Description: Cut out of the main investigation by her worried partner, Daisy decides to take matters into her own hands and uses some basic detective work to locate the Butcher. Things do not go as she planned, however.
Despite the ongoing case, it seems that after a savage attack of some sort, Daniel continues to shut the woman out; she was there when he first got eaten, and although she endured a battery of interviews from both local STPD and Interpol, afterwards she was remanded back to her normal duties. The count of people vanishing linked to the madman continues to increase, and it seems she's now on her own. However, call it luck, call it a woman's insight, call it fate, she manages to find small fragments of clues and links. Ultimately, people are thinking about this from too logical and meticulous a standpoint. Going to the streets, asking people if they've seen the man with the cornrows, leads her after a hard few days to a squalid brick apartment. The normally locked front door is broken allowing anyone to enter, and a number of squattors and druggies pool around in the lower areas around forced open mailboxes or amongst the stairs and halls between doors. Shouting, barking, and music ring through the majority. It's upon the third floor that everything is quiet, as if she suddenly walked into another world. A familiar sense of darkness would increase more and more, before seeming to simmer like a sun past '306', the peeled black paint of the door doubtlessly housing the Butcher within. He has never made pains to hide himself, ultimately. The reasonable thing to do would be to call Interpol and have the heavy guns ambush the place immediately, along with Daniel and any other resources they have available. Just what will Daisy decide to do, with her enterprising investigation...?
The last week or so of Daisy's time has been spent trying to put out fires. Her discharge of a firearm in the middle of a bustling Japanese metropolis caused quite a stir and it's taken a lot of intense apologizing and paperwork to unruffle the feathers of politicians and local police forces; precisely the kind of thing that drove her to her wit's end nearly a year ago. But Daisy has a new perspective on the necessity of public image within her job and her far more compliant personality shift has made her exceptionally skilled at kissing ass.
Fortunately that's a metaphor, no one has tested just how far the limits of her public relations efforts will go quite yet since most of the big complaints get sent over her head and up the chain. The people back at Interpol HQ probably had three times the amount of work in light of the bizzare series of events that have been unfolding around her and her partner.
That just means she needs to do better! Though she managed to scare the Butcher off, atleast that's her take on it, Daniel hasn't quite been the same since their first encounter with the killer. She's only seen him in passing a few times lately but she can tell that something is very wrong. On top of that, it seems like she's being kept away from the case with no explanations to be found. Did they blame her for his escape? Are they afraid she isn't up to the task? There are no answers to be found.
Which is why she finds herself alone in a part of town that the upstanding citizens rarely dare to tread. To call it a slum would be a kindness and with every step further into the collections of ramshackle homes and abandoned buildings it becomse increasingly fortunate that she failed to wear her usual bright blue uniform. Instead, the agent is clad in a simple t-shirt of bright red but unremarkable design with a pair of cut-off jean shorts hanging loose and unbuttoned around her hips. Her fancy high-heels have been replaced with plain black sneakers and her badge is tucked away in the recesses of a back pocket, out of sight to casual observance. Her gun is unfortunately still in the custody of the police chief. He was not very happy with her.
By either coincidence or plan on her part, this ensemble allows her to fit right in for the most part, save for the healthy color of her skin which is free from bruises or needle tracks and the fresh scent of strawberry from her shampoo that wafts around her like a fruity aura. Her attitude hardly matches the angry and downcast expressions of the gathered unfortunates as she slips into the building, a big bright smile plastered onto her pretty face as she waves cheerful in response to the dark looks that follow her wherever she goes.
By some miracle, Daisy makes it completely unmolsted through the bad neighborhood and up to the third floor of the building. The sudden silence does not escape her notice and she shivers a little at the eerie shift in atmosphere. But even as she feels the tell-tale tendrils of that familiar evil presence begin to slither across her consciousness the young agent marches on down the hall without even the slightest thoughts of turning back.
Outside room 306, Daisy pauses in her slow deliberate strides and turns to peer at the door with a curious look. Something feels different here. Maybe this is the place; but what to do? She could call for back up. A hand goes to her hip where the familiar weight of the police radio should be but instead she finds nothing. Right, that's with the rest of her gear.
Hmm. Well, she can't just leave! He might get away again. Nothing for it but to press onwards. Swallowing a sudden knot in her throat, Daisy stiffens up and takes a deep breath then slowly reaches out to knock on the door.
"Helloooo? Mr. Butcher? Are you hoooome?"
There's a long period of silence before heavy footsteps. That oppressive darkness can be felt growing more and more, before it seems like some great shimmering mass is looming opposite. The knob slowly twists, and once pulled over... a disheveled-looking Butcher is standing there, looking as if he had just been woken up from some sleep. A fine looking hawaiian shirt hangs open upon his torso, along with skinny black jeans. No shoes are upon him, and there's a bleary look of abject annoyance. If not for that raw, primal, otherworldly aura that seems to ripple across him she might believe that she's just hassling someone with a hangover. "You." he states, peeling back his lips. Teeth remain completely normal at the moment. But... there's a smell. A dull copper scent is coming from within the room somewhere, and blood is upon his fingers. "I told you last time... I'm not *interested* in you. You're too WEAK. Call some backup that has a spine. Oh... not that strange cop-friend with you. I'm done with him for now. Someone *new!*"
Daisy manages to stand still for roughly three seconds while she waits, petrified with uncertainty and fear, before she relapses back into distracted animation. Her gaze shifts down to the floor and she taps the tips of her fingers together, humming softly to herself in a tuneless lilting voice like someone waiting for the elevator to arrive on their floor.
