Description: The New Metro City has begun to consume the country. Duke, the former crime boss of the Southtown Syndicate, is mad with power, seeing himself as an all powerful god and ruler. But a motley crew of a hero, a villain, and someone in between will not stand for Metro City to be twisted into what it is... and dare to topple the man who would be god.
It was never enough.
Standing atop the roof of his tower, a towering, half-naked figure looks over all that he rules. Clutched in one hand, was a jade sphere with a swimming surface, murky and deep. Searing leylines coarsed over his arms and chest, cutting into his black skin with a hellfire red glow. The man's black hair was now ghostly white, and his eyes were a burning gold. Staring out across the landscape, he glowers into the depths of Metro City.
His Metro City.
The city now had covered the horizon. The Cordon that once tried to cut off the outside world from the city had been long consumed. The army was in full retreat. Countless lives had found themselves into his perfect vision, whether willingly, or otherwise. The urban landscape had already consumed nearby communities, and would not stop. Duke would never stop, until he consumed Sunshine City, the whole of the pacific coast.
And from there, he can begin to spread towards Southtown.
There is a surge of power. A flash of energy bursts forth around the glaring figure, boiling over the surface of the rooftop. It rips down, tearing down the tower's outer walls, pouring into where glass windows once guarded. The violet chi continues to pour downward, only disappating when it strikes the picket of pawn shops, brothels, and casinos that was the writhing mess at the base of the tower. The city was an extension of his soul. His will created it, his will controlled it.
And something was defying his will.
Somethings.
And they were crawling closer to him.
Duke turns around, to stare at the lone doorway that lead to the access stairwell that lead to the rooftop. Intruders. He could sense them. Just like the two who broke through his guardians. Faceless goons. Giant Canine Beasts, with rows of teeth like a shark. Shadowy images of his lowly associates of the Syndicate, such as Billy, Mr. Big, and even the worthless Geese himself. Dim memories of an weaker time, when he was merely a crime boss. Merely a crime boss. Hah. What did did a crime boss compare to what he was now? Not ruler a city.
But its god.
Zach Glen stands at the base of the tower, glaring up at the ediface of twisted malice and averice. The psion looks a little worse for wear, having spent two /weeks/ in this twisted hellscape. The nice longcoat is tattered but still draped over his shoulders, covering his arms and upper body. The jeans are dirtied and torn in places. Zach's blonde hair is rumpled and mussed, and stubble is starting to show on his face.
Tired green eyes stare towards the top of the tower as Zach considers his next move. Something tells him that what he is after is at the top of the tower, but to enter the tower may be certain doom. So he waits, and gathers his power, knowing that the sunlight flare of psychic energy will get someone's attention.
To Razor, Metro City is still a city sinking. It was sinking long before the flood waters came; not beneath the literal wave that had swept over his hometown, but a wave of crime, and perhaps more abhorrent to him, the corruption and poverty underlying it. And here, underneath Duke's tower, seems to be the center of the new wave of vice already threatening to drown the city even as it appears to be rebirthed.
And so Razor is here, without a plan, just a vow to somehow try and do his best to staunch the flow. He's standing across the way from the tower, hands in the pockets of a hooded sweatshirt, contemplating a course of action, when Zach's action catches his eye. He makes his way across the street.
"Hey. Zach, right?" he greets with a hint of recognition as he gets closer. The two had met briefly in mutual defense of Metro City Hall once when it was attacked by Shadaloo's goons. "Got business here?"
All her life she had been told that there were no gods.
Despite the gravity of the situation that she has found herself thrust into, Franziska cannot help but allow her thoughts to wander down the dusty halls of memory within her mind. Much like the ancient castle where the majority of her life had taken place, there are endless corridors leading into a maze of twisting passages that all wind up somewhere in the dark depths of places best left undisturbed. Many of them she has forgotten, either through some passive mental defensive measure against traumatic experiments that molded her into what she is now or by choice of her own; there are few happy thoughts to be found in this place.
Despite her best efforts, however, some memories of her childhood remain clear, as vivid in her mind's eye as the day she partook in them. The curse of a mind as powerful as her own is the inability to forget the things that have left the greatest marks, regardless of her feelings towards those memories. One in particular drifts to the surface as she wanders admist the shifting landscape that sprawls out before her like a slowly creeping moss, its features shifting and emphemeral.
There are no gods. That had fact had been drilled into her mind with a fevor as intense as any religious sentiment. The figures of legend and myth were simply that: beings of impossible beauty, strength, and wisdom conjured up by a primitive humanity to explain away the mysteries that haunted their fearful minds, metaphorical torches against the darkness that is present where knowledge does not exist. They were meant to inspire people to greater heights, sometimes to stand as beacons of ultimate virtue and honor while others represented the worst of all things, scapegoats upon which all evil might be blamed. Whatever their purpose, such figments of superstitious fancy held no place within the modern world of science and technology.
Franziska smiles faintly to herself. She's always believed those words. Not because she does not believe in Gods or Demons, but because she knows that mankind holds a far greater power within. One day, she will unlock that power, unleash the dormant energy of perfection that sleeps inside of the chosen few and lead humanity to their true destiny. This twisting Hellscape is nothing more than proof of that power; a misguided use of it, perhaps, but she can imagine what wonders could be made if it were in the proper hands - her hands.
The slender woman rounds the bend of a narrow side street, stepping into full view of those gathered at the base of the tower. She does not look terribly surprised to see others here; rather she seems amused, her eyebrows lifting as the corners of her lips turn upwards into a bright smile, and a warm pleasant feeling blankets the area as she draws nearer.
"Vell... I did not expekt to find ozers here amidst zis... I am not even sure vhat to call it. A city? A mirage?" She shrugs, claspsing both hands behind her back. "No matter. Perhaps vee haf all come for zee same reason, ja?"
The tower groans.
The buildings around the trio begin to contort and shift. It was a routine fact of life now, within the New Metro City. The buildings weren't actually real; they had no substance within them. Only shadows and shapes. The buildings were now moving to close off the streets, the alleyways, the corners. Even the sky itself becomes shut away, as the concrete towers bend to shut away the light. In its place, neon signs cast their artifical glow upon the stone streets.
The doors of the tower open.
A rumble shudders through the earth again. Another blast of energy roars overhead, the ceiling of tower shuddering as it is struck. Pieces of debris fall around the trio, as a low growl fills the air.
"Come face me, mortals!"
Zach gives Razor a short nod, not trusting his voice at the moment. The things he has seen, has heard, has fought... these things still claw at his mind. He's still not entirely sure what happened to Maki. One moment she was following him deeper into the city, and another moment she was gone. Then word came from Japan regarding the final fate of the Empire of Ezo. Things have been trying for Zach since his return to Metro City.
