A New Remedy

[Seether]

Reann coughed as he stopped rolling and lifted himself up onto his hands and knees. Something was crackling beside him. His chest burned with a white hot pain and it was leaving him breathless; he pushed the pain to the back of his mind and opened his eyes.

In his left hand he still clutched one of his knives, his right was empty. He didn't know where the knife had flow to, he didn't care. The demi-god had finally revealed his true power. The crackling grew louder and Reann looked up and finally saw what it was.

Fire.

Abruptly the world crashed down atop Reann and he screamed in pain. Snapping himself to his feet Reann clawed at the branch that had fallen onto his back and flung it from his flesh to crash into the trunk of the now burning tree. He was lucky the branch wasn't engulfed in flames; he'd be dying a very painful death right now if it was. Wiping his nose he turned and found himself staring into what appeared to be hell itself.

Oh no!

The entire prairie seemed to be engulfed in flame. Blood red flames licking at the air as pale white smoke billowed and curled above the plain, stretching into the pale blue sky. The grass was dry. The was the only explanation for it. There was no way this demi-god, who apparently liked to fight hand to hand, could possess this kind of power. Reann's gaze took in all the fire, all the smoke and then found the angels, standing sentry atop the ridge where he had first seen the black clad figure. He gapped and took a half step backward, fear coming to his eyes but before he could run, one of the angels spoke.

"Your bow Reann, pick up your bow."

Huh?

His foot landed on something smooth and Reann looked down. His bow was laying in the grass, propped up by the grass so that it was easy to grab. As luck would have it his lost arrow was next to it as well. He bent to pick them both up, his fear suddenly passing into the wind and turned to face the demi-god, who was now brandishing a very wicked looking sword.

Hefting his bow Reann pointed with his arrow. "What is it you want from me, daemon?" Demi-god or not, Reann decided that now this man, this creature, was now more daemon than god.

The daemon smiled. "Your blood boy, your blood."

Reann growled.

"You disgust me," he said through clenched teeth as he placed the arrow on his bows string calmly, paying no attention to the spreading fire around him. "And just for that, you will die." In the blink of an eye Reann drew the fletching to his ear, took aim and loosed his arrow. It whistled through the air and was headed straight for the daemons chest. With out missing a beat Reann reached down, pulled another arrow from his quiver, knocked it, and took aim.

He was ready to loose the second should the daemon counter with one of his own ranged attacks, if he was still alive to do so, or should his first arrow fail in its mission. The fire raged on around them, slowly closing them in in a circle of flame. It was just the two of them now, deamon and wolf-hybrid. The end would be bloody or be wreathed in flame.

[Death's Nephew]

Tommy stood there, dumbfounded. Now he was a daemon. What the hell was going on? Before he could even ask the question, the beast unleashed an arrow straight for his chest, which would’ve pierced his heart had he not been able to use basic instinct in reacting, more like the way someone might suddenly jolt away when a fly neared their face. His sword deflected the arrow’s tip, sending it flying to his right, striking the buck in the chest. The amount of power it still had to pierce the buck after being deflected said a lot about the beast’s power. The buck swayed on its legs, still not making any sounds, and fell over the ridge, into the fire that had spread to just below it’s lip.

None of the other animals had moved.

Before he had a chance to rejoice in the death of the annoying creature, an arrow slammed into his upper left chest, easily breaking through the chain mail and tearing through his flesh as if it were nothing more than fresh mud. Screaming in pain as the force of the projectile pushed his body into a 180 degree turn, he dropped his sword from the loss of feeling in his hand. As he turned, he used the rest of his momentum to keep spinning, rage and anger mixing with the pain. He had one last major attack left in him, since the arrow and taken out his left arm, and the fire was closing in on them inch by inch. As he came to face the creature once more, he let out for quick punches, each sending a flaming fist towards the beast, two by two formation. As his fist de-flamed, he fell to a knee, unable to get back up to his feet. His energy was low, his will to survive high, and the fire intense. He was sweating profusely, and the only thing that kept him smiling was the fact that the buck had died from the arrow or the flames. Anything else was gravy.

