And then there were none.
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Nicodemus is posting an open challenge. He's definitely new to this, and needs some xp. Trying to bring life back to this place. So yeah, fight me if you want.
Challenge
- Thread starter Dawntilldusc
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- challenge
Live free or die by the sword
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No one is going to accept the new meat challenge? I would throw my own hat into the ring if I wasn't currently writing a round against Kelesk, but I am not opposed to reffing this round.
. Best of luck though!
Live free or die by the sword
Retired Forum Staff
✔️ HL Verified
💻 Oldtimer
Deep beneath the city of Forumscant there are twisting passages that stretch for miles, countless noobs have made the tunnels their homes when they couldn't hack it on the surface. But you have a map. This map takes you deeper than anyone has ever gone before . . . who built these tunnels and built marvels in these wide open cavernous spaces? What are you seeking at the bottom of the world? For what purpose were these tunnels built? You'll tell me how your expiditions should have never crossed paths in the best of three rounds. Begin your smack talk!
And then there were none.
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Talkin the Talk
So…what kind of fighter are you? I’m guessing you’re not the average boxer. No matter, it isn’t really important how powerful you are, it sure doesn’t improve your fashion sense. A gray fedora…how original.
So, telekinesis huh? You going to throw some pebbles at me, or maybe bend a spoon? What’s with that look? You’ve got such a cold expression all the time; your face could probably sink the Titanic. Oh, and smoking, yeah that’s real good for your body; you probably couldn’t throw a punch without dying of asphyxiation…or a heart attack. I heard Catalyst was absolutely undefeatable …until you joined that is. If you’re serious about fighting me, then you’d better step it up a notch. I’ll smash you to smithereens and wipe the dust of your remnants off the tip of my staff.
So…what kind of fighter are you? I’m guessing you’re not the average boxer. No matter, it isn’t really important how powerful you are, it sure doesn’t improve your fashion sense. A gray fedora…how original.
So, telekinesis huh? You going to throw some pebbles at me, or maybe bend a spoon? What’s with that look? You’ve got such a cold expression all the time; your face could probably sink the Titanic. Oh, and smoking, yeah that’s real good for your body; you probably couldn’t throw a punch without dying of asphyxiation…or a heart attack. I heard Catalyst was absolutely undefeatable …until you joined that is. If you’re serious about fighting me, then you’d better step it up a notch. I’ll smash you to smithereens and wipe the dust of your remnants off the tip of my staff.
And then there were none.
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Nicodemus vs. Nathan Round One, Part One
Nicodemus was having one of those days. The kind where you walk into a musty tavern, and slip on a fresh pool of someone else
Nicodemus was having one of those days. The kind where you walk into a musty tavern, and slip on a fresh pool of someone else
And then there were none.
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🚂 Steam Linked
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Nicodemus was having one of those days. The kind where you walk into a musty tavern, and slip on a fresh pool of someone else’s blood, where after you leave, you walk into one of Forumscant’s many alleys and find the dilapidated body of a dying man. This was just the beginning. Finding it impossible to resist helping someone in need, he quickly ran towards the well-dressed, and elderly gentleman. He had received three bullet wounds in the back and looked like he had been beaten profusely. He wasn’t in good shape. He wore a torn gray suit and had a tartan scarf wrapped around his neck. He clutched a small role of parchment tightly to his chest. As Nicodemus leaned the broken, and slowly bleeding man against a nearby wall, he began to channel energy into his palms. As the man’s breathing began to get shallower he reached out and grasped Nicodemus’ cloak. “I, know a yer kind…yer one a t’oes that shine w’ere o’er do not.” “Tis good tha’ you found me…though a bit late laddie,” he wheezed in a Scottish dialect, coughing in pain from the effort.
“I will not let you die here,” replied Nicodemus through gritted teeth. “I’ll just”……
“Do not waste yer time on one such as I. Tis my time, it is.” “Take this, and think o’ it as a gift from a dying man… take it Bright One…please!” he begged proffering the tattered and bloody parchment he gripped in his hand. “Find the artifact known as the Globe of Stars…use it…to save those in need… use it for good.” He gasped his last ragged breath, and then the spirit faded from his eyes. He was at peace. Nicodemus looked to the scroll of torn and tattered parchment, and found it to be a map navigating bizarre tunnels far below the catacombs under Forumscant. At the bottom of the scroll was a small note that read, “Lest ye be worthy to ride the storm, reach not for that which shall transform.” “Stray not from the Enlightened Way, for doom awaits where those paths lay.”
