The Contestants |
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The Breakdown |
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Advantages
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Disadvantages
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Kills
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Kills
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Click here to see how Ari Marmell thinks this fight will go down
How we think the fight will go
“Expelliarmus”
A hollow clang filled the courtyard, echoing off the surrounding towers that stood silent sentinel over the duel. The skull-like helm rattled around on Corvis Rebaine’s head like a hard-struck bell, but did not come off.
Corvis Rebaine—The Warlord, The Eastern Terror—laughed. One long, amused chuckle. “Meet Khanda,” he said. The amulet around his neck flickered brightly—not with the silver light of the moon, but with a crimson light cast by the demon trapped within.
/Hello, Serverus. A nice try. Really. But you’ve a lot to learn. You wield magic like a little kitten. Has anyone ever told you that your face glows lovingly when you’re angry?/ Khanda said. Not a sound, but a voice in their heads.
Though Snape was tall, Corvis towered over him. The hulking warrior’s armour was spiked and bone-plated and so black it seemed to suck the light from the very air. Snape’s cloak and greasy hair looked grey in comparison. The deathly visage of his helm nearly matched the lightly glowing tattoo on Snape’s forearm. Visible through the gaping jaw of the skull, a slight smile touched Corvis’ mouth, just a twinge at the corner of his lips.
“Care to try that again?” said Corvis. Confidence dripped from his voice. The leather of his greaves creaked slightly as he hefted his enormous demon-forged axe.
Sunder.
It’s name was whispered by fearful lips the world over. Though thousands had met their end on its blade, there was not a single notch or scratch to mar it. Most men couldn’t wield it with two hands. The Warlord held it easily with one.
“The Eastern Terror?” Snape snarled. “Should those in the West have no fear?”
“And Half-Blood Prince? Ooh, this full-blooded warrior trembles!” Rebaine started to slowly circle the Wizard, each heavily booted foot carefully picking its place among the rough cobblestones of Hogwart’s courtyard.
/You both have rubbish nicknames. So stop this little pissing match and fight like real men—with swords and wands, not insults and witticisms…which you have no talent for./
“Shut up, Khanda,”
“Conjunctivitus!” A flick of Snape’s wand. “Impedimenta!” Another flick.
Suddenly the world dimmed around Corvis. Like a heavy cloud had passed over a half-moon at midnight, Snape was no more than a blur of black against the courtyard. Like a fresh painting of a moonlit castle splashed with water.
The Warlord swung his giant axe in the direction of the black shape, but the attack crawled through the air like it was cutting through water. Not a vicious charge on horseback, but a slow stroll through the park with a baby carriage.
Suddenly Snape was gone. The black shape disappeared and Sunder slammed heavily into the fountain in the middle of the courtyard, cutting through the ageless stone like it was nothing. Gradually, the spell slowing him lessened, until finally, it broke. The mobility in his arms returned. He spun, eyes searching the courtyard.
/Your grandmother could swing harder than that!/
“And that’s my fault? Counterspell, you useless thing!” Corvis raised a hand, gauntleted fist clenched tightly.
/Oh, please! Let me!/
Hellfire erupted from his fist. Khanda put all his sardonic, demonic glee into the blast and its light filled the courtyard, tearing into every shadow. The heat of the blast set flags to flapping and leaves to shrivelling. The bolt of Hellfire consumed Snape, raising all of Hell’s burning flames to the spot where the black Wizard stood.
Snap!
Snape appeared across the cobblestones, untouched by the fiery magic, his wand drawn and aimed at Corvis. “Sectumsempra!”, his greasy voice exploded into the courtyard, ragged at the edges—angry, euphoric.
Several clear clangs rang out as Rebaine’s armor was struck by a succession of what felt like heavy sword slashes. The Warlord stumbled slightly under the assault, but was unharmed by the piercing attack.
Clink
Corvis looked down to see the crimson amulet, Khanda, lying on the cobblestones. The leather cord severed cleanly by Snape’s spell.
/Well…been nice knowing you./
A flick of Snape’s wrist and the amulet was whisked into the air and out through an arch in the courtyard wall. It fell, fell, fell…finally splashing into the lake far below Hogwarts Castle. Corvis grasped feebly at his naked neck. His armour felt looser now. Sunder felt heavier. Scrambling, the Warlord drew on his own small command over magic. Rubble from the cracked Fountain flew at Snape, peppering him with small stones.
/You attack with gnats? The Eastern Terror, indeed./ Even from the lake below, Khanda’s acid wit was strong and biting.
Without warning, Corvis threw himself at the lanky Wizard, knocking him to the ground. One gauntleted fist slammed heavily into Snape’s face, shattering his teeth. Blood gushed from his crushed nose.
“A Wizard bleeds like any other man, I see,” Corvis growled.
