damned_institute | Nightshift 44: The Coliseum

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Nightshift 44: The Coliseum

[Warped in from here.]

When Guy's eyes opened, it was almost as if he was waking up, and yet he knew that wasn't the case; he was standing, with a weapon in his hand, and somehow feeling far more comfortable than he had in weeks.

His gaze was on his feet, and it took him a few seconds to let everything sink in. He was wearing boots. His boots. And while being back in familiar clothing wasn't so new to some people, it was definitely a big change for him.

His head then snapped up and he realized just what he was holding. It wasn't Ashton's sword, but his own, the Jewel of Gardios -- and on top of that, Guy realized that he felt more powerful somehow. Did he have access to fonons? He had been working without them for so long, but it was almost as if he could feel them in the air now.

All of those changes didn't matter as much when he took in his location. The sphinx had warned them, of course, but the huge coliseum still impressed him, and what was even stranger was the way sunlight seemed to be filtering in from overhead. Was it actually day? This almost felt like he was in some sort of dream.

But that theory was torn into shreds when he eyed Sync, also in full form, standing across the arena from him. So what, they were supposed to fight? Guy didn't have a problem with that (it was what he'd come down here intending to do, after all), but he knew there had to be some kind of catch.

As he glanced to the side, he saw that Claude and Dias were in similar positions, except facing each other. "Wait," he muttered under his breath. No way were those two going to fight each other except in a sparring capacity, so what was going on? He wasn't sure where Anise and that other girl had gotten off to, but maybe it was for the best that they weren't here...

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While Guy had been worried about Claude and Dias, his concerns quickly had to return to himself. Sync wasn't the type to just wait around when he had a chance like this, and Guy was hardly surprised that the God-General was taking this opportunity to use powers that had long been sealed off to all of them. Idiot! Didn't he realize that there had to be some kind of catch?

He heard both Claude and Anise (from behind him?), one yelling Sync's name and the other his own, but he was more than capable of handling this now.

Seeing how Sync had decided it was a good idea to test out the fonons, Guy didn't see why he shouldn't follow suit. Watching as the ball of energy flew toward him, Guy let out a breath and then yelled out an attack name: "Tempest!"

He vaulted off of the ground, doing an impressive somersault that would have caused his sword to slice into whatever was beneath him. In this case, that was nothing, but he had mainly used the Arte as a way to get himself high enough in the air that the energy ball went shooting right under him -- and as a test of his own. Guy landed and then turned to watch Sync's attack hit the bottom of the stands behind him.

That was when he saw Anise up above, along with the other girl he didn't know, and -- was that Celes? He had no idea where she had come from, but it looked like they had an audience.

As he turned forward again, Guy had to watch as Claude raced toward Sync and was then rudely cut off by what had to be some kind of invisible wall. Ouch.

While he got the feeling that Sync was just going to keep up with the attacks, Guy wasn't going to engage him just yet. Shouldn't they try and figure out if there was some sort of explanation for all of this first?

Even before Guy prepared to dodge Sync was already preparing his next attack, shifting his arm until it was parallel to his body as he concentrated gathering the necessary fonons. He couldn't help but laugh as he watched Claude try to rush at him, only to stop short when the blond ran into some kind of invisible wall. This probably meant that he couldn't attack Claude either, but that was fine; the last thing he needed was some sorry bastard getting in his way. Him and his friend could stay on the other side and out of his business.

Of course, the God-General knew he should've approached this situation more carefully, but it'd felt like such a long time since he had access to his powers. And besides, it made enough sense that whoever sent them here in the first place wanted them to fight, otherwise they wouldn't have bothered returning their possessions in the first place. If that were the case then Sync didn't mind providing some entertainment as long as it coincided with his own goals. After all, he was nothing more than a tool anyway. Who could blame him for wanting to have a little fun while he could?

Yet the sudden booming voice was enough to deter his concentration for a moment. It sounded as if it resonated throughout the entire coliseum, and it took the God-General a few seconds to pinpoint the source.

'... Who was that guy?' Because Sync's mind had been elsewhere he hadn't been able to pick up the familiarity at first. Yet it didn't take long for him to realize that the voice was something he'd grown all too used to over the past week and a half. However, some small part of him was in disbelief at how he was now witnessing Landel in the flesh, as if attaching the voice to an actual being was out of place in itself.

Sync regarded the Head Doctor with a passive expression, burning the image into his head through narrowed eyes, before suddenly shooting his arm back out at Guy as he finally unleashed his arte.

