Death Battle: Spider-Girl vs Jolyne Cujoh

Spider-Girl (Infinity) vs Jolyne by Br3ndan5
 

Prelude: Spider-Girl vs Jolyne Cujoh

Alright, the combatants are set. Let’s end this debate once and for all! It’s time for a Death Battle!

——————————————————

 

To say that it was a hot summer day in Port St. Lucie would’ve been an understatement. The Sun’s intense heat was mercilessly beating down on Florida’s citizens, though they paid it no mind. Whether they were regular civilians or tourists, everyone had managed to find some way to ignore the heat. In fact, one such example of the latter could be seen making her way across the streets.

Clad in her red and blue spandex costume, Mayday Parker was busy swinging through the streets of Florida. Normally she and her family would’ve been in New York, but this was a special occasion. Midtown High School’s spring break had just started, and as a way to celebrate, the Parkers had decided to take a vacation to Florida. It had taken them over a day to reach their destination, but it had been worth it. After 2 months of studying for exams, keeping up with her assignments, and balancing her academic life with her heroic career, she would finally have the chance to just kick back, relax, and enjoy some fun in the sun. Well, that’s what she expected, anyway.

Unfortunately, it seemed that the old Parker Luck had decided to rear its ugly head. From the moment the Parkers had arrived, Florida’s TV networks and radio stations had been flooded with updates seemingly at every hour, all of them focusing on an extremely odd case. From what May and the rest of her family had heard, a group of convicts had escaped Green Dolphin Street Prison. 

According to the reports, the escapees were Jolyne Cujoh, a woman convicted for a hit-and-run while DUI; Atroe, a woman who had been arrested for kidnapping; and a murderer by the name of Narciso Anasui. How these two had escaped and what their reason was for being together remained a mystery. Some had suggested they paid off a guard to smuggle them in a boat, while others believed they had disguised themselves to escape. Regardless of the disagreements, all of them gave the same warning: avoid these people at all costs. For May, however, this warning served the opposite purpose: it convinced her to take action. That’s not to say this decision had flown past her parents’ radar, though.

Roughly 40 minutes prior

“May, are you up there?” The door to May’s hotel room opened, and Peter walked in soon after. “We were just discussing plans for dinner and I was wondering how you’d feel about…” Peter’s voice trailed off as he noticed his daughter’s current position.

To an outsider, the situation would’ve looked extremely surreal. May stared at her father, looking somewhat surprised as she clutched her currently thigh-length right legging. Peter stared back, allowing his daughter to witness his brown khakis and light blue shirt covered with images of pineapples. There was a brief, awkward silence between them, something Peter would break as he spoke first.

”I… thought we agreed you’d lay off web-swinging while we’re on vacation.” He said awkwardly.

“I know, and I thought I’d be able to stick with that, but,” May paused as she pulled her legging up, “It’s still my responsibility to protect people from harm. And with those two criminals out there-“

“You don’t have to explain. I understand.” Peter responded as he began closing the door. “Just don’t take too long, okay?”

Present

May flipped through the air, feeling the wind rush past her as she landed on one of the nearby skyscrapers. The moment she collided with the window, an audible- if somewhat muffled- THUNK could be heard. Placing her hands against the glass, Spider-Girl took a brief moment to pause as she looked around.

’Hoo-boy!’ She sighed. ‘I get that I’m searching out an entire city for three people, but you think they’d be easier to spot! I mean, who else would go out in public with those weird outfits?‘

Little did May know, one of the people she was searching for was currently a few blocks away, running down the street at top speed. 

‘I feel like I’ve swept half the city, but there’s still no sign of it. Dammit!’ Jolyne Cujoh, the daughter of Jotaro Kujo, swore under her breath. Currently, she was on a mission to retrieve the Green Baby, a creature made by the fanatical Enrico Pucci. To Pucci, the Green Baby was essential to his plan of attaining Heaven, and Jolyne had made it her goal to prevent that from happening. Unfortunately, it seemed that fate had other plans in store for her.

One day ago

“‘Hydrangea!’ ‘Rhinoceros beetle!’ ‘Singularity point!’” Pucci declared as he stood above the Green Baby, his arms already outstretched to grasp the creature. Then, to fully awaken it, the priest spoke the final phrase: “‘The Secret Emperor!’”

Upon hearing this final word, the creature’s red eyes snapped open, and it found itself staring at Pucci. For a brief moment, a poignant silence filled the air, but it would soon end as a pale, ghostly arm punched through Pucci’s hand. Blood spilled out of the wound as bone suddenly erupted out from the gash. Rather than worry about this, however, Pucci instead grabbed hold of the bone and pulled it free from his hand. Offering it to the Green Baby, which had begun to reach for item, he spoke again.

“Are you interested in me, now? Are you curious? Are you going to come to me?” He pressed it with questions. For a brief moment, he could’ve sworn the grass around the Baby had rustled, followed by a brief glow of orange, but he put it aside. “Is this going to mark the beginning of everything that is to come?”

There was a brief pause, and with it Pucci’s expression grew tighter. Was it possible he had failed? Could he have misremembered one of the phrases? Before he could question himself any further, he noticed the grass rustle again, followed by an almost drill-like sound. In tandem with this, the orange glow seemed to be growing stronger. Its illumination lit up Pucci’s face, highlighting his tense expression and the sweat running down his forehead. Just what was this item? Could it perhaps have something to do with DIO’s plan?

Enrico would soon get his answer as the item broke through the surface, revealing a smooth, glowing orange gemstone. Though his expression remained the same as before, Pucci’s eyes told a different story. His pupils showed three emotions: surprise, intrigue, and a slight hint of fear. Surprise at the item’s arrival, intrigue at the power he was sensing from it, and fear as he noticed the Green Baby start to turn its attention toward the gem.

‘No! I’m so close! If I could just regain its attention, I might-‘ unfortunately, Pucci’s thoughts would soon be cut short as the Green Baby suddenly grabbed hold of the orange gem. Both the creature and its jewel began to glow a bright orange, and then-

VEW!

Pucci suddenly disappeared in a flash of orange light, with Jolyne, Foo Fighters, and a bloodied Anasui vanishing not long after. The next thing she knew, Jolyne had found herself in the middle of Port St. Lucie, fully healed of her injuries, but something was wrong. Rather than the dead of night, it was now the middle of the day, and she was the only one here. No matter where she looked, she couldn’t find any sign of Foo Fighters, Anasui, or even Pucci for that matter! Then there was what really worried her. When she checked the nearby clocks and displays, they read March 19. Somehow, she’d been sent an entire day into the future, but how could that be? As far as she knew, there weren’t any Stand users who could manipulate time like this. She quickly put that aside, however, as there were more important matters to deal with. 

 

Anasui’s dying body had been injected with Jotaro’s memory disc, the latter of which was on the verge of shattering; Foo Fighters had also been on her death bed, and unless she’d been sent somewhere with water, it was unlikely she’d survive. It didn’t help that there were now only 3 days before Pucci could enact his plan to obtain Heaven, and that was assuming he hadn’t already gotten his hands on the Green Baby!

As these thoughts swam through her mind, Jolyne had begun searching the city, hoping she’d be able to find some sign of either her friends or the baby. Unfortunately, she’d had no such luck. It was close to an hour at this point, and the only thing she’d accomplished was getting herself lost. After letting out an annoyed sigh, the escaped convict began speaking aloud.

”Anasui? F.F.? Is anyone out here?” For a brief moment, she received no response, but then she heard something. It was a barely audible groan, but then it evolved into something louder.

”J-Jolyne?” Recognizing the voice, Jolyne took off toward its direction, and she soon found herself staring down at the body of Narciso Anasui. He was laying limply on the ground. Blood ran down his chest, painting the concrete beneath him a deep shade of crimson, though it seemed his wound had sealed itself shut. As she drew closer, Jolyne noticed a trail of golden smoke gather from where his wound had been. With each second that passed, the trail began to take on a more humanoid appearance, forming arms, a more pronounced chest, and an outline of hair.

“Th… this… N-no way! It can’t be!” Jolyne stammered as she watched the smoke’s appearance continue to evolve. “Anasui!”

”No… Jolyne…” a feminine voice responded as the smoke began to form a lower jaw. “Don’t worry… it’s not him…”

“I’m glad…” the cloud said as it took on a face and hairstyle. Turning to face her, Foo Fighters continued speaking. “Anasui… he got the disc back.”

As she said this, the former Stand gestured to Anasui, revealing a silver disc laying next to him.

‘It’s not Anasui!’ Jolyne realized. “Is that you, F.F.? Is that you, talking?”

”What I was scared most of, was not being able to even say goodbye to my friends. To forget how to say goodbye.” F.F. admitted. “But… at the very end, I still remembered that I have to say it.” Turning to Jolyne, she continued.

“Jolyne, when Anasui wakes up, tell him that his body is his. That I used his intelligence and his strength to cure his wounds.”

”Wait a second! What are you talking about, F.F.?” Jolyne asked.

”Goodbye, Jolyne. I can’t stay here any longer. F.F. is going to disappear.”

”What are you saying?” Jolyne demanded. “D-don’t be stupid!”

“Look at me, Jolyne.” Foo Fighters responded, gesturing to herself. “This is my ‘spirit’… This is my ‘intellect’… I was alive.”

“I’m going to get your disc back from the priest! Your Foo Fighters disc! Then you can come back!” Jolyne pleaded.

”But that will probably be another Foo Fighters. It probably won’t be ‘me.’ ‘This’ is me.” She said calmly. “This is me saying goodbye.” Turning her back to her friend, Foo Fighters continued.

”I’m glad I was able to say my goodbyes to you, Jolyne. It’s alright, Jolyne. It’s alright.” She said reassuringly. “I’m glad I got your disc back…”

As she spoke these final words, a sharp gust of wind blew through the area, taking the misty form of Foo Fighters with it.

”F.F.?” Jolyne asked as she watched her friend get swept up. Upon receiving no answer, she looked around and tried again. “F.F.?” She tried a third time, only to receive the same response. In desperation, she began calling out in an even louder voice.

“Answer me! WHERE ARE YOU? F.F.?” She cried out, her voice cracking as she screamed the name of her deceased friend. Nothing answered her. Nothing, save for another draft of wind blowing past her ears. Realizing she was alone, tears streaked down Jolyne’s face as she bent down,  picking up the memory disc and Anasui’s unconscious body.

Meanwhile, Spider-Girl was still scanning the area when the distant sounds of screaming filled her ears. With her mind kicking into high gear, the daughter of Spider-Man began swinging as fast as she could, and within seconds she had managed to close in on its source. 

Placing herself atop a perch, Spidey watched as Jolyne stood over an unconscious Anasui, currently in the middle of placing something in her pockets. While the distance made it difficult to tell what it was, it appeared to be some kind of disc. After placing it in her pocket, Jolyne began looking around, stopping as she noticed a pay phone on the other side of the street. With a sudden burst of energy, the escaped convict took off toward the booth, and it was at this same time that Spider-Girl decided to reveal herself.

After slowly lowering herself from a web line, May immediately rushed toward Anasui. With the amount of blood on his chest, she doubted he had that much longer to live, but if she acted fast enough, she could at least get him to a hospital! Once she was close enough, Spider-Girl knelt down and checked his pulse, but that’s when she noticed something odd.

”That can’t be right.” She muttered under her breath. Confused, she checked again, only to find that the feedback was now a bit stronger. There was no doubt about it. Somehow, even with the apparent blood loss, Anasui was completely healthy!

‘With how that blood is coming down, there’s no doubt it’s his, and it’s still wet enough to be recent, but…’ her eyes narrowed, ‘how did he heal so quickly?’

Last she checked, there was nothing that suggested the inmates had powers, much less a healing factor of this magnitude. Either way, it didn’t change that with how quickly he was recovering, he would be coming around soon enough. While this brought her some relief, May also recognized the potential danger of leaving him unattended, especially with how quickly he seemed to be recovering! Seeking to nip this in the bud, she threw out her right arm and fired a thin strand of webbing. The white fluid wrapped itself around Anasui’s torso, hardening instantly and binding him to the green bench he was laying in.

”Phew! Alright, one down,” May turned to the phone booth, eyeing the remaining prisoner, “two more to go.”

Meanwhile, Jolyne had just gotten off the payphone, breathing a sigh of relief as she did so. She’d managed to get through to the Speedwagon Foundation, and according to her contact, one of their agents was coming to retrieve her father’s disc in the next hour or so. Though this set her mind at ease, she couldn’t help but let her thoughts wander back to Green Dolphin Street. Her friends were still back there, stuck in prison with no way of knowing if she was still alive or not. She thought about calling Ermes and giving her an update, but right when she was about to do so, she heard someone call out to her.

“Look, I know it’s hard being on the run and all, but I’m pretty sure you’re supposed to keep a low profile.” A new voice called out from behind her. It was feminine and definitely belonged to a teenager, but not one she’d heard before. Confused by this, Jolyne attempted to turn around, only for a vague blur to soon land in front of her. When this mysterious figure stood up, Jolyne found herself staring at a girl in a red and blue costume, which only seemed to confuse her further.

“What?” Jolyne questioned, completely caught offguard by both this girl’s sudden appearance and what she’d said.

”Okay, that might be bad advice coming from someone in red and blue spandex, but girl-to-girl, you should try a change of clothes. That Britney Spears look is a bit ‘14 years ago.’ If you want my advice, I’ve heard orange jumpsuits are lovely this time of year, especially among escaped convicts!”

“Uh… Thanks for the suggestion, but I’m not too interested in fashion tips from the girl in a brightly-colored gimp suit.” Jolyne said in a deadpan tone.

“Gimp suit?!” Spider-Girl repeated, clearly offended. “This is a classic! Besides, it’s not like your buddy over there is the king of modesty!” May’s words caused Jolyne to look over at Anasui, and her eyes went wide with shock. Anasui was still unconscious, but now he was completely covered in a strange, white, web-like substance. “It’s a good thing I covered him up when I did. He’s like an indecent exposure charge waiting to happen!”

”What is that stuff? What the hell did you do to Anasui?” Jolyne asked, narrowing her eyes as she glared at Mayday.

”Don’t worry. It’s not like it’ll hurt him. I just needed to make sure he wouldn’t bleed out. It’ll dissolve by the time the police arrive.”

”Police?” Jolyne repeated, her eyebrow raising in confusion. “Look, I appreciate the concern…” she trailed off.

”Spider-Girl.”

”Spider-Girl. But I already called for medical attention.“

“That’s good.” Spider-Girl nodded. “But that doesn’t mean I’m just gonna let you go. You are still a criminal, and he’s still an accomplice, so I hope you don’t mind-“

All of a sudden, May cut herself off, her eyes widening as she felt a familiar tingling sensation in the back of her skull. Though she couldn’t see anything, her Spider-Sense was warning her of some kind of danger in front of her. And whatever it was, it was coming in-

WHAM!

“Aaauuugh!” 

Moving far faster than Spider-Girl could’ve reacted, this new arrival suddenly lunged for her, burying its fist right in her face. Her head snapped back from the force as she was sent flying, but with a quick backflip, she managed to land gracefully on her feet.

’What the heck was that?’ May thought to herself as she clutched her aching cranium. ‘I didn’t see anything coming toward me, but that… whatever it was just came out of nowhere and took a shot at me!’

While she gathered herself, May heard Jolyne’s boots clamping against the ground as she walked toward her. “How did you do that?” Spider-Girl asked as she looked Jolyne’s way.

“Doesn’t matter if I give you an answer. This’ll be over in a few seconds.” 

Almost immediately, Spider-Girl backflipped as the ground where she’d just stood suddenly cratered.

“Time’s up.” May said cheekily as she lowered herself into a fighting stance. “I guess I’ll just have to beat the answer out of you.”

Spider-Girl leapt toward Jolyne, aiming a kick at her stomach, only to feel that same force from before block her attack. It then pushed back, causing Spider-Girl to backflip a few feet away. The instant she hit the ground, May, in an attempt to test the waters, threw out three punches and a kick, but her invisible opponent managed to block each one. A right hook hit her at full force, with three equally strong body blows following immediately after.

Spider-Girl staggered back from the pain, leaving her open as Stone Free battered her with a barrage of hard, swift punches. A scream of “ORAORAORAORA” escaped the Stand’s lips as it pummeled Spider-Girl, ending with a right hook that sent Spider-Girl soaring into the air. A pained groan escaped the heroine’s lips as she shot a web line toward a nearby building, reeling herself closer as she gathered her thoughts.

‘Okay, so taking her down the old-fashioned way is a no-go. And whatever’s helping her out has some serious anger issues.’She thought as she stuck to the wall. Trying to alleviate the pain, she called out to Jolyne, “Man, you know how to throw a mean right hook! I guess all that time wrestling sewer gators really paid off!” Spider-Girl joked.

”Thanks, but I can’t exactly take all the credit. Those last attacks were all Stone Free’s doing.” Jolyne responded, gesturing to the thin air behind her.

“Huh. I didn’t take you for a Hendrix fan. With that outfit, I could’ve sworn you were more of a Brittany girl.” May admitted, mostly to mask her confusion. ‘What’s she mean, ‘Stone Free’? Is that some sort of code word?’ As she wondered about her opponent’s words, Spider-Girl threw out both arms. “But since we’re on the topic of music, I’ve always been a bit partial to Sticky Fingers!”

THWIP! THWIP! THWIP!

Three web lines were quickly fired at Jolyne, who leapt back to avoid them. A fourth one was sent spiraling Jolyne’s way, but she quickly sidestepped it. Grabbing hold of the web line, she gave a sharp tug, pulling May in for what should’ve been a left hook! Fortunately for the wall-crawler, the buzz from her Spider-Sense alerted her just in time to twist her body. Feeling the air from the punch rush past her, Spider-Girl used her momentum to spin through the air and grabbed Jolyne with her legs!

With a quick twist, Jolyne was flung across the street, trailed by a quick series of THWIPs from May’s web-shooters. Jolyne let out a grunt as she slammed into a nearby car, only to then be pelted with white, sticky globs one after the other. Each one targeted her arms and legs, hardening instantly. With her arms and legs quickly tied up, all Jolyne could do was grit her teeth as she watched Spider-Girl pull her forward, ready to end the fight with a hook of her own!

As the fist flew toward her, Jolyne’s mind went into overdrive. She ducked her head as she threw out her left arm, unraveling her hand into a wide net of strings that spread out, searching for something, anything she could grab that would fend off Spider-Girl’s inevitable attempt at a comeback.

KRRR-KKRRR-KRACK!

Spider-Girl’s fist smashed into the car window at full force, shattering it on impact. As the glass shards rained down, so too did time seem to slow as multiple actions occurred all at once. Jolyne found what she needed and pulled it forward, sending a speeding object hurtling toward Spider-Girl. At that same time, Stone Free had grabbed one of the fallen shards of glass and used it to cut into Jolyne’s restraints. Jolyne threw out one leg, hoping to catch her opponent off guard. And during all of it, Spider-Girl’s Spider-Sense was keeping track of everything.

Using the heads-up she’d received, Spider-Girl ducked her head to avoid the oncoming projectile, then lifted her legs to avoid Jolyne’s sweep kick. Placing both hands against the ground, Spider-Girl sprang forward and nailed Jolyne with a somersault kick, but JoJo pushed through the pain and responded with a hard tug of her strings! A warning signal flashed in May’s mind for a split second, but the –

CRACK!

A groan escaped May’s lips as a baseball hit her from behind at full force. She staggered forward, briefly disoriented by the pain, and before she could do anything else, Stone Free acted!

SHINK!

Spider-Girl stifled a cry of pain as a sharp piece of glass was jammed into her leg. An intense sting ran across her her thigh, and in her pain, she found herself smacked in the face by the same object from before. And now that it was right in front of her, she could see it: a baseball!

Questions swarmed through May’s mind: where had it come from, how did Jolyne get it, how did it outspeed her Spider-Sense, but all of it was drowned out by Jolyne continuing the assault!

”ORAORAORAORAORAORAORAORA!”

THUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUDTHUD!

Using Spider-Girl as a practice board, Stone Free threw the baseball like mad, smashing it into May’s body so hard it bounced back into her grip, only to be flung forward again. Each throw seemed harder than the last, and the interval between them was growing. May couldn’t even keep track of where they were at by this point. 50? 100? 200? All she knew was that every inch of her was feeling sore, and she was getting really sick of being used as target practice!

Beneath her mask, the teenager grit her teeth, and pushing through the pain, she slowly raised her arm, extending her palm as she swung through the air. The FWAP of rubber colliding with fabric was like music to her ears, and with the pummeling briefly stopped, she finally had some time to come up with her own plan.

“Think I might be getting a bit rusty if my dad’s old practice method’s starting to do a number on me! Then again…”

In a sudden burst of kinetic energy, the baseball rocketed out of Spider-Girl’s hand and was sent flying straight toward Jolyne. Her eyes widening in shock, Jolyne threw herself to the left, narrowly avoiding the attempted beanball.

“I was always quick to pick myself up after a fall!”

Spider-Girl’s one-liner caused alarm bells to run through Jolyne’s mind, and with some quick thinking, she leapt into the air, narrowly avoiding a sweep kick! With a quick, stylish flip, Jolyne landed on the ground, immediately taking notice of Spider-Girl’s posture.

The glass shard she’d been stabbed with had been torn out, replaced by a makeshift bandage of webbing. Any injuries or bruises she may have gained from that recent beating weren’t even acknowledged as she reentered her fighting stance. Somehow the daughter of Spider-Man still seemed raring to go. It was almost as if the past 10 seconds hadn’t so much as affected her!

 
“So you’re still ready to fight after that?” Jolyne raised an eyebrow before letting out an annoyed sigh. “Good grief. You’re one persistent bitch.”
 
“EXCUSE ME?” Spider-Girl said, sounding heavily offended as she clocked Jolyne hard in the jaw. Jolyne’s head snapped to the side, and a grunt escaped her lips as blood flew from her mouth. “Didn’t your mother ever teach you not to say that to another woman!?”
 
Jolyne staggered for a moment, but she quickly regained her balance. Wiping the blood spilling down her lip, she flashed Mayday an amused smirk.

“Heh. I guess you could say I take more after my old man. We’ve got the same attitude, the same type of Stand, but most of all-“

As she spoke, Jolyne unraveled parts of her back, commanding the strings to burrow into the ground and snake toward Spider-Girl. The strings raced toward May, burrowing through cement and dirt to ensnare the teenager. May’s Spider-Sense flared up at this, trying to warn her of the oncoming danger, but the strings proved far faster! By the time the warning flared through her mind, Stone Free’s strings had already burst out of the streets. 

“Whoa!” May cried out, completely shocked as dozens of invisible strings tied themselves around her arms and legs. A sharp tug then pulled her limbs back, leaving her defenseless!

”We’ve got the same drive to kick ass!” Jolyne announced as she threw a kick straight to Spider-Girl’s stomach. Jolyne’s foot buried itself deep into her gut, causing her to double over. Before the pain could even leave her mind, Jolyne added to it by unleashing a heavy barrage of kicks, her legs moving far faster than May could hope to react. The Stand user buried her feet into Spider-Girl’s stomach, chest, shoulders, forearms, thighs; any weak point she could target in the heroine’s body! Finally, after nearly 20 kicks, Jolyne ended her combo with a roundhouse to the jaw!

Spider-Girl’s head snapped back as she flew through the air, reeling from the beating she had taken. ‘Ugh! I guess that speed’s not just exclusive to her invisible partner!’ She thought. Her sight was blurred and her body ached from where she’d been hit, but she quickly blinked and tried to regain her focus. She was just in time, too, as she realized she was flying straight toward a building.

Her eyes widening in alarm, Spider-Girl performed a quick backflip through the air. ‘And more importantly,’ she landed feet-first against the wall, allowing herself a brief rest, ‘what did she do to activate my Spider-Sense? It felt like she was tying me up in strings, but-‘

May’s thoughts were interrupted as her Spider-Sense flared up once again. Looking up, her eyes widened as she noticed the baseball from earlier, now flying toward her fast enough that it had caught fire! With the ballistic sports ball closing in, Spider-Girl unleashed a quick reversal of her wall-crawling, she burst off the wall and vaulted into the air! She was just in time too, as she noticed the ball crater against the bricks.

‘And now that ball’s coming back to haunt me! Just what kind of power is this girl using?’ Spider-Girl wondered. ‘My Spider-Sense is telling me that whatever’s attacking me has some connection to her, but how are they moving so quickly?’

As she landed on the ground cat-footed, May thought back to a distant memory.

‘Dad mentioned fighting a guy called The Spot back in the old days. Apparently he could use the portals on his body to attack faster than Dad’s Spider-Sense. Is she doing something like that?’ 

Spider-Girl focused her Spider-Sense, trying to sense if there was anything amiss about her surroundings. At the same time, Jolyne, seeing the seemingly prone Spider-Girl, commanded Stone Free to commence its attack. The Stand rushed toward Mayday from behind, ready to bash her skull in-

‘There you are!’

Thinking quickly, Spider-Girl ducked under the attack and spun around, hitting Stone Free with a spin kick. Then, just as quickly, she followed up with a backflip that struck Stone Free in the jaw, causing its head to snap back. With her spectral attacker now dazed, May brought her legs up, planting them onto Stone Free’s chest, and kicked off!

Using her opponent as a springboard, Spider-Girl launched the Stand out of its range, forcing it to unravel as she shot toward Jolyne. Sensing her invisible opponent’s sudden disappearance, Spider-Girl decided to test something. A series of razor sharp needles flew from the tips of her web-shooters, each one hitting their mark as Jolyne raised her arms to block them.

‘Huh. Her ghostly pal didn’t come to save her this time.’ Spider-Girl noted as she clenched her fist. She could feel a bit of guilt over using the stingers on a seemingly helpless criminal, but she pushed it aside. She was already descending toward Jolyne, and if she was going this far, the least she could do was end the fight early!

Spider-Girl swung her fist, throwing out a hard punch to the gut, but right when her fist connected, something odd happened!

”What?” She asked in shock, staring down at what she’d just struck- or rather, what she hadn’t struck. It looked as if her punch had phased right through Jolyne’s stomach. Before she could pull her arm back, a hard kick slammed into her gut. The wind was instantly knocked out of her as she staggered back, giving Jolyne’s enough time to press her advantage!

“ORAORAORA!”

A swift combo of punches struck her Spider-Girl all at once, the final one sending her flying back several feet. Though she managed to right her position with a flip, she was still reeling hard from Jolyne’s combo. Her mind was so flooded with pain that she barely noticed her Spider-Sense flaring back up. Out of instinct she leaned back, feeling something sharp graze her cheek. When she looked back toward its direction, she let out a small gasp.

It seemed that Jolyne’s invisible friend had chosen to attack in her stead. Each of the stingers were being picked off of Jolyne’s body, and now five of them were headed straight for Spider-Girl!

Time seemed to slow down as May spun through the air, twisting her body to narrowly avoid the first two. As she’d finished this 180° spin, she left the ground once again by leaping into the air, dodging the next three being shot at her. She attempted to counter with an axe kick, but something blocked her attempt before pushing back!

May staggered back, and as she was off balance, an invisible force clamped down HARD on her right wrist. Before she could properly react, that same force pulled her forward, causing her to let out a surprised “WHOA” before her body was pulled directly into the path of her own stingers!

SHUK SHUK SHUK!

The teenager groaned underneath her mask as she felt the razor sharp darts pierce her skin. It wouldn’t cause any lasting damage, but that didn’t stop it from hurting like hell! It didn’t help that right after the stingers pierced her, Jolyne added to the damage with a knee to the gut and a roundhouse kick to the face!

May staggered back, spinning slightly as the telltale buzz of her Spider-Sense flashed through her mind. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t have time to act on it before Jolyne let out a cry of “ORAORAORAORA.” In tandem with the strange war cry, the remaining stingers were launched toward her back, and right as May prepared to jump out of their range-

“RRGH!” Jolyne gave a sharp tug, and the pressure on Spider-Girl’s wrist returned as she was pulled forward. But this time, Spider-Girl was ready as she backflipped over the stingers and Jolyne. As she sailed overhead, Spider-Girl used her position to reach out with her legs, wrapping them tightly around Jolyne’s head as she let her momentum do the rest.

The world around Jolyne morphed into a blur as she was slammed face first into the ground. Groaning as she got back to her feet, the ex-convict heard a THWIP and quickly brought up her arm, causing Spider-Girl’s webbing to instead get caught on the chains connecting them!

Spider-Girl’s eyes widened in surprise before morphing into a more understanding gaze. ‘So that’s what she was using!’ She thought to herself. 

Three web shots were launched at Jolyne, but each one was quickly blocked as Stone Free punched them aside. Meanwhile, Jolyne grabbed hold of the chain and yanked it hard, dragging Spider-Girl closer. As she was reeled in, May noticed her opponent raising a leg and jerked her head to the side, feeling the air brush past her head. In tandem with this failed kick, May raised her free arm and pressed the trigger on her web shooter.

FSHZZT!

The sound of a discharge caused Spider-Girl to raise an eyebrow. ‘It clogged up? But that shouldn’t be-‘

“ORA!”

WHAM!

In her distracted state, Spider-Girl found herself victim of a sucker punch from Stone Free, causing her head to snap to the side as blood leaked from her mouth.

”Nice try, but I already had a priest try that same trick. And I’m not repeating the same mistake twice.” Jolyne said coldly as she tightened her hold on the strings. Almost instantly, another set of cuffs fastened around Spider-Girl’s other wrist, and with her opponent secure, Jolyne unleashed Stone Free. The Stand lunged forward, ready to pummel the newly restrained Spider-Girl, but May had other ideas in mind.

