Chelsea vs Espio is a Death Battle by Peep4Life.
| Chelsea vs Espio | |
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| Season 2, Episode 17 | |
Vital statistics
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| Air date | June 8, 2019 |
| Written by | Peep4Life |
| Directed by | Peep4Life |
Episode guide
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| Gardevoir vs Gothitelle | Qrow vs Bulat |
Description []
Season 2 Episode 17! Akame ga Kill vs Sonic! Which of these stealthy unit sneaks a win in this Death Battle?
Interlude[]
Wiz: As you'd expect, a stealth unit can come at you in many different shapes and sizes.
Boomstick: They're impossible to find - until you feel the cold press of metal on your neck.
Wiz: Such combatants are like Chelsea - Night Raid's assassin and reality check.
Boomstick: And Espio - Team Chaotix's chameleon and straight-man to Vector and Charmy's nonsense. He's Wiz and I'm Boomstick.
Wiz: And it's our job to analyse their weapons, armour and skill to find out who would win a Death Battle.
Chelsea[]
Wiz: During the height of revolution across the Imperial nation, Night Raid's numbers took a beating with the introduction of Esdeath's Jaegers. Looking to reinforce the assassin unit, Najenda would journey to the Revolutionary Army HQ to acquire two new assets: Susanoo and Chelsea.
Boomstick: In her younger years, Chelsea was a skilled underling of a viceroy. Seeing how he took pleasure in taking the lives of others, and was corrupt to his core - taking bribes. Which, if Star Wars taught me anything, was to be expected from his type.
Wiz: Chelsea inheirted the Imperial Arms: Gaea Foundation. With the use of this Teigu, she murdered the Viceroy and allowed for a better figurehead to take over that political role. Chelsea earned her way into the Revolutionary Army's ranks, suffering losses and casualties to her comrades, which only served to toughen her as a character.
Boomstick: I mean, at first she seems a little unhinged with how calm and quirky she was, but it turns out that was a facade for her cold and realistic outlook on Night Raid; they were too soft to get to the end of the revolution.
Wiz: She cited the deaths of Sheele and Bulat as a consequence of their weakness, rubbing a lot of the remaining squad the wrong way - especially Mine. Chelsea would use her deception to cause mischief around the base, but was always prepared to put everything on the line for her duty.
Boomstick: She also seemed to have a nack for lollipops - which wouldn't strike me as a battlefield necessity, but whatever.
Wiz: Chelsea displayed intelligence and experience as she began to encourage Night Raid to be realistic, letting her combat days speak for themselves and completely compensate for her youth. She was primarily deployed for stealth and recon missions, but she was also capable of detecting incoming enemy units when she needed to.
Boomstick: She was also smart enough to manage to sense aura of other people as well as imitate demeanours perfectly.
Wiz: Indeed. Chelsea was a no nonesense character for most of her career, although she found herself being softened by the nature of Tatsumi and his allies. And during the line of duty, Chelsea would take the highest of risks in hunting down Bols and Kurome. After dispatching Bols, she went against Lubbock's suggestion, and pursued Kurome. Despite landing a fatal blow, scientific alterations to Kurome allowed the Jaeger to perservere.
Boomstick: And then, it was run Night Raid, run! Unfortunately for Chelsea, well, Yatsufusa put paid to any hopes of getting home... She made a nice street decoration though.
Wiz: Be that as it may - though I doubt anyone will agree - Chelsea was still a top of the line assassin and a very skilled unit for Night Raid. As mentioned, her Teigu was Gaea Foundation. At a glance, this is a makeup kit, allowing Chelsea to take on the form of any animal or character she comes into contact with. She often uses animals as a means to escape a target, or to make them lower their guard as she performed on Mine, and when she needed to evade the eye of Wave when she murdered his Person of Interest.
Boomstick: It also appears she copies the nimbleness of the animal as well, being able to jump and run in regular tangent for an average cat. It's debatable whether or not she can use their claws as a weapon too, but it's easily possible.
Wiz: Chelsea can use the Teigu to take the form of other people as well. She managed to impersonate Susanoo and Bols thanks to it. She was able to imitate Susanoo with ease thanks to their familiarity with one another, but her Bols disguise was only effective when she had Tatsumi run down the Jaegers' mannerisms and speech patterns.
Boomstick: And she remembered that just from someone else's recollection?
Wiz: Pretty much.
Boomstick: I can barely remember someone's name an hour after they introduce themselves, how does she do it?
