Description: The second round kicks off with Pacific's Tiffany Lords vs. Gorin's Brett Neuer. It's a Cheerleader vs. Athlete fight that ends up devolving into a knock-down, drag-out brawl down to the wire. (Winner: TIffany)
After a previous run as the away team and a distinctly /weird/ run, Tiffany is glad to have her next match right in her own backyard -- she's even been given the chance to pick a location for it... though, curiously, it had to be somewhere big enough and sterile enough to support one of these medical evaluations. This put many of the usual places Tiffany would've picked out of commission, so she's chosen the next best thing: the cafeteria.
Indeed, she's just finished a pre-match snack when the official 'go time' hits; surely no one will mind if an apple and half a scoop of ice cream go missing during the fight, right? Right. Of course not.
Pacific's student body is small, so seating hasn't proven much of an issue despite the comparatively intimate dining hall; about one hundred Pacific students ring the outer edge of the cafeteria, standing, with another eighty or so seated in front of them. Despite the reputation of international schools, it's all very tidy.
Ms. Lords, of course, is at the very center of the action, with medics at the ready in one of the corners.
Unfortunately for Tiffany's opponent, he ends up on yet another away stint. First Taiyo, which was reasonably more friendly ground, to Pacific, a place that he's....not sure he's all that fond of.
Brett Neuer really wasn't that fond of the school, despite having gotten a letter of interest before from one of the domestic branches of Pacific. Of course, that was before he learned how much it'd cost, and how little a scholarship would've benefitted him compared to the full tuition. And since coming to Japan, he's always felt a rather elitist air coming from the school. So of course his second round fight would bring him here.
Of course, he doesn't really have anything against Tiffany personally. He actually fought on the same team as her before, fighting SAGAT of all people. Still...he has to represent for Gorin as best he can, right? Still, it doesn't feel like quite as friendly ground as his fight at Taiyo was.
Rolling into the area of the cafeteria cleared out and ringed by students, only a small minority of them sporting the Gorin polo uniform, he feels the glare of high class upon him. Rubbing his neck self consciously with a padded hand, he looks over toawrd Tiffany, a small bow of his head toward her. "Um...good luck to you, Tiffany," he says to her, a small uncomfortable frown on his face as the timid hockey star tries to do pre-match prep for himself.
Tiffany remembers Brett -- the fact that they've encountered each other before, and been on the same side of a winning team, has her excited for this match. After all: if they could accomplish something as impressive as defeating the Emperor of Muay Thai together... what's their /match/ going to be like?
"Hey! Good luck to you too, Brett," she replies, a big smile on her face as she gets herself into stance; she doesn't have his self-consciousness, nor does she really try to engage with it other than a brief, "Don't worry so much!" The stance she favors this early in the fight is tall, and kind of poorly defended; it definitely looks like the stance of a cheerleader and not a boxer or savateuse.
Getting her blood running with a few short side-to-side weaves before the bell, the Lords heiress is ready to go when it rings; she dashes forward immediately, seemingly intending to give Brett a big boxer's dash punch. It's a feint, though; as she gets very near, Tiffany instead leaps up and back into the air, then changes momentum mid-leap, doing a flip that sends her forward in a punishing kick instead.
COMBATSYS: Tiffany has started a fight here.
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Tiffany 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Brett has joined the fight here.
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Tiffany 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Brett
COMBATSYS: Tiffany successfully hits Brett with Exciting Kick.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-
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Tiffany 0/-------/------<|====---\-------\0 Brett
Making sure everything is set and secured on him, Brett SEEMS ready. Seems being the operative word, considering how he still usually needs a bit of a start up to get himself truly into the game, as it were. So perhaps it's not a big surprise when TIffany ends up rushing forward, and when the feint is fell for, the hockey kid ends up getting a serious bell ringing as the flip kick crashes straight into his head and nearly posterizes him straight into the carpeted floor of the dining hall.
Groaning painfully, Brett pushes himself up, blood trickling from his nose already after just one hit....but if anyone was unfortunate enough to think he needed to be checked on, they'd be sadly mistaken as the hockey kid rushed forward, a furious, full bodied charge more like a football tackle than a hockey check headed straight for Tiffany as Brett is forcibly dragged into his 'game face'.
COMBATSYS: Tiffany dodges Brett's Fierce Strike.
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Tiffany 0/-------/------<|====---\-------\0 Brett
Tiffany isn't eager to shove her face into Brett's offense -- or any other part of herself, for that matter. Accordingly, when he comes at her at full speed, she weaves so far to one side that she ends up sacrificing her positioning entirely. Still -- better than eating a full-on tackle to the chest. Her eyes widen a little when he /stops/, as she notices he's busted open; she can't think about that now, though -- not until after the match!
