Line of Scrimmage (SA Quest)

[Jack Darby]

Camelot was a place where technology didn't hold sway but instead was replaced by the abilities of magic. It had a series of floating islands as well as many places of interest. The air of the place smelled fresh and clean, unlike the air of Coruscant which had smelled toxic in the area he had been in because of the fumes in that area he had been in. Sure the presence of the Empire in the area he had been at had been low, but that didn't mean he had to like the area he had been in previously. Unlike that area, Camelot was clean and fresh in comparison. Having trekked towards the woods of Camelot Warren sighed. Normal people were likely to be scared of the woods that he was in. The woods contained many animals that were likely to be problematic if the one he had encountered. Some of the animals had dangerous tusks and could impale him on them if he were not armed. His spear was something he could use in the meantime while he worked to level up as it were. 

"Here I go again!" Exasperated as he entered the forest, Warren was annoyed about the situation.  Once he had entered a grove in the forest, one that had black gnarled trees that needed to be pruned badly. There was a woman who had waited in the grove, the same lady he had encountered before in the same place.  "Why do you want to go down this dark path, my lord? What does it possibly gain you, that you couldn't learn from the Mage's Association?" asked the woman to the Quarterback of Chaos.  Her words were something that gave Warren pause for a moment. Normally he'd shoot her and be done with the situation, but she had piqued his interest for a moment. As she noticed that, the woman conjured up a book in her hands, and approached him. "Just think. There is more to magic than darkness. Why waste your efforts learning how to be a villain when you could be a hero instead, my lord?" 

At that, Warren was snapped out of her beauty inspired mesmerization. "Because it is who I am."  He said, summoning his spear and impaling her on it causing her to disperse into golden particles of light. Warren had no use for someone who was going to fool with his brain with magic or anything else of that nature. Such was not enjoyable, to say the least for him actually. Continuing his trek deeper and deeper into the forest the Quarterback of Chaos started to look around the place. Upon seeing a statue of a swordsman standing in front of him, the swordsman statue said to Warren Zimmer.  "I am the Guardian of the Fortress of Darkness. Unless you pass my trial you will not be allowed to go deeper into the forest." said the Guardian as he looked at Warren.

[Jack Darby]

Before his quest had been one that required a trial of accuracy. This time the quest was different from what he had remembered. Previously his quest had not involved a talking statue although it had involved that woman because she'd tried to persuade him to change his plans, just like she had attempted to do this time more forcefully. Groaning as he progressed into the forest of Camelot the statue "popped" into existence in front of him and said to him once more.  "Unless you pass my trial, you cannot progress and gain the information and power that you wish to do. Be warned. Once you have started this trial you cannot stop it for any reason. Do you choose to accept?" There was really only one option if he was to get anywhere in this forest, and that was to take the trial. But given that he didn't know what the trial was he was a bit unsure. 

Warren nodded and the statue said.  "Alright. I'll begin the trial." The statue nodded and handed a wooden sword to Warren. "You will face two thousand opponents which will come in waves. As you defeat each wave the opponents will come in greater numbers and faster towards you. We shall begin your trial. Stand in this spot." The statue materialized a wooden square in the middle of the grove. Warren nodded and proceeded to stand in the wooden square. When he did his feet were paralyzed all of the sudden and he couldn't move. He could shift his body but that was all he could do. "Why did my body get paralyzed?" asked Warren. "Because you must learn to take on multiple opponents while you are immobilized."  Warren nodded. Being able to take on multiple opponents sort of made sense to him although he had a lot he was thinking about. What did this have to do with magic? Was it some sort of trial or test for him? Probably. With that, the trial began. Ten opponents came at him when he stood in the wooden circle and he slashed them with the wooden sword. The next wave of opponents got cut down with his wooden sword, and so was the next wave of opponents by him as well. His skills with the wooden sword were improving substantially. 

Slashing at the next wave, Warren nearly missed one but managed to pull through. After the sixth wave of opponents he was panting for breath and that statue said.  "So you do have determination, and will not quit on your path to become a master of the arts of magic. You have passed the trial of endurance. Proceed deeper into the forest for your next trial. You will be quite surprised." said the statue.  Proceeding deeper into the forest, Warren had plans for the trials so that he could pass them. Each and every trial in the Forest was going to be passed by Warren.

