r/whowouldwin • u/RobstahTheLobstah • Apr 18 '21
Battle Character Scramble Season 14 Round 2: The Most Dangerous (Pirate) Game!
Round 2 is over! To vote, please fill out this form with your picks!
Voting will close at 7pm PDT on Thursday, May 6. Remember, if you're competing and don't vote, you'll be disqualified!
The Character Scramble is a writing prompt tournament originally started by /u/mrcelophane where people compete to write the best story they can. At the beginning, everyone submits characters that meet the guidelines, then those characters are randomized and distributed evenly. From then on, every couple of weeks there's a new writing prompt for everyone to follow. At the end of the round, everyone votes for who they think should advance, until we have our winner at the end. The winner at the end of the tournament gets to choose the theme, tier, and rules of the next scramble, along with a nice custom flair as their reward. The current theme is based on the anime One Piece, and to fit the tier, submissions must be near-even in power level with 616 Luke Cage.
Without further ado, let’s set sail!
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Round 2: The Most Dangerous (Pirate) Game!
Your crew has arrived at Sabaody Archipelago, the hardest island to spell in the wide world of One Piece. The thing about Sabaody, though, is it's not one singular landmass— just a bunch of massive trees really close together. The "island" of Sabaody is really just a series of small groves, areas of land that are organized by the numbers put on their mangrove tree. Your crew has pulled up to a lovely looking grove to anchor for a bit, except there's only one problem; someone else is here.
Now let's not get out of hand right away, let's be civilized about this. Surely, there's some way to solve this issue that doesn't end in slaughter. Luckily, there's an ancient tradition on the world of piracy. A game known, respected, and feared by sailors of every sea.
The Davy Back Fight.
This isn't just about winning a parking spot anymore. A Davy Back Fight consists of three rounds, each one different but just as challenging as the last. More than just fighting ability is needed; your crew's smarts, skills, and teamwork are all going to be needed to win rounds. And you'll want to win— the prize for winning a round is the ability to steal one member from the other crew and force them to pledge loyalty to your own (or you could steal their flag if you want). There's some other rules about peanuts and coins too, but this is Scramble, so we're keeping it simple.
Your crew and the opponent's crew will be going head-to-head in three events, with steals being made after each one. To the victor go the spoils, but one team has to be the ultimate victor; hopefully you. When all the dust is settled, you may notice an additional body aboard your ship, thanks to all these steals. Since your team is winning, it seems like you've adopted someone onto your team! How exciting!
Normal Rules
Sanji’s Cooking, Chopper’s Doctoring: Look at all these obscure characters in the scramble! Give a brief summary of your characters in your post. Be sure to mention things like powers, personality, weaknesses, just stuff that the average reader should know before reading.
I’m Gonna be King of The Pirates!: Scramble is the story of your team winning. Even if the odds of you winning are 1 in 100, explain those odds in the analysis and then show us that 1 miracle run.
A Good Pirate Never Takes Another Person’s Property: Characters are assumed to be at the same power level at which they started the tournament at all times. To clarify, this means you would not be able to loot Captain America of his shield if you beat him in a previous round, or otherwise gain a competitive advantage based on anything that happened in a previous round. This is to aid your opponent in research of your character. This rule doesn’t apply to changes to your characters that occur in your own overarching narrative.
Due Date: The round will be due at 7PM PDT on Sunday, May 2nd.
Round Rules
The Legendary Davy Back Fight: One of the most infamous and respected challenges on the high seas, this battle isn't just about combat; it's about teamwork, skill, and most importantly, bending the rules to your advantage (you are pirates, after all). The events themselves vary between Davy Back Fights, so it's up to you! However, one round is decided already, see the next rule for details on that. You can decide what challenges the crews face and which members are involved. Athletic contests, tests of skill, battles of the mind, or even battles of the fist: anything is fair game. For reference/inspiration, the Davy Back Fight that the Strawhats take part in had a boat race around the island, a game of basketball where a crew member was the ball, and finally a one-on-one anything goes fight between the two captains.
Required Contest - Donut Race: Well, we've got these nice boats, why don't we do something with them? One of your challenges will be the most piratey event of them all: a boat race around the island! The rules are simple: finish first by any means necessary. Sabotage, violence, and even murder is completely allowed and, actually, encouraged in keeping with the spirit of the Davy Back Fight. This event must be included, but can be placed anywhere in your round. Use it to introduce the other crew or have it be your big finale— your call.
New Nakama: It's adoptions time! This season is offering a special opportunity: in the spirit of the Davy Back Fight, your adoption can come right from your opponent's team! You can also select from eliminated submissions across the Scramble. Just keep in mind that the adoption comes via the Davy Back Fight, so you will need to include that submission on your opponent's crew within your writeup. Please send /u/FreestyleKneepad a message on reddit with your adoption, just so that we can keep track of everything. Here is a handy dandy list of eliminated submissions, just ignore the devil fruit column.
