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Post by Xypher on Jan 12, 2014 15:13:40 GMT -8
Combatants: Merrill Vs Warrior. Story V: Matched at V10 Turns: Battle 7, Intro 2 Judge: ? [Needed]
The air was calm as Merrill teleported into the area. He started walking towards the destined battleground. Healer, the Candevil, and Defender, the Kite, followed behind him . He thought about everything over the past few years, from his first arrival here to his first Christmas, to meeting Warrior. From there, he thought about Cypher, Zeta, Strike, Feint, and several others. He thought about Eon and the Eternal Endgame. He reminisced about all of the memories he had as he walked. He smiled down to Healer and Defender, remembering the first time they met, and their first battles together. He remembered the times where Warrior started drifting away, changing from the happy, upbeat, cocky and well deserved navi to being calmer, more withdrawn, distant and near silent navi he had become.
He cared about his friend. He wondered about the trials Warrior went through. He often bounced ideas in his head about what his friend had went through. He was determined though, that this fight would... change things with him. He hoped he could earn not only Warriors respect, but more important than anything, his trust. This battle had so much more meaning then just a friendly spar. He hoped that he could not only get through his physical armor, but the mental wall Warrior had put up as well.
Then, he started thinking about their first battle. Merrill gave it his all, and he knew Warrior did too. They had clashed blades over and over, each blow trying to stagger the other in an attempt for the upper hand. Everytime Merrill had the upper hand, Warrior was right there to tie the score and even take the lead, per say. He remembered hitting Warrior right near his eye, and how Warrior brilliantly used his broken visors as daggers to slice him several times, even one nearly gutting him. He remembered little about the ending, his body giving out and blacking out to see how Warrior had faired against his attack.
And then there was the time of training with him and Mirror. Merrill knew he and Warrior had both grown greatly in that time. He couldn't help but admit, he did give it more than he would in a regular training battle, his pride and determination to keep pace with his best friend and rival apparent. That battle was cut short, and there really was no clear winner to that one either...
Would there be a victor this time around? Or would this end in another tie? Only time would tell.
The trio finally stopped, the sand slowly settling at the many feet. Merrill looked around, surveying the battleground. To his left, was the ocean, lazy waves drifting towards him. The rising sun peaked over the dawning horizon, making the sky light up with multiple shades of blue, yellow, gold and pink. It made things gain a sparkling glow to them, including his and Defender's armors and the flames from Healer's head. To his right, several hundred yards away was the forested woods of the Forest Net. The soft sand beneath him felt warm to the touch.
While he waited, he pondered his answer to the very question he had asked his Rival and best friend.
"Why do you fight? What are you fighting for?"
He thought about each battle he fought. All of his training, physical, mental and emotional. What did each battle mean? What did he earn from each battle? Especially each battle with Warrior. What did he learn? What was all of that training for?
He thought about his transformation, to now whom he had become. He couldn't help but let a small smile flash across his face.
He had two answers for his Brother-in-Arms.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 18, 2014 18:19:45 GMT -8
The scarlet sun illuminated Warrior's eyes first as he approached from the distance along the shore. The golden gems glimmered like candles while he approached. As the sun continued to slowly rise, it revealed the rest of his facial features that were hidden in dawn's discrete shadows.
He closed his eyes as he inhaled the salty air and felt a moist breeze chill his cheeks and distort his brown spikey hair. He was still walking - it'd take a few moments for him to reach where Merrill was, so he opened his eyes and looked out to the rising sun over the ocean's horizon. It was a beautiful scene, to say the least. It modeled the real world so accurately with its elegance and tranquility. The peaceful atmosphere caused Warrior's mind to reminisce about his past - namely his past with Merrill.
It was difficult to remember how they first met... it felt like he had always known him. It involved a battle, no doubt. A friendly one, of course. There were many that Warrior could defeat in battle. More that could defeat him. But there was only one that he could fight to a stalemate.
On every single occasion that they had sparred, there was never a clear victor between Merrill and Warrior. Even when adding Remnant and Healer to the equation, they'd always amount to a draw. Whenever Warrior went for a more straight forward, burst-centric style of combat with relentless attacks and split second evasions, Merrill was excellent at countering his strikes blow for blow and sending him back on the defensive. Likewise, when Merrill had the chance to exhibit his own offensive abilities, Warrior's endurance and survivability were able to pull through as well. And so the pattern would endlessly repeat.
He'd never had to fight against Defender, or at least not that he could recall, but Merrill was probably unfamiliar with Remnant's newer forms of synergy with Warrior, so once again their odds were evened out. The two were either polar opposites or exact copies. Perhaps this battle would change that, although it was hard to believe that considering all of their past attempts.
Finally reaching the place that Merrill was at, he would notice Warrior - while not actually smiling - seemed to have a happier expression about him. Maybe he was just happy to see his old friend again, or maybe he had finally moved past the things that had kept him down in the past?
"Why do you fight? What are you fighting for?"
