2017-07-09: Alisha Diphda vs. Arleph Ardan

From Dream Chasers
Jump to navigation Jump to search
  • Log: 2017-07-09: Alisha Diphda vs. Arleph Ardan
  • Cast: Alisha Diphda, Arleph Ardan, Lunata Croze, June Lim Ze, Yarobeleedt, Elena, Avril Vent Fleur
  • Where: Lacour - Arms Coliseum
  • Date: July 09, 2017
  • Summary: Round 3 of the Lacour Tournament of Arms pits a princess of purpose against a scientist of sorcery... but this time, they have a special guest announcer in the booth, who provides... complications. (A lost log, found in late May 2019!)

========================================<* Lacour - Arms Coliseum *>========================================

Situated immediately adjacent to Lacour Castle, the Arms Coliseum is a temple to the pursuit of perfection in physical prowess. Built more than three centuries ago by King Etienne I, the Coliseum is laid over with ancient Symbols that blunt weapons and protect combatants on the brink of death, allowing competitors to fight to the best of their ability without fear of killing their opponents.

The Coliseum is the site of the annual Lacour Tournament of Arms, a competition that fuels the spirit of martial artists and weapons merchants both. The Tournament is a spectacle that draws visitors and competitors from across Filgaia, and is the major event on the continent while it is running. A series of smaller tournaments are organized throughout the year; entering as a combatant is free of charge, but spectators pay a nominal fee that nonetheless provides a significant boost to Lacour's coffers.

BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1s8YkgEYlvY

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

The tournament continues!

And Alisha Diphda, somehow, has progressed in it. The princess knight waits in the tunnel -- and steps out only when the trumpets blare, to tell the contestants to enter for this match. The coliseum has sand on the floor and the walls are lined with wood. Some of it is freshly painted, where new blows where struck. Alisha's uniform, over her armor, is still that pristine white...

...but a rich blue instead of pink, and the emblem of the Sparrowfeathers is emblazoned upon the back. Her sponsor is, of course, Rose and her merchant group.

Some of the crowd cheers when she walks onto the field -- and she lifts a hand, smiling at them. The cheers are, she thinks, something she could get used to. She looks across the field -- and waits for Arleph to approach. She met him, once.

And she knows little of how he fights.

<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 In the two matches he's made, Arleph somehow managed to get a small gathering of fans to comes at his match. Not that they are particularly picky, mind you: it's far more likely there is bets going on than being actually fans of a someone like him.
 
 Then again, who knows?
 
 Arleph steps in, getting a cheer out of the crowd as well, waving with a smile at the people watching them. The man's clothing are repaired, seamlessly from his previous fight. This time, he wonder what will be the gimmick of this particular fighter. Will she cheat? Will she be legit? Will she throw the fight for some uncomphrensible reason? He'd rather not.
 
 The Doctor walks a few steps forward, his coat trailing behind him to the wind around him, giving Alisha a smile as he approaches. He's met her once, too. He suppose that spear is not just for show, as it that armor. He tightens his gloves, snapping them and wriggling his fingers into them, before giving Alisha a nice tip of the hat.
 
 "Ma'am."

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

    Lunata's taken a moment to recover from her rather horror-frought and anxious match to step up towards the stands and watch. She should appreciate some of the fine combat arts that the other contestants are pitching forward! She hasn't met Alisha or Arleph, but she's heard of them -- how the former controls light with her spear, and the latter, water with Symbolic arts... they're remarkable talents to be sure.

    The cube floats beside Lunata, looking docile for all the hubbub it caused the last time.

<Pose Tracker> June Lim Ze has posed.

 
"Lunata," says June as she comes up near where Lunata has parked herself. "Cube," she adds, with a nod, before inviting herself to sit down.

"I heard you kicked ass!" June says, enthused. Her attention rests primarily on the field of hono(u)r, of course.

<Pose Tracker> Yarobeleedt has posed.

    "OH MAN ARE WE READY TO BLOW. SYMBOLS. UP?" Asks you-know-who. "YEAH I SAID SYMBOLS DEAL WITH IT, I GOT SICK AND TIRED OF HEARING THE BLEEPS SO I BLEW THEM THE SYMBOLS UP."
     The crowd is ready for it. There's pyrotechnics left and right for the entrance of the graceful warrior knight, and the suave symbology-based aquamancer slash country doctor. That's what they paid good money for! (They also paid way too much money for concessions and other such things but that's diverging from the original point).
     "WELL I'M HERE TO ANNOUNCE THE WINNER OF THE BLASTEMOL!(r) ANNOUNCER FOR A CONTEST!!"
     Meanwhile, a nefarious figure in a non-flattering robe skulks about behind the announcer's table. They gibber in anticipation. Soon, he will find an opening in which to inflict unfathomable terror upon the humans at their most joyful! He has found an opening through the thorough professional security outfit hired for the high-profile event. He is one of the (in his humble, objective opinion) finest scouts of his people! Soon, soon...
     "I HAD THE NAME ON AN ENVELOPE BUT IT... EXPLODED!! MY BAD!! BUT I'M OF THE OPINION A BAD ENOUGH DUDE TO WIN THIS HONOR ALREADY KNOWS THAT THEY WON AND THEY ARE GOING TO BE HERE SHORTLY!!"
     Yarobeleedt slinks out of the darkness, a low-pitched screech as he raises a robed arm behind our loud-mouthed announcer...
     "HOT DAMN THERE THEY ARE NOW!!" And so, Mister Torque delivers an amazing high five to the contents of the sleeved figure behind him. Explosions go on around them.
     The figure crouches and cowers.
     "OKAY THAT WAS KIND OF A LIMP HIGH FIVE, FELT MORE LIKE A HIGH ONE!! THAT STABBED MY PALM!! THAT'S STILL BAD ASS!! WELCOME TO BEING THE ANNOUNCER FOR A CONTEST!!"
     "double u hat???"
     Before he can protest, Yarobeleedt is powerbombed into the seat next to him. He shudders.
     "SO KICK US OFF, WINNER!! IMMA CALL YOU CUCCOO DINNER!!"
     Yarobeleedt taps the symbological microphone. Tap. Tap. Tap.
     "SAY IT!!"
     "what"
     "SAY IT THIS IS AO NCE IN A LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY!!"
     ..."it????"
     "THAT'S MORE LIKE IT! AND AS FAR AS WE LEGALLY CARE THAT IS AS CLOSE A SIGNAL TO 'GO' AS ANY!!"
     "it???"
     "WE HEARD YOU THE FIRST TIME, YOU BAD ASS CONTEST WINNER, YOU!!"
You are no longer marked as an observer in +pot.

