(2) Sons of Terrinore v (23) Songs of Sorrow

[Thoracis]

((Italics in this post are mostly paraphrased from my own work or posts made by Dirks or Redrick in The Nobodies vs. The Untouchables. Bold and italics are Thoracis’ thoughts.))

“Son of a bitch, Kornis. NO!”

Hashin Gert and Wohan Kold had been their names. They were “The Untouchables”.

It was already too late. The dwarven prince had engaged Dirks in combat.

Gert had been about Thoracis’ size, small, fast, and elusive. Kold was a monster of a man, a tower of brute force the opposite of his partner. That was until, out of nowhere, the giant’s head fell to the ground. The shadow stood mocking, daring Gert to attack. He went for his weapon, but it was not nearly fast enough. No sooner had his hands closed on the hilt of the weapon then hid head too, was severed, and his body fell lifeless to the ground.

Perhaps today would not end so badly for those who were caught between them. Kornis was holding his own against Dirks, whom he had just head butted and sent sprawling to the ground. “He’s nothing to worry about!” the dwarf called back to Thoracis.

He’s nothing to worry about….

”I’m just here to protect my investments.” Dirks had proclaimed upon emerging in the forest… just before the butt of his gun had slammed into Thoracis’ back. Everything became a blur as Thoracis fought Mazrith, Dirks fought Azrael, and innocent victims lay dead on the ground. But the fight had gone in favor of The Nobodies. They had the upper hand and seemed to be winning handily. Max Dirks was no match for Thoracis.

The mage was stunned as Kornis approached Dirks, his axe held like a bat, seemingly about to decapitate the criminal. The tables had turned completely. This time innocence would not be lost. Those with no place in the struggle would be spared. Today it was Max Dirks who would taste cold, steel defeat.

He’s nothing to worry about….

But you could never count Max Dirks out… Dirks quietly raised his gun once more and slowly crept towards Thoracis. Once the gun was but a mirror foot away from Thoracis, Dirks pulled the trigger, sending an iron bullet straight towards the ice mage’s skull.

Kornis is going to die…

The wooden handle of the axe tore before the prevalida blade. The katana pierced the dwarf’s armor and a steady flow of crimson dripped from the metal and to the ground. Kornis turned to Thoracis, clutching his torso. It would be hard to forget the look in his eyes. It was not a look of fear or pain. It was the look of shame and disappointment. With his last living breath the Prince of Kachuk apologized to Thoracis Rakarth with one awful look.

Anger replaced composure instantly. Thoracis had just broken a promise. Even worse it had been broken by the man he despised more then any other and the last man who should have ever had a chance to have broken it. Without thought the Beretta 950 was drawn and pointed directly at Dirks, who was turning back to Thoracis at that very moment.

“Was the bitch really worth all this trouble?”

[The Bard]

Amoroth had taken a few moments to watch, from his perceptive confusion. A dwarf and a mage had stepped into the area. The mage had white robes with a black porcelain mask that brightly shinned to where Amoroth had to squint to see the rest of the features. But from what he could tell he looked to be about sixty-seven. He was holding a staff with a blade of ice jutting out from one end. Next to him was what Amoroth despised more than bad music….a dwarf. From a young age Amoroth understood that dwarfs and elves don't so much hate each other as they find each other incomprehensible. They have a modicum of agreement on the threat of the Wild, but Elves are far more accommodating than dwarves on this. Elves are fine with Pixies or even Giants. Dwarves are not. A dwarf in an elvish enclave would feel a little like a Human visiting a freak show. You wouldn't go to war with the freaks, but you wouldn't be their banker either, or want to marry one. Not that they'd care. But they are just complete opposites.
Aside that the other one whom Amoroth made an attempt to shoot with the fireball was wearing a White Jumpsuit, Black Trench coat, and a chain mail vest. He had told Ferael and Amoroth to fight what Amoroth recorded as Thoracis and Kharas Lightbringer. Taking no second thoughts as to why Amoroth closely approached the dwarf. Amoroth dug his feet in the ground knowing the stopping power of dwarfs he wanted to back up his attack. But at that moment the stranger named Max had slain the dwarf lifting a heavy wait off his back but added more confusion. Red fluid leaked through the grass and to Amoroths feet, Stunned by how quick his beating heart had stopped. Death was another Amoroth learned

Wearing the colors of waking
I watch you face
Softly whispering the wisdoms
Of half lucid dreams
Barely able to hold myself
With fingers all aching
Wishing your knowing to be
So filled with me
Wanting your eyes to roam
Through my darkness
Wanting to touch you
Yet knowing you sleep
In a world all your own
Soft blessed by the dead
And were I to dive now
Splash into your senses
My presence would break up
Such holy clear skies
And dragging you out into now
Here with me I would
Shorten your journey in
Freedom rich lands
And I love you too much
To deny you such pleasure -
I close my eyes
And dream

Amoroth settled back and Yelled. “ What the hell is going on!”

