Match of the Millennium

Description: It's the sequel to the powerhouse fighting event! Watch as Ryuko debuts in her first public match, pitting her lightning fast swordplay against Munin's devious shadow powers atop an old-fashioned Chinese fishing boat as they slowly wind down the Li River! Can the newcomer strut her stuff or will experience win out over youth? Tune in to find out! <Winner: Munin>

[MUNIN]
Ugh..... as if Munin hadn't had enough of an ocean encounter when she ran into Lump.....

The SNF group has set her up in a match on a small chinese fishing boat, out on the water about half a mile off shore: deep enough to fall into safely, yet close enough to still see the shore. Cameras, both mounted around the edges of the ship, as well as attached to flying drones buzzing around them, are ready and waiting to record the impending battle! The top of the boat has been removed, giving the two fighters unhindered movement around the top of the floating object, though it's size is not exactly large to begin with.

Warily, Munin takes in the details of her opponent. The electronics and headgear remind her of a techno-kitty, though this thought is not voiced. The eyepatch is likely a targetting system judging by the techy look of it. The sheathed sword is noted as well.

This could be interesting.... and could also get messy.

A drone with a small LCD screen comes around, with a countdown on the screen. Focusing entirely on her target, dark whispy chi begins to drift off Munins body as her, and the inside of her hoodys hood darkens as the shadows thicken, making all but the violet glows of her eyes difficult to make out "Hope you're ready"

[RYUKO]
Unlike her opponent, Ryuko is practically giddy with the anticipation of the upcoming fight. While she's been a participant in all sorts of small scale local contests back in Southtown, this is the first time that she's gotten the chance to join the big leagues. Today is her grand debut on the world stage!

It's hard not to be nervous, what with the cameras swirling around them like busy worker bees, taking footage from every possible angle to provide the best viewing experience. She's familiar with the set up. The Saturday Night Fight broadcast has been a weekly event for her for as long as she can remember, a time when she gets to sit down with her parents and enjoy some family bonding. Most people might consider violent beatdowns a strange way to get closer to your family but Ryuko's parents aren't quite the norm, both of them having been avid participants in martial arts since their own youth. They practically shoved her towards taking the sport herself but she's never regretted it.

Ryuko sits on her own side of the long boat, patiently waiting as the pair of oarsmen row the massive raft out into the middle of the Li River. Some might question the reasoning behind holding a fight in such a strange place but she's well aware of the quirky nature of the themed events typically created. She's not particularly familiar with this one, though - something about some famous American actor's movie career, she thinks. While it would be nice to have a little context so she could put on more of a show, she's pretty sure that most people will be content just to watch a good fight.

The one-eyed girl's gaze drifts from the beautiful view of the Chinese scenery to the far side of the boat as the drones suddenly become busy. The countdown on the more sizable robot makes it clear that the match is about to begin and so she rises to her feet, picking up the slender length of her sheathed sword in her left hand and moving closer to the middle.

"Hey there," she says, offering a quick wave and a confident smile to her opponent. "Name's Ryuko. Ryuko Tenjin, if you're curious." Ryuko extends her hand out towards the other girl in the universal handshake offer. "This is my first time doing one of these! So, uh, let's have fun, yeah?"

[MUNIN]
Also moving closer, Munin accepts the handshake, being quick and cautious about it in case it's a disguised throw....

You never know.... she's known folks that would do it

"Munin Arshe. Grats on this bein your first". She takes a few steps back and assumes a ready stance as the countdown ticks ever closer "Fun sounds fine with me!". She gives a small half-smile, though it's only partially visible in the gloom of her hood. It becomes a smirk as she adds "I'll try not to hurt you TOO much for your first fight here", her tone full of humored snark

[RYUKO]
Ryuko's handshake is confident and firm, much like her smile, and equally lacking in deception. Unlike some fighters, she's not the sort to resort to cheap tricks just to score a few points. She does take note of the speed at which her opponent shakes and then steps back, however, and her smile shifts to a faint grin. Perhaps this girl is smarter than she is by acting with such caution.

"I would appreciate that, Arshe-san. It's just a sparring match, after all."

Stepping back, Ryuko creates a small amount of space between them and falls into her combat stance. She half turns away from Munin, exposing her side and forcing her to peer almost over her shoulder to keep the woman in view. The sword is held against her hip in the traditional position where a samurai warrior might have it belted about their waist; she does not wear any such device to keep it immobilized, however. Instead, Ryuko simply holds the sheathe with her right hand, the left loosely resting on the handle.

