Post by Randy Savage on Aug 21, 2015 15:19:40 GMT -5
Marines Make Awful Rivals
Character: Randy Savage
Length: 7186
Randy crouched in the low brush on the outskirts of Troubadour Island. She had an odd feeling about this island and now it was proving true. She had past by it a few times in her travels and something in her stomach struck her as odd. It was naturally defensible, there were poor sightlines from the coast into its depths, there were always some boats docked but hardly any ever went to it, and they didn’t seem to produce any trade. It’s a Pirate Island! She could tell--it had all of the earmarks of the island she grew up on. At that time it wasn’t so obvious, but now she was sure.
After actually setting foot on the island, she had snuck by numerous patrols and now, in the main village of the island, she could see jolly rogers and flags hanging. There were the flags of the Traitorous Flaggen Crew. Flaggen had gotten the name by overthrowing the previous captain in a coupe. It was rumored that, though the crew was large and had many powerful captains in it, their leader was fairly weak and did not possess a devil fruit. All he had were his wits and those had been enough to elevate him to his station. Randy thanked how dark this night was as a patrol passed by her bush. She was never particularly good at sneaking but, luckily, the guards were fairly lazy. They had such a naturally well defended island that they didn’t have to worry about intruders. The guards were going through the motions.
The night hung blackly overhead and Randy pulled her hood close. Her outfits was simple and fairly standard for her. Black combat boots with black shorts, a black tank top overlaid by a black aviator jacket. She always found that name weird. What’s an aviator anyway? This coat had a hood that she pulled snugly over her head. While her hair, technically, didn’t produce any light, she still wasn’t comfortable with it flickering about her. Especially if she got mad or worried and it rose from her hiding spot, giving her away. As proud as she was of her hair and lineage, it wasn’t worth the risk. As another guard patrol walked past she snuck behind them and cross a village street, making it to the other side and diving into some underbrush.
So far she was impressed by how well this was going. Her plan was simple enough; sneak onto the island, knock out the captain, escape with him in tow, then turn in the bounty before his crew even realized he was missing. On a moral scale her plan was flawed; with Traitorous Flaggen gone, the crew would simply pick up new leadership. Hypothetically, not being led by a betrayer would lead to a boost in morale and the crew would probably grow stronger. Fortunately for her, she didn’t care. As a bounty hunter, she was in this for the money. And as a Hard Rock Hunter, she had to do it with style. A silent bag and tag was the perfect idea. Under most circumstances, Randy wouldn’t trust her ability to sneak, but she hoped she had the element of surprise. So far, that was proving true. She could only hope she didn’t run into trouble later; the Traitorous Flaggen crew was strong and she would not be able to take on an entire pirate crew by herself. Yet.
After diving into the bush, Randy tucked into a roll. Landing on her feet, she started to run through the forest past the village. She was mostly operating on instinct but she had a feeling the captain’s house wouldn’t be near the main village. The whole point of a small village like that was so the pirates wives and bastards would have somewhere to shack up while they looted. That, and to give the mild appearance of a legit island if the random ship did manage to land on their dock without them blowing it out of the water. Randy was knocked out of thought as she ran into the back of a person standing in the middle of the woods. Surprise and instinct took over and Randy threw a punch before she was even able to get a good look at the person’s silhouette.
The mysterious stranger was lithe and quick on their feet; they deflected a blow and tossed Randy onto her back then leaned in closely to her face, holding a free hand over Randy’s mouth.
”You shouldn’t be here. You are interfering with a very delicate Marine operation. Explain.” It was a woman’s voice. She spoke flatly.
”Mmmph Omph phmmm...”” Randy muffled roughly through the fingers of the Marine. It’s like the woman had forgotten to remove her hand. The Marine let go of Randy’s mouth and let her get up on her own. ”I said my name is Randy Savage and I am here on a very delicate Bounty Hunter operation.” Randy spoke as if she was marking her territory. The woman was eyeing her up and down. ”How do you know I’m not part of this crew anyway? And just what are you staring at?”
”My name is Agent Nightengale. That’s all you need to know. I’m a special scout that was sent to sneak in here and ascertain the situation before the Marines arrive. We are taking this island Ms. Savage.” The woman spoke Randy’s name with particular venom. It was as if she knew it already. ”Besides, you might want to be careful where you tread. There are still some Marines that think you deserve a bounty based on your heritage alone. If you do not leave, I will be forced to remove you.”
”Are you threatening me?” Randy spat incredulously.
”Marines do not threaten Ms. Savage; that is simply what will happen if you remain on this island.
”I’m not leaving. This is my bounty and I’ll be damned if some spoiled Marine takes it from me!”
Randy was near yelling at this point, momentarily forgetting the danger that was all around them. She had gotten far enough from the village that they wouldn’t be visible in the dark of the night. Ms. Savage and Ms. Nightengale stood for a few long moments in the dark. Randy’s hair flared brightly under her hood, framing her head in a spectrum of reds. Her attitude was coming to a boiling point. She couldn’t make out the Marine’s features in the dark of night but Randy could tell she was slight of frame and a bit shorter than her. Despite that she had managed to throw Randy to the ground with frightening ease. The Marine was surely skilled, that was certain. Randy couldn’t take the silent anymore.
”Damn Marines. Always think you can push peo--”
Nightengale struck out quickly, cutting Randy off. The Marines rushed forward with surprising speed and lashed out a kick aimed for Randy’s head. Instinct kicked in and Randy dodged under the kick and rushed forward. She caught the Marine’s leg on her shoulder and wrapped her arms around Nightengale’s hips. Wordlessly, Randy shifted her weight backward to suplex the Marine face first into the dirt. Amazingly, the Marine caught herself with her right hand and flipped away from Randy, landing on her feet. Randy was barely back to her feet when Nightengale was back on her, the attack coming from the Marine was two quick kicks. Randy struggled to her feet but managed to deflect the blows.
Now that they were close, Randy was able to get a good look at the Marine. She wore a flat black ladies uniform. It was close fitting. The bottom was a short skirt with strange black leggings underneath. Her top was a bit odd though, the right sleeve was full and ended in a glove whereas her left arm was bare. Her legs were much the same with the right in a full pant leg while the left ended mid thigh and continued as bare skin. Randy didn’t have much time to ponder the curiosity that was the outfit though as the Marine’s attack was relentless. Tired of being on the defense, Randy grabbed one of the offending legs and launch out her own kick at the foot of Nightengale, trying to throw her to the ground again.
Nightengale slid her back foot even further back, pushing herself into a split. This caused Randy’s attack to miss and the strange effectiveness of the dodge caught her off guard. The Marine was in a full split, one leg far behind her with the other in Randy’s hand. Taking advantage of her surprise, Nightengale put her covered arm to the ground and flipped herself upward, spinning her legs around in a windmill kick. The attack caught purchase on the side of Randy’s head, causing her to go reeling back. Damn that hurts! What are that girls boots made of?! It felt like she got hit with a hammer. This Marine was dangerous. What Marine isn’t?
Randy didn’t have time to ask where Nightengale got her boots though as the Marine was back on her. Before Randy could regain her composure, the Marine rushed and leapt at Randy. Haphazardly, Randy tossed out a punch, trying to swat the woman out of the air. The Marine grabbed onto her arm gracefully; it was like she read Randy perfectly. With a quick flip of her body, Nightengale flung her legs up wrapping one around Randy’s neck and the other around her body. The Marine’s covered leg was constricting her throat and she was using the covered arm the wrench Randy’s arm backward, as if trying to rip it out of the socket. They both tumbled to the ground as Randy fell victim to the submission hold.
Randy struggled silently in the ground, trying to get her arm free. This grip is intense! I can barely breath. Randy was starting to get light headed and, if it weren’t for her gauntlets bracing her wrist, she felt like her wrist would been disable by the hold. They rolled and struggled, Nightengale was unrelenting and barely flinched or wiggled as Randy flopped around. It was like a skilled woodsman holding open the mouth of a crocodile while it rolled around uselessly. Randy’s hood got loose in the scuffle and her hair shot out upright. Her patience had ended. With a hard grunt, Randy stopped rolling in the dirt and stood to her feet. She couldn’t brute force the women off of her arm, but she could stand up. Nightengale clung to the hold, her head near the ground.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki...”
