Team 4: Song 3
-Lyra
-Kiwi

vs.

Team 16: Song 4
-Ocara
-Slicer

-Auto Ap Raio (lasts for the whole round)

-Field Description:The area seems like a normal ice field. A small ring of solid ground is where all appear. No snow has fallen on it and no ice has formed there. Even the winds seem to curve around the spot. Four deep emerald rays form lines going out in four different directions along the ground, separating the field into four major areas. One region is nothing but solid, slippery rock. Not a single spot existed in there for relief from constant downward descent. Another quarter was mounds of deep and heavy wheat while a constant and steady snowfall occurred. A different expanse had an average amount of snow but the prevailing feature would be the icy cold winds that whip around powerfully enough to actually remove a player from the ground. The final area was a combination of all three areas mixed throughout the entire district, with the addition of lightning bolts raining from the sky.

ooc: Clarification, lightning bolts raining from the sky can hurt.

"Turbulent Fatal Feeling," says Kiwi.

Three golden rings descend upon snowy ground, their forms twirling at equal pace and showing off intricate symbols written upon them. The snow sinks in two spots where a pair of boots appears beneath the rings. The quiet whistle from the gold hoops provides the only sound to alert of an entrant to the field. A figure in denim appears at the center of a snow-covered earth. The black boots with three green slash marks are his own. He glances around, surveying his location with chocolate pupils. A black gauntlet runs through his hair as slides back tangled fluff that matches the gauntlet's color. The surroundings are enclosed within a green circle, after which the field varies depending on direction.

Upon entering, a thunder spell automatically casts itself on him out of nowhere. It disappoints him. While he had heard that this round would feature a continuous boost on one element, the choice element is useless. A spell covering a weakness that he has no reason to fear because its element is forbidden this round. The land around his snow flat is precisely divided into four regions. To the north, a steep slope sprinkled with unpleasant jagged stones. A snow layer conceals which facets are safe for stepping and which are unstable. To the west, terrain flowing in smooth white mounds, ravaged under intense random winds. The howling would be obvious to anyone the moment they approach the emerald border. To the south, the usual winter horizon is invisible behind thousands of wheat stalks. Anyone that rushes into that area without a clear plan would probably become disoriented within a minute.

To the east, the features seen across the other three regions combine to form a confusing amalgam. A treacherous mountain-side where wheat grows in random patches and the ice winds chill their stalks. More over, lightning occasionally impacts an unfortunate stalk, burning holes through the snow. Presumably, the dangerous slopes end up against the map walls at the north and east. The world loops around at the borders inexplicably, so that the ground in the south connects to the northern slope base and the west region connects to the eastern slope base.

The administrators seem to be running short on original ideas as of late. The Heavy Blade can recognize a pattern in the way this and so many other event areas have been made. Traditionally, there is a calm circle in the center where players will arrive. The signature trait of such a base area is when the wind seems to curve around the starting point. He walks one way, then the other, feeling the presence of wind pushing against his hand past the safe circle. Perfect opportunity.

"Ap Corma," says Kiwi. Faint energy forms an aura about him as his magical power increases. The haze glows are brief and timid so as to be mostly invisible to him. Considering the layout, everyone else will be arriving around him. He walks back towards the west region and stands facing the center. Remaining there prevents the opponents from dashing into that area from the start. The other areas would be to his advantage. He begins to traverse some menus a moment as he switches his leg armor with a stored item.

Raising both hands above his shoulder, he draws the Moumokuteki from its sheath along his back. The obsidian blade appears to absorb some of the ambient illumination into its black surface. Five crimson straights mark the metal up to the tip where they all meet. While its weight requires two-handed technique, he can harness its darkness potential very well due to experience.

Neither opponent should pose much of a challenge. Being the bird he is, he decided to investigate details concerning this team from their last opponents and other sources. The rules for this round mean that useful equipment is scarce, probably due to administrator oversight. It's easy to narrow down what the opponents might be equipped because of the elemental rules. For example, combining his information on Ocara and the rules, there are only two useful armors he could be wearing on his body. The match is certainly in his favor.

133/145 SP

A demented laughter rings through the city of Mac Anu. The laughter flows on the soft air currents that flow through the tranquil city. Each breeze carries the ringing laughter. It made it’s way across all of Mac Anu, leaving not a soul undisturbed. Why someone would do something as stupid as this was beyond the thoughts of mere men. The person who did this was above men. Or just plain crazy.

With a quick intake of breath, Slicer stopped his laughter for a while. He glanced down upon the small piece of paper again. He had done this an untold amount of times, yet his steady gaze was still focused upon the parchment. Upon it, the bold letters couldn’t spell it out any clearer. Slicer and Ocara was to fight Kiwi and Lyra.

Slicer was about to let out another crazy laugh, when two Twin Blades looked down upon him from atop the bridge. ”This time, you two are so dead!” With that, they ran off. It seemed a stupid action to take, not that the Heavy Blade had any place to say. He did understand what they said though, and for once, he couldn’t argue with them. He, himself, was quite unsure as to how he would act when facing the (almost) unparalleled force that was Lyra and Kiwi. The Tag Team from Hell. It was a title that Slicer had given them, though he did it with good reason.

Lyra and Kiwi were two of the toughest people in the entire tournament. Slicer knew both of them to a slight degree. He knew Kiwi because he was the leader of the clan in which Slicer was in. Lyra was a leader of another clan, one that Slicer had once tried getting into. The two other teams in this tournament were people that Slicer didn’t have much information about, though he wished he was facing one of them. Knowing his luck, the Heavy Blade had foretold that he would fight these two titans. He had just bested Wren and Asura because of some technical difficulties, but now he would fight Kiwi and Lyra?! It seemed that there was an unseen force just trying to bully Slicer.

Letting out one of his traditional long sighs, Slicer got out from underneath the safety of the Mac Anu bridge. For some reason, Slicer didn’t feel despair. He didn’t feel fear. His body was shaking, but it wasn’t from the terror of the opposing team. It was the shaking of anticipation. An anticipation that he hadn’t felt in a very long time. He would finally be able to fight a tough team. He would finally be able to get his rematch against Kiwi. He was happy. He was unsure about his partner, though.

Reaching the Chaos Gate, Slicer decided that he shouldn’t stay around too long. He had to get to the field sooner or later and he decided that it would probably be better if it was sooner. Something about the early Kiwi gets the worm or something. ”Lamba Server!” The three rings descended upon Slicer, before transferring to City of Lights, where Slicer quickly changed course and rode the Chaos Gate’s rings to his dueling field.

As the three golden rings finally lifted themselves from Slicer’s body, he began to feel the cold rush of either exhilaration or the cold. It didn’t matter. His body had been in much worse and the winter feeling only strengthened Slicer’s determination. Not his determination to win, but his determination to give a good fight and show his leader what he was made of.

Letting loose a few words and a small whisper of Ap Do, Slicer began surveying his field. He also noticed how his gloves seemed to react to a power-up that Slicer didn’t use, not that it would be much use. His gloves held no ability to be used in this duel, because of the element restrictions, which Slicer hated dearly.

This field didn’t exactly seem like the typical ice field. There didn’t seem to be any rubble that laid down upon the ground, the wind seemed to blow stronger than in normal field and there were two long line that seemed to bisect each other, creating four equal sections. Slicer was unsure where the field would end, but he didn’t really care. He would be fighting a more straightforward battle than before.

Glancing around the sections, Slicer tried to think of which would be the place where advantage filled him. Ahead of him, an area seemed to be filled with various chunks of earth sticking out. It would be tough to climb the area and people would be extremely vulnerable to threats of the magical kind if one did venture into that territory. To the right, an area comprised of various pieces was placed. It was like a jigsaw puzzle. The pieces were crammed together to form an area where wind was blowing wheat, while thunder struck down upon icy earth. Behind him, an expanse of wheat would be seen. Wind slowly blew through the field, moving the stalks with it’s icy touch. And to the right stood Kiwi... His figure seemed to dwarf the area behind him. The wind seemed to blow profusely behind him.