"Ready," she states bravely.

COMBATSYS: Ryuko has started a fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Ryuko            0/-------/-------|

COMBATSYS: Munin has joined the fight here.

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Munin            0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0            Ryuko

[MUNIN]
Munins eyes glow brighter, and the whispy chi increases in volume in the air around her as she waits, like a good sport, for Ryuko to turn around enough to see the attack coming. The moment she peers over her shoulder, Munin is off!

With intense speed, she splits in two, one Munin going left and attacking from the side, the other going right and leaping in from the upper right side! A makeshift 'blade' of glowing purple chi erupts from both images hands as they come in with a slashing motion from their respective sides!

COMBATSYS: Munin successfully hits Ryuko with Mirror Image.

[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Munin            0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0            Ryuko

[RYUKO]
Ryuko has hardly taken up her stance when the fight starts. She's used to these sorts of flash assaults after attending Gedo for some time now. Hell, most of the people there don't even have the courtesy to wait til their opponent is ready. Considering the apparent nature of her foe, she'd been expecting something to happen.

The clones are a little beyond what she could have planned for, however. The swordsgirl's eye opens wide as Munin seems to split into two different bodies, one coming at her from each side. Her instincts scream into action, slowing the attacks down until the world is moving in slow motion to her. She glances back and forth between the two identical women, attempting to gauge the sort of threat they pose.

Is this some sort of illusion? Which one is real? Are either of them real? She has only a short few moments to decide.

In the end, she turns to face the assault coming at her from the right. Her blade whips up, half drawn from the sheath as Ryuko interposes the dull metal between herself and the falling sword of energy. She moves with more than enough speed to intercept the blow except that when the two weapons meet the shimmering blade of light simply passes right through her own. A fake!

Munin's true form tears into her from the other side, blazing chi scoring her defenseless ribs with searing heat. The girl hisses in pain and staggers to the side, whirling around to face the real body of her attacker once more. She takes a moment to clutch the wound, inspecting it curiously, and lets out a huff of amusement.

"Neat trick."

Ryuko doesn't waste much time in pressing her own attack forward. The blade dances out of the sheath in a blindingly fast movement, arcing through the air so quickly that its nearly impossible to see. A contrail of blue chi carves into the space that her opponent currently occupies marking the path whip-like slash for a couple seconds.

COMBATSYS: Ryuko successfully hits Munin with Tenryuko Senjin.
- Power hit! -

[     \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////////////     ]
Munin            0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0            Ryuko

[MUNIN]
"Thanks" is the quick reply given to the compliment. Of course, the time it takes to think in words slows Munin down. When she sees the contrail of chi indicating the attack coming, her brain is still swapping between 'speak' mode and 'get out of dodge!' mode! It hits full force, causing a painful gash along the side of Munins head, slicing part of her hood off in the process, thus revealing the gals suprised expression from the sudden burst of pain!

Right. Common sense: Sharp pointy thing is DANGEROUS! Sparring or no!

Hoping to take advantage of the time usually needed to recover from swinging a weapon, she moves in on Ryuko, sending a pair of punches, followed by a kick to the knee, and if unhindered an arm lock and shoulder throw!

COMBATSYS: Ryuko blocks Munin's Combo Grapple.

[     \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
Munin            0/-------/--=====|===----\-------\0            Ryuko

[RYUKO]
Unfortunately for Munin, Ryuko's art is completely resistant to the issue of time needed for re-sheathing as her slash is so quick that the blade is back in its case at her side almost before she can even realize she's been hit. The speed and skill on display is absurd, almost impossibly so for someone as new to the fighting circuit as this teenage girl.

As such, Ryuko is fully ready for the attack when it comes. The punches are evaded without difficulty, the first hitting nothing but air as she leans to the side. The second is caught on her forearm, neatly deflecting the blow and she repeats this manuever with her leg to intercept the kick, blocking it with the tough surface of her shin. It stings a bit but she shows no outwards signs of the pain, already moving to position herself for a counter attack.

Munin's attempt to grab on to the elusive swordsgirl finds her out of reach, as if she was somehow aware of the intention behind the salvo of blows, effortlessly evading the martial throw with a back step. Her sword explodes into motion with the same intense alacrity as before, becoming a blur of red and gray metal encased in blue light as it carves a sharp angle into her body.