He simply, in response to both Razor and the strange German woman with the psychic powers, points towards the top of the tower. He frowns a bit, about to try to explain, but no words come out of his mouth. Zach closes his mouth again.
A moment after the arm lowers, a voice fills the air, drawing a deeper frown from the psion. Zach rolls his shoulder forward to resettle his coat, and walks into the tower. If Razor and Franziska follow, all well and good. If not... well... Zach's not entirely sure they are really there to begin with.
The latest arrival, Franziska, receives an upward tilt of Razor's chin in greeting, though there's also a wary glint in his eyes. The woman seems like a strange sight, even in a place as strange as the new Metro, but Razor tends to trust his senses.
"Could be we are," he allows, his voice a bit gravelly.
"Personally, I was planning -"
He is cut off abruptly by the booming of Duke's voice. Razor's brow creases and he turns his eyes upward, then outward, taking in the scene as avenues of escape simply seem to disappear.
"- on making an appointment to see whoever was in charge, but I guess they're not giving out numbers."
By the time he turns back around, Zach is already heading inside, and Razor moves to keep in step.
"I think 'mortals' means us. Who the hell -is- in charge here, anyway? Sounds like some asshole has a God complex."
And with good reason, it seems, if... whatever this is is their doing, but Razor isn't going to cede that point out loud just now.
Franziska tilts her head up as the city closes in around them, peering at the quickly reforming canopy of concrete and steel with a mixture of amusement and curiosity. She certainly doesn't appear to be nearly as shaken by the shifting, ghostly nature of the city as her fellow psion if the placid expression on her face is to be believed; it looks more like she's watching a performance at the circus. Perhaps she simply hasn't been here as long as Zach, hasn't seen whatever it is that has worn down his spirit, been haunted by ghosts and visions for days on end.
Regardless, the woman seems upbeat, cheerful even as the terrain alters at the whims of their unseen host. The booming challenge causes her smile to turn into a thin-lipped smirk as she lets out an exasperated sigh. "Zat appears to be our invitation. Best not keep him vaitink, hmm?"
The others apparently need no encouragement. Franziska falls into step behind them, her polished boots tapping sharply against the surface of the floor as she steps into the building's foyer. She's more than happy to take up the rear position, using the freedom of pace to peer around at their surroundings.
"Are eizer of you familiar with zee van responsible for zis? I must admit to beink somevhat in zee dark here."
The interior of the building is beautiful.
Where the outside was a surreal abomination of concrete a nd steel, the tower itself was gorgueous. White Marble pillars with black obsidian floor. Gold lines the baseboard, silver hanging from the lights. Everything was impossibly and ornately rich; if some of them wanted to swipe, the option was there. But if they decide to focus on their goal....
There was a spiral staircase in the middle of the room.
"Strong," is all Zach says in a coarse voice. He heads up the stairs, heedless of the display around him. He's on a mission.
"Damn," is all Razor has to say for a moment as he takes in the sight of the interior. This place is probably more opulent than anywhere he's been in his life, and the impact of that thought isn't lost on him.
"Anyone else see a place like this and feel like breaking something, or is it just me?" he asks once the initial awe has worn off, moving to follow Zach up the steps.
"I am afraid I cannot share such a sentiment," Franziska says, looking at the rough man with a small smirk. "Somevan obviously put a lot of thought and effort into makink zis extravagant decor - it vould be quite rude to damage it needlessly."
Probably unlike either of the men, she grew up in a rather wealthy household. Things like marble, gold, and other rare materials were par for the course in her home, so the surroundings aren't something she's never experienced before. Rich people have rich friends, after all. Besides, if the city's exterior is anything to go by, the lot of this is probably just as fake and fleeting.
"If it is all zee same to you, I vould prefer to be surrounded by opulence razer zan rubble."
It was a long climb.
The stairs wind up and up, as the trio begin their long climb to the root of all this madness.
Even a wasteland was better than this.
The door opens, as Zach, Franziska, and Razor emerges from the long march. Reaching the top, they find the the man behind this all was waiting for them. Eyes distant, arm holding the sphere aloft. It takes him time to focus upon the insects that were before. So small, in comparison to the greatness that he had made. "So. You are the ones distracting me from my greatness."
And he release the sphere.
The sphere begins to fall down to the floor. With a great shudder, a pillar bursts forth from the rooftop, catching the sphere. Shooting upwards to the sky, the rooftop begins to reshape itself. Stone weaves against steel at the border of the parapets. "Do you really think you can stop me?" He roars, a storm of red and violet energy swirling around his body. "You think you can contain my ambition? I am all powerful! I have created my own city! And soon! All of the world will be within my borders! I am its king! I am its god! And you think you can bring god to his knees?"
"Come at me!"
"Come and strike down the man that hell itself spat out? Come kill the Immortal Duke!" The stairway itself was begin to melt, oozing back into the towery structure. Zach, Razor, and Franz would find themselves trapped on top of the tower, in the middle of a hellish mockery of Metro City, in front of a crime boss mad with power.
It was time to fight for the fate of the city.
COMBATSYS: Duke has started a fight here as a boss!
DUKE
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Zach's allowance for Duke's grandstanding is owed only to the distance between the two men. Zach's right arm reaches for the wakazashi hanging at his hip. His gaze follows the sphere only breifly as the weapon comes free.
The psion takes a single step forward, whipping the sword towards Duke's face with such force that the sheath rips free from the blade and launches towards the Mad God of Metro City!!!
COMBATSYS: Zach has joined the fight here.
DUKE
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Zach 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Zach equips Violet Miraitou.
DUKE
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Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|
Casting a glance over his shoulder at the stairway disappearing behind them, Razor clenches his jaw. The hooded sweatshirt is discarded, revealing both the straight-edge street fighter's scarred arms, weathered muscle shirt, and perhaps more importantly the heavy crowbar that he's been hiding under the hoodie this whole time.
"Your own city? This place is fake. A lie, just like the ones people like you push on people to keep them under your heels," he growls as he advances toward Duke, brandishing the crowbar. Still, despite his aggressive tone, he doesn't rush in ahead of the others, instead opting to gather his wits as the world churns about them.
COMBATSYS: Razor has joined the fight here.
DUKE
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Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Razor
COMBATSYS: Razor focuses on his next action.
DUKE
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Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Razor
Thoughout the walk, Franziska does her best to keep her new traveling companions distracted from their thoughts, whatever they may be with constant conversation. Despite living cloistered away from the world for most of her life, she seems to have no end of random subjects to talk about. Whether or not they chose to participate in her idle chatter, she emerges from the exhaustive march up the seemingly endless flight of stairs in good spirits, apparently suffering little from the effort of climbing for so long.
