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Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Tue Jun 18, 2013 1:15 am
by Admiral Breetai
Praeothmin wrote:I can't, even the guest accounts (which I can access via my IPod) have the site blocked... :(

So my only access will be from home from now on...

that is lamentable...I promise to do something awesome for you though

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Tue Jun 25, 2013 1:21 pm
by sonofccn
Praeothmin wrote:Good news:
I should resume writing next week, the plays and dance shows behind me...
Which is good. It's been too long since James punched something.

Praeothmin wrote:Bad news:
My excellent IT department at work declared this site as a gaming site, so per company policy, has now blocked it, so my appearances here will from now on be very sporadic...
:(
Well that's a bummer.

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Fri Jun 28, 2013 12:28 am
by Praeothmin
Started writing, but work has been hectic, so not much has been written...

And now I'm on vacation for the next two weeks (if you call remodeling the entire basement a vacation... I don't)...
So next update should be in a month... :(

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Fri Jun 28, 2013 12:40 am
by Praeothmin
A small taste of what's to come...

Chapter 84

Wednesday, July 31th, 2374, 05:36 (18:36 Taris time)

He was standing in an arena, the crowd loudly cheering him and his opponent, an aging man well over fifty years old, with light-skin, gray eyes and gray hair, his hairline somewhat receding.
He was tall, a quick evaluation by Tharnok making him close to six feet three inches, with broad shoulders, and no apparent paunch.
The man was in shape, and held his double-bladed sword confortably, indicating he was well accustomed to its feel and weight, giving Tharnok the impression that the man was certainly good with it, though he didn’t know how he could know this.
He wore a Combat Suit that offered some protection without hampering its wearer in combat.
While the armor was too light to protect one efficiently in all out battles, it did offer sufficient protection in a Duel, where ability to evade was as important as being able to resist blows and energy discharges.
It certainly offered better protection than his own uniform, he thought.
While he could see the material of the uniform was thicker than standard uniform fabrics, it felt too light, too confortable to be mistaken for armor by anyone.
And so there he was, standing in front of a Duelling opponent, wearing no armor, and wielding no weapons.
Once more, he doubted the wisdom in accepting this fight in exchange for credits.
The worst part of the deal was that, according to Carth, it had been his idea.

*******************************************************************************

Wednesday, July 31th, 2374, a few hours earlier

He was let out of the tank he had been submerged in, dried up and given his repaired uniform so he could dress himself.

“What do you mean, who am I?” Carth asked with panic in his voice.

“Just what I said: I do not know who you are, yet I can see by the way you react, and the familiarity you display with me that we are acquainted.” Tharnok said to the soldier.
“But I have no memory of meeting you.”

“Hello Tharnok,” The smaller man said, “My name is Zelka Forn.
I am a Doctor, and I was the one who took care of you.”

“Why did I need taking care off?” He asked, having no recollection of being injured, though his left shoulder did feel a bit stiffer than his right.

“You were in a fight, according to your friend, prior to being brought here, where your shoulder was injured through the use of a Disruptor Pistol.” Zelka explained.
“You were losing blood fast, despite your efforts to close the wound, and your fight upon entering my door only increased the blood flow.”

Tharnok looked at the man and saw no deception in his eyes, the man’s body posture betraying no unease, only calmness.
The man's explanations only brought more questions to Tharnok's mind, so he asked them.
Zelka, as it were, didn't have much to say, as he had only encountered Tharnock when Carth and he had come seeking help for his wounded shoulder.
Carth, on the other hand, knew more, which was normal in the big man's head, as they knew each other.
He told the giant man about the past two days, explaining that Tharnock, like Carth, was a soldier stuck on the planet by the Sith blockade, and that they were trying to gain enough money to get off by buying passage from a smuggler, after finding a lost friend of theirs.
But the big human felt that Carth wasn't telling him everything, and so he told him about his suspicions.
The soldier's face clouded, confirming his doubts, yet still he remained silent, still he wouldn't divulge anything else.

“Are you holding information from me because of Zelka?” He asked the soldier.
“Do you fear him learning something dangerous about me?”

“Yes!” Was the only answer he received from Carth.

“While I can guarantee your secret would be safe with me, I also understand your friend's reluctance at revealing important secrets about you to total strangers, even strangers who saved your life... After you saved his.” Zelka added with a genuine smile.
“Although, if it can help assuage your friend's uneasiness, allow me to be completely honest.” The Doctor said.
“I am fully confident that you and your friend,” He told Carth, “Are with the Republic.”

Carth was surprised by this revelation, but tried to suppress his emotions.
Zelka's expression showed him he had seen the man's surprise, as if he was expecting it.
When neither Carth nor Tharnok spoke up, the man continued.

“First, let me thank you for not insulting my intelligence by pretending it isn't true.” Zelka told them honestly.
“Now you are wondering how I know this.” He began, but was interrupted by Tharnok.

“You know this because you've seen a uniform similar to Carth's not too long ago worn by someone who identified himself as a member of the Republic, and by judging from the looks you keep shooting subtly at the door to the left, that person might even still be here.” Tharnok told an astonished Doctor, Zelka's face telling him he had scored home with his assumption.