Rather than immediately sheathing it once more, however, Ryuko whirls into a second attack, bringing the sheath around like a club to smash upon her opponent from above, pressuring her hard to dissuade any ideas of attempting to get in close again.

COMBATSYS: Munin fails to counter Tenryuko Souken from Ryuko with Terminal Response.

[          \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////////         ]
Munin            0/-------/-======|===----\-------\0            Ryuko

[MUNIN]
Mentally cursing herself, Munin backs up as her attack is prevented. Fast-draw. She sees it now. She also sees the attack coming, knowing that draw attacks are almost always parallel to the ground, or at an angle due to the movement capabilities of the arm!

She leaps up and over the attack, sailing over Ryuko with the intent of coming down with an attack from behind!

Unfortunately for her, she doesn't see the sheath coming. It impacts her in midair cleanly, carrying her to the ground in front of her opponent, dazed from the impact, and with an audible "Oof!"

[RYUKO]
Ryuko tries to be a good sport most of the time but she can't help but grin as her instincts prove correct. Though she can't quite explain where it comes from, she's always had a good natural talent for analyzing the moment-by-moment nature of a fight, reading her opponents like an open book as if she were blessed with the insight of someone far more skilled than herself. Her parents had simply chalked it up to good genetics, naturally, and she'd never felt a real need to question the matter further.

Keeping her distance, Ryuko steps back another foot or so rather than trying to press her momentary advantage. Allowing the opponent to rise is simply good manners in a duel, and as she stated earlier, this is all supposed to be about having fun not putting the other person in the hospital. Perhaps a strange sentiment coming from someone wielding a sharp sword in a practice bout but she's confident that she can keep from actually causing more than a few nicks and scrapes.

Instead, she takes a calming breath and gathers her focus, expelling all distractions from her mind. It is a mental exercise rather than some sort of actual technique or fancy power, a display of discipline and training. Ryuko's eyes drifts closed for a second as she exhales then snaps open once more, her attention intently concentrated on her opponent as she smiles.

"Take your time."

COMBATSYS: Ryuko focuses on her next action.

[          \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////          ]
Munin            0/-------/-======|====---\-------\0            Ryuko

[MUNIN]
With pained effort, Munin pushes herself back up to her feet. She gives a nod "Thanks....". Wiping sweat from her brow, she takes an attack stance again "Ready or not, here i come!".

In another blur of motion, she darts towards Ryuko, chi-lance blazing from her hand as she sends a strong stabbing jab at Ryukos sword-arm shoulder, reasoning that if it impacts seriously, it can pass entirely through potentially and not do harm to anything vital.

Changing up, with an equally fast burst of speed she continues past, leaping into a spin, hands enshrouded by chi for increased impact with her hands!

COMBATSYS: Munin blitzes into action and acts again!

[           \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////          ]
Munin            0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0            Ryuko

COMBATSYS: Munin successfully hits Ryuko with Shadow Spike.
Glancing Blow
-+- CALCULATED HIT -+-

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////            ]
Munin            1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0            Ryuko

COMBATSYS: Ryuko blocks Munin's Spin Slash.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////              ]
Munin            1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0            Ryuko

[RYUKO]
Ryuko is most certainly ready - as ready as she can get atleast. She prepares herself for the inevitable rush, her opponent seeming to like quick strikes that come from unsual angles. In this she proves correct. Munin flashes forward with some impressive speed of her own but even her blitzkrieg assault cannot fully overwhelm the power of the schoolgirl's instincts.

Ryuko's eye narrows as she focuses and time seems to slow down for a brief instant. The lance of energy thrusts forward towards her arm as if moving through molasses and she twists to the side, attempting only half-successfully to move out of the way of the deadly thrust. The searing chi blade scores a weak hit, grazing the side of her shoulder, but thankfully not plunging straight through as intended.

Ryuko grits her teeth against the pain but keeps moving, sensing that another threat is present. Whirling around to present her front to agile fighter, the teen whips her blade up to intercept the spinning assault. One of Munin's hands slips past her defenses and lands another weak hit but the brunt of the rush is deflected leaving Ryuko in a prime position to bring her own A-game to the table.

Ignoring the burst of fire that runs up her arm as she draws her sword, the student takes a step back and lashes out with a sharp sideways slash, aiming to return the favor by landing a light cut on Munin's bicep. Perhaps if she can disable one of her limbs she'll have fewer options in the future.