Taking a deep breath in through her nose, Tiffany locks in her offense; stance still tall and firm, she raises an arm, starting to spin it around and build up momentum. All the while, she murmurs a little chant -- one the Pacific High spectators join her in.
"Guru, guru, guru..."
She doesn't finish it out with the proper name of the attack, though; instead, she just aims her freshly chi-charged fist for Brett's midsection. It's a lot more telegraphed than her last blow, but she slides across the dining hall at legendary speeds!
COMBATSYS: Tiffany successfully hits Brett with Groovy Punch.
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Tiffany 0/-------/-----<<|======-\-------\0 Brett
It's not unexpected that the big tackle charge Brett tried to react with was evaded, telegraphed as it was. It would definitely have hurt if it hit, sure, but it was about as direct an attack as one could expect. Hockey stopping after hitting nothing but air, Brett definitely looks different, the timid expression from before replaced by one of possibly over-intense focus, the glower toward Tiffany as he turns back toward her far from cordial. NOt quite predatory, but also regarding her more as an obstacle than a friend at this point.
Of course, the sheer difference of demeanor between the two doesn't exactly reveal much about effectiveness. As Tiffany comes in with that cranking punch, Brett tries to bring up his arms to stop the blow, but instead, he finds himself slammed directly in the chest with the strike, the surprising speed catching him off guard enough to completely double him over.
A frustrated growl coming from him, Brett charges again. Rather than directly attack Tiffany however, he tries to circle around her, before using his momentum to start spinning toward her. While her earlier spinning arm was vertical like a crank, Brett's body spins horizonally like a top, his stick extended out as he spins low, then high, trying to chop at Tiffany repeatedly.
COMBATSYS: Tiffany interrupts Wild Spiral from Brett with Groovy Knuckle EX.
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Tiffany 0/-------/----<<<|=======\=------\1 Brett
Now that Brett's really in the fight, Tiffany's enthusiasm for it visibly increases; she's increasingly become something of an adrenaline junkie, really feeding on the energy of a the fight itself as well as the crowd. Not wanting to let Brett dictate the pace of the fight to her, Tiffany draws her whole body inward slightly after that forceful punch, moving much more conservatively.
When she sees his movement, however, she smiles. "Oh!" she says, brightly. "Okay -- let's spin!" Ducking low, Tiffany joins him in spinning like a top. As that first low spiraling attack comes in, Tiffany meets it with her own spinning offense.
Her fist erupts in bright yellow energy as she swings it around in a glove-clad back-knuckle, plowing through the low spin without any regard for her body. Pulling away from Brett once she's finished her swing, she wastes a valuable second giving the crowd a wave.
Brett might be in the fight, but it's clear that Tiffany is outright dominating at this point. The attempted Wild Spiral tried to chop TIffany down, but when Tiffany spins at him, it's clear hers is better, the erupting energy swung around completely blowing through Brett's attack and sending him across the floor in a heap.
Groaning, Brett pushes himself up slowly, breath sharp as he's clearly taking a beating. Gripping his stick in sheer frustration, enough to even make the steel-reinforced wood to creak a bit, he pulls it up with him as he finally gets up to his feet, and....pushes away, warily hanging back now. THe direct approach, despite it being his main advantage, isn't working...he has to think of something before this turns into an outright laugher.
COMBATSYS: Brett circles, trying to pick up speed and momentum.
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Tiffany 0/-------/----<<<|=======\-------\1 Brett
When Brett backs off, Tiffany rolls her neck and just grins. She can tell she has him on the ropes now, with everything that entails; she can't afford to give him that space nor give him the chance to dictate the tempo. It's in her hands, and she knows it... but what can she do to harsh his game plan?
Inspiration hits her, and she smiles broadly. "Let's see how you handle this one!" she says, proudly, once she gets an idea for just what to do to poor Brett.
Weaving back and forth toward him, Tiffany keeps her stance low for now; it looks for an instant like she's going to come in for another spinning back fist. The truth, however, is a little more impressive; her body erupts in /purple/ sparkles this time, drilling up into the air -- and hopefully Brett's chest or jaw, in the process.
COMBATSYS: Brett blocks Tiffany's Beautiful Spin EX.
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Tiffany 0/-------/----<<<|=======\==-----\1 Brett
When Tiffany comes to him, rather than vice versa, Brett takes the time, trying to calm down long enough to react this time. When she finally comes in, he finally manages to get a stick and an arm in the way when she backfists toward him. The stick and padding on his glove manages to catch that glowing backfist. The shot reels him back, but he's able to bunker down and take the hit unlike before. Rolling back on his skates, he glowers toward Tiffany, as if saying it's his turn to take the momentum.
Charging in, he picks up speed toward Tiffany, though he doesn't go straight at her. INstead, he skates past, then whips around, trying to catch her in a blind spot before he brings his stick up. A glow of blue surrounds the blade of it before he slashes outward, trying to knock her off balance hard.
