Reicher vs Malenexum

Latent Shopping Mall

A lavish shopping outlet where one can get all over their overpriced needs. An elaborate fountain decorates the center and sitting area of the plaza, offering a calming and urine inducing stop for those who need to rest their tired rich feet.

The mall offers goods from lingerie for the Misses and Mistresses to rugged man gear for the dashing Misters. As well as shoes, all you can eat dragon jerky, khaki outfits and tiny porcelain figurines.

We wish to dazzle you into giving us your inherited cash!

General- Marble floors and window shopping welcome the fighters to this spectacular waste of tax money!

Weapons- Items from displays, fountain bits, over priced shoes, and whatever else one could get their grubby hands on.

Natural Element Resource- Water and credit card plastic.

Bonus Effects- The mall somehow seems a little less sturdy that it appears... The more expensive the item taken from the environment, the easier it seems to break! -HINT- It's all pretty ******** pricey.

5567_No_Okami Wrote:

_______"...This is your third and final call. I repeat, we will be starting the event soon! This is your third call." large crowd of people would stand by the designated fight area. There were a series of ropes that would circle a large area in the middle of Latent Mall. The area was large enough that the center, where the fountain was located, was at least 60 feet away on either side from the nearest spectator. Within this area several shops framed the three-way fork intersection on all its sides: from electronics stores to cloth stores, to shoes stores and comic book stores. But window shopping was the least thing in this crowds' mind. They all looked to the center awaiting the arrival of the preliminary contestants.

_______For a few moments this area of the mall would keep its signature dull roar of browsing congregations of men and women, if perhaps a bit quiet as it got to the center near the fountain due to the distance from it and the spectators. Other than the judges that would oversee the fight, there was no one past the ropes. The public got louder as they became restless for the arrival of the fighters, until eventually, the same voice that issued the first three calls for the public attention would boom across the entire mall. "Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls! Welcome once again to the annual Heaven or Hell Tournament competitions!" The crowd went wild, clapping and cheering over the ropes.

_______"Tonight, here, in our very own Latent Mall, we are holding Heaven or Hell's seventh installment's Preliminary Matches! Two contestants will fight for the right to enter their teams into the Tournament and become part of a long tradition of world-renowed games to attempt to win the glorious Grand Prize!" The announcer would allow some space between this discourse and his next, during which the public would shout and cheer at the sidelines. "For years Latent's Heaven or Hell Tournament has been the major point of attraction for several worlds' fighters, knights and mages, who gather at this fine town to test their mettle against opponents from around the multiverse!" Another pause to allow the crowds to fully appreciate the words, and perhaps to get them a bit restless for the fight that would ensue shortly. As if on queue, the lights around the mall would dim slightly and the main battle area's lights would be increased in brightness, calling the attention of any onlooker away from their own conversations and towards the 'ring'.

"And now, for the main event of the night, folks; introducing this evening's Preliminary Match contestants! On the left corner, representing fourth year-coming Team ODESSA for the first time, coming for his second time to Heaven or Hell... the Vampire of Hollows Birth! The Nights' Haunter! The Archduke of the Fallen City...!"

"MMMMMAAAALLLEEEEEEEE....NEEEEXXXXXUUUUUUMMMMM!!!!"

_______A music track would be played for the combatant as the roar of the crowd would increase when the stage suddenly became dark. For a brief moment the whole stage was enveloped in darkness that seemed to come from the floor. When the light came back on, on the left corner stood a very pale man with glowing neon-blue eyes. He was dressed in black colonial fashion, a black satin coat covering an equally elegant-looking satin vest; both of which were sported above a pair of black pants of the same material and a pair of leather boots. About the only white he had on him was a cravat just under his neck over his vest and a plain mask he wore over his face. Upon appearing on the arena, he'd grin and twirl his sword for the audience, throwing it into the air before it would land on his hand once more. The crowd went wild.

"Keh...! The last time I was cheered so enthusiastically for my return I wound up annihilating everyone in the world.

I'll have to make due with maiming just one victim today."

In the distance, Reicher could hear the crowd cheering. The words of the announcer were clear even from where he was. A ring like this was bound to be popular and a lot of people would go to witness the Preliminary Round. It would be unlikely the mall would be devoid of a crowd, much less crowd control.

The announcer started to queue Reicher's call, that he may approach the ring.

