I know some of you may be a little miffed as you see some of your favorite characters keep on dying. All I have to say to that is, stick with the story, as all is not as it seems as the plot continues to unfold. The story is quite far-reaching in its scope and I believe you all will enjoy its conclusion thoroughly. In these installments Serge descends further into his madness and even shifts his innate allegiance. Some players have an idea as to what's going on, but will they be able to help him? Read on to find out.
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Round 26 – Serge (S), Janice (K)
Janice was feeling mighty proud of herself. She had managed to take out Kid without so much as breaking a sweat.
"Hmmm...I feel good. Man, does it feel good to show that pompous little..." she trailed off, because she heard something in the bushes. She didn't want to investigate, but she had a strange inkling that this would be something important.
"As long as I'm quiet," Janice whispered to herself, and started pawing through the undergrowth. She waited for a long time before she came across Serge. Janice wanted to call to him, but he appeared busy. Her curiosity taking over, she poked her head out a little from her hiding place to watch.
Serge was standing next to a stream where the group usually got their water. However, he appeared to be quietly contemplating something, unsure of himself. Footsteps from the undergrowth brought in the shapely Riddel.
"Serge, there you are," Riddel said, walking over to him. He looked to her with pleading eyes, and with his hands, he asked about Kid.
"Kid? You did not hear? I am sorry, Serge, Kid is dead." Riddel delivered the news solemnly, and moved to put her hand on his shoulder. Serge stepped back.
"It was Janice," Riddel said. She moved toward him again, but he angrily shoved her a little, and then ran off into the woods, his hands pressed to his face.
"Oh, Serge." Riddel sighed before turning around and returning from where she came.
Alone in the wilderness, Serge was pouting. How could that rabbit girl, with those feet, kill Kid? Shouldn't Kid have been able to fight? He sobbed for a minute, and then got a drink of water. Once he started drinking, he heard a single word in the back of his mind.
"Vengeance," it said simply and loudly. Serge was confused and sat down for a minute.
"Vengeance." The word repeated itself again. It kept speaking, getting louder and louder. Serge put his hands to his ears, but it didn't drown out the sound, the word, or its meaning.
When Serge finally stood up, the sparkle was gone from his eyes. All he could think about was Janice. Janice killing Kid. Janice and her cocky smile.
'She will pay!' Serge screamed in his head.
Janice was strutting near the beach, feeling awfully proud of herself while waiting for some sea creatures to come close so she could capture and train them. Serge emerged from the bushes, the look in his eyes screaming bloody murder.
"Oh, it's Serge. Well, you look like you wanna come get me. I know you know about Kid, and I say bring it! You can't take me out! I'm the Almighty Janice! The Iron Woman!" She shouted before getting her bunny drum out.
Serge ran straight for her, while Janice swung her drum. She knocked him on his rear, but he stood right back up and blindly charged still.
"Fireball!" Janice conjured up four globes of piping hot napalm. At her point, all of them crashed into Serge, knocking him flat on his back. But again, he stood up, paid his reddened skin no mind, and charged again.
"Firepillar!" Janice shouted, the ground around Serge erupting into flames. He fell backward, and stumbled onto one knee.
"Inferno!" Janice threw in for good measure. The air turned red with heat and charged itself onto Serge's body. His clothes were in tatters, and everywhere on his skin, red boiling blisters oozed and popped with sickening sounds. Serge weakly got to one knee, and raised his fist in the air, trying to use the Holy Healing element. He felt weak from the blisters, as Janice strode over to him with an exaggerated bounce in her step. But his power wasn't working. The healing light would not form.
"I can take you out easily! Leena will be even easier!" Janice mocked. Her carrot out, she prepared to stab Serge's throat.
'REVENGE!' The same deep voice spoke the word in Serge's head once Janice had stopped talking. He stood up, again with his evil gaze, and charged himself with black energy. When the black light subsided, Serge himself was fine, with no more blisters or reddened skin on him. They had shifted onto Janice.
"Im-Impossible!" Janice shouted, her ears and arms in pain from all the festering skin. He had used the Revenge element, something he could never use before.