Randy grunted out words while the Marine continued to increase her grip. Nightengale tilted her head, a confused look on her face from the words. It was like she was trying to parse the meaning and ready herself for whatever attack Randy might have in her pocket. With a burst of strength, Randy left her gripped arm, bringing it and the Marine nearly straight on in front of her. Although the Marine had her arm in a lock, there was nothing stopping her from opening her hand and place an open palm on Nightengale’s chest. As one fluid motion, Randy brought her other hand up and clapped the Marine on the back, the clap sending a few rippling vibrations through her body.
”Third Corner Vibration!”
The attack wouldn’t do a whole lot of damage, but it served its purpose. The vibrations and a gauntleted slap on the back knocked the air out of Nightengale. Losing some of her composure, her grip loosened and Randy managed to slam her into the ground. The slam, also, would not do much damage as it was almost entirely the product of Randy just shaking her arm loose. Now it was Randy’s turn to be relentless. Switching gears, Randy launched toward the sprawled out Marine. She was quick about regaining her composure but not fast enough. Closing the gap, Randy was overtop of the Marine and prepared to unless a powerful attack.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki.: First Corner Flurry!”
Randy launched a tirade of quick jabs to Nightengale. She was leaning over the floored Marine, not quite mounting her, but unleashing a furious flurry of attacks, Randy’s smile widened and her skin hued red as her attacks grew faster. Suddenly, Randy’s fist was stopped. Held in place by the gloved arm of the Marine. She had held out her arm to defend herself and managed to block every blow with simply one arm and then managed to catch Randy’s hand. That itself was surprising enough, but surely the Marine’s arm was a pulpy stump now right? Randy’s smile faded as she caught a glimpse of metal under the torn sleeve. Her attacks had been fierce and, although Nightengale blocked them all with her arm, she still took some damage. The clothing and glove on Nightengale’s right arm had ripped away to revealed her entire right arm was metal. Servos pumped visible as she held Randy’s fist in place.
”A cyborg?”
Wordlessly, the Marine threw her arm to the ground and tried to push herself up into a windmill kick again. Randy let her arm go but was ready for the attack this time. She leaned back and dodged the first kick then lashed her hands out and grabbed the Marine by the thighs. Holding her in place, Randy delivered a quick knee to her midsection and then a firm straight kick that sent the Marine rolling through the dirt. The Marine rolled away and came up on her feet. She was visibly frazzled. Apparently, she had expected Randy to be easy prey. Both Randy and Nightengale tensed as they made eye contact; Randy’s eyes pierced a vibrant red. They were just about to rush each other when they heard yells from the village.
”I think it came from over here! It sounded like fighting!”
Damn! Some of the pirates must have heard their fight and were now closing in on the location. This would have to wait.
”What’s your name?”
”What’s your first name? If I tell everyone the name of my marine rival is a robot named Nightengale, they’ll think I’m stupid! That name sounds like an edgy superhero!”
”You’re lucky today Jocelyn!
Randy knew they couldn’t continue this fight; she could hear the pirates getting closer. She shot Jocelyn one last wink before turning on a heel and sprinting into the woods. Running was dangerous--it made her more noticeable of course. Unfortunately she didn’t have much of a choice. With the pirates so close, if she didn’t run they would catch up to her. Besides, she had spent her whole life running through woods like these. Pulling her hood back up, Randy’s hair was starting to calm down. Randy couldn’t help but feel a bit of excitement. That fight was fun! She loved surprises and that Marine seemed full of them. In a small way, she hoped she’d see more of the woman.
Randy slid to a stop as she burst out of the woods and into a clearing. Ahead of her she could see a few small buildings and then something that looked akin to a keep or castle. That must be where Flaggen is. She heard yells and sounds of struggle off to the side, still in the woods. With a bit of panic, Randy turned with a hop to look around her. In the distance she could see a couple of Pirates had caught up to Jocelyn. It was only a few of them and she seemed to be handling herself well enough. Randy thanked her luck; that means they’d be distracted by Jocelyn, giving Randy more of an opportunity. Turning back toward the keep, Randy took off into a sprint, heedless of the danger. She was putting stock in Jocelyn sufficiently drawing their attention.
As she closed the distance on the keep, Randy ducked around the building. Even if Jocelyn was making the best distraction in the world, going right through the front door was foolish. As she came around the back of the keep. She found some latticework that went up the side of the building. Large, bulbous purple vegetables were hanging from the vines in the latticework. Randy couldn’t tell what vegetable they were, but she knew they weren’t peppers! Mmm, peppers. Almost as if realizing she was hungry, Randy reached into one of her pouches and pulled out a pepper to snack on. It was long, spindly and yellow. It seemed dried out and crunched audibly but man oh man was it delicious! Randy threw a leg onto the vines and began climbing the latticework.
Reaching the top, Randy had a great view of the entire island. She gave a brief look around and could no longer see any commotion down in the clearing or the outskirts of the woods. Briefly, she wondered if Jocelyn had been captured. A part of her considered actually caring about that line of thought. On the one hand, it would do no good to have a rival die at the hands of simple pirates. On the other hand, rescuing ones rival wasn’t good for the image. That’s how one gets dubbed an antihero and Randy had no interest in that. She climbed the ceiling tiles slowly, careful not to dislodge any and give herself away. There were no guards up here, though she could tell a few down in the clearing had gone back to normal patrols.
As she reached the highest point in the roof, she came to a wall with a medium sized window in it. Looking through the window she could see it led into a long, wide hallway. There were pillars on both sides and, with the windows open, curtains billowed on each side. At the one end of the hall was a stairway leading down while, at the other, was a large ornate door. In the middle of the hallway were a group of pirates sat at a squat card table. She couldn’t hear them but one seemed to be yelling at another. There were bottles of saki around their feet and she could tell they were playing a game and gambling. Judging by the size and detail of the door, Randy decided that must be her goal of the pirate leader.
Carefully, Randy slid herself into the hallway. It was dark outside, and the pirates only bothered to like their table. The rest of the hallway was illuminated dimly but, by the brightness of their lantern, the pirates actually obscured the rest of the room from their vision. Randy kept her body out of the middle of the hallway and slid behind the pillars, slowly making her way down the room. Her progress was slow, but steady, and so far it seemed as though she could make it the entire way down the wall unperturbed. Once there, she would wait until their argument grew particularly heated, and she would take the opportunity to open the captain’s door and sneak in. Then her job would be done. Easy peasy.
When she finally reached the end of the hallway, Randy hadn’t realized she had been holding her breath. Her hair was falling out of her hood and she could see it hummed a dull pink, almost as if hiding itself too. She waited in the darkness for the pirates to start up their argument again. They finished a hand and as the pirate who won reached in the middle to claim his winnings, another pirate grabbed his head and slammed it into the table. That set off a chain reaction of punches, kicks, and yelling as the pirates argued over who was cheating. Now was her chance. Randy started tiptoeing toward the door.
”Hey bozos!” Jocelyn?
”Huh? What?....HEY!”
The yell caught Randy by surprise. She looked up an open window that was near her end of the hallway. Jocelyn was leaning into it. She at Randy before retreating from the window and back onto the roof, leaving the pirates to search the room for the voice. The first thing they say was Randy by the door. They immediately pointed her out and started yelling. Damn! Randy turned quickly and gave the large, ornate door a tug. It didn’t budge. She reached up a foot and placed it on the opposite door, trying to force the door open. It wasn’t moving. Oh well. She thought. I wanted a fight anyway.
”Well played rival...” Randy mumbled to herself as she turned to face the pirates who were now running toward her. ”Alright fellas, lets cuddle!”
