King of the Monsters
"I was part of the 32nd Batters' Inning in my world. We were... a division of Minnesotan baseball-based Super Soldiers. Our goal was to unite the world under the banner of red, white and blue."
Johnson's arms hang limply, and his bat dips down at his side. "An enemy nation developed a counterweapon. Of the fifty Batters' Innings, only one survived from each. I survived by running. I never returned to the battlefield. I abandoned my job, my country... my family... out of fear."
"He's gearing up for war."
"..."
The Batter is strangely silent. With his eyes hidden in the shadow casted by his cap, making out his expression is impossible.
"So you brought forth a war, and fled from the consequences."
"... Purification in progress."
Before Johnson can even ask what the Batter means by that, he suddenly charges, attempting to swing his bat at the side of his head.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
As the Batter says the recap, Johnson squints with one eye and raises his brow over the other.
He narrowly ducks underneath the swing, stumbling a few feet away from the Batter. He stops to catch his breath, using his bat for support. Then he lifts it up to his side, in a batting stance. "... Fine. Let's play ball."
Johnson holds out a hand, and a sphere of energy forms in his palm. He tosses the sphere up into the air and then smashes it with his bat, sending it flying at the Batter at high speed.
Edited by KiriK on Oct 11th 2018 at 2:14:28 PM
"He's gearing up for war."
The Batter... well, bats it out of his way, as three circles, all coated in an angelic white glow, materialize around his bat and fly off. One of them, Alpha, charges for Johnson, while the Batter takes a good look at his opponent to analyse him.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
Johnson sees Alpha coming and actually gasps slightly. He gets hit by the Add-On as a result, but swiftly recovers and glares at the Batter, not seeming to notice or care that he's effectively being scanned.
Samuel Tucker Johnson
A soldier with amalgamate powers who fled in cowardice.
HP: 3000 — CP?: 500
Johnson bends his knees and taps his bat to the ground as an Add-On appears behind him. The Add-On is also analyzed.
Gamma
A mimicry of the purificatory guides, superior to each individually but outclassed by the three together.
HP: 2750 — CP: 300
Then Johnson takes his batting stance again, waving his bat side to side in a wide angle while focusing on the Batter as if judging the measurements for his next swing.
Gamma's image turns blurry, then it suddenly snaps into focus as it shoots a bolt of randomized force at the Batter.
Edited by KiriK on Oct 11th 2018 at 3:40:31 AM
"He's gearing up for war."
The Batter actually appears surprised when Johnson conjures up an Add-On of his own, even somewhat angry judging by his sudden frowning mouth, leaving himself vulnerable to being scanned successfully.
The Batter
Level 26 HP: 2614—CP: 288
The holy purifier of the world, created by the new God
Alpha
Level 26 HP: 2633—CP: 291
The holy 'Father' of the purificatory guides, it is a divine halo, obeying the whims of the purifier.
Omega
Level 26 HP: 2633—CP: 289
The holy 'Son' of the purificatory guides, it is a divine halo, obeying the whims of the purifier.
Epsilon
Level 26 HP: 2633—CP: 308
The holy 'Spirit' of the purificatory guides, it is a divine halo, obeying the whims of the purifier.
The Batter, seeing Gamma's attack, holds out his bat in front of him with both hands. Upon impact he slides back a surprisingly far amount, making him grumble.
"Powerful. But I've purified stronger."
Pointing with his bat, Alpha charges forth towards Gamma, flying around it in a bracket-like form before trying to tackle it. If successful, the attack will induce Poison.
Omega mimics the false Add-On, launching the exact same attack right back at it.
And Epsilon does dramatic movements in order to increase the Batter's defenses.
Speaking of the Batter, he himself charges for Johnson again, going for another strike, this time aiming it at his knees.
"How did you create an Add-On!?" , he practically growls at the man, as if him doing so is a personal insult to the Batter.
