<span style="font-weight: bold">Not so long ago…</span><br/><br/>Stormfront had been a nice city, even taking the Imperial occupation into account. The Emperor hadn’t issued his ban on street fighting yet, no one was hurling barrels at guards yet, it really was peaceful. The Storm Riders hadn’t been sighted in over a week. All in all, it had been a good day for Lionel and his father to bring their crops into the city for sale.<br/><br/>Lionel had been to the city a few times before that, but only briefly. Farm work kept him busy most of the day, and the winters were always too cold to travel very far, so every trip was something like an adventure. The last time he had been to Stormfront, the Imperials hadn’t moved in yet. Although he was a Bladelander, Stormfront had been very welcoming to farmers like himself.<br/><br/>“Take the wagon, would ya?” Lionel’s father handed him the reins. “I have to go see Gerald about getting some tools. You know where to go?”<br/><br/>“I know, dad,” Lionel did his best to sound confident. It was a big deal, his father letting him take the reins. Lionel had never driven the cart before. “I remember the market.”<br/><br/>“Alright.” They stopped by the street and his father hopped off, gave the horse an affectionate pat and found Lionel’s eyes. “I won’t be long. Go find Thom. He knows we’re coming.”<br/><br/>And then he was gone and Lionel was driving the crops off towards the market. Over the dull roar of the bazaar, Lionel heard shouts coming from the center of town. People were angry. And that anger seemed to be spreading through the market crowd quickly.<br/><br/>“I can’t believe it,” he heard. “Take away the fights…not right…shouldn’t even be here…”<br/><br/>But he paid it no mind. He was a loyal Bladelander.<br/><br/>Thom waved to him and they began setting up the market stall. Thom was a big man, hardened from years as a blacksmith. He and Lionel’s father, Randy, were old friends and they shared a stall whenever they could. It saved on space and gave them a chance to catch up. Randy took longer than he should have to return, and when he did, he seemed troubled.<br/><br/>“Dad?” He joined them behind the stall and motioned Thom to follow him, leaving Lionel to watch the stall. Between deals, he caught snippets of their conversation. “Commotion…rebels…fights…Project: Midnight…dangerous.”<br/><br/>And then gold bricks started falling all over the market. Lionel heard the screams before the thuds of solid gold falling from a high altitude. A robotic voice shouted from overhead, but Lionel was too busy ducking for cover to listen. The gold didn’t rain long, but he could still hear it as it moved across the city.<br/><br/>“Stay here!” Randy shouted, taking Thom with him out into the destroyed market. They weren’t going to sell any crops today, it seemed.<br/><br/>A few minutes later Randy got Lionel to help. The falling gold had destroyed a lot of buildings, including peoples’ homes. The market had been built in the center of the original town, a hundred years ago, so there were many homes around. He, Randy, and Thom joined a team of about ten men who began sifting the rubble, rescuing those who had been inside when the gold started falling. One house they went to was already being picked through by a very distraught man, screaming about his family. It took the better part of an hour, but they managed to pull his wife and six kids from the rubble. As Randy pulled Lionel aside, he could see them huddling together, looking forlornly at the remains.<br/><br/>“We can’t stay here,” his father said. “It’s getting very dangerous, so we’re putting whatever crop isn’t ruined back on the wagon and leaving.”<br/><br/>Lionel frowned. “But, dad…the people…”<br/><br/>“They’ll be fine, Lionel. Right now, we need to make sure we don’t get caught up in – “<br/><br/>Ah, but it was too late for that. Just them, the Storm Riders burst through another part of the city, bringing with them all kinds of weather. Fierce lightning began to fall upon the city, starting fires across the city.<br/><br/>“Ok,” Lionel agreed suddenly. “Time to leave.”<br/><br/>Ten minutes later the cart was loaded and they were maneuvering around piles of debris towards the eastern gate; the one they had entered through not so long ago. And even as it came into sight, Lionel’s heart sank. The boundary of the market was being guarded by soldiers. It didn’t appear as if anyone was getting through. His father swore and began trying to find another way. Lionel craned his neck and looked back. The market had caught fire on the far end; one man appeared to be intentionally starting fires. “Dad,” he said to no avail.<br/><br/>Then everything happened so fast. The guards all ran to that man, there was a fox thing, knights on motorcycles, the Storm Riders, a race course appeared in the city…and a young boy steered through the market, unzipped his pants and…Lionel was too slow to get out of the way.<br/><br/>And all at once, he decided he’d had enough and grabbed his sickle, a nearby pot, and placed the latter on his head and chased after the boy who’d wizzed on him.<br/><br/><span style="text-decoration: underline"><span style="font-weight: bold">Interference</span></span><br/><br/>Vespi broke through an item block and three spheres of ball lighting began revolving around her bike. She grinned, knowing she was coming up on a guard house. A handful of soldiers ran out to confront her and were joined by a trio of Blade Riders. “Suck it, nerds!” she yelled and launched all three balls of lightning, creating a spectacular light show. Lighting streaked upwards into the sky like the roots of a great tree.<br/><br/>She heard a ding as her bar filled up completely and the first checkpoint responded in the distance. “Sweet. That was too easy.” She angled off and was through the holographic arch in a few seconds. “Are they all going to be that easy?” she shouted to the Dayman. “I thought you were better than – “<br/><br/>“FIRST CHECKPOINT MINIBOSS ACTIVATED”<br/><br/>“First what now? You didn’t say anything about boss battles!”<br/><br/>"CHECKPOINT SYSTEM IN TEMPORARY LOCKDOWN. DEFEAT MINIBOSS TO REACTIVATE CHECKPOINT SYSTEM."<br/><br/>That’s when she noticed the farmboy with a pot on his head, standing by the arch, panting. He held what looked like a sickle, a farming tool for harvesting crops. “Seriously?”<br/><br/>“I came out…” he huffed, “to have a good time. And, honestly, I’m just feeling so attacked right now.”<br/><br/>The light over the checkpoint lit up...and the kid began to glow as well.<br/><br/>“And I don’t…like…being…attacked!” His voice tightened and his muscles tensed. He stood up straighter. In fact, he seemed…bigger.<br/><br/>“Oh no.”<br/><br/>Oh yes!<br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold">Lionel<br/>HP: 875/875<br/>MP: 0/0<br/>Abilities: Gets stronger the angrier he gets; farming abilities</span><br/><br/>But Lionel wasn’t interested in Vespi. He readied his sickle and ran straight for Stratus, yelling, “Whiz on me, will you?”