Carth's face displayed equal surprise, the Soldier no even trying to hide it this time.

After barely a few seconds passed, Zelka smiled, nodded, and walked towards the door Tharnok had indicated, inviting both he and Carth to follow him.
They entered another room similar to the one they had been in, another Medical Bay, yet this one was much bigger, as Tharnok saw more than a dozen tanks similar to the one he had been in, all of them containing a wounded person inside.
There were at least four different races of humanoids in the tanks, some igniting sparks of recognition in the big human.
What caught his attention rapidly were the uniforms hanging on the wall next to the tanks.
All were similar to Carth's, some even armored like his was, and all had identical insignias braided to it.
Tharnok assumed, even though the insignias did not seem familiar, that they were Republic in origin.

“I keep getting these people brought to me in great secrecy by some of the better citizens of this section of Taris, telling they were found in Escape Pod wreckages all over the lower levels.
Some I couldn't help,” Zelka said sadly, “While these are healing well, although not nearly as fast as our friend here.”He added with what suddenly became a suspicious frown.
Zelka looked Tharnok over again, seemingly for the first time, his gaze lingering on the man's belt, as if he was expecting to see something there he wasn't seeing.
He looked in Tharnok's eyes with a glint of mischief.

“Lost something, have you, Master Jedi?”

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Fri Jun 28, 2013 3:34 pm
by sonofccn
Well that whet my appetite for the next installment of Tharnok champion duelist. Through I wonder who is going to be more surprised during the fight. His opponet or Tharnok himself?

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Mon Jul 01, 2013 7:27 am
by Admiral Breetai
oh man I can't wait!

fiiiigghhtt!!!

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Fri Jul 05, 2013 9:31 pm
by Praeothmin
Updated Chapter 84 with a few more lines...

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Tue Jul 09, 2013 9:39 pm
by Admiral Breetai
Can we haz moar?

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 1:45 am
by Praeothmin
No!










;)


Not at the moment, though our home renovations are nearly over, so I should be able to resume writing...
I am over my writer's block, so new material should be coming your way soon...

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Wed Jul 10, 2013 5:03 pm
by sonofccn
Cool, so Carth isn't the only surviving Republic soldier.

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Wed Jul 17, 2013 10:39 pm
by Praeothmin
I'm ba-ack!

Completed chapter 84...

Chapter 84

Wednesday, July 31th, 2374, 05:36 (18:36 Taris time)

He was standing in an arena, the crowd loudly cheering him and his opponent, an aging man well over fifty years old, with light-skin, gray eyes and gray hair, his hairline somewhat receding.
He was tall, a quick evaluation by Tharnok making him close to six feet three inches, with broad shoulders, and no apparent paunch.
The man was in shape, and held his double-bladed sword confortably, indicating he was well accustomed to its feel and weight, giving Tharnok the impression that the man was certainly good with it, though he didn’t know how he could know this.
He wore a Combat Suit that offered some protection without hampering its wearer in combat.
While the armor was too light to protect one efficiently in all out battles, it did offer sufficient protection in a Duel, where ability to evade was as important as being able to resist blows and energy discharges.
It certainly offered better protection than his own uniform, he thought.
While he could see the material was thicker than standard uniform fabrics, it felt too light, too confortable to be mistaken for armor by anyone.
And so there he was, standing in front of a Duelling opponent, wearing no armor, and wielding no weapons.
Once more, he doubted the wisdom in accepting this fight in exchange for credits.
The worst part of the deal was that, according to Carth, it had been his idea.

*******************************************************************************

Wednesday, July 31th, 2374, a few hours earlier

He was let out of the tank he had been submerged in, dried up and given his repaired uniform so he could dress himself.

“What do you mean, who am I?” Carth asked with panic in his voice.

“Just what I said: I do not know who you are, yet I can see by the way you react, and the familiarity you display with me that we are acquainted.” Tharnok said to the soldier.
“But I have no memory of meeting you.”

“Hello Tharnok,” The smaller man said, “My name is Zelka Forn.
I am a Doctor, and I was the one who took care of you.”

“Why did I need taking care off?” He asked, having no recollection of being injured, though his left shoulder did feel a bit stiffer than his right.

“You were in a fight, according to your friend, prior to being brought here, where your shoulder was injured through the use of a Disruptor Pistol.” Zelka explained.
“You were losing blood fast, despite your efforts to close the wound, and your fight upon entering my door only increased the blood flow.”

Tharnok looked at the man and saw no deception in his eyes, the man’s body posture betraying no unease, only calmness.
The man's explanations only brought more questions to Tharnok's mind, so he asked them.
Zelka, as it were, didn't have much to say, as he had only encountered Tharnock when Carth and he had come seeking help for his wounded shoulder.
Carth, on the other hand, knew more, which was normal in the big man's head, as they knew each other.
He told the giant man about the past two days, explaining that Tharnock, like Carth, was a soldier stuck on the planet by the Sith blockade, and that they were trying to gain enough money to get off by buying passage from a smuggler, after finding a lost friend of theirs.
But the big human felt that Carth wasn't telling him everything, and so he told him about his suspicions.
The soldier's face clouded, confirming his doubts, yet still he remained silent, still he wouldn't divulge anything else.

