KillamriX08

Royal Rumble!

So I am dreaming up a little side adventure, and here are some things that would need to/be cool to have take place. Once/if the main objectives have been completed, I will at some point in the future set events into motion. I'm not gonna go out of my way too much to make any of it happen. I am curious to see how you'll go about it, assuming you're interested.

All I'll say is that the prize is a dramatic boss-fight spectacle. There won't be any literal prizes/power-ups handed out by me (dawg I ain't even the co-GM!), but it would be a good opportunity for character progression. That's up to you though.

Necessary events(All events are in order of importance):
1. William's plan succeeds
2. Wolf uses his Agony armor to demolish someone/something.
3. (Nothing atm, but I feel like there should be something here....)
Bonus Objectives:
1. I am allowed to adopt Cassius (+1000 points)
2. Kath fuses/absorbs/whatever the Demoness (+750 points)
3. Vittorio gets healthy enough to walk around. (+250 points)
Relevant people (again in order): @Letter Bee @Dezuel @6slyboy6 @Crowvette @Ebil Bunny @AtomicNut

I may add to the list if I think of/remember anything. (Also, @RoflsMazoy may want to take a quick look at this.)

Royal Rumble!

Wolfram & Vera & Vernon 2.0

@Letter Bee @Crowvette @AtomicNut @Bartimaeus

---

Wolf was calmer now, and so Masami's presence didn't put him on edge like it had before. Besides, apparently she knew William.

"Wolf. Likewise." He didn't have the strength to say much more. He was about to take her hand before she got distracted. In that instant, Vera reached out to pull Wolf to his feet herself. Well, she made a show of grabbing his arm, but she wasn't in much better condition and so Wolf still had to do most of the work.

When Masami would look back at them, she'd see Vera giving her a nasty look for daring to try and touch Wolf in front of her...

"Hm, so even at a time like this your mind can go there," Vernon chuckled and rolled his eyes at William's comment. He gave Andras a gentle push so that she could rejoin the group. It seemed the fighting was finally all over. From a silly little scuffle with Wolf to an all out battle against Galbrek's dolls and some masked weirdo. "Don't us men already have a bad enough reputation as perverts, dear William?"

He supposed they had won?

"Cool, great, go bang it out then. We're leaving," Vera grumbled as she and Wolf joined them, once more clutching at her aching head.

"Just going to run away? You were so brave a minute ago." Vernon smirked, though winced slightly at the memory of her kneeing him between the legs. Girl didn't hold back.

"Screw you. This job isn't worth it!" Vera snarled. "We just got here and already all hell has broken loose, and there's no way we can trust you! You attacked us twice!"

"Well maybe if you would just apologi-" Vernon cut himself off at a sinister glare from Wolf. OK, so maybe that joke had run its course. "Fine then, go tell King you're giving up and see if he can send us someone more helpful."

"Why yo-" Vera stopped as Wolf put a hand on her shoulder.

"We'll stay." He sighed.

"Excuse me?" Vera grit her teeth. Was he going against her? "You wanna say that again? I don't think I heard you right!"

"I said we'll stay," he repeated.

Vera's hand shot out suddenly, gripping his face like a claw, forcing him to look at her.

"Idiot! Whose side are you on!? You want to help that idiot and his fucking backstabbing boy toy?"

Vernon rolled his eyes, "I take offense to that. Clearly William is my toy-"

"SHUT UP!" Vera snapped and turned her attention back to Wolf.

Wolf pulled her hand away, even as it caused her nails to scratch his cheeks, "The Vigilantes. You might be right. William's plan might be a huge mistake. Vernon might not be trustworthy. But if Andras is going to be involved with this, then I'm not walking away." He turned to William. "I'm sorry, but if we do stay to help, it's for Andras's sake, not yours. If she at any point backs out, so will we."

"Uuuuuugh..." Vera groaned and smacked his hand away from hers. "I am surrounded by idiots. All you men are idiots." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. As much as it burned her up inside, he wasn't wrong. These fools would get that girl killed if they didn't help.

They already almost had.

Regardless, she was mad at Wolf for putting her in this situation, and so stomped away from him. She made her way over to Alex. Andras. Whatever the hell her name was.