<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.

    A real princess from the moon!
    And a member of the Guard, also from the moon.

    Elena was... curious, even if she detests fighting. And so we find the priestess of Granas in the crowd, conveniently not far from Lunata. Her hands are clapsed together in front of her in a prim and proper pose, though she lacks the enthusiasm of the crowd. It's true she'd rather be Literally Anywhere Else right now, but still couldn't help herself at wanting to see at least one battle between two competitors that vaguely interested her.

    It'll just confirm that she hates violence so it's OK, right?

    Her head turns momentarily, spotting Lunata. She gasps, surprised. "Ah! Are you not one of the competitors? ... are you alright after your last battle? Do you require any assistance?!" This is confirmed by June as he says Lunata kicked ass. But Elena is more of a doting mother than someone who can appreciate proper asskicking.

    Then there is yelling. So much yelling. That's the announcer, Elena, get used to it. She doesn't seem used to it. That poor, squeamish man with him, though. She feels intense pity for Yaro's current situation.

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.


    Lunata looks just a bit baffled as she stares up towards the commentators' box for a moment. 'it'? Something's a bit strange with the commentary... but before she can dwell on it that much longer, she gasps to say, "Oh-- Miss June!" She pauses, as the box bobbles up and down rather gently.

    She looks towards Elena as she arrives as well and shrinks a little into herself. "Um... I think... it wasn't really a fair match, but... yeah... n-no one is saying I'm disqualified or anything, but... I don't feel good about it either."

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

"Good day, sir!" the princess says to Arleph, with a smile. "I hope that we shall both do well today."

The princess bows her head respectfully -- until the explosions starts, and Mr. Torque's voice comes booming over the place. She yelps and leaps back, staring around at the pyrotechnics, and then at the guest announcer. Her leaf green eyes widen. Isn't--isn't that--

She stares in dismay for a moment up at the stands. What, she wonders, is wrong with some parts of Filgaia? She also hesitates a moment at the last 'it.' Is that the cue to start? It might be. She thinks it might be. She looks back at Arleph. She nods -- and then she runs forward.

"Let us begin!" the princess knight cries out.

She leaps to close the distance between them. The cloth ribbon her spear whips around her, as she lands in front of the good doctor -- and then makes a quick stab for him.

GS: Alisha Diphda has attacked Arleph Ardan with True Thrust!
GS: Alisha Diphda has completed her action.
GS: Arleph Ardan takes a solid hit from Alisha Diphda's True Thrust for 90 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 Ah. A straight up, slug out fight it is, then. In more ways than one, Arleph finds this acceptable.
 
 However, the explosion was something new, as well as the confused voice that just joined the obinoxiously loud announcer. The Symbologist slowly looked upward at the announcer booth, his eyes narrowed. He could swear he heard that inflexion before. Nah. Could not be. That'd be too odd.
 
 He return his attention to Alisha, tightening his hands into fists and lowering them at his side.
 
 "Very well. Let us begin!"
 
 It proves that she is pretty fast. Arleph throws himself to the side to avoid the first stab aimed at him, the spear hitting him on the side. Gods, it's always there. But better there than his arms, at least! He rolls on the ground with a ground, kicking himself up to a feet.
 
 Arleph tosses out a palmed hand at Alisha's general direction, his other busily gesticulating in the air. A symbological circle forms out of it, covering his outstretched hand that he reeve up. It extends, growing a long watery whip that he brings out against the Princess with a crack.

GS: Arleph Ardan has attacked Alisha Diphda with Water Whip!
GS: Arleph Ardan has completed his action.
GS: Alisha Diphda guards a hit from Arleph Ardan's Water Whip for 64 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> June Lim Ze has posed.

 
"Yeah? What was unfair about it?" June says, with some more sympathy than before. She gives Elena a somewhat more wary look, then to Lunata she murmurs, "Don't feel bad if you dominated. Just don't assume it'll be the way it always goes."

<Pose Tracker> Yarobeleedt has posed.

    The guest commentator is twitchy where they... sit? It's tough to describe, but if you're looking at the box from certain angles, there's a certain way the lower half of the robed body sort of... doesn't... fit.
     "WOW!! WHAT AN EXCITING START!! HEY!! TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE SEEING!!"
     "I see the fumans! They are to get her???" The words are screechy, strained, and uncomfortable. "They are every ware..."
     "WE MEAN THE ONES IN THE RING STABBING AND WATER SLAPPING ONE ANOTHER!!"
     "Just two??"
     "DUH!!"
     "But so many looking?? Not overstand...!"
     "I DUNNO JUST SAY BAD-ASS A STABBED BAD-ASS B AND THEN BAD-ASS B SLAPPED BAD-ASS A WITH A WATER WHIP!!"
     The guest announcer gibbers incoherently.
     "WOW!! THAT IS AN AMAZING PERSPECTIVE. YOU ARE TOTALLY RIGHT. THAT'S AN AMAZING PLAY. I NEVER THOUGHT OF IT THAT WAY!! MY MIND IS... BLOWN!!"
     Explosions. The guest commentator hides under the table.

<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    Avril and her friends had come to Lacour to watch a few of the matches while the tournament's still on (having regrettably missed some of the early rounds, but sometimes that's just how life is), and with Avril's return from Linga, well, that's just what they were going to do.

    Especially since the matches on today are in the Winner's Bracket.

    Avril's currently here on her lonesome, though, since Dean and Rebecca went off to hit the concession stand and still aren't back. Vaguely, the young woman wonders if everything is alright, and briefly considers getting up to go and find them, but...

    Something's nagging at her senses. Stirring at last from her seat reluctantly, the young lady in green stands and begins to pick her way across the stands, pushing past other seated people as she does so.

    And suddenly, there are explosions. Avril freezes, gazing at the announcer's table. "Oh..."

    To which the person she's stopped in front of (and is blocking the view for) as the match starts yells, "HEY LADY, MOVE OR SIDDOWN!"

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

"Ah--fast!" Alisha calls out, in surprise. The last opponent she fought had no magic. She can quickly see this fight will not be like the last one, even if it proves just as challenging. The princess turns and readies to charge at Arleph again. As she moves, though, a whip of water slams at her. She can't move aside. She breaks off her charge to skewer him again, so she can swing up her spear.

The whip of water still slams into the princess and knocks her back, roughly. Her feet stumble and she lets out a hiss of pain. The princess stops her charge -- to swing up her spear across the ground. Light flashes along the sword-like blade.

"Demon Fang!"

The titular fang of light shoots off the spear's edge, as it cuts through the sand. Then, it flies, a narrow and sharp edge of energy, that goes hurtling towards Arleph.

