Description: Something screwy is going on here. First, Daniel has a fight against a Gedo student. But then he gets shot at. And /then/ his day gets even better when his Rumble alarm goes off for the second time that day...
Two days ago, Sakuraba was sitting in class, drumming his pencil on the desk. He kept glancing to his phone -- a no-frills smartphone provided by his classmate Miko -- much like he had any day. But he'd had this fight to look forward to. And a mission.
Now, he's staring his mission objective right in the eye. The boy's Gedo uniform jacket would probably be in better shape if he'd left it buttoned up, but as it is now, it's tattered in places, ripped up by a wave of chi thrown taken just moments earlier. His lip is swollen, his ribs may well be cracked, and... well, most of his classmates would be unconscious by this point, but he's pretty determined to press on -- if his white knuckles are any indication.
"You've been taking it easy on me! But GEDO HIGH's..." He pauses to spit out a glob of blood onto the floor of the shrine. "GONNA SURPRISE YA!"
The teenager's form is backlit by a conflagration of raging purple chi. And then he rockets towards Daniel's chest with one foot extended, wisps of chiflame trailing from his foot as he plans to deliver a massive Saikyo-ryu styled kicking combination to his opponent!
Daniel Jack had his own missions.
Japan was on the cusp of chaos. A new order was trying to form. Crime was turning into terrorism. And Daniel Jack, Agent Little of Interpol, had to make lead the vanguard on how the world will react to Japan's new future. He had expected a fight that would lead to his death. But here, out at the Hikawa Shrine in Saitama, he got to face an old favorite of his.
Gedo High.
As a former resident of Gedo Street, Daniel Jack had developed a deep, affectionate respect for the students of Gedo High. Not only were they a fantastic support and intelligence network on the street, but they worked for packs of Seven Stars and Suntory. Daniel Jack built a solid relationship with the students of Gedo High by treating them like adults, and giving them booze and cigs. Daniel kept the principle that you treated these
And frankly, Daniel Jack wasn't starting now.
"Don't worry kid, Gedo High always surprises me." The detective growls cooly, running a thumb across the torn-open wound on his face. Daniel Jack's body was burning, his Interpol greys tattered. And worst of all, his face cut was NOT healing well. There was no time to rest in the hospital, as the teenager rockets forward. The detective brings his hands up, keeping his footing as he braces hard for impact. He nearly catches the teenager.
Nearly.
The detective's defense is cut through as Daniel Jack is forced to rely on pure grit in the end. His own orange aura blazes out as the kicks come crashing in. He manages to deflect the last kick, knocking it aside as he groans. Two more body blows. He really was struggling with this teenager. But he wasn't slowing down in the least. "Where are we at now? Is that six cigarette packs, or seven? I'm gonna count that as two seperate hits, does that sound fair?" Daniel Jack grins as the momentum shifts.
And he hurls out a palm strike with the left.
Hand chop with the right, elbow thrust with the right, rising palm strke with the left. The foundations of the Zoot Suit Riot. But it doesn't end. Daniel Jack was throwing his pressure right back, continuing his offense as he chains a falling elbow strike with the left, and a hand chop with the right. A combination of two roundhouse kicks finishes the contact portion, before he lurches in, attempting to seize the teenager by his hip and shoulder. Should he get those final grips on him, the assault would end neat and clean as he pivots and pulls.
And attempts to hurl the boy face up, right on his back.
Daniel Jack had his own missions.
Japan was on the cusp of chaos. A new order was trying to form. Crime was turning into terrorism. And Daniel Jack, Agent Little of Interpol, had to make lead the vanguard on how the world will react to Japan's new future. He had expected a fight that would lead to his death. But here, out at the Hikawa Shrine in Saitama, he got to face an old favorite of his.
Gedo High.
As a former resident of Gedo Street, Daniel Jack had developed a deep, affectionate respect for the students of Gedo High. Not only were they a fantastic support and intelligence network on the street, but they worked for packs of Seven Stars and Suntory. Daniel Jack built a solid relationship with the students of Gedo High by treating them like adults, and giving them booze and cigs. Daniel kept the principle that you treated these kids like adults, not like... kids
And frankly, Daniel Jack wasn't starting now.
"Don't worry kid, Gedo High always surprises me." The detective growls cooly, running a thumb across the torn-open wound on his face. Daniel Jack's body was burning, his Interpol greys tattered. And worst of all, his face cut was NOT healing well. There was no time to rest in the hospital, as the teenager rockets forward. The detective brings his hands up, keeping his footing as he braces hard for impact. He nearly catches the teenager.
Nearly.
The detective's defense is cut through as Daniel Jack is forced to rely on pure grit in the end. His own orange aura blazes out as the kicks come crashing in. He manages to deflect the last kick, knocking it aside as he groans. Two more body blows. He really was struggling with this teenager. But he wasn't slowing down in the least. "Where are we at now? Is that six cigarette packs, or seven? I'm gonna count that as two seperate hits, does that sound fair?" Daniel Jack grins as the momentum shifts.
And he hurls out a palm strike with the left.
Hand chop with the right, elbow thrust with the right, rising palm strke with the left. The foundations of the Zoot Suit Riot. But it doesn't end. Daniel Jack was throwing his pressure right back, continuing his offense as he chains a falling elbow strike with the left, and a hand chop with the right. A combination of two roundhouse kicks finishes the contact portion, before he lurches in, attempting to seize the teenager by his hip and shoulder. Should he get those final grips on him, the assault would end neat and clean as he pivots and pulls.
And attempts to hurl the boy face up, right on his back.
"Six," replies Sakuraba, as he hops back, shifting stance into something more akin to Jeet Kune Do. It would be silly to give someone from the streets an option like that if he hadn't already maintained a steady rapport with the young man, throughout the fight and through his continuing contributions to the community, but no. Sakuraba is honest now, if a little monomaniacal.