“Then thank God I have a contingency!” 

Using the split second warning from her Spider-Sense, Spider-Girl leapt into the air, moving far out of Stone Free’s range, and thanks to the handcuffs connecting them, Jolyne found herself along for the ride.

”WHAT THE HEEELLL?!” Cujoh yelled as she and Spider-Girl suddenly flew through the air, the younger girl suddenly taking the lead. 

“Since you got rid of my web shooters, I guess you wouldn’t mind if I borrowed these for a bit, would you?” Spider-Girl asked playfully as she grabbed hold of the chains and swung Jolyne through the air at high speeds. The world around JoJo became a dizzying blur, and as she finished her rotation Spider-Girl threw the ex-convict to the ground, feeling the chains drag her along for the ride. Keeping a firm grip on them, Spider-Girl gave a hard tug, slingshotting into Jolyne with a drop kick to the stomach!

The instant she felt the blow connect, all of the wind was knocked out of Jolyne as she slammed into the ground, her impact cratering the concrete. Flecks of spit and blood flew from her lips as pain shot across her back. Meanwhile, her opponent backflipped off her body while simultaneously snapping the cuffs’ chains through raw strength. Instantly, the strain from the cuffs vanished as they seemed to unravel like string, causing May to breathe a sigh of relief.

”Phew! That’s better.” May said as she began fiddling with the web shooters. “Heroes like us don’t really do cuffs all that well. You, on the other hand…”

THWIP!

A string of web fluid covered Jolyne’s stomach, hardening instantly.

”I’d say you’ve got a good, long time to make them work when you get back.” Spider-Girl finished. Jolyne’s expression hardened at this, and with only a subconscious thought, she unraveled the afflicted area and pushed herself back up. 

Spider-Girl shot several more webs, but they didn’t even seem to slow Jolyne down. Each time they came close, Jolyne almost seemed to phase through them. ‘What’s going on here?’ May thought. ‘Invisible summons, strings, intangibility… It’s like she’s some kind of superpower grab bag!’ Beneath her mask, her gaze became a bit more serious. ‘Normally I’d try and get a feel for this with my Spider-Sense, but that ‘Stone Free’ thing is outmaneuvering me hard!’

Little did she know Jolyne was in the same boat. ‘Something feels off about all this. She’s clearly not a Stand user, but then how the hell is she reacting to my attacks? And what she just did with those cuffs…’ Jolyne looked down at the strings of fabric now littering the street, visible only to the eyes of another user. ‘Whatever her powers are, she seems to have a knack for bouncing all over the place.’

Her eyes darted around the area, noting the tall buildings and wide streets around her. ‘It doesn’t help that this street is open enough for her to use it. If I want to get her in Stone Free’s range, I’ll need to get her into a more enclosed space. But how?’

Noticing a nearby warehouse behind her, the gears in Jolyne’s head began turning. It was a huge gamble, but if she wanted any chance of taking this Spider-Bitch down, she’d need to take that risk.

“I gotta admit, you’ve been doing a pretty good job holding me off.” Jolyne admitted as she returned her gaze to May. “Especially for someone that isn’t a Stand user.” Jolyne’s expression hardened. “But don’t think that means you’ve beaten me just yet! We Cujohs- no, we Joestars aren’t limited to brute force. We rely more on strategy to overcome any obstacle!” Slipping into a combat stance, she continued, “And if all else fails, there’s one last trick we can fall back on, the ultimate technique that’s been passed down my family for generations!”

Jolyne’s words were spoken with such confidence that Spider-Girl was immediately put on edge. ‘Ultimate technique? So she had an extra trick up her sleeve all this time?’ As if to add to her alertness, her Spider-Sense flared up, giving May a sudden warning as to what her opponent had planned. But when that warning came to her, Spider-Girl’s caution became confusion. ‘No, there’s gotta be some kind of mistake! There’s no way that’s what she has in mind!’

As if in answer to these shocked thoughts, Jolyne’s legs tensed up, and then in a sudden burst of speed, she proceeded to book it in the opposite direction! She ran like an accomplished track star, sprinting at top speed to get as far away from Spider-Girl as possible! Unfortunately, she’d soon realize her opponent had her own tricks up her sleeve!

“That’s an impressive trick, but I’d prefer if you stuck around!” May announced as she slammed her open palm against the concrete. Jolyne was still taking off, preparing to continue her retreat when something seemed to tug hard at her! A shocked gasp escaped her lips as she clumsily stumbled forward, her left leg landing at an awkward, crossed angle. She looked back, trying to lift her right leg, only to find that it was completely stuck to the floor! 

“The hell’s going on here? Why can’t I move?” She asked irritably, trying in vain to lift her left leg off the concrete.

“Well, I figured if you wanted to show off your secret technique, I’d go ahead and show you mine! Call it a final courtesy before the boys in blue haul you and your boyfriend back to jail!” As she spoke, Spider-Girl fired off several balls of Impact Webbing, each one set to envelop a different part of Jolyne’s body. But Jolyne was nothing if not efficient!

As the balls flew toward her, Jolyne calculated the flight path of each one in her head. Then, right as they were about to hit her, she forced each area to take on a spinning, 3D shape: a Mobius strip. The moment the Impact Webbing made contact, each one became entangled in Mobius strip’s endless cycle, left to accelerate as it spun from one section to the other. And with nothing to stop them, the web balls kept going, moving faster and faster until Jolyne released them, sending the Impact Webbing back in droves!

With equally quick precision, Spider-Girl flipped and twisted her body, easily avoiding the reflected attacks. As she descended toward Jolyne, May extended her arm out, firing a web that latched onto a nearby building. Using her momentum to her advantage, Spider-Girl then swung through the air, landing a hard kick to the stomach. Jolyne’s eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets as she coughed up spittle, while Spider-Girl carried her through the air feet-first. And upon reaching the peak of her ascent, May unleashed a blast of bio-magnetism from her soles, repelling Jolyne further into the air!

‘Dammit! She hits a lot harder than she looks! Any harder and she might’ve knocked me out cold!’ Jolyne thought as she felt the wind rush past her. ‘Still, it at least got me closer to the warehouse. Now all that’s left is to get her boxed in!’ 

Extending her arm out, Jolyne fired off a few strings and wrapped them around the top of a nearby rooftop. Grabbing hold of it with both hands, the sixth JoJo used her momentum to dip toward the ground before slinging back into the air at a higher rate!

”Hey, watch it with the web-slinging!” Spider-Girl joked as she swung after Jolyne. “That’s my thing, and I’m not too keen on imitators!”

”What, you think you’re the first person to swing through the air?” Jolyne scoffed.

”Nah, but my dad was.” May informed as she swung toward Jolyne. She threw out a brief combo of kicks and punches. “And I’d rather-“

A buzz of Spider-Sense flashed through May’s head, giving her enough of a warning to twist her body.

”Keep his trademark moves-“

POW!

 

An uppercut struck Jolyne in the chin. She tried to counter with a blow from Stone Free, but her opponent flipped over, skirting beneath her a bit. Jolyne watched Spider-Girl’s trail with her eyes, her pupils shrinking in shock as Mayday came back in with a hard kick to the stomach.

”Safe from a cheap copycat!”

As she finished her thoughts, Spider-Girl smashed into Jolyne’s gut, dragging both herself and JoJo forward and launching both of them toward the high rise windows behind them. Cracks rang out a split second before Jolyne crashed through the window, only half aware of the shattered glass that was raining down alongside her. Down into the depths the Stand user and superhero fell as their surroundings became mired in the darkness of the wide, spacious, abandoned storage room. 

It was only seconds later that Jolyne would feel something other than the air rushing past her, as she slammed hard into the wood floor, accompanied by a cacophony of glass PLINKing against the ground. She could feel some of that glass adding to the pain as it dug into her skin, but she refused to yell or even cry out in pain. The cuts might’ve hurt like hell, but she wasn’t going to let that impair her decision to fight!

Pushing the warm, unnerving feeling out of her mind, Jolyne focused on the surrounding area. The lighting was dim, but she could make out the dusky outline of Spider-Girl’s costume heading her way, as well as two silver glints.

Two THWIPs rang out, and Jolyne was on the move, scrambling away as she watched two white balls crash into the floor, exploding into puddles of sticky gunk. Seeing Spider-Girl land in front of her, Jolyne commanded Stone Free to let her have it!

”ORA!” An overhead punch was sent toward Spider-Girl, but she immediately leapt out of the way, leaving Stone Free’s punch to miss by a mile. As she ascended through the air, Mayday tried to recover her advantage with a rapid series of web lines, but Jolyne leapt after her, using Stone Free’s crossed arms to barrel through each one. And once Spider-Girl was in range, Jolyne let her have it!

”ORAORAORAORAORAORA!”

A steady burst of machine gun-like punches battered Spider-Girl’s body, striking her from every conceivable angle in only a few microseconds. And by the time she’d begun to fall toward the ground, Jolyne left the web-slinger with a final punch!

”ORA!”

A left hook struck Spider-Girl at full force, cracking one of her goggles and launching her deeper into the shadows. Jolyne heard the sound of something land against the wall, and when she squinted her eyes she could just make out Spider-Girl, her short hair now exposed and half-tussled.

”The hell are you doing up there?” JoJo asked.

”Staying away from you.” May said, sounding rather cheerful for someone who’d just been battered senseless.

“Why? You scared to fight woman to woman?” Jolyne smirked.

”I don’t suppose I could convince you to come up here and fight like a spider?” Spider-Girl joked. Jolyne was about to make a retort, but something in May’s words struck a cord.

”Fight like a spider, huh?” Her smirk widened a little. “Fine. I’ll just beat you at your own game.”

[If rooting Spider-Girl]
[If rooting Jolyne]

In an instant, strings shot out from Jolyne’s fingertips. Sensing something heading her way, May leapt further into the shadows, feeling the Spider-Sense continue to buzz in her mind. The invisible strings were back, and if her Spider-Sense was accurate, each one was being spread throughout the room, moving from wall to pillar to crate in a vast, interconnected web.

‘Huh… that’s not a bad idea.’ Spider-Girl thought as she steadily crawled across the walls, keeping a low profile. While she couldn’t necessarily see them, the subtle cues from her Spider-Sense were giving May a good sense of where they were. She went through a few possibilities in her head, trying to think of the best way out of this. Trying to rush Jolyne down would end in disaster, and with how fast they’d moved before, snapping the strings would just alert Jolyne to where she was.

‘Unless…’ May mused as she looked down at her web shooter. Eager to test her hypothesis, the scientist’s daughter fired off a few stingers. They approached the strings at bullet-like speeds, but instead of snapping them in two, the darts seemed to phase through and embed into the ground.

The sound of something hitting the ground transferred through Jolyne’s strings like a telephone wire, and with a determined look, she went to work on ensnaring the culprit!

Spider-Girl clutched her head as her Spider-Sense flared up, alerting her of the strings’ rapid shift in location. An unconscious groan made its way out of her lips. Big mistake, since the strings seemed to react to that and began swarming her!

‘Oh God!’ She thought as she instinctively leapt to higher ground, twisting her body in unnatural and inhuman forms to avoid the strings. But the instant she landed on the ceiling on all fours, the strings were back at it again!

Fighting the growing worry inside her, Spider-Girl began flipping and cartwheeling like mad, doing whatever she could to avoid capture. The strings were threatening to snag her in midair, and it was becoming increasingly difficult to avoid their grasp. Still, that didn’t mean she’d stopped fighting! 

Even as she had a few close calls, Spider-Girl returned the favor by targeting Jolyne with her webs. Web lines and web balls were launched her way, and with May out of its range, all Stone Free could manage was blocking and pulling on the lines in an attempt to make Spider-Girl see the light. Less successful, however, were the attempts to block the stingers.

With the darkness as her cover and the Spider-Sense as her guide, Mayday was making up for her lack of direct confrontation by landing direct shots. Thanks to the near lack of lighting in the area, the stingers came without any warning and stabbed Jolyne without fail. None of them were targeting her major organs, but she would’ve lied if she said they didn’t hurt like a bitch!

The only good news about this was that each of the stingers seemed to be firing from a closer location, and it was only a matter of time before Spider-Girl slipped up and got too close! 

All of a sudden, Jolyne could feel another presence in front of her. Something was coming out of the shadows, something that seemed pretty big, with arms and legs outstretched to tackle her.

”So you finally decided to show yourself? Good! Because I’ve got something special planned for you!” Jolyne announced as she focused all of her strings, wrapping each one around Spider-Girl until she was fully covered. Reeling her closer, Jolyne threw out her leg, kicking straight through her opponent’s web-like, pale flesh!

[If rooting for Jolyne, play this and start at 0:34]

“What?!” Jolyne asked in shock. Whatever she just struck wasn’t Spider-Girl. It was some massive decoy, one that quickly fell on top of Jolyne, enshrouding her in a sheet of sticky white gel. “It’s a dummy!”

”Oh, don’t insult it like that!” Spider-Girl called out from behind as a drop kick slammed into Jolyne from behind. Flipping off of her, May continued, “I’d say the only dummy here is the girl that abandoned her strategy without double checking her surroundings!”

Two web lines shot out from the web shooters, but Jolyne managed to move out of their way with a quick roll. Spider-Girl trailed her with a few more shots from her webs and Impact Webbing, but Jolyne strafed between each one. From her surveying of the surrounding area, she knew the area in front of her was little more than a dead end, but it wasn’t the wall that had caught her interest. It was what was above her.

Feeling the draft blow past her hair, Jolyne couldn’t help but smile as she looked up at the vent northwest of her. 

“Looks like someone took a wrong turn at Albuquerque!” May quipped, but Jolyne didn’t seem to hear her. The convict’s legs were visibly tensing up as she looked toward the vent. “Uh… hey, JoJo. I’m not sure what you have in mind, but…” Jolyne continued to ignore her as she ran forward unopposed. “That’s not really a way for you to…” May’s voice trailed off as Jolyne leapt through the air and swung her arm out. The moment her fingertips touched the metal grating, Jolyne’s body seemed to phase through the air vent, sneaking inside like some kind of snake.

[Stop]

”Escape…” May finished awkwardly, her brain reeling as she tried to comprehend what had just happened. Looking around, she called out, “Uh… hello? Are you still there? Hello?”

When nobody answered her question Spider-Girl began swinging through the building, searching for some sign of Jolyne. “Marco.” She called out as she leapt from a high ledge and flipped onto the floor below. 

Still receiving no response, she casually strolled around, surveying the stacks of crates and metal parts. Trying again, she yelled, “Marco.” Still nothing. Spider-Girl sighed. ‘Fine. If she doesn’t want to play along, I’ll just have to zero in on her.’

With that, the teenager began concentrating her Spider-Sense, and the mild buzz she received told her that Jolyne was only one floor beneath her. But then a louder buzz flashed through her mind. Something of Jolyne’s was racing toward her!

“Polo.” A familiar voice cut off her thoughts. May’s eyes widened in realization, but in the microsecond it took for her to register-

FWIP!

[Start at about 1:11]

A choked gasp emerged from her lips as something tightened around her neck. Then, with a sharp tug, the heroine found herself pulled through the catwalk, falling wildly through the air before smacking her head against one of the I-beams.

CLUNG!

The hollow ringing in May’s skull elicited a low groan, but another pull of the string forced it to morph into a strangled gasp. The rope-like bindings around her neck were slowly tightening, cutting off her air supply. Her vision was starting to blur, and her head felt like it was spinning. But even in her delirious state, she could still feel Jolyne’s strings reaching up and piling on top of her. They wrapped around her arms and pulled them back, forcing her to release her grip on Jolyne’s noose. 

From the floor below, Jolyne could sense her adversary’s waning strength, and eager to get this over with, she began spreading her strings to the rest of May’s body. The sharp, wire-like ropes began digging into Spider-Girl, forcing rivulets of blood to seep out onto her costume. A pained, infuriated grunt escaped May’s gritted teeth as she placed her feet against the floor. Bio-magnetism surged through her soles and she rocketed into the air, her hopes of escape rising much like her body…

Only to be mercilessly ripped away as Jolyne’s strings slammed her into the ground! Flecks of blood escaped as May let out a haggard cough, feeling the choking coils tighten around her.

”I’ll give you this, kid. You’ve got a lot of spunk.” Jolyne commended, but her tone dropped an octave, becoming more serious as she continued. “But at this rate you’ve only got two options left: either bleed out or tap out. Now which will it be?”

In tandem with her ultimatum, Jolyne tightened the strings once again, slowly forcing Spider-Girl to constrict in place.

’Does she even need to ask?’ May thought to herself. True, she was low on air, and she could feel the blood loss sapping away at her strength, but she refused to give up like this. ‘I don’t care how hard I have to fight! I won’t just give up here!’ 

Gritting her teeth, May continued to push against her restraints. Feeling this from beneath her, Jolyne’s expression hardened.

”So you want it the hard way, then? Good grief… Well, just remember, it was your call.” Jolyne stated as she forced the bindings to grow even tighter. May grit her teeth, fighting back an urge to groan as more blood continued to spill from her cuts.

’Stay calm. You can do this, girl!’ May reassured herself. ‘You’re way stronger than any bundle of string this lady can throw out!’

As if in response to this taunt, the strings rewrapped themselves, dragging against different angles they hadn’t snagged before.

‘AAARRRGGGHH!’ May screamed internally. ‘No, don’t acknowledge the pain. Just focus…’

Pulling with all her might, Spider-Girl felt her arms strain against the spiritual bindings. Her arms slowly moved up, struggling as pain coursed through every inch of them. ‘Just need to… gather my strength… Put everything I have… into escaping this death trap!’

As these thoughts ran through her mind, Spider-Girl began to strain against her bindings. She didn’t care that her muscles ached from how much she was exerting herself. She didn’t care that she could feel blood dripping out as the strings dug into her skin. All that mattered at this moment was getting herself free! Her arms were slowly moving up, dragging themselves higher along her body.

‘Just keep pushing, no matter how hard it hurts!’

With a heavy strain, Spider-Girl grabbed hold of the noose around her neck and tugged with all her might! Her muscles ached with exertion, and Jolyne’s strings dug into her fingers and neck. Blood was seeping through her suit, dripping down her hands, but this pain only seemed to motivate her!

’Yeah! YEAH!’ She thought as she continued pulling, hearing each of the strings start to snap. With this sound driving her motivation, Mayday doubled down on her efforts and pulled even harder!

SNAP!

‘Oh, YEAH!’ Spider-Girl thought as her main binding gave way. In her jubilation, the wall-crawler threw out her arms and puffed out her chest. The muscles in her torso expanded by a few inches, and with this growth, the rest of her snares were torn to shreds!

However, any joy Spider-Girl felt was replaced horror as she heard a blood curdling scream from the floor below. Her sense of heroism overriding her pain, Mayday leapt to the floor below, and her eyes widened at what she saw. 

Standing before her was Jolyne Cujoh, her body covered with bloody, open wounds. Various cuts adorned her side, blood was spraying out from her stomach, and May could see decently-sized wounds just above her chest and collar.

“Oh God… Did I cause that?” Spider-Girl asked, completely horrified by Jolyne’s brutalized body.

“What do you think?” Jolyne asked in annoyance. Her words hit Spider-Girl like a truck, filling the heroine with a deluge of shame and guilt.

”I… I’m so sorry! I didn’t think this would happen! I- I just wanted to escape those traps you set up.” Her terrified response didn’t seem to change Jolyne’s expression.

”Oh, don’t give me that bull. You were just doing what you needed to survive. I would know.” Jolyne said, holding one of her arms out. Spider-Girl grabbed it, but the instant she did so, her Spider-Sense went off. “After all…”

CLICK!

“I’m doing the same!”

Prelude: Spider-Girl vs Jolyne Cujoh

Mayday Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Girl!

And Jolyne Cujoh, the string-slinging daughter of Jotaro Kujo!

Heroes are often admired by the public for a multitude of reasons, whether it’s for their amazing powers, their sense of justice, or their willingness to help out those in need. But it’s easy to forget that at the end of the day, these heroes are just as human as the rest of us. They’ll eventually have to grow up, get a job, and may even put their adventurous careers aside to start a family. And while their days of heroism may have ended, it’s inevitable that their children will carry on their legacy.

I’m Br3ndan5, and I’ll be analyzing their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win a DEATH BATTLE!

——————————————————

Picture this: you’re a Spider-Man fan in the early 90s, and the comics are currently in the middle of this little thing called the Clone Saga. After a DNA test that led him to believe he was a clone, Peter Parker’s decided to pass his threads on to his supposed progenitor, Ben Reilly, while Peter himself enters an early retirement alongside his pregnant wife, Mary Jane Watson. Everything seems to be going fine. Peter doesn’t have to worry about being Spider-Man anymore and can live out a perfect family life, and Ben can protect the streets of New York while making a name for himself as the new Spider-Man. It should be great, right?

Unfortunately for the former Spider-Man, his old nemesis Norman Osborn didn’t see it that way. Enraged that Peter had the nerve to enter an early retirement, Norman hired the services of conwoman Allison Mongrain and began work on a plan that would drive the Parker family to the brink. Disguising herself as a waitress, Allison infiltrated the Daily Grind coffee bar and served Mary Jane some poisoned chicken gumbo. The moment Mary Jane ingested the powder, something in it accelerated her pregnancy, and she suddenly went into labor.

After an emergency trip to the hospital, Mary Jane was forced to endure the pain of giving birth as the poison flowed through her system, but eventually she managed to pull it off. Now fully out from her mother’s womb, Mary Jane could finally welcome her beautiful daughter into the world!

Or at least, that’s what she’d hoped. Unfortunately for the expecting mother, this joyous occasion quickly fell into shambles when she realized her daughter wasn’t crying. In fact, she didn’t seem to be breathing at all. The daughter she’d been looking so forward to welcoming into the world… was a stillborn.

IMG_4209IMG_4210

As Mary Jane was left to wallow in the loss of her baby, the midwife carted the child outside and revealed herself as Allison, while also providing the waiting Norman with proof that her job was done. Pleased by these results, Norman ordered Allison to dispose of the child and paid her off, sending her off on a trip to Europe as a bonus.

IMG_4211

But what if Mary Jane had never lost the baby? What if Spider-Man had a Spider-Girl?

Welcome to Earth-982! On this world, the Age of Heroes has long since passed, and the superheroes of the past have either grown up, grown old, retired, or passed away. And with this next generation, there have also come new groups. The Fantastic Four are now the Fantastic Five, the X-Men are now the (stupidly named) X-People, and the Avengers have reorganized into a group of next-gen heroes. And among these next-gen heroes is Mayday Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Girl!

Spider-Girl by Br3ndan5

But don’t let her colorful costume and outlook fool you. Though the reality she appears in may suggest otherwise, May’s past isn’t all sunshine and roses. From her birth, she was kidnapped by Allison and replaced with a recent stillborn to trick Mary Jane. When Allison gave the baby to Norman, he decided to give her a sizable bonus in order to let the baby accompany her on her trip to Europe. After several months of letting Allison bond with the kidnapped infant, Norman separated the two and chose to enact his ultimate revenge scheme, Project: Changeling.

Using his knowledge of genetics, Norman cloned May and performed some “genetic tinkering” on the two infants, ensuring that their spider powers would manifest earlier than usual. Once he’d finished modifying one of the girls, he passed her off to his good friend Philippe DeJunae and let her be returned to her parents.

For the next two years, Peter and Mary Jane would continue living out their lives, taking care of their daughter while Peter continued his work as Spider-Man. This eventually came to a head during his final encounter with the Green Goblin, where the premature detonation of a Pumpkin Bomb cost Norman his life and Peter his right leg. The loss of his leg seemed to give Peter a serious wake-up call, and with his greatest enemy gone, he hung up his threads for good to focus on raising his daughter.

Over the years, May would go on to become an exceptional student, achieving straight-A’s in her classes and playing starter for the Midtown High girls’ basketball team. She was so skilled in basketball that it earned her the nickname “Mayday” and a pathway to going pro.

But that all changed when she turned 15. During a basketball game at Midtown High, May began exhibiting some impressive physical feats. So impressive, you could even call them superhuman, like jumping well above the backboard’s height and shattering it when she performed a slam-dunk. Though her parents were concerned by this, they tried their best to play it off and congratulate her, unaware that a figure from their past had been watching them.

As it turned out, Normie Osborn, grandson of the Green Goblin, had decided to take up the family business. Blaming Peter for the deaths of his father and grandfather, Normie confronted May and her friends, telling her to let her dad know they had unfinished business at “the bridge.”

Wanting answers, May confronted her parents about this. Peter tried to remain vague and took matters into his own hands, but once he’d left the house, Mary Jane explained to May her father’s career as Spider-Man and his history with the Osborns. Inspired by her dad’s actions, May donned the costume of her “uncle” Ben and fought Normie head-on, kicking off her career in superheroing in more ways than one.

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Unfortunately, despite her victory, her parents didn’t approve. Fearing their daughter could die in the line of duty, they forbade her from being Spider-Girl. But being a rebellious teenager, May went against their wishes and did it anyway. Naturally, she was eventually caught, but after a few arguments and saving the day a couple times she managed to win them both over. Now fully supported by both of her parents, Spider-Girl was now able to enter the world as one of its newest heroes.

Note: Spider-Girl’s name was chosen by her creators because they wanted something more unique and believed the name “Spider-Woman” was cursed. Considering all of the Spider-Women’s series were quickly canceled, while Spider-Girl became the first Marvel heroine to reach 100 issues, they may have been onto something. Her original series even makes a joke about this.

As Spider-Man’s daughter, May naturally inherited all of his abilities and more. She has superhuman strength, speed, and agility; an enhanced equilibrium that allows her to perfectly balance herself atop any object, and her advanced musculature gives her far more stamina than the average human. She can fight for over an hour without any signs of fatigue, and even when she’s completely drained, all she needs is a five hour nap to get back to full strength.

But out of all her powers, she’s got two that definitely outclass her old man’s.

Spider-Girl wall crawling

Like Peter, she can alter the inter-atomic bindings of her body, allowing her to stick to surfaces and climb them just by placing her hands on them. At first she had trouble with this, since she needed to concentrate for it to work, but over time she got enough experience that it pretty much comes to her naturally.

And after a brief period of losing and regaining her powers (because what superhero hasn’t lost their powers at some point?), she discovered the electric shock that restored her had also affected her wall-crawling. Now she could transmit its electrostatic “stickiness” across whatever surface she touched, allowing her to stick any objects or people in place. She even learned she could repel them, or herself, which she quickly began utilizing in battle.

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But her biggest upgrade compared to Peter’s is easily her Spider-Sense. This omnidirectional sixth sense allows May to detect any form of danger coming from her surroundings, but hers comes with a few added perks. Spider-Man’s merely provided a general signal for danger, but Spider-Girl’s allows her to recognize the source of the danger. This includes if the source is a familiar threat or someone new, even if she isn’t aware what triggered the Spider-Sense. She can even tell if the source is a regular person or if they have superpowers.

And since it gives her a full awareness of her surroundings, it’s impossible for anyone  to sneak up on her. She’s detected opponents invisible to the naked eye, seen through illusions, and can track others even in a pitch-black area. And after receiving some training, she learned how to use her Spider-Sense as a second set of eyes in case she’s ever blinded.

But that’s not even the wildest thing it can do. One day, an army of demons decided to invade New York and tear it to shreds. Despite not being able to see them at all, Spider-Girl’s Spider-Sense was able to not only tell her where they were, but also led her to the dimensional rift they were coming from! And despite the demons and their home still being invisible to her, she could still sense them with her Spider-Sense!

If that wasn’t enough for you, she can focus the Spider-Sense to locate weaknesses, whether it’s coming from an enemy or a nearby structure. And after some martial arts training from Elektra, one of the deadliest assassins in the world, she learned how to hone her Spider-Sense at such a level that she could let it take full control of her body. In this state, she can avoid attacks based purely on instinct, moving at such an advanced level that not even she knows what she’ll do next! That’s right. This 16 year-old girl managed to pull off Ultra Instinct nearly 13 years before Goku!

Unfortunately for May, even with all of these powers, she still had trouble convincing her parents to let her follow in her dad’s footsteps. Fearing she could be killed in action, Peter and Mary Jane forbade May from being Spider-Girl, but being a rebellious teenager, May refused to listen and struck out on her own. Though her parents were furious at first, as time went on, they began to notice just how much good she was doing.

With Spider-Girl’s help, older heroes were being encouraged to get back in the game and aid the next generation, and several villains had begun turning their lives around for the better. She even managed to gain the approval of J. Jonah Jameson! Peter himself even got inspired enough to step back into the limelight, but when he realized he was out of practice, he stuck to the next best thing: teaching May everything he knows. And as an added bonus, he also gave her a few upgrades!

Spider-Girl costume by Br3ndan5

Modeled after the suit worn by her late “uncle,” the Spider-Girl costume is created with agility and flexibility in mind, allowing May to use her spider-like agility both in and out of combat. The mask also muffles her voice and contains polarized lenses to protect her from dust particles and the glare of the Sun as she swings through New York.

Spider-Girl Web-Shooters by Br3ndan5

And to complete the spider motif, May wears a pair of wrist mounted web shooters. By pressing the trigger with her middle fingers, she can unleash a pressurized web-fluid that possesses a tensile strength of 120 pounds per square millimeter of cross section. For those of us who don’t speak math, this means it’s as hard as steel, and unlike Peter’s, which lasts only a hour before dissolving, May’s lasts twice as long.

While it’s mainly used to swing across buildings or restrain others, May’s ingenuity during battle has allowed her to form it into various tools. From shields capable of blocking lightning and explosions, to cocoons, slingshots, a dam, life-sized decoys, and even a parachute! She can even form a layer of webbing around her arms to act as makeshift boxing gloves, further enhancing her strength and durability.

