Of freedom and of pleasure (Ch. 4: Day 4, pt. II) [Finale?]

Mie · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 12:11 am

It was amazing how quickly that produced a reaction. Whether or not it was Ace's intention to be incendiary, Jam's pupils instantaneously shrunk to pinpoints, and her arms involuntarily erupted in snapping, undulating electric gloves, that spat hungrily as her hands balled into fists beneath her tensed frame. She was mid-way through a short lunge forward, and an accompanying deep breath -- one of the ones taken right before either shouting or throwing something with an excess of effort behind it -- when Rock actually blew her away by seeing fit to explain -- to justify himself to the self-righteous serval.

While not entirely diffused, Jam's wrath was at least mitigated, and for the moment, Ace was spared a brutal attack from a very angry walking electric chair.

Sheff · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 12:36 am

If Jam's reaction was to be considered quick, Geoff was only a step behind her. He knew the situation was already becoming rotten the moment Ace opened his mouth, and with the tension suddenly rising, his eyes had been snapping between the two primates. The minute he saw the electricity flare around the pink one's arms, he was following up with an abrupt suiting of crystal armor, the material cracking and grinding at the haste it was being made. It even seemed a bit more jagged than usual.

Yet, surprisingly, Jam stayed put and so did he after Rock's explanation. Doubt lingered in his mind after the taller primate's words, contemplating whether there was a hundred percent truth in them. It seemed to make sense in hindsight, but the means weren't justifying the ends for the hedgehog.

He didn't cease to be anxious, glaring between both the monkeys, only allowing his figure to stand slightly straighter in a futile attempt to make his appearance less hostile. He would remain silent at Ace's side for the moment, wanting to observe the confrontation, knowing full well he wouldn't get a bit of information if he intruded.

Greens · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 4:13 pm

If Ace had any feelings of averted attention, let alone flinching, he didn't show it. As it was, there were two sides, both with commanders, and soldiers. Maybe the corners of his eyes narrowed a bit, but that was the extent of it. On the other hand, his brows sunk for the second after Rock finished 'explaining'. He continued.

"How convenient for you," he rolled lowly. "But you'd have to have to have some pretty good foresight to have planned out sitting on Eggman's throne from there."

psikeout · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 5:37 pm

"... Exactly," said Rock, shrugging and tilting his head from side to side with brows raised, but eyelids half shut. "See? That's it. I dunno what it is with people always thinkin' I have some kind'a plan," he said, spitting the word almost derisively. "Sure — sometimes I get some insight, see a few moves ahead, make a few good plays, but really? I don't know where I'm goin' any more than anybody else. I just react faster."

"Calibration complete," chimed in the computer. "All systems OK. Biometric analysis interface ready."

Rock scanned the group with an indifferent, unimpressed gaze. "And right now, my reaction is to think I trust me with this more than I trust anybody else."

Greens · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 9:22 pm

“…Fair enough.”

Then, at long last… it happened. The serval-- rather, the alleycat, loosened his stance, and uncrossed his arms. The same alleycat that had been raised from day one not to trust your closest friends. The same alleycat that suffered no less than three betrayals this very month, between his best friends, the love of his life, and his very own long lost father. The same alleycat that slid a trio of cards between the fingers on his right hand, and blew out a gentle, creeping breath so cold you could almost see it.

“I guess I’m just not as convinced.”

psikeout · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 9:56 pm

Rock smiled almost sleepily.

"Ace," Rock sighed, "my conscience is gonna bother me if I beat you down again now," he said insincerely.

He glanced to Jam, then back to Ace.

"I think I'd be okay if she did it, though."

Mie · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 11:01 pm

Jam wasn't nearly as into dramatic pauses or showy one-liners as Ace.

