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E BRACKET

Match 1 - Mark Ailshie
Darth Maul vs. BA Barracus

A flash took B.A. (Bad Attitude) Barracus into the hanger with all the fighters in it. Of course, To BA, this is just another garage. He puts down his M-60, and takes out his blowtorch, and starts cutting apart a fighter.
But suddenly the doors slide open revealing the fearsome tattooed face of Darth Maul, a cloak over his head and two-handed lightsaber in his hand.
"Hey, boy!" shouts BA. "What's with the freaky music?" Maul doesn't answer, instead taking off his cloak to reveal his way-cool horns.
"You answer me when I am talking to you, sucka!" shouts BA, and shoots a grenade at the Sith lord.
Maul ignites his lightsaber and slices it in half, but it explodes into smoke. Darth ignites the other side, and scowls into the gathering smoke.
Of course, with his lightsabers lit, Maul makes an easy target. BA opens up the barrel of his M-60, but
Maul deflects every bullet, and with a fierce gesture sends BA's gun careening across the room. Maul advances swinging his saber like a baton.
BA bends over and grabs his torch. When Darth Maul is close enough, he blasts the fire into his face, momentarily blinding the Sith apprentice.
Maul Snarls and covers his eyes with one hand. BA grabs the saber, shouting "Now gimme dat!" and tries to pull it away.
Unfortunately for BA, at his best he was never as strong as Darth Maul. The Sith Lord pulls back, and uses a force-push to toss BA into a wall. BA is on his feet quickly, and Darth Maul slices high, neatly decapitating Barracus, and immediately cauterizing the wound. BA's head rolls across the floor, and his body slumps to the ground.

Winner: Darth Maul

Match 2 - Robert Newell
Megatron vs. Athos

Megatron could only laugh. He was to fight a mere human. A human with a metal sword at that. It was too rich. He, Megatron, leader of the Decepticons, was to kill this pitiful human. All he needed to do was find the pathetic creature.
Athos approached the armored man warily. This Megatron had no sword, and it would be dishonorable to ambush him. He called out Megatron's name and raised his sword in a salute.
Megatron could not believe the stupidity of this worm. He was actually coming at Megatron with some archaic weapon that couldn't even scratch his skin. He would enjoy killing this one with his bare hands.
Athos held his sword in the en guarde position. Megatron ran towards him arms outstretched to crush the man. Athos decided that the eyes were the probably the least armored part of this monstrous creature. As Megatron closed, Athos dropped his rapier and drew two long daggers. He leapt up and stabbed Megatron, one dagger in each of his eyes. The resulting energy discharge fried Athos to a blackened crisp. It also had a similar effect on Megatron's electronic brain, as if two daggers weren't enough. Both crumple in a dead heap.
Double KO is the judge's call. The winner of the Darth Maul vs. B.A. Barracus fight will have a second round bye. Megatron's pride killed him, while Athos' naivety did him in.