Edited by DevilPsyco on Oct 11th 2018 at 10:13:58 AM
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
Gamma gets knocked back and poisoned. It shudders and hisses a bit, then multiplies, becoming a chainlike sequence of overlapping rings. The chain of Gammas bounds all over the place before diving at Epsilon and merging back into one at the very predicted moment that it would make contact for hard impact.
Johnson takes a baseball bat to the kneecaps and instantly drops. Good thing he's superhuman. He quickly stands up and declares, "It's just one of my many abilities. You'll see!"
As he says this, his skin momentarily reddens before returning to its natural hue.
He throws another energy ball into the air and slams it with his bat to send it flying at the Batter.
Edited by KiriK on Oct 11th 2018 at 3:40:02 AM
"He's gearing up for war."
Omega suddenly flies in front of Epsilon to take the hit from Gamma in its stead, bouncing onto the ground as a result, as Epsilon makes another, different dramatic movement pattern, which increases the Batter's offensive capabilities.
Alpha goes on the offensive yet again, somewhat mimicking Gamma's chain-like manoeuvre, but its chain is much shorter and seems to change shape at various moments to try to disorient Gamma. Regardless of success, it tries to charge into Gamma in the same way it charged into Omega.
"If you hadn't deserved to be purified before, you certainly do now." , the Batter says, somewhat confused by the hue of red his opponent had for a moment, but not letting it distract him. This time he dodges the sphere instead, and hops over Johnson, landing behind him to try to land a solid blow to the back of his head.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
Gamma gets hit by the responsive chain attack. Its image is beginning to flicker.
It begins moving in a similar manner to Epsilon, raising Johnson's attack power...
which should nicely accompany the result of him getting bashed in the back of the head.
He staggers forward and falls to one knee... growling. "Okay, buddy... You just keep thinking what you think, and I'll keep doing what I do. And we'll see who gets more done!"
His muscles swell a little as his body briefly turns red again, and visible steam erupts from the pores in his skin.
Then he turns right around to face Batter. His body starts flashing red as he points an empty hand to the sky as if calling his shot, then he furiously grips his bat and performs a mighty upswing that will send the Batter flying if it hits.
"He's gearing up for war."
Trying to take advantage of the fact that Gamma isn't moving a lot, all three Add-Ons suddenly strike forward, attempting to destroy the false Add-On with their combined impacts.
The Batter, meanwhile, raises his bat again, ready for an attack. He appears confused by the yet-again-appearing hue, and even moreso the steam. Mistaking it for smoke, he figures that Johnson is going Burnt, and grips his bat tighter, now more determined than ever to purify him.
Then, seeing Johnson's swing, he attempts a counterswing.
This fails spectacularly, and the Batter, struck right in the stomach, is sent flying into a nearby cliffside.
It takes him a little bit before he starts moving again and, now very suspicious of Johnson, analyzes him again to see if anything had changed.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
Gamma goes down, dissolving into nothing.
Smouldering Tank Johnson
Super warrior who constantly increases in attack and speed what he has lost in HP.
Johnson puts a hand over his brow to block the sun from his eyes, chuckling as he sees the result of his home run attack. "Well, come on, big shot!"
He creates another energy sphere, but this time he tosses up three of them somehow, launching one at each of the Add-Ons.
Edited by KiriK on Oct 11th 2018 at 4:16:01 AM
"He's gearing up for war."
The Batter, his mouth a scowl, climbs out of the rock formation as his Add-Ons, swiftly dodging the incoming attacks, return to his side.
"Your impurity grows with each hit. So I'll finish you off before you become too strong."
The Add-Ons line up in front of the Batter, who takes a ball out of his pocket, throws it up, and then hits it through the Add-On loops, right at Johnson.
With every loop the ball passes through, it increases in strength, gaining a holy aura. Even with Johnson's buffs, this attack is dangerous to get hit by.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
Johnson gets hit by the ball in the gut, knocking the wind out of him. He goes tumbling back and falls to the ground, lying still.
Johnson's Third Base is loaded.
