Cid Raines vs. Genesis

[Hades]

Well, how does a Death God top a spectacular preliminary round of his own tournament? By making the rest of the rounds even better, of course. The stands and arena was empty currently, everyone avoiding the repair process. Hades stood in front of his throne, assessing the damage. He chuckled at the sight of the ruined stadium. The mayhem was amazing! He clapped his hands and a blast of white light enveloped the stadium. When it subsided, the stands and the battlefield were fully restored, with added bonuses. The battlefield now included several platforms of varying heights and sizes. Most of them were suspended in mid-air, but a few near the bottom were attached to posts secured in the ground.

A gong sounded and two gates opened up, signaling the combatants forward. The stands quickly filled as the warriors took their spots. Hades shouted across the stadium, "Welcome to Round Two! You'll see a few differences in the arena this time. I've added multiple platforms to enhance the battles. I know many of you like to hop around like rabbits on caffene, so here's your chance! I'm sure you'll also be glad to know that I've created barriers around the stands, so the spectators will not be injured. Feel free to cut loose in this round!" A shout of joy came from the spectators as they were glad they wouldn't be burnt, blown away, frozen, pelted by rocks, or anything else.

Hades, however, was not finished yet. He spoke again, "In the North Corner, we have -Cid Raines-!" More cheers roared from the stands and then fell quickly. "In the South Corner, we have -Genesis-!" Another round of cheers rose and fell. Hades then finished with, "But what kind of Hades Cup would this be without some stipulations, huh? In this round, I'm gonna take away... Summons and Transformation abilities! And to make sure you follow this rule, I'm going to do this!" Another ball of energy left his hands and created an invisibile field around the arena. "This will ensure that you follow my rules. Now, fight!"




-OOC: Okay, now for rules. You can't use Summons or Transformations at all. That includes drive forms, trance, metamorphosis, or anything else that follows these lines. You cannot use Summons of any type, including GFs, Materia Summons, or any other types under your Summon sections. All of you should know what I'm getting at here. Attempting this will not only make your favorite deadman angry, but result in immediate disqualification. There is a 72 hour post limit and a 2 week limit on the round. So have fun, post frequently, and kick some butt. I look forward to seeing how this round goes. Don't disappoint me, now!-

[Cid Raines]

Cid Raines, after hearing that he had been picked among many others to advance, headed straight to the back to rest up and heal himself with his upper wear in hand. Cid kept to himself until the second round was called. Cid originally joined this tournament to gather info about his surroundings. Cid wondered if competitions such as this happened all the time. Cid wasn't sure if the competitors that he had worked with were from this particular world, however. Cid would have to find a way to communicate with them otherwise. However, it would have to wait until after the tournament. For right now, Cid Raines was going to fight and win. Cid Raines was taught that if his mind was clouded before war then death would be what awaits. It was at this point that the attendant called Cid to let him know that his fight was next. Cid stood and left his upper wear, knowing full well that to put it on and take it off over and over again would be pointless.

Once Cid was announced, he came out to the roar of the crowd. The man known to Cid as Hades referred to Cid's opponent as Genesis. Another fighter had come out before Cid, draped in red. Cid thought this to be a regular match but Hades had thrown a curveball. According to Hades, there were stipulations to every match. Unfortunately, the rules that Hades put for this match would prove to be a great disadvantage to Cid. According to Hades, this match was a no Summons or Transformations match. Cid's primary offense and defense relied on his Cie'th-Human Hybrid and Metamorphose transformations. Cid would be a huge disadvantage in this battle, Cid would have to rely on his fists and feet for this battle. Cid wouldn't let it show...but he hated these rules for obvious reasons. Cid fought hard to keep focus...to stay concentrated on his opponent and the fight. He would have to think harder than usual...but he wasn't worried, at least not too worried...for he did not know his opponent, he didn't know a thing about him.

[Genesis Rhapsodos]

It was a relief to finally get away from the extreme heat that was being produced from the molten rock of the Lava Titan. Such an incredible match, one that may very well have been impossible to finish if fighting alone. What was that monster? Where did he come from? Also, the way the Tournament's host, Hades, seemingly effortlessly returned the massive glooping pile of magma into a sphere of light and back to his hand... what god-like powers could that blue-fire-headed individual possess? Such a thought as a frightening one. If this Hades was indeed a God, then it was not the first time the Crimson SOLDIER would have laid eyes on one. No, there had been 2 more before him. Minerva and Cosmos... both of tremendous Light alignment, both women. There were rumours of a certain 'God of Discord' known as Chaos that was supposed to be the rival or enemy of Cosmos. Could it be that this Hades was the opposite of Minerva? Was he her equal?

