As the next Round was being set up, X-P0N3 zipped around on Item 2. "Well, we've had quite the interesting set of matches haven't we? From the comedic to the cringe-worthy to the action packed..." She chuckled into the microphone. "Let's see what sort of battle we'll have here?" As the crowd cheered, X-P0N3 made her way to the first contender, a purple Robot Master whose design seemed patterned after the samurai, complete with the war helm that covered - and on closer inspection, was - his face. He was armed only with a long spear. "Tell us a little about yourself!"
"I'm Yamato Man," the Robot Master replied. "Anything else you need to know about me you'll see in the ring."
"Whoa!" X-P0N3 replied, shooting back. "Someone's eager for the fight, and it's not just the audience!" With that, she zoomed over to the other Robot Master. This one was as different from the others as could be. Instead of a fully humanoid body, only the upper body was human in shape. From the waist down, this robot was a tank...literally. The torso was heavily armored, with a large energy cannon in the center. Each arm was equipped with heavy machine guns, and the robots head was completely covered with a helmet with a gas mask for a face plate. "Looks like a real heavy contender here!" X-P0N3 announced with a wide grin. "And who might you be?"
"Merkava," the robot replied, the voice heavily distorted by the gas mask.
"Huh...and what's your story?" X-P0N3 inquired.
"You'll find that out when I win the tournament," the robot growled back.
"Fiesty!" X-P0N3 proclaimed happily. "Looks like this is going to be an interesting match!"
A jet turbine on the bottom of Merkava's tank body lifted the robot over the edge of the ring to land in the combat area. Yamato Man back flipped over the barrier and into the ring.
X-P0N3 took up her position over the ring. "Ready...FIGHT!"
Merkava immediately opened fire with the heavy machine guns, tracking Yamato Man as he dodged around, using the shaft of his spear to deflect the bullets that came near him by rapidly spinning it. "Quite the heavy hitter, aren't you?" Yamato Man called out. "Maybe you should go on a diet!"
Merkava ignored the jibe, firing missiles from alongside the heavy machine guns.
Yamato Man used his spear to split the missiles before they could hit him. "What's wrong? U mad bro?"
Merkava calmly switched back to the heavy machine gun on one arm, backing it up with missiles from the other, slowly moving around the arena for better angles.
"You couldn't hit the broad side of a barn!" Yamato Man shouted out as he dashed from side to side to avoid the volley, rushing up to Merkava's side. "Or the barn side of a broad for that matter! Nudge nudge, wink w-"
Merkava calmly smacked him aside with one arm before launching several missiles after him.
Yamato Man barely managed to dodge the missiles before leaping to the edge of the arena. "Is that the best you got?" he shouted out. "You hit like a fembot!"
Without warning, Merkava fired off the torso-mounted heavy plasma cannon straight at Yamato Man, which he barely dodged. "Shut up!" Merkava roared.
Yamato Man slowly looked up at his opponent. "Oh, I see...you are a fembot! Kinda hard to tell. I seriously thought you were a dude-"
Roaring in fury, Merkava charged, slamming into the edge of the arena and nearly running Yamato Man over with her tank treads.
Yamato Man scampered back, the point of his spear missing as he twirled the haft carefully. "Geeze, what's got you so upset? That time of the month?"
Merkava spun about, rotating her torso on the tank treads before charging after Yamato Man, intent on slamming him into the ground, only for him to dodge to the side.
"You know, I don't think you're cut out for this!" Yamato Man called out, dancing around in circles and forcing Merkava to spin on her waist to track him. "Why don't you try flashing your tits? Probably more effective than that tit buster of yours!"
"Shut up shut up shut up shut up!" Merkava snarled, the heavy plasma cannon firing again, once more missing and now smoking and sparking.
"Maybe you should get back in the kitchen!" Yamato Man offered, dashing up to Merkava's side. "And make me a sandwich!"
"I'll kill you!" Merkava roared, lifting her arms up to smash him to bits.
Yamato Man spun, using his spear shaft to slam the spear point he'd left embedded in Merkava's waist deep into the pivot joint, the force of the blow and the damage it had already done as she'd spun on it causing her torso to pop free of her tank treads. Catching the spear blade back on the haft, he lunged in as she flew through the air, severing the latches that held her armor on by slipping it between the armor plates and her actual body.
Merkava landed on her back, her armor fallen away along with her helmet and gas mask. A rather cute red headed, green eyed, freckled face snarled up at Yamato Man as she brought her heavy machine guns up.
Yamato Man lunged in, his foot on her torso. His spear spun, knocking the guns out of alignment before the blade came to rest at her neck. "You're beaten," Yamato Man stated calmly, the joking and teasing tone from earlier gone from his voice. "Wait for the ten count, and I won't kill you."
Merkava glared hatefully up at him...then lowered her arms.
Merkava sat on the lab table as her repairs were being done. She still was very upset about losing so easily, especially when she so plainly outpowered Yamato Man. The spear was his only weapon! Even so, despite her capacity to, she refused to let herself cry. She wanted to prove that fembots like herself could be just as much of combatants as their male counterparts...and she'd failed miserably.
"If only I'd kept my cool..." she grumbled to herself.
"You would have beaten me," Yamato Man stated calmly, stepping into the room.
Merkava glowered at him, crossing her arms defiantly, wishing she still had the heavy machine guns equipped so she could blast his head off. "Come to gloat?" she demanded angrily.
"No," Yamato Man replied. "I've come to apologize for what I said in the arena. It was not meant." He gestured to a nearby chair. "May I sit?" he asked politely.
Merkava 'tsk'ed angrily to herself. "I can't exactly stop you."
Sighing, Yamato Man took the seat. "Merkava...you were plainly designed to be a high power, high defense robot. A literal tank in combat. By specs alone, we both know I should never have been able to beat you. Had I kept my mouth shut during the fight, you would have eventually worn me down, and bested me."
Merkava frowned angrily. "Come to rub it in?"
"No, to explain myself," Yamato Man countered. "My only weapon is my spear. The blade and shaft can be separated, but they're designed to return to each other. But my combat style is not based around my spear. It's based around finding the weaknesses in my opponent's defenses and exploiting them."
"Yeah," Merkava grumbled. "That blade did a number on my waist. The pivot grooves need to be completely re-filed-"
"Not all weaknesses are physical," Yamato Man interrupted. "That is the reason for my taunts. To find my opponent's mental weaknesses. The chinks in their discipline. My words are my weapons there...because we are more than soulless machines, if not much."
Merkava grumbled a bit to herself, then looked back up at him. "You expecting forgiveness?" she grumbled.
"No," Yamato Man countered. "I expect you to take my words to heart, and make a much better showing of yourself in the Second Tournament."
Merkava glanced up at him in surprise, then looked away. "...you'd better become champ," she stated finally. "And not lose to anyone till I take that title from you!"
Yamato Man's eyes smiled. "It's a promise," he offered happily, extending his clenched fist.
Managing to smirk, Merkava returned the fist bump.