His kicks are quite potent -- a testament to their instructor's stressing of excessive force at the expense of proper form. Saikyo-ryu as a style works well enough as a foundation, though anyone beyond orange belt can easily tell that it's... missing something. And Sakuraba has been gaining a little bit of help from his HitBit -- minute electrical signals to suggest corrections to his form and balance. Every Gedo student has gained benefit from this competition, winners and losers alike.
But while miracles have happened, they don't -continue- happening. Sakuraba raises his elbow, taking the palm strike solidly upon a well-muscled forearm. The hand chop, though, is enough to knock said forearm aside, leaving the young man open for the palm strike that follows. Sakuraba tries withdrawing to deal with the onslaught, but Daniel Jack's continual advance nullifies that attempt to gain space. It's too much for Sakuraba to keep up with -- even the roaring chi that had accompanied earlier movements seems to be fading out.
The chi is almost completely snuffed as the teen as pivoted about, face-first into the ground. His fists clench, and the thinnest flames flicker at his hands... but in such a position, the young man lets out one final grunt.
The fists loosen up, and as the boy pivots to show his face... there is a brief smile visible. "Good one, you..."
It's hard to hear the rest, as the report of a high-powered sniper rifle rings out, echoing off the trees and the small buildings surrounding the shrine. It's hard to pinpoint the exact direction of the firing, but it would be easier to tell the direction of the shot once it impacts its target: the back of Daniel Jack's head.
A half second passes, before a second shot follows in a similar trajectory, six inches lower.
It was his instincts that saved him.
It wasn't reflexes, no. Daniel had solid reflexes for his weight class. But it just meant that he wasn't slow, and if it wasn't a man punching him, his reflexes were naught. Daniel Jack was over Sakuraba, arms crossed in the stoic gaze that his own instructor had given him a hundred times. But after the grim moment, he can't help but break it with a grin. As the student begins to speak, Daniel Jack leans down, hand out, to help him up. And then, a gunshot rings out. It was Daniel's instincts that took over. Immediately, without a second thought, the detective's first reaction was to drop down.
And throw himself to cover the kid.
There was a ringing sound. There were screams. Daniel Jack felt something hot and wet on the back of his head. He was laying on Sakuraba, covering him. He gasps for air. He was... dying? Alive? It was a good five seconds before anything changed. Somewhere 10 yards away, towards the opposite direction of where he was shot from, his interpol fedora lands on the dust. He was nearly split in half. Daniel glances up at the hat
He was grinning mad.
"I got you scuzzy." The detective begins, as he rises up. He brings a hand to the back of his head. It was soaked with blood, but nothing broke. He gradually runs his hand up to the top of the dome, and he felt... oh god, he felt bone. As he puts a little pressure on it, nothing gives. He was just shot in the head. Again. But was it a graze? Did he just cheat death. The smile was still on his face, as the medical staff is on him. "Everything will be fine, Agent Little! We just need to-"
And Daniel Jack shoves past them.
The detective takes a few steps towards the direction of the shot. It had to be drain bamage. That was the only justification on why Daniel Jack would reject medical attention. "Come on bastard." He mutters to himself as he scans the direction on the gun fire. Building. Sniper. Just like LG. He picks up speed, before serpentining. Max taught him that, in his work in Columbia. He continues his zig-zagging approach, as he beelines to the building where... where it had to be. "Come on bastard." He repeats to himself, glancing up to the windows. "Shoot me again. I'm the god damn world police."
"Shoot me -again-"
One shot, two shot, red shot, blue shot. The man fell down, and the sniper was in an undefended position -- he had already started to break the rifle down into its component pieces. The stock is removed. The extended barrel is removed. The scope...
The sniper frowns, and looks back up. People are looking around in confusion, the medical team is swarming, and -dammit the target is on the move-
The sniper shoves the scope into its slot and slams the black briefcase shut. He grabs his escape rope, already anchored to the rooftop boundary wall, and leaps off the side of the building in the start of a rappel.
The rope twangs, and in the man's nervous flight, his grip falters. It's not a complete loss -- he was able to take some of the momentum off his fall -- but he still hits the ground as if he'd dropped from the second story. Bones begin to splinter in his legs and feet -- but a timely dose of adrenaline allows the man to soldier onward, picking up his briefcase and rising back to his feet.
With a panicked look, the tattooed assassin looks back over his shoulder. Shit, how is he so -fast-, he thinks to himself.
He looks forward again. His salvation: a HIJET light-duty pickup truck. His accomplice already has the engine running -- and he sees the agent coming. The window rolls down.
BLAUW! BLAUW! Two wild warning shots are fired out -- landing wide because of the terrible and dreadful sideways aim favored by gangsters more accustomed to looking badass than actually being it. He was clearly hired as a driver and not a shooter -- Will it be enough to cover the man's escape?
The rifleman is almost there. And, with another audible -snap-, his femur gives way.
He howls as he topples over. It's not fun, having your nose pressed into the filthy pavement.
The driver hesitates. His passenger is only a few feet away -- but Daniel approaches. The driver steps out of the car, whirling the gun towards Daniel. His right hand is shaking -- he braces it with the left, just like he learned at the firing range.
"Third time's the charm, Agent... eh?!!"
Target acquired.
Daniel Jack sees the man coming out of the window, and his body surges with orange energy. Chi flows from his arms as he flings his arounds out to his sides. Daniel wasn't really THAT fast typically. But the problem was that the man's leg was broken, and Daniel's legs was not. And in the battle of adrenaline vs adrenaline, Daniel was managing it a HELL lot better. As both shots come, Daniel Jack bursts in speed. His jaw was tense now. As the sniper hits the dirt finally, the detective had him. His attention unlocks as finally, the driver comes out of the car. He took two shots now. Three WAS a charm. Both of his arms trembles as he bounds on the sniper, driving a foot to the back of his thigh.
And slams his arms down.
The full wave of the Chou Kasane Ate is unleashed, the wave of energy slammed down forward. The energy would cascade hard forward, the shockwave rising up above a man's height as it rips forward. It would easily slam into the car, knocking it sliding but little else. The main target was the driver. The man could try shooting through the wall of energy surging forward. He could try running. He could just take it. But no matter what, one thing was clear. Daniel Jack's arms were still burning with chi energy.
