Guilympics: Torch Relay

[Deleted]

GUILYMPICS 2009
Torch Relay

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Good morning and welcome to the first ever torch relay for the Guilympics! The aim of this game is not to get the torch to the opening ceremony, but rather to be as flamboyant, creative, amusing, vindictive and evil as you possibly can. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, will be to take up the Guilympic torch and, using RP-style format, take it as far as you can. You may also wish to sabotage other Torch Bearers in your bid to dominate the torch.

Procedure and Rules

• Each Torch Bearer will take the torch and do with it as they wish. Points will be awarded for style, humour, nastiness and clever tricks.
  
• Players may carry the torch a maximum of 5 times and no player will be allowed to carry the torch twice in a row, though Torch Bearers are welcome to resume their antics once another player has posted.
  
• Players may steal the torch from one another, sabotage the relay of another or just have them hand you the torch in a show of good faith and mutual respect... Yeah.
  
• Please note, you may use any means you deem necessary to obtain, transport and retain the torch. We do want it to eventually end up with the torch at the Guilympics opening ceremony, but you may tack the torch for a romantic date or hide it in a treasure trove or dangle it in front of a charging bull. It's up to you!

Contest Information

Signups: Closed
Ending Date: To Be Assigned
Judges: Michelle, Cyborg, Draco
Medals: Yes
Points: Judges assign points out of 100
Entrants: Celestial - Mages (2)
Sariphe (Sarn) - Knights (2)
Sarinon (Sarn) - Steampunk (2)
Esmeralda Wip - Ninjas (2)
Zylaa - Pirates (1)[rand=166384828572115234389732297091117034048640563145057823541185633082]

[Deleted]

Yo runners! I dunno what other judges will be judging on, but I'll be going for creativity and originality of the entry (and not literacy, though it'd better be readable or I won't be able to judge your creativeness.) I want to see you using the torch as well in some form or fashion--funny and awe-worthy antics will be marked high, but funny and awe-worthy antics that interact with the torch a lot will be better. ^^

On the other hand, this is a torch relay, so just things that are interesting in the course of the relay, or even as a pit stop, will be great. ^^ I'm an indecisive judge. In essence: If you have a good idea, go for it!

Have fun!
((Oh, and Sarn, since we have a Mage in the running already and I'm a judge, I think I'm out of this one. ^^ Unless it's okay for a judge to go and jump in. ))

[WiP]

A great crowd was gathered in front of a stage, where the participants of the torch relay waited behind the curtain for their names to be called. Once they were introduced, they would be taken to their individual checkpoints. In view of the crowd, a man spoke of this as being ‘a landmark occasion marking the start of the first Guilympics'. A teenaged girl, Esmeralda Wip, stood with the other participants of the relay, shifting impatiently from foot to foot.

Why does he go on like this? Wip thought, You take a giant match and light a giant fire, causing a giant crowd to make a giant uproar about it. Apparently that fact is very difficult to explain, since the announcer is taking so long.

She crossed her arms and sighed, scanning the faces of the other racers. Most of them she couldn’t name, having arrived to the NTWF only a few weeks before. She wasn’t inclined to start any small talk with them, seeing as they could be called out at any minute. Or any hour, at this rate.

Yet another curtain was behind them, and through it Wip could see a faint glow. Curious, she backed away from the group quietly and went to investigate. On the other side of the curtain was what must have been the fabled torch that they would be carrying, sitting in a shoulder-height pedestal.

The young woman watched the flame as it glowed and twisted. It was no natural blaze. Its colors shifted rapidly as if the flames were a prism in the light, rather than being light itself. Instead of whipping back and forth as fire usually did, it twisted slowly, disappearing into the dark after several inches of color and heat. Also, it smelled strangely of lemons.

And there it sat in all its glory, lonely and unguarded. Wip didn’t have the patience to wait any longer; she moved towards the torch and carefully picked it up. It brightened and twisted a bit faster when she touched it. Her hands pulled back instinctively and she watched it with a guarded expression. The thing can’t possibly be sentient, can it? she thought.

She picked it up, and again set it down. This could be considered stealing, I think. I don’t want to get kicked out of the Ninja guild as soon as I get in, and stealing isn’t really an honorable thing for a Ninja to do. She nearly turned and went back to the other racers, but when she glanced at the flame again, it had gotten noticeably duller.