[Max Dirks]

Dirks turned only to find a Beretta, his Beretta, staring him in the face, but the appearance of the gun was made irrelevant after Thoracis’ spoke. A fire raged in Max Dirks’ eyes. Thoracis’ words were the salt on his wounds. She was worth everything. Without hesitation, Dirks let out a cry and unleashed an assault on Thoracis. First he took his katana into both hands and gripped it like a bat, taking a sharp swing at Thoracis’ outstretched hand. Then he advanced on Thoracis, shoving his right elbow towards the mage’s chin. Dirks followed his elbow by jamming the hilt of the sword into the vicinity of Thoracis’ right temple. Once he finished, he jumped back and let go of the sword with his left hand. When he landed he attacked twice more: the first was from a cross-slash from Thoracis’ left shoulder to his right. The second was a backhanded slash meant to decapitate the mage.

His life was a blur. He could barely see a foot in front of his face. Dirks couldn’t tell if his dizziness was from his anger or from the dwarf’s head butt. Then again, he didn’t really care. He didn’t care about anything except killing Thoracis. Even Starlynn, the reason why Dirks had gone berserk in the first place, was just a lingering thought in the back of his mind. He had lost control over his body. He was caught in a bloodlust worse than any vampire’s.

Then he heard it. Was it a song? Was it her? Starlynn? Was she speaking to him? The words were so relevant. They told of man mourning over the loss of his love. Was it real? “What the hell is going on?” Dirks cried out in chorus with Amoroth. Did he really know? It turned out that no time had passed. Dirks had just then recovered from his last attack on Thoracis and stood wide open to a counter. His mind was racing, but he quickly remembered. The song he’d heard was an old elfish carol about waking from death. Starlynn, a half-elf herself, had sung it to him once to help him sleep. He also remembered that after the elbow, his attacks on Thoracis were all slop. The temple thrust was in desperation and his cross-slash, back-slash combo was messy. He only hoped that Thoracis had forfeited the gun as he prepared for the worst.

(Following this post, Thoracis has permission to bunny my character. We want to do a short but intense fight sequence which will require him to determine Dirks’ actions so that we don’t have to go back and forth)

[Thoracis]

Apparently she was worth it. Worth all this plus the lives of everyone here. If only Dirks knew the truth.

The attacks came suddenly and swiftly. There was an intensity and rage to Dirks’ movement that Thoracis had never seen before. But with that fire came sloppiness. Thoracis dropped the Beretta as the first swing of the blade came for his hand. In full control of his staff again he parried the blade with Dirks’ own momentum. Thoracis stepped towards the criminal as he came again, taking the full force of the elbow on the back of his shoulder. Before the bruising pain had a chance to subside the hilt of the katana struck Thoracis in the neck, forcing him backwards. Son of bitch… Thoracis could already feel the knotting of muscles in his neck now, as well, and again had no time to react as the blade of the katana swept across his shoulders, narrowly missing his neck, and exposing the enchanted dehlar chainmail that rested beneath his robes. The close call brought Thoracis to his bearings. The last attack came and whiffed as Thoracis ducked and rushed Dirks, a magically created sheet of ice forming beneath the criminal’s feet meanwhile.

Now they would play by Thoracis’ rules.

His shoulder slammed into Dirks’ torso, who immediately lost his footing on the ice and was driven into the ground by the mage. Both men lost grip of their weapons with the fall, leaving them both unarmed. Managing an under-hook with his right arm on Thoracis’ left, Dirks shifted his weight with his hips, sending Thoracis sprawling over the top of him and nearly dislocating the mage’s shoulder. Thoracis was quick back to his feet, immediately sending a single ice shard at Dirks whom had managed to roll out of their grapple as quickly as Thoracis had, grabbed his katana, and narrowly deflected the ice which would have impaled his chest.