And he was ready to hurl out another Kasane Ate, so help him.
The sniper yelps out in pain -- as if he wasn't in -enough-. But he might've been able to walk again if Daniel hadn't forcibly separated the two halves of his thigh, tearing muscle and sinew alike with his swift kick. The sniper's gun case is hurled away, the hollow sound of its foam-lined interior masking the sound of the gun barrels clicking within.
The driver takes the bulk of the damage, however -- as the self-defense handgun is knocked out of his hand, he finds himself blown backwards, slammed into the open door and quite nearly taking it off its hinges. The driver slumps down, hands curling in front of him -- his wrists, too, showing signs of full-sleeve tattoos.
Sakuraba has, by this point, climbed back to his feet. His fists curl by his side, as he's fully prepared to join in on the beatdowns. The referee's already called the match in Daniel's favor, so he's free to help as well -- though it seems Daniel's taken the wind out of his two aggressor's sails. "IS THAT ALL YOU BASTIDS GOT?!" shouts out Sakuraba, glancing over to Daniel for advice. "Hey, Dan-man, we gotcha back..."
Two Yakuza. One Cop.
Daniel Jack is upon the driver, anticipating a counterattack that doesn't come. Going for the takedown, he wrenches him down to a pin. And from here, Daniel considers carefully. Holding the driver in place with one hand, he reaches into his jacket. Without looking back, he tosses a pair of cuffs to Sakuraba. "Get the sniper cuffed up. Don't touch the briefcase or the gun." As the medical team and... the rest of the crew and audience arrives, he begins to spout off orders, as if the back of his head wasn't grazed by a long-arm rifle round. "Medical team, help that man. He has a broken leg. This guy next, and then me. Everyone else, stand back, this is a crime scene." Daniel Jack handcuffs the man he was on, as a bystander says the important words. "Should we call the police here?" "No." Was Daniel's response, as he pulls out his own cellphone. Dialing in, he brings it to his ear. "I'm contacting my men. This is now Interpol's problem. The local PD can go kiss my-"
And there is a rumble of thunder.
Daniel Jack winces as he pulls his cellphone from his ear. The phone call was interrupted as his alarm goes off.... for another HitBit match. Daniel Jack's brow furrows, as he looks back into his phone. He starts jamming his fingers out on it, trying to stop the alarm. And it -doesn't-. Growling, he just holds down the power button, and decides to go for a cold reboot. He raises up the driver, and drags him over. "I swear to crap." He mutters. The phone finally cold reboots... into a roar of alarms, as his next HitBit fight comes up. Daniel Jack stares -daggers- into his phone.
"And are you -shitting- me?"
"No, no, no." He begins, checking over his phone. "Is the FitBit... Hitbit app breaking my phone? What kind of shitty- god damn." Orange energy flows over Daniel as his arm trembles. A medical staffer finally reaches Daniel, bandaging his head. The detective keeps pressing button on his phone, before finally breaking out to an open answer. "Is anybody else's phone working? I have to make a call!?"
And as it turned out, interferance from the storm meant -no-.
Daniel Jack slowly realizes that his phone, being top tier UN technology, wasn't even supposed to be getting access to ANY signals right now. But instead of functioning, it was... HitBitting. As the back of his head was bandaged up, Daniel Jack took this moment to flail his arms, the stitches and gauze being put in place. "Friggin frick frick frigs in the friggin hole friggingness dammit god dammit scuzzy bitch tits bastard scum god damn!" He finally turns towards Sakuraba, eyes pinpricks, voice rumbling as he shows his screaming phone to the Gedo High student.
"What the hell is my phone doing Sakuraba?!"
Sakuraba looks up from ensuring that the sniper is properly secured onto the stretcher that would allow for safe transfer to the medical wagon. Sakuraba himself could use some medical attention, but all things considered... not as much as the sniper.
And yet, he'd been paying muted attention to Daniel, unable to fight back -all- of his snickering at the agent's phone troubles. So when Daniel thrusts up his phone at him, the Gedo student already has the answer on the tip of his tongue. "It's sayin' you gotta match, Dan-man." One beat to pause, and he adds, "Maybe someone punched in the win wrong, and it's just..."
The referee, by this point, walks up towards Daniel, careful to give wide berth to the driver as he's loaded up onto his own restraining stretcher. He shakes his head, shaking his phone in similar measure. "I... I punched everything in right, but... yeah, it's telling me the next match is right here. In two minutes." The Zainichi referee shrugs his shoulders, one side of his lip curling up in exasperation. "I... I never understood how the algorithm worked, it's crazy having two matches back to back like this..."
"Will you cock garglers shut the hell up!?" spits the driver, right before his head is forcibly slammed to the back of the stretcher. "You just broke my back and you make it sound like -I'm- the bad guy here!"
The EMT attending to the driver mutters under his breath, "your back's fine, you big baby..."
"Okay fine."
Daniel Jack rubs the bridge of his nose with his fingers. "Thank you Sakuraba. You're awesome." He was not sarcastic. THis was... the heaviest crock of shit. More than ever, he hated HitBit. The alarm was STILL going. Daniel Jack attempts to turn the volume down. At least, in the land of hell, there were minor mercies, and it does at least go down. Daniel Jack trembles a bit, as the man on the stretcher calls out. "Hey, buddy. You spitting shit like that from your gaping mouth?"
"Your back's gonna be the only thing NOT broken."
The detective turns to the ref. "Okay. So it looks like all I have to do is do the fight, get it down however, ever, and then I can make my phone calls. Fantastic. Fucking Fantastic." The detective was still burning with chi, as the men are pulled away on the stretchers. "Now hey! Hey! I want those guys put together here. No ambulance! Nothing until I get contact with Interpol!" Daniel Jack was finally freed from the medical team, and he just glares daggers into his phone."God damn friggin' frig frig fricks. How could this day be any worse." He looks up from the phone.
"Who's my opponent supposed to be anyways?"