Under the weight of Corvis’ sustained assault, Snape still fumbled with his heavy cloak, digging in one of the many pockets. He drew out a small flask, silver and shaped like a waterdrop. Corvis knocked it from his grasp, but not before the Wizard swallowed the contents.
Snape began to change, his arms growing longer, his nose even bigger. Muscles bulged on his back, his legs thickened to the size of tree trunks. With newfound strength, Snape tossed the heavy Warlord aside. Corvis skittered along the cobblestones, coming to a crashing halt against the leaking fountain.
Corvis wasted no time. He stood, gathered himself, and flew at the monstrosity, swinging Sunder with all the might left in his aging arms. The blade bit into Snape’s leg, splitting the blue, bark-like skin, clanging off the bone inside. He wrenched the blade free. The wound in Snape’s leg sealed almost as quickly as Corvis drew out the axe blade. The muscle and skin knitting together. Not even a scar.
/Hah! Looks like you’re about to pay a terrible troll for your mistake, Corvis!/ Khanda called from the lake below.
Snape now towered over the Warlord. His nose was big as Sunder’s blade and his ears stuck out the side of his head like an elephant’s. The troll stooped and picked up a huge boulder from the rubble near the fountain. “No magic to save you now, muggle.” Unlike the rest of his body, Snape’s voice had not changed.
One huge hand swung out at Corvis, trying to take of Corvis’ head with a fell swipe. Corvis met the attack, deflecting the blow with Sunder. His arm rang and his fingers nearly dropped the axe, but he held on. Corvis chopped at the troll, slamming the backside of Sunder into the monsters crotch. This only seemed to anger the thing further. The boulder came next, swinging down from high above, trying to crush Corvis flat as a squished cockroach. The Warlord rolled sideways, but the huge rock caught his leg. He fell roughly to the stone, his head slamming hard against ground. The skull-like helmet flew off, no longer protected by Khanda’s magic, and clattered away into a shadowed corner. Salt-and-pepper hair framed a weathered face.
A defeated face.
“You are done, old man,” Snape yelled. He was reverting back into human form. Lanky black hair fell into his eyes, robes—tattered and torn—hung from his skinny frame. A huge bruise covered his leg. He walked gingerly to the ruined fountain, one hand grabbing his sore crotch. The Wizard picked up his wand from where it lay among the wet rubble.
Corvis tried to heft his axe, to stand. He made it to one knee, then fell hard against the ground. Blood was running down his forehead, seeping into his eyes. His ears still rang.
Snape muttered some nonsense words, flicked his wand.
Corvis Rebaine’s world flashed green.
Predicted Winner: Severus Snape
NOTE: THIS MATCH ENDS ON SUNDAY, MARCH 13TH, 2011, AT 5 PM, ET
Severus Snape is a character from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling; Corvis Rebaine is a character from the The Conqueror’s Shadow and The Warlord’s Legacy by Ari Marmell.
Severus Snape image courtesy of Grant Gould. Corvis Rebaine image courtesy of Larry Rostant
Aidan Moher contributed to this Cage Match
Psh. Where does SNAPE get off calling someone “old man”? And “Muggle”? Just because he relies heavily on Khanda now doesn’t mean that Corvis isn’t an accomplished sorcerer in his own right– as well as being a dirty, kick-butt fighter. He’s no less deadly without Khanda’s extra firepower, and he’s learned to compensate for his age with even more vicious and wily dirty tricks.
Pitting Snape against Corvis is like pitting an orchestra conductor against a retired Navy SEAL. Corvis crushes master magicians all the time. When has Snape ever faced the likes of Corvis?
My prediction: Marmell’s version is the more accurate.
The Terror of the East would wipe the floor with that crotchety old gasbag.
Marmell’s version : http://mouseferatu.com/index.php/news/march-9-2011-corvis-rebaine-vs-severus-snape/
Good luck Ari. I voted for ya!
I have to throw my support to Corvis on this one.
The magic in Harry Potter is not really all that powerful. Even according to the author herself, the best wizard couldn’t defeat a muggle with a shotgun. Corvis doesn’t have any gunpowder weapons, of course, but he is of a manifest physical advantage over Snape, armed with actual weaponry and armor, and has Khanda to counteract Snape’s magic. Even if Snape could separate him from the amulet, it is still likely that Corvis could inflict a lethal physical injury.
The story written by Ari Marmell for this battle is much better in my mind, and more along what would happen, though it would be a close fight. In the end I’m going with the character I like better, Corvis Rebaine.
One teensy little problem: Polyjuice is strictly for humans only. Snape wouldn’t be crazy enough to attempt turning into a Troll.
I must agree with the others. I love Severus Snape, but he wouldn’t stand a chance against Corvis Rebaine.