With the closing of Amoroth’s song the skies had opened up again, first with a sprinkle, and now with another downpour. The skies turned dark as monstrous clouds blocked the sun in a way which would make the smog of Ettermire jealous. Lightning raced across the sky and thunder boomed to a deafening level, echoing across the hallowed walls of Terrinore Hromagh’s approval of this clash of titans.

Chainmail exposed, Dirks was smart enough to come with a piercing attack instead of a slash. His staff out of reach Thoracis thrust his left arm, formed of solid ice, into the path of the blow, absorbing its full force. Dirks was now between the mage and his staff so Thoracis lunged for Kornis’ battleaxe, gripping what was left of the hilt and recklessly flung it at Dirks. The axe was too heavy and Thoracis not strong enough to put much force into the throw, which Dirks avoided easily as he dove towards the abandoned Beretta 950.

Oh shit, the gun!

Instinctively Thoracis cast his ice spike spell beneath the gun. Just before Dirks’ hand closed around the grip a massive spike of ice shot up, sending the gun airborne. Thoracis watched as time seemed to convert to slow motion, the gun twisting and turning through the air. Yes, it worked. It worked! Twisting and turning through the air until it fell and came to a rest directly at Dirks’ feet.

Dread and anguish overcame Thoracis at the site, barely visible through the rain that was now seeping between his mask and face, blurring his sight. Looking as if he were the luckiest man in the world Dirks quickly scooped up his lost firearm at the same moment Thoracis remembered he had its twin at his waste.

It had only been about thirty seconds, but the duel was over. Amidst the storm-tossed courtyard of Terrinore Thoracis and Max Dirks stood face to face, mere feet from each other, Twin Berretta 950’s drawn and pointed at the face of the other. All because of a girl that Dirks’ presumed to be dead.

“So what now?” Thoracis asked.

[Scars]

All Ferael Finn could do was watch. He looked upon the arrival of an elf who immediately conjured a fiery orb with a flute and sent it upon his partner. He watched as, before he could react with a counter-attack, Thoracis Rakarth, a warrior that he had seen fight time and time again in this very tournament – one he admired and looked up to – emerged with a dwarf at his side. He held his breath at that point. He watched as that dwarf launched himself at the man who had been identified as Dirks - a name that rang no bells in the buccaneer’s mind – and knocked him to the floor. He watched the recovery of the fallen warrior, and the deadly reprisal that followed. He watched as Kornis Lightbringer’s features twisted into a grimace; as he clutched at the wound that bled his blood and stole his strength as if in refutation.

He had frozen up. No matter how much he urged himself to step into the fray, he could not do it. Thoracis would kill him, Ferael was sure. He would encase him in ice and smash it with his bare fist. The pirate’s hands did not even rest on his weapons. Instead they hung loosely at his sides as he followed all that happened before him, as if he were part of the crowd. Questions rattled his brain. There were five of them, but one had fallen already. Was he not meant to be there? Were any of them meant to be there? Which of the four others was his designated partner? He had forgotten the name. Not Thoracis Rakarth; not this ‘Dirks’.

What the hell is going on?

The elf? It had to be the elf. Aramoth? Something like that. If the elf was his partner, at least one, if not both of the two men brawling before him had to be his opponent. He finally found himself in the right mind to act.

Drawing his cutlass, Ferael Finn took a step forward. He could not find the courage to challenge Thoracis, but the other man, Dirks, had been bettered for a time by a dwarf. The pirate could beat a dwarf, for they were slow and sloppy, so in reflection he could surely win this bout.

“So what now?” Dirks was so immersed in his own private skirmish that he wouldn’t see it coming! Ferael took one step and then leapt forward, swinging his sword down vertically towards the side of Dirks’ skull with both hands on the hilt. His shipmates would applaud him for such a cunning victory.

Unfortunately for Ferael Finn, he had been so locked in his own thoughts that he had failed to identify the weapon in Max Dirks’ hand as a pistol, dismissing it as a knife. It was only when he was in the air that he realised his mistake, but there was no chance of altering his course.

[Max Dirks]

Max Dirks was filled with a familiar confidence the minute he put the patented Beretta 950 into his hands. Though he was exhausted and breathing heavily, a crooked smile appeared on his face. This battle, Dirks’ vendetta, was over. Thoracis still wielded the weapon’s twin, but Dirks no longer cared. He could pull the trigger and send another bullet into the ice mage’s head before Thoracis could flinch. A strange excitement filled the former criminal.

