Re: The Battle Majestic (Round 1 - Bubble Universe)
01-15-2010, 02:53 AM
Originally posted on MSPA by Baphomet.
Vegmagog thought quickly about his situation. Quick thinking had gotten him out of many scrapes in his expansive past, and he felt confident that it would get him out of this one. A battle to the death, he thought, especially with more than two contestants, would be won easiest by one who stayed out of the way. His bubble came to rest in an abandoned alleyway of some sort of shopping center, and deposited him unceremoniously between a dumpster and a brick wall. Though there's no thrill in that, no party. He mentally reviewed the speech he had just heard as he leaned against the dumpster. Just "gentlemen" here, though. Not much of a party anyway.
"A nice change of scenery" implies what, another setting? So they expect one to die in each location, with the remainder taken to the next. That would be unfortunate if I were to remain in the background as the number dwindled. They might forge alliances, and I might be the remainder.
Let them forge their alliances. Find who is stronger in them, and make them kill the weaker. It will hurt more that way.
Vexmagog shook his head and held his right arm in front of his face, frowning beneath the fur. He knew from two centuries of experience that the best way to resist that draw was to take the most divergent course of action. He let his arm drop back against his side. I will go find them. Make my presence known. Perhaps find a way out of this game. Make alliances myself. Let another who hides in the shadows be the remainder when the time comes. Then I... He stopped that train of thought. He knew it ended with "will be the one to hurt them," but something approximating denial forced him to redirect.
The birdlike creature with the pods, "Sen", and the four-legged "wolf" creature, they are the most bestial. With the exception of those two and "John Swift," the other combatants are all the same species. They're also the same race from Magog's dimension of origin, or at least superficially similar. "Human." A common pattern for life, perhaps? Or perhaps they are from the same world, a world I now regret leaving with such haste. Differences cause discomfort, and familiarity the opposite, so I am at a disadvantage with at least four of the other combatants. Half. Those four have each other to look to, while the remaining three have no one. They would probably be the most accepting of a call to rally around me. Also, causing the ones who look like humans to antagonize the non-human-looking combatants would assist me if they were suddenly to see the other humans as something else. We'll see. A brief disconcerted look crossed his face. I'll see, I mean.
He stepped away from the dumpster and frowned at it. Against the side where his hand was resting, the metal had shifted. It looked as if it were a malleable surface against which a human on the other side had pressed his face and hands, screaming in agony. It writhed and shifted as the nonexistent man clawed at his nonexistent prison and cried out, though mute. Vexmagog let out a short sigh and padded out of the alleyway on the tips of his foot-fingers into the artificial sunlight.
Another being from his world would have been uncomfortable with the inability to view the crystal spheres, a view afforded by his plane's expansive mountain range. The mountain range Vex had helped create, and the crystal spheres Vex had helped place in the sky all those eons ago. Inconvenient though this is, it will at least afford me an opportunity for mischief in unfamiliar locations. He smiled, the fur on his face parting to reveal two unexpectedly pristine rows of white teeth. I might even have some fun.
Vegmagog thought quickly about his situation. Quick thinking had gotten him out of many scrapes in his expansive past, and he felt confident that it would get him out of this one. A battle to the death, he thought, especially with more than two contestants, would be won easiest by one who stayed out of the way. His bubble came to rest in an abandoned alleyway of some sort of shopping center, and deposited him unceremoniously between a dumpster and a brick wall. Though there's no thrill in that, no party. He mentally reviewed the speech he had just heard as he leaned against the dumpster. Just "gentlemen" here, though. Not much of a party anyway.
"A nice change of scenery" implies what, another setting? So they expect one to die in each location, with the remainder taken to the next. That would be unfortunate if I were to remain in the background as the number dwindled. They might forge alliances, and I might be the remainder.
Let them forge their alliances. Find who is stronger in them, and make them kill the weaker. It will hurt more that way.
Vexmagog shook his head and held his right arm in front of his face, frowning beneath the fur. He knew from two centuries of experience that the best way to resist that draw was to take the most divergent course of action. He let his arm drop back against his side. I will go find them. Make my presence known. Perhaps find a way out of this game. Make alliances myself. Let another who hides in the shadows be the remainder when the time comes. Then I... He stopped that train of thought. He knew it ended with "will be the one to hurt them," but something approximating denial forced him to redirect.
The birdlike creature with the pods, "Sen", and the four-legged "wolf" creature, they are the most bestial. With the exception of those two and "John Swift," the other combatants are all the same species. They're also the same race from Magog's dimension of origin, or at least superficially similar. "Human." A common pattern for life, perhaps? Or perhaps they are from the same world, a world I now regret leaving with such haste. Differences cause discomfort, and familiarity the opposite, so I am at a disadvantage with at least four of the other combatants. Half. Those four have each other to look to, while the remaining three have no one. They would probably be the most accepting of a call to rally around me. Also, causing the ones who look like humans to antagonize the non-human-looking combatants would assist me if they were suddenly to see the other humans as something else. We'll see. A brief disconcerted look crossed his face. I'll see, I mean.
He stepped away from the dumpster and frowned at it. Against the side where his hand was resting, the metal had shifted. It looked as if it were a malleable surface against which a human on the other side had pressed his face and hands, screaming in agony. It writhed and shifted as the nonexistent man clawed at his nonexistent prison and cried out, though mute. Vexmagog let out a short sigh and padded out of the alleyway on the tips of his foot-fingers into the artificial sunlight.
Another being from his world would have been uncomfortable with the inability to view the crystal spheres, a view afforded by his plane's expansive mountain range. The mountain range Vex had helped create, and the crystal spheres Vex had helped place in the sky all those eons ago. Inconvenient though this is, it will at least afford me an opportunity for mischief in unfamiliar locations. He smiled, the fur on his face parting to reveal two unexpectedly pristine rows of white teeth. I might even have some fun.