Re: The Phenomenal Fracas! (GBS2G6): [Round One: Afterparty]
09-19-2010, 09:04 PM
Originally posted on MSPA by granolaman.
Tamerlane slid down the outside of the building, Core in hand. If the lantern was correct, this device would enable him to get back to his world, but how? That was the question. The only time he’d seen it in action was when the pirate used it against him at the bar. What had it done then? He leapt off the building onto a passing cable as he contemplated his next move.
His musing was interrupted by the ring of gunshots followed by a distant stream of profanities. The shots whizzed by as he looked up and saw Ripper bearing down on him. Of course, how foolish of me to think I would get a moment of quiet solitude. The pirate was yelling something at him, but between the distance and the accent, he couldn’t make out anything but the occasional “yar.” Whatever he was yelling, it didn’t matter, he was through dealing with this lunatic.
Ripper was closing in at breakneck speed, which meant he had no chance to react when Tamerlane jumped out of the way. He hit the cable face first with a thump and the sand quickly bound him in place. “Your reckless stupidity astounds me, pirate.” He slowly walked towards the struggling Blackmask. “You’re all but disarmed without your precious toy, and still you think it’s a good idea to attack me head-on.” The pirate responded with another string of curses, but the hunter simply tuned them out. “Now, a source of questionable reliability told me this device is capable of taking me out of this irritating tournament. I don’t suppose you’d be willing to tell me how it works?” He had arrived at his head, bent down, and started tapping the Core against the mask. Ripper growled and angrily tried to headbutt Tamerlane to no avail. All he got was a mouthful of sand.
“No? That’s a shame, I guess I’ll have to figure it out myself. I’m no scholar, but I bet I can get this thing to work. And hey, you know what they say. If at first you don’t succeed, try charging directly at your problem without thinking things through.” Tamerlane inspected the box carefully. Apart from the slot, the box seemed positively bland. “If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say you put an object through this hole on the top to activate it. But what do you put in? Dirt? Food? Coupons? Help me out here.” He turned to face Ripper.
The mask stared back at him silently.
“Has anyone ever told you that your poker face is brilliant? Wait, I remember now! You put a box of jewels into this thing and it pumped you up. I don’t see how this helps me escape, but maybe it’ll come to me when I use this. Hmm, it seems I don’t have any precious stones on me right now, I hope you don’t mind if I borrow some from you and pay you back later?”
Tamerlane eyed the cutlass sticking upright from the back of Ripper. “Say, how about that? I was holding onto that for you for a while, it’s quite the beautiful sword. That’s platinum right? And is that pearl in the hilt?” He put a foot on the pirate’s back and tugged the sword free. “I guess if you live through this, you can look me up and I’ll pay you back. Until then, I.O.U one sword. Here goes nothing.” He brought the cutlass up to the Endorphic Core and plunged it into the slot.
A surge of energy blasted itself through Tamerlane’s being. So much power! He felt a rush to his head followed by sudden serene clarity. His senses were sharpened to a level he didn’t believe possible, and his mind felt like it could tackle any problem with ease. That’s when he felt the sand. Gods, I can feel the sand go on forever! He felt the presence of every grain for miles in all directions. The desert was an open book to him, all of its secret were his.
All this power distracted Tamerlane enough to loosen his control on Ripper’s restraints. In an instant he was up and grasping for the Core. The empowered shaper merely glanced at the aggressing pirate and the sand reformed into a wave and knocked him skyward. I barely needed to think about my attack and it’s there! There are combined pantheons that have less power than I now possess!
Inspiration struck him. Of course, how could it be so obvious? I can leave when the battle is over, and the battle is over when all of the other contestants are dead. The Endorphic Core was the key! With it, I can destroy all of the competition in one fell swoop.
Tamerlane focused his mind on the sands around and below the city. With all the power of his mind, he forced them to move. At first there was nothing, the dust remained still. Then slowly, he felt the sands begin to shift and shape.
***
Longcoat stood outside of the still smoldering bar. Something had happened here. Something big. Where's Lachesis? Why isn't he here? Her eyes glanced through the rubble, searching for any clues to the Equalizer's whereabouts, but she feared the worst. A clatter from a nearby alley caught her attention and drew her away from her search. She drew her harpoon gun and cautiously investigated.
Lying in a pool of blood, a pale young man, struggled to sit himself up, but the large stabwound in his side was making it difficult for him to even move. The fact that he was even still conscious surprised her. Longcoat hurried to his aide, and immediately started dressing his wounds.
"Come on, kid. This looks pretty serious, but you might have a chance if we get you back to base."
"Captain... the lantern..." the boy tried to gesture to the destroyed lantern back in the alley.
"Forget about it, we're moving out." She finished bandaging him and hoisted him over her shoulders. Together they exited the alley and started back towards their base.
“Captain... what time is it?”
“Early morning, what’s the problem?”
"The sun’s setting...”
Longcoat stopped and followed the boy's gaze. He was right, the sun was sinking below the horizon. How can this be? This isn’t possible. As the sun disappeared behind the land, it became clear. It wasn’t the sun moving, it was the desert itself. Longcoat watched in stunned silence as the wall of sand reached higher into the sky.
“…”
***
Deep in the Periphery, Tamerlane stood on a platform of sand and lifted himself into the sky. In his hand, the Endorphic Core rumbled and whirred, still processing the magnificent sacrifice it’d been given. All around the city, walls of sand were beginning to dwarf the buildings. As sand from below the city was tapped, the ground shook and gave way to massive sinkholes anxious to swallow up the mighty skyscrapers.
No one will survive the carnage, contestant or otherwise. Finally I’ll be able to return to my mission and my King.
