For the Sake of Fighting (Rider)

[Sam Alexander]

"Heay what gives?" Sam asked as the toung Nova rubbed his eyes. The sudden teleportation caused him to become temporarily disoriented after he saw that he was not longer on the Hellicarrier instead it was in space. Tge AI in his helmet didn't seem to know where he was either. He hovered in place as he saw the big space rock, it was about the size of a football field and they seemed to be in a part of a domed in area where they could breath.

Sam flew up towards the top of the dome as fast as he could go only to slam into it. "Ok that wasn't a good idea. It's like I am trapped here and I have no idea where I am." Sam said wondering if the helmet's signal was being jammed.

A loud booming voice came over the speakers as the young Nova seemed surprised ny this. "Congratulations, Young hero, you have been selected to take part in the Contest Of Champions, you will fight other villains and heros as you go to show that you are the top champion. Anyone who refuses will be banished and confined in a high security prison." The voice said as it was the vouce of the Collector.

"What?I didn't sign up for this!" Sam protested as the Collector didn't take no for an answer.

As Sam tried to find a way out of this caged space rock they seemed to have decided on an opponent and it stunned him on who it was. "What? It is that other Nova!" Sam said, now he really didn't want to fight but he had no choice too. In fact he had some respect forRider. The older Nova had shown him so much the last few times they met. He feared this would ruin everything. But on the other side, he could show Rider what he had learned. And if he lost, it wasn't a big deal to him. There were probably some better heroes than he. "Well, here goes nothing." He said inhailung a bit as his muscles tended while he waited.

@richardrider for the Contest of Champions fight, round one

[Deleted]

Rick was never fond of teleportation as a way of travel. The whole of idea of taking your body apart atom by atom and reassembling it somewhere else always freaked him out a fair bit. AT least this time it seemed to have worked all right. He didn't know who had offered the invite, or where the destination was, but at least he was in one piece. A quick scan around showed him that he was inside some sort of force dome, set up on something that looked like an asteroid, but he certainly couldn't see the stars well enough to have any real idea of where he was. Not at least in a way that he could use. Well, a force dome couldn't hold him forever.

He heard the voice booming out of the loudspeakers and was not impressed by the message. He enjoyed a good dust up now and again, but he already had enough trophies at home, and putting on a show for someone else's amusement was not his cup of tea. The idea of Sam as his opponent was not to his taste either. He was older than the kid, heavier, and way more experienced. Someone could get hurt in a fight like this.

He thought for a moment about letting Sam win, but that wouldn't be right either. He could not let the kid think the giving up was right. If they had to tussle he would give it a real go. It might help if he knew the rules though.

"Hey you loud mouthed wanker!" he shouted out to this 'Collector' "You better tell me the rules of the game if you want me to play!"

[Sam Alexander]

It wasn't long before someone else arrived, and it was his opponent, Rider. It just seemd so wrong that the teacher and the student would fight against each other in some dome like this. One day, Sam wondered if he'd be able to be as good as Rider was. This fight appeared to be unfair in his opinion, however, he was willing to give everything he had towards Rider and that was a promise he was willing to keep. Sam flew down to where Rider teleported to and was forced onto the stand. And like Sam, he was not amused that he had been forced here. It wasn't long before the god like person came forward, he stood so high that it made the young Nova looked stunned at how he was. His skin was as a light shade of blue, white flowing hair and a long white robe. "I see you got tossed into this mess too. One thing I knew I was back at SHIELD and got forcibly teleported here." Sam admitted as he crossed his arms waiting for the Collector to speak.

"The rules o the game are simple." The man explained. "You two heroes have been chosen to fight in the first round of the Contest of Champions. There are others that have started their own part of the fight. The first one to win in this can move to the next round and possibly become the champion. There are no rules on how the fight can go, it's anything goes. But if anyone of you tries to escape you will forefit and be placed in a high and secure prison." The Collector answered. "Is that all." He asked as the screen played it appeared that he had been right that other heroes were starting to fight in different arenas. One of which Sam actually recognized with a spider suit that belonged to one of his friends, a young teenaged girl named Anya.