Regardless, this wasn't the time to think too deeply about it. There was a Tournament to compete in and after heading back stage to find these 'healing waters' that Hades had mention, Genesis carefully slid his crimson trench off his shoulders, folding it up neatly before he placed it down upon a stone bench situated not far from one of the 'fountains'. Turning about, the sand underfoot crunching beneath his boot, the LOVELESS quoter cast a glance at his left shoulder, examining the burned black undershirt as well as his badly burnt shoulder and upper arm. Experiencing the temperature of molten rock on ones skin was not particularly pleasant. The liquid had burnt clean through both his shirt and his coat. A small smile appeared on the SOLDIER's lips as he untucked his black shirt before lifting it up and over his head, placing it beside his coat. Dipping his right hand into the healing waters, cupping some of the crystal clear water in his gloved hand, the Crimson SOLDIER brought it up and splashed the water over his shoulder, allowing the cool waters to trickle down his back and arm. A small chuckle escaped his lips as he felt a droplet run down the muscles of his back.
"I wonder how many coats am I going to go through this time...?"
Mused the SOLDIER 1st Class to himself as he half expected the water to sting his wound, though was surprised when it simply and instantly started to sooth it instead. Within seconds the pain had gone and the burnt flesh had healed itself, returning the SOLDIER back to normal.
"......??"
The smile on Genesis' lips had vanished and a surprised expression had spread itself across his face. Well, fancy that? This stuff was rather good!

Grabbing a towel and drying himself off, the shirtless SOLDIER turned about and stepped to the bench, reclaiming both his shirt and coat. An idea entered the SOLDIER's mind and as he turned back to the healing fountain, Genesis dipped the half destroyed black pauldron of his iconic trench into the waters, wondering if they could fix his clothes as well as his wounds. While it might prove more of a challenge to go into each round with further deteriorating armour, the auburn-haired man thought it a bad idea to start the second round against another human opponent with his left shoulder exposed and open to damage.
"Better not risk it..."
He decided and after drying off his coat was surprised again to see that his little idea had indeed worked. The black, thick leather pauldron covering the left shoulder of his coat was indeed fixed. Sliding his black shirt back on followed by his coat, the SOLDIER 1st Class made his way back to the waiting area where he approached an official of the Tournament who handed him a list with the names of all the combatants who successfully made it through to the Second Round. Bright blue eyes scanned the list and he smirked confidently to see some familiar names showing up.

"Felix, Naminé, 'Artemis' all made it through. Sora, huh? Now there's someone I have not met in a while. Tifa. Tseng...? What is Tseng doing here?"
The Turk's name forced the SOLDIER to look up and cast his gaze about the waiting area, but it was practically deserted. It seemed the majority of the contestants had made their way to their starting areas for the next round. That wasn't a bad idea actually and as a result, the Crimson SOLDIER made his way off to the South Entrance of the arena he was due to show up in next. The crowds were noisy!! It sounded like the majority of his fans from the past two Tournaments had crammed themselves into the seating and were all calling his name defiantly, proudly. It sent a shiver down the SOLDIER's spine. It was an unmatched sensation!
"I'm doing this for all you guys. I'll claim victory over the entire Tournament for the third time in a row. I'm fighting for you, my fans!"
Genesis said to himself to pump himself up, to help get his adrenaline moving.

Hades voice echoed about the arena explaining some 'differences' about the arena. Raised platforms apparently. That was certainly going to make this a lot more interesting. After he announced the first contestant, someone by the name of 'Cid Raines', Genesis' gate opened up as he hear the Lord of the Underworld call his name. The roar the crowd gave off was deafening. That was his cue and so did the SOLDIER walk out into the open, waving a hand up to the crowds which only caused them to roar ever louder. He was their champion. He was the two times champion and it didn't matter who stood before him, the SOLDIER 1st Class was going to cut them all down and obtain fame and glory for the third time. But the Lord of the Underworld spoke up again, mentioning that all summons and transformations were prohibited from this match. The words caused a small red light to shine from out of Genesis' left palm and after lifting his hand up, Genesis could only frown and offer his apologies to the King of the Dragons.
~Rules are rules my friend. You'll have to sit this one out.~
Thought the SOLDIER which caused the red glow to fade and vanish completely.
~No transformations huh? I'm not sure if my wing counts as a 'transformation', but I better keep it hidden for this match to play it safe.~

Walking under one of the floating platforms, Genesis made his way up to Cid and smiled at him, nodding his head in greeting as he extended his right arm and help his hand open, offering a handshake.
"Lets give these people a good show. Best of luck!"
The Crimson SOLDIER then gripped Cid's hand tightly and pulled him closer. Placing his head beside Cid's, Genesis whispered in his ear.
"You're going to need it!"
He treatened before releasing his grip and pushing his shoulder into Raines to open the gap between them. Genesis' friendly smile and greeting was replaced with a dark glare. His eyes were glowing brightly as the Mako within his veins begun to stir. Lifting up his right arm to his side, Genesis summoned his Rapier to hand before pointing the tip of the blade in Cid's direction. A glare still plastered across his face and with his Darkness starting to fluctuate within his Heart, the Crimson SOLDIER was clearly oozing confidence as he took a couple of steps backwards. As he did so, he brought his left arm up level with the crimson blade of Rapier, and after running his hand down the length of the weapon, the whole sword became Imbued

[/b] with the magical strength Genesis possessed which caused it to start glowing a bright crimson.