Warrior did grin at that question. Maybe it was just because of his name, but he got asked that quite often. Strangely enough, his answer never seemed to be the same, but that's probably because it changed depending on the situation.
"A person can fight for anything. It's what they live for, or what they die for, that truly defines them."
His riven scarf was picked up by the wind and fluttered at his side like a broken wing. Almost as if on queue, Warrior tilted his head in the direction the wind was coming from and closed his eyes, breathing in more of the refreshing sea salt aroma while letting himself take in the soft melody of the gently crashing waves nearby. The seagulls weren't out yet... he began to wonder if there was such an equivalent in the Cyber World before returning to the moment.
"Today, I'm fighting to win. We've still got a score to settle, you know?"
"But why don't we make this interesting, for old time's sake. Let's leave Remnant, Healer, and Defender out of this."
His eyes reopened and his head turned back to Merrill as he made his offer.
"Deal?"
He'd still had yet to return Merrill's question, but there was no rush. The world wasn't on the brink of total ruination and they weren't pressing for time. It felt good to finally have some free time away from a world in constant peril, and he'd rather spend it no other way then doing what he loved best with an old friend he hadn't seen in a while.
Hopefully they'd walk away form this one with less cuts and wounds than past endeavors, but considering the amount of passion they both showed in a fight, that was quite unlikely.
[Intro 1/2]
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Post by Xypher on Jan 22, 2014 14:32:05 GMT -8
As Warrior approached, Merrill's smile widened at the sight of his old friend. He felt his energy rise, his body already reacting to Warrior's presence. As Warrior arrived, he gave a slight bow, something he had not done in a very long time.
""A person can fight for anything. It's what they live for, or what they die for, that truly defines them."
Warrior was indeed correct. A textbook definition, however it held true. Both of them lived that rule.
"Today, I'm fighting to win. We've still got a score to settle, you know?"
Merrill smirked. He couldn't help it. An obvious answer, and he knew it. He would let that pass for the moment. However, he was determined to learn more about Warrior himself. However, before he could settle on a response, Warrior made his offer.
" "But why don't we make this interesting, for old time's sake. Let's leave Remnant, Healer, and Defender out of this."
Merrill's eyebrow's raised slightly, very intrigued. He couldn't help it, but he liked the idea. Just like old times? He admitted to himself he wondered the edge that Remnant gave him, knowing just ow powerful having Healer and Defender had made himself. He took a deep breath, turning his head, looking down at Healer and Defender.
"We make this decision together.. Do you--"
Before he could finish, Healer spoke up.
"Go for it! You can take him! We know you can! Besides, the two of you need this, and we know it. "
Defender nodded, jumping down, landing next to Healer. He looked up at Merrill, giving his body in a nod-like agreement. Healer however, turned to Warrior and spoke.
"Remnant, don't you agree? You can understand Warrior just as much as we understand Merrill."
Merrill's eyes opened in shock. He knew how much they had looked forward to this, especially Healer, who had wanted some payback for being tossed around like a ball. But he felt honored that the two of them would let him truly test himself against his best friend.
"Thank you, both of you. That means a lot to me, especially because you guys believe in me..."
As he turned his head back up to Warrior, he composed himself. His eyes brightening up, full of passion and energy as he made his decision.
"I accept your proposal."
Not only that, but Merrill thought he could do one better, and raise the stakes. Going off of Warrior's response to his question, he formulated his response, carefully, speaking from his heart.
"I too, am trying to win. That is given. I also fight for our honor. I have many reasons to fight... But I also have other reasons..."
He paused for a moment, looking to the sky now, the multicolored light embracing the heavens above them. He changed topics briefly, to clarify why he chose this area to be the battleground, while he found the wording to how he wanted to move forward.
"Do you know why this place is called "Dawn's Enlightenment?"
He looked down again, placing his left palm outwards. In it he brought forth a small light, resembling a flame.
"This place has a strange way of teaching you things you want to know. About oneself, about imitations... For example, I've learned a few new tricks I plan to use today. One of which, I learned in this very spot."
He closed his hand, letting it fall back to his side as he stared directly into Warrior's eyes.
"I have questions, and concerns. I know that you've changed... You've become... hardened. I don't exactly know how to describe it, but you don't seem as happy or outgoing as before. Your Light shines brightly, my friend... But It's not as bright as it used to be. I know you've gone through your trials, as I have mine but... You just seem to distance yourself from others... The Life in your eyes has become... Colder, if you will. I'm curious as to why, and I want to help you regain that warmth..."
Merrill shut his eyes for a moment, searching in his heart for a way to express himself.
"I know I'm asking for a lot. And I know I may upset you by asking, but I wish to know the truth. Friends don't push friends away. I would never push you away. You are not alone, and whatever it is that's been changing you, I am here to help you carry that burden. I know that you know a lot about me, not necessarily everything that you may want to know, or maybe you do. But I also have a proposal. I propose that If I win, I can ask about your past freely and get a satisfying answer. And if you win, You may do the same of me, about anything. And I will give you an exact reason for why I fight this fight."
