Description: For the first time ever, one of fighting's most famous names comes to Professional Fighting Worldwide's BLITZ(tm)!! Don't miss this spectacular event, held in Russia's CYCLONE ARENA, the historic PFW battlegrounds and site of some of the best matchups the RF's seen in contemporary fighting! Come to see if star JOHNNY CAGE has what it takes to BLITZ, and stay to watch the scintillating HONOKA KAWAMOTO perform her mesmerizing routine against a film legend! Will CAGE get spellbound, or will HONOKA fall victim to the NINJA MIME? Nothing is just for show when you step inside THE OCTAGON! (Winner: Honoka)
The seats are packed here at the Cyclone Arena -- a night of awesome entertainment is much more cozy than the near-freezing chill outside. Moscow's centerpiece stadium has played host to a great number of PFW bouts in the past, and tonight is shaping up to be its own spectacle.
A number of lesser contests have already taken place here -- mostly, up-and-coming Russian fighters strutting their stuff and doing their part in keeping the crowd happy. And after each match follows a bit of an intermission -- a clown show, a comedy segment, that sort of thing. But after the penultimate match of the evening, the final challenger has made an early appearance.
Honoka Kawamoto, of Japan's touring Twilight Star Circus, is well-versed in holding the attention of the audience. In stark contrast to the chill outside, Honoka is practically on fire, wowing the audience with her scintillating juggling performance. Two diabolos, ignited into a whirling balls of flame, swirl around in apparent defiance of gravity and momentum, even as the Ainu-Japanese performer pirouettes, spins, and flips about. The tendrils of flame lick tauntingly close to the circus performer, but never closely enough to set her thin white-and-violet leotard aflame.
One obvious difference from the circus performer's usual costume is the addition of slender devices, fancifully named "JOUST devices". These devices are sheathed in white plastic, and bound to her wrists, ankles, and around her belt. As her performance proceeds, the added weight of the devices seems to be less and less of a problem for the circus veteran.
One might think the lithe combatant should be preserving her energy for the upcoming main event: her higher-ranked, movie star opponent is no pushover. But, in a few moments when she's locked within the confines of an 18x18 octagonal cage, she won't be able to use her diabolos as freely. No... right here in the clear expanse of the Cyclone Arena's main stage, outside of the cage: now is the best opportunity for the smiling, energetic performer to hype up the crowd. The acclaim of the crowd is the best and strongest weapon in a performer's arsenal, after all -- which should help -both- fighters out in the long run!
"Ladies and gentleman!" An announcer's voice suddenly proclaims over the arena speakers. "Please welcome Mr. John Carlton! The blue eyed actor from Venice California!"
A rock instrumental starts to build up. "He's cool! He's hot! HE'S JOHNNY CAAAAAAAGE!"
Fireworks explode from one of the doors leading to the arena itself, and Johnny comes running out with his arms raised. He performs a few flips, pauses to shadow box and throw out some kicks tinted with green energy, and finishes with a mighty leap into the octogonal ring. More pyrotechnics surge upwards behind him as he spreads his arms and beckons for the crowd to get LOUDER. All the while, posters of his various movies flash on the big screens that will broadcast the fight.
He finishes by putting on his signature shades; the actor is wearing his usual fighting outfit - expensive yet functional pants, sneakers, a giant belt that says CAGE on the buckle, hand wraps, and his name tattooed on his chest. In addition, he also sports the sleek JOUST wear like his opponent on his extremities, though instead of a belt, he has a chest harness - which obviously is tailored to not obscure his tat.
Honoka's performance doesn't so much end with the announcement as seamlessly segue into a slower pace. The flames twirl about, tracing sinuous paths into the air as she turns her attention to Cage. From her smile, she seems just as pleased by the arrival of the box office star as she is by the pounding rock instrumental that heralds him. Her hands are occupied by the thin wands used to twirl her juggling props around -- but she's able to swing the diabolos up, twirling them about on a finger as she blows out the flames like a birthday cake's candles.