“Are you holding information from me because of Zelka?” He asked the soldier.
“Do you fear him learning something dangerous about me?”

“Yes!” Was the only answer he received from Carth.

“While I can guarantee your secret would be safe with me, I also understand your friend's reluctance at revealing important secrets about you to total strangers, even a stranger who saved your life... After you saved his.” Zelka added with a genuine smile.
“Although, if it can help assuage your friend's uneasiness, allow me to be completely honest.” The Doctor said.
“I am fully confident that you and your friend,” He told Carth, “Are with the Republic.”

Carth was surprised by this revelation, but tried to suppress his emotions.
Zelka's expression showed him he had seen the man's surprise, as if he was expecting it.
When neither Carth nor Tharnok spoke up, the man continued.

“First, let me thank you for not insulting my intelligence by pretending it isn't true.” Zelka told them honestly.
“You are surely wondering how I know this.” He began, but was interrupted by Tharnok.

“You know this because you've seen a uniform similar to Carth's not too long ago worn by someone who identified himself as a member of the Republic, and by judging from the looks you keep shooting subtly at the door to my left, that person might even still be here.” Tharnok told an astonished Doctor, Zelka's face telling him he had scored home with his assumption.

Carth's face displayed equal surprise, the Soldier no even trying to hide it this time.

After barely a few seconds passed, Zelka smiled, nodded, and walked towards the door Tharnok had indicated, inviting both he and Carth to follow him.
They entered another room similar to the one they had been in, another Medical Bay, yet this one was much bigger, as Tharnok saw more than a dozen tanks similar to the one he had been in, all of them containing a wounded person inside.
There were at least four different races of humanoids in the tanks, some igniting sparks of recognition in the big human.
What caught his attention rapidly were the uniforms hanging on the wall next to the tanks.
All were similar to Carth's, some even armored like his was, and all had identical insignias braided to it.
Tharnok assumed, even though the insignias did not seem familiar, that they were Republic in origin.

“I keep getting these people brought to me in great secrecy by some of the better citizens of this section of Taris, telling they were found in Escape Pod wreckages all over the lower levels.
Some I couldn't help,” Zelka said sadly, “while these people here are healing well, although not nearly as fast as our big friend.”He added with what suddenly became a suspicious frown.

Zelka looked Tharnok over again, seemingly for the first time, his gaze lingering on the man's belt, as if he was expecting to see something there he wasn't seeing.
He looked in Tharnok's eyes with a glint of mischief.

“Lost something, have you, Master Jedi?”

***********************************************************************************




The blade passed close to Tharnok’s head, too close for the big human’s comfort, yet he had somehow once again evaded the blow, with a practiced ease that kept surprising him every time he did.
Tharnok’s opponent seemed surprised as well, yet with each missed attack, the man renewed his efforts in the hope of finally connecting with his big opponent’s body, and with each attack, Tharnok’s opponent, Marl, was getting closer to his goal.
Marl was good, the big human could see, his attacks coming very naturally, flowing easily from every movement he made, as if he was simply walking with a double-bladed sword in hand.
Thanrok understood now why the crowd had cheered so loudly when the grey-haired warrior had been presented by the announcer before the duel had started.
His own cheers, as loud, if not louder when the announcer had reminded the crowd Tharnok was fighting unarmed, had surprised him immensily.
He had wondered if the people cheered because of his previous fights, which he’d been shown by Carth in Zelka’s office, or because some of them suspected he was a Jedi as Zelka had.

********************************************************************************************

“What’s a Jedi?” Tharnok asked the Doctor, a question which brought great concern to the man, as well as to Carth.

“Your wound must be more serious than I first believed,” Zelka told Tharnok, “For you to forget something as common as what the Jedi are.
Tell me,” he added, “Do you remember what a starship is?”

“Of course!” Tharnok replied.
“They are space vehicules that you use to travel from planet to planet.”

For some reason he could not explain, though, this knowledge seemed new to him, as if it had been something learned not too long ago.
Even explaining what starships were to Zelka, the big man still felt some slight disbelief at their existence, as if the concept was still somewhat alien to him.
He saw the Doctor looking at him, his smile coming back slowly, as if he was coming to peace with something.

“Well, I woulnd’t worry too much about it, because Jedi are very resilient, from what I’ve heard, and since your friend hasn’t denied my claim, I can thus be assured you are, indeed, a Jedi.” Zelka said with some degree of smugness.

Carth was about to say something when the Doctor silenced him with a raised hand.