Wiz: Well, your life doesn't depend on that memory - Chelsea's does; if she messes up, it's over. Luckily for Chelsea, she is very smart and extremely patient. When she was imitating Bols, she had to wait several minutes for Kurome to lower her guard. The second she did, Chelsea used her needle to deliver fatal stabs to the back of the neck.
Boomstick: Except for Kurome, right?
Wiz: Right, but that was down to unatural means. Remember Kurome had undergone changes to enhance her durability like that. Chelsea was simply unlucky on that occasion, and a little overconfident. Which is a weakness in her game - alongside the fact that her Imperial Arms are vulnerable to damage; Kurome's puppets were able to destroy it in a single shot.
Boomstick: Chelsea is quite capable even when stripped to her bare necessities as well; she is athletic and fast, being able to outrun much of her opposition. And while her visit to Night Raid - in the anime at least - was extremely short lived, she was still a vital player in the rebellion.
Chelsea: All I'm trying to say is, if you don't get it together, you're not going to last long enough to see this fight through to the end.
Espio[]
Wiz: The world of Sonic the Hedgehog teems with villainy and criminal activity. To counter that directly, a group of private detectives named Team Chaotix was formed. Vector was the muscle of the group, Charmy Bee was the small mouthpiece of the unit, but the calm and collected Espio offered something unlike any of the traits possessed by his team members.
Boomstick: Espio, being a chameleon and all, is the pacey stealth unit - eat your heart out, Spy!
Wiz: At times, Espio has shown speed capable of keeping up with the likes of Shadow the Hedgehog. Sure, not directly as fast as Shadow, but enough to keep within the region of him.
Boomstick: Being different to his team does have drawbacks, however. See, Espio can lose patience with Charmy and Vector thanks to their rash and loud style contrasting to Espio's quieter and more focused demeanour.
Wiz: However, he is a pivotal piece of the puzzle, being able to aid the rest of the Chaotix through many missions. He even aided the resistance against Dr Eggman's Empire when it took to power in Sonic Forces.
Boomstick: His role in the organisation seemed to be on the strategic side of the battlefield rather than directly being the muscle of the squad, but he played his part in the final battle, aiding the rebels in the battle with Eggman and Infinite's copies.
Wiz: As intelligent as he may be, and as seemingly laid back he might appear, Espio is quite the show off. Often, he will be stubborn enough to put himself in a position to show off his ninja skills first hand without much regard for the dangers. But above all that, he has a strong sense of justice and will not rest until evil has been subdued.
Boomstick: Espio is typically strong enough to defeat robots with his body, breaking through metal with ease. Hell, he even was tough enough to stand Knuckles to a standstill, and was able to fight on par with the likes of Rouge the Bat as well as toughing it out through physical onslaughts from foes like Sonic the Hedgehog.
Wiz: Indeed, Espio is a worthy foe. By his own account it would take a powerful enemy to do him in. And when you consider the fall back onto ninja powers, and the natural speed and strength of the Sonic the Hedgehog verse, you have a very tough obstacle in front of you...
Boomstick: Espio's main asset could easily be his speed; he is fast enough to trick people with seemingly appearing in multiple places at once! He is also extremely nimble; applying midair jumps and being swift enough to use Grind Rails.
Wiz: His speed can be amplified by techniques such as the Spin Dash. A staple of the Sonic games, this spinning attack is revved up by the character spinning on the spot to build momentum and then rush foes at great speeds. As stated earlier, this move can be strong enough for Espio to wipe out robots with ease. He can also break into an accurate technique called the Homing Attack, where Espio curls into a ball and rushes a target in a lock on motion.
Boomstick: These are often strung together in sequences of around three, making them extremely good for consecutive hits on multiple, or even the same foe.
Wiz: Espio often applies martial arts techniques to his onslaughts, delivering kicks and karate chops freely in battle. Thanks to the sheer speed of the chameleon as well, these attacks can be hard to decipher and defend against.
Boomstick: Using his chameleon biology, Espio can use his long tongue as a tool, as well as being able to latch onto walls and ceilings for better vantage points. Sounds like a pest if you ask me…
Wiz: He can also use the Ninja Arts: Camouflage. Rather than camouflage himself according to his surroundings, Espio turns himself invisible entirely, after shouting out the name of the technique of course.
Boomstick: Why… Why the hell would a stealth unit shout out when they’re hiding? Did I miss the part in Metal Gear where Snake yelled “Hang on a moment fellas, getting my box.” Come on, now…
Wiz: It does seem impractical. Espio does go invisible, making him all but impossible to target, say for the giveaway leaves that float around him.
Boomstick: Again, WHY?
Wiz: But, Espio does become an intangible object; lasers travel through him and he cannot be grabbed. So really, he is more of a ghost than anything in this form.
Boomstick: Alright, you pulled that technique back, it’s all good! Although, like with a lot of his techniques, this calls for a lot of concentration on Espio’s part; the second he stops concentrating, he will return to a very, very physical state.
Wiz: This technique links very closely to his signature Leaf Swirl attack. The Leaf Swirl is a move unique to Espio, though bares similarity to techniques used by all speed types in Sonic Heroes. Espio turns invisible, and creates a small tornado attack to whittle down foes.
Boomstick: It can stun enemies, as well as ragdoll robots if it needs to. And the added boost of going invisible is great for when Espio needs to get behind enemy lines. Though, he is still capable of being hurt while cosplaying a ghost.
Wiz: Being a ninja, Espio also possesses a variety of throwing knives, shurikens and kunais that he can assault foes with at range. Typically, these aren’t too powerful on most foes such as robots, but Espio can summon a three foot long shuriken to harass foes with.
Boomstick: That seems a little overkill. I mean sure, not on a robot. But still…
Wiz: Espio’s knife throwing skills are marksman accurate. He managed to quickly draw, and launch his knife through the ribbon of a package small enough to fit a walkie talkie inside. All before it even hit the ground!
Boomstick: I bet Espio was always that kid trying to get on killcam of the week when it came to Throwing Knife montages. But, if I was as skilled as him, I’d be making all the Top 10’s I possibly could.
Wiz: Putting aside his arrogance, Espio is an extremely worthy foe. And as the policy goes: he’ll run down who do you wrong… For the right price that is.
Vector: C’mon, boys! Let’s go!
Charmy: Yes sir!
Espio: Roger…
Intermission[]
Wiz: Alright, the combatants are set. Let's end this debate once and for all.
Boomstick: It's time for a Death Battle!
Fight[]
Location: River (Akame ga Kill)
Espio froze on the spot and initiated his invisibility; Night Raid members were advancing fast and charged through the wooded area. He quickly clung to a tree and masked himself - ghosting over the area. If what the Chaotix had been told was true, only three of them were out on patrol. Akame... Lubbock... And Leone.
Lucky for Espio, they seemed too busy focusing on their target to sense him. He scooted down from the tree, still masked. But when he turned, he was face to face with a small cat.
"Huh." Espio thought to himself, wanting to move on. The cat purred and walked towards Espio, acting totally oblivious to the chamelon's positioning. And then, Vector just had to chime in...
(Music Stops)
"Espio, get a move on!" the crocodile demanded over the radio. "Are you for real?" Espio thought, as he immediately broke cover, and looked around frantically. The cat then let out a snicker as it formed into Chelsea of Night Raid. "A fourth squad member!" Espio realised. Chelsea smirked. "Bingo! And, just saying, if you want to survive as a spy, you really gotta work on that low profile; I woulda heard his voice from the Capital!"
Espio frowned. "Whatever. I'd suggest you stay out of my way, miss. I have a mission to complete." The Chamelon went to rush off, but Chelsea opened her Gaea Foundation in front of him. "Yeah, and I have a mission to complete as well. But, if you stay still, this should be over soon enough." she smirked, equipping her needle.
FIGHT!
"I'll pass..." Espio muttered, swiftly evading the needle and delivering a chop to Chelsea's hand, forcing it back. He then span up in a ball, looking for a Spin Dash on the assassin, but she quickly took the form of a cat and leapt away into the higher branches of the tree. Espio sneered and rushed up after her, before being pounced by the feline foe. It dug in claws and raked Espio's eyes, but the chamelon launched her off, sending her to the ground. He then landed before her again and kicked her just as she took the form of a human again. Chelsea skidded to a hault with the aid of a nearby tree, but she took a glance across the nearby river, and thought.
As Espio came closing in with a chop, she ducked and then tried to offload a few kicks of her own, but was too slow to trump Espio at the moment. The chamelon then scored a direct hit with a Homing Attack, knocking her into the water. "Hmph." he said, looking at the centre of the ripples. He had a gut feeling... but where was she? The splashing sounds of someone emerging from the water caught his eye, and he quickly launched a knife in the direction, but it was merely a fish. This continued three times, and then finally Chelsea reemerged, swimming directly at him and bringing her needle high!