"Thunder Blade!"

Upon the God-General's words a giant spear of lightning materialized high above where Guy stood, crackling once before shooting down towards the blond's general direction.

If there had been any questions he wanted to ask regarding the man, he'd be more than happy to let someone else do it for him.

Edited 2009-10-24 01:43 (UTC)

Guy had only been allotted a second or two to catch his breath before his earlier thought was responded to. It sounded like they would be getting an explanation, and who better to give it to them than Martin Landel?

He turned to the right, to where that voice was coming from -- and for once, it wasn't entirely filtered through a loudspeaker. The man was right there, and despite the fact that Guy had been in the institute for what he thought was a decent amount of time, this was his first time seeing the man with his own eyes. The weirdest thing about it was that Landel looked almost normal. Middle-aged, dark hair... The fact of the matter was that nothing really stood out about him other than his maliciousness.

Still, Guy wasn't allowed a chance to speak up even if he'd wanted to. He heard Sync's voice yelling out a command, and he remembered the attack as if it had been only yesterday that he'd last been on the receiving end of it. His body remembered the timing, and he sprung into action, darting out of the way right as the charged spear shoved into the floor, causing dust to fly up around it.

It took only a few seconds for the dust to clear, but in that moment he heard the Head Doctor finishing up whatever he had been saying to Claude. Guy was glad that someone was trying to get answers, though it wasn't very helpful to him when he was too distracted by Sync's onslaught to pay proper attention.

However, the message came through clearly enough when Guy suddenly felt a sharp pain cut through his chest (where the zombie bite should have been, he vaguely realized), causing the orange of his outfit to be stained with blood. He gasped out and then fell to his knees -- the cut wasn't fatally deep, but it had taken him by surprise. Where had that come from?

He glared over at Sync, wondering if he was somehow responsible or if this was something else entirely.

Sync rolled his eyes when Guy dodged his second arte, form partially swallowed up in the thin cloud of dust for those few seconds. Unlike the other, who was too busy dancing around like an idiot to pay attention, he was able to catch and digest at least the second half of Claude's conversation with Landel. The fact that he was witnessing the blond being lectured like a child was more than enough to pay back all his efforts.

Yet the God-General quirked an eyebrow when the Head Doctor raised his hand, looking about the arena for their due punishment. However, his attention immediately fell back on Guy just as the swordsman fell to his knees, the dark red stain on his shirt visible even from where the teen stood. Of course, the timing wasn't lost to Sync, but there was the possibility that it may have just been a delayed reaction from his attack. He wouldn't be surprised when it came to slow minds like Guy.

"What's wrong Guy? Getting tired??" There was no ounce of sympathy in the replica's voice, however, as he lifted his head high enough to show off his sneer. Sync had no code of honor, and he'd be damned not to snatch any opportunity he could take, no matter how filthy it was.

This was why he dug his boots into the ground and propelled himself forward, charging at Guy with unmatchable speed. Sync pulled back his arm, creating a tight fist with his right hand before swinging down with every intention of striking the swordsman in the face.

It didn't take long for Guy to make the connection between what was happening to him now and what he'd endured last night. Once again, he was suffering from a wound that had come from an invisible blade, and yet he already knew that this situation was different. There was no sense of him being in another place, another time, living out a death that didn't belong to him. This was real, and he had to wonder if the wounds would be gone by morning this time. With the arena-like setup, he was starting to doubt that.

Still disoriented, not to mention distracted by Anise's pained gasp that came from behind him, Guy wasn't prepared to get out of the way of Sync's attack. The God-General's punch connected, knocking Guy onto his back, hard. He had never doubted the Tempest's strength, and he could already feel a bruise forming on his cheek as the blood continued to drip down his chest.

Guy was nothing if not a quick fighter, though, and he immediately reasserted his grip on his sword and swiped out at Sync with it -- bringing the fight in close put them on a more equal level.

He heard the Head Doctor's words from above him and caught enough of the explanation that he felt newborn anger giving him the energy to fight even harder than before despite the wounds he'd already accumulated. So Anise had been injured, too? He didn't even have the luxury of making sure she was okay, but he knew one thing; he needed to fight relentlessly, which was something he was completely willing to do considering his opponent.

But then he had to wonder: had he received this injury because of Claude's hesitation? If that was the case, then chances were he was going to continue to have to brave attacks that he was powerless to block. He didn't believe the Head Doctor's apology for one second, and he would have cursed the man more directly if he wasn't busy focusing all of his attention on Sync.