Thankfully, none of them had pistols. Two of them had sword and the other two had crude brass knuckles on their hands. All four of them were at least a head taller then she and as they got closer their size loomed. They were clearly strong opponent. Especially if the captain was using them as his door guard. Randy stretched her arms out; her left arm was still tight from the grappling earlier. Hopefully, these brutes lacked the finesse of Randy’s rival. Brute strength Randy could deal with in kind. Finesse and subterfuge were harder for her. As they nearly closed the distance, Randy struck.
She launched forward, her sudden burst of speed seeming to catch the group off guard. As she ran, Randy outstretched a hand and slammed it into the face of one of the knuckle wielding thugs. Stepping a leg behind him, she torqued her hips and forced the back of his head into the floor. The rest of the thugs were slow to react, but did not hesitate. They all quickly turned inward, taking aim on her as she stood straddled over top of the first pirate. Randy couldn’t help but let a huge smile creep over her lips. She couldn’t help but enjoy these odds. Fighting was always fun. And when it was a challenge? Whoa buddy you better look at, because that’s when Randy was in her prime form.
”Jōshō Doragon: Con Carne Grenade!”
Randy unhitched a few pouches from her belt loop then, stepping off of the stomach on the downed pirate, Randy launched herself through the air. Landing by where they were playing cards, Randy kicked over the table and used it for cover. The pirates hesitated. They saw her flip away but, from their perspective, it sounded like her technique was just a far jump. They almost began to close in on Randy, then she heard the screams. One of the pirates must have seen the grenades and she heard frantically scrambling from behind her shield. She was tempted to look out, but, the grenades were the newest addition to her arsenal and she wasn’t sure how much shrapnel they created. Boom!
After the explosion, Randy looked up to see only one of the pirates had gotten completely clear of the grenades; most likely the first one who noticed. Two of the other pirates stood dazed over top of their comrade. The explosion hadn’t done massive amounts of damage, but being so close to the flash and sonic boom certainly served to disorient her foes. With a swift boot, Randy flipped the table across the room. A sword pirate looked up just in time to take a panicked swing at the furniture. He was able to disable most of the damage it would have caused but, as it splintered away, Randy was in the debris. She rose with an uppercut into the jaw of the sword pirate. Given that he had just swung, he didn’t have time to counter attack.
At that moment, the pirate who managed to dodged the explosion grabbed Randy from behind. The other pirate, knuckle dusters in hand, turned to Randy and went to throw a punch. Clearly this pirate was lacking in smarts as, even though her body was held in place, he aimed for her head. Randy dodged the attacks relatively easily; though he had regained most of his balance, his attacks were still sluggish. Randy punctuated her dodges with swift elbows to the head and body of the pirate that grabbed her around the waist. He was trying to flip her off her feet. If there was one thing Randy had though, it was impeccable balance. She squared her stance and was, still with a bit of effort mind you, able to stay on her own two feet. The second pirate, clearly frustrated by the fact he hand’t landed a blow, stopped attacked and tried to tackle her also.
Randy wrapped an arm around the neck of the second pirate as he grabbed her waist above the first. They couldn’t get her off her feet but the pure force of them pushing was enough to drive her backward down the hallway. It almost seemed as if they were trying to force her toward the stairs. As she was pushed away, Randy noticed the fourth pirate was completely incapacitated on the floor. Her initial attack, combined with the grenades going off right on top of him, had removed him from the equation. Randy threw elbows and punches at the two men, trying desperately to loosen their grip. It seemed like their determination nearly matched her own. Her hair started to lick at the air as he frustration mounted. She didn’t like being held.
Throwing her free arm back, she wrapped it around the neck of the first man. Now, holding the heads of both mean, she steadied her weight. She knew she couldn’t pull them off of her. With a quick jerk of her hips, Randy bucked her body weight backward and drove the heads of both the men into the floor. They hit the ground in a heap, the heads of the men landing first. All three bodies sprawled away from each other. Before Randy could get to her feet, the third man was on her. Sword raised, he was leaping through the air, threatening to drive his sword right through her. Randy shot up her feet and caught the man in the chest. She let his momentum carry and pushed her weight over her head. She used the motion to roll to her feet as the third pirate sailed smoothly on by.
As she stood she could see the door to the captain’s room. Jocelyn was in the open doorway. She took a moment to glance back at Randy before smiling and slipping inside the room. Dammit! Used my own trick against me! Randy’s hair danced violently around her and her skin started to redden. She went to run toward the door, to chase after Jocelyn, but one of the men she slammed intercepted her. He swung a fist toward her side. She hopped back and then deflected his next attack easily. She went to throw a punch but had to adjust at the last moment and throw her body of the way of a sword. The blade careened past the back of her head as she jumped to the side. All three men were on their feet and advancing on her, attacking progressively faster. It was time to end this.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki: Third Corner Vibration!”
Randy pushed back into the men and clapped her hands onto the sword of the fist attacker. He tried to keep control of the long sword but, as it wobbled, he had to stop attacking. He stepped back, supporting his wrist with his free hand. He looked like he was wrestling a snake while he tried to regain control of his sword. She turned to the next sword user and attempted to do the same but he was ready for her. She managed to deflect his original sword thrust but her hands landed awkwardly. One clapped the sword but the other hit his forearm. The attack would sting a bit like a slap, but otherwise be ineffectual. With a dark grin he rammed his elbow into Randy’s stomach.
Grunting, Randy stumbled back a few feet. The knuckle duster user pressed forward and delivered a swift punch two her face, causing her to fumble further. She nearly lost her balance. All three pirates were upon her now; the middle pirate had abandoned his sword and decided to just attack with his hands. They were crashing down on her like a wave of smiling, malicious seamen. Randy finally caught her balance on her back foot. Her skin and hair were nearly a solid red now.
”Now I’m MAD[Yosumi Sutoraiki: First Corner Flurry!”
Randy seemed to yell her attack, as if the force of her voice was empowering her. As the first pirate attacked with a punch ,she met his punch with her own. Concentrating on her dominant hand, her right, Randy focused her attacks. They were rapid and violent; she was using the first corner to deflect the attacks of all three pirates at once! Randy was never particularly skilled at defense. The best way she knew to defend herself was just to attack back. She pressed forward as she unleashed her first corner. What started as a defensive strike slowly turned int o a full blown attack. The tables turned as the pirates turned from attacking, to full defense. Their smiles dropped to grimaces as they tried their best to defend themselves.
Then Randy saw her opening. The first pirate who dropped his sword was attacking with his bare hands. He was blocking Randy’s attacks with those same hands and moments ago Randy had been meeting his punches with her own. Her gauntlets had did a number on his hands and she could tell they were beaten and bloodied. Finally, one of her attacks broke his guard, hitting him square in the nose. Using her momentum, Randy stepped forward and delivered a swift knee to his stomach. As he doubled over, Randy followed up with an uppercut. His mass rose in the air a few inches, the force of Randy’s blow sending him upward. She finished him off with a jumping pound to his throat, striking the man to the ground. His friends faltered. Randy didn’t.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki: Second Corner Shock! SHOCK!”
Randy moved between the two remaining combatants. She feel on the one man with an elbow to the throat, he stumbled back in shock, seemingly unable to breath. Randy spun on a heel and struck the second man right in the chest, with her speed and rage, Randy could swear she heard a light crack when she hit the man. Probably damaged a few ribs. She jumped back, grabbing both men by their heads and slamming them together. They collided, but quickly tried to right themselves and counter. If Randy was in the mind for thinking, she would admire their tenacity. They threw a few punches and sword strikes, but Randy was as smooth as silk. Blood streamed down her face from where she took their attacks, but she did not feel the pain. She was no longer thinking or feeling; this fight had become pure instinct and muscle. Her attacks were dangerously fast, for Randy was no longer taking the time to think between them. Her body had turned into a weapon.