Result: **BYE**

Match 3 - Brian Ailshie
Ramirez vs. F'lar

In the starfighter launch bay of Theed palace, there is a great flash of light. After a moment, the light dies away and reveals a leather clad man armed only with a long knife. However, this is not the most impressive part. He is also astride a great bronze dragon, larger by triple any of the spacecraft in the fighter bay, except perhaps the royal-cruiser. Sliding down the massive front shoulder, and lightly hopping from the extended fore-claw, F'lar dismounts from the great dragon Mnementh. "Stay here my friend!" F'lar calls to the dragon and strides toward the open doorway. Suddenly a man with a great overcloak and a long katana-blade leaps out and dashes at the Dragonrider from behind.
Ramirez isn't too sure of how well this man fights, but he didn't have to look twice to see that he didn't want to fight him near the dragon. Its wingspan had to be near to 200 cubits. And the teeth in the great maw were half-again as long as Ramirez was tall. He had to reach the man quickly and take his head before he could return to the great bronze beast.
Mnementh saw the man dashing out and called out to F'lar psychically. "LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU" F'lar spun around quickly and dropped to a crouch as the man lunged at him. He rolled to the side and swiped with his blade scoring a large gash in the man's abdomen. The cut would kill him, but slowly, he just might kill F'lar before bleeding to death. Better be more careful. "THANK YOU MNEMENTH" He called back.
Ramirez wasn't sure how the man heard him coming he had used all of his skills the Japanese master had taught him of stealth, and hadn't made a sound as he charged him. The man must have sensed him with the 'buzz' immortals get. However, Ramirez didn't get the 'buzz' feeling himself, this being wasn't immortal. He was good with his knife though. The wound would have killed a mortal. But for the immortal Ramirez, it was only a small sting to ignore until it healed itself. Now to close with the man while he still had the slight advantage of weapon length.
F'lar saw the long curved sword in the man's hand, and knew this was not a fight he could win without a better weapon. However, if the man knew honor, he would drop the weapon if he did and they could grapple hand to hand. On the other hand, what kind of honor let a man sneak up on his opponent? Better not risk it. Back pedaling slowly, F'lar scanned the area and saw a long piece of pipe. No edge to it, but the disadvantage in reach would be eliminated. F'lar feinted to his left and then jumped back to the right toward the pipe as the long curved blade swung where we had started to go. In one motion, F'lar heaved the pipe up and crashed it down on the man's back. He heard the snap that F'lar knew to be his neck breaking. F'lar stepped away and heaved a sigh. He had won. But wait, the man grunted a curse (that sounded to be in a slight Ruathan accent) and started to rise. How could this be! Then F'lar saw that the belly wound was not bleeding either. This man was not mortal!
"I NEED YOUR HELP FRIEND" F'lar called, as he ran toward the dragon. Mnementh leaped toward him claws out and head down. F'lar leaped to his saddle behind the dragon's head as the man chased him, then turned to run away. "TEAR HIM LIKE A HERDBEAST" F'lar called, and Mnementh responded covering the distance to Ramirez in one flap of his great wings. In another moment the man was shredded in pieces. However the head was starting to spark! "RUN FOR IT MNEMENTH" F'lar called and the dragon leaped from the launch bay as a huge lightning storm erupted from the man�s body.

Winner: F'lar

Match 4 - Mark Ailshie
Slink vs. Sir Lancelot

>Flash!<
>Flash!<
Slink immediately faded into the shadow of the wall, and then looked around cautiously. He was not about to make the same mistake that his uncle Gasponac had. But then, Slink never underestimated anybody. Even when his Grandfather sent him to assassinate women or old people, he made sure to stab them in the back. His reputation for striking from the shadows was such that even his followers called him "The Coward." He took it as a compliment. He had good reason to be cautious. His lineage was only 1/4 Shehap. He spotted his foe across the room. He carried a broadsword, and looked like he knew how to use it. Slink had only his knives, but he had never needed anything else. Any weapon that you don't see coming is twice as effective as any weapon that you do. He gambled that Lancelot wouldn't be watching a shadow on the ground, and slid around him. Lancelot tightened his grip. He didn't like this. He was confident in his ability to out-fight anyone, as long as he could see him. He knew this "Slink" fellow had to be around somewhere, but he wouldn't show himself.
"Come on, coward! Have you no honor? Face me like a man!"
Slink wanted to laugh. He didn't of course. He was smart enough to never call attention to himself when he was a shade. He was in position. Now he just had to wait for Lancelot to move forward a few steps. Lancelot stood still for several minutes. Slink was patient. He could wait. And if he moved another way, he would slide around him again and set up another stab. There was plenty of time. There were definite advantages to being immortal.
Lancelot gritted his teeth. Maybe he was hiding in that alcove. If he could just find him, he knew he could beat him. He stepped forward. Twice. "One more step," Slink thought. He stepped again. As silent as the wind, Slink melted out of the shadow, drawing his knives as he moved. With his right, he stabbed deep into Lancelot's right kidney as with the left he slit his throat. The whole attack had taken less than a second. Slink leapt away. How many of his followers had been killed by their victim's death throes? He would have melted back into the safety of the shadows, but his energy needed a few minutes to recharge.
Luckily, it wasn't hard to stay out of the reach of a dying man. A few minutes later, and he had nothing to worry about.