It's around the same time that the Butcher's presence becomes more pronounced as he moves to answer her call that the American girl remembers that while she doesn't have her radio she /did/ remember to bring her phone along! Her face lights up with an 'aha' look and she digs around in her pockets, somehow managing to not push her shorts off in the process, eventually withdrawing a small rectangle of pink plastic.
She taps the power button and the screen lights up at the precise moment that the door swings open. Daisy glances up from her small device, peers for a second or two at the towering gangly man looming over her, then holds up a finger at him as he starts to talk and shifts her attention back down to the phone.
"Just oooone sec, please!"
Her thumbs dance across the touch screen with dextrous alacrity and a moment later she holds the phone up towards him aiming the small camera lens on its rear at his face. "Cheese!" There's a bright flash and Daisy smiles. "Perfect~"
Her fingers begin to dance across the keypad again as she composes a message to Daniel, her tongue poking out the side of her mouth as she concentrates.
sup,
look who i found! ^o^
sure looks tired!! i guess evn butchrs have 2 sleep, huh?
i dnt tnk he likes me :( mby hes grumpy
n e way, cnt talk now, will c u later!
xoxo~
Daisy
The phone lets out a soft beep as the message and the attached picture scatter into bits of information that will wind up on the elder detective's phone in a few moments. Daisy's smile returns and she thrusts the device back into her pants, turning her big hazel eyes on the hulking brute again.
"Okay, thank you so much for waiting!"
The flash of light from the photo causes the Butcher to raise his hand, letting out a hiss that no human could muster up. Daniel will see black eyes and a hint of teeth, along with a look of utmost aggravation, when he recieves the picture. After a few long, awkward moments the huge man slowly grasps the side of his door. "Go. Away." he growls out through clenched teeth. "I'm... ...'busy'." His neck twists before there's an audible crack, bloodprints left upon the door as he moves to heavily shut it upon the girl. Truly, his peculiar mannerisms would be a boon to someone with more common sense. Although it's unlikely things will end so simply as her leaving to wait for meaningful backup, as the Butcher desires...
"Aaaah! Wait, please, Mr. Butcher!"
Daisy's expression shifts to one of panicked surprise when the villainous brute attempts to shut her out and takes a step forward, one hand lifting to try and get his attention. Unfortunately, this being a run down ramshackle disaster of a building, the construction isn't particularly safe. The carpeting is all torn up, the boards in the floor are uneven, there's bits of metal protruding from cracked and worn down frames and studs. It's an accident waiting to happen really.
So it should be no surprise that the flustered police girl manages to find one such hazard with the toe of her shoe as she moves to intercept the obvious brush off. Daisy's panic shifts to a new form as her center of gravity tilts, her body not finding the support it expected from her outstretched leg. She squeaks in a high pitched voice and tumbles forward, past the Butcher and into the room beyond.
And then she just kind of keeps going. Instinct takes over and Daisy tucks into a controlled roll, her shoulder hitting the hard floor instead of her head. She tumbles a good dozen feet past the door and comes to a stop sitting on her butt.
"W-wow! That was close! You should get these floors fixed up, someone could get hurt!"
That someone would just brazenly intrude in such a manner completely takes the Butcher by surprise. The door rebounds off Daisy's foot, opening back up just enough for the girl to tumble within. A moment later he finishes slamming it shut, before beginning to laugh. "What... what's this...? Are you an imbecile or not...?" The smell of blood is strong within the room, and the source readily found. Three corpses are settled within the sitting area; there's two long couches, each housing a fully clothed individual. They bear a single wound upon them that seems to have been terminal, but are white and dessicated, veins and eyes a murky, inky black. Mouths are stretched wide open, as if they died in some sort of scream. "Don't you see... it's not ENOUGH." The Butcher turns, a dark aura shifting over his frame as he looks down upon Daisy. "Eating normal humans... a century ago, that was no longer enough. Every essence I devour makes me stronger. But every essence I devour... also makes my next meal more difficult to find...!! Hahaha!! So here I am, in the Mecca of fighters! A buffet beyond comprehension. Why had I not thought of this before?! 'That man'... I think I owe him after all."
But then the Butcher suddenly inhales deeply, before seeming to violently expel a thick, black mist -- one almost liquid, pooling up upon the ground. "Yet you... I ate your kind in the last hundred years. Not enough. Not nearly strong enough. But..." The blackness parts into three streams, slowly heading towards the bodies settled like broken mannequins. "There's still use for the weak..." A drip of saliva falls, before the Butcher moves to head to a great lounge chair and heavily sit within it.
"Maybe your dying screams will attract my next meal."
Then, the horrific essence enters the open mouths of the dead. They begin to spasm and twitch, before slamming mouths closed. Teeth and fingers warp, slowly forming vicious teeth and brutal claws, as some spark of unlife begins to stir within those voided souls.