[Jack Darby]

Having trekked deeper into the forest he'd see an ancient temple that was in a bad state of disrepair. The temple had been broken down and had been messed up badly. The temple had ivy and moss growing on it, and was an ancient set of ruins. The temple was a place that had not seen maintenance in a long time. Entering the temple he was able to see a single room in the place. There in the room were six people in hooded cloaks. One of them in a red robe looked at him for a moment. "We have been expecting you Mr.Zimmer. You are here to learn the secrets of magic from us?" asked the individuals as they looked at him for a moment. Warren simply allowed himself to nod his head. The individuals nodded and proceeded to snap their fingers. Orbs appeared floating around him for a moment. "Your test is that you must impale the orbs with your spear. But be warned. Use too much force and you will get painfully shocked. You must do enough to pierce, but not enough to go all the way through. Do you understand the trial of restraint as we have set it out before you?" asked the one in the green robe. So his trial was to essentially use his spear on some of the orbs but without breaking or damaging them too badly? It was a trial of restraint. Summoning his spear to his hand he nodded and shifted into his stance so that he could begin his further lessons in the abilities of magic. The orbs spun around him, some moving horizontally and others moving vertically. They were moving in haphazard patterns that were chaotic and thus couldn't be predicted. When he tried to pierce one of them like he had been instructed he accidentally used too much force and got a painful jolt to his nervous system. It felt like he had stuck his finger into an electrical socket for a moment but he swiftly recovered from it. 

Upon having completed the trial, the one in the black robe nodded.  "You have passed our trial, so here is the bit of wisdom we will give you. Sometimes the best way to fight is to restrain your power, warrior." They'd then all point their hands at a wall which disappeared, revealing a passageway to the next area where he would be tested.  "Should you proceed through that door know that your next trial will begin. It will be harder than anything you have ever experienced warrior. But you will be able to pass the trial." said the black-robed mage. Warren made his way through the passageway and headed onto the next area.

[Jack Darby]

After he went through the passageway,  Warren found himself in a maze of sorts. 

"Seek out the power that lies at the center of the maze, and you will find what you need. But be warned Warrior, there are a lot of traps hidden within the maze. You will face both the past and the present in order to see if you are worthy of our gift."  

Unable to see the source of the voice,  Warren groaned as he examined the place. The maze prevented flying over, not that he could fly at present because he lacked the technology to do so. It was true Camelot was a place where winged horses existed, but he didn't know enough about Omnilium in order to summon one. To be exact, he didn't remember enough about it to use it properly yet. Sure he had made a sword for himself as well as a spear but that was all he had managed to do. If he was to truly do something meaningful, what he needed to do was learn how to use it in a proper way for his own purposes. 

"Alright. let's get this over with."  Warren stated as he progressed into the maze. Once he was deep within the maze, a flashback hit him like a ton of bricks. This one was not a particularly pleasant one because of the subject matter. The subject matter of the flashback was of his time he had spent in the world of Coruscant. The verse there had been one where he had been humiliated and beaten up by the Stormtroopers when they had humiliated him. 

"You have issues with your anger. Since you cannot control your anger you must instead fight it." The voice said and a door opened inside the maze, revealing a rage filled copy of Warren that was only temporary. It charged at Warren unarmed and tried to punch and kick him. Pulling out his sword in a split second Warren ran the copy through and it vanished in a shower of red sparks. Time was not a commodity Warren could afford to waste. This situation had officially turned serious as his life had been endangered by the trials of magic.  "What is the point of these trials? I already know I have issues with my anger."  This was loudly shouted by Warren all around, but no response came. 

"You have passed the trial of sacrifice. You have sacrificed your past and moved onto the future.  From here your trials will only get more difficult. You should have obeyed the lady and strayed from this path. For at the end of it, we cannot promise you will remain the same as you are now. You will be changed drastically. Do you still wish to continue, and if so what drives you?" 

What drove him indeed? Part of what drove him was a desire for vengeance in the Omniverse. After all the Stormtroopers needed to be put down like bad dogs before they hurt him again, or hurt others like they had been hurting him. While part of that was altruistic, another part of it, his own revenge was not so. Warren continued to consider his reply. How could he word this so that no one could complain about what he was about to say. 

"I will not back down. As the Quarterback of Chaos, I cannot afford to allow myself to surrender. As to what drives me? A refusal to surrender. I will not yield to you, not to the troopers in Coruscant. I will not obey anyone other than those I wish to!" 

"So you do have the spark of courage. Excellent. We were right to back you in this. But we will not give you magic. It is not something you can simply be given. You must learn it as many did. If you are so determined that your own skills have merit, we shall honor that. You may learn on your own how to use our power for your own." 