“No worries, my friend, as I was already suspecting Tharnok was a Force-user as soon as I saw him, or rather, didn’t see him take out those two thugs a day ago.” Zelka told the Republic Soldier.
“And I am very glad that he is a Jedi rather than a Sith.
I can assure you I will surely not tell a soul of what he is, as he saved my life, and from the reports I received from some of my underground informants while you were fretting over him, Carth, you two have been doing a lot of good in a very short time, it seems.
I would certainly not want to deprive the poorer people of Taris the possibility of getting some justice for once.”

The man became silent then, and simply smiled at the two Soldiers.

“Thank you for your discretion, Zelka!” Tharnok told the Doctor.
“But you still haven’t answered my question: what is a Jedi?”

*******************************************************************************

What they had told him had sounded unbelievable at first, even though Carth had told him he had seen the big man do unbelievable things with his own eyes, Tharnok unable to discern even a hint of deception in their description of Jedi and their general abilities.
But then Carth had gone on to detail what he had seen Tharnok do, and the big man had almost decided the Republic Soldier was hallucinating.
But then he had been told of his duelling career and had been shown the footage of his fights.
As incredible as their claims had sounded, Tharnok had received first hand accounts of his prowess in the form of a visual media, evidence which couldn’t easily be dismissed.
He had seen himself display strength beyond belief, even for a man his size.
His speed was such that his fights had to be seen in slow motion for his friends to see what he was doing, even though Tharnok found he had no trouble following his movements in real-time screening.
Then Carth had told him about his extremely high resilience, which Zelka backed up by showing him how he would have been dead from his shoulder wound if he had been any other human being.
Without all that evidence, Carth would never have succeeded in convincing Tharnok to participate in the Duel he found himself in.
Even so, the big Jedi had had reservations which had still been there at the start of the fight.
But the longer he fought, every attack he evaded with an ease that seemed to defy logic, his experienced opponent almost as fast as he was, melted these reservations away, little by little.
Still, Tharnok wasn’t out of trouble, for while his body seemed to respond to attacks as if moving on its own, the Jedi couldn’t conceive how he could win if he continually evaded his opponent’s attacks and threw none of his own.
He was starting to try to analyze Marl’s attacks, to hopefully discern a pattern he could use, when he realized his mistake.
A low side-swipe came from the right, Tharnok barely evading by lifting his left foot over the attacking blade, while Marl continued his movement with a complete pivot.
As the big Jedi was beginning to form a plan of attack, thinking the older warrior vulnerable with his back to him, he received a direct thrust to his abdomen from the other man’s second blade, the pivot too fast for any weakness to be exploited, the move simply allowing the old warrior to reposition himself for another attack.
As the attack doubled Tharnok over, Marl simply reversed his pivot and came back around the other way, swinging a heel-kick at the big Jedi’s face.
All the big human could do was to roll with the blow, the kick still impacting like a mule’s on the big man’s jaw.
Expecting a broken jaw, he was extremely surprised that the attack hadn’t even phased him.
He used the momemtum imparted to his body by the kick to mimic Marl and pivot away from the dangerous warrior repositioning himself after the attack.
Marl’s face showed only slight surprise at the apparent lack of effects both his attacks had on his giant-sized opponent, and so he came hard at Tharnok as soon as his feet had been set.
Two downward swings coming in at angles were sidestepped by the Jedi, then a direct thrust to Tharnok’s face was evaded when the giant man bent backwards under it.
Marl took the chance to send a circular kick at the man’s exposed right knee, bending his opponent’s leg and sending him down on one knee, followed by a right elbow at the side of Tharnok’s head.
The Jedi’s mind was reeling, trying to find a way out of his predicament, pain suddenly flaring in the man’s head from the latest blow.
Marl sent a left knee straight at Tharnok’s face, but the big man’s reflexes took over and he blocked the attack with a left elbow, using the attack’s momentum to get back up to his feet.
As the older warrior advanced, Tharnok side-stepped to the man’s right while throwing a pivoting right elbow aimed at his attacker’s neck.
The attack was evaded by Marl, who as he was taking a side-step away from the big Jedi, swung one opf his blades which connected with his opponent’s right temple.
As consciousness was leaving the big human, lost memories flooded his mind with all the knowledge of one James Reynolds, slayer of living Gods.

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Thu Jul 18, 2013 4:31 pm
by sonofccn
No! James Reynolds, the god slayer, get up! You can't die yet! There's too many monsters left to punch! ;)

Ahem...I mean good to see you back and nice update.

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2013 12:43 am
by Praeothmin
Finally, after an eternity, here's an update...
Ihope my reader (sonofccn) likes it... :)

Chapter 85

“And the Mysterious Stranger is dooooown!” The announcer loudly called out, parts of the crowd cheering while other parts jeered loudly.
“Who can believe this? Marl retains his second place in the rankings with a brilliant defeat of the young upstart vying for his spot.” The man added, and now most of the crowd cheered in admiration for the old warrior’s performance.

