Round 1: Scavenger (Pharod) VS. Shapeshifter (Flemeth) - Judge x Kiki x

[Kiki]

https://climbingsucks.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/102_0087.jpg

Awake. Or are you?

For as your eyes open to mere slits, you are met with only darkness. Pitch blackness. So dark, you cannot even see your hand were you to hold it directly in front of your eyes. The darkness is limitless, boundless.

And yet, you hear something in the distance. A scuffling. Another breath. It is your opponent.
Fear grips you as it does them. The darkness exudes only a sense of terror, silent terror. You cannot see, you can only hear. And all you know is someone else is in the darkness with you.

In order to explore the darkness, perhaps a way out, you must fight.

(After each combatant makes two (2) posts, the GM will make a post on any changing conditions.)

(You have 5 posts per person and 72 hours to respond between each post. By the flip of a coin, the warrior will go first.)

By the flip of a coin, the first to post is the Scavenger.

[Wattz]

The Scavenger was still shivering. Every memory, every idea, every sense of self was gone. Now, there was nothing left but a blank slate to rival the surrounding darkness in its vastness. Stolen. Taken right from the Scavenger’s bony grip. Hollow gasps ripped from the desperate throat of the shadow. The Scavenger needed something… anything… to act as an anchor. There seemed to be a faint sky up above whirling with a subtle redness against the blue: a small touch of reality to break the black. There was the cumbersome weight of equipment strapped to their back: rope, a shovel, lanterns. Most importantly, there was the weight of two bombs securely in the Scavenger’s pockets: finally, a reason to breathe.

My name is Pharod. Of this, the Scavenger was certain. But this information held no purpose. A name could not give a light to lead the Scavenger out of this hell hole. It could not provide the Scavenger’s gaunt body with strength. It could not relieve the infuriating knot tensing in their lower back from leaning against a dirty cell wall. And it certainly could not save the Scavenger from the steady breaths of an unseen creature directly across the way.

A name meant nothing.

And what was the unknown creature compared to her? (Her? Him? No, their. The Scavenger had no reason to choose one gender over the other. Both suited them just fine.) Was the Scavenger trapped like a mouse facing a lion in a cage?

No matter. Now, it was time to plan an escape. There was no reason to fight with even the slightest chance of getting away. Vast though the darkness seemed, there had to be an end to it. There had to be an exit. Could the Scavenger’s golden eyes be seen in the darkness? Pharod lowered their hood just enough to obscure the glow, not wanting to take the chance.

They considered themself lucky to still have some possessions to call their own. The shovel would do just nicely. Pharod reached into their cloak to grasp the handle. A splinter from the wood broke off into the Scavenger’s nail as they pulled the shovel out as quietly as possible. They winced, wondering if they were at least human enough to bleed.

Moving backwards would do the Scavenger no good; their opponent would know they were in front, what with the Scavenger’s desperate gasping at the start. Instead, they took a couple swift steps forward and right, hoping to arc around the mystery opponent. They held the shovel in front with the rusty blade pointing outward, though their bones shook with the effort. If the blade happened to run into something, well… perhaps Pharod would find out the outcome soon enough.

[camelean]

Darkness all around her, with no inclining to who she was. Looking around she could see a small light coming over what looked like a hill, but she wasn't sure. She, why does she always reference to herself as she? She felt around her body and felt only her skin and lumps on her chest, and a slit between her legs.

I guess this is the body of a female, she thought to herself. Then her name came into her head, Flemeth. She liked the name, however an overwhelming pain shuddered through her body. She could feel her body changing, getting stronger and she could feel her sight changing to see better in the darkness. During these changes, letting out a dreadful scream, she could see a creature making their way to her holding up a shovel.

Feeling as though this creature may attack her, so she took a swing at it with her now stronger arms that looked more bear-like than human like anymore after the changes. Flemeth only wanted to scare the person off, so she could figure out who she was better. Also she thought she would feel better alone than with some other creature.

[Wattz]

A high pitched scream ripped through the darkness. They swore it was the voice of a woman in pain. A mere human? No, it was something more than that. Pharod could have sworn the scream had warped into something bestial, a low rumble that took root in the thief’s chest. The scream was so near the Scavenger felt its force ripple the tattered robes around their feet, taken aback by its nearness. Misjudged our proximity. Rash.

Move, you fool! The Scavenger turned on a heel with their momentum still carrying them forward in the same direction. It had been so long since Pharod had the chance to stretch their legs that the reflex came as a shock. How swift, how light, how evasive—

—the spin was barely complete before the force of something on their left shoulder sent them face forward to the ground. They came clamoring down in a graceless clatter of lanterns and grave-digging tools. Pharod caught themself with their free arm, shovel-arm sprawled out to the side. A light stinging spread through their shoulder where the blow had fallen. It felt as if nettles had lightly grazed their skin. A claw? The blow had not been quite as harsh as the Scavenger expected. Though the attack had been but a warning, the image of this creature continued to grow with every flick of the imagination: a human’s voice. A beast’s strength. The Scavenger had never been more aware of their own weakness as they had now.