"Well, lady demon," she spoke somewhat mockingly and heavily threw an arm over her shoulders. "I guess we'll be getting to know each other real well, hm? Who knows, maybe we'll even end up as besties." The wry smirk that spread across her face told that she didn't believe a word she'd just said. However, Andras would notice something. The way Vera sort of leaned into her, it was impossible not to notice how badly she was starting to shake. Between nearly dying, getting thrown clear by Wolf, and getting blasted in the head by Vernon, she wasn't in the best of ways. The wound on her forehead was still seeping blood, blood that had long since been smeared across her face and soaked into her shirt, dying nearly half of it red.

Meanwhile, Wolf wasn't doing much better. He had been thrown too, but only because the car had actually hit him. With his armor gone and the adrenaline fading, it was impossible to ignore how messed up he and Vera were.

He patted himself down, but his phone was missing. Then he remembered Vera had never given it back.

"Vera, you still have my phone?" he asked.

"Yes. And you still have no friend requests. On anything," Vera rolled her eyes and tossed it to him.

"That's not..." Wolf shook his head and just ignored her comment. He went through his contacts, which didn't take long. He barely had ten. There was one in particular he could really use right now as the throbbing in his ribs only got worse. He was also pretty sure it was getting harder and harder to breathe.

Whether she answered or he got voicemail, Wolf spoke, "Hey... Meredith. Um, hope you weren't sleeping." Andras would have been able to practically feel Vera's animosity the second Wolf spoke that name. "I could... use your help. I think I'm bleeding internally. I'm probably not dying, but... can you come to the park?"

Royal Rumble!

Rurik Alexeev

@Hammerman @6slyboy6 @Gentlemanvaultboy

---

Rurik's jaw dropped when Bak just deployed her guns and began chewing her way through the building with bullets. Lots of bullets. Seemingly endless bullets.

It was a lot of bullets.

Rurik lifted an arm to protect his eyes from dust and debris, and for a moment considered using his shield like an umbrella for himself and/or Bak. He soon realized, however, that shield or not, they would get buried, and so just got clear while Bak played demolition crew.

"You know..." Rurik blinked in surprise at a half-buried Bak. "That's not quite what I had in mind, but I guess that'll do." Saved him the trouble of putting forth any real effort. "Uhh, I guess we all climb on then." He did he best to scale the unsteady pile of debris so that he was next to Bak. Once Thobias teleported them, it would set Bak free and move them all up to the final floor. He waved for Christine to join them and looked at Thobias expectantly. "Maybe you're not a taxi, but how do you feel about elevator?"

Royal Rumble!

Rurik Alexeev

@Hammerman @6slyboy6 @Gentlemanvaultboy

---

Rurik actually felt a small wave of relief at Christine's words. Finally, some sort of confirmation that he didn't have to do anything anymore. Bak being proud of him was great and all but since when the hell had he actually cared?

Never. Quite frankly, never. And he wasn't about to start now.

After being almost broiled alive by Kath, he was content to relax in Christine's cooling presence. She was his girlfriend, so why not take advantage?

And then all hell broke loose beneath them. Screaming and crashing and... sizzling? He stuck his head out into the hallway and his jaw dropped. As if to add to the atmosphere, steam lit up with an ominous, orange glow seemed to be rising up through the holes in the floor. That couldn't be good.

He wanted nothing to do with that.

"Wait, isn't your sister still down there?" he asked Christine, but also looked to Thobias who actually seemed more concerned with the girl's well being than her own sister. Christine was weird that way, though he was sure she cared regardless of how poorly she portrayed it sometimes.

The last thing he needed was Katherine dying and Christine getting depressed. That would be a lot of trouble for him to deal with.

On the other hand, no way in hell was he going to be mounting the rescue effort, so he'd let them worry about that. In the meantime, he wanted to get as far away as possible from whatever the hell was going on down there. He thought for a moment and then sighed. There was only one option, wasn't there?

He pulled at his hair and let out a frustrated roar before stomping over to where he'd deflected the missile like a tempestuous child, waving for Bak to follow him. He then pointed up.