One by one they rise, shifting about as if whatever invisible strings hold them up are ill suited to the task. And they hunger.
"Come... the least a house guest can do is amuse me...!!"
COMBATSYS: Gluttonous Trio has started a fight here.
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Gluttonous Trio 0/-------/------=|
The horrific scene that greets the young woman causes her blood to turn cold. With wide eyes she stares at the trio of mutilated corpses apparently lost for words for once. That these people are dead is plain enough but what kind of wound causes /that/? Daisy's seen plenty of horrible things in her short life. It comes with being one of the people who has to deal with the scum that builds up on the bottom of polite society's shoes. Every now and then someone has to get in there with a brush no matter how unpleasant the mess is. But this is new to her.
The Butcher's husky voice snaps her out of the momentary trance and she jumps a little as if she had forgotten he was there. Daisy's head tilts and she looks up at the beastly thing as it unloads its woes upon her; and it's plans. Until now the killings had been random and senseless, just brutal slayings without anything to connect the dots. Now they knew why.
Correction: now /she/ knows why. Her superiors will want to hear about this!
"W-well t-t-that sounds really t-troublesome! M-m-maybe you should t-try a vegetarian diet?"
Daisy fumbles in her pocket again, pulling the cute little phone out and bringing it to life so that she can begin to type out a message while she slowly backs away, keeping her nervous smile aimed at the Butcher. Then he does... that. The agent freezes in wide-eyed terror as the black mist pools upon the ground and then dives into ruined bodies. Okay that was weird. Now they're getting up. That's worse.
Daisy shrieks and takes another step back. Her back hits the far wall a moment later; no where left to go. "Z-z-zombies! S-stay back!!" Slamming her eyes shut as if that will somehow make them disappear, she instinctively throws the nearest thing she can find at the zombies. Oh wait she already has something handy!
The phone sails through the air in a lazy arc at the closest corpse, message unsent.
COMBATSYS: Daisy has joined the fight here.
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Daisy 0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
COMBATSYS: Daisy successfully hits Gluttonous Trio with Small Thrown Object.
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Daisy 0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
The phone strikes the face of the nearest approaching zombie, a well-built man within a bloodied white wifebeater and khaki shorts. The 'send' button is hit, but only after another bunch of garbled text is added to the last contact. Whatever partially composed message Little was going to get goes through, but a moment later a sneakered foot crushes it with a splinter. Another is a female in a miniskirt and babydoll tee, some kind of raver from the look of it, rounded out by a slender thug covered in tattoos with a mohawk. All of them have the same black eyes, brutal claws and sharp teeth of the transformed Butcher, who's currently guzzling beer with a number beside him. "Eat up." They then all shriek like banshees, rushing forward. One goes low, one goes high, and the third goes for the throat, as they try to brutally shove Daisy backwards to slam into the wall and sink those vile teeth into her in order to rip away delicious mouthfuls!! They move with surreal unity, as if one cohesive unit. Are they being manipulated, perhaps...? They aren't brainless, in the most basic sense...
COMBATSYS: Daisy parries Gluttonous Trio's Sate the Hunger!
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Daisy 0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
"M-my phone..."
The sound of the crunching causes Daisy to look again and she makes a face like she's about to cry when she spots the pretty pink recantangle underneath the foot of one of the zombies, her eyes and nose scruntching up into a pout. She doesn't have time to worry about such trivialities for long, however, as the small group of reanimated thugs hurls themselves at her with a supernatural hunger.
Another shriek fills the small room and Daisy flies into action. The first comes at her legs in a low tackle, perhaps trying to hamper her mobility while the others move to throw the woman against the wall. She circumvents this plan by hopping into the air, planting both of her hands on the zombie's back as it charges and leap-frogging over him leaving nothing but the wall to greet his gaping mouth.
The raver girl comes in next, swinging her deadly nails like razor blades through the air, which only gives Daisy a few instants to duck out of the way. This happens to put her in the kneeling position when the third zombie attempts to latch onto her neck and she gets a brief glimpse of khaki shorts as the muscular undead goes tumbling over her back.
With both of the males in a pile on the floor, that leaves the woman to contend with for the moment. Daisy throws herself forward from her crouched stance, attempting to shoulder check the dead raver with enough force to send her reeling. The downside is that the impact is hard enough that it sends /her/ reeling too, assuming the zombie isn't fast enough to get out of the way.
COMBATSYS: Gluttonous Trio blocks Daisy's Hasai Yama Desu! EX.
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Daisy 0/-------/------=|===----\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
The trio of zombies are surprisingly fast; the one that is shoulder-checked goes flying, but manages to brace itself and slams into a wall, avoided by the other two which begin to lurch forward. A slow sizzling noise is heard; rancid smoke appears to be coming off of them in multiple places, as if they are in the process of dissolving. Well, whatever fel energies have been forced within them, they are not exactly the greatest of vessels. The Butcher simply laughs; but it becomes quickly apparent he's watching reruns of Always Sunny on his small television, feet up on a milk crate. It seems the zombies' random attacks have not yet amused him enough to pry away from the self-defeating hijinx of the Gang. He's still nursing on a beer, even as another of the undead rear forward, trying to catch Daisy by the arm. Another leaps to wrap an arm about her back, before the one she shoulder-check goes for a tackle to the back of her legs. There's so many of them... individually they are well beneath Daisy, but all at once it's a pretty significant threat to defend against. She'd better remove one from the equation soon, if she wants to retain the upper hand!