GS: Alisha Diphda has attacked Arleph Ardan with Demon Fang!
GS: Alisha Diphda has completed her action.
GS: Arleph Ardan takes a glancing hit from Alisha Diphda's Demon Fang for 47 hit points!
GS: Disrupt! Statuses applied to Arleph Ardan!
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

    "It's-- it's not a matter of dominating... more than..." Lunata seems to have some trouble expressing it. She lowers her head. "I mean, I don't disagree with the assessment... sorcery was not banned, but still..."

    Before she expresses much more, though, she gasps as she watches the eruptive start of the match. The way Arleph conjures a water whip to strike at his opponent -- and the way Alisha in turn keeps her balance to return a bolt of energy was impressive.

    She gasps a little as someone yells, and she beckons for Avril. "Oh, miss, there's an empty seat here!"

<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.

    "I see! I would not know anything about the rules of this tournament so I do not know what you refer to!" Elena explains to Lunata, in a way that makes it plainly obvious she's that kind of lady. To make matters worse everytime something EXPLODES she seems to recoil or flinch a bit. She is NOT used to that yet. Explosions should be controlled and expected, nor surprising! What terrible use of explosives!!

    A glance back at Lunata and June, and Elena half-bows in apology. "I am sorry! My name is Elena, I did not mean to intrude without introducing myself!"

    They beckon someone over, and Elena waves towards Avril happily, while she looks towards the arena once more. She was right, such violence! Even if it isn't to the death, how can people just enjoy this so publicly?

    Seems it's a battle of magic versus might, too...?

<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 Arleph focuses his mind on the battle. The announcer mystery will have to wait when he don't have a late teenager spearfighter that want to skewer him. Even if it bothers him a lot right now!
 
 The Symbologist keep his eyes on Alisha, watching how she moves. She know how to use that spear, it's for certain. She's pretty fast, herself, too. The light around the sword-like blades of her weapon, however, garner his interest...
 
 And then his emergency reaction. "Hrng!" Arleph grunts out, swinging his coat around him, twin brief Symbological circles appearing below him, pushing him further ahead out of the trail of energy following alongside the ground. Unfortunately for him, his casting was a bit too slow, he catches the tail end of it with his feet.
 
 "Impressive projection." Arleph grunts out, an hand on the ground while water still gathers at his feet, smiling at her. "It's good to see someone that will fight without cheating. BEWARE!"
 
 Arleph slams his fist into the puddle of water. It rises, freezing, then shoots itself out into a line of spiked ice at Alisha, following the same trail she used for her Demon Fang... and homing on her a little bit, at that.

GS: Arleph Ardan has attacked Alisha Diphda with Icicle Ground!
GS: Arleph Ardan has completed his action.
GS: Alisha Diphda guards a hit from Arleph Ardan's Icicle Ground for 71 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Yarobeleedt has posed.

    Things continue. Yarobeleedt is too busy cowering under the table to do his wrongly assigned job.
     "YOU KNOW WHAT MAKES ME FEEL BETTER WHEN I GOT NOTHING TO SAY, OTHER THAN RUNNING MY MOUTH ON THE FIRST THING THAT COMES TO MIND?!"
     Yarobeleedt doesn't answer, because he already knows the answer.
     "YOU MUST BE THINKING EXPLOSIONS!! PARTIAL CREDIT!! PARTIALCREDITHASNOREDEEMABLECASHVALUEATBLASTEMOL!(R)AUTHORIZEDVENDORS," ahem, "BUT YOU'VE ALSO WON A SPIN AT THAT AWESOME THING WE DO TO MAKE THE ARENA EVEN MORE BAD-ASS THIS YEAR!! IN FACT BY VIRTUE OF BEING DOWN THERE YOU'RE ALREADY SENDING THE INSTRUCTIONS TO OUR SYMBOLOGY TEAM BY BUMPING INTO ALL THE SIGNALS WE USE!!"
     The robed figures get their instructions. They aren't completely uniform in movement. A few exchange confused glances. One has fallen asleep outright. What happens next...
     The battleground is now made of pink grass set in gelatinous see-through yellowish mud. Birds fly upside down above them, with an unnatural hue. Their wings are more like propellors instead of proper wings. A neon cyan haze cuts through the air between the warriors, which smells like something Arleph could identify as rubber dipped in chocolate and lavendar. A low whistling hum breaks into static every so often.
     "WHOA!! THIS NEW CONFIGURATION IS BAD ASS!! THIS IS SOME GREAT NEW FRONTIER IN BAD ASSERY!! A LANDSCAPE THAT CANNOT EVER EXIST WITHIN COMPREHENSION!!"

<Pose Tracker> June Lim Ze has posed.

 
"Ah... She got hurt?" June says to Lunata, with sympathy. She seems about to continue when -

"What the God?" June says when the level of a e s t h e t i c intensifies to perilous levels.

<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    Many things are begging for her attention, all at once. It at least doesn't take her long to collect herself, though. "--My apologies," Avril utters a moment later, a few hurried steps taking her past the Very Upset Tournament Attendee as melee unfolds on the field below.

    'There's an empty seat here', some one says, and Avril wastes no time making her way over.
    As it happens, it's also the direction of the strange yet familiar feeling. Coldness...? Blue eyes soon find and settle on the floating cube, even as she reaches the seat. Once again, Avril fails to actually sit down.

    "Excuse me, but... I sense a Medium."

    No sooner has she said that than something... very odd happens to the arena. Slowly, Avril turns her head towards the battlefield and stares. "Um..."

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

The coat, Alisha realizes, can help him block attacks. That surprises Alisha and warrants a gasp. She takes a few steps to the side, circling more cautiously, now. Her eyes narrow a little bit. "I--beware?"

His warning is twofold. First, she suddenly keys back into what the announcers are saying to have an ounce of warning when the landscape shifts into the strange, terrible mud that her feet sink into and the haze makes her view of him that much stranger. She gasps sharply and cries out:

"What in the name of the Goddess is happening!" she yells, as she slams her spear at the icicle that erupts up into her feet. It slams it away -- and it smashes into her arm, instead, splintering into so much icy dust. She stares back at Arleph. "Is... is this your doing!?"

Then, the princess lunges forward. The haze of purple mist clears around her as she shoots over the ground in a straight line. Her spear swings back -- and she stabs hard for Arleph, before skidding past him, feet splattering up yellow mud in her wake.

"Skewering Spear!"

GS: Alisha Diphda has attacked Arleph Ardan with Skewering Spear!
GS: Alisha Diphda has completed her action.
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

    The Cube seems content to bobble back and forth lazily up until the part where Avril casts her icy-blue gaze upon it. You could -- positively see it sweating profusely for a moment as it becomes gelatinous in texture for a moment, like it's turning transparent in fear... then it goes to hide behind Lunata's head. Wow, what a reaction.