James’s head was spinning as Marl saluted the crowd, and then left the ring after throwing a glance at him.
The big warrior was trying to remember how he had gotten back in the duelling ring when his most recent memory was of himself, injured and walking with Carth supporting him, followed by some blurred images of someone holding a Blaster threateningly towards a dark-skinned man.
He did not know how he had gotten there, but he knew, pain flaring all over his body, that he’d been defeated.
Remembering his wager, where he had proposed to fight without weapons or armor to the giant alien slug, Ajuur the Hutt, he wondered how he could have entered the ring to fight if he hadn’t been in his right mind.
For a brief instant, he worried about Carth, thinking that perhaps the man had been abducted, or worse, killed.
But then, remembering how good a fighter Carth was, one of the deadliest person he’d ever seen with pistols, he suppressed his worried thoughts, and decided he’d go back to the Cantina to ascertain the situation before yielding to his fears.
He got up without pause, surprising the Medical Droid that was taking care of him, as the artificial being believed him to be unconscious.
He let the Droid inject him with something, which he assumed to be some sort of stimulant, an assumption he knew was right when his head cleared up and everything came back into focus.
The rumbling noise that was blaring in his head was revealed to be the cheering of the crowd at seeing their new favorite Duelist getting up so quickly after being defeated.
He wasted no time in getting back up to the Cantina through the side passage, where he grabbed a surprised Carth by the arm and dragged him off to a more private area where they could talk.
The delighted Republic Soldier told James everything that had happened after learning that his Jedi companion had recovered his lost memory.
James was glad they’d found a new ally, though he was worried about his health.
If he had suffered a concussion, as Zelka believed, then how well would his body respond to another blow to the head, he wondered.
According to Carth, Zelka had assured the Republic Soldier that the medical treatments he’d received, combined with the big human’s natural resilience, meant he was already fully recovered and should not fear another one.
And James knew, from the signs his body was giving him, that even though he’d been hit on the head again, he had not suffered from a concussion this time.
Pushing his concerns aside, he knew they needed money, which he could use to ensure help from the good Doctor’s friends.
Not knowing how much moneywould be needed, though, he decided he had to win it all to ensure their mission’s success.
He needed all the help he could get to find the missing Jedi, Bastila, and take her off the Sith blockaded planet.

“Ajuur, I want to go back in the ring immediately!” He told the fat Hutt.

The creature looked at him with surprise, knowing full well how blows to the head were normally dangerous to humans, and that it took most humans at least a full day of medical treatment to completely recover from one.
But Ajuur knew as well how tough this human was, for his spies, sent to investigate this new, potential Duelling champion, had reported the battle against Davik’s thugs, and the carnage this bug humon and his smaller ally had left in their wake.
He was also beginning to suspect, due to the lack of the usual physical tremors associated with long term combat drug use, that this human was more than a simple drug-addicted warrior.
He was also beginning to wonder how much money the Sith would pay for information about a Jedi running around unimpeded on their planet.
As he was running quick calculations in his head, the big Hutt knew that the best option for him was to at least wait until Tharnock won the championship before selling him out, as he was certain without a doubt the man was capable of attaining the top ranks.
No one on the current roster was as good as he was, Ajuur knew, and he wasn’t even certain how the old champion, Bendak Starkiller, would fare against this one.
And then the big slug-like creature began dreaming of setting a Duel between the former, highly feared champion, and his new protégé, and all thoughts of betraying Tharnock flew out of the Hutt’s mind as the profits from such a match started flowing through his head, burying his fat dream-form under loads and loads of credits.
The urge to sell out this man who might be a Jedi was suddenly quashed under the bleeping sound of Telos credi-sticks filled with money.
Ajuur smiled wide, a smile which made James a bit uncomfortable for reasons he didn’t know.

“Yes, of course, I should have known defeat would not keep you down for long.” The Hutt told James.
“If Marl is ready and willing, you may fight.” He added.

**********************************************************************************

James was in the ring no more than ten minutes later, waiting for his opponent, as the doors from the side passage opened and two men entered the ring.
While he already knew he wasn’t going to fight Marl, the older warrior telling Ajuur he needed to rest after the fight, and that he would fight someone from the public, he hadn’t been told he’d be fighting two opponents at the same time.
He could see by the way they walked and held themselves these men were experienced fighters.
Their cadenced steps and upper body stiffness even reminded James of soldiers.
Their movements did not hold the grace of a warrior like Marl, though, and so James still remained confident he could beat them, even though he was still unarmed, and they both sported Blasters in addition to wielding swords.
The announcer worked the crowd, sending them into frenzy when he mentioned the two men James would be fighting were Sith Troopers, and that the rules had been modified to allow their bladed weapons to draw blood.
James looked towards the organizer’s booth, his eyes finding Ajuur, his gaze letting the big slug know they were going to have a talk after the match.
The big warrior was under the impression Ajuur had actually shuddered when James looked at him.

***************************************************************************************

The Jedi did not look happy at the announcement, and the look he sent Ajuur’s way unnerved the big Hutt.
He swore once more at the Sith under his breath -although not loo loudly since the two Troopers’ Captain was sitting next to him in the organizer’s booth- for forcing him to accept the terms of this fight.
He was certain Davik was under this, as the Sith Captain was a known associate of the Crime Lord, and he was certain Davik wanted revenge for what had happened to his men at the Jedi’s hands.
Even though he was certain the Jedi would not harm him after the match, Ajuur hoped that he would win without too many injuries, for many injuries meant less fights, no championship, and no money for Ajuur.
The big slug truly hoped he was right about the big human being a Jedi, or he feared his days of living were the human to win would become numbered.

