Prologue: In The Beginning

"Angelic Layer. That's that crazy doll fighting game, y'know"

"Yeah I've heard of it. Big in Japan, right?"

"Bingo. The japs love their robots."

"So what?"

"So we like robots too, right? Pacific Rim? Real Steel? Lost In Space?"

"Bob, get to the point. I have a golf game in an hour."

"Let's bring it here, to the States."

"...Alright. Make it happen."

Two years later...

Los Angeles, CA.

The crowd in the fully packed Staples Center in Los Angeles roared, every single person on their feet and cheering at the top of their lungs. They claaped, stomped and yelled as the announcer stood in the middle of the layer platform. He raised his hand into the air as his other hand brought up a microphone. The crowd calmed only slightly. They were too excited. The night so far had been full of some of the greatest fights in the short history of the Angelic Layer American Circuit. And now, it was time for the fight they'd been waiting for: the championship.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the announcer began. "Boys and girls, children of all ages! The A.L.A.C. is proud to bring you tonights main event! For the first ever Angelic Layer American Circuit Championship title!" The crowd cheered again. Security guards stationed at some of the doors plugged their ears and removed their earpieces; they were getting feedback from the cheering. In the backrooms, the head of security made a note to replace their headsets before the next event.

"Representing the East, hailing from Richmond, Virginia, winner of the East coast nationals, I introduce to you Daniel Stamos and his Angel, the Powerhouse, Gideon!" Again the crowd swelled as the deus stepped into the light, a fanfare of music accompanying him. He waved to his fans and held up Gideon, a heavy type angel with muscles to spare. They were both garbed like Rambo, right down to the bandana. If you squinted a bit, Gideon even looked like Sylvester Stallone.

"And his opponent," the announcer went on. "Representing the West, from Eagle Rock, California, winner of the West Coast National and the only angel to have so far not lost a single match, I give to you, Scott 'Timber Wolf' Martin, and his angel, the Piltover Enforcer, Vi!" The music came up quickly, the house speakers barely heard over the roof being blown off by the crowd. Scott stepped into the light, Vi perched on his shoulder and a plastic coffee stir straw tucked behind his ear. He had a grin on his face that said he was sure of victory. He walked in time with the heavy guitar, raised both fists as the chorus went into the final part of the song, and the crowd chanted Vi's name alone with the band.

Vi looked exactly like her League of Legends inspiration, from the oversized steampunk gauntlets that made up her fists to the small tattoo on her left cheek. A small smile adorned her face, as if she was more than ready to fight.

"FINALLY, SHE'S HERE," the singer screamed. "HERE COMES VI!" "VI!" the band and crowd chanted, over and over until Scott had taken his place next to the Layer platform. He placed the interface on his head and activated it. The wings on both sides of the unit spread, giving the deus a very angelic look. A glance across the field let him know his opponent was also ready. Both of them acknowledged each other, then they looked to the announcer, who had climbed down from the field as the crowd calmed.

"There is to be a single fall match," he said into the mic. "Only close combat weapons will be allowed, and the timer will be set for ten minutes. Whomever depletes the opponent's points first, or whomever has the most points left at the end of that time, or whomever successfully knocks their opponent out of the field will be crowned as our first A.L.A.C. Champion! Deuses, enter your angels!"

The layer lit up, and a blue sheen surrounded it. The field was ready to accept players.

Daniel raised his angel over his head and shouted, "Gideon! The war is almost over! Let's win this last battle! FOR AMERICA!" With that he threw Gideon into the layer. He passed thru the blue wall and instantly came to life. His eyes snapped open, and he flexed his muscles in midair. "Descend, Angel," David called as Gideon dropped to the floor. He landed in a crouch with a machete in one hand, the other drawing a combat knife. Both grinned like mad.

Scott took hold of his angel and held her head to his, whispering something that only they could have heard over the cheering. He then looked directly at David, put the straw into his mouth, and yelled his own intro.

"LOOK OUT! HERE COMES VI!" The crowd chanted Vi's name again as he threw her into the field. She came awake with a grin, clenching her metal fists. "Descend, angel!" Vi dropped to the floor and stood ready, her gauntlets' hydraulics pumping both fists out once or twice.

"Let the match begin!" A bell sounded and both angels took off, running headlong at each other. Gideon lowered his machete for a underhand stab, but Vi's gauntlet was quick to block as they came together. As her left gauntlet parried the blade, her other came in in an over hand haymaker to Gideon's head, knocking him back a few steps. Vi kept up the attack, sending punches into Gideon's gut and chest. He stumbled again, but recovered and swung his blades. Vi raised both gauntlets to block the sudden onslaught.

On the scoreboard above, the computer kept track of the point values of each hit, subtracting it from the angel's total hit points. In their visors, the deuses kept track of what damage their angel had taken, as well as where. Scott noted that Vi's gauntlets were taking a pounding. He knew thats what they were there for, aside from punching, but he didn't look forward to buffing and repairing the damage. Oh well, he thought. Such is life in the circuit.

The battle went back and forth, neither able to gain any real advantage. When The one minute warning sounded, he glanced up. The board showed Vi still leading in points, but Gideon was right behind her on it. He looked back down at the field in time to see the Rambo clone preparing his final strike slam. He'd seen it used several times while he'd been keeping track of the East nationals. He knew what to expect, and by proxy, so did Vi.

Gideon flipped both his blades around and rushed Vi. He leapt at the last second and raised both hands, intending to bring those blades down hard into her. But Vi wasn't having any of it. She leapt up to meet him halfway, her right fist reaching out to grab his shoulder. The crowd cheered, knowing what was coming. On his own side, Scott raised his own fist, then sent the command to Vi as he yelled "GET DUNKED!"

Vi twisted in midair and flung Gideon to the floor. He landed with a hard bang, and before he could even think about recovering, Vi slammed back to the ground fist first, landing directly on his chest with her body and her fist smashing into Gideon's face. The scoreboard above recorded the hit and sounded the buzzer as Gideon ran out of points. The arena exploded in noise. The announcer couldn't even be heard in the cacophony of sound. On the layer and next to it, the victors raised a fist in salute to the crowd. Vi then knelt, picked up Gideon and carried him over to his deus, holding him out for David to take.

David was confused for a minute, then smiled as he took his fallen angel. Vi put two fingers to her temple and saluted, then turned and ran back to her owner, leaping off to land in Scott's hand.

The after party lasted well into the night, and when the last guest had gone, Scott was left sitting in a Lay-z Boy in his living room, buzzed from the alcohol and content with the day's outcome. His last thoughts as he drifted off to sleep were to wonder how tomorrow would work out.