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Tryout Fic #16: Solid Chihuahua - Crono vs. NookThe day of the match was like any other. The sun was high in the cloudless sky and beat down upon the combatants and spectators, the glare obscuring that action below at times. Even so, nearly everyone had shown to see the match. It was the first match of the well-known and popular hero who traveled through time to prevent the apocalypse, and many were eager to see a stunning performance. The noise of the crowd had reached an almost painful volume. Everybody was yelling at the top of his or her lungs, contributing what they thought was important to the noise. Whether it is "Good luck" or "I want some blood", the spectators spewed from their mouths useless garbage, only adding to the ever-increasing pollution that offended Sephiroth so much. The offensive nature of humans is what prevented Sephiroth from going to watch the matches. They were a vile, disgusting race, only living to destroy what was never theirs in the first place. If one were to hear the thoughts inside his head, one may argue that Sephiroth himself is a human like everyone else. Sephiroth would explain that he was not a human like them. He was part of a higher race, the rightful heir to the planet. He would then promptly remove said person the burden of his or her head. These creatures do not deserve a show, the would-be ancient wore a scowl that warned others not to stray near him. In fact, there was a radius of several seats around him where nobody dared to sit. They do not even deserve life. This discontentment with the race that had stolen the planet is a large cause of his unpopularity, although some would argue it was due to his habit of killing people. The swordsman did not mind this, as he was perfectly satisfied staying in his room or training. However, Sephiroth actually wanted to witness this display of human drama. Crono was the subject of a lot of talk amongst the swordsmen. His skill supposedly rivaled that of Sephiroth himself. He even preferred to use a sword similar to that of Sephiroth, although his was considerably smaller. Sephiroth actually found himself eager to see how the warrior used it. Although there was much excitement, nobody expected a fight; they expected a slaughter. The cheering for Crono died down as the crowd became aware of the bizarre noises emanating from Nook's side of the stadium. The raccoon's contraption came into view accompanied by noises that could only be described as wheezing. The metallic sound cause by the moving parts was nearly drowned out by the hissing of steam that ejected from nearly every seam and orifice. It sounded like an animal that was struggling to simply walk, hanging on to life by a thread. The visual appearance of the weapon was no more impressive than the desperate sounds it produced. Real dragons were beautiful in their frightening appearance. Their sharp fangs and sinuous bodies were sexy in a way. This tank that mimicked the beast was anything but sexy. Its body seemed to be made entirely of its rather large belly. Its head was perched atop a long neck and resembled an awkward bird more than a fearsome dragon. It rode atop not clawed feet, but rickety wheeled that were barely held in place. It was a weapon nonetheless, and Crono perceived it as a threat. This seems vaguely familiar, thought Crono. His encounter with a battle tank similar to this was the climactic end to the memorable occasion when he had to escape prison before his execution. He had to take a systematic approach to destroying the beast that time. The head healed the entire body, and the wheel stored energy. He was planning on attacking the head the instant they were instructed to begin fighting when he realized that this tank was not made with the same craftsmanship as the only he had faced before. It should be quite easier to dispatch. The loud cheer that normally erupted as the announcer shouted "GO!" died down unusually quickly. Everyone in the audience suddenly felt as if a ghost had entered the stadium. Everyone felt an odd, tingling sensation in the back of his or her necks, which was growing stronger every second. Every part of ones body that was touching the chair was suddenly weakly bounded to the chair by an unseen force. Nobody uttered a word. The silence was broken only by an occasional sound that reminded some of the popping of popcorn. Everyone's hair began to stand up against the will of gravity. Tom Nook's view screen was occupied by the image of Crono, who was now levitating several feet above the ground. Although there was no wind, Crono's clothing was dancing against his body as if he were standing in 100 mph gales. He wore an expression of intense concentration as he closed his eyes and raised his open fists to the sky. Although the sun was now blocked by unexplained storm clouds, the heat became so great that one could see the air around Crono distort. Without warning, the lights surrounding the stadium, which had been turned off, erupted into a burst of sparks and shattered glass. Cameras and cell phones burst in people's hands. Nook's view screen began behaving erratically before suddenly shutting off and glowing an eerie bright white. The sky was growing steadily darker. Certain spectators in the stands began violently convulsing. Master Chief and Samus Aran fell to the ground in a fit of spasms, every joint in their armor flailing madly. KOS-MOS seemed to be undergoing the most severe convulsions, but she soon became motionless. She had seemingly switched off automatically due to some sort of emergency failsafe. Solid Snake and Raiden were affected by the unseen force as well, but less so than others. Snake seemed to maintain enough muscle control to yell, "Shut them off, Otacon!" The invisible force seemed to rise out of the ground, and everyone could feel it. Large sparks burst from Crono's body and licked the ground beneath him. It was apparent to everyone present that this warrior commanded an awesome power. Crono