Duel Galactic Kaggath Round 2: Mercy vs Jacen vs Switchblade vs Koda (4-way Special)

[Razmir Tezhyn]

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Mercy vs Jacen Breska vs 5-WCH (Switchblade) vs Koda Fett​

Molten rock covered the arena floor, churning under the pressure of its own heat. The dying corpse of the Wroyshr tree lit up with flame, descending steadily as its base burned away. Great branches broke away and were quickly consumed by the lava. As it devoured the last remnants of the first round’s environment, the second round’s stage took shape.

Platforms were scattered throughout the arena. They ranged from small ones which could barely hold one person to larger ones that evoked small duelling rings. Dozens of them floated at various heights, their machinery shielded against the heat from below.

Together, they formed the battleground for this round: a precarious battle above all-consuming lava with limited space to stand on.

Those who fell would be incinerated by the lava and forgotten in a tomb of molten rock.

The announcer’s voice cut through the excited chatter of the crowds as the combatants were ferried into the arena on small, floating platforms: “In remembrance of the Battle of Mustafar, fought by the First Order and the Galactic Alliance many decades ago, we present to you the second battlefield of the Kaggath!”

“WELCOME TO A SPECIAL ROUND TWO OF THE KAGGATH!”

“What was a three-way chaotic brawl has been turned upside down by the surprise appearance of another duelist!”

“Please welcome to this SPECIAL 4-WAY RUMBLE:"

“THE INDESTRUCTIBLE LEVIATHAN, MEEEEEEERCYYY!”

“THE INDOMITABLE SUPER SOLDIER, JAAAACEEEEEN BRESKAAAA!”

“THE PERFECT KILLING MACHINE, 5-WCH SWIITHCBLAAAADE!”

“AND EVERY BOUNTY’S GREATEST NIGHTMARE, KODAAAAA FEEEEETT!”

“WHICH OF THEM WILL SURVIVE THE CHAOS TO COME? LET’S FIND OUT IN THE SECOND ROUND OF THE FIRST GALACTIC KAGGATH TOURNAMENT!”​

 

[Mercy]

"Where the fuck are all the Sith?" She muttered to herself as she listened to Razmir Tezhyn 's voice announcing the players, including the surprise fourth addition.

For one moment Mercy held out hope there would be another Sith in the duel with them. But no, it just had to be the most famous Mandalorian this Galaxy had ever seen.

She walked up to one of the edges of the large floating platform she was on. Kicked a pebble down over it. It sizzled away into the magma far below.

With Mercy's luck she'd go through the whole tournament, never laying eyes on another Sith. Would that still count? Winning the tournament but without any forcer blood on her knuckles? She felt that couldn't count. Sure, she'd have the money, the title, the fame. All very good things to have, but would Mercy feel good about it?

Mercy thought about it as she walked back to the center of the platform. Watching for the others to arrive on their respective platforms.

Yes. She'd feel good, but only if she was able to spill some blood today.

Jacen Breska 5-WCH (Switchblade) Koda Fett

 

[Jacen Breska]

K A G G A T H ​

WEARING:: Halcyon Armour | Contact Lenses | Wrist Mounted APG | Ancile Shield | Aredian Amulet
EQUIPMENT: MAIN WEAPONRY: VW 864 Maser Rifle | DC-902d | Sunshot Pistol | Shiva Knife |
ADDITIONAL EQUIPMENT: 3x Ravenous Grenades | 2x Kushute Grenades | 3x Ion Grenade
LOCATION: :: Ruusan - Arena ::
TAG: Mercy | 5-WCH (Switchblade) | Koda Fett

Jacen hopped back and forth on his feet, eager for the fight to commence properly.

A surprise fourth combatant, he sneered. Of course. It couldn't ever be simple.

"Can't have fought in round one, no no," he muttered, shaking his head as he eyed the other contestants before settling on Koda, "got a good little break, just show up and make it that much harder. Good. Great."