Stepping out onto the roof as casually as if she were taking a tour of a house, she casts a glance around, taking in the sight of the sprawling phantom-city from on high before shifting her gaze to the lone figure residing atop the towering platform. Rather than focus upon Duke himself, however, her eyes are drawn to the orb in his hand and she watches it with the intensity of a hawk tracking its prey until the object rises up into the sky and out of her reach.
Slowly, Franziska lowers her ever-cheerful stare back down towards the self-proclaimed god of Metro City. She does not strike immediately for there is no animosity fueling her desire to bring this man low from his lofty throne. She does not care about this blasted wasteland nor who desires ownership of it; its fate is immaterial to her designs.
"Vell, van cannot fault you for a lack of ambition. Truth be told, I prefer zee folly of enthusiasm to zee indifference of visdom."
COMBATSYS: Franziska has joined the fight here.
DUKE
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COMBATSYS: Franziska takes no action.
DUKE
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Franziska 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Razor
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COMBATSYS: Duke endures Zach's Thrown Weapon.
DUKE
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Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|
Duke's body begins to roar with energy.
Plumes of chi erupt from his form, as he begins to approach the trio. Every step comes with explosions of power, searing footsteps into the rooftop. As the sword is hurled through the air, it strikes Duke squarely in the chest. The man does not bleed. Instead, waves of violet and crimson energy surges forth from the wound, as tissue binds tightens around the weapon. Duke barely slows down. But a hint of a smirk comes across his face, as he growls.
"Fake?"
"Everything is real, my child. Anything is real. That is the truth behind power! The only limit is how powerful you are. And when you have no limit to your power... you have no limit to what you can do! Observe!" Duke surges with a burst of speed, lunging upon Zach with unnatural speed.
Those golden eyes were locked dead on Zach.
In a single, fluid motion, Duke draws back a fist. The very tower shudders as a roar comes from the sphere. Hurling himself forward, he brings his full weight to bear on the man who first dared to stand up to him. Zach Glen. The very city tenses up as the God of Metro City attempts to strike the very soul from Zach body. Should he lands a hit, it was very likely that Zach would be sent hurling across the rooftop, into the sculpted parapets that he has raised.
Don't worry though.
There will be plenty for the rest of you.
COMBATSYS: Zach blocks Duke's Power Axe.
DUKE
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Franziska 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Razor
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Zach brings his right arm up, bringing the limb between himself and the incoming punch as he slides his left foot back to lean into the strike. Air is blasted away from both men in an explosive wave, and Zach is driven back on his heels.
The psion staggers back a couple of steps, his right hand extended to catch the Miraitou that is racing back to the man's waiting grip. Zach charges even as he grasps the sword, bringing it down hard on Duke's collarbone. Golden energy sweeps in the wake of the strike.
There is no heroic speech, no screams of defiance in the face of this dark god. This is a fight for survival. Zach's defiance is in every step, every swing of the blade.
As Duke lunges for Zach, Razor raises the crowbar he's been brandishing and circles around the self-styled God of Metro, attempting to use the attack to get into his blind spot. As the blast of air from the impact of Duke's attack passes, he rushes toward Duke, bringing the weight of the crowbar spinning toward the man's ribcage.
Anything is real if you have the power to make it so. A wonderful sentiment hampered only by the annoying reality that such power doesn't exist; or it shouldn't exist. It is hard to deny the bizarre landscape that spreads out across the ground below but at the same time it lacks substence. She can't help but feel like she's looking at a half-realized dream trying deseperately to become real. Whatever power these orbs possess, it seems to be capable of making the impossible draw within reach. All the more reason to take it away from someone like this.
"The greater dangers for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short but setting it too low and achieving the mark. You, however, appear to have the opposite problem."
Franziska drops into a combat stance, her posture as easy-going and loose as her temperment, both of which clash with the immaculately kept military uniform she wears. The air around the woman crackles with intense energy as she draws upon her inner will, slowly marching towards the center of the roof as she prepares to join the battle. As before, she is all smiles and pep and despite the tense and serious atmosphere an aura of radiant warmth seems to emanate from her mere presence.
"Alas, he speaks the truth. Your world is but a shadow of reality. Do not be afraid to see what you see or you shall make a greater mistake than what has already been commited."
Leaning forward suddenly, Franziska breaks into a run and the last few meters between herself and the brawl vanish in the blink of an eye. She comes in low, ducking underneath the blade and club of her allies to bring her fist into Duke's chiseled torso with a surprising amount of force.
COMBATSYS: Duke dodges Zach's Heavy Strike.
DUKE
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Franziska 0/-------/----===|-------\-------\0 Razor
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Zach [E] 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Duke Toughs Out Razor's Random Weapon!
DUKE
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Franziska 0/-------/----===|-------\-------\0 Razor
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Zach [E] 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Duke interrupts Herzschlag from Franziska with Swivel Gun EX.
*KNOCKED AWAY*
DUKE
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Franziska 1/----===/=======|-------\-------\0 Razor
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Zach [E] 0/-------/----===|
The very foundations of the tower thunder as Duke's fist smashes into Zach's own arm. The titan's power was only magnifying, as the sphere above pours the eldritch forces into him, augmenting his already overwhelming power. As Zach leaps towards the God of Metro City's neck, the giant is a blur. Moving with impossible speed, he charges forward, letting the blade graze his skin. Where there would be blood, only more energy flows out.
And the initial wound was already scar tissue.
Thundering forward, Duke saunters forward, an arrogant swagger coming with every booming step. This time, straight for Franz herself. His yellow eyes fixed on her, they snap away as Razor comes in with a crowbar. The weapon slams into the brute's chest... and a flood of chi comes bursting out, straight into the crowbar itself.
The weapon begins to melt, from the raw energy.
Stopping dead as he is struck, the freshly released chi begins to erupt up along the leylines that were spread across his body. Duke begins to bellow with laughter, as the final opponent comes forward. A shadow of reality. Those golden eyes focus downward as the woman comes in low. With both blade and club utterly shrugged off, that left all the attention on her. As the fist touches him, there is a flash of chi.
"HERE IT IS!"
That was the roar that rumbles throughout the city, as Duke rockets his foot into an upwards kick straight into Franz's abdomen. There is an audible, metallic sheen as fresh energy boils from the leg, giving it more than just impact, but true cutting power. Both titan and german are sent straight up into the air, as the crime boss swivels his leg other leg around. The other leg too has violet energy rolling over it, as another scream comes. Slamming it across, he spikes the poor woman straight into the small raised enclosure, where the stairway once was.
He lands with a crumple, the tower beginning to sway.
Zach lands in a low crouch, kick-stepping away from Duke, eyes watching the display of raw power coming from Duke. Mind racing, Zach realizes that either victory is going to come through a /massive/ display of strength, or they won't win at all. The psion hops back two more steps, and thrusts his left arm out from underneath the coat.
