Hey guys! Here we are, one week after the initial poll opening, and I have to say, at least I have some votes. I am a little sad that no one wrote their opinions as to why their choice won, though. Oh well. Next week is another week.

The crowd cheered, and Vash holstered his gun, scratching the back of his head. Even still, after being hated by so many, praise made the blond-haired gunman a little bashful. For a moment, he imagined the women of the crowd embracing him, envisioned a night of celebratory drinking and new friends.

That vision was short lived, as Spike then locked onto the red coated demon and squeezed the trigger, unleashing the machine guns of the Swordfish II.

The crowd screamed in fright, the bullets sending up a huge storm of sand, blinding both Vash and Spike. However, Vash had the advantage here… hidden in the storm, he could hear the Swordfish’s engine now, so he reloaded his magnum and prepared himself.

Spike knew that no bounty of that size would go down so easily. He knew to keep his aces hidden, to wait for a moment to strike. He would watch his prey now, watch him react. If he learned his foe, it would be easier to best him. But watch as he might, no one exited the cloud, no one but the crowd ran, and as he circled, the cloud began to disperse, revealing an empty desert.

“Hmm… not bad… pretty quick. Question is… did he duck into the crowd…? Or…” Spike circled around again, getting lower to the desert, eyes trained on where his target had stood before. Spike knew no one could have fled that fast… no one. He decided to throw an Ace, hoping to catch a Joker. He fired the plasma cannon.

In a flash, the white-blue plasma ripped through the desert, tearing the dunes asunder. Under the sand, there were old cars, skeletons of long dead Thomases, and then, in a flash, just under the plasma stream, a flash of red.

Vash had taken his chance, and just barely avoided the massive weapon. He hopped to the top of an old car and then leapt onto the Swordfish as it rocketed by. He latched on with his mechanical hand and called to the pilot. “Why hello there! Not much of a day for sightseeing, is it stranger? How about you just head home, okay? I’m kinda busy…” Vash said with a goofy smile.

Spike glowered at the man hanging to the Swordfish II’s wing. Was he for real? Could this freak really be worth that many Woolongs? But Spike would not underestimate this man… after all, this guy had somehow evaded machine gun rounds, hidden under the sand, evaded his plasma cannon, and leapt onto his ship. Still, Spike grinned deviously, eager for a challenge. “Sure, why not? I was just taking my girl for a spin, anyway.”

With that, Spike did a aileron roll. (Yes yes, I know, do a barrel roll! Can’t let you do that, Star Fox. That’s not even a real barrel roll. Look it up.) Vash hung on for dear life, and endured through the spin, now landing atop the cockpit. “Hey now, that’s not very nice~!” said Vash sarcastically, his arm transforming into a machine gun for a second time.

Spike looked up in horror. “YOU IDIOT! DO-” But Vash had pulled the trigger, shooting around the cockpit, trying to pry open the glass casing. Instead, however, he accidentally triggered the escape pod. A rush of gas deafened the two as the pod spiraled off from the craft, crashing into the desert sand. The Swordfish II sailed off into the distance, ridding Spike of a great asset and giving him another: rage.

Vash, afraid for the man’s life, pried open the glass capsule, from which Spike immediately lunged, swinging his legs at Vash in anger. Vash stumbled back, falling to the sand, and looked up, seing the man’s silhouette as he leapt from the capsule, swinging his leg down in a deadly strike.

Vash blocked with his metal arm, and felt many of the parts bend and give way. He then rolled back nimbly, taking the half-second to reload his magnum. Spike drew his pistol.

A flurry of bullets followed, ripping through the red coat and the dark mess of hair, ricocheting off the capsule and filling the sand with holes. Once Vash’s gun was empty, Spike began his assault. Vash dodged the first few blows, but eventually found himself missing the man’s quick footwork, and missed a boot’s heel coming straight for his chin.

Spike grinned as the man called Vash spiraled towards the sand, readying to fire another volley. But Vash was no slouch, and hit the dust with the grace of a ballerina, hitting his ever-weakening left arm, forcing it into a partial transformation. It wouldn’t be accurate, but it was enough. He riddled the sand with shots, sending dust into Spike’s eyes. But Spike knew this tactic. It was meant to stop him, create a moment for escape. So he lunged forward, into the dust, and found… nothing.

Vash stood behind him, and whistled appreciatively. “You’re really fast, Mr. Bounty Hunter! But I am Vash The Stampede, and I’m just that much faster.” Vash said, putting his newly loaded magnum to the back of Spike’s head.