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But the web-shooters’ capabilities don’t end with web-spinning! They’re also equipped with a Spider signal that lets her announce her presence to criminals or illuminate a dark area. And thanks to some modifications from her father, she can spice things up in battle with Stingers and Impact Webbing.

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Originally used by Ben during his Scarlet Spider days, Stingers are metal darts capable of piercing their target from far away, but since May believes they’re too brutal, she’s extremely reluctant to use them on a living target. Instead, she’s more likely to use them as a means of distracting someone or countering their projectiles, only using them for attacks if she’s desperate.

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And if she wants to quickly dispatch her opponents, she can fire a ball of Impact Webbing. Another invention of the Scarlet Spider, Impact Webbing consists of a web pellet that immediately ensnares its target upon contact, wrapping them in a mess of tendrils. And since it can cover anywhere from an entire head to most of the body, it’s extremely difficult to escape from.

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Even if her targets do manage to escape her, May can always hit them with a spider tracer. These miniature tracking devices emit a signal that covers up to 100 yards, and are so small that most don’t even notice their existence. There’s just one small problem. While Peter can track them with his Spider-Sense, the same can’t be said for May, who needs a receiver since hers operates on a different frequency.

Note: The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe A to Z #11, which was released near the end of Spectacular Spider-Girl, claims that Spider-Girl can track the spider tracers with her Spider-Sense. However, this is never shown in the comics themselves, and issues released around that book’s publication still depict her needing the receiver

With these gadgets and powers in hand, Spider-Girl’s managed some pretty impressive feats. She’s defeated several of Peter’s old enemies, helped found the New Warriors, took down the league of assassins known as the Scriers, and helped end a gang war that was threatening all of New York.

Even without her powers, she was able to end the Spider/Goblin war that had plagued her family for years! She did this, not by throwing a punch, but by appealing to Normie’s conscience and assuring him that they could end their family rivalry, not by killing each other, but by helping each other.

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And with her help, Normie actually managed to turn his life around! He became a legitimate businessman and even got engaged to another villain May had reformed.

Unfortunately, not everyone approved of the two families burying the hatchet. As it turned out, the original Green Goblin had amassed a cult of worshippers, and they weren’t too pleased when they found out his grandson had made peace with the enemy. Viewing his decisions as sacrilege, the Order of the Goblin at first tried to course correct by infecting him with the Venom symbiote, but when he tamed it and began using it for good, they resorted to plan B.

Using the notes and journals they’d gathered from Norman’s research, the Goblin Cult began working to resurrect their dead master. After kidnapping Peter Parker, they hooked him up to a machine that infused him with Norman’s brainwaves. Everything- the memories, experiences, and even emotions, the very “essence” of Norman Osborn- was transplanted into Peter’s mind, and when it was done, the original Green Goblin was reborn.

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With his newly obtained body, “Norman” sought to tie up any remaining loose ends and attacked May’s friends and family. He even managed to coerce the clone he’d created into joining his side and merging with him, transforming him into the Goblin God! But since May wasn’t willing to let her dad be taken over, she leapt between them, sucking her inside Peter’s mind.

There, deep in the recesses of Peter’s mindscape, May would do battle with Norman and her clone, aided by the efforts of Peter and the ghost of Aunt May. As the battle raged on, their merged psyches allowed everyone to begin living through each other’s memories, letting May’s clone witness the good she’d done and the people she’d reformed. Inspired by the words May had given Normie, her clone turned against her former master and joined the fight against Norman.

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With the combined power of three generations of Parkers, May was able to finally put an end to Norman, purging him from Peter’s mind, and with it, the last of the Goblins was no more. The nightmare that had plagued her family for years had come to an end.

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Everything was back to normal, save for a new addition to the family: May’s clone. While May and Mary Jane welcomed her into the family with open arms, Peter remained distant and uneasy around her, and for good reason.

Despite May’s best efforts to steer her on the right path, the clone- now going by April- wasn’t having any of it. She felt jealous of May, believing she was constantly in her shadow and ignored by the rest of the Parkers. This, combined with Peter’s colder attitude around her, would cause April to have violent outbursts whenever she was on patrol. And despite May’s best attempts to help her control this anger, this only added fuel to the fire. Over time, April’s impulsiveness and violent tendencies resulted in a city-wide gang war, which ended with her and May bitterly parting ways.

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April would then go on to enact her own brand of vigilante “justice” across the city, now rechristening herself as “Mayhem.” Horrified by April’s actions and blaming herself for not seeing the signs, May began pursuing her “cousin” to bring her to justice. After meeting her on the rooftops and failing to make her see reason, things broke out into a fight, which culminated in the warehouse they were in catching fire. With the blazing inferno threatening to consume them both, Spider-Girl took matters into her own hands and ensured at least one of them would survive. 

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But if she hoped her death would help April see the light, she was sadly mistaken. Once they learned of their daughter’s death, the Parkers disowned April and forced her out of the house. With no one left to turn to, Mayhem snapped and doubled down on her murderous crusade. It became so bad the US military had to step in, and then things got worse!

Using samples of the Carnage symbiote, the military hoped they could fight fire with fire by sending a squad of trained mercenaries after April. But surprise, surprise, it turns out injecting a bunch of hardened, well-trained killers with a psychotic parasite wasn’t the best idea.

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For the next few decades, these “Bio-Preds” would ravage the Earth, slaughtering the populace or adding them to their ranks. The only one truly immune to this threat, ironically, was Mayhem herself, who now found herself as the protector of all humanity.

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After witnessing the carnage and lives that had been lost due to her actions, April began working on a plan to fix everything. Using Dr. Doom’s old time machine and some help from Cassie Lang, she was able to go back in time and successfully altered the past, with both Aprils sacrificing themselves in the process.

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Though her “cousin” may have died, she managed to ensure that Spider-Girl would live to fight another day. And she’s more than proven her worth as the daughter of Spider-Man!

She’s beaten down her fair share of Spidey’s old foes, like the unstable Spider-Man clone Kaine, the monstrous Man-Wolf, and Doc Ock’s next-gen successor Lady Octopus. She’s even fought Peter himself on several occasions! Whether it’s a younger version from the past, an evil alternate version still in his prime, or her dad being controlled by a past enemy, she’s battled him all the same and often come out on top.

Note: Spider-Girl’s strength and fighting prowess were further refined thanks to martial arts training from the Ladyhawk twins and Elektra.

Though there is a weird stigma about whether or not she’s stronger than Peter. Spider-Girl Annual #1 notes that she can only lift 5 tons compared to Spider-Man’s 10, but in terms of striking strength, she’s been able to harm a past version of Spider-Man and her dad while he was amped by the Venom symbiote. However, when she later fought an evil, alternate Peter, he stated he held the edge in strength over her.

But later on in that same series, Spider-Man’s old partner Araña decided to test May’s abilities by sending a killer robot after her. And after seeing her in action, she said that May appeared to be just as strong as her dad.

And near the end of her final series, Spectacular Spider-Girl, she might’ve actually become stronger than Peter, considering she managed to knock him out with a single punch.

With all this in mind, it would make sense for her to be around Peter’s level of power, and this is where things start to get wild!

Early on in his career as Spider-Man, he was believed by the public to have murdered Norman Osborn, and the hero for hire Luke Cage was brought on to bring him in. Though Spidey gained the upper hand in their first fight, when they had a rematch, Peter realized they were so evenly matched they’d wind up killing each other. This is pretty impressive, considering Luke was able to survive getting caught in an explosion from Ultron’s sentries, which destroyed Manhattan. Given the size of this blast, the explosion would come out to 54 megatons of TNT, enough energy to destroy an entire city! Spider-Man himself has even matched that level of power when he was hit by an explosion
explicitly stated to be capable of destroying a city and emerged unharmed!

Note: Adding further credence to this scaling, SHIELD ranks Spider-Man and Luke as having the same power level, and Spider-Man has been shown to match and overpower Hammerhead, who remained conscious after a beating from Luke.

Note 2: Spider-Girl can also be scaled to Electro through one-shotting his daughter, Aftershock, who has the same powers as him and survived being bombarded by his electricity when their powers went haywire. For comparison, a stable Electro could power a particle engine that would destroy New York and once absorbed all the energy in New York, which would yield 316 megatons and 754 megatons, respectively.

But strength isn’t important unless you’ve got the speed to back it up, and Spider-Girl’s got that in spades! She’s regularly dodged bullets, even once avoiding a sniper shot while distracted; dodged explosions from Hobgoblin’s pumpkin bombs, and regularly avoided arcs of electricity while fighting Aftershock; and she did that last one while still healing her broken ribs.

She’s even moved fast enough to dodge lasers. And yes, these are actual lasers. They travel in a straight linebounce off reflective surfaces , and burn on contact, meaning they’re light-based in nature. With this in mind, and considering the distance May would need to jump to avoid it, this would require her to react at 33% the speed of light.

Note: Factoring May’s 119 lb weight into this calculation, moving at this speed would generate a kinetic energy worth 70.75 megatons of TNT, further supporting her being City Level.

Her speed’s even been stated to be superior to Spider-Man’s, both by the narrator and Peter
himself. To put into context how impressive that is, Peter has regularly shown the ability to react to light speed lasers, and even early in his career was able to blitz Daredevil, whose enhanced senses allow him to sense the passing of a nanosecond and attack within that same timeframe. With this in mind, this would put Peter anywhere from baseline faster than light speeds to 5 times that! And, again, May is faster than him!

And when it comes to durability, Spider-Girl’s no slouch there either. She’s tougher out getting stabbed in the ribs, shaken off bolts of electricity from Aftershock, who could leave regular people near death if they so much as touched her; and has withstood being beaten to near death by Mayhem; only to get back up with little issue.

But Spider-Girl’s greatest feats don’t come from things like strength, speed, or durability. It’s her compassion and ability to push through any limits to achieve her goals. She’s a firm believer that everyone can change no matter what actions they committed before, and it’s that exact reason she refuses to take a life.

In her mind, doing so would be a complete betrayal of everything her parents taught her, and even failing to save the worst of criminals still leaves her reeling. Like when the murderous lunatic Crazy Eight died in a shootout. Despite everything he’d put her through and how many times he tried to kill her, she was still wracked with guilt that she couldn’t save him, and visited his abandoned grave just so she could mourn him.

It’s also this refusal to let anyone die that leads her to constantly try and find ways around fighting others. She’d rather settle things diplomatically than resort to violence, since she believes that doing so would just bring about a cycle of vengeance.

But don’t think that means she’s a complete pushover. While she does hold back to avoid hurting others, should the situation become dire enough, she’s more than willing to start playing dirty and stop holding back. And she’ll push herself to hell and back to get the job done!

She’s torn herself free from a crucifixion at the bottom of the ocean and swam to the surface, all while low on oxygen. She’s powered through a psychic illusion that was draining her life force, and has forced herself through a concussion and some serious self-loathing to find civilization while lost in the Pine Barrens. She’s even survived a beating from Seth, the Egyptian god of death and old enemy of the mighty Thor! Even with her costume shredded and her body a battered, bloody mess, May refused to break, and kicked him in the balls to prove it!

Unfortunately, those greatest strengths are also possibly her greatest weaknesses. Her sense of responsibility may be what motivated her to become a hero, but it’s also led to her regularly putting herself in harm’s way to protect others, even if those people are villains. It’s even what led to her death in the original timeline.

She also has a major guilt complex when it comes to failure. If she’s on duty and anyone around her gets hurt or killed, chances are she’ll find some way to blame herself, even if the circumstances were completely beyond her control.

And while her willpower’s let her push through immense pain before, there have been times where she’s been a bit too stubborn. You know how I said she tore herself free from a crucifixion and swam back to the surface? Yeah, right after she did that, she went to confront Seth… and immediately collapsed since she was barely conscious and didn’t have any strength in her attacks.

So it’s clear that not everything she inherited from her dad was positive. In fact, her spider powers have their fair share of downsides, like a weakness to ethyl chloride. To be fair, it won’t drain her of her powers like it did with Peter, but it will leave her nauseous and disoriented, at least for a moment. And while her Spider-Sense might trump Peter’s own, she still needs to be able to react to what’s coming toward her, meaning a fast enough opponent can blitz her. And with the right sonic frequency, it can even be nullified or turned against her.

But the biggest weakness May inherited from her father is the “Parker luck,” where no matter what good she does as Spider-Girl, it will always negatively affect her civilian life. This has cost her several boyfriends, caused her to miss her 16th birthday party, led her to drop out of the race for student council president, and even strained her friendships on more than a few occasions.

At its worst, it’s actually led to her retiring twice, but whether it’s because of the morals taught by her parents, or the result of some cosmic coincidence, she always finds herself coming back. Because no matter what pain or misery awaits her, this is a Spider-Girl world!

Death Battle: Slayer vs Demitri Maximoff

Slayer vs Demitri Interlude

Prelude here: https://brendansversus.wordpress.com/2021/03/04/prelude-slayer-vs-demitri-maximoff/

Alright, the combatants are set. Let’s end this debate once and for all! It’s time for a Death Battle!

——————————————————

Slayer’s Mansion, Villa Vampir, January 2188

The full moon shone in the night sky, its light serving to illuminate the mansion set around the lakeside. Hundreds of vines and leaves covered the mansion’s sides, which were supported by a set of chains that vanished beneath the murky waters below. Under most circumstances, the appearance of this building would’ve led others to believe it had been abandoned for some time, but this couldn’t have been further from the truth. A bright light could be seen shining through its halls, and with its presence came the silhouette of a rather tall man.

Inside of the castle, the first of its two occupants could be seen making the rounds through his home. The way he moved gave off a sense of elegance and refinement, something that was also reflected quite well in his appearance. He wore a white undershirt beneath a professional-looking gray suit, the latter of which contained red, cross-shaped emblems across its sleeves. A red tie ran down his middle which, when combined with a red stripe that ran across his undershirt, formed another cross on his attire; though whether this was intentional was unknown. A pair of gray dress pants covered his legs, with brown shoes obscuring both of his feet. His brown hair was slicked to the side, accompanied by a thin mustache and well-kept beard. A monocle sat atop his left eye, and he held an old-fashioned, wooden pipe in his right hand.

This was Slayer, vampiric gentleman and semi-retired founder of the Assassin’s Guild. Normally he would’ve been enjoying himself this late at night, taking in the sights of the world as he wrote haiku. But tonight his attention was focused more on observing the structure of his own home. It had been one month since the mansion’s destruction at the hands of the narcoleptic hitman known as Bedman, and the attempts at repairing it had taken far longer than expected. Every framed painting, every repaired window, and every board of wood had been painstakingly replicated and put back into position, but Slayer still wasn’t pleased. Even with the assistance he had been given from his former associates, the vampire wanted to see for himself that his home had been returned to its former glory.

As he began to walk past a nearby bookshelf, Slayer noticed something out of the corner of his eye. Turning to face it with a surprised “Hm,” he found his attention drawn to a book in the middle of the third row. Its cover was mostly black, bound with cloth that was a deep shade of red.

Pulling it out, Slayer began flipping through its pages and found that there were ent sections dedicated to chronicling the history of Makai. As he skimmed through the book, he eventually stopped at a random page, and upon peering down he was met with a spread describing in detail the history of its rulers. Skimming through the chapter with a bemused expression, Slayer’s eyes brushed past the Aensland and Dohma Clans, only stopping when he came across a familiar name.

“Maximoff.” Slayer read aloud. It had been centuries since he’d heard that name, yet he vividly remembered all of the rumors and tales he’d heard regarding that particular clan.

Centuries ago, its leader, Demitri, had attempted to challenge Makai’s ruler, Belial Aensland, in a bid for power. Unfortunately, the vampire’s arrogance would be his undoing, and as punishment for his treachery Belial would have him stripped of his rank and exiled. According to the rumors Slayer had heard, the castle Demitri had lived in, Zeltzereich, had also accompanied him in his exile and was now located in the Romanian mountains. And if the local legends were to be trusted, Zeltzereich would only appear under the presence of a full moon.

A full moon, much like tonight’s.

As he stared out of the window, illuminated under the pale light, a smile slowly spread across Slayer’s face as he closed the book, placing it back in its original position.

“Perhaps I should pay this young man a visit, then. After all, it’s been some time since I’ve encountered another vampire in this world.” Looking over his shoulder, Slayer glanced at the raven-haired woman currently reading through her own book. “What do you think, Sharon? Would you care to take a stroll?”

“Of course. I’d love to accompany you, darling.” She responded, smiling as she closed her book and began approaching him. Wrapping his arm around hers, the two began to head toward the front door, casually making their way to Zeltzereich.

[Stop music]

Roughly an hour later, the two had approached the hillside containing the castle, staring up at the enormous structure that floated above them.

“Hm, it seems rather unaccommodating for our host to be so high up, doesn’t it?” Slayer mused as he took in the sight of Castle Zeltzereich suspended above them. “Very well then. I suppose I could use a bit of a warm-up before our main event.”

Wrapping an arm around Sharon, Slayer then shot into the air, his cloak billowing in the wind as he flew higher and higher. In only a matter of seconds, the duo had managed to reach the top, with Slayer gently allowing his wife to step down before holding the door open to escort her inside. 

Continue reading Death Battle: Slayer vs Demitri Maximoff

Prelude: Slayer vs Demitri Maximoff

Slayer vs Demitri 3

Vampires, the bloodsucking creatures of the night. Throughout the centuries, these undead monsters have had many interpretations, from merciless, corpse-like beasts that drain innocent lives without remorse, protectors of humanity willing to slay their own kind, or even protagonists of romance novels. But out of their many reimaginings, one of the most notable is that of the noble, refined gentlemen. And today, we’re going to pit two vampiric combatants of this archetype against each other!

Slayer, the Original Assassin!

And Demitri Maximoff, the lord of Castle Zeltzereich!

I’m Br3ndan5, and it’s my job to analyze their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win a DEATH BATTLE!

—————————————————— Continue reading Prelude: Slayer vs Demitri Maximoff

Death Battle: Hakumen vs Darth Vader


Prelude here: https://brendansversus.wordpress.com/2020/11/17/prelude-hakumen-vs-darth-vader/

Alright, the combatants are set. Let’s end this debate once and for all! It’s time for a Death Battle!

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Blazblue – Mirage

The Boundary. It was a vast, infinite expanse that existed outside of time. It served as the core of all dimensions, and all timelines intersected within it. The area permeated with seithr, a radioactive element that corrupted anything in its vicinity. If a person were to even look into this dimension, their mind, soul, and body would shatter almost immediately. And yet for some reason, there was one person that continued to exist inside of it, almost as if he was dead-set on defying the laws this world had established.

He wore a hakama and black bodysuit beneath pieces of white armor that covered his head, shoulders, abdomen, upper legs, and feet. A red eye was adorned on each shoulder, with the armor on his hands containing two each and his shin guards displaying four. His face seemed to be obscured by a blank, faceless mask, with two horns jutting off to its side. A ponytail of silver hair draped down to his thighs, its color barely visible in the darkness. In fact, the only illumination in the Boundary seemed to be coming from this man, courtesy of the faint blue aura surrounding him.

This was Hakumen, wielder of the Susano’o Unit and leader of the Six Heroes. Some time ago, he had allowed himself to be thrown into the deepest, darkest part of the Boundary’s depths, and he had stayed there ever since. While his body could still feel time passing in the outside world, he wasn’t sure how long he’d been in there. It could’ve been hundreds of years, or perhaps it had only been a few hours. It didn’t really matter. This realm existed outside of time, and even if he wanted to see the outside world, he wouldn’t be able to. He didn’t have the energy to leave, nor did he have an ability that would let him escape. He couldn’t even move. The only thing he could do was float there, allowing his body to recede further into the Boundary…

Or at least that’s what he expected.

[Stop music]

Guilty Gear Xrd Revelator – Premonition

Suddenly, the silver-haired man began to feel something permeate through the air, an energy far different from the seithr that inhabited the area. What he was sensing felt more… ancient, tinged with feelings of anger and malice. As the eyes of the Susano’o Unit peered into this newfound energy, Hakumen began to feel the darkness that seemed to dwell within it. It seemed that the person who wielded this force had allowed themselves to be fully embraced by it, and in the process they had become a living conduit for its malevolent nature. It drove them, fueled them to keep going, but most of all, it gave them power. And it was the feedback of this power that caused Hakumen to seize up.

The darkness he felt was slowly beginning to extend all around him, threatening to drown his very being. It was only through sheer willpower that he was able to keep himself afloat above this flood, but even that was proving difficult to maintain.

‘The last time I felt something like this…’ Hakumen thought back to a time long ago. He remembered the multi-headed, serpentine beast whose mere presence had eradicated countries. He remembered its deafening roars as he rushed in to face it. He recalled all too well how its influence had spread across the planet, bathing the Earth in a radioactive element that would poison its atmosphere for years to come.

‘This power…’ a new voice muttered within Hakumen’s subconscious, snapping him back to reality. It was deep and baritone, with some sort of filter placed over it. ‘Are you… a Jedi?’

Though Hakumen wished to answer this mysterious voice, in his current state such a thing was impossible. He had to focus all of his mental fortitude on rising above the sea of darkness this new arrival had unleashed, leaving him unable to do little else. Despite this, the voice seemed to sense his confusion at being called a Jedi and continued after a few moments of silence.

‘No matter. Regardless of what you are, I can sense your intentions. If you wish to kill me, then come. I will be waiting.’

[Stop music]

As this mysterious voice faded from his mind, so too did the ominous darkness that was brought with him. However, as the great pressure surrounding Hakumen was suddenly lifted, something odd began happening to him. He watched as an aura of white energy slowly surrounded his body, and with it, he began to flicker.

“This feeling… is this… the Power of Order?” He wondered aloud. Could the Power of Order be guiding him toward the source of this darkness?

This question would soon be answered as his body continued flickering, and with it his surroundings began to morph. The darkness of the Boundary began to shift, its empty void starting to morph into shapes. With each millisecond that passed, these shapes became more solid and detailed, and after several seconds Hakumen took in his new surroundings. It appeared to be some sort of hangar bay, with multiple spaceships parked throughout the room. Standing in the middle was a squad of several men in white body armor, all of whom suddenly pointed their blasters at him in alarm.

“An intruder? But how did you get past our defenses?” One asked before tightening his grip on his blaster. Then, in a more demanding tone, he barked, “Identify yourself, in the name of the Empire!”

‘Empire?’ Hakumen thought to himself in confusion. ‘So this must mean the man I sensed is either their leader or one of its enforcers.’

Though his new surroundings had left him with questions, Hakumen chose to focus on the stormtrooper that had addressed him.

“I am Hakumen.”

“What business do you have with the Empire, Hakumen?” The stormtrooper asked.

“I’m afraid that does not concern you. I have requested a meeting with one of your commanders.”

“Funny. We didn’t receive anything to alert us of your arrival.” Another stormtrooper said, clearly not believing him.

“Then perhaps my contact wished to keep our meeting confidential.” Upon hearing this, the troopers turned to each other, muttering several words that Hakumen couldn’t hear, though he could make out the words “rebel spy,” “bounty hunter,” and “Jedi” being uttered in disgust. After a few seconds, the one who addressed him returned to meet his gaze.

“Follow us. We’ll take you to the commander and see if you’re telling the truth.”

“While I appreciate the offer, I would prefer if I could meet with him alone.”

“That wasn’t a request.” The trooper said as he aimed his blaster at Hakumen’s chest. “Either you can come with us, or we can take you in by force.”

“And I would suggest you back down lest you make a grave mistake.” Hakumen warned. “Attack me, and I will hold nothing back when I retaliate.”

”I think I’ll take my chances.”

“I think I’ll take my chances.” The trooper scoffed as he pulled the trigger, with Hakumen lunging toward him at the same time. The bolt brushed past Hakumen’s body as he rushed forward, moving so quickly that he seemed to teleport behind the trooper. A millisecond later, his attacker cried out as he fell to the ground, now sporting a massive cut across his chest and holding a bifurcated blaster.

“Do any of you wish to repeat his mistake?” Hakumen asked, eyeing the remaining troopers. They remained silent at first, but soon each one had trained their blasters on him. “Very well. Just know that from this moment, only death will await you.”

Rather than give a verbal response, the remaining stormtroopers fired, spraying a barrage of bolts toward the samurai. Tightening his grip on Ookami, Hakumen responded with a battlecry as he charged forward!

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Death Star II, a man stood at attention, watching as several Imperial mechanics began work on the final section of the battlestation. He was clad head to toe in black armor, with a long cloak draped down his back. A black pauldron ran across his shoulders, sporting a distinct pattern of silver lines, and a control panel had been placed over his chest. Wrapped around his waist was a black belt that had three metal boxes along the front, with each one sporting a different series of buttons. But the most striking feature about this man was his helmet, which covered his entire head. It sported a face that looked similar to a skull, though it had a triangular grill in place of a mouth. A pair of optical lenses had been placed on the helmet, giving him the appearance of an emotionless robot, but the man in question was anything but.

Long ago, this man had been Anakin Skywalker, a Jedi Knight famous across the galaxy and heralded as the Hero With No Fear by the public, but those days had long since passed. Now he was known by a new name, and a new reputation: Darth Vader, right hand man and enforcer of Emperor Palpatine.

Currently, Vader had been assigned to oversee the completion of the second Death Star, and while its progress was nearing completion, he could feel a disturbance in the Force, one identical to the being he’d sensed prior.

Star Wars: Episode III – Meeting with Palatine: Part 2

Vader sat in his meditation chamber just as he had countless times before, his mind filled with hatred and rage toward his current situation. As with these previous sessions, he had but one goal in mind: the restoration of his lungs, the ability to breathe without the need of this metal death trap! Unlike these previous sessions, however, something was different. Vader could sense a disturbance in the Force, one originating several systems away. It appeared to be some sort of rift in the fabric of space, and he could feel the radioactive, corruptive energy permeating within. But none of this intrigued Vader more than the presence he sensed inside of the rift. It seemed that whoever this was, they were trapped, and the power he sensed brought back memories of events he had long suppressed.

Intrigued by this, Vader peered further into the Force, venturing into the rift to contact this mysterious figure. The moment he entered, he could feel the corrosive energy threaten to overpower him. Whatever this energy was, he could feel that it was intent on destroying his very being, but he wasn’t willing to give in so easily! He channeled his rage into the Force, fighting against the opposing energy and slowly pushing it back. In its place, the Force began to thrive, with Vader using it as a conduit to spread his consciousness further… further… until he finally sensed the source of this power. The man had nearly been consumed by the growing influence of the dark side, but it seemed that he was resisting Vader’s efforts through sheer willpower, just as he had with the previous energy in this realm.

‘This power…’ Vader thought. ‘Are you… a Jedi?’

Though the man gave no response, Vader could sense his confusion, and he quickly brushed it aside.

‘No matter. Regardless of what you are, I can sense your intentions. If you wish to kill me, then come. I will be waiting.’

With that, the man once known as Anakin Skywalker severed his connection with the Force, returning him to the reality of his meditation chamber. Though he didn’t know who this was, he could tell that they were an accomplished warrior, and he would need to prepare himself for when they would strike!

A week had passed since then, and ever since that encounter, Vader’s mind had been plagued with visions. Memories of events that hadn’t happened yet. Each one came and went within a few seconds, occurring at random times, and he could vividly recall each one. But it was the latest one that had caught his utmost attention. Closing his eyes, Vader allowed memories of the vision to once again fill his mind.

Star Wars: Episode III – Premonitions

A man clad in white armor stood before him, his face hidden behind a blank mask. A ponytail draped down to his thighs, its light silver color hinting at his true age, though the man’s stance suggested that he was unaffected by the ravages of time. He stood before Vader, peering down at the Sith Lord and wielding a massive blade of nearly equal height. His clawed feet lay across the floor in opposite positions, and the stance he’d adopted reminded Vader of Vaapad. Vader watched himself throw his lightsaber at the man, who responded by bringing his right arm. Some sort of red barrier appeared in front of him, and the moment the lightsaber struck it, the man lowered his stance. His legs tensed up for a brief moment as Vader used the Force to retrieve his lightsaber. Once it had returned to his grip, the mysterious figure was mere inches away, and the two swung their blades in an outward arc!

[Stop music]

Vader opened his eyes as he snapped back to reality, allowing him to sense an Imperial officer standing behind him.

“Lord Vader,” the man saluted as Vader faced him, “I apologize for disturbing you, but our troops have discovered a breach in security. Our men have reported a possible Resistance member in the docking bay. We aren’t sure where he came from. They said he just seemed to… appear out of nowhere, and started slaughtering our stormtroopers.”

Vader remained silent as he reached into the Force. He could sense the massacre occurring on the other side of the Death Star, and that the one responsible was the man he’d previously discovered. Though the question of how he’d arrived here briefly crossed his mind, Vader pushed it aside and returned his attention to the officer.

“Tell the rest of the stormtroopers to fall back. I shall deal with this intruder myself.” While the officer carried out this command, Vader made his way to the deck, unaware that the intruder was waiting for him.

Back at the docking bay, the final stormtrooper cried out in pain as he was sent flying back. His chestplate was sliced open, and his blaster rifle had been sent sliding across the ground. A low groan emerged from his throat as he slammed into the ground, with his body going limp shortly afterward.

With the final member of the army dealt with, Hakumen prepared to place Ookami back in its sheathe, but he stopped upon feeling a familiar presence. The feelings of rage he had sensed now seemed to be drawing closer, accompanied by raspy, mechanical breaths and the heavy CLUNK of armored boots hitting the ground.