The medical staff eyes widen as Daniel barks out orders to them. If he didn't have a nice shiny badge somewhere on his person (not that they're dumb enough to actually demand it from him in such a state), they might deny his request entirely. But...
Sakuraba smirks faintly. "Don't worry, Dan-man, we gotcha back." He turns over to the EMTs, and since they are on the verge of looking frustrated at having to do little more than wait, he howls, "OWWWWWW, god, can't someone make my arm stop throbbing?! I need some helppppp..."
It's highly overplayed, and ridiculously melodramatic, but it's enough to earn a smile from the EMTs as they escort him away from the crazy yakuza prisoners strapped to the stretchers. Sakuraba shoots them an angry glare -- he may be in pain, but they're at a -much- worse position than he.
And as the prisoners wisely keep their yaps shut, Sakuraba picks up his phone and stabs in a few numbers. "Hello, operator? Yeah, lissen. I needja to hook me up to the -interpol-..."
Zach Glenn's had... an interesting week to say the least. Ninjas, dates, wierd dreams. So this afternoon when he got the HitBit notification, he got moving. Back to Saitama? Interesting. Zach makes his way to the Hikawa Shrine, his phone pulling up Google to get information about the site.
Of course, this is when the Rumble Committee sends Zach the notification regarding his opponent. Zach's face breaks into a snarl, and he takes off at a sprint. The long coat flares dramatically in his wake as Zach pulls the wooden claymore free from its wrappings. A perfect tool for this job; Zach doesn't want Daniel dead. But he certainly wants the Agent to wish he was.
The psion gets to the stairs, and stalks up them, gathering his power around him. Violet frame sweeps up Zach's body, with gold lightning wrapped around it as if keeping it in check.
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn has started a fight here.
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Zach Glenn 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Daniel has joined the fight here.
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Zach Glenn 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Daniel
Half-mindedly, Daniel Jack casts his gaze to the stairway going up to the shrine.
After a second to process who was coming up, engulfed in a VIOLENT FLAME, Daniel Jack's eyes go wide. He tightens his grip on the phone, before shoving it in his jacket. He gives a response. "PILPUT!" He sputters, body shuddering. "PAGHUT!" He sputters again. In tandem with his rival, his own orange aura goes up like a bonfire. "IT'S ZACH FUCKING GLENN, OF COURSE IT IS!" Daniel Jack lifts his arms in the air, and turns straight to his side, to the Yakuza's car.
And he hurls out a second Chou Kasane Ate into the escape car.
This time, the car is tipped over from the sheer force, rolling over on its side. The orange energy was now faded from Daniel's frame. The detective turns towards Zach again, taking in a deep breath, and a deep exhale. He turns to the doctor who stitched him up. "You. Three things. Pills. Whiskey. Blood. Now." The detective tone made it clear what he needed. Now. The doctor, nervously, goes into the van, and pulls out those three things. As Daniel Jack downs the pills and whiskey, the doctor gingerly attachs an iv to him, letting the blood pack replenish him. Duct taping under his suit, he turns back towards the enraged Zach, clutching the bottle of Jim Bean in one hand, the bottle of painkillers in the other. "God dammit Zach, you really have ass timing." He takes a swig of the bottle, as he moves to confront his opponent.
"Fuck it."
"Lets do this, scuzzy."
Zach watches Daniel throw a bit of a tantrum, followed by demands for a couple of things that ought not be combined. He has the sword out, held low in one hand. He... really has no words for this asshole. Daniel Little has threatened him, which doesn't really bother Zach. But the Agent threatened his family. Threatened Honoka. Nope. Nothing really /to/ say.
Zach roars as he simply /leaps/ towards Daniel, sweeping the empty hand at the Agent. A jagged flare of psychic energy rips into existance to threaten Daniel!
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn successfully hits Daniel with Claw Flare.
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Zach Glenn 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 Daniel
Daniel Jack tosses the whiskey back as Zach begins to leap.
In theory, Daniel was going for the dodge. He had fought Zach before, and even in his UNINJURED condition, the Ex-Marine outclassed him. In an injured state... well, Daniel Jack was gonna have to pace himself evenly. Side-stepping, he attempts to slip past the psiflare. Instead, he takes it HARD to the torso, searing through his soul and right through his nervous system. The detective staggers, stumbles, his footing uneven. What could Daniel response with after being Psionically Assaulted?
Daniel Jack responds by draining the bottle of whiskey in his mouth.
Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he groans out. "Look Zach, I'm sure you got a lot of anger issues to work out right now. But could you wait until AFTER I get my arrests down? I mean seriously, what the hell is that crap. And- jesus, this isn't the whiskey I'm feeling, it's you."
"God -damn- Scuzzy."
Daniel Jack pivots, twisting his body as he simply spikes the bottle at Zach's head. The pill bottle. The empty whiskey bottle, meanwhile, is simply chucked straight down at Zach's knees, attemptting to shatter it right into the shinbones. Daniel Jack was sore, he had just gotten shot in the head, and he just got into round two of a fighting chain.
And frankly, Zach showing up was the WORST PART of his day.
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn overcomes Thrown Object from Daniel with Scatter Barrage.
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Zach Glenn 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 Daniel
Zach stomps on the ground, and streamers of violet psychic energy erupt from the point of impact, shattering the bottle and screaming towards Daniel!
"Shut up," he commands in a surprisingly even tone as Zach is already stepping towards Daniel to follow up the offensive!
COMBATSYS: Daniel blocks Zach Glenn's Scatter Barrage.
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Zach Glenn 0/-------/-----==|======-\-------\0 Daniel
Well, Daniel Jack was at least getting back into his flow.
As the pills and bottles are hurled out, his opponent's flare of psionic energy told Daniel very clearly that he was -enraged- and Daniel Jack's safety was in question. Safety and life. The energy lash is hurled back, and Daniel Jack crosses his arms, bringing up his defenses as Zach just hurls it in. This time, he is able to disappate the energies before it burns his body, recoiling from the pure force. His nervous system really couldn't be handling this stuff. Staggering back from the impact, his arms felt numb. Standing fast, Daniel Jack slowly uncrosses his arms.