While the successful connection of his attack made Sync outwardly grin, he was sorely disappointed to know that it'd only been because of all the distracting noises high above them. It figured that Anise couldn't keep her mouth shut for even one minute. Still, he could only watch as Guy pathetically fell back onto the floor, more than prepared to block the sudden slash with the heel of his boot. The block had caused a few tendrils of green lightning to appear at the point of connection, though Landel's words were enough to steal his attention for the time being.

One would think that getting a 'helping hand' from the Head Doctor himself would receive at least the slightest bit of amusement, but Sync was anything but grateful. It was almost as if they didn't trust him to finish the job on his own, which would only lead to Claude and the rest his idiot friends pinning Guy's inevitable death on something completely unrelated like this. It figured that he couldn't even enjoy this one thing.

The replica threw Landel a harsh glare, teeth grinding together as he bit back his poisonous words.

No, this was Guy's fault. If the swordsman had just kept to himself then he wouldn't have had to drag spineless bastards like Claude into the picture. Ha! It served him right for trying to make friends in a hellhole like this!

"Looks like it'll be to the death. Just like old times," Sync announced bitterly, raising his head high to meet Guy's eyes with his own condescending glare.

It was no surprise that Sync had managed to dodge him, but that didn't stop Guy from gritting his teeth out of aggravation. Still, he knew that losing his cool in the fight was the last thing that he wanted to do, and so he tried to focus on simply getting a hit on Sync rather than trying to divide his attention between his own battle and what was going on with Claude, Dias, and even Anise.

The girl would stay safe if he continued to fight, and he was just going to have to hope that Dias and Claude could stall for long enough that the Head Doctor was satisfied.

Then again, with that man watching them from up on his throne like that -- it was hard to imagine that he would let them slip by without going all the way. That was one thing that Sync had said that Guy could agree with.

In any case, the only way he was going to get a proper attack in on the God-General was if he got back up to his feet, and so Guy used his sword as support as he dragged himself back up. Even with that look that Sync was giving him, the swordsman reminded himself that he couldn't lose his head. He was usually very good at that sort of thing, but all of the extenuating circumstances was making it a little more difficult.

He didn't hesitate, however, in drawing in close to his opponent as he thought through his next attack. He drew his sword close to him and then pulled on the fonons that seemed to be plentiful all of a sudden. It didn't take him long to choose out an Arte. "Beast!" he announced, and he flung his sword arm forward and watched as the transparent blue figure of a beast appeared and rammed toward the Tempest with a roar; hopefully, this was something Sync couldn't dodge as easily.

Guy looked so pathetic right now, dragging himself up like that, that Sync just couldn't be bothered to kill something so weak. All he wanted from the swordsman was to make his death more challenging and yet he couldn't even do that! His glare only worsened when the latter finally recovered, but before he could lash out Anise's screaming caught his attention.

Looking away from Guy, the God-General scanned the coliseum, quickly catching sight of the red stain lingering in the air. Of course, he couldn't help but laugh at the sight. What the hell did Anise think she was doing? Did she really think she had a chance against someone like Landel? From the looks of it the arte was considerably weaker, giving the God-General the impression that she was still bogged down by this institute's seals.

Unfortunately, with his attention now fully on the scene before him, Sync hadn't the time to dodge Guy's sudden attack until it was too late. Green eyes immediately cast back down at his opponent just as the swordsman announced his attack, grimacing at the sight of the transparent beast heading straight for him. His arms criscrossed in front of his face, the same green lighting snaking out at all directions when the arte connected.

"Augh!" The force of the attack was more than enough to knock him back, the God-General's back sliding against the coliseum's floor. However, Sync suddenly forced the bottom half of his body upwards, performing a back flip and landing on his feet in a crouched position. He graced Guy with a wild grin, giving the blond a quarter of a second before immediately retaliating.

"That's more like it!" Already he was rushing towards the swordsman, suddenly twisting off the side in an attempt to confuse the latter before striking a fierce uppercut aimed at his jaw.

Edited 2009-10-30 17:14 (UTC)

Right now, Guy was so focused on just getting a hit in on Sync that the sound of his own Arte and the roaring of that beast made it difficult to pinpoint what Anise was doing behind him. He knew that he couldn't get distracted, since any wasted second might end up in disaster.