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After hours of walking endless tunnels, with only the sound of his footsteps echoing off the ancient granite walls for company, the ominous phrases were still the subject of Nicodemus’ thoughts. Deep inside his soul, he found himself wondering why he had followed the mysterious man’s directions. These introverted distractions caused him to stumble on a crooked stone in the long flight of steps he was descending.
His usually heightened awareness did not save him from the long plunge down the dangerously jagged stairs and into a gigantic cavern. “That’s definitely going to leave a bruise,” he grimaced rubbing the aches from his extremities. “Hmm, I should try to be more careful.” Leaning back to rest on the floor he gasped as he looked upward. Without the need for illumination to see, he normally kept his staff from glowing, but a beam of light had dashed forth when he fell into the room, and the bright light it shone, reflected not off of gray slate walls he had become accustomed to, but instead sparkled off millions of precious stones. They were arranged to look like the night sky, in the high vaulted ceiling, every one a serene star, contrasted by the obsidian sheet that was their perch. When he picked himself up off the ground and walked further into the cavernous chamber, he realized that the gems were also stretching into rivers on the floor. They all branched from a single vividly decorated central ring, the inside of which was filled with the most gorgeous collection of valuable stones that mankind has ever known. Malachite, Jasper, and Aquamarine, were the concentration of outer edge, Amethysts, Rubies, and Emeralds were the second layer, the edge of the centerpiece was filled with white and pink Diamonds the size of grapefruits, and in the heart of this splendor he knelt in awed silence as he stared upon thousands and thousands of other gems all placed with care into the wonderfully crafted masterwork. With his head bowed in reverence he traced the central pattern with his finger and finally spoke, “Such a shame that this masterpiece will be covered in the darkness of the earth for eternity, where only a chosen few might admire its magnificence.” After a time he stood and looked to the bejeweled rivers, which were each made of a specific gemstone and flowed smoothly from the circle into archways of intricately woven marble. After consulting the dead man’s map, he turned and followed a radiant sapphire stream that led to an arch in the wall furthest from his way in. As he drew nearer to the opening, he realized that no light was reaching beyond the door, and his gaze couldn’t penetrate the darkness beyond. Usually having perfect vision on even the blackest of nights, this concerned Nicodemus. Curious, he peered around and found all the other archways had this strange effect as well. Although puzzling, and mildly disorienting if one peered directly into them, these strange constructions were nothing to keep him from continuing onward, so he turned back to the arch and boldly step through.
The closest thing to a description of the feeling that he experienced as he unwittingly walked through a portal, would be having your naval wrenched upward by a hook and then spun viciously counterclockwise, after which he had ferocious nausea and a few minutes of dizziness. When all of the unpleasantness was over with, and his head had stopped spinning he noticed the familiar glow of the gemstones leading away down the passage. He turned for a moment to look behind and saw the same archway, and the same impenetrable blackness. “I’m definitely not going to do that again.” “At least not for a while,” he said turning away and heading down the new path.
Following the brilliant gemstone stream wasn’t the easiest thing to do. There was the fact that parts of it had gone missing, or had been covered up by dust, also that it extended down tunnels that had been warped by geological activities, which made it not only difficult to traverse, but also tilted it at odd degrees for walking. The worst part though, was all the ancient, and quite distracting epigraphs of long forgotten memories along the walls. Every new section told a story of great celebration or tragedy, all based around a shiny and mystically bright orb. The populace in each history was different, but each had one thing in common; they seemed to all be communicating with the strange artifact. Each went on for several hundred feet, and then another would begin.
Being unaware of how long or far he had walked mattered little to him. He had plenty to eat in his pack, and his endurance wasn’t going to give out for a while, and yet he felt he should make haste and so he quickened his pace a bit. It was then that he first felt as if he was being watched. He also began to notice some chips and missing gems from the beautifully etched walls. Glancing forward he saw the strange, and priceless art steadily growing more ruined. Soon anger began to rise inside him, as he saw what had been done to the pristine works, all of them smashed, broken, or defaced in some way. With a little more inspection he realized that most of the damage was done recently, probably within hours of his arrival. “Who…who would do this?” He asked himself. “Wait… if this is so recent they’re probably still here!” With that in mind he jumped into the dusty air and began to swiftly fly down the tunnel.
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The operation was going smoothly and I was supposed to be standing guard at the exit tunnel, but my bladder was killing me, and well when nature calls, it really calls. So I figured relieving myself on the wall where we had already looted would be okay. It wasn’t very good art anyway. When I noticed someone coming towards me, I quickly zipped up my pants and turned…I definitely wasn’t expecting a furious looking stranger, in a white and purple cloak, to be rapidly flying in my direction. I also wasn’t expecting him to pick me up and shove me against a wall.
“Hey w…what are you doing?”
