[BLESS MAGIC ARMOR. . . it's an extremely powerful stomp, and Mars immediately lifts his hands to catch Man Eater by the sole of his foot instead of rolling out of hte way. a successful strength roll (1 1 5) means a successful defend, which means he manages to negate the damage this time around! probably helped out by said defense being reinforced by armor]
[but]
[it's clear he can't hold it very long, with the way his hands are shaking. and really, while he's holding Man Eater's foot like this, there's really only one thing to do. is there?]
[ACTIVATE CHARM]
[for a -3 modifier to the target's ability to resist the caster or do the caster harm]
suddenly the foot that was pressing down against Mars' shaking hands, trying to overpower him, doesn't have quite as much force in it. and then he is overcome with alarm and frustration as to why he's suddenly hesitating. wait, why is he stopping? this is stupid. he already decided what he's here to do.
anyway he is definitely Incapacitated By Feelings™ for this turn ]
[hey you know what happened the last time Mars Charmed a ☆ZRAEL]
[he fucking stabbed them]
[. . . though he was in a much better position to do it back then than he is now. with Man Eater Incapacitated by Feelings(TM) for this turn, Mars attempts to upend his opponent's balance by kicking at the foot keeping him upright. and if that works, he's going to bolt up, summon his heart weapon, and attempt to plunge it into Man Eater's chest while he's on the ground!]
[UNFORTUNATELY HE FAILED HIS STRENGTH ROLL (5 5 6)]
[so this whole plan probably fails in some spectacularly stupid way]
[ he's still too caught up in his emotional turmoil to see that kick coming—but the adrenaline of suddenly falling backwards snaps him back to his senses just in time to remember to catch himself with Verticality instead of beefing it. his dismay is quickly turning into some kind of anger with an almost panicked, hysterical edge to it, and as he sets himself back down on the ground at the same time Mars bolts upright, he hurriedly lashes out with a kick aimed towards the hand holding the sword, trying to disarm Mars (strength roll 2 4 6). ]
[no need to roll for this one-- the sword goes flying, clattering on the ground some several feet away]
[ah]
[. . . uh oh]
[there's a brief spike of panic, before Mars reacts on instinct, launching himself right at Man Eater in an attempt to tackle him to the ground (strength roll 1 3 6!)]
[ he thinks to stop Mars, catch him, get out of the way, do anything, but as emotionally compromised as he is, a roll of 4 6 6 means he's just eating that, going down underneath Mars, hitting the ground hard.
once he can breathe again, though, he knees Mars in the gut as hard as he can (strength roll 1 2 3), yelling almost feverishly, more like he's trying to convince himself than anything: ]
[being so up close and personal, there's no way Mars can dodge that, even if he's sitting up to prepare to punch Man Eater in the face. he takes the knee to the gut, the wind knocked out of him even through the armor thanks to Man Eater's superior strength. that's another 3 damage knocked off of his HP]
[he wheezes, inhaling sharply as he rocks back, freeing up Man Eater from his place on the ground]
Y-- yeah. I know.
[. . . it's understandable, considering everything his team has done]
Come on and try to finish it, then!
[without his weapon this is gonna be an all out brawl. and with his inferior strength, even with his armor, Mars doesn't stand much of a chance]
[ he scrambles up to his feet at the opening, immediately assuming an offensive stance.
he can feel his heart racing at Mars' battle cry—both apprehensive, knowing there's no way this can end anymore besides killing Mars or being killed by him, but also a little excited. a little happy that Mars is inviting him to finish it. more resolved. ]
—I don't need you to tell me that!
[ and he lunges forward with another spinning kick, strength roll (1, 4, 5). ]
[Mars knew this fight would end only one of two ways: with him dead, or with Man Eater dead. that’s just the way this game works, isn’t it?]
[there’s no time for another response. no time to dodge while Mars is on the ground, still recovering from a blow to the gut. the kick strikes him square in the jaw, sending his helmet flying (it crashes several feet away) and Mars sprawling to the ground, face-first into the concrete. he coughs, pushing himself up with a shaky arm, his entire body aching with the exhaustion and bruises from the fight. he no longer has a visor but he’s still wearing the armor, so. . . how are ya gonna finish this, Man Eater?]
[ well, he went into this thinking he understood that too, but that was before he had a sudden love epiphany for his opponent.
as Mars struggles to get back up, Man☆Eater gives him a rough kick to flip him over onto his back before he's down on top of him, straddling him. familiar? but there's a moment of clear hesitation before he makes his next (last?) move. ]
[the kick knocks the wind right out of Mars again and knocks him flat onto his back. and then his opponent is there before he can do anything else, and another spike of panic shoots through his gut. no. not this easily]
[. . . Mars is the type to fight until the very end, at least. so although he’s firmly pinned, he takes advantage of that moment of hesitation, reaches up to grab Man Eater by the head, and attempts to. headbutt him. definitely aiming to AT LEAST break a nose, here]
[ that headbutt slams him square in the face, and he lets out a strangled cry as the force of it turns his nose into a shattered, bloodied mess, the pain absolutely staggering for a moment. luckily, his reflexes work faster than his mind does, and even as he's swimming in that haze of pain, he slips a hand around Mars' neck and slams his head back onto the ground.
