A few weeks have passed already, and a week from the first fight, the tournament brackets have been released! This is a double-elimination tournament, which, for those of you who are unfamiliar with the term, adds an extra set of fights by breaking the first fight into a "winners" and "losers" bracket. Normally in a KOF tournament there are almost 64 teams competing, but this year only those who are most prominent, and a couple extra, have decided to enter, for a grand total of 16 teams. For the first and second sets, there will be 8 fights, then for the third on the number will be halved, as only the winners can advance beyond the second bracket in a double elimination tournament. Got it? No, you don't. I hate you all. But it's okay, I have a better way to explain it! For the tournament, each team is given a number from one to sixteen. During the first fight, one will fight two, three will fight four, and so on. The winners will move on to the "winners" bracket and then the winner of the one vs. two fight will fight the winner of the three vs. four fight, while the same will apply to the losers in the "losers" bracket. The true winner will be the winner of the "winners" bracket, while the winner of the "loser" bracket will have nothing more than the consolation that they are the best of the worst. Whew...
Kirsten: Are you okay, Joey? We can't have you exhausting yourself before the first fight is even announced!
y..yeah, I'm fine, I just need to catch my breath.
Kirsten: You sure you can handle the stress of fighting AND narrarating?
Of course! Monologues are just a bit taxing, you know.
Kirsten: I know! I'm a fanfic writer too!
And a damned good one at that, but I haven't seen you participate in one of them yet..
Kirsten: Hey! You never read them...(sniffle) I'm Tsuzuki-chan! And I'm in this one, aren't I? Besides, shouldn't you just make yourself a character now?
I haven't shown up yet! Pretend you're waiting for your teammates or something!
Kirsten: Alright...
Erm..Ahem. Anyways, our mental camera is now focused on the only member without her team waiting, Kirsten, our beautiful, mysterious fangirl.
Kirsten: Mysterious? I'll let the "beautiful" slide, but why the hell do I have to be mysterious?
Come on, all new competitors were mysterious! Okay, except Saisyu, but he scratches himself.
Kirsten: (sighs)Fine. Where the hell are my teammates? And which of Joey's friends did he manage to drag into this?
(The small roar from the over three dozen competitors quiets to silence as the doors slowly open. Two tall darkened figures emerge from the back area, and all eyes turn to the as-yet-unseen visitors. Both are clad in trenchcoats and strap-up boots with swat-team pants and--)
Kirsten: Dammit, Joey, you don't own any of those clothes!
But they're too expensive in real life! Fine, ruin my fun. Rewind to the beginning of the paragraph.
(The door quickly swings open and two tall males run in--or more specifically, one barges in and stops to catch his breath, and the other simply walks quickly beside him. One is wearing a trenchcoat--seems his punk-ass could afford it, but not the rent--)
Kirsten: Hey! Watch the fourth wall!
(Oh, right. Anyways, both contestants appear to be slightly over six feet tall, the first closer to "lanky", with the same skin tone and figure as K'. In addition to his trenchcoat, he sports a pair of black sunglasses and black hair reminiscent of Shingo's. The other applicant, however, seems to have broader shoulders, wears a black unbuttoned button-shirt over a black "Gunsmith Cats" shirt, black cargo pants, hiking shoes, and a pair of yellow Vash-sunglasses. His hair is long and tied in back with long bangs over either side of his face, like Irvine from Final Fantasy 8, but with shorter and darker hair.)
Kirsten: Joey! Hi! You brought Kenny?
(Kirsten jumps and waves. She is wearing a white "Trigun" shirt and blue jeans, along with a necklace covered in different anime chracters, including Iori. Her hair is red and wavy, and she wears glasses.
The man with the broader shoulders looks up, flips his sunglasses down with one hand and stuffs them in his pocket.)
Joey: Yep. I figured he'd be the most use.
Kirsten: What about Chris? He actually takes martial arts classes.