Winner: Slink

Match 5 - Mark Ailshie
Rygara vs. Clint Eastwood

Rygara Monpue appeared in another flash of light, and quickly got her bearings. She was getting used to how Fantastic Fighting worked. She could confidently say that she was more experienced than most. She had made it to the final match in the first tournament, even though that was probably more luck than skill. And in the first Rumble, she had lasted longer than almost anyone else. She didn't recognize the name of her opponent, and she didn't know where she was. It looked like one of the castles from her home. But she was not about to trust to that--she always expected surprises in these locals. Well, no sense in waiting around for this "Eastwood" to find her. Rygara quickly braided her long yellow hair and stuffed it under her helmet. Then she drew, Labyrinth, her ancestral sword, hefted her gem-encrusted shield and went hunting.
Clint had no idea where he was, and he didn't like it. But then, how could you tell whether Clint liked anything? It was hard to be expressive with only one facial statement. He was wearing a three-piece suit, like any politician. Irritably, he yanked off the jacket--it could only get in his way, and it was too hot anyway--and drew his pistol. He had no idea what he was looking for--some woman named "RYE-gra" or something like that. But he suspected that it had something to do with the glimmer of light he saw out in the hall.
Rygara wondered if she should cover the front of her shield. The gems were sparkling in the sunlight, such that it would be impossible to sneak up on anyone. But she decided against it--she had learned in her past battles that the particular arrangement of crystals allowed her shield to actually deflect the mysterious light-swords that she had encountered in the past. If it wasn't for that, she would never have been able to defeat Mara Jade in the first Rumble. Of course, it had only slowed down Darth Vader, she thought grimly.
>>Blam!<< a shot rang out! Rygara had heard that noise before, in the battles of the dwarves. Without thought, she dove to the ground, and the bullet ricochet harmlessly off her armor. She rolled to her feet and spotted her opponent, a tall old man who cursed, as he saw how she had evaded him. He raised his �Dwarven Sling" for another shot.
Rygara closed the distance in a few steps. Clint shot twice, but Rygara easily deflected the bullets with her shield. Clint tried to give ground, but Rygara was in much better shape, and caught him. With a vengeful cry, she knocked the sling aside with her shield, and spitted the tall man on the end of her sword. Rygara panted for a few moments. That had been far too easy. The next warrior would probably be much more skilled. She reached for the Dwarven Sling. She had never used one of these, but had seen them used by allies and enemies in the past. It might turn out as useless at the lightsaber she had stolen from Jade, but it was worth a try.

Winner: Countess Rygara Monpue-Plamnor

Match 6 - Robert Newell
Feyd Rautha vs Scorpion

Feyd Rautha thought himself very clever as he put his deadly poison on both his blades. Any civilized opponent would know that only his shorter black blade should be poisoned while his longer white one should be toxin-free. He knew that he was a very skilled knife-fighter and had nothing to fear from any person that he had ever encountered before.
Scorpion waited in the shadows for this Feyd-Rautha person to pass. He could tell by his stance that his opponent was a capable fighter, but he could also tell by his features that he was incredibly overconfident. As soon as Feyd-Rautha passed, Scorpion threw his barbed spear into Rautha's back with all of his might. Feyd-Rautha was so over confident, he had not even turned his personal shield on! Scorpion reeled in his skewered foe to finish him off, but he soon realized that this would not be necessary as Feyd Rautha was already bleeding too much. He kicked his opponent in the face and kidneys several times to increase the agony of his death. After Feyd-Rautha stopped moving, Scorpion retrieved his spear from the corpse and cleaned it off on the corpse's fine looking clothing.