Swinging the Imbued Rapier before him horizontally, Genesis held the weapon down by his side as he raised his left hand and flicked his index finger at Cid, beckoning him to attack.

Bring it on!
[/blockquote]

-=Cooldowns=-

Imbue Rapier[/b] - Effect is Active. 1 Post. -- Genesis runs his left hand down the length of Rapier, imbuing the blade with his magic power, causing the weapon to glow brightly. When Imbued, Rapier has greater attacking and defending capabilities.


((OOC -- I heard from Falko that you were not looking forward to this match, but give it everything you got and lets make an exciting read for the members watching this thread!! The very best of luck to you! =D))

[Cid Raines]

It would seem that this crowd was more than familiar with the man that Cid was to face. Cid was new to this land, new to this atmosphere, new to this universe. There was no way that they would know of Cid at all, which lead Cid to believe that they simply cheered for Cid just to be courteous. At first, Cid was silently psyched to win the whole tournament. However, he had realized, as his opponent was greeted with deafening cheers, that he was only here to investigate...nothing more. He wouldn't gain anything if he were to win or lose. Of course, it would seem that the world that he was in loved to bear witness to extravagant tournaments and fights. Cid wasn't sure if this world was simply bored with their lives to enjoy two beings beating one another half to death...or if they enjoyed bloodshed.

However, his opponent seemed nice and honorable enough. Genesis had reached out to shake Cid's hand in good sportsmanship, at least that was what Cid thought. He even wished Cid luck. Cid was just about to wish him the same, as he had shook Genesis's hand to return the same courteous favor, only after a few seconds, Genesis pulled Cid in and told him that he would need the luck. Genesis let go off Cid's hand and walked some paces away from Cid Raines. Cid rolled his eyes. Cid didn't really respond to threats. Cid was naturally a stoic man, nothing ever really threw him for a loop and if anything did, Cid had one of the best poker faces ever to counter it. Cid turned and faced his opponent. Cid looked around him to see countless platforms floating above where Cid and his opponent were, which was the main arena battle platform. Cid would have to use his martial arts from here on out in order for him to combat his enemy.

Genesis seemed to cast some type of magic on his weapon, which seemed to be a cross between a rapier and a long sword...Cid broke it all down in his head. Genesis had reach in his favor; Cid will have to make Genesis pay for his mistakes if he wished to inflict damage on Genesis. He will have to play defensive for right now. The magic that Genesis had cast must be an augment of some sort, it must have increased his strength somehow in some way, shape, and or form. Genesis then taunted him, telling Cid to come at him. Cid raised an eyebrow at his opponent. Cid was given the luxury to start. Cid figured he might as well. Cid then began to walk toward Genesis with an emotionless stare. Cid was not about to be drawn into attacking an armed man without anything to defend him but his fists and feet. Cid increased his pace with every second. Cid, however, knew that if he wanted to start his defensive run, he would have to draw fire. When Cid got close, Cid threw a simple right hook to the face of Genesis...

[Genesis Rhapsodos]

There was the strangest of feelings running through the back of the auburn-haired man's mind that this encounter was not going to be on such grand a scale as it should be. The reason this feeling was present was due to a few factors. First and foremost, the words that the Lord of the Dead had spoke; No Summons or Transformations were allowed at all during this round. While that only took away the SOLDIER's ability to summons his Clone, Bahamut FURY and to spawn his wing for flight... there was something lingering in the air, something about the body language of his opponent, that was telling him that he had lost a lot more abilities to use. The pair of men standing in the middle of the arena had never laid eyes upon one another before, at least Genesis had not ever seen the man before him, so he knew nothing of what he was capable of. From first impressions though, the man was a martial artist, favouring his fists and feet as his weapons over drawing a sword, summoning an axe or un-holstering a gun. Whether he could use magic though, was yet to be seen. There were no restrictions on the use of spells, so it was something he'd have to keep an eye open for.

