RE: DEATHGAME 9000 [S!3] Round Two: Interplanetary Circus
02-20-2015, 07:08 AM
(This post was last modified: 02-20-2015, 07:17 AM by Solaris.)
"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Jax Ryder was at a bar, he had been drinking, which was making him happy, because it meant he could stop devoting brain cells towards worrying about what sort of horrible atrocities everyone else in the buddyfest was getting up to, and that he was probably safe, since no one else had ever come close to the bars (or whatever passed for one) in the previous rounds. They had always been his final bastion of rest when things got to hot, even before he got trapped in a battle to the death.
His initial scream of terror over with, Jax assessed the situation and with great hope that Ella wasn't behind it, he switched to his predatory, barking tactics. "EY, WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? YOU COULDA JUST DROPPED ON ME AND I WOULDA GONE KAPUT!"
Keagan climbed down from the now, for better or worse, settled and grounded ERIC to face this odd yelling man who only seemed to be speaking English. He tried to take a step back, the loud accusations only increasing in volume and intelligibility, only for the man to raise his pitch higher and add various pointing fingers into his wild dance of anger.
Keagan mused on if he should try to get ERIC to intervene, when to his complete horror, the man started to fly upward. Keagan's eyes opened wide.
"AND ONE MORE THING HOWZIT THAT YOU'RE JUST SHRINKING AN-"
"Stop."
The commanding deep voice rang through the bar, and while all of the regulars continued with their mingling, everyone else froze in place. While he was screaming and causing a giant scene towards a mostly innocent minor, the bartender, a large and imposing man in sunglasses had lifted the pathetic used car salesman by his clothes.
"Now, listen, if any of us should have beef with this kid and the robot, its me, since I own the place. And, even if I had beef, screaming it out like an untrained dog won't solve shit."
Jax, now released from the bartenders grip, got down on his knees and once more turned to the defensive, "I'M SORRY PLEASE DON'T HURT ME I DIDNT MEAN ANYTHING BY IT IVE JUST BEEN UNDER A LOT OF STRESS YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE THIS NONSENSE."
Keagan, somewhat recovered from this bizarre lashing, managed to give a quip, "Oh, let me guess, you got kidnapped and are in some sort of battle to the death?"
Jax, continued on his sordid whine, "NOT ONLY THAT, BUT I KEEP GETTING OWNED!"
"Heh heh heh, alright then, spill the tale. Let's hear all about it." The bartender returned to behind his bar, and continued to work on the drinks.
Jax, in the moment, and not very interested in finding out what other choices he had here, began his recap of the Bickering Buddyfest, "Alright, so before this old god broad called the Housewife decided to put her mitts all over me, I was just your run of the mill used car salesman, you know, vendor of various vehicles of questionable everything, able to give easy demonstrations thanks to this doohickey that connects good ol' me, to the Lot, where I've got all of my stock there, ripe for the takin."
As Jax started to get into the details of his fellow contestants and his abduction, Keagan stood there, confused, looking at the bartender, who motioned for him to sit down, listen and relax.
"Sos the first of these rounds sounded fine and dandy, it was at some geriatric factory, Happy Holmes Homes, let me tell you, I ain't never seen that many people so happy to be on the brink of death, but first of all, on these the other wackos I had to deal with, the first was and still is the worst, this real stuck up broad, Patricia."
---
Patricia could of course fight and was actually looking forward to it. If there was one thing that Ella's smiling face deserved, it was a fist. However, the witch could dodge, and while it was obvious that Ella couldn't throw a punch to save a life (not that she would) she had more stamina and speed than you would expect. While Patricia had been able to land a blow or two, there was nothing decisive enough. It didn't help that the power kept flashing on and off, no doubt the work of Legasaur the Stegosaur's sabotage, and that she didn't want to leave the range of Hippocrates' vocal barrier. If things kept up as they were, she wasn't sure if she would be able to get the clean kill she needed to rid herself of the giggly witch once and for all.
She could tell at the very least, that Ella was hurting, one of the few human traits the witch exhibited, but in her opinion, it wasn't enough. With things as they were, she would win, but Ella was sadistic, resourceful, and worst of all, crafty.
Trisha felt a bit conflicted. While she wasn't out of shape or anything, she certainly couldn't match this sort of technique. It certainly didn't help that with all of the things going on, she felt... very out of place, looking around at the very dead She-Boom, Vigil doing something(?) to Galatea's still living(?) body, and what she saw as a much better version of herself fighting an absurdly powerful being that was only barely subdued by her horse. It wasn't really a good time for her.