Winner: Scorpion

Match 7 - Mark Ailshie
Snake Eyes vs. Riggs

Snake-Eyes silently swept the ground with his eyes, and spotted his opponent, a short man with a pistol. Snake-Eyes didn't like being pitted against someone so manifestly below his ability, but he was not arrogant enough to think that this tournament wouldn't challenge him beyond any of his abilities. He would make this first kill quick. He checked the clip in his Uzi, and drew his sword. First things first: he would dispense with the lights. He sent two throwing stars flying into a fuse-box, and with a spark and a pop, the whole palace was plunged into darkness.
Riggs pulled out a lighter and lit it. Not near enough light to fight by, but maybe enough to figure out how to restore the electricity. He drew his pistol and tried to find the fuse-box. Suddenly, a shiruken throwing star stabbed into the back of his right hand, and Riggs dropped his gun.
With a shout, he dropped to the ground, and snatched it up again, shooting wildly in the direction the star had come from.
Of course, the masked G.I. Joe commando was behind him by now. Snake-Eyes clung to the sheer wall and watched his opponent's reaction. He was obviously a cop--unskilled in any but the most obvious attack methods. He wouldn't survive one quick burst of Uzi fire. But somehow, Snake-eyes couldn't do that.
Years of silent missions had taught him to move quietly, finish his enemies quickly and cleanly; much better to do it with a sword. Snake-Eyes drew his sword and dived for the floor.
He landed and rolled without making a sound. Riggs was still looking the other way, trying to see where the star had come from. Snake-Eyes tossed a knife to the far wall. Riggs heard the sound and turned toward it. That was all the distraction Snake-Eyes needed. With one clean stroke, he swept the policeman's head from his shoulders. He never even heard him coming.

Winner: Snake Eyes

Match 8 - Mark Ailshie
Lt. Marco vs. Bolt

Lt. Marco Thorne blinked his eyes as the flash faded away. He looked around for this "Bolt" character. He spotted him across the hanger from him. Bolt hadn't seen him yet, and Marco flung himself under a peculiar yellow and grey plane. His camouflage wasn't very effective indoors, but it was better than what Bolt was wearing. It appeared to be a skintight yellow body suit, topped with hair so yellow that it seemed to be glowing. Blue lightning bolts decorated his chest. Marco grimaced. He hated fighting showboats.
Bolt gritted his teeth. If he could just find his opponent, he was certain the fight wouldn't take very long. "Well," he thought. "He's not in here. Let's try through this door."
Marco smiled. Bolt was leaving. This would let him choose the terrain. He ducked out of the hanger door, looking for a park or an alleyway. Somewhere to set up a trap. Bolt grinned broadly. What luck. He had wandered into a power station. Immense charges of energy flashed around him. This would be a perfect place to fight. He wandered around among the catwalks and conductors, planning how they might be used. A particularly interesting discovery was a service corridor with electric barriers. This would prevent any enemy from reaching him, while he, with his mastery of electricity, could just bend the barrier around himself and walk through unharmed. But Marco was obviously not here. Bolt made a mental note to use this power station to its greatest ability while he was here on Naboo. Well, he'd better find Marco. Bolt found a suitable electric socket and sparked into it. He couldn't travel in electric wires for any great length of time, but, of course, a stream of energy could travel a great distance in a short time. Marco was doing a good job of hiding himself. Suddenly, he found him hiding in a park. Luckily the park's lightning was supplied by the same power station. Bolt smiled -- if a stream of energy can be said to smile -- and sparked back out near him.
Lt. Marco smiled proudly. He had rigged strings and traps around his position in all directions. If Bolt came within 50 feet of him, he'd know it and be ready. He fastened his bayonet on the end of his rifle and waited.
"Hey Lieutenant!" Marco's mouth dropped open. Bolt stood not twenty feet away under a street lamp. How had he gotten within the perimeter? He turned and opened fire.
CRASH! A bolt of lightning missed Marco by inches and slammed into the metal grate behind him. Marco was blinded momentarily and shot blindly in the direction the bolt had come.
"Shoot," thought Bolt. "His boots must have insulated soles." He sprang aside, easily escaping the rifle fire, and considered what to do next. If he could just get Marco to touch the ground or something that would conduct elec-- "Of course," he smiled. Marco blinked and his vision cleared. Bolt was standing ten feet away and pointing at him. Reflexively, Marco ducked, but nothing happened. He looked up to see Bolt desperately jabbing his fingers at him again and again. A look of increasing panic was on his face, and he was backing slowly away. Marco smiled and advanced. Now Bolt really looked scared. He backed into a tree. Marco lunged with his bayonet. Bolt dodged instantaneously. Marco's bayonet bit deep into the trunk of the tree. He frantically tried to yank it free, but Bolt shot a few thousand volts into the soldier's body, which traveled out his arms, through the gun and bayonet, through the tree, and into the ground. Marco shook convulsively for a few seconds until Bolt released him. He was fried to a crisp. The gun and the tree weren't in such good shape either.