Thus, it was with no more than Rock's verbal pretense that she strode swiftly forward, planting herself directly between armed gambler and his target, and literally exploded into a snarling, spitting, and unusually form-fitting variation of her normally spherical cage of lightning. She stood in a wide, low, very nearly feral stance, shoulders tensed, arms rigid, and something disconcerting growing and glowing in each of her gnarled hands.

With narrowed eyes and a sneer of impassioned dislike previously reserved only for a certain green hedgehog, Jam was to the rare point of anger well beyond words, yet that hardly kept her from blaring her incontrovertible sentiments as if through a bullhorn: "Do it. Give me a reason."

Sheff · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 11:36 pm

The next soldier quickly strode forward onto the metaphorical battlefield with thumps of rock on metal. Although Geoff would not actually consider Ace as the commander of their side, he'd taken his cue to make his own forward approach, crystal refracting some of the moon's far off light as well as the numerous sources from the room. No sort of electricity current would pass through him as he were at the moment, something he'd already discovered awhile ago, and perhaps this was his reasoning for taking a step in front of Ace. His role may as well have been to stop the electrically primed monkey from giving the cat behind him enough voltage to equal a lightning strike.

A silent glare was exchanged from hedgehog to primate, his own body tense beneath his layering of crystal.

However, the other quilled member of the varied group atop the tower suddenly was there, forming a third side to the potential showdown. He was everything but impressed, judging by his icy glare between both groups as if not wishing to take part in their quarrels. It didn't prevent him from stepping closer to the growing storm (with lightning included), however.

"Enough of this," snapped Shadow coldly, fully facing Rock and Jam. Siding with the group he had familiarity with, it seemed, even though he barely acknowledged them in the first place. "Keep your petty disagreements for another time, but if this is an issue over the new user, I suggest you step down and save me the trouble."

And confidence too. The threat sounded serious enough, the hedgehog looking nothing but aggravated as he visually challenged the monkeys with clenched fists, glowing with a yellow-green energy.

psikeout · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 11:44 pm

"I guess it's only fair you'd counter my girlfriend with yours," remarked Rock to Ace in crude regard to his green hedgehog protector. Meanwhile, he didn't so much as grant Shadow the dignity of a glance, much less a response, keeping him only in his periphery.

NPC · Posted: Tue Feb 07, 2012 11:53 pm

"Error: Biometric analysis cannot be completed. Error: Too many subjects. Activating isolation field. Remove unwanted subjects to resume biometric analysis."

The platform was suddenly engulfed in yellow light as a thrumming forcefield formed a wall around the entire perimeter from floor to ceiling. It was like the entire group had been enclosed in a great, glowing cylinder. Its effects? Not immediately apparent, actually. It wouldn't be until one passed through it that it became clear: The barrier was one-way. Individuals would be able to pass out of it, but not in.

The stage was set.

Kazz · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 12:20 am

"I am getting, really, freaking, sick, of stai-- whoa." At some point Mako had out and burst his way forward, leaving big cat and ferret in the metaphorical dust-- a need to know what was going on, perhaps. He cut himself completely short, though at the sight of what was going on here-- and he furrowed his brow.

There was no freaking time to take a rest for five seconds, was there.

And then in came the cavalry. Like a giant purple wrecking ball, up the stairs rampaged Big. Why? ... why, he had seen a glimpse of Geoff's green. And out of his periphery vision, green can only mean one thing.
Frog.
And so he made haste. If Desmond planned to be carried in along (as Big had placed the ferret on his broad shoulder for the ride, with room to spare) would have to hold fast, quite like if the rotund cat were something of a terrifically bulky bucking bronco, running up stairs with a childish fervor.

Into the ring Big trundled. The floor just about shook.

"Error: Biometric analysis cannot be completed. Error: Too many subjects. Activating isolation field. Remove unwanted subjects to resume biometric analysis."