Joey: Yeah, but there's only so many "make me a sandwich, ho!" jokes I can come up with. "Make me a sandwich, Mai-ho! Make me a sandwich, Yuri-ho! Make me a sandwich, Mary-ho!"
(Mai, Mary, and Yuri surround the foolish fanfic writer)
Mai: What did you call us?
Mary: You pig!
Yuri: Cheauvinist!
Joey: Wait, you've got the wrong idea! I wasn't--aaaaiiieeeee!!!
(A few minutes later, when Joey finally wakes back up)
Joey: Dammit..I didn't want that to happen..
Kenny: Cheer up, dude! You just got pummeled by the three hottest chicks I've ever seen!
Joey: That makes me feel a lot better..really...
Kirsten: Good, you're up! They're about to announce the first round matches!
(A stand in the arena grows out of the ground and the fighters quiet down. Behind the stand is a map of the world with a few key locations marked--It appears that once again this tournament will be sponsored and the fighters will be carted to exotic locations. Seven exotic locations, to be precise.)
Joey: Seven? There's supposed to be eight matches in the first two rounds!
Kirsten: They'll tell us what's going on.
(The announcer steps up to a microphone. He taps it to make sure it's working then begins to speak.)
Announcer: Greetings, challengers, to the 2002 King of Fighters tournament! Each of you has shown remarkable skill, by way of ability to pay us incredible amounts of money, and now we will determine once and for all who is the best! Alright, I know most of you are excited, so I'll begin announcing the matches now!
Match one! To take place in Kyoto, Japan, The Japan Hero Team Versus the Art of Fighting team!
Shingo: Alright! we have the first match!
Benimaru: All eyes will be on me, for sure.
Goro: We're always first.
Robert: Allright! First round match!
Ryo: Against the hero team...we're screwed.
Takuma: Negative thinking! You must be positive we are screwed!
Announcer: Match two! The Ikari Warriors team versus the Canadian team '99, to take place in Cambodia!
K': .....
Maxima: Seems simple enough.
Whip: Hmm...my old team-mates..that should be interesting. Right K'-Darling?
K': Stop that!
Clark: Dooh you see anneeh otahhkoo?
Ralf: I dunno...a couple suspicous ones, but none for sure.
Leona: Cambodia????
Announcer: Match three! Team NESTS versus single entry 1 in Pisa, Italy!
(K'9999 chuckles as he looks at his ticket, then his laugh quickly turns to a look of abject horror)
Angel: What is it, K'9999?
Kula: Do we get to go there in a Train?? I like trains!! My best friend is a train....
Announcer: Match four! In Mexico, the Psycho Soldier Team versus Team Iori!
Mature: How come it's called team Iori??
Iori: Because otherwise the fangirls would rip the two of you apart.
Vice: Does this mean we have to use your theme again?
Athena: Mexico! Yay! And my hair's all grown back, too!
Kensou: Um...why do the Ikari Warriors team keep staring at me?
Chin: Tequilla!!!
Announcer: Match 5, to take place in America, Team '97 versus Team Otaku!
Ralf: Did he just say OTAKU??
Clark: I theenk he deed.
Kenny: Fucking cheap, dude? America?? We already live there!
Joey: Home turf, man.
Kirsten: Aren't they an American team too?
Billy: Awwrite!
Yamazaki: Should be no problem.
Mary: And if we win, I'll get to fight Terry again!
Announcer: Match six! In South Korea, Team Fatal Fury versus The Tae Kwon Do Justice Squad!
Andy: You ready for this year's tournament, guys?
Terry: OK!!!
Joe: Yeah...what he said.
Kim: This year, justice will prevail(TM)!
Choi: Um..yeah...
Chang: Why don't we just kill them right now?
Choi: It'd be unjust...dammit! Now he's got me saying it!!
Announcer: Match Seven! In China, Team 2000 versus the Female Fighters Team!
Seth: Let's do this!
Ramon: Hell yeah!
Vanessa: But I don't think the writer cares for us...
Damn Right.
May: This year, justice shall prevail!