“You may not win, but you fought to end, young one. You’ve proven your worth.”

Blow me… Tommy thought as shifted uncomfortably on his knee, sending lightning sharp pains along his upper back. It was then he realized the arrow had gone out the other side, but was still lodged firmly in his chest. Blood was seeping from the wounds, but not as fast as if he would’ve pulled it out. Groaning, he coughed harshly, laughing as he saw his own blood falling from his lips. So this…is what it means to be defeated…

The fire was closing in faster now, leaving both fighters with only less than two minutes before both were smothered by emerald and ruby flames.

[Seether]

It took him an agonizing instant to realize that he had lied. Lied to himself, to his family, and to that bastard clothed in white.

He had promised the daemon that he wouldn't be caught off guard again in this fight. So when the daemon launched its final counter-attack, for there would be no more fighting this day, the fire was too intense to escape now, Reann did the only thing he could do. He smiled a sad smile. He watched in silence as the four small spheres of fire spun towards him and then inhaled sharply when the world flashed, blinding him in a white light that stretched endlessly in every direction.

He blinked and then cautiously sniffed at the air. Something wasn't right, he shouldn't have been able to do that. Yet, he was. He blinked as the world began to fade once more into the shades of color that he had left it in. The harsh reds and oranges of the prairie fire spreading around him, the billowing white smoke rising from the flames to blot out the very sky, the angels, standing along the ridge and the daemon, falling to one knee, an arrow protruding from his left shoulder. That was when he saw the flaming balls. They were frozen in mid-air, the first two less than a foot from his face. He reached up to touch one. . .

And blinked in surprise when he found that his hand wouldn't move. In fact, it hadn't moved at all. It was still locked in the same position it had been when he had released his third, and last, arrow. He couldn’t even flex his fingers. He could feel every part of his body, but he could not move them.

What?

Something stepped out from the flames and began walking towards Reann. Reann tried to twist and see who it was walking towards him but he again realized that he couldn't move, anything, at all. Panic overcame him, the rage over fighting the daemon suddenly gone, as if it never existed and he tried writhed in his unseen prison.

"Rest easy Reann," a voice said from beside him. Reann jerked, or rather would have jerked if he wasn't bound as he was, and tried to move his eyes to see who had spoken to him. All he caught was a glimpse of white cloth shrouded in a white light. Panic overcame him a second time; the daemon was here!

He began whimpering as he struggled to move. All he had to do was get one arm to move and he could strike! He could end this, here and now. End his suffering for all time. All he had to do was. . .

A hand, almost out of nowhere, reached up and touched the side of his skull and memories instantly flashed through his mind. A child, yes, there was a child. An infant child. No. Two children, two infant children. And a woman. Their mother perhaps? There was a man, holding the children in his arms. The man turned, he was their father, and smiled at the woman. They were husband and wife. Reann would have smiled if he could have moved. Then the man turned to face him, a small smile crossing his face and Reann instantly recognized who it was. It was him, when he was a human! And that, that was his wife. And those, those were his children! A tear began forming in his eye as the memory flashed, then was gone, replaced by another. A white light, there was a bright white light. A figure emerged and spoke. It said no words but Reann knew that it had spoken, he had seen this once before already. It was speaking to him, when he had first taken on this form. The figure materialized into a discernable shape and Reann could feel the tear dry in his eye as he felt rage building in his chest; the daemon!

The hand pulled away and the memories ceased. There was a few seconds of agonizing, tear filled raging silence before the voice spoke again.

"I just thought it would be appropriate if you died in a proper fashion."

And then the figure was gone. Reann hadn't seen it leave, but he knew, somehow, without having to see it move, that it was gone. And in its absence he knew what he had been given. He knew exactly what he had been given and the tears began to form anew in his eyes.

The world flashed white and everything resumed its normal motions once more. Just before the first balls of flame hit his body his smile changed, it changed from being triumphant to joyful. He had seen his life flash before his eyes. In all the fights he had been in within this place, that had never once happened to him. He died with the image of his dead wife and kids, his family in his mind.