“Your not supposed to be here,” whispered Nicodemus as picked up the small guard who had previously been urinating on the epigraph. “Who do you work for?” he snarled quietly.
“His n…name is Mr. G…Grey.” The man trembled as he spoke, clearly not used to confrontation. “I’m just following his orders.”
“And why are you here?” Nicodemus eyes glowed brightly as he continued his questions.
“Why should I tell you?” “Your not one of us.”
“Oh really, and what if I work for Mr. Grey?”
“How could you work for him?” “You didn’t even know his name! I’m not stupid you know.”
“I’m a foreign correspondent that’s why,” replied Nicodemus coming up with a suitable story as quickly as he could, while placing the man back on the ground.
“What’s that?” This man was obviously not the brightest.
“It means I’ve never made his acquaintance, but I’ve worked for him in various fields of extreme expertise.”
“Oh…I knew that…I was just testing you.” ”Well you see…um…there’s this big shiny round thing…yeah, and the boss wants us to get it for him.” “He said we could have all the treasure we wanted, he just wanted the orb thing.” “Some of the guys are trying to get it for him, but I just do guard duty.” This was winding down quickly now. “I don’t have to do much…and well I haven’t seen anyone but you come down this hall.” It works out well don’t you think?”
“Nope…but thanks for the information.” As Nicodemus said this he delivered a swift blow to the man’s head and let him tumble down to the floor, unconscious with little hope of awakening soon.
He walked quickly and could feel he was nearing his final destination. Nicodemus realized that the exit to the tunnel was lit quite well, and seemingly without a light source. When he finally reached the edge of the extensive tunnel he peered down at the vast chasm that it opened into. It wasn’t as breathtakingly beautiful as the gem encrusted chamber, but what it lacked in magnificence was made up for by its titanic size; the distance to the opposite side being nearly half a mile. The epigraphs he had seen along the tunnel walls continued and expanded as they reached through the entrance and onward until completely covering the spherical chamber. They circled into patterns around the walls finally spiraling together to form coiling pillars of ivory at both the zenith and the base of this glorious work of art. The only omission in the engravings was a single path that led from where Nicodemus stood to the base of the lower pillar.
After scanning the room the source of light became quite apparent. Suspended hundreds of feet in the air between the ivory pillars, was an orb of outstanding brilliance and exquisite splendor. It resembled a miniature white star. However it was wrapped in a filigree of indistinguishable metal. The metalwork surrounding the artifact had four circular lenses. From these the pure white light was refracted into red, yellow, blue, and purple light. These protruding rays rotated counter-clockwise against the curved walls and where they touched the engravings morphed into different events. The walls would only return to normal after the light had passed. As strange as all of this was, Nicodemus had a job to do. Stopping this looting was his highest priority, and getting that strange orb was his second.
There were three others in the immense chasm. Two were dressed like the man he had already dispatched; straight, gray jackets and blue jeans. The third was wearing a gray trench coat and fedora. His black slacks, and fine Italian shoes, also black, could be seen protruding out the bottom of his coat. To top if off he wore a pair of finely made black leather gloves. His demeanor and posture were clearly professional if not military in nature. He was giving instructions to the others, so it seemed obvious that this was Mr. Grey.
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As he turned from his ignorant lackeys and tried to rub some of their stupidity away by massaging his temples, Nathan noticed the newest arrival. He looked around swiftly to make sure there was only one. “And who might you be…stranger?” shouted Nathan across the grand hall. At this his two goons quickly turned to see whom he was talking too.
“My name is Nicodemus…you and your associates have some answering to do!” he responded, the resentment in his voice was quite pronounced.
“You assume too much…I answer to no-one,” said Nathan frigidly.
“Did you honestly believe that destroying priceless, and ancient masterpieces, though buried under thousands of feet of earth, would go unnoticed?” Nicodemus chuckled sarcastically as he began walking quickly down the path. “If you did…you’re wrong.”
“And what are you going to do about it, huh?” said one of the minions before Nathan could reply. “Don’t worry boss…I’ll take care of him for you.”
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Finally the fighting begins:
Walking calmly as the enraged minion hustled menacingly towards him, Nicodemus lifted his staff lightly and continued onward. When the distance between the two was no more than twenty feet the crony reached into his jacket with his right hand and pulled out a telescoping stun-baton, which he then activated and began waving about as he sprinted towards Nicodemus. When he was five feet away it seemed appropriate to Nicodemus that he should act in defense. He quickly raised his left hand and dash forward. His quick movement surprised the minion and gave Nicodemus just enough time to grasp the top of his adversary’s right hand and twist the stun-baton up under the minion’s arm and jab it into the hollow of his armpit. Holding it there for only a moment he released his foe, and rapidly finished by sweeping his legs out from under him with a twirl of Amethyst Star. “Two down and one to go, you seem to be running out of pillagers Mr. Grey.”
