The Jade Arenas of Heaven: Shock the Monkey [IC]

[Quinn]

The second the word "FIGHT!" left the overseer's lips, Crow was moving, bolting in a bold frontal assault at the ancient warrior before him! It was crazy, it was suicidal, it was...

A feint.

Right before he got within arm's reach, the hero vanished, appearing underneath Bres and kicking upwards with his boot in one smooth motion. Before the Fomorian leader could so much as blink, the Eye of Balor; an eldrich artifact of immense power and steeped in myth and legend, was rather unceremoniously kicked out of his hand and into the air. With another quick motion, Crow wheeled and flung the Eye as hard as he can, throwing it towards the stands and his friends and comrades from Freedom City!

"One of you get it out of here and keep it safe until I deal with this idiot! And for the love of the gods, don't use it!"

And then he was back in front of Bres, lowering his head and shifting his feet in a very clever defensive stance; without warning he launched a simple jab wreathed in earth energy, meant to keep his opponent at bay and buy some time...

[Raveled]

Ironclad took the blow full on her chestplate. Dammit, she wasn't expecting him to be so fast! For a horrible second she couldn't breath, and the image of a crushed breastbone, a pulped heart, a snapped spine all flashed through her head. She wavered on the edge of consciousness -- then her eyes swept over the stands and she saw Morgan and Victoria there, and even John and Joe, all cheering her on. She would not let them down.

Sucking in a harsh, painful breath, she leapt into the air, turning her flight into a spiral as she brought both her wrist blasters to bear. A fusillade of light and crackling sound erupted as she hurled charged energy at the Canadian hero.

[Semi-Autogyro]

The opening blow sets the rhythm of the fight, as a boxing adage was put. Her's was the equivalent of throwing a straight punch and trying to get him to drop his defenses. It didn't work. John stayed in place, the wind from her sonic boom rippling his clothes as the shock wave passed through him. She's fast, He noted idly. How to use that against her? He considered his options.

Caltrops? No. They would restrict his movement as well. Tripping her? He would have to take advantage of the split second she would be down.

She had circled back to her side of the arena, throwing another verbal jab at him. She's impulsive. A small smile came to his face, but was obscured due to his face mask. Now that he could turn against her. If her last attack failed, and didn't have any results he surmised that she'd try for the hay maker to try and end this as fast as possible. So, how to use that? Myrmidons mind raced through countless feints and counters before he settled on one that while it could be brutally effective, it meant he had let her attack him.

The spectators watched as Myrmidons combat armor started reinforcing itself with heavy metal and ceramic plating while Myrmidon himself shifted into a defensive stance. The unsaid line was there: "Not enough. Try again."

The spectators voices changed to background noise as he prepared to enact his strategy. "Well, no plan ever fully survives first contact with the enemy." was the thought that crossed his mind.

[Azuth65]

Wisp bowed to her opponent, "Indeed." Sliding into a fighting stance Wisp bounced on her toes lightly as the cheers of the crowd washed over her. Glancing at the stands she saw Morgan and the rest of the crew from Freedom showing their support.

After being told to begin, she burst into motion. In a puff of smoke Wisp left her position, attempting to slip behind Vigil. Striking with a open palm blow to the kidneys she followed up the blow with a kick to the head. Watching him recover effortlessly after she backflipped away she sighed, That is so unfair, as she dodged his counter attack.

[trollthumper]

Bres's pride seemed to deflate the instant the Eye of Balor left his hands; race swept over his face as he saw the Eye vanish into the stands. "That belongs to me," he said. "Do you really think you can tame such a thing? I'll see it returned, or I'll take payment from you in blood." A burst of roiling energy emerged from his hands and hit Crow dead center; fortunately, the bindings on his coat held, keeping the blast from doing any damage.

----

"A nice trick," said Silent Vigil. "We had one who attempted something similar in Yeoncheon, only he tried dragging in landmines from the DMZ. He taught me a lot about dealing with teleporters." In a split second, he seemed not to aim for Wisp, but for where she might be. The crackling electrical blast from his arm missed her by an inch. "I suppose I could always stand to learn more..."

[trollthumper]

Genardine closed the distance with Cannonade once more, her saber turning ephemeral and surging right into his chest. It burned like a hot stove, and his shirt began to smolder around where it had gone in, but he managed to stay on his feet. "That's a pretty damn sharp sunbeam," he said, delivering a blow to the chest that knocked her back a good foot. "Got any other tricks up your sleeve?"

