It was a peaceful day in Rome. Hydrogen molecules were floating freely, protonating and deprotonating their comrades. There was a positive charge in the atmosphere, for today was the day of the games. Today was the day that various molecules would engage in battle in the famous benzene ring. The mighty emperor, Carboniouss, was already at the arena, addressing the crowd..
"My fellow organic compounds, I bring you to this arena, in a day of celebration. Today we shall be equals as we watch two combatants fight to the death. Today is not the day to be anti-bonding for we shall come together, regardless of what hybridization we have come from. Now without further adieu, let the games begin!"
The crowd roared, and for once the mighty benzene ring seemed unstable. The mightiest warrior of the arena was the mighty Acidious Fragmentous 22. He was almost unstoppable. He entered the ring today without the knowledge of his next fight.
He stepped into the arena, with confidence, knowing that he was the best. He looked towards the gate, waiting for his opponent. Then the arena fell silent as the emperor spoke,
"Kind citizens, tonight I have a special treat for you all. Through multiple battles, our champion has gone untested, unchallenged, and unscarred. Tonight we shall see what he is capable of, and if he is really the true champion. Tonight he shall not be fighting an ordinary compound, tonight he will face a protein!"
The crowd gasped at these words. Proteins were massive compared to Acidious Fragmentous 22, and fiercer than the other compounds. Acidious Fragmentous 22 looked towards the gate as it crashed down, and out came the mighty Protieron, champion of the Biological realm. The trumpets sounded and the combatants faced each other for a moment before jumping into action. Acidious Fragmentous 22 fought valiantly, but he was not able to pierce the thick armor of the quaternary structure. Protieron charged Acidious Fragmentous 22, knocking him to the ground, jolting his chemical structure. Acidious Fragmentous 22 was stunned, laying on the ground, and defenseless. Protieron approached, ready to administer the coup-de-gras. Acidious Fragmentous 22 then looked to his left, and saw a miracle. In the sands was an endopeptidase. With the last of his strength, Acidious Fragmentous 22 lunged for the weapon and swung widely at Protieron. B-sheets, and a-helixes were flying everywhere as Acidious Fragmentous 22 hacked away at the tertiary and secondary structures of his foe. Within moments, Protieron was reduced to nothing but a few hydrogen bonds, and disulfide bridges. The crowd roared at the sight of the carnage, the emperor was praised, and Acidious Fragmentous 22 retired back to his vial thinking only about his next fight.
Trost, V. M.; Dong, G. J. Am. Chem. Soc, 2010, 132, 16408.