[glow=red,2,300]‘Please, take me; bring me to where I am meant to go.’[/glow] The words seemed just a bit louder in Wip’s head than what her imagination could create on its own. [glow=red,2,300]‘Please, young assassin.’[/glow]

Wip pulled it out of its holder gently, and ran out the first door she found. She ran as and as far as she could from the stage, the Torch lighting her way and directing her, even though she was in bright sunlight. “I’ll help you, Torch. I won’t let anything hurt you.” She said it in a voice not all her own, and stared at the fire with a gaze that proved her undivided and possibly unhealthy loyalty. She would die to protect this torch. She would kill to help it get to its destination.

((I hope nobody minds how much I described the Torch and the stage and stuff.))

[Zylaa]

((I'm assuming that some god-moding is allowed here, since otherwise we would never be able to get the torch from one person to another without several posts worth of battles))

Zylaa stood with the other relayers in the entry hall, waiting, listening to one of the expendable NPCs drone on and on about the traditions of the torch, and where they would go, and procedures for the torch carrying, and so on, and so forth... it was enough to make her fall asleep.

So when one of the new ninjas snuck out the back way, Zylaa was only too happy to watch her instead. Since the ninja was behind the curtain, Zylaa couldn't see exactly what was happening... but she could easily see the ninja silhouetted against the glow of the flames.

Flames which suddenly started to move away.

Well to heck with this, Zylaa thought, sidling backwards from the expendable NPC. I'm not about to let some ninja steal my glory.

As soon as she was behind the curtain, she abandoned what flimsy attempt at stealth she had and looked around for the ninja. Nowhere to be seen-- although there was a convenient glowing exit sign pointing to a back way out.

Zylaa dashed out the door and into the street, and turned to see the ninja jogging away down the street, multicolored torch held in outstretched arms. By this point, the fact that the torch was very obviously magical didn't even bother Zylaa as much as the fact that the ninja wasn't bothering to be stealthy at all. Something was clearly wrong here.

Of course, the more pressing wrong was that someone besides her held the torch.

Zylaa clambered up to the rooftops and began to run along them with the grace of a weasel, trying to recall what the NPC had said about the route of the torch. She calculated the route and suddenly turned, taking a quick shortcut so she was ahead of the ninja.

Her shortcut also brought her out near Blunt Objects Inc., a store that took the mission of providing what the customer needed to its logical conclusion. After a hasty negotiation, she ran back out into the street, clutching an Extra Long Bamboo Staff. It was a ninja weapon, but desperate times and all. She laid it carefully across the street, clutching one end. She pulled her spoon out of her pocket and twitched it a little, summoning a half-dozen weasels. She explained their purpose very very quickly as she saw the ninja round the next corner.

As soon as the ninja got near the bamboo, she jerked it up, tripping the ninja. The torch went flying, only to be caught by the happily waiting weasels.

Zylaa strode up and snatched the torch away from the weasels, quickly before they got too enraptured with the shininess. And it was very shiny... mesmerizing... prismatic colors... like a magical cone of rainbow sherbert... hmmm...

Five minutes later, after a slight detour, Zylaa continued on the torch route, torch proudly held in one hand, a cone of rainbow sherbert in the other. Delicious.

[Celestial]

Celestial flew over at a relaxed pace in her dragon form, quite surprised that nobody noticed the huge purple dragon flying right above them. Even if it was somewhat normal to have all kinds of things flying above the guilds, many of them stranger than a dragon. This one time, there was a ship with tentacles and maybe even the Blarf. Could blarfs fly in their natural habitat? Did the Blarf even fly or was that her memories muddled after a long time.

In either case, Celestial decided she should focus on the ones below her now. The ninja did not have the torch anymore and was very likely in a rather comical position. But who did? She looked down.

Zylaa. The yang to Celestial's yin. The white to her black. The goodness to her evilness. The tofu to her beefsteak (mmm...steak...) and finally, the "It" to her "Ni!". It was so poetic that she would snatch the torch from her arch-enemy like a lion takes from a hunting dog. Even though the lion was a jerk that way and the hunting dog was quite awesome because of it's colour scheme and the fact that it was such a great hunter. But that wasn't the point.

Celestial became a human again and hovered. Gathering flames all around her, she coloured them blue, red and white. Each tongue of the flame split offf and became a dragon writhing in the wind as if sniffing for prey. She herself embalmed her hands in them and coated her wings with the purest fire to make sure they looked as though they were flaming. Every single flap sent sparks and flickers of flame into thin air and with each stroke the flames quivered like feathers. It was an awesome effect. If only she could summon the dragon for the awesome Glowing Eyes Of Doom _(tm) and the Voice of The Legion _{(also tm)}.

She landed in front of Zylaa. As soon as her feet touched the ground, the flame dragons reared up and roared, glaring at the weasel-creature. It was time to use the LARGE HAM voice.