And -then- she claps for Johnny Cage, timed perfectly to stride into the octagon right after his fanfare ends.
The BLITZ Arena is a marvel of modern technology. Each side of the cage contains complicated gadgets that interact with the JOUST devices, allowing a punch to strike with double the force -- or a defensive stance to be twice as defensive, with the right motion. In short, the BLITZ arena dials the intensity up, not just to ten, or eleven, but potentially to -twenty-.
It's all due to rare earth magnets or something, who cares?! The point is, it's quite obvious that something's different as Honoka steps into the BLITZ Arena, with the trills of her bubbly J-pop dance theme approaching but never quite matching the intensity of Cage's bombastic entry. Her steps are springier, her motions exaggerated -- the opposite of her weighed-down performance from earlier. As before, it doesn't take long for the acrobatic performer to reacclimate herself to the new environment; she seems perfectly dialed in after a few tenative steps and swings of her arms.
An attendant -- or coach? It's hard to tell -- sweeps into the ring, exchanging Honoka's formerly-flaming diabolos for a simpler variant. These new diabolos are darker, and seem to be a bit heavier, but it doesn't seem to deter her from twirling them about. Bowing her head to Johnny Cage, she offers the movie star a friendly smile. "Of all the ways I expected to bump into you..." she begins...
Just in time for the heavy metal doors of the cage to slam shut with a resounding CLANG. "... I hadn't expected anything like -this-," she continues, with a thin smile across her lips.
The diabolos swing into motion. It's not as flashy as before -- she can't leap and twist about -- but the diabolos carve a steady figure-eight pattern before her, offering a tangible threat should Johnny attempt to strike the lithe Twilight Star performer head-on.
COMBATSYS: Honoka has started a fight here.
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Honoka 0/-------/-======|
COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage has joined the fight here.
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Honoka 0/-------/-======|-------\-------\0 Johnny Cage
COMBATSYS: Honoka focuses on her next action.
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Honoka 0/-------/-======|-------\-------\0 Johnny Cage
Johnny was feeling super pumped for this event. A hardcore arena like this was perfect to show the hardcore side of the fighting crowd that he was completely legit, once you get past the glitz and glamor. He flashes Honoka a grin and a thumbs up. "What better way to meet ME than in a televised fight for a huge audience?" he replies.
Johnny spreads his legs and raises his arms in a Jeet Kune Do derived stance. The screens show the two fights and he can feel a slight rumble of his JOUST attachments activating.
"Get ready for a real show!" he declares, then kicks his leg out. It becomes wrapped in green energy as he slides forward...but then the JOUST takes effect. The green energy becomes an EXPLOSION of green as it emanates from his leg like fire, and the speed of his slide is doubled so one second he's across from her, the next he's planting a kick into her midsection.
COMBATSYS: Honoka blocks Johnny Cage's Shadow Kick.
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Honoka 0/-------/=======|=------\-------\0 Johnny Cage
Jeet Kune Do isn't a fighting style that Honoka is terribly familiar with, at least not in person. Sure, she's watched a few of the star's movies before, but fighting someone in person is a huge difference from seeing the moves on a small screen. Consequently -- she's not -quite- prepared for the lighting-quick speed of the JOUST-boosted kick that comes rocketing towards her. It's all she can do to cross the two diabolo batons in front of her, neatly blocking the impact but doing little to stop the lithe fighter from being propelled backwards.
The cage CLANGS, reverberating from the impact of the diaboloist's frame crashing into it. Her diabolos are knocked out of their rapid orbits, clanging uselessly to the cage, and then thudding onto the floor. The JOUST system is in full swing, the capacitors and tiny rotating servos within letting out high-pitched whines as the impact is shown in beautiful 4K HD on the megascreens overhead.
