Do they have tennis courts here?

((BONUS!))


"GET AWAY FROM ME!" Deuce shrieked, "IT'S ONLY AFTER YOU! YOU'RE GONNA GET ME DELETED!"

The pain and dizziness that followed let Tennisman know he was still alive. He rubbed his head where the massive pick had struck him and tried to stand up. He felt dazed and staggered about before regaining his balance. A blurred vision of the giant Metool shifted in front of him. As his focus cleared, he could see the virus more clearly although for some reason it still looked blurry.

Even Desmond noticed it, "Yo, is there something wrong with the resolution on this thing? The Met looks messed up."

Tennisman looked to the surrounding landscape and could see distant objects clearly. The phenomenon seemed only limited to the Metool. It seemed to be... Destabilizing.

Curious, Tennisman asked, "HP reading?"

"About... 25 percentish?" Desmond replied.

There was hope. Tennisman straightened up his back and stretched his arms out. One deep breath later and he felt ready to take on the world. The headache was now a thing of the past and he started to calculate how to bring this monster down.

"Kunai and Boomerang." Tennisman called out.

"Got it." Desmond replied.

Both chips loaded at the same time. Spirals of data streamed down his arms, into his hands and racket respectively. He soon found himself armed with a trio of blades and a racket infused with luminous green strings.

"GO!" shouted Desmond.

Tennisman bent down, pulled one arm back and snapped it forward in a wide arc. The bundle of kunai were whipped into the Metool's face at high speed. But Tennisman wasn't done. The inertia of his spin carried his body as he waved his other arm up. He could feel the energy building at the tip of his racket. At the peak of his slice, the Boomerang wave was forced out and followed the kunai in an irregular flight path. Finally, Tennisman stamped his foot down and knelt, his racket supporting him like a pillar.

"Netplay." He said quietly

The relatively small net popped up in front of him. It wouldn't stop the Metool's foot if it tried to step on him, but it would probably protect him from the next shockwave or at least slow it down.

"That's pathetic. Why would you even try that?" Deuce mocked.

Tennisman ignored the comment and kept his eye on the dying virus.



1 - Kunai1 (3 x 30 damage)
2 - Boomerang (60 damage) + untapped potential (15 damage)
3 - Netplay (1-hit shield + 60 heal)
4 - dodge

Deuce - dodge

Tennisman doesn't give up as he throws his Kunai and Boomerang at the MegaMet. Deuce screams away like a little girl in fright as the sportsman puts up his NetPlay.
Bellowing loudly, the giant Metool leaps into the air and crashes down on top of Tennisman, breaking his shield, and making him resotire health. The warrior barely gets away from the mighty body slam before another shockwave nearly rends off his arm. Darn.

|\/|3700|_: 280 HP

Terrain: 28% Grass, 52% Normal, 10% Hole. (around edges)

Tennisman.exe: 115 (PP: Shock Wave)
Deuce: 45

He could see it. When the titanic virus had tried to crush him, he was mere pixels away from touching it and his eyes could easily focus on the flecks of data that were falling away. It wasn't blurry; it was bleeding. But the brief moment he had been lost in thought was long enough for the virus to launch another attack that was nigh unavoidable.

"WATCH OUT!" Desmond shouted.

A towering wave of energy, practically a wall in Tennisman's eyes, plowed through what remained of his net. Though futile, he still tried to evade it. His body moved but the wave was faster - his right arm was caught and completely engulfed in the stream. Tennisman cried out in excruciating pain, but his arm resisted being torn apart by the viral corruption. Sections of his suit along his shoulder and forearm had been flayed away, accentuating the damage he had taken. Despite this, he was still standing.

"There's still some grass under it! I'll send a Heatshot!" Desmond said.

Tennisman raised his ruined arm and pointed his fist at the Metool's face. There was a strange buzzing sound followed by a small shower of sparks that spouted from his wrist. He winced in pain and crumpled forwards cluctching his hand.

"What happened!?" Desmond asked.

"The chip is unable to load," Tennisman replied between short breaths, "My buster cannon cannot initialize."

Desmond was lost, "So, now what?"

"Sword." Tennisman said plainly, slowly rising to his feet.

"You're gonna rush it AGAIN?" Desmond said, bewildered.

There were no more words left to share between the two after that. Tennisman would be unwilling to accept any substitutions and Desmond didn't have any better ideas. They were both aware they had two Windracket chips left, but Tennisman also knew that each one was only good for one attack. A stray tennis ball flew towards the Metool's mountainous helmet from an unexpected direction.

"...Why did I do that." Deuce said.

