Wattpad Tournament Entry: Round 1: Vecto vs. Reiji

My character Vecto is participating in a fighting tournament on Wattpad called Ultra Hyper Hero Battle Mark I. It's organized by Nick Uskoski (author of Sigma/Star). Vecto will battle characters from other writers in a fight to the death (or destruction) in a virtual reality setting.

The rules are that I will write fight scenes with Vecto losing while my opponents will write separate fight scenes with my character winning. The audience will then have two days to vote for the winner after each round. The character who wins will move on to the next round (not the author). This means that in order for Vecto to advance, you need to vote for the fight scenes (on Wattpad) created by my opponents! You can always comment on my fight scenes (please do) without it affecting the results. After the tournament is over, you are welcome to vote for my fight scenes if you like them.

The first character Vecto that fights is Reiji from Brooding Guy, Quite Girl created by TheBloodEdge. Click here to read his story and vote for it (you will need a Wattpad account to vote). You can read my story here or just read below for the whole story.

Here is the tournament lineup: http://challonge.com/UHHBM1.

Below is my story. Admittedly, it was difficult to write because I wrote it in Reiji’s point of view, a character I just recently read about. "First person" isn’t my favorite, either, but I wanted to capture the feel of his story.

Remember: Vote for Vengeance, Vote for Vecto! But really, revenge is bad ....

Let the tournament begin!

Yet another day of my crummy life. Why am I even going to Gekkoukan? I didn’t sign up for frickin’ drama school. Another day that I have to deal with those idiots. Life would be much better without them. Peace and quite.

I stumble out of bed but don’t trip. Good so far. Looking at my reflection in the window, I fix my hair and rub my head. How many bumps did I get yesterday? Whatever.

Maybe today will be different. Maybe I’ll save the day or something like those anime shows. Yeah, right. But wait, what if Alice is the damsel in distress . . . What am I thinking? Forget her. She probably thinks I’m a creep. SO WHAT if I accidentally touched her thighs? She took my hiding spot under the stairs. And I only ran into her ‘cause she keeps getting in my way!

I shake the thoughts away and walk out from my dorm room. Walking down the hall is Sayoko, the warden of dorm.

“Reiji, would you like breakfast today?” She twirls her straight raven hair again.

I ignore her and walk to class.

Ah, my usual spot, in the back next to the window. The clouds are darker than usual, and the stupid birds are flocking away. Good riddance. They block my view, anyway.

On key, Yukino slams her hand on my desk--yeah the desk with phrases that someone wrote on it like “Nobody likes you,” “Arrogant prick,” and “Just die already.”

“I will defeat you, Reiji! You’ll--”

I look at the obnoxious, green-haired student council president before she stopped her sentence midway through. Her expression was blank. In shock. Was there something on my face? Outside? I look over my shoulder to see what looked like a robot staring in through the window. I gotta be dreaming. A nine-feet-tall robot with floating body parts? And an orb in his chest? Besides, he can’t even be standing from outside the third floor.

Maybe I watched too much anime last night. Why couldn't the robot be female? Why does it always have to be male? Well it looks male—sort of—although robots don’t have genders. What would it look like as a female, though? Would it have a bow and wider metal thighs? Why am I thinking of thighs? That stupid Alice.

I shake my head to snap out of it to see the robot punch through the window. The glass shatters and slices through my cheek. I touch my cheek, but there’s no blood. I should have wakened by now.

Screams drown out my thoughts. My stupid classmates are wailing like children, ducking for safety.

"You must be Reiji. I am your opponent: Vecto!” The robot’s voice is cold but stern, not as monotone as I expected. He doesn’t even have a mouth--just a deathly looking head. What is he talking about? Opponent for what? That’s Yukino’s line. Speaking of Yukino, she finally snaps out of it and throws a dictionary at the robot.

“Reiji’s mine!”

I catch myself staring at her, um, milkshake. Yeah, she had one in her hand from breakfast--maybe some kind of protein shake. Why didn’t I eat this morning, let alone last night?

“Not like that, you jerk!”

She roundhouse kicks me in the head, and my face smacks the floor. I open my eyes to see the robot float a chain gun to his side.

“Oh sh--“ I barely get the words out when he lets bullets fly. I hear louder screams--deathly ones--and look back. I see that four-eyed menace go down first, his deck of cards scattering in the air. Then the red head who talks to himself. With a thump, Yukino’s body falls in my view, riddled with bullet holes and blood. I never cared for her anyway. But if this was a dream, why is she bleeding and not me? Still on the floor, I knock my desk in front of me to serve as a shield and see more students fall to their deaths. I remember my cheek and rub it. The cut was there, but no blood. Yeah, this has got to be a dream! Now I can be the hero! Of whom, though? Not these worthless classmates. Hero of myself, maybe? That’s lame.

What am I thinking? Shouldn’t I be worried about this robot? Vector, was it? No, Vecto--that’s it. Maybe I can use the three laws of robotics to beat him? Oh, wait, he’s already breaking them!

I stand up--maybe a stupid choice, but it’s my dream, right?

"Don't you know the three laws of robotics? Shouldn’t you NOT kill?”