Johnson gets up, wiping blood from his mouth while smiling as he turns redder, grows more muscular, and emits more steam. "Yeah... this is the moment. It's all coming back to me now... the reason I never left the bat behind me even after giving up on my career. This is what I live for!"
He twirls his bat around his fingers with one hand, then strikes a confident pose with it. A yellow aura forms as a glowing outline around his bludgeon.
"He's gearing up for war."
"So you live for violence. Need I repeat my point?"
He charges at him couragously, his bat slightly coated in a metallic hue, and tries to go for a jab in Johnson's stomach, then follow it up with a whack in his face.
Alpha starts swirling itself around Johnson in a bracket-like formation, splitting up at the last swirl and then attempting to close in on him and strike him from both sides. If it works, it might induce Mute, which'll leave him unable to use his Competences for a while.
Omega starts blurring in place before suddenly being launched at Johnson, as fast as the taking of a photo. This attack, if it hits, will pierce through any increased defenses.
Lastly, Epsilon moves around Johnson in a tragic motion before suddenly attempting to strike him multiple times all over his body, each attack being a surprisingly powerful one.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
"No, you judgmental prick. I'm talking about the moment when everything's down to the wire! The last stand! The finest hour! One's only chance to shine their inner light on the world and leave a truly memorable mark! And this... is MINE!"
Johnson starts moving with startling speed compared to his relatively human agility which he had previously demonstrated. He jumps backwards away from the Batter and Alpha, then double jumps to evade Omega as well. However, by the time Epsilon is upon him, he's back on the ground and gets smacked around some more, being brought down onto his knees and one hand.
He confidently straightens his back and points his bat to the sky. As he does so, its aura intensifies from a yellow outline to red flames.
Then he stands up, still smirking, as he pulls out a nondescript beverage (real-world equivalent is Gatorade) and starts to drink it.
As he does so, the redness lessens.
Johnson's third base is OUT.
"He's gearing up for war."
"Marks left on the world is the last thing it needs."
He then lines Alpha and Omega up, going for another ball hit against Johnson. This attack isn't as strong as the last one though, only passing through the two of them.
Epsilon then tries the same attack it'd just done, going for multiple powerful strikes.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
Johnson is ready this time, and he whacks the ball away with his bat.
He also holds out his bat to guard against Epsilon's combo, taking less damage than he otherwise would.
"Really? You believe that purity is clean emptiness? Living one's life to the fullest regardless of the damage is what defines existence! To believe that nothing should exist is to be alone and despised in your goal! Nobody will stand by your side, and the rest will bring you down!"
He throws his bat high into the air and catches it by its grip when it comes down. Its aura turns to one of bright blue plasma.
Johnson's third base is loaded.
"Now I may not be able to change your mind... but I can show you what true purpose looks like."
"He's gearing up for war."
"I don't need anyone by my side. With Him guiding my steps, I am capable of fulfilling my sacred mission alone."
He then seems to break his stoicism, actually grinning.
"I have succeeded once before. I'll do it again."
Then, upon hearing Johnson's words, there's some glints in the shadows of the Batter's cap where his eyes are hidden, the Batter's silent acceptance of Johson's challenge of purpose.
There's no attacks this time around, only Epsilon boosting the Batter's offensive capabilities again. It seems like, in his desire to break down Johnson's declaration, that he's letting his opponent make the first move.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
"... So, you wouldn't play along as I hoped you would. Fine."
Johnson's bat suddenly forms a ring of spikes around its end.
He hits himself in the face with the bat, damaging himself enough to fully redden again and inflicting bleeding, after which the spikes disappear.
Johnson's second base is loaded.
Johnson's first base is loaded.
Johnson points his bat straight up to the sky like a beacon.
The sky instantly turns to blue night, with any normal celestial bodies replaced by 50 glimmering white five-point stars.
"FINISHING RUN! STAR-SPANGLED GRAND SLAM!"
