XSYS Arena
Because balance is overrated.
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Preshow 10/12: Initial XIV
12 Oct 2023 - XSYS Team
Open on the main arena floor. Magus is welding together some kind of bipedal Armored-Core-ish machine, though it’s clearly amateurish, wires jutting out everywhere from shoddily-assembled plate metal.
- MAGUS: All right. THAT should do it. Give the switch a flip, and–
The machine immediately catches fire. Magus groans and sits down beside its leg, not even bothering to put out the fire.
- BOOSTER SYNTH: Oh, hey Magus. You, uh. [looks at the fire] You doin’ okay?
- MAGUS: Oh, hey Loa. Eh, I’ve been worse. Having a heck of a time getting bosses to run fights against, though. Back in the day, we’d just recruit from other worlds, but… I don’t even know how I’d get out there from here, any more.
- LOA (BOOSTER SYNTH): Huh. …So, wait, that thing’s supposed to be a boss?
- MAGUS: Yeah. The Sahelanthropus! The weapon that walks upright! Or whatever.
The camera zooms out. It resembles a Mantis from Halo far more: a box with legs.
- LOA: …Huh. Well, wait. You just need some kinda big mechanical thing to fight, then, right?
- MAGUS: Yeah, basically.
- LOA: I know just the person. You got schematics? I can put ya in touch. They did one of my thruster packs! One of the earlier ones.
- MAGUS: [narrowing eyes] Was that one of the ones that exploded messily?
- LOA: [brightly] Yeah!
- MAGUS: [slapping Loa on the back] PERFECT. Here, let me dig through all my old data banks and put something together. …Uh, am I gonna owe somebody money for this?
- LOA: Honestly, just seeing data from another world would be payment enough for me! But I’m not the one you gotta worry about. You can talk about it with ‘em.
- MAGUS: Hmm… yeah. Makes sense. So who’s this friend of yours, and where do I meet ‘em?
Cut to the bay, later that evening. The sun’s starting to set. Several ships of increasing impracticality are moored out here along a futuristic white-steel dock, but Magus has stepped onto one of them– a battleship with no guns, a wide-open empty deck, with a massive bulky building at the back.
Magus walks up to the building and knocks on an oblong plate that could be a door.
- MAGUS: Uh, hello? Is there a… Big Dendy here?
The entire building SITS UPRIGHT, arms unspooling from either side, revealing that the ship *is his contact.*
- BIG DENDY: Ahh, so you’re the newbie!
Magus nearly jumps out of his headphones, skittering back like halfway along the deck, then trying to play it off cool like he totally expected this.
- MAGUS: Yyyyyes, yes I am, that’s me! Do you have what I drew up for ya?
- BIG DENDY: Mmm, well, I started working on it, but there’s not much interior detail on your schematics.
- MAGUS: Y…yeah, that’s right. I mean, it’s basically just a 3D model I ripped… Tell you what. I’ll leave you the data you wanted, and you can just take an extra week to put it all together, yeah?
- BIG DENDY: Oooohhh… So you have it? The schematics from your world?!
- MAGUS: Yeah! Maybe it’ll be some inspiration for ya. Just ship it straight to the arena when you’re done, yeah?
- BIG DENDY: Hooohohoho. You got yourself a deal, newbie!
Cut to the day of the fight. The stands have a few scattered observers, but they’re nowhere near full– and Magus is pacing anxiously in a high-up announcer-room with a good view of the mostly-empty stands.
- MAGUS: Where is that thing… gonna be a real short fight if we don’t have a boss! I mean, I guess I could run two Sandbags…
- LOA: [sticking head down in front of window, from on top of the building] Hi!
- MAGUS: [startled] Waah! I mean, uh, hi, Loa!
- LOA: Your boss is here!
The two arrive at a large crate in a loading dock, at the base of the arena. Magus rubs his hands gleefully.
- LOA: The big guy said he took your advice, and patched together some of the missing detail with some of the data from your world!
- MAGUS: Huh. …I was more being polite, but, I guess that works. Still, this should be a great fight! Something recognizable, that everybody’s gonna love. Massime, if you would?
Massime gets out their dented flagpole and jams it into the crate, prying it open. Magus’s expression goes from nervous to confused.
- MAGUS: …The hell is this…?
This week’s fight is, uh, apparently against the… Altima Weapon. It has a lot of powerful Delay attacks, but you have several ways to deal with that: some can be broken with damage, and you have access to a special Event Button action called “Execute Mechanic”!
…And while you all figure out how you’re going to deal with that, uh, I’m going to… figure out how exactly I’m going to pilot this thing so you can fight it…
Be there, or be Flare! I guess!