clenched his fists above him and brought them swinging down towards the ground, as if commanding the heavens to unleash their power and strike his enemies. This was not far from the truth. As he brought his fists down a jet of light blue energy sprung from the dragon tank and met the sky, bringing down a column of intense heat and light and a clap of thunder. The instant the bolt reached the tank a mighty explosion of superheated air could be heard for miles around. Shards of metal erupted from the beast-like tank, each carrying a residual charge of electricity that was visible when it jumped to the ground or a nearby piece of metal. Flame burst from the engine housed within the steel belly, which remained burning long after the initial blow. The final piece of shrapnel struck the ground and everything returned to normal. The sky became cloudless once again, cyborgs in the audience became motionless, and Crono was planted firmly on his feet. At first, nothing, not even the wind, dared make a sound. After a few moments of awed silence, someone spoke up. "I could have done better," proclaimed the magician Magus. Still, everyone else remained silent, eager to see what became of the beloved shopkeeper. There was a loud gasp as the smoke cleared around the wreckage. Standing in the middle of the shards of the destroyed tank was a shaking, however completely unharmed Tom Nook. He opened his eyes long enough to realize he was, in fact, still alive. He smiled and let out a very unenthusiastic laugh as the crowd burst into applause. If KOS-MOS were operational, she would have informed anyone around her that the metal shell of the tank had protected the raccoon. However, as she was not around to enlighten them, the members of the audience drew their own conclusions. "It's a miracle!" cried Zelda. "Bah!" yelled Bowser, "What a wimp! I would have killed him!" Crono's show of immense power and mercy had put everyone in a cheery mood. Sephiroth could no longer stand the noise and interrupted them. "The match isn't over, you know," he scornfully reminded them at the top of his lungs. Suddenly everyone was once again hushed in anticipation of what Crono would do next. He swung his hands to his weapon on his hip. One hand gripped the sheath, the other the handle of the sword. Before the swordsman could draw his weapon, Nook acted out of pure fear and desperation, a dangerous combination. "OH GOD!" Tom Nook suddenly began wailing and gripped his chest with both hands. "YOU GOT ME!! Oh cruel fate!!" The spectators were very puzzled as they stared down at the shopkeeper, who was now dramatically swaying as if he were about to drop dead at any moment. "Oh why?! WHY?! I must be destined to die here, at the hands of my opponent!" Nook continued to wail at as loud as he could. Crono raised an eyebrow as the raccoon fell to his knees, still holding his chest as if preventing his lifeblood from spewing from a wound. "Tell my children...*cough*...that I love them." Tom Nook suddenly dropped onto his back, eyes closed and tongue hanging out. It took a moment for the audience to process what they had just seen before they started booing the animal. Evidently, Tom Nook's performance had not pleased the crowd. They began throwing junk at the supposedly deceased raccoon. Nook cringed in pain as he was struck with Sonic the Hedgehog, who was thrown by Bowser. The announcer was about to declare Crono the winner by default, when some newcomers interrupted him. "Giving up so easily, Nook?" the audience turned to see a group of moles. All were clad in trench coats but one, who was wearing a white tuxedo. "Tony!" cried Tom Nook, now miraculously revived, "Y-you can't interfere! It's against the rules! There are guards everywhere. "Taken care of," replied Tony. "Now let's talk business. My sources tell me you have yet to raise enough money here to set things in order. You know what happens to animals with unpaid debts." One of the moles in trench coats laughed. "B-b-but, Tony," stammered a very scared Nook, "you don't understand! Do you know who that is?" He pointed to Crono, who was just staring at the two of them, stunned. Tony studied Crono for the first time. The first feature that struck him was the bizarre, spiky hair that rested on the top of his head. "Some sort of human-pineapple hybrid?" he ventured. This is getting out of hand, Crono decided. With that, he drew his sword. Most were expecting a deadly, razor-sharp blade. Crono instead unsheathed a sword made entirely of harmless wood. This had been his practice sword since he was just beginning to study sword fighting as a child. It was heavily worn and displayed nicks from the many times he had struck something with it. The handle was completely undecorated except for the word "MELCHOIR", the name of the old man who had personally made the practice weapon for Crono. "You wanna play, pineapple? Fine," Tony laughed. "Goons! Advance on him menacingly!!" As the moles began to close in on the hero, the audience began cheering. They were eager to see Crono in action once again. The cries of enthusiasm grew louder as the moles got closer and closer. The first mole that lunged at Crono chose brass knuckles for its weapon. Crono swiftly stepped aside mid-lunge and brought his non-lethal weapon down upon the back of the animal's neck with a sickening crunch. The fight that followed could hardly be called a fight. Each thug that attacked Crono was dispatched with a single blow. The only mole that came close to hitting Crono was one with a lead pipe. He attacked Crono with a blow to the head, which was blocked when it was only inches from striking. Crono then kicked the mole in his rather low-to-the-ground face. It was less than a minute before all of the moles were lying upon the ground with large bruises in various places on their bodies. Tony was nowhere to be seen. He had apparently run off out of fear in the confusion. Crono then turned on Nook, his weapon raised. "Umm, I forfeit," the stunned animal managed to say. Back |