"Oh Hippocrates, you still love me right, even though I can't do cool kicks and punches?"
As he was busy subduing Ella's powers, Hippocrates was unable to neigh in agreement.
With everyone's eyes on the title match going on in the center of the stage, Vigil was attempting to stabilize Galatea. While his species have a host of various support powers, they usually kept them to themselves to prevent changing too much, while an Altar could heal any disease and stop plagues, and many would like to, an outsider to a universe solving problems in the universe, could only cause trouble in the universe. That said, it was obvious that whatever course this scenario was originally poised to take had been thrown out the window when a dozen odd strangers were warped in against their will. Vigil had already bent the rules when he gave Galatea her powers, which meant he was directly responsible for what had happened to her, and he wasn't willing to lose anyone, he couldn't risk it again.
"I'm sure no one will mind a third infraction, at this point." The rabbitesque couldn't bring Galatea back by himself, he desperately needed Lynette to come, and fast. With enough power placed inside Galatea's body to keep her from deteriorating, Vigil poured some more power out, just enough to hopefully catch Lynette's attention. An unnecessary, and ultimately damaging action.
---
"So up until now, I've been knee deep in jolly old patrons, dodging the robo nurses and hoping that they don't start treating me like the shmucks that they've got around. That's when this big guy, some demonoid looking guy with a big glowing arm decides he's gunna fuck things up for the restuva us by taking Ella, the so far floaty broad hostage. So likes I said, this broad just kept to herself, ignored the rest of us, and kept talking about some songs or some shit, harmless, and easy kill later on for the survivors, yanno? But instead, this guy is all, survival of the fittest, and decides that he's gunna rub her out now. Only, the jokes on him, because his demon nonsense breaks her sound equipment, and she starts screaming and smiling and its horrific I tell ya, you see this girl, you better start running! Sos with the demonoid kaputsky, the housewife goes and yells at us for get this, murdering in her murder contest, and we all end up in some magical fairy land national park. Since I've got some room to breathe, I figure, might as well start using up my stock if I ever want to see home again."
---
Lynette, the psychic, Aria, and Cat Six were somewhat awkwardly driving to the tent where everything was happening each one more or less keeping to themselves. The psychic was silently plotting and making sense of his visions, Lynette was rummaging through Cat Six's glove compartment for music and hoping that Vigil, Trisha, and Eris were okay, and Aria was in the drivers seat talking to Cat Six.
"So, you have feelings, huh? Did you just start off with them or did you like, develop them over time?"
After a moment of contemplation, the speakerbox sparked, "THATS.... SOMEWHAT RUDE."
"Oh! Was it... I'm sorry, I just..." Aria made a sorrowful sigh and sunk into her seat.
After a few moments, Cat Six replied, "DO YOU MEAN IT?"
"Huh...?"
"ARE YOU REALLY, SORRY? FOR WHAT YOU SAID."
"Yes. I just asked because I was curious, without really thinking about it, and I shouldn't have."
"I... SEE.... THEN... I WILL ANSWER, IF YOU TELL ME WHY YOU ASKED."
"Well... it's because until a while ago, I didn't have any feelings, or my own identity really... I was a part of someone else... and they're gone now... while I'm not."
"THATS..." Cat Six thought about her partner, how she felt back then, but quickly shoved it aside, "I SEE. MY AI WAS CREATED TO BE AS HUMAN LIKE AS POSSIBLE, I EXHIBIT FREE WILL AND EMOTIONS JUST LIKE ANY REGULAR HUMAN. I'M SORRY, I SUPPOSE YOU WANTED TO TRY TO RELATE TO ME."
"You shouldn't be sorry for that, you look like you've been through a lot. But it's ok. You aren't going back to the lot, or to Jax, I promise."
"WHY? WHY DO YOU CARE?"
"I don't really know, I guess... I just felt like I had to... also Jax is kind of a shit."
There was a small silence, the psychic shaking a little now, his hand rubbing forehead, and Aria and Cat Six feeling a bit awkward. This silence was broken when Lynette finally picked from one of Cat's cassette tapes, "AHA! Found a good one!"
With Lynette's exclamation, everyone snapped back into the present, and Aria asked, "What is it?"
An ecstatic Lynette answered, "Fall Out Boy!" She waved the tape close to the cassette player and asked, "Cat, is it ok if we play this?"
"UHM... I SUPPOSE?"
"YEAH!" The magical girl slammed that tape in as the 'na-nananas' na-nanana'd before the band started with their Oh, whoa, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, whoa's.
"B-B-B-Be careful making wishes in the dark, dark."