COMBATSYS: Daisy blocks Gluttonous Trio's Mob Tactics.
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Daisy 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
True to form, Daisy executes the attack with a level of skill that seems to be out of place with her personality and antics. Her shoulder digs into the space underneath the girl's sternum and she uses the motion of standing up to lift and toss the zombie across the room to great effect. The impact causes the agent to rebound a little, tilting backwards and hopping on one foot, but her panicked state throws the aim off a little and the recovery isn't quite enough to push her out of immediate reach.
The Butcher's laugh gets a puffy-cheeked glare from his 'guest' but she quickly notices that he's not even paying attention to her at this point which is almost more upsetting than being made fun of!
"Heeey, don't ignore me!!"
The distraction almost proves her undoing. Daisy lets out a surprised noise as she's pulled in three different directions at once, her arm yanked one way while her legs are swept out from underneath. At the last moment she manages to turn her fall into a defensive manuever, thrusting her free arm out to divert the last zombie away before he can get a good grip on her waist.
"H-hands off! I'm not into dead people!"
Twisting her arm free of the other zombie's grip, Daisy rolls back to her feet and turns her attention on the easiest target which happens to be the raver once again. Her hands thrust out into the air infront of her and she concentrates for a moment, drawing energy out of the air until they glow with orange-red light.
"Ko-ou Ken!"A blazing sphere nearly the size of a beach ball erupts from Daisy's hands as she throws her arms wide, channeling the potent chi into the space between her palms. It soars across the room like a cannonball aimed for the side of the dessicated woman but which such cramped quarters who knows what it'll end up hitting.
COMBATSYS: Gluttonous Trio dodges Daisy's Ko-ou Ken Desu!.
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Daisy 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
"I told you." the Butcher says within his chair, still not looking up. "I'm not interested in you. Bring me someone fun before you die, and I'll let you go. ...Oh. But you broke your phone. ... ...Oh, well." That seems to be the extent of the sympathies she's liable to get from the man. His flippant attitude refused to even fight her firsthand, although it's becoming apparent that there's quite a gulf between the pair -- if only due to the troubles she's having with these damn underlings! The sudden blast of energy is met with a lurch to the side, the zombie's lower shirt and belly being scorched before an explosion takes out the fridge, causing an annoyed cry from the serial killer. "DIE. QUIETLY." Neighbors can hear the sounds, but this is not the neighborhood where you call the cops. No; most don't want them here anyway, and keeping quiet until it stops while not getting involved is the right answer. And that's when the three zombies rush forward in tandem. One tries to hug Daisy from the front, the other behind, and the third all around. Before slowly drawing her to the gruond as they attempt to just bite and tear and /chew/ upon her, exactly like some kind of horrific zombie flick where the person in question was absorbed into a groping mound of the undeath. If they succeed, by the time she yanks herself free, she's bound to be chewed up and scratched heavily from head to toe...!
COMBATSYS: Gluttonous Trio successfully hit Daisy with Insatiable Hunger.
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Daisy 1/-------/=======|-------\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
"Eeeee! S-sorry!"
Daisy flinches upon being yelled at and instinctively bows to the apartmetn's resident in apology. Ofcourse, this proves to be a rather unfortunate instinct to have in the middle of a fight and her good manners are met with snarls and teeth. No respect!
The zombies tackle the pretty officer in a united dogpile and this time she has no way to escape before she's taken to the ground. A scream that would fit right in with this Hollywood horror film rebounds off the walls of the small room. Claws tear at her flesh and her clothes with inhuman hunger shredding skin and cloth alike. Teeth clamp down on her soft pale flesh like she's some kind of all you can eat buffet and though her struggles prevent any of the evil creatures from taking a solid bite out of her they leave plenty of ugly scratches and cuts that well up with trickles of fresh red blood.
"Ow! Stop that! That hur-aaaaaaah!"
Being chewed on proves to be a rather solid motivator when it comes to getting Daisy in gear. "Get ooooff!" Her arm manages to work free of the heavy press of bodies on top of her and a fist slams into the side of one zombie's head, sending it reeling for a moment. Her long leg works upwards until she gets her foot against another's chest and she throws it away with a powerful kick leaving only one offender left.
Rolling onto her side, bloody and frightened, Daisy straddles the last zombie and rains a rapid fire series of blows down on its face and chest, her fists becoming a blurred frenzy of afterimages.
"Didn't your mother ever teach you not to bite people?!"
COMBATSYS: Daisy successfully hits Gluttonous Trio with Zanretsuken Desu!.
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Daisy 1/------=/=======|==-----\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
The zombies are kicked away with more effort than might be expected, first the female crashing to the ground, then the larger one within the white tanktop. The slender one with the mowhawk is the last, and suddenly recieves a brutal onslaught of punches. Despite ripping into the creature, no blood seems to come out, even as the face deforms with the last blow. The blackness within it's eyes suddenly seeps out in a mist, and only a corpse crashes down upon the ground, leaving two behind. The supernatural claws and teeth have rescinded... that should help significantly with matters! The remaining duo scuttle forward once more, assaulting in tandem once more, trying to grapple either of Daisy's arms from behind and sink in brutal teeth. The Butcher has finished his beer and tossed it aside, finally casting his gaze over to watch. What hope does she truly have...? Even if she beats away these monsters, the madman himself is unscathed and fully rested. But the flame of hope must never die!!