The wizard in the maze snapped his fingers and a door opened near Warren leading to a Library with many magical relics, and books. The library was dusty and had seen better days. Some of the books were missing pages or molded or rotting. Others had spines damaged and still, others possessed water or other forms of damage that they shouldn't have. Examining the damaged books, Warren summoned up the equipment needed to repair the books, but also a translator device so that he could read the books of the place. 

"Hmm. There is a lot here that I could read." 

[Jack Darby]

These books were wrong. As Warren examined each of them he realized something he hadn't about the books before. Each and every last one of the books was blank. This was something he hadn't expected, nor thought could happen in the slightest. 

"Each is the story of a Prime who has failed our test. You will be like them, unless you learn what it is you have that they lacked. Choose your story carefully.."  This was heard by Warren as a writing desk, a blank book in a good state and a quill and ink appeared. Warren scowled. What did he possess that the other Primes hadn't? The books were blank. Of course. He was willing to do what they weren't, to write his future with his own hands. Writing the story took a couple of hours, or was it days? He couldn't tell because the room had no windows. As the air in the room grew stale one of the mages entered and looked at the book. 

"So in the end you proved true to yourself by betraying the ones employed by your father. You stuck to your nature. For that you have earned our respect. We are not sure whether or not passing you is a wise idea, but we shall say it is for the time being." said the Mage that had entered clad in a navy blue robe with silver trim, and a gold interior. 

Warren was allowed to leave the room at that point, and found himself in a different room. This time there were seven thrones in the room, with six mages sitting on them. The six mages looked at him. 

"We have decided..." 

"That you will be allowed..." 

"To learn our magic....." 

"When you are truly ready." 

"But as you are now, you lack the spark." 

Warren sighed as he heard that. What was the spark that he lacked? Try as he might he couldn't think of what he was lacking. He lacked power of any variety really at present. There could be what the spark was. But was it the spark of heroism? Was that what he lacked? If so he couldn't pass their training as he was no hero. At best he was a chaotic neutral. Thinking about it, Warren sighed as he made his plans. Without Saint Walker around he couldn't study the power of the Blue Lantern Ring, or learn much about the emotional energies the rings commanded. Sure he learned that hope, fear and rage were ones that could be channeled by the rings. What other options were there for emotions? Such a question was one that Warren could honestly not answer. 

"What spark?"  asked Warren. 

"Why the spark of heroism, of course." 

"I'm no hero." said Warren. "I'm what heroes call a villain." 

"So you want to learn our magic, and yet you are not of our morality. Interesting. What motivates you to desire such?" 

Hmm. What did drive him to desire such? Part of it he supposed came from being tired of being a helpless weakling in the Omniverse. Having only two moves while other Primes were eons ahead of him? It made him feel pity for himself which was a feeling he wanted to lose. 

"I cannot allow myself to be as weak as I was in the past. That is why I want to use your power. That is why I need your power, and need to add your power to my own."  said Warren Zimmer, the Quarterback of Chaos. 

"You have been honest with us, and we appreciate your honesty. So we shall allow you to train in our ways on one condition. You will make an effort to change yourself, to go from villain to hero once you leave our training grounds." 

Warren nodded, although he was lying.

[Jack Darby]

The next thing Warren realized,  he was in a library of sorts but one that was bigger than Fort Zimmer had been. Tons of books were strewn on the ground, and throughout the place. There were also numerous magical artifacts of varying designs, and styles throughout the place. Spears, swords, axes, maces and what not filled a good portion of the room. Talismans, potions and many other interesting bits of magic existed. There were even books on how to cast spells properly and improperly. Furthermore cobwebs lined the place, and it was filthy. Whoever had used the place last was not someone who took good care of his property. Hacking a little at the dust as he brushed a bookshelf off,  Warren groaned. It was going to be one of those days where he did the work without reward. If he were to be honest with himself,  Warren didn't even want magic. The mere fact was he needed something to substitute for his Z-Tech Wrist Blasters which he no longer had. Honestly were he still in possession of all his equipment, Warren knew he wouldn't be doing something like this.Sadly in a situation like this he had little choice. Primes were stripped of all but the minimal amount of their power they could cling to with all of their might. Sure they could rebuild their power over time, but that was the keyword. Time was something that wasn't possessed by Warren in any abundance. As the Quarterback of Chaos he knew it was highly likely that some of the heroic types were going to come after him. Such was the law of the universe. 