Slicer closed his eyes and sighed as he saw Kiwi. His opponent. His clan leader. His friend. So many things in one figure. It was really quite amazing, but Slicer would not let even let his leader win easily. He would fight his hardest and make this leader of his earn his keep. Opening his eyes again, Slicer looked at Kiwi with an intense gaze. It wasn’t a look of hatred or anger. It was more of a “I might lose, but I’ll fight till then.” kind of look.

The Heavy Blade moved his right, gloved, hand up to the blade upon his back. He didn’t pull it out, but instead, started moving backwards, heading towards the field with the wheat. He would have to wait here for his partner. He was anxious to fight Kiwi, but that didn’t make him stupid enough to go head on just yet.

SP: 43/55

On a ship docked in the back alleys of Mac Anu, a HeavyBlade shot awake to the sound of a FlashMail alert, then muttered "oww…" for no apparent reason. In reality, her player had tumbled out of her chair after being startled by the sound, and was now peeved at herself for dozing off while waiting for the message. After righting herself and reclaiming her controller, she opened the Mail…

The fox's nose wrinkled. Strike two, she concluded, more than a little miffed about how things were turning out in this tournament. The wait between rounds had been excruciatingly long, and every team that she and Kiwi had hoped to fight had been kicked from the brackets already. This wouldn't have been a problem if they'd removed more of the teams themselves, or even if they'd been defeated in an honorable match, but this was beginning to be the Tournament of the Crimson Default Win, in her opinion. Since seeing the initial list of participants weeks earlier, Lyra had gotten glorious images in her mind of a triumphant victory at the tournament, ending in a climactic final round where she and Kiwi honorably but entirely owned Asura and Wren's asses.

That was completely impossible now, though, as they'd lost the previous round… by default. Granted, it was a hotly debated topic throughout The World as to whether or not they'd have lost anyway, but Lyra had her doubts about the two that had defeated them, which brought her back to the FlashMail. That team, Slicer and Ocara, were her next opponents.

They weren't exactly unfamiliar to her. She'd met them both before, when they'd tried out for the Figment Raiders – twice, in fact. While she wasn't sure if they'd known each other before then, they'd certainly been inseparable since, and had made it into the list of the final four teams. One of them had since become a member of Kiwi's team, and while she somewhat regretted not snatching him up while she had the chance, Slicer had been rather n00b-ish when she'd first met him, and she wasn't about to compete with her boyfriend for the same members. Ocara, on the other hand, had remained clanless still, and popped up around both their clan grounds frequently. He was of the rare WhipMaster class, and had only just switched, so she was interested in seeing him in action now.

Ironically, the other two remaining teams were Xan and Arcion, both Figment Raiders as well, and Lone Dragon and Viva. Viva had long before rejected an offer to become one of the pack, and for once in her life, Lyra hadn't considered that an insult. Lone was all the companionship she needed, it seemed, and they'd made it rather far in the tournament, considering their level. While she was impressed, she still fully expected her clan mates to take them out, more out of preferential bias than having any evidence one team was better than the other.

She got up as she examined the rules for this round one more time. They'd known the rules before they'd known their opponents, and almost everything seemed to be restricted. Basically everything she owned in the way of armor was out of commission, so she'd had to raid Kiwi's stash to find some things she could use. Weapons had been easier – both Juk and Vak were allowed, so she'd been able to find plenty of things she could use, the hard part had been choosing just one to take. Even now, she still wasn't sure, so she kept thinking as she headed out the door and wove through the streets to the Chaos Gate.

Lyra needed to transport twice; first, from Mac Anu to Carmina Gadelica, then again to the tournament field. Before she made that last transport, she'd have to make the final decision on which weapon to take. To delay having to do so, she browsed through the shops for a bit, clicking her teeth together as she looked over the assorted items, picking up a few of what she needed. Time ticked by at an annoyingly fast pace, and finally she headed back to the gate, switching out her weapons to her final choice on the way.

Something felt horribly wrong from the instant she arrived. Her whole spine went stiff, causing her tail to stick out awkwardly as every hair on her body stood on end. This field is… she surveyed the landscape, completely ignoring the others who'd already arrived for the moment, More than a little jacked up. Ugh.

So scrambled was the field their duel was going to take place in, that part of her wanted to gate back out right now. But she couldn't just abandon Kiwi like that, so instead she looked over at him, snorted, and made a few gestures to show how disgusted she was with the field, and really, the day as a whole. Slicer was already there as well, and she halfway ignored him, instead glancing around to make sure Ocara wasn't here yet. The match wouldn't start until a specified time or when all four members were present, whichever came first, so there was time to kill until then. Boosting spells were, of course, in order, to fill up the otherwise-pointless time.

She cast Ap Do on herself first, twitching her ears to keep them honed in on Slicer as her eyes continued to examine the peculiarity that was their battlefield. Each quarter of it was different, with the only similarity being a snowfall across all four areas. The only place with no snow, in fact, was directly under foot at the moment. It reminded her of the eye of a hurricane, how it was just a calm spot in the middle of chaos. Either some administrator got really bored, or a hacker got to our field before we did…

Holding up her hand towards Kiwi, he shook his head at her before she could cast the spell. No sooner had she tilted her head and started to open her mouth to ask what he wanted, when the FlashMail alert dinged.

**********
To: Lyra
Subject: Actually, Ap Torma would be better.

.

From: Kiwi
**********

She had to laugh at the fact that the text area contained only a single dot, figuring he'd meant for her to not need to even open it to know what he wanted. She nodded, mouthing the words as she pointed her hand at him. Granted, their opponents would know they both had some sort of spell cast on them, and her Ap Do would get obvious rather quickly, but because they couldn't see their stats, it'd be a while before anyone knew what Kiwi's spell was.

Everything was ready now… her weapon, her armor, their stats… Now, they just had to wait for the last person. She just hoped that this round, unlike the last, there'd actually be four players on the field.

********
SP: 83/110

Ocara sat on the edge of the cold, seemingly floating city of Carmina Gadelica. The city music was an ambient background distraction, but one Ocara let happen and whistled along to as he sat staring into the horizon. The water seemed to extend into the distance, a distance no player could cross even if they wanted to. The faraway shores held a city of magnificent light, and the night sky was turned to an orange glow right above the untouchable buildings. The likely sleeping city made no noise Ocara could hear, and as he was pondering what the place was like a large blimp-like craft lazily sailed into his view across the distant waters. He had chosen to sit on the far edge of town by the grunty stables, the side nobody usually went to. It was relatively quiet here, and although parties could be heard in the distance they were easy enough to drown out with some whistling. Just as Ocara hit a particular high note in the music of the town, a similar sounding tone came from nowhere. The noise nearly made Ocara fall into the water, but he caught himself and managed a short hop off the rock ledge separating the city from the dark waters below. Ocara only now realized his flash mail was the source of the noise, and checked it quickly to see it was the notification of the next round. He had checked the rules of this round, and instead of having more freedom as Ocara had hoped for, they were even more restricted.

“All these restricted elements… and scrolls! No healing spells… no revival… this isn’t going to be easy. I wonder if those jerks I pushed into the water are related to the game designers around here…”

Ocara looked over his equipment. The restrictions placed had left him with a fairly limited amount of spells, and he thought for a moment before realizing what his strategy would have to be. He sighed at his poor luck but started a slow jog to the chaos gate. Although his and Slicer’s last victory was a default win, Ocara didn’t think they did all so bad considering the levels of their opponents. He took out his whip, going over the surface carefully as he walked. When he was sure the smallest non-aerodynamic bumps were flattened down or fixed, he coiled it back up. By this time, he was nearly at the golden portal which held the gateway to every land on this server. A crowd was gathered around the gate as they were before, although more attention was now being paid to every detail of the current matches. Due to there being a great deal fewer number of combatants total, people were now nitpicking every aspect that could make or break the team they supported. Much to the dismay of Ocara‘s ego, it seemed he and Slicer were not what one would call the fan favorites. Attempting to shrug this off, he looked for the tournament card in his stash of items.

