Damias Harter, via OGLN, with text supported by PiRaTe BanD COMmuNICaTioNs, broadcasted his narration of the Grakkan's Union final match of the season to the entire known universe, and where received in the unknown. "And that is why they are called the Future Ophidians! I don't know about you, but I could've lived a happy life not seeing Donpiere's fist exiting out that hole in Sergeant Klitgord. That is a sight I cannot wash from my mind’s eye.
"Turning now to tonight's main event. Determining the best, the runner-ups, and third placers in this year's games, we have a three-way fight for the championship. First, into the Pits tonight is a man, a machine, a perfect balance of the two. He was winning Grakkan Games before most of you were born. I am, of course, talking about the man with only one adjective that describes him... Captain Impressive!
"His team, who has supported him to a near-perfect record, the Boom-Boom Babe, mistress of the winds, commander of the skies...Galeforce. The psychic who's accomplished more in his short life than most people have by the twilight years, the cloak-wearing, mind-controlling, former demon-harboring... The Kid. And stepping up to reinforce the missing gap in his team, the construct who built the Grakkan Games, the original prototype for those wannabe constructs of today, you know him as... what the...?" Damias was not the only one in the arena to pause. Johnny Alpha snatched the spotlight. The current model on Popular Construction had nothing on him. Literally overnight, Johnny Alpha had his entire exterior replaced. He was now fitted with the latest in cybernetic armor, enough that his V.P. rating should have been increased. "If you are not here to see this you are missing out. Like the fairy tale of the rusted oilcan that turns into the ultimate killbot overnight, Johnny Alpha has gone from a patchwork, metal mosaic to the finest thing to happen to metal since Mind Machine. He gleams silver like the triple sunset of the Tuvian Moons. He's tricked out like the Universal Aide Ships of the 7th Vanguard. I've got metal-envy, and I'm not even a construct. But he'll have to prove that a better look makes a better fighter.
"You've watched him fight for decades. You've seen him play second, third, fourth string in teams. You've seen him sacrifice for the greater good and forsake his deserved glory. I am talking about Mr. Grakkan himself, Kavorkian Grantun. This manager AND gladiator, as well as a rumored Ophidian descendant, has led a flawless season, with one loss that, according to my books, doesn't count, as it was a makeup match after the season had closed. This long-timer in the reinforcement role has come a long way, pulling himself up by the toes. This season he did the impossible; he tied Captain Impressive's record of total career wins. If he wins tonight, he would be the third person to break another's record: Captain Impressive broke it a whopping nine years ago, taking it away from Anton Strong, who broke the record midway through the second season of the Grakkan Games. Good luck to you, Mr. Grakkan.
"Going for quality over quantity, he has only two team members this season. Chrysan Vortex and Nylan Epimetheus, not siblings like so many rumors say, nor lovers as per the rest of the whisperings, but they do have a history going back to the Levonese mines; and I don't need to remind you of the conditions there! Chrysan is known as the Princess of Minions and Fashions, The Cyber Stylist, but most notably known for a mouth that could embarrass a mutant from Dethos. Nylan is known for foaming like a rabid Zwazaw, and of course, blowing up heads from the inside out. Not an alien to anger.
"The latest entry into this season’s games, the team without a name, managed by our long-time supporter Kashen. Leading this team is a man who defies the human-demon-alien classifications, with as much history as time, but as young as fallen snow. He has made various names for himself throughout the universe, but he comes to us here tonight as Lord Slice. There is a lot of buzzes that he and Team Diamond's manager, Dreena Diamond, daughter of the Handler Extraordinaire, have a heavy wager on this fight. Details are sketchy, but if any of the rumors are true, he is fighting for a happy ending tonight, let me tell you.