---
"So, and let me re-iterate, we are on a giant boat paradise in the middle of the ocean, and instead of some much needed R&R we've got a Genghis Kahn gorilla arms type threatening to throw anyone who harms 'his vassal,' that delusional broad, overboard and meanwhile, there I am, being swung around like a flag and being used as the example. So I'm beggin for mercy here, hoping and wishing while the two just start taking over the cruiser, guests, and all, and I start flying over! I start screaming and seeing the light, closing my eyes and seeing good ol' Jax from start to finish when I remember that I have a few all-terrain gizmos back in the lot."
"So for once in his goddamn life, I, Jax Ryder pull out a cool move. I reach into the lot and take out this hovercraft motorcycle thing, a good one, with flames and a real engine that roars out, but not for the bad reasons, and then fly around. So I thinks to myself, Jax, you've got a way out, you can just ride this puppy home. But then I remember back when I tried the same deal at the park, and how I got lost and stranded and how the fairies had to take me to their leader and I decided that I wasn't going to take this! I was gunna save the day! So Jax here revs up the hovercraft, and rides right back to where I got tossed, I turn up the radio and some really teeny emo crap comes on and Ella just starts screamin. Guess she didn't like that band!"
---
The fight between Ella and Patrica was not really going anywhere at all. Trisha felt a bit more self-assured and once more wondered if she should try to intervene, but eventually decided to move her attention to Hippocrates. She figured that she might as well attempt to discover at least a little bit more about what she was actually doing to Ella, if she could strengthen it, she might be able to make things even easier for... the other her.
The small pulse that Vigil sent out was simple, it would stabilize Galatea and let Lynette know where they were. However, as it was a magic pulse, in his haste, he forgot to account for any other magical persons who may be in the area, specifically the one dodging Patricia's fists and kicks.
The magic pulse gave Ella a moment of clarity, silence from the horrid voice of the horse whale, but that didn't help against Patricia who was relentless. As luck would have it though, the lights flashed out giving her the opportunity she wanted.
Trisha was contemplating altering the pitch of Hippocrates, when a beam of light shot out at her precious companion. It was a soundless beam, obviously coming from Ella, but still having the feeling of coming from no where. Trisha reacted immediately, keeping any conclusions for after Hippocrates was stabilized. It was obvious now that Ella and sound didn't mix, but what sounds worked and which didn't?
he he he he
Ella had some of her powers back now that the horse was incapacitated, but it wasn't enough, not to do what she wanted to do to Patricia. But, it would just be a matter of time, and with Patricia on the defensive, time was on her side. Patricia dodged the flares with little effort and clenched her fist angrily. This should have been it! She was going to wipe that smile of the multiverse! Still, she had to keep calm and composed, unless she wanted to be the one who was got wiped.
Vigil, his deed done and his worries now a bit less plentiful, returned to the situation at hand. Ella was using magic again, Hippocrates was being tended to, and while Patricia could hold her own, it wasn't guaranteed that Trisha could nurse the horse back before Patricia got tired or Ella got lucky. The rabbit ran and leaped forward, lunging towards Ella and missing at the last moment.
"Oh, I see you've finally decided to join us?" Patricia wasn't in a very happy mood, and she was very ready to take it out on the fancy rabbit.
"I was calling for backup."
"Oh, how wonderful, any reason that Ella came back in action, or is that a coincidence."
"I... may have made a miscalculation, but everything's fine, we just need to buy more time."
"Buying time is apparently, all that I've been doing, and nothing is fine! She-Boom died, she was cut through like a piece of paper! Galatea went down easier! What can any backup from you bring?"
"We don't have time to bicker."
he he he :* ;) ;* i disagreeeeee
Two beams this time, one for each, shot out at the pair, who responded in unison with, "Shut up!"
"Wait, do you hear that?"
"No, I don't have rabbit ears, what is it?"
"It sounds like... Fall Out Boy..."
"What is that?"
My songs know what you did in the daaaaaaAAAAAAAAaaaaaAAAAAArk
Cat Six crashed through the tent, flying through to the center of the stage as her cassette tape screamed out.
So light 'em up, up, up
Light 'em up, up, up
Light 'em up, up, up
I'm on fire
Ella started to scream, standing still long enough for Patricia to punch her squarely in the face as she blindly fired out some magic rays. As the song continued, she rolled on the floor screaming, leaving Patricia a little confused as Vigil went for the car to drag Lynette to Galatea.
Trisha, who had stabilized her horse just in time to see the chaos asked, "What just happened?" before turning to Aria in the drivers seat and noting, "You look different."