The knight turned and spat blood onto the floor of the arena. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

---

Sentinel soared above the arena, taking Ironclad's blow to the chest and continuing onwards. "Magnetic pulse," he said. "I should look into that." He managed to close the distance and delivered another blow to her chest. "You have no idea how many idiots try to attack the SkyTrain with giant robots. It'll help to level the playing field."

---

Windtracer just stared at Myrmidon, somewhat surprised that he wasn't responding to the blow. She dashed forward, seeking to take advantage of the opening -- only to pause slightly as he dodged out of the way of her super-fast volley. This was all Myrmidon needed, as he quickly got the Australian speedster into a tight grapple that she struggled to escape from. "Not bad," she said as she beat against his arms. "Can't believe I didn't see that one."

[Semi-Autogyro]

John didn't respond. In fact he felt a pang of sympathy for what this poor girl was about to endure as he activated the plan that Crow and He came up with. Just a few grunts of exertion escaped his lips as he maintained his hold on her, mentally calling forth his duplicates.

The five appeared around him clad in his normal combat uniform as he commanded them. -- Execute Attack Pattern Delta Psi Gamma. Incapacitate only. --

Their five voices echoed mentally in his head. -- YES SIR! --

The speedster only tried to escape in desperation more as she saw them close around her, metal vambraces and gauntlets forming over their forearms and hands. They stuck as one, the impacts of their fists dully resounding against his ears and body.

She stopped struggling, and slumped bonelessly into his arms. John laid her flat on the arena floor, and checked to see if she was still breathing before standing up and dismissing his duplicates and armor.

"I am sorry. I would have greatly preferred to have met under better circumstances." He said to her prone form as he walked away.

[Quinn]

Crow’s eyes went wide over the bandanna, and he yanked his coat up instinctively. Luckily, the blast struck the fabric and dissipated harmlessly, though he was driven back a couple of feet. Recovering his stance, the teen shook his head and drew himself up, before cracking an insolent smile at Bres underneath the bandanna.

“Aww, angry ‘cause I took your toy? You mad, bro?â€

He spread his arms wide, two runes on his arms flaring to bright life; too bright, in fact. Blindingly so, orbs of light shooting out from the burning runes and hanging in the air all over the arena. To the spectators, friends, crowd, and overseers, it was akin to seeing a whole pile of spotlights fill the arena, illuminating the fight quite nicely; to Bres it was if he was staring directly at the surface of the sun, a field of blinding light that outshone even Crow’s silhouette. And even that slowly rippled and vanished as the second rune, the Rune of Fog, came into effect, and Crow’s outline turned extremely vague and indistinct. Although his voice was quite clear as he disappeared, and the crowd could see what remained of his outline aim a thumb at his opponent.

“Yeah, he totally mad. Hey B.B, can I call you B.B? You want your rock back, come and get it!â€

And then he was gone.

[Raveled]

Ironclad felt the blow to her chestpiece again -- Got to stop getting hit there. Will weaken the plate in the future -- and saw her vision going pink at the edges. She felt her heart labor to keep going, but once again she pulled through. Jessica could feel the sweat pouring down her face behind the mask, though; she didn't think she could take many more hits like that and stay in the fight.

With that thought in mind, the armored heroine slammed both her wrist blasters into Sentinel's stomach. She grimaced and fired them both; there was a huge flare of light as the hero's midsection was blasted with the full strength of her attack.

[Semi-Autogyro]

Myrmidon watched the fight between Morgan and Bres ensue, a noticeable frown on his face if one was close enough to see. This cannot go on forever, he thought as his friend was pulling all the stops out. He had to do something, anything to assist Mr. Morgan. But what? He knew that any yells of encouragement would be drowned out in the noise of the crowd. Aha. That would do.

A second before he faded out of sight into the fog, Myr made eye contact with trench-coated mage for a split second, and simply held up two fingers. It was quite simple really. The gestured intoned to Morgan that Johns' bout had only lasted two rounds and that Crow was taking to long. Hopefully it would inspire his competitive friend to push through all the distractions and focus solely on his foe.

[Azuth65]

Wisp gave a slight smirk at Silent Vigil's not-compliment, "Thanks." His comment about a North Korean trying to bring landmines across the border with him however left her a little queasy. Rather than make a comment, she started into her next attack. Combining flips and teleports, she moved in and delivered a handful of kicks, open-palm strikes, and as he fell back from her last attack she grabbed his wrist and pulled him in to drive her shoulder into his sternum.