"I am a servant of the secret fire, wielder of the flame of dragons! The rainbow fre will not be with you, weasel animal! YOU SHALL NO- hey rainbow sherbert! Can I have some?" Celestial grinned, completely spoiling the EPIC effect. All three dragons forget the fact that they had no arms and collectively facepalmed. They then died of shame, along with all the rest of the EPIC fire.

"..._{You can keep the sherbert actually. I'll just take the torch so you can enjoy your rainbow sherbert in peace}" she said meekly and guided the flame to her hand, taking the stick part from Zylaa and mounting it on the torch. It looked pretty cool and swirly. She wished she could make fire like that. Then again, a villain with rainbow fire is not menacing.

"Let's not speak of this incident ever again" Celestial glared at Zylaa before flying up on her own two wings. She tried not to stay too far off the ground so that the other runners could see her. Actually, would it be cheating to fly? Probably not, she was transporting the torch after all.

Flying was hungry work though. Celestial's stomach rumbled and she looked down at the meadow of rabbits underneath her. However, rabbits were not so stupid as to not run away from the dragon girl with purple robes fyign all over the place. Eventually she just got a bag of popcorn and made it in the torch.

It tasted like rainbows. Which was a lot better than rabbit. Just because she was half-dragon didn't mean she needed to eat like one.

[Deleted]

Swooping down like a bird of prey, he alighted on the hard earth near the entrance to a shifty looking tavern with a carved sign above the door bearing the image of a dancing, headless bull. The Prancing Hog. He glanced at the grimy establishment with some distaste, but had resolved to go ahead with his plan. The Feberi Enchanter pushed the door open, sidled sheepishly inside and found himself sitting near a corner where a shifty character was staring at him from under his cowl with knowing eyes.

"Rangers," noted the cheery bartender, who seemed unconcerned with the appearance of his pub or his person. "Can I getcha anythin'?" he garbled. Sarn shook his head, nervous tension growing in his body as he watched the door, anxious not to be seen.

Five minutes later, a trickle of people started to enter the tavern, all wearing distinctly mage-like robes. Sarn cursed silently, realized he'd cursed out loud, apologized to the woman next to him who should've been more offended at the state of the tavern, and then cursed silently again. Fools! he thought, wrathfully, They're just drawing more attention to themselves.

One by one, the crowd gathered together around Sarn and looked to him expectantly. He just stared back awkwardly, making little turtle gestures with his long fingers until he could bear it no longer.

"Ok, well, I guess you all know why we're here. I need that Guilympics Torch-"

"Hang on," burst out a little squat mage with a salt-and-pepper beard, "I thought we were here to fight She-Who-Can-Not-Be-Tamed!"

"Who, Zylaa?" Sarn said without a second thought. The entire pub seemed to flinch as the Name was spoken. One of the braver mages nodded slowly, still taken aback. "What! Heck no! I want that torch, and you're going to help me get it."

"But... what about fighting for what we believe in?"

"Do you believe in the Torch?" asked Sarn, quirking an eyebrow.

"... yes," replied the group.

"Then you can fight for what you believe in." A low growl escaped Sarn's lips and a second hush came over the tavern. The Ranger in the corner leaned forward slightly, the candle on his table flaring enough that Sarn caught a glimpse of his eyes. He ignored him and began to explain his plan to the mages who all looked rather sullen, but obeyed him anyway because they need to in order for this idea of mine to work out.

~*~*~*~

This was it. They had scoured the Guilds for the better part of an hour and had finally found the torch in the hands of Celestial. Perfect, thought Sarn. He waited until he could see her on the horizon and the lifted off the ground, racing toward her with his arms outstretched, a loving grin on his angular face.

Embracing her mid-flight, he kissed her cheek, her nose and then her hand, feeling it go slightly limp in his, then pulled the torch from her grasp, turned tail and fled as fast as he could, basking in his victory because who needs magic when you've got snogs?

[Deleted]

The Feberi woman just shrugged as all the other contestants flailed about, grasping and squabbling over the torch. The only reason she'd signed up for this was so that her beloved Steampunk guild would have some representation. She didn't care all that much for the torch itself, but the tiny streak of competitiveness in her wouldn't live to see her brother win.

She knew he had the torch, knew exactly where he was... knew that he was subjecting it to some classic Feberi romancing. She snorted and closed her eyes, focusing on the faint tug of her brother's blood, listening to the soft music which filtered through the both of them.

She turned and walked a while, humming quietly and listening for the echos which indicated where the obstacles were. She kept her eyes closed for they were useless to her. In her mind, she formed a plan.

When she felt the tug getting closer, she let out a burst of song, drowning those around her in a wash of haziness that would leave them exhausted and wondering what on earth had happened.