"Well," Aria began, "It's a long story, uh, I guess first of all you should know that Jolene died, and that my name is Aria."
"What... I'm so sorry... Wait, are you like... her?" Trisha pointed towards Patricia, wondering if there were other versions of everyone here...
Aria saw Patricia's similarities to Trisha, but also saw her differences, "I uh... doubt it actually..."
The psychic motioned towards Ella, still shaking from whatever he was or wasn't seeing.
Patricia had already gotten to work on holding Ella still, while she really wanted to kill her, doing so with bare hands would be messy, and with the new arrivals, things got too weird for her to just leave without getting some answers, something she hadn't actually thought could happen anymore. "Oh, it's you again, help me restrain the witch. Are... you okay?"
The psychic nodded, doing his best to keep his composure. "It's them." He nodded in the direction of Lynette and Vigil, who were now restoring Galatea, "Something about them just... messes me up. I don't think they're normal, even for uh, our standards."
"I've noticed, the rabbit brought in some knock-off version of me and I think he gave some other girl magic powers."
"Ah, so thats Trisha."
"You know her name?"
"Well, technically, we're here to kill you or her, Jax sends his regards by the way."
Patricia felt disgusted just at the mention of the slimy man's name. "Fucking coward."
Galatea opened her eyes, her heavy breaths somehow calmed by Vigil and Lynette smiling down on her. She was alive, healthy, breathing, and before she could question it, Lynette left to check on the other groups, "I'll be back in a bit, just sit tight!" Vigil was about to follow when Galatea put one of her hands on his back.
Vigil looked back and saw her uncharacteristically grave. The happy-go-lucky circus girl looked into the rabbits eyes and said, "Vigil, I was dead."
"No, you were almost dead, Lynette saved you."
"Vigil. I was dead. I died. I shouldn't have survived whatever... happened to me. Lynette brought me back to life. But she just... brushed it off. That shouldn't be possible Vigil... what's going on?"
"I..."
...oh, oh, whoa.
Ella's eyes snapped open as the rock song ended. She wasn't very happy.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Ella raised herself into the air and got rid of the restraints that she had been put in. She wasn't in the best situation. Weakened, repeatedly embarrassed and put down, first by a horse and then by shitty music, and now facing two magic users, their pet, the psychic, and Patricia. Her smile contorted as she raised her hand. There was only one way out of this for her.
There was a flash, both from Ella's hand, and in the psychic's mind. "NO!" He screamed out, the only sound in the flash, and when everyone's eyes opened, Ella was still floating, but the psychic was on the floor, in front of Patrica.
"You saved me."
HA HA HA HA HA HA
The light that had blown into the psychic was now eating away at him, it was gruesome and painful, "I had to, I saw it. I can't change fate. But... ggg, that's not the only reason I did it. Those... two, they can, and they're gunna... you've got to..."
The psychic closed his eyes for the last time, and Patricia looked up, angrily, as Ella and the man that saved her vanished.
Only... she didn't. "What? Why am I still here?"
While it wasn't a direct answer, Aria asked, "Where did Trisha go?"
---
"And sos, we say so long to the glorious spasort, Ski-Sky-Slope, and end up in this place, right after the usual whine about the murdered soul and such. And, I'll be honest, no brownie points or nuttin, it's been great! Not only have I avoided the murderess supreme, I've managed to set it up so that I won't see no one but that lousy psychic. Let me tel ya, he's a piece of work that one, he was traveling around with two broads, one of them in some weird girly outfit, the other one some middle aged cop type with auburn hair, a real work that one, n-"
"WHAT!" Keagan shocked even himself with that, but was ready to follow it up, "YOU SAW JOLENE AND LAUREN?"
"Woah woah kid, calm down, jeez, suddenly all excited for nothing, I've got some bad news for you, I sent them off towards Ella."
"WHAT!?" Keagan stood up, horrified.
"Listen, listen, I didn't mean anything by it kid, I saw the psychic get up to his old tricks and I wanted, nay, needed to get them as far away from me as possible. He started to go on about where she was gunna be was or is, I dunno the deal with him, and I gave them the means to get there as fast as possible before hightailing it as far from there as I could, for once, I'm innocent I tell ya."
"YOU LED THEM TO THEIR DEATHS! YOU JUST TALKED ABOUT HOW SHES THE MOST DANGEROUS PERSON IN YOUR BATTLE!"
Keagan, going on nothing but adrenaline and following the desire of everyone in the bar, swung a fist at Jax, punching him just as he vanished into nothing.
From the perspective of the bar patrons, Keagan just punched Jax so hard he got vaporized, causing an eruption of mirth from the various drunks. Keagan just stood there, confused, dazed, tired, and a little sad...