Of course, it didn't help when he kept wondering when he might get another unexpected injury somewhere, but he was going to have to hope that Claude could keep up his end of the fight. As much as Guy wanted to stay tuned in to every part of this situation that they'd landed themselves in, the fighter in him was completely aware that he couldn't afford to do that.

The fact that this attack actually connected filled him with a satisfaction that got him even more eager to keep up the fight. He watched Sync's recovery with little surprise; as small as he was, Sync was well-trained and he wasn't about to go down easily.

Guy prepared as Sync rushed him again, trying to follow his movements while also attempting to forget about the way his face was throbbing and the blood was still continuing to seep down his chest. While he wasn't bleeding profusely, the exertion of the fight certainly wasn't helping.

However, Guy wasn't just going to leave himself wide open to get slugged in the face again. The moment Sync drew in, he jumped back and then swung his sword down toward the ground, belting out the name of yet another Arte; it was coming back to him as if he'd never stopped using his powers: "Demon Fang!" A wave of energy went bursting from the sword and sliding across the ground, heading straight toward Sync.

Now that Guy was doing something it was actually much easier to let his body to do all the work, moving accordingly like any seasoned fighter. While the other hapless morons provided enough entertainment from afar, his focus was now on his opponent, knowing damn well what the risks were for taking the situation too lightly.

Guy had already beaten him several times, and even killed him once in the end, but with no friends to come to his aid he'd be damned to let the latter believe that he actually stood a chance.

Given that they were still technically fighting in close quarters, Sync couldn't completely evade the Demon Fang when he was recovering from the latter's dodge. The attack managed to hit, ripping into the side of his pants with angry streaks of red clawing up his calve. The God-General paid no mind to it, however, already preparing to counterattack with something much more powerful. The God-General's body acted on its own, performing a short back flip before unleashing his next arte.

"Cyclone Blaze!"

Sync could feel the heat of the flames surrounding his entire form as he launched himself at Guy.

It was only after Guy had gotten that hit in that he glanced toward the Head Doctor's seats for a split second, having noted the sound of Anise's attack connecting with something. As was to be expected, it didn't actually reach its target, and while he could hardly keep up with the conversation his friend was having with Landel, he did find his worry and frustration growing. Why did she decide to go and try to attack a man who was obviously invincible when she was already injured?

If something bad happened to her...

Of course, the only way to prevent that was by fighting tirelessly, and so that was what Guy intended to do. However, Sync had one advantage in that he wasn't likely to get distracted by whatever peril the other participants might be in. Recognizing the attack by its name when Sync called it out, Guy winced as he realized that he had very little chance of dodging it.

Lo and behold, he was more or less a sitting duck as Sync rammed into him, the flames surrounding his body scorching Guy's skin as he yelled out in pain and stumbled back.

There was one good thing about what had happened, though; while he was now in even more pain than before, the fire had cauterized his chest wound, so the blood flow would now be significantly less. His clothes were still singed and that hit had taken a lot out of him, but that didn't mean he was beaten.

The moment Guy could find the strength to move, he swung out with his sword, wanting to get Sync away from him before the younger man could follow up with a series of punches and kicks after all that.

Compared to how Guy was fairing, it was almost like Sync wasn't suffering at all. The few attacks that managed to connect had definitely caused his body to ache, but the adrenaline of the fight successfully numbed out a majority of these painful distractions. It also helped that he was now ignoring everything above him, hardly caring if Anise's arte connected or not. In the end it wasn't going to be of any use anyway. Maybe it was about time they learned that they couldn't get everything they wanted no matter how hard they fought for it.

Sync didn't even offer a hint of a smirk when his arte connected, watching listlessly as the latter's flesh seared from his chest. Unfortunately, before he could throw the swordsman off balance the God-General found himself dodging away from the latter's meager attack. The swing itself managed to tear into the front of his uniform, though it barely grazed into his own skin. Of course, why would something like that ever harm him? If Guy planned to kill him then he better step up from this lousy performance!

If it was a matter of stepping up, then that was something that Guy was willing to do. Having forced Sync to back up enough that he had some breathing room, the swordsman then focused, pulling his sword in close to his chest as he pulled at the fonons that were suddenly so plentiful. A green light started around his middle as he murmured out the word: "Center."

While the wound on his chest that was still slowly bleeding - the one he had taken from what had to have been Claude's inaction - didn't heal even a small bit, the burns became less severe and his face wasn't hurting nearly as much anymore. Centering himself like that really did help in a pinch.

It also gave him that burst of energy that he needed to really let loose. Knowing that he couldn't hesitate any longer, he raced toward Sync and wound up with his sword.