Yuri: Kim just said that.
May: Nononono! HE said "Justice WILL prevail," I said "Justice SHALL prevail!"
Yuri: And that makes all the difference..
Mai: I'll get to see Andy finally if we win the first fight!
Announcer: Finally, Match Eight! In China, The New Faces Team versus Single entry number 2!
Shermie: We're first up against A single entry! It should be a breeze!
Chris: Where's Bao??
Yashiro: Why do you need Bao, when you have me?(He flexes.)
Chris: AAAAHH! Scary!!
Announcer: All teams should begin moving to their respective gates to catch their flights.
(K'9999 walks up to the ticket counter.)
K'9999: Um..miss...can I exchange two second-class tickets for one first-class?
(Elsewhere, trouble is afoot)
Clark: Thehh they aah. I shall craash them.
Leona: Hang on, let me talk to them first. (She taps Kirsten on the shoulder)Excuse me, team Otaku?
Kirsten: Yes?
Kenny: ....(He drools.)
Joey: Hey, Kenny, the drool.
Kenny: Oh, right. (He takes out a mop and wipes up the puddle)
Leona:Are the three of you really otaku?
Kirsten: Yep!
Leona: Oh..I'm sorry.
Kirsten: Why?
Leona: Because we have to kill you now.(She, Ralf and Clark pull out guns and begin firing. Kenny, Kirsten, and Joey quickly dive out of the way and take cover crouching behind a pillar.)
Joey: Shit! They're Firing at us!! With...guns...with...real..bullets that go BANG and make holes in shit!!
Kirsten: We need a distraction so we can get away!
Kenny: Which is why sometimes a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do and make the ultimate sacrifice for his friends. (Kenny stands up and pushes Joey out into the hail of gunfire. He and Kirsten then bolt for the boarding gate.)
Joey: Come on! We all saw that comin-aaaaa!!! Whymewhymewhymewhymewhymewhymewhymewhyme?????(He scampers across the floor, narrowly escaping the hellfire death that is all but certain.
Leona: Enough! Stop shooting Ralf, Clark! You! Tell your friends that if they want to be cowards, they shouldn't enter in the tournament!
Joey: ....Thanks.(His clothes are torn from the near misses and he's bleeding from all the scrapes, but he's still able to move. He makes his way to the boarding gate, and on to the plane.)
Kenny: Joey! Over here!(Joey walks over to the seats and takes his)
Joey: .........
Kenny: You not gonna thank me for saving you a window seat?
Joey: Next time, YOU're the human shield.
Kirsten: Are you okay, Joey? We can't have you exhausting yourself before the first fight is even announced!
y..yeah, I'm fine, I just need to catch my breath.
Kirsten: You sure you can handle the stress of fighting AND narrarating?
Of course! Monologues are just a bit taxing, you know.
Kirsten: I know! I'm a fanfic writer too!
And a damned good one at that, but I haven't seen you participate in one of them yet..
Kirsten: Hey! You never read them...(sniffle) I'm Tsuzuki-chan! And I'm in this one, aren't I? Besides, shouldn't you just make yourself a character now?
I haven't shown up yet! Pretend you're waiting for your teammates or something!
Kirsten: Alright...
Erm..Ahem. Anyways, our mental camera is now focused on the only member without her team waiting, Kirsten, our beautiful, mysterious fangirl.
Kirsten: Mysterious? I'll let the "beautiful" slide, but why the hell do I have to be mysterious?
Come on, all new competitors were mysterious! Okay, except Saisyu, but he scratches himself.
Kirsten: (sighs)Fine. Where the hell are my teammates? And which of Joey's friends did he manage to drag into this?
(The small roar from the over three dozen competitors quiets to silence as the doors slowly open. Two tall darkened figures emerge from the back area, and all eyes turn to the as-yet-unseen visitors. Both are clad in trenchcoats and strap-up boots with swat-team pants and--)
Kirsten: Dammit, Joey, you don't own any of those clothes!
