CARNIVAL (The Spark Form Chronicles Book 2) (18 page)

              With the four Data Wicks now floating gently in the middle of the Battle Zone, you can hear the excitement building with the fans. "Donal and Davey Delaney," says the electronic announcer, "please initialise your decks." In response, the two brothers shake hands, nod to each other and hit their initialisation keys.

              Meanwhile, the first of the Data Wicks spins in the air and disappears behind a sudden blast of light. Donal's chosen Spark Form appears first as a silhouette against the brightness, then steps out into clear view, his grey fur shining sleekly under the arena lights. The long ears give away that the Anthro is a Lopine, but unlike the ever popular Carnival, this character is far more serious looking. He wears a casual Chinese style sleeveless black leather shirt with white trim. The top fans out into a cape at the back with a slit for his tail, and is accompanied by plain black leather trousers. His facial markings amount to a series of three red lines that extend from under his left eye, circling down and around the back of his neck and finishing around the front of his neck on the right hand side. His ears are striped like all Anthro Lopines and the colouring matches his markings, as do his hands and feet, but we cannot see his arm and leg patterning due to a combination of the long trousers and the long bandages that cover the top of his hands and run all the way up to just below his shoulders.

The endless dance of the Lopine race,

Failed to capture his heart,

And so he locked himself in his tower,

Believing himself shunned for his hatred of music.

Here,

He devoted his life to the magicks of the Ka'Noxian peoples,

Surrounding himself with the fires of forbidden spells,

And forgotten arts.

It is said that each success he found,

Came with strangled screams,

And that his arms now remain bandaged to mask and soothe,

The burns and scars of years spent mastering the arts of races not his own.

It is also said that when he returned from the Eternal Spark he cried aloud,

'Such cruelty that I should fight to return those,

Who do not want me.

Is it not clear that I do not wish to be as they are?'

Yet fight he does,

For all that now remains to him is but a slim hope.

Lantern would see all cultures return to the world,

If just so he could leave his own behind.

              Lantern gives a flourish of his right hand and summons a flame, but extinguishes it quickly, clutching his hand as he grunts in pain. Then, in stark contrast to his brother's, Davey Delaney's Data Wick fades into a black mass. From the shadow leaps the same Spark Form that Finn McCourt used in his losing effort against John Forrester in the first round of the tournament.

White ears trail back above sleek fur,

Whipping side to side,

While razor teeth cut the air,

Splitting sounds

                         That

                                     Fall

                                             To

                                                     The

                                                                       Floor.

A flick of the tail, an excited leap, and he's gone,

Leaving only the fading blur of his markings,

Like fuchsia flames rising where paws should be.

There.

Behind you.

His golden eyes, underlined pink,

Watching,

As his call echoes,

At first wistful,

Then childlike in its glee as you turn.

He calls again.

A warning that it is time to begin.

For The Breeze, this is but a game,

And all who hear his cry are already playing.

              The Breeze gives a quick dash around his fellow Lopine, then settles into a relaxed pose next to him as they await their opponents.

              The electronic announcer cuts in almost immediately with 'Slade Fury and Lana De La Cruz, please initialise your decks." The two popular competitors give each other a quick fist bump and do as instructed, sending their cards flying across their screens.

              Out in the Battle Zone, Slade's Data Wick explodes into a ball of flame. The flames rise quickly then burn themselves out, leaving behind a familiar beast type Drakalia.

His scales, rippling gently as he breathes, glow a deep, fiery red,

Punctuated only by the curious black markings adorning his back and tail.

Dark as a starless night, they run the length of his body, forming a line of symmetry for the scimitar-like patterns that trace paths out from the spine,

First straight

Then curved

Then pointed until they reach the tail, itself as long as he, where the markings become straight and thick with pointed tips.

As the markings end, we find the first traces of hair, coarse and green like a Barium flame,

Traversing back along the vertebrae, consistently bristly with path unwavering until it reaches the shoulders, where it begins to diffuse wildly into the full, thick mane that frames his long snout,

Twitching and tensing, as it allows a flash of razor sharp teeth to glimmer in the light then disappear again behind powerful jaws.

Slowly, his eyes open, alert and shining, yellow and untamed.

A stare.

A blink.

The stumps above his shoulders flick instinctively

As though flexing the wings that he once carried and once carried him.

Finally,

He stands and stretches, his scaled paws clicking on the floor and tail sweeping dust into the air.

The Torn has risen,

And the world shall burn.

              The Torn roars loudly and fixes his sights on Lantern while Lana's Data Wick immerses itself into a similar ball of flames as Slade's had. Instead of burning out however, the flames hiss and turn to smoke, revealing a second beast type Drakalia.

They call him 'He of the Night',

For this is when he slides from his would-be tomb beneath the waves.

There was a time,

Long ago,

That he stalked the land by night,

The thick,

Shadow black plates that form his body,

Acting as both armour and a tool to aid his hiding as he searched for his prey.

His rage,

Born from the pain of his wings being ripped from his body,

Was such that nought but the slaying of others would satiate his desire to hear others scream as he had.

