User blog:Nkstjoa/Nk's take on Cole MacGrath VS Alex Mercer

It's pretty much inevitable at this point, and while I would normally post a prediction, it's a bit long as you can see.

Description
''InFamous VS Prototype! A decade-long debate between these superpowered open-world protagonists will finally be settled once and for all!''

Interlude
(*cues Wiz & Boomstick - Brandon Yates at 36 seconds*)

Boomstick: I love me some open world games, but when I want to take a break from following the damn train, I especially dig the ones where you're a literal superhuman.

Wiz: In 2009, these two super-powered sandbox games came out just two weeks apart, and for an entire decade, this debate between InFamous and Prototype's leading men has gone unanswered... until today.

Boomstick: Cole MacGrath, InFamous' ELECTRIFYING Prime Conduit.

Wiz: And Alex Mercer, the Prototype. For this match-up, we will sticking exclusively to both characters at their peak prior to their final battles.

'''Boomstick: Meaning no Beast powers or Evolved cronies. He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick...'''

Wiz: And it's our job to analyze their weapons, armor, and skills to find out who would win a... Death Battle.

Cole MacGrath
(*cues Hypothetical Rundown Music - Insert Fictional Artist*)

Wiz: Cole MacGrath was someone most would never notice: a simple bike courier making his living by delivering packages.

'''Boomstick: Aside from his best friends Zeke and Trish, he really didn't care for anything else. He even dropped out of college just to piss off his folks. *sniffles* Livin' the dream, Cole.'''



'''Boomstick: Then one day in New Yor... *coughs* I mean Empire City, Cole got a call to drop off a box, but when he got there, he was offered extra cash to open the package and hold what was inside. Nothing out of the ordinary, just some shiny glowy Poké Ball the size of a basketball, then BOOM!, a couple city blocks were toast.'''

Wiz: If waking up in a crater wasn't bad enough for Cole, Empire City completely fell apart: a plague began to spread, forcing the government to place the whole city under quarantine.

Boomstick: Oh, and crime was so out of control that the city's entire police force was almost completely absent.

Wiz: But Cole didn't just survive the explosion: he was changed by it. He and his friends soon discovered he could interact with electricity without harm, absorbing and even utilizing it himself.

'''Boomstick: So he practiced, becoming adept enough to stop armed gang members from stealing air-dropped food... but a guy on the TV put up a video showing Cole with the quote unquote "bomb", turning the city's people against him. And then someone from the FBI told Cole that it wasn't a bomb at all, but a device called the Ray Sphere that gave people superpowers. Oh, and it was made by a super-secret society called the First Sons. Sufficed to say, Cole had a lot on his plate to deal with that day alone, but luckily, he was more than up to the task of fighting to find the answers.'''

Wiz: Cole was practically a master at parkour and with his newfound abilities, he could navigate both rooftops and the sewers with utter ease.

'''Boomstick: But now let's get to Cole's bread-and-butter: electricity. He has his basic bolts, ranging from single and multi-shots to rapid fire, blasts to push foes and objects back or even cause them to levitate, grenades that stick, multiply, chase after, and electrocute before detonation, and his hard-hitting rockets. My favorite's the Redirect Rocket, which may spiral, making it hard to hit things with, but if Cole fires bolts at something, it comes flying straight at them with all fury like... well... a rocket.'''

Wiz: He can also utilize an ability called Kinetic Pulse to lift objects above him, then launch them forward with kinetic energy for an explosion upon impact.

'''Boomstick: Anything from trash cans to cars, he can lift them. And he can even stand on top of the object he's lifting to lift himself up too.'''

Wiz: But Cole's powers aren't exclusively for long-range offense. He can ride power lines and rails to get around a city quickly, or use the tops of cars to be given a massive electrical jump upward.

'''Boomstick: And if that and climbing aren't getting him to the tops of buildings fast enough, he has the Lightning Tether. Think of it like Batman's grappling hook: he fires and it pulls him straight towards his destination. Oh, and hey, DC Comics made an InFamous comic. How about that?'''

Wiz: Another technique, the Lightning Hook, essentially does the opposite: pulling objects and even people to him, including those he can lift with Kinetic Pulse such as cars.

'''Boomstick: And he can project static electricity from his hands while in midair to slow down his descent and glide to a lower rooftop. But should his enemies be below him, Cole can charge up the Thunder Drop to unleash a shockwave upon impact with the ground.'''

Wiz: While taking aim, Cole can focus and slow his perception of time with Precision. And his Polarity Wall is a unique and defensive ability that can both stop bullets.



'''Boomstick: Not only that, but blocked shots turn into energy for Cole to use. And while this ability requires a transformer box... the electricity kind, not the Hasbro toy... the Tesla Missile can be remote-controlled by Cole into whatever he needs it to hit, be it another transformer or, y'know, enemies.'''

Wiz: All of Cole's abilities run on the electricity reserves in his system and overuse can drain him too quickly, leaving him unable to use any of them. Thankfully, Cole can always track sources of electricity and even enemies with Radar Pulse.

'''Boomstick: So... like sonar?'''

Wiz: Like sonar. He can also use something akin to a psychic vision on a deceased individual, seeing their last moments, and leaving a trail for him to track their killers.

'''Boomstick: Man, Cole would make a killing in the detective business! Well, when the fighting's all said and done, he heals injured civilians with Pulse Heal, straps foes to the ground with Arc Restraint, and on those days where he's thirsty for electricity and can't wait, he can just say "Screw it!" and absorb the electricity of a defeated enemy with Bio Leech.'''

Wiz: And in case Cole needs to get up close and personal, his seemingly normal punches and kicks are greatly enhanced with electricity.

'''Boomstick: If that doesn't cut it, he can charge up even more power for the Gigawatt Blades. But his sole melee weapon, and his favorite, is the Amp.'''

(*Wizard and Boomstick are shown with the latter holding the Amp and a log in front of him*)

'''Boomstick: Built by his best buddy Zeke, Cole can channel his electricity into this doohickey for even more powerful strikes. *points at self* But not this guy! Just watch!'''

(*He swings the Amp into the log, but instead of splitting it, he simply puts a small crack in it before dropping the amp due to his hands shaking from the impact.*)

'''Boomstick: Damn it! Guess I do need electricity powers after all!'''

Wiz: Indeed. Now then...

Boomstick: But wait...!

(*He takes out the Ray Sphere to Wizard's surprise.*)

Boomstick: Imma get me some super powers with this.