    "U-um, Ge Ramda?" Lunata looks really surprised, then looking back to Avril. "I'm sorry, my Cube's been misbehaving lately... but, a Medium?" She hesitates. "I... I suppose it... I didn't think it could be one... it looks different from what Mister Cyre and Miss Catenna bear on their persons..."

    She stares rather agog at the battlefield and echoes June's sentiments, except it comes out as: "W-what the Lunie?!"

    She smiles at Elena and says, "Oh, um, my name's Lunata Croze." A pause. "Not Lululu Wait. It's nice to meet you..."

GS: Arleph Ardan takes a glancing hit from Alisha Diphda's Skewering Spear for 66 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 Arleph is having mixed feelings right now.
 
 On one side, his timing was pretty much perfect to make her belive that he caused this... jarring change in the combat field. Every muscles of his being tells him that he should encourage that and confirm her suspicions. That's the sensationalism talking. The raw, primal sensation of all magic user have to deal with one time or another. After all, Symbology is a science, but an often misunderstood one, even in the Galactic Federation. That is his first instinct.
 
 The smart part, second part of him that he can do much more with that.
 
 Arleph stumbles back, narrowing his eyes behind his glasses as he takes in the sights. The rubber smell odd, the grass is... almost in a reverse color scape and the birds are not having a good time. The Symbologist greets the Princess's lunge forward by thrusting out a gloved hand with a grunt, his eyes growing wide as he meets it headon. The spear struggles with an invisible force for a moment, before he slides off away with it, a shower of sparks following him. This time, the spear dig deep into his upperarm as he slides off the... strange grass.
 
 "No." Arleph intones. "I can do better than that."
 
 For now, he does not, his gloved hand reaching for his bloodied upper arm, with a wince, fingers feeling the blood. Then there is a pressure, a humm as water is created out of thin air around that hand, stained by the red that he fling outward at Alisha with massive pressure headed against her, much like a water hose.

GS: Arleph Ardan has attacked Alisha Diphda with Bloodstained Water Cannon!
GS: Arleph Ardan has completed his action.
<Pose Tracker> Elena has posed.

    Now that Lunata brings attention to it, there IS that floating thing around her. Experimentally she reaches out to poke said Cube with a finger, curious. "It is the first time I hear about something called a Cube," she explains, probably meaning in a context other than geometry, before she adds: "It appears to be changing colors and reacting to speech, is this Cube a sort of pet?" Like... a dog, or a cat? Is this the hip new fad, floating cube pets instead of animals? Elena wouldn't know the first thing about fads.

    She oooohs as her attention gets taken by the flashes of light in the arena. It's not the fighters that earn her stare, though, it's the arena itself, changing so vividly. "That pink grass looks lovely! Is that... normal?" she inquires of the others, not having seen the arena do that last time she was there, for the opening ceremony.

    Well, she might also be watching the sudden display of ice and water magic, courtesy of Arleph. She herself plays in that particular ballcourt so there's some academic purpose behind watching how someone else does it.

<Pose Tracker> Yarobeleedt has posed.

    "NOW THAT'S MAKING THEM SWEAT!! THEY ARE PIONEERING NEW GROUND, BOMBS AND GRENADES!!"
     Yarobeleedt peeks up from under the table. "I donut c the explodes...?"
     "COME NOW!! CLEVER THEMATIC REPLACEMENTS FOR THE TERMS 'BOYS' AND 'GIRLS' IS ANNOUNCER 101!!"
     Yarobeleedt emits a high-pitched sigh that might be of relief. "So no all explode while in here..."
     "OH EVERYTHING'S GONNA EXPLODE!! WHEN THAT SPEAR BREAKS THROUGH THAT NEXT SHOT OF WATER IT'S GONNA BE EXPLOSIVE!!"
     Yarobeleedt wants nothing more to do with this and hides under the table again.
     The upside down propellor-wing birds are now spitting party streamers everywhere, which burst into distracting but harmless color-changing confetti upon contact with competitors or the ground.

GS: Alisha Diphda guards a hit from Arleph Ardan's Bloodstained Water Cannon for 59 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> June Lim Ze has posed.

 
"I'm actually a large," June answers Avril because she's not paying attention to her very closely. She is instead watching the screen.

Streamers start to burst everywhere as if it were someone's birthday party and someone in question was drugs. In other words, it was Drugs' birthday.

"As a human, I'm offended," June says, finally.

<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    To recap, the first thing out of this mystery woman's mouth is something about a Medium, and not a 'hello' or a 'thank you for offering me this seat'. Perhaps one can't blame the Cube for suddenly freezing in mid bobble and rolling back to try and hide behind Lunata.

    It's... pretty blunt.

    Those blue eyes -- the same that had pierced the poor innocent Cube to its cube-like core -- blink slowly, as if in bafflement. "...Am I mistaken? I had thought I had felt..." Avril shakes her head. "No, I'm certain of it... it must be an artificial Original--"

    And things get a little weird. Touching a gloved hand to her lips as she watches on, the now very very confused (more than usual) lady in green finally voices, "Is there a meaning behind the pink grass and the yellow mud? What sort of skill is this meant to test?"

    She pauses. "And the birds? What of them?"

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

    The Cube shrinks away from Elena's touch as well, and Lunata has to squint in thought with a furrowed eyebrow as she thinks about the Cube as a pet.

    LUNIE-VISION:

    "Come along, Ge Ramda!" Lunata calls cheerfully as she holds onto the end of a leash, upon which her cube is roped upon. "Who's a good Cube? You are!"

    REALITY:

    "... n-nooo, I don't think it's a pet..." Lunata says tentatively, not quite certain -- she blinks as well as the propeller wing birds explode streamers, and then she says, "That doesn't look comfortable at all..."

    She looks back to Avril to say, "An... Original...?" She tilts her head. "Umm... I--I genuinely don't understand... sorry..."

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

"Better...?" Alisha asks, in surprise, even as her spear slams into the barrier created by his magic. She takes a step backward, eyes widened. She is surprised, to say the least. Symbology is a rare magic indeed on Lunar. The universal magic is rare there -- the spells granted by the Goddess Althena, like her own magic, are far more preferred. She begins to wonder if that dogmatic bias has made her underestimate the other form of magic.

She is surprised, to say the least, when Arleph uses his blood to fuel a water cannon. The high pressure burst comes flying in -- and so Alisha throws her spear in front of her, clutched in both hands, perpendicular to her body, and cries out: "Guardian!"