"Heay! You forced Arana into the fight, too!? She's one of my friends!" Sam said as his fists glowed a deep blue from the Nova force. Boy was he mad that one of his friends had been forced into this fight. Arana had been a SHIELD trainee just like Sam, the two had met a couple of weeks ago now, and their friendship had been a strong one. Other heroes in the fights had included ones like Iron Woman and Scarlet Spider in another arena as they were currently working on it too. It appeared that the Collector and the Grand Master had chosen a variety of costumed heroes in this one.

"We chose those heroes and villains because they are unique in their own way. If they survive they too can become a champion. It's everyone's go in this fight. Now I will ask again...is that everything?" Collector asked as it was clear that he was growing impatient that this fight would not start as he choose the two Novas to come in and battle. This one seemed very evenly matched in his opinion and maybe even in the Grandmaster's...but if you wanted anyone to blame for this, he'd blame his brother for constantly fighting or arguing with him.

The young Nova looked back at Rider as a sense of dread came to his stomach and he didn't like this one bit. "Rider you can win this one." Sam said knowing he wouldn't regret it. "It's only fair that the teacher bests the student...as I am the student here." He said knowing this may be a noble act, but Rider was far stronger than he was, and he submitted to it. Even the Collector's eyes narrowed as he heard Sam speak up like this...Earth was unique as every day super heroes and villains were being born, and he felt sorry, but there was nothing he could do here.

[Deleted]

Rider sounded mighty pissed.

"Hey Collector, how do we know when the fight is over?"

He looked at the screen and his blood boiled.

"I got your name and number Mr. Big Voice, and there will be some serious payback for this crap. The only thing you are going to collect is a world of hurt."

He looked towards Sam.

"Let's wait and see Sam. If we have to fight, we have to fight. But if we go, don't hold anything back. The best way to get yourself hurt is to go half speed. I expect a full effort from you or nothing. No half measures."

[Sam Alexander]

"Compared to you fools I am a god. My brother and I have been doing this for centuries collecting the best warriors and putting them together in a fight to see is the best. You two are no different." The Collector explained. "But on the other hand, I'd rather just collect you warriors...my brother is the one who has always been demanding these types of fights." The Collector explained as Sam raised an eye noticed what the Collector was saying. As if it made plenty of sense, this guy would rather collect things than actually fight or smash them to pieces...but it seemed his brother acted as if he were the alpha male or the stronger more controlling member of the family here. And it seemed that this had been going on for centuries...didn't that grow tiring?

"I think I get it now. Your brother has always wanted to show who's the bigger 'man' here and he's constantly challenging you while you loose your confidence, Collector. I should say one day try standing up to him. It'll work wonders for you." Sam said not believing that he would be the one giving advice to some big blue guy that he had never seen before...well his Nova Force was blue...but that was another story!

The collector thought about this for a bit seeing that he was about to probably piss off even more heroes at the rate he was going. "You two will fight, but the one who looses will go back home, that at least I can make an adjustment for. But my brother's so strict, he won't take no for an answer. YOU MUST FIGHT." He said. "But if your friend here will take the lose, then I consider that a noble act." He explained.

"I guess we don't have much of a choice Rider. But I'll show you every thing I've learned these last few months of being a Nova. Consider this something like a final exam." Sam said as he felt a bit of tears come to his eyes knowing that he was going to lose this one. But at least Rider was the better out of the two of them. He'd be able to handle much worse problems than the young Nova was. And so with that Sam's body lit up a bright bright blue, probably far bluer then he had ever tried in the past. And so did his hands as he prepared to strike with one of his favorite hits and well known ones, the Nova blast.

[Deleted]

Rider listened to the Collector babble on, tuning him out about half way through. That guy was a egotistical wind bag and Rider couldn't give a rat's ass about what he thought was noble or his sibling issues. That kind of stuff should get left in elementary school. But if it was a fight there would be, he would do it right. Hopefully Sam could learn something along the way. It should not be all that hard to win without hurting Sam at all. Hopefully. The fight really was not a fair one. Sam's biggest advantage was his speed, but the size of the dome limited his room to move. Not fair at all.

"Jam it up your ass Collector." Rider said clearly. "You wouldn't know 'noble' if it was fell on your head like an anvil." You couldn't beat a good Road Runner reference to start a tussle.

He watched as Sam powered up. Worldmind could detect the use of the Nova Force with great precision at great distance. The computer was feeding him all the data on Sam's preparation down to the watt, and it was easy to tell just when he would fire and what his target would be.

