Nero vs. Clown Baby

Nero found himself in the arena once again. Something about the life of a gladiator kept drawing him back to the field of competition. The thrill of battle was irresistible, and the idea of fighting for fame and glory was too good to pass up. Also, there was reward money. Fights in the big leagues paid very nicely, most of the time. Nero’s past three victories, over Rocky, Polliver, and Zai, had been fruitful in more aspects than one. He was a man driven forward by fortune and notoriety, and he became closer to his goal of becoming a glorious warrior by the battle. It was an exhilarating feeling, being one of the great gladiators he once looked up to as a young child. The danger was ever-present during every bout, as Polliver had warned him. However, this never stopped Nero- he would continue to press onward, in victory or defeat, until he could go no further. The thirst for glory was unquenchable, his hunger for fame insatiable.

Exiting the tunnel and entering the arena, the cheering of the fans became his reality. They saw him, and the volume in the coliseum escalated as they sang his praises. Secretly, Nero expressed the desire that many a child in the arena saw his battles and wished that they could one day do the same deeds that he was doing. Perhaps one day he might fight a fan of his in the ring. That would be some spectacle.

Of course, Nero was starting to get ahead of himself. He was only on his fourth opponent; he had not really made the biggest name for himself yet- but he was proud his fame was growing. Big changes are comprised of small steps, after all.

The man who Nero would be competing against went by the alias of “Clown Baby.” This was very odd. It was certainly memorable, though. That was what mattered, supposedly. The announcer went through his spiel of welcoming the audience to the ring, and introducing the combatants. Nero met Clown Baby in the middle of the arena. He was a gargantuan man, shirtless like Nero, but with a few feet taller, with loud muscles and a louder personality. Is it possible for muscles to be “loud?” Perhaps, perhaps not. They were definitely very noticeable. Clown Baby greeted Nero, rather flamboyantly.

Ah, Nero! You is very good to meet. We make strong battle now, yes?

Uhh.. Yes. Strong Battle.

Nero was taken aback by this man’s strange accent. He was billed from a foreign land, however. Perhaps this was part of his character? Or maybe he was from far away. He did not have any ideas, and did not care to find them, as the match was announced to begin.

As soon as the fight began, Nero stepped 10m back and began to eye Clown Baby, looking for weaknesses. The man’s lack of armor made gut shots and body shots more viable offensive options, as opposed to Polliver, who wore metallic armor and only exposed his head. However true this may be, the massive man’s muscles would likely make damage to the abdomen harder to inflict, and his spiked gloves would make his strikes difficult to face. Either way, Nero had to do something. He was an aggressive, explosive fighter, but for the past few bouts he was seen as the underdog, dominated by his foes and scoring comeback victories. This time he would change things and change his image. Clown Baby was ready to fight; he slammed his fist into the ground, utilizing his Shimmy and Shake maneuver, causing Nero to stumble and lose his footing. The tremor from the strike hurt Nero somewhat as well, but for the time being he brushed it off. He fell onto his stomach, but stood up once more as the rumbling subsided. He felt a little bit of pain but he could look past it; right now victory was more important than licking his wounds. Nero then ran towards Clown Baby, covering the distance rather quickly; but instead of backing away, Clown Baby began to run towards Nero as well. Nero leapt into the air and aimed a flying punch strike towards his target’s head, but heard a loud shout and felt his fist hit something that missed the mark.

OOOH-RA!

That was Clown Baby; he had raised his arm in front of him, utilizing his Iron Will ability. Nero landed, backing up once more, and circling around Clown Baby. Clown Baby turned himself around, to keep eye contact with his foe. Nero feinted the gargantuan man, causing him to believe that the Fanalis would run towards him. Clown Baby threw a wicked uppercut, Slam Up, but missed any target. He had been sure that Nero was going to charge again. Directly following this, however, Nero did charge, laying into Clown Baby. He ran in quickly, leading with a jab to the chest, followed by a body hook to the abdomen. When Clown Baby attempted to counter the attack with a strike, Nero stepped to the side, utilizing his Flow Step ability, and bent downwards; he would then leap upwards, and administer a swift kick to the giant man’s head, before using his other leg to strike the man again while he was still airborne, showcasing his Enzuigiri. Nero landed and the giant staggered to his knees. As soon as this happened, Nero would run behind the man, who had taken a knee. Nero would then prop the man up, pick him up by the waist using his enhanced Fanalis strength, and then proceed to slam him downwards onto his spine, using his Tower Crash ability. Clown Baby stirred, and began to stand, but was overtaken by the pain and exhaustion and fell. Nero would be declared the winner of this match.

The Fanalis was overtaken with pride upon this victory; he had added a fourth success to his belt. That was something to celebrate. Perhaps he would get a drink sometime that night.

OOC: basic attacks deal b-tier damage, so do all my other abilities- 2 b-tiers = 1 a-tier, i landed more than 2 b-tiers