Jax Ryder was at a bar, he had been drinking, which was making him happy, because it meant he could stop devoting brain cells towards worrying about what sort of horrible atrocities everyone else in the buddyfest was getting up to, and that he was probably safe, since no one else had ever come close to the bars (or whatever passed for one) in the previous rounds. They had always been his final bastion of rest when things got to hot, even before he got trapped in a battle to the death.
His initial scream of terror over with, Jax assessed the situation and with great hope that Ella wasn't behind it, he switched to his predatory, barking tactics. "EY, WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? YOU COULDA JUST DROPPED ON ME AND I WOULDA GONE KAPUT!"
Keagan climbed down from the now, for better or worse, settled and grounded ERIC to face this odd yelling man who only seemed to be speaking English. He tried to take a step back, the loud accusations only increasing in volume and intelligibility, only for the man to raise his pitch higher and add various pointing fingers into his wild dance of anger.
Keagan mused on if he should try to get ERIC to intervene, when to his complete horror, the man started to fly upward. Keagan's eyes opened wide.
"AND ONE MORE THING HOWZIT THAT YOU'RE JUST SHRINKING AN-"
"Stop."
The commanding deep voice rang through the bar, and while all of the regulars continued with their mingling, everyone else froze in place. While he was screaming and causing a giant scene towards a mostly innocent minor, the bartender, a large and imposing man in sunglasses had lifted the pathetic used car salesman by his clothes.
"Now, listen, if any of us should have beef with this kid and the robot, its me, since I own the place. And, even if I had beef, screaming it out like an untrained dog won't solve shit."
Jax, now released from the bartenders grip, got down on his knees and once more turned to the defensive, "I'M SORRY PLEASE DON'T HURT ME I DIDNT MEAN ANYTHING BY IT IVE JUST BEEN UNDER A LOT OF STRESS YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE THIS NONSENSE."
Keagan, somewhat recovered from this bizarre lashing, managed to give a quip, "Oh, let me guess, you got kidnapped and are in some sort of battle to the death?"
Jax, continued on his sordid whine, "NOT ONLY THAT, BUT I KEEP GETTING OWNED!"
"Heh heh heh, alright then, spill the tale. Let's hear all about it." The bartender returned to behind his bar, and continued to work on the drinks.
Jax, in the moment, and not very interested in finding out what other choices he had here, began his recap of the Bickering Buddyfest, "Alright, so before this old god broad called the Housewife decided to put her mitts all over me, I was just your run of the mill used car salesman, you know, vendor of various vehicles of questionable everything, able to give easy demonstrations thanks to this doohickey that connects good ol' me, to the Lot, where I've got all of my stock there, ripe for the takin."
As Jax started to get into the details of his fellow contestants and his abduction, Keagan stood there, confused, looking at the bartender, who motioned for him to sit down, listen and relax.
"Sos the first of these rounds sounded fine and dandy, it was at some geriatric factory, Happy Holmes Homes, let me tell you, I ain't never seen that many people so happy to be on the brink of death, but first of all, on these the other wackos I had to deal with, the first was and still is the worst, this real stuck up broad, Patricia."
---
Patricia could of course fight and was actually looking forward to it. If there was one thing that Ella's smiling face deserved, it was a fist. However, the witch could dodge, and while it was obvious that Ella couldn't throw a punch to save a life (not that she would) she had more stamina and speed than you would expect. While Patricia had been able to land a blow or two, there was nothing decisive enough. It didn't help that the power kept flashing on and off, no doubt the work of Legasaur the Stegosaur's sabotage, and that she didn't want to leave the range of Hippocrates' vocal barrier. If things kept up as they were, she wasn't sure if she would be able to get the clean kill she needed to rid herself of the giggly witch once and for all.
She could tell at the very least, that Ella was hurting, one of the few human traits the witch exhibited, but in her opinion, it wasn't enough. With things as they were, she would win, but Ella was sadistic, resourceful, and worst of all, crafty.
Trisha felt a bit conflicted. While she wasn't out of shape or anything, she certainly couldn't match this sort of technique. It certainly didn't help that with all of the things going on, she felt... very out of place, looking around at the very dead She-Boom, Vigil doing something(?) to Galatea's still living(?) body, and what she saw as a much better version of herself fighting an absurdly powerful being that was only barely subdued by her horse. It wasn't really a good time for her.
"Oh Hippocrates, you still love me right, even though I can't do cool kicks and punches?"
As he was busy subduing Ella's powers, Hippocrates was unable to neigh in agreement.