She beat on the two remaining men a bit more. They had landed a punch to her stomach, and she had two sword cuts on her arm she didn’t remember taking, but she didn’t care. It took a bit for her to calm down and when she did, she was punching one of the pirates repeatedly in the face, despite the fact he as clearly incapacitated. Randy regained her composure, standing and taking a deep breath out. She took one of the long black pieces of fabric from her belt loop and wrapped it around her injured arm. Her jacket was in tatters, so she discarded it, dropping it on the body of one of the pirates. Now it was time for her prize.
The door came open easily this time. The room was large and immaculate. There was a desk, a bed, a cooking area; it was an entire living quarter. Randy saw the form of a man in the bed. He’s really sleeping peacefully? Randy had tried her best to be quite coming in, but she surely didn’t do that good of a job! She inched her way over to the man. As she got closer she got her hands ready; she was going to choke him out. For a moment, her mind mulled over exactly how you choke someone out while they were alseep. Did it still work the same? Would it accidentally kill him if he was consciously awake to know he should go unconscious? Promptly, Randy decided those questions were beyond her depth. As she got within arms reach she dove onto the bed. Wrapping her arms around what felt like a neck, she pulled tight and tugged upward, ripping his head clean off and throwing feathers everywhere.
Wait, what?
Randy opened her eyes and looked down. She had ripped a pillow in half. Someone had arranged them on the bed to look like a body. She hopped up, confused. Before she could move, a large cage clanged from the sealing and dropped to the floor around her. Before she could do anything, it went tight with the floor and latches sprung up from hidden compartments to lock the cage in place. It was a trap? How? Randy punched at the bars, her wounds suddenly aching. Her anticipation, rage, and excitement now gave way to the emotions she had been pushing down; pain and exhaustion caught up to her bones as her hair died down to what almost seemed like gray.
”That took you quite a bit longer than I expected. Are you sure you’re rival worthy?” Jocelyn’s voice came from the end of the room. Behind the desk there was a large throne like chair. She spun it around to reveal Flaggen, bound and gagged. She walked around the desk and approached the cage. ”I really have to thank you. Though I’m sure I could’ve done this alone, you’ve certainly saved me time by distracting those guards. And now that you’re trapped her, the pirates will assume you’re responsible. We’ll have time to interrogate Flaggen on the true number of pirates here and then attack in force.”
”Hey, you can’t just leave me here! Aren’t you supposed to be all lawful good or some BS?!” Randy’s hair flickered as her rage returned.
”Yes I can and will. I’d almost say this is a fate more kind than me turning you in to the proper authorities for attacking an officer and interfering with an investigation.” A sly smile curled over Jocelyn’s lips and she turned away from the cage and walked back toward Flaggen. ”Besides, it wouldn’t be fitting for one to rescue their own rival. What do you think I am? An antihero?”
With that, Jocelyn slung Flaggen over her shoulder and jumped out of the large window at the back of the room. Randy didn’t know where she was going, but that seemed like the end of this opportunity for here. Guess I’ll have to let her have this one. It’s more fun being the underdog anyway. Randy raged and punched the cage. She even took to trying to rip if off its hinges on the floor. The contraption was extremely sturdy. She ripped up the bed and flipped it over, looking for an escape. What kind of pirate lord traps his own bedroom!? This is ridiculous! Randy pounded on the metal. Suddenly, there were voices in the hallway. A lot of voices in the hallway. Randy had to get out of here fast or she’d be in real trouble. It was then she realized the solution was obvious.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki: Fourth Corner Burst!”
Randy hopped back and thrust her hands into her side pouches. Taking out small pouches of gunpowder, Randy set to work hitting the cage. Her attacks were loosening the metal but it wasn’t fast enough.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki: First Corner Flurry!”
Combining the two techniques, Randy reached into pouches with both of her hands and flung them forward at alarming speed. Her punches rang out, sounding like someone was firing an explosion machine gun. Her body was being pushed to its limit and she could feel it. If she could just keep this up a little bit more! She continued to beat on the gate until finally she blew one of the joints free. From there she worked her arms in and pulled at the cage. With the metal weakened from the explosions, she was able to force open a hole big enough to slide her body through. Quickly, she ran to the window that Jocelyn had escaped to and looked down. Nothing but pure sky and water a looooong way down. Of course she was curious of how exactly Jocelyn made this plunge with Flaggen over her shoulder, but that was a question she didn’t have time to ponder.
Just then, the pirates busted into the room. They had all number of weapons and some of them even had pistols this time. For the briefest moments, Randy considered running into the foray and giving them some more fight. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she had pushed her body hard this night. And honestly, even if she was in peak condition right now she’d still have a rough time with those odds. Of course she wouldn’t admit that to herself. Nor did she think of this as running. She simply had no reason to be here anymore. She recognized one of the pirates in the front, it was the first pirate whose face she mushed. Randy looked out over the sky. The sun was starting to come up. The view from this window was pretty spectacular.
”That’s her! GET HER!”
”Maybe another time boys. It’s passed my curfew anyway.”
She blew a kiss at the advancing pirates as bullets flew toward her. As the window frame around her shattered and splintered, Randy leapt into the rising sun. Her form flew from the window and she careened down toward the sea. The fall was long. Long enough for her to reconsider her choice to jump in the first place exactly twice. When she hit the water it reminded her of the one time she had fallen out of a third story window and landed on a patio roof below. Pain shot through nearly every part of her body. She swam out of the water and broke its surface with serious of sharp gasps. She was almost sure the fall had bruised a rib. Assuming the fight prior hadn’t done that already and she was just now feeling it. She could see the pirates pointing and yelling from the window, but couldn’t hear them over the surf breaking on the rocks.
As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t stay in the water. Snapping into action--well, as fast as one could ‘snap’ in her condition--Randy did her best impression of limping in water while swimming to shore. When she reached the beach, all she wanted to do was stop and catch her breath. But there was no time; already she could hear the voices of pirates yelling, raising the alarm. She had to get off of the island. She ran down the beach. She had to make it to her dinghy. When leaving the last island, she had decided to travel by single person boat. She had only intended to scout the island when she arrived but things escalated quickly. Her boat was secured in an outcropping of rocks a bit off the short. The crags formed a small, natural cave and it was enough to hide it boat. The continued sprinting down the beach, her breathing labored, until she saw the crags off the coast. Leaping into the water again, she swam for salvation.
As she dove, she saw the pirates were nearby and possible closing in on her situation. It was time to get desperate. Diving underwater, Randy held her breath as she swam. She did not resurface, instead she aimed to reach her boat without coming up for air. The marathon was proving difficult. She heard a couple muffled gunshots ring out. Nothing pierced the water though, so they were probably just firing to try to draw her out. Or at least she hoped. She could see the base of the rocks under the water in front of her. The salt was stinging her eyes. Her lungs burned for oxygen and her limbs ached, as if everything was trying to signal her brain that she was in trouble. Her vision started to blur and her lungs convulsed. Just a bit...farther! Rounding the edge of the rocks, Randy shot out of the water in the small, natural cave that made the outcropping. Surf and waves buffeted her, but she didn’t care. Her lungs sucked in as much air as they could, even taking some water with them as they filled. She coughed, gagged and sputtered in the cave, but at least she was safe.
Randy boarded her dinghy, untied the vessel and pushed out into the water. The pirates may notice her, but she paddled into the sun. It was large and directly on the horizon, looking like a lump of butter and a big blue pepper. This would make it hard to see her in this direction; the light of the midmorning sun too brilliant to look at directly. Mmm, blue peppers. Randy reached into one of her last remaining pouches and pulled out a round, blue pepper. It almost looked like a tomato in shape but much smaller. It looked a little rough and squished--the jump into the water did nothing to help the food she kept on her. She tossed the pepper into her mouth and fell backward into her boat, chomping on the pepper like it was a tasty treat. She may not have achieved what she came here for but sometimes, just sometimes, a good fight was worth the effort anyway. Drifting toward the relative safety of the sea, pepper juice on the sides of her mouth, Randy couldn’t help but drift peacefully to sleep.