Finally,

The Drakalia ensnared and bound him,

And cast him into the sea to drown with his rage.

But this was not enough.

For even now,

His mane still glows flame green,

And his scales still shimmer beneath the moon.

But his fires.

His fires burn blue and cold.

Fear does not exist for The Great Beast,

No,

Only hunger remains.

              "Both teams here going with same species pairings but not necessarily same types. Any thoughts Sam?"

              "Ya know, Slade came pretty damn close to beating Fahrn with The Torn yesterday, so it makes sense that he's sticking with him here. Lana going with another beast type Drakalia means that the Blast Style Data Fragment they've loaded up is probably both beast and Drakalia based, so they'll get a nice big damage boost if they get to use it."

              "So what can you tell us about the Drakalia as a species?"

              "There are more Beasts than Anthros, an' they're all scary tough. Both types are heavy into combat and showin' who’s the strongest. Physically, they vary in size but all have the big ol' lion mane an' fur going down their back an' tail."

              "None of them have wings either, right?"

              "Yeah, the story is that they all had their wings ripped out before they returned from the Eternal Spark as the Deities of Ka'Noxus wanted the various species to fight on a level playin' field, an' the ability to fly would give the Drakalia an unfair advantage. If you believe the forums though, it's just 'cause Emblem couldn't come up with a good flying mechanic for the game when they designed 'em."

              Dirk laughs. "And what about the Delaney's Lopines? How are they as a species?"

              "Lopines are kinda like the party animals of the world, ya know? The Anthros tend to be like ravers, they're all about dancin' an' stuff like that. The beasts are jus' outright playful."

              "So The Breeze is typical of the species but Lantern isn't?"

              "That's right. Lantern rebelled against the fun stuff an' wanted to be all serious all the time. The main thing is that he hated that whole lifestyle an' felt like he was an outcast. The other Lopines didn't really mind that he didn't wanna party though, he was jus' too consumed by his own choices to see it. Lopines are generally quite welcoming, so he's a real anomaly."

              "I see that the Delaney's are going with a Burst Style Data Fragment tonight. Are there any Lopine exclusives that they could use there?"

              "Uhm, I'm not sure actually," Sam laughs. "There could be, but I can't think of any. The stat boost for them isn't necessarily important though. If they've got a big combo in there, then jus' droppin' the right cards'll do it."

              "True enough. Well, we're almost ready to go Sam, any predictions?"

              "That's a tough one. Lana and Slade both lost yesterday so will be hungry to get one back, an' Slade's usually a safe bet outside the tournament matches, but the Delaney's are an experienced team. I'm gonna go with experience here an' say Donal an' Davey take it."

Song: Battle Music 06

Band: Emblem Productions

Genre: Instrumental Heavy Metal

              The drums count the music in and the electronic announcer states, "It is time to ... Light. It. Up. Competitors ... Begin!" The guitars kick in hard and both The Breeze and The Great beast retreat to the far ends of the Battle Zone.

              "Lantern throws off a Lightning Bolt and The Torn dives past, straight into a row of Ice Spikes."

              "An' Lantern presses the advantage with a big ol' leap in the air, comin' down hard with a Sword of Flames, but the dice roll says he takes some damage himself an' stumbles back."

              "The Torn now Lunges in and Lantern quickly steps aside, but The Torn follows up with a Tail Whip, sending him sprawling away from his tag partner."

              "The Great Beast now leaps in behind the prone Lopine, an' both Drakalia fire off huge claw swipes."

              "Blood and screams of pain, right up The Great Beast's street, right?"

              "It sure is Dirk ... that's not though! Lightning Bolt there from Lantern followed by an Electric Net, an' The Breeze jumps in, immediately sinkin' his teeth into the throat of his much bigger foe."

              "He's hanging on tight as The Beast tries to throw him off Sam, and ... beautiful dive under by The Breeze as he nips at The Beast's back legs. Dives back and here comes the claws-no! The Great Beast goes back to a Tail Whip. Lantern looking on helplessly now as ... a Heavy Swipe bounces The Breeze hard against the floor."

              "The Great Beast goes in with those massive jaws but The Breeze squirms his way under him just in time an' Lantern now dives back in with the Sword of Flames, forcing the Drakalia off his fellow Lopine."

              "No self-damage this time either, Sam."

              "Nope, the risk paid off an' Lantern presses ahead with a series of Rock Hooks, shaking The Great Beast."

              "So Lantern's used fire, ice, lightning, rock and fist based attacks so far. That's a pretty balanced deck there for Donal Delaney."

              "Yup, that's-The Great Beast blocks a row of Ice Spikes. That's all five of Lantern's stats we've seen in play, an' Donal's usin' them to his full advantage here."

              "Lantern now with another series of Rock Hooks and ... The Great Beast catches the incoming fist in his mouth and forces his teeth down hard!"

              "An' again Lantern cries out! The Torn now dives in an' forces the Lopine to the ground, reigning down with vicious bites. Lantern brings his hands up an' ... whoa!"

              "Lantern there with a close rang Flame Thrust to force The Torn off him!"