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Round 1
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As we begin our third match in the first round of the first Macro Madness Megamatch tournament, we have two contestants that are maybe not as well known for their size. Let’s see what they can show us in this head-to-head battle!

Mizella takes her turn first, and she goes right for one of the growth rays lying around, boosting her growth rate to 10%!  An impressive first effort!  But wait, it looks like she’s not quite done–she’s mouthing something…she’s casting a spell!  Oh my, it’s the More of Me, Less of You spell!  Our first size steal of the tournament!  She takes 7% of Zero’s size, shrinking him down under 7 feet, while she tops that amount!  Turning the tables in the very first round, that’s got to have Zero wrong-footed!

Zero does indeed look stunned finding himself behind already, and he flexes to regain some size, but he only manages a few inches.  He pulls some magic of his ow in his attack, landing a Disempowerment spell on Mizella and slowing her growth to 5%!  Quite a flurry of combat, growth, and shrinking in this round, and this game’s just getting started!

Let’s see what happens in the growth round–Zero creeps up just past 7 feet, while Mizella rises several inches higher!  Advantage: skunk!

Scores after Round 1:
Zero: 7.01 feet (growth rate: 1.03)
Mizella: 7.68 feet (growth rate: 1.05)


Round 2
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It seems Zero is eager to regain what he's already lost! Flexing didn't seem to do much, so he's resorted to wishful thinking:

"N-no fair...I want to be taller! I wish to be taller!"

It seems talking himself up is helping; he's already looking bigger for it, increasing his rate of growth by 5%! He'll have to wait until the growth phase, and that's assuming Mizella doesn't plan to take more of his size away!

It's the skunk's turn, and she wastes no time going into a flex, adding a few more inches to her height and barely squeaking her way up to 8'. But what's this? She's reaching into one of her pouches, producing what looks like a growth formula! She downs it, licking her lips as she gives herself an extra 3% boost! She's been muttering to herself off and on as well. I wonder if the pressure's getting to her a little bit—

W-wait...no! She's cast another spell! Rays of energy fly from her fingers as she casts a Moderate Contraction spell!  Zero finds himself going in the wrong direction once again, as he's shrunk below his starting height for the second time! Mizella is well-known for her size-altering magic, and she's wasting no time going on the offensive against her wolf opponent!

Luckily, all of that willful wishing allows Zero to regain what he lost, jumping back up to 7'! He's gonna have to be more cautious and find ways to disrupt Mizella's spellcasting, especially since they share the same rate of growth, because a bigger starting point means a bigger result! She's already up to 8 1/2' tall, and Zero's problems are only going to get worse if he keeps getting shrunk!

Scores after Round 2:
Zero: 7.11 feet (Growth rate 1.08)
Mizella: 8.66 feet (Growth rate: 1.08)


Round 3
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Mizella and Zero race to be first to perform this round, and Mizella beats Zero to the punch.  She starts by boosting her growth rate to 12%, quite a good speed for round 3 based on what we’ve seen so far this tournament, and…oh no…yet another attack against Zero, and she gets him with an Effective Reduction Elixir!  His growth rate plummets back to 0%!  Mizella is determined not to let Zero get any bigger, and she is rewriting the book on defense!

You can see Zero’s frustrations build as every attempt to overcome Mizella’s advantage is thwarted by the skunk herself.  He starts chanting “grow…” to himself over and over, and by sheer will, he starts his growth up again!  It’s a meager 5-ish percent, but that’s better than nothing!

We go to the growth phase, and we can easily see that Mizella’s bigger and growing faster than the beleaguered wolf. Zero stays in the 7-foot range while Mizella grows about a foot taller, up past 9.

Scores after Round 3:
Zero: 7.43 feet (growth rate: 1.04)
Mizella: 9.68 feet (growth rate: 1.12)


Round 4
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Zero wastes no time taking the initiative, and it looks like all of that chanting's gone to his head! He roars, flexing triumphantly as she surges up a full 7%, nearly back up to 8'! As soon as he finishes, he lunges! Looks like he's decided that turnabout is fair play! Mizella grins as he swats his efforts away with impeccable defense!
In fact, it looks like that's all she's doing this round! The skunk folds her arms over her chest, grinning down at Zero. We can't tell if she's giving him a chance to get some of that size back just so she can take it away, or if she's starting to underestimate him as an opponent! That might cost her...the gap isn't as big as she thinks it is—one good growth spurt is all the wolf needs to get right back in this fight!

With that, the growth phase begins. Zero's finally reached 8', while Mizella surges closer to 11.

Scores after Round 4:
Zero: 8.31 feet (growth rate: 1.04)
Mizella: 10.82 feet (growth rate: 1.12)


Round 5
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As we start the second half, Mizella once again takes the initiative and goes first.  She skips the opportunity to grow herself and instead tries to land another attack on Zero, possibly an attempt to shrink him yet again…and this time Zero’s ready for it!  He dodges and saves himself still more work trying to catch up.

