SoundMan.EXE VS Anyis.EXE

Soundman sent out a few commands as he perched on the hanging crate, turning the sensitivity of his systems down. That had hurt, and it wasn't an experience he wanted to reproduce a second time.

Soundman looked around. No Anyis...

Tactically, if not entertainingly, that left the best move to just wait. She had likely set up some sort of defense above, so...

Soundman continued to perch atop his hanging crate, waiting diligently for Anyis.

Hopefully she would come soon...

Actions 1-4: Dodge
Soundman and Anyis watched the three remaining holes waiting for each other to emerge, but nothing happened. Anyis activated her Rageclaw on her other hand out of boredom and anticipation while Soundman simply stood completely still. It was mostly silent with the exception of the air swirlying gently around Anyis.

Then someone in the crowd started to boo. The first of many, soon sounds of disapproval and harsh insults were hurled at the two navis and their operators. This battle was quickly becoming a farce.



UPPER LEVEL: 96% Ice, 3% Hole, 1% Blocked Hole (300 HP)

Anyis.EXE: 140 HP [Channel Surf Coldpunch (80 aqua + 100 null damage) (12 uses)] [Rageclaw (40 slashing damage) (15 uses)]

LOWER LEVEL: Normal (70%), Ice (15%), Broken (5%), Spring Panel (2%), Booster Pad (8%)

Soundman.EXE: 180 HP [80 HP barrier] [Attack +20 Varitails (9 x 30 damage) (7 uses)]
Anyis tried to ease some frustration with a heavy sigh after the audience actually started booing, but that wasn't even close to enough. Her anxiety next tried to vent itself out of her foot as her heel began tapping repeatedly against the ice, but the resulting sound couldn't drown out the jeers of the crowd. She would have tried to rub her temples, but... Using her right hand would give her frostbite at best, and there's a good chance that her left hand would gouge her eyes out. With all avenues of stress relief cut off to her, Anyis snapped. "That's it! I'm done with this joke! I'm going down there! Mill, send me some chips if you want to help, otherwise just stay quiet!" She hated this stalling as much as the audience did, and damn it all if she was going to wait any longer.

Being human, Mill needed a second to process Anyis's sudden outburst. By the time he had sorted that out, his Navi was already halfway to the nearest open hole. "Whoa whoa whoa whoa, wait!" shouted Mill desperately... Nope, she kept moving. "10 seconds!" he pleaded. She stopped, back to his view. Okay, that's a start. Mill took a deep breath before explaining. Whoops, that's one second down.

"Going down one of the three remaining holes is the obvious choice... way too obvious." Three seconds. "SoundMan will expect that, and you'll probably get attacked before you can get close." Six seconds. "We could try unblocking the fourth hole, but that'd take too much time." Eight seconds. "So, instead, use this..." Ten seconds later, and a Wrecker chip went into Mill's PET and delivered itself into Anyis's palm.

"... To break through the floor and get the jump on him? Alright, you win." sighed Anyis, somewhat annoyed by the time her Operator was wasting, yet at the same time glad that his idea wasn't too lame. So, with what was basically a miniature cannonball in her hand, Anyis made her way back over to the center of the arena, surrounded on all sides by columns and barricades. One could debate where the exact "middle" of the floor was, but Anyis didn't have the time nor patience to figure it out. A ballpark guess was all she needed, and all she used. With a quick throw, the Wrecker slammed into the ice and the natural result of a heavy object slamming into something fragile took: complete and utter shattering. In the aftermath, Anyis jumped in, and the real battle began...

As soon as she fell through the hole, Anyis caught something in the corner of her eye. Seeing how gravity wasn't one to give her the time to think on it, though, Anyis made a move, figuring that there wasn't much else here that could move besides her opponent. She stretched her left arm as far as she could, and with all the effort she could muster, Anyis made a swipe, trying to grasp the cable supporting her guessed cube with her RageClaw and slice it in two. With nothing left for her to do on that task, Anyis would have been ready to step back for a moment...

