Round two - Val vs Val

Posted on Mon Mar 26th, 2018 @ 12:55am by Commander Bertrand Cuprum & Lieutenant Hel Samedi & Gunnery Sergeant Val Seran

Mission: Of Machines and Men

Val became aware of their surroundings again, the recent combats having passed before them in some coma like state.

"Thank you contestants," The woman spoke to them. "You are progressing to round 2. Only one of you may pass to round 3, however..."

Again the shift in focus, and now Val was in the arena on opposite sides.

A voice boomed over the arena, "Ladies and gentlemen, and other viewers. I present to you Round two PVP Combatants 1338545 and 1338546, Gunnery Sergeant Val Seran versus Gunnery Sergeant Val Seran! Only one can continue to round 3! Place your wagers now!"

Val materialized opposite herself. Both bioforms facing each other, five meters from one another. One, with a prosthetic arm, armed with a type III compression rifle and a type II side arm. The other, both arms still intact, armed with a GX-80 heavy marksman platform and a type II side arm. It took her a moment to grasp the situation, but when the full realization hit her she looked around in alarm.

"W-what?" She ventured, both forms taking a step back. Now six meters between her forms. She looked at herself, then took another step back, now seven meters between the two halves of a whole. "No ... " She added, taking another hesitant step back. If this were real, this is where she'd start to lose connection with herself. She hoped and silently prayed to Dia, her deity, that this wasn't real.

Eight meters. No change. She hesitated, then took another step back. Nine meters. This was further than she'd ever been apart while maintaining the connection. Another step. Ten meters. This confirmed it - it wasn't real. Her real bioforms were still within range, still maintained connection. A flaw in the arena simulation, but an understandable one. It couldn't account for the range of the telepathic connection between Dalacari halves.

Ok. She could do this. She'd 'died' here once before, during the fight against the drone. It had surprised her and 'killed' one of her before she could finish it off, a mistake she would chastise herself for for a long time to come. It felt very weird leveling a weapon at herself. It felt almost prohibitively weird to pull the trigger. But it felt weirdest of all to see the bright orange beam from two perspectives - outgoing and incoming.

She had half an idea what to expect, but it wasn't this. As one bioform slumped down in the arena, chest burnt and blackened, she had expected to feel nothing. A tingling maybe, feedback from the simulation. But she expected her link to maintain.

It didn't.

The bond had gone. She could no longer feel her other self. No gentle fading, like if her two forms wandered out of range. No searing, rending pain, like Jorem had described, recounting the accident. It was just like a light had switched off. Her brain barely registered this thought though, as it felt half of itself just disappear.

She staggered a step, eyes wide, dropping her Type II side arm. It didn't feel real. But it did. It felt more than real. Less than real. Everything was surreal, colorless, dull, too bright. She wanted to flee - needed to flee, to disappear, to hide, to reconnect. She turned around, eyes wild, letting out a feral snarl. No, she wasn't there either.

Another staggered step, knees buckling, chest heaving, panting heavily in panic. A half step, barely registering the ground, she collapsed on her knees. Cheeks streaked, letting out a primal, earth-shattering scream, claws digging frantically at the ground. She needed to hide. She had to hide. Dig. Dig! DIG! Claws found plating. Steel, not steel, it didn't matter, she couldn't dig.

Two halves made a whole. One half made a useless, shivering, sobbing wreck. Curled up into a tight ball, twitching, snorting, snarling. Sobbing.

In the Room under the stadium, the android was at a loss. They had collected the "loser" and placed her instantly into stasis suspension, but the Bio-rythmic pattern of the other was out of control.

"Ladies and gentlemen, It seems we must conclude that, due to physical incapacitation, both contestants have failed the challenge. However, due to the rules, we will progress contestant 1338545 through to the next round..."

Darkness.. cold... peace. Was she dead? Did she care? Val was no longer aware.