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Description: To debut the opening of the new Beach Selena, which sits on the western coast of the GTB plot of land, Midus has decided to host the second round of the tournament in this lovely place. The sun is shining brightly as the warm breeze blows gentle waves along the clear crystal waters. Boats, surfers, and ski boats trail the waters as a large crowd of spectators gather around a single large wooden platform situated out in the middle of the water. This platform will serve as the fighting ground for both fighters as they are transported out here, either via boat or by their own creative method. The platform itself is made of wood, but contains a solid slab of stone underneath it that is four feet tall meant to keep the platform from being destroyed. Though you may think you can destroy rock with your attacks, this stone is extra tough, meaning knocking chunks out of it will be your only capability, so don't expect to punch any holes through it.

Field Measurements: The platform is a square shape, with the distance measured from one side to the other merely 15 yards, which equates to 45 feet. You won't be able to run around this thing as freely as the last arena. The platform is raised a foot above water, so if you fall off, you can still simply climb back on. The platform is rooted underneath with a four pillars of the same stone at each corner, so it will always remain stationary. The pillars are ten feet long each (and quite wide), touching the sandy floor underneath.

Ten Count Boundary: Falling into the water begins the ten count. If the other fighter goes into the water, too, or makes contact with the fighter in count-out in any way, the count resets. This does not apply if both fighters are in the water. Only when a fighter has both feet on the platform does the count stop for them.

The flying rule remains in effect.

Other Penalties: Do not attack spectators or attempt to destroy the platform's rooting underwater. Doing so will result in a DQ.

Fight Ends: On July 9th, at 9 PM Central.

Left pointer finger, tilted forty five degrees. Fingertip meets the soft arch of metal framework. Glasses slowly rise after 1.23 seconds of dramatic push.

Sunlight reflects brilliantly.

SCHWING!!!

Hoshiko would be blinded by the light of -




"Hothico!" a blubbery voice sputtered. Yeah. That's right.

A mouthbreather.

Was this guy really the ONLY person who had come to see the woman march to her next match? Where were the screaming fans, the giggling girls and posturing boys to greet her with cheering fanfare?

Well, Midus had done the fighters the luxury of not having revealed the fighter's locker rooms to the general populace. Even this small, bulbous bespectacled creature had only found out by coordinating multiple system hacks on Midus's computer with his nerd friends from 4Spam. Who would have thought Midus liked traps?

Yeah, everyone.

And by god, was he the only one who had the sheer gall out of his motley crew to let his pockmarked visage and crooked grin into the sunlight.

Not only that. But he had something in his arms. A shoddily wrapped gift for the woman.

"Hothico! I prepared a speshal weapon for your fight today! Please accept my gift!" He cried. And I mean that literally. He was crying.

"WAIT!" He screamed, and made sure to sidle in front of her, no matter what direction she moved.

"Wait please, just take this thecret weapon! I read the judges' perthonal notes! I know this will get you exthra points!"

That's right. Extra point. Buy it, Hoshiko. Buy it.

Because in that box was something of master-level craftmanship. It was not some shoddy knitted blouse made by some desperate fanboy. It was a piece of ******** art made by a man at the pinnacle of his goddamn craft.

A piece of equipment that could turn this



INTO THIS

g]



"Please Hothico! Please don't ignore the thupport of your fanths!" he added, desperate enough to dare.

BUT WAIT.

There was a problem! Hoshiko had been so enamored by his beautiful handmade garment! she had forgotten her weapon!

"Oh no!" He cried, and ran back into her locker room. An act of kindness like this would cement her love for him for sure!

A minute and a few sniffed undergarment later...

"Hothicooooo!" He said, running toward the beach.

Each step from his flabby legs send him careening further toward the edge of the beach, the sword in his hand like a javelin! He was going to hurl it toward the now very scantily clad warrior woman!

The distance was great. But so was his love. And when his arm arched back to hurl it over the testy waters of their newfound relationship, the mouthbreather could feel his arm invigorated by her love.

But he still only tossed it about two feet. A wave might push it over to her in about an hour or so.

Joel was there.

Yeah, he wasn't going to be winning any awards for most flashy or poetic entrance, but he was there nonetheless. This time around his opponent was a one-armed woman he'd heard very little about.

"Jeez, furfags and women-fighters, this tournament is more a bus ride through Barton Town." At least his opponent this round wasn't a stupid cat-person he could kick around with ease. Joel stood up, gripping his battleaxe in his right hand, waiting for Hoshiko to get situated on the platform so that the match could begin.