Actually, there are a number of spells that carry a lot of strength behind them. The one that pops up in Half-Blood Prince (and that Snape created) would have had Harry murdering Draco had Snape not shown up when he did. If it can rip apart someone like that with it being just a kid doing it, imagine an adult with Snape’s abilities using it. And say all you want about him: I don’t consider Harry the hero of the series; Snape is the one who spent every year trying to protect Harry without being caught; he and Dumbledore worked out how to make Voldemort trust him; and it is ONLY because of him that Harry was able to defeat Noseless, because he had thought that the wand was bound to Snape, rather than Draco (who may have never used it, but it had acknowledged him as it’s new master), causing Noseless to kill himself because of the spell rebound.
From what was written, I was afraid Snape might lose. Point to remember about him though: he WAS a Death Eater at one point; the good little witches and wizards may not know “those” kinds of spells, but the DEs certainly do!
How is snape talking with shattered teeth and a possibly broken jaw. By all means take a platemail spiked guantlet and allow someone to punch you in the face with it. You cant speak for about a minute if it BARELY makes a connection (having previously done re-enactment fighting I KNOW this personally) and a minute is a VERY long time in a fight. Not to mention without some of your teeth you cant pronounce certain letters which makes Snapes magic at that point utterly useless. Not to mention a large part of the potion would dribble out of his mouth without teeth to keep it in when hes on his back…well unless you want him to choke to death.
You also forgot the mind control spell Corvis memorized at the end of the first book…The one where he controlled mages and the rest of the nobles *chuckles* Methinks snape would have been a monkey on a leash at the end of the fight.
Mind control spells wouldn’t work against Snape, blocking that sort of thing is pretty much his specialty. Also, spells can be non-verbal so it wouldn’t matter if Snape’s teeth had been knocked in.
Saying that he has too much anger as a disadvantage is stupid unless the contender manages to stumble across the few things that will flip him out – in general he is very calm and in control. As for physical fights, there’s no way he would let anyone get even close enough to lunge at him, he’s far too intelligent for that.
That said, I know nothing about the other character and so won’t presume that Snape could beat him – just saying that the arguments against him thus far have sold him very short.
Oh, and I forgot to mention, Polyjuice Potion?? With the huge array of potions at Snape’s disposal, there’s no way in hell he would choose Polyjuice Potion, that’s just ridiculous.
First, I want to thank everyone who has voted (or will vote) for Corvis. I appreciate it, and he’s made a note of who you are, so he can exclude you from his inevitable vengeance.
But I also wanted to say, I know that a lot of you reading this aren’t yet familiar with Corvis Rebaine, or with my own writing. And while I certainly hope that either the above write-up, or the one they linked to on my own site, made you curious, I realize it’s unfair to expect people to buy a book completely blind, just out of curiosity. So I wanted to point out that I’ve got a free short story for download on my site, here: http://mouseferatu.com/index.php/short-stories/02_sp_the_ogres_pride/
It’s a tie-in to The Conqueror’s Shadow (though it doesn’t involve Corvis himself), but you don’t need to read one to enjoy the other. I hope some of you folks will give it a look.
Just wanted to point out a canon error, by the end of the seventh book Snape is only 37 ish … Picky but hey. Gives the guy a slight age advantage.
Corvis should have won this one. Too many good characters going out in the first round.
Well, I can’t say I’m surprised. The Harry Potter fanbase is a little bigger than mine.
But thank you very much to all who voted for Corvis. Heck, thanks to everyone who participated, regardless of how you voted. I hope you saw something you liked.
Sorry Corvis, and Suvudu but a killing curse is the straight forward end to all this. Money is on Snape all the way, lets see some green light and dead kids in the next round!
the only reason snape won this is because nobody knows who corvis is. this was a popularity contest.
Ari Marmell, I’d never heard of you or your books before this, but just based on your ability to keep it classy here in the comments section what with all the ridiculous arguments and embarrassingly over-emotional character-bashing going on and being a distraction and all, I plan on checking you out soon. Just thought I’d let you know at least one person here did actually notice and appreciate it. Thanks for being an oasis of grown-up behavior.
Wow, okay. You wrote this in 2011? after the books came out?
Wow. Just, wow. I can’t believe this. You got Snapes age wrong (he was 38 when he died) his intelligence level wrong (hes ovbously EXTREMELY intelligent), he’s an extremely powerful wizard (one of the strongest in the series), he can fly WITHOUT a broom, he can read minds, can use wandless and WORDLESS magic, he has remorse and can fight. And had you finished the books. You would know he is NOT a death eater, but an order of the phoenix member, and he was on dumbledores side all along. He was in love with Lily Evans. Oh, and he’s a potions master.
Try getting your information right next time. It’s painful to read this because of the lack of research you did
i really want to know that why didnt severus snape say Avada Kedavra immediately?