He didn't waste any time, yelling out "Tiger Blade!" as he was propelled into the air with a series of slashes before he came down with one final strike, relishing the feel of his blade tearing into his opponent -- and had he felt some resistance, the hardness of Sync's mask and then the satisfying feel of it cracking under his strength?

As Guy landed he took a quick hop backward, intending to get out of range until he could move in with yet another Arte. However, right as he was preparing something else, he felt another phantom wound start to tear open at his torso. Dammit! How was he supposed to win when he continued to have to fight two different battles, one of which it was impossible to win?

He wanted to look over to the other half of the room and see what Claude was up to, but Guy resisted. If he did that, then his friend would have to deal with even more guilt, and he didn't want to force that onto the younger man. He just had to focus on Sync...

Sync scoffed when he caught that green light glowing faintly on Guy’s exposed chest, having an idea of what the latter was trying to do. It was rather shameful that the latter had to resort to healing himself in order to stand a chance, but it wasn’t like Sync had ever thought highly of him. He didn’t plan on letting the man get too far, and thus prepared to rush at him with another series of attacks.

But the God-General didn’t get the chance to when the swordsman finally attacked, raising his arm to repel the first slash. However, the blond forced him to remain on the defense, trying to match Guy’s sudden speed. In an attempt to block a lower slash, however, Sync left his upper body wide open, the blade slicing deeply into his right shoulder while specks of blood dotted the clay floor. The attack caught him by surprise, but before he could recover the latter was already descending upon him with his final strike.

There was a loud clang! as metal collided with metal before one of the two caved against the pressure of the arte.

Flying shards of metal ripped into Sync’s flesh, cutting deeply into the skin underneath his, now exposed, eye. Blood began to pour down his forehead from where the mask had been pressed down from the force of Guy’s attack, matching with the deep patch of red that surrounded his shoulder. In the end the severity of the attack broke off three fifths of his mask, though what was left stubbornly remained hooked to his face. For the first time since the start of the fight, pain began to cloud Sync’s mind.

Yet that did nothing to stop him. Instead of being impressed the God-General's anger skyrocketed. Why the hell didn't Guy fight back like this sooner? If Sync hadn’t already known that the blond was too stupid, he would’ve been under the impression that the swordsman was just playing around with him!

“Bastard!” Now there was nothing to hide the murderous glare that Sync gave Guy, already rushing towards him in a fit of rage. Clenching his left hand into a tight fist, the God-General swung upwards in another fierce uppercut.

However, Sync couldn’t care less if it actually connected. In reality, the swing served as nothing more than a distraction while he prepared for his real attack, right hand clenched in the same manner. All of a sudden the God-General twisted his body, outstretching his arm as he shoved his right palm into the middle of the swordsman’s chest. A purple flash appeared at the point of connection, seemingly harmless at first, before the ghastly symbol of the curse slot carved itself right into its victim.

Having placed his free hand to his stomach, Guy could feel the blood from the new wound pooling into his palm. If anything, this cut was deeper than the first, and he could already tell that he had to make this quick if he was going to have any hope of surviving. If he took even one more hit due to Claude's hesitation, he knew that there was little chance of him living through this.

While he could have been angry at his friend, Guy knew better than that. It was Landel and his sick mind that had come up with this coliseum, and he was the one who was to blame for this. Guy could have yelled himself hoarse trying to damn the man who was only a matter of feet away, but he knew it was pointless. There was just no way to get through to a person like Martin Landel; he'd learned the same sort of thing from Van.

Guy really had destroyed part of Sync's mask, and while he did take some pleasure from the sight, he'd only added to his opponent's anger.

Guy did his best to pull back from the uppercut, making it so that Sync's fist only grazed his jaw, but then he was assaulted by a whole different kind of pain. It flared through his chest with a familiarity that made his arm throb. He knew what this was, and he felt his fighting spirit switch into a sort of panic as he flinched back and fell into a crouch.

The curse slot. He glanced down just as the purple light was fading, and felt his stomach twist with nausea. He'd thought he'd been long rid of that thing, and here Sync had just given it back to him. Guy took all of that fear and converted it into a controlled rage as he jumped to his feet, ignoring the way his movements were becoming sluggish from the blood loss.