... Sans the fact that she was still falling. Damn, she hadn't thought about this part. She had fallen about 20 feet last time she came down here to a rather poor landing on her butt, so it stood to reason that falling a solid 45 feet didn't have anything better to offer. She could try to catch herself on a gust of wind, but she'd probably be falling too fast after that large of a drop for it to make a difference. Her ColdPunch and RageClaw didn't provide much propulsion, so it seemed like
she was out of luck. "Well, this sucks..." Anyis sighed in resignation... before she felt something clasp her foot. "What the...?" she muttered as she looked, only to find that she had a Cannon for a shoe. Mill had noticed his Navi's airborne predicament, and being well-versed in the ways of Cannon jumping, he wasn't too afraid to apply the practice to this situation. As for why it was on her foot... Well, Anyis's hands were full, and Mill didn't want to throw away a perfectly good chip.

With her flight issue addressed, Anyis looked around for her target, kicked her leg back, and BOOM. The artillery unloaded its round, and the recoil sent Anyis flying straight towards SoundMan at full speed. With the speed she was going at, it'd only be seconds before she made contact with either SoundMan... or the ground. She really, really hoped it was the former. Still, this fast movement made everything seem so... slow. It was almost like when she used the AreaGrab. She was definitely flying through the air, but it almost seemed like she was moving at a snail's pace. Maybe just the excitement of rocketing through the air was making her mind process things a little too fast, or maybe there was actually a little bit of lag in the wake of her sudden acceleration. Whatever it was, she didn't need to think about it. She was about to attack SoundMan, and that's all that matters. He had that crazy looking whip still, and the only thing Anyis could think to do is summon up a wind to try and deflect it or something. A head-on attack like this was probably asking for a hit, but there was no turning back. With collision imminent, Anyis thrusted her right arm forward, ready to deliver to SoundMan just what he needed: a fist.

Actions:
1) Throw Wrecker (80 damage, Break) at middle panel of upper floor, change it to Broken
2) Dive down Broken panel, Slash cable with RageClaw (40 damage, Slashing) and drop the Hematite Cube SoundMan is standing on (100 damage if it hits)
3) Cannon Kick-Jump (Knockback, Movement) towards SoundMan
--Gust (Tangle up SoundMan's Varitails)
4) ColdPunch ((70 + 10 damage + 100 Strengthen, Aqua, Impact, Knockback) x 2 (Impact Multiplier vs. Barrier) = 360 damage @ SoundMan's Barrier, (280 overflow / 2 (No Impact Bonus)) = 140 damage @ SoundMan, 180 @ SoundMan if Barrier is already gone)
--Ectopatcher (Heal 15 HP)
"Booing..." Soundman grimaced. "They're booing at us?"

"Looks like it..." Trenn added, rubbing his eyes a bit. This was getting tiring... "Well, at this point our options are limited, thanks to that fist. She can kill you in two hits with that thing, pretty much no matter what else she decides to throw. So my best idea is simple-- kill her in one shot with that Varitails."

"Why the Varitails?" Soundman asked. He had a hunch he already knew, but he hadn't taken too close of a look at the chip folder, so... he could be wrong.

"Simply put, we don't have anything strong enough besides that Varitails to go toe to toe with her. And from what I've seen, I think she might have the ability to heal as well. That leaves one option. One shot..."

"...One kill." Soundman finished with a nod. Crouching on the crate, he waited, perched... He could almost sense the trepidation in the air, the malice in the crowd who wanted a 'show'-- the crowd who did not realize what might be at stake for some of the participants. Booing cheaply from what were most likely free seats, they didn't care about the fates of the fighters, what they wanted-- they just cared about being entertained. Well, he'd give them a show alright, even if they didn't care what might be at stake for him.

"What might be at stake... for us." Soundman muttered. Deep within him a certain program, like a digital heart, beat once in response.

But... did he really have anything at stake here?

That thought gave him pause. If he lost, so what? What did he lose, besides recognition, prizes, fame-- things that were worth little to the right people, and easily outranked by more important things.

So if he lost, what did he really have to lose? What was there for him to gain here that he could not elsewhere?


Even as Soundman leaped from the crate, these thoughts still plagued him.

Air. That was the first thing Soundman noticed as he hurtled toward the ground at an arc, wires whipping in futility against the wind. The sound of the air rushing past him, making the backdrop for a harsh tune. The sound of something that should not, did not really exist, being simulated by his 'senses'. The song of battle.

Fwooo-

Thoomp.