Ø

9; Prev: Pg 36, The City of Latent

_______The grin on Malenexum's face would not leave when he took off the mask that covered it with his free hand, the other one carrying a black, eerie dark sword. The vampire put the mask next to the other three that hung from a tight leather rope around his waist, letting it rest there as the oddly-dressed man decided to run some silly, childish fanfare followed by something with slightly more taste. Whilst one hand placed its middle and index fingers under the back of the satin coat's neckline, the left hand took to gripping the sword as well as it could. And now the idiot would waste his time with talk.

5567_No_Okami Wrote:

"Greetings. Before we begin, question for you. Tell me, do you know who your opponent is? Also, do you perhaps know how we as fighters are being scored?"

_______Predictably, the slash would miss. Even with how queerly frail his opponent looked, it was very unlikely just any middle aged human would join a Tournament such as HoH without some amount of skill at least one thing related to combat. Right now though his opponent seemed to be stalling. For what? Well, two could play that game. Malenexum would stop in his tracks once having finished the horizontal slash and would stand firmly in place. He'd chuckle at Reicher's words and would yank out a mask from one of the cords that hung from his pants' waistline and would put it on his face. At first glance, it seemed as merely a pumpkin mask... but once he put it on and stared dead into the scientist's eyes, the mask seemed to warp into the opponent's worst fear. Everyone in the crowd suddenly became abject with horror, emanating a series of gasps and shouts of fear in unison. A cacophony of screams and guttural sounds of sheer terror.

_______"...I can smell your fear. Your fear of losing this fight; of revealing your secrets that others may use them against you.... Hiding behind a veil of so-called 'logic' cannot hide the reality behind your mentality." The free hand that had been holding the mask to Malenexum's face would separate from it, leaving it on his face securely as if by magic. The right hand would then present itself to Reicher and a plume of some kind of purple/black smoke would start to emanate from the hand and slowly form a semi-solid ball on its palm. From behind the mask, the vampire's voice would pierce the distance between the two and attack the man with just as much viciousness as his sword would. "You... are... a coward. And cowards feed on fear! This fear, I will feed you... 'til your entrails burst from your venter!"

_______Suddenly Malenexum's body started to shake and distort. It began to grow taller, gruesome popping and crunching of bones sounding off into the mall arena. The crowd that had been watching was mostly gone, running away from the stage in abject fear of this vampire that had turned into a creature of nightmares. As he grew taller, he also grew considerably skinnier, his pants, vest and boots warping to fit his new form. From both of his pale, defined arms sprouted a second pair of arms, disgustingly bursting from under them and sending a splatter of blood onto the floor. The vampire had now become something different entirely. 9 feet tall, gaunt, and emanating an aura of fear that could send lower men crying for their cradles of infancy. Two voices in one concluded the earlier voice's thought.

"Your fear will be your undoing!"

[Darkball Charge: 1]

[Mask of Jacko: Active]

[Gauntwarp: Active]

5567_No_Okami Wrote:

_______The large, tall creature chuckled from its position. Malenexum would lift up his upper right arm (where the ball of darkness was still being formed) while his two lower arms began to emanate the same energy and formation patterns at their hand palms. Four hands he sported in his body: one of them carried a dark ball that would slowly take its final shape and grow about as large as a beachball, two other hands held identical twins of the first ball of darkness except that these were much younger.

_______"The coward grows impatient, I see! Perhaps I can indulge you with some treats!" From the floor under them small minions began to sprout from the shadows. They began to shout horrid little screams of pain and anguish, as they were twisting within themselves as they grew larger... As they ascended from the ground they looked at Reicher with pleading eyes as if they were being tortured, yelling at the top of their lungs for Reicher to help them. "HELP USS!!!" "AAHhhhhh!!!" They would surround the scientist as Malenexum readied himself.

Still stalling for time? Malenexum wasn't going to let go of this mistake so easily.

He was going to milk it for all it was worth.

[Darkball Charge: 1]

[Darkball Charge: 1]

[Darkball Charge: 2]

[Pseudo-Illusory Horror: Active]

[Mask of Jacko: Active]

[Gauntwarp: Active]

_______It, of course, was very likely that this man would ignore the horde of small creatures around him. It was something Malenexum was counting on... because as Reicher's focus moved away from the creatures, they grew just as Malenexum had. They grew farther and farther away from the man, but they grew just as freakishly tall as the warped vampire, and then some. These creatures melted into one another, growing wider and amorphous until they formed a wall of pure darkness. A wall shadow mist, which would just leave him there in the silence of the empty mall.