The moment he stepped foot onto the deck, Vader came to a stop. Standing before him was the man he’d seen in his vision, clad in white armor and armed with the enormous blade. He was surrounded by the bodies of stormtroopers, all of them dead and sporting lacerations on their exposed skin, and his back was turned to Anakin. The moment Vader attempted to draw closer, however, the mysterious figure suddenly whirled around, pointing his blade at him.

“So you are the one that called me to this vessel.” The man spoke, his voice containing a metallic rasp. For a moment, Vader stayed silent as he reached out with the Force, attempting to sense the man’s intentions. Peering into it, he was met with feelings of stoicism, a dedication to uphold justice, and the intent to strike him down. Upon sensing these emotions, Vader’s expression darkened from beneath his helmet. It seemed this man shared more in common with the Jedi Council than he’d originally thought.

Aside from that, there was something else Vader could feel in the Force, and it left him somewhat confused. If what he sensed was true, then the man before him was completely hollow, nothing more than a suit of armor being controlled by some sort of spirit. While this revelation briefly astounded him, Anakin proved quick to push it aside, instead choosing to focus on the man’s mission.

“Indeed. I have been expecting you for some time.” Vader said.

“And yet you lack a weapon to defend yourself.” Hakumen noted. “Or perhaps you intend to challenge me with only your fists?”

“If you believe that I would come unprepared, then it would seem your arrogance is matched only by your foolishness.” Vader responded as he raised his hand, causing a cylindrical, silver device to fly from the side of his belt and into his grasp. Pressing a button on its side, a crimson, laser-like blade emerged from its hilt, creating an audible PSHEW! The lightsaber hummed as Vader stared directly into Hakumen’s mask. “Even if I did choose to fight unarmed, it would change nothing. I have slain countless others like you before.”

“You mean the Jedi?” Hakumen asked. Though Vader gave no verbal answer, he could sense that his assumption was correct. “If you believe that I will fall as they have, then you are sorely mistaken. Now that we face each other, you will know what it means,” he paused to bring Ookami in front of himself, “to stand before me!”

Keeping his grip on the ōdachi with his left hand, Hakumen stood upright, his right hand hovering over its blade. Then he began to speak.

Blazblue – Hakaishin

“I am the white void.”

Vader felt a sudden tremor beneath his feet.

“I am the cold steel.”

Another tremor appeared, this one being somewhat stronger than before.

“I am the just sword.”

A third tremor shook the bay, scattering the numerous aircraft and corpses that littered the area.

“With blade in hand shall I reap the sins of this world…”

With each word Hakumen spoke, the tremors grew in intensity, causing the entire docking bay to begin shaking violently. Sensing that they would only continue to grow, Vader used the Force to root himself in place, preventing the tremors from holding any sway on him.

“And cleanse it in the fires of destruction!”

While Hakumen spoke, the tremors picked up even further, spreading and strengthening with each passing second. Soon enough, the entire Death Star was in the throes of a massive earthquake, and it felt as if it could collapse at any moment. Even Vader was beginning to struggle to maintain his position, as it was taking everything he had to remain rooted in place.

“I am Hakumen! The end has come!”

Upon revealing his identity, the tremors ceased, and a ring of white energy briefly appeared around Hakumen’s ankles, blowing his hair back before quickly fading. Spreading his legs out, Hakumen lowered his stance, adopting a horizontal, double-handed grip as his suit’s red eyes seemed to stare into Vader’s own.

“Now, Dark One, come forth so that I may put an end to this facade!” Hakumen demanded.

“Very well. But when you are at my mercy, remember that you chose to die here.” Vader responded as he lowered into his own two-handed stance, holding his lightsaber in front of himself at a diagonal angle.

Continue reading Death Battle: Hakumen vs Darth Vader

Death Battle: Cammy White vs Black Orchid

Credit for the Orchid artwork goes to Ganassa

Prelude here: https://brendansversus.wordpress.com/2020/06/17/prelude-cammy-white-vs-black-orchid/

Alright, the combatants are set. Let’s end this debate once and for all! It’s time for a Death Battle!

——————————————————

Ultratech Headquarters, New York

It seemed to be a slow night at Ultratech headquarters. Most of the employees had turned in for the night, leaving the company’s head, ARIA, alone in her office. For the most part, everything seemed to be silent. The only sounds that carried through the upper floors were the mechanical whirs and metallic footsteps of the Fulgore units. For the past hour, these robots had scanned the premises for any sign of intruders, though none seemed to have shown up. In the deeper recesses, a pack of genetically-enhanced dinosaurs, the Riptors, lay in sleep, letting out the occasional violent spasm. In one of the lower areas, a man who seemed to be set ablaze was currently testing out his powers on several Fulgores. And judging by how the floor was littered with various metal scraps, it seemed pretty clear who was winning.

As Ben Ferris, otherwise known as Cinder, was busy sparring against his company’s sentries, another figure rushed past him. They stuck to the shadows, attempting to make sure they didn’t get caught, but Cinder seemed too preoccupied to notice. Once they had snuck through the door behind Ferris, the figure soon found themselves staring at what they had come for.

Standing in front of them was a massive computer, one containing billions of terabytes worth of knowledge. Unfortunately, it seemed that the figure was going to have to deal with some setbacks. Standing in front of the computer, surrounding it from all sides, were four Fulgores.

’Damn!’ The figure thought to herself. ‘Seems whatever ARIA’s guarding in here, she really went all out with the security.’

Reaching into a pouch on her belt, the woman fished out an extremely odd device. It appeared to be semi-cylindrical, with two old-fashioned keypads and a small glass screen. Pushing a button on the left keypad, the device immediately brought up a set of rotating 3D schematics for Fulgore on its display. Rapidly, the woman pressed several buttons of the pad, and then-

Veeeeewwww…


All four robots shut down, their eyes going dark as they slowly slumped over.

‘Too bad her software’s in desperate need of a patch.’ Black Orchid thought to herself as she stepped out of the shadows. Walking toward the computer, she immediately pulled a flash drive from her pocket and inserted it into the USB port. Then, with several rapid keystrokes from her hacking device, the ex-SWD member had managed to bring up all of the computer’s files. With a smirk, she quickly pressed one of the larger buttons on her device’s keypad, and with it a status bar began to slowly load across the screen. Each second that passed, another 20 files of once classified information would be loaded onto the device. As these folders were extracted, Orchid took note of several names, with one in particular catching her eye: Shadaloo. Back when she was serving in the SWD, Shadaloo was considered public enemy number one. From what she remembered, their crimes included smuggling drugs and weapons, kidnapping, and conducting human experimentation; among many others. She also recalled hearing mentions of a brainwashed team of assassins: the Dolls, if she was remembering correctly.

“Still,” Orchid thought to herself, “what would Ultratech want with Shadaloo? A hostile takeover? Or is ARIA attempting her ‘advance humanity’ schtick by copying their technology?” The thought sent a brief shiver down Orchid’s spine. Ultratech by itself was threatening enough, but if they got their hands on Shadaloo’s technology… Orchid quickly shook her head. She didn’t have time to worry about Ultratech’s intentions. Right now, all that mattered was extracting that data and getting the hell out of here!

Little did Orchid know, there was someone else in the building, currently on a mission similar to her own. This figure swiftly made her way through the skyscraper, avoiding all forms of detection as they slowly approached their destination. Soon enough, the figure peaked around the corner, watching as a man who seemed to be on fire slowly walked out of the nearby room. Despite the stone that made up his face, Ben was somehow managing to whistle. Once he was a safe distance away, the figure leapt out from the shadows and entered through the door. Then, after sneaking by for a bit, the figure cautiously approached the door. As if sensing their presence, the door suddenly opened, and with it the intruder snuck inside.

Upon doing so, they were met with the sight of a woman standing in front of the very computer they were searching for. A status bar scrolled across the screen, displaying 99% for a split second before shutting itself down. Seemingly content with this, the woman put a device back in her pockets and removed a flash drive from the computer’s port.

With the woman’s back facing her, the figure decided to reveal themselves as they stepped out of the shadows. As it turned out, “they” were a woman in her early 20’s, sporting light blue eyes, blonde hair that had been done up in pigtails, and a scar across her left cheek. Her entire torso was clad in a green leotard, while a red beret sat atop her head. Black, calf-length combat boots covered her legs, and a pair of red, studded gauntlets covered her hands.

Cautiously, Cammy White began sneaking up on the woman in front of her, taking great care not to make a sound. At the same time, Orchid was preparing to turn around when she suddenly felt someone wrap their arms around her neck. Almost as if on instinct, the Killer Instinct champion brought her leg up and kicked off, sending her attacker to the ground with an audible grunt. Backflipping through the air, Orchid landed on her feet, taking a moment to eye her assailant. It was obvious this woman wasn’t with Ultratech- unless the company had decided to start hiring bodybuilders in spandex, which she sincerely doubted. Upon spotting the red beret on the blonde’s head, Orchid began to feel some vague memories stir within her. She recalled that during one of her missions in the SWD, her superiors had mentioned an organization of agents dressed in similar outfits. The name still escaped her, but Orchid quickly pushed it aside.

”Not bad, blondie. I didn’t even hear you sneak up on me.” She complimented. “Who are you working for?”

“Delta Red.” Cammy responded. “I take it you’re here under orders, too?”

”That’s right.” Orchid admitted, making a mental note of the organization’s name. “Rumor has it Ultratech’s been dealing with various terrorist organizations, either trading technology or weapons depending on their services. I was sent here to extract information on the organizations and serve as reconnaissance. I’m guessing you’re here under the same orders?”

“Yes. From what I can tell, you’ve already accomplished your mission?”

”Yeah, but if you’re looking to complete your mission, you’re a bit late.” Orchid informed her. “My hacking device cleared out all of the files.”

“And placed them onto that flash drive, right?” Upon hearing this, Orchid cocked an eyebrow in confusion, only for her expression to become one of realization a second later.

”Should’ve figured you’d seen that.” She admitted. “So what are you planning to do about it?”

”Well, I can’t go back to Delta Red empty-handed, now can I?” Cammy said as she slowly lowered herself into a fighting stance. “I apologize if I’m getting in your way, but I need the data on your drive.”

“If you want it so badly,” Orchid began as she grabbed hold of two hilts. Then, with a flick of her wrist, a pair of cylindrical extensions emerged, suddenly sparking to life with electricity. Now armed with her eskrima sticks, the agent lowered herself into her own pose before continuing. “Come and get it!”

 
DB Fight3 by Br3ndan5
 
[Start at 0:47]

Cammy proved quick to take her up on that offer as she rushed forward, throwing out a punch to the stomach once she was close enough. Orchid’s response was almost immediate as she swung her right eskrima stick to block the strike. The two attacks collided, producing a small burst of electricity as the eskrima collided with Cammy’s gauntlet. A paralyzing pain spread across Cammy’s arm, but she put it aside as she noticed Orchid swinging her left stick in an overhead arc. The Delta Red agent reacted almost immediately as she brought her right arm up, resulting in another shockwave.

The two quickly entered a deadlock, with both attempting to match each other blow for blow. Orchid would swing her stick, but Cammy would raise her gauntlet in defense. Cammy would attempt a knee strike, only for Orchid to counter with one of her own. Soon enough, their clash came to an end as Orchid threw out a kick to the side, attempting to exploit her opponent’s blind spot. Rather than making its mark, however, this attack would hit thin air as Cammy ducked beneath it and countered with a sweeping kick.

With her leg kicked out from under her, Orchid fell to the ground, but she swiftly recovered by placing her hands against the ground. Then, with a quick push, the former SWD member cartwheeled back to her feet, gaining some distance between them. At the same time, Cammy let out a shout of “Spiral Arrow” as she shot forward, spinning like a drill. Before Orchid even had the chance to defend against it, she found herself knocked back as the corkscrewing Brit slammed into her stomach. The power behind the Spiral Arrow left Orchid reeling, and she wouldn’t have the chance to recover as Cammy took the opportunity to start a combo!

As she rose back up, Cammy clasped both hands together and slammed them into Orchid’s stomach. The Disavowed’s leader doubled over, leaving her open to an uppercut to the jaw. A roundhouse kick to the jaw followed this, causing Orchid to spin around. She soon came to a halt, but before she could fully recover Cammy grabbed hold of her right arm. Leaping into the air, the former Doll wrapped her legs around Orchid’s neck, threw her over her shoulder, and slammed her into the ground.

SOLID COMBO!

Despite the pain coursing through her body, Orchid threw out a sweeping kick, intent on catching Cammy off guard. Unfortunately, the attack ended up whiffing as her would-be victim backflipped through the air, putting some distance between them. Realizing she’d missed, Orchid got back to her feet, dusting herself off for a moment before reentering her stance.

[Pause]

“So you still want to fight?” Cammy asked. “Hmph. It seems you haven’t learned your lesson yet.”

”You think I’ll give up that easily?” Orchid asked with a smirk. “I’m just getting started!”

[Continue]

As she said this, Orchid suddenly jetted forward, moving so quickly that Cammy didn’t even see her move. She could certainly feel her, though, as a cartwheel kick struck Cammy twice. Orchid then followed this by dropping into a handstand and kicking Cammy two times, ending with an overhead kick to the forehead. The moment her feet touched the ground, Orchid broke whatever concentration the Killer Bee had built up by striking her across the jaw. From there, Orchid began the process of repeatedly bludgeoning her adversary, switching between overhead strikes with her right hand and outward swings with her left. Each one targeted a different section of her body, and as these strikes rained down on her, Cammy could feel her pain start to numb. Instead, anger was beginning to build up within her, and it would only grow as Orchid continued battering her. Finally, after nearly twelve seconds of being rapidly bludgeoned, Cammy had had enough!

With a surge of adrenaline coursing through her body, Cammy spun to the right, hearing an electric crackle as Orchid’s eskrima drifted past her. With Orchid’s back now facing her, White threw her elbow forward, slamming it into the agent’s spine.

C-C-C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER!

 

The force of the strike caused Orchid to lurch forward, caught off guard by the sudden attack. Before she could attempt to retaliate, Cammy continued her attack by delivering a backhand to Orchid’s right shoulder blade, striking hard enough to send her airborne. For a brief moment, Cammy considered the idea of leaping after her to continue her combo, but these thoughts were soon dashed as her legs suddenly gave out.

[Stop music]

Falling onto one knee, Cammy could feel her injuries flare up with each breath she took. It seemed that Orchid’s eskrima sticks had really done a number on her!

‘Still,’ She thought as her hand instinctively drifted to a sheathe strapped to her right thigh, ‘that doesn’t mean I’m out for the count just yet!’

In a swift, fluid motion, Cammy unsheathed her new weapon and rose back up. At the same time, Orchid had managed to recover in midair as she handsprung back to her feet. Upon landing, the agent looked back up to see Cammy, now holding a combat knife as she cautiously approached Orchid. As she saw this, Orchid brandished her eskrima sticks, giving a brief smirk before responding in kind.

Slowly, the two women made their way across the lab, sizing each other up and waiting for the other to make the first move. Soon enough, they were only six feet away from each other, and it was then that Cammy spotted an opening!

Lunging forward, Cammy gave an outward swing of her knife, intent on planting it in a chink in Orchid’s armor. Orchid’s response was almost immediate as she brought up her left arm, keeping the knife at bay as her stick met its guard. Then, with a flick of her wrist, she switched positions, knocking the Brit’s hand out of range and thrusting the eskrima stick into the arm. Cammy grimaced in pain as she felt the electricity burn across her forearm, but she quickly put it aside as she noticed Orchid already preparing for another swing.

With swift reflexes, Cammy leaned to the side, causing the eskrima stick to narrowly brush past her. Undeterred, Orchid threw out an outward swipe with her left arm, only for White to duck underneath that, as well. While doing so, Cammy noticed the weak spot from earlier and, with her knife still in hand, responded a swipe of her own! A wet SCHLICK rang out, followed by a grunt from Orchid as it was ripped out of her. Two slashes followed this as Cammy rapidly struck Orchid’s side, aiming one at her ninth rib and the other at her third. As the knife was removed from Orchid’s chest, Cammy took the opportunity to deliver a sweeping kick, sending her tumbling to the ground.

Orchid’s head slammed into the metal floor, causing her to groan as stars began to cloud her vision. Blinking it away, her eyes widened as she saw Cammy coming down on her, knife already poised to slice across her neck. As she watched the blade’s tip grow closer, Orchid brought her arms up, grabbing Cammy’s hand mid-swing. She then began applying pressure, trying to force her to drop the knife, but it seemed the Brit wasn’t willing to give up so easily!

Placing her left hand over her right, Cammy began putting more strength into her push, and Orchid responded in kind. The two seemed to be at an impasse, with both giving it their all in an attempt to overpower the other. For nearly ten seconds, each inch of progress Cammy made would be undone as Orchid responded with equal, if not superior force. As they continued struggling against each other, Orchid began to feel her strength fade, and panic began to overtake her mind as she watched the knife’s tip grow closer. For a moment it looked as if the knife was about to stab into her throat, but at the last second Orchid managed to throw her head to the right.

THOCK!

”What?” Cammy asked in surprise as she watched her knife slam into the ground, inches away from Orchid’s neck. Before she could correct this mistake, Orchid kneed her in the stomach, which she then used to kick the Killer Bee over her!

Cammy’s body flipped through the air, but she proved quick to reposition herself and hit the ground with a loud THUNK! As she rose to her full height, Cammy threw her knife at the still-recovering Orchid, stabbing her in the shoulder. A cry of pain emerged from the Killer Instinct champion before she got back up, tearing the blade out of her shoulder. Looking back at Cammy, she was briefly surprised to see the ex-Doll rushing toward her at full speed, but this soon morphed into a smirk.

”Looks like you forgot something. Hope you don’t mind if I return it.” She taunted before throwing the bloodied knife back at its owner. As it approached her, Cammy brought her left arm up and quickly swatted it aside, sending her former weapon clattering to the ground. 

“Please! If you want to surprise me, you’ll need more than that!” Cammy responded as she closed the distance between them. Once she was close enough, Cammy threw out a left hook, intent on starting up another combo, but it seemed Orchid had other ideas!

”Alright,” she smirked as she reached behind her back, “how’s this for a surprise?”

Her arm moved like a blur as she leapt back, tossing a white cylindrical object at her attacker. For a brief moment, it ascended through the air, blinking red as it reached the height of its ascension. Upon hitting the ground, the item rolled toward Cammy, its blinking growing more frequent as it approached her. Her pupils dilated as she realized what it was, but before she could move out of its range-

BANG!

The grenade exploded, creating a blinding puff of smoke as the Killer Bee stumbled back. At the same time, Orchid rushed forward and began assailing her with a rapid flurry of kicks and eskrima swings. Her strikes were unrelenting, and she delivered each one with the intent of inflicting the same damage Cammy had onto her. Unfortunately for Orchid, it seemed that her combo wasn’t destined to last. Even as her body became wracked with pain, Cammy managed to raise her arms, blocking the attacks with her gauntlets. Undeterred, Orchid continued buffeting her, with her speed rivaled only by her growing anger at her inability to land a hit.

While Orchid continued chipping away at her defenses, Cammy had taken the opportunity to monitor the agent’s style, searching for any weak points. After several seconds of defending, she eventually noticed a small portion of Orchid’s body that she was failing to defend, one that could easily be exploited!

Orchid swung her eskrima at full force, ready to break Cammy’s defenses and slam it into her head. As it approached her, Cammy ducked beneath it before retaliating with a hard-hitting left cross to the gut! The fist struck hard enough that even with her bustier protecting her, Orchid doubled over, coughing out several flecks of blood. Cammy followed this by reeling her right arm back and smashing into her jaw with a hook. Blood and a tooth fell out of Orchid’s mouth, but she paid it no mind as Cammy slammed into her with another hook.

As she felt her head snap back, Orchid grit her teeth before glaring back at Cammy, who had already brought her fist back. With an annoyed grunt, Orchid swung her eskrima in an underhanded arc, intent on sending Cammy flying with a strike to the jaw. Unfortunately, it seemed Cammy was quicker on the draw, as she cut off Orchid’s attack with a right hook.

C-C-C-C-COUNTER BREAKER!

Orchid stumbled back, but before she had the chance to recover, Cammy lunged forward. The Delta Red agent had clenched her fist, which was now glowing with a dark blue energy. It seemed to be growing in strength as she drew closer to Orchid, and once she was in range, Cammy gave an enraged cry.

“Back off!” She barked as she threw her arm out, slamming into Orchid’s cheek with a backhand. Once the energy-infused fist struck her, an enormous burst of what seemed to be blue fire launched her across the lab.

QUAD COMBO!

 

[Stop music]

As Orchid’s pained scream rang through her ears, Cammy looked down at her fist, her eyes wide with shock as she watched the blue energy flicker away.

”That… that was Psycho Power!” She realized in horror. “But… how did it manifest? And why- why do I have it?” She asked, her hand trembling in fear.

Meanwhile, Orchid hit the ground back-first, causing her to let out a grunt of pain. Placing her hand against the ground, the agent began attempting to push herself back up, but this proved to be a horrible decision. The moment she began pushing, Orchid felt her stab wounds flare up, and her muscles threatened to give way. Before she could fully collapse, however, the agent’s expression hardened as she forced herself to keep pushing! It hurt like hell, and the feeling of blood oozing down her body didn’t help matters, but she refused to let that keep her down! With a determined cry, Orchid pushed herself back to her feet, though this proved to be a double-edged sword.

The moment she got back up, she felt a burning sting run across her cheek. Upon bringing her hand up, she had to fight back the urge to recoil in pain. It seemed whatever that energy was, it would burn her if she wasn’t careful!

[Loop. Start at 0:47 if it ends before you reach “Stop.”]

’Looks like she’s got a few tricks up her sleeves.’ Orchid noted as she lowered her hand. Returning to her fighting stance, she continued, ‘Well, in that case, why not show her some of mine?’

As these thoughts ran through her head, a spectral purple bat appeared near Orchid’s shoulder, and she immediately rushed toward her opponent. Meanwhile, Cammy was just beginning to recover from her shock, and as she looked back up-

“Coming through!”

Orchid suddenly slammed into her ankle with an energy-infused slide kick, forcing Cammy’s knee to buckle. As she attempted to regain her balance, Orchid cut her off with three outward swings to the face, each one forcing Cammy to stagger. An overhead swing nailed her in the forehead, followed by a backhanded swing causing her to spit blood. A left swing followed this, with a right swing to the stomach forcing White lurch over. She attempted to push herself back up, but Orchid put an end to that by delivering a second cartwheel kick to her skull. Then, to end the combo, she threw out two 180° swings, slamming into Cammy hard enough to send her airborne. Just as quickly as she ascended, the Killer Bee began to descend through the air, and as she saw Cammy’s exposed back, Orchid gave a smirk.

”Lasaken!” While these words escaped her lips, Orchid threw her right arm into the air, creating a massive CRACK as her eskrimas collided with each other. As she did so, a spinning disc of plasma shot out of the sticks, slamming into Cammy’s back and sending her crashing into a nearby wall. A series of cracks spread through the surface, and upon seeing this Orchid pointed at her.

”Firecat!”

The moment these words left her, a specter of flames suddenly appeared out of thin air. The construct took the form of a tiger, letting out a roar as it lunged forward and headbutted Cammy in the stomach. Upon colliding, the Firecat exploded in a burst of orange energy, eliciting a cry of pain as Cammy was launched through the wall.

MONSTER COMBO!

 

[Pause]

For three seconds, Cammy fell through the air, feeling only the air flowing behind her back. Just as she was about to hit the ground, though, she backflipped through the air, hitting the metal walkway with a loud CLANG! Upon landing, however, she collapsed onto her knees, panting heavily. She couldn’t explain why, but each time Orchid had hit her, she could feel part of her stamina start to drain. Not only that, but with every blow, Orchid seemed to be getting faster and stronger! 

‘But that doesn’t make sense. How could she-‘ Cammy’s eyes widened as she suddenly remembered something. While she barely had any time to register it due to Orchid’s combo, she could’ve sworn she saw some sort of purple specter beside her. Could that be why she was feeling so drained? As this thought came to her, Cammy began to realize something else: Orchid’s injuries didn’t seem to be slowing her down. In fact, with the way she was moving and how strong she’d gotten, it was like she hadn’t even been stabbed in the first place!

Before she could ponder her opponent’s newfound recovery, Cammy’s thoughts were cut off as she noticed a shadow rapidly approaching her from above. Out of instinct, the Killer Bee backflipped away, which proved to be the right choice as Orchid hit the walkway with a resounding CLANG! Looking up, Orchid watched the blonde skid to a halt, her combat boots kicking up a series of sparks as they grated against the walkway. Once she’d come to a complete stop, Cammy rose back up and reentered her fighting stance, eliciting a smirk from Orchid.

“Gotta say, I respect the dedication to your mission.” The raven-haired agent admitted. “But unless you’ve got some anymore surprises, you’re better off calling it quits. I just spent the past three minutes kicking your ass, and no amount of blue energy is gonna change that.”

‘She’s got me there.’ Cammy admitted to herself. ‘If I want to take her on, I’ll need to rely on more than just Psycho Power. Fortunately…’ she leaned down, pressing a button on both sides of her boots.

[Continue]

‘I’ve got just what I need for an extra boost!’

WHOOSH!

Suddenly, Cammy burst forward, moving so quickly that she disappeared from Orchid’s sight! Her eyes widening, Orchid brought her arms up, instinctively blocking an attack that sent her skidding back two feet. Once she had stopped, Orchid lurched over as she felt a knee strike slam into her chest. A spin kick followed this, with the speed and power sending Orchid hurtling through the air. Before she could regain her bearings, however, a sudden jet boost rang out through her ears, causing her to instinctively look up just as-

WHAM!

Orchid grunted in pain as she felt a flip kick nail her in the forehead, drawing blood and sending her crashing back onto the walkway. She attempted to push herself back up and recover, but Cammy put the kibosh on that as she dove down. Orchid’s eyes shrank in shock as the Brit rapidly approached her, but she proved quick to react by cartwheeling back up, just narrowly avoiding a dive kick. Unfortunately, she proved too slow to counter the follow-up, as Cammy then boosted into a Cannon Spike! The jet-boosted technique sent Orchid into the air once again, and this time Cammy was ready!

Using her rocket skates to her advantage, Cammy boosted forward with a shout of “Cannon Strike” and delivered a dropkick to the chest. An audible CRACK rang out as Orchid’s bustier became covered in cracks, but the woman herself only acknowledged this with an annoyed grunt. She soon fell to the ground, hitting it back-first, but as she attempted to recover, Cammy took action!

While Orchid was just starting to get back to her feet, Cammy rushed forward and struck her with a left hook to the face, forcing her to spit up blood. A right hook followed this, which then led to a roundhouse kick with her left leg and a crescent kick with her right. Orchid felt her head snap to the side, but her pain soon morphed into annoyance. Looking back at Cammy, Orchid attempted to regain control of the situation and swung her right eskrima in an overhead arc. Seeing this, Cammy responded by ducking beneath it, placing her left hand against the ground. Then, with a quick push-

C-C-C-C-COUNTER BREAKER!

 

She slammed into Orchid with a jet-powered, double-booted kick to the face, causing the agent’s head to once again snap to the left as she staggered back. At the same time, Cammy leapt forward, wrapping her legs around Orchid’s neck. Then, after allowing their combined weight to drop them to the ground, Cammy slammed Orchid into the ground back-first, eliciting a grunt of pain from the agent. The moment they hit the ground, Cammy released her grip on Orchid’s body, causing the agent to bounce back into the air! As she watched her opponent ascend, Cammy struck an odd pose, letting out three words as she did so:

”Shifting of gear!”

Then, with her speed boosted even further, Cammy lunged forward, curling into a ball as she leapt through the air. Once she was close enough, Cammy uncurled herself and dove past Orchid, delivering another rocket-powered Cannon Strike. Somehow, the dive kick hit Orchid three times, but this would prove to be the least of her worries as Cammy landed on the ground.

Without wasting a moment, Cammy corkscrewed toward her with a Spiral Arrow, hitting five times and sending Orchid spiraling through the air. The moment Cammy felt her boots touch the ground, she immediately leapt after her aerial opponent, giving a shout of “Cannon Spike” as she slammed her jet-powered skate into Orchid’s lumbar. Unlike before, however, it seemed Cammy wasn’t content with letting it end there. Instead, she allowed the flames of her jet boosts to grow in intensity as she threw out four more kicks. Each one carried Orchid even higher, and by the fourth they were nearly twelve feet in the air! 

As the final kick nailed her opponent in the back, Cammy used the woman’s body as a springboard, creating burns on Orchid’s legs in the process. Cammy hit a nearby wall within seconds, landing with a resounding CLANG, and she immediately sprung off. Then, using a combination of her speed, agility, and the jet boosts; Cammy rapidly struck Orchid from all angles. Each kick carried them further through Ultratech’s headquarters, and it would only end once they were three floors above the corporation’s recesses.

”Acceleration!” The Killer Bee announced as she launched herself at Orchid and began spinning like a drill. Her legs ground against Orchid’s bustier, creating a small spider web of cracks that grew with each nanosecond. Finally, after three seconds of drilling into the Killer Instinct champion, Cammy spun past her, punctuating it with a shout of “You’re finished!”

GODLIKE COMBO!