"So, uh, if we wanna get back on track, I figure you and I can blast a hole all the way to the top and then work our way back down until we meet up with Clara. Thobias can get us all up there in a second as long as we give him a line of sight," he suggested to the girl. And as a bonus he'd have a nice, safe buffer zone between him and... whatever was downstairs.

He just hoped there was nothing upstairs.

Royal Rumble!

Vernon 2.0

@Letter Bee @Crowvette @Dezuel @AtomicNut @Bartimaeus

---

Flatman? What was he talking about? Oh right, Vernon had said something dumb like that earlier, hadn't he?

As the car began to tumble toward him, he considered his options. He could freeze the car to the ground and stop it's tumbling. But no, that'd require much too perfect timing. Duck down and let the car bounce over him? But no, that'd require even more perfect timing.

No, Vernon knew exactly what must be done. DODGE!

He flung himself aside and into a bush... that he soon realized was a thorn bush. Oh gosh. Oh geez. Why had he gone left instead of right?

When he managed to extricate himself from the thorn bush, he saw Gilgamesha, alive and well, attacking Galbrek. Good, he'd have hated to explain to William that his mother had died in a fiery wreck. Well, the demon-boy had certainly fucked this one up. Gilgamesha was supposed to be rather scary, or so he'd been told. That said, Galbrek was also a huge pain in the ass.

"Yes, I think I'm just done for today," Vernon grumbled, but carefully maneuvered around the fight and let William's mother distract Galbrek for him. "This way dear. I'm afraid it's one step forward, two steps back today." He threw a hand over Andra's eyes and then pulled her toward him before attempting to guide her back to the park. He wasn't sure he wanted to face Wolf again just yet, but maybe Andras would make a good enough peace offering...

Royal Rumble!

Wolfram & Vera & Vernon 2.0

@Letter Bee @Crowvette @Dezuel @AtomicNut @Bartimaeus

---

"Oh William... such terrible, terrible timing," Vernon said to himself. Poor boy had no idea what he was walking back into. He felt the invigorating power of William's ability take hold of him. If only he knew.

Suddenly, Celine ran back onto the scene and Vernon rolled his eyes as he pulled himself out of the car. Right as she was running past the "Fallen One", he let out an icy screech, aiming to trip her up by icing her feet. He couldn't have William be getting hurt. He also couldn't let William interfere with his new "friend." He supposed he'd just have to do everything himself.

There were no sides for him to take right now. He'd be playing for his own side. One he'd taken care of his own problems, then he'd worry about everyone else. Right now, he had to make sure that his relationship with William didn't reach the ears of his family. If they found out about Alexander, they'd certainly get... concerned.

As he and the Fallen One were passing, his hand shout out and grabbed her elbow to halt her.

"We may share a side, but don't think I'll forget how you've forced my hand today," Vernon shot her a disdainful look. "And clean that up on your way out, would you?" he gestured toward the hopefully incapacitated Celine. He then patted her on the shoulder and let her go.

Next he walked over to William, and a smile spread on his face. He stood in front to him, blocking his path, but also lifted a hand to stroke William's face lovingly.

"William, William, William," he began. "Things have changed a bit, my love. You've gotta stop. I'm afraid that if you try to impede her, then..." His hand slide down to William's chest before suddenly hooking a foot behind William's ankle and taking his leg out, simultaneously pushing against his chest aiming to drop him. "I'll have to impeded you." He hovered over William, a hand on each of William's elbows, pinning his arms to the ground. He knew right now William was making himself stronger, so he had to be fast. "You're resourceful, William, I know you can figure this out." Vernon's skin grew ice-cold and with a crackling sound, he caused ice to form around William's elbows, freezing his arms to the ground. It wouldn't hold forever, but even with William's strength it would hold him in place for a bit. "Just not today."

A few feet away...

"I'm... fine..." Wolf grumbled. He took a deep breath. Masami's second interruption gave him a second to thing. There was a crunching sound and numerous puffs of concrete dust. He suddenly sat fully upright with no trouble, though he paused for a second once he had. Ribs. Ow.

