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Motarius VS Rousseau Vincent Zeng slowly walked down the snow-covered streets of the city of Sacrinia, looking around for a place where to get supplies for Omicron. Omicron had set up camp just outside the city last night. They needed supplies badly, so when Recon moved in to look at the city, Vince volunteered to go with them. Now, here he was, wandering the city by himself. They had decided to split up to cover the city quicker, but so far, there was no luck. Omicron still had plenty of food and clothes. They needed weapons and fuel, especially fuel after Alice's fuel car fiasco during the battle at the train. Vince had passed three gas stations, but none of their pumps worked any more. Without warning, black portals opened all over the street, and out poured servants of the Shadow. As Death Knights, Dark Knights, Necromancers, and Dark Mages filled the street, Vince fled and hid in an alley. In the same moment, several Griffin-class hovercraft carriers came down through the cloudy sky. Half of these silver Ragnarok aircrafts began dropping metal packages, which transformed into Trooper Bots as they landed. Immediately, the people on the streets and in nearby buildings fled, determined to get as far away from the expected fighting as possible. As the battle between Ragnarok machine and Shadow began, John Rousseau, the Dark Mage, emerged from a portals. "First, we're kicked out of Kiera, and now we're intercepted here in Sacrinia?" Rousseau asked, seething in rage. "That accursed Alliatus, always trying to persecute us." With one swift hand motion, he fired out several Shadowmissiles and destroyed a dozen Trooper Bots. Far above, the remaining Griffins opened up, and down came Paladins, Mystics, and Priests, supported by Holy barriers as they floated to the ground. The last to come was Thalloric Motarius himself, his silver Ophelia in his hands. "The Dark Mage Rousseau," he addressed his foe as he landed. "When I heard you were personally coming to capture Sacrinia, I was thrilled. Now, I have a chance to get rid of you and hopefully cripple the Shadow for good." "Oppressor!" Rousseau replied. "I'll handle you personally and save my people!" Rousseau quickly summoned a Shadowsaber, and the two legends charged upon each other. They clashed. Swords struck. Silver collided with dark energy. As Vince looked on, he didn't know who he wanted to win. He had fought both of them before, and they were both powerful enemies. Both warriors cast a spell. An Angelhair Snare appeared in the air and tangled Rousseau while a Shadowsnare shot out of the ground and wrapped around Motarius. For a moment, the two stared at each other, not moving. Then, Motarius gave a battlecry, creating an aura of light, which burned away the Shadowsnare. Rousseau had also acted, calling forth the Shadowflame to burn away the Angelhair. They both swung their swords, and the noise of their weapons clashing rang out. Immediately following, both warriors leapt back, each separating himself from the other. There was a pause. Then, Motarius broke the silence with repeated Holy Shots at the Dark Mage, firing them at rates rivaling that of an automatic rifle. Rousseau transformed his Shadowsaber into the Shadowreflector and used the barrier to deflect the bolts of Holy energy. Then, he returned his shield to energy and used this energy to form more Shadowmissiles. Holding his dark projectiles, Rousseau hovered into the air, propelling himself with dark magic. He then hovered circles in the air and fired the Shadowmissiles from all angles down upon Motarius, who knocked them away with several swings of his sword. The last one wasn't a Shadowmissile, however. As it hit Motarius' sword, the Shadowblot expanded, covering the sword in black slime. Still hovering in the air, Rousseau called the dark substance back to him, and the blade slipped from Motarius' hand into Rousseau's, where he reabsorbed the dark energy. "Ophelia!" Motarius shouted, reaching out for his sword. Rousseau laughed, then realized that he no longer held Motarius' silver sword. Instead, there was a young woman in a pink dress in his arms. She pointed her hands at his head and blasted him with flower petals, only these petals left cuts in his face. Rousseau shouted in pain and clutched his face with his hands, dropping the woman in the process. When the girl landed next to Motarius, Rousseau took a look at her. "You..." the Dark Mage said, somewhat confused. "I've seen that face before." "And I've seen yours before as well," the girl spoke in a sweet, soft voice. "That was the face of the man who made it into the Inner Sanctum." "I don't understand, my dear," Motarius said, addressing the woman. "What Inner Sanctum? What about his face?" "Eleven years ago," the woman said, before transforming into the silver sword again, leaving behind the fragrant smell of roses. "Eleven years ago," Motarius repeated. He looked again at Rousseau, who had hovered to the ground in front of him. Then, his eyes open in shock and recognition. Then, his expression became that of anger of hatred. "The man who killed Ophelia!" he exclaimed, his voice full of rage. "You killed Ophelia!" Before anyone else could react, Motarius attacked, rage driving him. Rousseau barely had time create a Shadowreflector to block the sword. Motarius struck again and again, each time pushing Rousseau back a step. A white feather quietly dropped to the asphalt and exploded. Soon, as Motarius forced Rousseau back step by step, the sky began