With everyone's eyes on the title match going on in the center of the stage, Vigil was attempting to stabilize Galatea. While his species have a host of various support powers, they usually kept them to themselves to prevent changing too much, while an Altar could heal any disease and stop plagues, and many would like to, an outsider to a universe solving problems in the universe, could only cause trouble in the universe. That said, it was obvious that whatever course this scenario was originally poised to take had been thrown out the window when a dozen odd strangers were warped in against their will. Vigil had already bent the rules when he gave Galatea her powers, which meant he was directly responsible for what had happened to her, and he wasn't willing to lose anyone, he couldn't risk it again.
"I'm sure no one will mind a third infraction, at this point." The rabbitesque couldn't bring Galatea back by himself, he desperately needed Lynette to come, and fast. With enough power placed inside Galatea's body to keep her from deteriorating, Vigil poured some more power out, just enough to hopefully catch Lynette's attention. An unnecessary, and ultimately damaging action.
---
"So up until now, I've been knee deep in jolly old patrons, dodging the robo nurses and hoping that they don't start treating me like the shmucks that they've got around. That's when this big guy, some demonoid looking guy with a big glowing arm decides he's gunna fuck things up for the restuva us by taking Ella, the so far floaty broad hostage. So likes I said, this broad just kept to herself, ignored the rest of us, and kept talking about some songs or some shit, harmless, and easy kill later on for the survivors, yanno? But instead, this guy is all, survival of the fittest, and decides that he's gunna rub her out now. Only, the jokes on him, because his demon nonsense breaks her sound equipment, and she starts screaming and smiling and its horrific I tell ya, you see this girl, you better start running! Sos with the demonoid kaputsky, the housewife goes and yells at us for get this, murdering in her murder contest, and we all end up in some magical fairy land national park. Since I've got some room to breathe, I figure, might as well start using up my stock if I ever want to see home again."
---
Lynette, the psychic, Aria, and Cat Six were somewhat awkwardly driving to the tent where everything was happening each one more or less keeping to themselves. The psychic was silently plotting and making sense of his visions, Lynette was rummaging through Cat Six's glove compartment for music and hoping that Vigil, Trisha, and Eris were okay, and Aria was in the drivers seat talking to Cat Six.
"So, you have feelings, huh? Did you just start off with them or did you like, develop them over time?"
After a moment of contemplation, the speakerbox sparked, "THATS.... SOMEWHAT RUDE."
"Oh! Was it... I'm sorry, I just..." Aria made a sorrowful sigh and sunk into her seat.
After a few moments, Cat Six replied, "DO YOU MEAN IT?"
"Huh...?"
"ARE YOU REALLY, SORRY? FOR WHAT YOU SAID."
"Yes. I just asked because I was curious, without really thinking about it, and I shouldn't have."
"I... SEE.... THEN... I WILL ANSWER, IF YOU TELL ME WHY YOU ASKED."
"Well... it's because until a while ago, I didn't have any feelings, or my own identity really... I was a part of someone else... and they're gone now... while I'm not."
"THATS..." Cat Six thought about her partner, how she felt back then, but quickly shoved it aside, "I SEE. MY AI WAS CREATED TO BE AS HUMAN LIKE AS POSSIBLE, I EXHIBIT FREE WILL AND EMOTIONS JUST LIKE ANY REGULAR HUMAN. I'M SORRY, I SUPPOSE YOU WANTED TO TRY TO RELATE TO ME."
"You shouldn't be sorry for that, you look like you've been through a lot. But it's ok. You aren't going back to the lot, or to Jax, I promise."
"WHY? WHY DO YOU CARE?"
"I don't really know, I guess... I just felt like I had to... also Jax is kind of a shit."
There was a small silence, the psychic shaking a little now, his hand rubbing forehead, and Aria and Cat Six feeling a bit awkward. This silence was broken when Lynette finally picked from one of Cat's cassette tapes, "AHA! Found a good one!"
With Lynette's exclamation, everyone snapped back into the present, and Aria asked, "What is it?"
An ecstatic Lynette answered, "Fall Out Boy!" She waved the tape close to the cassette player and asked, "Cat, is it ok if we play this?"
"UHM... I SUPPOSE?"
"YEAH!" The magical girl slammed that tape in as the 'na-nananas' na-nanana'd before the band started with their Oh, whoa, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, whoa, oh, oh, whoa's.
"B-B-B-Be careful making wishes in the dark, dark."
