[FATR: I don't own Dance Dance Revolution (DDR). This story has surprised me again. I didn't really mean to send it in this direction but I won't fight its chosen course. This could be a chapter for Scorpion fan girls (if any are reading this). Don't get discouraged, Otto fan girls, he's in here too, and in the grand scheme of things he is the main character. He is, after all, my personal favorite. I have big plans for our eight-limbed sex god. As far as this chapter goes, HOORAY FOR ESSENTIALLY PLOTLESS VIOLENCE!!!! Ahem. Featured Story: "Falling Feels Like Flying" by erinflanagan. The descriptions are rich and the... I don't want to say humor because there are things besides the humor that are also witty. Escher is a great character. Just give it a look if you haven't already. Now, for those of you who stuck with my babble this far, on with the fic!]
While Peter was romancing Mary Jane, the four super villains were busy doing something of an entirely different sort.
"Yeah, crack 'is god'am head in, Quin!" Mac cheered.
Quinton looked up from Max, whom he gripped in a headlock, long enough to rebuke Mac for calling him 'Quin.' "It sounds like a fucking girl's name."
"I can see how he'd get confused, what with that blond ponytail thing you've got going there," Max taunted. This earned him a fist in the abdomen. Max growled and knocked Quinton off with a burst of electricity, causing him to hit the nearest wall.
Quinton was momentarily stunned as he slumped to the floor. "The rules are set down, no one uses powers unless it involves actual, physical strength."
"You fucking punched me in the gut, what did you expect?" Max smirked, more amused than angry.
"He's right," Otto spoke up from the sidelines. "Five second penalty on Max." The two fighters nodded and returned to their match.
As he spun around Max punch Quinton square in the face, while he was still off guard. Quinton recovered quickly and tried to round kick Max in the side of the head. Max caught his foot and swung him to the ground. Quinton rolled and hopped up. The two men stalked around each other, sneering.
Quinton tackled Max, the force carrying them both two feet before they landed. They struggled on the floor for a while, each trying to get the upper hand over the other. Quinton flipped Max on his stomach and twisted his arms behind his back with one hand while bending Max's knees back and wrapping his other arm around Max's ankles.
Max struggled as the count began and almost got an arm free. Quinton threw more weight into the pin, shoving his knee into Max's back. Max thought he heard something pop but wasn't quite sure. I can hardly breath, you bitch! He debated cheating again but decided it wasn't worth the energy.
"4... 5... Quinton wins," Otto announced indifferently.
Max rolled his eyes as he got to his knees. "Your enthusiasm is underwhelming, doc."
"If only you guys had any idea how that looked," Stephanie giggled from the DDR machine. "Very cute." Her shift had ended an hour ago and she had been using the time to play just about the only game in there she was notably good at. Max, always willing to try new forms of entertainment, had played a few times. It made them laugh, and he seemed to like the attention. The reason she had been able to watch their shenanigans at the same time was because this was her favorite song and she had it just about memorized. "I doubt you should be beating each other up just now, anyway," she continued as the song ended. She pulled her hair off her hot, damp neck and secured it in a messy ponytail. "You want to be fresh for whatever it is master Fisk wants you to do." As she joined them she noticed that Quinton's lip was bleeding.
"Hey, why don' yah wrestle me?" Mac grinned.
"Oh, please, it isn't even a contest," Stephanie laughed.
"Yah tha' sure a yahself, huh?"
"No, I'm that unsure of myself."
"C'mon, I'll go easy on yah," Mac winked.
"Yeah, why don't you do it?" Quinton challenged playfully.
"Do it! Do it!" Max chanted.
Stephanie turned to Otto who stood, with his arms crossed, leaning slightly on the bottom two tentacles. He merely shrugged at her. She sighed. "Fine, I'll give it a shot. Are there going to be any rules for Mac to break?"
"Now don' be like tha'. What kinda man would I be if I couldn' be hones' with a lady?" Mac pretended to be offended.
"No punching, biting, or-" Max started.
"Oh, come on!" Stephanie interrupted. "There's no need to treat me that much different just because I piss sitting down!"
Max contemplated this. "Okay, you can't hit or kick Mac in the berries, and he can't hit or kick you in the peaches. The same rules about powers apply. Anyone who breaks the rules gets time knocked off their required pin time. Enough violations result in an automatic forfeit."
"Is the ref ready?" Quinton inquired of Otto.
"Always." He shifted his weight back to his feet and the tentacles snaked around so that he could view the match from all angles. "Game start."