 

[Stop music]

Once she was several feet away, Cammy stopped spinning and hit the ground with a muffled CLANG, but she still wasn’t done! Spotting the descending Orchid, Cammy shut off her boots and rushed forward, pulling out some garrote wire from a holster on her left thigh. Leaping through the air, the blonde performed a brief flip as she approached Orchid, using this opportunity to wrap her legs around the agent’s arms. With her opponent now restrained, Cammy shifted her weight forward, forcing Orchid to slam into the ground face first. A grunt emerged from Orchid’s throat as her head crashed into the metal floor, but before she could recover her bearings, Cammy wrapped the garrote wire around her neck. Then, without missing a beat, she began to pull!

The grip on Orchid’s neck suddenly tightened, causing her to snap back to reality as the garrote dug into her skin. Realizing what her opponent was planning, Orchid began writhing around, her mind filling with panic as she attempted to free herself. Unfortunately, she would soon realize how futile this was. Due to the way Cammy had wrapped her legs around Orchid’s arms, all she had done was slowly tire herself out. It didn’t help that each time she fought, Cammy’s grip grew tighter. Blood was starting to leak down Orchid’s neck, and she could feel her air supply slowly depleting. But if Cammy expected Orchid to accept her fate, she was dead wrong!

Instead, this feeling of helplessness was causing something to boil up within Orchid. Her mind, once clouded with panic, was rapidly giving way, replaced with a mixture of anger and desperation to survive. As if reflecting this, a blaze of fire began to surround Orchid’s body. A mighty roar escaped the agent’s lips as she leapt to freedom, her body having shrunk into a smaller, familiar form: the Firecat!

 

[Stop music]

”What?” Cammy asked in surprise as she watched the woman-turned-feline escape her grip. The moment the Firecat hit the ground, it immediately turned back around and lunged at the Delta Red agent, headbutting her in the stomach. The force was enough to make Cammy lurch over, leaving her open as Orchid turned back and began wailing on her!

Using the momentum of her first attack, Orchid cartwheeled toward Cammy, delivering two overhead kicks that forced Cammy’s head to snap to the left. Once her feet hit the ground, Orchid struck Cammy with a Flick Flack, with each one forcing her to spit up blood. A donkey kick to the stomach followed this, causing Cammy to cough up spittle. She attempted to recover her bearings, but Orchid cut this short with an overhead swing, forcing her adversary to lurch over. Not even a second later, and this would be followed by a knee strike smashing into Cammy’s chest. Then, using the momentum from this attack, Orchid brought her leg up and slammed into White’s jaw with a roundhouse kick. Cammy’s head snapped back, but before she could regain focus, Orchid fired off three blasts of plasma, each one slamming into the Brit’s stomach. Then, while her opponent was distracted by the pain, Orchid crouched down.

”Coming through!” She announced as her body began glowing a bright white. A split second after this, and the Killer Instinct champion lunged forward, having turned back into a Firecat. This time, however, there was a difference. Now she was moving fast enough to leave a series of afterimages! Cammy grunted in pain as the Firecat rammed into her five times, and once this was over, Orchid returned to normal. Unfortunately, she still wasn’t finished.

With shadow energy still coursing through her, Orchid threw out a lightning-fast combo. A backhanded swing struck Cammy in the side, followed by Orchid whirling around to smack her right cheek. Two downward swings nailed the Delta Red agent in the forehead, forcing her to lurch over. A knee strike then sent her into the air, with Orchid responding by morphing into a Firecat and leaping after her. Once again, the fiery apparition struck its adversary five times, with each one sending them further through the air. Once they’d hit the peak of their ascension, Orchid morphed back, punctuating it with a swing of her eskrima, and then dropkicked Cammy in the face. The former Doll found herself hurtling through the air, and it was at this same time that Orchid hit the ground. Not wasting a beat, the ex-SWD member brought her sticks’ handles together. A grunt of exertion escaped her mouth as she slammed the makeshift staff into the ground, and then-

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Four pillars of energy erupted out of the ground, each one carrying White further across the arena. The energy soon dissipated, and once it had, Cammy slammed into the metal ground with an audible THUD!

GODLIKE COMBO!

 

[Stop music]

Cammy laid on the ground, her body battered, bloodied, and covered in bruises. Pain shot through her with every breath she took, and her injuries were only making this worse. Yet for some reason, whether through sheer stubbornness or an innate desire to win, the Brit forced her arm to move. She placed her hand against the ground, mentally preparing herself for the pain that would come with pushing herself up, but a familiar voice cut her off.

”I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” Orchid advised. Looking up, Cammy noticed the ex-SWD agent had stopped in front of her, both arms crossed over her chest. “I’ll give you this, blondie, you’re tough, but I’m pretty sure even you should know when it’s time to throw in the towel.”

”No!” Cammy said defiantly as she attempted to fight through the pain. Propping herself back up with her right arm, the Brit slowly pushed herself onto one knee. “I can’t give up here! I won’t!” Hearing this, Orchid sighed in annoyance.

“Suit yourself.” As she said this, her batons began to glow a bright yellow, almost as if they were building up energy. She then swung them down, and it was then that Cammy’s pupils shrank in horror. Time seemed to slow down as a sense of dread overtook her mind. Was she really about to die like this? Alone, with her body left to rot in the catacombs of a corrupt organization? What would the other members of Delta Red think of her death, or of her failure to retrieve the information they needed to stop Ultratech?

As these thoughts ran through her mind, Cammy’s panic began to subside, and in its place was a new emotion. Pure, unadulterated rage, born from a determination to survive, began to boil within her. Blue sparks began to form around her body, each one appearing and dissipating with an audible crackle. They started off slowly at first, but each of these wisps continued to grow in frequency, only rivaled by their ever-growing size. Looking up, the Delta Red agent watched as the charged batons slowly descended upon her. By now, they were mere inches away from making contact. All Orchid would need is another millisecond, and all of this would be over. What she didn’t expect, however, was that Cammy was more than willing to fight back!

Bringing her arms into the air, the former Doll grabbed hold of the eskrima sticks, stopping them dead in their tracks.

”What?” Orchid asked, audibly surprised by what she was seeing. Aside from how Cammy was actually grabbing her eskrima without any ill effects, the Brit’s appearance had also undergone another change. For starters, her entire body was now coated in a fiery, blue aura, one that seemed to be made of the same energy from before. The second difference was in her eyes. Only a moment ago, clouded with fear and dread. Now, however, they shone with a cold, violent fury!

[Stop music]

Orchid grit her teeth, feeling her muscles strain as she attempted to push her eskrima into Cammy’s face. Unfortunately, it seemed this energy had given Cammy a second wind. No matter how hard Orchid pushed, her weapons refused to budge! It didn’t help that Cammy had begun twisting her arms and, by extension, the eskrima, to the side. Within seconds, the weapons were pushed out of range, and Cammy proved quick to counter it. Two knee strikes slammed into Orchid’s face, sending her skidding back as the energy in her eskrima suddenly dispersed.

With her opponent distracted, Cammy lunged forward, throwing out two hooks, two hard-hitting crosses to the stomach, and finished by slamming into Orchid with a roundhouse kick. With the added strength of Psycho Power, Orchid was sent spiraling through the air, a streak of blood trailing down her lips as she did so. Before she could even regain her bearings, Orchid found herself sent further through the air by an energy-infused Cannon Spike. As Orchid flew through the air, Cammy leapt after her, curling up in fetal position as she began ascending even further through the air. In seconds, the former Doll had ascended above Orchid, letting out a brief smirk as she dropped down.

With a shout of ”Cannon Strike,” Cammy dove past her adversary, this time unleashing a Psycho Powered kick. Under its power, Orchid was sent spinning even further across the lab, and Cammy proved quick to follow this with a second Cannon Spike. Upon feeling Cammy’s combat boot slam into her atlas, Orchid’s rapid spinning suddenly came to a halt, and she let out a cry of pain. She wouldn’t have the chance to fall, though, as Cammy wrapped her legs around Orchid’s neck. Then, with a violent twist, the Delta Red agent slammed her adversary into the ground! A resounding CLANG rang out as Orchid hit the ground headfirst, only to once again bounce back into the air. 

As her opponent involuntarily flipped through the air, Cammy hopped forward. Then, with a cry of “Spinning Axe,” the British agent slammed into Orchid’s chest with a heel kick. A grunt of annoyance and pain emerged from Orchid’s lips as she flew through the air, but she proved quick to correct her course by backflipping to her feet. Upon hitting the ground, a series of sparks erupted from beneath her as she forced herself to skid to a halt.

AWESOME COMBO!

 

[Pause music]

Once she had come to a stop, Orchid collapsed onto one knee, letting out a heavy series of breaths. That combo had taken a lot out of her, and that energy… whatever it was, she’d need to keep her guard up if she wanted to get around it!

’She’s tougher than I thought!’ Orchid thought to herself as she fell onto one knee, panting heavily. ‘And that energy… whatever it is, it seems stronger than before.’ Closing her eyes, she let out an annoyed exhale before opening them again, revealing that they were now shining with anger. ‘Well, if that’s the game you wanna play, I’ll gladly join in!’

As if reacting to her thoughts, the Vampire Bat disappeared in a puff of smoke, and in its place was a glowing, orange sphere Its sides sported a pattern of intricate white lines and circles, while its middle contained a glowing, light blue iris. The moment it appeared, Orchid gave a grin as she felt her body became tougher, almost as if a layer of metal was coating her skin.

[Continue]

Now equipped with the Fractured Ward, Orchid ran toward Cammy at top speed, with the Delta Red agent responding in kind. They soon met in the middle, with Cammy leaping through the air and throwing out a kick to the chest!

WHOOM!

Upon contact, however, a purple shockwave shot out from Orchid’s body, with Orchid herself remaining unaffected. Cammy’s eyes widened in shock, but before she could attempt to rectify her mistake, Orchid countered with a powerful swing of her left eskrima! The Delta Red agent spat out blood as she was sent flying back, but she quickly recovered with a backflip through the air. Then, with a sudden lunge, the beret-clad Brit slammed into her opponent with an axe kick. Her intent had been to slam the former SWD agent into the ground, but once again she was met with the sight of a purple shockwave. Suspicion briefly donned on Cammy’s face, but it was soon replaced with pain as Orchid countered with a knee strike to the chest.

CRACK!

Cammy let out a cough of pain, flecks of spittle mixing with blood as she felt two of her ribs break. Four swings of Orchid’s eskrima slammed into the Street Fighter’s chest, with each one causing another one of her ribs to crack. Once the final swing had made contact, Orchid connected both of her sticks together. Then, with a grunt of exertion, she slammed them into the catwalk below!

BOOM!

A pillar of energy erupted from the staff, causing Cammy to grunt as it bombarded her multiple times. As it dispersed, Cammy was sent hurtling through the air, but before she could travel too far, Orchid leapt after her and planted both feet against her body. She then pushed off, dropkicking White in the chest hard enough to send her flying away from the catwalk. 

EXTREME COMBO!

 

Cammy descended through the air at breakneck speeds, her back facing the gaping abyss below. Despite this, she showed no signs of worry about her current situation. Instead, Cammy gave a smirk as she threw her arm out. In what could only be described as a stroke of luck, she managed to grab hold of the railing, and she proved quick to exploit this! 

Using her boosted strength, Cammy brought herself over the bar and quickly flipped off of it, making a b-line straight for Orchid! With a shout of “Spiral Arrow,” she once again corkscrewed through the air, this time drilling straight into Orchid. Unfortunately, it seemed that whatever was protecting her was still working its magic. No matter how hard she spun, she still couldn’t get past that damned shield!

With her frustration hitting its peak, Cammy crouched down for a second, allowing Psycho Power to build within her. At the same time, Orchid, noticing the gaping hole in her opponent’s defenses, threw out a left hook. Just before it could make contact, however, Cammy lunged forward, smashing into the Disavowed’s founder with a Psycho Power-infused axe kick! While it wasn’t enough to break through the shield, it had been strong enough to send Orchid crashing back onto the walkway!

CLANG!

 

[Stop music]

The deafening noise rang out across the room, though Orchid managed to push herself back up without much of an issue. That’s not to say her recovery had gone off without a hitch, though. Her fall, when combined with that heavy strike from Cammy, had left her shield in critical condition. Another hit like that, and the barrier would no doubt shatter!

As these thoughts ran through her mind, Orchid noticed a shadow suspended above her and immediately leapt back, just barely managing to avoid a punch from Cammy’s gauntlets. As she leapt through the air, however, Orchid noticed something concerning: the gauntlets were now covered in arcs of electricity, something that would no doubt be amplified by the ex-Doll’s Psycho Power. This theory of hers would soon be tested as her opponent’s feet hit the ground seconds later, with Cammy herself slamming an outstretched fist into the metal floor!

BZZZ-ZZZZ-ZZZT!

Orchid let out a cry of pain as the Psycho Powered electricity coursed through her body, tearing through her shield and attacking her directly! Thousands of volts rolled across her body, shutting her muscle system down and forcing her to collapse onto her knees. Before she could collapse onto the ground, Cammy rushed forward, slamming into the Disavowed’s founder with a kick to the stomach. Orchid was sent skidding back, and with her muscles temporarily shut down, she had no way of fighting back as Cammy laid into her.

Using the momentum of her latest attack, White spun around, striking her across the jaw with three spin kicks. As the final kick flew past Orchid, Cammy followed up with a powerful shoulder tackle to the chest! A grunt of pain emerged from Orchid’s throat as she felt her otherwise numb body flare with pain. Even with her bustier blocking it, she could still feel how hard the elbow strike had hit, and Cammy wasn’t content with letting it end there! Whirling around, the Killer Bee slammed into her face with a swift backhand, but then something odd happened.

Almost as if it were reacting to her subconscious demands, the Fractured Ward disappeared, much like the Vampire Bat before it. In its place was what appeared to be a miniature golden dragon. This new creature, the Exemplar, immediately went to work, filling Orchid’s paralyzed body with energy. The agent flashed white for a brief moment as Cammy’s fist approached. Then, despite her current condition, she raised her arm, casually parrying the swing with her left baton.

”How did you-“ Cammy’s question would be cut off as Orchid bashed her right baton against her side, staggering her.

”Recover so quickly?” Orchid finished with a smirk. “Let’s just say I’ve got my own secrets.”

As she said this, the ex-SWD agent threw out a swift barrage of strikes with her eskrima sticks. She targeted anything she could locate: the arms, the legs, the torso, it didn’t matter! As long as it would make it harder for Cammy to fight, she didn’t give a damn what she hit.

At the same time, Cammy was gritting her teeth, trying desperately to retaliate against Orchid, but to no avail. Occasionally, she’d manage to break the combo chain and attempt her own attack, but Orchid would block and counter with a blow that hit twice as hard. And unfortunately for Cammy, these signs didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon. With each parry, Orchid would recover more of her lost health, and she could feel the energy in her attacks getting boosted even further!

Once these energies had hit their peak, Orchid began unleashing an even more brutal combo. Punches, kicks, and eskrima bludgeonings were happening so quickly that Cammy couldn’t even keep up with her. She didn’t even have time to register the movements in between each move, as her mind would still be left reeling from the previous blows. The onslaught of blows forced the Brit to continuously spit out blood. With each strike, she could another of her bones crack and her organs would either receive another bruise or start bleeding. Little did she know, it would only grow worse once Orchid decided to finish her combo.

Flipping herself upside down, the Killer Instinct champion threw out both legs and began spinning like a helicopter, causing her to ascend through the air! While this blatant defiance of physics occurred, two kicks struck Cammy across the stomach and chest, forcing her to share her opponent’s ascent. Upon landing a final kick to the face, however, White was sent flying off of the catwalk, hurtling toward one of the support pillars at supersonic speeds!

KING COMBO!

As she flew through the air with her back facing the endless expanse below her, Cammy forced herself to look up. Upon doing so, she was met with the rapidly approaching sight of a support pillar, something that she seemed destined to crash against it. Had most people been in this situation, they would’ve likely entered a state of desperate panic, but Cammy White was not most people!

The moment she saw the enormous pillar, a smirk began to form on Cammy’s face. Using her momentum, and fighting the agonizing pain in her system, White backflipped through the air, allowing her to hit the pillar with a muffled THUNK! Then, just as quickly as she landed, she sprung off, hurling herself toward Orchid with a diagonal kick. The blow made direct contact with Orchid’s chestplate, cracking it even further as Cammy flew past her. Appearing behind her, the Killer Bee then lunged forward, landing a kick to Orchid’s back as she once again seemed to phase through the agent.

Once again hitting the support, Cammy rocketed forward with a powerful kick to the stomach. Then, as she landed behind Orchid, Cammy delivered a diagonal ascending kick to the nape. As they ascended through the air, Cammy wrapped both of her arms around Orchid’s torso and performed a swift backflip. The two agents were rapidly approaching the catwalk, and just when it seemed that they were about to hit the ground together, Cammy quickly switched positions. With a resounding CLANG, Orchid found herself slammed into the ground, courtesy of a twin-legged stomp from Cammy. The moment they landed, White quickly backflipped off of her, landing only a few inches away from Orchid.

 

SOLID COMBO!

“I’ll give you one last chance: stand down.” Cammy ordered. Unfortunately, it seemed that the Killer Instinct champion refused to cooperate. As soon as those words had left her opponent’s lips, Orchid forced herself to get back to her feet, ignoring the blood that was now running down her face.

“Sorry, but I’ve never been the type to take orders from an enemy!” She taunted, attempting to retaliate by bashing an eskrima stick against her head. Just when it seemed that her plan was about to come to fruition, however, Cammy gave a smirk as she ducked underneath the swing.

”Then it looks like I’ll need a bit more force!” She announced as she reeled her right arm back. With each inch, her gauntlets began to violently spark, producing arcs of electricity and the occasional streak of Psycho Power. Then, before Orchid could attempt to correct her mistake, the Killer Bee threw her fist forward with all her might!

WHAM!

The Psycho Power-infused punch slammed into Orchid’s stomach, forcing her to double over as she coughed up several flecks of blood. As she would soon realize, though, this was merely the punch. The gauntlet’s blast had yet to come! While this realization was coming to her, she watched in horror as the energy continued to build up. Thanks to it pressing against her stomach, she could feel the growing reserves of energy slowly building up from her gut. Then, with an audible shout, Cammy released all of it in the span of a second, creating a massive explosion that sent Orchid flying across the arena!

As she soared through the air, Orchid let out a scream of combined pain and annoyance. Upon reaching the peak of her ascension, Orchid prepared to reposition herself in midair, but it seemed that Cammy had other ideas. Using her enhanced strength, the Delta Red agent leapt through the air, meeting her recovering opponent almost immediately, and prepared to slam into her with a Cannon Strike. Unwilling to let history repeat itself, Orchid brought her sticks up, crossing them in front of herself to block the dive kick. Unperturbed, Cammy threw out three more kicks, all of which Orchid continued to block. As they continued falling through the air, Orchid took a moment to look back, only to find that she was seconds away from colliding with the metal grating.

Desperate to prevent a painful landing, Orchid proved quick to improvise as she performed an overhead cartwheel through the air, striking Cammy in the chin and sending her over Orchid’s shoulder. With her body now repositioned, Orchid hit the ground feet-first and looked back to where Cammy was landing. Exactly one second later, the Brit landed on her feet, creating a muffled CLANG, and immediately rushed toward Orchid.

”You won’t escape my sting!” Cammy announced as she dove down, corkscrewing toward her with an energy-infused Spiral Arrow. As she watched the Delta Red agent approach her, Orchid only responded by giving a smirk as she reeled her arm back. Then, with a mighty swing-

BAM!

Cammy grunted as one of the eskrima sticks slammed into her jaw, sending her airborne. Then, without wasting a beat, Orchid threw out two swings, both of which hit White in the stomach. Shifting her body, the ex-SWD agent then performed a handstand as she threw out three spinning kicks to the chest. As she rose back up, Orchid delivered two 180° swings, sending Cammy flying helplessly through the air. The blonde attempted to correct her course by flipping through the air, but before she could-

“Firecat!”

At Orchid’s command, the Firecat appeared out of nowhere, slamming into Cammy with a powerful headbutt! Cammy grunted in pain, closing her eyes as she felt a fiery pain spread through her stomach. It soon dispersed, knocking Cammy back, and as she opened her eyes, Cammy was surprised at what she saw. Rushing toward her at hypersonic speeds was Orchid, who had now connected her eskrima sticks together. She held the sticks out a vertical angle, no doubt in an attempt to continue the combo. As this approached her, however, Cammy’s surprise soon gave way to a smirk. Orchid’s makeshift staff was milliseconds away from hitting her, but just before it could, Cammy suddenly disappeared from her sight, causing Orchid to hit thin air. Just as she realized this, though-

”Where are you looking?” A familiar voice called out as the agent felt a spin kick slam into her back.

C-C-C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER!

As Orchid unintentionally staggered forward, Cammy followed her counter by delivering a right underhanded punch to the lumbar, which then led to a roundhouse to the agent’s left shoulder blade. The kick sent Orchid spiraling through the air, and Cammy leapt after her in hot pursuit! Meeting in midair, Cammy planted her feet on the older woman’s back and shifted into performing a Spiral Arrow. The drilling motion of her legs rapidly tore through the damaged bustier, and now they were digging into Orchid’s skin. As she fought back the urge to cry out in pain, Orchid felt her head slam against the grating, forcing her to let out a grunt in annoyance. With her opponent distracted, one thought rang through Cammy’s mind:

”It’s time to end this!”

[Stop music]

Once the Spiral Arrow had come to an end, Cammy didn’t even waste a second before performing her next attack! Moving her legs up, she quickly wrapped them around the older woman’s neck and began squeezing with as much strength as she could muster! Needless to say, it was clear that Cammy had learned her lesson from last time. Earlier, she had made the mistake of acting too slowly. If she wanted to take Orchid down, she’d have to do it quickly!

As these thoughts ran through White’s mind, Orchid, in a blatant attempt to defy her fate, responded by raising both of her legs into the air. Most of her vision had been obscured by Cammy’s thighs, but even in her current position she could still make out where her captor’s face and neck were. With little time to spare, Orchid wrapped her own legs around Cammy’s neck and began squeezing just as hard!

Under Orchid’s vice-like grip, Cammy could feel her neck start to twist involuntarily as she was pulled further toward the ground. The muscles in her neck were struggling to remain intact, and her breathing was becoming slower. At the same time, this brush with death was causing a well of adrenaline to rush through her body her, boosting her strength even further! The Psycho Power surrounding her body was starting to spike up, and with it Cammy’s grip continued to grow tighter and tighter. At the same time, Orchid’s own adrenaline had begun to rise, and she responded in kind!

By now, it was a race against the clock. Both soldiers lay on their sides, locked in a battle for supremacy as they held the other in a headscissor. Their thighs continued grinding against each other’s necks, forcing them to bend at unnatural angles. A chorus of cracks rang out as their muscles and bones began to give out, causing pain to flare through both women’s minds. The two flashed a pointed glare at each other, Cammy’s light-blue eyes meeting Orchid’s dark blue. Gritting their teeth, a strained grunt escaped the soldiers’ lips as they struggled against the other’s grip. These grunts soon evolved, becoming defiant war cries as each one twisted their captive. They could hear their muscles tearing and their bones threatening to snap, but this only seemed to further their resolve! The muscles in their necks began to strain under each other’s grip, and then, as they each gave one final push-

KRACKT!

 

[Stop music]

The audible crunch of someone’s neck snapping rang throughout the area, followed by the muffled CLANG of their hand hitting the ground and going slack. With her opponent dead, the victor pulled herself free, coughing and sputtering as she took several ragged breaths. Once the color had returned to her, the soldier pushed herself back up, taking a brief moment to look down at her fallen opponent.

Cammy’s body laid against the walkway, her neck bent at an unnatural angle. Her eyes were glazed over and her expression remained blank. The Psycho Power had faded from her body, having dispersed the moment Orchid snapped her neck.

As she stared down at the fallen Delta Red agent, Orchid allowed her thoughts to wander. Had her quest to destroy Ultratech actually brought her to this point, that she was willing to kill someone who could’ve been a potential ally? True, she could’ve made the argument that it was in self-defense, but that wouldn’t be enough to rid her of the disgust she was feeling toward herself. Maybe things would’ve turned out differently if they’d talked it out. Or if she’d placed a little less pressure, Cammy would still be here. Or maybe she could’ve used her smoke bomb to escape, instead of continuing the fight..

As her mind swirled with possibilities, Orchid gave a melancholic sigh before bending down. After closing Cammy’s eyes, Orchid switched positions and brought her into the air, taking a moment to look down at her.

”I’m sorry it had to come to this,” she admitted, “but I won’t let your death be in vain. Ultratech… Shadaloo… I’ll make sure those bastards pay for everything they’ve done. Every life they’ve taken, everything they’ve ruined, I’ll be sure to take it and pay it back tenfold! For my sake, and yours!”

As this promise escaped her lips, Orchid began walking out of the laboratory, taking Cammy’s body in tow. While the thought of Cammy’s death still left her with a feeling of disgust, she wouldn’t let it be in vain! She wouldn’t rest until Shadaloo and Ultratech were destroyed, and nothing was going to stop her!

Db Ko! by Br3ndan5

Man, that was pretty close. If Cammy had lasted another second and applied a bit more pressure, this story might’ve ended a bit differently, right? Well, despite what the fight above might have led you to believe, this match was nowhere near as close as it looked.

Let’s start by discussing Cammy. Physically speaking, she’s comparable to the likes of Ryu, Chun-Li, and Guile; the former of whom had his energy used by M. Bison to power a city-destroying laser. This feat comes out at City Level, but it could likely be higher since it was performed after Ryu was subdued and beaten, and it’s unlikely Bison was using Ryu’s full power. Scaling its speed would put Ryu, and by extension Cammy, at Mach 5633, or Massively Hypersonic+.

When it comes to Orchid, this is where things get interesting. During the events of Shadow Lords, she was able to defeat Shadow Jago, who at the time was possessing Jago’s body. Jago was one of the three people (alongside Tusk and Kim Wu) responsible for defeating Gargos, who was able to disperse a massive amount of clouds, which comes out at 29.99 zettatons of TNT; or Small Planet Level. Keep in mind that this was just from Gargos appearing, so it’s likely he’s even stronger. In terms of speed, Orchid can be scaled to ARIA due to directly keeping up with her in battle. And in the Killer Instinct Novella, ARIA was able to do this:

ARIA sat down on her throne and tapped into her cloud-mind, running through every scenario that she had ever conceived—and its millions of potential pathways—in a nano-second. Her eyes flashed briefly and then she said: “I will go to the City of Dawn…alone. And I will ask Jago, Orchid, Maya and TJ—and their allies Thunder and Aganos—to join Ultratech in combating whatever malevolent beings will inevitably come through these portals.”

Since ARIA was able to process millions of pathways in a nanosecond, this feat would be around 15 million times faster than light. And since Orchid was able to keep up with her, this feat by proxy would scale to her as well.

In short, Orchid massively dwarfs Cammy in the stat trinity, but what about the other factors?

Well, experience is a bit hard to decide. Cammy’s been trained from birth to be a master assassin, and she’s fought her fair share of martial artists. Orchid, meanwhile, has been trained by her father in military and survival skills; and her time in the SWD has given her stealth training and knowledge of guerilla warfare tactics. This knowledge, when combined with her stealth, gives her another option to take Cammy down if brute force wouldn’t cut it.

In terms of arsenal, both had a vast array of weaponry, each with their own advantages. Cammy’s gauntlets give her better striking strength and its concussive blasts would grant her an edge in unpredictability. The choke whip could be used to restrain Orchid, and her submachine guns and rocket launcher give her better options for long-range combat. But while Cammy had Orchid’s number in long-range, Orchid had better close-range options. Her electrified eskrima sticks and tonfas could let her paralyze Cammy, and their eruptions could let her attack Cammy from a distance. Additionally, her smoke grenades could disorient Cammy, giving her the opportunity to attack via stealth tactics. Her transmutation spell is also something Cammy had no means of countering, as she’s never shown the ability to resist something like that. Admittedly, it’s unlikely Orchid would use it right off the bat since she typically saves it for a finishing blow, but this is a moot point considering she already holds a massive edge in stats. 

Keep in mind that I’ve said all of this without considering the Guardians. By including them, Orchid gains an even larger edge in versatility. The Vampire Bat could heal her from any damage Cammy inflicts, and it gives her the opportunity to gain faster attacks. She could counter Cammy’s fighting style (which is based on agility and grappling) by using the Ram, Fractured Ward, Exemplar, Watcher, or Tiger. Astral Tiki and Lion give her buffs that would further the already massive gap in stats, and Snake would allow her to inflict a poison effect to further inconvenience Cammy.

Finally, there are their respective energy power-ups. While you’d think Cammy’s Psycho Power would give her an edge over Orchid, it… really doesn’t. Sure, it boosts her stats and increases her moveset, but Orchid’s Firecat accomplishes the same thing. It doesn’t help Cammy’s case that using Psycho Power will cause her body to decay. Admittedly, this will only occur over time, but it’s unlikely to happen in the first place since Orchid can easily blitz and one-shot her.

Meanwhile, when we look at Orchid’s Firecat, it becomes clear that she even holds the edge here. With it, she can summon Firecats to give herself an edge in numbers, they can explode or burst into flame for a larger AOE attack, and she can even turn herself into a Firecat to phase through Cammy’s attacks.

In short, Cammy’s firearms gave her an edge in long-range combat and her ability to use Psycho Power meant that she could lessen the gap in stats by a bit; but Orchid’s enormous edge in the stat trinity, superior experience, more tactical mind, larger arsenal, and larger array of powers allowed her to take the win.

Cammy thigh-ed her best, but it wasn’t enough to prevent her from snapping under the pressure.

The winner is Black Orchid.