She fell to the ground, and Serge gave no word as his swallow tore into her midsection. The blisters ripped with her skin, as the swallow opened her body and killed her within seconds. With a smug look of satisfaction, Serge tossed her body in the ocean, but not before cutting off her ridiculous feet.
"How lucky are you now?" Serge asked hypothetically, his voice eerily carrying over the sea breeze.
Standing within the shaded area under a fallen tree, the hooded figure watched Serge's actions. If anyone was watching and could see his mouth, they would find a twisted smile upon his lips.
"He uses the dark powers at last. My work is nearly over."
By: Matt620
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Round 27 – Nikki (S), Zappa (K)
Zappa was very angry. Just two days ago, his only son had gotten into a bar fight with Orlha, and now Karsh was dead. He would never forgive Orlha, even if Karsh could be an idiot sometimes. He needed somebody to help him avenge his son.
Nikki and Miki were taking a walk around the island. They were happy that neither one of them had been killed yet.
"I can't believe my sister is dead," said Nikki. "If only I knew who did it."
"Riddel and Karsh were seen near where her body was found," remarked Miki. "But Karsh is dead now, and dead men don't tell tales."
"If I ever find out who killed my sister, they are going to die!" yelled Nikki, who noticed Zappa walking by just then.
"Hello, Zappa," greeted Miki. "How are you today?"
"My son is dead. Ah know who did it too. It was Orlha."
"I know how you feel," sympathized Nikki. "My sister Marcy was found dead several days ago. Someone saw your son talking with Riddel near her body."
"My son? But that's impossible. Ah dinnae believe that he would do that."
"You're just sticking up for him now. I saw how rude he could get at the bar. I bet Karsh killed Marcy! That backstabber!" Nikki was getting very angry.
"I'm telling ye, my son dinnae do it. Laddie, you calm down."
"My sister is dead and you are telling me to calm down!!!!" Nikki took out his guitar.
"Nikki, are you sure you should be doing this?" asked Miki. "I mean, what if Karsh is innocent..."
Nikki was not listening to Miki. He started to play his guitar.
"That music...it's awful, laddie!" Zappa exclaimed.
Nikki just kept pounding away on his guitar. Zappa was holding his hands over his ears. "Ah'm telling ye, stop the bloody music," Zappa pleaded in vain.
"What's that?" Nikki laughed over the drone of his rock music. "You want it louder?! I think I can do that."
He then pulled out the cord that normally connected to his amp from the back of his guitar. Nikki twirled it around a few times and then let it fly. It settled right into the base of the weapon smith's skull as he began to scream even louder.
"You think it hurts now? You just wait!" Nikki yelled.
Nikki played a thunderous rift and the effects were immediately apparent. The music was making Zappa's head swell up. Every little note seemed to make the forger's head grow more and more until it reached comedic proportions. Finally, Nikki prepared himself for his big finale.
"From my family to yours!" cried Nikki. "Hope you go out with a bang!" With that Nikki slammed home the final note of his death song.
Zappa screamed in pain as his head grew even more. His eyes bulged out of his sockets as he waved his hands around like a rubber chicken. His cranium was fighting a battle with the sounds of sorrow and neither one could yet be declared the winner. After ten seconds, one of them finally gave up. With a sickening pop, Zappa's head exploded as his body then slumped to the ground.
"You fought the rock. And the rock won," said Nikki, as he let the cord retract into his instrument.
"I hope you did the right thing," said Miki, as she kissed her boyfriend on the cheek.
By: Alanna82
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Round 28 – Harle (S), Grobyc (K)
In camp, Harle was on her daily messenger/delivery job when she saw none other than the cyborg assassin, Grobyc, walking towards her. Harle had rarely spoken to Grobyc, so she was wondering what the cyborg had to say to her.
"Harle-may-Grobyc-have-a-word-with-you?" requested Grobyc.
"Wit moi? Of course, Grobyc," the harlequin led the two to the edge of camp, away from any potential listeners. "So, what do you need to speak to moi about?"
"Grobyc-is-worried-about-Grobyc's-master-Serge. Serge-has-been-acting-very-strangely-recently," the cyborg stated monotonously.