“I’ve already told you, Thoracis,” Dirks coaxed, “you are going to die.” It was time. Just when Dirks was going to pull the trigger and end his crusade, he saw the pirate’s advance out of the corner of his eye. “No!” he cried out while jumping backwards. Unfortunately his response did not come soon enough. The blade of the sword came down onto Dirks’ shoulder blade, taking off a chunk of Dirks’ skin. To make matters worse, the sword nicked one of Dirks’ nerves. Dirks felt a tingle travel down his right arm and then he lost control of it. Dirks cussed and fell down to his knees. “Not now. Not now…”

Then all of his anger for Thoracis was diverted to the Songs of Sorrow. They had taken away all that he had left. Dirks tugged the gun out of his clasped right hand with his left. When the gun came free Dirks took aim and then fired, then fired, then fired again. The first bullet was aimed at the pirates’ head. The second bullet was off. It traveled toward the fallen dwarf instead of the elf. It hit the dwarf’s armor and then ricocheted in a direct path for the elf’s mouth. The third shot never happened. The gun clicked. Dirks pulled the trigger again and again, but nothing happened. It was not jammed. The clip was empty.

Dirks’ started laughing. “You didn’t reload the weapon.” He fell from his knees down to his thighs. It was over, and Dirks had lost. “At least now I’ll get to see her.” Then Dirks waited for Thoracis to pull the trigger and return the favor.

[Thoracis]

Thoracis knew he couldn’t pull the trigger. Whether or not Dirks would have been able to he did not know. He probably never would as Fereal Finn came from nowhere, slashing into Dirks’ shoulder. Almost instantly Dirks fell to his knees and Thoracis stood in astonishment as Dirks fired at the pirate. After two shots the gun fell silent, only the clicking of the hammer hitting a void could be heard now.

What have I done?

Dirks fell to the ground. The anger he had felt towards the man who had shot him became pain for the man he once called friend. Whether or not Songs of Sorrow had been felled by the shots which Dirks fired was lost on Thoracis, who just stood over his rival, motionless, debating what he should do. “At least now I’ll get to see her.” He had to tell him. The pain he must have endured. It couldn’t end like this.

But what about the tournament? Dirks had killed his partner. Sure, the monks would revive Kornis, but there was no way Kharas would allow him to continue on this path with Thoracis. Already the promise of his safety had been broken. There was no way in hell Thoracis was going to forfeit though. Not this year. This was his year. Unless…

“She’s not dead.” Thoracis spoke with a rather matter-of-fact tone. While inside he was more and more regretting what he had done there was no way he was going to let Dirks know it. “You may have shot me, but it wasn’t permanent. I couldn’t go so far as to take her from you forever.” He knelt down by the criminal now. “But you’ve put me in a precarious position. That dwarf was ‘supposed’ to be my partner. I need to finish this tournament.” Thoracis flipped the gun in his hand and caught it by the barrel, holding it out towards Dirks. “Finish this thing with me. There is no way we could be stopped together. See it out to the end and Starlynn will be your again.”

Thoracis held out his other hand to help Dirks up. Hopefully he would accept it and the offer.

[Max Dirks]

What? Max Dirks nearly fell forward. She’s…alive? Impossible. “Don’t play games, Thoracis Rakarth. I’ve already suffered enough,” Dirks admitted. He looked up through the rain into the ice mage’s eyes. “Just kill me now.” Dirks was not afraid to die, again.

“I’m not a monster, Dirks. She’s perfectly fine. No one has laid a hand upon her.”

Dirks didn’t know what to believe. A great pressure had been removed from his chest, but at the same time he couldn’t completely trust the ice mage. Then again, Thoracis’ hadn’t shot him yet. “Where is she? Damn it, Thoracis, take me to her.”

“You’re not really in a position to make demands, but don’t worry I’ll take you to her...once we win the tournament.”

Dirks cursed under his breath. He knew full well about Thoracis’ problems with his former partners. He knew the ice mage did not feel any remorse. Thoracis was not having any change of heart. He was just using Dirks and his feelings for Starlynn to ensure that he made it past the semi-finals this year. “Prove to me that she’s alive first.”

“Don’t be a fool, Dirks, you know I can’t do that.” Thoracis hissed. He lifted his arm and starting walking around the fallen criminal. “Heh, look at you. You’re washed out, worthless. You’re not the man who nearly won the Gisela Open BY HIMSELF just a year ago.” He paused. “If you don’t join me, you can go on with that life. Go on being worthless. However, if you do join me, you go home with Starlynn as a champion.”

“And if you’re lying?” Dirks interrupted.