Opening his eyes, Merrill stood his ground, the small breeze toying with his hair slightly, his cloak fluttering to the side. Merrill felt the energy from his aura change, changing the mood, and heaving the air around them. He waited patently for Warrior's response, his nerves fraying at the edges slightly while he waited.
Intro Post 2/2
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Post by Deleted on Jan 23, 2014 19:55:19 GMT -8
"Well..."
Remnant spoke up as he stepped out of Warrior's body. The decision had been made: he would not be a part of this battle.
"Just don't kill him."
He was talking to Merrill when he said that. Warrior resisted the urge to chuckle at Remnant's doubt in him, but perhaps that was to be expected after considering how much he often relied on Remnant in the more recent past.
Warrior's grin slowly sank to a neutral-frown as Merrill went on with his proposal. And interesting pitch indeed, but a risky one in more ways than he could understand.
He turned his head to Remnant, as if seeking advice from him for how to respond. But Remnant, too, was riddled with indecision. After leaving Merrill in his suspense for a few moments, Warrior's half-grin finally returned and he gave him his attention again. But Remnant was the one to speak up, surprisingly.
"We've got our secrets. Everyone does. But it's not lack of trust that persuades us to keep them, so much as it is... protection."
"You're keen to notice the changes you've seen in me since that fateful day --"
Warrior was referring to the Eternal Endgame when he said that. Everything Merrill had mentioned was true. He'd changed in more ways than one, and not many were able to detect that change, truthfully. Only the ones as close to him as Merrill.
-- but know that those changes happened for a reason. For security, mostly."
It was hard to imagine how a personality change could be caused by a need for security, much less the other changes Warrior had undergone over the past few years. But if it were clear to understand, there'd be no reason to conceal it.
"I do trust you, Merrill. And I know you wouldn't hesitate to help me out if I so much as asked, but..."
"But there's only so much that we, as Navis, are capable of."
Remnant spoke up once more to complete the thought that Warrior would have otherwise left unfinished. Their story was probably beginning to sound a little more serious than they had usually let off for it to be, but that's because it was. They felt a little uneasy putting their secret past out on the line like this.
Another brief silence later, Warrior spoke again.
"The truth is a dangerous thing, in this case."
Warrior looked to Remnant once more, as if nonverbally telling him he'd made his choice with what he was about to say. Though he was speaking to Merrill, he continued to look at Remnant as he said it.
"But if you prove to me that you can handle the danger of knowing the truth... I'll share it with you."
Remnant nodded as if in approval. It implied that he agreed with Warrior's decisions -- that he, too, trusted Merrill with a secret no one else knew.
But he'd still have to earn it.
[Intro 2/2]
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Post by Xypher on Jan 24, 2014 7:30:44 GMT -8
As Remnant spoke, Merrill debated whether if Remnant was talking to him or Warrior at first. He guessed that Remnant was talking to Warrior about not killing him. He couldn't help but snort. He believed both himself and Warrior both would stop if either had conceded. As they spoke, Merrill listened and focused very closely, picking up on the body language and trying to decipher the hints and or hidden meanings behind their words. "Those changes happened for a reason... For security, mostly."That line in particular made Merrill have a quick mental red flag. He stored that knowledge away, refocusing back in on Warrior. He couldn't help but smile with a pride to know Warrior trusted him. It meant a lot. "The truth is a dangerous thing, in this case."
...