"Oui, Monsieur Serge 'as been behaving out of character, so what do you plan on doing?" Harle was curious about what he had in mind.
Grobyc made his request. "Grobyc-has-noticed-that-you-have-also-observed-this. You-and-Grobyc-will-watch-Serge-to-find-out-the-cause. Then-Grobyc-can-repair-Serge."
Harle thought about this for a moment and gave her reply, "Alright, Grobyc, I 'ave some time to spare. Let us find Monsieur Serge."
"I-know-where-Serge-is. Follow-Grobyc." And with that, the cyborg briskly marched off into the jungle with the jester close behind. For a few minutes, there were no words shared between the two as they worked their way through the thick vegetation. Grobyc knew the way as if he had just come from Serge's location.
"Stop. Serge-is-beyond-these-trees. Grobyc-followed-Serge-this-far-before-going-to-you. Watch-silently," the robot cautioned.
"I do not need spying tips from a robot. I am more worried about you making ze noise," Harle replied. The two crouched down silently onto the mossy ground and peered through the branches. Sure enough, there was Serge, seemingly at peace. He was also crouched down, but by a creek instead of bushes. Serge brought his hands together and lowered his arms into the creek, collecting fresh water in his palms. He raised his cupped hands to his mouth and sipped the refreshing water. And then...crack!
'?' Serge looked up and towards the source of the noise, his eyebrows narrowed with a look of irritation in his eyes.
The two spies quickly and quietly withdrew and left the scene. When they deemed it safe, Harle immediately turned on Grobyc. "What did you t'ink vous were doing?! A robot 'as heavy az vous trying to be completely zilent? Vous should 'ave found a place with no twigs before vous zat!"
"That-was-not-Grobyc-that-made-the-noise. It-was-you. You-are-not-as-skilled-at-spying-as-you-thought," Grobyc retorted.
"Moi? Pleaze. Az a robot, vous should have the logic to be careful around a potentially dangerous person."
"Are-you-insulting-Grobyc's-intelligence? Grobyc-will-not-stand-for-this! Grobyc-attack!" the cyborg cried out in his own cyborg way and tried to punch the jester.
Harle jumped back and fired a dart at her assailant. "Vous wish to fight wit moi? It will be your death," Harle warned. The dart bounced harmlessly off of Grobyc.
"Grobyc-thinks-otherwise. Grobyc-is-an-assassin," Grobyc announced, with some pride, too. The robot launched his fist at Harle's gut but missed by a mile. Harle teleported behind him and took another shot. This time the dart made it into a space between his armor and caused some sparks to fly out. She got the idea and launched many more darts toward more of these spaces while she dodged Grobyc's blows. Finally, the cyborg scored a hit and sent Harle tumbling backwards. He took the chance, detached his arm, and replaced it with a cannon. He took careful aim and fired.
"Zat t'ing iz much too slow!" Harle laughed as she teleported behind Grobyc again. As the cyborg was recovering from the massive attack, the jester stuck many darts into his skin. Grobyc was spouting sparks all over.
"Au revoir, foolish cyborg!" Harle jumped onto a tree branch as a wave of water rushed by, thoroughly soaking Grobyc. The water fried the circuits inside of him and his spiky metal hair was smoking. Then a massive charge built up above his head and came into contact with his body. Grobyc instantly exploded, sending circuitry in every direction.
"Useless robot. If Luccia asks, Grobyc 'ad a major malfunction." Harle brushed herself off and resumed making her deliveries.
By: TenkoStar17
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Round 29 – Miki (S), Luccia (K)
Some of the adventurers had been getting tense lately, as more and more of them had been disappearing as of late. But not Miki. She was more concerned with getting something to eat, as she had missed breakfast that morning. As she was walking to get some food, she felt a little creature knock into her.
"Hey, Pip, what's the rush?" a flustered Miki asked.
"I'm Sowwy, Miki, but Wuccia needs you to test her invention!" Pip said, his excitement clearly showing.
"Me?!" exclaimed Miki. "But I know nothing about machines."
"Wuccia asked fow your help," said Pip.
"Okay Pip, I'll help test the machine," assented Miki.