Still, ejecting his rear spikes had instantly freed him. Not quite the intended use, but it got the job done. He noticed that Vernon was suddenly attacking William. Oh good. "If you'll excuse me..." Wolf got to his feet and stomped past Masami. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"Only what is necessary." Vernon stood, but didn't face Wolf. "I'm not any happier about it than you are."

"Unlikely," Wolf growled.

"Hm." Vernon spun as Wolf got close, aiming a blast of ice right into his face. It had worked for the masked girl, hadn't it? Indeed it slowed Wolf's advance, but he just reflexively attacked anyway. Vernon ducked underneath and placed a hand against Wolf's elbow, icing up the armor's joint. He darted around Wolf, limb-to-limb, doing the same until he could barely move. He finished by simply throwing himself bodily against the armored boy, knocking him over, Wolf unable to even catch his own fall.

"Gah!" Vernon clutched at his arm. A spike had nicked his bicep and it burned like hell. "What an asshole..." With any luck, the "Fallen One" had been given plenty of time at this point. "Alright, foxy lady," he spoke to Masami. "You have some options here, you can interfere and join th-"

He was interrupted by an impatient tap on his shoulder. He glanced over and saw it was Vera.

"Back off, girl. You can't do anything here. Just be glad I only incapacitated him rather than hurt him," he told her before turning back to Masami. "You can interfere and join them, or you can stay safe and-"

Another impatient tap. Harder and more insistent. How... aggravating.

"WHAT D-?!" He spun around to face Vera only to suddenly receive a brutal knee between the legs. His eyes watered and he stumbled away, falling to a knee and placing a hand to the ground to steady himself. He honestly hadn't seen that one coming. "You're... going to regret that... in about five seconds," he squeaked out painfully.

"I doubt that." Vera crossed her arms and glared at him. Vernon heard a cracking noise first. Then he felt the heavy footfall behind him.

"Ah, fu-" A vice-like grip grabbed his ankle and suddenly he was hanging upside down, hands still clutching his aching groin as he dangled from Wolf's hand. Of course the freakishly strong armor had let him break free in record time. The next thing he knew, the world became a blur as Wolf spun... and promptly tossed him. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaa-"

Wolf soon after fell to his hands and knees, his armor evaporating into thin air. He sucked in air, panting heavily.

"Burnout?" Vera walked over to him.

"Not... quite..." Wolf gasped out. "But close."

"Not gonna get 'em, huh?"

"Too risky." Wolf's eyes fell. He was disappointed in himself. He could have tried to stop the masked girl, but at this point it would have been a battle of attrition. He knew he'd hurt her and could have possibly worn her out, but it was just as likely in his mind that she would outlast his armor. With her capabilities, he'd never survive a full burnout.

"Ugh, I can't believe I had to help you. You seriously need to shape up!" Vera scolded him. "I shouldn't have to get my hands dirty!"

"Sorry..." Wolf flinched as she metaphorically ground salt into his wounds. At least Andras was safe... right?

Wait, which direction had he thrown Vernon again?

. . . By Gilgamesha's Car . . .

"-aaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAH!" WHUMP!

Vernon rolled to a stop some distance later. He looked up to see a spinning blade about an inch from his nose. Any farther and he'd have been minced.

There really was something to be said about having your luck increased.

He hauled himself to his feet and shook his head. What exactly was going on here? Oh, Galbrek. Of course. It had only been a matter of time til' he showed up.

"Ah, 'Master Galbrek' I see!" Vernon threw on a savvy grin, as if he hadn't just been shot-putted, oblivious to or rather ignoring the confrontation he'd just dropped into. "You finally made it to the party! Your dolls are quite a pain, you know." Vernon winced and grabbed his back, "Hit like a truck..." Accidentally suggesting it was the doll that had roughed him up, rather than Wolf. "Well, if you were here to help that masked person, don't worry, they're quite fine. With any luck she and your pet will be long gone by now."

He arched his back, doing some light stretching mid-conversation.

"Know any good chiropractors by chance?" He then noticed Andras next to the demon bastard. "Oh, Andras. What are you doing out of the car?"

Royal Rumble!