Wiz: ...except the Ray Sphere doesn't exactly give powers to just anyone. In the InFamous world, Conduits, or humans with special powers, often take time for their abilities to awaken.

'''Boomstick: Ah, like those Mutant X-Men people from Marvel Comics! So the Ray Sphere just gives them their powers early.'''

Wiz: Yes... at the cost of all non-Conduits nearby the user.

'''Boomstick: I can live with that. Now let's get us some powers!'''

(*He gets ready to squeeze the Ray Sphere.*)

Wiz: Just one problem with that: those without the Conduit gene can't hope to utilize the Ray Sphere's power themselves, just like the time Zeke attempted to gain powers for himself.

Boomstick: ...so you're saying I don't have the Conduit gene?

Wiz: I checked and you don't... and neither do I.

(*Boomstick was saddened by this, but tried to play it off by putting a hand over Wizard's shoulder.*)

'''Boomstick: It's alright, Wiz. We'll get by.'''

Wiz: Cole's search for answers and eventual determination to save Empire City led him to a fateful battle with the First Son's leader Kessler, who happened to have electrical powers of his own.

'''Boomstick: Strap yourselves in, folks. See, Kessler doesn't just happen to have Cole's same power set: Kessler WAS Cole from an alternate future who chose not to use his powers to help others, resulting in a massive beast called "the Beast" annihilating everything. So Future Cole here traveled back in time and all the awful shit he did was to ensure that the Cole we all know was ready for it.'''

Wiz: ...while also unintentionally causing an incurable plague with the Ray Sphere called "the Plague".

'''Boomstick: And murdering his own future wife Trish. Good going there, Kessler.'''



Wiz: His quest to be ready for the Beast led him to New Marais, where he came across the agent Kuo, who also had the Conduit gene.

'''Boomstick: Long story short, Kuo unlocked her ability to conjure ice, and then after finding a device that allowed the transfer of abilities between Conduits, she and Cole used it to try swapping powers with each other. Kuo didn't really get anything out of it, but Cole gained a cool new power set to call upon.'''

Wiz: Cole can create shards of ice to launch with his blasts, grenades and rockets that trap humans in ice on contact, a pillar for launching himself upward...

'''Boomstick ...and a shield of frost... the Frost Shield. But when outnumbered or facing a powerful foe, Cole can call upon these show-stoppers: the Ionic Vortex is basically an electrical tornado of death that sucks just about anything into it, while Ionic Freeze creates a trail of ice spikes that freeze enemies... and not civilians. That's handy.'''

Wiz: But by far his most powerful are his Lightning and Ionic Storm. Both involve Cole summoning a bolt of lightning from the sky with a force all but guaranteed to down nearly any enemy.

'''Boomstick: And the former of which Cole can steer himself. And if he needs even more power, he has Karmic Overload. While it costs karma to use, it gives Cole unlimited juice for a short time.'''

Wiz: On his journey to becoming a full-fledged superhero, Cole's performed some exceptional feats. He's taken on gangs like the Reapers and Dust Men, First Sons soldiers, various swamp monsters, and a mercenary army of Ice Conduits.

'''Boomstick: Oh, and he liberated two whole cities from their captors. No biggie, really.'''

Wiz: He's fought several high-tier Conduits, like the mentalist Alden Tate, who could throw a bus onto the top of a tall building and craft a giant body out of junk to pilot, and Joseph Bertrand, who could mutate normal humans into swamp monsters and transform himself into a massive fifty story behemoth.

Boomstick: At his most powerful, Cole has managed to fire off a super-heated bolt that can punch a hole through the hull of an aircraft carrier, sank said carrier with Lightning Storm, and even damaged the Beast.



Wiz: The Beast once had its body destroyed by a nuclear missile.



Wiz: The missile's creator, Sebastian Wolfe, stated the weapon to have a payload of 51 kilotons. That's over two and a half times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb.

'''Boomstick: And Cole's a tough cookie too. He's been thrown through a wall, had a steel beam fall on him...'''



'''Boomstick: ...and was hit by eye beams from the Conduit David Warner that sent him flying. Wait a second... David Warner... *excited gasp*'''

Wiz: He's not one of the Warner Brothers!

Boomstick: Aww.



Boomstick: Plus, Cole's gotten up after having a bomb go off in front of him...



Boomstick: ...which isn't all that surprising since he was in the middle of an explosion that destroyed 6 city blocks!

Wiz: But Cole does have several weaknesses: submerging himself in large bodies of water will electrocute him, and one deep enough could actually kill him.

Boomstick: Weakness #2:

Cole hears and sees metal gates close around him, trapping him.

Bertrand: It's nothing special, but it'll stop your lightning.

Boomstick: Cole has some trouble firing through fences, gates, and all manner of metal obstructions, which some of his foes have used to their advantage.

Wiz: Also, Cole is not invincible. His durability is entirely dependent on a constantly supply of electricity. Should he take damage, Cole will need to recharge from nearby electrical sources to keep up his healing factor.

'''Boomstick: He can heal from bullet wounds, sure, but he ain't Wolverine. And should Cole be completely drained, enough well-placed shots can put this Conduit down the same as any other man.'''

Wiz: But even for a hero with just a career of only a few months, Cole would go on accomplish the impossible: stopping the Beast and curing the entire world of the Plague once and for all... by sacrificing his own life.

'''Boomstick: *sniffles* That Cole MacGrath. He may have lasted only half as long, but he truly did glow twice as bright.'''

''[https://youtu.be/e4gVi2RUqKo?t=116 Cole: See, powers don't kill people. Oh no. *extends the Amp and charges it with electricity* It's the person behind the powers... that kill people.]''

Alex Mercer
(*cues Hypothetical Rundown Music 2 - Insert Fictional Artist*)

''[https://youtu.be/umQ3Gm8PvE0?t=38 Alex: They call me a killer. A monster. A terrorist. I'm all of these things.]''

Wiz: Alexander J. Mercer was a fairly withdrawn intellectual, trusting no one and without friends.

'''Boomstick: Probably because he had a bit of a crummy upbringing, being in foster care for years and having to be a parental figure to his younger sister Dana due to a lack of any good parental figures. But hey, Alex found his calling in science, so after earning his doctorate degree... for genetics, not poultry science like yours truly... he went to work at a research company called Gentek.'''

Wiz: Alex excelled in his new surroundings, his work on viruses and altering genes years ahead of his co-workers.