Jacen shook his head and exhaled, pulling the Maser Rifle from his back and shouldering it as the platform he was on lifted off the ground and the Lava flooded the arena. He eyed the surroundings, looking up at the platforms above and below him as he plotted out different routes in his head.

It'd be easier if it was a single platform, he thought to himself. The way it was looking, getting close to any combatant, close enough to use any of his equipment smartly, was going to take some doing. The time it'd take to plot out a strategy for all three of them was something he just didn't have. He'd have to prioritize. Logically, to Jacen, the Sith was the biggest threat, and the Droid was the unknown. But his eyes focused on the Mandalorian first.

The Sith and the Droid could wait. This guy thought he could skip the first round and join the tournament no muss no fuss?
Not on my watch, he thought with a smile as he turned his gauntlet to max settings.
He always wanted a nice suit of Beskar armor to hang from the walls. It was a Kaggath, after all. The Kaggath. It was a fight to the death, and Jacen wasn't going to wait for anyone to make the first move. He was going to win this. He needed it, needed the proof of his skill, needed everyone to know he was something to take seriously. Everyone else only wanted the win. It was still just a tournament to them. For Jacen, it was something else.

"I'm not going to wait. The first move is mine," he muttered, raising his maser rifle to his eye and sighting the Mando before firing off a burst, two flying, aimed for his legs while the third soared for his jetpack. As the blasts left the rifle, Jacen immediately engaged his repulsor pack and launched himself forward across the platforms straight at Koda.

​

 

[Mauve]

Suddenly! A series of hovering news droids equipped with internal loudspeakers came under the sway of Mercy thanks to a slicer friend or three. They would now boom out whatever she said to the audience.

 

[5-WCH (Switchblade)]

CHAMPION OF THE GUILD

Jacen Breska | Mercy | Koda Fett

​

The droid had to hand it to Lynch , the man had some great connections.

Switchblade admired his new gear as he stepped out onto the battlefield. This new tech would be very useful for this upcoming round. What was originally supposed to be a three-way fight turned into four competitors all duking it out. He knew little of the soldier and the Sith. His pre-match scans through the Darknet did not reveal much of anything. The newest opponent, however, was one he knew quite well. Everyone did. Veteran hunters, rookies, any and all in between. Every single one has heard of Koda Fett . And for those unfortunate few of the other side of his blaster, they knew what he was capable of.

Along with the bounty hunter, four Tanuki droids and one recon droid rested on the platform. He did not have much hope for the Tanuki's survival this round, but they were meant to be expendable. If they could cause at least one distraction to give him the edge, then Switchblade was going to take it. The recon droid would help him keep track of all three of his opponents, making sure that they would have a very difficult time sneaking up on him.

Looking out across the molten battleground, the droid watched as Jacen Breska made the first strike towards Koda. Foolish. There was no pity from the hunter, because that was an emotion he was incapable of processing. Maybe the boy would die an honorable death against the Mandalorian. But his chances were thin.

Using this opportunity, Switchblade turned his attention towards Mercy . The hovering news droids would be a nuisance nonetheless, but perhaps he could use them to his advantage. Raising his rifle so the scope met with Mercy's head, the droid fired off a quick volley of shots. While this was happening, two of the Tanuki droids began to dart their way across the platforms, making their way towards the Sith. The recon droid turned its attention to the fight between Koda and Jacen, studying their attack so that Switchblade could learn their weaknesses in real time.

All in all, he would have to be on his A-Game if he wanted a chance to move on to the next round.