Wolfram & Vera & Vernon 2.0

@Letter Bee @Crowvette @Dezuel @AtomicNut

---

The screeching of a car flying into the park got everyone's attention. He'd just released his arrow moments ago and barely had time to register whether or not he'd hit his target. The car was swerving right toward him. He had to move.

But Vera was still next to him, and she seemed to be a deer in the headlights. Well, it wasn't every day someone had to dodge a rogue car in a park. A choice needed to be made. Wolf grabbed her and flung her clear, but...

BANG!

Meanwhile, Vernon had a bit more time to react. The car swerved and spun his way. He simply took a large step back, ending up behind the vehicle. He peered around it to see that Wolf had been clobbered thoroughly and flung quite a distance when the car had swung into him. Meanwhile, Vera was on her rear, just now pushing herself back up and looking like she was hyperventilating with panic. Well, that was how most normal people reacted to near death experiences.

However, with Andras free and Celine running, the tricky part was dealt with. Ascot, heroic little bugger he was, quickly collected the much sought after girl. That left Vernon only one thing to deal with.

POP!

The next thing the "Fallen One" would know, a ball of ice was bouncing off the dashboard, the rear window having been shattered. Vernon was then suddenly plopping himself into the back seat. It was a nice car. The seat probably would have been pretty comfortable if not for the shards of glass now covering it. At least glass from cars weren't particularly sharp when shattered.

"So... Fallen One was it? Pretty... uhhh... hm?" Vernon quickly recognized the St. Lucifer's uniform. A fellow student then? It made sense, her coming to Galbrek's minions' aid. Then again, did anyone actually like Galbrek enough to help him? "Well, I have a few questions for you, but first you might want to duck." Vernon forced the issue, reaching forward and yanking the recliner lever on the driver's seat, pulling the seat back and himself also ducking low.

A moment later, Wolf's war-hammer came smashing straight through the windshield. It would have smashed through the rear too... if Vernon hadn't already done that.

"I must say, you've complicated an already complicated situation," Vernon told the "Fallen One," sort of laying next to her after helping her avoid the death hammer. "It might be strange to ask this after just saving your life, but do I need to kick your ass? I believe we might be on opposing sides in this... scuffle."

Vera had pushed herself up, but now sat there, trying to catch her breath. If Wolf hadn't pushed her, she'd be dead. Speaking of Wolf, where was he?

SMASH!

Her question was answered when the hammer flew through the car, end to end. It then turned to smoke, returning to its master. She followed the smoke trail to where Wolf stood. He looked unsteady, but the armor now burned red. Getting hit by a car must have really pissed him off. Strangely though, the hammer didn't immediately reform. It just sort of swirled around Wolf, as if fighting with the red aura. It tried to shape itself in his hand... but it didn't look like a hammer. It flickered in and out, the shape of a sword.

Vera's blood ran cold. Oh no. Not that again. Dread overtook her as she prayed that the red and black didn't become one. She shoved herself back to her feet and, willing her knees to steady themselves, ran over to Wolf. Instinct told her to go the other way, but she fought it.

"Wolf!" She called out, but it was like he was oblivious to her presence. "Hey, it's me!" She placed her hands on his chest, careful not to impale them on the spikes. Suddenly, the hammer snapped into existence, the swirling energies finally seeming to make up their mind. His entire body sagged, as if it only just then remembered that gravity was a thing. His breathing was labored.

He had just been hit by a car after all.

"V-Vera? You're OK!" Wolf said with relief. He put his arm around her, as if trying to hug her as best he could in the world's least cuddly armor, but she pushed the arm away.

"Watch it! Don't get carried away!" Vera snarled. "This is hardly the time!"

"S-sorry..." He coughed, and Vera's eyes widened as a trickle of blood leaked out of the helmet's breathing slits. He lifted his gaze back to the car, and Vera saw the red shimmer flare up again. "Stay here." He stepped around her, marching toward the car. The hammer dragged through the dirt, as if he couldn't find the strength to even lift his arms. Each step seemed to take effort that was plainly visible to observers.

He didn't care and even William's call to retreat fell upon deaf ears. Someone had just run him over, and they hadn't cared that Vera was in the way. He wasn't going to be satisfied with just their windshield.