The audience roared with delight as the round got underway, starting off with the men shaking hands. It was a simple form of good gesture, though what followed wasn't typically something the Crimson SOLDIER usually did. He wasn't one to threaten people, or to brag or boast. He tended to let his skills and SOLDIER training do the talking for him, but he was already the Champion of the past two Tournaments, and no smartly dressed off-worlder was going to take away his third claim to victory. If he were able to shake up the man before him in anyway, then it was going to be worth exploring every possible path. At the end of the day though, it was all going to come down to who was the better fighter, who was the better thinker. One was going to walk out of this arena heading into the next round. The other was going home. Genesis smirked to himself as he could feel the energy the audience's cheers and chants were giving him. He was getting excited!! It wasn't often one could fight at their best without worry of being killed by any mistakes or slip ups one made. This was but a Tournament, a chance for people across the worlds to show what they were made of. A chance for the civilians of the worlds to forget about what was happening in their lives and re-experience feeling what it was like to have a good time! To enjoy oneself! This was what Genesis was going to provide them in this match!

After beckoning his opponent on, the auburn-haired man stood his ground, Rapier held down by his right hand side as he watched the man called Cid start walking towards him. Genesis' brightly glowing blue eyes flicked with the mako energy coursing through his veins. He was itching to get things started, though also just as eager to see what the man before him was capable of. An unarmed man going up against another with a lengthy sized blade in hand. It was going to be so easy to just lift the Rapier up to chest height and point the tip in Cid's direction. But that would also be easily read. Genesis smirked to himself as he thought about handling this round as unpredictably as he possibly could. All he had to do really was to step forth and release an onslaught of sword strikes to keep his opponent at bay... but where was the fun in doing that? Cid drew closer still, his pace increasing in speed before he suddenly lashed out with one of his fists, swinging a swift right hook straight to the SOLDIER's face.

Genesis' eyes were locked onto those of Cid throughout his attack, a smirk spread across his lips at the same time. Oddly enough, the auburn-haired man didn't move an inch, allowing the fist of Cid to connect firmly upon his right cheek. The blow had strength behind it, knocking the SOLDIER backwards and forcing him to stick out a foot behind himself to stop himself from tumbling down to the floor. Even though his head had be knocked to the left from the blow, the glowing eyes of the LOVELESS quoter were still looking at Cid, his smirk still present on his lips as he slowly righted himself. Bringing up his left arm, Genesis softly gripped his own chin and flexed his jaw open and closed a couple of times. He then smirked ever more confidently.
"Heh."
Was all Cid got as a reply before the SOLDIER 1st Classes eyes flashed brightly. Twisting his hips and digging his heels into the arena floor, Genesis suddenly launched himself at his opponent. Bringing his Imbued Rapier up, the SOLDIER unleashed his Dancing Sword

[/b] technique. Six firm, fast swings of his Rapier were aimed at Cid, two diagonal slashes aimed for his chest followed by three powerful thrusts, each stab aimed for Cid's stomach and both his thighs. Finally, the Crimson SOLDIER leaped into the air and came down upon his opponent with a 'Sephiroth Style' downward stab. But instead of aiming for Cid himself, the SOLDIER thrust his blade into the ground instead, allowing a shock wave to blast out from his position to blow Cid away should he be standing too close to him.

The auburn-haired SOLDIER didn't hang around to see what had become of his opponent. Instead, he figured it was going to be worth while using all these new platforms Hades had provided for the round. Some were rooted to the arena floor with pillars supporting them, but the majority were all magically suspended in mid-air, floating effortlessly. Flexing his knees and crouching down to the floor, Genesis launched himself up into the skies with a powerful jump, his SOLDIER strength carrying him much higher then any ordinary human. Leaping into the air at least 20 feet, the SOLDIER 1st Class landed upon a floating platform and promptly walked to the edge to peer over the side. Smirking, the SOLDIER 1st Class turned about and raised his Rapier up over his head. A pose he usually took on when preparing himself for an Apocalypse spell, the SOLDIER instead did something different. Bring his Rapier down in a firm slash, the SOLDIER sliced the platform he was standing on in half down the middle. Surprisingly, both halves remained floating in the air, but not for long. Walking to the middle of his half of the platform, Genesis brought up his right foot in a wide arcing axe-kick, slamming his heel down and stamping upon the half-platform opposite him. A loud crunching impact sent the half flying down towards Cid and the arena floor, where it would smash into tiny pieces of rubble were the smartly dressed fighter to dodge it.
[/blockquote]

-=Cooldowns=-

Imbue Rapier[/b] - Effect is Active. -- Genesis runs his left hand down the length of Rapier, imbuing the blade with his magic power, causing the weapon to glow brightly. When Imbued, Rapier has greater attacking and defending capabilities.

Dancing Sword[/b] - 2 Posts. -- A 6 hit combo of Rapier strikes. Two diagonal slashes followed by three forward stabs finished off with a leap and stab into the ground, sending out a shock wave upon impact.

[Hades]

-Well, Cid's time is up and I have to Disqualify him. Sorry, but them's the breaks. Genesis moves on to Round Three-