COMBATSYS: Gluttonous Trio successfully hit Daisy with Fierce Bite.
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Daisy 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|===----\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
Daisy continues to wail on the fallen zombie even after it's body goes limp and reverts to normal, her fear driving her to reckless action. Tears well up in the corners of her eyes partly from the searing pain of her injuries and from the overwhelming hopelessness that fills the room curtesy of the Butcher's vile presence.
Her distraction once again proves a terrible mistake. Both of the remaining zombies latch onto her from behind, pulling her arms to either side in a fierce grip that hauls her backwards off their fallen. Teeth sink into her flesh and this time she isn't fast enough to avoid the terrible brunt of the attacks. Blood gushes around the sharp fangs and spatters onto the floor and Daisy screams in fresh agony.
"Kyaaaaa! P-please, don't!"
A fresh surge of adrenaline floods through the officer as she suffers and she takes a deep breath, recalling the years of training that she endured under the harsh taskmaster Takuma. Pain is temporary, she can deal with this! Gritting her teeth, Daisy leans forward and then thrusts her arms down at the floor, shifting the grips holding her in place. The sudden unexpected movement snaps her free from the zombies in a flash, even their unnatural strength still subject to the simple laws of motion and leverage.
Bleeding heavily from multiple places now, Daisy pushes back to her feet and scampers back away from her opponents to give herself some breathing space and time to think. The first thing she does is to rip a long strip of fabric away from her tattered shirt and bind it around the worst of the bites on her bicep, winding it around a couple of times as quickly as possible to staunch the bleeding.
"S-stay back! I'm warning you! You'll regret it if you come any closer!"
COMBATSYS: Daisy gains composure.
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Daisy 1/-<<<<<</<<<<<<<|===----\-------\0 Gluttonous Trio
The two lumbering zombies continue to hiss and sizzle as they approach, before the Butcher suddenly pushes up out of his seat. "Are you done playing already?" he wonders, beginning to stride over in slow, lumberous steps. The undead stop cold, as the skin of those abominations begins to bubble and pop. The infernal energy within continuing to eat away at them slowly. The fallen one suddenly disgorges the black liquid-like mist, which swirls up and begins to orbit the Butcher like some dark star. "I told you what I wanted. A /meal./" He then pulls a cellphone from his pocket and hurls it to Daisy, hard enough to thump into her midsection with significant force. "So call. You must have a fighter friend... haha... anyone who'd come and 'save' you!! C'mon!!" Suddenly he reaches out and grasps the side of the undead's heads. Blackness whirls out of them, before in a spasming shudder they collapse lifeless to the ground, transformation recanted. Inhaling deeply, the Butcher sucks the aura back within himself, swallowing heavily. "Or... hmm. I think I have an even better idea...!!"
COMBATSYS: Gluttonous Trio has left the fight here.
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Daisy 1/-<<<<<</<<<<<<<|
COMBATSYS: The Butcher has joined the fight here as a boss!
THE BUTCHER
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0|---------------|------------===
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Daisy 1/-<<<<<</<<<<<<<|
Daisy continues to huddle on the far side of the room, wincing as she ties off her makeshift tourniquet. Her eyes remain fixed on the creatures quite attentively this time, her gaze wavering only long enough to glance at what she's doing with her hands every couple of moments. This is not going as well as she'd hoped.
And yet it can always get worse. Apparently no longer content to sit and mock her, the Butcher rises from his seat and reclaims whatever fel power animated his creations. The cellphone sails through the air and she twists to avoid it but it ends up smashing against her arm instead of her stomach, glancing off the bone of her elbow hard enough to send a spike of tingling numbness through her limb.
Daisy cries out but fumbles for the device like it was a life line. She misses and scoops it up off the floor a moment later, quickly retreating back the couple of steps she had to take to collect it. For several seconds the woman stares at the killer as if afraid to take her gaze away from him for even an instant but eventually she fires up the phone and rapidly taps out a short message containing nothing but the address, room number, and the words 'watch out!'.
Her message sent, Daisy makes to toss the phone aside but then an idea strikes her. Instead, she flips through the applications until she finds the one she wants and then turns her attention back to the Butcher, frowning.
"A-alright, I did what you want. Now you have to do something for me." She doesn't wait for him to make fun of her or laugh or ask what exactly that might be. She lifts the phone, aiming the back of it at him and clicks the screen. "Say cheese!"
The camera flashes brightly filling the space between them with a brilliant flare of white for a brief instant. Hopefully it'll be all the time she needs. Daisy's hands begin to shimmer with dull red light once more but this time the glow spreads until it too is almost blinding.
"Haoh Sho Ko Ken!"
When she draws her hands apart this time the surge of power that explodes outwards is nothing short of collosal. Standing even taller than the spunky officer herself, it rockets across the meager few feet between them in a wrecking ball of spiritual energy. Even if it isn't enough to take the Butcher out the gas line in the wall behind him is certainly going to expire in a rather climatic fashion!