Clumsy. Foolish. Stupid.

Goddammit, if only they could see!

If the Scavenger could be tricked once…

No! They would find a way out. They would find freedom.

There was no telling if Pharod could scramble away from the creature outright. Not while prone like this. With a grunt that sounded more like a gasp, the Scavenger swiped their shovel blindly in the direction of where their attacker had come from, hoping to catch the creature’s ankles with the blade.

[camelean]

Flemeth could feel an impact, however she knew it was not devastating. Now with her body's transformation complete, and her eyes were adjusted to the darkness, Flemeth could see the creature before her. Covered in rags, with miscellaneous gear on it, the creature looked pitiful laying prone before her.

She believed the creature may have been knocked out or scared enough to stop fighting, however it's shovel suddenly swung across the ground toward her feet. Not able to get out of the way quick enough Flemeth received a cut on the front of her feet that were shaped like paws at the moment.

Infuriated by the sudden attack of the pitiful creature Flemeth stood on her hind legs and started to fall down onto the creature before her, attempting to crush it like the bug it was.

[Kiki]

** GM POST **

Somewhere in the darkness, you hear it. Like a loud yawn, it permeates the dark space. A sudden rush of wind across your face, an up-sweep of sudden air - hot air. You cannot see it, you can only feel it. A tear in the black void, something slowly trickling down into your confined pitch darkness. So you listen - what could it be? It begins like a thin sheet on the ground, but you can hear it gathering speed - its intent is to bury you. Soon it will pass your feet, then your ankles, moving steadily up the length of your body, weighing you down.

You reach a hand down to grope for the stuff as it pools at the floor. It passes through your fingers easily, like a sift.

Akin to an hourglass, your black confusing nightmare is filling up steadily with sand.

[Wattz]

Now! The Scavenger did not plan on laying prone for long, not so the beast could pounce on her prey. They were confident in their speed, in their cunning, and the Scavenger pushed their body so they no longer laid on their stomach. They were mid-roll, ready to put as much distance between the two as possible—

Just as the Scavenger moved to roll out of the creature’s path, the steady rush of hot air blew in from the corners of the darkness. They faltered ever so slightly, and the creature’s claw (hand?) fell down onto their right shoulder.

The hand of the massive creature stomped down on their leathery arm. But what the Scavenger expected to be covered in matted fur was actually covered in smooth skin. Human skin. The scream of a human. The strength of a bear. The images thrashed about in the Scavenger’s mind as they desperately tried to visualize what the shrouded adversary could possibly be. But it mattered not. Bones began to crack, and they cried out with a mixture of mercy and hatred, spitting nonsensical obscenities in raspy waves. The Scavenger smelled the creature’s breath as hot snorts of anger misting their face.

And the sand kept coming. Delusions of escape were swept away with it. Now, the Scavenger was sure of it. Fight, or die.

Pharod’s shoulder cracked again. Any longer and their shoulder would surely shatter into irreparable bits.

Their left hand burst forth from the sand in an explosion of grains. They didn’t stop until their leathery hand came in contact with the creature’s face. Hunting around in the darkness, they found a pair of gnashing lips, a snarling nose, a crinkled ear. And at last, the Scavenger’s thumb rested on what they thought was a round, tender eye. They took a sharp intake of breath, and then pushed their thumb inward…

[camelean]

Flemeth felt her hand hit the creature as she fell and it tried to scramble away. Then she felt sand starting to fill up the area around them, however this did not bother her in her enraged state. After that she felt several small object making their way toward her face. She tried to swat them away but then one made it to her left eye and started to press into it.

She almost ignored the object pressing into her eye but then it began to hurt enough that she rubs her head against the sand building below her attempting to remove it from her face. However, this had no effect so she started to paw at her face with her front paws finally removing the object from her face. She could tell that her sight was now blurrier than before, making it hard to see what was in front of her. She still looked around to see what caused her so much trouble, and it turns out it was pieces of a body. Looking like pieces of a hand. Enraged even more by the trickery she completely lost her mind roaring a deafening sound into the arena filled with anger and frustration.

[Wattz]

As the creature’s snarl ripped through the battlefield, the Scavenger pulled down and away from its grip, at last rolling away to the side. They gritted their teeth as the white hot pain of broken bones and bruised flesh shot through their shoulder. The sand pushed the Scavenger’s arm every which way, thrashing the limp limb without mercy. The whole arm was barely mobile, and the Scavenger was reduced to scraping up towards the sand’s surface with a single arm. Sand poured into the corner of their mouth as they moved like a swimmer stuck in gelatin. Grains stuck to the Scavenger’s glowing eyes. The creature behind them continued to scream.

And then what? Was the Scavenger doomed to drown in a devil’s sandpit? Or would they be torn asunder by a raging amalgamation?

Not if the creature drowns first.

Yes. This would certainly be the Scavenger’s means of survival.