Spike froze, not believing that someone actually got the jump on him. “…so then… guess this is the end… unbelievable…” Vash instead, began to laugh. “You think I’m that type? I hate killing. I’ve never done it, and I never will, either. That’s what a certain woman taught me.”

Spike found himself offended, then relieved, then put it all together. He knew the man’s pain, trying to get by, getting a reputation he scarcely deserved, following a mantra partially because of a girl he cared about. “…She gone?” Vash knew that he understood. This fight was over. “…yeah. Long time ago now.” Vash lowered the gun.

Spike turned and faced the man, and the two spent a second studying one another. They were very different men, living very differently… but today at least, they understood each other. Spike walked past Vash, shoving his hands in his pockets. “… gotta go get my ship. Watch your back, Humanoid Typhoon. If she’s wrecked, I’ll be back fr that bounty. I won’t lose if that day comes, either.”

Vash smiled, heading back towards January, calling back to him, “Stop in January tonight, Bounty Hunter! I’ll buy you a drink!” He said with a wave.

“It’s Spike. See you around, space cowboy.” He shot back with a lazy wave.

“Be seeing you around, Spike! Find that girl of yours… life is short after all, and this world is made of Love and Peace! Enjoy it while you can!”

The two both smiled and walked their separate ways, each heading for terrible pain… and one for death. But those words resounded in Spike’s head long after, and he continued to hope that one day, his world would indeed be made of Love and Peace.

We have our Champion! Congratulations, Vash the Stampede!

Spike got next to NO votes. There was lots of votes for a draw, so I made it close. Plus, I figured that’s what Vash would opt for, anyway. Until next week, Space Cowboys, remember that this world is made of Love and Peace! -GG

Alright, y’all. Last week, I posted a midweek mashup and got too swamped to ever give more info. This week’s been busy too, so here we go, one day late.

It only got one vote, so it doesn’t really matter.

Leveling the Battlefield

Now, most people who have seen Trigun and Cowboy Bebop will agree that based on pure ability and skill, Vash is broken, even when compared to Spike. That’s why we have the Deus Ex Machina brand Fanboy Muting Earmuffs! All I do is put these on…

Just a sec, they’ve god some plastic doohickeys…

…

…

Need some scissors, hang on… *rummage rummage* Ah. There. *snip*

Right, so I just put these on, like so… and bam! All the twelve year olds in the WORLD couldn’t sway me now, not even on Ebaum’s World, the Newgrounds forums, or even You’re The Man Now, Dog!

That being said, here are the facts…

• Vash is a pacifist who won’t kill, not to save his own life, anyway.
• Spike is a Bounty hunter, who will kill for a good meal.
• Vash has his magnum, his machine gun, his ‘m4d skillz’ and the angel arm, which, according to the anime rules, won’t hurt people, like Spike, just property.

• Spike has his pistol, his own ‘sk1llzzz’ and the Swordfish, a wondrously fast, devestatingly strong personal ship equipped with a high-energy rifle and a couple rockets, giving him the equipment edge.

That being said…

Setting the Stage

Gunsmoke: a distant planet, considered the untamed frontier by most wayfarers. But, thanks to the Deus Ex Machina brand Warp Gateway Amplification Drive, it is now accessible by scientists, criminals, and most prominently, Bounty Hunters.
Desperate for cash and trying to lay low for a bit, Spike and the Bebop crew have fled the system, in favor of some high bounties out on the rim, on a small desert diamond called Gunsmoke.

The crew began as they always began, with Ed and Ein checking their facts, Jet trying to work the police angle and find some leads, and with Faye seducing wealthy men into treating her well and trying to seem moronic while ‘overhearing’ crucial information. It was here, with some prominently wealthy Sand Steamer travelers, that Faye found the big break.

“Out in the desert outside of January, you say?!” yelled an old woman in a worried huff. The man near her raised an eyebrow. So did Faye, straining her ear. The older gentleman adjusted his glasses, turning to the worried old bag. “Yes, that IS what I said, isn’t it? Must you repeat EVERYTHING I say…? The men were holding the town hostage, laying wrongful claim to their meager spring water. Then that Stampede showed up. That vandal won’t let anyone out of that town.”

The worried woman began fanning herself. “Those unfortunate souls,” she said with the cool calculation of someone who cared more for the spare change lost in the living room sofa.

