The Primordial Weapon

[Proto Man]

Proto Man wheezed even though he had no lungs. The nimble mercenary’s assault had left him with a few new gashes across the organic layer but none of the swipes had gone deep enough to compromise the ceramic titanium skeleton that housed his vital processes. A glance revealed that the mercenary had slipped into a form of stealth, but the machine couldn’t dwell on the man’s efforts to conceal himself with a hulking man in armor stalking toward him.

“Out of my way.” Atelos demanded as his ethereal swords reformed around his already imposing figure. “I will not ask you a third time. ”

“You think I’m afraid of you?” Proto Man muttered as he held up his left hand. “I’ve seen the best that you can do, and let me tell you… I ain’t impressed!” In a crackle of light, the Proto Sword erupted from the barrel of his previously idle hand cannon, and without skipping a beat, the preteen machine dashed forward to meet the Spartan in melee. With a grunt, Proto Man swung his energy sword only to have it met by one of the three ethereal blades.

Unfortunately for the Spartan, one sword wasn’t going to cut it, and in a matter of seconds, he had to throw the other two against his opponent’s weapon or face losing their standoff. Even so, it became painfully obvious to the man-sized warrior that he couldn’t overpower the child who stood between him and his prize. With that in mind, he took a page from Alain’s book and swung his shield down at Proto Man’s oversized shin.

Rather than dodge the blast, Proto Man threw up his unoccupied hand and released a concentrated blast of Atomic Fire at Atelos’ chest and face. Almost instantly, the free-floating swords fizzled away as the Spartan roared in pain, his body tormented by the very real flames that now danced across his battered, war-weary features. Before Proto Man could press the advantage and remove the warrior from the equation, he felt a pair of pale hands wrap around his throat.

“Last chance,” Dio whispered even as he tightened his grip. “We can split the prize and take out Dracula together… don’t you see?” The response that the pallid man received was the helmeted skull of the android slamming back into his jaw. As Dio Brando stumbled away from the child he sought to manipulate, Proto Man spun around and glared up at his opponent.

“One of my good friends was a Snake... And he was a much better liar than you are.”

Proto Man threw back his head as his body vanished beneath a flash of white light, blinding everyone who was still conscious. When the flare faded, Dio found himself staring at an older and more muscled version of the kid robot. Gone were the soft, rounded corners and the softness of youth, and in their place, the android’s features were sharp, harsh, and almost too muscled. The smirk beneath the visor conveyed a fresh and almost smug confidence as Proto Man clenched his fists and dashed forward to meet his adversary.

Unimpressed with the machine’s transformation, Dio flashed his teeth and moved to intercept his foe.

For the first time in a long time, sheer bravado failed Dio Brando.

His clawed hands moved to rake apart the cheek and jaw of his robotic foe, but Proto Man slipped away at the last moment and brought his knee up into the man’s gut. Dio let out a scream as he was bent over the robot’s armored knee. Before he could adjust his strategy, an elbow slammed into his skull. There was a momentary flash of stars before the man slumped into unconsciousness. With a frown, Proto Man shoved his would-be killer to the ground and turned to see that the Spartan, ever resilient, had risen back to his feet.

“Puberty won’t save you.” Atelos rasped as he started toward his opponent. First- and second-degree burns dotted the exposed parts of the man’s body, and the chest plate he wore for protection had been warped and deformed by the fire. Yet despite having the appearance of someone who had walked through the fires of hell, Atelos still bared his teeth and walked like a man possessed.

“No more games,” Proto Man muttered as he sprung forward and threw a fist at the Spartan. Like clockwork, Atelos effortlessly maneuvered his shield to absorb the blow, but unlike every previous time, the shield did little to cushion the blow. A horrifying thud resonated through the otherwise still air as the bronze bulwark buckled beneath the impact, allowing enough force from the blow to transfer through and stagger the Spartan.

A sturdy kick to the stunned man sent him sailing backwards.

Using Overclock (Tier 2 Transformation) for two posts (this one and the next one) -> -4 SP