And he holds his ground.
"Okay, hey, Zach buddy." Daniel Jack states smoothly, teeth gritted. "I don't think you get it properly. You see those guys on the stretchers over there?" The detective casts his glance towards the two stretchers, where the tattoo'd men lay. "That's Yakuza. That's my ticket in getting to the bottom of all this crime down here. Now, I know your friend Honoka is over at the Twilight Star Circus, and I know she's been having to pay off those Yakuza thugs protection money. Still not sure who's behind the fire proper, for sure, but all the evidence at least points that the Yakuza started. I'm... this... close to getting a major breakthrough with these two scuzzies." The detective slowly eases into a proper defensive stance, his Todoh-Ryuu burning bright as orange energy begins to swirl around him again. He locks his eyes dead on Zach, looking intensely at his opponent. "So I gotta ask you something, Zach."
"Are you really gonna screw over everyone over a little bad blood between us?"
COMBATSYS: Daniel Jacks it up a notch!
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Zach Glenn 0/-------/-----==|======-\-------\0 Daniel
"A... 'little' bad blood?" Zach asks almost incredulously. "A LITTLE BAD BLOOD?!?" Zach roars. The energies swirling around him react to the intensity of his emotions. "Oh ho ho no," Zach intones as he stalks slowly towards Daniel.
"You threatened me. You threatened my FAMILY," Zach says, the intensity in his voice ramping up while the violet flame whirls madly around him. The golden lightning contains it, but only barely. "YOU THREATENED THE PEOPLE THAT I LOVE!" Zach roars as the psycho power all but explodes into a life of its own around Zach before settling around him like a cloak of sheer power.
"You do /not/ get to gloss it over with such a throwaway phrase like 'bad blood," Zach growls, his emerald eyes glinting gold.
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn gathers his will.
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Zach Glenn 0/-------/-======|======-\-------\0 Daniel
Daniel Jack could see where this was going.
Zach had two paths he could have taken from Daniel's threats. He could have listened, and kept his head down. Or he could be... like this. Insanely offended. Was Glenn a scottish last name? Zach had be acting scottish right now. The detective keeps his stance as Zach goes berserk, his expression grim and stoic. As he begins to explode in his own power, Daniel's own seemed almost restrained. "It is just bad blood, Zach." Daniel states, his voice getting soft. "You know why I made those threats? Cause from what I could tell from your profile..."
"You are just two steps away from being a psychopath."
Daniel's own arms begin to sweep, the detective building his own tower of energy as he lets them rise. "You think you can intimidate me out of... what. I mean, hell. What do you think your friend Honoka is gonna think, when she sees you like this? A crazed monster killer, lashing out at an officer of the law. Think about Honoka, Zach. She's your friend. How would she react, seeing this side of you? I mean, hell. If this wasn't an arranged fight, Zach?"
"I'd have you locked up for obstruction of justice."
"There are bigger things right now than you, your family, and the people you love, you dig?" The detective hurls his arms down, unleashing the cataclysmic wave of energy into a ripping shockwave. Another Chou Kasane Ate, just like before. Daniel Jack really had the most powerful Kasane Ate down to a science, if obscenely slow. The orange energy spreads out in a semi-circle, spreading out more and more as it rips forward. The waves were just like before by the time they reach Zach's position; taller than him, and burning outward. Daniel Jack was already moving forward, chasing the blast as he keeps chattering. "And if you won't see past that, Zach?"
"I'm gonna have to shut you down, you dig?"
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn endures Daniel's Chou Kasane Ate.
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Zach Glenn 1/----===/=======|=======\=------\1 Daniel
Zach does not stand against the Kasane Ate. He knows this move. Has done this move. Taken this move. Repelled this move. Zach /charges/ through the Chou Kasane Ate, his legs churning as the monster hunter runs /right at Daniel with almost primal rage. Zach blasts through the waves of chi, his coat in tatters as he reaches for Daniel with his empty hand, attempting to bear the man to the ground!
COMBATSYS: Daniel blocks Zach Glenn's Rushing Tackle.
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Zach Glenn 1/----===/=======|=======\===----\1 Daniel
Oh, he is charging THROUGH it too.
As Zach rips through the Kasane Ate, the detective stops his advance cold. Daniel Jack keeps his footing squarely as Zach comes in, taking him down. Both are on the ground, and Daniel Jack grunts. But as Zach follows up with the ground and pound, the detective's hands remain free. Catching the oncoming punches with steady, smooth agility, he guides and deflects. He could keep this up for a while. He needed to break this, though, or he would get tired. And Zach wouldn't. Taking in a deep breath, the detective exhales with a rumble.
"... FANTASTIC..."
The response comes with the telegraph; Zach should know very well what was coming. Orange energy builds up in Daniel right hand. He keeps the blocks going with one hand, which... is far less effective. Daniel Jack breaths hard, as he just forces through it. "TODOH! PAAAAAAUNCH!" Comes the roar as Daniel Jack explodes back upright, hurling out the staggering punch straight forward. The momentum would carry himself up to a stand, as he hurls out the blow aiming squarely for Zach's chin. Both of them were building into a cataclysm.
But Daniel was on the wrong end of this apocolypse.
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn fails to interrupt Fantastic Todoh Punch EX from Daniel with Claw Spiker EX.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Zach Glenn 0/-------/-======|=======\=====--\1 Daniel
Zach responds to the chopping motion with one of his own. However, where Daniel's attack relies on a modicum of physical force combined with chi, Zach's is pure psionic power that tears a chunk out of the stone by Daniel's head. Zach, however, is knocked clear of Daniel.
Zach rolls to his feet in a low crouch. "Go ahead," Zach growls, "Keep convincing yourself you're in the right." Zach spits a glob of blood and spit onto the ground. "/Nothing/ you have done here was /right/," he says.
"Yeah, I've screwed up a few times here."