COMBATSYS: Brett successfully hits Tiffany with Red Sabre.
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Tiffany 0/-------/-<<<<<<|=======\===----\1 Brett
This time, Brett gets a nice, solid blow with the blade of his stick; Tiffany eats it square in the midsection, and is promptly bowled over. She isn't /quite/ knocked on her butt, given the circumstances... but she /is/ hurting, and her eyes screw shut in pain. "Oh, /wow/," comes a breathless groan from the girl as she weaves away, doing her best not to give any ground back to Brett. She has this so well in hand -- all she has to do is hang on!
Her offense becomes more conservative now, almost on reflex; still weaving back and forth but with a little less vigor, Tiffany comes in for a perhaps-surprising power move, given her comparatively small size. Grabbing for Brett, she attempts to simply hurl him to the ground unceremoniously, re-buying herself that space.
COMBATSYS: Brett interrupts Quick Throw from Tiffany with Sir Stanley's Crush.
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Tiffany 1/=======/=======|=------\-------\0 Brett
As Brett strikes Tiffany in the midsection with his chi-charged stick, the Gorin student continues his momentum around, pivoting around and trying to keep moving, not wanting to get Tiffany get a bead on him as she recovers from the hit.
When Tiffany goes a little more conservative and tries to give him a simple grab, her arm ends up finding his stick instead. As she pulls at him, he instead reacts by pulling her back with the crook of his weapon. Trying to yank her forward fast, he ends up meeting her halfway, one arm releasing his stick to instead give a full-swing elbow straight to the Pacific girl's face and bowl her over completely. A gutteral sound escpes him as he plows forward, the Gorin students in the human ring knowing that kind of sound from when he makes a big hit in a game.
That... did not go so hot. The Lords heiress goes from 'solidly leading' to 'an almost even keel' within moments, as she's jerked around with the crook of that weapon and then met with a vicious, full-force elbow. For a few moments, she just lies there... but sure enough, she gets back up, with plenty of time to beat the count.
Well, Tiffany thinks, this really got out of hand fast! Gnawing at her lip in a desperate attempt to distract herself from the much more expansive pain that runs all through her body, Tiffany makes a plan to have a plan, her fight cadence such as it is almost totally destroyed now.
Without hesitation, Tiffany sends herself into a high jump, her body whirling around in midair slowly. She nearly hits one of the light fixtures in the ceiling with her jump; as she comes /down/, it's toward Brett's head with her thighs, hoping to land flush...
COMBATSYS: Brett blocks Tiffany's Groovy Screw.
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Tiffany 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Brett
... and while she lands and /tries/ to spin... well. Brett might have something to say about that.
Feeling the momentum having shifted toward him, Brett u-turns around again to face Tiffany as she tries to get back up from the plowing elbow strike. Returning his stick back to the ready in his arms, he narrows his eyes, trying to measure his breath now that he has the space to even himself out. When Tiffany finally gets up and leaps at him, his stick comes back up, and when her legs come spinning toward his head, he brings his stick up horizontally, forearms underneath to catch, then push away the attempt to spin him him around.
He feels his forearms go slightly numb from the impact. Rather than chance it, Brett brings his stick back to his side, momentum bringing him forward toward Tiffany to try and catch her before she recovers from her failed technique. Flipping forward, he tries to crash his heavy skated heels at her from above, the heavy somersault kicks hopefully breaking through her guard.
COMBATSYS: Tiffany blocks Brett's Falling Star.
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Tiffany 0/-------/-======|===----\-------\0 Brett
The kicks plow forcefully through Tiffany's guard, though she manages to keep her arms up and her body tight through the whole thing; though her arms sing out in pain, she manages to keep it together for exactly long enough to /not/ feel miserable. Weaving back away from Brett for a moment, Tiffany digs deep into her reserves, trying to find some way to catch Brett off-guard.
A-ha, she thinks, after a moment: surely /this/ will work!
She decides to go to the well from much earlier again, in hopes that it'll set Brett up a little better than just /doing/ it. Once again, she rushes up, looking for all the world like she's going to hit him with a dashing punch for real this time...
.. and once again, at the last second, she goes into a forward-flip and aims her thighs for his shoulders, trying to catch him by the head with them.
COMBATSYS: Brett endures Tiffany's Groovy Screw.
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Tiffany 0/-------/-------|=======\-------\1 Brett
This time, she gets a little better position, and accordingly, begins to spin. It's a remarkably controlled spin -- enough to apply agonizing twisting force, but not /quite/ enough to actually snap someone's neck. When she finally finishes her seemingly-endless rotations, she pops off of Brett with a kick.