A white dome of interlocking hexes appears, and the water explodes over it, dividing across the dome of light. Alisha still shudders, having been pushed back by the attack -- and felt it tax her physical reserves, too. "You're quite talented, sir," she says. "I am duly impressed!"

Confetti explodes around her when a propellor wing bird strikes at her. Alisha shoots forward, and her spear drops down -- then swings up in a broad arc to hit at Arleph, in an uppercut slash. When she does, light explodes off the spear, and a deep brown-gold color infuses her.

"Earth Rave!"

GS: Alisha Diphda has attacked Arleph Ardan with Earth Rave!
GS: Alisha Diphda has completed her action.
GS: Arleph Ardan takes a solid hit from Alisha Diphda's Earth Rave for 94 hit points!
GS: Alisha Diphda takes Cover! She gains 50 temporary hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 The dome makes Arleph lifts his eyebrow in curiosity. Is this truly a Ki Projection? It might be. Again, it is not quite his realm of expertise. If it was magical, it would be very different, he assume... then again, there is a veritable buffet of magical traditions around here, which still is impressive considering this is one planet. Or two, if you consider the moon.
 
 "Thanks you." The Symbologist says, gathering himself back up to bring his arms into a defensive posture. "You as well." Once more, he find himself at the wrong end of a spear. The downward arc finds a similar shield blocking against him, that immediatedly shatters, sending the older man flying from the upper swing. Somewhere during this upper ascension, he hits a bird, exploding into further confetti before landing unceremoniously on the ground.
 
 He grudgingly get himself back up, a long gash over his front quite visible. It might be time.
 
 Arleph swings one arm to the left, hand flat while the other rises up above him, pulling it down. Symbological circles spins into being at his feet as he intones.
 
 "THE WEIGHT THAT LIES UPON ALL OF OUR SHOULDERS!" Arleph intones, his voice taking on an booming quality, energy crackling from him, two fingers pointed at Alisha. "INVISIBLE AIR AND WATER, MAKE YOURSELF KNOWN!"
 
 A sudden burst watery blue shield explodes outward from the Symbologist, engulfing half of the arena and the close-by fighter. Inside, the humidity is crushing, ruthless, much like the worse summer night in a marsh you could ever imagine.
 
 Then it gets worse.
 
 "ATMOSPHERIC CONDENSATION!"
 
 This feeling grows twicefold. Four times. Ten times, the weight of water hidden in the air just increasing in weight, the natural shape of humans having evolved to handle the pressure in the air, suddenly changes.
 
 It would be far more impressive if Arleph wasn't covered in conffettis.

GS: Arleph Ardan has attacked Alisha Diphda with Atmospheric Condensation!
GS: Arleph Ardan has completed his action.
GS: Alisha Diphda has activated a Force Action!
GS: Alisha Diphda takes a solid hit from Arleph Ardan's Atmospheric Condensation for 159 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Yarobeleedt has posed.

    "OH WE GOT FIRST BLOOD RIGHT THERE AND IT'S GUSHING!! THAT IS SYMBOLS RAD!! HOLY SYMBOLS!! DUDE!! YOU ARE A DUDE RIGHT?? YOU HAVE GOT TO SEE THIS!!"
     Yarobeleedt peeks up. He watches the blood-hued water blast sputter about the protective hex shield. Somehow the darkness that obscures the face under the hood pales to a lighter shade of gray. The actual shade going pale.
     "human have more blood in than body??" Yarobeleedt stammers.
     "SHE'S SURE ABOUT TO FIND OUT WITH THAT AWESOME UPPERCUT SHE JUST DID ON HIM!!"
     "When does he dye?!" Yarobeleedt asks.
     "LEGALLY SPEAKING, NOT IN THIS RING DURING THE TOURNAMENT OF ARMS!! IN CASE YOU ARE ASKING WHETHER HE IS ACTUALLY INTENDING TO RECOLOR SOME PART OF HIMSELF AND NOT EXPIRE, OF WHICH BOTH WORDS SOUND ASTOUNDINGLY SIMILAR, TECHNICALLY HE'S DYEING RIGHT NOW WITH ALL THAT RED OUT THERE."
     This entire conversation might be the reason Yarobeleedt is translated the way he is. This bit. This exchange, right here. This entire chunk of the game is at fault.
     Maybe.
     "wait. Wait! It is the ^Liquid Man^."
     "THAT IS A BAD ASS TITLE!!"
     "...fufufu. Press the hindons~" Yarobeleedt disappears under the table again.
     The temperature has become freezing. The mud starts to freeze into voxel-like chunks and rise slowly into the air - this fight may involve aerial movement before long.

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

Alisha has fought mages before, but it isn't common for her. She has less experience -- and that takes her by surprise. The Symbological spells, the incantation, the fingers pointed at her -- all of that is terrible intimidating. For a moment, she feels her insides turn to jelly, fear struck through her. She has read about what a dedicated wizard can do to a battlefield.

It is the voice of her mentor, in her mind, that makes her stand firm through that. 'Do not give into panic,' Lady Maltran seems to whisper to her. 'Their spells are powerful. You have to defend as much as you can.'

Crushing humidity surrounds her, enough that she instantly breaks out into a sweat -- and she is lost under the crushing pressure of the spell, before it explodes outward. Her clothing is sodden, then, and her armor has some dents -- and yet, she isn't as harmed as she should be. The glow of light that suffused her fades. And the air becomes freezing. The mud under feet begins to shatter and crack and lift -- and Alisha goes sprinting across the field, spear swinging back.

She lunges at Arleph, and swings her spear down, stabbing it hard for him. "Light..."

Which is when multiple copies of her spear, made of light, also strike down as she starts a rapid combination of spear thrusts at him.

"...BLAST!"

And it is punctuated by a titanic explosion of light, which fires directly at Arleph, and threatens to send him hurtling across the now frozen arena, if it should strike.

GS: Alisha Diphda has attacked Arleph Ardan with Light Blast!
GS: Alisha Diphda has completed her action.
GS: Arleph Ardan has activated a Force Action!
GS: Arleph Ardan critically Guards a hit from Alisha Diphda's Light Blast for 31 hit points!
GS: Alisha Diphda takes Cover! She gains 50 temporary hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 Alisha's mentor is a very wise woman. In the end, despite the might that a wizard can bring to the battlefield, the remain human. Most of the time they are human, anyway. MORTAL, anyway. Hopefully. AT LEAST IN THIS CASE, Arleph is mortal AND human. He bleeds, like the rest of them, like he abundantly have proven in this fight.
 