Johnson rushes at Omega, his bat leaving a trail of red light behind it. He comes to a stop with a spinning swing, then the light turns white as he performs a down swing, then red again as he does a simple backhand motion to the Add-On.
Then he rushes Alpha with his bat trailing white, leaping at the Add-On with a downward smash, then two quick side-swings - the first red and the second white.
Next, he rushes Epsilon with his bat's light turned red, and directly thrusts the bat at the purificatory guide before making a white-trail upswing and a red-trail diagonal down-swing.
Finally, he starts spinning very fast and leaps for the Batter, making three full rotations of alternating colors within striking range.
After all that, he rebounds away from the enemies and sets his feet down, and steam just billows out of his body as he exhales deeply, blanketing the ground like fog as he reverts to his initial plain human-like appearance.
He points upward to the night sky, and then those 50 stars fall out of the sky, revealing they were much closer and smaller than they appeared as they swirl together, congealing into a sphere of light that keeps getting bigger and bigger until all 50 stars have entered it.
The light fades, revealing a baseball of twenty-meter diameter.
Johnson uses his home run attack, sending the ball hurtling towards his foes like a meteor, one last stream of red light trailing behind it.
"He's gearing up for war."
The Batter appears surprised when Johnson suddenly harms himself, raising his bat warily.
But even he can't prepare for the devastating attack that's about to be unleashed upon him and his Add-Ons.
Omega gets swung at, first hurling to the side, then crashing onto the ground and shattering like glass, having been dealt a critical hit.
Same with Alpha, being smacked to the ground and hit on both sides, though it barely survives.
Then Epsilon, who actually manages to avoid the first thrust, but the up-and down swing hit it incredibly hard, knocking it 'unconscious', for lack of a better word. It's not dead, but it's not moving either.
Lastly, the Batter, who tries everything in his power to match Johnson's rotating swings, managing to block them, but his bat breaks as a result.
After that, now weaponless, he can only watch as the giant finishing move descends upon him and his Add-Ons, striking its targets with a violent, gloriously multi-colored explosion.
Edited by DevilPsyco on Oct 11th 2018 at 1:35:48 PM
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
Johnson is panting and sweating buckets, seemingly sapped of his rising-strength ability for the time being, back down to an above-average human level.
He leans back against a nearby rock formation, keeping his eyes on the results of his attack but sputtering and huffing nonetheless.
Edited by KiriK on Oct 11th 2018 at 6:38:52 AM
"He's gearing up for war."
When the smoke clears, there's nothing left of the Add-Ons, all three of them gone.
The Batter, however, is still standing. Panting, but standing. Growling, he turns to Johnson and slowly starts approaching him.
"Pu... ri... fi... ca..."
Just a little distance away from him, being close enough that Johnson may very well fear that he'll get to him, the Batter suddenly collapses onto the ground, now unmoving, his body vanishing.
Purification failed.
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
King of the Monsters
Johnson groans, "Oh, for the love of God, just stay dow -"
and then Batter drops dead.
"... Thank you." He sighs in relief and starts chugging another bottle of knockoff Gatorade.
"He's gearing up for war."
After a few more moments, an unknown presence can be felt in the area. The sky turns darker all of a sudden, and a strange yellow box appears some distance away from Johnson, hovering above the ground. Still in his line of sight, but not close enough that he'd have to worry about what it could be.
It flashes a few times before it starts to crackle and let out smoke, and a dark silhouette forms inside that smoke. Eventually, the smoke clears, the box disappears, and it's the Batter who's left standing there, his bat positioned against his shoulder as he slowly looks Johnson's way.
"... Nothing... will stop me-"
"-from purifying this world."
Edited by DevilPsyco on Oct 11th 2018 at 2:09:21 PM
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.
"Anyone who affects the world in a negative, harmful way." , he says. his ear twitches for a moment.
"As for your mission, please elaborate."
In the year 202X, all is devastation... Soon, any last shred of hope had by the saintliest optimist shall die and decay.