Winner: Bolt

Round 2
Match 1
Darth Maul takes the Bye from Match 2, Round 1

Match 2 � Mark Ailshie
F'lar of Benden vs. Lord Slink the Coward

Slink was beginning to enjoy this. At first, he had been a bit nervous to realize that his new opponent was riding a dragon. The dragons had once been the greatest weapon of the Darkshehaps, back in the Garline wars. But that was thousands of years ago, and even then Slink hadn't liked them. Too strong. Too blunt and obvious. Too intelligent. This one didn't seem to be any different. But the man was as foolish as any other mortal. Slink had called his name, and he had followed him. Cautiously, of course, but now Slink had the fool man chasing shadows in corridors too small for his beast to crawl in.
'Mnementh' called F'lar telepathically. 'Have you seen any sign of our enemy?' Mnementh sent a negative. F'lar didn't like this. He had faced thieves and cutthroats before, but never such a cunning thief. Every time he thought he had cornered his opponent, he would turn the corner and find nothing but shadows. He had finally followed his voice into the power plant, but Mnenmenth couldn't squeeze through the doorway. F'lar didn't like being seperated from his mount.
"Why should I be the hunter?" he mumbled to himself, and turned his back on the empty walkways, intending to let this 'Slink' come to him. Mnementh sent a frantic warning, and F'lar spun and dodged in the same movement, barely evading a fierce backstab! The wielder turned and fled without an attempt at a second attack. F'lar hadn't gotten a good look at the Darkshehap, but it appeared to be wearing a long dark cloak. F'lar was certain he had not been there a minute ago. No matter. F'lar drew his knives and gave chase.
Slink cursed inwardly and kept running. It would take a few minutes for his powers of subterfuge to replenish themselves. He was no warrior, and knew better than to attempt to outfight this dragonrider. But even without his powers, Slink was fast and agile. He dived down to a lower walkway, and cut back the way he had come. F'lar followed without a break. He was gaining on him. Slink noticed a dark hall, and went for it at full speed. F'lar followed, and both were almost cut in half as the protective lazer forcefields that guarded the maintenance shaft to the refuse pit angled back between them.
The two warriors stopped and faced each other. Slink felt horribly exposed--trapped in a little room surrounded with light that mocked his shadowing abilities. F'lar felt similarly uneasy at being trapped so far from any assistance from his dragon companion. The two waited breathlessly, and re-marshaled their strength. When the lights angled away, F'lar lunged forward, and Slink immediately vanished into the nearest shadow.
F'lar stabbed wildly, but Slink faded down the corridor until he found the dead end. Inwardly, he cursed his bad luck, and tried to reverse his position. But now, F'lar blocked the only way out. No problem there. Slink was immortal. He would just wait him out.
After an hour, F'lar realized that they were at an impasse. He dared not turn his back to leave, he dared not try to back out against the forcefields, and he couldn't outwait this cowardly opponent. Against his better judgment, he decided to try to bluff him out. He made a show of getting impatient, and stepped a few steps away from the doorway, to try to make Slink attack him. Slink waited a few minutes, watching the agitated weyrleader. He slowly faded around the round room, until he was almost behind F'lar. He waited for F'lar to respond. Nothing. Slink waited a second to be sure. He gathered himself to spring. Silently and instantaneously, he separated himself from the shadow and sprang against F'lar's exposed back! He drove his blade into his left lung, and sprang back against the wall. This was the dangerous part.
The pain was F'lar's first notice that Slink had attacked. He spun around and faced his shadowy enemy. He knew he was dying. In vengeance, he leaped against the Dark Shehap and caught him by one foot. Slink immediately kicked him in the face and danced away, but not before F'lar could lash out against the coward's foot. Slink howled in pain, and hopped away. He would have a limp for his next match. But F'lar was defeated. His breathing labored and wheezed, and he was beginning to cough up blood. Slink's well-placed kick had blinded the weyrleader with his own tears, preventing any missile attack. Slink stayed huddled against the far wall, keeping as much space between himself and his dying opponent as he could.
In a few minutes, a distant roar of despair announced that Mnementh had gone between. F'lar had died. Still, it was at least an hour before Slink limped over to the corpse to retrieve his dagger.