The Scavenger plunged their good hand into one pocket. Their fingers first met sand, sand, more goddamn sand, until finally they finally felt the surface of a smooth, silver orb. One of Ironclad’s smoke grenades, bless the dead bastard. The Scavenger gave the grenade a quick peck with sand-crusted lips for luck.

Twisting around to face the direction of their screaming opponent, the Scavenger rose the grenade high in the air. They cursed their left hand, made awkward by years of lack of use, before flinging the grenade in the monster’s direction, hoping to disorient her further with thick clouds of smoke.

[camelean]

Just before a cloud of smoke surrounded Flemeth, she spotted her mark. The creature was upright and throwing something at her. Flemeth however was now in a rage so deep the only thing on her mind was destroying the creature. She charged in the direction of the creature, hoping the cloud would part before reaching the creature. Just as she reached the outer edge of the cloud she was in she spotted the creature yet again through her blurred vision. It was in front of her only a few feet and she new with the momentum of her charge if she pounced she would easily find her mark.

She pounced on her mark, jaws snapping and snarling in anger, determined to tear into the creatures flesh and start ripping pieces out of it. Saliva was slinging from her mouth, her paws in front of her inches away begging to make contact yet again. The only thing on her mind was complete evisceration of the her opponent before her, blind to everything else around her.

[Wattz]

My name is Pharod…

The Scavenger never thought these words would bring solace. A name had no tangible use. It had no weight in a world that would risk crossing a river with pounds of gold on its back with the promise of gaining riches. But the Scavenger repeated this fact as the beast advanced toward them as if in slow motion. I am a fool, the Scavenger thought in spite of the lingering pride buried somewhere in their chest. I am a shadow. I am the lion’s feed.

Yet still, there was darkness: an abyss that the Scavenger could not navigate. There was nothing more than the steady trickling of sand and the rabid, advancing cries of their adversary. Was this all that would be left? To awaken in oblivion only to die there as well…. But even worse was to die at the hands of someone—something—so much greater than themself. This, the Scavenger would not accept.

This, Pharod would not accept.

They would see to it that the creature drowned in its own fury.

And just as at the beginning of the fight, the Scavenger still had their trusty knapsack of belongings strapped to their back. As the Scavenger reached back into the knapsack to find the first piece of equipment, the beast erupted from the darkness, pinning them down. The Scavenger allowed it, pulling their final resort out into the open, the very first thing their hand managed to clasp--

--a lantern.

The beast thrashed about, stomping and clawing with reckless abandon. Over and over again, she dug into them, creating gashes along their body and spraying tendrils of saliva all over their cloak and face. The Scavenger’s thoughts wandered to the splinter sticking up from their thumb and wondered bitterly if a shadow as lowly as them could bleed.

There was no other option to take. The Scavenger pulled back their left arm once again, and swung it down as hard as they could towards the beast’s head.

[camelean]

Flemeth was blind to the lantern, or the fact that the creature had even pulled it from it's knapsack. She felt it hit her head, causing pain to erupt from her scalp. Blood was now falling down her face as the metal and glass of the lantern dug in. If she had been in her normal state it would have bothered her greatly, but her rage was so profound that even the pain would not stop her at this state. After taking the hit, Flemeth, opened her jaws wide, and tried to bite down on the creatures head in order to make sure it would not bother her again. The only thought on her mind was to get rid of this creature so she could figure out who she was again. This creature was a threat to her, and needed to be destroyed if she was to live in peace again.

Then a small thought leaped into her mind for a split second, 'What if this creature thought the same as her. That she needed to be put down for it to live.' Her jaws were just about to close on the creatures head, teeth touching the skin, as she moved away on her own. She then said, In a half growl half English,"I will leave you alone now if you leave me alone. I just want to live in peace creature." She then started to run off cautiously from the creature she had just mauled to near death. If it was lucky it might survive long enough to get help from someone or something else.

[Kiki]

** GM POST **

Each opponent has reached their five-post limit. The battle is over and the scores will be tallied up soon. Please check back for an update.

[Kiki]

** GM POST **


The winner is ~Wattz~.

Note: From what I had read and derived, both combatants had solid character development and understanding of abilities, flow of the story with GM guidance, and conventions with battle interactions. The determining factors, because you both did so well on the above listed, relied on the control of the fight that you engaged in, and length of post and detailing.

camelean's Total Score: 21
Note: There were a number of posts that seemed a bit too short, a bit lacking in detail, and as a result, I was left feeling a little shortchanged as to what the character's motivation and thoughts were. I wanted to see more of what the shapeshifting looked, felt and seemed like, and again, felt like I was left out a bit by the style of writing for it. I did not feel as though there was much interaction with the arena provided. However, I truly loved what details you did provide, and the solid portrayal of the Shapeshifter and its abilities.

Wattz's Total Score: 25
Note: I was able to clearly understand what was happening inwardly for your character, with the thinking process and battle rationale. I very much appreciated the attention paid to the surrounding and changing environment; it helped to display your ability to change and adapt your character and its already existing abilities to the arena.

I congratulate both you for your efforts and ability to write within the context of a changing environment and strong abilities of both in the art of Battle RPing! C: