Challenge for Overlord

[Seirichi]

For those of you who don't like reading too much.

"I'm Rakeesh. I should of posted my response the day after Matt challenged. My bad."

[Harris]

You cannot anger me, Seirichi. It is not worth your effort. The Grant is given and there is naught that can change that.

For the sake of one of the youth of this city, may your poison not seep into your unborn child. It deserves better than to end up as you have.

Roll around in the dirt with me, Rakeesh. I'd suggest you watch your mouth when addressing Seirichi in regard to our yet unborn 17-time Diamond.

Tass seems overly concerned with chopping your head off. If you keep it up, I will be too. Except I don't aim as high, and I doubt you'd want to be gelded in the ring, Ward or not. You certainly don't want it to happen outside the ring, because they definitely won't grow back.

[Ria Graziano]

Anyone else notice Mr. Spirit and Sportmanship called his not bothering to follow the rules a "triviality?"

But yeah, pity the fuzzass. He "worked hard to get where [he] was despite many obstacles." Poor baby, bad childhood and all. Ain't 'nublet used this line before too?

Dude made the big time, he won a couple a times, he's too damn cool for school now and s*** don't apply to him.

The note is unsigned but the handwriting is identical to a previous one.

[DUEL Norah]

To be clear on the matter at hand:

Rakeesh will hold his title until the matter is settled by the Baron's Council. Kyra Jessup, having been awarded the Overlord's Grant, remains eligible to use it for one week from the time of its declaration. It is my advice to the holder of the Overlord's Grant to not make the same mistake and sit on it too long no matter how comfortable doing so might seem.

Also, if Kyra would like to come by Topical Cupcakes, she has a free cupcake waiting for her!

[Andrea Anderson]

To be clear on the matter at hand:

Rakeesh will hold his title until the matter is settled by the Baron's Council. Kyra Jessup, having been awarded the Overlord's Grant, remains eligible to use it for one week from the time of its declaration. It is my advice to the holder of the Overlord's Grant to not make the same mistake and sit on it too long no matter how comfortable doing so might seem.

Also, if Kyra would like to come by Topical Cupcakes, she has a free cupcake waiting for her!

I will not comment on the Overlord, but I want to express my gratitude for this choice. Kyra Jessup earned her right to challenge for a barony and I'd like to personally congratulate her on her victory.

Baroness of Seaside
Andrea Anderson

[Corlanthis]

Kyra's cupcake is going to have a countdown timer wedged in the frosting, isn't it?

[Maria Graziano]

Rakeesh, thank you for finally being interesting. I am so amused right now.

I really do hope they vote to strip. This is just another example of your disrespect and arrogance. And, yeah, I know arrogance.

- MG

[MurOllavan]

This is what he should get for waiting all seven days to respond. Stripped of his title, without any fanfare whatsoever. You know why these chumps take all week to accept officially? Because they suck, pure and simple. There are quite a few around these rings that habitually do this.

They are just stretching out their reign because they know for a fact they have a zero percent chance of defending. I answered my Overlord challenge inside of a couple of hours, anyone taking longer is stalling and deserves to be stripped. If I was on the council I would strip and vote Xanth as champion and I would not listen to any other apologetic nonsense.

[Goldglo]

Copies of the following letter are sent to the Barons, their Squires, Norah Vanderhildt and the Overlord:

When the challenge-response deadline passed with no reaction from Rakeesh Sah Tarna, I believed he had heeded the words I wrote when issuing the challenge in the first place. It was my hope that the Overlord would set aside his lust for personal glory and turn his focus and attentions to those things he purported to hold as important and dear – the safety of Old Temple’s citizens.

For a moment, I believed he had done this.

It appears I was mistaken.

To Rakeesh Sah Tarna,

You continue to disappoint me. However, I commend you on the time and effort you personally placed into holding the Overlord’s Grant tournament – I hear it was a hard fought contest and won by a worthy participant. I am pleased to learn that Kyra Von Jessup will not suffer at the hands of your oversight and be stripped of the Grant – she won the prize and deserves its use.

Regarding this challenge: You claim you were not negligent. You were. Again. You claim that ignoring my challenge is a triviality. The Council will decide whether you’re correct. You claim you are supporting our sport and in that, you are correct – the Grant Tournament is evidence of such and I again applaud your efforts in that regard. You write that you have earned your place to fight. You’re again correct, you have earned it. And you chose, perhaps innocently, to set that aside in lieu of other matters.

