc and....

[7/17]

Sun let the sword come back to his body, almost as if he was sheathing the ridiculously long jagged blade, even as Vahn popped him in the face, causing him to roll quickly around the blade before coming up, surprisingly within range again.

It'd be a hell of a bruise come morning. But he'd not finished yet.

Vahn wouldn't have half the chance to back up as Sun kept hold of the other end of the blade, palm over the top in a loose, balancing grip. There'd not been a lot of force in the swing after all, the salamander had just wanted to see if he could get in close.

Vahn Fah Wrote:

"Easy there, bright eyes, your making a mess of the floor!"

His eyes sparked as Vahn mentioned them, coming into startling focus despite the pain and the jarring. Through the hasty guard, after the blow...there was no other place for Sun to go after all but up and forward, and if he stopped, that was it, it would be over...

His left arm drove upwards and slugged Vahn in the jaw with the hilt of Flamberge, all the strength of his run and hasty roll behind it.

Sun had had a lot of time with a staff and not a lot of time with a sword, but in some ways, the benefits were a lot more for him, then they were for someone who'd not had quarter staff experience for a while.

It meant, in short, that there were far more painful things on a sword then just the blade, especially if you were willing to get right up close and personal, and weren't paticularly bothered about paper cuts/wounds.

ESPECIALLY for a sword like Flamberge.

8/17

Sunstrike showcased the nimbleness he was known for, slipping through the opening in Vahn's grip in order to deliver an upward blow to his jaw, using the entire hilt of the Fang (I'm seeing it as a rising uppercut instead of a hook to the side of the jaw based on what you wrote). "Uugh---!"

The opening had been made when Vahn followed on Sun's roll in order to get another hit in, and actually missed a stabbing thrust of the staff's back end as the redhead came in, the quarterstaff no longer between both men.

There was a brief blackness on Vahn's part before his footing was regained, even as the burning sensation of a dislocated jaw blazed in his mind.

The reason for this--- and not a direct knockout was simply because Vahn didn't have a glass jaw. He had the opposite, and much like a certain idol of his from old pulp comics, he used a bastardized version of the rope-a-dope in his fighting style; essentially intentionally setting himself up for damage in order to gain an opening for counter-attack on a daily basis.

So it was safe to say that Vahn was more suited to absorbing blows to the face as well as the body.

If the strike had actually been more guided, instead of quickly slung-- Sunstrike might had actually struck Vahn's TMJ (Temporomandibular joint) full on and caused an instant knock out-- regardless of how good a 'chin' the Murmillion had.

But it did feel like a few teeth had gotten knocked loose, and there was blood in his mouth. Seems the pretty boy wasn't so pretty anymore.

TIMER: 10:00

Ah fuc--

Eyes widened even as the literal spike that was the Fang's pommel bit through flesh and drove itself into his stomach. He wasn't exactly expecting that.

Not quite at all.

"Shi--!" The words came out a bit slurred and hard to understand, since his jaw was still kinda disconnected-- but the shock on his face was a bit...funny...considering he was still going over it in his head. He released his grip on the quarterstaff, since it was now completely useless to him.

Feeling the sensation that Sunstrike was waning--- he was reminded of the wound inflicted by the Fang to his side. Gritting his teeth-- even as he fell backwards, he would reach out with his fingers, and viscously grip that torn side, getting into the skin and blood as best as possible with his left arm while using his right hand to keep the blade's pommel from digging in any deeper and causing a bigger puncture wound, fingers bleeding along the blade's true edge, since he lacked protective gloves.

He used his right knee to force Sun slightly up and away from him, not wanting the salamander to gain total mounting position.

With all his blood out and about, it was a miracle that the temperature hadn't kicked up or that blackened flames had been birthed--- but that possibility was slowly becoming an actual realization the more self control went out the window.

Right now, the focus was on causing as much pain as possible in order to make the redhead pass out-- if the bloodloss didn't get to him-- before Vahn himself bled out-- especially if the pommel was removed.

TIMER: 9:00

Grace winced as the pair of fighters tried to tear each other apart, knowing those wounds were not easily shrugged off. "That has got to hurt..."

'Andy leaned forwards until her head was almost touching the view port on the submersible. "What, who? I can't see a damn thing with all the other fighters in there..."