He aims the stump that was his left hand at the Mad Dog of Metro, the limb glowing golden in the darkness as the psion aims and fires a spherical burst of energy at Duke's midsection while trying to keep distance between himself and the much larger man!
There is not the expected telling thud of metal striking flesh, nor the crack of breaking bone, but only the hiss of melting iron. For a moment, disbelief is visible in Razor's eyes as the weapon that he was wielding warps from the pressure of chi-energy as it strikes the God-Man.
"Well, shit.
Casting the distorted hunk of metal aside and grimacing at the display of power as Duke and Franziska collide, the straight-edge fighter seems to come to the same conclusion as Zach - that there can be no holding back here. Perceiving a moment of opportunity as Duke lands and the building seems to sway, he charges, clenches a fist, winds up and throws his full weight behind a massive punch aimed at Duke's back.
Because charging in head on has been working out well for them so far, right?
Franziska's expression morphs into a look of shock as the foot rises to meet her exposed torso. She doubles over, eyes going wide beneath the brim of her peaked cap, unable to retort through action or word as the air evacuates her lungs in an explosive exhale. She feels the familiar sensation of her bones flexing to their breaking point, several ribs caving inwards to pierce the organs beneath that they were meant to protect.
The blow she lands upon Duke is paltry by comparison, her tightly balled fist thumping dully into his empowered flesh with what little momentum she could salvage as the two of them are lifted into the air through the kinetic force of the kick. The second blow is no more gentle than the first. A strangled gasp of pain escapes Franziska's throat as the impact sends her sailing through the air, Duke's might blasting her into the concrete closet as if she were a hockey puck.
The slender woman strikes against the wall of the stairwell like a human rocket with the expected results. The concrete shatters upon impact, dozens of tiny cracks forming an intricate spiderweb pattern around the shallow crater that her body leaves. She falls to the ground in a crumpled heap, sliding down the wall into an inert sitting position. After a few moments of wet coughing, Franziska's chest expands outwards, the German sucking air into her lungs in a single massive gulp.
"V-vell... perhaps not everysing about you is... make believe."
Despite the incredible injuries she has sustained, Franziska plants a hand on the ground and slowly pushes to her feet. A faint trickle of blood is wiped away, staining the back of her pristine white gloves.
"Forgive me, gentlemen... I vill... need a moment."
COMBATSYS: Franziska gains composure.
DUKE
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Franziska 1/-----==/=======|-------\-------\0 Razor
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Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: Duke dodges Zach's Blast Punch.
DUKE
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Franziska 1/-----==/=======|-------\-------\0 Razor
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Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: Duke blocks Razor's Haymaker Punch.
DUKE
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Such power.
The titan rises back up, a living pyre of burning energy. The power was overwhelming now. As Zach is forcing his way, he must tear through the choking miasma that was filling the rooftop. The volcano was about to explode. As Zach unleashes that blast of power, Duke's head perks up. Eyes glaring towards the boxer, he grunts. He takes a step aside, narrowing evading the blast of power.
And thunders traight towards Razor.
The thug hurls a punch towards the crime boss's back, or at least, where the back was. Turning towards the hooligan, the brutish Duke spies the blow that was coming. Reaching out with a massive hand, he stops the charge cold, grabbing the punch squarely into his hand. The hand breaks, the man's palm cracked against the force. The twisted mess of flesh and bone holds there, for but a moment.
And it begins to reform.
Bone fixes itself. Where there would be blood, another blast of energy bursts up. Duke smirks, his golden eyes now burning brightly. He ignores Franz for now. She may be grateful for the break, especially what was coming towards Razor. The titan just reaches out, the pyre of pure chi growing to a climax.
The god of Metro City stretches his arm out..."
COMBATSYS: Duke knocks away Razor with Volcanic Bomb.
DUKE
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Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|
And he crunches his hand around Razor arm.
Duke unleashes a straight punch straight to the thug's face, stunning him. And with that, he pivots, swinging Razor overhead. With a sickening crunch, he slams Razor straight into the ground, cratering him. Releasing him on the rebound, as even a dead cat will bounce, he regrips the man by the legs. With a heave, he spins him high into the air. And with a mighty leap, he surges up into the air... and seizes Razor for the last time. Clutching him tight, he finishes the assault with a powerbomb, smashing Razor into the ground...
And exploding in a cataclysm of burning, chi energy.
He at least has the grace to release him, as Duke allows Razor to be swept away by the blastwave.
Zach grunts at the terrifying force Duke brings to bear, and decides to buy Razor a moment to breath. He doesn't wait for Franziska. Assuming she's /real/, Zach's uncertain about her motives all of a sudden. She's not in this, as it were. Zach charges at Duke once more.
The psion goes in low to his left, coming up on Duke's left flank and drives the hilt of his sword into Duke's liver with a detonation of sunlight, hopefully winding the juggernaut. Big moves aren't even touching the monster, Zach reasons. He to either administer death by a million cuts, or find another plan!
Razor is no stranger to pain. Cracked ribs, a broken nose, the feel of broken glass cutting into skin as a bottle is smashed over his face - these are all familiar sensations. Yet the feeling washing over him as he lies crumpled on his back on the roof of the Mad God's tower is altogether alien. Burn marks from the blast of chi energy cover his body, leaving his shirt in smoldering tatters. Blood flows where the skin of his arms and back have been shredded during his tumble across the rooftop after being sent flying by the assault. His right eye is already swelling shut from the initial punch to the face, and his left arm is badly bruised where Duke's grip tightened around it before. For a moment, as the stunned haze clears and he considers rising and finds himself unable, he thinks his back may well be broken.
But as moments pass, and he plants a burnt and bleeding hand on the rooftop, he finds that he is not paralyzed. Managing to roll himself over onto his knees, he gives a ragged cough, then forces himself upto one foot, nearly buckling as he does so. Then, with another surge of effort, he forces himself up fully to his feet. Hunched and holding his left arm with his right, his breathing hoarse, he turns his head toward Duke.
"That was... a pretty good one," Razor says, his voice a bit thick. He spits fresh blood and saliva onto the rooftop, then swallows. "Let's see you do it again."
COMBATSYS: Razor drops his guard to recover.
DUKE
[ ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
1|------<<<<<<<<<|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Franziska 1/-----==/=======|=======\=====--\1 Razor
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|
Franziska instinctively lifts a hand to shield her face as the explosion of spiritual energy sends a shockwave ripping across the rooftop. Her hat, which had managed to dutifully cling to to her head throughout her own unpleasant mauling, is blown free by the blast and her long pale blonde hair ripples out behind her like a flag waving in the breeze.