Royal Rumble!

Wolfram & Vera & Vernon 2.0

@Letter Bee @Crowvette @Dezuel @AtomicNut

---

Wolf stood there, stock still, as Bertrand turned into dust and shattered clay. Had he...? No... he'd been careful. Careful enough. He hadn't meant to... He shook his head as Vera's words echoed in his mind. No. He couldn't worry about that right now. Andras still needed him.

When Celine threatened to hurt Andras, there was anger, yes, but also something else. The situation was rapidly deteriorating. They weren't even listening to William's offer to help. Bertrand's death had severely hurt the negotiations. He also felt fear. Fear that he couldn't control this. Fear for Andras.

Fear enough that his hammer faded away and was replaced by a bow. He drew the massive, curved weapon back, an arrow more than a foot long with a broad head nocked in it. Before too long his arm began to ache with the strain of holding it. As he focused his fear to summon the bow, he lost touch with some of his anger. The armor, and thus the strength it granted, began to fade.

When Darla ran, he let her. He considered firing at her, or chasing her down. He could use a new hostage of his own, but surely Celine would leverage Andras the second he made such a move. Regardless... he didn't want to. He'd messed that up once already.

And so they were at a standoff. For a moment, silence reigned... until-

Whoosh!

A chunk of ice flew deftly between Andras and Celine, just nicking the tip of Celine's nose. The silence was then fully shattered by uproarious laughter. Vernon.

"Now this is just getting ridiculous! Look at you all!" Vernon cackled madly. "You really are a little stargazer, aren't you, William? Trying to save these husks!" He was nearly doubled over at this point. "But really, you lot of fools made a right mess of this, didn't you?" He was now speaking to Celine. So focused was she on Wolf that he'd had no trouble getting the perfect angle on her from the side. That said, he didn't seem to be making any further moves to attack just yet.

"You are just so scared of them but I don't get why!" Vernon continued. "I mean, William there, bless him, is more concerned with raising the dead than adding to their number! Your little friend there, I'm pretty sure she broke herself, not the other way around. And then Wolf here... sure, he looks a bit scary, but look closer!" he spoke excitedly, taking a few hurried steps toward Celine as if he had the world's best secret to tell her. "See that girl there, pissing blood like a faucet down her face? That was my handiwork, and she's Wolfy boy's girlfriend. I had to actually goad him into getting mad about it! He's just another naive child like William deep down! Full of empty threats, that one." Vernon told her, hands now pointed at Wolf and Vera rather than her.

He then pulled back a bit, though still closer than he'd started, "But I know what you're thinking! My poor... brother? Friend? Whatever he was... He's been killed!" He slapped his hands to his face as if in shock, but then went deadpan. "Nah, darling. I was watching. I'm mostly certain he did that to himself. Blew himself right up! Wolf doesn't have it in him, certainly! For fuck's sake, you fools have been kicking your own asses since you got here!" He shook his head. "Just look at him! He's all shook up! A guy just turned to dust in his hands, he's gonna be having nightmares for at least a month."

He wasn't wrong. If anything, the shaking got worse when Vernon said it. Wolf took a breath and forced his hands to steady, but of course Vernon saw.

And laughed.

A lot.

"Did you see that!" Vernon pointed and guffawed. "That was fucking hilarious!" he told Celine. "No. Look here." He held up his own hands, and in a burst of cold a chunk of ice appeared, spinning perfectly atop his index finger like a top. "Rock steady." He stared into her eyes. "I'm the one you should be afraid of. Were it up to me, I'd have already punched a hole through those crumbly heads of yours." And just like that, he was suddenly all business. "Still might."

And right then, if Celine was distracted for even a moment by Vernon's little show, Wolf would release the arrow. Passing close enough to Andras for the feathers to tickle her cheeks before tearing through Celine's shoulder. A fleshier being might have just had the projectile stick fast, but for her it would most likely mean ending up like Darla -- one limb down.

Hard to break a neck with only one hand, Wolf figured.

Royal Rumble!