Grace tried to suppress the urge to laugh at such a human gesture on the other woman's part, and ended up having to cough to keep it out of her voice. "Sunstrike just stabbed Vahn in the gut with the pommel blade of his own weapon... and Vahn appears to be trying to grab one of Sunstrikes earlier wounds to keep the redhead off balance..."

Even 'Andi had to wince at the mental image those words drew up. "Ouch.."

The moment Sunstrike had pushed off his knee, was a moment that was going to be etched in his mind for a long time to come.

Sunstrike reared back, brandishing his own blade, poised to strike and finish it. Part of him wanted to let it happen. To just let that sword fall down and everything could end.

But that would just be the cowards way out...

With the pommel removed, his right hand would have moved to cover the gap, pressing down tightly in a bid to stop the blood flow. Both legs would raise, even as his bloodied left hand pressed down against the floor next to him for support.

As the blade came downwards, the flat of his greaves would come together, trapping the sword between both booted feet. The tip of the sword was oh so close to coming down--- that the blood in his throat was actualy nearly spilled out from the pain.

Using nothing but leg strength, he held Sunstrike at bay, before twisting his hips to the right-- crying out as he forced Sun to fall to the side as he yanked the blade away from him; hopefully spilling the salamander to the ground and disarming him at the same time.

"Huugk!" A spurt of blood from his lips as the motion forced him to try and tighten the hold on his stomach even more-- and he would be pushing himself off to the side, trying to lift himself up off the ground slowly with his left hand.

[i]Of all the...damned....[i]

TIMER: 8:00

ragingtofu Wrote:

"Ey, you, Tinsel Head."

Apparently Rage was fond of nicknaming people whose names he didn't know based on their attributes - unfortunately, not all of the names were winners. Fortunately, he made it a little easier by pointing at Silver as he said it. "AHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Perhaps Rage had waited a little too long in making his challenge. Perhaps Athan was starting to get a little case of cabin fever, perhaps Athan felt that the best way to issue a challenge for a fight was to straight up attack a guy, or perhaps some weird disembodied voice told him it was best that he fight the young silver-haired prodigy instead of another Frozen Flame member. Whatever the case was, Athan bolted straight past Rage, sword completely unsheathed and dragging behind him, practically parting the red sea of blood that covered the ground of the dome they were to fight on.

Athan had a lot of ground to cover, so it wasn't like the Cole Train's approach was going to surprise Silver or anything, though whether or not he moved in response to the swordsman bearing down on him was up for debate.

In the end it didn't matter as long as Silver wasn't leaned up against the edge of the dome Athan was going to slow his charge at the last moment, taking into account the lack of solid footing on the blood stained ground, and then take one solid step forward with his right foot before bringing the sword from Athan's right to left in a horizontal swing aimed towards Silver's midsection.

As stated in a previous fight, Athan's sword (with the exception of the point) had been dulled prior to his entry to Heaven or Hell. So while the weapon wasn't going to cleave Silver in half, it would pack enough of an impact to bite into the flesh and leave a nasty gash on top of all the blunt force a heavy weapon like his could carry.

As for Rage, well...an apology would be in order at some point. Assuming the green-haired fighter didn't take it out on him during the course of the round.

[1/17]

Sun fell to his knees, his support gone, leaving him kneeling while Vahn stood.

He just looked at his friend, blood covering half his face in a macabre mask, before sliding the dislodged blade along the wet floor between Vahn's legs, and throwing himself into the other man's knee.

The flat end portion of the blade would smack along Vahn's calf and with Sun's weight, plus the flat portion of the upper half of the sword, shoved against it, would look to trip up the standing man.

Bringing Vahn crashing back down to his level, or worse, all the way to the floor, and maybe doing some damage to the darker man's legs on the trip.

13/17

Sun made a variety of colourful and expressive sounds/words when Vahn grabbed his hair, fighting against being thrown to the floor, and leaving them glaring at each other in half stalemate. In all fairness, it was sheer force of will to keep Vahn up, even if it was helping the other man stabilize himself.

There wasn't a lot of choice left, it was either this, or try and dislodge himself the normal way, something that was proving awkward at best.

"b*****d...let...me....GO!!"

He let something in his mind slip. Cue ignition of Vahn's blood in the area between the two. It was a localized blast, small, and cushioned by both men receiving exactly the same concussive force as the other.