*******************************************************************************************

His gaze went back to the two soldiers, in time to see them inject some drugs in their system.
They immediately began to twitch like Ice had in their fight a day earlier, and they both grinned like maniacs at the big human warrior they faced.
This, to James, meant they relished the idea of hurting, and maybe even killing him.
They were like Davik’s men, it seemed, remorseless and dangerous.
James would no go easy on them.

The signal to begin rang, and the big MACO leader exploded into motion as the two Sith drew their Blasters with incredible speed.
They could not fire on James at the same time for long, though, for the big man had made a straight line at all speeds to the left of the man to his right, soon getting out of the sight of one Sith.
The other kept firing at him, getting closer and closer with each shot as his companion took his sword out after dropping his now useless Blaster.
A less experienced fighter would have tried to circumvent his companion to regain his firing sight, leaving a moving opponent a chance to always stay out of sight.
The Trooper instead had chosen to let his companion fire while he would protect their flank with a close-quarter weapon.
As the second, sword-wielding Trooper went to his companion’s right side, so did James.
The MACO leader, still evading Blaster shot after Blaster shot, was just about to grab the first Sith’s gun with his right hand when the second one stepped in an attempt to cut off his arm at the elbow.
As the blade was coming down, James retracted his right arm as he stopped dead in his tracks to begin a pivot to his right.
As he started to turn, his left arm shot out, his hand grabbing the swordman’s wrist and bringing his opponent’s elbow against his shoulder, he pulled with all his strength, causing tendons to tear and the Sith’s grip to loosen on the sword.
The move ended with James facing the right side of the sword-wielding Sith –now unarmed- and his opponent between him and the Blaster wielding Trooper, who was still shooting while tracking James.
Two shots impacted on his companion before he could stop himself, slightly stunning the man who was already suffering from a damaged arm.
These men were not used to fighting at these speeds, most likely having never used enhancing drugs before, or at least not sufficiently to become accustomed to their effects.
James Reynolds, on the other hand, had been fighting at these dazzling speeds for years now, heightened reflexes having been the first augmentations he’d received.
To him, moving with such grace and speed were second nature now, while it was moving at what humans considered normal speeds he felt uncomfortable with.
As the first Sith realized his mistake, his friend was propelled at him by the strenght of a mountain of a man.
As the Trooper ducked to his left side side, the big human stepped in.
He used the flat of the blade to hit the Sith’s wrist mightily, shattering bone, tearing skin and forcing the weapon from the other man’s hand.
This injury alone should have ended the fight for any normal man, but the Sith Trooper only looked at James as he attempted a straight kick to the MACO leader’s groin, the drugs in his system fueling his combativity while dampening his pain.
James twisted to his left, deflecting the kick with his thigh, as he himself side-kicked at the man’s supportin leg, shattering the knee-joint.
The Trooper fell down howling, more of rage than pain, and tried to use his off hand to free his sword from its scabbard.
James could not finish him off immediately, though, for the other trooper had gotten hold of a Blaster and fired at him.
The first shot impacted dead center, but the MACO leader’s Pain Compensators blocked out all signals that could even slow him down, and so the Sith never got a chance to fire a second shot.
James’s left hand clamped down on the man’s left wrist, twisting the arm away from him at the same time his right hand grabbed the Sith’s shoulder.
As the Trooper tried to fire, James’s right knee impacted the back of the man’s elbow, bending it 90 degrees backwards, and as he put his foot down, he led his heel in a powerful kick to the man’s left shin, breaking the leg.
As the latest injuries finally took their toll on the poor Sith, the big human targetted his companion.
The second Sith had finally freed his sword, and was holding it in a defensive position in front of him, unable to move much because of his damaged leg.
A small step-and-retreat feint from James forced a left-to-right sidelong defensive swing, and as soon as the blade had passed the center point, James waded in, grabbing the man’s left hand with his right, twisting the wrist down while he lifted the arm up.
As the Trooper’s grip became flaccid, he grabbed the sword’s handle, blade facing down, with his left hand, and impaled it on the man’s left leg, the blade going through the leg up to the hilt.
A snap kick to the man’s jaw, breaking it in three places, made sure this one would no longer be a threat either.
As the crowd erupted in cheers at the Mysterious Stranger and his incredible unarmed fight, James Reynolds sent his iciest stare at a cowering Ajuur, letting him know the talk would be very unpleasant.

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Fri Sep 06, 2013 12:09 pm
by sonofccn
And James Reynolds is back!!!

Well I loved it it, fluid graphic fighting at its best, and I'm sure Khas and Admiral Breetia will too.

And once again Davik learns not to mess with a "two-bit Jedi".