Fin
Character: Randy Savage
Length: 7186
Randy crouched in the low brush on the outskirts of Troubadour Island. She had an odd feeling about this island and now it was proving true. She had past by it a few times in her travels and something in her stomach struck her as odd. It was naturally defensible, there were poor sightlines from the coast into its depths, there were always some boats docked but hardly any ever went to it, and they didn’t seem to produce any trade. It’s a Pirate Island! She could tell--it had all of the earmarks of the island she grew up on. At that time it wasn’t so obvious, but now she was sure.
After actually setting foot on the island, she had snuck by numerous patrols and now, in the main village of the island, she could see jolly rogers and flags hanging. There were the flags of the Traitorous Flaggen Crew. Flaggen had gotten the name by overthrowing the previous captain in a coupe. It was rumored that, though the crew was large and had many powerful captains in it, their leader was fairly weak and did not possess a devil fruit. All he had were his wits and those had been enough to elevate him to his station. Randy thanked how dark this night was as a patrol passed by her bush. She was never particularly good at sneaking but, luckily, the guards were fairly lazy. They had such a naturally well defended island that they didn’t have to worry about intruders. The guards were going through the motions.
The night hung blackly overhead and Randy pulled her hood close. Her outfits was simple and fairly standard for her. Black combat boots with black shorts, a black tank top overlaid by a black aviator jacket. She always found that name weird. What’s an aviator anyway? This coat had a hood that she pulled snugly over her head. While her hair, technically, didn’t produce any light, she still wasn’t comfortable with it flickering about her. Especially if she got mad or worried and it rose from her hiding spot, giving her away. As proud as she was of her hair and lineage, it wasn’t worth the risk. As another guard patrol walked past she snuck behind them and cross a village street, making it to the other side and diving into some underbrush.
So far she was impressed by how well this was going. Her plan was simple enough; sneak onto the island, knock out the captain, escape with him in tow, then turn in the bounty before his crew even realized he was missing. On a moral scale her plan was flawed; with Traitorous Flaggen gone, the crew would simply pick up new leadership. Hypothetically, not being led by a betrayer would lead to a boost in morale and the crew would probably grow stronger. Fortunately for her, she didn’t care. As a bounty hunter, she was in this for the money. And as a Hard Rock Hunter, she had to do it with style. A silent bag and tag was the perfect idea. Under most circumstances, Randy wouldn’t trust her ability to sneak, but she hoped she had the element of surprise. So far, that was proving true. She could only hope she didn’t run into trouble later; the Traitorous Flaggen crew was strong and she would not be able to take on an entire pirate crew by herself. Yet.
After diving into the bush, Randy tucked into a roll. Landing on her feet, she started to run through the forest past the village. She was mostly operating on instinct but she had a feeling the captain’s house wouldn’t be near the main village. The whole point of a small village like that was so the pirates wives and bastards would have somewhere to shack up while they looted. That, and to give the mild appearance of a legit island if the random ship did manage to land on their dock without them blowing it out of the water. Randy was knocked out of thought as she ran into the back of a person standing in the middle of the woods. Surprise and instinct took over and Randy threw a punch before she was even able to get a good look at the person’s silhouette.
The mysterious stranger was lithe and quick on their feet; they deflected a blow and tossed Randy onto her back then leaned in closely to her face, holding a free hand over Randy’s mouth.
”You shouldn’t be here. You are interfering with a very delicate Marine operation. Explain.” It was a woman’s voice. She spoke flatly.
”Mmmph Omph phmmm...”” Randy muffled roughly through the fingers of the Marine. It’s like the woman had forgotten to remove her hand. The Marine let go of Randy’s mouth and let her get up on her own. ”I said my name is Randy Savage and I am here on a very delicate Bounty Hunter operation.” Randy spoke as if she was marking her territory. The woman was eyeing her up and down. ”How do you know I’m not part of this crew anyway? And just what are you staring at?”
”My name is Agent Nightengale. That’s all you need to know. I’m a special scout that was sent to sneak in here and ascertain the situation before the Marines arrive. We are taking this island Ms. Savage.” The woman spoke Randy’s name with particular venom. It was as if she knew it already. ”Besides, you might want to be careful where you tread. There are still some Marines that think you deserve a bounty based on your heritage alone. If you do not leave, I will be forced to remove you.”
”Are you threatening me?” Randy spat incredulously.
”Marines do not threaten Ms. Savage; that is simply what will happen if you remain on this island.
”I’m not leaving. This is my bounty and I’ll be damned if some spoiled Marine takes it from me!”
Randy was near yelling at this point, momentarily forgetting the danger that was all around them. She had gotten far enough from the village that they wouldn’t be visible in the dark of the night. Ms. Savage and Ms. Nightengale stood for a few long moments in the dark. Randy’s hair flared brightly under her hood, framing her head in a spectrum of reds. Her attitude was coming to a boiling point. She couldn’t make out the Marine’s features in the dark of night but Randy could tell she was slight of frame and a bit shorter than her. Despite that she had managed to throw Randy to the ground with frightening ease. The Marine was surely skilled, that was certain. Randy couldn’t take the silent anymore.
”Damn Marines. Always think you can push peo--”
Nightengale struck out quickly, cutting Randy off. The Marines rushed forward with surprising speed and lashed out a kick aimed for Randy’s head. Instinct kicked in and Randy dodged under the kick and rushed forward. She caught the Marine’s leg on her shoulder and wrapped her arms around Nightengale’s hips. Wordlessly, Randy shifted her weight backward to suplex the Marine face first into the dirt. Amazingly, the Marine caught herself with her right hand and flipped away from Randy, landing on her feet. Randy was barely back to her feet when Nightengale was back on her, the attack coming from the Marine was two quick kicks. Randy struggled to her feet but managed to deflect the blows.
Now that they were close, Randy was able to get a good look at the Marine. She wore a flat black ladies uniform. It was close fitting. The bottom was a short skirt with strange black leggings underneath. Her top was a bit odd though, the right sleeve was full and ended in a glove whereas her left arm was bare. Her legs were much the same with the right in a full pant leg while the left ended mid thigh and continued as bare skin. Randy didn’t have much time to ponder the curiosity that was the outfit though as the Marine’s attack was relentless. Tired of being on the defense, Randy grabbed one of the offending legs and launch out her own kick at the foot of Nightengale, trying to throw her to the ground again.
Nightengale slid her back foot even further back, pushing herself into a split. This caused Randy’s attack to miss and the strange effectiveness of the dodge caught her off guard. The Marine was in a full split, one leg far behind her with the other in Randy’s hand. Taking advantage of her surprise, Nightengale put her covered arm to the ground and flipped herself upward, spinning her legs around in a windmill kick. The attack caught purchase on the side of Randy’s head, causing her to go reeling back. Damn that hurts! What are that girls boots made of?! It felt like she got hit with a hammer. This Marine was dangerous. What Marine isn’t?
Randy didn’t have time to ask where Nightengale got her boots though as the Marine was back on her. Before Randy could regain her composure, the Marine rushed and leapt at Randy. Haphazardly, Randy tossed out a punch, trying to swat the woman out of the air. The Marine grabbed onto her arm gracefully; it was like she read Randy perfectly. With a quick flip of her body, Nightengale flung her legs up wrapping one around Randy’s neck and the other around her body. The Marine’s covered leg was constricting her throat and she was using the covered arm the wrench Randy’s arm backward, as if trying to rip it out of the socket. They both tumbled to the ground as Randy fell victim to the submission hold.
Randy struggled silently in the ground, trying to get her arm free. This grip is intense! I can barely breath. Randy was starting to get light headed and, if it weren’t for her gauntlets bracing her wrist, she felt like her wrist would been disable by the hold. They rolled and struggled, Nightengale was unrelenting and barely flinched or wiggled as Randy flopped around. It was like a skilled woodsman holding open the mouth of a crocodile while it rolled around uselessly. Randy’s hood got loose in the scuffle and her hair shot out upright. Her patience had ended. With a hard grunt, Randy stopped rolling in the dirt and stood to her feet. She couldn’t brute force the women off of her arm, but she could stand up. Nightengale clung to the hold, her head near the ground.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki...”