In the back of his mind, the mercenary wondered exactly what kind of bullshit 'suwpar powahs' he would be coming up against this time? Laser eyes? Super strength? Lightning speed? Energy blasts? He'd have to be ready to have it all thrown in his direction.

"Glad you could make it. Don't get too relaxed, though."

"Sure. If you can get past my axe."

Joel spoke in a gravely, uncaring tone. Honor on the battlefield wasn't his thing, there never had been such a thing as a fair fight in his opinion. The last guy had tried to rip his nuts off, he expected a few kicks and punches to be aimed at that general area again this round, too.

"You shouldn't rely on others to equip you in battle," He said, referring to the miserable waste of flesh that had botched throwing her weapon to her.

Taking a few good strides forward, Joel kicked off the match with a horizontal, right to left swing of his big double bladed battleaxe. The blade that was heading towards her left side now was the one he had blunted to account for the non-lethal terms of each match, while keeping one side razor sharp... just incase.

Whoosh~

Swing and a' miss!

Joel's eyes narrowed, not out of concern or worry, but out of focus for where he would immediately be striking next. Interesting fact, most people dodge the first strike - and Joel planned ahead for that. Now as it turned out, both fighters had planned ahead and were both transitioning into the next phases of their attacks!

With his right side perpendicular to the quickly approaching Hoshiko, he snapped out his right foot in a low, fast right side-kicked aimed at her stomach, about the time she got her foot on the ground. Unlike the woman, he did not have super strength, but nevertheless, Joel could kick like a mule, so unless she had mass behind all that strength, she was gonna end up in a lot of pain and on her a**.

As for her own knee strike? It'd pass under the middle part of his inner thigh, rather than painfully striking him in the pelvis possibly breaking something. What she'd find out later, assuming Joel didn't beat her down, is that he had incredible physical durability to go along with his fighting skills.

If Joel managed to knock Hoshiko down on the ground he'd quickly plant his right foot down and grip the handle of his axe with both hands, bringing the blunt edge down for an overhead strike for her right shoulder. He could easily smash right through it like a knife through a paper mache sculpture.

The audience let out a mix of cheers and boo's in Joel's direction. How could the man be so dishonorable as to fight an unarmed warrior with an axe? Well, that was all a part of Joel's personality, the way he went about things. He'd learned that if you give somebody an inch they will take a mile. In this case, his instincts would have served him accurately, like they always hand. In straight up hand to hand combat, he'd have lost simply because he didn't have the physical strength to match up, nor advanced martial arts skills to effectively compensate.

Thank the cruel gods for minor miracles.

"It's like kicking a ******** tire!"

The thought raced through Joel's head as his foot planted into the woman's firm abdominal muscles. He narrowed his eyes and focused more intently on her body, trying to see as fast as possible if there was some kind of magic about her. There had to be, he'd never met anybody that could take a kick like that and keep standing besides a damn meta-human, or himself!

Fast as lightning, Hoshiko was already transitioning into the next part of her attack - bouncing off his attack like a platform, he expected no less a pattern to be followed. He already had a counter though, one bred into him by instincts and experience.

"HAH!"

With a snap-like motion, Joel slung his right leg towards his left side, pulling his knee out of the proverbial fire just seconds before her fist impacted, probably hitting herself in the process if she wanted to really damage him. He'd have liked to have done it quicker, so that he could catch her in the middle of an attack, but that was way out of his league with just human reflexes and senses.

There wasn't any time to consider the impossible though, instead, once his foot hit the ground, Joel immediately gripped the handle of his axe with both hands and rotated his hips into a heavy left to right horizontal swing, aiming the blunt end of his axe for the soft tissue underneath the ribcage of Hoshiko's torso.

He doubted it would connect full force (if at all), considering the woman's like of hippity-hoppity dodging, but at least he could set her off balance, because he'd be catching her with her left foot just hitting the ground.

A follow-through axe swing would be his best bet if he could set her off balance! He'd have to save the idea and rewrite his plan if things didn't go like he wanted them, to though.

"She's got some durability powers, my best chance is to attack the soft spots on her body. Places where you can't tense the muscles enough to lessen an impact! Like finding the c***k in the armor." These and other subconscious thoughts raced through Joel's mind continuously, processed, but not to the point where he was distracted by them. Only rookies become distracted by idle mental banter.

Joel was nothing of the sort!