[trollthumper]

The blast caught Sentinel right in the stomach. He lolled in midair, trying to gain some control... and as he did, he swiftly began to lose altitude. The audience gasped as he plummeted to the floor of the arena. He hit with a mighty explosion, sending out clouds of atomized white marble everywhere. Murmurs went up as the dust seemed to occlude the Canadian hero, and the medics were ready at the sides of the arena. As the debris cleared, however, Sentinel appeared, slowly climbing his way out of the crater. The audience applauded; the fight was still on.

---

Windtracer was caught off-guard by Myrmidon's grasp, and was even more surprised when his duplicates emerged. "Should've seen that coming," she muttered. "Clever boy, not to have 'em where I could see them." She braced as she saw the gauntlets form on their arms, and took their blows with a tight grimace. Once the barrage was over, she slumped in Myrmidon's grasp, and soon fell to the floor of the arena. The medics were quick to respond, checking her for a pulse and administering some sort of elixir. As they wheeled her out, she gave a weak salute to Myrmidon.

"Dear audience, the match is called! The victor is... Myrmidon!"

A storm of cries and cheers went up from the stands as Myrmidon stood alone at the heart of the arena.

---

Bres tried to scan the arena, but it was futile. It was as if night had fallen only for him. In the far fields of his vision, he thought he could see something flickering in the shadows... but not well enough for him to place it. Rather than leave himself open, he crafted a shield of swirling light around himself as he scanned the arena.

"I see you like to lurk in the shadows, boy," he called out to Crow. "Hide and wait like a carrion bird. Why, what would your mother say? She's a fierce and merciless bitch, yes, but at least she has the good grace to fight in the open. What does that make you, then?"

---

Tugging Silent Vigil's arm was like trying to pull a suspension bridge's cables down with your teeth; the cybernetic prosthesis was wired in so tightly it dragged the rest of the body rather than show any sign of giving way. It dig drag the soldier into the path of Wisp's blows, however, allowing him to catch the worst of the barrage. He let out a grin as he stumbled on his feet. "You fight dirty," he said. "You really know your stuff."

[Quinn]

Crow stayed low, moving slowly and quietly through the field of light as Bres stumbled about. He was relieved for the chance to take a quick breather; breaking out so much magic in such a short period of time was beginning to take its toll on both the coat and him.

Okay. Stages one and two complete. It’s working. Holy crap, it’s working. The plan. It’s working. And I’m not dead yet. This is good. This is very good…ok, get a grip, dude, you’re not out of the woods yet. Gotta finish this fast, or he’ll outlast me - wait, what’s he saying?

He froze, listening, and for a moment, Bres's words of insult caused a frisson of shame to pass through him. Then he caught sight of Myrmidon’s gesture, and Morgan grimaced, shaking his head as the rune reasserted itself. Forget fighting straight-up; Red Hand's Rule Number Three, never be afraid to fight dirty! The fatigue vanishing under fresh resolve, he sent a hidden thumbs-up his friend’s way in reply.

Block it out, block it out. I’m the one with words like knives here! Alright, stage three, go!

The concealing rune winked out as Crow appeared right behind Bres, another one on the hem of his coat near his foot flaring to life as he tapped into a brand new rune. “Definitely smarter than her. And you.†Energy flowed from his leg into the ground right before the teen vanished again, causing the ground to rumble and the marble tiles around Bres to roil. Abruptly, the ground simply rose up, attempting to snare and lock him down…

[trollthumper]

"And I asked so nicely before, sir knight," said Genardine, "but the formalities are gone. Bow to me."

The words bit like a whip, but Cannonade knew where she was going the instant she opened her mouth. He pressed his hands tight against his ears, slipping them under his helmet and keeping out the barbarous whispers. Once he was sure she was done talking, he went right for her waist, grabbing her in a tight hold that caused her to stagger. "Listen, lady, I don't think I made it clear the first time..."

He drove his fist right into her chest with the impact of a sledgehammer, causing her to shake and quiver in his grasp. "Stay out of my head!"

Genardine locked eyes with him, spite burning like a wildfire. Then, her eyes rolled back as her sword fell from her grasp, clanging against the marble floors of the arena. Cannonade laid her down once he was sure she wasn't faking and checked to make sure she was okay. The medics were out there first, however, and quickly got her to her knees.

"The match is called! The victor is... Cannonade!"