"His teammates are equal strangers to us, coming to the Grakkan Games for the first time. Lord Slice's bodyguard, Pslpuupt in his native tongue, Splat in the common language, an alien from the extinguished planet Apollo-63, is a solid, raging muscle whose strength is outweighed only by his unpredictability. Those that saw the match last month when he attacked Lord Slice himself, before being brought down by his other two teammates, know what I'm talking about. With him comes Catdemon. No, he's not a cat. No, he's not a demon. He's Hyperbian, a race that is quite populous in the Leonide system for those not familiar with it. They make great gladiators, but don't tell them I said that, as fighting for sport is considered blasphemous in their religion. The last gladiator tonight is Sace, The Goddess of the Seas of Light. Spectral or Deity, I'm not certain. Her loyalty to her team, questionable. Her powers of the mystic, undeniably the greatest we've seen here. This season she has resurrected five people from death, three of them Longwalk Cherubs, I might add. She has torn out two souls and switched the bodies they were in. She's changed the gender of a gladiator mid-fight. She's had a temple built to her in the Detrius Colony in the past month. One can only guess what Sace has in store for this final match.
"The gladiators are in position, the Pit is filled, and the presiding agent is ready to give the signal. I remind you that this is the final match, and is therefore Full Death. There is no interference by the agent or judges. No one will be portaled out of the arena unless they do so themselves. Tonight, and tonight only, unconscious gladiators are still fair game. I have never seen a final where no one died. Tonight should not disappoint. The agent has given the signal, the fight is underway."
As the signal sounded, Slice was already unleashing the bound might of Splat. The four confining rings that kept him subdued fell off at Slice's will, clanging to the floor of the Detrius Pits. This shook the opponents and started them on their restless planning. Gladiators started fanning out, Slice and Captain Impressive held to the center. "Mm, mm, mm! Can't wait to wrap my tongue around that sensual little manager of yours. I bet she tastes like honey."
Captain Impressive was already building a rage. Drastically he punched. Slice sidestepped as the fist whipped the air harmlessly. Slice then showed the reason behind the nickname, "The Living Weapon." At the cost of a lot of pain and little time taken off his life, the flesh of his torso, and the fabric of his strawberry-vanilla bodysuit transfigured themselves into metal. His front and back, mirror images of one another, came together and extended themselves into sharp edges. Captain Impressive was going for a predictable body shot and landed his left, cybernetic fist into one of these edges. Like punching a blade of an axe, there was more damage dealt with Captain Impressive than there was to Slice.
Gail could feel a ball of wind in her hand. She visualized how to expand this. How to do the most widespread damage. Sace was changing. There had been a time when she was like a shaft of light bouncing between a lake and a mirror. Over time she reddened into a setting sun striking a prism. Now she had faded, the embodiment of midnight, like a starless, moonless night that walked the land. She petted Gail on the head, playing with her shortest braid, unconcerned with the windstorm forming in her hand. "Little Kitten, Little Kitten," Sace called as if trying to find her new cat. "Your ear has been sheered. Rub it nice and it will dance tall for you again." The ball of wind vanished from Gail's hand. "There, there, Little Kitten, not in the house." Going from bad to worse for Gail, Splat charged at her.
At the brink of a portal, The Kid and Chrysan faced off. As if in the dusty street of a cowboy gunfight, each wiggled their fingers, waiting to see who would strike first. The Kid wore a hat brimmed the whole stretch around, which fell over his curls that sheltered his powerful eyes. His hand brushed the forward most brim, about to flip it up and give a command. But did he give a command to surrender into the eyes of Chrysan, risking it accidentally going into the eyes of a minion, or the command to attack its master, hoping to hit the out flying minion, and not wasting it on Chrysan? Chrysan was in a similar predicament. Taking the time to open the portal properly would give him the chance to advance on her, but if she didn't produce a minion soon, she was a useless tool. It was the waiting that bothered her. "You pyter jrell! You glispon serp! Quit licking my vimy! Just do it! Don't you have any x'lor? Oitern attack already!"