“Some GP, some scrolls I can’t use, some extra junk… let’s see, here it is!”

Ocara found his card and placed it upon the spinning blue Chaos Gate. His body faded as the rings made their way down his body. Their noise was the last thing Ocara heard before the screen faded to black and the field unleashed its brutal image upon him.

Ocara materialized on the strange field, his arms immediately feeling a slight chill. No air seemed to be moving where he was, but the land around the small untouched ring seemed to be in quite the state of instability. Ocara quickly took in his environment, not wanting to be stricken off guard. Green lines ran down the perimeters of the 4 zones in this field. Ocara noticed a snow capped wheat field, an unforgiving slippery rock slope, a gale of icy winds, and the last area. The last area was a hybrid of the others, with an additional effect of searing bolts raining down upon the land. Ocara had never heard of lighting on an ice field, but he considered the unique properties of the field otherwise and stopped thinking about it.

Ocara’s eyes darted over to Slicer, who had decided to half conceal himself in the abundant wheat field. Nearby were the two who were his opponents, and Ocara gazed at the familiar players.

That bird like body… that giant blade… I saw him at one of the Figment raider’s recruitment quests… So he must be Kiwi then.

Ocara had seen him before, but hadn’t received the chance to fight him because of his other party members tackling him before he got the chance to take him. Ocara had since traded in his spear for his whip, and Ocara’s physical appearance had changed a great deal since that time as well. He was now lighter, faster, and stronger than he had been. His attack range had been multiplied by 6, and his affinity with spells had been increased. Although he had lower Hp, he would make up for it in sheer speed and planning. Ocara cast Ap Do on himself, speeding up his already fast movements. Ocara noticed heavy blades on both of his opponents, and even if they added the speed of Ap Do to them, as long as Ocara stayed alert he would be faster. He then took a closer look to his other opponent, Lyra, who he recognized from the Figment Raider’s recruitment as well. She had been at the beginning of the last one he could remember, but had not stayed with them and had gone somewhere before they even left.

I’ll have to show them the power they decided to throw away…

Ocara looked over to Slicer, giving a half wave to make sure Slicer knew he was here now. Ocara’s back was precariously facing the slippery rocks, although Ocara had taken a step forward to look around since. It had only been moments since Ocara had arrived, and he quickly decided the route Kiwi was blocking, the windy area, was not a great place to try and go to. He headed over to the wheat field, hoping to be able to group and get into a battle ready position before anything big happened. Ocara’s Ap Do made it easy to cross the smallish circle in a short amount of time, his back to the wheat in a matter of moments. Ocara hadn’t much noticed, but the spell Ap Raio was cast upon him the moment he entered the arena. If he were with his Ectoplasmic Wisp spirit right now he’d probably be cringing, but he was just himself for now and watched the gold orbs of thunder enhancing energy dance along his body. Thunder was completely outlawed in this round, but Ocara thought it might get put to use if he was forced back to the lightning area. An Ap Corv affect had also been placed upon him, but the feel of the spell was quickly fleeting although having been automatically placed only minutes before. Taking out a scroll, Ocara pointed to Kiwi. The scroll was a Hunter’s Bane, the spell within it Dek Torv. Ocara hoped to lower the opponent’s accuracy so that it would be even harder to hit. Large blades can be unwieldy, and attacking a fast target while having an accuracy perplexity would most likely make Ocara’s evasion of a physical strike very easy. Ocara felt his Sp return at an accelerated rate, the effect of the tournament a definite useful one in his case. He waited for the next move, wondering what the opponents had up their sleeves.


Sp: 68/80

The other three participants enter the field slowly one after the other. Slicer had fought with his clan leader another time. The duel turned out to be rather inconclusive after a chaotic turn of events. Kiwi observes Slicer with a passive glance due to the strategic importance of the matter. Information is every bit as critical in this match as the strength behind his swing. Information shapes what works and what flops on this field because of the limited choices that both sides have. The fact that Slicer casts Ap Do on himself provides the first clue as to what armors he must be wearing.

His partner is the second to arrive. He watches Lyra's amusing gestures with a smile and tries to remain focused on the upcoming battle. She casts a speed spell upon herself and offers him the same courtesy. Shaking his head urgently a few instants, he takes his fingers from the dual joystick system that drives his character to a keyboard. A flashmail answers a question that she has no chance to ask.

To: Lyra
From: KamiKazeKiwi3
Subject: Actually, Ap Torma would be better.

.

End of message.

Soon afterwards, several subtle sparkles of all sorts of colors flutter about his hands. Nothing occurs to his character physically. The changes taking place are in an underlying sense that guides spells to their destinations. Now his magical accuracy should be much better.

The fourth player shows himself: an intriguing Whipmaster named Ocara that he has previously seen for quick trades. The meeting that Ocara believes to have had with Kiwi is a misunderstanding. That was another bird with a drastically different appearance that tried to slaughter a recruitment party. Their physical resemblance is present only in their clothes and weapon. Kiwi doesn't know that incident took place at all. Presently, his brown pupils observe the new player carefully. Any spells that he uses provide hints about what capabilities he has.

A prickling sensation zaps across his body. He nods in a calm fashion as he watches the scroll fading from Ocara's grasp. The blade detours from its intended course slightly and his precision seems to be off. His left hand comes off the Moumokuteki for a moment to give Lyra an OK gesture. Dek Torv was to be expected considering that the rules only allow a particular bane item to be used.

"I'm a step ahead of you this time. The ability to cast Ap Do plus a reduction in physical accuracy can imply only one thing," thinks Kiwi. Drawing a deep breath, he narrows his gaze on the two players in front and decides to get things going. He dashes cautiously ahead for a few steps to an abrupt stop, perhaps causing them to raise their guards.

"Dek Anid," shouts the Heavy Blade, setting violet glyphs underneath both opponents. The area enchantment is capable of draining their darkness resistance within seconds. Without a darkness weapon to use or darkness equipment of their levels, their current resistance would fall to negative defense.

"MeAni Kruz," he says. A wave of darkness focuses momentarily through the Moumokuteki before blasting off precisely towards Slicer. The energy, taking the form of a purple shots, could be very painful because of the way he presumes their duel is set. Some of the reasons are obvious. Boosting his magical accuracy and magical power and trying to cripple the opposing darkness defenses, though, are just the tip of the iceberg.

Kiwi has the Kagayuzen on his side to boost his magical prowess and precision further. It's very probable that Slicer has one, if not two, time armors on himself. The only two he could use would raise his physical evasion to the point that the bird, with his current impairment, would find his swings dodged readily. The disadvantage to Slicer would be that they raise physical evasion solely, leaving him vulnerable to accurate magical strikes. Even the chance of another Kagayuzen wouldn't cancel much because its magical attack raise is greater than the defense gained.

The question is, did Slicer play as expected?

115/145 SP

Entering the field quickly after Slicer was the infamous leader of the Figment Raiders. Lyra. As soon as she entered, the female Heavy Blade shot off a double dose of power-ups. It wasn’t unexpected for one to power themselves up before the match began, so it didn’t come as a surprise that she would do something like this. Unfortunately, Slicer was unable to hear the exact words that went through the field, so he was still a bit unprepared for what was to come, but of course, that was expected. Slicer’s current team had close to no advantages over their opponent.