“Is that so?” Nathan turned his head towards his other goon and barked, “Shoot him and be done with it you twit.” With that he began walking back towards the pillars.
“Y…yes sir,” the burly second minion stuttered, drawing his gun and aiming it at his distant target. “You won’t be getting me, no siree.”
“Are you sure you want to do that?” Nicodemus asked slowly. “It’s not a very good idea.”
“What do you know? I’m the one with the gun.”
As the man spoke Nicodemus began walking forward once again with an easy gate. “I’ll say it again for your sake, that’s not a very good idea.”
“Stay back you crazy weirdo. I’ll shoot you!”
Without responding Nicodemus began to walk slightly faster and closed the distance between them to about twenty feet. “Fine then…go ahead and shoot…I dare you.”
The foolish goon brought his gun up once more to aim and fire at his now closer opponent, and as he did so Nicodemus raised his right arm, staff in hand, and stamped the end of it against the ground. This caused a solid pillar of stone in front of the minion to rocket upwards and it struck him diagonally in the chest throwing him backwards. When he flopped onto the ground a few feet away, Nicodemus walked over, picked up the gun, and broke it in two. “He won’t be needing that anytime soon.” He then looked up and found that Mr. Grey had once again turned to look at him. His face displayed boundless frustration and he spoke softly. “Well then Mr. Nicodemus…shall we.”
“I thought you’d never ask,” Nicodemus replied with a wry smile.
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“Let it begin then,” Nathan shouted. Raising both his hands, palms outward, he tensed for just a moment and then settled into a well-practiced offensive stance. He began assessing Nicodemus’ attributes and though he lacked quite a bit of information about the strangely dressed man, he knew enough to start formulating a plan. As Nathan thought out a strategy, Nicodemus let go of his staff, which remained standing straight up, and began walking towards Mr. Grey. He also took up an offensive stance, but instead of devising a plan he decided to clear his mind and focus on the battle ahead.
The first to move was Nathan. He stepped forward and attempted a twin fist strike to knock his foe of guard then flipped over Nicodemus’ head and sent a couple of quick kicks at his back. The distraction failed however. The first kick was dodged as Nicodemus ducked and swung around and the second he blocked with his forearm. Not wasting any time, Nathan swung a few heavy punches, and finished with an inner roundhouse. “Those were pretty good Mr. Grey. But you’ll have to do better than that to get past my guard.” As he said this Nicodemus launched himself into the air and performed a massive axel kick aimed at Nathan’s head. However, Mr. Grey had moved out of the way, so he tilted and landed on his hands, and tried to catch him with a whirlwind kick. Nathan stepped back, and said, “You know…this is getting us nowhere.”
Back on his feet, Nicodemus nodded. “Your right, I guess it’s time to step it up a notch!” Nicodemus raised his hands as Nathan did the same. “I won’t be using just martial arts anymore, hopefully you don’t die. Because this is turning out to be an interesting day.”
“Fine by me…this time my attacks won’t be so easy to dodge. Especially if you can’t see them coming.” Nathan ran forward quickly and side stepped around Nicodemus who turned to avoid being flanked, but as he turned he felt a crushing force slam into his side and then it smashed him twice upwards. As he became airborne, Nicodemus thought quickly. What’s going on? He’s not even hitting me; he must be using air magic or something. Reorienting himself and staying aloft he began to look around for any trace of Nathan. Soon he spotted him flying some distance away, circling around and coming back at him full bore. “Alright, fine then. Let’s do this!” shouted Nicodemus as he began to rapidly fly towards Nathan. He charged a little energy into both palms using primal energy manipulation, and concentrated upon the air around him. Let’s see how he likes this then. Flying full bore towards his foe he began to spiral his flight pattern and soon set a collision course with Nathan. He charged his opponent and then dipped at the last second before impact and quickly turned over to deliver two piercing strikes to his abdomen. His air energy manipulation made the strikes extremely rapid, and almost razor sharp. As soon as they struck he spun and delivered an immensely powerful upwards kick to his opponents torso. After that he returned to an upright position and was startled to see Nathan unharmed. “What! I landed two vicious strikes and a great kick. You should at least be bruised damn it.”