It may truly be that you made a simple mistake or straightforward oversight in not responding to the Overlord’s challenge. The consequences of that mistake now lie out of your hands and mine. My goal in challenging was to remove you from the Overlord’s seat; if I can do so without stepping into the ring, I will not cry foul. If I do not obtain the Overlord’s mantle myself out of the Council’s decision, that is an acceptable outcome.

It is my continuing hope that you will separate your persona as dueler from your life outside the rings. Serve Old Temple, fix the problems there. Then come again and win title in these rings if such is your desire. As you’ve proven, now is not the right time for you to be Overlord.

To the Baron’s Council and Norah Vanderhildt,

For the moment, let us set aside the political and emotional unrest attributed to Rakeesh Sah Tarna over the last several weeks. Let us set aside his personal threats to myself. I ask that you focus on this challenge alone. For weeks now, Rakeesh Sah Tarna has asked that we look past his ill choices and focus upon his actions of now – the actions he’s taking to right his wrongs and rectify his errors.

I ask that you thus do exactly that: focus upon his actions and in this case, his inaction. I take away nothing from Rakeesh – he won the mantle from Candy Hart and defended it from Ticallion Carter. But Rakeesh has, here, made a choice. Disappointed with the consequences of that decision – whether it was a conscious decision or not – he now hopes that you will undo those consequences and allow him to continue to hold his title and rank.

As Maria Graziano often states, we are players of sport. Some of us are stars, others are not. Regardless of our standings in the rings and our accomplishments, the onus now falls to you to decide whether Rakeesh Sah Tarna is worthy to hold the title and responsibilities of Overlord, to claim the topmost rank over all participants of this sport. Is he worthy as a man? That is not the question before you. Is he worthy as a participant, as a dueler? That is the question before you. It is up to you to decide whether his intent overrides his culpability – a common theme following him these days. Whatever your decision, I will accept it without complaint.

--Matthew Algiers Simon

[Charles Blackstone]

I have remained silent this time the challenge came around. Far more silent then I was the first time.

But that was then. This is now.

What I am about to say is almost contradictory to everything I have said before, however I believe it is a valid point to make.


Being the Keeper of the Tower of Fire in the Duels of Magic, I have made sure that whenever someone has challenged me, I responded as promptly as I possibly could, usually within a day.

And that is me just being a keeper. I have followed the other Disciplines of dueling and I have noticed that nearly all other duelist that have won some position of merit-able rank have , also, promptly responded to challenges.

So why can't the overlord do the same thing?

I understand the fact that he held a tournament recently, I participated in that very tournament. But I see no excuse to why the overlord could not have responded promptly and fully to Matt's challenge.

However the decision on whether his title is stripped is not up to me. It is up to the council to decide. But if I may say, this had happened with Rakeesh before. How many more times are you going to let this happen before he is punished?

-Charles

[Charles Blackstone]

This isn't life or death. This isn't some sort of glorious fight on a battlefield. This is sports. Two guys going at it in the middle of the ring for others amusement. Don't make it out to be anything spectacular.

Thank you for saying this.

[Maria Graziano]

I am being quoted now as a philosopher on dueling.

I am so awesome.

- MG

[Seirichi]

I am being quoted now as a philosopher on dueling.

I am so awesome.

- MG

About damn time.

Also, it looks like I owe someone 1000 nobles. It wasn't Matt who choked in the end, it was Mr. Kitty.

[Elijah]

I have never had much sympathy for those who can not follow the basic procedures of protocols promptly that govern the aspects of the sport especially in regards to the challenge process. I find it of insulting disrespect for one party to wait till the very last bitter minute to respond to such paperwork "trival" messages to begin with, but find it ironically laughable that such grandiose schemes can be shattered by technicality.

The rules are the rules, regardless of the past, present, or future, of any individual. No dueler is greater than the sport.

[BardGallant]

I am being quoted now as a philosopher on dueling.

I am so awesome.

- MG

About damn time.

Also, it looks like I owe someone 1000 nobles. It wasn't Matt who choked in the end, it was Mr. Kitty.

You can leave my money in the office. I'll swing by and pick it up one of these days.