Soon after, Slicer’s partner arrived upon the field. Ocara was a whipmaster. One of the few that Slicer had seen, actually. The Heavy Blade was glad that he was able to have found a friend in him. Now, with their teamwork and resilience, they had made it into the semifinals. Slicer wondered if his partner knew how hopeless this duel seemed. If he did, he didn’t show it. Ocara give Slicer a slight wave, which Slicer returned with a quick smile, before he came over, adding some speed to his already impressive body. Won’t be long now... The thought was commenting on how the fighting would begin very soon.

Sure enough, the battle began. Well, to be more exact, it was more of an exchange of negative status inducing spells. Ocara had used a Hunter’s Bane, decreasing the bird’s accuracy by quite a bit, like planned. Kiwi, who Slicer already knew as a darkness alignment person, used his darkness decreasing spell, Dek Anid, upon Slicer and Ocara. The Heavy Blade was unsure if the weakening spell hit his partner, but it sure did hit him. And sure enough, Kiwi launched his signature element; a darkness spell.

A slight grin escapes the Heavy Blade as he watches the orbs of darkness coming at him. Even looking down at the face of death, he can’t help, but feel excited. Fighting Kiwi and Lyra had been something of a dream for Slicer and now, he was living his dream. Unfortunately, unlike his dreams, this time, Slicer wasn’t even close to being on equal footing. It didn’t matter much, though, since Slicer was just too overcome with excitement.

It seemed that unlike the previous duel the two Heavy Blade’s had, this time Kiwi wasn’t playing around with sword swings and was instead going straight for the kill. The magical kill. It wasn’t an unexpected turn of events, considering how Slicer’s class favored physical finesse, instead of magical durability, but that didn’t mean life would get any easier for Slicer.

Deciding that this would be a semi-decent time to attack, considering how Kiwi just let loose a spell, Slicer decided to the charge the level two spell with the added speed of his Ap Do. Unfortunately for him, he had been weakened tremendously from the Dek Anid and Kiwi was more than just a bit powerful in the field of dark spells. Slicer had released his blade from it’s prison upon his back and moved it towards his right side, holding it parallel from the ground. This was the first time he was using the blade, so it felt a bit... unusual.

Reaching the wall of the MeAni Kruz, which was still moving towards Slicer, the Heavy Blade made a quick slash upwards. ”Crescent Slash!” A name for a skill. A skill that technically did not exist in The World, which meant that it used not SP to activate. His blade left it’s position at his side, moving into a quick arc-like swing, cutting at the MeAni Kruz. He was able to make a cut through it, but material weapons didn’t do much to actual spells. He had done it so he could get through it easier and take a bit less damage. As the blade completed it’s swing, Slicer was forced backwards, causing his back to be towards Kiwi. This was a dangerous position, but Kiwi should have still been recovering from the casting of the spell and Slicer needed to be in this position to... ”BOOM!”

The bombardment of MeAni Kruz skulls began their impact onto Slicer. Fortunately, his added speed and that sudden slash had caused the formation of the spell to be disrupted, even for a slight bit, so he took a bit less damage than he should have. It was still a high number, the damage he took, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it.

As the spell finished it’s attack, a charcoaled Slicer emerged from the smoke. It only took a second for the attack to be completed, so Slicer still contained his momentum. His feet were moving underneath him, propelling him towards Kiwi. Guessing at about the area where the other Heavy Blade would be, Slicer made a counterclockwise swing, moving the massive Omnius through the air, directing it towards Kiwi. The last bits of Ap Corv powering the swing of the sword.

If the attack hit, then that was one point for Slicer’s team. If it didn’t hit, Slicer should still be able to, hopefully, go head-on with Kiwi in his “weakened” state. If not, well, it didn’t need much explanation.

SP: 55/55

The battle had commenced with Ocara's arrival; an enhancement on himself and then a Dek Torv scroll on Kiwi had started it off. Lyra had to laugh. Obviously, due to the restrictions, her partner had speculated they'd use this sort of a strategy, and he'd been right. Kiwi's skills in battle were nothing to laugh about, unless one found severe pain amusing as several of her friends did, and their opponents obviously knew that. For quite some time he'd wielded the Moumokuteki and a set of darkness elemental armors, making himself into the dark HeavyBlade, the only one of their class who could use that element.

In her mind she would often muse nicknames for him, based off this elemental affinity, to go with hers of the Moonlight Shadow… The term Eclipse had often come into her mind, but of course, she said nothing to him about the playful titles, and instead kept them to her assorted fantasies, wanting to wait until she'd found the right one to share the idea with him. They'd been tracking the second Moumokuteki for some time now, trying to get it for her use, but she feared that by the time they could fulfill their quest to be the sole possessors of the dark blade their levels would be too high for use of the weapons to be anything but a disadvantage. Already, the relative power of Kiwi's Momo to the other weapons in his arsenal had severely waned, as it was ten levels below his own. Still, he continued to be the bearer of it, his loyalty to the sword second only to his loyalty to his vixen, a fact that always brought a smile to her face.

The pair had done extensive research before the match to see what armors hadn't been outlawed or made useless under the rules created by some either very bored or very cruel administrators. Both was more likely, but how the rules got in place was less of their concern than predicting their opponent's strategy was. Because of his abilities and the Moumokuteki, it was expected that he'd be using it, and sure enough, Ocara had targeted him to nullify his physical accuracy; the added speed that Ap Do had given both him and his partner only further made Kiwi's sword skills useless.

Lyra, on the other hand, hadn't been targeted by these reduction skills, and already had Ap Do of her own. She grinned, watching as Slicer got half-fried by her bird's first attack of the match, then turned her attention towards Ocara. Since they'd been expecting this sort of tactic, he'd chosen to have her adjust his magical stats. Granted, his Matk still wasn't much, but between the number next to the darkness icon on his status screen, a cast of Dek Anid, and the addition of Ap Torma, he packed a nasty jolt. 'Heee… Soooo glad he's on my side,' she giggled, popping her knuckles and adjusting her grip on the Dryad's Sword slung over her shoulder.

Since Slicer had already chosen to attack Kiwi, that left the fox to deal with their other opponent. She had no qualms with that idea, of course, given the simple logic that Ocara was a WhipMaster, WhipMasters were a light class, light classes had a miserably low physical defense statistic, and Ap Corv was still in effect on the field for the moment. As her last knuckle popped, she giggled again, casting Ap Torv on herself with the sort of giddy whisper normally reserved for secrets passed between kindergarteners. While not the best setup possible, the armor she was wearing was still about the best she and Kiwi could put together given the situation, and was good for basically any situation their opponents decided to throw at them. The spell passed over her, ensuring that her sword would find its target provided the goggle girl didn't hit her maximum level of carelessness. It was quite possible she'd hit there, of course; she'd been angry a few minutes before, and was now both hyper and grinning like a maniac, which meant she was about to maximize the amount of chaos she could inflict upon the already scrambled field.

During the whole two seconds it took for her mind to contemplate all this and the spell to complete, she never took her eyes off Ocara and her grin only grew as he didn't seem to notice her. Another eager giggle left her lips as she thrust herself forward, dashing headlong at the WhipMaster, her bubbly enthusiasm apparent on her face and floating in the air behind her in the form of a trail of almost maniacally happy but barely audible noises. Red boots thumping across bare ground at incredible speed, Lyra reveled in the joy that was the familiar combination of Ap Do, adrenaline, and bloodlust.