"But if you prove to me that you can handle the danger of knowing the truth... I'll share it with you."He was kind of surprised that they agreed to his proposal. He gave a second bow. "I'm honored that you trust me. Truly, you have no idea how much that means to me. I too, trust you with my life. You are my best friend, and I consider you basically family."Merrill paused, smiling down at Healer and Defender, both whom nodded up at him in agreement. "Regardless of danger, Family and friends stick together. You should never have to face it alone. I will always have your back, whether you want it or not. No amount of danger or chance of deletion would make me change my mind..."Turning to Remnant, Merrill focused on him for a moment. He cocked his head to the side. "I disagree with you about our limitations. We, as Navis, only have limitations if we believe we have them. We, like humans, have the power to grow. To become stronger, to learn and evolve. My transformation to this form should be proof of that. We have no limitations, outside of a way to cross between both worlds."Merrill shut his eyes, raising his left hand to the side, his MZKeyZoth appearing with a small flash of white light. He grabbed it, flipping it around in his left hand. "I do respect and agree that we all have secrets. It's not that I want to pry in and know everything, but I have noticed these subtle changes and how your affected by them. It worries me. It's like you believe your limitation has gotten the better of you. It feels like you've accepted that you have reached that limitation."He lifted his right hand, the other MZKeyZoth flashing in his open hand. He clutched it, flipping it to mirror the other. "You should know better, Warrior. You taught me to believe in myself. You helped me reach where I am now. I wouldn't have this kind of power without you pushing me to my limits and beyond them..."Merrill opened his eyes, the yellow diamond appearing in his right and the seven pointed star in the other. His Sight abilities activated, he could see the energy that they were emitting. "Its time... Healer, Defender... Go."Healer and Defender both took off, heading for the trees so they could watch. Healer shouted back at Remnant as she made a beeline. " Come on Remnant!"After a minute, Merrill crossed his blades at the tips, pointing them at Warrior. He gave a small grin at seeing into his best friend's energy. He knew, Remnant was wrong. Warrior was just as strong as he was. Not only that, every battle they had so far had been a testament to that. "Warrior... I will not hold back. I am determined to exceed your expectations. Are you ready?"BATTLE START!Merrill made a growling noise, his smile disappearing as he drew energy within himself, the wind gusting in response to the sudden change of the natural energy. There was a hissing sound as Merrill released some of that energy, it physically creating a yellow, green and blue light that radiated a few inches off of Merrill's body. If Warrior listened closely, he could hear the static-like noise of the energy as it radiated. His white cloak rustled to the side, it too, glowing with energy. Merrill could feel his energy pulsing, exploding outward. He could see that it emanated right into Warrior's own energy flow, almost like it could push it back. Without warning he dashed forward at Warrior, spitting sand up in a cloud where he had stood. He covered the distance between them in a flash, slashing with the right-hand blade horizontally, the left one vertically. He jumped backwards, throwing each blade, homing them in on Warrior's position. He then made a water symbol with his hands, A yellow and white energy circle appeared at his feet, expanding several yards wide around him,. The energy seemed solid at the earthy sand level, fading as the light extended vertically up to about eye level. The energy ring was brightest at the edges, solid for a full inch, then also the glow faded as it got closer towards the epicenter. Merrill then waited for Warrior's opening moves, using what precious time he had to gather up energy. 1/7
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2014 19:25:57 GMT -8
Merrill was quite the optimist. Warrior admired that about him, perhaps even envied it. Perhaps this battle was just what he needed right now.
"Ready as I'll ever be."
Remnant stepped backward slowly until he reached where Healer and Defender were. This would be an interesting show.
BATTLE START
Merrill seemed to be gathering a lot more energy than Warrior remembered him capable of. He'd certainly grown stronger since their last encounter and wasn't hesitating to show that.
Normally, Warrior would start gathering energy as well... but for some reason, he didn't.
Was he still able to?
Merrill closed in incredibly fast, but Warrior was able to weave away from the horizontal slash and around the vertical one quite seamlessly. He hadn't drawn his own weapon yet, but his reflexes were reliable as ever.
As Merrill created a distance between them and hurled his MZKeyZoths, Warrior caught the first by the hilt and used it to deflect the second. He'd seen this technique many times before; Merrill would have to pull out some new tricks if he planned to land a hit.
"You've gotten a lot faster."
Speed was usually Warrior's trump card over Merrill, while durability was his counterplay. But as Warrior began to close the gap between them again, it became apparent that he wasn't all that much faster than Merrill anymore. Maybe not faster at all?
After discarded the MZKeyZoth by throwing it in the sand, he ran toward him at what would have seemed like a regular pace -- not blinking to the destination instantaneously like he'd done in the past. It almost seemed like Warrior had gotten slower since their last engagement. Maybe he was more powerful in another factor to compensate?
His plan was simple: disrupt Merrill from gathering energy. If he could keep him busy, he wouldn't be able to heal up the damage that Warrior was able to dish out.
As he came within striking range, Warrior ripped Faith off of her place on his back and swung it at Merrill like a baseball bat. It wasn't the most proper use of a sword, but it usually got the job done. There was no time to verify the hit. Immediately following, he swung the sword once more at Merrill, this time like a golf club, intending to knock him away upon impact.
A strange use of a sword indeed.
"..."
Remnant crossed his arms and continued to stare at the scene unfolding. He couldn't help but shake his head at Warrior. What in the world was he doing?
[Battle 1/7]
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Post by Xypher on Jan 28, 2014 18:27:57 GMT -8
Merrill couldn't help but grin as Warrior spoke. Warrior's reflexes were as sharp as ever. Not to Merrill's surprise, Warrior had countered the MZ/keyZoths with little effort, actually using one to deflect the other. Warrior wasn't wasting any energy, it seemed.
"He is sharp as ever. Every move calculated perfectly. He isn't wasting a single ounce of energy. I too, can't afford to waste any either. But my new powers still need a bit more energy to have a chance to have an affect on him..."
As Warrior discarded his blade into the sand, Merrill recalled it to him. He also recalled the one that had been deflected. The blades would need a minute to return to him. Time which he wouldn't have, as Warrior initiated his attack.
However... Warrior ran at him unusually slow. He didn't try to dash like he normally would. He just ran at him with less than his usual speed. Was Warrior just toying with him? It didn't matter to Merrill yet, actually using the extra time to store in as much energy as possible. As Warrior gripped Faith and swung it at him, Merrill had plenty of time to back step away and to the right, the second swing missing him completely. Merrill then yet again, jumped back, this time to the inner edge of the energy circle, just outside of striking range.
