Android 16 (Killed) vs. Monster Carrot (W)

Android 16’s relentless attacks were gradually wearing down Monster Carrot, but not at the rate he or the Red Ribbon Army had hoped. It was clear he needed to take more drastic measures to bring this battle to an end.

Just as he pondered his next move, he was forced to deflect yet another energy blast from the rabbit. Android 16 retaliated swiftly, firing his own energy blast that met the oncoming attack head-on. The powerful collision resulted in a spectacular explosion, sending shockwaves rippling through the area, and fireworks raining down across the battlefield.

Amid the smoke and debris, Android 16 sensed Monster Carrot's movements. Using the cover of the dust and debris, the android skillfully manoeuvred through the battlefield, expertly repositioning himself. As the rabbit prepared to charge at full speed, Android 16 suddenly appeared behind one of Carrot's hapless henchmen. The mechanical warrior used the unfortunate guard as a makeshift shield, positioning him between himself and the charging villain. The impact from Monster Carrot's charge struck the bodyguard with formidable force, so much so that it made its way through the guard and sent pain through the android’s metal ribs, making the android grateful for the protective barrier he had used.

The henchman went limp and was discarded with a casual toss, hitting the ground with a thud. There was little time to think about the guard's condition; he had served his purpose, allowing Android 16 to seize the moment and return to the offensive.

In a daring move, Android 16 decided to counter the bunny's fire with a literal fiery response. He opened his mouth wide, unleashing a torrent of flames that engulfed Monster Carrot, hoping that his fur would prove to be exceptionally flammable. The raging inferno illuminated the battleground, as shadows of their encounter danced amidst the flickers.

Without a moment to lose, Android 16 rushed forward, his left hand charged with ki energy. He hurled the explosive fist toward the rabbit's smug face, capitalising on the disorientation caused by the fiery onslaught. Then, in a seamless motion, he swung his battleaxe with deadly intent, aiming to strike the animal while it was engulfed in flames, hoping to bring the battle closer to the end.

Android 16's sensors faltered as Monster Carrot produced a grenade seemingly out of thin air. In a desperate attempt to evade the explosion, the cyborg swiftly shifted, but the manoeuvre was far from perfect. The grenade detonated, unleashing a chaotic electrical discharge that surged across the battlefield, striking the mechanical warrior and interfering with his circuitry, rendering him momentarily immobile.

Thankfully, the paralysis didn't persist for long, just in time for Android 16 to detect the ominous energy buildup as Monster Carrot prepared for a daunting assault. The rabbit's question about his identity rang through the battlefield, and a quick exchange ensued among the Red Ribbon Army team back at headquarters, pondering how best to respond to this precarious situation.

However, the android's full attention was devoted to mitigating the imminent danger he faced. Reaching down deep into his back of tricks, he decided to initiate a rarely used system.

Activate Excavation Mode.

Thousands of calculations played through the android’s mind, continuously trying to find the best strategy to avoid the devastating attack headed his way. One particular scenario seemed more likely to succeed than the others, and yet he could feel it being met with resistance. Something was holding him back, playing against him, or at least, that’s what it felt like. Try as he might, the solution just didn’t feel like it was there. No matter how he altered the scenario, re-wrote the situation in his mind, there were sensors picking up on something that wasn’t right, something that he couldn’t get around. It was as if suddenly he was unsuited to this encounter, his whole style of combat needed to transform in order to continue.

Weighing up his options, Android 16 decided that any action was better than no action, and even with the high probability that his calculated move would indeed fail, he ventured forth with it anyway. Standing tall, like a ballerina, the cyborg’s aura exploded to life, kicking up clouds of dust around him as he began spinning at ever-increasing speeds, drilling his way into the already fragmented ground.

The streams of energy converged as they barrelled towards him, forming an X-shape. Even with his burst of speed, the android was unsure whether he’d make it. The deadly cross cleaved through the air, completely stripping the android of his hair, including his scalp, leaving a burning sensation running through the android’s systems.

Android 16 breathed a sigh of relief as he emerged from the makeshift cavern, struggling to gain purchase against the broken ground.

“We can’t run that,” Crimson declared, shaking his head at the engineer. “Quoting those damn anime shows is bound to get us some sort of copyright notice,” He continued, putting an end to what the engineer thought would have been a fairly amusing scene.