Once she was within a few feet of him, she leapt, enormous blade cocked behind her head as her clearly displayed teeth flashed, tongue held between two razor sharp canines as the quiet laughter subsided into an amused hum, her lips curling back to show an impossibly greater amount of pearly fangs as she barked out her attack, activating a skill, "Juk Smashu!!" For a moment she seemed destined to crash into the ground as she performed a full forward flip with the ease of a gymnast and the grace of a drunken bear. As the somersault completed, however, the green sheen surrounding the tinted metal of the Dryad's became more obvious, a glow strong enough to reflect off the fur gloves that lined the fox's arms. As her eyes, the same forest green as the light, locked in on their target, the insane grin faded from her lips, replaced by a confident, sly smirk that was visible for only a blink of time before a soft, but still as humored as ever, "heh" escaped her lips and she came crashing down, 120lbs-of-steel first, hoping to land on an easily breakable but still valuable part of Ocara's anatomy, specifically, his collar bone.

His skull would do, too, of course.

********
SP: 50/110

Ocara was focused, his mind in concentrated battle mode as the enemies made their attacks. Kiwi’s Dek Anid covered him, the odd sensation of thunder enhancement and darkness handicap almost feeling like a balance. The thunder sparks which floated and the dark wisps that bit at him seemed to dance in a mystical waltz along his arms. A spell exploded next to Ocara, the whipmaster taking a step to the side as to avoid being smacked by a stray skull. Slicer seemed to survive, Ocara wishing they had targeted him due to his higher magical resistance.

I guess It makes sense to take advantages of weaknesses… I should do the same and take advantage of my speed and their slow attacks.

Slier charged in, Ocara being left as the only one still standing back. He narrowed his eyes, hearing the thumping steps of a character and the maniacal giggles of a child. Out of nowhere, Lyra popped up, brandishing her curvy heavy blade as she charged in. The sword seemed to tilt in every direction as she drew near, her movements erratic and unpredictable.

The loose cannons are the ones you have to worry about the most…

Ocara got ready for a dodge, and possibly to duck afterwards in case she would cast a spell where he would have landed. Ocara watched her come right to a few feet in front of him, starting to take off before she got the chance to do something. His feet propelled the light Whipmaster at a good pace to escape a tumbling lunatic, Ocara watching the area turn a glowing green for a second before a loud blasting of snow and dirt could be heard. Lyra’s skill had crushed the frozen soil with extreme leafy force, Ocara catching a glance at the misty cloud shooting up where the skill had hit. No sooner had he turned back than 3 medium sized rocks went flying out from the aftermath of the attack to nail him directly in the chest and stomach. The stones had been shot up from the frozen earth, powered by the Juk energy of the skill. Ocara lost his breath, his gasps short and raspy as he tried to breathe. He pulled out another Hunter’s Bane, casting the spell written on it now at Lyra. As he kept slowly advancing away from Lyra, Ocara noticed he had come to the emerald border of the wheat field. He turned back to Lyra, the cloud from the slam to the ground shrouding her figure slightly. Ocara’s stomach was bruised where he had been smacked by rocks, but he raised his hands and drew upon the spell in his armor to help him go on the offensive without having to move much.

“Miu Lei!”

The pink energies of the spell were released from his arm, draining his Sp like mad. He hoped it had worked and ran across the circle of clear land to be ready for any sudden charges towards him. Slicer seemed to be doing fine with Kiwi, so Ocara prepared to be backup if he needed it while staying alert to Lyra from the corner of his eye. He did not to be caught off guard if the charm spell had failed.

Sp: 40/80

The success of Kiwi's attack brings him even further confidence. Lyra seems to respect his wish to settle matters honorably with Slicer, leaving the two to finish their match without interruption. He watches the other Heavy Blade charging him through his darkness spell, no doubt staving off the sensations of being struck. His blade is positioned in such a way that the response would presumably be a slash. Otherwise, the two would ram into each other. Kiwi moves on forward suddenly, drawing away his right gauntlet from the Moumokuteki, placing himself closer to Slicer than might have been expected. Those watching through the Pond of Kotetsu might immediately feel intrigued at the peril in his decision. His sword is too heavy to swing without a two-handed grip.

The Moumokuteki turns over a pair of his left fingers, placing some strain on his wrist from the weight during the move. The blade becomes easier to control once its tip rests against the ground. Kiwi brings the weapon towards his side so that its broad facet acts as a shield against Slicer's slash. The guard should protect his grasp if the incoming strike runs its way up the facet and his black gauntlet can withstand against some injury. Swords, after all, are both offensive and defensive tools. The tactic temporarily prevents Slicer from causing any harm because he can't swing again the blade while blocked at such close range. The same obsidian barrier stops him from carrying out an immediate follow-up slash from the other side. The weapon can't magically pass through the Moumokuteki.

"MeAni Kruz," says Kiwi, focusing a new handful of darkness energy into his right palm amid the parry. The moment is ripe for a counterattack: Slicer should be dealing with his halted attack and their point blank meeting negates his speed advantage. He aims the dark burst at Slicer's stomach, exploiting the distance between them at the height where the shot would be hardest to dodge. The following seconds may determine the winner of their quick encounter even though the spell shouldn't kill. Its an exciting match for the Heavy Blade, even as he does his best to control his emotions, permitting just a slight grin across his lips.

107/145 SP

Swinging his arms around like an over caffeinated gorilla, Slicer made his weapon go towards Kiwi. To no surprise of the Heavy Blade, Kiwi blocked the blow with ease. It wasn’t surprising. Kiwi was the leader of his clan and he was also a veteran of battling. Slicer knew this match would be more than a little bit tough.

Slicer would have lost his balance, had he not prepared for a block. He knew Kiwi wouldn’t go down that easily, so at the last moment, he lightened his attack, so the clashing of the two black blades didn’t cause Slicer to lose his balance too much. His step was a bit off, but over-all, he was still fine. He looked over to Kiwi, noticing how he didn’t seem to want to use his weapon as a means of attack. It didn’t surprise Slicer. With the Dek Torv and Slicer’s Ap Do active, even with Kiwi’s superior levels and skill, the chance of hitting Slicer would be slim to none. Unfortunately, it was a different story with spells.

Slicer had guessed... no, he had known that spells would be the opposition’s weapon of choice. There wasn’t any real counter against them. The best he could probably do was to get out of the way of the spells. It was alot harder than it sounded.

Even as the Heavy Blade looked down Kiwi’s eyes, he could see a type of wanting. It could have been Slicer’s eyes playing tricks on him, but it seemed almost as though Kiwi wanted to fight him. I can’t let him down, now can I?

As the dark spell came towards Slicer, there seemed to be two options left for him. The first one was to get hit. There was no way that Slicer would choose that as his way of going out, so that left the second option. An option that wouldn’t be possible without the help of his friends.

”Death Bringer!” With a quick retraction of his legs, followed by a straightening of the same appendages, Slicer had made a jump. This time, his Death Bringer was unlike any he had ever used before. He had just used Kiwi’s variation. Kiwi’s variation of the Death Bringer was different from most others. The birdy jumped up, seemingly to stay in the air for a couple seconds, while doing a corkscrew front flip, before coming down upon the opponent with a deadly sword smash. Slicer had learned this in his last duel with Kiwi, oh, so long ago. He had tested it out a bit every now and then, though he never used it in an official duel before, but using it in a real situation was probably the fastest way he would be able to learn.

Kiwi’s Death Bringer variation used his wings to keep him a bit more stable in the sky. It was something that Slicer wouldn’t be able to do with wings, but because of the help a couple of his friends provided he had gotten his hands on a pair of the magnificent items. He would only be able to use it for the tournament, but being able to use them was something that, he felt, was an honor. The wings were hidden underneath his jacket, so they were completely invisible. Even now, they could still be hidden, but if you looked underneath the jacket, you would fine the chibi white wings hanging there.

Due to the exquisite timing of the Death Bringer, Slicer had leapt out of the way of the MeAni Kruz just in time. The crashing of the skulls sent a small draft towards the Heavy Blade, so his body flew a bit further than he had planned. He had ended up a bit behind Kiwi, facing the wrong way. With a quick twist of his body, Slicer had changed his direction so he would be facing Kiwi. And with the force of gravity behind him, Slicer finished his move.