Mac and Stephanie began circling. Mac was poised to pounce, always ready to go on the offensive, but Stephanie's stance was more wary and defensive. "Yah know, he didn' say nothin 'bout grabbin," Mac grinned.
Stephanie smirked back and flashed Mac her nails. "I'll keep that in mind." He raised an eyebrow but stayed silent.
It was clear that she had no intention of making the first move, so Mac took the liberty. He crouched low and launched himself into the air.
Stephanie avoided being tackled, but just barely. Her hours on the DDR machine paid off when it came to hand-eye coordination and reaction time, but she knew she couldn't just keep dodging Mac. To win she would have to pin him, which she knew she wasn't strong enough to do, and she would tire out before him. As she whipped around to face him, still in defensive mode, she watched him turn to face her in mid air a split second before he landed. He assumed another arachnoid position and she saw his muscles bunch to launch him again. She spun out of the way and made a split second decision to hook her arms under his armpits. She locked her hands behind his neck. He was taller than her so the move forced him to bend over backwards. "I've had just about enough of your giant grasshopper impressions."
The smile on Mac's face may have been evil enough to scare even Stephanie if she had seen it. "Okay." He tucked his head down and jerked forwards in one clean movement. The move caused her to flip over his shoulders. She didn't let go, so he went over with her.
Stephanie landed on her back with Mac on his back on top of her. It knocked the wind out of her. She hadn't realized he was that heavy. Somehow, however, she had managed to maintain her grip on his shoulders. As he struggled, she squeezed tighter, thinking of nothing but holding on, though it was difficult to get her breath back with him on top of her. Vaguely aware that Otto had begun the count, she pushed hard off the floor with her foot and tried to roll Mac on his stomach. She succeeded, but she wasn't heavy enough to keep him there.
Mac got to his knees and looked over his shoulder at her. "Are yah gonna le' go or do I have tah get real violent?" Stephanie scowled at him and pulled still tighter. The flip before had pulled a muscle in his shoulder and it complained when she did this. Well, she gives me no choice. He threw himself backwards onto the ground.
Stephanie's head cracked down audibly and white and red sparks temporarily blinded her. She let go to put her hand to her head and groaned a little, thankful the ground was carpeted. The colors cleared just in time for her to see Mac coming at her again, this time to finish her off. She put her feet together and launched them with all her strength into Mac's chest. She had been aiming for his solar plexus, knowing that a blow like that would take anybody out, but had, in her confusion, miscalculated. His chest was like a rock and it probably hurt her just about as much as it had hurt him, if not more.
The blow made Mac stumble back just long enough for her to get up but it hardly fazed him. He was sweating slightly, but she still looked much more worn out than he felt. She was a little wobbly on her feet, probably from the clonk on the head. He found himself hoping he hadn't hurt her too much. Stephanie was, after all, a nice girl, and he didn't dislike her. Her head was down and he tilted his head, trying to see her face. "Yah okay?"
"I'll survive," she lied, trying to keep the moaning tremor out of her voice. When she saw his face, however, she noticed he had heard it anyway. Well, of course he had. He was a predator, after all. She drew up straight and steadied herself. "Well, come on."
Mac mentally sighed. She was determined, he had to give her that, but the fight was just about over. He had expected her to wait for him to attack again, but his time she rushed to meet his attack. They clashed in the middle, their fingers interlocking as each tried to topple the other. She was stronger than she looked but not strong enough. He squeezed her hands mercilessly but she never cried out. Her eyes watered but she never closed them, never tried to pull her hands away. In fact, she began digging her nails into the backs of his hands as hard as she could. It stung, but not enough, and his size and strength finally overpowered her, forcing her to her knees. He sank with her, pressing her over backwards.
Stephanie felt her shoulder blades touch the floor. Being a dancer, bending her knees in such a way was not painful in the least. Her feet, however, were being crushed under their combined weights. She heard Otto begin the count but it seemed like time was moving much more slowly than it should as she struggled against Mac. Between three and four, she caught Max and Quinton exchanging an uncomfortable yet still amused look. Suddenly it occurred to her. Mac was practically straddling her, pinning her hands on either side of her head, pressing his body on her to keep her back on the floor. This man had hit on her more than once before, until she had lied about being an avowed virgin. Instinctively she tried to seek his thoughts in his face but of course she couldn't see it. His face was right next to hers, with his cheek close enough for her to feel the warmth radiating from it onto her own. When she turned her head her cheek brushed his and she suppressed a blush.
Time was called and Mac released her, sitting back on his heals. That hadn't been entirely unpleasant. He studied the backs of his hands. There were little red crescent moons printed beneath each of his knuckles, but only one was bleeding. "Yah stronger than I 'riginally thought."