14/17

As soon as Silver jumped Athan was prepping some sort of retaliation. As his foes grew in strength and technique Athan had grown used to people avoiding his attacks, and had to adapt accordingly. With his right leading Athan had planned to push off and swing his body around, giving him enough room to avoid Silver's attack and set up a counter of his own.

The only problem was the floor was still incredibly slick with both Vahn and Sun's blood. Athan didn't get as much push as he had wanted, and instead of throwing his body to the side he took a single stutter step forward and to the right.

"!"

His eyes shot downward at the ground for a split second, recognizing just how much of a pain this was going to really be.

His sword had never really stopped its horizontal progress. And Athan was just in the process of bringing the weapon back around to try and bat Silver out of the air when the decidedly more agile fighter caught him by the neck.

Athan was off balance as it was, but most of his weight was forward. If Silver hooked the arm around Athan's neck, there was a good chance both fighters were going to be falling to the floor of the dome.

If Silver went for the clothesline but didn't hook the arm or just decided it was best to not end up on a ground war with the big guy, Athan would be taken to a standing position before taking a giant step back with his right leg to balance himself.

Assuming Athan was still standing, he'd be turning his head to look over his shoulder, determined to not let Silver get out of his sights for too long. Meanwhile, his left and right hands would reaffirm their grip on the hilt of his sword, muscles tensing as he prepped himself for another attack.

[2/17]

> Sunstrike -v- Vahn

Despite his annoyance at not being able to fight this round, he was.. impressed. In the back of his mind, he wondered if Sun truly was good, or if he was one riding the coattails. Other than the fight in the first tournament, Lazenca had never seen his then-foe battle. While the fight was good, lots of other factors played into it so there was still that lack of sureness. But now, with this showing, any doubt about Sunstrike's ability went straight out the dome with this showing.

It was the kinda thing that made Laz physically sit up and take notice, seeming now like an overgrown guard wulf, alert as the timer mentally ticked down.

> Silver -v- Athan

He almost... slipped? Momentum... would Silver be able to navigate the slick ground? Athan was going to have so much momentum behind him, and a bad wist could have the ankle broken. A freak accident because of a slick and charred floor...

Ha! Of only luck were on their side.

"..."

Position was everything.

"Nope."

He wasn't curled up now... even he couldn't afford to lay idly by as they fought it out. Before, it seemed that everyone was griping and moaning about this rematch. Sun and Vahn were/had gone the mile, laying fist to face and clearing the air between them. It was nice, something so primal as a spar that brought up emotions and issues. It was all layed out there on the field. Lazenca wondered more about those two he'd got to know a lot more than before in Guldor.

"Probably with Maximos." Lazenca's head dropped and his shoulders rolled in a general shrug. "It's probably for the best."

Quote: "You're not looking so hot."

"I try."

Lazenca inhaled sharply... a dry sniff, indicative of nothing more than being alert, maybe catching a stray dust bunny that made his nose twitch. To support this theory, Lazenca was currently staring down his snout.

"I'm fine enough to move about, though..." Another shrug and he readjusted his fore footing in the upright sitting position. "...though, I was more worried about your weapon."

"We... they... you seem anxious to fight."

He turned his head to Kael for the first time, really looking him over. Maybe Lazenca was thinking of the meaning incorrectly, but with the big, invisible overhead clock ticking down Laz had been wondering if Teira was going to show dramatically, and they'd be just throwing down two fights at once, if for nothing to keep the excitement in the round going. Hadn't planned on being one of the performers, though. Was such a thing even allowed?

...Really wished Teira was here.

"Well, until someone let's me know that we have an idea what's to be done, I'd be more comfortable getting it over with than knowing there're a bunch of people hanging over waiting to make a strike."

Kael hadn't really noticed the misunderstanding himself- with Lazenca injured, he hadn't considered fighting him. Truth be told he was antsy about that, among other things, but as he saw it he had to wait on Teira to show up, and then either he or Rage would fight her. Hopefully after the other two, before the clock ticked itself to a stop. Not that he let it show in his posture, but his eyes and blinking- not constantly, but too often, would give it away if one bothered to look hard enough.

"It's a lot less complicated to watch one's own hide than protect someone else. Funny, then, how the latter seems so much easier." He curled his lips into his mouth, wetting them with his tongue inside his mouth, and returned to watching the fight mostly blankly. "Isn't it?"