"What did you just do?!" he snapped, though not loud enough to grab the attention of the other participants. He ran back toward Sync, not caring how his attacks might pull at his wounds. "Sword Rain Alpha!" he yelled, and his sword flung out at the God-General with a series of jabs that was certain to tear into Sync's chest and torso just as Guy's had been. It was about time he evened things up. Sync deserved so much more than that for what he'd just pulled.

As soon as he unleashed the Daathic fonic arte Sync flipped away in order to create some distance between them, his single visible eye gleaming in excitement as he watched Guy fall to his knees. It served the swordsman right for holding back on him like that, though he couldn't help but feel disappointed that the damned replica wasn't with them. It would've been entertaining to sic his puppet on Luke; he wouldn't mind reminiscing those kinds of memories.

The God-General's laugh, loud and arrogant, rang out in response to Guy's raging demands. It was a good thing the latter's anger was so amusing to witness; he could've very well cut off any sort of conscious thought in the latter's mind until he was nothing more than a mindless drone. However, the prospect suddenly became more tantalizing when Guy rushed at him with a fury of jabs, forcing the God-General back into a defensive stance. While there was no doubt his speed matched with Guy's own swiftness, the combined pain and exhaustion seeping through his body was making him more sluggish.

Sync bit back a cry of pain when the blade's tip finally tore through his chest, partially exposing the symbol drawn there before a stream of blood trickled down his skin. This quickly descended into a domino effect, several more jabs connecting into Sync's body, though he'd be damned to lie down and take everything like this. The God-General willed himself to focus on the swordsman's pattern of attack, dodging or blocking any remaining advances before rushing back in.

Spinning his body in order to gain momentum, the teen immediately performed a series of hard kicks and punches with the very intent of forcing Guy not to attack. He just couldn't afford the latter swinging his sword so recklessly, which meant digging under any of the swordsman’s weaknesses and exploiting them to their full potential. The teen was relentless as he produced wave upon wave of strikes, finally finishing the combo with his chosen arte.

"Reaper's Toll!" At that time a bright blue flash encased his right fist, Sync immediately unleashing the charged attack as he swung forward with all his might.

Edited 2009-11-04 05:35 (UTC)

As his sword cut into Sync at least a few times, Guy felt his energy rising with the adrenaline of each successful jab. Some of Sync's blood even splattered onto his face, and while he knew that it was wrong of him, he felt some satisfaction in that. Sync deserved this; he'd already given up his chances at living, and whenever he was given another shot at life, he spent it ruining everyone else's. Guy was willing to take the burden of killing him another time if it meant ending this streak of sadism.

It was that very feeling that reminded him that he would never be as good of a person as Luke. Despite all of his friend's immaturity, Luke would have never gotten pleasure out of something like this. He would have had the resolve to do it, but he would have been struggling with guilt each time he swung his sword.

Then again, Luke had never had his mind toyed with by the God-General. Guy didn't even want to think about what Sync might try to do with the curse slot if he survived this.

Unfortunately, it looked like both of them were just taking turns when it came to going all out on each other. After finishing up with an Arte like that, Guy didn't have the immediate energy necessary to block or move away from Sync's barrage of attacks. He did his best to move his arms up to block his face and his chest, but that didn't stop each punch and kick from hurting.

It was as he heard the name of another Arte called out that he realized he was in serious trouble. He cried out when Sync's powered-up first connected with his left arm a final time, and in a strange twist of fate, the bone cracked once again -- in a different place, maybe, but this still counted as the second time that Sync had broken his arm.

Finally, as the Arte finished, he had a moment in which he could take a rest, and he forced himself to back away from his opponent even though his arm was throbbing unbearably. He was really going to have to break out all the stops in this case, and he started to wonder if he could gather up the amount of fonons needed for his Mystic Arte...

Maybe it was the exhaustion or the realization that he could actually die, but hearing the sound of Guy's bones cracking beneath his fist felt so much more satisfying in a way. It didn't matter to him when the swordsman backed away; it gave him the time to examine his own wounds and think of an arte to unleash to finish the blond off.

However, all of that was forgotten when he finally looked off to the side, immediately catching sight of the tragic scene before him. Based on physical stature alone it almost surprising that Claude had come out the victor, but maybe it'd been a good thing, for Claude's sake, that Sync hadn't actually witnessed how the other swordsman died. Unfortunately, only the God-General would be heinous enough to make light of the situation, his loud laugh ringing in the air and he rested a hand on his hip.

"I guess they're just waiting on us now, huh?" Sync chuckled. While his own fatigue was more than evident in his voice, the replica merely waved it off as he continued, though in a darker tone. His chuckles had died down by then, expression contorting to one of disgust as he graced the fresh corpse with a condescending glare.