Stephanie sat up too. "You're heavier than I originally thought."
"With practice yah could win nex' time."
Stephanie got to her feet and stretched. "Oh, no. That's the last time you'll be on top of me for a while. I'm going to shower and take some aspirin. I'd advise you three to clean up a little before you go meet master Fisk. You have about an hour."
While Peter was romancing Mary Jane, the four super villains were busy doing something of an entirely different sort.
"Yeah, crack 'is god'am head in, Quin!" Mac cheered.
Quinton looked up from Max, whom he gripped in a headlock, long enough to rebuke Mac for calling him 'Quin.' "It sounds like a fucking girl's name."
"I can see how he'd get confused, what with that blond ponytail thing you've got going there," Max taunted. This earned him a fist in the abdomen. Max growled and knocked Quinton off with a burst of electricity, causing him to hit the nearest wall.
Quinton was momentarily stunned as he slumped to the floor. "The rules are set down, no one uses powers unless it involves actual, physical strength."
"You fucking punched me in the gut, what did you expect?" Max smirked, more amused than angry.
"He's right," Otto spoke up from the sidelines. "Five second penalty on Max." The two fighters nodded and returned to their match.
As he spun around Max punch Quinton square in the face, while he was still off guard. Quinton recovered quickly and tried to round kick Max in the side of the head. Max caught his foot and swung him to the ground. Quinton rolled and hopped up. The two men stalked around each other, sneering.
Quinton tackled Max, the force carrying them both two feet before they landed. They struggled on the floor for a while, each trying to get the upper hand over the other. Quinton flipped Max on his stomach and twisted his arms behind his back with one hand while bending Max's knees back and wrapping his other arm around Max's ankles.
Max struggled as the count began and almost got an arm free. Quinton threw more weight into the pin, shoving his knee into Max's back. Max thought he heard something pop but wasn't quite sure. I can hardly breath, you bitch! He debated cheating again but decided it wasn't worth the energy.
"4... 5... Quinton wins," Otto announced indifferently.
Max rolled his eyes as he got to his knees. "Your enthusiasm is underwhelming, doc."
"If only you guys had any idea how that looked," Stephanie giggled from the DDR machine. "Very cute." Her shift had ended an hour ago and she had been using the time to play just about the only game in there she was notably good at. Max, always willing to try new forms of entertainment, had played a few times. It made them laugh, and he seemed to like the attention. The reason she had been able to watch their shenanigans at the same time was because this was her favorite song and she had it just about memorized. "I doubt you should be beating each other up just now, anyway," she continued as the song ended. She pulled her hair off her hot, damp neck and secured it in a messy ponytail. "You want to be fresh for whatever it is master Fisk wants you to do." As she joined them she noticed that Quinton's lip was bleeding.
"Hey, why don' yah wrestle me?" Mac grinned.
"Oh, please, it isn't even a contest," Stephanie laughed.
"Yah tha' sure a yahself, huh?"
"No, I'm that unsure of myself."
"C'mon, I'll go easy on yah," Mac winked.
"Yeah, why don't you do it?" Quinton challenged playfully.
"Do it! Do it!" Max chanted.
Stephanie turned to Otto who stood, with his arms crossed, leaning slightly on the bottom two tentacles. He merely shrugged at her. She sighed. "Fine, I'll give it a shot. Are there going to be any rules for Mac to break?"
"Now don' be like tha'. What kinda man would I be if I couldn' be hones' with a lady?" Mac pretended to be offended.
"No punching, biting, or-" Max started.
"Oh, come on!" Stephanie interrupted. "There's no need to treat me that much different just because I piss sitting down!"
Max contemplated this. "Okay, you can't hit or kick Mac in the berries, and he can't hit or kick you in the peaches. The same rules about powers apply. Anyone who breaks the rules gets time knocked off their required pin time. Enough violations result in an automatic forfeit."
"Is the ref ready?" Quinton inquired of Otto.
"Always." He shifted his weight back to his feet and the tentacles snaked around so that he could view the match from all angles. "Game start."
Mac and Stephanie began circling. Mac was poised to pounce, always ready to go on the offensive, but Stephanie's stance was more wary and defensive. "Yah know, he didn' say nothin 'bout grabbin," Mac grinned.
Stephanie smirked back and flashed Mac her nails. "I'll keep that in mind." He raised an eyebrow but stayed silent.
It was clear that she had no intention of making the first move, so Mac took the liberty. He crouched low and launched himself into the air.
