02-02-2016, 03:20 PM
So there was Zack, who just a day before had nearly killed everyone while attempting to pilot a simple skiff, trying to control a dragon who he'd just hijacked from it's jockey.
Yea, it started off about as well as that made it sound.
There was another, more immediate concern for both Zack and his new steed, and it made them unlikely allies. Namely, the fact that the other dragon riders targeted the two of them, with little regard for the dragon's well-being now that it's proper rider had been deposed. Real cost-effective bunch, these bandits.
Zack found himself doing little other than holding on, at first. This had not been the best idea after all, and he was pretty much counting on the dragon to keep them both in the fight. The dragon was doing that quite effectively, however, flailing it's limbs and snapping at each of the other riders and their mounts as they came close. Even though the participants of this alliance of necessity weren't being outright killed, they were still being backed up, and Zack knew something would have to change quickly.
He noticed the numbers thinning gradually, and realized that Drake was systematically removing opponents from the fray. It may not have been the strategy he envisioned, but it was working. That was enough reason for Zack to resist the urge to simply abandon the dragon. After all, everyone had a part to play.
Down to two opponents, Zack was starting to get this under control. His dragon was holding the other two at bay, and now he had enough breathing room to do something of his own. Just as he was producing an orb of Materia from his belt, though, the clown car that Drake had been effectively raising hell in landed upside down on the head of one enemy dragon. It predictably went into a frenzy as it tried to remove the vehicle from it's cranium, and Zack took the time to look around for Drake.
He spied his ally soaring up into the air. Zack didn't even begin to wonder what had caused this situation, he just began to work towards fixing it. He'd seen Drake make a more than impressive landing before, but it didn't make a whole lot of sense to risk it. He snapped the reigns in one hand while he formed a sharp icicle with the Ice Materia in his other hand. The dragon snapped forward and flew upwards, with Zack hurling the icicle into the chest of one rider. The bandit fell from his dragon, clutching the frigid blade that had impaled him, but the damage was too severe to do anything about. Now all that was left was the one dragon and rider still struggling with the clown car.
Zack looked down to see the last jockey had landed on a nearby plateau. He had also dismounted and was attempting to remove the discarded vehicle from his thrashing steed. While Zack was looking downwards, he was startled by an abrupt thud as Drake landed on the dragon with him, and the two of them found themselves back to back on this creature.
"You alright?" Zack shouted over his shoulder to his one armed friend.
"Uh-huh," Drake responded, quite briefly.
"Your turn, then!"
With that, Zack slid right off the creature and dropped to the ground. He made a hard landing after a long fall, that forced him to drop a knee and brace one hand against the rocky plain to prevent his face from continuing downwards. A small cloud of ash shot in all directions from the impact, easily gaining the attention of the final rider.
The bandit was large and imposing, taller than even Zack. It was difficult to determine much more about him, as he was clad from head to toe in a scaly armor. Zack wondered if they simultaneously used the dragons for their armor as well. It would be an odd practice, but it might also explain why the remaining dragons without jockeys weren't leaping into action.
He shrugged it off, and watched as the bandit stepped away from the scaled beast. While behind him the dragon continued to shake it's trapped head like a dog stuck in a boot, the rider squared off with Zack. The Ex-SOLDIER knew he shouldn't play into this, but he just couldn't help it. Zack watched with a smile as the the bandit tossed his large shield to one side, and his lance to another. Zack responded in kind, brandishing the Buster Sword only long enough to stab it into the ash covered ground.
The understanding was there, so the two men both charged towards each other at the same time. As the gap closed, Zack stopped and braced himself, allowing the bandit to come to him. He brought up his right arm to deflect the first strike, and then his leg to block a follow up kick. Zack took the offensive and stepped in, delivering a powerful punch to the bandit's face that sent him stumbling backwards.
Zack was a tall and well built individual, and a simple glance would tell anyone that he would make a good warrior from his size alone. This final bandit was even more suited for fighting, with an additional half foot on Zack in height and the increased muscle mass to match, if not exceed, those proportions. Yet, in that brief clash, Zack had little difficulty matching the speed or the force of those blows. It was a bit disappointing.
He stepped towards the bandit, who was still reeling from the previous strike. His stride was relaxed, almost casual, now that he had sized up his enemy. The bandit abruptly lunged forwards, unleashing a flurry of strikes which Zack had little difficulty deflecting. Finally, Zack caught the hand of his opponent and twisted his wrist in a very unnatural direction, causing the outlaw to drop to his knees in a desperate attempt to relieve the pain. Zack decided not to snap the joint, and instead released the man's hand and delivered a powerful kick to the front of his mask. The bandit was thrown backwards from the blow, sliding across the ash upon landing.
Zack stretched his arms a bit and cracked his neck. In doing so he noticed a faint, light green aura covering himself. He held up his gloved right hand and inspected it a little closer. It unmistakably looked like he had just been doused in Mako, but that made no sense, considering that energy source wasn't even present in this world. The aura faded away as he was studying it, and he decided he'd make sense of all of that later on.
The bandit was stumbling to his feet, and Zack figured now was the right time to play the honorable card. After all, the man was beaten and outnumbered, and had little chance of turning the battle in his favor. Being cut from the hero-type mold, Zack had a few rehearsed speeches in his head about the futility of this man's ways, even if he found that he believed them a little bit less since arriving in this world.
In an instant, it no longer mattered. Because as the bandit stood up and balled his fists, he let out a defiant battle cry that would be the last thing he ever did. Mid-scream, he was devoured from behind when Drake and the dragon swooped down and the scaly creature clamped it's jaws tightly along the criminal's upper torso. Whatever thoughts of mercy and honor Zack had were cast to the wayside as he watched the dragon devour the man. All he could do now was recover the Buster Sword and wonder why the hell Miranda had insisted on making him the pilot instead of Drake.
