Post by Ryukai on May 16, 2020 17:11:20 GMT -5
Choose, and act.
❝
Once again, the members of team MSRA would enter the arena of Amity Colosseum after their victory the previous match, the roar of the crowd hitting them like an almost physical force. It was a veritable tsunami that few things could match, ripe with the expectation of the tens of thousands of people that had come to watch the demonstration of skill and prowess by the future defenders of man and Faunus kind. Before them lay the arena, already configuring itself to the newest layout to grace the incoming combatants. Larger than three football fields put side by side, the fighting grounds lay a hundred and fifty meters in diameter and had the capability of changing the environments within between rounds, so that no two fights would ever be the same. Separated into four biomes that each took up a quarter of the area not already taken by the centerpiece of featureless concrete were the three biomes that MSRA and MRLT would be fighting in this match, stretching the fifty meters from the featureless grey octagon that sat squarely in the center to the edge of the arena proper and the brown dirt that ran around its edge for a good distance more before it hit the wall and force field that would protect the audience from anything gone awry. Of course, said force field was invisible to the eye unless impacted hard enough to pulse the blue of hard light Dust used to keep it running, so unless stray attacks or trainees were launched into it, it would remain a silent protector of the masses viewing them for their pleasure.
To their left, swampland stretched out the full two biomes, uninterrupted from one end of the circle to another. Reeds and marshland grasses protruded out of the ankle deep brackish water, along with stunted and twisted trees that grew outward rather than upward, ranging from twenty to twenty four meters tall with loops of strangling vines hanging from their branches. Bubbles floated up to burst on the murky surface, and filled the air with the stench of rotting mud, which wafted outward and over to the contestants.
To their right, the closest biome was densely forested, with deciduous trees thickly closeted together. Unlike their counterparts in the swamp biome, these trees stood straight and tall and narrow in comparison, though they stood at the same height of twenty to twenty four meters tall. In the lower reaches of the biome, assorted brambles and grasses grown thickly together made for a dense undergrowth that would hinder movement through it, though anything above that remained clear and gave students ample space to fight between the trees.
The furthest biome on their right was a rocky and mountainous landscape, which only grew in height intensity the closer to the center of the biome it got. Small foothills ranging from one to two meters in height were scattered around the base of one large group of peaks, the lowest of which still reached dozens of meters in height. The tallest of these stood heads and shoulders around its smaller brethren at nearly a hundred meters tall, and had small stormclouds coalescing around its peak that crackled with thunder and the occasional flash of electricity. With all that on display, it was definitely a locale that suited the unique Mistrallean aesthetic, and those who had spent time in the capital would no doubt feel quite at home there.
Before the students could do much more than observe the terrain, the view of the commentator booth quickly flashed on to several of the surrounding screens, though the rest remained focused on the commentators on the ground. A woman with bright red hair and a slight blush was speaking, with a pair of striking red eyes that somehow managed to convey slight nervousness through the holographic screen. Despite that, the voice that came over the speakers, while demure, had a way of cutting through the noise in admirable fashion.
"Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to the second bracket of the Wild Card rounds for the Thirteeth Vytal Festival Tournament. Today, we have Team MSRA and MRLT facing off against each other in a two on two battle that will see one team eliminated from the Wild Card rounds and the victor climbing closer to their opportunity to reach one of the eight spots that will be contesting for this year's title of Vytal Festival Champion. I am Aika Ishimura, currently under contract as a Huntress of Atlas, and will be providing live commentary for the match alongside my colleague, Oignon de Marron. Please welcome the contestants as they enter the field."
Across from the two, Mika Willow and Engram Ruskea were entering the field, their teammates noticeably absent. Neither of them looked much different from the last time they'd been seen, still scowling and stone faced when compared to other contestants. However, facing off against Magarethe Holiday's team HNGE in the match immediately prior to this one had caused some shifts in attitude, shifts that would become immediately apparent on first glance. There was a newfound vulnerability to them, finally having come up against an opponent they couldn't brute force their way through - a vulnerability that might perhaps be exploited by those willing or sharp eyed enough to do so. Instead of the careful strategy shown in the last round when their blonde companion was present, Willow and Ruskea immediately crossed into the center area where contestants were required to start in and stepped right up against the dividing line, clearly intending to rush across it as soon as the match started.
"Oh. It seems as though Team MRLT has forgone their previous strategies of letting their opponents come to them in favor of taking the offense this round. A bold strategy, but as we've seen before, Professor Marron - not one that works particularly well. Would you not say the same?"
The other commentator, a slightly harried blond woman with green eyes who sat next to her fellow Huntress, nodded in response, pushing up her glasses to her eyes and giving her best attempt at a smile.
"Zhis is true, yes. We 'ave seen zhis go poorly before in previous matches, but zhere is also clear precedence for its success. Miss Bariole, for example, 'as employed the rushdown technique to great effect in earlier matches. As always, such techniques depend 'eavily on ze person performing it, and ze persons reacting to it. I expect zhat Mister Willow will be trying to use his better speed to focus down the slower members of the team before zhey can muster a defense while Mister Ruzkea catches up. Zhen again, as Mister Vas 'as a similar Semblance to Mister Willow and 'is teammate Miss Sabatto is noticeably smaller and lighter, and Mister Ruzkea does not appear to 'ave a ranged attack option, it could also be possible for them to remain out of range until enough damage 'as been done to knock zhem out of ze fight."
Huntress nodded along in agreement with her colleague's assessment, before leaning a bit closer to her mic.
"We're looking forward to see what happens, contestants. Please remember to afford your opponents all due respect and fight to the best of your ability. I wish the both of you the best of luck, and may the best team win. You may begin in five. Four. Three. Two. One."
Above the students, the holographic screens flashed a countdown as the Huntress did, starting from five and ticking down with every second. When it reached zero, a siren blasted into the air, and the words MATCH START flared across in bright red letters.
"Match - begin."
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MADE BY MIZO