5567_No_Okami Wrote:

Store... To store... To store... Reicher quickly scanned through the nearby stores for some sort of defense or advantage until he found one... A karaoke bar! Reicher quickly bolted towards it, ignoring the shadows but keeping his eye on his opponent in case he made any movements or threw the balls.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!"

_______Just as his vision of said store would become impaired by the darkness, Reicher began running towards it. Malenexum's laughter seemed to fade away into the distance much too fast considering the little distance Reicher was covering. Normally Reicher's plan would've worked, except when he ran into the wall of nightmare creatures he'd feel the thick, dense dark fog cover his eyes and deprive them of any light whatsoever. It was as if he had run into the thickest fog, with more than 90% of the air mixed in with what seemed to be thick, purple slime. It felt humid, dank and very, very burdening; the atmosphere felt like it was weighing him down. Reicher would feel as if though he was running within a dream, his legs moving as fast as they could but the distance not being traversed. His footsteps echoed into the empty space of the inside of the now dark, abandoned building. Everything he did while he ran towards the store was beginning to feel futile... and slowly he felt like the whole mall was against him.

_______At the same time he felt this, the sounds of dozens of obstacles being thrown out of the way, and the sound of a hundred different running feet would pierce his ears. Something... no, hundreds of things were coming after him! Throwing mall benches, trashcans/rubbish bins, and other miscellaneous objects aside... just to get him! Nay, to get to him as quick as possible! And just as he was hearing all of this and almost breaching the limit between himself and the door to the store, a 3 foot wide, huge ball of black energy would burst against the door of the karaoke store and explode into what seemed to be a corroding purple/black gaseous substance. If he accelerated, the ball would end up hitting him instead of the glass door. If he stopped, he'd have to face the darkness behind him... and whatever lay behind him that was following after him like a prey after its meat.

From the darkness, a spindly silhouette began to form as it approached closer, trotting on four thin, boney limbs as it encroached upon the distance between the 'scientist' and itself. Two limbs erected from its back like twiggy horns, threatening the man with a worse fate than death.

Dread would attempt to fill the scientist's heart.

What was this thing he was fighting? What was it capable of?

And just how much can a man live through without being killed...?

What good was a scientist in a realm where everything was abstract? Where nothing can be explained...?

[Darkball Used]

[Darkball Charge: 2]

[Darkball Charge: 2]

[Pseudo-Illusory Horror: Active]

[Mask of Jacko: Active]

[Gauntwarp: Active]

_______When the man issued forth the field of anti-magic, the mist quickly dissipated, as did all spells. His spindly hands, which had been holding dark matter slowly charging to issue forth an attack would now be empty. Stripped clear of his plans, a grimace would appear along his lips momentarily. His guesses had failed him, and now he had to deal with the margin of error. Just like that he had lost any advantages he had over the other, and was now forced to adjust.

Nothing hard to do, he supposed.

_______So while his opponent monologued, his frame slowly shrank down to normal size, the four, boney arms that he sprouted merging down into just a pair. His body gained its girth, muscles and normal proportions. The sword on his left hand would point towards his opponent, and now the battle would begin anew. On retrospect, everything he had done so far had been a huge waste of time. It was time to rectify time lost.

5567_No_Okami Wrote:

Reicher sighed, "Well, I guess you entrance was just a show... If you're not going to follow me then I'll just have to come to you." Reicher would then begin a fast but controlled sprint towards Malenexum. Many would likely guess he was running at top speed and wouldn't be able to make finesse movements but that was only if they didn't overestimate him. He wasn't super human, but he was something close. Now assuming Malenexum just stood there would be silly, but if he did he would likely wind up with a broken knee as Reicher would approach and deliver a powerful back hand to it with one of his left titanium bracers.

_______Of course it would be silly to just stand there. The vampire would also sprint forth to meet his opponent, blade at the ready. With his opponent having to duck to meet his knee, the blade would slash down towards him and towards his back, aiming to gash him along the upper or lower back area; whichever the case the back muscles would be severed and maybe even the backside of the ribs would be damaged. Since the vampires feet would be in movement, hardly standing their ground enough to stay put in place while the blunt attack happened to his right knee, they would instead trip forwards and cause Malanexum to hurl himself forward and above Reicher right after having sliced him.