The Kid laughed a short, mocking, friendly laugh. "Yeah, right, I'll attack when you tell me to attack. Play right into your..." There came a noise of metal grinding against metal. The Kid whipped his head to look at the source. He expected to see the new and improved Johnny Alpha in trouble. Instead, it was Captain Impressive, Slice's chest blade stuck into his hand, which needed help. Forget Chrysan, he had to aid his team.
Chrysan could not have cared less about Captain Impressive or Slice. She cared about her opportunity, and it was now. She tore open a portal, bringing in a Grendel. She also snatched a set of metal jaws. This was intended to be placed into Grendel's mouth, improving his bite. "Bite the gloin out of him!" she commanded Grendel.
The Kid saw the metal jaws and knew what had to be done. "Help me out," he snapped at Chrysan.
"Why the zorvyt would I help you?"
"We've got a common enemy." She dropped her guard, knowing he was right. The Kid stared her in her luscious, pastel eyes. "Help me," he commanded with his mind. She complied.
"Looking pretty sharp," noted Nylan to the gleaming Johnny Alpha. "Be a shame if you spontaneously exploded," he stared the construct down, peering into his spherical cameras.
"You know I don't have a mind for you to destroy?" Johnny Alpha landed a fist into Nylan's nose. Nylan had the honor of being the first person to bleed on the new hand.
Gail stood amidst an unexplainable void. The air was calm. When she reached to the breezes beyond, they stilled as well, vanishing with her thoughts. "What did you do to me?" she asked the darkening Sace. Instead of a response, she received a body slam from Splat that knocked the wind out of her.
Captain Impressive ignored the split open hand and brought back an arm to land a punch with his flesh. Un-retractable claws gripped this arm. Captain Impressive did not have time to see who was there before Catdemon slung him into the air and landed him on his face. He stepped on Captain Impressive's spine and brought back his flailing legs. This move was intended to paralyze him.
Slice laughed at the sport. His teeth, like drills, parted to display the deep void of his throat. He failed to anticipate the metal jaws coming at him. Most gladiators who met the jaws received a bite from the teeth. Slice experienced something new, the smaller end, point first, pushed into his mouth. Chrysan jammed it in as far as possible. Claws scratched her, trying to dissuade her, but she only cared about helping The Kid at the moment. She opened the jaws as wide as possible. Slice tugged at them.
The Kid threw his hand into Slice's throat, letting it disappear down the dark tunnel. It reached its destination without touching digestive juices, leaving unanswered questions about Slice's inner workings. The Kid pulled his arm out just before the jaws snapped shut. The damage had been done.
Slice did not move his lips, but a voice came out. "I am the Doombringer. The destroyer of life. Where I tread I leave only dust and darkness." Slice's mouth opened. Like a scene from an alien science fiction movie, the Doombringer's arm unfurled out. It reached and clawed, trying to make a larger passage. The Kid folded his arms over his chest, smug with self-satisfaction.
Sace surrounded Slice like a comforting blanket. "Your food is kicking back on you, Red. Tsk, tsk, you should watch your diet. But it is not your time. Reach for me and we will leave together." Sace petted Slice on his orange and black air. The Doombringer's arm vanished. Slice remained terrified, but now he was raging with anger.
"That was a very clever idea, I'm disappointed in myself for not expecting it. Now you'll feel what it is like to have something tear out your stomach."
"Look out!" a voice startled Chrysan out of her trance, and The Kid out of his moment of pride. They ducked. A shot from the pulse cannon, which Johnny Alpha's left arm could now convert into, struck Slice in the face, tearing it asunder. He fell, lifeless. "Leave him," commanded Johnny Alpha. "I'm going to charge up my flame thrower and make sure he doesn't come back." The Kid and Chrysan backed away. Sace followed them.