he doesn't stop to think this time before he sinks his sharp teeth into Mars' throat, around where the helmet and his armor would connect, tearing into the flesh. ]
[with no helmet, Mars’s head cracks against the ground, sending his vision swimming. he blinks up blearily through swirling stars and blackness, the pressure on his neck almost suffocating]
[and then there’s an explosion of pain around his neck, and Mars yells, wet and strangled and panicked and holy shit holy shit holy shit]
[he bucks up against Man Eater and attempts to throw him off, bleed seeping from his new wound, staining the front of his outfit and pooling onto the ground next to his head. even now. . . he struggles to the end, through the way his vision blurs and dims, through the dizziness of blood loss, through the way the world suddenly seems to go out of focus and everything starts to fade]
[ he pulls back from Mars' neck, bracing against his thrashing, watching the life seep out of him slowly.
slowly. why is it going so slowly? this is agonizing—obviously for Mars, but it's also giving Man☆Eater long enough to feel something that just might be regret. eventually he just slams Mars' hard head against the concrete one last time, hopefully finishing it for good. ]
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Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
[but]
[it's clear he can't hold it very long, with the way his hands are shaking. and really, while he's holding Man Eater's foot like this, there's really only one thing to do. is there?]
[ACTIVATE CHARM]
[for a -3 modifier to the target's ability to resist the caster or do the caster harm]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
suddenly the foot that was pressing down against Mars' shaking hands, trying to overpower him, doesn't have quite as much force in it. and then he is overcome with alarm and frustration as to why he's suddenly hesitating. wait, why is he stopping? this is stupid. he already decided what he's here to do.
anyway he is definitely Incapacitated By Feelings™ for this turn ]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
[he fucking stabbed them]
[. . . though he was in a much better position to do it back then than he is now. with Man Eater Incapacitated by Feelings(TM) for this turn, Mars attempts to upend his opponent's balance by kicking at the foot keeping him upright. and if that works, he's going to bolt up, summon his heart weapon, and attempt to plunge it into Man Eater's chest while he's on the ground!]
[UNFORTUNATELY HE FAILED HIS STRENGTH ROLL (5 5 6)]
[so this whole plan probably fails in some spectacularly stupid way]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
[ah]
[. . . uh oh]
[there's a brief spike of panic, before Mars reacts on instinct, launching himself right at Man Eater in an attempt to tackle him to the ground (strength roll 1 3 6!)]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
once he can breathe again, though, he knees Mars in the gut as hard as he can (strength roll 1 2 3), yelling almost feverishly, more like he's trying to convince himself than anything: ]
I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
[he wheezes, inhaling sharply as he rocks back, freeing up Man Eater from his place on the ground]
Y-- yeah. I know.
[. . . it's understandable, considering everything his team has done]
Come on and try to finish it, then!
[without his weapon this is gonna be an all out brawl. and with his inferior strength, even with his armor, Mars doesn't stand much of a chance]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
he can feel his heart racing at Mars' battle cry—both apprehensive, knowing there's no way this can end anymore besides killing Mars or being killed by him, but also a little excited. a little happy that Mars is inviting him to finish it. more resolved. ]
—I don't need you to tell me that!
[ and he lunges forward with another spinning kick, strength roll (1, 4, 5). ]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
[there’s no time for another response. no time to dodge while Mars is on the ground, still recovering from a blow to the gut. the kick strikes him square in the jaw, sending his helmet flying (it crashes several feet away) and Mars sprawling to the ground, face-first into the concrete. he coughs, pushing himself up with a shaky arm, his entire body aching with the exhaustion and bruises from the fight. he no longer has a visor but he’s still wearing the armor, so. . . how are ya gonna finish this, Man Eater?]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
as Mars struggles to get back up, Man☆Eater gives him a rough kick to flip him over onto his back before he's down on top of him, straddling him. familiar? but there's a moment of clear hesitation before he makes his next (last?) move. ]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
[the kick knocks the wind right out of Mars again and knocks him flat onto his back. and then his opponent is there before he can do anything else, and another spike of panic shoots through his gut. no. not this easily]
[. . . Mars is the type to fight until the very end, at least. so although he’s firmly pinned, he takes advantage of that moment of hesitation, reaches up to grab Man Eater by the head, and attempts to. headbutt him. definitely aiming to AT LEAST break a nose, here]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
he doesn't stop to think this time before he sinks his sharp teeth into Mars' throat, around where the helmet and his armor would connect, tearing into the flesh. ]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
[and then there’s an explosion of pain around his neck, and Mars yells, wet and strangled and panicked and holy shit holy shit holy shit]
[he bucks up against Man Eater and attempts to throw him off, bleed seeping from his new wound, staining the front of his outfit and pooling onto the ground next to his head. even now. . . he struggles to the end, through the way his vision blurs and dims, through the dizziness of blood loss, through the way the world suddenly seems to go out of focus and everything starts to fade]
[this is a familiar sensation]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
slowly. why is it going so slowly? this is agonizing—obviously for Mars, but it's also giving Man☆Eater long enough to feel something that just might be regret. eventually he just slams Mars' hard head against the concrete one last time, hopefully finishing it for good. ]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
[there’s another sharp crack as Mars’s skull collides against the concrete, and his form immediately goes limp]
[this is now one very dead HSS]
Re: THE SHIBUYA SCRAMBLE
and then as the effects of Charm wear off, he's left wondering what the hell any of that was about. ]