Miki and Pip walked to Luccia's tent. There were weird beeping noises coming out of it.
"Kom in," beckoned Luccia. "I had Pip bring you here to test my masterpiece. Dis machine is called de Dance Dance Revolution 1000, and I vant you to test it vith me."
"A dancing machine! Cool!" exclaimed Miki. "But how did it get here?"
"I built it out of the remains of my brother, Grobyc," explained Luccia. "At least his death was not in vain. I built it for science!"
"Whatever..." said Miki. "So how do we play?"
"It's simple. You dance on dis pad," Luccia instructed, as she pointed to the floor piece. "Den you dance the vay the arrows are pointing. If you hit the arrows, you get points. If you miss the arrows, you vill not be able to pass dis stage."
"Okay, let's play," said Miki, as she stepped on one of the dance pads and got herself comfortable. Luccia then stepped on the other dance pad. With a wave of the scientist's hand in front a miniature display board, the game began.
Miki won the first game easily, as Luccia barely managed to even pass the easy levels.
"I vill beat you eventually," huffed Luccia. "Kom on Miki, keep playing."
"You'll never beat me, for I am the Dynamite Dancer Miki!" exclaimed Miki, as the two women danced all night. Eventually, Miki noticed that Luccia wasn't even dancing anymore.
"Luccia, are you alright? Why aren't you moving?" asked a shocked Miki.
"Wuccia!" exclaimed Pip. "She doesn't appeaw to be bweathing. I think she had a heart attack!"
"Oopsie! I didn't mean to kill her..." said Miki. "This is not good. I'm getting out of here." Miki then hopped off the dance pad and walked toward the tent flap.
"I will get wevenge on you Miki!" yelled Pip as he sprouted horns and a tail.
"Pip, look what you have become..." said Miki, as she slowly backed out of the room. One more person had died and another enemy had been made. This was not a good day for the dynamite dancer. She then raced out of the tent to find Nikki. He would understand that it was an accident and hopefully protect her from the Devil Pip.
"Oh Nikki! It's happened again!" cried Miki, as she spotted her boyfriend.
"What's wrong?!" Nikki asked, concern in his voice. "Did you raise the dead?"
"Ummm...no," answered Miki, confused. "I was playing this game with Luccia and we got so into it. I couldn't stop playing and I didn't even notice anything was wrong. Then when I looked over, she had a heart attack! She wasn't breathing!"
"Okay," Nikki said, looking relieved. "So you're sure you didn't raise the dead?"
"Nikki, have you even been listening to me?!" shouted Miki.
"Yep, you said you didn't raise the dead," replied Nikki, as he placed his arm around his girlfriend. "And that's good enough for me." The two then strolled off toward the kitchen tent, hoping to scoop up any leftovers just before it closed down until breakfast time. Neither of them noticed the little horned creature glaring at them from afar.
By: Alanna82
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Round 30 – Fargo (S), Leah (K)
"A scavenger hunt?" remarked Orlha, as she read the posted sign. "Wow, SAL must be getting really desperate for activities now. Oh well, we might as well see how it turns out."
"Dude, do I really have to go?" asked Doc, obviously not enthused. "I have a whole bag of stuff just waiting to be tested..."
"I think it's time you got some fresh air," Orlha said, forcefully. "This tent is so stuffy sometimes that I really wonder what you do in here all day." With that she pulled Doc to his feet, and with much pushing and prodding, finally got him moving in a reasonably straight line.
As the two friends reached the meeting area, they were quite shocked to see everyone there, save Lynx and Guile. The number of players in this tournament had shrunken considerably since its inception, and now they were down to only sixteen total. A turnout of fourteen was remarkable, even more so when you considered the amount of brewing enmity growing between the once friendly adventurers.
"Ahem!" Norris cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. "Thank you for showing up to this SAL event. I figured a little old-fashioned scavenger hunt would be the best thing to take our minds off of the more stressful things that have recently been going on. Anyway, the rules are quite simple. We'll pair off into teams of two and then hand out the list of items. Then, everyone returns here after a maximum of three hours. The team to collect the most items wins. In the event of a tie, the faster team to return to this spot will be declared the victor. Any questions?"