'''Boomstick: Yeah, speaking of viruses, his usual work load included a supposed cure for diseases that was actually meant to rewrite the DNA of living creatures. Y'know, fairly shady shit, but Alex was pretty much okay with all of it... that is until his fellow scientists began getting "mysteriously" killed.'''

Wiz: Gentek was under investigation and, fearing potential leaks, attempted to cover it up. He sent Dana a laptop containing information about his work, then fled Gentek for his life. But his body would end up at Penn Station, which became Ground Zero for a massive biological event: the spread of the Blacklight Virus.

'''Boomstick: Alex Mercer was dead... but then he found himself in a morgue with a splash of amnesia and freaky superpowers to boot. Pretty convenient since Manhattan soon went under quarantine and became a total war zone. Not only were people starting to turn into monsters, but the government black ops group Blackwatch's solution to stopping the virus' spread was to basically murder whoever they pleased, whether they were infected or not.'''

Wiz: The virus completely changed Alex: his entire physical being, including his own clothes, had become biomass, the building blocks that make up all living creatures, which he can alter at will.

(*Wizard and Boomstick watch clips of Alex Mercer*)

'''Boomstick: Ah, but now he's stuck wearing that jacket and hoodie forever... which is what I would've said if he couldn't take on the appearance of others! So what, does he just look at them and then pull a Mystique or T-1000?'''

Wiz: No... actually, he...

(*Boomstick sees several clips of Mercer absorbing individuals*)

'''Boomstick: He's eating them! And then he's going to eat me!'''

(*A fly lands on Boomstick's head as the camera zooms in on his face.*)

Boomstick: OH MY GODDDDDD!!!

Wiz: And that's only the half of it: with every person he consumes, Alex takes on all their memories. Imagine: an entire lifetime suddenly brought into your consciousness.

'''Boomstick: Complete with tons of really awkward memories he doesn't want to talk about, I'm sure. He probably has a separate file for them.'''



Wiz: More importantly, Mercer obtains the memories of his target's training, giving him the skill sets of potentially hundreds of combatants. Everything from close-quarters and marksmanship to combat tactics and knowledge.

'''Boomstick: Give Alex an automatic weapon, grenade, or rocket launcher and he'll put that to good use. Same goes with whatever tanks or helicopters he decides to commandeer.'''

Wiz: But Alex didn't accomplish everything with just firearms and vehicles: he learned to weaponize himself, transforming his own arms into a variety of instruments of death.

'''Boomstick: He can turn his hands into four-fingered claws, which can slice through flesh and bone with ease. Not only can he cut up close with it, but he can even have them travel underground and impale from a distance.'''

Wiz: What Alex's Hammerfists lack in speed, they make up for with powerful strikes.

Boomstick: With them, he can slam down on his elbow hard enough to smash armored vehicles, and can even toss himself forward fist-first like a torpedo of pain.

Wiz: His barbed Whipfist easily grants Alex the most range of all his other transformations, complete with a spear-like point.

'''Boomstick: For those moments where he wants to do his Scorpion impression. Or he can pull himself towards larger foes or helicopters. And that's when he's not swinging it around him like a chain blade of death. And speaking of blades... THE Blade is perhaps his deadliest close range weapon for mano-a-mano, especially against larger enemies and vehicles.'''



Wiz: The virus also increased his strength and speed dramatically. He can lift cars with ease and run so fast that it takes military helicopters to keep up with him.

'''Boomstick: Not to mention his agility. He can leap stories and long distances in a single jump, and can climb the sides of buildings... or he can just give gravity the middle finger and just RUN UP THEM!!! Where have I seen that before?'''

(*Clips of similar actions from Hulk: Ultimate Destruction and Prototype are shown side-by-side*)

'''Boomstick: Oh yeah... the same people that made Prototype also made a Hulk game.'''

Wiz: Alex can glide, dash forward, and even recover from being thrown back while in midair.

'''Boomstick: And if you don't see him, you're definitely in trouble because Alex can sure as hell see you. His Infected and Thermal visions can see through smoke and even some obstacles.'''

Wiz: Mercer's quest for answers didn't end in the way he had hoped.



'''Boomstick: Turns out when Alex fled Gentek, he took a vial containing a virus he was working on with him as insurance to keep him alive, but when he was cornered by armed soldiers at Penn Station and, knowing he was dead meat, he threw it to the ground. So the mastermind behind the outbreak... was himself.'''

Wiz: And he's even speculated that the Alex Mercer we know is not actually Alex Mercer. That the virus took over the deceased Mercer's body and simply possesses his memories.

'''Boomstick: ...huh. Well I'm just gonna keep calling him Alex Mercer, then. While this couldn't protect Mercer from the truth, the Shield covers him from the front, stopping a variety of attacks from even getting to him. Not only does it do all this without hindering his speed one bit, he can ram through crowds and obstacles with it. CHARGING STAR!!!'''

Wiz: But enough damage or attacks from more powerful weapons or enemies can shatter it, requiring it to fully regenerate before being used again. This isn't the case with his Armored form.

'''Boomstick: The Armor covers Alex's entire body, greatly reducing damage all-around. Sure, he loses a bit of speed and agility when using it, but who cares when you can turn into a walking tank?'''

Wiz: And should Mercer require even more strength, Musclemass greatly increases the power of melee strikes and thrown objects.

'''Boomstick: 'roided Mercer's punches can turn a human into paste and objects thrown hit harder and actually travel faster. Even landing from jumps are powered up to create shockwaves. And did I mention he can use Force Push?'''



Boomstick: Because he kinda can.

Wiz: But Alex's deadliest attacks by far are his Devastators. Tendril Barrage can impale foes all around Alex, as does Groundspike Graveyard from below.

'''Boomstick: Kinda like a beefier version of the ground spike technique his claws have. But then there's Critical Pain, which locks onto and crushes a single target for maximum punishment. Critical Pain... that name would be great for a wrestling move.'''

Wiz: With all these abilities, Alex Mercer would more than prevail against Blackwatch and the Infected. He's defeated beasts like the Hunters, Hydras, and Elizabeth Greene, who was basically the mother of the virus.

'''Boomstick: He also fought Robert Cross, a Blackwatch specialist who was trained to fight people like Mercer, and these freakishly massive Super Soldiers. Look at the size of those guys!'''

Wiz: These Super Soldiers were injected with a variant of the virus, granting them improved muscle growth and healing factors. And if that wasn't enough, bulletproof plating was molded to their soft muscle tissue.