"Ugh... did I forget to ask you to take it easy on me? Ahaha..." The fighter's arms sag -- if it weren't for the JOUST system it's unlikely she'd be able to even -lift- them afterwards from the sudden shock. But sure enough, she's able to step away from the wall -- and pivot around. She may not have her diabolos available, but that won't stop her from rocketing forward, aiming to plunge her palm right into Johnny Cage's well-sculpted abs. But that's not all -- she'd also be aiming to arc a rather powerful burst of energy into his midsection -- strong enough to make him queasy enough to regret the last meal he'd ate, should he be so unlucky.
She's also fully cognizant of the forgotten diabolos, tossed carelessly on the floor. Hopefully he won't be stepping on them...
COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage blocks Honoka's Pon-itak Ki.
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Honoka 1/-----==/=======|===----\-------\0 Johnny Cage
Johnny blocks his abdomen with his arms, Honoka's palm slamming into him. He stands his ground, but the follow up chi blast sends him sliding backwards on his feet a good distance, coming to a rest with bruises on both arms and a nauseous feeling - which even permeated through his block! "Ugh...easy? Nah. Stylish AND powerful? Double yes," he replies, cracking his neck.
He moves towards her again, covering the distance quickly and suddenly flowing past her like water. He attempts to move to her instep, hooking a leg around one of hers, then grabbing her and throwing her hard down onto the ground. With JOUST, it's hard enough to make the arena shake!
COMBATSYS: Honoka blocks Johnny Cage's Front Throw.
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Honoka 1/-----==/=======|====---\-------\0 Johnny Cage
The audience roars their approval of the JOUST system. Part of the downfall of traditional mixed martial arts is that much of the complexity is lost on the layperson -- all it looks like from a distance is playing footsie. But the Twilight Star performer can appreciate the technical skill of her opponent -- if not only the bravado and smugness. She always did have a soft spot for Americans who can speak their mind.
When Johnny steps forward, Honoka steps backwards. Her shin still finds itself in his path, but she's already taking the motions to roll with the attack -- such that when he makes a grab for her arm, she's already pivoting out of the way. The net effect is that she's shoved to the ground, but she's able to deflect off the arena floor on her own terms, not those of the multi-millionaire movie star.
Of course, the JOUST system overanticipates her intention here, causing her to not only roll ... but roll -further-, causing the lithe juggler to bounce off the cage with another clatter. "Tch... almost had me," she compliments. Damn narrow quarters.
But, as before, she's quick to adapt -- she leaps at Johnny, falling a bit short -- but it's just a distraction, so that she can backflip into a JOUST-boosted flipkick aimed at knocking Johnny backwards! "Nnn-HAA!"
COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage fails to interrupt Strong Kick from Honoka with Director's Cut.
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Honoka 1/--=====/=======|=======\-------\1 Johnny Cage
Johnny watches and waits for Honoka to counter attack, moving back after his throw attempt. He charges up one of his hands with energy, preparing to slam it into the acrobat as soon as she gets close. He feels the crowd's roar and is pumped by it; it's his ambrosia.
However, he misjudges, thrusting his green fist forward at her faked attempt - this leaves him wide open for her flipkick. BAM! Johnny is sent flying up and away, all the way into the wall of the arena cage, falling onto his face soon after. He struggles to his feet, breathing heavily and looking unsteady - his jaw feels like it's on fire. "Uugh..."
Honoka lands back upon her feet, overselling the stance just a bit in order to evoke a stronger reaction from the crowd. She flexes her toes, widening her stance slightly as she spares a smile for the cameras. The fans are the reason for the fighting -- and she's definitely hoping to leave a more enduring mark on them than upon the movie star.
Though she wouldn't mind that either, judging from the sly smile crossing her lips. Not everyone is as straightforward a fighter as they may seem, especially not the Twilight Star juggler. Flexing her right hand with an audible whine from the JOUST gear, she coos, "Don't tap out just yet, Mister Cage. The show must go on, after all..."