It was in the middle of this thought that the forcefield hzurrrmrmm'd its way to life barely behind shark and cat. To anyone who would have cared enough to pay him any mind (read: likely nobody-- there were more exciting things going on), some sort of switch seemed to have been flipped. One eye began to twitch involuntarily, both pupils contracting just slightly, nostrils flaring for just a moment. Perhaps it was just entirely too much pent-up frustration. Maybe it was just the weight of everything finally hit him.
Maybe he just really, really hated the colour yellow.

Whatever the reason: with an characteristically even expression, though limping a little bit, the blue shark moved his way closer towards the conflict of hedgehogs and monkeys and cat (oh my).
It was almost a bizarre sight, but it seemed that Mako... was ready to fight.

Greens · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 6:36 am

While Ace finalized his stance and chuckle/scoffed a breath out of his nose, he uttered something like "Cute" out loud. He mumbled to the side in an oddly strong whisper: "Geoff, stay on me." But somewhere in his skull, he swore, and felt sick. By no means was this what he wanted... but sadly, that didn't change a thing. He didn't want to make the first move, either, but the tension was growing so thick and so steadily that it was an inevitable matter of seconds before it fell apart under its own weight.

So of course, out soared three cards, all charged up and ready to deal some damage right at Jam's electro-shielded noggin...

Only to miss nicking her ear by a matter of inches, and aim instead between the eyes of the (slightly) taller simian left in her wake. At the very same time, Ace charged behind his own ammunition in the same direction. But being much larger than his cards, he was left with few other options than to charge forward and hurl his weight shoulder first at the punch-hued primate.

And so began the battle for the throne.

Mie · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 10:58 am

To miss Jam's ear "by mere inches" was a fake-out Ace could not afford, especially when dealing with one so anticipative as the primed primate was. Without the slightest visible effort, the monkey threw her shield outward, catching the brunt of the cards, and sent them chaotically rebounding with a nasty-sounding sizzle and strobe not unlike a bug catcher intended for Mothra.

After that, the half-breed would need to be faster than he was capable of to get to his target before the first shot of volatile electricity snapped free from Jam's hand in an ephemeral, but erratic arc. So much potential difference had built up in Jam's hands that when she directed her aim and came even remotely near to Ace, a bolt lashed out at his chest like a lightning strike. Meanwhile, the monkey continued forward just long enough to somersault over his head with a telltale *BZRRT* as she sent the contents of her second hand straight down at the charging feline's head. With Geoff being such a non-conductive target, there wasn't much of anything else the electricity would want to hit but Ace.

psikeout · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 11:46 am

Rock remained still. Feet spaced apart in a wide, but direct stance; hands resting on his belt at either hip; head lowered; mismatched eyes darting rapidly. He didn't flinch as Ace's cards flew wild off Jam's shield. He consumed everything that happened around him — Big and the gunman near the steps, Seven on the ground, Mako approaching, Ember lingering, Jam soaring over Ace and Geoff, Shadow poising himself to strike — and stayed there with the tension of a wire ready to snap.

Nuzlocke Griff · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2012 3:34 pm

Big seemed to speed up considerably for some odd reason, holding on to his… neck (or head, whichever makes more sense) he held on to the large cat as they traveled up the stairs in an extreme pace.

Finally arriving at the impending battleground the force field activated and covered their tracks. Desmond on his giant steed eyed the conflict in question, asking a question cut short when he comprehended the blows about to fly. "Hey big guy," he whispered in the large cat's ear "Try to sit this thing out for awhile". Pulling out his weaponry, he prepared for the worst.

Almost immediately, Ace let loose the first shot of the fire fight. Apparently suppressing the desire to actually hit his target, the card missed the smaller monkey just my an ear shot. Taking note on Geoff, Mako, Shadow, and Ember, he switched his attention to the taller simian. He was standing battle ready, entirely still other than his wandering gaze, and seemed to be watching... everyone.

"Good point there" the ferret murmured to himself. With this advantage point he could see everyone in the arena, now all he needed was for the big guy to stay still...

Of freedom and of pleasure (Ch. 4: Day 4, pt. II) [Finale?]

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