'''Boomstick: That's some Weapon X shit right there! And these guys could go toe-to-toe with Alex.'''

Wiz: He's smashed through a two-foot thick steel door, destroyed military bases, and broke into the Hive when not even Blackwatch alone was capable of doing so.

'''Boomstick: And Alex is ridiculously tough. He went into his apartment, only to have it blow up in his face, fell to the streets below, and just kept going. He can be inside of an exploding tank or helicopter, and just continue fighting almost like nothing happened.'''

Wiz: Mercer hardly even flinches from bullets, and has been stabbed repeatedly with a combat knife seemingly without any pain from it.

Boomstick: Even having his throat sliced hardly seemed to do a thing to him.



Boomstick: And then there was that time Mercer got caught in a nuclear explosion.

Wiz: Blackwatch's final solution for stopping the infection was to nuke all of Manhattan. Destroying the entire island city would require over 68 kilotons of TNT.

'''Boomstick: One of the Infected called the Supreme Hunter theorized he could have survived the impending explosion if he consumed Alex first. Well after killing him, Mercer flew the bomb away from the city, but couldn't escape the detonation, reducing him to a puddle. But eh, his biomass just ate a crow and he grew his whole body back.'''



Wiz: He may have saved Manhattan that day, but Mercer's thoughts on humanity soured as time went on. He became convinced that the infection he stopped was the key to saving humanity: by having them all joined as one hive mind.

Boomstick: But since he didn't have any Pym Particles, he went back to Penn Station a year later and single-handedly started a new outbreak from the same Ground Zero as the first.



'''Boomstick: He infected several individuals with his gifts by hand, turning them into Evolved, and used them to infiltrate Blackwatch and Gentek themselves to further his goal. Nothing could stop him...'''

Wiz: Until he came across the soldier James Heller, who intrigued Alex enough to infect him... and who would become his undoing.

'''Boomstick: Heller evolved at a far more rapid rate than Alex anticipated and went right to work taking down Mercer's operation. By the time Alex realized what Heller was doing and tried to stop him, Heller couldn't even be consumed by him thanks to the virus combined with his unique genes. Even after consuming eight of his own Evolved followers to power himself up, Alex just couldn't beat him.'''

Wiz: Mercer is incredibly durable, but consistent damage to his biomass will require him to consume others to heal. And prolonged combat with someone his equal, like Heller, can leave him unable to repair his body.



'''Boomstick: Tougher targets can't be consumed right away, requiring Alex to soften them up first, and even he isn't immune to his own technique, which led to Heller consuming him when all was said and done. But Alex wasn't actually that torn up about it: he even welcomed Heller to the top of the food chain.'''

Wiz: Anti-hero or villain, man or virus, Alex Mercer is nothing short of terrifying. Those who would stand in his way will become a part of him.

''[https://youtu.be/hg74MpERlyw?t=666 Alex: What have I become? Something less than human. But also something more.]''

DEATH BATTLE!
A sign read:

Blackwatch Empire City Division

The outside of this military facility was completely trashed and the pavement around it was littered in blood, bullet casings, and rifles. Police sirens rang in the distance.

(*cues Death Battle: Shock and Consume - Insert Fictional Artist*)

Cole MacGrath, donning his former bike courier attire with the Amp in his backpack, landed across the street. He saw all the damage from the carnage, but not a single body...

...except one lying crushed beneath a jeep. There was nothing Cole could do for this masked soldier, but he would at least find out what happened. Putting his hand to the man's head, Cole caught a glimpse of the soldier's last moments:

A whole platoon firing at once at one single target, all their shots landing, but to no effect. This soldier saw his fellow units cut to ribbons one-by-one with blades of some kind, then their bodies absorbed into this enemy. He ran towards a rocket launcher, retrieved it and turned to fire, but by the time he did, the jeep went flying right at him.

From there, Cole saw an orange echo of the assailant, a hooded figure, running into the building. He walked towards what was left of its entrance...

''???: YOU!!! STOP RIGHT THERE!!!''

One of the masked soldiers exited, pointing a rifle right at Cole.

Soldier: This is a restricted area!

Cole humored him, putting his hands up. What the soldier didn't know was that Cole was scanning him:

MacGrath saw that the man wasn't human at all: in fact, upon scanning him, he had the same orange outline as the hooded man.

The soldier could tell by Cole's grin that his cover was blown and immediately jumped high into the air, attempting to escape. Cole was initially shaken by the impact of the jump, which left cracks in the ground, but then recomposed and took aim. From his right hand fired a lightning hook, which stuck to his target's leg. With a two-handed pull, Cole forced him hard to the ground.

As the man slowly got back to his feet, a dark red substance seemed to emanate from his uniform, then spread across his entire body. From there, the man revealed his true form: that of Alex Mercer.

''Cole: Nice hood. Very inconspicuous.''

Alex: What do you want with me?

Cole: See pal, this city's already had more than its fair share of murdering psychopaths.

He showed Alex the blue electricity flowing across his arms and fingertips.

Cole: And I'm not about to let you roam free.

Alex: This matter is beyond you.

Mercer extended an arm, showing its shape changing, as well as his hand and fingers.

Alex: And so am I.

Both of MacGrath's hands made fists, coursing with electricity.

''Cole: Whatever Conduit you are... whatever powers you've got...!''

He pointed right at Mercer.

''Cole: I'm bringing you down! Here and now.''

Mercer put both his hands into his jacket's pockets, then sighed.

Alex: I gave you a chance...

Just then, Cole saw Mercer running right towards him at high speed. He rolled to the side, just barely getting out of his way, only to see Mercer coming right back for him. He went for a side-step, then found the back of his jacket's neck gripped. With what to Alex was a casual toss, he threw Cole towards a wall.

MacGrath used his static thrusters to slow himself down, then used his feet to bounce off of it as Alex ran for another strike. It missed, but tore a hole right through it as Cole fired bolts at him. Mercer moved side-to-side as Cole switched between multiple bolt types in succession, including a triple shot. By the time Cole had a clear shot, Alex punched him square on the jaw.

After Cole was sent rolling to the ground, Mercer retrieved the rifle he held earlier and took aim right at Cole's head from a distance. The memories gave him the aim of an expert marksman as the grouping of all the shots was perfect...