All of this would happen much to the exhilaration of the vampire.

Finally, the coward decided to fight back!

[Darkball Discharged]

[Darkball Discharged]

[Darkball Discharged]

[Pseudo-Illusory Horror: Active]

[Mask of Jacko: Active]

[Gauntwarp: Deactivated]

_______The masked vampire felt the sword get wrapped up in the coat he had used earlier. Interesting use for a coat, he'd have to give the opponent points for that... but what did he hope to accomplish by wrapping up the sword in that? Surely not keep him from attacking! That was ludicrous! The slash would get caught up in the coat and, before it could continue to meet the man's right shoulder, it would be yanked. Malenexum wouldn't let go, though. Not yet. Behind the mask, a smirk would emerge from his lips.

"KEH!"

_______When the man pulled, so did Malenexum... except, Malenexum was considerably stronger. Unless Reicher was some sort of body builder, a martial artist of amazing strength or otherwise assisted by some machine or magical contraption, he was s**t out of luck. On a regular basis, being a vampire, Malenexum could lift double his own body weight with only some median effort. So when the two of them pulled, even with the masked monster's less-braced stance, he'd be able to pull the man towards himself instead of what had been intended. And then his eye would catch In response to Reicher's left bracer came Malen's right open hand which would take the hit, but also grab it with a grip that could crush an apple. Even through it was now bruised, it could still hold on tightly.

_______At that moment, Malenexum's left leg would be sent straight at the man's groin area, knee-first. Malenexum had no scruples, and slashing this man up to ribbons was going to be fairly easy if all he was going to muster were pathetic defensive strategies like those. Finally, the blade's negative energy would begin to sear and burn into the coat with an acidic effect, corroding the matter it touched and chilling the surrounding moist of the coat into ice all at the same time. The longer the blade remained in the coat, the more its Shadowbrand effect would dissolve and freeze the garment until it could pry itself loose.

[Pseudo-Illusory Horror: Deactivated]

[Mask of Jacko: Active]

_______A nutshot taken with such grace? Malenexum had to commend this man once again. The kick from the other man was taken in stride, but it was what would happen afterwards that would surprise the vampire.

_______The masked fell on the floor with a growl, the resulting thud echoing across the empty, dark mall. The bash to his left shoulder caused him to elicit a grunt of pain. The strain on the muscle from the impact of the fall plus the hit of the metal brace induced a sprain along it. Now Malenexum was beginning to see the miscalculation he had made earlier completely corrupt the pattern of his plan's algorithm. A butterfly effect of failure. This mask he wore, was not the mask he should wear against one such enemy. Regardless, the vampire would press on. It was all about the creativity, right?

_______As the other now proceeded to strike for the vampire's right shoulder, the bottommost of the two would begin to take defensive measures. His own leg would rise behind Reicher and unwrap itself from said opponent's leg while his right arm would brusquely push the man's left arm upwards not a second before the effects of his next attack took place.

"GETOFF!"

_______The vampire's whole body would suddenly become engulfed by 150 mph winds. The winds would pick up fast, in so little time, that the man on top of him would feel like a strong kinetic blast had blown him away a good 5 to 7 feet up in the air toward his left, depending on his weight. Even Malenexum, himself, would be sent reeling along the floor to Reicher's right a dozen feet away and banging himself against the floor all the way to a his unexpected destination. The vampire used the wind's forcible rolling against his will to roll himself onto his right knee and left foot, then stood up using the momentum from the rolls that slowly dissipated. Once up, he grabbed the coat off the blade and threw the soaked thing on the floor. A pity, but he'd have to get a new one now.

_______Now that the battle was more or less neutralized once more (the last time being when Reicher negated his spells), the round 3 could commence. Malenexum grinned as the souls inside him stirred and fed the mask he wore. As he stared at Reicher, the human could feel his hairs standing on end... the mask continued to exude an aura of fear that was constantly trying to invade his mind.

But fear could only be confirmed with facts, and Malenexum had yet to give him enough to confirm those fears.

This had to change.

It would change.

Malenexum switched the sword from his left to his right. Dexterity be damned, a sprained shoulder would decrease his performance anyway. With his head, he'd make the gesture to Reicher to approach him.

Time to change strategies drastically.

[Neoshadow: Activated - 1000 Necroma Potency (Full Potency) Used]

[Jacko's Black Arts: Activated - Wind Element Used]

[Mask of Jacko: Active]