She pauses for a few moments, peering coldly over the edge of her raised arm at the devastation wrought by Duke's assaults. Every time he strikes the world seems to shudder. "So zis is zee power of a 'god'," she muses outloud. Slowly her smile returns and her arms lowers. Already she can feel the power residing within herself performing miracles of its own. The damaged flesh begins to knit, the bones within her chest moving of their own volition, sliding back into their proper place as if they were pieces of memory metal.
"Vell... I suppose zis vill be van for zee history books, zen."
With a final nerve-calming breath, Franziska steels herself and launches at the demi-god with the same fervor as before. His devastating counter attack seems to have done little to shake her resolve nor does the equally brutal fate of one of her temporary companions give her pause. The click of her boots across the dusty surface of the waivering tower rings out in warning as she approaches Duke from the flank, her German warrior doing little to hide her advance.
Franziska draws her fist back as if to lead in with another punch but this turns out to be a ruse. She spins at the last moment and pivots on one foot, using her body as a fulcrum to bring the other swinging around in towards the side of the crime lord's knee.
COMBATSYS: Duke dodges Zach's Liver Blow.
DUKE
[ ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
1|------<<<<<<<<<|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Franziska 1/------=/=======|=======\=====--\1 Razor
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Duke endures Franziska's Knochenbrecher.
# Disabling hit! #
DUKE
[ |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
1|-----<<<<<<<<<<|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Franziska 1/-----==/=======|=======\=====--\1 Razor
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|
Pain is what Duke brings.
As the combination strike finishes with the explosion, the demon rises, body still boiling out with chi. He was not bleeding blood, he was bleeding energy. Even in the afterglow of his powerbomb, the crimson force was flowing over the floor. As Zach once again comes roaring up again, the beast of a titan is on the move. He had given Zach space so far, perhaps it was time to change it.
But Franz comes roaring in. % R
As Zach strikes out towards his side, the beast evades once again. He was being an outfighter to Zach's infighter; trying to avoid the brunt of his force, to outlast them. He could always outlast them. But Franz was at his flanks now. As she comes in, he simply stands there, to endure it.
That was a mistake.
The feint comes, and it is ignored. But the kick comes... and it goes through. Duke's knee snaps hard, as the titan groans in agony. Collapsing down, he falls to his hands. The god has fallen. Franz had crippled him, slowed him down. A moment of weakness was now on Duke. Rage has come.
Oh, how has rage come.
The volcano of a man swings his hands back. Razor was down. Franz was nearby. But he could taste his own weakness, surging back upright, he raises his hands overhead. With a roar of agony, his arms and chest explode. A tidal wave of crimson energy pours out from his body, the geyser threating to tear apart Razor.. and a portion of the rooftop.
A god was falling.
Zach growls as he backs off from Duke. He needs to charge the batteries a bit. He reaches for his birthright, that vast font of Soul Power that seems at his call. Zach's body sheaths itself in golden energies that bring a little light to the top of this dark tower.
COMBATSYS: Zach gathers his will.
DUKE
[ |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
0|---------------|===============
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Franziska 1/-----==/=======|=======\=====--\1 Razor
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Zach [E] 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Duke knocks away Razor with Sledgehammer.
DUKE
[ |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
0|---------------|===============
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ]
Franziska 1/-----==/=======|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2 Razor
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Zach [E] 0/-------/---====|
As the wave of crimson energy crashes toward him, Razor spits blood again, wiping his mouth with a scorched forearm. Even if he willed himself to move, it's already clear to him that the attack is coming at him too fast for him to avoid it in his current condition. Turning to the nearby blonde - she was able to take the hit from the Man-God earlier, yet seems still capable of fighting - he yells quickly, "Kick his a-"
And then, much like his hometown, Razor is swept under by the current of burning energy. The entire section of roof he was standing on gives way, leaving the street thug's fate uncertain as the dust from the destruction clears - but whatever may have become of him, it appears bleak.
COMBATSYS: Razor assists Franziska.
DUKE
[ |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
0|---------------|===============
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Zach [E] 0/-------/---====|=======\==-----\1 Franziska
COMBATSYS: Razor can no longer fight.
DUKE
[ |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
0|---------------|===============
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Zach [E] 0/-------/---====|=======\==-----\1 Franziska
Franziska smirks as she closes in for those final few moments before her trap is sprung. Her arrogance is not quite as obvious and god-like as Duke's but it is there, lurking beneath the surface of her placid and friendly exterior. She is better than other people, better than anyone expects her to be. Her power is something insidious and deceitful, a hidden quantity that only becomes plain when her enemies lie thrashing or unconscious upon the floor.
The familiar feel of her boot making contact with soft malleable flesh is supplemented by the satisfying crack of bone and cartilege as Duke is brought low and her smirk widens into a dark grin at the bellow of anguish that accompanies the fall. Even gods can feel pain apparently.
"I believe..." she says, drawing back her fist in preparation to strike at him again. "Zee god has been brought to his knees."
Her follow up strike is merciless and swift, the true brutal nature of the woman that has come to topple him from his throne emerging in the heat of conflict. She doesn't wait for him to recover from her assault. The tsunami of raw energy that is unleashed upon Razor sends an explosion of force washing over the roof but it does little more than send another dramatic flutter through her loose hair and greatcoat as she bears down upon Duke once more, driving her fist down at him with all the delicacy of a pneumatic piston.
The final defiant cry from the man she hardly knows does not go unheard, however. His spirit surges in that last moment before the collapse and she feels the emotion and determination of his desires flood into her mind. The air hums around her body as psycho-kinetic force builds to a critical mass in those few short instants, spiderwebs of barely visible power crawling up her arm to settle around the incoming fist. A cacophanous blast shakes the tower once again as her fist reaches its full extension, the very air itself seeming to collapse and turn against the would-be King of Metro City.
COMBATSYS: Duke endures Franziska's Eisernes Kreuz.
DUKE
[ |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
1|-------------==|===============
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Zach [E] 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Franziska
The first victim was had.
Blasting Razor off the face of the tower, the titan struggles to stand up again. Already, his leg was healing. The broken bone was slowly, steadily reforming. But not fast enough, it seemed. It was deforming, twisting into the wrong shapes. Fast healing did not mean accurate healing. Franz's words come, arrogant words. Duke locks his golden eyes upon the German. Rage fills him, as energy flows over him. She hurls out the combination of psionic energy and and fist.
And defiantly, Duke rises to it.
Taking the blow squarely in the chest, Duke groans in rage. Ignoring Zach's stockpiling of energy, the titan's chest explodes. Ribs meshed with flesh rip open, as raw chi energy flow over Franz's form harmlessly. The Duke's very organs were exposed, the lungs quivering in the sucking chest wound. These would kill a man. These should kill a man. But as his leg deforms, his chest is already closing. Body burning in pain, Duke makes a choking sound.