 The spell go off, the Symbologist looking slightly surprised that Alisha is pushing through the initial fear he detected in her visage, gathering her courage to charge at him. He smiles with a pleased expression. Good. Good. There should be more courageous folks like her in the world.
 
 This gentle condescending thought turn around quickly when the light spears multiplies before him. His eyes widens, his mouth grit into a determined ricktus. Damnit. He was getting ready to follow up his spell, he can't just dodge this--
 
 A foot step forward, his body shivering. The environment grows cold, like he's seen on some Artic planets, the ground rising by itself in some inexplicable manner. Soon, he'll have to climb. This is a fortunate turn of event.
 
 One hand is thrusted outward at the incoming onslaught, his other gesticulating. It's obvious the wizard is hard pressed, gripping at invisible strands. One such tiny island of frozen mud flies up in the air, to meet against the incoming light spears and Alisha's own terrible thrusts. Pieces of mud are thrusts up at the last few moments of her thrusts, but there is nothing he can do against that blast. It blows him backward, again, on his ass.
 
 Still, even on the ground, even as he staggers to his feet, force concentrated on his other hand, Arleph intones.
 
 "CONJURING FROM THE CARELESS FROST OF NIFLHEIM TO MY COMMAND!" The Symbologist intones, his free, wounded hand pointing at Alisha. "FREEZE THE AMBROSIA WITH FORCE!"
 
 While the area around them is, indeed, freezing quite mightily due to the machination of an announcer, the water he conjured earlier condenses into a tight bubble above Alisha, including her sodden clothes. It creates a tight bubble, barley a fist wide, hovering there. Then, at the very center, a light burst forth, flash freezing the bubble with ice pushing outward all it comes into contact with.
 
      "AQUA FRIGORE!"
 
 The bubble detonates with thunderous force, sending flash frozen shards out that lingers with itself.

GS: Arleph Ardan has attacked Alisha Diphda with Aqua Frigore!
GS: Arleph Ardan has completed his action.
GS: Alisha Diphda has activated a Force Action!
GS: Alisha Diphda critically Guards a hit from Arleph Ardan's Aqua Frigore for 37 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    With Noeline, this was an easier conversation to have.

    With Lunata, the girl genuinely doesn't seem to know what Avril's talking about. This just results in an increasingly baffled Avril -- probably about as confused as Lunata might be. "Oh... I see," the young lady in green says, her gaze once again sliding over towards the cube. Once again, she blinks, then regards the cube more intently.

    Out on the field, the terrain is quite literally cracking up -- the ground literally freezing over as the competition heats up. "Is this to test reflex?" Avril wonders, finally taking a dang seat.

    And glancing towards Lunata, she murmurs, folding her hands on her lap, "...Perhaps, we should discuss this later?"

    Finally, some tact.

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

Alisha shivers as the air and ground grow so cold -- and as Arleph chants, and she realizes that her technique did not bring him low. Her eyes widen a little, but she holds that shock in check, as she sees water above her condensing into a frozen bubble, and she realizes she is at the center of it. Her eyes go wide.

Training takes over.

"GUARDIAN!"

The blessed light of the Goddess Althena fills her, and then the same dome of light erupts from her. This time, it pushes out from her, and all of those frozen bits of water in her clothes and on her skin are pushed out. When the ice shatters in a titanic, thunderous explosion, it slams into the barrier instead of her skin, and most is held at bay. Some rips through -- a few slashing into her, drawing red blood.

The princess knight hisses in pain, but she nods. It was a skillful spell and it deserves her respect.

Alisha leaps, then, and jumps at one of the chunks of frozen mud rising into the air. Alisha kicks off it, to direct herself downward. That results in her dropping down straight for Arleph -- and she stabs downward with the spear, trying to strike hard into the sorcerer from above.

GS: Alisha Diphda has attacked Arleph Ardan with Skewering Spear!
GS: Alisha Diphda has completed her action.
<Pose Tracker> Yarobeleedt has posed.

    "THIS IS FREAKING AWESOME!!" Mister Torque echoes the sentiments of just about everyone. "THE BEST AGAINST THE BEST AND IT AIN'T OVER UNTIL THE SHOCKWAVE BLOWS OUT YOUR SYMBOLS EARS!!"
     A tremendous meeting of light and ice both stand to find blockades to prevent one from claiming a definitive victory over the other, as the two gladiators are left jockeying for position best they can.
     "Why so interesting in human watch other human them fight than??" Yarobeleedt asks. "Why not fight as selves? Just kill neighbor? Just kill brother??" Somewhere in the endless spite, pettiness, and cowardice that defines this creature is a fundamental difficulty in understanding why everyone looks like they're having so much fun. Fighting is to kill, to dominate, for survival. What about this is enjoyable?
     He shudders. Humans really are scary if they take full pleasure from even watching this by proxy...!
     "BECAUSE!!" Mister Torque just nips that line of thought in the bud, oblivious to some of the implications in word choice.
     Yarobeleedt keeps poking away at the signals to send the Symbology Team. They are growing overworked, frustrated, and uncertain as to what the hell it is is going on.
     The grass is now wavering about like it's alive! It writes rude words that somehow seem well-chosen to get under the skin of the contestants. They write on the walls and ground when it isn't whipping at the contestants.
     "

<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

    Lunata looks towards the arena again as she shivers, mumbling quietly, "I-- I think so? I feel like I'd be really embarrassed if I fell to the arena rather than my opponent... would it still count as a loss, I wonder?" Yes, Lunata, it totally would. Though the crowd probably wouldn't be too pleased if you just stepped on lava.

    Tune in to next episode: Lunata Croze dies in lava!!

    She nods very gently to Avril as she admits, "Y-yes, I'd be happy to. To be honest, I've been trying to learn about this..." she gestures, "... for a while now, when it -- um, accidentally came into my possession... so if-- you think it is a Medium..."

    She lowers her head. "It would be a lead..."

<Pose Tracker> June Lim Ze has posed.

 
"I guess at least this is screwing with both of them... probably," June muses, seeing this new fresh hell being whipped up by the promoters of Blastemol.

GS: Arleph Ardan critically Guards a hit from Alisha Diphda's Skewering Spear for 25 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 This, however, have taken a bit out of Arleph. He is economical when he use energy, but chaining two High Arts is still draining, no matter who you are. It's how fast you recover from them that matters.
 
 Arleph watches Alisha defend herself from his spell, using the same glowing white shield as she used before. That wont finish it, he sumrises. Damnit. He waits for Alisha, taking the few precious moments to rest and watching her come. The grass around them move, but quite frankly, beyond the distraction of movement, the last kick of adrenaline is far too high for him to care about insults.
 