Stephanie avoided being tackled, but just barely. Her hours on the DDR machine paid off when it came to hand-eye coordination and reaction time, but she knew she couldn't just keep dodging Mac. To win she would have to pin him, which she knew she wasn't strong enough to do, and she would tire out before him. As she whipped around to face him, still in defensive mode, she watched him turn to face her in mid air a split second before he landed. He assumed another arachnoid position and she saw his muscles bunch to launch him again. She spun out of the way and made a split second decision to hook her arms under his armpits. She locked her hands behind his neck. He was taller than her so the move forced him to bend over backwards. "I've had just about enough of your giant grasshopper impressions."
The smile on Mac's face may have been evil enough to scare even Stephanie if she had seen it. "Okay." He tucked his head down and jerked forwards in one clean movement. The move caused her to flip over his shoulders. She didn't let go, so he went over with her.
Stephanie landed on her back with Mac on his back on top of her. It knocked the wind out of her. She hadn't realized he was that heavy. Somehow, however, she had managed to maintain her grip on his shoulders. As he struggled, she squeezed tighter, thinking of nothing but holding on, though it was difficult to get her breath back with him on top of her. Vaguely aware that Otto had begun the count, she pushed hard off the floor with her foot and tried to roll Mac on his stomach. She succeeded, but she wasn't heavy enough to keep him there.
Mac got to his knees and looked over his shoulder at her. "Are yah gonna le' go or do I have tah get real violent?" Stephanie scowled at him and pulled still tighter. The flip before had pulled a muscle in his shoulder and it complained when she did this. Well, she gives me no choice. He threw himself backwards onto the ground.
Stephanie's head cracked down audibly and white and red sparks temporarily blinded her. She let go to put her hand to her head and groaned a little, thankful the ground was carpeted. The colors cleared just in time for her to see Mac coming at her again, this time to finish her off. She put her feet together and launched them with all her strength into Mac's chest. She had been aiming for his solar plexus, knowing that a blow like that would take anybody out, but had, in her confusion, miscalculated. His chest was like a rock and it probably hurt her just about as much as it had hurt him, if not more.
The blow made Mac stumble back just long enough for her to get up but it hardly fazed him. He was sweating slightly, but she still looked much more worn out than he felt. She was a little wobbly on her feet, probably from the clonk on the head. He found himself hoping he hadn't hurt her too much. Stephanie was, after all, a nice girl, and he didn't dislike her. Her head was down and he tilted his head, trying to see her face. "Yah okay?"
"I'll survive," she lied, trying to keep the moaning tremor out of her voice. When she saw his face, however, she noticed he had heard it anyway. Well, of course he had. He was a predator, after all. She drew up straight and steadied herself. "Well, come on."
Mac mentally sighed. She was determined, he had to give her that, but the fight was just about over. He had expected her to wait for him to attack again, but his time she rushed to meet his attack. They clashed in the middle, their fingers interlocking as each tried to topple the other. She was stronger than she looked but not strong enough. He squeezed her hands mercilessly but she never cried out. Her eyes watered but she never closed them, never tried to pull her hands away. In fact, she began digging her nails into the backs of his hands as hard as she could. It stung, but not enough, and his size and strength finally overpowered her, forcing her to her knees. He sank with her, pressing her over backwards.
Stephanie felt her shoulder blades touch the floor. Being a dancer, bending her knees in such a way was not painful in the least. Her feet, however, were being crushed under their combined weights. She heard Otto begin the count but it seemed like time was moving much more slowly than it should as she struggled against Mac. Between three and four, she caught Max and Quinton exchanging an uncomfortable yet still amused look. Suddenly it occurred to her. Mac was practically straddling her, pinning her hands on either side of her head, pressing his body on her to keep her back on the floor. This man had hit on her more than once before, until she had lied about being an avowed virgin. Instinctively she tried to seek his thoughts in his face but of course she couldn't see it. His face was right next to hers, with his cheek close enough for her to feel the warmth radiating from it onto her own. When she turned her head her cheek brushed his and she suppressed a blush.
Time was called and Mac released her, sitting back on his heals. That hadn't been entirely unpleasant. He studied the backs of his hands. There were little red crescent moons printed beneath each of his knuckles, but only one was bleeding. "Yah stronger than I 'riginally thought."
Stephanie sat up too. "You're heavier than I originally thought."
"With practice yah could win nex' time."
Stephanie got to her feet and stretched. "Oh, no. That's the last time you'll be on top of me for a while. I'm going to shower and take some aspirin. I'd advise you three to clean up a little before you go meet master Fisk. You have about an hour."