...save for the lying Cole's Polarity Wall blocking them. MacGrath made it back onto his feet and ran to Mercer who decided to use the rifle's grenade launcher attachment. Cole saw the grenade coming for him and, instead of blocking with the shield, used his other hand to fire a push-like blast, knocking it forward. By the time Mercer had cocked the rifle for another shot, he saw the grenade coming right for him.

The explosion put Mercer right on his back as Cole took out his Amp from his backpack. Mercer returned to his feet and with Cole in front of him, readied his hand for a punch while its shape began to change...

...but something seemed to stun him and he gritted his teeth in irritation: he was standing in a puddle and one of Cole's feet touched it, causing electricity to run across it.

Cole: Doesn't agree with you, does it?

Even in his state, Mercer finally went through with the hit, but Cole ducked before swinging the Amp into Alex's side. He rose with three more hits, each forcing Mercer to take a step back, before leaping upward, jumping off Alex, throwing something behind him, and swinging the Amp into his face, knocking him straight down. As Mercer made it onto his knees...

...something was zapping him again: the electrocution grenade. His opponent seemingly trapped in place and unable to pull himself upward, Cole stepped back and began to raise his arms. Mercer didn't know what Cole was about to do, but something told him he wanted to get out of the way. He raised his head and arms, seeing something was brewing in the sky above him and, in defiance of the attack...

Cole: Too easy.

Mercer's fists transformed into the Hammerfists, then both struck the ground so hard they created a small earthquake.

Cole: Whoa!

He was knocked off his feet as Mercer immediately stood in front of him, a gut punch of epic proportions rocketing him into a car.

Cole was practically embedded into the car, slowly pulling himself out of the mess.

Alex: You think you're in control?

He could feel Mercer's movement, which were much heavier than earlier. His mind ran as he looked at his surroundings until he saw a power line close by.

Alex: You have no idea what I'm capable of.

He fired off his lightning tether, pulling him out of the path of Mercer practically launching himself in his direction. The intended attack sent Alex straight through the car and the wall behind it, and by the time he emerged, Cole was already riding on power lines and gaining speed.

Just by extending his fingers by the line, Cole began to pull in electricity, healing him from the injury prior. He heard small pieces of debris falling from behind him and turned his head.

Alex: There's no use running!

He saw Mercer running after him on the side of a building.

Cole: Show off.

Without turning around completely, Cole rotated just enough to fire an electrical rocket from his hand while still traveling at the same speed. Mercer immediately leapt to the other side, continuing his run from another building. Cole turned once more and fired another rocket, only to see Mercer avoid it just as easily.

Alex entertained Cole long enough and lunged, heading for Cole with a diving kick. In that instant, Cole focuses, time around Mercer and himself slowing down as he took aim. A powerful bolt to Mercer's head caused a near-miss as Mercer crashed to the streets below.

Seeing Cole getting away, he put his hand beneath a car in front of him and flung it with great force. The car tore through power lines, even as it began to break apart. Cole ducked to avoid a bumper, then saw the remains of the car cutting down the power lines in front of him.

He lost his footing and landed on his shoulder, attempting a controlled roll. Upon making it to his feet, he saw Mercer coming right at him with a shield-like construct in front of him.

Cole: Oh come on...

Alex rammed into him, the two going through the display window of a building. From outside, the sounds of electricity and several breaking objects could be heard. Finally, Cole was knocked through another display window, rolling until he stopped himself.

Mercer exited, then leapt into the air, aiming his shield for a crashing descent. Cole rolled backward, avoiding it, then threw another grenade. Mercer saw this and moved his shield in such a fashion to knock it away from him. Cole fired bolts, all of which the shield was stopping so far, and grinned since he knew something Mercer didn't...

...the grenade Alex thought he knocked away was stuck to his shield. The sticky grenade finally detonated, taking a chunk off the shield and briefly catching Mercer's attention.

As Cole aimed his hand for any number of attacks, a barbed wire-like weapon wrapped itself around his arm. The end of it, housing a spear point, nearly struck Cole's face when he managed to catch it with his other hand. He caught a glance of Mercer behind his shield and saw the Whipfist was his other arm transformed.

Cole: You're an interesting Conduit, all right.

He pulled MacGrath towards him, then close-lined his opponent with his shield. As Cole lied on his back, he saw Alex about to bring the shield down on his neck.

Alex: I am no Conduit.

Before he could go through with the decapitation, he saw Cole putting out a hand. Alex was flung into the air, then seemed to be floating in place, like being held on strings. In his confusion, he failed to see that Cole was using a magnetic field to keep him afloat.

Cole: Catch ya later!

With two palms pushing forward, Alex was launched backward, covered in kinetic energy.

He was knocked through a wall, the biomass making up his jacket appearing partially tattered. As he began to recover, he saw a horde of electric missiles coming right for him.

Mercer was blown through another wall and into the path of a tanker truck. His impact into the cab's front caused it to tip over, rolling on its side.

The truck's driver, having exited through the shattered windshield, saw Mercer crouched over and approached him.

Driver: Are you okay?

Mercer turned, chunks of his face missing and holes in his chest area.

Cole, just arriving, gasped at what he inadvertently caused.

Cole: No, no, no...

By the time he turned to see where Mercer was, he saw the truck driver being absorbed into him, and all Alex's wounds healing.

Cole: You...!

He only caught a glimpse in the vision, but seeing the consumption first-hand, and on a civilian, infuriated him.

Cole: You monster!

Alex saw Cole taking aim, then turned to the tanker behind him. He knew it was Cole's intended target, but made no attempt to avoid it.

BOOM!

A massive explosion went off, one that even caused Cole to shield his face. He looked at the flaming wreckage, seeing only the remains of the tanker...

Alex: Yes...

Mercer slowly walked through the flames, donned in an armor of some kind from top to bottom.

Alex: I am a monster...

His right hand was the Whipfist once again while his left arm was a four-fingered claw.

Alex: And nothing will protect you from me.

Cole: Spare me the crap!

He fired bolts away at Mercer, who only walked forward. In his armor, Cole's bolts didn't seem to phase Alex at this point. Now in range, Mercer swung his Whipfist, Cole ducking and rolling swings from it. One seemed to be too fast for Cole, who used a blast to knock it backward. He had an opportunity to fire a rocket...

...and Cole did not care for the sound of him being out of juice.

Cole: ...damn it.

Quickly, he scanned, finding a transformer box nearby. He ran for it as Mercer continued his slow approach. Just then, Alex slammed his clawed hand into the ground. Cole didn't understand it at first until he scanned again, sensing something from underground.