"Pumpkin," she took off The Kid's hat and stroked the curls out of his hair. "Your job here is finished. Don't be afraid to leave behind the Great One, he has his own fight to win. You will play again." She handed The Kid back his hat. Inside was the amulet, swirling with the dark mist. Sace kissed Chrysan on the head, though none could tell as Sace's head had vanished. "This team was not for you, Firebar. Help the Pumpkin plant his roots. You will have such beautiful children. I will preside over the first birth personally. Now, open a portal home, so we can all leave." With these parting words, Sace faded into nothing.
Captain Impressive had a plan to free himself from this painful position, but it was moot. Before he calculated his best course, Catdemon was thrown from him, sliding across the Pit floor, and then returning to his feet, like his fall had been replayed in reverse. "Fight is mine," Kavorkian now stood over Captain Impressive. In one hand he held a Sunder Maul, in the other a sword carved of a black stone, The Sword of Eternal Night, actually, but it was just a name. Kavorkian stepped over Captain Impressive, advancing on Catdemon. He swung the sword, but with a fancy Gercan Side Step, Catdemon was easily out of the way.
He brought his claws down on Kavorkian, opening his chest, and dropping a strap that sheathed his weapons. Without missing a beat, Kavorkian buried the sword into Catdemon's stomach, halfway up the blade. He brought the Sunder Maul down onto the hilt of the sword, pushing the blade in the rest of the way. Blood leaked from Catdemon's eyes, nose, and mouth.
The dangling strap on Kavorkian held a dagger and a Tigbar fighting stick. Captain Impressive slipped these out, intending to use them against Kavorkian.
Catdemon defied the crippling pain, pounced on Kavorkian, toppled him over, and stood on him. He bared his black teeth, growled, and leaned his head down to his jugular.
A sudden attack by Grendel distracted Catdemon. In his rage, he did not flinch, but fired back at him, killing the minion. He was off his flow, though, and left time for Captain Impressive to make a move. Captain Impressive slit the Achilles' tendon on Catdemon's right leg, causing him to wail. Kavorkian pulled the sword out of Catdemon's chest, flooding the immediate area with Catdemon's liquid life. He cleaved his head with the sword while Captain Impressive broke his back with the fighting stick. Kavorkian removed Catdemon's corpse like a blanket on a warm morning, preparing to take Captain Impressive one-on-one.
Gail cursed the name of the saints that had watched over them while Splat landed another blow with his mighty hands. This one broke some ribs. Already one eye had been swollen shut, and she was limping on her left ankle. She prayed to the winds, begged for their mercy, but the eerie stillness that imprisoned her would not let up.
"What do you want to do now?" asked The Kid to Chrysan, an awkwardness standing between them.
"We were fighting, remember?"
"Yeah, but..." there was something haunting about Sace's words. "Want to produce a minion so I can turn it on you?"
The Kid yelped as something stung him in his lower back. With a salivating hand, Nylan, bloody nosed, stood behind him. The Kid stared him in the eyes, "We're busy here, go help Gail." Nylan complied.
Gail shut her eyes, feeling the tears swelling, and threw a fist into Splat's stomach. He felt nothing, for a moment. Then he burned and itched in an area he could not reach. He extended his hands behind his head, but there was a sensation on the middle of his back he could not quell. Gail opened her eyes as Nylan leaned out from behind Splat. He winked, "I scratched him with Tactus Bacterium under my nails. This will heighten his sense of touch a hundredfold. Try hitting him now."
Gail was a bit confused by this nicety but landed another punch in one of Splat's stomach rolls. He recoiled. She brought up her leg and kicked him in the side; he gripped the pain and grunted. Gail kicked again, this time in the small area that a piece of fabric covered. This brought Splat to his knees. His eyes were as small as watermelon seeds, and compared to his size, were all but non-existent. They leaked a broken stream of water. Gail punched him. He grunted a pathetic cry. Gail brought her foot up but hesitated. Kick him while he's down? Maybe she should give him a chance to...
The heavy swing of his knuckles chucked her across the Pits. Splat stood and teetered, rubbing his sore areas. Gail ran and jumped, a flying kick. Splat clocked her in the chest. She tumbled to the ground. He lifted his foot, like a kid stepping on ants.