Post Limit: For this round, you have a post limit of 8 posts or 80k characters.
Flavour Rules:
Bubble Buddy: Sabaody's a weird place. The resin from these massive trees that make up it's landmass create huge bubbles that float through the air of the island. These bubbles are permeable, so things or people can enter without popping it and float around. Feel free to use these in your writeup if you want!
This Island Ain't Big Enough Fer The Two Of Us: Maybe there are plenty of spaces on the dock, maybe something else stuck in the other team's craw. If you want to come up with another reason to start the Davy Back Fight, get creative! Maybe a third party forces you to go at it, or maybe your crew simply wants to shore up their numbers without getting in trouble with the local Marines. One way or another, this game will begin!
Character Scramble Is An Equal Opportunity Employer: Don't forget that your opponent's team is adopting a character too! Pick someone out for them, even if they're only there to lose in this round. Maybe they start on your team somehow and get taken away, or maybe it's a 3-on-5 disadvantage for you when your team starts. However you want to swing it, have fun with it!
2
u/LetterSequence May 03 '21
“Hulk sad now,” said The Hulk. He took one look at Mayuri, whose face showed more anger than he could possibly muster. Realizing what’d come next, he went back inside his shed and locked it from the inside.
“Nyahahaha, loser!” said Nonon. “Witness and be amazed by my sheer intellect. Not even a supercomputer can match my prowess.”
“You nearly lost a game with an incredibly easy solution,” said Drakkon.
“Oh yeah? Why don’t you say that to my face?”
“Maybe I will!”
“Ladies and gentlemen,” said Xemnas. “Now is not the time for fighting. We have accomplished the trials. The key is at hand. Do we need to waste our time on a small skirmish like this?”
The two of them grumbled like bickering children, and backed off.
“I suppose all is fair in science and war,” said Mayuri. “Here is your prize. As per our agreement.”
Out of his pocket, Mayuri pulled out the quivering purple heart and threw it in their direction. It floated slowly, guided by memories, in front of Xemnas. It knew who it belonged to, and intended to stay there this time.
“Can’t you use this thing to get your heart back?” asked Nonon.
“A part of a heart is not enough to replicate emotions. A roof with a hole can’t shield you from a blizzard. A meal with no calories can’t satiate hunger. It is similar in those respects. This is useful as a key, nothing more.”
Xemnas admired the heart. Yes, he fought for this for a long time. A heart of his own. It would not make him complete, but the sheer prospect of getting close filled his chest with a warmth he didn’t understand.
He knew he couldn’t accept this though. This heart worked best when implanted in another. It transformed them into one who thought the same way he did. It essentially created a second version of himself. Another being connected to Xehanort. Who to give it to, was the question. Drakkon may have been the best choice, but with such a precious weapon, he needed to think about it before making a decision.
“Bankai.”
Mayuri pulled out a blade from his waistband, shaped similarly to a candy cane. Behind him, a fifty foot tall baby appeared. It resembled an elf in appearance. It wore the same clothes, had the same ears, the same elvish eyes.
It spewed out a bright blue liquid at the group. They covered their faces to block the blow without doing much further.
The tidal wave washed over all three of them. At first, it didn’t seem like much. A simple water attack. That is, until Nonon's eyes went wide before she collapsed on the ground. Drakkon clutched his chest as he befell the same fate.
Xemnas watched, unharmed.
"I suppose I should reveal the truth of the matter," said Mayuri. "You see, my Bankai infects anyone within a one hundred seventy foot radius with the most lethal poison I’ve created.
"In the case of a healthy adult specimen, the poison will enter through the skin and flow through the bloodstream until it enters the heart. From there, the heart will become completely paralyzed. The poison itself will provide the blood cells enough energy to continue moving on its own for several minutes, however. Essentially, this causes the person to become frozen in time. They can see, perceive, even feel anything done to them. But they are unable to speak or move an inch, as they are trapped in their own nervous system. It is the strongest anesthetic in the world.
"Nobodies don't have Hearts, so conveniently it doesn't work on you. To provide you with the honest truth, I did want test results, but these games had an ulterior motive. An informant paid me quite handsomely to ensure only you remained standing, with the stipulation I can do whatever I wish with your subordinates."
An individual wished for his demise? Certainly he committed horrific atrocities that any Warrior of Light would want to take him out for. But for someone to go this far, commission this level of scientific prowess to even attempt to stop him instead of charging in head first.
“He’s all yours… your Majesty.” Mayuri bowed and took a step backwards, revealing the one who was behind all of this.
A rodent with an air of regality. Standing at a firm two feet tall, none could mistake the one in front of them. His round black ears. His thin tail at the end of his body. Those red overalls. And that golden keyblade.