The cry went up to the sky, and Cannonade was momentarily dumbstruck by the cheering. When he regained his senses, he cracked a smile. "Yeah. I could get used to this."

[Raveled]

Ironclad watched Sentinel fall, and silently hoped he wouldn't get up again. Not just because this was turning into a hard fight; she also didn't want to fight a superhero any longer than she had to. Regrettably though, she saw the hero pull himself out of his self-made crater, moving clumsily but still moving. She decided to try something desperate; the heroine put her feet together and pointed her toes downwards, cutting her flight system almost entirely. Her armored form dropped from the sky like, well, like a steel human, and she hit Sentinel square in the chest.

[Semi-Autogyro]

Myrmidon stood tall, basking in the the roars of appreciation from the crowd and most importantly his friends. He felt his body wind down from the combat high, and looked around to see the medics wheel his opponent out. At her gesture he snapped to rigid attention before saluting her and then facing Guan Yu and the tournament hosts and bowing to them before proceeding out of the arena. It didn't sit well with him, fighting another hero, but he had to admit he had liked being supported by his friends. His thoughts then instantly went to his friends' matches and his next opponent. He made sure to sit through all the other matches supporting his friends but also gaining intelligence on his potential next bout.

[Azuth65]

Wisp gave a more sincere grin and glanced towards Morgan, "Fighting dirty is one of Red Hand's rules. Not the way I was originally taught but I find it works fairly well."

Vanishing in another cloud of her smoke she reappeared behind Silent Vigil and dropped kicked him in the back, landing in a handspring and rolling forward to land a series of quick rapid strikes in his stomach and sides finalizing with a solid kick to the shoulder.

[trollthumper]

The blast knocked Sentinel back against the marble, hard enough to cause cracks to radiate out from where he was laying. He collapsed against the floor, not moving. It was clear to Ironclad that he was still breathing, and his heartbeat sounded regular, if at the pace with a man who's typically unconscious. The medics wheeled him away from the arena, and the cheers went up around her.

"The match is called! The victor is... Ironclad"

---

The kick to the shoulder sent Silent Vigil reeling towards the floor of the arena. He braced himself with his arms, and pushed upwards in an attempt to regain balance. His legs went flailing out from under him, however, and he hit the floor chin-first. He struggled to get up once more, but eventually came to the rest on the cold marble. The medics were out instantly, and wheeled him out of the arena. He lifted his head from the stretcher and mouthed to Wisp, "Let's talk later."

"The match is called! The victor is... Wisp!"

The stands erupted with a thunderstorm of applause. Even Silent Vigil was clapping as he was carried away.

---

Crow knew that he would appreciate the look of Bres's face when the earthen net grabbed him for a long, long time. The scion of the Fomorians struggled against his clay bonds, thrashing at them to little avail. "You treacherous little worm!" His hands glowed scarlet, raw magical energy pouring through them into the clay net, but not even they could chip away at the restraints. "When I get out of this, I will visit waste upon you that will make the Morrigan weep tears of blood!"

[Quinn]

Crow appeared in front of the raging Fomorian leader, cracking his knuckles as the light show fizzled and vanished. Inwardly, the teen was shaking in his boots; this was it, he had to act now! He took a step back, bending his arms backwards and cocking his fists, the familiar earth energy wreathing both of them simultaneously...

"Go howl, Bres."

Morgan shot his fists forward with every ounce of force he could muster. Both struck home, one in the sorcerer's gut, the second right in his nose. Powerful, rumbling energies lashed into him, the clay restraints shattering under the sheer ferocity of the twin blows.

[trollthumper]

The barrage sent Bres onto his back as his marble bonds shattered. The Fomorian chief struggled to get to his feet, staring at Crow with eyes that burned with hatred all the while. Soon enough, though, the light in his eyes faded, and he slumped to the floor, unconscious. A roar went up from around the arena, and as Crow scanned the audience, he saw the three ladies in black.

They weren't applauding. But they were certainly talking amongst themselves.

"The match is called. The victor is... Crow!"

The other matches wore on with a good deal of spectacle. Some ended quickly, while others -- such as the man from the IDF, named "Gevurah," versus a water controller with a misty form hailing from Mainz -- carried on for close to a half hour. In time, however, one fell to another, and the victors emerged to a storm of applause. With the last match concluded, Guan Yu addressed the crowd.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today's matches are at an end," Guan Yu declared as a woman in scarlet armor walked away from a cheering crowd. "Sixteen champions shall continue on to tomorrow morning's rounds... and from there, eight, to tomorrow afternoon's rounds. If you seek further entertainment, I believe the matches have just begun in the Turtle Beak, Well and Emptiness mansions. For our competitors, however, the time has come to retire back to the Extended Net -- and tonight, there shall be a feast to celebrate the day's battle."