Vecto raises a cylinder gun-for-a-hand.

"Son of a--"

Vecto shoots rapid energy blasts from the weapon. I barely dodge them as I jet across the room and jump over the teacher’s desk to hide under it.

That was close! I notice my hair on fire from a too close blast and pat the fire out.

What am I doing? I’m not some coward. But I need a plan. I go to stand up and hit my head on the desk before cursing up a storm.

“That’s it! I’ve had enough!” I stand up to face him, but in a flash, Vecto grabs me by the throat and slams me against the white board.

“All too easy.” The robot clutches harder, making it difficult for me to breathe. I guess that was the point. I punch him in the head, but it doesn’t even faze him. Am I going to die? I fiddle my hand beside me and grab a white board eraser and smack him aside the head with it. His head shifts with the attack, and he lets me go, stumbling. That's not supposed to happen. How can I make a robot budge?

Vecto gains his balance. “You only have abilities due to this virtual world. No matter. You will die.”

So this is a virtual world and not a dream? This stupid robot is confusing me!

“Wait!” I throw my hands up. “Why are you attacking me, again?”

“Don’t play coy. You are part a tournament of fighters. I will defeat you and win this tournament to prove my worth. Then I will defeat Morphaal!!!”

I didn’t even get to attack again. The robot punches me in the chest. I slam so hard into the white board that a crater forms. Well, a sideways crater, if that counts. He punches me again, and I fly through the wall into the next classroom. I land onto something squishy. How can I still survive after that? I hear screams as the students run for the door. These idiots locked themselves in here thinking they’d be safe. Wait. This is Alice’s classroom. But where’s Alice?

I look down to see that I’m on top of her! She has a shocked but blushed look on her face. She tries to speak, but it looks like she can’t. I can see her blue eyes up close . . . her curly blonde hair, pale skin. What I’m I thinking? I’m going to die here. Not a bad place to die, though.

That’s when I hear the bullets. Vecto marches through the wall with his chain gun, taking aim at everyone in sight. Even that perverted tuxedo-wearing guy goes down. I think about laughing, but nothing comes. They deserve it. Nobody likes me anyway. But something was different. I always wished these people would die, but to actually see it happen is unsettling. It’s not real, though. It’s a dream ... or virtual world, or whatever.

“Get off her, Reiji, and fight!”

I look over to see that blue-haired caped girl taking cover behind a desk. She had her legs facing me but was wearing a boy’s uniform again. At least she wouldn’t accuse me of looking up her skirt. Ugh. I don’t even want to imagine.

She grabs the desk’s leg, waiting for Vecto to pause. He does, and she spins up and throws the desk at him.

Vecto pushes it back at her.

The caped girl leaps over the desk and takes out a wooden katana from nowhere, smashing Vecto in the head with it as she comes down on him. The katana snaps in half as Vecto grabs her by her ponytail. He slams his cylinder gun into her chest and blasts a hole through her.

Yet another death. But why shoot them and not me? I thought I was the target. Is he trying to get to me by killing everyone else? Good luck with that! And how could I be hit in the chest, fly through the wall, and hardly feel a thing? Do I have superpowers or something? I’m I going to save the day after all . . . with nobody to save? Only one way to find out.

With Alice still in shock, I stand up to face him. “Hey you! Whatever you are and whatever you want, I’m your target, remember?”

“You are, indeed. But I have grown impatient with you.”

The robot isn’t looking at me. He’s looking down beside me. Down at Alice--the speechless Alice.

"Get out of here, you idiot!" My yells don’t help. She remains frozen in shock.

Vecto aims his chain gun at Alice. What do I do? She’s the only person I don’t want to die. So I stood in her way. I let the bullets come for me instead. Maybe I’m an idiot, but when the smoke clears, I’m still standing. Maybe I’m a superhero, after all. Maybe I will save the damsel in distress. But I know my life is never that easy. I look down at Alice to see what I feared. My thighs were skinny--not wide enough to block the bullets. She has bullet holes in her body, and she remains motionless.

No, not Alice! Not Alice! I crouch down by her, shaking at the sight. This was the last straw. I clutch the strap of my school bag that she kept away from me and look at Vecto--anger boiling inside.

“You Bast--“

Vecto rushes at me and punches me in the chest, but this time, I’m the one who doesn’t budge. My body glows red with some sort of energy, like chi from those martial arts movies.

"Whatever this world is . . . dream or virtual ... or whatever. I've had a bad day, so you'll regret this!"

I sling my bag at him and knock him into the wall. Then I yank my hand into the bag to pull out my big knife and charge at him. I aim for the orb in his chest and stab at it. It has to be his power source. But the blade stops before it reaches it. It’s blocked by some kind of shield--the blade grinding through an invisible barrier, making it flicker.

"Come on you piece of sh—"

Vecto grabs my arm and slams me into the wall next to him. He tightens his grip, and I drop my knife. Then he slams me into the floor and drags me. With a flick of his hand, he tosses me through a window.

I hit my head on a tree and tumble through branches before I’m face-planted in the grass. Out of all the punishment, why is only my head hurting of all things?!

Vecto hovers down in front of me. “Give up. Your attacks were mere flukes.”