“You fool…did you honestly think you could get by my guard that easy? I have my own protection too you know.” Quick as lightning Nicodemus shot several blades of air at Nathan and then retreated by descending to the ground. His attacks had glanced off of Nathan at the last moment leaving him completely unharmed. Mr. Grey rocketed towards Nicodemus who was on the ground, and using his telekinesis to strengthen his punches launched a rapid assault on him. Luckily he was agile, and dodged most of the blows, but those he attempted to block broke though his guard quickly and he ended up kneeling a few yards away breathing deeply and rubbing his left arm where Nathan had almost punched straight through it. I guess I underestimated this guy. I better stop kidding around and start actually fighting. Back on the ground again he stood up and faced Nathan. “My turn.” He bent his knees a bit and took an offensive stance again, concentrating energy into his palms again. “Martial arts again? Haven’t we already tried this?” Nathan chuckled as he readjusted his over-coat and waited to see what Nicodemus would do. “I’ll show you what I’m really made of Mr. Grey, you’ll pay for what you let those goons do to this place.” He thrust his fist into the air in an uppercut motion, and as he did so a boulder dislodged itself from the rock path in front of him. He then smashed his fist into it and sent it hurtling towards Nathan at great velocity. He barley had time to move and as he tumbled out of the way, Nicodemus sent a solid wall of sharp stones soaring at him. The majority of them stuck Nathan’s telekinetic shield and bounced off harmlessly, the rest missed and scattered against the floor. “You’re never going get me like that. Just face it, it’s useless.” As he said this Nicodemus, who had been gathering energy, smashed his hands together producing a small clapping sound, which was followed by a massive boom from the ensuing attack. He had manipulated two energies at once, not an easy task, to crush Nathan from above and below. Nathan was now on a black pillar of stone that Nicodemus had raised from the ground, and he was laying spread eagle on top of it because a massive column of air had smashed him several inches into the pillar. He raised a hand upwards, and spoke softly. “That. Really. Hurt. And you’re going to pay tenfold for what you just did.” As he stood up the look on his face told Nicodemus that the real fight was about to begin.
--- edit ---
sorry about the weird text mishaps. I don't know how to fix those.
“I will not let you die here,” replied Nicodemus through gritted teeth. “I’ll just”……
“Do not waste yer time on one such as I. Tis my time, it is.” “Take this, and think o’ it as a gift from a dying man… take it Bright One…please!” he begged proffering the tattered and bloody parchment he gripped in his hand. “Find the artifact known as the Globe of Stars…use it…to save those in need… use it for good.” He gasped his last ragged breath, and then the spirit faded from his eyes. He was at peace. Nicodemus looked to the scroll of torn and tattered parchment, and found it to be a map navigating bizarre tunnels far below the catacombs under Forumscant. At the bottom of the scroll was a small note that read, “Lest ye be worthy to ride the storm, reach not for that which shall transform.” “Stray not from the Enlightened Way, for doom awaits where those paths lay.”
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After hours of walking endless tunnels, with only the sound of his footsteps echoing off the ancient granite walls for company, the ominous phrases were still the subject of Nicodemus’ thoughts. Deep inside his soul, he found himself wondering why he had followed the mysterious man’s directions. These introverted distractions caused him to stumble on a crooked stone in the long flight of steps he was descending.
His usually heightened awareness did not save him from the long plunge down the dangerously jagged stairs and into a gigantic cavern. “That’s definitely going to leave a bruise,” he grimaced rubbing the aches from his extremities. “Hmm, I should try to be more careful.” Leaning back to rest on the floor he gasped as he looked upward. Without the need for illumination to see, he normally kept his staff from glowing, but a beam of light had dashed forth when he fell into the room, and the bright light it shone, reflected not off of gray slate walls he had become accustomed to, but instead sparkled off millions of precious stones. They were arranged to look like the night sky, in the high vaulted ceiling, every one a serene star, contrasted by the obsidian sheet that was their perch. When he picked himself up off the ground and walked further into the cavernous chamber, he realized that the gems were also stretching into rivers on the floor. They all branched from a single vividly decorated central ring, the inside of which was filled with the most gorgeous collection of valuable stones that mankind has ever known. Malachite, Jasper, and Aquamarine, were the concentration of outer edge, Amethysts, Rubies, and Emeralds were the second layer, the edge of the centerpiece was filled with white and pink Diamonds the size of grapefruits, and in the heart of this splendor he knelt in awed silence as he stared upon thousands and thousands of other gems all placed with care into the wonderfully crafted masterwork. With his head bowed in reverence he traced the central pattern with his finger and finally spoke, “Such a shame that this masterpiece will be covered in the darkness of the earth for eternity, where only a chosen few might admire its magnificence.” After a time he stood and looked to the bejeweled rivers, which were each made of a specific gemstone and flowed smoothly from the circle into archways of intricately woven marble. After consulting the dead man’s map, he turned and followed a radiant sapphire stream that led to an arch in the wall furthest from his way in. As he drew nearer to the opening, he realized that no light was reaching beyond the door, and his gaze couldn’t penetrate the darkness beyond. Usually having perfect vision on even the blackest of nights, this concerned Nicodemus. Curious, he peered around and found all the other archways had this strange effect as well. Although puzzling, and mildly disorienting if one peered directly into them, these strange constructions were nothing to keep him from continuing onward, so he turned back to the arch and boldly step through.