SP: 48/55

How her skill had missed, Lyra wasn't sure. It was hard enough to miss with a five foot sword, but with the added effects of Ap Torv, she'd been counting on hearing the satisfying crack of bones splitting. Thus, her abrupt meeting with the ground startled her enough to leave her frozen for a precious second. During that instant, as her eyes skimmed through the floating debris left by her attack, Ocara's scroll found her and negated the extra points on her accuracy. 'That's fine,' she chuckled; since the only decreasing scroll available had been the Hunter's Bane, it was another thing she'd guessed would happen, especially after Dek Torv had already been used on her partner. Now, because of her preparations, her aim was only back to square one instead of below average. In a moment, she would stop being so happy about that…

Through the dust, she could see little of her opponent besides a silhouette, which gave away nothing more than the fact he was facing towards her. Having landed in a squat following her Juk Smash, she was still crouched as she slid one leg beneath her, leaving her kneeling on one knee, her toes curled under in preparation to catapult her towards the WhipMaster. She dragged her weapon through the rubble she'd created, clutching the hilt with both hands just to the left of her raised leg. The curvy, two-pronged design of the Dryad's Sword gave Ocara's whip something to wrap around instead of her neck, if he were to lash out at her with a physical ability. Once it was securely wound, the vixen planned to leap forward, jerking her weapon back over her right shoulder to disarm him or at least throw him off balance before she charged.

She waited quietly for a moment, but that attack never came. Growling low, her toes began to dig into the dirt, her body rising to launch at him anyway.

That attack also never came.

At first, she didn't even notice the pink haze that washed over her. By the time she was aware that she had a severe case of rose-colored glasses, Ocara was already dashing off away from her, and she just smiled as she watched him go. A series of rapid blinks followed as she grew extremely confused, her body moving on its own accord as her mind complained. 'Awwww come ON! I better not be…' The character of Lyra turned to face her partner, cocking her weapon back and charging with all the speed of Ap Do, barreling across the center of the field towards the other HeavyBlades, already locked into a feud.

'…I am. Damn you Ocara, you are SO goin down! YOUR SP CAN'T LAST FOREVER! Nekkiko screamed in her mind, shoving the joystick every which way and pounding the buttons of her controller. It wasn't that she posed any real threat to Kiwi at all, even with her Ap Do; while she could certainly damage him, there was no way she could kill him in the short time charm lasted. It was more the idea of distracting him that was pissing her off, especially when he was trying to settle an old issue with one of his clan members. Against her will, her hollow blade rose high above her head as she closed in, with the bird's head right in the path of the downswing. His voice seemed to come from off in the distance as he called out another MeAni Kruz, as did Slicer's when his Death Bringer followed.

She was vaguely aware of the lower level HeavyBlade tumbling downwards towards her target as she tried to bring her weapon down on Kiwi, performing a 160 degree swing that began straight above her head, putting on the brakes just before the weapon could wedge itself in the ground. Her eyes, the one part of her body she still had control over in this charmed state, went wide as she realized she couldn't stop herself from attacking her lover. All sound coming from her was muted, so she couldn't even yell to warm him, either of her own attack or Slicer's the moment before. Her mind screamed again, cursing whoever had decided to make that rule in some update long before, damning whoever had removed the ability for players with status effects to speak, 'DAMEYO!'

Mindlessly she pulled back, adjusting her grip as the weapon came parallel to her right side. Her body twisted with it, pressing her stomach against the crossbar, as she pulled back further still with her arms. Lyra knew this attack all too well; it was a less powerful but SP-less version of her Drive attacks… Unwilling to let herself watch whatever might happen next, because she was certain it would involve some form of carnage she'd rather not view, she shut her eyes, whimpering silently as she felt her body launch forward, propelling the twin points of her Dryad's sword ahead of her…

'Gyaaaaaaa… Sorry Kiwi-kuuuun…'

********
SP: 62/110

((note: a picture of the Dryad's can be found here: http://decipher.fanhq.com/Resources/CardIm...ACK-EN01074.jpg Yay!))

Ocara saw the charm spell hit with precision, his body now a fair distance from the fight which had Kiwi pinned between Lyra attacking from one side and Slicer attacking on the other.

I’m the middle!

Ocara ran in to about 6 feet from Kiwi’s side, watching Lyra’s blade come down upon Kiwi’s front as Slicer aimed for his back. What was left to be open (Possibly for a dodge) were the left and right sides of his body. Ocara’s whip was a full twelve feet long, and he was sure with his skill he’d have no trouble hitting either side from where he was. He whispered his skill as his arms threw his whip straight up above him.

“Melting Crusher…”

Ocara’s whip fell at high speeds downwards suddenly, the weapon skill aiming to cover the distance between him and the 5 feet on Kiwi’s other side in a flaming, downward crush. If Kiwi was to dodge Ocara figured it would be hard for a heavy class, even with Ap Do, to be able to get more than 5 feet in either direction in the time it would take for the flaming whip to slam violently downwards into the dusty soil. Gravity sped up the simple task of bringing the flaming weapon through the air, Ocara watching as the straight line of a whip descended. With attack from front and back, escape seemed unlikely there. His whip was coming down at a tighter angle towards Ocara since he was the pivot point of the attack, so any attacks on him to try and interrupt him would be stopped by his flaming skill before they reached him. Escape to the side with no players on it would seem to be the last option, but Ocara didn’t see an escape from the falling whip before being able to get away.

This one should hurt him…


Sp: 37/80

It takes a mere few seconds for a nightmarish scenario to unfold, fairly uncommon in the standard dueling circles. This is the penultimate tournament round, though. The audience is about to witness the reason for the two teams reaching where they stand.

The defense was perfect, even though Slicer conveniently knew he was to be stopped after he was. The darkness spell was a work of art until Slicer stirred creativity with luck into a leap that cleared the energy shots. The move first surprises Kiwi with its swift execution and because that Death Bringer style is usually associated with him and Lyra. It seems a pointless and sloppy escape. Slicer would just fall behind him, easy prey to another devastating darkness enchantment.

Lyra starts to enter the scene at the same time. His gaze catches her and the player running parallel alongside her, though not enough time passes for him to focus on the latter. An intense prickling coats the back of his neck, warning that something seems to be wrong. The faint aura about her, its diminished rose glow very familiar, foreshadows a chaotic three-on-one attack. Kiwi grinds his teeth in aggravation at the interruption to the honorable duel between him and Slicer. Armor analysis had anticipated that one opponent would have a rare Kagayuzen, but the use of charm must mean they're very desperate.

"The administrators should have patched up that charm flaw a while ago. A fifteen level advantage doesn't change whether I can be charmed or not. There are no solutions even if we knew this would happen. The odds of it failing are so slim it shouldn't be allowed between players," thinks Kiwi. The trigger that fires his instincts is the sound behind him. Sounds, which paint clearer portraits than his eyes, depict a crafted edge slicing the otherwise quiet air. Suffocating the urge to denounce Ocara for being cheap, the bird throws himself down into a crouch even as Lyra charges in. He flips his body hard towards the right with his right arm turning him from underneath, using his left gauntlet to shove against the Moumokuteki.

"MeAni Kruz," shouts the Heavy Blade, holding his left arm inwards and as stable as possible. A clank resonates through his left gauntlet as the turn exposes him to Slicer, moving so narrowly under the descending blade that his gauntlet ricochets against metal. The spell blazes off his grasp the instant Slicer comes near, hopefully snipping a hole straight through his vital organs. The final contact with his obsidian sword before dodging provides the shot with its standard darkness power. However, the concluding shock from Death Bringer immediately pries his right hand off the ground, rippling beneath him and tearing him effortlessly from the snow.