The heroes always went after the villains of the universe, it was a fact. Laws could be changed, and rules could be amended. Facts however could not be adjusted in any way, because they were concrete evidence. The laws of physics didn't apply here to the degree they did because of the Omnilium. It could be used to warp and restructure items, to create items and to perform many other feats that could only be dreamed of. Even when he had the Anti Core, or the Core Warren had never dreamed he'd possess an opportunity like the one he had that laid before him right now. Here in the Omniverse he didn't have to worry about something not being possible for him to learn from his world. There were tons of abilities he could learn, and lots of weapons he could gain access to. Sure for right now he was limited to a sword and a spear, but that didn't have to be forever. When he was strong enough, Warren knew he could reclaim Fort Zimmer and make it his own. The question though was if reclaiming Fort Zimmer was the right play or not. It was certainly a beneficial play, but did he honestly need a place like that right now? Having a home meant having security and stability. Yet if he didn't possess the strength to protect such a place, what was the good in having it? There was another question that popped into his mind unbidden. As he let his body go on auto pilot cleaning the library, he began to focus on the past and the present. In the past he had made numerous mistakes. 

One of those mistakes was one he regretted, even now. It was a mistake he had made on Coruscant, and one he was never going to repeat. He'd underestimated his enemy, and that had cost him dearly. The Imperial Stormtroopers had humiliated him and beaten him severely. They'd also undid his efforts to clean the vehicles he'd been assigned to as punishment. Still he had managed despite their interference to get the vehicles done and cleaned. One of the costs of the cleaning had been that he was incredibly sore, and in a lot of pain. The pain had disappeared but the memory of such was never going to fade. Nor did he want it to, as it served to a reminder to him. Even for all he knew, and could prepare to deal with, Warren was not invincible.

[Jack Darby]

One of the first things he was going to do when he got out of here, was write a manual for the various villains of the Omniverse. A manual that was going to contain information on how they could properly be better villains for the world they found themselves in now. It was going to have a villainous code of conduct, Warren decided. One of the rules of the book was going to be one that said to maintain a realistic assessment of your own strengths, or weaknesses. It was a mistake that had cost him back home when he had been in Canton, Ohio but also here in the Omniverse. Heroes always arose to take down villains, and villains always underestimated the hero. It was not something he was going to allow to go on. Having finished the cleaning, Warren examined his handiwork. Unlike before when he had suddenly appeared in this part of the trial, the library was cleaned to perfection, and truthfully he didn't remember what all he had done to clean it. Of course being lost in introspection had helped. 

"You have done well at the trial of Introspection. Tell us, what have you learned?" Out of nowhere came the six voices that had he any less courage would have caused Warren to jump into the air. Hearing voices out of nowhere could scare an individual. Forcing his adrenaline and his nervousness back down, Warren allowed him to think of what he had learned through Introspection. One of the things he had learned was not to overestimate what he was capable of this time around. Last time he had been too ambitious, and as a result had paid the penalty in spades.   "I have learned in battle you don't underestimate your opponent, and you must maintain a realistic assessment of your own strengths, and weaknesses. In addition, you must avoid conflicts that you know you cannot win."  Revenge on the Stormtroopers was not possible, he realized that now. Even if he were to level up there was just too much that could go wrong there. While he was a villain, Warren was not suicidal. Engaging that many enemies was suicidal if not downright foolish. 

"I see. So you have learned from the mistakes of your past. Your skills are improving, and the spark is slowly forming within you. But tell me this. Are you as sure of why you want the power as you were when you started? Is your reason the one you wish to stick with, or is there something deeper that you want to tell us, something deeper that drives you to want the power we possess for yourself?" 

[Jack Darby]

"I just... can't. I can't...afford to be weak like that ever again. I can't afford to let people overpower me, and make a fool out of me." Warren's voice was low, and barely audible but the mage that was in the room still heard what he had to say. "So your experiences of the past are what shaped you, and made you desire the power to protect yourself from those that seek to injure you. Since you have been honest with us, to the best of your ability other than the part about becoming a hero, it is time for the first reward that you will have at your disposal. Should you choose to use it, you will possess the power of the Chaos Burst. This spell will allow you to discharge a purple blast of energy from your hands. It's charged form is more powerful, but will take you longer to prepare for yourself.  I will leave you a scroll for the technique. But first, allow me to transport you somewhere where you can properly handle training in your magic without damaging these old volumes."  She'd open a door near him, and he'd walk through it to find himself in an arena of sorts with training dummies set up. Warren sighed as he examined the area. Standing still, Warren concentrated and after five seconds was very impressed. For a purple beam had shot out of his hands, and obliterated the targets. 