But they're too expensive in real life! Fine, ruin my fun. Rewind to the beginning of the paragraph.
(The door quickly swings open and two tall males run in--or more specifically, one barges in and stops to catch his breath, and the other simply walks quickly beside him. One is wearing a trenchcoat--seems his punk-ass could afford it, but not the rent--)
Kirsten: Hey! Watch the fourth wall!
(Oh, right. Anyways, both contestants appear to be slightly over six feet tall, the first closer to "lanky", with the same skin tone and figure as K'. In addition to his trenchcoat, he sports a pair of black sunglasses and black hair reminiscent of Shingo's. The other applicant, however, seems to have broader shoulders, wears a black unbuttoned button-shirt over a black "Gunsmith Cats" shirt, black cargo pants, hiking shoes, and a pair of yellow Vash-sunglasses. His hair is long and tied in back with long bangs over either side of his face, like Irvine from Final Fantasy 8, but with shorter and darker hair.)
Kirsten: Joey! Hi! You brought Kenny?
(Kirsten jumps and waves. She is wearing a white "Trigun" shirt and blue jeans, along with a necklace covered in different anime chracters, including Iori. Her hair is red and wavy, and she wears glasses.
The man with the broader shoulders looks up, flips his sunglasses down with one hand and stuffs them in his pocket.)
Joey: Yep. I figured he'd be the most use.
Kirsten: What about Chris? He actually takes martial arts classes.
Joey: Yeah, but there's only so many "make me a sandwich, ho!" jokes I can come up with. "Make me a sandwich, Mai-ho! Make me a sandwich, Yuri-ho! Make me a sandwich, Mary-ho!"
(Mai, Mary, and Yuri surround the foolish fanfic writer)
Mai: What did you call us?
Mary: You pig!
Yuri: Cheauvinist!
Joey: Wait, you've got the wrong idea! I wasn't--aaaaiiieeeee!!!
(A few minutes later, when Joey finally wakes back up)
Joey: Dammit..I didn't want that to happen..
Kenny: Cheer up, dude! You just got pummeled by the three hottest chicks I've ever seen!
Joey: That makes me feel a lot better..really...
Kirsten: Good, you're up! They're about to announce the first round matches!
(A stand in the arena grows out of the ground and the fighters quiet down. Behind the stand is a map of the world with a few key locations marked--It appears that once again this tournament will be sponsored and the fighters will be carted to exotic locations. Seven exotic locations, to be precise.)
Joey: Seven? There's supposed to be eight matches in the first two rounds!
Kirsten: They'll tell us what's going on.
(The announcer steps up to a microphone. He taps it to make sure it's working then begins to speak.)
Announcer: Greetings, challengers, to the 2002 King of Fighters tournament! Each of you has shown remarkable skill, by way of ability to pay us incredible amounts of money, and now we will determine once and for all who is the best! Alright, I know most of you are excited, so I'll begin announcing the matches now!
Match one! To take place in Kyoto, Japan, The Japan Hero Team Versus the Art of Fighting team!
Shingo: Alright! we have the first match!
Benimaru: All eyes will be on me, for sure.
Goro: We're always first.
Robert: Allright! First round match!
Ryo: Against the hero team...we're screwed.
Takuma: Negative thinking! You must be positive we are screwed!
Announcer: Match two! The Ikari Warriors team versus the Canadian team '99, to take place in Cambodia!
K': .....
Maxima: Seems simple enough.
Whip: Hmm...my old team-mates..that should be interesting. Right K'-Darling?
K': Stop that!
Clark: Dooh you see anneeh otahhkoo?
Ralf: I dunno...a couple suspicous ones, but none for sure.
Leona: Cambodia????
Announcer: Match three! Team NESTS versus single entry 1 in Pisa, Italy!
(K'9999 chuckles as he looks at his ticket, then his laugh quickly turns to a look of abject horror)
Angel: What is it, K'9999?
Kula: Do we get to go there in a Train?? I like trains!! My best friend is a train....