 

WinnerBlackOrchid by Br3ndan5
Black Orchid (Winner)
+ Held an astronomical edge in stats
+ More experienced
+ Better training
+ Stealth training and guerilla warfare tactics gave her a form of combat Cammy had no means of countering
+ Better close-range arsenal
+ Smoke grenades could be combined with her stealth training to disorient Cammy
+ Magic was something Cammy had no counter for
    – Though it’s unlikely Orchid would use it from the start
+ Guardians gave her massive buffs, ways to counter Cammy’s fighting style, healing options, and the ability to inflict poison effects
+ Firecat gives her an edge in numbers, larger AOE attacks, and unpredictability
– Inferior long-range arsenal

Cammy White (Loser)
+ Better long-range options
+ Could boost her stats further with Psycho Power
    – But even with it, she has no way to close the massive gap
    – She’d also get blitzed and one-shot before she could use it
– Even with Psycho Power, she was completely dominated in stats
– Less experienced
– Inferior training
– No way to counter Orchid’s stealth approach or magic
– Inferior close-range arsenal
– Guardians countered her fighting style, could poison her, allowed Orchid to heal herself, and gave Orchid buffs
– Firecat > Psycho Power

Prelude: Cammy White vs Black Orchid

Claim: Cammy White vs Black Orchid by Br3ndan5
 

They are the government’s top soldiers, saviors of mankind multiple times over and masters of assassination. Armed with skill in hand-to-hand, stealth, and weaponry, these two deadly heartthrobs are some of the military’s best warriors, and today, they’re here to show who truly reigns on top of the heap.

Cammy White, the Killer Bee of Delta Red!

And Black Orchid, leader of the Disavowed!

I’m Br3ndan5, and I’ll be analyzing their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win a DEATH BATTLE!

Thanks to TheNerd-Bot for the Cammy bio and VultureDuck and MajorM117 for their Orchid bios
——————————————————

Sf4-cammy2 (2) by TheNerd-Bot
Cammy White
Aliases: Killer Bee, The British Bombshell, The Blonde British Bombshell
Age: Unknown, Young Adult at minimum
Height: 5’5″
Weight: 134 lbs
Species: Artificial Human
Occupation: Shadaloo Doll (Former), Agent of Delta Red
Theme:

Feats:
-Was trained from birth to be a master assassin
-Is Delta Red’s hand-to-hand combat expert
-Killed Chun-Li’s father, who was able to hold off all of the 13 Dolls
-Defeated Vega with ease
-Fought Balrog to a draw
-Slaughtered a small army of mercenaries with ease
-Fought a mind-controlled T. Hawk, Ken, and E. Honda simultaneously
-Fought Juni, Juri, and Decapre simultaneously
-Defeated Necro
-As Killer Bee, beat up Blanka so badly, he’s terrified at the mere sight of her
-Has freed multiple Dolls from Shadaloo’s control
-Among the most well-known Street Fighter characters, even starring in her own manga
-Was portrayed by Kiley Minogue


In his conquest for world domination, the terrorist leader M. Bison has created multiple host bodies to use in the event that he dies. From the cybernetic warrior Seth, to the French martial artist Abel, to today’s subject: Cammy White.

Created using the dictator’s own DNA, Cammy was raised from birth to serve as a mindless drone in Shadaloo’s league of assassins, the Dolls. During this time, she would use her skills to take out multiple political officers, military leaders, and rogue Shadaloo agents. All of this would change when she was assigned to assassinate the yoga master Dhalsim. Sensing that her mind was troubled, the mystic used his spiritual powers to ease her troubled mind. In doing so, he also managed to unlock her inner consciousness, freeing her from Bison’s control.

Realizing that this might screw up his plans, Bison sent several of his hitmen after her, like the Spanish ninja Vega and the twin Dolls Juni and Juli. They were quickly defeated, and upon returning to Shadaloo she freed all of the Dolls and led a revolt, ultimately prevailing after a hard fight. After obtaining victory and helping her “sisters” escape the base, however, Cammy lost her memories and fell unconscious. She would’ve died had it not been for the arrival of Vega, who chose to rescue her out of the belief that someone as beautiful as her didn’t deserve to die. The ninja would then drop her off at the doorstep of the British military group Delta Red, which quickly took her in. She would become a valuable asset to the team, aiding them in fighting off Shadaloo and various others who threatened the world.

aUe5Re5 by TheNerd-Bot
Strength:
-Strong enough to kick a terrorist through the metal roof of a train
-KO’d a Doll with a single backhand
-Was dogpiled by around ten men, and threw them all off with ease soon after
-Regularly fights on par with the likes of Ryu, Juri, Chun-Li, and other Street Fighters
-Was able to Double KO with Balrog
-Can throw the 584 lb Abigail with nothing but her legs

Screen Shot 2017-12-27 at 4.09.37 PM by TheNerd-Bot
Speed:
-Able to dodge gunfire with ease
-Reacted to sneak attacks from Decapre
-Can keep up with Ryu in a fight
-Caught up to a jet plane mid-takeoff


Screen Shot 2017-12-27 at 4.11.20 PM by TheNerd-Bot
Durability:
-Was unfazed by a headbutt from Decapre
-Barely flinched after taking a punch from T. Hawk
-Tanked a punch from Balrog, who can kill an elephant with one blow
-Was smashed through a glass container by M. Bison
-Tanked several electric attacks from Necro
-Survived a brutal beatdown from an enraged Chun-Li, being tackled out of a three-story window, and tanking three of her super moves
-Withstood a beating from Juri Han
-Survived falling out of a jet, and was only pissed off
Continue reading Prelude: Cammy White vs Black Orchid

Death Battle: King Bradley vs Deathstroke

King Bradley vs Deathstroke Interlude by Br3ndan5

 

Prelude here: https://brendansversus.wordpress.com/2020/06/15/prelude-king-bradley-vs-deathstroke/

Alright, the combatants are set. Let’s end this debate once and for all! It’s time for a Death Battle!

——————————————————

European Forest

CLUNK! CLUNK! CLUNK! CLUNK!


The almost rhythmic beat of numerous steel-toed boots hitting the ground echoed throughout the forest, just as it had been for the past several hours. The men responsible for this noise were a group of soldiers, currently wading through the depths of the forest. Their uniforms were all identical, consisting of blue overcoats, pants, and a pair of black boots. Some had chosen to add to this outfit by adorning themselves with white coats or hats, though the intense heat meant that these additions were ultimately rendered moot. Despite this, all of the soldiers continued to move forward, following their leader without complaint.

The man in question stood in front, his gaze focused on the forestry ahead. His clothing consisted of a blue, full-length military issue coat and slacks. His legs were covered by a pair of blue dress pants, while his feet were obscured by black dress shoes. A sash lay around his outfit, currently holding four swords in its sheathes. When it came to appearance, this man’s face appeared somewhat stocky, with short black hair that contained a widow’s peak. A thick, black mustache covered his lips, and his left eye remained obscured by an eye patch.

This was King Bradley, the Führer-President of Amestris and- unbeknownst to his men- the Homunculus known as Wrath the Furious. Currently, he and his men were under orders from his superior- the original Homunculus, Father- to investigate some reports that had come up in the Amestrian military. Apparently, while investigating a far-off city, a group of soldiers had located three oddly-shaped statues, all of them near-naked men in rather odd poses. According to these reports, whatever came close to these statues would be attacked, which the soldiers only learned after four of them had died.

When he had first heard these claims, Bradley dismissed them as foolish, but Father seemed to take a slight interest in one of the smaller aspects of these reports. Three of the soldiers had reported seeing several oddities adorning the wall. These included a small set of stone masks, all of which bore fangs, as well as some odd carvings that depicted a red stone. When he had heard this, the elderly Homunculus sat up, a small glimmer of surprise shining in his otherwise dull eyes.

It had been several hours since Father had given his orders to investigate, and the battalion was nearly a third of the way through their trek. As they traveled down one of the forest’s many pathways, however, Bradley could’ve sworn he heard something: a faint, nearly inaudible rustle. The moment this noise echoed through his ears, he immediately stopped and raised his arm, signaling for his men to follow suit.

”It seems someone’s trying to spy on us. Keep yourselves on high alert!” As he said this, the troops began to look around the area nervously, some clutching their rifles while others tightened their grip on their swords. Sweat began to pour down their faces, until finally-

SPLURTCH!

 

[Start at 1:52]

A bullet suddenly tore through the skull of one of the soldiers, spraying blood onto his comrades’ outfits as he fell to the ground. The others’ eyes widened in horror, but before their panic could overtake them, three more shots emerged, seemingly from nowhere. Each one nailed itself into a different portion of its target’s body, but one thing was certain: they had all been fired with extreme precision, each shot ensuring a quick death. Within the span of a few seconds, the group had dwindled, going from several dozen members to only one. But if the sniper expected this to frighten Bradley in any way, they were sorely mistaken! Instead, the Homunculus had decided to scan the area, his uncovered eye darting back and forth until he noticed something: a brief muzzle flash.

With lightning-fast reaction speeds, Wrath turned toward its direction, having already drawn a sword and swung it through the air. An audible SHINK rang out as the blade met another metal object- a bullet, he noted. And that could only mean-

Another flash appeared out of the corner of his eye, causing the Führer to turn toward it, his hand already gripping a second hilt. Another swing, and a second bullet was sliced in two.

”Don’t tell me marksmanship’s all you have!” Bradley taunted, a slight smirk on his face as he continued to scan his surroundings. Once again, he picked up the nigh-inaudible rustle of leaves, and he proved quick to bring both swords behind him. A deafening CLANG rang throughout the clearing, the result of his sabers meeting a blade of similar caliber. Turning to face his attacker, Bradley’s smirk evolved into a full-blown grin as he saw who was in front of him.

Standing before him was a man clad in orange-and-black armor. A sash lay wrapped around his chest, adorned with hundreds of ammunition cases, while his waist was covered by a belt containing two submachine guns and dozens of pouches. Two knives were attached to his outfit, one on his waist and the other strapped to his right thigh. A holster was strapped to his left thigh, currently containing a pistol. Several hilts emerged from his back, one containing a second sword with a yellow crossguard, another containing what appeared to be a staff, and a third containing a sword with an intricately designed golden hilt. But the thing Bradley noticed the most was his mask. It was split down the middle, with one half consisting of orange fabric and the other being pitch-black. The mask itself contained a single hole on the orange half, revealing an eye that glared intently at Bradley.

Although they had never met before then, Bradley was aware of this man’s existence, if only through his reputation. A fearsome soldier turned mercenary, feared even by those who hired him. He was known by many names. Deathstroke. The Terminator. The Balkan. But before he had taken up the role of a mercenary, this man had gone by another name.

”Slade Wilson.” Bradley declared as he continued struggling against his opponent’s blade. With a sudden push, the Führer had caused his attacker to stagger back, and he proved quick to exploit it! With a sudden lunge, Bradley thrust his right saber forward, intent on driving it through Wilson’s shoulder. Unfortunately, it seemed the mercenary’s reflexes may have matched his own, as he immediately brought his sword up to parry it. The two blades clashed in a series of sparks, but Wrath proved quick to put it aside as he reeled back, readying both swords in the process.

“What reason do you have for targeting me?” Bradley asked as he swung both swords through the air at lightning-fast speeds. Each swing was aimed at a specific weak spot in Slade’s body, but it seemed that none of them were destined to land. No matter how quickly he attempted to swing them, Wilson would casually block or parry each one, almost like he could see them coming! An upward swing attempted to disarm Deathstroke of his weapon, but he proved quick to avoid it as he leapt out of its range.

[Stop music]

Now that he had some distance between them, the Terminator decided to answer.


”Let’s just say that you’ve got some crimes you need to answer for, and there are some people willing to pay a hefty price for your head.” Deathstroke said.

”The Ishvalans?” Bradley asked. Slade nodded, causing the Homunculus to smirk. “So they finally decided to take my advice and stopped relying on their God to answer their prayers, eh?”

”And unfortunately for you, they decided to hire me.” Deathstroke responded, smirking under his mask.

“HA! The only unfortunate one here is you, Slade, and for one reason,” Bradley lowered himself into a fighting stance before continuing. “You had the gall to think you could challenge me!”

“Oh, I assure you,” Deathstroke paused to pull out his pistol before following suit, pointing its barrel at the military leader. “I’m far different from the rest.”

“Why don’t you show me a demonstration, then?” King asked, his smirk growing further in size.

 
Db Fight! by Br3ndan5

Deathstroke proved quick to honor the request as he pulled the Beretta’s trigger, rapidly firing off three shots. Between each millisecond of firing his shots, Slade would calculate the trajectory of each bullet, keeping a close eye on Bradley’s body language. As a result, he had made each of his shots with extreme precision, ensuring that even if Bradley managed to dodge one of them, the rest would still hit their mark.

As he watched each of the bullets fly toward him, Wrath’s muscles began to tense up. Even without using his Ultimate Eye, he was still scanning the oncoming projectiles, mentally assessing their trajectories. Three milliseconds later, and a grin began to form on his face as he rushed forward. His arms moved like blurs, with the weapons themselves moving so quickly that it couldn’t even be seen! As the halves of each bullet descended toward the ground, Bradley lunged forward, thrusting his right sword directly at Deathstroke’s chest. It was inches away from piercing through the mercenary’s chestplate, but Slade proved quick to respond.

With a diagonal swing of the promethium sword, the saber’s path had not only been interrupted, it had been diverted. Not helping was that Deathstroke had twisted his body at an angle, ensuring that he would also avoid the Führer’s second attempt. With this newfound opening in his opponent’s defenses, Wilson immediately raised his Beretta and pulled the trigger.

BANG!


The bullet flew out from its chamber, rapidly approaching the Homunculus’ temple. Just when it seemed like it was about to pierce his skin, however, Bradley suddenly tilted his head to the side, causing the bullet to whiz past him harmlessly. That wasn’t to say it was completely ineffective, as it had succeeded in nicking Bradley’s eye patch. Despite the close call he had just experienced, the Führer proved quick to jump back into the fray, using his change in position to slam his head against Slade’s. It struck hard enough that the Terminator’s head snapped back, eliciting a grunt of pain as he stumbled back.

With his opponent distracted, Wrath seized the opportunity and swung his right saber through the air, delivering a diagonal slash that ripped the promethium sword out of Slade’s hand. As it ascended through the air, Bradley attempted to end the fight quickly with a swing of his left sword, intent on slitting Slade’s throat. At the same time, Deathstroke had already recovered and, upon realizing the sword was rapidly approaching him, time seemed to slow to a crawl.

As his mind went into overdrive, Wilson quickly brought his arm up, creating an audible CLANG as the saber clashed against his forearm. Sparks flew through the air as the steel blade met Slade’s promethium armor, but it would soon end as Deathstroke leapt to the right and brought his Beretta up. His finger rested on the trigger, just a nanosecond away from pulling it, but then-

SHING!

 

[Stop music]

Bradley, having noticed the sudden change in motion, responded with a horizontal slash, splitting the firearm in two. With his opponent now disarmed, he took the opportunity to thrust both arms forward, intent on stabbing through the less protected areas in Deathstroke’s armor. During the several milliseconds it had taken for his arm to move an inch, Bradley had taken the time to look the armor over, calculating the best options to aim at. Then he found it, and it took everything in his power to not smirk at the realization.

With his arms hurtling toward Slade, Bradley adjusted his grip, aiming one slightly below the ribs and the other over his left pec. Both of them flew through the air, mere inches away from piercing the armor, but then something odd happened. Slade had reached out, grabbing hold of both arms and holding them at bay. Of the two, the first sword’s tip was only a centimeter away from stabbing through Deathstroke’s side, and Wrath was ready to finish the job! Unfortunately, his efforts seemed to be in vain. No matter how hard he pushed, the damned sword wouldn’t move! Of course, Deathstroke’s own fight for survival wasn’t doing Bradley any favors, either.

Keeping a firm grip on his opponent’s arms, Deathstroke began to slowly apply pressure, forcing them to bend at an uncomfortable angle. With each centimeter that passed, another flare of pain shot through Bradley’s mind, and the grip on his weapons continued to loosen. In fact, he had already dropped one of his swords. But if Slade expected that this would stop Bradley at all, he was dead wrong!

In a desperate attempt to free himself, Bradley slipped his left arm free and threw out a hook, attempting to aim at Deathstroke’s blind spot. The fist flew forward, but just before it could land, Slade flicked his own hand through the air. The next thing Bradley knew, something gray and metallic had smacked against his face, causing his attack to whiff as he stumbled back. His other sword fell to the ground and, while he was in the midst of recovering, the Führer took a brief moment to look down at what had hit him. Upon seeing what it was, his eye widened in surprise. Laying on the ground was Slade’s Beretta, the same weapon he had reduced to scrap only seconds prior!

‘Hm. Seems he’s more cunning than I gave him credit for.’ Bradley admitted to himself. As he returned his focus to Deathstroke, the Homunculus instinctively put his arm up, blocking a right hook. Pushing the arm aside, he responded by planting a left hook into Slade’s jaw. The blow staggered the mercenary, and before he could recover, Bradley lunged forward! Three jabs and crosses planted themselves into Deathstroke’s stomach, each one aimed at the less-armored portions of his clothing. For a brief millisecond, Bradley had reeled back his fist, preparing to deliver a strike that would finish the combo. Unfortunately for him, it would be this same moment that allowed Slade to recover his bearings.

As he watched the Führer‘s fist slowly approach him, Deathstroke responded by tilting his head to the side, allowing the uppercut to lightly brush past his left cheek. Once it had, the mercenary lunged forward, slamming into his adversary with three punches. The first was a left cross to the stomach, the second was a hook aimed at his chest, and the third was a jab that embedded itself into Bradley’s right pec. Then, as the Homunculus staggered back from the pain, Slade smashed into his face with a wicked headbutt!

 
[Stop music]
 

Upon contact, an audible CRUNCH could be heard as Wrath’s nose was broken, followed by a cry of pain. In his pain, Bradley stumbled back, and it was at this same moment that Deathstroke decided to end it!

Ducking down, Slade threw out a sweeping kick, knocking him off his feet and onto the ground. Before he could get back up, Wilson lunged forward and wrapped both of his hands around the Homunculus’ neck.

”I’m… quite impressed!” The Führer choked out as the pressure around his neck began to grow. “I heard the rumors… but I never thought… you’d be this skilled in combat!” As he said this, he grabbed hold of Slade’s arms. Then, with as much fading strength as he could muster, he began pulling at them, intent on freeing himself from this cruel fate.

Unfortunately, it seemed that his efforts were in vain. No matter how hard he pulled, Deathstroke’s arms refused to budge, much like the swords from earlier. Not helping matters were his fading sight and slowing breath, both of which were starting to affect his struggles. He could feel himself growing weaker, and there seemed to be nothing he could do about it! But in this sense of hopelessness, this feeling of loss, Wrath could feel something building up from within. It was quickly spreading throughout his entire system- a surge of adrenaline, brought on solely by his desire to survive, and he wasn’t going to let it go to waste!

With this newfound energy replacing his fading strength, Bradley began to pull against the arms that held him down, and he was slowly succeeding in his goal! With each second, Slade’s arms were moved further out of reach, and as he stared the mercenary in the eye, Bradley couldn’t help but flash him a smirk. Then, before the mercenary could think up a new strategy, Bradley kneed him in the stomach, eliciting a grunt of pain as his former target suddenly threw him over!

 
[Stop music]
 

As Deathstroke’s body flipped through the air, already halfway into landing on his back, King scanned the area using his uncovered eye. With the skill Slade had showcased, he’d need a weapon if he wanted to even the odds. While he could’ve just used one of his spare swords, its ineffectiveness against Deathstroke’s armor proved quick to rule that out. But what else could he…

Aha!’ His eyes widened as he noticed two familiar weapons laying near him. One of his swords lay nearby, currently several feet away from his grasp, but he was more interested in the second item: Deathstroke’s promethium sword, currently laying against the grassy terrain. Admittedly, it was farther from his reach compared to the saber, but he quickly put it aside as he pushed himself back to his feet. Then, after his legs tensed up for a brief second, he shot forward!

While this was occurring, Slade had also begun to rise back up, and the sound of rapid footsteps caused him to turn toward its direction. Upon doing so, he noticed King Bradley, currently holding both the promethium sword and one of his sabers from earlier. Realizing the trouble this would bring, as well as the vulnerable spot his opponent was in, Deathstroke proved quick to grab hold of the Heckler & Koch MP5K’s strapped to his side. With blinding speed, he swiped them across his ammunition belt, filling them to the brim immediately, and aimed at Bradley. The leader of Amestris was just beginning to stand upright, and Slade was more than willing to exploit this!

BRADADADADADADA!


With a pull of both triggers, the submachine guns let loose a hailstorm of bullets, all of them quickly spreading out across the area. For an ordinary person, this sight would’ve no doubt left them in a state of shock, and their only recourse would’ve been to close their eyes and wait for the inevitable. But it went without saying that Führer-President King Bradley was not most men! As he stared down the onslaught of ammunition flying toward him, the Homunculus’ expression lifted, going from a look of stoicism to a cocky smirk.

“Back to gunplay, are we?” He taunted as he lowered himself into a fighting stance. “You should know by now that those pathetic shells mean nothing to me!”

As these words escaped his lips, the leader of Amestris suddenly boosted forward, swinging his swords like a madman. He moved so quickly that, to the untrained eye, it would’ve seemed that his arms had completely disappeared! Every time a bullet approached his vicinity, he would immediately split it in two with a swing of his blades, causing it to fall to the ground. With each second that passed, Wrath continued to close the distance between them, and he would commemorate each step by picking up the pace.

”Feel free to bring out whatever you’d like, Terminator! Guns, swords, it doesn’t matter! If it stands in my way, I’ll cut it down without a moment’s hesitation!” He boasted as his arms continued to dart around his body. By now, the swords couldn’t even qualify as blurs. They were moving so quickly that a vacuum of air was starting to blow away some of the bullets before they could even approach! The few rounds that would bypass this “shield” would only meet the same fate as their predecessors, with Bradley nonchalantly rending them in two.

[Stop music]

“Is that so?” Deathstroke responded, now sounding somewhat smug as he returned his SMGs to their straps. Gripping the staff-like object behind him, he quickly unsheathed it to reveal its true form. It resembled a metal bo staff, though both of its ends possessed a hollowed-out, cylindrical extension. Pointing one of its ends at Bradley, a blast of cobalt energy began to build up within the extension, growing brighter with each millisecond that passed.

”Then let’s see how you plan to cut through this!” As these words escaped his lips, Slade thrust his staff forward, firing off an enormous laser from its shaft. The beam approached Bradley at blinding speeds, piercing his stomach faster than he could’ve hoped to react. The moment it made contact, King felt himself get blown back, causing him to let out a cry of pain. Despite the beam burning his abs, Bradley proved quick to recover as he planted both feet against the ground, skidding to a halt. At the same time, he noticed a familiar shadow suspended above him. Looking up, the Homunculus proved quick to bring both swords up, placing them in a defensive position. He was just in time, too, as Deathstroke had leapt through the air, already in the midst of bringing his staff down!

Upon colliding, the simultaneous sounds of a metallic CLANG and a sound like shattering glass rang throughout the forest. The shards of metal that had once been Bradley’s saber fell to the ground, while its wielder held his ground. Despite just losing one of his weapons, the Homunculus proved quick to adapt as he used the stolen promethium sword to parry the strike.

With the staff’s path diverted, Wrath decided to take a page out of his opponent’s book and chucked his broken weapon at Slade. The saber-turned-dagger nailed Deathstroke in the shoulder, stabbing through a chink in his armor and eliciting a grunt from the former soldier. Blood began to seep from the wound, he proved quick to rip it free and tossed it aside. As this was occurring, Bradley, seeing an opening in his opponent’s defenses, rushed forward, ready to rend Slade in two with his own sword. The promethium blade flew forward at blinding speeds-

SHINK!


-only for Deathstroke to suddenly recover and raise his staff, blocking the oncoming strike with ease!

”Don’t think you can take me out that easily. All you did was get in a lucky shot.” Slade said as they struggled against each other’s weapons.

”Is that so?” Bradley responded as he spun around, swinging the sword at enough of an angle that he could’ve easily decapitated the mercenary. Unfortunately, it seemed Deathstroke had seen this coming, as he quickly spun the staff around and smacked it against the right side of Bradley’s head. The Führer stumbled back, briefly overwhelmed by the pain, and Slade proved quick to capitalize on this!

With blinding speeds, the Terminator swung his staff at multiple angles, aiming each strike to target the vital sections and pressure points in Wrath’s body. Every time these hits landed, the blue-clad leader felt a numbing pain shoot through his body, and it would only grow in intensity with each blow that passed. In fact, he was moving so quickly that Bradley couldn’t even keep track of his movements. He couldn’t even make out Wilson’s actions during the brief intervals between hits!

’That speed… it might even rival my Ultimate Eye!’ He thought in astonishment as he was continuously bludgeoned. Before he could think on this matter any further, however, Deathstroke ended the combo by thrusting his staff into Bradley’s abs, causing the Führer to cough up spittle as he lurched over. As he stared down at the staff, Bradley noticed its end flash blue for a brief moment, causing his eyes to widen in horror.

FWOOOOOOOOM!

 

[Stop music]

”HRAAAAAAAGGHHH!” The Homunculus’ scream of agony echoed throughout the forest as the energy violently launched him away. The burning pain in his stomach had now increased tenfold, as what had once been confined to the outside of his body had now spread into several of his organs. Not helping was his landing, as he slammed into the ground back-first. Upon impact, Wrath involuntarily opened his mouth, allowing several flecks of blood to emerge from his throat.

As these drops hit the ground, he found himself rolling across the grassy terrain, each cycle producing another sensation of pain as he landed on his stomach. This would continue for several more feet until Bradley planted his stolen sword in the ground, allowing him to rapidly skid to a halt. As he attempted to get back to his feet, King doubled over, collapsing onto one knee as he felt pain sear throughout his stomach. Looking down, he found himself staring at the source. It was a hole, currently between his abs and roughly the size of a medal. Although it had been cauterized by the laser’s heat, it didn’t change the fact that if left unchecked, this newfound injury would only serve to hinder him! As this realization came to him, Wrath couldn’t help but sigh in annoyance.

‘It’s times like this that make me wish I had the same healing ability as my siblings.’ He thought as he forced himself back up. While doing so, a familiar set of footsteps began to echo throughout his ears, and he quickly looked toward their direction. Upon doing so, he found Deathstroke striding toward him, and though his mask obscured most of his face, Bradley still noticed the look in his eye. He could sense two emotions stirring within Slade: annoyance at his inability to die, as well as a shred of respect for his tenacity.

“I’ll give you credit where it’s due, Bradley. You’re one persistent bastard.” He admitted.

”I could say the same about you, Slade. Even with all of that armor, you’ve still managed to keep up with me!” Bradley responded, sounding heavily impressed as he grinned at the mercenary. This expression soon fell, morphing into a more serious look as he continued speaking. “But I’m afraid this is going to be as far as you go.”

Placing his hand against his eye patch, Bradley then proceeded to tear it off, revealing what lay beneath. A scar ran across his eyelid, with his sclera rolling forward to reveal a surprising sight. Its pupil consisted of a red symbol, one depicting the alchemic symbol for transmutation, while the iris was that of the ouroboros, depicting a snake biting its own tail. Though Deathstroke had no way of knowing this, what he was looking at was a sign of King Bradley’s transformation, the power that had turned him into a Homunculus: the Ultimate Eye!

”That armor may grant you protection, but with my Ultimate Eye,” Bradley cut himself off as he shot forward, moving so quickly that Deathstroke didn’t even have time to notice he’d vanished! He proved quick to regain his bearings, however, as he picked up a vague blue blur rushing toward him. In an attempt to intercept what would no doubt be an oncoming attack, Slade swung the staff with all of his might, aiming specifically at the Führer’s collar. There was no doubt that if it had struck, the bone would’ve snapped in two from the pressure alone. The keyword here being “if.”

Despite the oncoming staff threatening to crush his collarbone, Wrath stared straight at the approaching weapon with a smirk. Thanks to the Ultimate Eye, he had predicted that Slade would use this exact method, and now he had spotted a small section on the staff. It was a minuscule line running across the middle of the weapon’s base, almost as if connecting one end to the other, and there was no doubt that this link was one of the staff’s weaker sections.

With this thought in mind, King swung his stolen sword upward, slicing clean through the staff as he turned to the side. Grabbing hold of the bifurcated weapon, Bradley quickly flipped it over so that its shaft was pointed directly at Slade. He briefly looked the mercenary over, scanning the armor for any exploitable weak points. Within a millisecond, he had found it- or rather, he had found them! Located just above the shoulder pads was a small gap, though it would be hard to exploit in his current position. Unless…

”All it does is leave you wide open!” The Homunculus finished, using all of his might to jam the impromptu eskrima stick into Slade’s right shoulder! Deathstroke screamed in a mix of pain and fury as his former weapon ripped through the gap in his shoulder pad, impaling itself through his right deltoid. He could feel a pain like trillions of needles running through his mind, and it would only get worse as Bradley wrenched it in even further! Blood began to drip out of the wound, only growing further as King twisted once again. This time, though, the Führer had managed to activate another one of its features!

BBZZZZTTT!

As the eskrima stick was wrenched further into Slade’s shoulder, an arc of electricity emerged from the shaft, burning through the mercenary’s muscles. His already agonizing pain multiplied tenfold, which caused his scream to intensify even further. No longer was this pain like trillions of needles. Now, in addition to the piercing sensation in his shoulder, his muscles felt like they’d been set ablaze! The burning pain had nearly caused his arm to go numb, and while he refused to black out from it, the shock had still been enough to make him drop the other eskrima stick. Noticing this, Wrath immediately swiped the falling weapon and switched it out for the promethium sword, which he proceeded to plant into Slade’s leg. The blade, now stained in its former owner’s blood, exited out of his calf. Pain flared through his mind as he fell onto one knee, though he quickly pushed it aside as he noticed Bradley grip the handle on his promethium sword. Then, with a swift yank-

SCHLICK!