Daniel admits that outright as his punch surges him up to a stand. His arms... hurt badly. But he was on his feet, and Zach was coming up to a crouch. "I've screwed up a lot in my life. All that's changed is that I now I know, scuzzy. The biggest mistake I made so far, Zach?" Daniel Jack approaches Zach with a steady, looming pace. "I should have just arrested you next time you assaulted a person under the guise of 'stopping monsters.' No warning. No threat. Just the full weight of the rule of law, coming down on your head. Cause you're like a mad dog Zach. You can't control yourself. I know your girlfriend wouldn't stand for it. And I know your friend Honoka wouldn't stand for it."
"Now get upright, scuzzy, I need to mess you up something fierce."
Daniel Jack flares up with orange energy as he regains his center, before lunging in with a palm strike right for Zach's jaw. Whether it contacted or not, it didn't matter. Daniel Jack would follow up with a hand chop with the right, aiming right for the collarbone. And then, Daniel Jack would just dip in, aiming to seize Zach by his hip and shoulder, and pivot, whipping him over his own body, right down to the floor. A smooth, steady approach, and free of chi energy.
But powerful, nevertheless.
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn blocks Daniel's Skiffle Drop.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////// ]
Zach Glenn 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\0 Daniel
Zach parries every punch, every chop as Daniel sends them in. Zach brings all of that rampant psychic energy into his left fist. He settles into an astride stance, bringing that left hand in low.
"You throw your weight around, make the people you claim to protect terrified by it," Zach says. "And then you try to proclaim yourself to be righteous? That anyone who disagrees with you is insane?" Zach lashes out with a textbook three-quarters uppercut, augmented by an explosion of psychic force. "I think you need to look in the mirror if you're searching for insanity."
COMBATSYS: Daniel interrupts Dynamite Punch from Zach Glenn with Jumping Jack Flash EX.
- Power hit! -
[ \\\\\\\ < > ///////////////// ]
Zach Glenn 1/-======/=======|=======\===----\1 Daniel
"Zach, you're not seriously scared of me, are you?"
Daniel Jack actually lets out a laugh at that as Zach comes exploding in. "Nah, scuzzy." He states cooly as he throws down into the uppercut. Crashing hard against the punch, he collapses down low, the explosion grazing him as he comes in low. His body was numb, he was going dim by the sheer assault on his nervous system. And yet, as he dips low, he grips Zach by his ankles. "You aren't afraid of me."
And he shoots right up.
Jumping a good eight feet in the air, he whips Zach overhead, wrenching him back overhead. "Nah, you're not insane cause you disagree with me." He lets it slide as orange energy whirls around Zach's body. "You're nuts cause I am literally trying to get two Yakuza held in Interpol custody, so I can start making the coup de grace at all this terrorism going around." The detective comes back down to earth, slamming Zach right down to the ground in a wave of energy. The Kasane Ate comes as Zach Ate, hurling him into a shockwave that carries him along. Daniel Jack lands on both feet, keeping his even footing in spite of the consuming fatigue. "The difference between you and me, scuzzy? Once I'm done beating your ass?"
"I'm gonna make sure you get put back together safe and sound, you dig?"
Zach gasps for air as the impacts knock it out of him. He lays there for a moment before dragging himself to his feet. "Nah," Zach says as he wobbles slightly. "Not going to-" Zach stops, choking on his words as he feels something... inexorably intense. Hatred so sharp, so intense that he literally cannot see anything in front of him. Zach's words had regained, if not calm, a certain measure of reason. Something... is terribly wrong here.
That violet miasma erupts from Zach in a flare of psychic pressure, as Zach lets out a feral roar. It's... too much... too... /familiar/. Zach has felt this kind of hate before in both of his lives. Zach throws the sword to the ground, the sheer rage needing an outlet. Somewhere to /go/.
And there is Daniel. Talking all the crap. Thinking he's so high-and-mighty. So /righteous/.
Zach hunches over into a tight boxing stance, bringing his right hand close in as he prepares a corkscrew right straight. Zach's legs tense, and then he flies at Daniel, unloading that right straight directly at Daniel's heart!
COMBATSYS: Daniel blocks Zach Glenn's Heartbreak Shot.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Zach Glenn 0/-------/-----==|=======\=====--\1 Daniel
"Hey, Zach, you're alright?
Oh, Daniel Jack knew that Zach was a mad dog looking for a fight. And frankly, if the detective wasn't so stubborn, he would find another outlet. But the fact was, he was serious. He didn't want to see Zach dead, much like how he didn't wanna see Dr. Tessitore dead. With a lot less dickings, of course, but the fundementals were there. He wanted Zach subdued non-lethally. And right now, Zach didn't look like he was doing-
Oh no he was going supernova.
The Ex-marine was alight with the violet energy that was consuming him. The detective stumbles back, his guard coming up. As the sword is hurled down, the monster hunter was going full fisticuffs. The punch comes, and the detective throws up both hands to catch it by the first. The blow comes hammering in as Daniel grabs his wrist, and he tenses him, everything pouring in to stomp it from killing him outright. The blow lands true, slowed down by the detective's catch.
And Daniel's Heart stays steadfast.
Daniel Jack stumbles backwards, throwing him back away from the staggering blow. He gasps for air, the wind still knocked out of him. Grabbing his chest, he wheezes again, continuing to fall backwards. He shuts his eyes, breathing in. Exhaling. The orange energy whirls around him, as his eyes flash open again. Daniel Jack raises up a leg, staring down his opponent. "Look, scuzzy, I need to end this. I got an island to save. And if you feel like I think I'm better than you? Well, scuzzy. I do.
And Daniel drops his foot down.
The shockwave of orange chi runs through the earth, infusing it with power as the stone slabs of the temple crack. The pieces of debris are knocked up, as Daniel Jack begins to snatch piece after chi-infused piece, approaching Zach. With each piece of rubble grabbed, Agent LIttle hurls it straight at Zach. He would overwhelm him, hammer him down. Eventually, Daniel would run out pieces. But as the sweat stings his stil fresh wounds?