COMBATSYS: The Butcher fully avoids Daisy's Haoh Shou Kou Ken Desu!.
THE BUTCHER
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0|---------------|-----------====
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Daisy 0/-------/<<<<<<<|
Both of the corpses simply lay where they are, lifeless and mildly singed. Certainly something interesting for the forensic reports, to say the least. Scratching at his bared chest in an idle fashion, a heavy yawn leaves the monster, stretching his jaws unnaturally far in the motion. He waits patiently for the number to be entered, and doesn't seem to do anything more hostile at the moment. Whatever he might have planned is certainly slated for afterwards...
Although his head tilts to the side with a dark grin. "What...? Making requests--" But then there's a bright flash of light, filling the room. The Butcher didn't even blink. There was only a bright cloud of inky black across his eyes once more, just like when Daniel was sent the image earlier. Perhaps pictures somehow help to unmask the man, but he doesn't seem blinded...
Before the Haoh Sho Ko Ken erupts outwards, a blast of chi surging. There's a momentary laugh, just prior to the strike and eruption. Fire, debris, and glass goes flying in all directions. People around start to shriek in alarm, and the reluctance to call for aid is gone now as fire fills the shoddy little excuse for a shanty apartment. But a billowing mist swirls around, one that Daisy might remember. In a split second it passes her by...
Only this time the Butcher appears in /front/ of her as opposed to behind. The heel of his foot strikes out to impact Daisy in the stomach, aiming to slam her backwards into the wall beside the door. Laughing like a madman he begins to kick again and again, trying to rain them down upon her. Before twisting forward to capture her by the face, and haul her inwards so a wicked bite could rip into her shoulder, twisting to hurtle her aside thereafter.
"Stop fighting and I'll make it quick. Don't worry... I'm not going to ~KILL~ you..."
COMBATSYS: The Butcher successfully hit Daisy with Riptide EX.
THE BUTCHER
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Daisy 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|
Whatever the Butcher is - man, beast, monster - his powers put him on a whole different level than the beleaguered officer. She might have been able to deal with someone like this at one point when she was the rising star of Interpol but now it's all she can do just to keep herself alive long enough for help to arrive.
Help /is/ coming. That's what she keeps telling herself quietly. There's always hope. But that doesn't mean she's going to take whatever the Butcher has in store for her lying down! Mostly because he's got her pinned to the wall.
It had been her intent to just the energy blast as a signal, to try and prompt one of the local residents into calling for the authorities or to mark her location for anyone who might already be on the way. The explosion, however, was not in her game plan. Daisy shields herself from the incredible blast of force and shrapnel, amazingly managing to avoid catching any of the debris in her body, though that proves to be minor comfort.
The Butcher's ruthless assault catches the agent unawares and she doubles over from the first blow even as she sails backwards into the wall. The impact flattens her against the hard surface and she pretty much has almost no resistance to offer against the sheer speed and power of the inhuman creature that faces her. Kick after kick blasts into her like a downpour and it is only with the most extreme of efforts that she manages to deflect the strikes away from critical points on her body. Bone shattering strikes become merely flesh pulping ones and when she is bitten and cast aside Daisy is battered but not broken.
Bleeding from yet another location, Daisy slowly rises to her feet, using the chair in which her tormentor was sitting only moments before to drag herself upwards. The cushioned surface had broken her fall offering another small mercy of luck. She coughs and whimpers with the effort of rising but after a few moments of struggling, the woman rises and turns to face the Butcher once more.
"S...sorry... but I can't stop... fighting. I /won't/... stop fighting!" Drawing herself up with a sudden surge of stalwart resolve, Daisy frowns and narrows her eyes. "Whatever you are... I won't let you hurt anyone else!"
As she declares her intent to challenge him again, the slender martial artist lifts one leg up into the air and curls it against her side as if preparing to kick at him. However, instead of unleashing her strike immediately, she takes a deep breath and begins to emit a low drawn out kiai. Golden light shimmers to life around her foot and quickly grows in intensity as the chi in the air swirls inwards from all directions, gathering into that single point of focus.
"Take this! Hiyah!"
Daisy takes a small hop step forward, an effort that sends more of her blood spattering on the floor, and snaps her leg out in a crisp side kick at the Butcher's abdomen. It's unlikely she's going to be blasting him through the wall or anything of that nature but with the building already a ruin and now rocked by a powerful explosion... who knows?!
COMBATSYS: Daisy has reached second wind!
THE BUTCHER
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0|---------------|-----==========
[ \\\\ <
Daisy 0/-------/<<<<<<<|
COMBATSYS: The Butcher blocks Daisy's Kirei Happaryuu Kyaku Desu!.