But what was his motivation?

This drive he felt, this utter and complete need to win-- what caused it?

Did he want fame? No. Fortune, he had enough of, he guessed.

Then what was it...?


Soundman rolled awkwardly as he landed, a staccato of thumps the main focus of the next part of the tune. With a grace that seemed odd for him, he used the roll to absorb the blow and twirl himself back to his feet with the momentum. Then with one fluid motion Soundman continued toward his target, jingling footsteps synching up with the roar of the crowd.

The heart within him pulsed. The song of battle had begun.

...Ah, so he did know, after all.

What drove him.

What made him need to win.

He needed to win...


Soundman struck out with his Varitails, adding a dramatic, almost cymbal-esque whish to his inner tune-- missing entirely as he twirled, full of purpose, past his target's flank. With the slight, whistling sound of nine electrical cables swinging through the air, Soundman struck out again; this time, he was aiming for the right target.

...To truly awaken his 'partner'.

He had known, to an extent-- he had felt, rather-- when it had happened. He didn't want to admit it, but he knew Runeknight no longer existed.

Well, no longer existed anywhere other than inside him.

If he won the tournament-- better, if he did it while sporting Runeknight's colors-- maybe, just maybe, that would be enough.


With a swift yank, Soundman cracked the cables like a whip, sending them flying back into a ready position in the process. He then spun with a flourish, bringing the cables around his back as he twirled... then sent them slicing through the air once again, the whip of the cords violent and quick enough to remind him of a sonic boom.

Enough to bring some semblance of him back.

If this worked... it was over.

...If it didn't...

...Well, it would still be over, he supposed, as the second heart beat within him once more.

1: FLYING LEAP at Anyis if she comes down
2: Dodge/Strafe
3: Varitails1 (30x9 damage = 270 damage @ Anyis) (Swing 3)
4: Varitails1 (30x9 damage = 270 damage @ Anyis) (Swing 4)
Spurred on by the crowd's apparent disapproval, Anyis dropped a Wrecker straight down onto the ice, breaking through the panel and opening another entrance to the lower levels. From Soundman's point of view, a spot in the ceiling cracked open and dropped a heavy black ball that struck the ground, smashing open another hole in the floor. Slightly taken back by the unexpected turn of events, it took him a moment longer to react than normal which provided Anyis with the window of opportunity she needed to drop in safely.

Soundman leapt towards Anyis with his cables trailing around him but failed to realize Anyis was already on the attack while in mid-air. Mistaking a cluster of Varitails cables as something else, Anyis slashed out at them with her Rageclaw.

Soundman landed safely in a roll along with each of his Varitails, but they didn't land together. Several of the cables had been severed by Anyis's unexpected attack, cutting the remaining number of usable whips down to four.

Anyis's Rageclaw had been similarly torn apart from the exchange and was no longer usable. As she was about to fall through the second hole she unwittingly made, her single rocketboot kicked in, launching her towards her opponent like some kind of fist missile. Soundman lashed out with his diminished cables at Anyis expecting her to be unable to dodge in the air. However, his attack did not go according to plan as a spiral of wind jumbled up a few of the Varitail wires into a tangled clump. The remaining razor edged whips cut Anyis harsly but she was approaching far too fast for an accurate strike of the damaged weapon and arrived far sooner than expected.

As Soundman retracted his cables and prepared for another swing, Anyis slammed into his chest with the full force of her empowered Coldfist. The sound of the impact reverberated throughout the arena and shattered through Soundman's barrier like glass and continued straight through to crack his emblem. The hit launched him backwards, making him unable to execute his follow-up attack. Anyis instantly came to a complete stop, having transferred all of her momentum into the punch. She was covered in a few deep cuts from the Varitails but was still alive. Each of her wounds was closing very gradually thanks to her Ectopatcher, but she was not recovering fast enough.

Soundman bounced along the ground like a ragdoll and skidded to a halt. He had the wind knocked out of him but he was still very much alive. The crowd cheered loudly in response to Anyis's successful attack and the action in general while a few made sympathetic oohs to Soundman's painful recoil.