“You’ll pay for this, Xemnas,” said Mickey Mouse.
The King of the entire universe. King Mickey, his Majesty, one of the strongest Warriors of Light. In the past, he struggled to face him. He performed all kinds of nasty tricks to avoid a direct confrontation, which seemed inevitable at this point.
“I’ve traveled through countless worlds,” said Mickey. “I’ve seen what you did in Thebes. How your men hurt those in Twilight Town. I’ve always been watching. I thought you changed after hearing your final words. I was wrong. And now someone needs to make sure you can never hurt again.”
“Ah, King Mickey,” said Xemnas. “What an honor to see you.”
He worried about the state of his plans. If The King was as powerful as he believed, he had the potential to defeat him here and now. With his plans left unfulfilled, what’d become of this world? Would it stay a dull place to live? Would the status quo remain the same? There needed to be change. For without change, humanity never evolved.
Once, twice, Mickey leapt into the air with a twirling double front flip, his blade trained to slice Xemnas down the middle. He took a step backwards and watched as a strand of his hair fell off his head. He avoided the attack by an inch.
He produced two long laserblades from his wrists. The heat emanating off them was enough to melt through steel. Mickey geared for another strike, only to clash with Xemnas’s weapon when he took the offensive initiative.
Most surprising was the ease in which Xemnas overpowered him. All this time, he had the image of this powerful warrior who’d stop any villain when he saw Mickey. But he was only as strong as his body. And his flesh? It was disappointing how weak it turned out to be.
His laser sliced through his defenses. One knocked back his blade, the other sliced through his shirt while he recoiled from the blow. Mickey grunted in pain, and had no time to defend himself from Xemnas’s next move.
His fingers coiled around Mickey's neck, squeezing the life out of him.
“Anger and hatred are supreme.”
Mickey resisted with all of his might. He swung his keyblade, aimed to decapitate Xemnas in one blow. As expected, they always went for a fatal blow from the very beginning. Never any nuance in their attacks. It meant even a Keyblade Master such as Mickey could be predicted.
He ducked under the blade and threw Mickey to the ground. He pressed his heel into the mouse’s chest, digging deep to injure the heart inside. Mickey grunted in pain and struggled in vain to push Xemnas off of him.
"Darkness within darkness awaits you."
“I’ll never submit to the darkness,” said Mickey.
“And why not? What tethers you to this world that you’d resist so admirably?”
“My friends. The people I care about. They’ll show up to protect me!”
“Oh really? And who will save you? Where is Sora? Where is Riku?”
“They’re…”
“You know they won’t be coming back any time soon, if at all. What of that woman you left to rot inside the Realm of Darkness for a decade? Aqua?”
“I didn’t…”
“Do you understand how she felt? Ten whole years in isolation, all alone without a friend in the world to call out for her. No one to save her. You gave her a false hope. You are the one who told her you’d return for her and never did. How long do you think it took for her to realize how useless you are?”
“Why do you sound so… concerned?”
Xemnas paused for a moment. The words left his mouth automatically, without him even thinking of them. He always knew a part of him deep down was connected to her. But not to this degree. Was some kind of emotion welling up inside of him? Anger? Rage? Jealousy? Contemptment? He’d follow this line further. He’d keep this rodent around to ensure something like this occurred again.
He intended to kill Mickey. Lay waste to him and let him rot in this world. A different idea occurred to him instead. Rather than give his heart fragment to Drakkon… why not have further insurance?
“You will pay for your crimes, Mickey.”
“Me? You’re the one going around ruining lives!”
“So you say. But that does not make you superior to myself. We have both ruined the lives of others. Does it make it right to do what you’ve done, just because you told the other person you’re sorry? Does an apology wipe away the pain dealt? If I apologized to all the people you’re seeking revenge for now, would we finally make amends and end this pointless battle?”
“Of course not!” said Mickey. “It’s different when you do it though. Because… you’re evil.”
“I should have done this from the moment I met you. You will understand exactly what she felt. You will understand what it really means to be evil.”
Thick white vines unraveled out of his coat sleeve, ensnaring Mickey. No matter how much he tried to move his arms to cut through them with his keyblade, it proved a useless effort.
Xehanort’s heart fluttered in the wind. It moved untethered. It followed its own path, and chose its natural owner. The person it wanted to infect. Xemnas watched as it shot past his eyes and into the chest of The King. A deluge of purple slime oozed from his mouth, as thick as blood. There was simply too much darkness to fit in such a tiny vessel.
Mickey’s howled in pain. The utter denial of everything you were always came as a shock to one’s system. Long ago, Mickey told him that he was scared of the darkness. Another said the only scary part was the people who lurked inside.
Now Mickey would come to understand both. He’d become the very thing he feared. And he’d discover the truth.