He rolled to the side immediately, but saw that whatever was underground kept going forward towards the transformer box. Just then, a massive spike came from the ground, tearing apart the entire thing. But Cole saw electricity surging across the spike and Mercer appearing stunned for a moment as he destroyed it.

Alex: Where is your power now?

But Cole saw a display window filled with TVs, each showing 2D animated battles. He absorbed electricity from all of them, feeling refreshed.

Cole: There's plenty to go around.

With a roar, Mercer lunged, avoiding a fired rocket by Cole. MacGrath suddenly shot up into the air on a pillar of ice to Alex's surprise, then threw a grenade of ice at his back. Mercer was forced to his knees for a moment as Cole then landed on him with Thunder Drop. Afterward, Cole created ice shards from thin air, then blasted them at Alex with some knocking him back and others going into him.

Cole: Had enough there, killer?

Mercer crouched over, and from what Cole could tell by scanning him, something inside him was about to be unleashed.

Alex: I haven't even begun.

Dozens of tendrils fired off from Mercer's body and Cole had to think fast. With Precision, he was able to slow time around him, avoiding most of them, but one was just too quick for him, impaling his shoulder. Time returned to normal soon after as Mercer pulled Cole towards him, then held him by the top of his head with his clawed hand.

Alex: You stood in my way...

His Whipfist hand stabbed into Cole's back.

Alex: ...so now you will join me.

Cole tried firing bolts at him, but Alex knew it would not hurt him.

''Alex: One body. One mind. Just as humanity should be.''

Cole: Oh, God...

After MacGrath's remark, the rocket from before slammed into Mercer's back, forcing him to let go of Cole.

Cole: Maniacs like you are a dime a dozen!

Mercer went for a swing with his claw, but Cole ducked and, having formed the Gigawatt Blades, swung at his right foot. Even in his armored state, it cut his foot right off. The swing missed due to the sudden wound, and before Alex could try to readjust, Cole slashed at his hand, cutting that off as well.

Cole: And you're leaving my city!

Alex's remaining hand transformed into a Hammerfist and stopped Cole's intended decapitation, resulting in only a glancing cut of the weapon. Just then, Alex twisted his arm to swing the fist down onto him, so Cole blocked with both Gigawatt blades. The impact from one Hammerfist alone still grounded him, but Cole quickly fired off a blast...

...but Mercer saw the technique coming and his Hammerfist became a claw, stabbing into the ground. What Cole intended to sent him off his feet only pushed him back a few inches. But Cole soon realized what was going on beneath him and leapt to the side, barely avoiding the spike coming out of the ground. But as he landed, he was met by a massive blade.

Alex: It's no use.

Cole blocked again with the Gigawatt blades, but this blade tore through them, managing a small slash to his chest. He took out the Amp with one hand, then reached out for a street light with the other. He siphoned some electricity, but couldn't help feeling like he should've been absorbing it more quickly.

Cole: Come on, come on...!

Just then, Mercer closed the distance and took another swing, Cole barely getting out of the way in time and the post being cut down with ease. MacGrath noticed Alex was back in his jacketed form, which explained why he was that much faster.

Cole made the first swing, clashing with the blade, and his other hand going for another blast. Alex swerved his body to the side to avoid it, then swung at Cole's legs. MacGrath managed to hop onto the blade and put the Amp up against Alex's neck, the electricity zapping him. He swung himself with the Amp around Mercer, then went for a maneuver to launch Alex off his feet.

Instead, Mercer stood on his feet and Cole and the Amp landed in front of him.

Cole: You gotta be kidding me...

Now Alex was on the offensive, swinging at Cole's Amp as MacGrath tried to cover himself, and after a few swings...

...the blade cut into one of the Amp's bars. Cole was shocked, but kept swinging away, only to find the blade continued to do damage to his melee weapon.

Alex: I told you: nothing will protect you.

One swing of the blade took off the entire bar.

Alex: Not your weapon!

That swing turned the Amp into little more than a handle at this point. Cole attempted a lunge with two Gigawatt blades, but was met by a slash to his back.

Alex: Not your powers!

Cole fired a grenade, which split into several before landing, but Alex simply ran around them. As Cole charged up his hands for a more powerful ice technique, it struck him too late that Mercer was too quick for him...

...swinging with a clawed hand at his chest. Cole backed up, but was met by another slash, then a two-handed one. After rolling, Cole saw how dire his situation was and tried firing a lightning tether to escape, but the Whipfist grabbed him by his leg, then yanked him back down. Mercer swung and slammed Cole repeatedly before launching Cole with all his strength towards a building. Cole braced for impact with his shield.

From outside this building, a small cloud of debris exploded out from a middle floor. Cole emerged falling, landing hard onto the streets below overlooking the water. Cole still had the claw marks fresh in his chest from before, as well as dust from the building he was just tossed through covering his jacket. He barely made it to his feet, using a parked car to help him up. He knew it wouldn't be long before Alex found him, so he tried charging from the vehicle next to him...

...but he still struggled just to absorb electricity from it.

Cole: Why is this happening to me?

Alex: The virus.

Before Cole could turn and attack, Mercer lifted Cole by both of his arms.

Alex: The same virus that will unite this city.

''Cole: Sick... bastard...''

Alex: If you won't accept my gift...

He began to pull both of Cole's arms, intending to rip him in two.

Alex: ...you will die from it.

With what little electricity Cole had left, he used Precision and turned both hands toward Alex's head. If he missed this one, he was as good as dead.

Cole: No...

Both sides of Mercer's face were struck by two far more powerful bolts than before. These bolts seriously singed both sides, burning everything from his ears towards his eyes. Now free, Cole suddenly surged with a blue aura of electricity: Karmic Overload.

Cole: Not while I draw breath!

One powered-up bolt fired at Mercer's knee, nearly taking half his leg off and forcing him down, then MacGrath fired off a barrage. Alex tried to call upon his newly-regenerated shield only for each bolt to tear a hole right through it to Mercer himself.

Cole: I'm going to save this city...!

As he was struck back by each one, part of his body searing, he reactivated his armor and was left with no other option than to try to protect himself.

Cole: ...from the likes of you!

Once the lengthy barrage ended, the blue aura left Cole and he saw clouds of dust in front of him. He had his hands on his knees, breathing heavily: he put his everything into that.

But then he heard chuckling. Labored and pained, but chuckling all the same.