THE BUTCHER
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0|---------------|---============
[ \\\\ <
Daisy 0/-------/<<<<<<<|
With an air of bored patience, the Butcher begins to circle around, slowly rolling his shoulder and glancing the girl over. "I don't care for fighting the weak... come now, why must you struggle so ungainly?!" He vastly underestimates her prepared kick, shifting to catch it in a forearm. This turns out to be a mistake, as the eruption of force sends him skidding two meters backwards to slam into a shoddy table and send it crashing atop a corpse. A footprint is in his flesh, angry and black. But it almost immediately begins to resume it's normal shape, as a bit of a laugh leaves the figure. "Well... maybe you aren't worthless. Hrrmph. Your soul..." His eyes cloud to black at length, assessing closely. "It was strong once, wasn't it...?" Suddenly he snaps forward, reaching out his fingers as claws manifest. To dig within her hair, and twist down to slam her face first upon the stained carpet, only to repeat the motion multiple times with building snarls. "Now... stop... resisting!!" Blurring in his superhuman speed, he then aims to heft Daisy upwards and hurl her towards the door, letting out an angry snarl that sounds like the twisted beast he resembles. "Or I might break you on *accident*...!!"
COMBATSYS: The Butcher blitzes into action and acts again!
THE BUTCHER
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0|---------------|---============
[ \\\\ <
Daisy 0/-------/<<<<<<<|
COMBATSYS: The Butcher successfully hit Daisy with Brutal Slam.
THE BUTCHER
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1|--------------=|===============
[ <
Daisy 1/--<<<<</<<<<<<<|
COMBATSYS: Daisy fails to counter Excessive Force EX from The Butcher with Stupid Luck.
THE BUTCHER
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1|----------=====|===============
[ \\ <
Daisy 1/--=====/=======|
COMBATSYS: Daisy has reached third wind!
THE BUTCHER
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1|----------=====|===============
[ \\ <
Daisy 1/--=====/=======|
Daisy very nearly falls off her feet after delivering her viscious kick, blood loss and fatigue swiftly conspiring to rob the woman what little strength she has left. Her hand goes out to grab whatever is nearby for assistance and she leans on a tall standing lamp, using its metal length for a support.
"I... I'm not worthless!"
But against his strength her words mean little. Already half dead, it's a miracle she can even move, much less fight back any more. And yet that is precisely what she does when the Butcher comes for her. Thick bloody fingers reach out for her and she tries to sway to one side, reaching out to swat the attack away, but to no avail. Her hair is seized and she is driven face-first into the floor with a brutal thud. The action is repeated several times, each new impact as unpleasant sounding as the last.
When the Butcher goes to hurl her out of his apartment, finally enforcing his wish to be left along through force, the standing lamp is still gripped in her hand. Clenched in fierce spasm of pain and will, her fingers refuse to release their hold on the tall metal fixture so when she goes, it comes with her - as does its electrical cord. Several sharp pops fill the air as the weathered wires snap and fray, spitting sparks in a wide arc as the long cord whiplashes behind Daisy mere inches away from the monster's side.
Daisy lies in a crumpled heap against the wall of the corridor for several long moments, the lamp still clutched in her hands. Bitten, smashed, beaten, kicked, she looks like someone who got run over by a stampede of wild buffalo - twice. Blood trails down her bare arms and legs in thin rivulets and messy smears, practically creating a shell of grime around her skin. Her nose is mushed and wrong, one eye barely able to open between an already swelling bruise and a thin line of red trailing down from her temple.
And yet, she gets up.
Coughing, leaning on the lamp for support, she rises. Her gaze falls on the sparking tip of the destroyed cord and she smiles at the Butcher, casually lifting a hand to brush her messy hair out of her face.
"Careful...someone could... get hurt..."
"Hrmph. Why do you stand...? Such a pathetic display of tenacity. It changes nothing, beyond wasting time. There will be no hero to save you this day." The Butcher seems more aggravated by her resistance than impressed, which means his initial plans of sparing her life could change at any moment to ripping her apart and turning her into some sort of horrific zombie. He looked ready to simply slam the door shut, despite the gaping hole from her explosive chi creating a hole in the wall. The sound of sirens in the distance similarly begin to rise. Help is only some minutes away now. But she gets up, yet again. And instead of close it, the Butcher rips the door clean of it's hinges and hurls it away. "FINE." Suddenly he bursts with mist, rushing forward and appearing before Daisy. "If you wish it so bad... HERE." A bloodied, clawed hand attempts to grasp her by the face and lift her upwards, to slam her against the door of the hallway opposite his own. "I'll feast on your very soul... and leave nothing but ruined tatters behind. Perhaps then... if any care for you in the slightest, their vengeance will whet my hunger...!!"
COMBATSYS: The Butcher successfully hit Daisy with #Soul Devour#.
THE BUTCHER
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0|---------------|---------------
[ <
Daisy 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|
Once she's caught, Daisy would feel her entire body grow paralyzed, before with a shimmer, her own soul begins to seep from her very body. It's pink, unsurprisingly... but much more scarred and tortured than most might think. His free hand then grasps it, ripping it entirely free of her body beyond a single thread that wispily connects. Allowing her to fall to the ground, savage, brutal bites tear and rip into it, hisses of essence flowing out and vanishing into the air. When he finishes, it looks almost like swiss cheese, some ruined husk that was not pure and hale in the first place. "Hah... hah... that wasn't as bad as I expected..." He then lets go, and slowly it is drawn back into Daisy, whereupon her paralysis fades. "Heh... I think I'm done now. I have to find myself some... assistance."