Spoiler: Equipment

• AP-25i 'SIMP' Particle Beam Blasters
• Dioxis Grenades​
• GG-02 Glop Grenades​
• Indomitable-pattern Vambraces​
• M.I. Telescopic Electrostaff​
• Netrunner Vibroshank​
• PGEM Assault Rifle Slugthrower​
• 'Shev'la Gteditr' Rocket Pack​
• 'Ysalamiri Birikad' Nutrient Frame​
• 'Shev'la Gteditr' Rocket Pack
• 'Verd b' Jorad' Communications Suite controlling:​
• x1 RD-01 'Gar Sur'haai' Recon Droid​
• x4 Tanuki Droids​
• Claimed Gear:​
• Leidimas Sith Plate​

 

[Koda Fett]

Possession: Koda Fett's Armor, ZV1 Mentor Blaster Carbine, ZV2 Compact Heavy Blaster Pistol, Thermal Detonator, Ion Grenade, Sonic Grenade

From atop the platform, the Mandalorian surveyed the arena; the helmet came alive with the processing of newfound information. Each of them was small, slim, and positioned in a different . manner. His own was low, the heat from the molten lava palpable even with the environmental control his armour was equipped with.

Some vague notion of the Sith mercenary came to mind, with nothing on the other two. Fresh faces, maybe.

The T-visor watched as Jacen made his move. Two shots deftly evaded with careful, precise movements of his less-armoured legs. The third came close, though not close enough.

Blue bolts. Ion tibanna? No. He would have targeted the droid if that was the case. Maser - matches the density.

Fett tossed a sonic charge into the magma, the detonation spewing lava into the air and into the path of Breska. In the brief moment of that obscured line of sight, he repositioned.

Jacen Breska Mercy 5-WCH (Switchblade)

 

[Mercy]

The other contestants had arrived. Her uplink to the arena's audio drones synchronized with a sharp ping in her ear.

Perfect.

Jacen Breska sped off immediately towards Koda Fett . That was a rookie mistake. Never go after the grizzled veteran who had hunted Sith Emperors and Jedi Grandmasters alike, without the Force, and still lived to talk about it. But it wasn't the tactical error that annoyed Mercy. No. It was that she had hoped, sincerely and hungrily, that both of them would come at her at once.

Her voice erupted across the arena, a jeering echo bouncing off molten rock and metal. Boastful. Arrogant. Dripping with mirth.

"The little trooper is running from me." She sang, mocking and melodic. Her eyes locked on 5-WCH (Switchblade) , even as her words chased Jacen. "I told him I'd rip his spine out. Looks like he believed me. Maybe he'll run all the way back to his family... if he can look them in the eye after this."

The crowd roared, but Mercy only smirked.

It seemed Mercy was so distracted with goading Jacen, that she didn't notice the droid lining up his shot.

One of the shots took her straight in the shoulder and sent her flying off of the platform she was standing on. That was the end of Mercy then. Too arrogant by half, so convinced of her own superiority-

Except.

Her body never hit the fire below.

For a moment nothing, then...

CRACK

Her platform tore free of its hover-locks and launched itself toward Switchblade. One of the larger platforms, its mass triggered a chaotic chain reaction. It smashed into the others in its path, breaking the neat geometry of the arena. Platforms spun out of position, drifted, collided. The battlefield shifted.

But still, no Mercy.

Then her voice again, smug and echoing:

"I just wanted a real fight. Flesh and bone. Meat against meat. But I am stuck fighting a toaster and a coward. Where is the justice in that?"

A smaller platform near Switchblade exploded upward with splinters of durasteel slicing through the air. And then Mercy burst from beneath it. With a bright maniacal smile, almost joyfully, diving toward the droid with the full weight of her fury behind her.

 

[Jacen Breska]

K A G G A T H ​

WEARING:: Halcyon Armour | Contact Lenses | Wrist Mounted APG | Ancile Shield | Aredian Amulet
EQUIPMENT: MAIN WEAPONRY: VW 864 Maser Rifle | DC-902d | Sunshot Pistol | Shiva Knife |
ADDITIONAL EQUIPMENT: 3x Ravenous Grenades | 2x Kushute Grenades | 3x Ion Grenade
LOCATION: :: Ruusan - Arena ::
TAG: Mercy | 5-WCH (Switchblade) | Koda Fett

Jacen continued forward, hopping from platform to platform in an effort to close the distance to Koda. Naturally, the Mandalorian evaded his blasts, but one got close. Close enough to make him smile.