It couldn’t have been a fluke. I have power in this world, but how am I accessing it? There has to be way to use it again. I have to find a way to disable his shields. But for what purpose? Everyone will be dead. Why bother fighting? Then Alice comes to mind. She didn’t deserve to die.

“Oh, you tell me to give up?! Why not Alice? Why didn’t you tell her, you Bast--“

Not again! Vecto grabs me by the head and tosses through the cafeteria. Why does he always attack right before I’m going to curse him? Is he a superstitious robot or doesn’t like being called names?

Vecto hovers through the broken glass, and I throw abandoned lunch food at him. I ate a few chips while I was at, too. I knew I should’ve eaten breakfast. Why would a food fight do anything to him, anyway? But a can of juice makes Vecto stumble. Maybe my power is back? I jump on a table and run for him, leaping from table to table. I come down with a flying kick, seeing if Yukino’s attack rubbed off on me. It works! Well, at least I make contact. Vecto is unfazed by the attack. He grabs my leg and slams me through table.

"You cannot get through my shields!"

Still holding my leg, he slings me around and throws me into a wall. Not one wall, but two, three--I lost count. I fly though hallways and walls until I slide across the floor of the nurse’s office.

My head! It hurts so frickin’ bad. Knowing my luck, the nurse evacuated. I’d rather die than feel this pain! How did I even survive that, anyway? It seems that his punches and attacks don’t hurt, but when I hit my head, that’s a whole different story! Just my luck. Maybe that’s a glitch in this virtual world? What’s his glitch? Come to think of it, the only time I affected the robot was when I used an object to hurt him. Why’s that? And why is my body still glowing? Can I power up? Maybe if I get in a martial arts stance like some manga and grunt, I can power up. Ha! How ridiculous. It’ll just be a waste of time and make me look like a fool. Or perhaps this chi energy is protecting my body from attacks--a defensive rather than offensive chi, maybe? Ah, forget it.

I grab a syringe and sit on the floor, just staring at the syringe--seeing if it would magically do something. It only glows from my energy. I might as well give up. Maybe I’ll wake up from this virtual world or whatever. Man, I hate my life.

I hear a crash above, then another, and a third one. Vecto comes through the ceiling feet-first and lands in front of me. I sit there as pieces of construction and dust scatter across the room, making me sneeze.

Vecto raises his cylinder gun. "It ends now."

"You know, I don’t care anymore. You win. I give up.” I throw my hands in the air, holding the syringe.

“You cannot give up. This is a fight to the death!”

“Wait a sec. Didn’t you offer me a chance to give up?”

“I changed my mind.”

“Well seeing that you’ve shot me and slammed me through walls, floors, and whatever else out there, you can’t beat me. And I can’t beat you. So how about a draw?”

“You dare consider yourself equal to me? You are a weakling human. I am a war machine!”

“Look. I hate you. You hate me. We have a lot in common.” I prepare for the inevitable. “Face it. We’re both a---“

Vecto charges at me before I could finish “holes,” but this time, I attack first. I channel my energy through that syringe, striking Vecto in his shield with it. It grinds, making his shield flash . . . until finally it pierces it. I inject my energy into the shield and let go. Then I grab a chair and smack him with it. Vecto smashes through the window, his body parts tumbling through the yard.

I arch the chair over my shoulder like a baseball bat and walk on glass through the broken window. Now this is what I’m talking about! I was right. My chi is defensive around my body but can be become offensive through an object!

Vecto’s parts gather, clumping with some hovering technology rather than his shields.

“How?” The robot stumbles up, missing his shields.

I ignore his question. “That was for all the students you killed!”

“No!” Vecto raises his cylinder gun and fires a charged energy ball.

I sling the energized chair and hit the blast head on as if it’s a Wiffle ball—yeah, you heard that right—and send it right back at him. The robot’s body disintegrates, leaving only his orb.

“And that was for Alice!”

I drop the chair and walk over to the orb, pulling my switchblade from my pocket.

“Oh, and this is from me!”

I channel all my energy to the blade and stab through the orb, forcing my energy into it, forcing all my hatred into it. The orb explodes, sending pieces of it flying.

I thought that would satisfy me, but it didn’t. I somehow won this battle, somehow saved the school--or whatever is left of it--I got my revenge . . . but I couldn’t save Alice.

My worthless life is even worse now. There’s nothing left of it. Nothing to dream about. Nothing to hope for.

I seclude myself to my hiding spot underneath some stairs. At least that wasn’t destroyed. I bow my head, trying to gather my emotions. I can’t cry. What’s there to cry about? Why am I even alive? I look at my switchblade and flip it in my hand, looking at the old blood stains, thinking of what if feels like to die.

But then I feel a soft hand touch my thigh and look over to see something I thought I’d never see again. It was Alice. She didn’t die from the bullets. She was alive.

“Thank you!” The words come with ease from this quite girl--with no hesitation or struggle.

It’s me who can’t form a reply. I just sit there in awe as she grabs my hand.

(Oct. 23, 2014, update: You can buy my Vecto: Vengeance light novel on Amazon here: Vecto: Vengeance.)