Thoracis shrugged, “It’s not like you have anything better to do.”

Dirks started shaking with rage. It was different this time though. It was different because Thoracis held all the cards. Thoracis was right, and Dirks hated him for it. The ice mage had taken everything, but now wanted to give it back. Thoracis lowered his hand once more. This time Dirks took it with his left hand and the mage pulled him to his feet.

“Here, you might need this.” Thoracis tossed him the twin Beretta. Dirks grabbed it and put it under his coat. Without acknowledging the ice mage, Dirks started to limp to the gate of the prison. He walked through, and stopped at an outcropping that over looked Lornius. Thoracis followed slowly behind him.

Dirks took once glance outward, and then lowered his head. He would do anything to find her again. Dirks would join Thoracis and win his own tournament. Thoracis stopped behind him and looked over Lornius. “You know, its funny how it always begins and ends with this godforsaken prison,” Thoracis mumbled softly. “It’s like we were made for it.” A bright devious smiled was hidden behind his mask.

There, on the cliffs surrounding the prison, the Sons of Terrinore were born.

Edit: All bunnying of Kornis and Thoracis are approved by Thoracis.

[Ashiakin]

For a round one tournament battle, this was pretty good. Dirks and Thor: You had a good story you were trying to work out since it seemed like your opponents weren't posting, but it really suffered at the points when they did post. You essentially lost all of your continuity then. It wasn't really your fault, but you should have had more of a plan to include them. Scars and The Bard: You guys didn't really post enough for me to be able to score or give you many comments, so you won't get any rewards for this battle.

SONS OF TERRINORE

Thoracis
Introduction – 6.
Setting – 7. (Out of this whole battle, you easily did the best with this. Your use of the setting was usually not overbearing or too obvious, but used subtly to enhance the mood of the thread.)
Dialogue – 6.
Character – 6.
Rising Action – 5. (Like I said in my opening paragraph, your continuity suffered because you didn't find a way to deal with your opponents only making a few posts each. It really interrupted the flow of things.)
Climax – 5.
Conclusion – 4. (Kornis was going to die and Dirks was going to become your partner... I knew that by reading your first post. It was a little too obvious, honestly. So it just wasn't very exciting when it actually happened.)
Writing Style – 6. (There were a few rough places, but for someone who role-plays about as much as I do, I was fairly impressed. If you make it all the way to the finals, I'm sure you'll be doing great by then.)
Strategy – 6.
Wild Card – 4.

Total Score – 55.

Max Dirks
Introduction – 6.
Setting – 6.
Dialogue – 7. (You didn't have Dirks making fun of people like he usually does, but the dialogue you did use was great for showing how Dirks is changing as a character and the things he has recently been through.)
Character – 6.
Rising Action – 5. (See what I told Thoracis.)
Climax – 5.
Conclusion – 5. (See what I told Thoracis. Your conclusion was way too obvious from your first post. Kornis would die and Thor would become your partner in the LCC. Anyone could have guessed that!)
Writing Style – 6.
Strategy – 6.
Wild Card – 4.

Total Score - 56.

Team Average - 55.5.

SONGS OF SORROW

Had you guys posted more than twice each, you'd have much higher scores.

Scars
Introduction – 6. (A nice introduction. Too bad you had no follow up!)
Setting – 1.
Dialogue – 1.
Character – 2. (From what little you did post, you had a good sense of character.)
Rising Action – 0.
Climax – 0.
Conclusion – 0.
Writing Style – 2. (You obviously deserve higher here. But you didn't post.)
Strategy – 1.
Wild Card – 0.

Total Score – 13.

The Bard
Introduction – 2. (A little confusing. I really suggest running your posts through Word to clean them up before you put them on the board. Still, you have a lot of potential and I hope you stick with Althanas. Once you clean up your writing a little, I'm sure you could be pretty good.)
Setting – 0.
Dialogue – 1.
Character – 1.
Rising Action – 0.
Climax – 0.
Conclusion – 0.
Writing Style – 1. (I didn't get the inclusion of your little song/poem. I wasn't sure if it was some song your character was singing or a poem he was reciting or thinking in his head. You didn't really segue into it or say what it was at all.)
Strategy – 0.
Wild Card – 0.
Total Score – 5.

Team Average - 9.

Sons of Terrinore advance to Round 2!

REWARDS:
Thoracis receives 420 EXP and 150 GP.
Max Dirks receives 424 EXP and 150 GP.

[Thoracis]

Rewards Added!