"Let's get on with this Sam." he shouted across the space between them. "Rule One...don't telegraph your intentions!"

At that a small burst of energy leapt forth from the star in Rider's helmet, aimed towards Sam's chest. Just enough to knock the wind out of him if it made contact.

[Sam Alexander]

Before Sam knew what had hit him it was too late to try and get out of the way. The burst of energy struck Sam against the shoulder as the young Nova hit the ground pretty hard. His lungs burned for a bit as it looked like it had knocked him out on the first try. This really hadn't been a good fight at all as the two novas were out matched by experience. But the worst thing was that Sam seemed to have been hit by now with a reality check. He really was a rookie compared to Rider, and none of his stubbornness could've saved him or even his SHIELD training for that matter.

It seemed like an age or two had passed before he could get his bearings, his muscles around his torso ached from where the wind had gotten knocked out of him. But he knew that this was going to be a rough one if he wanted to survive at all. "Don't broad cast...got it." He said as he finally managed to stand. Maybe he wasn't ready to go into things like space or even try and take on other creatures out there. This was a big blow, but he knew he'd face much tougher challenges than this. "That one hurt big time." He groaned a bit.

But as his thoughts drifted over to his doubts, he thought how far he had come to these last few months with SHIELD. He had learned so much from his friends and even with SHIELD. Even if they were a pain in his side he managed to meet Super Soldier, a descendant from Captain America. If he could keep things up, he might actually do alright. Besides, even every great hero out there now had come from a point where they were still learning, he was just following after them.

Sam realized there was a problem here, he knew for one that Rider had the World Mind, if he was going to try and take him on and the World Mind he had to be unpredictable or at least try to be. This time he didn't give much of a warning towards Rider as he tried to fly forward towards the older Nova. Instead he shot a couple of Nova blasts towards Rider maybe three or four at most, half hoping at least one of them would make it. It lit up the sky almost like blue fire works as the young nova attempted to even make a stab. But he knew he'd have to accept the fate, even if he tried.

[Deleted]

Rider winced as he saw his blast hit Sam and propel him into the ground. He was fond of the kid, and had no interest in hurting him. But the fight was on, and going easy on Sam was not going to do either one of them any good. Soon enough the young Nova would be facing plenty of real foes on his own, and like it or not, a good beating could toughen you up. Pain was like any other experience, the more you experienced it the better you could handle it. It was impossible to develop that hard edge everyone needed to succeed in the crucible when you had not been pushed to your limit and beyond. Now was as good a time as ever to harden up the young Nova, before he was face to face with someone like Thanos or Annihalus. He remembered the time he had lost his arm, it had hardened his spirit and helped make him the warrior he was today.

Sam's blasts were accurate, and the pattern and spread effective. Rider thrust his right arm forward and generated a round energy shield, bright gold in colour, between himself and the oncoming blast. The brilliant blu energy bolts slammed into the golden field and it held. The dome was filled with a great flare of blue and gold eldritch energy. Rider had fought other Novas in the past, and the memory saddened him. It reminded him of the civil war, brother against brother.

He considered his next step as the energy faded away and the field became clear again. The only real advantage a black helmet had over him was short distance speed and acceleration, and with the small size of the dome, that was already partially nullified. Perhaps it was best to eliminate it entirely.

The Nova force that flowed through Rider was based on the elementary force of gravitons. He released a graviton wave towards Sam, increasing the force of gravity on Sam from 1 G to 20 Gs. Without hesitation he accelerated straight towards Sam with his fists clenched.

[Sam Alexander]

Sam had the gut feeling that this fight was so wrong in so many ways. Why would a commanding officer attack one of his own sentry men? It didn't make sense back than and it surely didn't make sense now. And as Sam threw the Nova Blasts at Rider he wasn't at all surprised by now that the older Nova was able to deflect the on coming attack with a large shield that he had put up. If someone were watching it the admiration of colors colliding with each other must've been beautiful to look at. But Sam had no time to admire things, the constant collision between golden yellow and the deep blue that Sam had often changed to a deep green that he had never seen before. Suppose there were other auras out there from the Nova force besides the ones that they had here?