Moments later, amid all the confusion, the Heavy Blade lands with a rough thump on the snow a dozen feet away. It's an awfully uncomfortable way of flying, especially the landing. Groaning for a second, he rolls off his back and leaves an imprint in the snow where he landed. The reason he even managed to get out from under Slicer's attack is some fortune in game physics and his use of secret wings. Speed boosts may change how fast players can move but gravity exists at a constant rate. Combined with hovering and turning, there was just enough time for him to notice Slicer trying to murder him. The series of attacks also came in waves rather than simultaneously. Lyra would have completed her mindless swing just in time to crush Slicer. Ocara ran the same distance as the fox but summoned power into his whip. His speed calculations were off due to the fox having nine levels more, and thus a minor advantage. Slicer could end up on the receiving end of the whip instead.

"Ugh... ow," mumbles Kiwi, scrambling back onto his boots. The sore sensation across his muscles and few scratches accumulate roughly a fifth of his health. Slicer caused more damage than anyone else has in the tournament. A crack was blown into his left gauntlet during the momentary ricochet. The Heavy Blade reaches fast into his jacket while he has the chance, delving his hand into a pocket. He draws a vial from said pocket and bends his arm back, pitching towards Lyra. The Restorative should reverse her charmed state.

"I'll have you know that charm is forbidden under my code of honor; the very code that stops me from unfairly destroying players with rare magic. Consider your actions morally as well as strategically. Besides... I have unfinished business in this."

99/145 SP

The force of gravity took hold of Slicer, pulling his body down. His weapon didn’t help the condition, but it wasn’t a condition that needed help. The modified Death Bringer was something that Slicer had tried to learn for a long time. After seeing Kiwi use it for the first time, he thought, Wow, I’ve gotta learn that. It was a stupid thought, but if he was able to use both variations of the skill, the normal and the modified, then he would have a larger arsenal in his stack of weapons. He probably wouldn’t be able to master both, but atleast he would be able to use them well.

The Death Bringer seemed to have caught Kiwi off guard. It didn’t surprise Slicer too much. He hadn’t seen anyone other than Kiwi use it, so it was probably odd to see your own move being used against you. That was Slicer for you. He stole moves and used them as his own. It wasn’t exactly the nicest thing to do, but it was effective none-the-less.

Unfortunately, there were just too many flaws in his plan. He was a man of action, not of thought, and that was what had brought him to the situation. While his weapon was heading towards Kiwi, an audible spell incantation was made. ”MeAni Kruz!” As if pain had taken a liking to Slicer, a wall of black skulls formed a wall infront of Slicer, blocking his vision. His position had left him vulnerable to too may things and now his incompetence was going to cause him to pay.

Smashing into the black skulls, the sound of crunching bones was quite audible. His body was being pummeled by the level two darkness spell and Slicer had absolutely no way to dodge it. His Death Bringer had to be finished and so, his body was forced into the spell.

The sting of a thousand needles was nothing when compared to the feeling of having your bones crushed by the very essence of darkness. The fumes went in through Slicer’s nose and mouth, rotting him from the inside out, unintentionally. The skulls were causing physical harm to his body; crushing bones and mashing limbs. Pain was a sensation Slicer didn’t want to feel for a while.

The weapon fell through the MeAni Kruz, coming through the clear side. As it came down, the blade was able to inflict some bodily harm to the Kiwi. And as if Slicer’s life was like the title of a book, a series of unfortunate events had begun and was about to end in the most unpleasant way possible.

As Kiwi dodged to Slicer’s right, a large blade came out of nowhere. The sicken churn of blood was heard as the blade ripped through skin and muscle as though they were nothing more than paper. Making a straight line in which bones were crushed, the Dryad’s Sword had cut a path through Slicer’s life, lessening it... a lot.

Looking up, Slicer noticed the face of Lyra. She had been the one who had killed Slicer. An interesting set of events. That’s what this entire duel had been. And now, Slicer’s life was ended... or not... As he looked up at the face of his opponent, he held the Omnius in both hands. They glowed white for a second as SP was transferred into the seemingly black blade, causing the swirling mist within it’s blade to shift even faster. ”Calamity!”

The skill, Calamity, was a three part skill. Unfortunately, Slicer probably wouldn’t be able to finish all three parts. One was the only he would get and that was why he threw of the last of his strength into this final thrust. He was trying to weaken his foes enough so Ocara would be able to live longer. The possibility of winning was slim and the possibility of Slicer living to see the end of this match was even worse, so he would give his all to stall his opponent and annoy them as much as possible.

Both hands were holding the blade behind him. Kiwi seemed to be saying something, though Slicer was unable to make it out, since his ears had already gone. The Heavy Blade tensed his arms for a moment, before, in one motion, the skill was initiated. A swift blade was sent flying towards Lyra. If she was to dodge this, she would have to toss away the Dryad, since the blade was through Slicer’s chest and he didn’t see how she would be able to take it out without using a couple seconds. A couple precious seconds she didn’t have. A surge of heat went off behind Slicer. It was the skill Ocara had used. It had now become completely useless, since it hadn’t hit anything. As Slicer looked at Lyra, he thought to himself, What will you do now...?

SP: 48/55 (In other words, I'm pretty much borderline dead. I'm dead due to blood-loss after this attack... or something like that...)

Lyra heard her sword crash through bones with a few sickening sound effects she was surprised the game even had. It wasn't the fact that she'd just impaled Slicer that surprised her; that fact had her rather happy, since she'd been scared out of her mind that she was going to hit Kiwi the moment before. Instead, she was surprised by the fact she was able to react afterwards. Not enough time had passed for the effect to wear off naturally, so she guessed a restorative had been used on her. She wouldn't get time to say anything about it or even to think about it at all, however…

Kiwi was giving a speech to their opponents. He was upset over their use of charm. The fox wanted to feel the same, but at the moment she was too busy deciding how to dislodge her weapon from the chest of the HeavyBlade in front of her before he had time to attack her. Over her partner's words came her victim's voice; he was clearly finished, but it seemed he wasn't going down without a fight. Her eyes locked on his as she understood suddenly their proximity and what he meant to do before he bled to death. With her weapon wedged into his ribcage, the vixen could do nothing to get herself away from Slicer without abandoning her sword, and he meant to take advantage of that situation, to take her out before his strength completely drained.

"Calamity!"

All his spirit was in the word, she had to give him that. A white glow flashed to his blade; his arms had already been coiled, his weapon at point blank to her stomach due to the short distance between them. She didn't even have time to curse as she threw herself to her right, her hands still clutched onto the hilt of her Dryad's Sword. Jumping to the side wasn't really an option, since her sword was partially in her way. Moving backwards would have left her still within the path of the thrusting attack. Had her opponent been any other class, had she not known what series of movements that skill pertained, Lyra would have found herself completely impaled right then. Because of the difference in their levels, Slicer probably couldn't have finished her right then even if he'd hit full on, unless he'd managed to hit her spine with the stroke. Her reaction was just enough to avoid any chance of that, though.

Her plan had actually been to use her sword as a rotation point. After throwing herself sideways, she'd use her grip on it to slow her decent to the ground, letting her land much less roughly. This idea was abandoned when the tip of the Omnius found her left side and tore it open, ripping a sizable slash into her gut just below her rib cage. A loud yelp left Lyra, replacing the look of concentration on her brow with a more alarmed expression. The shock of the pain was enough to cause her to let go with her left hand, instinctively reaching for the source of the sting.

She fell blindly now, too busy grimacing to worry about softening her landing. As her hip connected with the ground, the one handed grip on the Dryad's allowed her to avoid falling much further, though not without a painful jerk to her arm, which caused her to release the weapon entirely. She hissed in pain and clutched the large gash on her side, wincing sharply when she tried to breathe. His attack had narrowly missed her diaphragm, but had taken out a few of the more important muscles in her side; it would be difficult for her to swing from above or her left side anymore, and the fact healing spells weren't allowed this round meant it was a handicap she'd be enjoying for the rest of the duel.