In her left hand, though, are the batons from her diabolo routine earlier. With a flourish, she twirls one baton around her right index finger before settling it into her palm. And then she's on the move again, storming toward Johnny. There's little room to maneuver here -- flipping was about as much as she could manage. But close quarters combat is where the dual stick techniques of Escrima truly shine: Honoka rolls the batons towards his right shoulder, drumming one-two-three, before shifting to the other side for a rapid followup, four-five-six. The JOUST system promises to make even this simple attack more potent than usual...
COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage dodges Honoka's Random Weapon.
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Honoka 1/--=====/=======|=======\-------\1 Johnny Cage
"Please, haven't you seen my movies? Even if I get beat to shit, I still come out on top with a sweet comeback!" Johnny says, still finding time to stroke his ego. He waits for Honoka to come at him again. This time, he's ready; he dodges each and every baton strike she unleashes at him, moving at an increased speed thanks to JOUST.
He finishes by suddenly grabbing her shoulders and flipping over her, then performing another flip to get some distance between them. He turns around, thrusting one finger in the air as he concentrates a ball of green chi above his finger tip. He then starts rolling it around in his hands and between his arms, showboating for the crowd before he gives it an underhanded toss towards her.
COMBATSYS: Honoka reflects Out Take from Johnny Cage with Tokap Chup Kamui.
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Honoka 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\-------\1 Johnny Cage
Honoka smiles broadly -- she knows Johnny's a world-class fighter, and she's happy to see that he's quick enough to keep things interesting for the audience, neatly evading each of her strikes. He's nimble on his feet -- though part of the adrenaline rush she gets comes from seeing his feet narrowly miss stepping on one of the diabolos that had gotten knocked aside in their first exchange. Any misstep could put a quick end to the fighter, after all...
So yes, he'll make a totally sweet comeback. "Oh, good... but I hope this doesn't paint me as the villain, though..." she notes, taking a step back, and twirling the corded baton about one of her fingers. "Maybe... a rival, or a setup for a future sequel?"
When she sees Johnny reeling back with one finger in the air, though, her poise changes from coquettish (flirtatious?!) to wary: her mind is hard at work on an appropriate reaction. Her baton snaps out, as her fingers pinch at the string. She can't use her -usual- means of dealing with the attack due to the limited quarters -- but she -can- whirl the baton around like the blade of a fan.
She has to give him credit -- she hadn't expected Cage to lug it underhanded. She steps sideways, and with a quick snap of her wrist, she aims the baton into the energy ball. Her brow furrows as her baton glows with pink energy, allowing her to bring the Johnny's projectile to heel.
Swinging the cord of her diabolo batons around, she slingshots the ball around in a tight circle, before redirecting the ball's momentum towards Johnny with a sidearm throw. Judging from the timbre of the JOUST system and the slight tendrils of pink energy coiled around his energy ball, it might be a smidge stronger now.
COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage blocks Honoka's Reflected Out Take.
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Honoka 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\=------\1 Johnny Cage
"Damn!" Johnny cries just before the ball is slammed back at him - almost too fast for the cameras to keep up. He gets hit and the ball explodes like green and pink fireworks, though his arms block the strikes fairly well. They smoke a little from the impact, and he lowers them, looking at Honoka with a determined look. "Have my agent call your agent," he replies.
He runs at her, sliding like a baseball player as if he's about to hit her shins. Of course, his slide has him positioned with his head held in one hand like a model posing for a magazine. But this is his feint, as he suddenly does a flipkick while covered in red energy, boosted to be a BLAZING red energy aura. He aims to knock Honoka into the air, and follow with a jumping, fiery red uppercut. "JOHNNY CAGE!" he cries.
COMBATSYS: Honoka just-defends Johnny Cage's Double Feature!
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Honoka 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|-------\-------\0 Johnny Cage
Honoka allows herself a slight smile -- though that's, of course, the smile the audience sees -really large- on the big screens around the Cyclone Arena. The juggler's fame has not spread -far- beyond the confines of Japan -- few people really remember her bout dressed as Godzilla as anything more than a cheap stage show, after all. But it would seem she's making an impression on the mostly-Russian crowd here tonight, as the cheers invigorate her. Like Johnny, she thrives on the passion of the audience...