Cole walked through the dust slowly, seeing that Mercer still stood...

...or stood as best as he could, having no legs to stand on. Both his arms were missing as well with only bones sticking out. Alex's armored form was heavily seared, several holes straight through his body as his armored face cracked at the seems. It gave way, revealing his right eye, then revealing another, and soon his entire face save for his mouth was visible.

Even in the state he was in, coughing up blood, he chuckled.

Cole: Something funny?

He looked Cole in the eyes, something red beginning to ooze from his chest.

Alex Mercer: Life and death no longer bind me.

Cole could tell Mercer wasn't looking to give himself up, and with everything Cole had seen so far, he also suspected Mercer, even having been reduced to having no limbs, wasn't done yet.

He wasn't taking any chances. He stayed where he was, not about to approach him, and raised his hands once more uninterrupted. Mercer saw lightning brewing from above him and was in no position to move or to stop it.

But as a massive lightning bolt came down from the clouds, a ring of red mist exited Mercer's body.

Cole: Die!

Mercer could feel himself being melted, torn apart, by the lightning's sheer heat and power. It almost looked as if his biomass inside the armor began to melt away first, soon followed by the armor shattering.

But Cole saw himself surrounded by red and breathing it in. He kept up the lightning attack, making sure nothing was left of Mercer, but the mist was getting to him. A cough, followed by a rougher one...

...until Cole finally lost his footing and fell onto his hands coughing, stopping the attack. He covered this cough with his hand, seeing blood in it.

Cole: What did he do to me?

He looked down at the crater the lightning created, and saw only a small red puddle remaining.

Cole: ...still alive?

MacGrath took aim with both hands, surging with electricity...

...and nothing fired.

Cole: No, not now!

Again, he tried to fire, but nothing changed.

Cole: This can't be happening!

He felt pain in his side and grasped it, his eyes looking down at the puddle...

...and tendrils emerging from it. By the time he saw this, Cole felt himself being pulled down as if his shoes were tied together. He landed chest-first in the puddle and tried to get up, but saw it wrapping itself around his body. A red cocoon formed, encompassing his entire lower body and spreading over the rest of him.

MacGrath reached out with his hand, still trying to fire electricity from it, but as it was pulled back by the tendrils...

''Cole: No... way...''

A Blackwatch gunship flew in, shining a spotlight on the crater.

''Pilot: Located Zeus... with a civilian.''

He put his hand on the fire controls.

Pilot: Preparing to fir...

A lightning bolt nearly struck the chopper, forcing it to swerve.

Pilot: Shit!

From across the water, several bolts of lightning could be seen striking other parts of the city.

Pilot: Got a thunder storm here!

He got the gunship back into position, locking onto the red mass in the crater.

A massive bolt of lightning struck the crater.

Pilot: The hell's going on here?!

When the lightning bolt dissipated, Cole stood, looking up at the chopper.

Pilot: Firing now!

A missile fired from the gunship coming right for Cole, but instead of trying to get away from it, he leapt towards it. He managed to land on the missile before leaping off, the explosive hitting the crater as intended.

The pilot didn't know what was happening.

''Pilot: Who... what is this guy?!''

Cole: Say goodnight.

He landed, bringing his hands down and summoning another bolt of lightning, striking the chopper's tail rotor.

Cole watched as the gunship span out of control before crashing in the water, then looked back at the crater he was just in. Empty and completely barren with no trace of red in sight. MacGrath turned back towards the water and the other side of the city, seeing the lightning storm still continuing. The battle over, Cole put both his hands behind his neck...

...and lifted a grey hood over his head. His courier jacket, which looked clean and without any cuts, began transforming into a black-grey jacket with a white buttoned shirt. Cole grinned as his face shifted into that of Alex Mercer's.

K.O.!

Results
(*cues Death Battle: Shock and Consume (Instrumental) - Insert Fictional Artist*)

'''Boomstick: You know, I never got why Zeus was Alex's code name... but it kinda makes sense now.'''

Wiz: Both combatants faced their toughest and most unpredictable opponents by far in what was by no means a one-sided match-up.



'''Boomstick: Mercer's primarily fought military forces and the Infected, so Cole firing electricity and ice at him was completely new to him. And while Cole's seen some weird and freaky Conduits, he's never seen anything on Alex's level. But even then, they shared several feats like fighting armed forces, creatures far stronger than normal humans, and taking down 50 foot monsters.'''

Wiz: So to determine the victor, we first had to look at their defined limitations. For starters, neither Cole nor Mercer's shields were going to be able to block each other's biggest hits, as both have succumbed to large enough impacts and even rockets.



'''Boomstick: And just to get these big ones out of the way, no, Cole and Mercer weren't going to be busting moons, and neither have light speed or even lightning speed. "But wait! If Kessler could move and attack as fast as lightning, shouldn't Cole be able to as well?"'''

Wiz: Firstly, Kessler's teleports were always from a short distance in one direction, and nowhere nearly as instantaneous as lightning would be. Secondly, even assuming Kessler's blasts fired at the same speed as real-life lightning, it takes Kessler one second just to charge up his shot, giving Cole more than enough time to see the attack coming before it actually fired.



'''Boomstick: Like avoiding a gunshot without actually moving at the speed of a bullet because you saw the shooter getting ready first. It's the reason Cole uses cover and parkour to make himself a harder target to hit: he doesn't casually dodge bullets. If he did, Cole would be a completely different character.'''

Wiz: With that out of the way, now let's see how the two fared physically, starting with their speed. If we assume Cole's running speed to be 28 miles per hour, on par with the fastest Olympic runner in the world Usain Bolt, Mercer has shown he could easily go over 100.

Boomstick: And that's without rails or wires for Cole to ride on, which definitely make him faster, but aren't always available to him.

Wiz: As for parkour speed, Cole has managed to tail helicopters, but could never quite match their speed while Alex has often exceeded them, putting his speed at 160 miles per hour at minimum.'''

'''Boomstick: Moving on to strength, Cole's best feats in that department are lifting three to four ton cars with Kinetic Pulse. But in InFamous 2's user generated mission creator, the player can interact with a Militia semi truck, including lifting it with Kinetic Pulse. Obviously, if the developers didn't want Cole to be able to lift it, the game wouldn't let the player do that, so it's fair game to assume Cole is capable of it. That would put his maximum strength at just under 10 tons.'''