Faye excused herself to powder her nose, and immediately began ditching the disguise, calling her eye in the sky.

Spike had also begun this hunt like all the others, wandering where the spirits guided him, half-heartedly looking for the price tag on this dump of a planet. Spike was, in fact, so dissatisfied with the idea of hunting a walking natural disaster (as declared by the Bernardelli Insurance Society) that he had instead opted to remain in the (slightly) air-conditioned cockpit of his baby, the Swordfish II.

The Swordfish II sailed over the dunes, clunking and sputtering occasionally, as Spike pondered the day’s events and that night’s meal. His stomach grumbled angrily, also unhappy with the day’s events.

The comm buzzed, alerting Spike to Faye’s communication request. He rolled his eyes in annoyance, sighed, and answered. “Faye. Better not be wasting my time.” Faye glowered. “Would I call if it wasn’t IMPORTANT?!” Spike grinned. “So what is it, then?” Faye sighed. “Scan the desert outside of a town called January. They say that Vash guy was spotted there about an hour ago helping rob some little town. Check it out, would you?” Spike reluctantly accepted. He could use the money. “I’m on it, Faye.”

Spike then began to think, and got a little worried… Double Dollars… how did that equate to Woolongs? He called Jet. “Spike, what’s up? Any luck?” Spike was curt, as usual. “Yeah, I’m working on that. How many Double Dollars are even in a Woolong, Jet?” Jet blinked and crossed his arms. “Huh… hadn’t thought about it. Lemme see…”

But, as usual, Ed was listening in on their conversation. She was also far faster on the draw. “Woolong, woolong! Double? triple? Cut in half? How many many? Ten Woolongs per dollar, two of those in one D.D.! Spike spike, 60 billion Double Dollars is worth 1 trillion, 200 billionWoolongs!”

Spike pushed the throttle as hard as it would go, heading straight for January.

Meanwhile, Vash the Stampede, the $$60,000,000,000 man stood face to face with a few bandits who, like most every small time criminal he faced, had decided that they could claim the bounty on his head and then continue to extort the people of January. Vash knew they had to be stopped, so that the town could be saved… and because the girl he was holding hostage was exceptionally cute!

“You vandals! Let the girl go, and I this devil gunman might still spare your miserable lives!” Vash yelled, summoning his most evil of expressions. The vandals smirked, the three of them heavily armed and ‘ready for anything.’ “Hah! You don’t even have a clue who you’re dealing with! We won’t surrender to the likes of you, Mr. Vash th-” they weren’t allowed to finish.

In a flurry, Vash fired six shots from his magnum, simultaneously unleashing his left arm’s machine gun. The magnum shots unarmed the leader and punctured his leg, sending him to the ground, while the machine gun burst into life, knocking guns from hands and filling the henchmen’s feet with just enough to drop them to the sand. The crowd watched in awe, and then began to cheer.

However, from the Swordfish II, Spike could swear he saw the town’s last hopes of defense get gunned down mercilessly by a pile of Woolongs in a red leather trench coat. Luckily, the crowd was still far enough that he could begin his assault. “Dead or alive, huh?” Spike muttered, grinning as he took aim…

With that, we wait! Vote, readers, and write a reason WHY for an additional vote! But no results until we’ve got at LEAST 10 good votes. Don’t fail me again!

Okay readers, it might be a cop-out, but I’m sleepy and have no more ideas for MWMU, and YOU GUYS NEVER SUGGEST ANYTHING WORTHWHILE!!!

So, you lazy humps, this week you get the easy one…

Hah. There you go.

Backgrounds!

VASH:

A pacifistic gunman with a 60,000,000 Double Dollar bounty on his head. A crack shot, and eventually revealed to be an unaging plant-like being who can wield a massive, city leveling cannon called the Angel Arm. However, as we are dealing with ANIME Vash, not manga Vash, this weapon doesn’t damage humans, just property.

Also, he won’t kill unless people he loves are threatened with death directly in front of him. Vash has the ability to frequently dodge bullets, but bears his share of scars under his red coat.

SPIKE:

A pistol wielding bounty hunter who is out to escape his past and make some bucks, Spike lives a (mostly) carefree life searching easy street and a path to redemption. He also has a personal ship called the Swordfish at his disposal, which has a high-energy laser weapon and machine guns.

I want to get initial reactions before I set the stage. Go ahead and vote if you want, votes are changable. Setting and premise tomorrow!