Winner: Lord Slink, The Coward

Match 3 - Mark Ailshie
Rygara Monpue vs. Scorpion

Rygara had just finished loading Eastwood's gun, when a terse shout echoed off the walls of the throne room: "GET OVER HERE!!!!!"
A long silver cable shot across the room so quickly that she barely got her hand up to stop it from plunging into her throat. The cable wrapped like a vice around her neck, and yanked her back across the room, to where her new opponent waited. The gun and Rygara's shield slipped from her grasp and clattered onto the ground.
Scorpion delivered a fierce uppercut at his strangling prey. He didn't know who this silver-armored woman was, and he didn't care. As far as he was concerned, she was just another victim. He shot five palm-punches at her face in quick succession, and then swept her feet out from under her. Rygara panted as she hit the floor, trying to catch her breath. Scorpion shot his spear at her again, but this time, Rygara was ready. In one swift motion, she swept Labyrinth from its sheath and sliced the point off the cable. It clattered to the ground, but Scorpion suddenly vanished and appeared in front of Rygara, kicking like a storm. Rygara took two in the head, but caught Scorpion's leg on the third, and viciously sliced upward with her father's sword, cleaving off Scorpion's leg at the knee. Scorpion howled in pain, and stumbled away.
Rygara followed, swinging her sword menacingly. Scorpion shot his cable out again, and entangled the sword, yanking it away from the swordwoman. Rygara cried out in surprise and alarm. Not her father's sword! Seeing her discomfort, Scorpion attacked with a flying leg kick--not any easy thing to do with only one leg!, and followed up with another barrage of palm-punches, and swept Rygara to the ground again.
Rygara hit hard, and groaned. Scorpion decided to 'Finish her.' He yanked his face off, and inhaled deeply. From her position under her opponent, Rygara slammed a dagger under Scorpion's fleshless chin, and pinned his mouth closed. For a moment of panic, Scorpion tried desperately to quench the flames he had just called up from his gullet. Rygara leaped away, as Scorpion's head exploded in a fiery ball.
Rygara took a few minutes to catch her breath. He had been so fast! Perhaps her heavy armor was more of a hindrance than a benefit. She stripped it off and left it in a neat pile in the middle of the throne room. Then she retrieved her sword, dagger, shield, and Eastwood's gun.