UPPER LEVEL: 95% Ice, 3% Hole, 1% Blocked Hole (300 HP), 1% Broken

LOWER LEVEL: Normal (69%), Ice (15%), Broken (6%), Spring Panel (2%), Booster Pad (8%)

Anyis.EXE: 65 HP [Coldpunch (80 aqua damage) (11 uses)]

Soundman.EXE: 40 HP [Attack +20 Varitails (4 x 30 slashing damage) (5 uses)]
Soundman groaned. That had hurt. Well, he would have to-

Attack posthaste, whilst opportunity yet beckoned! Anyis would be open after hitting him down like that, expecting him to not get back up so quick, he needed to attack right now. Right now, before he lost his opportunity, before any chips could be slotted in. Right. Now.

Soundman struck out with his Varitails. The whipping sound of the cables was somewhat muted as they hurtled toward the end of their range and then past it, the sharp jacks at the end of each cable detaching from them and stealing their momentum, each one sent flying like a bullet.

A surprised "What-" was heard over the line before Soundman quieted it, rolling to his feet. Between him and Trenn that meant he would explain later; their own little code of sorts. Soundman immediately jumped away from Anyis with the momentum he had used to roll to his feet, the tattered remains of his Varitails retracting into his palm. The palm-speaker immediately slid over the opening and clicked into place, shutting the hole.

That speaker and its' twin were quickly raised to face horizontal as quickened, soothing music filtered through both. The piano seemed to play faster, the violin more hurried, the cello deeper, more rushy. The music and the healing behind it were still there, but the entire piece felt urgent, like a critical deadline was about to pass.

Yet all the while Soundman continued to move as his code repaired itself, not settling for just that meager distance between Anyis with her ColdPunch and his own, admittedly still injured presence. So it was as the soothing melodies of his Healing Serenade ended that he began to play a second song; one far more contemporary, to the tune of Rock 'n' Roll.

A guitar belted out the first few chords, soon joined by a bass guitar, then drums, then, at places, the violin from Soundman's Healing Serenade seemed to creep in, making for an odd mix of melodic song and catchy rock.

Neither, of course, was a problem to Soundman; his reaction was a mere sliding spin to face Anyis as the song finished, its' last remnant a bit different this time; as opposed to the usual, memorable bass chord, the violin seemed to be holding a C sharp...

"What..." Trenn's voice returned over the reopened line, "was that?"

Hopefully, Soundman sent back privately as he looked toward where he had last spotted Anyis, the end of this match.

1: Launch remaining Varitails at Anyis (30x4 damage, ends chip effect)
2: Dodge
3: Healing Serenade (60 heal)
4: Restez (80 barrier)
Whips lashed out at Anyis, scratching and cutting her skin more than her Ectopatcher could handle. She had never been programmed with a graphic model for blood, so small clumps of clear data began leaking out of a gash on her cheek. Two of the other whips hit their mark, and although her clothes managed to absorb most of the visual damage from the attacks, Anyis still definitely felt it in full. Despite the pain, though... Anyis couldn't help but be satisfied by the crunching sound of her fist slamming against SoundMan's chest.

The battle wasn't over yet, though, and this wasn't the time to revel in a job well done. Mill didn't even find the time to talk, instead just jamming one chip after another into his PET. Strike while the iron is hot, never turn your back on the enemy, kick him while he's down... Whatever the plan was, both of them knew they couldn't let up if they wanted to win. Plus, Mill was loading new weapons so fast that Anyis was going to overload if she didn't starting firing them off.

With the pace of the battle reaching peak speeds from the recent attacks, along with the adrenaline coursing through Anyis's body, she didn't even bother to let her gauntlet assume a more gun-suitable state. The sliver encasing her left hand just exploded outward, revealing a frozen Cannon underneath the scraps of her armored glove. With just as loud a bang as when her gauntlet blew apart, the Cannon fired off an icy slug straight at SoundMan.

This was hardly the end of Anyis's artillery assault, though, as the next chip Mill used immediately assumed the place of the Cannon, forcing the barrel to elongate to provide proper firing accuracy for the Bubbler. Before that went off, though, a fresh blast of wind rushed out from Anyis towards SoundMan, hell-bent on throwing off his balance by any means necessary. Anyis's trigger finger was too impatient to wait any longer than that, however, so immediately after that, a stream of water gushed out of her gun's barrel, rushing towards its target before exploding in a mass of bubbles.