Re: "The long Journey" (a Shadowrun crossover with everythi

Posted: Thu Sep 12, 2013 9:48 pm
by Praeothmin
New chapter...

Chapter 86

James turned around and began to make his way towards the tunnel exit to the Cantina, the crowd’s cheers loud enough to drown even the announcer’s words.
The big man paused, a thougth forming in his mind, and as the crowd’s cheers began to recede, he went back in the ring.
He was tired of all the setbacks, all the waiting.
He and Carth needed money, for they had a mission to do, and James had decided he had wasted enough time.
This sudden reversal in direction reinvigorated the crowd’s applause and cheers, exploding into elation as they saw the Mysterious Stranger lift his hand up high in the air as a sign of victory.
It took the crowd and the ring organisers some time to realize that the man in the ring wasn’t posing in victory, but was in fact sending a signal with his raised hand.
As the people began to calm down, the ring cameras zoomed in on the man’s hand, and they all saw he was pointing up towards the ring’s roof, then down at himself.
Their eyes all looked up, trying to understand what their new favorite Duellist wanted, and then they saw it: the hovering microphone, floating above the ring in order to capture all the labored grunts, Blaster reports and sword clashing sounds made during a fight.
The Mysterious Stranger was pointing towards it, and at himself: he wanted to speak to them.
The crowd erupted in thundering cheers and loud whistles, a deafening noise which lasted for minutes, eventually diying out as they realized the microphone was not lowering towards the Mysterious Stranger.
Shouts of “Let him speak!” picked up then, reverberating ever louder as more voices joined in with the same cry being expelled by hundreds of voices all at one.
Then the crowd began to tap their feet in rhythm with their demands, the ring thrumming from all the impacts on the ground.
After close to fifteen minutes, James’s arm never lowering, the crowd’s voices never wavering, the ring trembling beneath the repeated stomping of the crowd’s feet, the hovering microphone began its descent.
At that sight the crowd howled with glee, at first loudly, though the volume drastically decreased the closer the microphone came to James, to the point where not even a sound was heard when the big Duellist grabbed the microphone in on large hand.
His eyes never leaving the organizer’s booth, the MACO leader brought the microphone to his lips.

“Ajuur,” He called out to the big slug-like alien with his booming voiced resonating all through the stands, “I think it’s time we stopped wasting time: mine, and the people here.” He said, his left arm indicating the crowd, every single individual sitting on the edge of his seat, his full attention on what the Mysterious Stranger had to say.
“We all know what I want, Ajuur: I want the number one spot on the Duelling list!” James said.
“I WANT TO BE THE CHAMPION!” He bellowed, the crowd cheering anew, drowning the Duelling arena with their voices.
He looked at the crowd, then, and with his left hand waving up and down, shown to everyone on every single screen in the arena, demanded silence.
Within seconds, the air became still again.
James looked up at the organizer’s booth again, confident he had the crowd’s full support, knowing full well Ajuur would not want to disappoint his public.

“Ajuur,” He called out again, “Give me… No, give THEM,” He recanted by showing the crowd again, “what they want: I want to fight Marl and Twitch.” He said, the crowd erupting again in cheers, and again, giving their new favorite Duellist the silence he asked of them within seconds.
“Stop wasting our time,” He said, his arm encompassing himself and the crowd, “Give me Marl, and then Twitch,” He said, then took a small, measured pause, “ OR GIVE ME A SWORD, AND SEND THEM TO ME BOTH AT THE SAME TIME!” He finished under the roar of an ecstatic crowd, one that had erupted thunderously in cheers and repeated cries of “Give him a sword”.

Looking at Ajuur, James released the microphone and lifted his right arm, pointing at the alien, then down at his feet in the arena.
He knew he had the slug where he wanted him, and he smiled.


*********************************************************************************

Ajuur fumed, ired by the brazen display of arrogance the Mysterious Stranger was showing, by this man’s belief that he could dictate who and when he could fight.
He wanted to punish the Jedi, deny him his wishes, but Ajuur knew the Jedi’s wishes were the people’s wishes, and the big slug did not want to disappoint his public, his biggest source of income.
Still, he did not like to be dictated what to do, did not like for one of his Duellists to take control.
But then the slug-like alien’s ire went back to the Sith Officer next to him, as he remembered it was that man that had angered the Jedi in the ring, that man that had pushed the Mysterious Stranger to these acts.
Already the Officer was calling for back-up to arrest the Mysterious Stranger under trumped-up charges of assault on Sith personnel, and Ajuur knew he wound no longer be making any money through the Jedi’s fights.
Wasting no time, the Hutt acted in the only logical way he could: he signalled his ring crew to get Twitch and Marl in the ring and to bring a sword to the Mysterious Stranger.
He then split what he called his “betting allowance” in half, and bet one half on the Mysterious Stranger, and the other on his own Duellists.
No matter who won, Ajuur was going to make money.
A lot of money!