Randy grunted out words while the Marine continued to increase her grip. Nightengale tilted her head, a confused look on her face from the words. It was like she was trying to parse the meaning and ready herself for whatever attack Randy might have in her pocket. With a burst of strength, Randy left her gripped arm, bringing it and the Marine nearly straight on in front of her. Although the Marine had her arm in a lock, there was nothing stopping her from opening her hand and place an open palm on Nightengale’s chest. As one fluid motion, Randy brought her other hand up and clapped the Marine on the back, the clap sending a few rippling vibrations through her body.
”Third Corner Vibration!”
The attack wouldn’t do a whole lot of damage, but it served its purpose. The vibrations and a gauntleted slap on the back knocked the air out of Nightengale. Losing some of her composure, her grip loosened and Randy managed to slam her into the ground. The slam, also, would not do much damage as it was almost entirely the product of Randy just shaking her arm loose. Now it was Randy’s turn to be relentless. Switching gears, Randy launched toward the sprawled out Marine. She was quick about regaining her composure but not fast enough. Closing the gap, Randy was overtop of the Marine and prepared to unless a powerful attack.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki.: First Corner Flurry!”
Randy launched a tirade of quick jabs to Nightengale. She was leaning over the floored Marine, not quite mounting her, but unleashing a furious flurry of attacks, Randy’s smile widened and her skin hued red as her attacks grew faster. Suddenly, Randy’s fist was stopped. Held in place by the gloved arm of the Marine. She had held out her arm to defend herself and managed to block every blow with simply one arm and then managed to catch Randy’s hand. That itself was surprising enough, but surely the Marine’s arm was a pulpy stump now right? Randy’s smile faded as she caught a glimpse of metal under the torn sleeve. Her attacks had been fierce and, although Nightengale blocked them all with her arm, she still took some damage. The clothing and glove on Nightengale’s right arm had ripped away to revealed her entire right arm was metal. Servos pumped visible as she held Randy’s fist in place.
”A cyborg?”
Wordlessly, the Marine threw her arm to the ground and tried to push herself up into a windmill kick again. Randy let her arm go but was ready for the attack this time. She leaned back and dodged the first kick then lashed her hands out and grabbed the Marine by the thighs. Holding her in place, Randy delivered a quick knee to her midsection and then a firm straight kick that sent the Marine rolling through the dirt. The Marine rolled away and came up on her feet. She was visibly frazzled. Apparently, she had expected Randy to be easy prey. Both Randy and Nightengale tensed as they made eye contact; Randy’s eyes pierced a vibrant red. They were just about to rush each other when they heard yells from the village.
”I think it came from over here! It sounded like fighting!”
Damn! Some of the pirates must have heard their fight and were now closing in on the location. This would have to wait.
”Stay out of my way!”
”What’s your name?”
”What?”
”What’s your first name? If I tell everyone the name of my marine rival is a robot named Nightengale, they’ll think I’m stupid! That name sounds like an edgy superhero!”
The Marine’s fast twisted into a face of disgust. She was either irritated that Randy called her a robot or perturbed by the idea of being a ‘rival’ but Randy couldn’t tell. “Jocelyn...”
”You’re lucky today Jocelyn!
Randy knew they couldn’t continue this fight; she could hear the pirates getting closer. She shot Jocelyn one last wink before turning on a heel and sprinting into the woods. Running was dangerous--it made her more noticeable of course. Unfortunately she didn’t have much of a choice. With the pirates so close, if she didn’t run they would catch up to her. Besides, she had spent her whole life running through woods like these. Pulling her hood back up, Randy’s hair was starting to calm down. Randy couldn’t help but feel a bit of excitement. That fight was fun! She loved surprises and that Marine seemed full of them. In a small way, she hoped she’d see more of the woman.
Randy slid to a stop as she burst out of the woods and into a clearing. Ahead of her she could see a few small buildings and then something that looked akin to a keep or castle. That must be where Flaggen is. She heard yells and sounds of struggle off to the side, still in the woods. With a bit of panic, Randy turned with a hop to look around her. In the distance she could see a couple of Pirates had caught up to Jocelyn. It was only a few of them and she seemed to be handling herself well enough. Randy thanked her luck; that means they’d be distracted by Jocelyn, giving Randy more of an opportunity. Turning back toward the keep, Randy took off into a sprint, heedless of the danger. She was putting stock in Jocelyn sufficiently drawing their attention.
As she closed the distance on the keep, Randy ducked around the building. Even if Jocelyn was making the best distraction in the world, going right through the front door was foolish. As she came around the back of the keep. She found some latticework that went up the side of the building. Large, bulbous purple vegetables were hanging from the vines in the latticework. Randy couldn’t tell what vegetable they were, but she knew they weren’t peppers! Mmm, peppers. Almost as if realizing she was hungry, Randy reached into one of her pouches and pulled out a pepper to snack on. It was long, spindly and yellow. It seemed dried out and crunched audibly but man oh man was it delicious! Randy threw a leg onto the vines and began climbing the latticework.
Reaching the top, Randy had a great view of the entire island. She gave a brief look around and could no longer see any commotion down in the clearing or the outskirts of the woods. Briefly, she wondered if Jocelyn had been captured. A part of her considered actually caring about that line of thought. On the one hand, it would do no good to have a rival die at the hands of simple pirates. On the other hand, rescuing ones rival wasn’t good for the image. That’s how one gets dubbed an antihero and Randy had no interest in that. She climbed the ceiling tiles slowly, careful not to dislodge any and give herself away. There were no guards up here, though she could tell a few down in the clearing had gone back to normal patrols.
As she reached the highest point in the roof, she came to a wall with a medium sized window in it. Looking through the window she could see it led into a long, wide hallway. There were pillars on both sides and, with the windows open, curtains billowed on each side. At the one end of the hall was a stairway leading down while, at the other, was a large ornate door. In the middle of the hallway were a group of pirates sat at a squat card table. She couldn’t hear them but one seemed to be yelling at another. There were bottles of saki around their feet and she could tell they were playing a game and gambling. Judging by the size and detail of the door, Randy decided that must be her goal of the pirate leader.
Carefully, Randy slid herself into the hallway. It was dark outside, and the pirates only bothered to like their table. The rest of the hallway was illuminated dimly but, by the brightness of their lantern, the pirates actually obscured the rest of the room from their vision. Randy kept her body out of the middle of the hallway and slid behind the pillars, slowly making her way down the room. Her progress was slow, but steady, and so far it seemed as though she could make it the entire way down the wall unperturbed. Once there, she would wait until their argument grew particularly heated, and she would take the opportunity to open the captain’s door and sneak in. Then her job would be done. Easy peasy.
When she finally reached the end of the hallway, Randy hadn’t realized she had been holding her breath. Her hair was falling out of her hood and she could see it hummed a dull pink, almost as if hiding itself too. She waited in the darkness for the pirates to start up their argument again. They finished a hand and as the pirate who won reached in the middle to claim his winnings, another pirate grabbed his head and slammed it into the table. That set off a chain reaction of punches, kicks, and yelling as the pirates argued over who was cheating. Now was her chance. Randy started tiptoeing toward the door.
”Hey bozos!” Jocelyn?
”Huh? What?....HEY!”
The yell caught Randy by surprise. She looked up an open window that was near her end of the hallway. Jocelyn was leaning into it. She at Randy before retreating from the window and back onto the roof, leaving the pirates to search the room for the voice. The first thing they say was Randy by the door. They immediately pointed her out and started yelling. Damn! Randy turned quickly and gave the large, ornate door a tug. It didn’t budge. She reached up a foot and placed it on the opposite door, trying to force the door open. It wasn’t moving. Oh well. She thought. I wanted a fight anyway.
”Well played rival...” Randy mumbled to herself as she turned to face the pirates who were now running toward her. ”Alright fellas, lets cuddle!”