"Can I use bwute fowce?" asked Pip, scraping the ground with his horns in anticipation, while glaring at Nikki and Miki.
"If need be," answered Norris. "Just make sure it doesn't get too out of hand. Any other concerns?" Everyone shook their head "no". "Okay then, let's pair up."
After a mad scramble, seven teams were finally formed. The pairings were as follows: Doc and Orlha, Nikki and Miki, Norris and Riddel, Steena and Pip, Serge and Leena, Fargo and Leah, and finally, Harle and Irenes. Norris then handed out the lists.
"Be back in three hours from now," Norris repeated. "On your mark, get set...go!" And with the final word, everyone separated and dashed to various places across the island.
"Quick, what's first on the list?" prodded Nikki.
"A golden leaf," said Miki, as she perused the list. She looked in front of them and saw a huge tree. And up on its highest branch was a leaf of an amber hue. "There's one Nikki! But how will we get it down?"
"Leave it to me," assured Nikki. He then pulled out his guitar and played a jarring note. The tree shook and quivered for a little bit and then all its leaves fell off. Nikki waded through the pile of green and found what he was looking for. "Piece of cake. What's next?"
Doc and Orlha were walking around with their eyes focused on the ground for their item.
"A four-leaf clover?! Does Norris actually expect us to increase our luck or something?" seethed Orlha.
"Hey, what's this?" inquired Doc, as he bent down to pick something up. "Some kind of weed or something..." At the sight of what Doc held in his hand, his partner's eyes lit up.
"Doc! You found it! You really are the master of herbology," Orlha squealed.
"Uhhhh...can I smoke it?" pleaded Doc.
Orlha rolled her eyes at his comment. "Later. Now what's next?"
Norris and Riddel were standing by a nearby pond, on the lookout for any reptiles that fit the description they were searching for. Riddel suddenly spotted something enter the pond and she pointed it out to Norris. Norris shook his head to indicate he saw it and then reached down into his pants pocket. He pulled out a grenade, bit off the pin, and then hurled it at the creature. A miniature explosion resulted.
"Norris!" shouted Riddel, shocked. "Did you have to kill the turtle just for its shell?"
"Yep," Norris said, calmly. "It was a threat. I didn't like the way it was looking at me. Shifty eyes. Besides, maybe this way we can convince the others to give us bonus points for the two halves."
Riddel just sighed and picked up the burnt out husk. "Next item?"
Steena and Pip were searching high for a nest. So far, they had turned up empty. Suddenly, Steena spotted something.
"Pip, up there," she pointed. "Think you can get that egg?"
"I'll gwab it," he said, as he sprouted dragonfly wings out of his back and flew up to the nest. Suddenly a large pterodactyl descended on the ever- changing phenomenon. Pip fought a fierce battle, but in the end emerged victorious.
"Sowwy about that," he apologized.
"Don't be," laughed Steena. "That was a good fight. There's nothing like the smell of fresh blood in the morning! Let's hurry on with this wild goose chase then!"
Fargo and Leah were sitting by the base of a mountain, trying to think of how to obtain their next item.
"Four crystals of different colors?!" Fargo barked. "What's that matey thinking?"
"Leah know-um!" shouted his diminutive partner. "Crystals in rock-ums!"
"Yeah, but how will we break them open?" questioned Fargo. Then, an idea hit him.
"Leah, on my signal, hurl these big boulders at me. Make it four, though. No more, no less. Once I start what I'm doing, I can't stop. Got that?"
"Rock-um throwing is fun!" exclaimed Leah, as she picked up the first boulder.
"Go!" shouted Fargo. He then ran at Leah, while glowing a fierce blue.
Leah threw one rock and Fargo sliced it open, spilling its contents of multifaceted gems. 'One,' she thought to herself. She then threw a second rock at Fargo and he cut it into pieces. 'Two,' she continued. With another mighty heave and a sword swing a third rock just as quickly met the fate of the others. 'Wait? What come after three-um?' Leah paused, confused. Just then she felt a sword rip into her as her eyes went wide and she slumped to the ground.