Daisy continues to smile at the creature before her but the expression has more of a defiant cant to it than her usually friendly radiance. Her shoulders rise and fall with hard breaths from the effort of merely staying upright. If not for the lamp she probably couldn't manage it.
The Butcher's question strikes a chord within the woman, bringing back memories of events that transpired not so long ago. She had thrown herself against impossible odds many times, overcome trials that most people would not have thought possible. They had called her a hero and a genius but that wasn't why she had thrown herself so aggressively into the mouth of danger. That isn't why she is so tenacious, why she continues to serve despite being a mere shadow of what she was.
She stood up then as she does now because it is what she believes in. Justice. Order. A world where monsters are the ones that hide in fear.
The Butcher doesn't share her stand point on this matter. A clawed hand slams into her face and she suffers yet another dizzying impact as the back of her head strikes the wall. The weathered plaster cracks and spiderwebs behind her leaving a small dent. She struggles weakly, reaching up to grip his wrist and kicking her feet at him but there's no escape for her at this point.
Daisy doesn't even have the strength left to scream any more. Her soul is ripped free, a shining beacon of purity and purpose - save for the inky black stains that marr its surface like cancerous growths. The Butcher's hungry bites take chunks out it one after another which proves to be a rather novel sensation for the young officer but thankfully a short lived one.
When her spirit drifts back down into her body, the ditzy blonde's face contorts again this time into a hard glare that dispels all traces of humor or levity. For a brief moment, she cuts through the haze of fear and insanity that wraps her mind in a protective blanket. It is a shell, a barrier to keep the harsh reality of the world at bay, to insulate her from disapproval and her own self-doubt. None of that matters right now.
Daisy rises again. She has little sensation left at this point, her soul, mind, and body a united front of pain and shock that leaves only cold numbness behind. The wall supports her once again but strangely the agent's movements are no longer shaky or uncertain. A quiet resolve fills her and she draws strength from the knowledge that her time has likely come to an end.
"You want to know why I stand?"
Daisy's voice is soft and ragged as she speaks, pushing herself upright, but it carries with it a gravity unlike anything she has displayed before.
"Why I FIGHT?"
She clenches her teeth and with a herculean effort pushes herself away from the wall. She staggers forward, taking two hard steps before she finds her footing. Drawing herself upright, Daisy grins at some joke whose meaning is relevant only to her.
"I fight because I AM THE HERO!"
Both of Daisy's hands explode from her sides at her shout and she lunges forward, driving glowing fingers into the Butcher's chest. The initial assault shifts and becomes a blazing flurry of strikes, a dozen punches raining down on the creature in the span of a single second.
"And I won't let you harm anyone else!"
Dropping low, she throws herself sideways at the Butcher in an attempt to body check him back through the open doorway. Her moves flow together into a solid stream of motion leaving almost no gaps between them but she is tired and desperate, her movements not as fast as they could be, not as precise as they should.
COMBATSYS: Daisy can no longer fight.
THE BUTCHER
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0|---------------|---------------
COMBATSYS: The Butcher interrupts Kyokugenryuuken Desu! from Daisy with Aggressive Bite.
*KNOCKED AWAY*
THE BUTCHER
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0|---------------|------------===
The Butcher had begun to walk away once more, hands settled back in his pockets. He stops and turns back to her, listening in a sort of distant manner. Although her initial thrust genuienly takes him off-guard, slammed through the door and skidding on his feet within the shoddy apartment, expression twisting into surprise. A series of blows begin to rain into him, sheer numbers beginning to pierce through the passive protection that allows this monster to shrug off even pistols. But then suddenly his mouth snaps forward -- and her fist slams into his open teeth. He bites down, sinking deep before twisting, hurtling Daisy away to crash upon the stand-up table and folding chair that served as a minimalist dining table, likely to roll to a stop somewhere in the corner amidst the roach and rat traps that haven't been replaced since before he became a resident. Not that he ever did; the owner is currently face down and dead.
"I've lived a long, long time. I know what it's like to be weak. Hah... so weak a child could defeat me. Hated and reviled for my looks. Hunted, and killed. Killed so many times... I considered my immortality a curse. Day by day I weakened, and I feared some day, I'd never move again. Hiding in the dark from you wretched humans, I was forced to devour rats. From rats to dogs. From dogs to people. It was then I realized... humanity rejected me... because they are my prey!! A shame they could not stop me, when they had their chance. Heroes...?! Would you call the mad, twisted faces that bound me to a pyre and set me aflame heroes?! OR WERE THEY THE MONSTERS?!"
The couch is grasped and hurled, exploding upon hitting a corner of a wall and fully missing the fallen Daisy. "Yes. You are the hero. And I am the great monster. But this is no fairy tale. Once I get my fill of this city, I'll go and sleep another few decades. Then I'll come back, and do it again. And again. There's nothing you ignorant fools can do to /stop me./"
He then bursts into mist, pouring in all directions. It floods the room, before suddenly dissipating, heralding his unseen reappearance somewhere else. Luckily, in only a matter of minutes, paramedics and fire department will be here... but Daisy has marks on her no surgery or healing are going to fix.
And certain people are going to be very, very upset.
COMBATSYS: The Butcher has ended the fight here.
Log created on 14:26:45 02/10/2015 by Daisy, and last modified on 14:27:45 02/11/2015.