---
"So, and let me re-iterate, we are on a giant boat paradise in the middle of the ocean, and instead of some much needed R&R we've got a Genghis Kahn gorilla arms type threatening to throw anyone who harms 'his vassal,' that delusional broad, overboard and meanwhile, there I am, being swung around like a flag and being used as the example. So I'm beggin for mercy here, hoping and wishing while the two just start taking over the cruiser, guests, and all, and I start flying over! I start screaming and seeing the light, closing my eyes and seeing good ol' Jax from start to finish when I remember that I have a few all-terrain gizmos back in the lot."
"So for once in his goddamn life, I, Jax Ryder pull out a cool move. I reach into the lot and take out this hovercraft motorcycle thing, a good one, with flames and a real engine that roars out, but not for the bad reasons, and then fly around. So I thinks to myself, Jax, you've got a way out, you can just ride this puppy home. But then I remember back when I tried the same deal at the park, and how I got lost and stranded and how the fairies had to take me to their leader and I decided that I wasn't going to take this! I was gunna save the day! So Jax here revs up the hovercraft, and rides right back to where I got tossed, I turn up the radio and some really teeny emo crap comes on and Ella just starts screamin. Guess she didn't like that band!"
---
The fight between Ella and Patrica was not really going anywhere at all. Trisha felt a bit more self-assured and once more wondered if she should try to intervene, but eventually decided to move her attention to Hippocrates. She figured that she might as well attempt to discover at least a little bit more about what she was actually doing to Ella, if she could strengthen it, she might be able to make things even easier for... the other her.
The small pulse that Vigil sent out was simple, it would stabilize Galatea and let Lynette know where they were. However, as it was a magic pulse, in his haste, he forgot to account for any other magical persons who may be in the area, specifically the one dodging Patricia's fists and kicks.
The magic pulse gave Ella a moment of clarity, silence from the horrid voice of the horse whale, but that didn't help against Patricia who was relentless. As luck would have it though, the lights flashed out giving her the opportunity she wanted.
Trisha was contemplating altering the pitch of Hippocrates, when a beam of light shot out at her precious companion. It was a soundless beam, obviously coming from Ella, but still having the feeling of coming from no where. Trisha reacted immediately, keeping any conclusions for after Hippocrates was stabilized. It was obvious now that Ella and sound didn't mix, but what sounds worked and which didn't?
he he he he
Ella had some of her powers back now that the horse was incapacitated, but it wasn't enough, not to do what she wanted to do to Patricia. But, it would just be a matter of time, and with Patricia on the defensive, time was on her side. Patricia dodged the flares with little effort and clenched her fist angrily. This should have been it! She was going to wipe that smile of the multiverse! Still, she had to keep calm and composed, unless she wanted to be the one who was got wiped.
Vigil, his deed done and his worries now a bit less plentiful, returned to the situation at hand. Ella was using magic again, Hippocrates was being tended to, and while Patricia could hold her own, it wasn't guaranteed that Trisha could nurse the horse back before Patricia got tired or Ella got lucky. The rabbit ran and leaped forward, lunging towards Ella and missing at the last moment.
"Oh, I see you've finally decided to join us?" Patricia wasn't in a very happy mood, and she was very ready to take it out on the fancy rabbit.
"I was calling for backup."
"Oh, how wonderful, any reason that Ella came back in action, or is that a coincidence."
"I... may have made a miscalculation, but everything's fine, we just need to buy more time."
"Buying time is apparently, all that I've been doing, and nothing is fine! She-Boom died, she was cut through like a piece of paper! Galatea went down easier! What can any backup from you bring?"
"We don't have time to bicker."
he he he :* ;) ;* i disagreeeeee
Two beams this time, one for each, shot out at the pair, who responded in unison with, "Shut up!"
"Wait, do you hear that?"
"No, I don't have rabbit ears, what is it?"
"It sounds like... Fall Out Boy..."
"What is that?"
My songs know what you did in the daaaaaaAAAAAAAAaaaaaAAAAAArk
Cat Six crashed through the tent, flying through to the center of the stage as her cassette tape screamed out.
So light 'em up, up, up
Light 'em up, up, up
Light 'em up, up, up
I'm on fire
Ella started to scream, standing still long enough for Patricia to punch her squarely in the face as she blindly fired out some magic rays. As the song continued, she rolled on the floor screaming, leaving Patricia a little confused as Vigil went for the car to drag Lynette to Galatea.
Trisha, who had stabilized her horse just in time to see the chaos asked, "What just happened?" before turning to Aria in the drivers seat and noting, "You look different."
"Well," Aria began, "It's a long story, uh, I guess first of all you should know that Jolene died, and that my name is Aria."