Merrill placed his hand on the golden hilt of the two-hand on his back. He spoke, as he calculated his next move.
"Thank you. I have gotten a bit more agile. I've learned how to boost my speed in various ways.. However, I'll admit, your as sharp as ever with your dodging skills...
He paused, taking a second to absorb just a bit more energy.
"I hope your not holding back on me... What tricks do you have up your sleeve for me today?"
Merrill did question why Warrior wasn't moving faster. He knew Warrior was capable of it. Merrill knew he had worked on his speed, but he shouldn't be as fast as Warrior, should he? Even with his Sight, and his heightened sensing abilities, Warrior shouldn't be moving that slow. Maybe he was being tested?
Merrill took a deep breath, shutting out all the questions he had. It was time to focus on the here and now. Warrior may have caused Merrill a bit of confusion, but Merrill quickly refocused, selecting his decisions quickly, but carefully.
Merrill's face changing again from a half smile to a neutral expression, Merrill glowed again, dashing forward this time, faking his grip on the two-hand, going instead or his spear-staff as he closed the distance between them in a flash. He struck at Warrior's midsection as he passed by, taking a few steps before jumping into the sky, his wings bursting out from behind his cloak. He kicked up a large cloud of sand as he did so. after climbing about fifty feet, Merrill turned and looked down towards where Warrior had been: in the middle of the energy circle.
Merrill raised his hand, glowing blue, green, white and yellow energy balls appearing around him, rotating around his body. The wind again, blew off to the side, his cloak moving with it.
Merrill waited a moment, feeling the wind. He wondered when Warrior would start using the wind to his advantage.
He thrust his hand down, sending meteor after meteor down towards the circle. Each one hit where Merrill intended, increasing both the size of the circle with the energy dissipation and increasing the sand cloud within it. As the last one targeted the ground, Merrill dived with it, right behind it, making several quick slashes through the dust, aiming for Warrior, trying to get him back out of the circle. Merrill landed on the inner edge of the circle, waiting for the dust to settle, Merrill put his staff away, instead drawing the two hand, holding it closely against him. He began to absorb energy from all sources around him, the sand, the water, the sun and even the air. He almost had enough to try out a new move he had been waiting to use.
Just a few more seconds....
[/div] 2/7
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Post by Deleted on Feb 1, 2014 12:03:08 GMT -8
A ruse; an action intended to deceive or trick someone. A false move made in order to lower an opponent's guard and exploit their confusion.
Merrill was fully aware of Warrior's potential - if he was holding back, Merrill would have noticed. The gambit was whether or not Merrill would respond by hesitating to attack.
"Oof!"
The answer was quite obvious when Warrior felt the rod of a spear-staff slam against his gut. Merrill was keen; a difficult one to fool.
Luckily, the actual blade of the spear didn't strike Warrior, but only the shaft. It felt like a merciful consequence of his failed attempt to trick Merrill, but then again, he should've known the deception would fail.
"I hope your not holding back on me... What tricks do you have up your sleeve for me today?"
"Better ones than that, of course. Stay tuned."
Remnant's image flickered a bit as he saw Warrior take the hit. He'd been so used to intercepting blows for Warrior that he almost ported over and done it again. Not only that, but he and Warrior shared a sort of telepathic link. When Remnant saw the attack coming, his first instinct was to warn Warrior of it, but once again, this wasn't his fight, so he'd have to let Warrior deal with this by himself.
Warrior found himself in a cloud of dust before he could catch sight of where Merrill had made off to. The colorful glowing energy from above was visible through the sand screen, though, so it didn't take him long to find him again.
As the first meteor came, Warrior drew his sword in retaliation. Swinging his blade at the falling meteor, he not only deflected it but sent it flying back towards Merrill instead. This inadvertently stopped the energy circle from expanding as well as the dust cloud.
Each meteor was reflected -- it was clear that Warrior wasn't holding back now as he dashed to each orb before it hit the ground. There wasn't much Merrill could do after the last meteor if he was diving right behind it when Warrior sent it back skyward, but if he managed to evade and continue his series of slashes, the veil of sand would have dissipated by now and Warrior would have noticed him with just enough time to parry.
Merrill would get his wish though as Warrior dashed backwards out of the circle to create some distance between them.
Black energy gathered in his palm -- Merrill was quite familiar with what this normally meant. But instead of holding it, Warrior infused his weapon with the energy so that it developed a glowing black aura around it. This was probably less familiar to him.
*VROOSH!*
With a swing of his weapon, a black shockwave was sent flying from the sword, homing in on Merrill's position. The shockwave's homing trait wasn't a strong one, but enough that it'd take more than a step to the side to evade.