Catching himself after his flipping kick catches Tiffany's guard, Brett finds himself off balance, not to mention burning through energy clearly. "UGhnnn..." He grunts, looking forward as Tiffany reels away, and then charges straight at him. Finding it hard to bring up his arms still, and with his stamina at its limits, he doesn't even bother mustering up a guard. Instead, he leans in and pushes forward, even as the punch he expects turns into that attempted leg clutch from before. As she spins around him, he feels his neck straining painfully...and when the kick comes, Brett can't quite pull away to avoid it...
...but as he flies back, his stick flashes out, scratching the carpet up as the slapshot cracks forward from his midair roll. The arc of his stick creates a giant wave of cool blue chi, one almost as tall as Brett himself, that flies across the ground toward the Pacific cheerleader, trying to engulf her even as the Gorin student falls back painfully into the ground.
COMBATSYS: Brett successfully hits Tiffany with Blue Line Special.
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Tiffany 0/-------/--=====|-------\-------\0 Brett
The wave of chi bowls Tiffany over, sending her nearly flying into the ring of students around the battle. She kips up to her feet quickly this time, though; while she's dangerously close to falling over, she's almost certain that she has this one in the bag. There are definitely things that could go wrong -- /countless/ things that could go wrong -- but there's a definite, clear path to victory for her now that this has happened.
She hangs almost totally back, just watching Brett; after a few moments, she brings a boxing-glove-clad hand up, gesturing for Brett to follow up his earlier offense. After her recent bout with Kyoko, she has a much greater sense of when to just back off entirely.
COMBATSYS: Tiffany focuses on her next action.
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Tiffany 0/-------/--=====|-------\-------\0 Brett
Brett's path back up from the ground is not quite as brisk. Gasping heavily, he's barely able to get up to a crouching position even with the support of his stick. Propping the butt of it on the floor, he manages to slowly push himself back up to a knee, heaving breaths as he looks up to Tiffany.
Seeing her hang back and then beckon him, Brett sees a problem. A huge problem, just like with the beginning of the match. Rushing in like this would be a massive mistake. But more importantly, he just doesn't have much strength left to simply charge in at this point. Tottering back up to his feet finally, he doesn't move in at all. He pushes off the ground with his skates, trying to circle in turn, turning the face off into a bit of a stalemate, both of them seeming to look for a chance to recover and strike.
COMBATSYS: Brett circles, trying to pick up speed and momentum.
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Tiffany 0/-------/--=====|-------\-------\0 Brett
As Brett backs off, Tiffany smiles. That's not what she was expecting -- not in the /least/ -- but it's good enough for her; even as she stays a solid distance away, she starts to get the sense that she's found the /exact/ hole she needed to in Brett's offense. All that's left to do is go hammer it.
This one isn't /quite/ so perfect as the last one, because Tiffany is exhausted; the Lords heiress staggers in rather than bringing herself into a high-speed, perfect run. Still -- her approach is as sound as it /can/ be, given the circumstances.
Rolling forward, Tiffany springs up toward Brett's face with her feet a second time. Her spin isn't so drilling, so perfectly vertical -- it's more of a desperate forward surge -- but at the very least... it's something.
COMBATSYS: Tiffany successfully hits Brett with Beautiful Spin.
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Tiffany 0/-------/-======|====---\-------\0 Brett
COMBATSYS: Brett can no longer fight.
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Tiffany 0/-------/-======|
Unfortunately for Brett, he's still unable to truly muster up any kind of guard at this point, and it's clear Tiffany is still fresh enough to keep moving unlike him.
So when Tiffany charges in, Brett is loathe to bring his arms up to try and stop her, and the drilling punch manages to slam him in the face viciously.
Teetering back, Brett finds himself far past his limit...but as he finds himself about to topple over, his stick comes up, and with the last of his energy, he falls forward and spins his stick above his head, topping forward step by step like a wavering helicopter as he tries to catch Tiffany with the clumsy final blow, before finally falling over on his side, exhausted and down.
COMBATSYS: Tiffany breaks through Blackhawk Down EX from Brett with Groovy Knuckle!
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Tiffany 0/-------/=======|
It takes Tiffany a second to realize that Brett is still coming at her -- and rather than let him continue his offense, she decides to end the fight decisively. It's a big risk, but one that she's sort of eager to take; she's begun to appreciate the value of a risk, in the right circumstances.
Stepping up to Brett, Tiffany ducks low and starts spinning again; just as before, the heiress plows her fist squarely into that helicoptering blow, putting her shoulder into it in a desperate attempt to deflect it.
Stumbling back, the heiress looks dazed and blank... but she's still on her feet, whereas Brett is down on his side. And in the end... that's what matters. Once the count finishes, she stumbles backward into the ring of Pacific students, letting /them/ support her now.
COMBATSYS: Tiffany has ended the fight here.
Log created on 19:15:49 01/04/2015 by Brett, and last modified on 04:31:35 01/05/2015.