Re: The Grand Battle S2G1! [Round Four: New Battleopolis!]
07-21-2011, 03:25 AM
Originally posted on MSPA by Dragon Fogel.
It had been a shock to Arkal to meet the man Kracht had warned him about. It had been a greater shock to hear him speak so casually of his disdain for nonhumans.
Reinhardt's companion, who had grudgingly introduced himself as Phil Girnham, seemed relatively uninterested in speaking to either of them. He mostly ignored the other two and simply muttered under his breath; at one point, Arkal thought he heard the man say "when are we going to find something to shoot already."
Reinhardt himself, by contrast, was doing enough talking for the three of them, with enough words to spare for a fourth.
Much of it was simply spiels about the superiority of humanity in general, and Reinhardt in particular. Arkal had little choice but to conceal his disgust; this was an opportunity to question the man he was trying to stop, after all, and he couldn't waste it.
The explanation had started with the "awakened". Reinhardt began by explaining how he had been Matthew Vanhart, a simple tailor, and then suddenly found himself with new memories and a new appearance. And a new mission: ensuring humanity dominated the city.
"You see, I was not the only one to awaken in such a way," he explained. "There were others. Some were human, but a number of them... became other things. One man turned into a pile of boxes, filled with odds and ends. A woman became a wolf. A boy turned into a strange-looking armadillo. And there were others. I could not ignore the threat they posed to New BaTTleOpOliS."
Arkal was curious about the vocal distortion whenever Reinhardt mentioned his city's name, but he said nothing. The man himself didn't seem to notice.
As Reinhard continued, he explained that a group of these other beings had formed explicitly to wrest control of the city away from humans.
"They are our primary enemy. But, make no mistake: though there are non-humans who claim they have refused to join, they still seek to overrun this city. They must all be stopped. Worse still, there are humans who refuse to fight by our side, despite the threat these hideous creatures pose to us all! It disgusts me to think there could be such traitors to humanity in our midst."
It was at that point that Arkal punched Reinhardt in the back of the head and knocked him to the ground. He rubbed his knuckles afterwards; that helmet was made of strong stuff.
"You dare to strike me?" Reinhardt shouted, picking himself up. "Have you chosen to forsake humanity and side with the monsters, then? So be it. You have signed your death warrant."
Arkal responded by grabbing the knight and hurling him at Phil. He then unchained his anvil and raised it above his head, preparing to bring it down upon the duo and end Reinhardt's evil.
But he had underestimated the monster's strength. Reinhardt raised his hands and grabbed the anvil just it drew near, holding it up easily.
It wasn't a comfortable position for Phil. Being pinned under a heavily-armored man who was fighting with a muscular blacksmith over a large anvil offered little room to maneuver. If not for his own armor, he'd likely have been crushed already.
Fortunately, the communicator in his helmet was hands-free. In general, he didn't like calling for backup, but he liked being caught under Reinhardt's bulk even less.
***
John Smith picked up the call.
"It's Girnham," he said to the bearded man beside him. "Seems he's in a bit of trouble over at the old construction site."
"Girnham calling for help? It must be bad, then." Cedric grinned.
"Something about an old man trying to crush him and Reinhardt with an anvil," Smith replied.
"Lord Reinhardt," corrected the knight. Smith ignored it. He called no man his lord.
"Let's just go, shall we? This promises to be interesting, at the least."
High above, atop a ruined building, hundreds of eyes watched them run off.
The insect-covered mass of rotting meat that was Cole Aran had been tracking them for some time. And he intended to continue doing so.
Cole grew a set of dragonfly wings and followed the duo towards the construction site.
It had been a shock to Arkal to meet the man Kracht had warned him about. It had been a greater shock to hear him speak so casually of his disdain for nonhumans.
Reinhardt's companion, who had grudgingly introduced himself as Phil Girnham, seemed relatively uninterested in speaking to either of them. He mostly ignored the other two and simply muttered under his breath; at one point, Arkal thought he heard the man say "when are we going to find something to shoot already."
Reinhardt himself, by contrast, was doing enough talking for the three of them, with enough words to spare for a fourth.
Much of it was simply spiels about the superiority of humanity in general, and Reinhardt in particular. Arkal had little choice but to conceal his disgust; this was an opportunity to question the man he was trying to stop, after all, and he couldn't waste it.
The explanation had started with the "awakened". Reinhardt began by explaining how he had been Matthew Vanhart, a simple tailor, and then suddenly found himself with new memories and a new appearance. And a new mission: ensuring humanity dominated the city.
"You see, I was not the only one to awaken in such a way," he explained. "There were others. Some were human, but a number of them... became other things. One man turned into a pile of boxes, filled with odds and ends. A woman became a wolf. A boy turned into a strange-looking armadillo. And there were others. I could not ignore the threat they posed to New BaTTleOpOliS."
Arkal was curious about the vocal distortion whenever Reinhardt mentioned his city's name, but he said nothing. The man himself didn't seem to notice.
As Reinhard continued, he explained that a group of these other beings had formed explicitly to wrest control of the city away from humans.
"They are our primary enemy. But, make no mistake: though there are non-humans who claim they have refused to join, they still seek to overrun this city. They must all be stopped. Worse still, there are humans who refuse to fight by our side, despite the threat these hideous creatures pose to us all! It disgusts me to think there could be such traitors to humanity in our midst."
It was at that point that Arkal punched Reinhardt in the back of the head and knocked him to the ground. He rubbed his knuckles afterwards; that helmet was made of strong stuff.
"You dare to strike me?" Reinhardt shouted, picking himself up. "Have you chosen to forsake humanity and side with the monsters, then? So be it. You have signed your death warrant."
Arkal responded by grabbing the knight and hurling him at Phil. He then unchained his anvil and raised it above his head, preparing to bring it down upon the duo and end Reinhardt's evil.
But he had underestimated the monster's strength. Reinhardt raised his hands and grabbed the anvil just it drew near, holding it up easily.
It wasn't a comfortable position for Phil. Being pinned under a heavily-armored man who was fighting with a muscular blacksmith over a large anvil offered little room to maneuver. If not for his own armor, he'd likely have been crushed already.
Fortunately, the communicator in his helmet was hands-free. In general, he didn't like calling for backup, but he liked being caught under Reinhardt's bulk even less.
***
John Smith picked up the call.
"It's Girnham," he said to the bearded man beside him. "Seems he's in a bit of trouble over at the old construction site."
"Girnham calling for help? It must be bad, then." Cedric grinned.
"Something about an old man trying to crush him and Reinhardt with an anvil," Smith replied.
"Lord Reinhardt," corrected the knight. Smith ignored it. He called no man his lord.
"Let's just go, shall we? This promises to be interesting, at the least."
High above, atop a ruined building, hundreds of eyes watched them run off.
The insect-covered mass of rotting meat that was Cole Aran had been tracking them for some time. And he intended to continue doing so.
Cole grew a set of dragonfly wings and followed the duo towards the construction site.
There's no reason for this | Or this | Death is inevitable | You can't challenge fate | The smallest change | I'm overwhelmed
I'm serious | It makes perfect sense | Easy as ABC! | I can't even explain it | Cleaning up someone else's mess
I suck | I rule | I've got it made | Really, I'm serious | This bugs me | It's all lies | I want to believe | Beauty is a curse
I'm serious | It makes perfect sense | Easy as ABC! | I can't even explain it | Cleaning up someone else's mess
I suck | I rule | I've got it made | Really, I'm serious | This bugs me | It's all lies | I want to believe | Beauty is a curse