 Right now, anyway.
 
 "YAAAARRRRRRRGH!" Arleph cries out, steping back to one of the rising mud island behind him, against rising a hand against the incoming spear. This time, it deflect against an invisible shield of air -- or water, it's hard to tell with the current temperature -- but the sheer impact make him stumble backward on the far end of the island. This is going to be far rougher than he imagined it would be.
 
 He swings an arm to the left, spinning into an arc around himself. A symbological circle grows out of his feet, intricate circuits flowing into one another the raises into razor thin layers of water that folds, flows in opposing currents from one another. They surrounds him, blasting out with a small tidal wave against the close-quarters Spearwoman.

GS: Arleph Ardan has attacked Alisha Diphda with Patterned Whirlpool!
GS: Arleph Ardan has completed his action.
GS: Alisha Diphda has activated a Force Action!
GS: Alisha Diphda guards a hit from Arleph Ardan's Patterned Whirlpool for 70 hit points!
GS: Arleph Ardan takes Cover! He gains 50 temporary hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

It surprises Alisha, a little, when she hears Arleph shout wordlessly. Her eyes dart to the side -- and she sees the words 'FAILED PRINCESS' in the grass -- and draws in a gasp, frowinging, before she looks back at Arleph. Waters come shooting for her, a sharp tidal wave that she can't raise a spell for in time. She puts her shoulder into it, and rushes through them.

She breaks through the water and leaps, coming down for Arleph with her spear swung back. The sword-like blade can serve as a slashing or stabbing weapon. She uses it like the former, now. Light dances along the sword's length.

"Rondo of LIGHT!" she yells, her crashing descent punctuating it. Light trails after the slashing swing of her weapon in a half arc, before she lands, ice and grass crunching under foot, and then wheels her spear back -- and thrusts forward, trying to skewer into Arleph with one mighty stab.

GS: Alisha Diphda has attacked Arleph Ardan with Rondo of Light!
GS: Alisha Diphda has completed her action.
GS: Arleph Ardan has activated a Force Action!
GS: Arleph Ardan guards a hit from Alisha Diphda's Rondo of Light for 103 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Yarobeleedt has posed.

    "HEY THERE!! ANNOUNCER FOR A MATCH!! THERE'S A HECK OF A LOT TO ANNOUNCE RIGHT ABOUT NOW!! YOU DON'T WANT TO BLOW YOUR CHANCE TO SAVOR THE FLAVOR OF SOMETHING THAT'LL HAPPEN AGAIN NEVER!!"
     "Fufufu. I have an ounce~" Yarobeleedt sneers, one sleeve under the table as his little reconfiguring weapon-arm just pokes at all the buttons he can, covertly. "This field be of gray for yard soon!"
     Mister Torque sheds a tear, whether out of awe or just out of sadness for someone who does not recognize just how amazing this situation is. It's a badass tear though, he's allowed to cry at the very end.
     Something makes the sound of grinding to a halt. All light takes on an ultraviolet hue. The grass, the weird birds, and the see-through floating voxel mud coalesce into a growing singularity that tugs at the fighters. Everything is falling apart.
     "THAT IS KIND OF BAD-ASS BUT ALSO SORT OF BAD!!" Mister Torque goes. "MAYBE THAT'S ENOUGH OF THAT FOR ONE D--"
     "But it will former splode!!" Yarobeleedt whines.
     "NEVER MIND KEEP WHAT YOU'RE DOING!!" Well that was easy to convince him.

<Pose Tracker> Avril Vent Fleur has posed.

    Lunata admits that she's not sure what her Cube friend is -- and that more importantly, she's only come into possession of it recently.

    Whatever uncertainity had creased her expression before fades, relief coming into full bloom. "...I knew it," Avril breathes out, a slight smile crossing her lips. "Or, rather, I felt it...? It isn't the usual form for an artificial Medium, but something about it..." Her eyes close, briefly, as if focusing on something beyond the reach of the five senses. "Yes. It must be."

    "I will be in Lacour for a while, so I would be glad to explain at another time." She pauses, gaze briefly intent on the field of battle below. "...My name is Avril."

    And there's another, much longer pause. The battlefield looks like it's coming apart down there. "...Is this meant to test their response to unexpected situations and achieve victory in spite of overwhelming odds?

<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 The Rondo of Light is quite effective against the Whirlpool. The strong thrust and slash powers through the spinning bursts of water, digging through the Symbologist again with a wordless cry. Critically, he almost falls off the mud island they are fighting for. Arleph grits his teeth, tightly closing a fist together. He's starting to run low on energy, here. It is this sobering event that makes him take notice of all that's happening around there.
 
 And how everything is starting to fall apart.
 
 "Lady." Arleph grunts out with a huff, from fatigue as much as sore from his own wounds. "I do believe that whomever is handling the hazards here might be an idiot. Call it a hunch."
 
 On one hand, Water and Ice have done well for him. On the other, it is reaching a breaking point. Perhaps tossing her on her defensive might do some good again.
 
 Arleph slams his feet into the ground, his coat billowing into the direction of the pulled force as he concentrates. A symbological glow comes from his right arm, the other finger, split, aimed at the Princess. "HELLFIRE BE DAMNED," He intones, electricity crackling at his finger tips. "BEHOLD THE HEART BEAT OF LIFE!"
 
 By all things considered, this is not a large Lightning Bolt. In fact, you could probably just call it a brief shock, more than anything else. Even more, this is the only Lightning Spell he knows and have on his body.
 
 Alisha don't need to know that.

GS: Arleph Ardan has attacked Alisha Diphda with Shock!
GS: Arleph Ardan has completed his action.
GS: Alisha Diphda guards a hit from Arleph Ardan's Shock for 58 hit points!
<Pose Tracker> Lunata Croze has posed.

    Lunata has a little nod towards Avril, even as her Cube seems to wilt on her shoulder. If you look closely, it feels like it has blue fear lines over it like it's trembling. But why, exactly, it's fearful... none can say. Perhaps it's just a truly capricious cube companion.

    "Yes, absolutely-- oh!" Lunata gasps again as she turns towards the two, with a quiet frown. "... to be honest, it's starting to detract a bit, so... I'm glad that the stage effects are dying down now..." A pause. "I still really hope I don't get anything crazy when I fight next..."

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

"I am... inclined to agree," Alisha manages with a gasp, as the singularity forms, and things begin to draw into it, chunks of ground ripping away. She looks to the side, staring at a piece, and then back at Arleph. She sees his hand glow -- and then the bolt of lightning jumps off his fingers and slams into her, as she throws both hands and her spear to intercept it. Electricity explodes off of where it strikes, sparks flying and electricity arcing down into the ground.