Wiz: Alex once flipped an M1 Abrams tank, which weighs 60 tons at bare minimum... and that's not accounting for additional weaponry and gear.



'''Boomstick: And he didn't just lift it: he casually flipped it with one hand. And if he could do that half-assed, I wouldn't want to be tossed by him when he's putting his everything into it. And now the big one: durability.'''



Wiz: Durability is a bit tricky for both combatants: Cole has survived bullet wounds and an RPG...



Wiz: ...but surviving the 6 block explosion caused by the Ray Sphere isn't quite what it seems to be..

'''Boomstick: For one, context helps a lot here: the Ray Sphere was designed to give powers to its user, not to murder them. So you can't really look at it as someone trying to kill Cole with an explosion.'''

Wiz: Kessler had the Ray Sphere tested thoroughly to ensure Cole's survival. In their final battle, Kessler even admitted he was worried Cole wouldn't wake up when he used it.

'''Boomstick: And Cole's not the only one to survive a Ray Sphere going off: Bertrand used it as well, and the Conduit Nix was in the crowd he sacrificed. Not saying every Conduit has the same durability, but the Ray Sphere is literally designed to work for them.'''

Wiz: But let's give the benefit of the doubt and take the entire explosion as Cole's highest durability feat. Then that would mean Cole survived a force just under one kiloton of TNT.

'''Boomstick: As for Alex's, that's easy: taking a nuke designed to wipe out Manhattan island. In the credits of Prototype, the explosive yield was estimated to be at 75 kilotons, five times the power of the Hiroshima Bomb.'''

Wiz: But even if the 75 kiloton calculation was misinformed, it would take 68 kilotons minimum to accomplish Blackwatch's task. Even a fraction of this is still far greater than any durability feat Cole has shown.

Boomstick: I'd also point out that it's even greater than the 51 kilotons needed to blow up the Beast, buuut there is one catch: Alex wasn't at the center of it.



Boomstick: That still puts his durability over Cole's, of course, but it does mean that Mercer took substantially less from that nuke than one would assume.

Wiz: Turning what would seemed to be a lopsided match-up into one theoretically winnable for Cole: his maximum destructive capacity being able to match or exceed Mercer's durability.

'''Boomstick: And Cole's no stranger to fighting foes who outclass him in several stats. Plus, Precision's time slow gave him the ability to cope with the speed difference, so perhaps that with enough Beast-damaging bolts could allow MacGrath to reduce Mercer to mush, then nothing at all. Problem with that was Mercer didn't need to attack with the power of a nuke to kill Cole.'''

Wiz: Cole certainly has a knack for surviving tremendous blunt force, but that's not to say Mercer couldn't simply knock Cole unconscious by matching or exceeding the force of the falling steel beam.

'''Boomstick: Then there's the claws and blade. Yes, Cole could heal from a stabbing wound, but being cut apart? Not so much. No amount of electricity'll reattach pieces of him. But there's still tons of questions to go over, starting with the most asked: "If Cross' stun baton could, well, stun Alex, shouldn't Cole be able to do the same thing with his electrical attacks?"'''

Wiz: Cole's bolts and most of his other attacks are of a brief duration, compared to the baton, which could be held continuously. Even then, as the Hydras Alex created could resist such shocks, it stands to reason Alex has gained at least an improved resistance to them.

'''Boomstick: So electricity's not Mercer's Kryptonite, but it also isn't completely harmless either. So any attack that landed would be felt, but it would take higher caliber electric attacks to seriously damage him. And even then, his biomass could certainly regenerate from that. Ditto ice, as Alex's biomass has dealt with low temperatures before.'''



Boomstick: Next: "If Cole once recharged from a lightning storm, why couldn't he just do that against Mercer for unlimited power?"

Wiz: Cole summoning the individual bolts of lightning to absorb power from them was impressive, but changing the weather to that of a lightning storm is not something Cole can actually do.

'''Boomstick: Let's be totally clear: if at any time a storm brewed in a battle between the two, Cole would win, no questions asked. But he couldn't force a lightning storm to happen, only calling upon individual bolts at the cost of his own power.'''

Wiz: And that leads to one of the three biggest factors in determining this fight, starting with Cole having enough electricity on hand.

'''Boomstick: We weren't going to put the two in a field in the middle of nowhere, so in a city area, yeah, Cole would have plenty to call upon. The only problem was Mercer.'''

Wiz: Alex was certainly intelligent enough to figure out Cole's reliance on absorbing electricity, and with that knowledge, he could destroy sources of electricity or simply keep Cole from getting to them.

'''Boomstick: Which he could definitely do with factor #2: Mercer had the far better mobility options. Cole had to rely on powers to climb buildings faster, but for Mercer, it was second nature. If Alex decided to, say, consume a bystander, he could get away from Cole, whereas if MacGrath tried to retreat to recharge, there wasn't much he could do about Mercer aside from standing his ground.'''

Wiz: Precision could help with the agility and speed gap, but Precision also runs on Cole's reserves. That and his healing factor were paramount to keeping Cole in the fight, and once his reserves went empty, Cole was finished.

'''Boomstick: Leading into this last factor that made the biggest difference: Mercer's Blacklight virus. Cole could deal with with Alex's strength, speed, transformations, and weaponry, but he really had no defense against that.'''



Wiz: He could certainly resist being Consumed, and it'd likely take time for Mercer to turn him into a full-on Infected, but the Blacklight virus literally altering Cole's DNA was all but guaranteed to interfere with his abilities.

'''Boomstick: If having Sasha's black tar in his system could mess with Cole's reserves, a living virus could certainly wreck havoc over the course of a prolonged battle. And all Mercer had to do was get in a deep-enough cut or even just cover the area in the airborne virus. *sighs* It's a tough break. I mean it took prolonged battle with James Heller, a prototype that surpassed him, to bring Mercer down for good, and unfortunately, Cole just wasn't there.'''

Wiz: Cole is a great character and could win this bout in several scenarios, but Mercer's stats, arsenal, and Blacklight virus ultimately gave him the majority.

'''Boomstick: MacGrath gave it his very best here, but the odds were simply too biomassive. *sniffles*'''

Wiz: Boomstick, that pun was terrible even by your low standards.

'''Boomstick: I know, Wiz. *sniffles* That's why I'm tearing up.'''

Wiz: The winner is Alex Mercer.

Trivia

 * Research on Alex Mercer was assisted by Antonio valihora.
 * The Cole Precision calculation was assisted by Friendlysociopath.

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