For the King is not a man to be kept waiting.
Tamerlane slid down the outside of the building, Core in hand. If the lantern was correct, this device would enable him to get back to his world, but how? That was the question. The only time he’d seen it in action was when the pirate used it against him at the bar. What had it done then? He leapt off the building onto a passing cable as he contemplated his next move.
His musing was interrupted by the ring of gunshots followed by a distant stream of profanities. The shots whizzed by as he looked up and saw Ripper bearing down on him. Of course, how foolish of me to think I would get a moment of quiet solitude. The pirate was yelling something at him, but between the distance and the accent, he couldn’t make out anything but the occasional “yar.” Whatever he was yelling, it didn’t matter, he was through dealing with this lunatic.
Ripper was closing in at breakneck speed, which meant he had no chance to react when Tamerlane jumped out of the way. He hit the cable face first with a thump and the sand quickly bound him in place. “Your reckless stupidity astounds me, pirate.” He slowly walked towards the struggling Blackmask. “You’re all but disarmed without your precious toy, and still you think it’s a good idea to attack me head-on.” The pirate responded with another string of curses, but the hunter simply tuned them out. “Now, a source of questionable reliability told me this device is capable of taking me out of this irritating tournament. I don’t suppose you’d be willing to tell me how it works?” He had arrived at his head, bent down, and started tapping the Core against the mask. Ripper growled and angrily tried to headbutt Tamerlane to no avail. All he got was a mouthful of sand.
“No? That’s a shame, I guess I’ll have to figure it out myself. I’m no scholar, but I bet I can get this thing to work. And hey, you know what they say. If at first you don’t succeed, try charging directly at your problem without thinking things through.” Tamerlane inspected the box carefully. Apart from the slot, the box seemed positively bland. “If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say you put an object through this hole on the top to activate it. But what do you put in? Dirt? Food? Coupons? Help me out here.” He turned to face Ripper.
The mask stared back at him silently.
“Has anyone ever told you that your poker face is brilliant? Wait, I remember now! You put a box of jewels into this thing and it pumped you up. I don’t see how this helps me escape, but maybe it’ll come to me when I use this. Hmm, it seems I don’t have any precious stones on me right now, I hope you don’t mind if I borrow some from you and pay you back later?”
Tamerlane eyed the cutlass sticking upright from the back of Ripper. “Say, how about that? I was holding onto that for you for a while, it’s quite the beautiful sword. That’s platinum right? And is that pearl in the hilt?” He put a foot on the pirate’s back and tugged the sword free. “I guess if you live through this, you can look me up and I’ll pay you back. Until then, I.O.U one sword. Here goes nothing.” He brought the cutlass up to the Endorphic Core and plunged it into the slot.
A surge of energy blasted itself through Tamerlane’s being. So much power! He felt a rush to his head followed by sudden serene clarity. His senses were sharpened to a level he didn’t believe possible, and his mind felt like it could tackle any problem with ease. That’s when he felt the sand. Gods, I can feel the sand go on forever! He felt the presence of every grain for miles in all directions. The desert was an open book to him, all of its secret were his.
All this power distracted Tamerlane enough to loosen his control on Ripper’s restraints. In an instant he was up and grasping for the Core. The empowered shaper merely glanced at the aggressing pirate and the sand reformed into a wave and knocked him skyward. I barely needed to think about my attack and it’s there! There are combined pantheons that have less power than I now possess!
Inspiration struck him. Of course, how could it be so obvious? I can leave when the battle is over, and the battle is over when all of the other contestants are dead. The Endorphic Core was the key! With it, I can destroy all of the competition in one fell swoop.
Tamerlane focused his mind on the sands around and below the city. With all the power of his mind, he forced them to move. At first there was nothing, the dust remained still. Then slowly, he felt the sands begin to shift and shape.
***
Longcoat stood outside of the still smoldering bar. Something had happened here. Something big. Where's Lachesis? Why isn't he here? Her eyes glanced through the rubble, searching for any clues to the Equalizer's whereabouts, but she feared the worst. A clatter from a nearby alley caught her attention and drew her away from her search. She drew her harpoon gun and cautiously investigated.
Lying in a pool of blood, a pale young man, struggled to sit himself up, but the large stabwound in his side was making it difficult for him to even move. The fact that he was even still conscious surprised her. Longcoat hurried to his aide, and immediately started dressing his wounds.
"Come on, kid. This looks pretty serious, but you might have a chance if we get you back to base."
"Captain... the lantern..." the boy tried to gesture to the destroyed lantern back in the alley.
"Forget about it, we're moving out." She finished bandaging him and hoisted him over her shoulders. Together they exited the alley and started back towards their base.
“Captain... what time is it?”
“Early morning, what’s the problem?”
"The sun’s setting...”
Longcoat stopped and followed the boy's gaze. He was right, the sun was sinking below the horizon. How can this be? This isn’t possible. As the sun disappeared behind the land, it became clear. It wasn’t the sun moving, it was the desert itself. Longcoat watched in stunned silence as the wall of sand reached higher into the sky.
“…”
***
Deep in the Periphery, Tamerlane stood on a platform of sand and lifted himself into the sky. In his hand, the Endorphic Core rumbled and whirred, still processing the magnificent sacrifice it’d been given. All around the city, walls of sand were beginning to dwarf the buildings. As sand from below the city was tapped, the ground shook and gave way to massive sinkholes anxious to swallow up the mighty skyscrapers.
No one will survive the carnage, contestant or otherwise. Finally I’ll be able to return to my mission and my King.
For the King is not a man to be kept waiting.