He'd continue without waiting for an answer.

"And if they haven't figured it out already, then hanging around after this thing ends will make it pretty obvious, and things'll get even more complicated."

"...and here I thought Fah was being tight lipped about it all."

Yet another interesting little tid-bit. Added up to let him know he couldn't waltz in and ask the red-head to step aside and have a word with him about the ins and outs of their business. He really had to wonder what sort of a game those two were playing at, the only two who clearly knew enough to make a gameplan off of. He could have asked Athan more, but he he was more well acquainted with the side of the story Kael already knew abit about- the one that seemed fairly simple.

Not that he would have been thrilled to get a quiz about that, either.

Ask me for help, and then shove me in a dark corner and lock the door. Some game y'all're playing at. Apparantly it's one helluva crowded room though.

"We do have that to show for it. I'm patient enough usually. I just can't stand being idle, especially when for all I know there might be something I should be doing."

Well, beyond the obvious.

"I can't offer you much though, except that we've got two parties to worry about. One that's got some history with Fah, and one that's done something to piss Athan off fairly royally.

"...and probably several I haven't heard a lick about."

"Some guy pretty closely tied to Fah I was told we needed to keep away from Teira. That's about all I know on that end, except that any time it's been brought up he gets even darker and broodier than he usually does."

He unfolded his arms, brows lowering some. Not knowing too much didn't exactly please him- and he knew a little more than that, but not anything that would have been of any use. Not unless the Murmillion's blood was fairly consistant in its traits, in anycase.

"His brother, I think."

"And apparantly these things called shades are involved. All I know about them is they're black things with a single huge eye, and real dangerous. 'pparantly there are a lot of them, and they're less selective about who they're imperilling. And to make it all the more fun, Owle says there are a few on our side- but I haven't met them, much less know how to tell them apart.

"It's the shades that're on the big guy's bad side."

Kael's turn to be the one with the simple response.

"Never heard of either one of 'em."

One hand came up, stratched his nose, and then paused a moment, holding the FIGHTER up before it folded down again.

Seems this little exchange was worth quite a bit after all.

Funny, how even though he and Lazenca were so in the dark, he still pictured the two of them as playing a somewhat 'older brother'ey role for their teams, the patient ones just trying to do their job and look out for the rest. Only Lazenca had a less dysfunctional "family".

Silver did indeed hook his arm around the other, larger fighter's neck, using him for support as he swung his legs out and around Athan's side with his forward momentum. Silver wasn't trying to land on top of Athan, but behind Athan, and pull Athan down with him as he passed, hoping to land both fighters on their backs.

Only if he succeeded in making it around the larger man, whether he managed to topple the giant backwards or not, he would unhook his arm before either even impacted, and hopefully slide at least a few feet away on the slick coating that Athan had trailed to them by running through it. Even if he wanted to take the big guy down, that didn't mean he wanted to be there when he got up. And Silver wasn't much of a ground fighter already. Trying to go at it with this guy would have been suicide.

If all went well, once a reasonably safe distance away, Silver would kip up, and spin to face his opponent who was probably already well on his way to his own feet. Now, annoyance registered on his face more than anything.

"Hey, what's the big idea, Muscles?! You can't jus-WHOA!"

Suddenly, his feet came out from under him, and Silver was back on his back with a hard thud. The floor was slicker the closer you got to the center, where most of the other fight had taken place. How unfortunate.

"What the hell? What is this?!"

Silver hadn't even realized what they were slipping on, but a quick look at his hands revealed everything.

"Aww, gross!"

2

The focus on Silver's hands shifted to beyond them, the image of the incoming boot of the Cole Train becoming clear as his fingers blurred. His eyes widened.

"OH SHI-"

Silver turned his hands around and brought them together to catch the boot by the sole, but big guys had lots of inertia, so it did little to stop the back of his own hands from then smashing into his face propelled by the foot of Athan. He was at least able to turn his head a little to take it in the cheek rather than the nose, which would have been even more unpleasant.

"AGH!"

The two of them were sliding now, Athan forward, and Silver backward with a boot in his face. As they began to lose momentum, Silver would push back against Athan's leg, while pulling his own right leg up and out from under Athan, and planted it firmly against his crotch, using it also to attempt to push the other man away, or at least, if Athan was too big to move, himself away from Athan. Don't worry, Silver wasn't one to go around kicking another guy in the jewels or anything, armored or not, it was just the only place he could gain enough footing to try and separate them.