The mechanical warrior ignored the ongoing conversation back at Red Ribbon HQ, instead choosing to focus on his furry foe. He detected the rabbit’s laboured breathing, realising that his stamina wasn’t endless, unlike his own. With renewed determination, Android 16 rushed forth, aiming to deliver another explosive strike towards the gangster’s midsection. Hoping that it would detonate on impact, the cyborg reached forward with his other hand, thrusting it forward mere millimetres from his opponent’s body. He could feel the energy surge from deep within and force its way down his arms, channelling towards Carrot at great speed, engulfing everything within its path.

“Are you seeing what I’m seeing? We don’t have time to be deliberating on what to do next, we need answers now!” Crimson scalded the engineer, his voice rife with anxiety, unwilling to tear his eyes away from the screen, where the android’s latest attack was once again being foiled by the wily enemy.

“Oh no, we’ve got plenty of time,” The engineer chimed in, leaning back in her chair, as relaxed as anything, her hand rubbing against her chin as she continued to think about their precarious situation. “This room is in a time dilation field, so time passes much slower for us than it does outside. We could have a whole conversation here whilst only a few microseconds would pass outside,” She continued nonchalantly, getting up from her chair and pouring herself a drink.

“What? How does that work? And how are we watching this thing in real time if time is passing slower?” The Colonel probed, turning to the engineer with a raised eyebrow. Even with his scientific background, he was struggling to understand that.

“Don’t pick holes in it, it’ll just confuse the reader. Just go with it,” The engineer replied, taking a sip of her coffee and sitting back down, once again reclining in her chair and assuming her thoughtful pose. “But anyway, Android 16 is clearly in a precarious position right now. Nothing seems to be having the kind of impact that we’d want it to have. I think we’re really going to have to think outside of the box on this one,”

The Colonel tried to skip over the confusion and turned back to the screen, realising that not only was the feed slowed down, almost to a halt, but that Android 16 was close to being engulfed in flames. “Do you have anything in mind?”

“Hmm…well, having gone over the data, I’ve definitely noticed some patterns in Carrot’s behaviour. He seems to like to get in close before a big attack, so I think given the current situation, it would be best for 16 to create some distance. Then, after that, I think we need to get crazy…” The engineer continued, going over her plan of action as Colonel Crimson listened intently.

“What was your name again?” He asked, after she’d finished, wondering how she'd gone seemingly unnoticed for so long.

“Oh me? I’m Torie. Torie Yamma,” She said with a wry smile.

Android 16 felt something change in his mind once more, his systems were being patched, new ideas began flooding into his mind. Immediately, the mechanical warrior leaped backwards, a torrent of flames cascading from his mouth in order to defend from Carrot’s flames. The resulting heat was intense, and the android couldn’t help but wonder how the furry beast would cope in such temperatures with such a thick coat.

However, the android soon got an answer, as Monster Carrot altered his form of attack, allowing a blast of energy to shoot from between his lips, disguised by the flames and barrelling into the cyborg’s torso, the resulting explosion knocking him backwards. The mechanical warrior flipped through the air, finally landing back down on the ground, the friction of his knee and hand sliding across the floor eventually bringing him to a halt.

Thankfully, the distance that his tumble had taken him gave him ample opportunity to react, but not in the way that the bunny would likely expect. The artificial sentinel aimed his hands towards the floor, and began firing at the already destroyed ground, each blast wrecking the floor beneath him, debris flying in all directions, plumes of smoke and dust enveloping the area as the large beam of energy came barrelling towards him. Android 16 was once again grateful for the distance he’d created between them.

Deeper and deeper the hole went, until finally he fell through the ground, stumbling onto a secret tunnel below, his body hitting the ground hard and echoing through the chamber. With a wince, he rose from the ground and immediately used his sensors to detect where his furry adversary would be from above, as he navigated the secretive labyrinthine tunnels, wondering just what this place was.

Eventually, the android came across a large chamber, with all manner of weird and wonderful things scattered about the place. But 16 didn’t have time to concern himself with his surroundings, instead he sped towards the top of the large hall, directly beneath where Carrot was positioned, hoping he'd be quick enough to avoid detection and threw his hands up towards the ceiling, unleashing the biggest blast he could muster. The entire roof came crumbling down, along with the whole ground above it, completely burying whatever project was happening below, as the massive beam shot upwards underneath the rabbit, hoping to completely engulf the beast.