Thankfully, none of them had pistols. Two of them had sword and the other two had crude brass knuckles on their hands. All four of them were at least a head taller then she and as they got closer their size loomed. They were clearly strong opponent. Especially if the captain was using them as his door guard. Randy stretched her arms out; her left arm was still tight from the grappling earlier. Hopefully, these brutes lacked the finesse of Randy’s rival. Brute strength Randy could deal with in kind. Finesse and subterfuge were harder for her. As they nearly closed the distance, Randy struck.
She launched forward, her sudden burst of speed seeming to catch the group off guard. As she ran, Randy outstretched a hand and slammed it into the face of one of the knuckle wielding thugs. Stepping a leg behind him, she torqued her hips and forced the back of his head into the floor. The rest of the thugs were slow to react, but did not hesitate. They all quickly turned inward, taking aim on her as she stood straddled over top of the first pirate. Randy couldn’t help but let a huge smile creep over her lips. She couldn’t help but enjoy these odds. Fighting was always fun. And when it was a challenge? Whoa buddy you better look at, because that’s when Randy was in her prime form.
”Jōshō Doragon: Con Carne Grenade!”
Randy unhitched a few pouches from her belt loop then, stepping off of the stomach on the downed pirate, Randy launched herself through the air. Landing by where they were playing cards, Randy kicked over the table and used it for cover. The pirates hesitated. They saw her flip away but, from their perspective, it sounded like her technique was just a far jump. They almost began to close in on Randy, then she heard the screams. One of the pirates must have seen the grenades and she heard frantically scrambling from behind her shield. She was tempted to look out, but, the grenades were the newest addition to her arsenal and she wasn’t sure how much shrapnel they created. Boom!
After the explosion, Randy looked up to see only one of the pirates had gotten completely clear of the grenades; most likely the first one who noticed. Two of the other pirates stood dazed over top of their comrade. The explosion hadn’t done massive amounts of damage, but being so close to the flash and sonic boom certainly served to disorient her foes. With a swift boot, Randy flipped the table across the room. A sword pirate looked up just in time to take a panicked swing at the furniture. He was able to disable most of the damage it would have caused but, as it splintered away, Randy was in the debris. She rose with an uppercut into the jaw of the sword pirate. Given that he had just swung, he didn’t have time to counter attack.
At that moment, the pirate who managed to dodged the explosion grabbed Randy from behind. The other pirate, knuckle dusters in hand, turned to Randy and went to throw a punch. Clearly this pirate was lacking in smarts as, even though her body was held in place, he aimed for her head. Randy dodged the attacks relatively easily; though he had regained most of his balance, his attacks were still sluggish. Randy punctuated her dodges with swift elbows to the head and body of the pirate that grabbed her around the waist. He was trying to flip her off her feet. If there was one thing Randy had though, it was impeccable balance. She squared her stance and was, still with a bit of effort mind you, able to stay on her own two feet. The second pirate, clearly frustrated by the fact he hand’t landed a blow, stopped attacked and tried to tackle her also.
Randy wrapped an arm around the neck of the second pirate as he grabbed her waist above the first. They couldn’t get her off her feet but the pure force of them pushing was enough to drive her backward down the hallway. It almost seemed as if they were trying to force her toward the stairs. As she was pushed away, Randy noticed the fourth pirate was completely incapacitated on the floor. Her initial attack, combined with the grenades going off right on top of him, had removed him from the equation. Randy threw elbows and punches at the two men, trying desperately to loosen their grip. It seemed like their determination nearly matched her own. Her hair started to lick at the air as he frustration mounted. She didn’t like being held.
Throwing her free arm back, she wrapped it around the neck of the first man. Now, holding the heads of both mean, she steadied her weight. She knew she couldn’t pull them off of her. With a quick jerk of her hips, Randy bucked her body weight backward and drove the heads of both the men into the floor. They hit the ground in a heap, the heads of the men landing first. All three bodies sprawled away from each other. Before Randy could get to her feet, the third man was on her. Sword raised, he was leaping through the air, threatening to drive his sword right through her. Randy shot up her feet and caught the man in the chest. She let his momentum carry and pushed her weight over her head. She used the motion to roll to her feet as the third pirate sailed smoothly on by.
As she stood she could see the door to the captain’s room. Jocelyn was in the open doorway. She took a moment to glance back at Randy before smiling and slipping inside the room. Dammit! Used my own trick against me! Randy’s hair danced violently around her and her skin started to redden. She went to run toward the door, to chase after Jocelyn, but one of the men she slammed intercepted her. He swung a fist toward her side. She hopped back and then deflected his next attack easily. She went to throw a punch but had to adjust at the last moment and throw her body of the way of a sword. The blade careened past the back of her head as she jumped to the side. All three men were on their feet and advancing on her, attacking progressively faster. It was time to end this.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki: Third Corner Vibration!”
Randy pushed back into the men and clapped her hands onto the sword of the fist attacker. He tried to keep control of the long sword but, as it wobbled, he had to stop attacking. He stepped back, supporting his wrist with his free hand. He looked like he was wrestling a snake while he tried to regain control of his sword. She turned to the next sword user and attempted to do the same but he was ready for her. She managed to deflect his original sword thrust but her hands landed awkwardly. One clapped the sword but the other hit his forearm. The attack would sting a bit like a slap, but otherwise be ineffectual. With a dark grin he rammed his elbow into Randy’s stomach.
Grunting, Randy stumbled back a few feet. The knuckle duster user pressed forward and delivered a swift punch two her face, causing her to fumble further. She nearly lost her balance. All three pirates were upon her now; the middle pirate had abandoned his sword and decided to just attack with his hands. They were crashing down on her like a wave of smiling, malicious seamen. Randy finally caught her balance on her back foot. Her skin and hair were nearly a solid red now.
”Now I’m MAD[Yosumi Sutoraiki: First Corner Flurry!”
Randy seemed to yell her attack, as if the force of her voice was empowering her. As the first pirate attacked with a punch ,she met his punch with her own. Concentrating on her dominant hand, her right, Randy focused her attacks. They were rapid and violent; she was using the first corner to deflect the attacks of all three pirates at once! Randy was never particularly skilled at defense. The best way she knew to defend herself was just to attack back. She pressed forward as she unleashed her first corner. What started as a defensive strike slowly turned int o a full blown attack. The tables turned as the pirates turned from attacking, to full defense. Their smiles dropped to grimaces as they tried their best to defend themselves.
Then Randy saw her opening. The first pirate who dropped his sword was attacking with his bare hands. He was blocking Randy’s attacks with those same hands and moments ago Randy had been meeting his punches with her own. Her gauntlets had did a number on his hands and she could tell they were beaten and bloodied. Finally, one of her attacks broke his guard, hitting him square in the nose. Using her momentum, Randy stepped forward and delivered a swift knee to his stomach. As he doubled over, Randy followed up with an uppercut. His mass rose in the air a few inches, the force of Randy’s blow sending him upward. She finished him off with a jumping pound to his throat, striking the man to the ground. His friends faltered. Randy didn’t.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki: Second Corner Shock! SHOCK!”
Randy moved between the two remaining combatants. She feel on the one man with an elbow to the throat, he stumbled back in shock, seemingly unable to breath. Randy spun on a heel and struck the second man right in the chest, with her speed and rage, Randy could swear she heard a light crack when she hit the man. Probably damaged a few ribs. She jumped back, grabbing both men by their heads and slamming them together. They collided, but quickly tried to right themselves and counter. If Randy was in the mind for thinking, she would admire their tenacity. They threw a few punches and sword strikes, but Randy was as smooth as silk. Blood streamed down her face from where she took their attacks, but she did not feel the pain. She was no longer thinking or feeling; this fight had become pure instinct and muscle. Her attacks were dangerously fast, for Randy was no longer taking the time to think between them. Her body had turned into a weapon.