The closest thing to a description of the feeling that he experienced as he unwittingly walked through a portal, would be having your naval wrenched upward by a hook and then spun viciously counterclockwise, after which he had ferocious nausea and a few minutes of dizziness. When all of the unpleasantness was over with, and his head had stopped spinning he noticed the familiar glow of the gemstones leading away down the passage. He turned for a moment to look behind and saw the same archway, and the same impenetrable blackness. “I’m definitely not going to do that again.” “At least not for a while,” he said turning away and heading down the new path.
Following the brilliant gemstone stream wasn’t the easiest thing to do. There was the fact that parts of it had gone missing, or had been covered up by dust, also that it extended down tunnels that had been warped by geological activities, which made it not only difficult to traverse, but also tilted it at odd degrees for walking. The worst part though, was all the ancient, and quite distracting epigraphs of long forgotten memories along the walls. Every new section told a story of great celebration or tragedy, all based around a shiny and mystically bright orb. The populace in each history was different, but each had one thing in common; they seemed to all be communicating with the strange artifact. Each went on for several hundred feet, and then another would begin.
Being unaware of how long or far he had walked mattered little to him. He had plenty to eat in his pack, and his endurance wasn’t going to give out for a while, and yet he felt he should make haste and so he quickened his pace a bit. It was then that he first felt as if he was being watched. He also began to notice some chips and missing gems from the beautifully etched walls. Glancing forward he saw the strange, and priceless art steadily growing more ruined. Soon anger began to rise inside him, as he saw what had been done to the pristine works, all of them smashed, broken, or defaced in some way. With a little more inspection he realized that most of the damage was done recently, probably within hours of his arrival. “Who…who would do this?” He asked himself. “Wait… if this is so recent they’re probably still here!” With that in mind he jumped into the dusty air and began to swiftly fly down the tunnel.
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The operation was going smoothly and I was supposed to be standing guard at the exit tunnel, but my bladder was killing me, and well when nature calls, it really calls. So I figured relieving myself on the wall where we had already looted would be okay. It wasn’t very good art anyway. When I noticed someone coming towards me, I quickly zipped up my pants and turned…I definitely wasn’t expecting a furious looking stranger, in a white and purple cloak, to be rapidly flying in my direction. I also wasn’t expecting him to pick me up and shove me against a wall.
“Hey w…what are you doing?”
“Your not supposed to be here,” whispered Nicodemus as picked up the small guard who had previously been urinating on the epigraph. “Who do you work for?” he snarled quietly.
“His n…name is Mr. G…Grey.” The man trembled as he spoke, clearly not used to confrontation. “I’m just following his orders.”
“And why are you here?” Nicodemus eyes glowed brightly as he continued his questions.
“Why should I tell you?” “Your not one of us.”
“Oh really, and what if I work for Mr. Grey?”
“How could you work for him?” “You didn’t even know his name! I’m not stupid you know.”
“I’m a foreign correspondent that’s why,” replied Nicodemus coming up with a suitable story as quickly as he could, while placing the man back on the ground.
“What’s that?” This man was obviously not the brightest.
“It means I’ve never made his acquaintance, but I’ve worked for him in various fields of extreme expertise.”
“Oh…I knew that…I was just testing you.” ”Well you see…um…there’s this big shiny round thing…yeah, and the boss wants us to get it for him.” “He said we could have all the treasure we wanted, he just wanted the orb thing.” “Some of the guys are trying to get it for him, but I just do guard duty.” This was winding down quickly now. “I don’t have to do much…and well I haven’t seen anyone but you come down this hall.” It works out well don’t you think?”
“Nope…but thanks for the information.” As Nicodemus said this he delivered a swift blow to the man’s head and let him tumble down to the floor, unconscious with little hope of awakening soon.
He walked quickly and could feel he was nearing his final destination. Nicodemus realized that the exit to the tunnel was lit quite well, and seemingly without a light source. When he finally reached the edge of the extensive tunnel he peered down at the vast chasm that it opened into. It wasn’t as breathtakingly beautiful as the gem encrusted chamber, but what it lacked in magnificence was made up for by its titanic size; the distance to the opposite side being nearly half a mile. The epigraphs he had seen along the tunnel walls continued and expanded as they reached through the entrance and onward until completely covering the spherical chamber. They circled into patterns around the walls finally spiraling together to form coiling pillars of ivory at both the zenith and the base of this glorious work of art. The only omission in the engravings was a single path that led from where Nicodemus stood to the base of the lower pillar.