All he needed was the idea that it was possible. He could score a hit, and he'd keep trying. Jacen raised his rifle again, hoping to fire off another trio of shots towards Fett, when Fett tossed something into the lava in between the platforms separating them, sending up a wall of molten rock that threatened to roast Jacen.
"SHIT!" Jacen exclaimed loudly as he landed on the final platform before the lava geyser. Shifting his weight backwards, Jacen engaged the repulsor pack on the Halcyon and tried to stop his forward momentum, falling down on the ground and sliding towards the end of the platform before he engaged the magnetic boots and stopped himself completely, the sudden inertia drawing a pained grunt as he jostled inside his armor.

He raised his head and scanned for Koda as the lava died back down, cursing silently to himself when, of course, the Mandalorian was not where he had been. Jacen searched around briefly, hoping for any sign of the bounty hunter, before rising back to his feet, yelling out in frustration, "Karabast!"

He was preparing to continue forward, keep pushing towards where Koda might be lurking, with his eyes looking up, down and around for any signs of him until the announcement system for the arena screamed to life.

"If they announce another contestant I'm going freakin' lose it."

"The little trooper is running from me." She sang, mocking and melodic. Her eyes locked on 5-WCH (Switchblade) , even as her words chased Jacen. "I told him I'd rip his spine out. Looks like he believed me. Maybe he'll run all the way back to his family... if he can look them in the eye after this."

Jacen stopped mid stride and turned around towards where he remembered Mercy was. Somewhere opposite his location now, across the arena. Inside his helmet, his eyes were wide with anger.

"Alright witch you want a fight?" He sneered, "Well, then I guess the Mandalorian is gonna have to wait..." he muttered muttered, piecing together a haphazard, but fast, path to Mercy. He was about to engage his thrusters and begin his advance when he saw a figure tumble off the platform in the distance. He blinked in confusion, surely that wasn't her? For a moment, Jacen was torn between disappointment and elation. She was dead, what did it matter?
Then, a ripple of chaos erupting from her side of the arena. Platforms flung loose, sending a wave of destruction he could see clearly from here, heralding her unfortunate survival before her stupid annoying voice wormed it's way back inside his helmet.

"I just wanted a real fight. Flesh and bone. Meat against meat. But I am stuck fighting a toaster and a coward. Where is the justice in that?"

She appeared, flying through the sky trying to dive down onto the, he supposed droid. No time to get over there, not from here, so Jacen raised his maser rifle back to his eye and fired another burst. Three blasts screamed towards Mercy as she descended, aimed for her center of mass.
Once he fired, he started looking around for a good spot to reposition to. He hoped, with a more commanding view, he may also be able to spot Koda lurking around.

​

 

[5-WCH (Switchblade)]

CHAMPION OF THE GUILD

Jacen Breska | Mercy | Koda Fett

​

A digitalized smirk decorated the droid's face as his slug made contact with the Sith's shoulder.

It looked as if the woman had fallen into the lava, defeated just moments after the round started. There was no way that he defeated her so quickly. But could he? Maybe it was true. His suspicions were dismissed as soon as he had processed them as a platform went careening through the air.

Dropping to his back, Switchblade watched as the platform sailed overhead, crashing into the lava, spraying it everywhere. How was she that strong? Sitting up slightly, the droid watched as platforms all around began to shift and change positions. Two of these surfaces had a singular Tanuki droid on it, sending them spinning in opposite directions. Their target was Mercy, but now she was nowhere to be seen. The remaining two assumed defensive stances alongside the bounty hunter.