"Get offa me!"

If he managed to gain sufficient clearance, he would escape roll to his left and away from Athan, barrel rolling horizontally across the bloody floor.

3

"Well, I guess that means everyone else is out,"

Assumably, if Teira had shown up by that point, she wasn't in condition to be fighting so soon. That left only Lazenca on Frozen Flame, against the captain of Fracture once again.

"looks like we get to play again."

He stepped carefully, negotiating his way out toward the center of the field- right in the middle of all the blood, now smeared all over the floor. Stepping carefully, with muted little thuds against the metal flooring, he came to a stop finally, and reached up, taking his sword up and out of the sheath, which he then unstrapped, and tossed back toward his teams side of the field, clattering to rest near the dome's edge. Leaving him standing in but his usual. Leather jacket, jeans, t-shirt, and his boots and gauntlets. The knife was still at his waist, and, well, the new sword in his hand was evident enough.

"Are you alright for this, or d'ya need to watch 'yer wounds?"

His eyes stayed first on the lights, then the dome around them, falling to the blood around his feet, before he turned around to face Lazenca, face a distantly thoughtful expression.

The sword jumped, tossed from one hand to the other absently, before he finally let it rest in his right hand, corresponding foot half a step infront of his left at shoulder distance. The tip dropped, floating in front of him and toward his left at roughly knee level.

Well, time to see if I can make good on it all.

's all or nothing.

Kael's lips drew tight, and one corner slowly pulled upward.

[1/17]

TIME PARADOX, ROUND V FIGHT iii

Psychfish Wrote:

"Are you alright for this, or d'ya need to watch 'yer wounds?"

He shrugged. If he was here, he might as well do something. If anything else, this would be a good test of limits and everything else.

He didn't move from his place at all, though Lazenca got back to all fours and started rocking back and forth. Hackles rose and dropped and rose and remained that way as eyes traveling from Kael's chest to his neck, to his feet, back to his legs. Nothing too focused... just a general once-over that kept his peripheral vision open. With this, the temperature in the dome started dropping steadily and noticeably as Introversion became Extroversion.

It seemed like someone was pushing him, as if he were on a chain and some invisible owner were pushing him forward and holding him back. With his head low and tail swaying, he seemed ready to rush forward, but the chain kept him from going. A classic prep for a dogfight.

Either he was working his body through the bandage wrapping around his torso, the reminder that he was locked in Negative state, or the chain was about to snap.

[ disk 5, track 1]

{( Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence- Kugutsuuta Kagirohi Ha Yomi Ni Mata Muto )}

[2/17]

That's not surprising. It should be well more than cold enough out there for him to just siphon the heat out of the place...

Kael began to pick his way forward- he'd meant not to fight near the glass, but if Lazenca wasn't moving... much less changing... he was going to have to be the one to bring the fight to the other man.

...probably not hard at all. It'll be more important than ever not to give him time to work up to the magic.

One slow stride suddenly picked up, putting the speed on to dart forward back over to Lazenca again. Was the wolfman really going to wait for him? If not, there was going to be a world of change in the game plan, but for now Kael was rushing him as much as he could without risking slipping.

Assuming Lazenca was just waiting, once he cleared range he'd make a thrust for a top of the shifter's right shoulder- or rather the front, since he was leaned forward so, what would have been the top had he been standing upright- left foot forward and hand free as he slid into a stop, leaned just forward enough to make use of slippery substance on the soles of his boots to give him some extra sliding speed to make the thrust seemingly faster- coming out of nowhere comparatively, maybe all the more surprising for that his legs had ceased moving, but he kept coming closer.

In a way, using the reduced friction from the blood, he was mimicing the way Vahn had used the heat from his greaves to make a blindingly fast thrust with his Fang in the first round.

He'd be keeping Lazenca at the majority of the sword's reach worth of distance, in anycase, but he was thrusting with the back shoulder, even if it was coming forward, and meaning the blade to go a few inches down into Lazenca's shoulder if it pierced before coming back out again. Which meant, altogether, he still had reach advantage, but with Lazenca in his giant form it wouldn't mean as much as it normally would.

[3/17]

"-hn!?"