"Wow. Almost as good as the Z-Tech Wrist Blasts. It is a bit more powerful, and if I charged it longer it could probably do some serious harm to anyone who was on the receiving end. It's certainly a useful new ability to say the least..." stated the Quarterback of Chaos, in a jubilant mood because things were going his way for once it seemed.

[Jack Darby]

It was a good idea to see what one's ability could do before they left an area, or at least what the full power of it could do. This was why Warren stood and stretched his arms out in front of them. Standing slightly sideways so he could react if something else happened Warren began the process of charging up one of his new moves that he could use. The Chaos Burst as the Mage had described it was going to prove to be a saving grace, but he was curious about what it could do. If it were fully charged, what power could the blast unleash upon one of the dummies on the training field in the ruins he was in? Thinking about it made him curious all the more, and so he began charging the orb. 

"This should be intriguing. I've never had a blast like I have now. It is certainly stronger than the Z Tech Wrist Blasters to say the least, and that is impressive. Who knows, if I keep at this I might actually be stronger than I was in the past."  A grin was on his face beneath the helmet. Growing stronger was something he needed to do. After all, even if he couldn't get revenge on the Stormtroopers the idea of becoming more than he was now, and overcoming his limitations spoke to Warren volumes. Closing his eyes, his hands began to glow with purple as the move had reached the maximum charge it possibly could. Opening them, his eyes were glowing purple. 

"CHAOS BURST!" shouted Warren, unleashing the purple energy of the blast. A purple blast that was a foot long shot out of his palms. This blast hit one of the dummies, and obliterated it and the rest of the dummies. With all of the dummies gone, Warren smirked. So this was his new power, and the power that he planned to use for himself. "Still, I will need something to allow me to shoot my opponents easier. A rifle perhaps and some hand guns might prove useful. I also need some blades of my own, more than the Wazikashi. My spear also could use some improvement. But perhaps I shouldn't focus on that right away. I need a home of my own." 

[Jack Darby]

A home was a place where the heart was,  but Warren didn't have such a place for himself. In fact he had nowhere in the Omniverse that could be properly called "home" by him because Fort Zimmer was no longer around. Perhaps somewhere with a colder climate was going to prove useful because people were less likely to be there. In all seriousness, the Frozen Fields was most likely the least inhabited place. Building himself a home there did seem to make sense, but he'd need to be ready for the cold conditions of the place. 

"You are finally worthy of the power that you have earned." said one of the mages, the woman in the white dress with the blonde hair. She'd approach Warren Zimmer. "You've earned this little gift to help you remember what you learned here."  Purple and gray robes materialized, replacing his armor except for the helmet. "You should find this more comfortable than your current attire, but it is just as useful. Still you have a bit of a learning curve before you are ready truly. The next phase of your trial will push you to the limit and beyond. You'll be required to do more with your power than you have ever done before Mr.Zimmer. I advise you as I did as the start of the quest. Quit while you are ahead, and go to the Mages Institute to learn how to control your abilities. You are safer, if you do things that way. But you can continue down your path, if you have the will to keep going." 

Warren paused for a moment. Using Omnilium he replaced his clothes with his armor so that he could be properly clad. Once his armor was on his body he was ready for whatever should happen next. Awakening in another part of the forest, he'd notice the mage from earlier that he had stabbed with his spear through the chest, She looked at him for a moment.  "So you have come back from the trial, and passed the trials of dark magic. Yet you remain unchanged warrior. You must have incredible strength of will power to do so. As such, you are worthy of facing my sword in combat. Let's see if you have what it takes to claim your destiny as a true mage!" Drawing a sword of white and gold from her sheath on her back she'd dash at Warren. It was all he could do to block her sword. 

"Damn you're strong."  said Warren as he blocked her attacks with his sword. He'd then kick her and she was knocked down for about ten seconds. Dismissing his sword he'd quickly charge up a Chaos Burst and fire it at her, finishing her off for now. She'd be back when he came to attempt this quest again, most likely.  "Well that took longer than I'd like. But hopefully I'll be ready for what comes next. Not a soul knows what the future holds, but I know I must do my best. Rome wasn't built in a day, but Fort Zimmer will be once I find a good location to build one."