Espio ducked the attack, and looked for a Homing Attack, but this time Chelsea telegraphed it and used her Gaea Foundation to transform into Leone. She used the physical bulk of her new disguise to catch Espio and then dropkick him across the river. He landed with a splash, but was able to recover quickly. In a blur, he rushed back at the assassin, being smothered when she dropped a smoke grenade, and disappeared into the bushes. But the chameleon took to higher ground and looked down, throwing shurikens around the area and pinning Chelsea into a specific area. The detective landed, and then nailed a Spin Dash, running Chelsea back first into a rock. She coughed, and spat up a little blood, but quickly transformed again, this time into Akame, looking to use her stature to her advantage.
"You know these tricks aren't going to save you, right?" Espio asked confidently. He rushed after 'Akame' and took a swipe at her, only for her to use athleticism and kick him in the back of the head. Espio recovered quickly though, and turned back on Chelsea, launching a set of shurkiens at her. Chelsea gasped, ducking them and brought her needle up, grazing Espio on the arm but failing to hit anything significant on him. Espio hissed, and took a kunai of his own, looking to fence with Chelsea for a short while, clashing needle and kunai. Espio knew his arm wouldn't hold up - even if the damage was minimal, so he switched striking arm and then dialled in a Homing Attack on her. He then brought her into the air with a Leaf Swirl, something Chelsea had no idea what to do against, except hold on!
Her fingers were dragged away from the surface of the tree she had looked to protect herself with, and she was bounced off the floor, being caught with a devestating Homing Attack that sent her slamming into the tree across the river. She through down smoke again, and this time turned into a cat as she tried to escape the kunai. She pounced again, but Espio dodged, and then slammed her against the wall with a fist. She desperately clutched at Gaea Foundation, but an enlarged shuriken was launched her way, cutting off her arm, as well as shattering the Imperial Arms.
"No..." Chelsea gasped, her arm several feet in the air at this point. The splatter of her own blood almost obscured her sight of the incoming kunai. "So this... is my karma?" she asked herself. The silence of the battle's conclusion was then abruptly intruded on by the squelch and the slam of the kunai going through her skull and then into the tree.
Chelsea slumped in defeat, blood now gushing into the river as Espio retrieved his weapon. "I'm sure you appreciate as much as I do the dangers of our work." he added, closing her eyes and letting her rest. He then rushed away from the returning Night Raid, ready to scold Vector over the walkie talkie. How dare he put him in danger like that...
KO!
Conclusion[]
Boomstick: Wow! That... did not last long.
Wiz: Sadly, for Chelsea any way, no. This battle was always leaning in the favor of Espio from the moment the battle began. See, while she is a skilled murderer, Chelsea is never indicated as a particularly tough fighter. She uses stealth to get the drop on her foes, and then deliver a precise needle to the neck. But if she can't do that, her options are rather thin.
Boomstick: Remember when her little needle trick failed against Kurome? If Chelsea had the skill, she would have engaged the Jaeger in battle. Instead, she opted to flee.
Wiz: Right. And she failed to escape in that scenario, which did lead to her death. Against a foe as fast as Espio, she was never going to run too far. Although, she did offer a challenge in her wealth of disguises, they really did nothing but prolong the inevitable; she could disguise herself as animals and fellow assassins, but that wasn't to say she inherited their weapons or skill.
Boomstick: She may have taken experience, being an assassin for longer than Espio has been a detective, but what mattered was how they spent those years. Chelsea was a stealth unit specialized in surprise attacks whereas Espio could easily take on robotic units.
Wiz: Espio took durability as well, thanks to his ability to withstand attacks from Sonic and Knuckles, while carrying on fighting. And thanks to his speed, it was unlikely that Chelsea could A: React to him and B: Actually hit him with an attack.
Boomstick: Remember how slow to react she was against Kurome's puppets? Sure, they had a long bladed weapon, but Chelsea couldn't get anywhere near enough movement to dodge. And if she couldn't evade a large, slow weapon how do you think she'd fare against a fast foe like Espio?
Wiz: One final nail in the coffin, though not really used in the battle, was Espio's stealth trumping that of Chelsea's. See, Chelsea could take the form of creatures and people, sure, but Espio was the only one who knew how to be truly invisible. While yes, Chelsea could detect his aura - potentially - there is no saying she could react to his attack in time, whereas Espio would not fall for the disguises thanks to his known paranoia and reasonable intelligence. Chelsea could make things a little frustrating, sure, but ultimately she was always on the losing end of this battle.
Boomstick: And I kunai said it better myself...
Wiz: The winner is: Espio!
