Division 2: Khariss Sevrath vs. Ekirei

[Ther]

This match-up will last until 8 P.M. E.S.T. on 2/23/07. Remember, if you finish your battle early, I can score you early - and finishing early is a good, good thing always.

Best of luck!

[Khariss Sevrath]

The merchant sat on the hillside alone, eyes gazing listlessly out into the sunset. His shamshir rested in his lap, light glinting dully off of the marred surface into his eyes.

Khariss's thoughts went nowhere in particular. He thought briefly about his group, the Illicit Entrepreneurs. He remembered with unease the many enemies that the venture had earned him. Most of all, the entrepreneur thought of the number of days it had been since he had slept.

It didn't take long. Thoughts became fewer and farther in between. Finally, Khariss's eyes rolled back in his head. He leaned back against the dry grass. He couldn't remember a time when he had been more comfortable.

A heavy breath escaped his lips as sleep claimed the weary man.

This was mostly just a bullshit post. My opponent is one of the infamous many that sign up for a tourney and never post again. Since this is just meant to say "I'm here, he's not," I didn't put any effort into it.

[Ekirei]

Finally, night had arrived. For the forsaken, the black sky and pale moon signalled to him that it was safe to go outside. To him, night meant that there were less people crowding the streets, which in turn meant that it was less likely that someone would see the undead and make a seen. It wasn’t like he just couldn’t go out during the day, he just preferred the night.

He wasn’t sure why he travelled to the hilltop, but he wouldn’t regret after he saw what was in store for him at the top. In Ekirei opinion, the sleeping man before him was a merchant, a rich man. One who had the world at his finger tips, and probably believed that his worth was only proved by how many possessions he had. If you asked them who really ruled the world they would tell you. However, you wouldn’t hear the name of a person from them.

“Money,” the undead said as he tilted his head to his right. When he was alive and when he actually had a ‘life’, he was part of a noble family. His father was just like the rest of those greedy men. The bastard didn’t give a damn about his son. All that mattered to him was their estate and how much money they had. He’d often sit in their house and relish in their belongings. If he could, he’d probably sell his own soul to the highest bidder.

The black and white eyes of Ekirei stared at the sleeping form of Sevrath. “Poor rich man,” The forsaken said as his head tilted to his left. “How much are you going to sell your soul for?”

Slowly, the undead drew his serrated dagger and knelt beside the sleeping human. His swollen purple tongue licked the flat edge of the blade before he held it to the Sevrath’s throat. He giggled as contemplated just cutting the man’s throat and how much enjoyment he would get as he watched the red liquid flow and the merchant gasp for air. He didn’t know why he suddenly wanted to kill the man, all he knew was that it would be fun. “Send him to the antifirmament without his gold. He’ll get the same surprise out of it as father will.”

Despite what his shattered mind was telling him, the broken body didn’t listen. “No, I think I will have some fun first. Begging is such sweet music, especially from a greedy man that doesn’t really have anything to live for.” After the words escaped his mouth, Ekirei laughed evilly. “It’s time to wake up rich man, time to see how much you’ll offer me your soul.”

Drawing his other dagger, Ekirei began to sing. “Money makes the world go round, the world go round, the world go round…” The song was sung slowly and to some it would be disturbing. Nobody knew how Sevrath would react though, but one would bet money on the assumption that the sight of a dead man singing would be pleasant. In fact, it would probably be terrifying to some.

“It makes, the world, go round….”

[Max Dirks]

I'm at a loss for words on this one.

Khariss, don't forget that you had nearly two weeks to post prior to your opponent. Doing so on the first or second day with some effort put into the post would have made this an easy decision. Ekirei's post is clearly superior and if that were the only criteria for judging, he would have won. However, I can't help but think that Ekirei posted in poor taste.

Therefore, Khariss Sevrath advances to round two.