It is laughter.
And with that, the titan unleashes a stomp into the rooftop.
A shockwave rips through the surface, blasting outward in an explosion of force. Debris mix with energy as the storm cascades outwards, threatening to consume Franziska. To blast her away. TO knock her away. Duke was being ground down, cut into smaller and smaller pieces. But the sphere would protect him. The sphere would empower him. And where the sphere could not defend him?
There he will destroy all who defy him.
Zach lets out a held breath as Razor goes down. Duke takes the fight to Franziska. Zach's not certain how he's managed to stay off of Duke's radar past that first thunderous exchange, but he'll take those moments.
The psion charges past Duke, sweeping out with the maimed arm as he passes. An arc of Soul Power slashes out for the larger man, attempting to wreak a bit of havok for the larger man!
COMBATSYS: Duke knocks away Franziska with Seismic Impact.
DUKE
[ ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
2|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Zach [E] 0/-------/---====|======-\-------\0 Franziska
She has defied a god, taunted him even. Few would have the courage to try it, even fewer the brazen foolishness to stand firm in the face of the reprecussions; but that is exactly what Franziska does.
Power surges when she feels her fist connect and the resulting explosion tears Duke asunder, shredding him like so much chaff, but still he persists. Even so, she can feel his power ebbing, taste the life force as it bleeds into the air around them. Goliath has been wounded, now they just need to drive it home.
The German falls back a single step as the foot lifts into the air, moving clear of the initial impact even as she braces herself against the wrath of the enraged crime lord. Both arms lift to shield her body against the blast of pure power but it is like trying to stand against the detonation of a bomb only a few feet away. The shockwave hits her, raw force enveloping her entire body like a vice. Franziska grits her teeth, leaning into the onslaught of energy, fighting against it with every fiber of her being and for a few precious moments she stands firm in the face of a god.
Everything falls apart in the next instant, however. The surging wave unleashes its final burst of power and she becomes weightless briefly as she is flung bodily through the air. Franziska crashes hard upon the unyielding rooftop, bouncing slightly as she rolls a good dozen feet from the initial impact point before she finally comes to a stop.
As before, the sheer power of the man they have come to challenge proves to be devastating. Pain fills her entire being, countless needles of searing ice digging into her skin as she drags herself back to her feet. This won't stop her. If anything, every grandiose display only fills her with more desire to possess such power.
Pushing the pain to the back of her mind, Franziska draws herself up, her bearing regal and proud as ever. The blood and bruises smeared across her face do little to detract from the look that dominates her expression, calm amusement and unexplainable courage mixing together into a mask of determination. She slowly stalks back towards the center of the tower, fists clenching open and closed rythmically as she makes her way back into the fight.
"Nein. Not yet," she whispers. It isn't her time to die. Not yet.
"Not yet."
COMBATSYS: Franziska focuses on her next action.
DUKE
[ ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
2|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Zach [E] 0/-------/---====|======-\-------\0 Franziska
COMBATSYS: Duke endures Zach's Soul Flare.
DUKE
[ |||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
2|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-======|======-\-------\0 Franziska
Duke was falling apart.
Where flesh was fusing, energy was ripping apart. Where energy was bursting forth, flesh was rapidly trying to heal it. Duke had assumed the power was simply making him stronger, and building from his mind. But as his body begins to hunch over, flesh fusing to the point where he cannot move, it was obvious that it was doing too good of a job.
Duke moans in agony, as he rips his body apart again.
Tearing open the healed wounds, Duke breaks his body, to pull himself together. Franziska was knocked away, smashed aside like a paper doll. But Duke has no time to recover. As he struggles to keep control of his rapidly healing body, Zach unleashes the blast of Soul Power straight into the titan. Duke does not dodge. He does not block. He turns towards Zach, as the energy sears off a layer of his flesh.
And he lashes a hand out.
An orb of energy erupts in his hand, building larger and larger. Intertwined red and purple energy collapses into a singularity of black energy, as the pressure builds. Pieces of the rooftop begins to get torn away, as the giant orb of power begins to pull at Zach, attempting to draw him into the vortex. If Zach couldn't stand against the force of gravity that was pulling him in, he would be swept off his feet.
And crush in the heart of the hole.
COMBATSYS: Zach endures Duke's Gravitational Wave but gets knocked away!
DUKE
[ |||||||||||||||||||||| ]
0|---------------|--<<<<<<<<<<<<<
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Zach [E] 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|======-\-------\0 Franziska
Zach does not try to avoid the attack. Instead, he charges toward Duke in one last effort. The coat flaps off of Zach's shoulders, compressing and shredding into tatters of leather and cloth. Zach's clothes rip and tear as the psion presses closer. Blood splatters across the rooftops as Zach sweeps his left hand out to the side.
"Do you see what your deeds have wroght, asshole," Zach finally croaks. "There is nothing out there but ruin," he spits away a glob of saliva and blood. "All the people. Gone. The city... gone." Zach emerges from the sphere of destruction battered, bruised and bloodied.
But still standing.
"I will bring you down," he promises. "I will tear this hellscape down so that the people can rebuild it." Soul Power flows along Zach's body, sweeping towards that left arm. Motes of sunlight spray across the makeshift arena as Zach molds the power within him.
Suddenly, a hand of pure psychic energy forms where his left hand should be. "This hand of mine," Zach says, "Glows with an awesome power." Zach thrusts the outstretched golden hand towards Duke and seeks to crush the larger man in its grip. "It's burning might tells me to grasp victory."
The creation of the black hole actually forces Franziska to stop in her tracks, once more shielding herself from the terrible power being brought to be bear upon this pinnacle of battle. Zach disappears within the blackness and for a moment she thinks that the battle has come down to her and Duke alone. However, she is surprised to see the man reappear, glowing fist reaching out for the misshapen demi-god.
"Zee Dark cannot claim vat zze Light does not surrender. Very well. Let us end zis!"
Putting on speed, Franziska breaks into a run, circling slightly wide to avoid any lingering effects of Duke's power and to prevent her own plans from interfering with whatever it is Zach is about to do. However, she holds nothing back when she finally closes in.
The German takes a deep controlled breath and launches herself into an all-out assault. Her fists wail away at the lumps of flesh and energy that Duke has started to become, every blow lashing out with psychic might, her body itself becoming a weapon of flesh and bone. She puts little emphasis on accuracy or finesse, simply tearing and beating upon the horrible creature that was once human.
COMBATSYS: Duke Toughs Out Zach's #Full Tilt+#!
DUKE
[ |||||||||| ]
1|------<<<<<<<<<|<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
[ \\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|=====--\-------\0 Franziska
COMBATSYS: Duke interrupts Blitzkrieg from Franziska with Ground Zero.