The ending, crushing stomp of Splat never came. He fell to the ground, grunting again. Standing over him was Nylan, foaming at the mouth. "Acidic phlegm," he gurgled. "Can't imagine what that feels like with the Tactus Bacterium. Gloin, I bet that hurts."
Gail stood over the overgrown baby, now his eyes had vanished amidst the rolls of his clenched forehead. "Distari scum," said a memory inside Gail's head. "Freak," said another, similar voice. Those that belonged to the voices had kicked Gail while she was down. They had double-teamed her. They had used dirty tricks to hurt her. Was she really like them? Should she be?
"He's going to recover soon," noted Nylan.
A slow chant came from the crowd, “Boom-boom! Boom-boom!”
Gail had to change the thoughts in her mind. "Freak," she mouthed without sound. "Alien scum," she whispered louder. In her mind, she surrounded the crying girl on the ground. She went for the cheap shots. She stopped her from retaliating with her powers. It was a dark place to go. She became her enemies. She knew she was weak on the ground, strong in the circle. She knew it was the strong that survived; it was the only way. "You big, fat, stupid, freak!" Gail roared as she kicked Splat hard enough to move him. She did not realize it was her hurt ankle she kicked with; the pain was gone. "Think you're so strong? Huh?" The next kick moved him a little further. "Think you can beat me?" She punched his bulbous side, making him squeal as he skidded across the ground.
“Boom-boom! Boom-boom! Boom-boom!”
The painful bile was scraped off. The bacteria were wearing out. He was his old self again. He advanced on Gail. "No, you don't!" She landed a series of furious punches to his stomach, each adding to the pain the previous one left. Splat interlocked his fingers and dropped this wrecking ball on Gail's back. That only straightened her posture and made her punch faster. "I'll show you I can punch!" Each attack became slower and fiercer, but she had enough time to start the next one while Splat recovered. "I'll show you I can kick!" Hopping on her sprain, she landed five successive kicks. "I'll show you I won't hold back!" She went for the finishing punch; an uppercut to Splat's many chins. This last punch didn't touch him; it was the wicked wind of unrest that threw the giant into unconsciousness.
“Boom-boom! Boom-boom! Boom-boom! Boom-boom!” Like an exploding train, the rhythm of the chant grew faster and faster until it erupted into a deafening cheer.
"I'll show you strategy!" Gail took one of the rings that had been used to bind Splat before the match and put it around his throat. It was a matter of minutes before it relaxed his larynx and he stopped breathing permanently.
"Good job," noted Nylan. Gail sent him reeling with a wind. "What are you doing?" he asked, thoroughly confused.
"We're not on the same team," Gail reminded. The idea seemed strange and absurd. Aided by the winds, Gail continued to punch as Johnny Alpha had taught her.
Kavorkian threw aside the Sunder Maul and sword. He pulled out the two-handed Axe Blade of Wrath and swung at Captain Impressive. Captain Impressive let it split the fighting stick in his hands, rolled out of the way of a second attack, and swiped a twin-bladed short sword from Kavorkian's loose sheath.
"No arm blades," noted Kavorkian.
"Nope, I ran out, I kept breaking them in battle." Kavorkian laughed through his nose, bringing the axe down again, and knocking the short sword from Captain Impressive's injured, cybernetic hand. "However, I gained this." The Kurgunt Claw he wore on his right hand fired like a missile, punching Kavorkian.
"Is that?" He grunted, letting go of the axe with one hand. The claw gripped his wrist. He tried to shake it off. Another right hand came at him as Captain Impressive landed a blow.
"A new toy. What do you think?"
Kavorkian dropped the axe and pulled at the claw, finally releasing its grip. "Got to get one." The claw, as per the instructions given by Captain Impressive from the remote in his hand, poked Kavorkian in the eye. "Funny."