The tiny diversion bought Tennisman enough of an opening to dash in. He charged forward and leapt up into the air and slashed down with his racket, putting all his weight behind the single strike. The blade cleaved straight into the ground and was intentionally pushed deeper. The racket face punched through the floor, followed by the sheath until only the handle remained. The connection between Tennisman and every panel beneath him was at its highest point. There would be no better time to activate it.

"COURT CHANGE." Tennisman announced with a vigourous tone.

The floor flashed briefly, outlining every circuit and trail of data that acted like the veins and arteries of the net. When it dimmed, the panels had already softened into a localized dune. Still kneeling, Tennisman held his racket's grip firmly. It was protruding from the sand but he had no intention of leaving it behind or retreating. His expression changed; his normally stoic face grimaced angrily. The digital muscles along his arm flexed as he stood, lifting his racket. It came free at a bent angle, showing little resistance until the face revealed itself.

The strain Tennisman had been showing wasn't from pulling out the racket; it was from forcing as much energy as his body could muster into one final attack. The wind around the racket strings had already built to such a level that the sand wasn't touching it even as it laid half-buried.

"Game Set." Tennisman said quietly, lifting the racket into the air with both arms, ignoring all else.

There was a pause that all the engaged combatants could feel. Tennisman, Deuce, Desmond and probably even the Metool felt it pass.

Then the attack came, bringing into existence an epic rolling twister of sand as tall as the virus itself. The cyclone was a swirling and abrasive force that erupted from nowhere and tore apart the landscape, cleansing and razing it at the same time. Then the winds then stopped abruptly, followed by a gentle gritty rain that shrouded the area.



1 - Sword |\/|3700|_ (80 damage)
2 - Sword floor
3 - Court Change (sand)
4 - Windracket |\/|3700|_ (100 damage) x2? + untapped potential (15 damage)

Deuce - Attack |\/|3700|_ (10 damage)

It seemed like this was the final round for everything. Tennisman charged at the Metool, sword brandished dangerously, and cleaved right down the middle, slamming into the floor and sweeping the terrain with sand before he was kicked away a bit. (10) Deuce blasted the monster in the eye with a green blast, but it didn't seem to mind. Bellowing with all his strength, the sportsman built up his signature Windracket and sweeped its mighty power at the Metool, who met it by leaping into the air, and performing a dropkick of sorts toward Tennisman. The two attacks collided, wind power against pure weight and gravity. For what seemed like an eternity, the attacks clashed, before Tennisman saw the body land on him... and he sliced through it.... (100)

Exhausted the navi stood up, glancing around, but no Metool in sight. Eratic data fragments shifted and hovered in the air a bit before dissappearing.

|\/|3700|_: DELETED?

Terrain: 29% Sand, 51% Normal, 10% Hole. (around edges)

Tennisman.exe: 1 (PP: Shock Wave)
Deuce: 45

-VICTORY-
Get: 2000z, 4 Bugfrags

"I win." Tennisman said before collapsing.

Desmond sighed, "Good job." And promptly jacked him and Deuce of the net.

((Jack-out))

In a flash of light blue and teal, Tennisman found himself in Yumland Net again thanks to Jadia's key shortcut. Somehow, this felt more home to him than his PET or even ACDC Net. He took a few steps into the network and set out for Jadia again. Hopefully, she would be easier to find this time.

((Battle 1 or Jadia or whatever))

Tennisman warps in, and Jadia is actually very easy to find: right next to him.
Good, you found your way here! Shenki, Tennisman, for helping me back home!

Even though he was no longer feeling the effects of fatigue or battle damage, Tennisman was still unable to come up with anything to say to her other than, "I did not do anything."

"Real smooth." Desmond whispered.

"...But I needed to make sure that you were safe." He added gracefully, "Please stay away from the area where you found the portal. I need to report this to the authorities immediately."

Okay, Tennisman. I try to stay away from there. It was close by, but was never there before!

She points deeper into the net, but quickly shifts her focus back to Tennisman, and hugs him; since she didn't really know how to thank him in any other way.

Shenki, Tennisman! I'll see you again soon, yes?

She releases her hold on him, and plants a small kiss on his cheek. She lets go, and waves as she starts to beam out of the network and back into her home page.

Tennisman put his hand to his face where Jadia had kissed him. He was a little taken back and hadn't really moved until after she had left.

"Yo!" Desmond said, "That was pretty slick. Gotta teach me some of your moves."

Shaking his head, Tennisman turned away from the scene and began to walk off towards the portal but noticed something was missing. He stopped in his tracks and stared at his racket.

Deuce.

"Desmond," He said, "Please jack me out. We need to submit our report to the NPC and I believe prepare ourselves."

"Yeah yeah!" His operator cheered, "So where you wanna go?"

"The Netopia Network." Tennisman replied before teleporting away.

((Netopia Net))