"Oh no!" shouted Fargo. "I told her four! Oh well, maybe some of these red- stained rocks can pass as a different color." Fargo gathered up the stones and then headed out with the list in hand. "Aye, this next one looks easy."
Serge and Leena were situated by the ocean and testing out different stones. They were looking for the perfect skipping stone. Just as Serge placed his hand on one that appeared to do the job, he heard a familiar voice in his head.
"Why do you waste your time with these childish activities?" the voice said. "You could accomplish so much more if you do not hold yourself back."
'No!' Serge screamed in his head, covering his hands over his ears. 'Leave me be!' At this action Leena looked over at her friend warily.
"Are you alright, Serge?" she asked, obvious concern in her voice.
"But is that really what you want?" continued the voice inside Serge's head. "Take your partner, for instance. Wouldn't you love to rip her pretty little eyes out right now?"
'No!' retorted Serge, as he looked at Leena.
"Yes! You want to kill her! Gore is all that makes you happy!" the voice shouted.
'It is not...what I want. It is...not...Do I want this?' Serge asked the voice in his head, now not so sure of himself. The thought of blood and carnage was beginning to appeal to him.
"Yes! But you must thrust quickly! Perform your deed and be gone!" shouted the voice.
'The deed will be done,' Serge replied, calmly. The boy from Arni then stood up and held his hands to his eyes. When he looked again at Leena, they were no longer blue, but blood red.
"It is time to meet your maker," Serge hissed, as he took out his swallow and swiped at Leena.
"Wh-wh-what did you say?!" asked a shaken Leena, unaccustomed to hearing the voice of the amicable mime. She managed to dodge his swipes, but still feared for her life just the same.
"You are a stain upon this earth!" Serge yelled, as his swallow finally tore into Leena's arm. She screamed in pain. "Death is the only option." He then performed a sweep kick and Leena was left flat on her back, Serge's swallow pointed at the base of her throat. "Any last words?"
"Yes!" she cried. "Stop this insanity! It's me Serge! Don't you remember the bond we shared?! Come to your senses!"
"No, you mean n-n-nothing to me!" he shouted, but there was hesitation in his voice, his resolve wavering.
"But you mean much to me!" Leena countered. "I-I-I love you, Serge. You must have realized that by now. What ever this is, we can work through it. Let me help you." She then placed her hand on Serge's weapon and pushed it to the side.
Serge dropped his swallow and closed his eyes. He then put his hands to his temples and backed away from Leena. 'Nooo! What was I doing?!' he said to himself, reality creeping back into his head. 'I will have you gone!' he told the sinister voice.
"You cannot get rid of me," the voice laughed. "Not when we have come so far. Let us end this now. Just pick up the swallow, and run her through..."
'No!' Serge said as he fought against the overwhelming urge to do just that.
"If you are too weak to do it!" yelled the voice. "Then I will!"
Serge then dived for the swallow and stood up. Laughing, he brought it around for the killing strike. Just before it made contact, Serge halted its momentum and let out a bloodcurdling scream.
"Stop it!!!" he yelled. His body then went flaccid and collapsed to the ground. His eyes had rolled into the back of his head and he was shivering in obvious shock.
"I need help!" Leena shouted to the empty air, hoping someone would hear. "Something is wrong!"
Harle then materialized next to the maiden. The jester was holding a conch shell.
"What iz it?" she asked, perplexed.
"It's Serge!" Leena exclaimed. "He tried to attack me all of a sudden and then he just passed out! He looks horrid!"
"I tried to 'alt what iz going on, but it seems it was no good," said Harle, forlorn. "Irenes iz looking for a pearl in ze water, ze last item we need. Go back to Norris and ze others when she returns. Let them know what haz 'appened." The harlequin then bent over and put her hand on Serge's forehead.
"What are you doing now?" asked Leena, in tears at what was ripping her neighbor apart.
"Anyt'ing zat I can," replied Harle, as she teleported both herself and Serge back to the camp. Harle then placed Serge on his sleeping bag and removed his bandanna. She soaked it and placed it on his head, hoping to control the growing fever. Sighing to herself, she then slowly backed out of the tent. "I have put zis off for long enough. I must confront him."
By: Daredevil3181