-the sword was ripped free from his calf, causing Slade to fight back the urge to scream in pain. As he did so, he took note of Bradley’s body language. From the way his muscles were tensing up, it was clear he intended to attack with the promethium sword, but just before he could-

WHAM!


An uppercut nailed Bradley in the chin, causing him to stumble back. With his opponent now open, Deathstroke followed up by grabbing hold of the stick in his shoulder and ripped it out, barely acknowledging the pain as he continued his assault. With the eskrima stick now in hand, Slade wasted no time in using it to backhand Bradley across the face. The Homunculus continued to stagger, and Wilson was more than willing to exploit this as he thrust the eskrima stick into Bradley’s chest. Then, with a flick of his wrist-

BBBBZZZZZTTTT!

 

[Stop music]

“GRAAAH!” Bradley screamed in pain as dozens of volts coursed through him. The shock ran through his entire body, causing all of his muscles to go numb, and with it, his grip on his weapons faltered. The promethium sword fell out of his hand, clattering to the ground, and Deathstroke gave a smirk from underneath his mask. Then, as Bradley’s knees buckled, Slade gave a sudden kick to the stomach, forcing the Führer to collapse onto his back. While he was doing so, Wilson had taken the opportunity to recover his stolen weapons, forcing his eskrima sticks back into their staff form before retrieving his promethium sword.

Now wielding it in his left hand, the Terminator turned his attention back to Bradley, who was still writhing in pain. Seeing an opportunity to end it, Slade immediately brought his blade down, intent on stabbing Amestris’ leader straight through the neck. Unfortunately, it seemed Bradley had recovered quicker than he’d expected, as the old man quickly rolled to the side and threw out a sweep kick, knocking Deathstroke onto his back. The two got back up almost instantly, Slade gripping his promethium sword as he unsheathed the second one from his back, allowing Bradley to see it in full.

From what he could tell, it appeared to be a broadsword, with two yellow extensions protruding downward from the crossguard. The blade itself was roughly 40 inches long, with a slimmer section roughly three inches away from its hilt. Long ago, this sword had been called Scrymgeour, but ever since coming into Slade’s possession, it had taken on a new name: the Deathstroke.

Now armed with dual swords, Deathstroke rushed toward Bradley and immediately swung his self-named broadsword at the Amestrian ruler. For a brief moment it appeared his target was done for, but this notion was soon proven false as an audible CLANG echoed throughout the area. Despite there being only a scant few milliseconds where he could’ve acted, King had somehow managed to unsheathe two of his swords, raising his left to block what should’ve been a decisive blow.

“You’re a fast one, aren’t you?” He commented in a surprisingly casual tone. “If I had been even a second late, that swing might’ve actually killed me.”

Slade swung his left arm upward, attempting to catch the Homunculus off guard by stabbing him through the chest. To his surprise, Bradley reacted almost instantly, using his right sword to catch the thrust and stop it mid-swing. Then, in an attempt to exploit the hole in Wilson’s defenses, King pushed the mercenary’s broadsword aside and drove his left arm forward. Slade’s reacted just as quickly, parrying the oncoming slash with a diagonal swing of the broadsword. He then spun around, swinging his saber through the air with the intent of slicing through Bradley’s neck, but it seemed that the Führer had other plans. Ducking under, the leader of Amestris had managed to narrowly avoid a decapitation, instead only losing a few strands of hair. At the same time, he lunged forward, intent on driving both swords into Deathstroke’s sides. They flew forward-

WHAM!


-only for his supposed target to slam into him with a knee strike, shattering his nose even further and making him stagger. Not content with this, Deathstroke then proceeded to plant his foot against Bradley’s chest, using it as a springboard while forcing his opponent to the ground. The Homunculus hit the ground back-first, immediately noticing a shadow suspended above him and approaching fast!

Despite having little time to react, Wrath rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding impalement through the chest. An audible THUNK could be heard as his swords hit the ground, leaving both blades planted into the dirt. Seeing a chance to exploit this, Bradley threw out a sweep kick, but it would only hit thin air as Wilson backflipped out of range, taking his swords with him. As he spun through the air, Slade swung the Deathstroke at Bradley’s neck, intent on regaining the advantage he’d just had. His hopes were soon dashed, however, as his target leaned back, with the broadsword missing his nose by only an inch. Cartwheeling back to his feet, Bradley noticed the look of anger in Slade’s eye and chuckled.

[Stop music]

”No need to get so worked up, son. You should feel proud of yourself. After all, you’re the first person to give me a challenge in such a long time. Even with my Ultimate Eye, you’ve still given me a few close calls.” He admitted, only for his expression to turn serious as he continued speaking. “But make no mistake. You’re bound to slip up eventually, and when you do-“

He suddenly lunged forward, intent on exploiting an opening he had just noticed.

”I WILL NOTICE IT!” The Homunculus declared, emphasizing his words by driving both of his sabers into Deathstroke’s body! Slade gnashed his teeth, fighting back the urge to vocalize his pain. Noticing this, Bradley responded with a sneer before pushing his blades even further. As he felt the sabers dig through his chest, now deep enough that their tips were emerging from his back, Slade looked Bradley straight in the eye, and it was then that he started to piece things together.

’Ever since he’s brought out that eye, it’s gotten harder for me to hit him. Not to mention,’ Slade paused, recalling what Bradley had done while it was active.

There was the way he’d sliced through the staff, having aimed for a weak spot that most wouldn’t have noticed…

How he had exploited a minuscule gap in the promethium armor, one that he couldn’t have noticed beforehand…

The way he seemed to be dodging all of Slade’s attacks, almost as if he could see them coming…

But most damning of all was what he’d said just now: “You’re bound to slip up eventually, and when you do, I will notice it!”

Given the way he’d emphasized “will,” coupled with the other evidence, Deathstroke had come to a realization, one that caused his mouth to raise in a slight smirk.

[Stop music]

“You seem pretty confident about that eye of yours.” He pointed out as he swung the Deathstroke through the air, creating an audible CLANG as it split the Führer’s swords clean in half. Bradley’s eyes widened in shock, which would only grow as the Terminator lunged forward, his sword’s tip rapidly approaching King’s face.

”Let’s see how you do without it.” Deathstroke said coldly as he thrust the saber into Bradley’s eye!

SCHLICK!


A scream of agony erupted from Bradley’s throat as he felt the sword stab through his eye. As Deathstroke ripped the sword from his eye socket, Bradley felt blood seep down his face, and with it his pain started to fade. In its place was another emotion, one that continued to grow as he stared at Slade: pure, unadulterated rage!

[Skip to 0:49 if you haven’t already passed it]

With a furious scream, Bradley lunged forward, swinging his left sword as hard as he could! Slade responded by raising the Deathstroke, swinging it at enough of an angle that he was able to catch its blade in his hilt! Then, with a flick of his wrist, Wilson ripped the weapon from Bradley’s grip, sending it flying across the clearing! Undeterred, the Führer attempted to land a diagonal swing with his right arm, but Deathstroke countered with a swing of his own blade. Upon colliding, history repeated itself as the promethium sword divided its opposition even further, while its longer blade ran across Bradley’s forearm.

A muffled grunt of pain emerged from Wrath’s throat as blood oozed out of his wound, but he proved quick to push it aside. Instead, he chose to capitalize on the millisecond long opportunity Slade had given him by swinging his leg through the air and slamming it into the merc’s blind spot! Although the promethium armor had nullified most of its damage, the Homunculus’ roundhouse kick had still sent the Terminator into the air, and this was exactly what Bradley was hoping for!

Before Deathstroke could fully recover, Wrath leapt through the air and slammed into his chest with a dropkick, sending him hurtling back toward the ground. The Vietnam veteran hit the dirt with a loud THUNK, something Bradley proved quick to capitalize on as he reached behind himself and chucked an item at Slade. Noticing what it was, the Terminator responded with a smug “hmph” before plucking it from the air. Then, with an almost casual air, he lobbed the stick grenade back at its owner. The sight of this caused Bradley’s remaining eye to widen in shock, but before he could attempt to divert its path-

BOOM!

 

[Stop music]

 

The grenade exploded just inches away from Bradley’s face, causing him to cry out in pain as he was thrown several feet across the clearing. This pain would only grow further as he slammed into the ground, but he quickly pushed it aside. As he got back to his feet, the Führer looked up, only for his eye to narrow in frustration at what he saw- or rather, at what he didn’t see. He had expected Slade to be rushing toward him, weapon in hand and ready to strike him down at any second. This same expectation had caused Bradley to steel himself, fully prepared to defend against the inevitable clash, but it was all for naught.

Rather than Deathstroke running toward him at top speed, Bradley found himself staring at the clearing, with foliage as far as the eye can see. The only signs of Slade’s existence were the split blades on the ground, both of which lay coated in blood. Other than that, it was as if Slade had vanished into thin air!

‘No, not vanished. He escaped!’ Bradley realized as his eye narrowed. ‘Seems he’s falling back on his old tactics once again, but where could he be hiding this time?’

His right eye scanned the area, keeping a lookout for any signs of movement. His left hand gripped his remaining sword as he listened out for any sign of Deathstroke. For a few tense seconds, no sound could be heard throughout the forest, but then-

BANG!

The sound of a shot firing echoed throughout the clearing, coming from Bradley’s left. He responded by immediately turning toward it, having already drawn his sword. It flew through the air in an arc, splitting the oncoming bullet before it could even approach Bradley. Three more BANGs rang out, each one fired from a different position, but this only caused Wrath to smirk. With nothing more than a flick of his wrist, he split each of the bullets in two, causing their shells to harmlessly fly past him.

”There you are!” He muttered, a smirk on his face as he began running parallel to his attacker. Four shots emerged from his opponent’s firearm, only to meet the same fate as their predecessors. Ammunition was starting to trail the ground Bradley was walking on, but he chose to ignore it as he changed position, making a b-line straight for Deathstroke! With each second that passed, he seemed to get closer to the mercenary, but then-

KA-CHUNK!


A grenade shot out of the foliage, eliciting a smirk from Bradley as he swung his sword through the air. The flat of its blade met the grenade’s casing, batting it to the side as he continued forward. His leg muscles tensed up for a brief second before he leapt through the air, letting out a war cry as he brought his sword down. The Terminator responded by leaping back, causing the sword to hit thin air as its diagonal slash narrowly brushed past his chestplate.

As Bradley’s sword brushed against the ground, Slade raised his AR-15 through the air, immediately pulling its trigger. A BANG echoed through Bradley’s ears, followed by a scream of pain as a bullet tore through his shoulder, forcing him to drop his sword. Before he could recover it, Deathstroke had landed on his feet, having already aimed its barrel at Bradley’s head. He pulled the trigger, but just as the bullet emerged, Bradley shifted his body to the right. The bullet just barely missed the side of his head, and as he turned, the Homunculus threw his leg through the air, kicking the rifle out of Slade’s grip!

With his opponent now defenseless, Bradley swung his sword through the air, aiming its edge at Deathstroke’s neck. It sailed toward the mercenary at breakneck speeds, and for a moment it seemed that King’s tenacity had paid off. Much like earlier in their fight, his sword was only a few centimeters from cleaving through Slade’s neck, but now there was a crucial difference. Last time, he had been careless enough to leave Deathstroke armed, and he had certainly paid the price. Needless to say, he wasn’t going to let history repeat! It didn’t matter how fast Slade was. Even with his speed, there was no way he’d be able to escape this!

These were the thoughts that ran through Bradley’s head as he watched his weapon approach Slade’s jugular. Unfortunately, it seemed that in his haste for victory, he had made a crucial error in judgment: he had underestimated Deathstroke’s capabilities!

Just when it seemed that the sword was about to cut through his neck, Deathstroke brought his left arm up, using it to grab hold of the golden hilt that was strapped to his back. Then, in a swift and fluid motion, he unsheathed it and swung as hard as he could! For a brief millisecond, the start of a loud CLANG rang out through the forest, but it was simultaneously eclipsed by another, far louder noise.

FWOOOOOOSH!

 
[Stop music]


An enormous explosion of energy erupted from Deathstroke’s weapon, eliciting a scream from Bradley as he was sent hurtling across the forest. He slammed into several rows of trees, breaking through them each time as his pain continued to grow. It would only end once he slammed into the ground back-first, eliciting a grunt of pain as he rolled across the ground. Upon coming to a stop, Bradley wasted no time in pushing himself back up, and as he rose to his feet, he immediately noticed his surroundings. He was back where he started, with the corpses of his men surrounding his field of view. Not helping was the current state of his saber, which had clearly seen better days.

What laid several feet in front of him wasn’t the polished, 3-feet long blade he had wielded just moments prior. Its hilt was mostly burnt, the explosion’s heat had reduced its crossguard to slag, and the guard itself was now missing. It didn’t help that the only remaining part of its blade was the ricasso. Needless to say, Bradley knew that even with his skill, he couldn’t make this work. And with his last sword now destroyed, he knew there was no way he could make it out of this alive.

Or was there?

As he looked around, Wrath noticed something pinned to all of his comrades’ limp corpses. They were twin pairs of knives, all of them roughly six inches in length and currently sheathed to their belts.

’Not exactly my first choice of weapon, but I guess I can’t complain.’ He admitted as he picked up the knives from the nearest corpse. Getting back to his feet, he placed one in his holster before staring back at where Wilson had launched him. The smoke was starting to clear up, but Deathstroke had vanished once again! Bradley swore under his breath, which was only rendered further inaudible as his opponent spoke up.

”After all of this, you think you can take me on with a knife?” Upon hearing Slade’s voice, Bradley’s remaining eye narrowed in anger. He looked around the area, searching for his current location as the man continued to speak. “Either you’ve taken the line about ‘desperate times’ to the extreme, or the blood loss from your wounds is starting to affect your judgment. Not that it matters to me.”

KK-TCH-CHAAASSH!

 

As this bizarre sound reached his ears, Bradley turned toward its direction, his knife already at the ready. Upon seeing what it was, however, he quickly backflipped, just barely avoiding what appeared to be some sort of golden tendril. Before he could even question what had attacked him, the Führer grit his teeth as he felt something wrap around his right ankle. It dug into his skin, and he could feel blood oozing out of the wound. Gritting his teeth, Bradley knelt down and attempted to slice through his binding, but the sound of something flying through the air caused him to stop.

Looking back up, he found that dozens of tendrils were now heading toward him. A grimace appeared on Bradley’s face as he watched through his remaining eye. If he still had the Ultimate Eye on him, this barrage wouldn’t have troubled him in the slightest, but since he didn’t-

“I guess we’ll just have to do this the hard way!” He announced before charging forward. The moment the tendrils entered his line of sight, Bradley didn’t hesitate to act!

Using his enhanced speed, the Homunculus began swinging like a madman, his knife becoming a blur as he ran through the area. The moment he noticed a tendril about to approach him, Wrath would tilt his body to the side, allowing it to brush past before diverting its path. At first, it seemed that this strategy was proving effective, but as it dragged on several cracks were starting to show.

While it wasn’t obvious at first, Bradley’s aging body- when combined with his already grievous injuries- was starting to slow him down. During the first few tendrils, he had been able to divert them with no issue. Around the 20th, he had just barely reacted to the nearest one, and this mistake would soon prove to be his downfall.

From the shadows, Slade had watched as Bradley’s stamina continued to drain. Each tendril he shoved aside or cut down seemed to take a piece of him with them, and it was this latest screw-up that had elicited a smirk from beneath the merc’s mask. With a sharp tug, Deathstroke used the one tendril connecting itself to Bradley to knock his legs out from under him. With this new lack of balance, the Führer was sent tumbling to the ground, and the tendrils soon followed suit!

CHKCHKCHKCHKCHK!


Bradley suppressed a scream as the remaining tendrils wrapped themselves around him, their pointed edges digging into his skin. Deathstroke tightened his grip further and, almost as if sensing its master’s commands, the Godkiller contracted even further. Blood gushed out of the wounds, causing Bradley to cry out in pain as he dropped to his knees. He could feel himself growing more lightheaded as blood seeped from his body, and the ever-tightening grip on his restraints didn’t help. Fortunately, it seemed fate was on his side

”What’s your… plan here?” Bradley choked out as he looked toward Slade’s direction. “Are you trying… to split me to pieces?”

Deathstroke didn’t respond, instead allowing the tightened restraints to answer for him.

“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint,” King began as his muscles strained against his bindings, “but I don’t die so easily!”

As these words left his mouth, Bradley- in what could only be described as an adrenaline-boosted state of determination- flexed both of his arms, effortlessly snapping the bindings in two. Rather than falling to the ground, however, they instead began flying back, all heading northwest. Though this briefly left him confused, Bradley proved quick to save face as he realized what this meant.

‘So that’s where you’re hiding!’ He realized, chucking the knife as hard as he could. The SPLONG of something bouncing off of metal filled his ears, followed by the sound of air currents rushing toward him.

[Stop music]

While his draining stamina had left him with little time to react, Bradley still managed to roll to the side, just barely avoiding the new weapon. At the same time, he felt the object- a golden shield- slice across his right cheek, producing a noticeable cut. He quickly brushed it aside, however, and turned his attention back to Slade.

”That’s quite the weapon you’ve got there. Turning it from a sword, to rope, and even a shield! It’s too bad you threw it away. Otherwise-“

CLANG! WHUMP!


Before he could even finish his taunt, the shield suddenly flew back, slamming into his ankles and knocking him off his feet. As the Führer fell flat on his ass, his eyes widened in surprise as he noticed a familiar shadow descending upon him. It was Deathstroke, currently holding the Godkiller- which was now back to its original state- above his head. For a brief moment it seemed that Bradley’s life was about to come to an end, but the Homunculus proved quick to respond as he rolled to the side. The golden sword clashed against the ground, creating a massive explosion of energy that kicked up another smokescreen. Unlike before, however, Bradley was the first to act!

Unsheathing his remaining knife, the leader of Amestris lunged forward, bursting through the smoke with his knife already in mid-swing. The blade was aimed to pierce straight through Slade’s neck, and it was quickly approaching its target. Just another nanosecond, and then-

SCHLICK!

Bradley’s triumphant grin contorted, his remaining eye shrinking in shock as he watched his remaining arm sail through the air, still gripping the knife in its hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Deathstroke’s arm already in mid-swing, and his leg muscles began to tense up in response. Then, in a sudden burst of strength, Bradley leapt through the air, causing the Godkiller to hit thin air. As he drew closer to the severed arm, Bradley twisted his body in midair, allowing him to backflip over the appendage. The moment his knife entered his line of sight, the Homunculus craned his neck down, grabbing its handle with his teeth and ripping it from the arm’s grip.

Landing on his feet, Bradley immediately turned toward Slade and lunged forward, tilting his head to the right as he drew closer. Deathstroke responded by leaping out of range, narrowly avoiding what would’ve been a mortal wound. Despite missing his first shot, Bradley began improvising as he threw himself at Slade and twisted his head to the left. The blade sailed toward the mercenary’s chin, but he responded by jumping back once again. A third attempt- this one a diagonal slash- quickly followed, which Slade answered by bringing his own sword down! A resounding CLANG echoed throughout the area, followed by a shower of sparks.

Both men stared at each other, unblinking as they gazed into their opponent’s hate-filled eyes for what felt like an eternity. This timeframe would soon end as Slade threw out a knee strike to the stomach, forcing Bradley to lurch over. Seeing a chance to end this, Wilson brought the Godkiller into the air, but just before he could bring it down, his adversary stared back up at him. Displayed in the Führer’s remaining eye was a burning fury, one that only grew as he watched the Godkiller slowly approach him.

In a desperate attempt to defy his fate, Bradley sprung up through the air, twisting his body to ensure the attack would miss. As the golden sword flew past him, King shifted his head to the right, forcing the knife’s tip to drag across Slade’s left arm. A grunt of pain began to emerge from Wilson’s throat, but it was quickly silenced as Wrath flipped through the air, following with a downward slash. The knife raked itself across Deathstroke’s chest, producing a sizable cut and forcing blood to erupt out of the wound. Another slash followed immediately after, leaving a bloody X across Slade’s chest. But even with the progress he was making, Bradley could feel the battle start to take its toll on him.

Although it was only a minor nuisance at first, the blood loss he’d suffered was starting to take its toll on him. His vision was starting to blur, and he could feel himself growing more lightheaded. His muscles ached from how much he was exerting himself, and it felt like his legs were about to give out at any second.

‘Don’t have much time left…’ he noted before looking back up at Deathstroke. ‘But even if it kills me, I will drag him down with me!’

With a roar of determination, Bradley lunged toward Slade, swinging his knife in every direction he could. Unfortunately, it seemed that this desperate berserker strategy wouldn’t meet his expectations. Every time Wrath swung his knife, Deathstroke would counter it with a parry, moving so swiftly and fluidly that it was almost as if he could see them coming! The repeated CLANG of their blades colliding echoed through King’s ears, only fueling his fury even further.

Deathstroke, meanwhile, smirked beneath his mask. It was clear from Bradley’s body language that his anger was growing, no doubt at his inability to land a hit. The moment this clash had started, Slade immediately realized what this was: a final attempt at making a last stand. The evidence was all on the table: the blood loss of his injuries was impairing his vision, not helped by his already missing eye. The relentlessness with how he swung the knife suggested that his mindset was becoming more frantic, almost like a cornered animal. It didn’t help that Bradley’s remaining eye seemed to be scanning him in-between attacks, as if searching for somewhere he could strike.

In most cases, the person on the receiving end of this assault would’ve been frightened. What stood before them was a man fueled purely by his adrenaline and rage, hellbent on making sure they were dead. Deathstroke, however, saw the Homunculus as something else: a pitiful, frail old man trying so desperately to fight for his life, not knowing that his opponent was playing him like a harp.

Every time Bradley moved his neck, Deathstroke would take a nanosecond to calculate where he was most likely to strike. Then, in conjunction with its wielder’s thoughts, the Godkiller would swing itself in the perfect position to counter, but not disarm. Not yet, anyway.

Five more CLANGs rang out through Bradley’s ears, causing his anger to rise even further. Then, as Deathstroke parried his latest slash, the Führer noticed something that caused his rage to hit its boiling point. It was brief, but in his remaining eye, he had caught of glimpse of Deathstroke smirking. That was why he wasn’t fighting back! He was playing Bradley for a fool!

’How dare you! HOW DARE YOU MAKE A MOCKERY OF ME!’ The Homunculus thought furiously. Then, with a roar that practically embodied his namesake, Wrath lunged toward Deathstroke, bringing his head down with as much force as he could muster!

SHING- SCHLUCK!


A scream of pain emerged from Deathstroke’s throat as he felt a sharp pain enter through his collarbone. Looking to the left, the mercenary saw what had caused it: Bradley had jammed the knife into a small, unarmored portion of his armor, and he didn’t plan on ending it there! Instead, the Homunculus began applying more pressure to his grip, forcing his weapon to tear through his adversary’s skin and muscles! It then plunged even further, sawing its way into the collarbone. The pain in Slade’s head began to grow even further, and with it so too did his scream. It was almost unbearable, but Deathstroke forced himself to push through, keeping a firm grip on the Godkiller. He looked Bradley straight in the eye and then, despite the pain that currently flared through his mind, he spoke.

”You…” Slade began to smirk before continuing. “You don’t even know how badly you’ve screwed up, do you?”

 

SHINK!

 

[Stop music]

Before Bradley could ask what he meant by that, a splitting pain shot through his stomach, forcing him to drop the knife as he coughed up blood. Looking down, he found the Godkiller embedded in his stomach, half of its blade drenched a deep crimson. Then, as if to further his adversary’s pain, Deathstroke swung his sword even higher, further splitting apart the front of Bradley’s torso. It was only once he approached the ribcage that Slade ended the assault, casually ripping the sword from Bradley’s body. For a brief moment the Führer stood in place, too paralyzed by the pain to move, but then he felt his knees start to buckle. And without the strength to keep himself upright, Bradley collapsed onto his back with an audible THUMP!

Several ragged breaths escaped his lips, but in-between each one he could make out the audible CLUNK of Slade’s armored boot hitting the ground. Looking up, he found himself staring up at Deathstroke, who returned the stare with a blank expression.

“So you’ve come to finish the job, then?” Bradley asked as he watched Slade crouch down, bringing the Godkiller up to the Homunculus’ throat. Bradley prepared to close his eyes, but he stopped when Slade asked him a sudden question.

“Do you have anything left to say before I go through with this?”

“There isn’t much I could say that you’d understand, I’m afraid.” Bradley admitted. “But I will say this: for most of my life, everything I went through had already been decided for me by the man who made me what I am today. Because of that, I enjoyed the few choices I was allowed to make. When I fought you, I could feel a sense of freedom, something I haven’t felt since the day I married my wife.”

As the old man continued speaking, Slade noticed that his appearance was starting to change. In-between each word he spoke, Bradley’s hair seemed to be slowly fading, its deep shade of black slowly fading to an almost silver shade of gray. Each word, meanwhile, would result in another wrinkle, though the Homunculus seemed to pay it no mind.

“I guess I should thank you, Slade.” Wrath admitted as he allowed a grateful smile to appear on his aging face. “Even without alchemy, you still managed to push me to my limits. You showed skill that I never thought I’d see on the battlefield. To meet my end at the hands of such an esteemed warrior… I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

With these words spoken, the Führer closed his eyes one last time, and Deathstroke pushed his sword into the old man’s neck. An audible SCHLICK could be heard as it cut clean through Bradley, his head toppling to the ground with a soft THUNK!

[Stop music]

With his mission completed, Slade rose back to his feet and reached into his pocket, pulling out a flip phone. Quickly dialing a number, he brought the phone up to his ear, waiting for the ringtone to pass. Upon hearing the CLICK of someone picking up, the mercenary got straight to business.

“This is Slade. It’s done.” His contact asked him a question, and he proved quick to respond. “He was a harder target than I thought.” He admitted, looking over to the Führer’s corpse. “I’d hate to have fought him in his prime.”

The contact asked him a second question, and he responded by dismissively waving his hand through the air.

”No need for a medic. I’ve already got it covered. Just send someone out here to pick me up. We’ll discuss my pay when I get back.”

 
Db Ko! by Br3ndan5
 

And with that one action, Deathstroke has just single-handedly flushed over 400 years of planning down the drain! Good luck trying to become God now, Father!

So here’s a spoiler: yes, this is another stomp. I’m honestly starting to get burnt out with how many of my fights are one-sided, but I doubt you guys are here to read my self-loathing criticisms, so let’s just move on.

When it came to strength, Bradley would be around Town Level, as he was able to overwhelm Scar, who could fight on par with Kimblee. When they fought each other, Kimblee possessed a Philosopher’s Stone, which boosted his alchemic power to the point where he could create explosions worth anywhere from 28 – 90 kilotons of TNT. By contrast, Deathstroke would also be Town Level due to taking attacks from Gunfire and being able to beat him with only a few punches. And since Gunfire uses mass-energy conversion, this means his attacks would come out in the kilotons. Additionally, Slade survived being crushed by a submarine and withstood the resulting explosion, which measures out at 32 kilotons. He was later shown to trade blows with Legacy, the guy who pulled off the above feat, so this would also scale to his strength.

Of course, strength doesn’t matter if you don’t have the speed to back it up. For Bradley, he’s been able to outspeed Scar and has avoided an explosion from Mustang’s Flame Alchemy. Assuming these explosions use nitroglycerin, this means that Bradley would need to react at around Mach 20, and keep in mind that he was heavily injured at this time, so he might be faster! Deathstroke, meanwhile, has a multitude of feats that put him above Bradley. He’s been shown to dodge Starfire’s Starbolts, which are made from concentrated solar energy, multiple times; kept up in battle with Batman; and was able to block an attack from Katana at close-range. Keep in mind that Katana has been shown to deflect gunfire multiple times, the results of which are all higher than Bradley dodging Mustang’s explosion. And for a final point, Cassandra Cain, who can react at Mach 501, admits that Deathstroke is faster than her.

In other words, even if we say Bradley’s stronger by scaling him to the higher end of Kimblee’s explosion, Deathstroke’s so much faster that it’s unlikely Bradley could land a killing blow. If this were the case, the match would ultimately come down to their other factors.

For example, experience is a bit hard to decide. While both have spent some time serving in their respective militaries, Bradley has been trained since birth in combat, which you think would give him an edge here. The only problem is that he spends most of his time in the office after becoming Führer, and would only start fighting again after Father’s plans were threatened. It’s true that he still displays some considerable skill, but it’s likely that his time leading the country could’ve led to his skills becoming somewhat dull. By contrast, Deathstroke’s years as a mercenary helped keep his senses sharp and allowed him to polish his strengths against opponents who were either stronger than him or possessed superpowers. Similarly, he would also have the edge in intelligence against Bradley. While King’s knowledge of military tactics and strategy could help him identify some of Deathstroke’s tactics, Slade has shown that he can easily manipulate other, equally tactical opponents and use their own strengths against them.

When comparing their fighting styles, Bradley’s battles with Greedling and Scar both showcased some impressive skill in martial arts, but Deathstroke held the advantage here due to just how many he had. He could use jiu-jitsu to counter Bradley’s blows, cut off his circulation, or snap his limbs. Karate could be used to wear him down, and his skill in ninjutsu gave him a sense of unpredictability that Bradley wouldn’t be able to account for.