********************************************************************************

James went back to his mark in the duelling floor as the two very surprised warriors came in the ring, ready for a fight.
Still, when the big human looked at Marl, he saw worry in the man’s eyes.
He could only guess why, his instinct leading him to believe the older warrior held some reserves about using combat drugs again.
The drugs in his reality could create dependency in a user after only one use, he knew, and over time left its users in a debilitating state, transforming fit, healthy men into husks, pale reflections of their former selves.
And so he understood how apprehensive Marl might be about injecting them again so soon after his first use, not wanting to risk becoming an addict.
James couldn’t let his empathy towards the older warrior cloud his concentration, for the man had a choice.
He could opt not to use the drugs, thus leaving him unable to match the big warrior’s speed and strength, but that would make him a liability in this fight, and increase the chances of his partner and him losing to James.
But the MACO Leader knew in his heart it wasn’t truly a choice, for Marl’s pride would want him to use everything he could to even the odds and give him a fighting chance at winning.
James knew this to be true, because he too suffered from the same warrior’s pride, and he knew that his pride would be his undoing one day.
Still, it was a reality he had learned to live with and had accepted a long time ago, and so was at peace with this knowledge.
He saw Marl was too, increasing his respect for the old warrior as the man injected himself with another dose of the drugs, the muscle spasms rapidly becoming visible.
Looking at the other Duellist, the actual champion, he noticed the alien -a Rodian as Carth had named it- also showed muscles jitters, though his were more pronounced than Marl’s.
James smiled, for the alien’s jitters reminded him of Oscar, an old military buddy that had been equipped low-quality Wired Reflexes, and this realization that this reality apparently also had Cyberware surprised him.
For all off the other Hi-Tech realities still seemed lacking extensive Cyberware modifications.
He was still lost in his introspections when he noticed the roaring of the crowd recede, and he realized the announcer was already presenting the fighters.
As Twitch was drawing his pistols and Marl was moving sideways, James realized the presentation was infact over, and he had almost been caught unawares.
Gritting his teeth, he exploded into motion.
Using a similar tactic he had used against the Sith, he ran as fast as he could -while still performing some evasive steps- towards Marl, hoping to use the older warrior as a shield.
The wise man, with years of experience, had already anticipated this, so he moved as the bigger man moved, and for every step James took towards him, he took one sideways, always leaving an opening for the Rodian to fire through.
The alien’s shots were coming ever closer to their target, to James’s dismay, so when he was close enough to Marl, he swung his sword at the older warrior in an overhead chop which his opponent prepared to block, as he had counted on.
When the sword was over his right shoulder, James changed his aim and threw it at the Rodian with all his might.
Marl knew he couldn’t block it, so he went for a sideswipe at James’s stomach instead.
As Twitch crossed his arms in front of him to clock the thrown sword, James was jumping over the twin-bladed sword’s swing, landing in a roll on the other side at Marl’s back.
He got back to his feet within the Rodian’s range as he saw the old warrior continue with his swing, transforming it in a backwards thrust at the bigger man.
James blocked this thrust using the Rodian’s left arm, the impact making the alien lose his left weapon.
At the same time, the big human’s left hand clamped down on the alien’s right weapon, but to his surprise his opponent, knowing his defense was compromised, had already let go of the weapon and had begun to spin away from James.
As he tried to follow, Marl came at him in an overhead chop with his second blade, so he took a step back to evade the blow.
To his left he saw Twitch end his pivot holding two long-bladed daggers in his hands, both weapons humming in his hands.

“Oooohhhh,” The announcer cried out, “Twitch had taken out two vibro-blades. The Mysterious Stranger is now unarmed, and in deep trouble. How will he get out of it?” He asked, the crowd going wild.

James knew the announcer was right.
He was facing two excellent fighters, whose positions were always complementing each other, almost in perfect synchronisation.
They came at him together, Marl on his right and Twitch on his left, hoping to confuse him by attacking from opposing sides.
Marl came in with a low swipe at James’s right leg, which he evaded by spinning to his left, his right foot coming up in an intercepting kick which blocked Twitch’s downward swipe from his right arm, sending it out wide to the Rodian’s right.
As Marl came back in with a straight thrust to James’s unprotected left flank, the alien tried to stab the big human’s right side.
James began to spin to his right and swung his legs up over the incoming sword thrust in a jump, while his right hand came in to slap the knife attack away.
One of his feet hit Marl on the shoulder, the impact pushing the older warrior a few steps back.
Landing on his feet, with Marl on his left and Twitch on his right, he went on the offensive.
He send a low spinning kick at the Rodian’s left leg, one that would have destroyed had it connected.
As expected, the alien jumped over the kick, and as he landed, Twitch started towards James to stab him in the back.
The Rodian had not expected James’s kick to have such speed and momentum, however, for as the alien stepped forward, James completed his circle and sent another spinning kick at his opponent, one that was blocked by Twitch’s left arm covering his flank.
The force of the kick still sent him a few feet away, right next to the recovering Marl, which is exactly what James had hoped.
He jumped forward in a roll, and when he came back up, twisting around to face his two opponents who were advancing on him, he was now wielding his sword.

“Shall we start over?” He asked with a large smile on his face.