As the last remnants of the powerful beam began to subside, Android 16 flew up after it. In his periphery, he could see the sheer amount of destruction he’d caused to the secret underground facility below. If it did indeed belong to the wily rabbit, then he wasn’t going to be happy.

With all of the strength he was able to summon, the sentinel torpedoed towards Carrot, turning himself into a makeshift missile, using his head as a weapon to strike his furry foe.

“Can you explain to me why we were able to read his power level before the battle, but somehow now Android 16 is unable to locate where he is and just completely missed?” The Colonel questioned, looking at the screen in shock as the huge blast shot out from the ground with Carrot nowhere in sight.

“Err…nope, I’ve got nothing for you on that one,” Torie said, sounding as nonchalant as ever. “Just go along with it, I’m sure there's a good reason for it."

“And the complex structures below the ground? Carrot didn’t seem particularly bothered by that. Were they not his?” Crimson continued, seemingly growing more puzzled as the battle went on.

“Yeah, that one’s on me. The data suggested deeper in the desert, so naturally I thought that meant deeper underground, but clearly we were wrong on that one,” She finished, as she stifled a yawn, almost as if she was getting bored by the unfolding events.

Crimson brought a hand up to his face and rubbed his eyes, as he started to wonder if Torie was a genius or an incompetent fool.

In the midst of the battle, things were starting to take a turn for the worse. Not only had 16’s recent efforts been counteracted fairly easily, but now the rabbit was rushing towards him, crashing into his chin with a fair amount of force, causing him to stumble back, and then a swift kick pushed him back even further, sliding across the ground, breaking apart around his feet, moving ever closer to the large crater he’d created.

Then, out of nowhere, Monster Carrot pulled another device, which exploded, leaving some kind of residue in the air. Android 16 detected no pain from the blast, but he could sense that something was wrong, which was only intensified as yet again, a secondary Carrot appeared out of thin air.

“Activate the Yamina Protocol,” Crimson ordered, as the engineers got to work, sending the necessary data through to their battle cyborg.

Yamina Protocol Activated

The data processed swiftly, as parts of the mechanical warrior’s systems were adjusted, allowing him to boost other key areas. With the vital boost, Android 16 was able to grab the ankle of his adversary just before it was set to land, using the bunny’s momentum against him, swinging him round towards the hole in the ground, and utilised a well-timed haymaker in an attempt to send the furry gangster down into the cavern instead.

With renewed intensity, the cybernetic sentinel rushed towards who he assumed was the original Carrot, brandishing his battle axe once more, reaching his target and swinging himself around like a whirlwind, arms outstretched, the blade cleaving through the air towards the sentient animal’s head, before lowering his arms during the next swing, aiming instead towards the beast’s midsection.

The intensity of the battle was reaching boiling point. Although Android 16 had already had a minor repair, and boosted his systems, he could still feel that things would need to be wrapped up soon if he had any chance at emerging victorious. It was, of course, now made even more difficult by having to contend with two wily rabbits instead of just one.

The first Carrot launched at him once more, swiping at his body in quick succession, leaving claw marks that were largely absorbed by his armour, before reaching back, swinging his arm forward, aiming a swift punch towards the cyborg’s jaw. The Red Ribbon robot lifted his hands up towards the fist, catching it in his hands, avoiding the brunt of the force.

Out of nowhere, the second Carrot came barrelling towards him, knocking him for six as he turned to face his assailant, still slightly off balance from the previous attack. The second attacker spun around, aiming a swift kick towards his head. Utilising the fact he was already staggered, the android fell to the floor, narrowly avoiding Carrot’s kick, and using his hands to cushion his fall, kipping back up, and firing off a barrage of blasts towards both of his attackers, hoping to keep them occupied long enough to isolate the second Carrot for as long as possible.

Taking on one of the Carrots seemed to be more than manageable at their current power, but taking on both at once proved to be far more tricky, and isolating them didn’t seem to be working too well.