Wolfram & Vera

@Letter Bee @Crowvette @Dezuel

---

Wolf was dumbstruck, freezing up at the sight of Bertrand... fracturing.

"Wh-... what did I-..." He didn't even get to finish processing the sight before him before Bertrand unleashed a blast that left him staggered. "Gah... rrrr!" And for the moment, his rage was rekindled. Human's didn't "crack" like that. They might have acted alive, but they were just some sort of golem. Servants of some bastard who wanted to take Andras. More importantly, they were still fighting back. He couldn't drop his guard.

They weren't alive... right?

If Bertrand was by some miracle back on his feet, Wolf made sure to fix that in a hurry, aiming to get the boy, thing, back on the ground. He stomped down on his chest to keep him still, though not hard enough to do much further damage... yet. Another distraction tore at him. He hadn't quite gotten back all his momentum lost when he'd feared he'd murdered someone.

He wasn't focused.

The littlest one, Darla. He could practically feel her fear. Was she... crying? Her body was just as broken as her morale. The one he was fighting had told her to run, not encouraged her to fight. If they weren't human, but disposable pawns, then why...?

THUD!

The head of Wolf's hammer crashed to the ground, as if he'd lost the strength to hold it aloft, the grip held loosely in one hand. The furious shimmer faded from his armor.

Vera saw this and swore under her breath. She stumbled to her feet and wobbled over to him, still clutching at her seeping wound.

"The hell is wrong with you?!" She slapped the back of his helmet. 'Ow...'

"I... Uh..." Wolf seemed lost. From furious to dazed in a matter of moments.

"You just gonna let them get away? Whatever is going on with them sounds real messed up, but you know what'd be more messed up?" She grabbed his shoulder, her hand dropping away from her injury, and forced him to look at her. "If your dumb ass were to let them take Alex because you felt bad for her kidnappers! Your sympathy can wait! Isn't she your friend or some shit?"

Yeah... that was right... Andras was a Vigilante. He was a Vigilante. He was supposed to have her back. And here they were trying to take her right in front of him. And here he was losing it and letting them.

The burning shimmer returned -- more intense than ever.

BOOOM!

This time he drove the hammer into the ground, letting it stick fast. He grabbed Bertrand by the hair and hauled him to his feet, aiming to put him in a headlock, with one hand grabbing the side of his face, the tips of his gauntlet-clad fingers digging in.

"If you try to run, I will hunt you down..." His grip tightened, fingertips puncturing whatever material they passed off as skin. "If you hurt her, I will shatter you into pieces..." And even tighter still, letting the cracks spread and spiderweb. "And when I'm done with you, I will find your master and I will tear him apart!" He looked Celine directly in the eyes, no mercy being betrayed from behind the helmet. "Let. Go."

Royal Rumble!

Rurik Alexeev

@Hammerman @6slyboy6 @Gentlemanvaultboy

---

Rurik looked left to right, as if in disbelief. Was... Bak... pleased? He actually flinched a little when she touched him, expecting a sudden change in attitude, but no, she was genuinely happy. He was willing to run with that. He supposed maybe he'd done just enough to gain her approval and if she wasn't going to blame him for their opponent's escape that was fine by him.

"Oh, uh, yeah we ran into some students from St. Laurels. I blew up half the building and sent them back to the first floor..." His explanation ventured into hyperbole, but the end result was true enough. "Also I helped Thobias nearly drown Christine's sister, but it's OK because she deserved it." Rurik rolled his eyes.

Just that brief retelling of events seemed to remind Rurik of just how tired he was. He'd been broiled by Katherine, demolished two hotel floors, and then been ported around until he'd puked. Also whatever weird psychic bullshit Samoth had done to him.

He staggered over to Christine, "So, remember what I said about you taking the next fight?" he said to her, and in an uncharacteristic display of physical interaction just sort of draped himself over her shoulders, resting his forehead on her and letting her support some of his weight. He glanced up at Bak once he'd had a moment to collect himself, "And how has your day gone? I don't suppose we're done here yet?" his voice held a mixture of sarcasm and desperate impatience.

He wasn't sure he cared about what Bak had been up to, but it was only polite to ask... or... something.