Kael hit the bump, and his eyes went wide. The first focus was to maintain balance- and he would, throwing on the breaks early, starting to lean back away from Lazenca sooner than he'd meant to- the rocking and the quick abandon putting his thrust low and short- nicking Lazenca's shoulder before starting to return at best.

The initial rush was a bust, but he'd still gotten just the response he wanted.

Lazenca was fond of pouncing.

And this was the fourth time Kael'd observed him in battle, third he'd fought him.

Kael's sword, with the mid-low thrust, had the side of the blade nearly beside his free left hand already, and as Kael put on the emergency breaks, leaning barkward and falling onto his right knee, the backmost one, the left hand clasped the blade of his sword. With the close-range precision, most specifically point and pommel control, this kind of grip offered Kael a whole new thrust.

He'd dropped the target Lazenca had to pounce for, and his right arm was pulling down and left upward as Lazenca came in. He'd wanted to be closer so he could have made it a stab into the belly, but instead the tip would come up into the muscles and tendons on the now-underside of Lazenca's right shoulder, the front wall that formed the armpit- hoping to get deep enough to disable that arm for the fight. He'd continue to lean away from the leap, and turn at his waist, following through to try and sink his blade in deep enough to ensure the injury, and guide Lazenca just a little in soaring over and past him, but depending on just how low Lazenca had been aiming to hit Kael, and if he managed to get a grip with his arms as he passed, there was a chance the swordsman would be knocked over on his back into the blood as well.

If all Kael was doing was leaning back and not actually backing away, then the sword would penetrate. But he'd till have his hands on Kael's forearms. Since the bump didn't work, he got stabbed. Not as deeply one would think, for Lazenca's pushing forward so much would keep Kael from thrusting. So it all worked out that he basically jumped on the sword or something as such. And yeah, the whole plan was that Kael would end up on his back under Lazenca's weight.

That didn't help the sword in his shoulder, and Lazenca snarled in pain.

Now with things like this... this is the point where Laz would usually just look down at Kael and maybe let it sink in that he was pinned to the ground. But forgetting that submission was a way to get a KO and because he'd already resolved to stop being nice... Lazenca went straight into what he actually meant to do.

His weight went back as he kneeled on Kael's legs. His left knee was put down on Kael's right upper arm, pinning it to the ground and stopping the sword-arm from being used much more for wrist movement or letting the sword go. As for the arm that had been holding Kael's right arm, it was free to go across the sword in his shoulder and with a small twist, pull it out with a grip on the flat. No need to make injuries worse.

Kael should now be fully restrained and defenseless, so...

Lazenca's right hand, having landed on Kael's elbow roundabouts, slid down to the hand itself. The left hand slid under the joint and with a fist, pushed against it. His right hand slammed down towards it.

The hard push/pull.

The hard snap.

Getting colder.

[disk 5, track 3]

As Athan swung his weapon into motion, Silver's left hand came up to grip the lower portion of his own weapon's handle mid-swing, putting the power of both arms into the slash.

Silver's bokken would collide with Athan's sword while he was still in mid-air, the air around them visibly distorting as small shockwave shot outward from the force of impact. The thin coating of blood closest to them would roll away in a small wave, it being the only thing in the empty room to support the invisible force's existence other than the displaced hair and clothes of the combatants themselves.

For an instant, Silver remained floating there, it appearing as if he could actually keep the unstoppable power of the mighty Athan and his huge blade at bay from the air. This was, of course, impossible. As Athan's swing followed through, Silver would be sent back flying the way he came. His weapon, amazingly, remained in one piece, though he was probably at least somewhat structurally compromised. It was strong, but it was not indestructible. The limits of it's supernaturality did not go beyond being resistant to burning due to being soaked in Silver's blood. With repeated punishment, it would break.

Silver would fly back even further than where he started, but still managed to land on his feet, sliding backwards for several feet on the smooth floor in a crouching position, one hand coming down to help drag him to a stop. But he would not remain motionless for long. He would immediately bolt forward again, swing his weapon across to his lower left side, keeping his grip on it with both hands.

Once back within range of Athan, he would begin to swing his weapon up and to the right in a diagonal arc.

"URRRIYAAA!"

6

Once Athan's swing had finished its rotation he was moving forward, sword now at his right side, right hand moving to take the dominant position further up the sword with the left moving about four inches down. Athan was strong and all, but balancing a weapon like that took two hands for it to be effective.