'Keh, just levels the playing field,' she assured herself. Still squinting in pain, she watched Ocara wave his whip in a show of flame. An idea sprang to mind at the acknowledgement of the single-weapon rule, and the fox checked over her equipment mentally, forcing her hands away from her body and onto to help her to her feet.

She yipped in surprise and managed to hop into a crouch when Slicer's defeated body slumped to the ground beside her. Her eyes were wildly wide as she stared at him, for just an instant, trying to verify that he was indeed dead. His HP gauge appeared to be at zero, but she wasn't about to take any chances, and so came the decision to temporarily abandon her weapon. It was unnecessary at the moment anyway; all she needed for her plan was already attached to her body.

Ocara was busy with Kiwi still, but she doubted that would last long, so she spouted off her commands quickly, before she'd even reached her feet. "Dek Vaks! Ap Vaks!" she called, glaring directly at him and being sure she spoke loudly enough for him to hear, wanting the skills to be a taunt as well. The WhipMaster's sole weapon was Fire-based, and the combination of Fire decreasing and increasing spells had the potential to nullify any damage beyond that caused by simple physical strength. Even if the Dek skill failed, the Ap one had already taken effect, casting a slight red glow over both the fox and the bird, and that alone would lessen the damage. Without her sword in hand, another Miu Lei would serve little purpose if cast on her, and because she had Ap Do and he didn't, she'd likely be able to avoid damage from Kiwi by speed alone if he were charmed instead.

Bending slightly, Lyra let her hand cover the bleeding hole in her side again, her face contorting to hide her pain behind a taunting sneer. Her health had been drug down to just above half, and the warmth of her blood against the cold of the air was more than a little distracting. She ignored it, and instead assured herself that within three minutes time, Ocara would know exactly how she felt.

She'd make sure of that.

********
SP: 54/110

Ocara heard the thud of feet against the ground, his arms still throwing his whip down towards the ground at high speeds. Kiwi dodged to the side, his spell releasing in a chorus of wispy noises as the skulls from his spell started rapidly building a wall in front of Slicer. Slicer had been throwing himself forward for an attack at the same time, and all looked grim. Ocara yelled as his skill continued downwards, the scene in front of him playing out and leaving him helpless to do anything as he awaited the conclusion of his skill. Slicer tore through the wall, taking what could only be seen as mutilating damage. The physical damage to his body could be seen quite clearly, as dark spots and blood started appearing on his skin. The shady spell debris trailing from his forward spiraling body was a sign he would keep going no matter what the damage inflicted. His sword slammed Kiwi in a lightning fast strike, the bird-like opponent flying back into the snow behind him. Kiwi hit the ground as Slicer did the same, Lyra’s green blade tearing into him like a butcher’s knife into a fresh slab of meat. The sound of Slicer being torn apart was terrible, Ocara’s weapon slamming uselessly into the ground right behind Slicer as he struggled to hold his blade. Ocara pulled back the now doused whip as quickly as he could, almost fumbling for a second when the cord came back to his hand. He was still in shock from the direct blow on Slicer, which had made that sickening spurt which signaled multiple organs and vital mechanisms cleaving in half. Slicer filled his weapon with energy, shooting his sword forward in a thrust that seemed like it would stab directly though Lyra’s body.

”Calamity!”

Ocara heard Slicer’s words echo across the quiet middle circle, Slicer's weapon shooting forward and nicking Lyra as she dodged most of the painful injury with the luck of the gods. Her still sizable wound had her falling to the ground, Slicer’s body doing much the same without the care to catch his fall. Lyra let her weapon fall from her grasp, the move obviously intentional but not all that wise. A heavy blade would not be so easy to suddenly pick up if needed, and if Slicer’s body happened to turn to the ghostly form which bodies took in “The World” after they had been defeated, the lack of substance to stick into might make the blade fall away in a disadvantageous direction. Ocara looked to both his enemies, Kiwi going on about the unfairness of a Charm. Ocara looked to Slicer, and then back to his foes.

“It’s just another part of the game… like it or hate it, it has no relevance to the fact that this is a life or death duel, and you must use any strategy to win. If you are holding back because of your own morals, it is none of my concern. You may die in a noble manner, but I will be the one who will still be alive.”

Ocara heard Lyra’s shouts of Dek Vaks and Ap Vaks, the blue flame glyph appearing below him to signal the spell was indeed being cast. The water-blue of Rue and the fire symbol of Vak was something interesting; the glyph signifying the flame resistance in Ocara’s body had been lowered.

“Fine, play that way…”

Ocara watched the Ap Vaks increase their flame resistance, Ocara looking to his weapon.

It’s good the weapon skill is the only thing flame based about this weapon… the actual cord itself gives me no flame additions and is non-elemental. All right, time for the big turnaround.

Ocara decided the Charm had been a good tactic, and now would be the way that could turn the tables. The spell was effective against players of all levels, Ocara enjoying the fact that level had nothing to do with it’s success rate. What was now two on one in their favor would soon be reversed. Ocara clenched his fist, focusing the spell into his hand. His spirit was nearly drained now, but if this worked he wouldn’t need it for a while and it could fill again. He whispered the skill, the pink energies of Miu Lei encompassing his arm and fist for only a moment before it fired off towards it’s target, Kiwi. Ocara looked over his plan, the enemy in the far snow now receiving the spell. Ocara could only hope it hadn’t been resisted. He was now gambling all on the game mechanics not failing him when he needed them the most. Turning to Lyra, he threw his whip handle over to his right hand from where he had temporarily held it to cast his spell. Anger burned in his eyes, his ally which had stayed by his side all this time lying in all probability dead so that Ocara would have time to live.

“His sacrifice won’t be in vain…”

Ocara had no more energy for a skill, so he tactically planned a move that would be most effective. Taking only a few steps forward, his whip would reach Lyra as he would want it to. He pulled his arm back, the weapon whipping back through the air into perfect attack form. He made a wide arc over his head, moving his right arm so that it crossed behind his head and around to his front from the left after the first half of the movement. The whip followed through after the movement of his arm, making a half-moon as it traveled from the right and extending into a curved wall of pain as it came around from his back. The target of this attack was Lyra, and her wounded, crouched form was weaponless to stop the attack. If Ocara’s plan was working, Kiwi would be charging from the right side in which his whip was not coming from, since the only direction for Lyra to run to would be towards Kiwi. The weapon glinted slightly from lighting on one side of the arena, Ocara noting the beauty of a flexible weapon in flight. He didn’t think Lyra would be able to grab her weapon to block in time, as his weapon was slender, fast, and accurate. Although he lacked real power from this type of swing, it still held enough to make a painful welt against Lyra’s already injured form. If Kiwi was charmed and running in as Ocara had hoped, Lyra’s Hp might just be finished as it was already low.

This is where I can turn it around… I can only hope the game doesn’t hate me as much as I think it does…



Sp: 9/80

Lyra

Tactics: 9

Fairness: 10

SP Regulation: 9.5

Quality: 10

Technicality: 10

Overall: 9.7

Kiwi

Tactics: 10

Fairness: 10

SP Regulation: 10

Quality: 9

Technicality: 10

Overall: 9.8

Ocara

Tactics: 8

Fairness: 9

SP Regulation: 9

Quality: 8

Technicality: 10

Overall: 8.8

Slicer

Tactics: 7

Fairness: 9

SP Regulation: 8.5

Quality: 8

Technicality: 10

Overall: 8.5

Team 4 Overall Score: 9.75

Team 16 Overall Score: 8.65

The team of Lyra and Kiwi will face The Lone Dragon and Gothic Christian in the finals.