Daniel would never run out of spirit.
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn endures Daniel's Mean Business.
[ < > ///////////// ]
Zach Glenn 1/-----==/=======|====---\-------\0 Daniel
Zach's eyes are not focused on anything, and he is still screaming his rage to the heavens, with flecks of foam and spittle spraying from his lips. Zach has become the mad dog that Daniel accused him of being, but he did not /choose/ this. Something is flat-out /wrong/ here.
He charges once more, coming in low before firing an uppercut so fierce that it pulls Zach off of his feet. The former Marine lands, and fires off two more similar uppercuts that carry Zach higher with each leap!
Glenn is screaming with every punch and every landing. He doesn't see Daniel. Doesn't see the ambulances, or the yakuza, or anything he can discern.
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Daniel 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Zach Glenn successfully hits Daniel with Raging Dragon.
[ \\\\\\\\ <
Daniel 1/-------/=======|
Zach lands heavily, his body finally failing the unmitigated blinding rage washing through him. It's enough to bring Zach back to now. "I..." he says incoherently. "What... what did..."
Zach does not get to finish the question. He simply collapses.
Oh god he wasn't going down.
The enraged Zach comes firing right back, filled with the psychic energy within. The pure power of the boxer comes rioting in, and Daniel, sensing the shift in momentum, suddenly draws his OWN chi inward. Burning inwardly with his own chi, the detective attempts to direct the enraged offense. In fact, he manages to redirect one punch, before the rest come rioting in, tearing into him. Daniel grunts, he groans, and he eventually, as the rage dies down, the detective sticks his chest out to each hit. He grunts as there is a suddenly splash of blood on his jacket; Zach his the blood pack, bursting it. Eventually, Zach falls down, asking his question.
And Daniel?
Daniel just sighs.
The judge, uncertain of what was going on, just calls it for the pair. Another crack of thunder comes. And Daniel? Daniel finally pulls out his phone. It was no longer alarming. Whatever this was... what was this? Sakuraba runs over, staring down at the man that Daniel Jack just downed. "Hey, Dan-Man. We gonna cuff this guy too?" Daniel Jack just shakes his head, calling someone on the phone. "Nah. We are gonna get him to a hospital. And I am gonna make sure someone is there to pick him up." Daniel Jack pauses, letting it ring a few times through the storm. And finally, an answer comes. His voice suddenly turns bright and chipper. "Hey, Honoka?"
"Zach did something stupid. Can you pick him up?"
COMBATSYS: Daniel has ended the fight here.
Nearly an hour has passed before a white van with the Twilight Star Circus logo on its side pulls up. The van has barely come to a stop when Honoka Kawamoto rolls the side door open, racing over to the scene of the crime (which just happened to double as the scene of -two- tournament fights!). She's wearing a purple jacket -- apparently she has tons of those -- over a cream-colored turtleneck. Concern is wrought upon her features as she takes in the details of the scene, and its divergence from the HitBit-provided views beamed across the internet.
For one, the main audience has cleared out -- only a few members of the HitBit medical staff are present, and they're pretty much at the point of tapping their feet waiting for Honoka's arrival.
Honoka spots Daniel. Their last conversation was cheerful enough, but he -did- just smack down her boyfriend. For a moment, it looks like she might walk towards Daniel first...
But that's more because of the barricade in the way. As soon as she clears the obstruction, she makes a beeline for Zach, keeping her eyes downcast, and hoping that Daniel isn't well enough to intercept her. Conversation would be... awkward.
But she doesn't let distance stop her from trying to reach out to her boyfriend. << Zach, I'm here. >>
Zach stirs slightly, groans. Pain comes over the link between the monster hunter and the acrobat. Pain and the shadows of rage. The pain is Zach's, but the rage... not all of it is his. In fact, it feels like someone else's entirely. Zach slowly rolls over to his back. His clothes are a mess, and Zach has several bruises and burns that are slowly healing up. <<I... Something... something happened. Just... got so /mad/.>>
In the hour, Daniel Jack was still there.
Interpol was supposed to have come up 15 minutes ago. The fact that they WEREN'T mobilizing was definately pushing things for Daniel. His phone, was working still, and he was going through his contact to help get them going. The detective was even more bandaged up than before. He really wasn't supposed to be moving. At the very least, he DID get his cheek stitched up again. As he paces around by the medical 'post,' he munches down on some chicken wings and a beer brought up to him, mentally going over his schedule tomorrow. he keeps an eye on his three prisoners: Zach, Yakuza Thug 1, Yakuza Thug 2. As Zach rolls around, though, he looks over to him. "Easy champ, don't start getting antsy here." He states firmly, before looking up at the young lady clearing the distance, eyes downward.
The detective smiles.
Daniel Jack does intercept her, moving up to her to give her the basic confirmation. "Hey. Thanks for coming in. Hell of a thing, right? I get one HitBit fight, and then I get a second one, and who is it but Zach. He's uh... he's kinda..." Daniel Jack turns around, looking at the squirming Zach. And Daniel Jack just gestures at him.
"You think you can move him yourself into the van?"
Thoughts are clean, and direct. And sometimes, one thinks things they would never say aloud.
<< I know. It's Vega. >>
Having said that, Honoka immediately is wracked with pangs of regret. It seems like she might be about to launch into a more exhaustive explanation of how she can make a statement like that so matter of factly, when--
Daniel, already launching into a rapid-fire volley of statements and questions. Yes, she knows Daniel's been in one fight, and yes, she knows he's in another, and...
Honoka raises a hand to her forehead, wincing at the conflicting sets of information. Her train of thought is quite thoroughly derailed, to the point that she even, momentarily, forgot to walk towards her boyfriend.
So, first, the obvious question, that just happens to be the last. "Yes, Hanamura and I should be able to."
Second: "... And yes, I watched your fights." The psion forces a tiny smile, one demanded by politeness.
Late enough to be considered an afterthought, she adds, "Congratulations, by the way. Two in a row is a... tough act to follow."