Winner: Countess Rygara Monpue-Plamnor

Match 4 � Mark Ailshie
Snake Eyes vs. Bolt

Snake Eyes drew his sword and put his back against a wall. He suddenly knew he was being watched. He crouched into a defensive stance, and looked about him. Nothing. But he knew implicitly that his enemy was near. He waited in a tense stance, his body ready to move at the slightest disturbance. When the attack came, it came from a direction he didn't anticipate--a power socket a few feet to his left. Bolt zapped out of the socket and shot himself at the ninja with the speed of lightning. Snake Eyes' reflexes have been described as "lightning," but only in metaphor. He was nowhere near fast enough to dodge. Bolt struck the sword and electrified it, shocking the G.I.Joe commando right through his gloves. With a start, Snake Eyes dropped the sword and leaped away.
Bolt took human shape, and threw a lightning bolt at his opponent. This time, Snakes was prepared, and dodged aside, retreating down the corridor. He backflipped into a handspring and shot himself around a corner. Bolt followed in lazer pursuit. Snake-Eyes had intended to ambush the tribesman, but Bolt was too fast for him to avoid. Bolt shot another bolt at the ninja, and this time struck him in the stomach. The blast would have incapacitated or killed an ordinary man, but a ninja's endurance for pain is a bit above the typical human. Snake Eyes recognized now that he could not out-distance this opponent.
For a split second, he was at a loss. He had been used to overwhelming his opponents with his dexterity and surprise attacks. It had been some time since he had met anyone faster than he was. Bolt readied another attack, his hand sparking with accumulating charge.
At a loss, Snake-Eyes charged. Bolt blinked--He didn't expect him to attack! Still, he threw one tremendous bolt which struck Snake Eyes in the chest at point blank range. Snake Eyes felt his heart stop, but he tackled the tribesman, propelling them both through the plate glass window of the palace of Theed!
Bolt was shocked! Without a connection to the ground, his powers wouldn't last very long, and the dying Ninja's grip was too strong for him to zap out of. The impact of a fall from this height would kill them both. Bolt used all his power trying to shock Snake Eyes into letting go enough for him to zap himself safely to the ground, but to no avail.
A moment before they hit, Bolt looked behind him, and realized that it wouldn't have helped him. Snake Eyes had tackled him into the river. The two hit the water, and a massive shock sprang through a mile of river. Fish fried in the water, and ducks leapt into the sky in alarm. Bolt's power dissipated with his life. And then it was quiet. The rumble authorities were about to announce this match a bye, but no. A mile down stream, a black clad shape crawled out of the water, and promptly sank to his face. Snake Eyes had activated the ninja trance Sleep of Stone, forcing himself into a temporary coma while his body tried to repair itself. In the mean time, he is extremely vulnerable. But alive.

Winner: Snake Eyes

Round 3

Match 1 � Mark Ailshie
Lord Darth Maul vs. Lord Slink the Coward

Maul stalked his prey like a panther in the shadows. He was near. Maul could smell him, or at least sense him. An old power, perhaps as strong as himself. But he would be the victor.
Slink's ankle really hurt. Curse that Dragonrider! He hoped it wouldn't impair his ambushing abilities. It wasn't impairing his ability to hide. He had faded into the shadows around the pit where he had defeated the DragonRider. It seemed like an ideal place to ambush someone. Maul would find him--his uncle Malissant had told him about these "Jedi" and their abilities. Besides, he was too tired to move very far.
Maul stood outside the energy hall and scowled. As a Sith lord, he feared nothing. He kept telling himself that. But only a fool would want to return to where he had been killed. He would have his revenge on that one.
But there was no denying that Slink was hiding somewhere down the hall. It had to be a trap. But as much as it irked him, he knew that he couldn't wait forever. Well, the quickest way to disarm a trap was to spring it. Maul waited for the Energy doors to change, and strode down the hallway.
Slink saw him coming, and crouched in the shadows. Maul entered the room, and stalked back and forth. Slink waited until he turned his back, and then struck. Slink was quick. He leaped out of the shadows, with knife extended, as silent as the night. But Maul needed neither eyes nor ears to sense his attack. At the last moment, he force-leaped aside, and swung his double saber at where he had stood a moment ago. It was like a shadow being cut open, and bleeding light. Slink stood gaping at the glowing open slice across his chest, and then fell in two pieces. That was a little too familiar for Darth Maul. But suddenly Darth Maul's danger sense flickered, and Slink's body exploded in a blinding flare. Maul was taken completely by surprise--The other DarkShehap he had killed had not exploded! The explosion knocked him against the wall, and he slipped into the bottomless pit! Now this was entirely too familiar!
But Maul was not dead, this time. And he still had the force. He reached out to his Lightsaber, falling beside him, and ignited it. It cut through a part of the wall, and Maul caught the ragged edge. His lightsaber tumbled until it was out of his reach. No matter. He had other weapons. He hung there until the explosion subsided, and then propelled himself with the force back into the pit room.