*KNOCKED AWAY*
DUKE
[ ||||||||| ]
0|---------------|-------========
[ \\\\\\\\ < > / ]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|=======\======-\1 Franziska
Duke shuts his hand as the golden light builds.
"Ruin!?" The Duke bellows. "RUIN!? Do you DARE mock my creation?" Rage builds to a head, as the crimson storm roars. Duke was more scar than flesh now, more chi than spirit, his body only held together by the sheer resolve of the titan. And yet, as both Franz and Zach attack the God of Metro City, he can only glower with his golden eyes. As the light comes, he puffs out his moist, exposed chest. And like that, the golden palm consumes him. There is nothing, only a bright light where Duke once stood.
And the tower begins to groan.
Violent shudders rip up and down the tower. Not mere trembling. Sharp jolts, as concrete and steel begin to burst from the sides. Even on the rooftop, stone spikes fire up from the ground randomly. Pillars rise, and fall. Even the sphere, begins to lower. Suddenly, there is silence. All motion stops with the city. "I... Will... Not... FALL!!!"
And Duke emerges from the golden light.
Bone was seen. Organs were cooked away. And yet, he was reforming, well past the what he could have survived, if he was merely mortal. The pyre of energy was tearing against the powerful waves of psionic light. Duke was enduring against Zach's most powerful attack with the whole of his entire power. Slowly, but surely, hand tightened, his arm trembles from the power restrained. And yet, a bony-mess of muscle and fat was oozing violet energy. And the dark skin was regrowing. He was stepping towards Zach, a skull-like visage briefly on his face, before skin returns. Only the golden eyes remained, for that glimpse.
And those golden eyes turn towards Franz.
As she drives towards the creature. The momentum turns. Everything was in slow motion. Every step was staggered. It was just a step from the golden light that was consuming him. She hammers a limb into the exposed abdomen of the crime boss. And then, the golden light is destroyed. The spikes, the roof, nearby buildings, and the top of the tower itself collapses. Destroyed. All begins to tumble down to lower floors as the punch snaps forward. The slow motion breaks. The fist flies straight into Franz's jaw.
Consuming all into a blast cloud of raw chi energy.
Zach slumps to one knee, gasping from the effort of that attack. He watches Duke take it like a champ. He's about spent. The air burns in his lungs, his limbs are going weak from the sudden drain of energy from his body.
But the fight's not done. Duke is still standing and by all appearances, he's taken out any back-up Zach might have had. "I dare," Zach coughs out. Zach tightens the grip on his sword, and slowly regains an upright stance. The psion drags one foot, taking a small step towards Duke. Then another step. Zach keeps the Miraitou low and to the side.
Zach closes once more with the titan, and brings the sword up in a flat arc aimed at Duke's side with what may be one last flare of Soul Power surrounding the blade!
Darkness envelops Franziska. Her mind goes blank as the tower begins to shudder and fall away, a gaping maw of empty void sliding open to devour her whole. She doesn't even feel the impact of the fist against her cheek. Doesn't feel the bone-shattering blow that should have taken her head clean off her shoulders. Her world becomes emptiness as everything burns around her.
The moment is brief. Her eyes snap open and a wave of nausea overwhelms her almost immediately. She tries to cry out but her jaw refuses to move, the muscles twisted and useless, the bones reduced to shards of broken glass. The sensation of motion becomes apparent and she realizes she's falling.
Other people are there. The silent man with the missing arm. And the thing that might be a god. She can still feel the malice radiating from his being and she stiffles a grimace at the thought of this creature walking away to unleash his madness on the world. Not while she still has life within her. Death may be waiting, patiently biding his time at the bottom of this infernal shaft but he won't be taking her alone.
Summoning forth every bit of willpower she has left, Franziska twists herself about in midair as she falls into that gaping chasm. Her arm lifts, fingers slowly curling into a tight fist that she aims at hazy figure, unable to tell if his indistinct form is a result of the overwhelming changes attempting to 'fix' his mangled body or if her consciousness is fading once again. She doesn't take any chances.
An overwhelming surge of psychic power erupts from within the woman and her entire body slows to a crawl, hovering in midair for a single brief instant as she gathers it all into her outstretched hand. A single thought fills the air, Franziska's voice exploding into their minds as clearly as if she were standing right next to them.
-I will not suffer your impurity to taint humanity!-
The air around her arm seems to intensify, growing denser for a singular moment as the power coursing through her body coalesces into a single point at the end of her fist. A sphere no bigger than a marble explodes from her grasp, tearing across the empty space as if it had been fired from a cannon. Twin streams of super-heated air spiral in the wake of the deadly psychic shell, a double helix of white power marking its lightning-quick path towards the monstrous Duke.
And then she is gone, disappearing into the maelstrom of debris and darkness as everything falls apart.
COMBATSYS: Franziska can no longer fight.
DUKE
[ ||||||||| ]
0|---------------|-------========
[ \\\\\\\\ <
Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|
Admist the collapsing construct around all of them, a second light suddenly pierces the haze surrounding the ruin of Metro City. A diminutive (if, uh, built, but still diminutive) form appears... along with another body... and another. Two of those bodies are no longer moving, but one of them struggles to come up every unsteady step, every cracking, weakening foothold. A shriek is heard, lost in the maelstroms of energy and power, before her form arrives soon after.
"Another one?!" Cries out the mysterious woman who just showed up out of nowhere, posture lowered. Up close, it's clear she's not in great shape, with bandaging all around her bare upper body (well, aside from a sports bra) and bruising still visible underneath them. There is something of an unnatural flow coming from her... with her injuries, she shouldn't be able to stand very well, let alone... come up as far as she has, or... from appearances, carry two people.
The fallen form of Razor and the recently defeated (and one assumes caught) Franziska, who are allowed to slump to the ground - no, forced, because that is all she can do as she herself falls to her knees, wheezing and breathing in desperation.
It's all because of the thing she has on the back of her sling, which falls free of its hold and gleams a light equal - and opposite - to the one that Duke has held in his possession in which to create his little world. Its power washes over her to... uplift. She is weak, barely able. In the presence of the strong...
The sphere that just arrived rises into the air, going level in altitude with the other, as a similar... sensation, starts to form around Duke and Zach, whom both still stand and fight despite incredible physical pressure from the power that radiates...
To Zach, he feels a greater welling of strength within, a new reserve, a true second wind even after he has expended everything to try and bring and end to Duke's madness.
To Duke, a feeling of something slipping away... power, ebbing away, as though a tax to finally be taken upon the strong who previously stood tall above so many others.
A feeling of a change in elevation for both of them, as though being drawn... nearer... closer.
The two spheres start to circle in the air around one another as strife rages all around, the very stage that has been set for the clash becoming increasingly inadequate battlefield among those involved.