The first two balls of flame did little else but push him back a little, for they were aimed a bit high and all they did was knock him off balance a bit as well as causing his fur to begin burning. He didn't feel a thing as the flames raced across his body, eating at the fur faster than a piranha at meat. The pain, might as well have been someone else’s. A short second later the other two balls of flame found his flesh and it was these that sent him flying backwards, a concussion of air and swirling flames following him as he went. By the time he hit the ground he was completely engulfed in flames and his body was on the verge of dying. He still didn't feel any pain as he body writhed and twisted on the ground, flesh and fur peeling from muscle and bone as he did so.

His second to last thought before dying was that of a young boy who had first walked in on his paradise of long grass and soft breezes. Then the boy changed, he was kneeling, an arrow protruding from out of his left shoulder, a thin trickle of blood falling out from between his lips. Reann gasped one last ragged breath, ruined eyes widening in horror, before the darkness of death engulfed him and pulled him from the waking world, to the next.

((OOC: Spoils: My health and all of my weapons save two arrows, both lost to the flames. The third one turns up miraculously unscathed when the monks come in to clean up.))

[Death's Nephew]

Tommy couldn’t believe his eyes as the beast took all four shots of his attack. The first two had hit it high, but the last two had been what sealed the deal. He watched as the body flew backwards, limbs flailing in response the intense heat, nerves sparking out causing them to jerk this way and that, almost demonically. But through it all, he could see its eyes. And they seemed to be filled with a sense of horrific regret, as if seeing Tommy for the very first time.

He tried getting up to his feet, but stumbled miserably as his knees gave out on him. He was paler than ever before, the amount of blood loss much too great for him to even crawl. His body fell like a tree, slamming into the ground with a resounding thud that shook his very skeletal structure. His muscles worn out, his breathing short, he uttered a soft, “Get me the hell out of here…” as he watched the flames reach the already engulfed wolf-thing and begin crawling towards the half-specter.

“My my! And I thought you were done for! Well, it would appear that you are, but you’ve won the battle! Congratulations!”

“Suck…my….ba-“ Tommy tried to say as he passed out, not even caring anymore if he joined his uncle down in the dark depths of the Underworld.

***

Tommy bolted up, afraid and confused. He was in a completely white room, save for the mahogany door. Next to him, a monk was wiping his hands, obviously pleased with himself. “Good as new.” He said with a smile.

“Uh…thanks.” The specter said swinging his legs off the high table. He reached for his jacket which was resting on a chair and began to put it on slowly. There were no holes or slices from the battle in it. The magic of the Citadel was amazing.

“What…was that thing I was fighting?” Tommy said as he shrugged his shoulders into a comfortable position under the soft leather.

The monk only grinned at him and walked out of the room, leaving Tommy to ponder the question. Was this some sort of real test? Did the angel and my uncle plan this out from the beginning?! Angry, but grateful for the lesson he was taught, he made a goal that he would become more skilled as soon as possible. He may have “won” the fight, but winning doesn’t matter much when you die anyway.

“Loafing around is gonna get my ass killed…” he muttered as he stepped out of the room.


((No spoils.))

[Logan]

Seether:
1. Introduction: 4 – I was rather intrigued at first by the “lazy” beginning but when you pulled out the whole demi-god thing, I was thrown for a loop. It really added another level to the entire battle. This could've been a lot better in my opinion, though.

2. Setting: 2 – Ok, I wish the setting had been a little more original, or even unique. But really, what hurt you here was the fact that even though your char is a werewolf(essentially) the trees should've masked Tommy more when he was in them. Next time just, I dunno, use something more unique and original.

3. Strategy: 3 – There was nothing that made me just go “wow”. In this particular battle from your end it was just mediocre at times. I'm really a stickler for a creativity, so this definitely hurt you in this category. Also, the fact that in the beginning, blows that should've at least landed or something, just miraculously missed, was a bit far fetched for me as the reader, so I docked you on that.

4. Writing Style: 4 – This originally was going to be MUCH lower, but the more I read the stuff with the demi-god and the “white light” I began to find myself enjoying things more, which I lend to your style. When you enjoy writing something, it shows, and your particular style lends itself well in those times. Besides the few grammatical and spelling errors, you did well.