An imp, powered by a minion jetpack, made its way towards The Kid. Meanwhile, he had sent a Creeper back at Chrysan. Each took a minion attack at the same time. "Something a little nicer, next time," asked The Kid.
"I was thinking the same oitern thing," said Chrysan, knowing that half the minions she portaled in were turned on her. She fished around in a small portal, like she was looking for makeup in her purse. "Nope," she said to whatever she gripped.
The Kid was closer than she thought. "Yes, that," he commanded into her fiercely soft eyes. Out came a bomber. Too late, The Kid realized his mistake. She realized it as well, but due to the power of suggestion, she was helpless. The bomber went off, singeing them both to the point of near-death.
Nylan's finishing pain was not from Gail's fury, but the burning flash of the bomb behind him. Comatose, but not dead, he was technically still fair game. Gail felt the hot blast but swore she was unaffected. She looked at its source. There was The Kid, on his back, glazed eyes staring up, looking over the brim of his hat. A foot below his feet, Chrysan, with barely enough strength to breathe, used her remaining energy to open a portal to bring in one of her favorite minions that she kept at home. The Kid, catching Gail's sight, saluted her with two fingers. She understood and sent a wind his direction, which scooped up The Kid, the unconscious Nylan, and the struggling Chrysan. All three were thrown down the tunnel.
Gail suddenly felt the storm around her. Her brain hurt. Her body was numb. Her feet were inches from the floor. She destroyed the world around her, like a dream that knows it's a dream. She had been beaten. She had taken more punches than she could take. She had exerted more energy than she held. It was the winds, the ones she had cursed for abandoning her earlier, which fought in her stead. They pulled the strings, and she was the marionette. Once she realized this, they abandoned her again. Without the revitalization of the winds, she fell to the floor, too exhausted to sleep.
Kavorkian was double-teamed by one person. The claw was persistent, scratching and pinching any exposed flesh. Captain Impressive, with a gleeful smile in his human eye, kept on attacking Kavorkian. He threw Kavorkian against a curve of the wall. A sharp rock stuck out nature's own sword. Had Kavorkian been thrown an inch or so to his right, he would've been impaled and killed. As is, he was only stunned and primed to be finished.
The rumble of the explosion behind Captain Impressive distracted him from his lording glory. The oncoming blast tore him off his clothes and burnt the parts that could be burned. It was close to devastating. The Kurgunt Claw gave up its wiring to the blast, severing its link to the remote, falling into the sleep fit for an inanimate object.
Kavorkian looked at the rock that could have killed him. He had not intended for this, but that which spared his life then gave its own for his protection. It was imperceptible to even the front row spectators, but the rock bent to the side and shielded Kavorkian from the blast. He was only slightly aware there was even an explosion. He thanked the rock for its sacrifice and thanked his precognitive will. He was sturdy and strong and ready to fight some more. He pulled two one-handed axes from his leg sheaths and prepared to take on the man who stood between him and his deserved record.
Captain Impressive was hurt, badly. His flesh was weak, but his spirit was strong. So were the various metal patches throughout his body. So was the Axe Blade of Wrath, previously discarded by Kavorkian, which Captain Impressive picked up now. They were nearing the end of the fight; it was only a matter of who wanted it more.
Johnny Alpha was pleased with himself at turning Slice, who some believed to be immortal, into scattered ash. A wave of explosion washed over him from behind. There was plenty of fight still in him. Additionally, his arm pulse cannon was fully charged, and there was no one left in the arena that would survive a blast from it.
Johnny Alpha stood behind Captain Impressive, cannon aimed at the axe-wielding Kavorkian. "You can't win, Mr. Grakkan," informed Johnny Alpha.
"Know," panted Kavorkian. "Meet again next season."
Captain Impressive gently guided the cannon towards the ground with the handle of the axe. "Give me a moment to beat him properly, and if I look like I'm about to fail..." he nodded at his friend and trainer.
0 Comments