The Twilight Star performer tries shimmying past Daniel without wanting to come across as rude... with mixed results.
<< I felt it too. >> she adds, in a weakened follow-up to her earlier interrupted thought.
Zach does not even question how she knows. She felt it too. She would know. Zach tries to help Honoka and Hanamura, but his legs don't seem to be working. <<I'm... sorry.>> Zach pretty much goes to sleep, the exhuastion from the fight and the rage proving too much for him.
"Three if you include the part where I got shot in the head."
Daniel Jack was pointing to the bandaged up section on the back of his head, a grin across his face. Daniel Jack locked in on her carefully, analyzing her a little... too hard. It was the drugs and whiskey probably. And adrenaline. After seeing the 'fakeness' of her actions, the forced politeness, he just waves his hand at her, stepping back a bit. "Eh, I can tell you don't care. Don't worry about it, you got pick up your..."
And suddenly, Daniel Jack gets a realization over him.
"... Well..." He mutters to himself, as a dawn rises in his mind. It's like being shot in the head loosened up some stray thoughts, reconnected some synapsises. He steps aside fully, letting Honoka and Hanamura pick up her... yes. It would be obvious now. But it would raise so many questions. And answer some other ones. Daniel Jack shuts one eye, as he moves aside fully.
"Just uh, make sure he gets taken care of, okay Honoka?"
Honoka blinks back at Daniel, frowning. I can tell you don't care, he'd said. As Hanamura lends Zach his shoulder, the performer sifts her fingers through his hair in a consoling gesture as she helps support his other side.
<< It's fine, just relax. >>
And yet, the Agent's words are still bothering her. "Agent, don't take this personally, but I didn't spend the whole drive here worried about -you-. You called to tell me about -Zach-. And, as I'd said on the phone... /thank you/." She inclines her head with a more honest show of appreciation.
She spends a moment glancing up and down at Daniel's wounds, as if noticing him for the first time. "It's tragic, what's happened to you -- it really is. I =do= care. And I'm glad you're not worse off than you are."
Honoka eases herself out of the way so that Hanamura can help Zach into his seat. It's a pointed gesture, punctuation for her words. "But Zach...? He can't even stand. And you, you're..."
As she walks around to another door of the van, she wrinkles her nose pointedly in Daniel's direction, in subtle reference to the scent she's detected on the Interpol agent's breath. "... Well, I'll grant that you've got every right to a drink after all you've been through." Another brief smile is offered -- equally fake. She could be a -lot- more vicious if she chose.
"I hope your night goes better than your day has, Agent."
Could Honoka really be the same person?
Zach's partner had one profile, and Honoka was... very sweet, very mild, kind of inattentive, and a bit immature. Daniel Jack was reviewing the profile in his head, when Honoka lashed back. The detective actually opens his eyes wide as Honoka turns... bitchy. After the initial shock, though, Daniel Jack narrows his eyes in, taking it the full barrage harsh. Daniel Jack looks aside, rocking on his heels as Honoka finally gives him that fake smile. And in response?
And Daniel Jack laughs out loud.
Oh yeah, he could see it now. The agent of Interpol was chuckling to himself. "Hahahaha. Oh, wow." Why was it so funny? Maybe because of the painkillers. Or maybe because the fact that Honoka just proved a theory he was having, in flying colors. The whole thing was just so incredible now. "It's nothing personal; I literally don't matter a tinker's dam, especially with him so messed up. I'm sorry about yammering around so much. Jeeze, this whole thing must be embarrassing for all of us." Daniel Jack pauses a moment, taking a swig of the beer. "Oh, and sorry about beating up your... Zach." The detective states, looking off to the sides, smiling something fierce. Pieces were falling into place now. "I hope you two have a great night too." He states, raising up his beer, and then gesturing to the two thugs in holding. He calls out to the van.
"Oh! I'll get back to you on your thing soon, by the way!"
Honoka observes Daniel's face as she - in her mind - sets him straight. It's pleasing, watching the spectrum of emotions crossing the detective's face, and she makes a point of not letting her expression cross the line from 'polite' into 'smug'.
And yet, he laughs. It's not a ha-ha laugh, it's an a-ha laugh -- it's clear enough that the psion can pick up on the emotional shift. And that makes Honoka purse her lips, frowning. She places one hand atop Zach's, and the other moves to shut the door.
"Thank you, Agent."
Hanamura closes the remaining doors, then pulls the van into reverse. They're off before long.
And Honoka slams her hand into the armrest hard enough to rip it from its hinge. How much -has- this damn Interpol agent figured out?
How much has Daniel Jack figured out?
Honoka is Zach's mysterious girlfriend; the profiles between Honoka and 'Zach's girlfriend' are compatible if one assumes that one is a 'mask' and the other is the true character. Honoka is aware of the Darkstalkers at her circus, and Zach is either aware, or doesn't care. Zach has been incredibly protective of his family, and very likely, his girlfriend. That means that Zach clearly puts Honoka over his whole 'monster killing' shtick. Both are psionic. There might be a psionic connection as well. That was uncertain. One thing was clear, just at this juncture. With her sneaking into the hospital, lying her way in?
Honoka is a lot more deceptive than she lets on.
What did this mean with the circus fire? What did this mean with his interview? Maybe in a long shot, SHE was behind all this. A thousand points of light, and a thousand more paths for each point. Right now, the bottom line of what Daniel knew so far?
Honoka was kind of a bitch who didn't really like him very much.
Daniel Jack finishes up the beer. "Well, gentlemen. Looks like it's just us three." They weren't gonna respond. THey didn't before. Three black sedans and a provisioned police carrier pulls up to the shrine. It wasn't PD. It was Interpol. Daniel Jack knew that it would be only a matter of time before he would get a good look at the big picture. Daniel Jack was gonna let Honoka and Zach worry about their little issues. Daniel Jack had more ambitious needs.
He was gonna make the world a better place.
Whether it liked it or not.
Log created on 13:51:23 02/07/2016 by Daniel, and last modified on 15:22:45 02/08/2016.