He did not tolerate being called a toaster. The droid was a killing machine, and he would show the viewers rightfully so. The attack from Mercy was expected, though not as he predicted. Lifting both of his arms, Switchblade fired off multiple whistling birds from his vambraces. All were aimed directly at the Sith. A vital reading on the droid's HUD showed that the Ysalamiri in his supportive frame was alive and well. Since Mercy was so close, that meant that her Force abilities would be practically useless. The playing field had to be leveled somehow.

"How's this for a toaster?"

While this was taking place, the recon droid continued to monitor the fight between the soldier and the Mandalorian. The two Tanuki droids that were displaced by the platform shift were actually closer to the duo now. Under Switchblade's command, the rodent droids set their sights on making their way to Koda Fett , planning to attack him.

 

[Koda Fett]

It was as if the molten magma began to lick and curl flames around his armour, aware that the shields could not withstand so much heat for much longer; clung to the underside of a slim, one-man platform. The helmet's systems allowed for Fett to track Breska's movements, and an ambush could be sprung in short order.

Then, Mercy's voice erupted over the loudspeaker.

"Hnh," Koda shook his helmet, groaning.

There was a sudden, thunderous roar of his jetpack. Hardly a subtle thing. He took off into the sky, in a looping arc to reach the other side of the arena. Catching so much as a glimpse of those Tanuki droids that came scampering after him, leaving them behind.

If Mercy wanted her fight, she could have it.

In the air, above the rest, the targeting system of his helmet honed in on the intended targets. Organic, inorganic. A hail of missile fire erupted from the wrist-mounted launcher, seeking all three and some of the platforms around them, all to sink them into the lava.

Jacen Breska 5-WCH (Switchblade) Mercy

 

[Mercy]

Jacen Breska | 5-WCH (Switchblade) | Koda Fett

Oh, she struck a nerve, multiple ones by the sounds of it and that delighted Mercy utterly.

As she flew towards Switchblade, she twisted violently to avoid the mini-rockets from incinerating her utterly. They careened past her and exploded, showering her in fire and shrapnel that cut the flesh of her shoulder and arm. Blood crimson and fire licking at her nerves. She was heedless, she had her target, that is all that mattered. Blaster fire came in from afar, that initial twist causing two of them to go wide, but not the third compensated one. It ran along her hip.

Heedless still.

She burst through Switchblade's force dead field without even realizing it. Her senses became more muted, but all of it was subconscious. She barely relied on the Force except for in very specific moments. This wasn't one of them. In her hands were a pair of ion grenades. She had learned her lesson while fighting the trooper lad in the first round.

These maddening grotesque creatures of metal and cybernetics cared little for brute force. Somehow they kept going, over and over and over again. This was fine for Mercy, she loved a fight, but she loved winning even more.

Her feet landed her right besides Switchblade. "My bread ain't ready yet, toaster." She growled right as she dropped the grenades and immediately launched herself away again, sprinting and then landing on a different platform. It was the only thing that saved Mercy from dropping into the lava for keeps this time.

Koda had joined the fight and his rockets bombarded the platforms as he hung in the air like a vengeful comet.

The sheer force of the explosions caused her own platform to be send flying back and away. Only in that moment did she feel the change. When she was rooted in place, holding on and taking a breath. The Force had been gone for a moment, several heart beats, but it had been enough. Only now did she feel the pulsing from her arm. The one that had been etched with eldritch tattoos by a street savant. Mercy had been dealing with the consequences ever since.

Starweirds appearing where they shouldn't. Her arm acting on its own, sometimes to her detriment. She had been wrecked in her fight against Corazona von Ascania a long time ago because her hand hadn't been behaving.

But this was the first time that Mercy had encountered an ysalamir field. The first time the Force hadn't subconsciously flowed through her and kept her fully rooted in this existence. In that split second, when the Force was gone, something else had filled the gap. The tattoos were burning bright, sickening, she felt the bile at the back of her throat. The way her skin burned from the flames, the metal shrapnel. The blood trickling down her skin. And the pleasure of power from a different place coursing through her veins.

She smiled. It was beautiful.