And at the end of that dodge, he sneaks in an attack of his own before Mizella can get her footing again!  He connects with another Reduction Elixir and sends her growth rate spiraling down to 3%!  That may be just what he needed to stay in this game!

Let’s look at the growth phase–Zero and Mizella both only grow a few inches, but a few inches means more to Zero at his smaller size!  He’s now ahead on growth rate as well, though Mizella has a definite advantage in size, nearly two and a half feet taller than the wolf!

Scores after Round 5:
Zero: 8.68 feet (growth rate: 1.04)
Mizella: 11.13 feet (growth rate: 1.03)


Round 6
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Both attempt to make the first move this round, and Zero inches ahead. Once again, he begins chanting, his body glowing ever so slightly.

"Grow...GROW...GROW!!”

The growth spell re-triggers, doubling his current rate expansion to 9%! He's only got enough time to finish his casting before Mizella's turn begins.

"Mmmm, you really love those chants of yours," she muses. "But I'm the sorceress here: let me show you how spells really work!" She begins by flexing, adding a few more inches to herself in preparation, gesticulating for the audience before...oh no! She's cast yet another shrinking spell, stealing away all the size Zero gained in the last round and adding it to herself! That pushes Zero back down to 8'3", while Mizella laughs and soars to 12'! Zero does not look pleased about this in the slightest, stamping his foot as the growth phase begins!

Fortunately for Zero, he's cast some good spells on himself as his own growth pace exceeds Mizella's by a factor of three, rising up to 9'. But it's cold comfort when his opponent is still three feet taller, despite only growing a few inches taller. She's been ruthless this round. One has to wonder if Zero's got anything left in the tank after all that.

Scores after Round 6:
Zero: 8.99 feet (growth rate: 1.09)
Mizella: 12.36 feet (growth rate: 1.03)


Round 7
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And as we enter the late stage of the game, Mizella takes her opportunity to lord her size over Zero, grinning at him as she simply does a flex during her turn, growing about half a foot taller and daring him to catch up.  Let’s see what the wolf’s response is.

He gets out a size ray…it looks like he may be going for a rate boost, but no!  He turns it on Mizella and gives her a taste of what he’s been going through, shrinking her down a whole foot and leaving her smaller than when she started the round!  She left herself open for that one!

Let’s see what the growth phase brings us.  Zero climbs up near 10 feet, while Mizella climbs back over 12.  Zero has closed the gap a bit, but time’s running out with one round to go.  This is the closest match we’ve had so far this late.  It could still go either way!

Scores after Round 7:
Zero: 9.80 feet (growth rate: 1.09)
Mizella: 12.04 feet (growth rate: 1.03)


Round 8
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The final round begins! Mizella goes first and does...nothing. I don't think she's used to taking what she likes to dish out! She looks down at Zero in shock, losing her opportunity to take any action. This might be the chance Zero needs to come back from behind. You can see the desperation on his face, though—he needs to make this count!

He raises his arms, flexes and grunts as he tries to go as big as he can! He manages a good six inches, but he's still having to look up at Mizella! That won't be enough, so he takes the growth ray, sets the dial to maximum, and zaps himself with it! He doesn't stop until he's drained it for every molecule of energy, pushing his rate of growth well beyond Mizella's own!

The growth round begins...this is going to be close! We can see the determination in Zero's eyes as he seems to beg his body to grow! "More...grow...bigger...MORE!" he shouts, repeating those words over and over as he barely misses 12' by an inch! He's panting by the time he finishes...but was it enough?

"Sorry, Zero. You lose."

Mizella boops Zero right on the nose as she finishes her final surge, standing just a few inches higher than he does. The skunk's hubris nearly cost her, but she manages to survive by the skin of her teeth!

"Awww, come on, that's not fair! I was supposed to win! All you did was shrink me!" Zero complains, but Mizella's all smiles.

"That's the name of the game, wolf! Cute little trick zapping me with that ray gun of yours, I wasn't expecting that. But...magic beats science any day of the week!"

Zero's left speechless, but steps back with his size and dignity intact. Mizella waves to the crowd and cameras after a stunning upset, advancing to the next round!

Scores after Round 8:
Zero: 11.90 feet (growth rate: 1.14)
Mizella: 12.39 feet (growth rate: 1.03)

Mizella wins the match!


Summary
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What a match!  Mizella really put on a clinic on how to win by keeping your opponent small.  They can’t win if they can’t grow!  She shrank Zero or his growth rate in four out of eight rounds, growing just enough herself to stay ahead.  For his part, Zero did not lie down and take it, fighting hard to try to get back up to Mizella’s size round after round, but Mizella was just too good at keeping him small.  He had a surge late in the game as Mizella’s magic seemed to run out, and if the game had lasted just one more round, he might have pulled out the win.  We only go eight rounds, though, so time is of the essence!

Along with dashing Zero’s hopes of a tournament win, I imagine Mizella has also trashed a lot of brackets out there!  Her upset shows that each game matters, and you have to show up ready to play.  And grow!