*VRO-VRO-RO-RO-ROOOSH!*
A series of several more slashes, each sending equally propertied shockwaves from the sword. One wave on its own would have been a problem, but Warrior sent a barrage of them in rapid succession, one after the other. It would have appeared that the tail of one shockwave was connected to the tip of the next.
Though they all shared the same trajectory, they didn't all share the same shape. One was horizontal, another vertical, some diagonal -- Warrior chose quite the variety of slashes for this maneuver. The black aura of his sword vanished after the last cut and it was back to normal again.
He was still standing just outside the edge of the energy circle as he prepared to go back on the defensive.
[Battle 2/7]
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Post by Xypher on Feb 8, 2014 11:29:55 GMT -8
Merrill had struck first blow, when the shaft of his spear-staff struck true. However, Merrill had no time to relish in that small victory before Warrior started deflecting the meteor's back at him. Unexpected as it was, Merrill used it to his advantage by reabsorbing the energy into himself.
"No matter.. I'll just apply the energy into the circle myself..."
As Merrill waited for the dust to fully settle, his ears heard a noise in front of him.
*VROOSH!*
"What in-"
He then saw the black shockwave thorough the thinning haze of sand. He quickly took a hop to the left towards the water, attempting to stay in the Energy circle. Thinking he had evaded the shockwave, Merrill relaxed, until the shockwave pivoted towards him.
"Well. That IS new..."
He threw up his own two-hand to block the shockwave, the energy was strong enough to push him back a few inches. As the first shockwave finally died down...
*VRO-VRO-RO-RO-ROOOSH!*
"... Crap."
Five more incoming shockwaves. And they were all very close together. Merrill knew he wouldn't have time to block each one with his two hand before the next one would hit him. He released one hand from his blade to throw up a quick shield to try and stop the incoming shockwaves.
The first one hit the nearly clear and partially complete energy shield, and pushed both the shield and Merrill back. The second one hit the shield before the first one dissipated and Merrill slid back farther, out of the circle and into the water this time. When the third one hit, Merrill had almost no time to react before the shield shattered like glass.
"Umph!"
The remaining two shockwaves hit dead on, sending Merrill sprawling back several yards into the water. He fell, completely immersed under the water. The two-hand was stripped out of his hand, but luckily ended up right next to him.
Merrill laid under the water for a moment, trying to come up with an immediate comeback. He had to admit, he was surprised by the attack. Warrior never had had any homing type energy attacks before. He did admit it was pretty cool, and a brilliant tactic on Warrior's part. He grabbed the two hand and stood under the water for a moment, taking a second to sheath the large blade.
He closed his eyes, and started gathering up water. Manipulating the water, he blasted himself up, into the air. He spread his wings, spraying water droplets everywhere as he beat them every few moments to keep himself hovering over the top of the ocean. Water droplets rolled down his face from his wet hair. His wet cloak was now off kilter, with the extra water weight. He gave a quick shout out for his rival's success.
"Neat Trick! Energy manipulation is a suitable tactic for you!"
He placed a hand to his face, stroking his chin. he felt a warm liquid on his thumb. The shockwave must have cut his cheek.
"First blood however... Goes to you."
He took a deep breath. Raising his hands, the crystal on his forehead pulsed brightly for a moment as water from the ocean rose in front of Merrill in a thick wall. Higher and higher the wall of water rose until it was about twenty feet high and several feet thick. Merrill then threw his arms forward and down, aiming to have the torrent wall of water slam into Warrior, missing the edge of the energy circle that he had created thus far.
Without wasting any time, he unhooked the two-hand's sheath from his cloak, and dispatched the clips that attached it to him. He grabbed the spear staff that was locked in place, and threw it, cloak attached, high in the air, aiming way above the water wall towards Healer and Defender as he muttered to himself.
"No need for that stuff now. It's extra weight."
As the "water wall" slammed into the land and started decreasing in size, Merrill beat his wings, dashing forward. He charged in straight for Warrior's form, and upon arrival within a few feet, drew his blade from the sheath in a striking motion. A little technique he had learned along the way. It was no ordinary "draw" technique. The two hand shone with a white light, a searing blast of energy slashing forward towards his opponent. Without losing rotational momentum, Merrill then grabbed an MZKeyZoth that had previously vanished, out of thin air and threw it at nearly point blank range at Warrior. From there, Merrill struck outwards, attempting to cleave Warrior at the waist. From there, he let out a small roar as he swung the blade down over his head, the point of contact with anything, whether it was Warrior's sword, head, arm, leg or even the sand beneath his feet, exploded a blast wave of white and green energy, so much so that Merrill used the momentum of being pushed back by his own move, he did a small aerial flip, landing on his feet. To end his attack phase, he retreated into the epicenter of his nearly completed Energy circle, sending trace amounts of energy into the circle, in an attempt to complete it before Warrior could retaliate. If Warrior looked closely enough, not only would he see the cut on Merrill's face healing rapidly, but that Merrill's body wasn't slowing down as fast as it normally would.