"Maybe Claude shouldn't have made such weak friends."

His visible eye focused back Guy, that nasty smirk returning in full.

"Don't you see, Guy? If it hadn't been for you then he never would've met me, but at least you now have someone else who'll mourn your death."

The thing about a Mystic Arte was that it was something that was usually relied on in a pinch. For that reason, Guy was pretty sure that he could pull it off despite his injuries. He'd done it enough times in past battles that it should feel almost natural at this point, right?

Just as he was trying to prepare himself for the attack, Claude's voice cut in. He could hear the way it was cracking with anger and some kind of desperation, and Guy felt his heart twist as he turned his attention away from his own battle for a second. At least Sync was also distracted...

Maybe he should have expected it, but he'd honestly turned his attention so much onto his own fight that he'd hardly thought about what could be happening on the other side of the arena. He hadn't formulated an opinion about who would win between Dias and Claude, but that was mainly because he hadn't expected either of them to being willing enough to actually--

But someone had to die, and apparently that someone was Dias. As horrible as it was, Guy's first response was relief. If it had been Claude who was bleeding out, he wasn't sure how he would have been able to handle it. He thought very highly of Dias, but they had never connected in the same way, and the best way Guy could empathize was by trying to imagine how hard this was for Claude.

Terrible, yes, but humans had a tendency toward that. The curse slot that was still burned into his skin was proof enough of that.

If anything, Guy could take solace in knowing that he would never be as bad of a person as Sync was. The God-General went as far as laughing and mocking the situation, and Guy remembered what he'd been focusing on before all this. He would deal with Claude later. Right now, he had to keep on Sync so that no one else died here. Well, except for Sync himself, but he didn't count.

"I'm not the one who's going to die here," he said, his tone an unexpected kind of dangerous as he finally felt the beginnings of the Arte build up around him. Sync was going to pay for this. Guy started the chant as the fire circled around him.

"Oh noble conflagration... Incinerate all!" He darted toward Sync with an almost superhuman speed, forcing the God-General up into the air with just the force of his blade as the flames grew and tore into his enemy. "Razing Phoenix!" he finished as he landed and the flames surged even higher.

That was what Sync got for making light of someone being forced into killing a good friend. Guy knew too well how it felt, and it was Sync's fault that he'd ever had to experience that. This, as far as he was concerned, was the God-General's just desserts.

Oh? So Guy honestly thought that he was going to win this fight?

And yet Sync hadn't expected for the swordsman to suddenly move so fast. Even the replica couldn't keep up with the blond's movements until it was far too late. The God-General cried out when the blond's blade suddenly sliced into his back, forcing him upwards as he felt the surge of fire sear into his flesh. He jerked, but before he could do anything his body was fully engulfed in flames, forcing out a scream of agony.

Sync eventually collapsed back onto the floor, unmoving. Most of his uniform was singed, various burns mingling with his wounds and littering his entire body. Nearly every bit of exposed skin was covered in blood, a thin trail trickling down his forehead and into the corner of his mouth. At a distance, it looked as if the God-General had finally met his end.

But the slight rise and fall of his chest was proof that he was still alive, half lidded eye staring off in the distance. The pain and exhaustion was overwhelming, but none of this was new to him. Experiencing one's own death should've never been a common thing, and yet he'd been already been through this twice. Some part of him had to wonder whose sick idea this was, but the God-General had long since given up taking his death seriously. Even now he was overcome with laughter, quiet chuckles interrupted by the periodic wheeze or cough.

When Sync finally spoke his voice was soft, just loud enough for Guy to hear.

"Make it count this time..."

Closing his eyes, the replica quietly waited for the end.

Edited 2009-11-06 05:19 (UTC)

It was as Guy landed and the flames died down that he realized how much of a toll that had taken on him. The wound at his stomach was bleeding more profusely now -- too bad those flames from his own attack couldn't have cauterized it as well. He held his free arm against it as he surveyed the damage he'd done. Sync looked about as close to death as someone could get, and the only real indication that he was still alive was his shallow breathing.

The laughter came through first, and it was enough to make Guy frown. Sync would never lose that high and mighty attitude, not even when he'd been bested. Then again, wasn't death what he'd wanted all along?

This would assure that the curse slot would never amount to anything, at least. Guy knew Anise wasn't going to want to see this (regardless of how soulless Sync was, he still had Ion's face), and he could only hope that she'd have the sense to avert her gaze while he finished off the God-General once and for all.