Announcer: Match four! In Mexico, the Psycho Soldier Team versus Team Iori!
Mature: How come it's called team Iori??
Iori: Because otherwise the fangirls would rip the two of you apart.
Vice: Does this mean we have to use your theme again?
Athena: Mexico! Yay! And my hair's all grown back, too!
Kensou: Um...why do the Ikari Warriors team keep staring at me?
Chin: Tequilla!!!
Announcer: Match 5, to take place in America, Team '97 versus Team Otaku!
Ralf: Did he just say OTAKU??
Clark: I theenk he deed.
Kenny: Fucking cheap, dude? America?? We already live there!
Joey: Home turf, man.
Kirsten: Aren't they an American team too?
Billy: Awwrite!
Yamazaki: Should be no problem.
Mary: And if we win, I'll get to fight Terry again!
Announcer: Match six! In South Korea, Team Fatal Fury versus The Tae Kwon Do Justice Squad!
Andy: You ready for this year's tournament, guys?
Terry: OK!!!
Joe: Yeah...what he said.
Kim: This year, justice will prevail(TM)!
Choi: Um..yeah...
Chang: Why don't we just kill them right now?
Choi: It'd be unjust...dammit! Now he's got me saying it!!
Announcer: Match Seven! In China, Team 2000 versus the Female Fighters Team!
Seth: Let's do this!
Ramon: Hell yeah!
Vanessa: But I don't think the writer cares for us...
Damn Right.
May: This year, justice shall prevail!
Yuri: Kim just said that.
May: Nononono! HE said "Justice WILL prevail," I said "Justice SHALL prevail!"
Yuri: And that makes all the difference..
Mai: I'll get to see Andy finally if we win the first fight!
Announcer: Finally, Match Eight! In China, The New Faces Team versus Single entry number 2!
Shermie: We're first up against A single entry! It should be a breeze!
Chris: Where's Bao??
Yashiro: Why do you need Bao, when you have me?(He flexes.)
Chris: AAAAHH! Scary!!
Announcer: All teams should begin moving to their respective gates to catch their flights.
(K'9999 walks up to the ticket counter.)
K'9999: Um..miss...can I exchange two second-class tickets for one first-class?
(Elsewhere, trouble is afoot)
Clark: Thehh they aah. I shall craash them.
Leona: Hang on, let me talk to them first. (She taps Kirsten on the shoulder)Excuse me, team Otaku?
Kirsten: Yes?
Kenny: ....(He drools.)
Joey: Hey, Kenny, the drool.
Kenny: Oh, right. (He takes out a mop and wipes up the puddle)
Leona:Are the three of you really otaku?
Kirsten: Yep!
Leona: Oh..I'm sorry.
Kirsten: Why?
Leona: Because we have to kill you now.(She, Ralf and Clark pull out guns and begin firing. Kenny, Kirsten, and Joey quickly dive out of the way and take cover crouching behind a pillar.)
Joey: Shit! They're Firing at us!! With...guns...with...real..bullets that go BANG and make holes in shit!!
Kirsten: We need a distraction so we can get away!
Kenny: Which is why sometimes a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do and make the ultimate sacrifice for his friends. (Kenny stands up and pushes Joey out into the hail of gunfire. He and Kirsten then bolt for the boarding gate.)
Joey: Come on! We all saw that comin-aaaaa!!! Whymewhymewhymewhymewhymewhymewhymewhyme?????(He scampers across the floor, narrowly escaping the hellfire death that is all but certain.
Leona: Enough! Stop shooting Ralf, Clark! You! Tell your friends that if they want to be cowards, they shouldn't enter in the tournament!
Joey: ....Thanks.(His clothes are torn from the near misses and he's bleeding from all the scrapes, but he's still able to move. He makes his way to the boarding gate, and on to the plane.)
Kenny: Joey! Over here!(Joey walks over to the seats and takes his)
Joey: .........
Kenny: You not gonna thank me for saving you a window seat?
Joey: Next time, YOU're the human shield.