Despite 16’s attempt, the other rabbit decided to join the fray, the second of the bunnies. Even with his reduced speed, the power in which he shot up forced the android on to the back foot, holding up his arms in defence, blocking the brunt of the attack, although Carrot hadn’t finished there, launching a barrage of strikes that the cyborg allowed himself to take. The way in which Carrot was moving was different than before, there was less force behind the strikes, and he moved with far less speed. They still hurt, but the mechanical warrior felt much more comfortable taking them than he had done when the rabbit was whole.

Before Android 16 could capitalise, however, the original Carrot was back on the offensive. With his power sensors on the fritz, the android needed to rely on other data. His ears picked up the distinct audio of Monster Carrot leaping from the ground, the floor slightly crumbling against his large feet as he forced his way towards the artificial warrior.

Taking a chance to ignore his primary adversary, 16 swivelled in midair, ducking down at the last moment as he saw the rabbit fly towards him, hoping that Carrot would go straight over him and perhaps even strike at his identical counterpart instead. Seeing that the android had dropped to the floor, so too did the rabbit. In his crouched position, Android 16 was perfectly poised to spring upwards, launching himself into the air in order to avoid the sweeping kick, but not before Carrot continued his pursuit, leaping into the air after him. The android turned to block the strike, feeling the force of the kick knock him through the air several feet.

It was at this point that the magic show seemed to end and the second Carrot disappeared once more.

Growing tired of the constant games, Android 16 clenched his fists, so much so that they began to glow, radiating a brilliant light, leaving a trail behind them as he swung towards his furry foe, right hook, then left hook, and finally, throwing his whole weight behind an almighty haymaker, hoping that his ki-imbued fists would send the bunny to the Next Dimension.

Android 16 scanned his data banks for any semblance of a strategy that would carry him through this dire scenario. He could feel the damage to his outer exterior taking its toll, to the point that it wouldn’t be long before his systems would shut down for good. Both he and those watching from the Red Ribbon base contemplated how they could have done things differently. There were certainly some mistakes that were more blatant than others, but such scrutiny did little to help the android’s current predicament.

The whole area had been practically decimated by the ongoing encounter, buildings destroyed, fires raged, craters blown into the ground and bodies lay strewn all over the place. Even if Monster Carrot wasn’t going to be taken down today, the Red Ribbon Army had still seriously hampered, at the very least, part of the gangster’s operation.

“So tell me, do you think we have any hope of succeeding here?” Colonel Crimson pondered aloud, his voice stricken with disappointment, as if he’d already resigned himself to the fact that there wasn’t much hope.

“...It’s not looking good is it?” Torie responded after a short silence. “Honestly? I think it’d take a miracle at this point. Clearly this Carrot guy has way more up his sleeve than we ever anticipated. But you know…we may be in a better position next time?” She tried to end with a positive note, although Crimson seemed to be in a whole other world at this point.

“I’m so screwed. Commander Red’s gonna kill me,”

Both of them, along with the other Red Ribbon engineers knew what was at stake here. Their primary weapon, their most powerful planetary defence tool, was on the brink of being destroyed.

Of course, Monster Carrot wasn’t privy to this existential crisis, and continued his assault, counteracting the cyborg’s haymaker with one of his own. Realising that his arms and torso had already taken the brunt of the beating, 16 curled up into a ball, using his knees as a shield, hoping that his metallic exoskeleton would at least cause the rabbit some form of pain.

Unfortunately, it did little to slow down the wily rabbit, who continued with a flurry of strikes. Jab, jab, jab, jab. The strikes came in swiftly, forcing the mechanical warrior into a defensive stance, using every megabyte of data he had on combat scenarios to block the punches with his hands, calculating where they were most likely to come in from.

Carrot then switched it up, aiming for his kidneys instead, or at least where his kidneys would be if he were a biological organism. With as much speed as he could muster, Android 16 vaulted himself forwards, feeling the slightest of touches graze his artificial skin, before stamping his foot into the ground upon landing and powering himself backwards, his elbow outstretched as if he were about to elbow the bunny in the head, but disappearing just as he was about to arrive, only to appear behind his furry foe, and with his arm already locked and poised to strike, threw a heavy right cross towards the back of the rabbit’s head, quickly followed up with a calculated knee to the spine, and finally clenching his fist tightly, channelling every ounce of pent up frustration coursing through his mechanical body, the tightly gripped hand glowing once more as he sought to pay back the rabbit in kind with a hefty strike to the kidneys.