"That's it!"

Now if you can keep it up a little bit longer...

The two men charged one another, one trailing a giant sword, one trailing a wooden bokken, and both shouting all sorts of garbled nonsense at one another.

Athan would be swinging his sword down and to the left, but in the case of a stalemate, as Silver actually had grown to stand on now, Athan would be more than happy to apply some lessons learned from his fight with Vahn.

Just after the two blades made contact Athan would push his hilt forward, moving the weapon so that the blade was now in front of and slightly underneath Silver's bokken. Then he'd push upward with both hands in an attempt to expose Silver's abdomen by forcing both fighter's arms above their heads. The only difference was, Athan knew this was coming, and he was quick to lash out with a boot towards Silver's stomach.

[7/17]

OFFENSIVE STRIKER INBOUND

Kael vs. Lazenca

"I'll never get out of this watery grave if this keeps up."

This was taking entirely too long, and it looked as though Kael had gotten himself into a hell of a situation to boot. If that was the way things were going to be, then....

Click.

He designated an Offensive Striker on his FIGHTER.

... time to mix things up.

Without wasting a precious second of the little time he had, Rage sprung into an unusual amount of action considering his poor mood and cold condition so far throughout. The steel chair that seemed to always accompany him in hand, he set off at a quick pace, seeming not to aim for the combatants but rather off to the right - his right, anyways. In one fluid motion, the chair came out in front of him, popping open and skidding against the ground, seeming to nearly tip over just before Rage planted his right foot on the seat, followed by his left on the backrest.

With a mighty vault, he seemed to twist his body in mid-air, so that he could take several steps along the enclosure that was there to keep the water out and the fighters in, his momentum seeming to somehow keep him running against the wall.

Gotta do this....

A couple steps in, and he was all lined up with his target. He buckled his legs to push himself hard off the enclosure, twisting in mid-air to bring his legs out in front of him, held up as close to his chest as possible. It was something he had done before, but not quite like this....

... just right....

He was headed straight towards Laz's head - his face, to be exact - aiming to imprint the tread from a couple of loose-fitting, size eleven skate shoes into Laz's face with a (metaphorically) explosive kick to knock the larger man-beast-thing down, or at the very least off-balance. It was not a graceful maneuver. And when it connected, Rage would probably go tumbling - he wasn't pulling punches this time, he was going for raw power. Still, that ACTN ROLL™ would be enough to get him back to the sidelines maybe a second or two before his time was up, right into the same seated position he was in before he had even called his striker.

He looked just as unhappy and wet as before, too. It was up to Kael at this point.

... or else.

Someone hadn't read the memo about all the fire eating oxygen. Give it a bit and everyone would feel the hurt of that. But the big clock was ticking overheard so it probably wouldn't matter.

Tun tun tun tun---

The slams continued, even as Rage ran the wall around him. There was the slightest pause in the last one as Lazenca recognized foreign sounds getting closer, then the peripheral spy of a body passing. Coming near. Attacking with righteous force.

Lazenca initially tensed, but his hands immediately laxed as his body went to the side, following his head. Kael was free to move, and Lazenca had to wonder if another attack was coming from two people at once with whatever time was left. Last time... the last guy stayed in longer than usual. Last second, thoughtless, instinctual defense-- the left arm was up to perhaps take any blow that was coming. He should be able to feel his way through a couple of seconds.

He hadn't expected to feel the heat of flames as the spark ignited the blood like so much gunpowder. It wasn't explosive, but it was quick. So was the yelp of pain as the flames went up around him. Not so much to call it an inferno, but enough. Just enough to make it hurt, just enough to make him stall and mentally curse as that thing he knew was there, he planned to use, was now being used against him.

He had to get out of this... and now. Rolling to the right side and with smoking fur that would be in great need of a trim (and also making him grunt to the injuries to his back and arm), Lazenca snarled. And he rushed.

Korper.

He was taking Kael to the dome. He was going THROUGH the dying fire (it's so icey around hurrrr) to do it. He'd be horribly burned for it for the lack of aural protection, but if he could slam Kael's head into it, what with the other hits... that'd be it. Take a hit to give a final one, a KLONG ringing out and making vibrate their encasement as glass met the skull, guided by a both hands.

Gotta stop taking hits like this.

[disk 5, track 5]