Yea, it started off about as well as that made it sound.
There was another, more immediate concern for both Zack and his new steed, and it made them unlikely allies. Namely, the fact that the other dragon riders targeted the two of them, with little regard for the dragon's well-being now that it's proper rider had been deposed. Real cost-effective bunch, these bandits.
Zack found himself doing little other than holding on, at first. This had not been the best idea after all, and he was pretty much counting on the dragon to keep them both in the fight. The dragon was doing that quite effectively, however, flailing it's limbs and snapping at each of the other riders and their mounts as they came close. Even though the participants of this alliance of necessity weren't being outright killed, they were still being backed up, and Zack knew something would have to change quickly.
He noticed the numbers thinning gradually, and realized that Drake was systematically removing opponents from the fray. It may not have been the strategy he envisioned, but it was working. That was enough reason for Zack to resist the urge to simply abandon the dragon. After all, everyone had a part to play.
Down to two opponents, Zack was starting to get this under control. His dragon was holding the other two at bay, and now he had enough breathing room to do something of his own. Just as he was producing an orb of Materia from his belt, though, the clown car that Drake had been effectively raising hell in landed upside down on the head of one enemy dragon. It predictably went into a frenzy as it tried to remove the vehicle from it's cranium, and Zack took the time to look around for Drake.
He spied his ally soaring up into the air. Zack didn't even begin to wonder what had caused this situation, he just began to work towards fixing it. He'd seen Drake make a more than impressive landing before, but it didn't make a whole lot of sense to risk it. He snapped the reigns in one hand while he formed a sharp icicle with the Ice Materia in his other hand. The dragon snapped forward and flew upwards, with Zack hurling the icicle into the chest of one rider. The bandit fell from his dragon, clutching the frigid blade that had impaled him, but the damage was too severe to do anything about. Now all that was left was the one dragon and rider still struggling with the clown car.
Zack looked down to see the last jockey had landed on a nearby plateau. He had also dismounted and was attempting to remove the discarded vehicle from his thrashing steed. While Zack was looking downwards, he was startled by an abrupt thud as Drake landed on the dragon with him, and the two of them found themselves back to back on this creature.
"You alright?" Zack shouted over his shoulder to his one armed friend.
"Uh-huh," Drake responded, quite briefly.
"Your turn, then!"
With that, Zack slid right off the creature and dropped to the ground. He made a hard landing after a long fall, that forced him to drop a knee and brace one hand against the rocky plain to prevent his face from continuing downwards. A small cloud of ash shot in all directions from the impact, easily gaining the attention of the final rider.
The bandit was large and imposing, taller than even Zack. It was difficult to determine much more about him, as he was clad from head to toe in a scaly armor. Zack wondered if they simultaneously used the dragons for their armor as well. It would be an odd practice, but it might also explain why the remaining dragons without jockeys weren't leaping into action.
He shrugged it off, and watched as the bandit stepped away from the scaled beast. While behind him the dragon continued to shake it's trapped head like a dog stuck in a boot, the rider squared off with Zack. The Ex-SOLDIER knew he shouldn't play into this, but he just couldn't help it. Zack watched with a smile as the the bandit tossed his large shield to one side, and his lance to another. Zack responded in kind, brandishing the Buster Sword only long enough to stab it into the ash covered ground.
The understanding was there, so the two men both charged towards each other at the same time. As the gap closed, Zack stopped and braced himself, allowing the bandit to come to him. He brought up his right arm to deflect the first strike, and then his leg to block a follow up kick. Zack took the offensive and stepped in, delivering a powerful punch to the bandit's face that sent him stumbling backwards.
Zack was a tall and well built individual, and a simple glance would tell anyone that he would make a good warrior from his size alone. This final bandit was even more suited for fighting, with an additional half foot on Zack in height and the increased muscle mass to match, if not exceed, those proportions. Yet, in that brief clash, Zack had little difficulty matching the speed or the force of those blows. It was a bit disappointing.
He stepped towards the bandit, who was still reeling from the previous strike. His stride was relaxed, almost casual, now that he had sized up his enemy. The bandit abruptly lunged forwards, unleashing a flurry of strikes which Zack had little difficulty deflecting. Finally, Zack caught the hand of his opponent and twisted his wrist in a very unnatural direction, causing the outlaw to drop to his knees in a desperate attempt to relieve the pain. Zack decided not to snap the joint, and instead released the man's hand and delivered a powerful kick to the front of his mask. The bandit was thrown backwards from the blow, sliding across the ash upon landing.
Zack stretched his arms a bit and cracked his neck. In doing so he noticed a faint, light green aura covering himself. He held up his gloved right hand and inspected it a little closer. It unmistakably looked like he had just been doused in Mako, but that made no sense, considering that energy source wasn't even present in this world. The aura faded away as he was studying it, and he decided he'd make sense of all of that later on.
The bandit was stumbling to his feet, and Zack figured now was the right time to play the honorable card. After all, the man was beaten and outnumbered, and had little chance of turning the battle in his favor. Being cut from the hero-type mold, Zack had a few rehearsed speeches in his head about the futility of this man's ways, even if he found that he believed them a little bit less since arriving in this world.
In an instant, it no longer mattered. Because as the bandit stood up and balled his fists, he let out a defiant battle cry that would be the last thing he ever did. Mid-scream, he was devoured from behind when Drake and the dragon swooped down and the scaly creature clamped it's jaws tightly along the criminal's upper torso. Whatever thoughts of mercy and honor Zack had were cast to the wayside as he watched the dragon devour the man. All he could do now was recover the Buster Sword and wonder why the hell Miranda had insisted on making him the pilot instead of Drake.