"What... I'm so sorry... Wait, are you like... her?" Trisha pointed towards Patricia, wondering if there were other versions of everyone here...
Aria saw Patricia's similarities to Trisha, but also saw her differences, "I uh... doubt it actually..."
The psychic motioned towards Ella, still shaking from whatever he was or wasn't seeing.
Patricia had already gotten to work on holding Ella still, while she really wanted to kill her, doing so with bare hands would be messy, and with the new arrivals, things got too weird for her to just leave without getting some answers, something she hadn't actually thought could happen anymore. "Oh, it's you again, help me restrain the witch. Are... you okay?"
The psychic nodded, doing his best to keep his composure. "It's them." He nodded in the direction of Lynette and Vigil, who were now restoring Galatea, "Something about them just... messes me up. I don't think they're normal, even for uh, our standards."
"I've noticed, the rabbit brought in some knock-off version of me and I think he gave some other girl magic powers."
"Ah, so thats Trisha."
"You know her name?"
"Well, technically, we're here to kill you or her, Jax sends his regards by the way."
Patricia felt disgusted just at the mention of the slimy man's name. "Fucking coward."
Galatea opened her eyes, her heavy breaths somehow calmed by Vigil and Lynette smiling down on her. She was alive, healthy, breathing, and before she could question it, Lynette left to check on the other groups, "I'll be back in a bit, just sit tight!" Vigil was about to follow when Galatea put one of her hands on his back.
Vigil looked back and saw her uncharacteristically grave. The happy-go-lucky circus girl looked into the rabbits eyes and said, "Vigil, I was dead."
"No, you were almost dead, Lynette saved you."
"Vigil. I was dead. I died. I shouldn't have survived whatever... happened to me. Lynette brought me back to life. But she just... brushed it off. That shouldn't be possible Vigil... what's going on?"
"I..."
...oh, oh, whoa.
Ella's eyes snapped open as the rock song ended. She wasn't very happy.
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
Ella raised herself into the air and got rid of the restraints that she had been put in. She wasn't in the best situation. Weakened, repeatedly embarrassed and put down, first by a horse and then by shitty music, and now facing two magic users, their pet, the psychic, and Patricia. Her smile contorted as she raised her hand. There was only one way out of this for her.
There was a flash, both from Ella's hand, and in the psychic's mind. "NO!" He screamed out, the only sound in the flash, and when everyone's eyes opened, Ella was still floating, but the psychic was on the floor, in front of Patrica.
"You saved me."
HA HA HA HA HA HA
The light that had blown into the psychic was now eating away at him, it was gruesome and painful, "I had to, I saw it. I can't change fate. But... ggg, that's not the only reason I did it. Those... two, they can, and they're gunna... you've got to..."
The psychic closed his eyes for the last time, and Patricia looked up, angrily, as Ella and the man that saved her vanished.
Only... she didn't. "What? Why am I still here?"
While it wasn't a direct answer, Aria asked, "Where did Trisha go?"
---
"And sos, we say so long to the glorious spasort, Ski-Sky-Slope, and end up in this place, right after the usual whine about the murdered soul and such. And, I'll be honest, no brownie points or nuttin, it's been great! Not only have I avoided the murderess supreme, I've managed to set it up so that I won't see no one but that lousy psychic. Let me tel ya, he's a piece of work that one, he was traveling around with two broads, one of them in some weird girly outfit, the other one some middle aged cop type with auburn hair, a real work that one, n-"
"WHAT!" Keagan shocked even himself with that, but was ready to follow it up, "YOU SAW JOLENE AND LAUREN?"
"Woah woah kid, calm down, jeez, suddenly all excited for nothing, I've got some bad news for you, I sent them off towards Ella."
"WHAT!?" Keagan stood up, horrified.
"Listen, listen, I didn't mean anything by it kid, I saw the psychic get up to his old tricks and I wanted, nay, needed to get them as far away from me as possible. He started to go on about where she was gunna be was or is, I dunno the deal with him, and I gave them the means to get there as fast as possible before hightailing it as far from there as I could, for once, I'm innocent I tell ya."
"YOU LED THEM TO THEIR DEATHS! YOU JUST TALKED ABOUT HOW SHES THE MOST DANGEROUS PERSON IN YOUR BATTLE!"
Keagan, going on nothing but adrenaline and following the desire of everyone in the bar, swung a fist at Jax, punching him just as he vanished into nothing.
From the perspective of the bar patrons, Keagan just punched Jax so hard he got vaporized, causing an eruption of mirth from the various drunks. Keagan just stood there, confused, dazed, tired, and a little sad...