And some gets yanked towards the singularity. Do the announcers really mean to destroy the arena in the course of the fight. Alisha sucks a breath in, and sees a huge chunk fly upward. She leaps up, lands on it, and for a moment, she surfs it towards the singularity.

Then, she kicks off it. She sends the rock cracking down towards Arleph. It is, of course, a feint.

Because she erupts from behind it, spear outstretched -- and swings down with a dozen fast stabs, afterimages of light left after each. She cries out, again: "LIGHT BLAST!"

A final burst explodes -- and slams into Arleph and into the rock she hurled down ahead of her descent onto him.

GS: Alisha Diphda has attacked Arleph Ardan with Light Blast!
GS: Alisha Diphda has completed her action.
GS: Arleph Ardan has activated a Force Action!
GS: Arleph Ardan guards a hit from Alisha Diphda's Light Blast for 94 hit points!
GS: Alisha Diphda takes Cover! She gains 50 temporary hit points!
GS: Arleph Ardan has Fallen! He is no longer able to fight!
<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 Arleph smile. At least, she's a bright young lady that seem to grasp situations well. He will not mind the outcome of this battle, no matter what happens. "In fact, someone that might have a teeth against us."
 
 Alisha rushes at him with her spear, pushing the older man to his feet to meet her head on. The rock slams into the Symbologist, making him crumple back with a loud crack, sending him rolling on the ground. Arleph, hurt and exhausted from all the micro wounds, the spells he's pushing out, brings his hand to grab at the ground to straighten him, to steady himself as the flurry of spears comes hurtling his way. This time, there's no stopping it.
 
 Arleph is blown away by the several blasts of light then finnaly the princess, launched out against the side of the arena with force. The older man lets out a gasp, slumping on the ground where he lands on his knees.
 
 He remains there, panting heavily, gritting at the ground... with his shoulders shuddering. A choked, stuttered laugh comes out of him, one that erupts out as he pushs himself out on his back, interrupting himself with gasping for air.
 
 "Go figures." He grunts, on the ground. "The one that beats me played straight." He mutters to himself, lifting a fist up in the air.
 
 "You win." Arleph pushes out, with considerably more effort.

<Pose Tracker> Yarobeleedt has posed.

    "AND THAT LOOKS LIKE THAT!! AND THAT LOOKS LIKE A WIN!! AND THAT WIN LOOKS LIKE IT'S FOR ALISHA DIPHDA!! AND I AM A BIG FAN OF BLOWING THINGS UP OUT OF PROPORTION BUT I THINK I HAVE STRETCHED THIS JOKE AS FAR AS IT'S GOING TO GO!!"
     There are cheers. There are, well, more cheers. Lots of them. The charismatic, graceful princess of a troubled political climate could be assured that, on a surface level, the people here adore her for being a capable gladiator and will be willing to pay 1299 Gella down the line as downloadable content. (Wait, what?)
     Yarobeleedt rubs his sleeves together with scraping noises. "Fufufu. ^Liquid Man^ is cleaned time." He starts to sink into the sha--
     "WHAT? YOU'RE NOT DONE YET!! YOU GET TO GO DOWN AND MEET THE WINNER FOR A SINGLE RINGSIDE INTERVIEW QUESTION!!"
     The singularity is still raging on.
     "Meeeeeee? No. Nonononononono--"
     "AW DON'T BE SHY LITTLE FELLA!" Mister Torque just up and hurls him from the announcer box into the ring. The sudden pain that runs through his upper arm and shoulder might cue the guy in that maybe the robed figure is not so much a little fella, and wow that robe stretches really long from the waist down, how the hell do you walk in it?
     Yarobeleedt tumbles and twists without proper traction against the blacklit field. Sleeves and... sickles? Was he carrying sickles? Strike furiously at the earth, but do not find grip as they are pulled into the singularity.
     "LETTER BEFORE ZEEEEEEEEEED???" Yarobeleedt screeches as he gets sucked in, while Alisha's features billow about like a proper bad-ass.
     "AND THAT IS THE QUESTION FROM OUR LUCKY WINNER OF THE ANNOUNCER FOR A CONTEST CONTEST!!" Mister Toruqe says. "ALISHA, LETTER BEFORE ZED?!"
     Yarobeleedt finds himself squished between all the other compressed features, in the middle of a sphere of simulated environmental chaos. The entire sphere shakes as he struggles, and the whole matter of it collapses unto itself.
 
               bewm!
 
     The entire arena flashes a beautiful white as Yarobeleedt is launched into the sky, becoming a twinkle and also someone else's problem. Both Alisha and the fallen Arleph make some sweet shadows, as the simulated environment returns to normal.
     "ANOTHER ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR OUR LUCKY WINNER OF THE ANNOUNCER FOR A CONTEST CONTEST, WHO I AM NOW INFORMED AFTER THE FACT GOES BY THE NAME OF RUDY ROUGHNIGHT!! YOU WERE A BADASS, RUDY!!"

<Pose Tracker> Alisha Diphda has posed.

Alisha lands on the ground and lets out a sigh of relief. Her spear flips up to rest against her shoulder. She looks down at Arleph, then she smiles. There is a hint of pride in her voice. "Thank you," she says. "That was well fought."

She looks up -- and blinks at the crowd, letting out a sigh of relief as she looks at the cheering crowd. She could, in fact, get used to this. She blinks, though, as Yarobeleedt goes flying through the air -- and then she jumps back when he hits the ground. Her hair blows back, and then she gawks as the singularity collapses.

She blinks a few times and stares. "I-I don't... understand."

Then she turns around, and remembering herself, calls up to the stands: "Um, I do not know what that was!" she says. "But, please, everyone, I implore you: buy from the Sparrowfeathers!"

<Pose Tracker> Arleph Ardan has posed.

 "Just roll with it." Arleph grunts out, a hand over his forhead and pinching his eyes. He's got a headache, now. He usually did when he came down a heavily magical fight in a crash like that. Even is getting woosy, in midst of commercial placement.
 
 "M'thinkin' it's just an ant."

===================================<* Dream Chasers BBS - (IC) Rumors *>====================================

Message: 8/54 (12w 6d) Posted Author Round 3: Alisha vs. Arleph Jul 09 2017 Alisha Diphda


Alisha and Arleph faced off in a very close match, with a guest announcer! The guest announcer, somehow, caused some very strange terrain effects that both fighters had to contend with. They fought in a very close match.

In the end, however, the princess knight managed to win -- but it was a narrow thing!

The mysterious announcer, however, vanished at the end of the fight. If they said where they're going... well, no one quite understood it.

============================================================================================================