So when he mentions an agent in a stage whisper, she almost doesn't even hear it, giving a belated nod only when he's already in the midst of sliding at her.
Seriously? He's GQing at her? She barely even recognizes the attack for what it is, but she knows she wants no part of it, sidestepping out of the way. "Hey, hey, this--"
She doesn't get to make the pithy remark she'd wanted to though, as Johnny's used the opening to snap into a flipkick. Her JOUST-boosted hands move faster than lightning -- allowing her to snap the string of her diabolo batons taut. The string catches the flipkick, reflexes allowing her to step back judiciously, finely tuning the blow so that it doesn't contact her. The cord is dropped, her hands starting to sting from the blow, but when the uppercut follows, she's able to leap backwards, her crossed batons taking the blow as she's blasted into one of the upper corners of the cage.
On her own terms, though -- thanks to her augmented reflexes. She "lands" on the upper wall in a crouch, smirking as the motion stresses the cage. "Is... that actually the name of the move?" she asks with an arched eyebrow, just before springing off the wall.
As she somersaults into to the center of the ring, she looses one of her batons. Snaring a diabolo from the floor, she rights herself, juggling the diabolo about for a bit. "... I hope you can forgive me," she apologizes, her diabolo whipping about into an intricate technique. "I don't really call my shots."
The diabolo cord forms a star pattern, and as the diabolo snaps into the center of the pattern, it begins spinning wildly.
And a brilliant column of pink energy erupts forward, lancing out across the room with every intention of impaling the star with its painful concussive force.
Good thing he's got sunglasses. It's pretty bright, too.
COMBATSYS: Honoka successfully hits Johnny Cage with Nochiu-o Kando.
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Honoka 1/-------/<<<<<<<|=======\-------\1 Johnny Cage
Johnny is busy trying to hype the crowd up to really pay attention to what Honoka is really doing - or saying to him, for that matter. At some point, it's all just white noise to him. So when she prepares a star-shaped energy surprise, he is woefully unprepared for it.
He attempts to dodge, but it hits him with full force, lighting him up like a Christmas tree. He is flung into one of the cage walls hard enough to rattle the whole structure, and then falls to the ground. Unlike the previous time, though, he doesn't get up.
The crowd's roar gets louder and louder, as it seems Honoka has claimed her victory.
COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage takes no action.
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Honoka 1/-------/<<<<<<<|
COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage can no longer fight.
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Honoka 1/-------/<<<<<<<|
Honoka Kawamoto does not have the star power of Johnny Cage. She's a featured act in the Twilight Star Circus, which has rarely left Japan, but even then, she repeatedly claims to be no one special. This fight was really meant as little more than a promotion for the circus itself -- win or lose, Honoka's presence was bound to increase interest in the traveling circus.
Suffice to say, she hadn't expected the enthusiasm she'd channeled from the audience into Johnny Cage's midsection to be -quite- so powerful -- but it seems to have done the trick. Spreading the batons apart, she's able to pop the diabolo free, and sling it around into a leisurely orbit. She doesn't need to play to the audience any more, at this point -- they're already cheering their fool heads off for the epic battle. "Thanks for the fight, Mister Cage, it was an honor..." she says, unsure if he'll hear -- but it's something she has to say anyway. As fight officials open the Octagon cage to make sure both fighters are okay, the announcer manages to shout the results over the roar of the crowd.
Chalk up another win for the BLITZ Arena -- Professor Fightenstein must be absolutely delighted at this point!
COMBATSYS: Honoka takes no action.
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Honoka 1/-------/=======|
COMBATSYS: Honoka has ended the fight here.
Log created on 19:14:02 04/03/2015 by Honoka, and last modified on 18:53:25 04/05/2015.