[3/7]
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 16, 2014 11:00:13 GMT -8
Warrior smirked a little as his attacks hit. He wasn't proud of bringing blood to his friend just then, but he knew Merrill could take that. It was nice to see that they could both still keep up with each other. So far, at least.
"Neat Trick! Energy manipulation is a suitable tactic for you!"
"I wouldn't call it that. It was more like... improvisation."
It came in handy... perhaps Warrior would develop that stunt a little further later on. But for the time being, he had to remain focused.
A large wall of water was approaching, but not too large that Warrior couldn't leap over it before it swallowed him as it came crashing down from Merrill's position. As he landed from the leap, Merrill was face to face with him before he had chance to react - his claymoore sized weapon already unsheathed after he'd swung it and sent a wave of energy colliding with Warrior.
"Ngh..."
"You need to keep your guard up."
'Shut up Remnant' was the only thought going through Warrior's mind at that point, and it distracted him long enough to get caught offguard again by the MZKeyZoth. Luckily, his last second attempt to evade caused it to only graze his torso and tear a portion of his jacket as it flew by at blinding speed.
Merrill was attacking quickly and relentlessly... Warrior could hardly keep up with what he was doing, but he parried the oncoming strikes to the best of his ability until it came to Merrill's last.
"You can't block that..."
"Shut up Remn-ugh!"
Once more, distracted by his spectating 'ally' as he was struck by an attack, he was sent him soaring away from the explosive point of impact. Warrior's body slowly spiraled as it created distance from Merrill's explosion - he landed with a bounce before using the sliding momentum of his touch down with the ground to roll on his back and get back to his feet at the end of the slide. It didn't bring any blood, but Merrill's ambush just then was quite detrimental.
"Let me handle this, Rem. You're not supposed to be interfering at all."
He was a good distance away from Merrill by now, and despite how quickly he could close the gap, Warrior could sense something dangerous about the circle of energy on the ground. He hated to let those blows go uncontested, but he knew he'd have to play this out more safely if he wanted to keep standing after whatever Merrill had planned.
Energy gathered in his palm - it was an old tactic that he'd used in arguably every fight he'd ever been in, but regardless of how stale he felt when reverting to old tricks, if it got the job done then there was no point in avoiding it.
No energy was spent attacking, but rather Warrior's full attention was directed toward Merrill's own attacks. As a glimmering white orb began to encompass his hand, Warrior watched closely at what Merrill would do next... If he couldn't avoid his next attack, maybe he could offset it with the blast he was charging up right now.
[Battle 3/7]
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Post by Xypher on Mar 13, 2014 22:52:41 GMT -8
Warrior didn't attack back. Merrill legitimately was shocked. It took him a full second of concentration to realize that Warrior was charging energy of his own. However, the feeling of his Circle brought him back to focus.
Suddenly, the circle seemed to stop growing in size. It seemed that the energy started to glow even brighter, radiating powerfully now. If Warrior looked closely, he could see that Merrill stopped charging energy in the circle.
"One down..."
Merrill then placed the sword tip first into the circle. Then, he raised both of his hands, palms up to the sky. With a growl, he released a burst of energy into the sky. The silver energy rotated above him, a good fifty feet above him. Without wasting any time or energy, he clasped his hands together, greeting some kind of sign, causing the energy in the sky to become ANOTHER energy circle. The sigil in the center was slightly different, and overall the circle was smaller, for now. this energy sparked down, unlike it's counterpart. He tethered the new circle to himself too, and grabbed the two-hand in his hands.
".... Stop holding back... Or I may kill you."
Merrill stepped forward, out of the circles. Eeriness started to emanate from Merrill. Merrill wasn't just threatening Warrior in a rude way. He was worried he might kill Warrior if he wasn't careful.
However, something was still bothering Merrill. Warrior was off his game. He could tell with his eyes. He decided to try a different tactic. He knew he might upset Warrior, but he wondered if Warrior just needed a small attack on his ego.
"Come on Warrior... Your holding back. What's wrong? Afraid to give me everything you've got? Afraid I can't handle it?" Afraid of me maybe?"
Merrill knew that goading wasn't his thing. He wasn't doing it to hurt Warrior, but he was using it to make Warrior angry. He wanted Warrior to unleash EVERYTHING he had. Light... Darkness... Hate, Anger... Love... Appreciation... Kindness.... Everything.
As both were fighters, they learned plenty about who they fought while fighting them. Not only that, but they had a bond in battle. Merrill counted on that bond to allow him to learn more about Warrior in THIS battle.
"I plan unleashing everything I have on you... I expect no less from you, my brother, my rival... Cut the Crap, and fight me seriously!"
Merrill started walking forward slowly, cautiously. With each passing step, he pushed the energy around him in a circle, physically showing off his control over energy.
"Unleash everything you've got on me... Including your Darkness... Unleash your hate... Unleash your Rage... Your Light... Your Sorrow.... Your love...Unleash it all! Because I am doing the same! I will show you EVERYTHING!"