After scanning the room the source of light became quite apparent. Suspended hundreds of feet in the air between the ivory pillars, was an orb of outstanding brilliance and exquisite splendor. It resembled a miniature white star. However it was wrapped in a filigree of indistinguishable metal. The metalwork surrounding the artifact had four circular lenses. From these the pure white light was refracted into red, yellow, blue, and purple light. These protruding rays rotated counter-clockwise against the curved walls and where they touched the engravings morphed into different events. The walls would only return to normal after the light had passed. As strange as all of this was, Nicodemus had a job to do. Stopping this looting was his highest priority, and getting that strange orb was his second.
There were three others in the immense chasm. Two were dressed like the man he had already dispatched; straight, gray jackets and blue jeans. The third was wearing a gray trench coat and fedora. His black slacks, and fine Italian shoes, also black, could be seen protruding out the bottom of his coat. To top if off he wore a pair of finely made black leather gloves. His demeanor and posture were clearly professional if not military in nature. He was giving instructions to the others, so it seemed obvious that this was Mr. Grey.
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As he turned from his ignorant lackeys and tried to rub some of their stupidity away by massaging his temples, Nathan noticed the newest arrival. He looked around swiftly to make sure there was only one. “And who might you be…stranger?” shouted Nathan across the grand hall. At this his two goons quickly turned to see whom he was talking too.
“My name is Nicodemus…you and your associates have some answering to do!” he responded, the resentment in his voice was quite pronounced.
“You assume too much…I answer to no-one,” said Nathan frigidly.
“Did you honestly believe that destroying priceless, and ancient masterpieces, though buried under thousands of feet of earth, would go unnoticed?” Nicodemus chuckled sarcastically as he began walking quickly down the path. “If you did…you’re wrong.”
“And what are you going to do about it, huh?” said one of the minions before Nathan could reply. “Don’t worry boss…I’ll take care of him for you.”
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Finally the fighting begins:
Walking calmly as the enraged minion hustled menacingly towards him, Nicodemus lifted his staff lightly and continued onward. When the distance between the two was no more than twenty feet the crony reached into his jacket with his right hand and pulled out a telescoping stun-baton, which he then activated and began waving about as he sprinted towards Nicodemus. When he was five feet away it seemed appropriate to Nicodemus that he should act in defense. He quickly raised his left hand and dash forward. His quick movement surprised the minion and gave Nicodemus just enough time to grasp the top of his adversary’s right hand and twist the stun-baton up under the minion’s arm and jab it into the hollow of his armpit. Holding it there for only a moment he released his foe, and rapidly finished by sweeping his legs out from under him with a twirl of Amethyst Star. “Two down and one to go, you seem to be running out of pillagers Mr. Grey.”
“Is that so?” Nathan turned his head towards his other goon and barked, “Shoot him and be done with it you twit.” With that he began walking back towards the pillars.
“Y…yes sir,” the burly second minion stuttered, drawing his gun and aiming it at his distant target. “You won’t be getting me, no siree.”
“Are you sure you want to do that?” Nicodemus asked slowly. “It’s not a very good idea.”
“What do you know? I’m the one with the gun.”
As the man spoke Nicodemus began walking forward once again with an easy gate. “I’ll say it again for your sake, that’s not a very good idea.”
“Stay back you crazy weirdo. I’ll shoot you!”
Without responding Nicodemus began to walk slightly faster and closed the distance between them to about twenty feet. “Fine then…go ahead and shoot…I dare you.”
The foolish goon brought his gun up once more to aim and fire at his now closer opponent, and as he did so Nicodemus raised his right arm, staff in hand, and stamped the end of it against the ground. This caused a solid pillar of stone in front of the minion to rocket upwards and it struck him diagonally in the chest throwing him backwards. When he flopped onto the ground a few feet away, Nicodemus walked over, picked up the gun, and broke it in two. “He won’t be needing that anytime soon.” He then looked up and found that Mr. Grey had once again turned to look at him. His face displayed boundless frustration and he spoke softly. “Well then Mr. Nicodemus…shall we.”
“I thought you’d never ask,” Nicodemus replied with a wry smile.