The otherwise insignificant presence here, one Varvara Economou, balls up a fist as she dares to suck in air, as though trying to find something, anything, to be able to stand again even with her grievous injury and strange compulsion to draw herself nearer, facing upwards towards Zach and Duke.
"THAT IS DANGEROUS!" She screams, stating something everyone involved should already know, but she struggles to physically carry herself much further at all - it is as though screaming the words were all she can do as she enters herself into the climactic clash for the ruins of a fallen city.
COMBATSYS: Varvara has wandered into the fight here on the right meter side.
DUKE
[ ||||||||| ]
0|---------------|-------========
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Varvara
COMBATSYS: Zach successfully hits Duke with Dynamite Punch.
DUKE
[ ]
0|---------------|-==============
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Varvara
COMBATSYS: Franziska successfully hits Duke with Totengeist.
DUKE
[ ]
1|--------------=|===============
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Varvara
Duke was unstoppable.
Zach had given his best. And his best was not enough to make the titan fall. No, as the dust of the collapsed floors of the tower clear, he was standing tall. He had survived it all. Though he more meat than man, more energy than human, he was strong still. The power of the sphere was surging through his body. He truly was immortal. He truly was unstoppable. As Franz is blown away, Duke takes a single, thundering step towards Zach. "It is over." He growls, low and deep. Even the last promise of Franz, a psychic curse weighing against his very soul, could not break the indominable will of the God of Metro City.
And suddenly, everything changes.
The woman in the sports bra catches Duke's attention. Who was she. Another challenger? No matter. With the sphere, he was unstoppable. But as he takes the next step... he collapses. The weakness was overtaking him. A profound weakness, a weakness never felt in a long time. His
And his body stops healing fast enough to catch up to the injuries.
Whether it was rage or panick that Duke felt, it was not clear. But what was clear was the desperation. As his flesh trembles, the pain overtakes the man. Unable to keep himself upright by his arms, what little power he had left... was now being turned against him. His very soul was rotting him from the inside. He barely has enough strength to lift up a bloody, bony had to the oncoming sword.
It is driven deep into Duke's neck.
Duke reaches for the blade, the ancient scars that had long been his mark. Clawing at the blade, he begins to choke. The energy that had boiling over his body was gone now, all dried up. Looking up at the spinning spheres, he narrows his yellow eyes. The leylines were gone. The gold was gone. And now, the last light of his strength was gone. "I am Duke!" He gasps feebly. "I am immortal! I am..."
The man who would be god falls silent.
The city begins to shudder. Buildings begin to collapse. Skyscrapers begin to fall. The tower itself, the tower he made in defiance to all, to everyone, was beginning to rumble. And yet, the pile of meat, of bones, the once God of Metro City, simply lies there.
In a pool of his own, mortal blood.
COMBATSYS: Duke takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Varvara
COMBATSYS: Duke can no longer fight.
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Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Varvara
Zach's eyes go wide as the sword bites into Duke's neck. This... this /had/ to be done. The only way Duke could have been brought down was for the psion to bring /everything/ to the table. Duke... simply stops. Zach pulls the blade free, feeling exhausted despite the surge of energy brought on by the presence of the sphere. Flicking the blade to shake the blood off of the exquisitely crafted weapon, the psion looks around for the sheath to the weapon.
Varvara gives warning of the danger that the spheres represent. Zach nods slowly, opting to simply slide the weapon into his belt. It's a short term solution at best. He approaches the spheres floating in resonance with one another. He walks up to the Sphere of Flux, reaching for it tiredly.
"You're absolutely right," Zach finally says as he holds the artifact in his good hand. "Which is why we're going to keep these two away from each other. For as long as we can manage, anyway." A wave of energy sweeps through him, causing wounds to close up and heal. Most of them. As he feels the sensation of the rapid healing, he looks at his left arm. At the stump.
There is no change.
Zach heaves a sigh, and pockets the Flux Sphere before walking over to Varvara, and the unconscious forms. "I'll fix them up," he says. "It'll be faster, and easier, to get out of here if these two can move on their own."
COMBATSYS: Zach takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Varvara
Varvara immediately hurls herself after the other sphere as it gets away. It should be visibly apparent that as Duke's strength ebbs and the balance of power shifts to more level... levels, without the extreme end up top, there isn't as much coming down to the bottom.
Case in point, Varvara's hasty staggering as she scrambles to pull herself up and reach for the sphere goes to a limp. Her left hand lashes out to catch the other Sphere of Flux and bring it down to the ground with her as she lies crumpled in the fetal position. That, or she's coveting it - for all she's been through... mercenary work failed her, she gave up on it to maybe go into hard physical labor... but that went up in smoke with the city's destruction. The sphere is all she has left as a tether to much of anything, for all the woe and trouble it causes, continues to cause, and will cause.
It glows ever brighter than when it came in, her eyes tearing up as she grimaces and gasps in pain otherwise to hastily get it back into the sling she carried it in with. Zach's healing waves might renew some of the strength in her body, but looking at her... the bandaging around her does not quite hide the full extent of whatever she must have suffered.
She hardly has much strength to do much on her own, for whatever scrape she must have been caught up in... Zach may have to help her down as everything about them starts to fall apart.
Varvara is in no state to reason, feeling helpless and powerless where she stands as it all is in the process of collapsing. She shrieks something in her native Greek that is lost to the sounds of destruction, hardly in any sort of state where logic would prevail.
She came up here possibly curious and maybe even subtly guided by the sphere, but she was afraid even with the acts of altruism in saving those two from their probable deaths. Fear grips her as she offers little suggestion or recourse to the idea of a way to expediently get the lot of them out of here.
COMBATSYS: Varvara takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Zach [E] 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Varvara
Zach lets out a grunt of effort after giving the equivalent of basic first aid to Razor and Franziska, just in time to see Varvara go down hard. "Shit," he mutters, stumbling over to the woman, looking down at her. She's... not letting go of that sphere. Zach's not in anyway prepared to make an issue of it.
He hunkers down, and after a moment, manages to get the woman into a fireman's carry. It's difficult; Varvara's of a size with Zach, and he's only got the one hand to manage it. "Right then," he grunts. "Time to leave." With that, Zach carries Varvara out of the building. She'll need more medical attention than Zach can provide anytime soon.
He's completely forgotten about Ayame's promise to steal the sphere from him; Zach wasn't entirely sure he'd survive this mess.
COMBATSYS: Zach has left the fight here.
> //////////////////////////////]
|-------\-------\0 Varvara
COMBATSYS: Varvara wanders on to find the next challenge.
Log created on 13:59:39 10/05/2014 by Duke, and last modified on 00:57:36 10/06/2014.