raining white feathers, surrounding the two religious warriors with explosions of light. Within moments, holy lightning began striking the ground, dangerously close to the dueling pair. Finally, the sky opened up, and rays of light flashed to the ground at odd angles, tearing through whatever they hit. "I've seen this kind of storm before," Vince thought to himself, still hiding in the alley. "The first time I fought a Mystic, he used something like this on me, only Motarius isn't channeling any energy into it. His rage in itself must be triggering his magic." A ray of light flashed down and touched Rousseau's side. It was like a cannon blast. The Dark Mage went bouncing several yards before he stopped on a sidewalk. Shouting in rage, Motarius charged at Rousseau with his blade. However, Rousseau pulled in a mass of dark energy and fired it forward as a beam, the Shadowblast. Motarius took the full force of the blast and was launched across the street, smashing through the window of a nearby noodlehouse. Yet, the Mystic stood right up. Perhaps his rage alone was sustaining him. Screaming his anger, Motarius ran back toward Rousseau, who had climbed back to his feet. The Dark Mage quickly waved his hand, and a Shadowhole opened up right below the Mystic. However, before falling, Motarius plunged his sword into the concrete, using it as a handhold. "That's interesting," Rousseau commented. "That would be the second time your girl has protected you from me, only this time, you're going to die anyway." The Shadowhole was slowly expanding. In a matter of seconds, the concrete that held the sword would be gone, and Motarius would fall. "I'll kill you!" Motarius shouted, hanging on for his life with both hands. Somehow, a bolt of holy lightning shot right into the center of the Shadowhole. The collision of Holy and Shadow magic at the bottom of the pit caused an unusual reaction, and the resulting explosion expelled Motarius from the opening before the Shadowhole closed altogether. In the air and flying toward Rousseau, Motarius shouted and swung his sword. Rousseau had summoned a new Shadowsaber, and the two fought again, the silver blade clashing with an energy sword. As the two legends fought, sweat poured from their bodies, soaking their robes. The enraged Mystic fought to avenge his beloved. The old Dark Mage fought to save his people. They made one final pass at each other and separated, both with freshly bleeding wounds on their left shoulder. "Lord Rousseau," a Necromancer shouted. "We've taken too many losses, and now we're heavily outnumbered. We have to retreat." Rousseau looked to Motarius, who clutched his left shoulder with his right hand, his silver sword lying on the ground. The Mystic glared at Rousseau with deep hatred. "Let's go," Rousseau said quietly to the Necromancer. With a wave of his arm, a series of Shadowportals opened, and the servants of the Shadow warriors fled. Motarius ran after Rousseau, but the portal closed just before he reached it. That portal just happened to be right in front of the alley in which Vince hid. "Rousseau!" the Mystic shouted. "Come back here and finish this! Rousseau!" It was no use. All the Shadow warriors had retreated. All around him, the various Alliatus warriors began cleaning the streets of debris and corpses. Defeated and exhausted, Motarius sat down right where he was and put his head down. "Damn!" Vince thought to himself. "With Motarius sitting there, I can't get out of this alley. I'll have to wait until he moves, but if he looks in here..." Suddenly, Motarius lifted his head again, his eyes open in surprise. He looked around, as if trying to see something. "Shit!" Vince thought to himself. "Don't look this way!" Unfortunately, Motarius peered right into the alley and saw Vince. "The Fire Fiend!" he exclaimed. Vince swore loudly, then turned and sprinted down the alleyway. He could hear Motarius' footsteps chasing behind him. Up ahead was a brick wall, a dead end. A Holy Shot flew by, narrowly missing him. Vince turned left through a door and ended up in a spiral stairwell. Quickly, he ran up the stairs, passing several doors on the way up. From below, Holy Shots came up, tearing through the stairs. Vince saw an open door, so he dashed through it. It appeared to be an apartment. Somebody lived here, but the room was vacant now. Vince kept running, past the sofas, past the kitchen, and dove through the window on the other side of the room. Soaring over another alley, Vince crashed through another window, leaving glass shards everywhere. He was now in a shopping center, full of clothes and a few courageous shoppers who had stayed despite the battle just outside. Many of them gasped at Vince's arrival. However, Vince ignored them and continued to run. A moment later, he heard more gasps. Turning his head, he saw Motarius, who had followed him the whole way. However, because he wasn't looking, Vince ran into a display mannequin, knocking it over. As if in punishment for his mistake, yellow strands appeared from the air and entangled him, keeping him from moving. Vince struggled, but the Angelhair Snare was strong. Looking back, he saw Motarius throw a Holy Shot at him. Now, the magma appeared around him and surrounded his body, forming red armor for his black hide. The Dark Fiend of the Inferno burned through the Snare and ran, narrowly dodging the Holy Shot. He sped to an elevator and blew it open with a fireball. The elevator was half a floor below him, so he quickly hopped on top of it. Motarius was only a few yards