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“Let it begin then,” Nathan shouted. Raising both his hands, palms outward, he tensed for just a moment and then settled into a well-practiced offensive stance. He began assessing Nicodemus’ attributes and though he lacked quite a bit of information about the strangely dressed man, he knew enough to start formulating a plan. As Nathan thought out a strategy, Nicodemus let go of his staff, which remained standing straight up, and began walking towards Mr. Grey. He also took up an offensive stance, but instead of devising a plan he decided to clear his mind and focus on the battle ahead.
The first to move was Nathan. He stepped forward and attempted a twin fist strike to knock his foe of guard then flipped over Nicodemus’ head and sent a couple of quick kicks at his back. The distraction failed however. The first kick was dodged as Nicodemus ducked and swung around and the second he blocked with his forearm. Not wasting any time, Nathan swung a few heavy punches, and finished with an inner roundhouse. “Those were pretty good Mr. Grey. But you’ll have to do better than that to get past my guard.” As he said this Nicodemus launched himself into the air and performed a massive axel kick aimed at Nathan’s head. However, Mr. Grey had moved out of the way, so he tilted and landed on his hands, and tried to catch him with a whirlwind kick. Nathan stepped back, and said, “You know…this is getting us nowhere.”
Back on his feet, Nicodemus nodded. “Your right, I guess it’s time to step it up a notch!” Nicodemus raised his hands as Nathan did the same. “I won’t be using just martial arts anymore, hopefully you don’t die. Because this is turning out to be an interesting day.”
“Fine by me…this time my attacks won’t be so easy to dodge. Especially if you can’t see them coming.” Nathan ran forward quickly and side stepped around Nicodemus who turned to avoid being flanked, but as he turned he felt a crushing force slam into his side and then it smashed him twice upwards. As he became airborne, Nicodemus thought quickly. What’s going on? He’s not even hitting me; he must be using air magic or something. Reorienting himself and staying aloft he began to look around for any trace of Nathan. Soon he spotted him flying some distance away, circling around and coming back at him full bore. “Alright, fine then. Let’s do this!” shouted Nicodemus as he began to rapidly fly towards Nathan. He charged a little energy into both palms using primal energy manipulation, and concentrated upon the air around him. Let’s see how he likes this then. Flying full bore towards his foe he began to spiral his flight pattern and soon set a collision course with Nathan. He charged his opponent and then dipped at the last second before impact and quickly turned over to deliver two piercing strikes to his abdomen. His air energy manipulation made the strikes extremely rapid, and almost razor sharp. As soon as they struck he spun and delivered an immensely powerful upwards kick to his opponents torso. After that he returned to an upright position and was startled to see Nathan unharmed. “What! I landed two vicious strikes and a great kick. You should at least be bruised damn it.”
“You fool…did you honestly think you could get by my guard that easy? I have my own protection too you know.” Quick as lightning Nicodemus shot several blades of air at Nathan and then retreated by descending to the ground. His attacks had glanced off of Nathan at the last moment leaving him completely unharmed. Mr. Grey rocketed towards Nicodemus who was on the ground, and using his telekinesis to strengthen his punches launched a rapid assault on him. Luckily he was agile, and dodged most of the blows, but those he attempted to block broke though his guard quickly and he ended up kneeling a few yards away breathing deeply and rubbing his left arm where Nathan had almost punched straight through it. I guess I underestimated this guy. I better stop kidding around and start actually fighting. Back on the ground again he stood up and faced Nathan. “My turn.” He bent his knees a bit and took an offensive stance again, concentrating energy into his palms again. “Martial arts again? Haven’t we already tried this?” Nathan chuckled as he readjusted his over-coat and waited to see what Nicodemus would do. “I’ll show you what I’m really made of Mr. Grey, you’ll pay for what you let those goons do to this place.” He thrust his fist into the air in an uppercut motion, and as he did so a boulder dislodged itself from the rock path in front of him. He then smashed his fist into it and sent it hurtling towards Nathan at great velocity. He barley had time to move and as he tumbled out of the way, Nicodemus sent a solid wall of sharp stones soaring at him. The majority of them stuck Nathan’s telekinetic shield and bounced off harmlessly, the rest missed and scattered against the floor. “You’re never going get me like that. Just face it, it’s useless.” As he said this Nicodemus, who had been gathering energy, smashed his hands together producing a small clapping sound, which was followed by a massive boom from the ensuing attack. He had manipulated two energies at once, not an easy task, to crush Nathan from above and below. Nathan was now on a black pillar of stone that Nicodemus had raised from the ground, and he was laying spread eagle on top of it because a massive column of air had smashed him several inches into the pillar. He raised a hand upwards, and spoke softly. “That. Really. Hurt. And you’re going to pay tenfold for what you just did.” As he stood up the look on his face told Nicodemus that the real fight was about to begin.
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sorry about the weird text mishaps. I don't know how to fix those.