He didn't see much reason to respond to Sync's last words, and instead walked over, somewhat subdued (in the end, Sync seemed pretty pathetic, and it gave this whole thing a bitter taste), and prepared his sword so that he could jam it down into the younger man's chest...

To be honest, if he was ever confronted about it at some point, Sync wouldn't doubt that he wanted to die right then and there. Death had been a wonderful thing for all the pain it took to get there, and the God-General was so tired of living this sorry excuse of a life. Really, if it weren't for the fact that he was a gravely bitter person, the replica wouldn't have thought twice about allowing Guy to finally kill him.

And yet he was.

Unbeknownst to Guy, the God-General had slowly been gathering all the fonons around him, opening his fon slots as wide as possible in order to absorb the necessary amount in the shortest amount of time. Despite the pain, Sync was far from giving in, and he hoped the latter would drown in regret for not finishing him off sooner.

Green eyes suddenly shot open the moment the blade was thrust downwards, a quick swipe of his feet knocking the sword away as the God-General jumped to his feet.

"HARROWING GALE!"

Sync was immediately encased in a glowing green sphere when he finally unleashed all his fonons. He lashed out at Guy with breakneck speed, every punch or kick coming in harder than the last as the God-General knocked the swordsman's body around like a rag doll. The rush of adrenaline flowing through his veins made him feel unstoppable, and he couldn't help but laugh as he delivered his last round kick before twisting his arm back for his final strike.

"Now you DIE!"

And yet he didn't aim the deadly blow at any vital point on the latter's body. No, he craved to make him suffer, and that meant ensuring Guy would never be able to lift another sword for the rest of his life; something he intended to end very, very soon.

Guy might have been more prepared for some sort of fake-out like this if he hadn't already been far too aware of how much the God-General had wished for death in the past.

In Jade's words, it was a miscalculation. He hadn't properly judged just how badly Sync wanted to make him pay, and so he was completely blindsided when the boy jumped up and knocked his sword clean out of his hand.

The sound of the Jewel of Gardios clattering on the dirt a few feet away was the last thing he registered before he was assaulted with a world of pain. He'd been on the receiving end of this attack before, but that had always been with Tear and Natalia there to back him up with healing spells. Now? He was already far too injured, not to mention worn out from his Mystic Arte.

The pain was so all-encompassing that Guy couldn't properly register where new bruises were forming, or where bones might be breaking. Part of him feared that he wouldn't even live through to the end, and yet with that last hit he was finally knocked back so hard that he crumpled to the floor in a sad imitation of how Sync had collapsed earlier.

Covered in blood and contusions, Guy struggled to even try to lift an arm, and yet it seemed like he could barely manage that. He hadn't breathed his last yet, but he knew for a fact that Sync wasn't going to let up now.

He turned his head, just slightly, catching sight first of his sword (too far to reach) and then of Dias' corpse further on. Was that what he had to look forward to? He could only see the lower half of Claude's body, but maybe that was for the best. He didn't know if he had it in him to face Anise or Claude right now.

Through the pain and the half-consciousness, Guy finally managed to turn himself so that he was at least laying on his back. It killed him that he was basically helpless to Sync's whims now, and yet it was hard to even worry about that when the primary sensation for him right now was all that unbelievable pain.

[from here]

"Guy!"

Anise was screaming from the stands.

"Don't just lie there! Stand up! Guy!" Her panicked voice came out shrill and hoarse. The tears she had been struggling to hold back were pouring out now.

Guy couldn't lose here. Losing meant dying. Anise had already lost plenty of friends here, and now she had to lose one right in front of her eyes? And lose him forever, at that? She couldn't accept that. She wouldn't!

((From here (http://community.livejournal.com/damned/744481.html?thread=61199137#t61199137).))

Claude's fist slammed against the unseen wall out of frustration. He already knew it was futile, that there was nothing he could do for Guy from behind here. And yet that only heightened the panicked sensation that twisted in his gut, and strengthened the urgency in his words.

"You gotta hang in there!" The shout was punctuated by another pound of his fist. "Guy!"

Anise was screaming for Guy to get back up, too, Claude realized, but he didn't take his gaze off of his friend for even a moment. Even though his chest began to tighten with dread, he couldn't allow himself to just stand back and quietly accept what was happening. Guy had to pull through. The only other alternative was to let Sync kill him!

Nightshift 44: The Coliseum

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