As Rider came forward Sam had a split second thought...Wait a minute? If Rider could absorb energy, couldn't he? The attack looked so strong and fast he only had seconds to react as he powered himself up rather quickly and began to fly fast. His heart was pounding and racing as he flew towards Rider, he braced himself knowing that this was going to hurt. Probably hurt the both of them as he thought about it. Sam knew he had speed on his side, so why not use it now? He felt the air around him go faster and faster as it brushed across his face and he had no other thoughts except for what was going on here and now.

Though the blow from earlier hurt him badly and as well as his own feelings towards being a Nova, he wanted to show Rider what he could do. He thought of all the friends that he had met, and all the things that SHIELD had taught him on his adventures. He wondered if Anya or Miguel had made it to this awful Contest of Champions. If not, they sure were darn lucky. But if they did, they'd have one heck of a fight ahead of them. Though his time was short of being a Nova, he imagined there would be many tough and surprising battles to come and this was only the beginning. "Ready or not, here I come!" He said almost in a battle cry and within an instant he felt Rider's aura come forward. It was almost too much for his own helmet but he steadied himself knowing this one...was gonna hurt...a lot.

It looked like the Collector got a fight he wanted, and so a fight he shall receive.

[Deleted]

Rider's eyes widened as he saw Sam hurtling towards him. The kid was going to create a head on collision. With the extra gravity pulling him back he would not be able to get up to full speed before the impact, but as strategies went it was better than nothing, as long as it didn't end up killing them both. The time between them was so short Rider had no choice but to give up control to Worldmind.  The human mind wasn't fast enough for this kind of stuff.

<Nova Prime it is critical that you pay close attention at this point.>

Yeah no kidding.


With 20 G's pulling him back, Sam's energy that would be transmitted into the collision was effectively 5% of what it normally would be. Worldmind's purpose was always to maximize its own chance of survival no matter what the consequences for anyone else. It applied a force of gravitons to Rider's body increasing his effective mass from his normal 180 to over three thousand pounds. Richard grimaced as he felt his mass increase. At this speed and weight he would hit like an 18 wheeler truck. The forces involved were incredible...and potentially fatal.

A head on collision would mean the worst outcome for both of them. Helmets were replaceable. Skulls were not. Even if Worldmind didn't care about Sam's safety, he did. But there wasn't time for anything more than the simplest moment. He twisted as much as he could, trying to change the head to head into a shoulder to shoulder collision like a football tackle. It was the best he could do in the time involved.

He grimaced as he braced for the collision.

[Sam Alexander]

If it could be counted as a weakness, it certainly was in his case. Sam was stubborn and hardheaded sometimes, it had been well known and put on Sam's record that he sometimes disobeyed orders to go with his own feelings and this may have been one of those cases. his own helmet was blaring at him for the sudden impact, but he ignored it. The warning was there, but by the time he could correct the course it was already too late...Wham! To think that two normal human beings running at full speed was hard, this was no doubt going to leave a mark as Sam felt the impact it was like his shoulder gave out as Rider had tried to redirect his course.

But what he hadn't expected next was his body started falling as he realized that probably knocked the wind out of him once again. Sam hit the ground on his back as he let out a load groan as he tried to get up. But he certainly couldn't in this case as he felt his whole body ache. At this point in time the Collector was about ready to throw in the towel for the young Nova seeing how hard that last hit had been. He felt horrible that this was happening, and on the other hand another brutal fight was going on between Scarlet Spider and Ultron. But he had no control over that one. "Come on young one, wake up." The collector said under his breath as it looked like Sam was pretty much out of it, he may have lost even now. The fight had been so quick the young Nova didn't even seem to know what hit him.

But then something odd happened, "I've gotta...keep...fighting..." He said as he started to wake up as he stood. Blood dripped from his shoulder from a new wound. But the Collector was surprised at how strong Sam's will was to fight. He was a rare one indeed to be part of two worlds. "Alexander, we can throw in the towel if you believe you are too weak or exhausted to fight. It is your call." The Collector said as Sam wiped the blood from his cheek where he had gashed it from hitting the rock earlier. "No." He said stubbornly but he half wondered how Rider took that blow, he probably had a better chance of survival in that one than he did. But Sam probably looked like a mess, and maybe there were some broken bones, but he'd recover...eventually. Sam had the strength and will as his father did, no surprise there as he saw the young Nova panting heavily. "As long as I'm still standing, I will fight."