She beat on the two remaining men a bit more. They had landed a punch to her stomach, and she had two sword cuts on her arm she didn’t remember taking, but she didn’t care. It took a bit for her to calm down and when she did, she was punching one of the pirates repeatedly in the face, despite the fact he as clearly incapacitated. Randy regained her composure, standing and taking a deep breath out. She took one of the long black pieces of fabric from her belt loop and wrapped it around her injured arm. Her jacket was in tatters, so she discarded it, dropping it on the body of one of the pirates. Now it was time for her prize.
The door came open easily this time. The room was large and immaculate. There was a desk, a bed, a cooking area; it was an entire living quarter. Randy saw the form of a man in the bed. He’s really sleeping peacefully? Randy had tried her best to be quite coming in, but she surely didn’t do that good of a job! She inched her way over to the man. As she got closer she got her hands ready; she was going to choke him out. For a moment, her mind mulled over exactly how you choke someone out while they were alseep. Did it still work the same? Would it accidentally kill him if he was consciously awake to know he should go unconscious? Promptly, Randy decided those questions were beyond her depth. As she got within arms reach she dove onto the bed. Wrapping her arms around what felt like a neck, she pulled tight and tugged upward, ripping his head clean off and throwing feathers everywhere.
Wait, what?
Randy opened her eyes and looked down. She had ripped a pillow in half. Someone had arranged them on the bed to look like a body. She hopped up, confused. Before she could move, a large cage clanged from the sealing and dropped to the floor around her. Before she could do anything, it went tight with the floor and latches sprung up from hidden compartments to lock the cage in place. It was a trap? How? Randy punched at the bars, her wounds suddenly aching. Her anticipation, rage, and excitement now gave way to the emotions she had been pushing down; pain and exhaustion caught up to her bones as her hair died down to what almost seemed like gray.
”That took you quite a bit longer than I expected. Are you sure you’re rival worthy?” Jocelyn’s voice came from the end of the room. Behind the desk there was a large throne like chair. She spun it around to reveal Flaggen, bound and gagged. She walked around the desk and approached the cage. ”I really have to thank you. Though I’m sure I could’ve done this alone, you’ve certainly saved me time by distracting those guards. And now that you’re trapped her, the pirates will assume you’re responsible. We’ll have time to interrogate Flaggen on the true number of pirates here and then attack in force.”
”Hey, you can’t just leave me here! Aren’t you supposed to be all lawful good or some BS?!” Randy’s hair flickered as her rage returned.
”Yes I can and will. I’d almost say this is a fate more kind than me turning you in to the proper authorities for attacking an officer and interfering with an investigation.” A sly smile curled over Jocelyn’s lips and she turned away from the cage and walked back toward Flaggen. ”Besides, it wouldn’t be fitting for one to rescue their own rival. What do you think I am? An antihero?”
With that, Jocelyn slung Flaggen over her shoulder and jumped out of the large window at the back of the room. Randy didn’t know where she was going, but that seemed like the end of this opportunity for here. Guess I’ll have to let her have this one. It’s more fun being the underdog anyway. Randy raged and punched the cage. She even took to trying to rip if off its hinges on the floor. The contraption was extremely sturdy. She ripped up the bed and flipped it over, looking for an escape. What kind of pirate lord traps his own bedroom!? This is ridiculous! Randy pounded on the metal. Suddenly, there were voices in the hallway. A lot of voices in the hallway. Randy had to get out of here fast or she’d be in real trouble. It was then she realized the solution was obvious.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki: Fourth Corner Burst!”
Randy hopped back and thrust her hands into her side pouches. Taking out small pouches of gunpowder, Randy set to work hitting the cage. Her attacks were loosening the metal but it wasn’t fast enough.
”Yosumi Sutoraiki: First Corner Flurry!”
Combining the two techniques, Randy reached into pouches with both of her hands and flung them forward at alarming speed. Her punches rang out, sounding like someone was firing an explosion machine gun. Her body was being pushed to its limit and she could feel it. If she could just keep this up a little bit more! She continued to beat on the gate until finally she blew one of the joints free. From there she worked her arms in and pulled at the cage. With the metal weakened from the explosions, she was able to force open a hole big enough to slide her body through. Quickly, she ran to the window that Jocelyn had escaped to and looked down. Nothing but pure sky and water a looooong way down. Of course she was curious of how exactly Jocelyn made this plunge with Flaggen over her shoulder, but that was a question she didn’t have time to ponder.
Just then, the pirates busted into the room. They had all number of weapons and some of them even had pistols this time. For the briefest moments, Randy considered running into the foray and giving them some more fight. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, she had pushed her body hard this night. And honestly, even if she was in peak condition right now she’d still have a rough time with those odds. Of course she wouldn’t admit that to herself. Nor did she think of this as running. She simply had no reason to be here anymore. She recognized one of the pirates in the front, it was the first pirate whose face she mushed. Randy looked out over the sky. The sun was starting to come up. The view from this window was pretty spectacular.
”That’s her! GET HER!”
”Maybe another time boys. It’s passed my curfew anyway.”
She blew a kiss at the advancing pirates as bullets flew toward her. As the window frame around her shattered and splintered, Randy leapt into the rising sun. Her form flew from the window and she careened down toward the sea. The fall was long. Long enough for her to reconsider her choice to jump in the first place exactly twice. When she hit the water it reminded her of the one time she had fallen out of a third story window and landed on a patio roof below. Pain shot through nearly every part of her body. She swam out of the water and broke its surface with serious of sharp gasps. She was almost sure the fall had bruised a rib. Assuming the fight prior hadn’t done that already and she was just now feeling it. She could see the pirates pointing and yelling from the window, but couldn’t hear them over the surf breaking on the rocks.
As much as she wanted to, she couldn’t stay in the water. Snapping into action--well, as fast as one could ‘snap’ in her condition--Randy did her best impression of limping in water while swimming to shore. When she reached the beach, all she wanted to do was stop and catch her breath. But there was no time; already she could hear the voices of pirates yelling, raising the alarm. She had to get off of the island. She ran down the beach. She had to make it to her dinghy. When leaving the last island, she had decided to travel by single person boat. She had only intended to scout the island when she arrived but things escalated quickly. Her boat was secured in an outcropping of rocks a bit off the short. The crags formed a small, natural cave and it was enough to hide it boat. The continued sprinting down the beach, her breathing labored, until she saw the crags off the coast. Leaping into the water again, she swam for salvation.
As she dove, she saw the pirates were nearby and possible closing in on her situation. It was time to get desperate. Diving underwater, Randy held her breath as she swam. She did not resurface, instead she aimed to reach her boat without coming up for air. The marathon was proving difficult. She heard a couple muffled gunshots ring out. Nothing pierced the water though, so they were probably just firing to try to draw her out. Or at least she hoped. She could see the base of the rocks under the water in front of her. The salt was stinging her eyes. Her lungs burned for oxygen and her limbs ached, as if everything was trying to signal her brain that she was in trouble. Her vision started to blur and her lungs convulsed. Just a bit...farther! Rounding the edge of the rocks, Randy shot out of the water in the small, natural cave that made the outcropping. Surf and waves buffeted her, but she didn’t care. Her lungs sucked in as much air as they could, even taking some water with them as they filled. She coughed, gagged and sputtered in the cave, but at least she was safe.
Randy boarded her dinghy, untied the vessel and pushed out into the water. The pirates may notice her, but she paddled into the sun. It was large and directly on the horizon, looking like a lump of butter and a big blue pepper. This would make it hard to see her in this direction; the light of the midmorning sun too brilliant to look at directly. Mmm, blue peppers. Randy reached into one of her last remaining pouches and pulled out a round, blue pepper. It almost looked like a tomato in shape but much smaller. It looked a little rough and squished--the jump into the water did nothing to help the food she kept on her. She tossed the pepper into her mouth and fell backward into her boat, chomping on the pepper like it was a tasty treat. She may not have achieved what she came here for but sometimes, just sometimes, a good fight was worth the effort anyway. Drifting toward the relative safety of the sea, pepper juice on the sides of her mouth, Randy couldn’t help but drift peacefully to sleep.
Fin