While the next chip Mill slotted in wasn't technically a gun, it wasn't entirely incompatible with Anyis's mashed-up artillery hand, so she worked with it. The barreled widened out, creating more space for the IceWave's crystal to fly through. With not a second's wait, it did just that. The crystal shot out of the barrel like a rocket, bolting straight for SoundMan before erupting just shy of him into an equally fast wave of ice.

The final chip loaded itself into Anyis's weapon, forcing the barrel to twist itself into a series of fans to create the force needed for an Airshot. The innard blades spun to life, generating more and more stirred-up air until the weapon just couldn't take the pressure, and released the attack in a single ball of ultra-compressed air. Being just that, there was no way to see the attack, and only time would tell where it would actually strike. As her gun began to dissolve and her gauntlet slowly began to rebuild itself, Anyis came to a surprising realization: she hadn't moved an inch during this strike. She could only hope her ranged assault would push away her opponent's incoming attacks...

Actions:
--Ectopatcher (Heal 15 HP)
--Ice Bleeding (Imbue Aqua to:)
1) Ice Cannon (40 damage, Aqua, Knockback) @ SoundMan
--Gust (Blow SoundMan away from self)
2) Bubbler (50 + 10 damage, Aqua, Spread1) @ SoundMan
3) IceWave1 (80 + 10 damage, Aqua) @ SoundMan
4) Airshot1 (20 damage, Microburst) @ SoundMan
While Anyis's wounds continued to heal over, she assumed a firing stance and abandoned her Coldfist to unload an icy Cannon round at Soundman. In a desperate move, Soundman countered by launching the tips of his whip at Anyis. The Cannon struck first, pushing Soundman off balance and knocking him backwards a few paces. The Varitail 'bullets' were far less accurate and scattered around Anyis though one scored a grazing blow against her side. Not discouraged, Anyis kept firing while Soundman tried to scramble away. Inadvertantly assisted by Anyis's gust, the Bubbler barely missed, splashing past Soundman's heels as he dashed headlong onto the small patch of ice without realizing it.

Playing a calming meoldy, Soundman's systems quickly rejuvenated themselves only to be damaged again by another frigid blast from Anyis's IceWave. Soundman was in critical condition, having been saved twice by his Undershirt within the last few seconds. He prepared to set up another defensive melody but felt stuck. The IceWave had splashed around him, encasing his speakers in a layer of thick frost. His Restez played oddly and struggled to achieve the necessary notes to activate but was quickly silenced by the explosive burst of air from Anyis's final Airshot.

The fragments of ice shattered away, forcing Soundman to EJO from the overwhelming amount of damage. The crowd cheered in unison for the Anyis's victory.

UPPER LEVEL: 95% Ice, 3% Hole, 1% Blocked Hole (300 HP), 1% Broken

LOWER LEVEL: Normal (69%), Ice (15%), Broken (6%), Spring Panel (2%), Booster Pad (8%)

Anyis.EXE: 50 HP

Soundman.EXE: [EJO]

Winner: Anyis.EXE

Anyis GET: round 2 approval
Soundman GET: recov30 OR 1000z
Without any reserve for the cameras hidden away, ever watching, Anyis flat-out fell to her knees and let out a heavy, heavy sigh of relief. Her gauntlet was running into all sorts of problems reassembling itself, so Anyis just gathered up the various chunks of silver and transformed them back into her normal glove. She flexed her fingers once or twice just to make sure everything was in order, then asked suddenly, "Hey Mill, how long have I been awake?"

"Uh..." grunted Mill, caught off-guard by the random question. She woke up during that incident with Magna, which was... Wait, was it really only that long? "Just over a week, I think." answered Mill, who himself was surprised by the answer.

"Wow, that's it? It feels like it's been at least a month already." Anyis chuckled as she climbed back up on her feet after catching her breath. "I guess a battle like that will really wake you up."

"We're not done here yet, though. There's the next match, and..." Mill paused, checking something before continuing, "We don't know who our opponent is, because their match hasn't finished yet. Come on, let's go to the lounge to check out our competition."

Anyis nodded and jacked it in a quick flash, leaving the Underworld arena just as vacant as it had first been.

(Jack Out)