When it came to weapons, Bradley’s swords and knives would make it more difficult for Slade in close-quarters, but other than that Slade had him beat here. His promethium sword is strong to cut through other swords with ease, can amputate Cyborg’s arm, and even pierce through Cyborg’s head. The Deathstroke holds similar properties, and it’s even been able to cut Superman. The energy lance could make it harder for Bradley to reach him, shoot beams of energy for long-range attacks, turn into eskrima sticks for better close-quarters, and he could electrify them to leave Bradley paralyzed. His various firearms would allow for better long-range options, and his explosives could allow for an edge in unpredictability. His promethium armor also gave him a number of edges, as it amplifies his strength, has plating to protect from Bradley’s blades, and its ability to absorb energy (which his swords also share) render the stick grenade useless. Granted, this is assuming Deathstroke doesn’t just outrun the grenade, or that the armor could even be damaged by it (which is unlikely, as it remained intact after the exploding submarine).

And keep in mind all of this was without bringing in the Godkiller. With this, Bradley’s chances of victory slip even further. Its shapeshifting gives Slade an edge in unpredictability, he can fire off blasts of energy for long-range combat, and he could control it telepathically in the event that he’s ever disarmed. Not to mention, its ability to control the user’s movements meant that, when combined with Slade’s other advantages, it would be able to end the fight in an instant.

And in case you’re wondering, no, Bradley’s Ultimate Eye wouldn’t be able to change anything. While on paper, its ability to read movements and sense things with precognition sound like they’d give him an advantage, Slade had multiple ways to bypass it:

-His superior speed would let him blitz Bradley before he could use it
-Stealth would make it harder for Bradley to track his movements
-Ninjutsu’s focus on stealth gave him an edge in unpredictability
-His superior intelligence and more strategic mind could let him pick up on the Ultimate Eye’s abilities and how to disable them
-He could use gas grenades or explosives to disorient Bradley

It also didn’t help Bradley’s case that Deathstroke would likely be familiar with these abilities due to fighting Cassandra Cain, who also has the ability to track movements, and he proved to be so unpredictable that she couldn’t keep track of him.

While there’s no doubt that Bradley was a badass in his own right, against Slade, he was just headed for a loss!

The winner is Deathstroke.

 

WinnerDeathstroke by Br3ndan5
Deathstroke (Winner)
+ Stronger if Bradley is scaled to the low end of Kimblee’s explosions
+ Blitzed Bradley when it came to speed
+ More durable if Bradley is scaled to the low end of Kimblee’s explosions
+ More experienced
+ More intelligent
+ More strategic mind, to the point where he could manipulate Bradley in numerous ways
+ Mastery of various martial arts gave him an edge in close-quarters
+ Larger, more versatile arsenal
+ Better long-range options
+ Promethium armor and swords rendered Bradley’s arsenal useless, with the former lessening the possible strength gap
+ Godkiller could further boost his versatility and unpredictability
    + Its ability to damage the likes of Superman and Lapetus rendered the possible strength gap moot
+ Had numerous ways to bypass the Ultimate Eye
+ Has fought an opponent with similar powers to Bradley
– Weaker if Bradley is scaled to the high end of Kimblee’s explosions
    + But the promethium armor and Godkiller render this moot
– Not as durable if Bradley is scaled to the high end of Kimblee’s explosions
    + But his swords render this a non-issue

King Bradley (Loser)
+ Stronger if scaled to the high end of Kimblee’s explosions
    – Which is countered by Deathstroke’s promethium armor and the Godkiller
+ More durable if scaled to the high end of Kimblee’s explosions
    – Which is rendered moot by Deathstroke’s swords
– Everything else

Prelude: King Bradley vs Deathstroke

King Bradley vs Deathstroke by Br3ndan5
 

When joining the military, a soldier is willing to put everything on the line- from their well-being, to their lives, to even their future- all for the sake of serving their country. Under normal circumstances, these men would be considered heroic icons, symbolizing bravery, heroism, and patriotism; but sometimes this isn’t enough. That’s where the concept of a super soldier comes in. Through the use of chemicals, serums, or other miracles of science, the military is able to enhance certain members of their ranks, pushing their physicality and mental capacities past their limits.

But while these soldiers may work well on the battlefield, what happens when the war they’re fighting inevitably comes to an end? Will they use these newfound gifts to continue benefiting their country?  Or will they make something better out of their lives, using the abilities they’ve earned to further benefit their careers?

 

King Bradley, the Führer-President of Amestris.

And Deathstroke the Terminator, the top-ranked assassin of the DC universe.

I’m Br3ndan5, and I’ll be analyzing their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win a DEATH BATTLE!

Thanks to Dynamo1212 for the King Bradley bio and allcreation104 for the Deathstroke bio.

——————————————————

 
King.Bradley.full.1802266[1] by Dynamo1212

King Bradley
AKA: Wrath the Furious
Age: 60
Height: 5’11
Weight: 190 lbs
First Appearance: Fullmetal Alchemist (Chapter 15)
Theme:

Feats:
-Became the first human-based Homunculus
-Was the only candidate who survived having the Philosopher’s Stone injected into his body, allowing him to become the
Führer of Amestris
-Hid his true identity for decades
-Ordered the genocide of the Ishvalans
-Easily killed Isaac McDougal, the Freezing Alchemist
-Humiliated Greed in combat and killed his gang
-Injured Lan Fan and easily put Ling Yao on the defensive
-Survived the assassination attempt from Lieutenant General Grumman
-Killed several armed soldiers and destroyed a tank with just a sword and grenade
-Easily took out Captain Buccaneer of Fort Briggs
-Fought Fu and Ling Yao simultaneously before killing Fu and Buccaneer
-Helped force Mustang perform a human transmutation
-Fought Scar and almost killed him even after losing both his arms

In the world of Fullmetal Alchemist, there exist several countries: the culturally diverse dynasty of Creta, the war-torn principality of Aerugo, the struggling and belligerent Drachma, and the parliament republic of Amestris; led by the famous war hero King Bradley.

But before he became the leader of Amestris, King Bradley was a nameless orphan, inducted into the military’s secret program to produce the perfect ruler for Amestris. This program would train Bradley and hundreds of other candidates from birth, instructing them in mastering the art of politics, swordplay, and military strategy.

Once his training was complete and he came of age, the program’s doctors injected Bradley with a Philosopher’s Stone, a legendary material said to be capable of granting its user immense power. The Philosopher’s Stone in question contained the physically-ejected wrath from the Homunculus known as Father, and its energy had destroyed the lives of every other candidate. When it came time for Bradley, however, he managed to survive, as his soul fought for supremacy in the myriad of deceased souls that made up the Stone. When he woke up from the process, he found himself adorned with a new eye, and as a reward for being the experiment’s sole survivor, he was given a new name: King Bradley.

With the experiment now a success, Bradley enrolled in the military, serving for multiple years and rising through the ranks until he eventually received the position of Führer. With this newfound power, King would manipulate the men and women of Amestris’ military, using them as pawns to aid his benefactor, Father, in his plans to achieve godhood.

Physicality:

 

Nlblog[1] by Dynamo1212
Strength:
-Can cut through stone and metal with ease
-Traded blows with and outmuscled Greed
-Kicked Greed through a wall
-Easily cut through Greed’s chimera gang
-Overpowered Ling Yao and Lan Fan
-Fought on par with and overwhelmed Ling Yao after he became the new Greed
-Can leap off the debris of a falling train back to the cliff
-Strong enough to cut through tank armor with ease
-Cut through Buccaneer’s automail arm with ease
-Fought off both Fu and Greedling with no noticeable issue
-Kicked both Buccaneer and Fu away after getting stabbed
-Swung his knives hard enough to knock Greedling away
-Easily cut through Scar’s stone constructs while badly wounded
-Matched Scar evenly in strength and eventually overwhelmed him

 

Ecd5bda49ab6d8c178e5abf6d666d6db182764a6 Hq[1] by Dynamo1212
Speed:
-Cut Edward’s makeshift spear without him seeing
-Cut down Isaac McDougal without him noticing
-Easily blitzed Greed and his gang of chimeras
-Ran up a set of ladders before Lan Fan could react
-Kept up with and overwhelmed Greedling
-Escaped an exploding train that was falling off a cliff
-Deflected and dodged machine gunfire easily
-Casually slashed a tank round in 2
-Caught up to a tank and slashed it with no issue
-Cut up Buccaneer’s automail instantly
-Had no problem keeping up with Fu and Greedling
-Even after getting stabbed, he was able to keep pace with Greedling
-While badly injured, dodged Mustang’s Flame Alchemy and got the drop on him
-Eventually overwhelmed Scar, a casual bullet timer, despite his injuries

FMA57Bradley-Fu-Buccaneer1-b[1] by Dynamo1212
Durability:
-Shrugged off getting stabbed with a sword
-Walked off Greedling damaging his Ultimate Eye
-Kept going after getting shot, stabbed, and nearly drowning
-Got torn up by Scar’s alchemical spikes and keeps on fighting
-Stabbed Scar with a sword by using his teeth after he lost both his arms
-Can fight for hours without showing signs of tiring, even when injured

Weapons and Equipment:

 

Inhyuk-lee-[1] by Dynamo1212
Swords:
-Signature weapons
-Carries 5 at a time
-Around 3 feet long
-Single-edged and straight
-Can easily cut through stone and tank armor

Fma56-361 by Dynamo1212
Combat Knives:
-Used in case he doesn’t have a sword
-Can be used for close quarters or for throwing

 

Model24[1] by Dynamo1212
Grenade:
-Explosive powerful enough to blow up a tank

 

Skills and Abilities:

 

Military Knowledge:
-Trained from birth in military know-how
-Led a military dictatorship for years
-Understands military tactics and strategy
-Matched Colonel Mustang move-for-move in strategy
-Quickly gave out orders to reorganize Amestris’ forces during the Promised Day

 

3994254-3773304-5997267722-35553[1] by Dynamo1212
Master Swordsman:
-Trained from birth in swordsmanship
-Implied to be better than all the other
Führer candidates
-Easily humiliated Greed using swordsmanship
-Injured Lan Fan and fought off Ling Yao using swordsmanship
-Can cut bullets, tank rounds, tank armor, and automail with just a sword
-Eventually defeated and killed Fu the moment he got an actual sword
-Even after getting mortally wounded, proved to be a threat with his skills

Maxresdefault[1] by Dynamo1212
Master Martial Artist:
-Trained from birth in hand-to-hand combat
-When wielding weapons, he combines his swordsmanship with martial arts
-When fighting hand-to-hand, he uses kicks, punches, and grapples
-Had no problem kicking and punching Greed
-Easily grappled with Greedling
-Fought off both Fu and Greedling with knives and martial arts
-Fought evenly with Scar, a master martial artist

tumblr lyd8b8LpkL1r3tgtmo1 500[1] by Dynamo1212
Ultimate Eye:
-Obtained when he became a Homunculus
-Grants him ability to read an enemy’s movements
-Allows him to predict his opponent’s next moves
-Can’t see through walls or other obstacles

61 Wrath2[1] by Dynamo1212
Weaknesses:
-Will lose the Ultimate Eye if it’s damaged
-Ultimate Eye can’t see through solid objects
-Lacks the healing factor of his brethren
-Prefers swords and is reliant on close-quarters combat

(“WHAT’S WRONG!? DON’T TELL ME THAT’S ALL YOU GOT! IS IT!? ‘CAUSE THAT’S NOWHERE NEAR ENOUGH!”)

——————————————————

 

3922289-deathstroke   Slade Wilson By Shockythegre by allcreation104
Deathstroke
Real Name: Slade Joseph Wilson
Aliases: Slade, The Terminator, The Balkan
Height: 6’4
Weight: 225 lbs
Debut: New Teen Titans #2 (December 1980)
Theme:

Feats:
Has proved a match for all of the Teen Titans over the years
-Took on the Justice League, defeating Flash and Green Lantern in the process
-Has taken down Batman on multiple occasions
-Nearly incapacitated Superman with a bomb
-Called the best tactician on the planet, so good that Superman came to him for advice
-Overpowers the Bat Family on a regular basis
-Could kill 38 Viet Cong in minutes
-Is considered to be one of DC’s best hand-to-hand fighters
-Took on Black Lanterns and came out on top
-Can move faster than a man can react
-Moved a bridge suspension rope that took 100 men to move, and went underwater with it, tying it up with ease
-Overpowered the likes of Starfire and Cyborg
-Has perceived blasts and bullets in slow motion
-Solo’d both Green Arrow and Black Canary
-To all haters, don’t lie, he gets shit done

New 52 Feats
Deathstroke and Deadshot fought for a total of five days, killing 62 civilians that were caught in their crossfire, before being stopped by Batman
Joined the Riddler’s team against the Joker for control of Gotham and the privilege to kill Batman
-Was apart of the Suicide Squad before betraying them
-Was turned back to a young man again
-Broke into Belle Reeve Prison in his attempt to find his daughter Rose
   -Fought numerous prisoners, guards, even Deadshot and Black Manta
-With the help of Harley Quin, rescued his children 
-Killed Lapetus, a Titan
-Gave up his eye to the Greek Pantheon 
-Was so intimidating that chosen as a suitable candidate to wield a Yellow Lantern Ring, and was temporarily recruited into the Sinestro Corps
-Breaks out of meta human handcuffs with a paper clip 
Killed Ryan Choi, the fourth Adam
-Fought Green Arrow, and ultimately won in the end
-Infiltrated Lex Corps, and defeated numerous Bizarro clones
-Joined the League of Assassins, so that they could heal his daughter Rose
-Made a deal with Dick Grayson in exchange for not going after the Titans, they would train his daughter Rose to be a hero
-Kidnapped the original Wally West and New 52 Wally West, and took N52 Speed Force to get his deceased son, Grant, back
-Created the Dark Titans

After joining the US Army by lying about his age, 16 year old Slade Wilson served an entire year in Korea before eventually being promoted to Major and transferred to Camp Washington. While there, he wound up gaining the attention of his instructor, Adeline Kane, who decided to train him in the art of guerilla warfare. As it turned out, he was so impressive that Adeline wound up falling in love with him, and they then got married. Then, several months later, Wilson was drafted into the Vietnam war, where his unit forcibly gunned down an entire village, leaving him traumatized and disgusted with himself.

After the war, Slade signed up for a military project that was supposed to make him immune to enemy truth serums. But it turns out whatever they put in it instead boosted his physicality to peak human condition. While this was more than what the military had hoped for, they ultimately chose to discharge Slade since the experiment had also caused him to suffer from violent mood swings. It didn’t get any better when his old war buddy William Wintergreen was kidnapped and the military refused to help, forcing Slade to rescue him by himself. After this was done, Wilson decided to use his newfound physicality to become a mercenary.

Now under the title Deathstroke the Terminator, Slade made a career off of murdering people, with his skills being put to the test when a criminal named Jackal kidnapped Slade’s son, Joseph, hostage in the hopes of getting the name of Wilson’s client. Believing this to be against his code of honor, Slade refused to say who it was and killed the kidnappers, but not before one of them slashed Joseph’s throat, rendering him mute.

In response, Slade took his son to the hospital almost immediately, hoping the staff could save him. Unfortunately for him, Adeline was pissed that he couldn’t save their son in time and tried to shoot her husband in the head. While he survived, albeit now missing his right eye, she was still successful in a sense. On that day, Slade Wilson died, and in his place was the stone-cold assassin Deathstroke the Terminator.

 

5047100-deathstrokestrength1 by allcreation104
Strength:
-His striking class is usually considered at GJ level or above, making his best strikes proportionate to his staff and sword, placing his punches in Multi-City Block at their best
-Kicked down a steel door
-Overpowered Man-Bat with ease
    -Man-Bat being a 4 tonner
-Lifted a bridge beam that 100 men couldn’t lift
    -Said beam clocked in at 10+ tons
-Overpowered Starfire in a fight
    -Starfire easily lifted an elephant
-One-shots Wildebeest
-Cut through Cyborg’s arm
-Held his own against Aquaman
-Annihilated several Black Lanterns
-Pushed a plane door with one hand as it traveled over 500 mph
-Took down Mammoth
-Sliced a plane wing in half
-Held onto a speeding plane
-Took down Wonder Girl with ease
-Tore apart the mounted machine gun to a tank
-Drew blood from Lobo
-Knocked out a weakened Mr. Majestic
-After being weakened, having his healing factor compromised, being tazed, and beaten up by Bizarros, he was still able to fight Red Hood
-Matched and defeated Lapetus, a lesser Greek God

3722689-ds+speed by allcreation104

Speed:
-His average speed is definitely above supersonic to hypersonic, if not higher, given he blitzed Hawkman, and his reactions of Superman’s heat vision, reactions to various speedsters, and Starfire, make him Massively Hypersonic
-Outran Superman through Metropolis
-Reacted to, and defeated, Wally West
-Dodged Superman’s heat vision multiple times
-Casually took down Kid Flash
-Jumped over bullets
-Dodged Beast Boy’s charges
-Cut Green Arrow’s arrows out of the air
-Evaded Deadshot’s gunfire
-Can run past 30 mph
-Casually bullet times
-Dodged Starfire and Terra
-Moved between the blades of a fan
-Blitzed Aquaman numerous times in a fight
    -Aquaman is Massively Hypersonic-Relativistic
-Blitzed Hawkman
    -Hawkman is supersonic-hypersonic at his weakest
-Casually dodged a ballistic missile
-Easily a lightning timer
-Dodged a gunshot that should’ve split an Ox in two
-Dodged a blast from Black Manta
-Blitzed a group of soldiers before they can get a shot off
-Bullets and reactions slow down in Deathstroke’s mind when he needs to think fast, making the world around him feel like slow motion, allowing him to easily dodge the likes of Superman’s heat vision

Durability:
With armor
-Deathstroke’s durability should place him at Large Town Level due to tanking hits from Greek Gods, high tier DC characters, and submarine explosions. 
-Tanked numerous hits from Wally West
-No sold an attack that should have liquefied his brain
-High caliber bullets don’t faze his armor
-Tanks hits from Superboy
-Tanks hits from Beast Boy
-Shrugged off falling from a skyscraper
-Tanked a starbolt with ease
-His suit’s force has shown to be more powerful than missiles on occasion
-Tanked a submarine explosion
-Was hit by an RPG and continued firing guns before he even hit the ground
-Took hits from Green Lantern and numerous Black Lanterns
-Shrugged off Terra’s rock formations
-Took a blast from an Eclipso empowered Red Star
-Tanked a beating from Lex Luthor’s suit and numerous Bizarro clones
Without armor:
-Shrugged off being stabbed through the chest
-Took bullets and continues fighting
-Survived internal damage
-Took a punch from Lobo without his mask

 
3068009-3068008-batvsdstroke-ds4 by allcreation104

Master Martial Artist:
-Has taken on Batman, who’s mastered nearly every martial art in the world
    -Usually, beats him on top of that
-Trained in the military and was considered one of, if not, the worlds deadliest soldier
-Has taken down Yakuza, Viet Cong, and even members of the Justice League with his fighting prowess
-Allowed Dick Grayson multiple openings and still stomped him
-Outmatched Donna Troy and Cassandra Cain
-Defeated Ravager
-Forced Dick Grayson to fight dirty while he took the Batman mantle
-Studied under Natas to learn assassination techniques and ninja skills
-Easily defeated his daughter Ravager while in a wheel chair
-Is an expert in:

Mayweather by allcreation104

Boxing:
-A striking martial art invented by the Ancient Greeks and further developed by the Europeans
-Utilizes jabs, hooks, crosses, and uppercuts
-Highly underrated in popular culture in favor of eastern martial arts, despite being more practical, and just as efficient with fewer moves
-Involves high levels of endurance and a high threshold of pain
-Dodges are also used to evade punches to the head, called swooping by some

Jiu-Jitsu:
-A grappling art that utilizes the joints, and blood circulation of another opponent to the advantage
-Used throughout Japan, and modern day MMA
-Utilizes counters, takedowns, and much more
-Can snap limbs, cut off blood flow, and knock a person out in seconds

 
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Karate:
-A martial art based on punches and kicks
-When focused, masters of the art can easily smash boards 
-Traditional Japanese Karate is extremely powerful, as it was invented to counter the oppressive Samurai on Okinawa

Singapore-ninjutsu by allcreation104

Ninjutsu:
-Used to evade attacks, and end fights quickly
-Requires a lot of agility
-Similar to parkour, but with more offense
-Utilizes some striking, but depends on how it is taught
-Stealth and ambush based

GalleryComics 1900x900 20141022 DSTROKE001 Cover r by allcreation104

Master of Arms:
-Trained in firearms
-Tagged Kid Flash mid-sprint
-Trained with a sword as well
-Can out-perform Batman with it
-Used a wok to deflect gunfire and knock out mobsters
-His accuracy has rivaled Green Arrow at times
-His perception skills allow him to make his mark before firing at times
-Shot down a group of statues without looking
-Can easily dual wield katanas
-Shot Starfire in the neck while she was flying
-Cut off a plane wing with his precision
-Held his own against Ra’s Al Ghul
-Fought a train full of ninjas without any of his gear
-Sniped a guy from 650 feet away
-Killed a fly with a thrown paperclip
-Threw 3 knives at his targets while upside down and holding a sword
-Defeated an enemy he can’t harm by screwing up their ability to keep balance
-Stomped an amped Green Arrow and Emi Queen at the same time

https://i.imgur.com/pf4EF9o.jpgExpert Tactician:
-Rivals Aquaman, the king of Atlantis, on occasion
-Has outsmarted Batman numerous times with his tactical thought
-He’s so smart that Superman came to him for help
-Considered one of the smartest and quickest tacticians in the DCU
-Has gotten the better of the entire Teen Titans
-Made power dampeners to depower Cyborg
-Made a sword out of kryptonite
-Was chosen to lead Villains United
    -Said team included Captain Nazi, a feat in itself
-Used glow-stick bullets to trick Superman into believing they’re kryptonite

Healing Factor:
-Recovered from having his head blown apart
-His body heals faster than normal
-Stab wounds, bullets, and the like do little in retrospect
-Healed impalement easily with no pain
-While the healing takes time, it does happen, and minor wounds need little time
-Has explained that he can heal where he’s injured by concentrating on the wound

Superhuman Senses:
-Covered in the Speed portion
-He can essentially comprehend attacks before they hit
-Can dodge attacks due to a combination of his own speed and noticing changes in air currents
-Comprehended Heat Vision, and the Flash/Kid Flash as they hit

Enhanced Intellect:
-Can comprehend things 9 times faster than the human mind can
-His brain is essentially a supercomputer
-His mind can solve situations in seconds at times
-He can calculate strengths and weaknesses in his mind
-Can even exploit weaknesses
-Created a makeshift EMP
-Senses trouble up ahead when no one else does
-Deduces how powerful a telepath is
-Deduces an enemy’s powers
-Can be bold at times like having your enemy shoving their hand through your chest
    -The enemy lost his hand and Slade was fine because it was all according to plan 
-Uses Black Manta’s speed against him while underwater

Occult Knowledge:
-Seems to have knowledge of the occult

Mind Control Resistance:
-His son Jericho says it would take a few weeks to control Slade

Stealth:
-More than capable of pulling disappearing acts
-Disappears in a burst of smoke
-Snuck into the Arrowcave without being seen or tripping any alarms
-Stalked Green Arrow without being noticed
-Stole a file from the archives without being seen on the security cameras
-Moves next to HIVE agents without them noticing

Master of Deception:
-Pretended to be N52 Wally West’s friend in order to gain intel on the Teen Titans
-Good liar in general

Weapons and Equipment:

 

Image result for deathstroke promethium armor
Promethium Armor:
-Promethium is lightweight and self-healing
-Resistant to bullets and super-powered attacks
-Comes with Nth Metal plating as well to enhance his strength further
-Resists blades as well with most energy attacks
-Shows that many higher up superheroes cannot break through it
-Offered him protection from Aquaman’s trident and Hawkman’s mace on multiple occasions
-Took a load of Green Arrow’s bomb-themed arrows
-No-sold a load of gunfire from a massive aircraft
-Took Green Lantern constructs as well
-Showed no damage after The Flash unleashed numerous punches from all angles
-A building collapsing from a bomb did nothing to his suit
-Beast Boy in his gorilla form could barely scratch him
-A punch from Superboy into a foot of concrete couldn’t break his suit
-His mask has thermal scanning and allows him to breathe underwater
-Has a protective cup that protects him from nutshots

 

Image result for deathstroke promethium sword
Promethium Sword:
-Can easily cut through cars and plane wings
-Extremely durable and easy to wield
-Approximately 40 inches long
-Slices through most metals
-Gives Batman’s suit, along with numerous superhumans trouble
    -Said superhumans include Starfire, Terra, Kid Flash, Wonder Girl, and hell, it staggered Supes a few times
    -Said plane wing feat should place his sword at MCB with its sheer cutting power

 

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The Deathstroke:
-Slade’s first and favorite sword in the New 52
-An antique sword that he won off in a poker game
-Before it had any upgrades was capable of slicing through people
-Has promethium forged into it, making it more durable and capable of absorbing energy like Superman’s heat vision
-Drew blood from Superman

 

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Energy Lance:
-Can fire blasts that can shatter stone columns
-Can easily be spammed
-Also extremely durable and acts as a staff as well
-Can stun or kill depending on the blast
-Destroyed/nearly vaporized an entire helicopter
-Knocked back Superman
-Is stated to be proportionate to Deathstroke’s physical strength
    -Again, Town in power
-Stabbed through a giant dragon/monster with it
-The New 52 version can be split into twin eskrima sticks and shoot electricity

 
Dstroke Godkiller by Br3ndan5

Godkiller:
-Can adjust its weight
-Guides and might control the user’s movements
-Strengthens the user in the heat of a harsh battle
-Has the ability to shape-shift depending on the user’s own thoughts and instincts
-Can take on many forms to adapt to one’s fighting style as well as adapt to fight stronger opponents 
-Forms include a bo staff, twin blades, and a cat o’ nine tails for binding & ensnaring
-Can unleash powerful shock blasts
-Able to absorb and redirect whatever force is unleashed upon with twice the impact
-Can be magically be recalled back to the user
-If ever shattered or somehow broken, it can reform itself

 
Image result for beretta 92fs

Beretta 92FS:
-Ammo capacity: 15 rounds
-Rate of fire: 40 rounds per minute
-Deathstroke carries at least four on him and dual wield two of them
-Packs extremely powerful bullets
-Quick to draw
-Rapid fire as well
-Coupled with Deathstroke’s speed, it makes for a deadly combination

 

n0mOgDN by allcreation104
Pistol/Sniper Rifle Hybrid:
-Can be switched between a pistol or a sniper rifle
-Has infrared scopes and laser sights
-A handmade firearm with no serial numbers and all parts are enforced plastic

 
Ar-15-e1494629975678 by allcreation104

Custom Colt AR-15 Sporter Carbine:
-Ammo capacity: 20 rounds
-Rate of Fire: 800 rounds per minute
-Deathstroke’s AR-15 features a scope, a custom stock, and an M203 grenade launcher built into the handguard

 
Image result for Heckler & Koch MP5K:

 

Heckler & Koch MP5K:
-Ammo capacity: 15-30 rounds
-Rate of Fire: 800 rounds per minute
-Dual-wielded

 

700VTR Beauty-BipodUp by allcreation104
Remington Model 700:
-Ammo capacity: 3-6 rounds
-Rate of Fire: 1 round per minute

 
Deathstroke super bomb by Br3ndan5

Super Bomb:
-Nearly incapacitated the entire JLA when unleashed
-A last resort weapon
-Also carries smaller gas bombs and explosives
-Uses it to distract or escape

 

Image result for deathstroke knife
Knives:
-Often a back up weapon of sorts
-Very precise when thrown

 
4889298-1705065256-b7490 by allcreation104

Explosives:
-Various incarnations of Slade have used explosives capable of knocking back and even damaging Superhumans
-Did some damage to Lobo shown above
-Thermal detonators are strong enough to take out an elephant

 
tumblr ly1breBrsJ1qd772v by allcreation104

Weaknesses:
-A bit arrogant
    -To be fair, he has a right to be
-His healing factor takes time in some instances
-Many of his best feats required some type of prep
-Too much pain puts him into an animalistic state
-Major family issues

(“You cannot die until you have suffered the same way I have suffered, until you have known complete despair, and you will, I promise.”)

Future Gohan vs Baiken: Non-Death Ending

The moment these words escaped her lips, Baiken sheathed her katana, producing an audible CLICK. In tandem with this, his chest had split open, causing blood to gush out from its new gash. Although he wasn’t aware of it, Baiken had chosen to hold back at the last second, leaving the hybrid with a wound that- while painful- would only injure him, rather than kill. That didn’t make it hurt any less, though! The pain of this injury, when combined with his drained stamina and the blood loss from his previous wounds, had ensured that this fight was over. Gohan’s vision faded to black, and with no fight left in him, he collapsed onto his knees.

 

As she heard the THUNK of Gohan’s unconscious body hitting the ground, Baiken sat down, keeping both of her legs crossed. She then reached into her pocket, unveiling a small wooden pipe, and quickly lit it. Placing it against her lips, the samurai inhaled for a brief moment, savoring the taste of tobacco on her tongue, and then exhaled a puff of smoke.

“You did a pretty good job, kid. It’s been a long time since I had someone push me to my limits like that. If you keep up what you’re doing, you may even beat me the next time we meet.”

Once these words had left her lips, Baiken pushed herself back to her feet and began walking off, ready to continue exploring this new world and- hopefully– find a way home.

[Stop music]