Winner: Darth Maul (Sans Lightsaber)

Match 2 � Mark Ailshie
Rygara Monpue-Plamnor vs. Snake Eyes

After her fight with Scorpion, Rygara was afraid she wouldn't have time to catch her breath. But, after several hours, her next opponent still had not shown up. Rygara decided she'd better go and look for him. She searched all around the Theed palace, but as unable to find her enemy.
Eventually, about a full day after her battle with Scorpion, she wandered out by the river and found her opponent. Snake Eyes seemed to be in a deep, almost comatose sleep. But Rygara recognized him immediately. It would be an easy thing to finish him off with one quick stroke. Rygara raised her sword. No. Not like this. Not when he was half-dead and unable to defend himself. Such a win would be utterly without honor. Instead, she threw the wounded ninja over her shoulder and carried him inside. It didn't take long to find a comfortable place where Snake-Eyes could sleep and recover himself. Rygara had no idea how long that would take. In the mean time, she retrieved her armor, and practiced with the strange dwarvish sling she had captured from Eastwood. Days passed. At first, Rygara made sure to force-feed her patient at least once a day, but eventually she realized that the ninja could heal well enough on his own. Rygara's wounds healed up well enough that they wouldn't bother her, and she deciphered how the gun worked, only losing three bullets in the process. (Leaving six more)
Then one day, Rygara walked into Snake-Eyes' room, and found the covers thrown off his bed, the patient and all his clothes and gear no where to be found. Rygara drew her sword. The battle was back on. Snake-Eyes felt guilty for continuing with the tournament, when he plainly owed a debt of gratitude to this pretty blond fighter. But he wasn't nearly grateful enough to lie down and die for her. His Uzi would never function again, after an all-day soaking in the river. But the rest of his weapons worked fine. He would not ambush this woman. If he did that, he could have killed her before she knew he was awake again. But that would be a fine way to repay her for her honor. He waited for Rygara in the courtyard, where she quickly found him. He made a sign of gratitude that he hoped she understood.
Rygara nodded. The strange black-clad man hit a fighting stance, and the two began to circle each other. In a flash, Snake-Eyes spun three shiruken at her. She raised her shield and deflected all three. Her reflexes were surprisingly fast! Snake-Eyes charged with his sword, and the two began to fence. Snake-Eyes was more skilled, but Rygara was a bit stronger. Both blades rang with the strength of each blow.
Eventually, Snake-Eyes disarmed his opponent, and sent her sword flying aside. Rygara dodged his next swing, and dove after her sword. Snake-Eyes launched a flying kick to her back, sending her sprawling away from her sword. With a few well timed kicks, he knocked her shield away and softened her up enough for a killing strike. He knocked her against a wall, and raised his sword.
BLAM! BLAM!
Snake-Eyes looked in shock at the bleeding wound in his chest. He hadn't known she had a gun! It didn't seem like such a warrior would know how to use one. His sword dropped from his hand, and he fell lifeless to the ground. Rygara retrieved her sword and shield, and took a few deep breaths. She had a whole new set of bruises to add to the ones Scorpion had given her.

Winner: Rygara Monpue-Plamnor

Round 4

Match � Brian Ailshie
Darth Maul vs. Rygara Monpue

Darth Maul was disgusted, another unchallenging opponent. The woman was obviously not attuned to the force. His only real challenge had been the Shehap he had just finished. Granted he had only had one other fight, since he was robbed of a 2nd round chance to stretch his muscles. Oh well here came the woman to ruin his reverie, time to dispatch her.
Rygara knew her aim with the dwarven sling (pistol) wasn't the best so she made sure to brandish the sword high as she advanced with the sling held behind her shield. Screaming she charged the last few steps and fired. She was amazed at the man's speed. He actually dodged the bullet. Then she noticed that somehow the 'arrow-head' had somehow TURNED in it's flight and was heading back at her. It pierced her shield, shieldarm, and thudded on her breastplate. Thank the gods she had put that back on.
Just then she realized the man had called the sling to his grasp with some kind of magic. Jumping aside she played her last chance. Maul fired the ancient slug thrower (pistol) almost casually. He was caught somewhat off guard by the accuracy of the sword the girl threw at him as it hit his shoulder. However the slug blew open the girl's head, and his wound would heal. Removing the sword he strapped it to his waist, next to the blasters he had taken from the Naboo guards. No comparison in the ancient weapon to his lightsaber, or his force weapons, but a Sith Lord took advantage of every weapon he could.

Winner of Bracket E: Darth Maul