"Like a poor kitten after a long night," she thought to herself, then snerked. She rounded a corner, hummed and realized that she had hit a dead end. She knew there were wooden crates stacked against the walls as well as a few barrels, but there was no Sarn.

Curses. He must be flying. The blood connection between them was useful for getting close, but it was not sensitive enough to pinpoint Sarn's location. Sarinon sighed and turned back to the street, took one step and then reeled backward.

She had walked headlong into something solid and humanoid, and that one brief moment of contact told her that it was her brother who stood before her. She heard his wings rustle, and the strange crackling noise which must have been the torch.

"Sarinon!" he exclaimed in shock.

"Sariphe!" she exclaimed in shock.

The both stood facing each other. The tension grew. A tumbleweed rolled by and dust settled on the ground. Eerie music played as Sarinon bit her lip, reaching for her waist

"This relay ain't big enough for the two of us..." huffed Sarn, also reaching for his pants... I mean... belt.

"My hands are quicker than yours," hissed Sarinon, a glint in her mischievous eye.

Quickdraw.

The two of them whipped out their respective weapons. Sarn tugged at his sword, while Sarinon pulled out a single feather. One of Sarn's feathers, to e precise. Sarn just laughed.

"You can't seriously think you'll beat me with that, do you?" he scoffed. Sarinon just smiled and walked slowly forward, silently counting to three in her head. Sarn, too amused to bother resisting, and too full of heart to use his sword on his own sister, just stood. The feather came closer, Sarn's eyes followed it, wondering if she had some devious trick up her sleeve. Sarinon was a pacifist, but that didn't stop her from being able to attack.

A tiny brush of the feather against his neck and Sarn realized what she was going to do. He had a moment of panic, dropped his sword and threw out his hands to protect himself. Sarinon pounced on him, her hands too quick for him, and dived for his stomach. She pulled his tunic back, pinned him against the wall and ran the feather over his belly.

Sarn shrieked with laughed, unable to breath, in the throes of utter torment. He let his fingers slip from the torch as his hands convulsed, trying to push his sister away. She kept one hand on her brother while she reached out for the torch, grasping it firmly before tossing the feather at Sarn, jumping backward and fleeing off down the street, humming as she went.

[Zylaa]

((Celestial-- XDDDDD Sarn-- "She-Who-Can-Not-Be-Tamed?" EPIC! <3))

Zylaa slurped her rainbow sherbert with a glower, or at least, as much of a glower as anyone eating rainbow sherbert can have. She'd been bested by her arch nemesis! Humiliated by Celestial, the epitome of all that was Lawful Evil! For truly, despite the epic anticlimax of their confrontation, Celestial had accomplished what was important-- she had made the first Lord of the Rings reference of the torch relay. Oh, and she'd gotten the torch too.

Zylaa stalked through the streets, wishing she owned a proper pirate coat so it could swoosh out in a suitably dramatic fashion. Then she realized that she was still eating the sherbert, so the drama would be rather spoiled. But dramatic or no, she plotted how she was to get the torch back into her hands. The rightful ones.

The first problem was how to catch up to Celestial. She could fly. Zylaa remained unfortunately subject to gravity, and even the fastest running down these streets wasn't about to catch up with straight flight. Zylaa thwacked her newfound bamboo pole against the ground-- and as it sprung back, vibrating, she got an excellent idea. Of course, this meant she had to finish her sherbert first.

A few minutes later, Zylaa began to dash down a thankfully deserted street, jammed the pole into the ground, and began her first attempt at pole-vault flying. Her first attempt landed her on a roof, somewhat unsteadily, but at least upright. Grinning, she dashed across the roof and tried again. Soon, she was bounding over the city in little projectile arcs, trying her best to not crush the people below. This was generally easy, as people tended to look up when they heard massive sproinging sounds, and, failing that, the cries of "MOVE!" Long experience had given the citizens of this and the other guild cities very, very good reflexes at getting away from people.

But Zylaa didn't see Celestial. She scanned the skies, but didn't see her anywhere-- wait! There! Off on the horizon, looking slightly dazed-- Dazed? That wasn't normal....

In her shock, Zylaa forgot to watch the ground. This is usually a bad idea when you're hurtling towards it.

She slammed into the ground, lost her balance, and collapsed with a yelp-- right in front of someone running towards her, too fast to stop. Moments before they collided, Zylaa noticed-- they had the torch! Zylaa sprang up and at the person, grabbed the torch out of their hand, and took off running in where she vaguely thought the end of the race was. But then she doubled back briefly for the giant bamboo pole. Who knew when it might come in handy again?