Merrill roared then dashed forward, closing the distance between them as fast as he could, slashing horizontally, then vertically, trying to cleave Warrior in half. From there, he rotated 360 degrees and slashed again. He jumped back, throwing his hand forward, pointing it at Warrior, sending a quick rapid barrage of three meteors. He sheathed the large sword as he landed, using both hands to act as if he was drawing two swords, to which the two MZKeyZoth's appeared in his hands in a small flash of Light. Dashing forward, he did a slash with the left MZKeyZoth, followed by a cross-slash with the right. He then let the blade in his left hand go, it floating in the air next to him as he finally threw his hand forward with energy, intending to blast it in Warrior's face, right between his eyes.
4/7
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 29, 2014 14:48:14 GMT -8
"..."
He wasn't given much time to lend a response to Merrill before he lashed out at him.
*TINK!* *TI-TINK!*
Horizontal Slash: Blocked. Vertical Slash: Blocked, but just barely. And the third slash following the 360: Blocked, but only by a stroke of luck. Warrior just so happened to have his sword raised at the right angle to not get bisected by the weapon.
" ! "
Three meteors were incoming - Warrior wasn't prepared for any of them.
*BO-BO-BOOM!*
... But Remnant was.
"..."
In less than a split second, he warped into Warrior's body, then dashed outward to cut down each of the three meteors out of the air. They had broken their agreement from earlier, but that would have probably been the end of Warrior had Remnant not intervened.
Remnant's image split into two from there - one image blocking the strike from the left, and the other blocking the cross-cut from the right.
The two Remnants reunited once more with an open palm raised toward Merrill -- catching and absorbing the energy thrown at Warrior.
"... I am."
Warrior discarded his weapon by placing it in its holster on his back. This fight was over now; the victor had just been declared.
"I am fighting you seriously. I'm not holding back; I gave it all I had, and..."
He broke eye contact with Merrill as he continued almost as if looking away in shame to say what came next.
"... and, well, it wasn't enough."
Warrior slowly walked away - apparently there was some sort of business he needed to attend to or something. Truthfully, he was still uncomfortable sharing his secrets right now, and a part of him was hoping Merrill had forgotten the deal they'd made at the beginning of all this.
Remnant seemed pretty satisfied, though. Not disappointed in Merrill, to say the least, and hopefully the same could be said vice versa. He slowly discarded his weapon as well - something about his persona would have sparked some sort of familiarity inside of Merrill, though.
He was allegedly "the embodiment of Warrior's past", though... so perhaps that's all it was.
"And so our tie is finally broken. After years of rivalry, we finally find out who has the sharper sword."
He sounded proud of Merrill as he said that whilst continuing to walk away. There was no hint of shame in his loss, no trace of disappointment. A battle isn't only about victory - perhaps this episode needed to serve as a reminder of that to the both of them.
"It's not the destination, but the journey", as they say. The outcome of a fight isn't what makes it memorable - it's the fight itself.
Victory or defeat - Warrior could still walk away satisfied.
And that was a victory in itself.
(Battle Ended -- Warrior left the area; Remnant still lingers for now)
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Post by Xypher on May 15, 2014 11:07:16 GMT -8
Merrill was surprised when Remnant showed up, and he instantly reacted defensively by jumping back. However, as the pair sheathed their weapons, he did as well. He released the seals on the two energy circles, and let the energy fade back naturally, although not before refreshing himself, and giving some away to Warrior and Remnant.
He replaced the two-hand on his back. He walked over and gave a bow. It wasn't the outcome he had expected, but it had been a fantastic duel either way.
...
He had achieved victory. He wasn't sure how to feel exactly. He was proud of himself, and yet, he was disappointed he won. He released the thought however, listening to what Warrior had said.
"It was more than enough."
He replied, before Warrior could walk away. He bowed again, Warrior's praise meant so much to him.
Healer ran over, with Defender not far behind.
"You guys were amazing! Merrill, those strikes were fantastic! precise, accurate and lightning quick! All that practice really paid off!"
Defender nodded. He looked at Warrior and Remnant too. He focused on Remnant mostly.
"And Warrior! Your new skills were SO COOL! Those homing Slashes were EPIC! It's too bad the battle didn't last longer!"
Merrill patted her head, a way of asking her to calm down.
"Thank you... Your praises mean so much to me... Warrior, you fought incredibly. don't give yourself enough credit. Your much stronger than you think. You limit yourself when you have no reason to."
Merrill looked up, enjoying the warmth from the rising sun. When he looked back down, Warrior was walking away slowly.
"Wait, Warrior! I wasn't done! And we had a deal!"
Weather Warrior heard him or not, remained to be seen. However, Remnant remained behind.
Merrill stared at him momentarily, as something about Remnant was familiar to him.
"So... What exactly happened? Beforehand, Warrior was haunted by you... Now you two are allies... And I can feel Light in your heart, Remnant... May I ask what exactly happened after the End Game?"
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