behind, and he ran into the elevator as it passed. As Vince stood atop the elevator, something blasted a hole in the metal beneath him. Peering through the hole, Vince saw Motarius, peering back. Quickly, Vince grabbed onto the elevator cable and started climbing. Motarius didn't fire at him. Perhaps he was refraining from knocking the elevator down and causing the death of innocent bystanders. Vince climbed to the top, to the roof, while below him, Motarius climbed through the hole and climbed after him. Now on the roof, Vince sprinted to the edge and jumped to the next roof, and Motarius did the same. Thus, Vince leapt from roof to roof, some higher, some lower, all difficult jumps. In passing, he noticed there was only one Griffin left in the sky. Soon, he lost track of how high up he was, but he knew he was quite high up. Apparently, Sacrinia was a very tall city, and since it was late winter, the roofs were covered with ice. If he didn't step carefully, he'd slip and fall. Then, Vince came to a building whose roof was much higher than any jump he had made before. Still, with Motarius right behind him, he had to try. Vince leapt into the air, soaring nearly up to the top of the building. However, he missed the roof. Instead, he flew through a window. Still, he was near the top, though. As he continued to run, he heard something crash into the floor below him. Motarius was beneath him. He could catch up at any time. Desperate, Vince sped over to the stairwell and went up. He made it to the roof, but there was already somebody there waiting for him. It wasn't Motarius, though. It was Stephanie's sister, Tina. "Tina!" Vince cried out. The young girl held a particle blaster and was pointing it right at him. Her glasses were missing. Her hair and clothes were dirty and disheveled. The roof was empty of people other than Vince and Tina, and the only objects up there were the access stairwell behind Vince and a power generator behind Tina. Neither of them moved for a moment. "Tina!" Vince shouted to her. "It's me! Vince!" No answer. "What's going on?" Slowly, Tina walked toward him, staggering and swaying from side to side. "Vince, don't hurt me," she said, her voice shaking, seemingly unaware of what was going on. "Don't hurt me, Vince, please!" She sounded frightened. Yet, she still walked forward, holding the gun threateningly, as if her voice and her body weren't part of the same person. "It's like she's been drugged," Vince thought. "The Soulphage Serum! Somebody's taken control over her!" "Don't hurt me anymore!" Tina cried in a weak and shaking voice. She then fired two shots at Vince. One hit his chestplate. The other hit his helmet. Both pieces of armor started to dissolve, giving off a sharp hiss. Vince looked down and saw glowing spots on where Tina had shot him. "That gun must be imbued with Holy magic," Vince thought. He looked back to Tina. She was only a few yards away now, and somehow, despite her staggering and swaying, she held the gun steady and pointed it right at Vince's face, the only unprotected spot on his Dark Fiend body. "If she fires, and I don't do anything, then it's the end of me," Vince thought. He held up his arms, ready to defend himself. Tina fired. Vince put up a shield of flame, which deflected the shot. He had made sure the deflected shot wouldn't hit Tina, but he had neglected something else. Instead, the shot hit the power generator on the other side of the roof. Vince knelt down to brace himself against the explosion, but Tina wasn't so lucky. The shockwave swept her off the roof, throwing her over the edge. "Tina!" Vince shouted as the girl plummeted hundreds of feet. "Tina! No!" In a rush, Vince leapt to a lower roof, then across the street to an even lower roof, but it was impossible to catch up with Tina. She slammed into the street below, and Vince leapt from the roof to the street, crash landing on the ground. He hastily climbed to his feet and dashed over to Tina, who lay on the street, bleeding from the mouth. "Tina," he cried, returning to his human form. "Vince," she said, her voice faint but steady. "I'm sorry for trying to kill you." Her eyes closed and she said no more. "Tina! No!" Vince shouted. He listened for a breath, but he heard none. He felt for a pulse, but there felt none. "No," Vince groaned, tears coming to his eyes. A voice from behind spoke up, "Crying over your girlfriend's sister?" Vince turned around and saw Motarius, who now carried his silver Ophelia again. "You! You did this to her!" Vince shouted. "You gave her the Soulphage Serum." "Well, technically it was Mandragon," Motarius answered, "but I ordered it. I didn't expect you to kill her thought. So, are you going to surrender, or do I have to chase you around town again?" "No," Vince said bitterly. Magma came up from the concrete and wrapped around his body. As his skin became black hide, the Inferno armor returned to him once more. "No more running," the Dark Fiend of Inferno spoke with cold rage. "It's enough that you've been following me everywhere, and you've already tried to kidnap my girlfriend, but now, someone I care for is dead. That's enough! No more running! This time, I'm going to kill you, Motarius!" "Haven't you said that to me before?" the Mystic laughed. "You've never fought the Dark Fiend of the Inferno before," Vince responded. The Inferno Fiend's gauntlets began to burn. Vince threw the first punch, and Motarius responded with his sword. Metal against metal, the gauntlet and the sword clashed. Vince was fighting Motarius again. |