5. Rising Actions: 4 – This whole battle seemed to do nothing but rise, which is why I'm giving you what you are getting here. Just the continuing build was nice, however, next time you might consider actually reducing the length of it, as that can get to be a bit much for a reader. It's kinda like being on a roller coaster that just goes straight up and NEVER drops. Kinda boring after a while.

6. Dialogue: 5 – The only reason you netted a 5 was because of the demi-god talk. I would've liked more interaction, but there was quite a bit of body language that spoke through the mental barrier of Reann's not being able to see Tommy.

7. Climax: 7 – I think the climax was hit on the head here. Simply put, the moment where everything freezes and then bam, he sees Tommy as Tommy for the first time, it was brilliant. This right here was your bread winner, keep it up!

8. Character: 4 – You did fine here, it could've been better, but all in all it was fine. You stuck with your character's strengths and didn't do anything totally and completely absurd. I did dock you though for the really insane miracles that happened in the beginning.

9. Conclusion: 5 – You know, something happened in your battle, especially here. I could sense this almost maturing state for your character and then the finality of the battle and well, submitting, was beautiful. Really, if you keep up this kind of quality endings, you'll rival some of the better writers here.

10. Wild Card: 3 – This was a little hard for me to figure out. I based this off two things. One, the absurd amounts of luck your character had, and just the flow of your initial posts. There was some in the end, but in the beginning it was just missing. I know you can do better.

Total: 41

Death's Nephew:
1. Introduction: 6 – I liked how you worked in the whole monk interaction. It didn't feel forced, well done. Plus adding in the sincere shocked response to what was happening with Reann was nice.

2. Setting: 3 – Read comments for Seether. I gave you a point higher because you utilized the trees.

3. Strategy: 4 – I docked you for the same reason as Seether, however, you did get hit, and so you notched a point for that. I also liked using the branches and lighting them on fire. It worked well for you.

4. Writing Style: 4 – You had less errors, but the flow in the end seemed less, too. Overall you both were pretty equal, which is why you see the equal scores here. You still had errors though, so be a little more careful.

5. Rising Actions: 3 – Ok, so, same as Seether's comments, though, it didn't rise as much for you. I didn't feel as much excitement as the reader when the battle neared the end from the standpoint of your posts.

6. Dialogue: 4 – Even though Tommy couldn't talk to Reann, I still would've liked to see him try more, I guess. Really, it just came down to less body language for Tommy. Even though I felt along with the character, his physical responses to the situations presented seemed almost empty. Next time maybe add some body language and facial expression.

7. Climax: 2 – It felt like things were becoming forced, like the end of the battle had to happen soon. Interest almost seemed to dwindle. I really am not sure what happened, but this wasn't very good from what I've seen you can do from the beginning of this battle. It almost felt similar to how Seether started the battle, just very lazy like.

8. Character: 6 – You did well here, actually. It wasn't as deep as I'd have liked it to be, but staying within the bounds of your character and using that did you well. I liked, I liked a lot.

9. Conclusion: 6 – You did come back to conclude it well, which is why I gave you some points here. There could've been more, but you came back to where you started, with the monks. I liked, and am pleased here.

10. Wild Card: 5 – Ok, so I liked the flames, and the monks, and well, the reaction to the staring animals was nice. I would've liked to see more play into the silent, staring animals though. It seemed empty in the end, where it seemed to have a point in the beginning.

Total: 43

Winner: Death's Nephew

Special Note from Judge: I liked both of your styles at different points. Seether, you did fine in the end, but the beginning was just a bit hard for me to follow. Death's Nephew, you did fine in the beginning, but in the end it just felt forced. All in all I felt you both did a good job and look forward to seeing more from both. Good luck!

Spoils:

Seether:
Experience Points: 82 points gained
Arrows approved, health approved.
Gold earned: 60 gold

Death's Nephew:
Experience Points: 372 points gained
Gold earned: 100 gold

edit: gold added, too.

[Thoracis]

EXP and GP added!