True to Guan Yu's word, there was a feast in the dining chamber of the Extended Net that night. Unlike at breakfast, where the competitors had kept to their circles, the night was convivial, with those who'd fought fiercely trading friendly banter over platters and hors d'ouerves. Bres the Beautiful seemed to be absent, for some reason, but Sun Wukong was present and leading the proceedings.

"No hard feelings," said Genardine to Cannonade. The fae lady was back on her feet with nary a bruise; the medics of Tian did incredible work. "I seem to become another person when battle takes me. It's one of the reasons my queen holds me in close regard."

"Then I'd hate to run into her."

"You should," said the knight, her manner turning steely. "Seeing her in her element is amazing. She is like a firestorm run through with the sun's fury, kissing the earth and devouring it both in the same --" She blinked, and looked back to Cannonade. "I'm sorry, I'm going grandiose again, aren't I? It's a bad habit of mine."

"...yeah. Grandiose. That's it."

[Raveled]

Jessica Parker wasn't an especially gregarious woman at the best of times, but she was intrigued by one of the competitors she had seen that day. She was wearing a tight-fitting cheongsam of dark green silk, with gold turtles embroidered on it, and was holding a drink in one hand as she navigated the crowds, searching for one form in particular. She found him eventually, in a small knot of fellow fighters, apparently discussing different ways to dislocate a shoulder. She touched Silent Vigil on the arm to get his attention, and smiled widely when he turned around. "Hello. I'm Jessica Parker." She gave a small bow, no entirely sure of the social ritual here. "I saw your match, and if I may say your augmentations are stunning. Are they a government job, or from a private benefactor?"

[Quinn]

Crow sat with his fellow Claremonters, still in full costume and coat, staring at the crowd in a distinct daze. One arm ferried food from his usual oversized platter to his mouth, but the rest of him still seemed well beyond stunned.

I beat Bres. Bres the Beautiful. Thousands - hundreds of thousands years old. Unbelieveable power. And I outsmarted him. Stage 1, Disarm. Stage 2, Vanish. Stage 3, Lock Him Down. Stage 4, Take Him Down. How did I...what did I...

He leaned forward, putting his head in his hands, ignoring the weight of the Eye of Balor (that would have sent his mind into a whole new wild series of thoughts) in one pocket. Then he leaned back and looked at Myrmidon and Wisp with big, round eyes.

"Guys, am I dreaming? Tell me seriously, here. Pinch me if you gotta."

[Azuth65]

Vicky looked up from her own meal and to only the most careful of watchers would notice her hand slip under the table under Crow's yelp and blush. "One pinch, as requested," she smirked at his response. "That said Crow, very impressive fight. I've got some awesome pictures to put online when we get back home."

She finished her plate, thinking about the upcoming matches.

[Semi-Autogyro]

Myr looked at Mister Morgan, then to Miss Victoria and finally back again to Morgan his head cocked in puzzlement. He reached over and pinched the back of Morgans' hand, hard.

The desired effect was satisfactory. "Dreams do not have pain associated with them ordinarily. Therefore, you are are conscious, or we all are having a conjoined dream, which could be true with the caliber of some of the psychics here."

He took another bite of something called 'prime rib' that he found he liked. "But I do not think the tournament organizers would allow such a thing." He continued after a quick drink of water. "I am glad that our plan helped in your bout. It could have gone a lot worse with a man as skilled as Bres. Hopefully he is not one to retain a grudge over a friendly tournament."

Still, there were so many new things and people here. It was a bit overwhelming to him, especially when some of the other competitors wanting to talk with him, and when Windtracer chatted him up he was at a distinct lack of words. He mostly stuck alongside his friends, but he was happy to make some new acquaintances.

[Azuth65]

Vicky excused herself, leaving the table with a kiss on Morgan's cheek as she rose. She spotted Silent Vigil quickly enough after scanning the crowd. In a silent puff of smoke she vanished from the place in the walkway she stood and reappeared next to his table. "Silent Vigil, good to see you're okay," she greeted with a warm smile. Extending her hand to shake his metallic one, she added, "Excellent fight, you sir, are a worthy opponent. Now then, you said you wished to speak, and now seems as good a time as any. Sup?"