The strike is fast, even faster than the others, as if the swordsgirl has entered some sort of zen state and stepped even further into the realms of power that she should not possess. The electronic mechanics on her head, the ones that Munin referred to as 'kitty ears', begin to glow a little more brightly, the bright neon purple lights within flashing a few times.

COMBATSYS: Ryuko successfully hits Munin with Medium Strike.

[                \\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////               ]
Munin            1/----===/=======|=======\-------\1            Ryuko

[MUNIN]
Once more, Munin is caught in the recovery stage, and through she shifts back, arms up to try to defend, the sword strikes true, opening up a nasty cut in her arm. For the moment adrenaline keeps her going at normal speed, but its gonna REALLY hurt once the battle ends regardless of outcome!

Swords, however, have a weakness: get inside their range, and they can't hurt you much! So Munin rushes in, getting into Ryukos guard as best she can, attempting to wrest the girl into a throw. Whatever the headgear is doing with it's glowing, it can't be good. Can't worry about it now, though.

COMBATSYS: Ryuko intercepts Power Throw from Munin with Strong Strike.

[                    \\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////                  ]
Munin            1/=======/=======|=======\=------\1            Ryuko

[RYUKO]
Keeping inside of her range is indeed one of the best ways to deal with the sword at Ryuko's disposal; a fact of which she is very aware. However, actually getting that close tends to be the issue when she's swinging said blade around.

Munin's speed helps her greatly on this particular front as does the environement. The fishing boat offers little in the way of room to manuever and the gentle sway of the deck as the water carries it down the river is also somewhat disconcerting for precision footwork. As such, her sudden lunge forward is mostly successful and once she has a good grip on the teen, she proves remarkbly easy to handle.

Ryuko struggles a little against the sudden grapple but she's not particularly skilled at this form of combat and it shows. The powerful heave sends her flying backwards but even as she flips through the air, her sword lashes out once more in an unbelievable display of precision. The blade carves into Munin's torso as its wielder falls to the ground, the tip slashing her from shoulder to hip in a cut that cleaves the hoodie wide open.

A sharp grunt of pain follows the impact as Ryuko hits the deck but she rolls with the fall and manages to keep it from hurting as bad as it could have. Rising to her feet once more, she quickly falls back into her combat stance and turns a wary eye towards the opponent, still grinning.

"Got a few tricks myself."

[MUNIN]
"Well..... done" comes Munins pained response. The cuts are adding up, and while not bleeding profusely, it IS catching up to her rather seriously at this point.....

Time to adjust tactics!

Her eyes glow even more brightly than before, and the shadows on the boat seem to lengthen and thicken.... particularly right underneath Ryuko.

Rather than getting close consistantly, Munin decides to keep it at range for a change, and with an upwards sweep of her hands, several dozen 'spikes' of solid shadow spring up from these darkened areas, all intersecting at some part of Ryukos body in an attempt to impale her in multiple places at once! They are only there for a moment or two, before dispersing into black smoke that quickly evaporates from sight!

COMBATSYS: Ryuko blocks Munin's Iron Maiden.

[                    \\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////                    ]
Munin            0/-------/=======|=======\==-----\1            Ryuko

[RYUKO]
This is new.

Munin had already shown an ability to create illusions but so far her powers seemed to have been limited to close range applications. As the shadows pool all around her into ominous puddles, Ryuko is forced to wonder if this too is another illusion, a distraction meant to draw her attention away from the real attack.

She can't risk being wrong. Though only a few of the energy-wielder's attacks had managed to hit her properly, the wounds were beginning to ache. Whatever sort of power she wields, it is starting to sap the girl's strength a little a time. Another solid hit might be too much for her to take.

Bracing herself for what might come next, Ryuko waits until the last moment when the spikes of shadowy power erupt all around her. She takes to the air, flipping backwards in a great leap that carries her up and out of their range. A couple of the nasty things still manage to catch her in the leg but her momentum is such that the attack only manages to sends her into a harder landing than she anticipated, dropping to the deck halfway across the boat from Munin.

"Whew. Almost had me there! Heh, you've got some pretty interesting techniques."

Ryuko leaps forward a moment later, slashing her way through the spikes of shadow should any linger, and rushes straight at her opponent. The sword comes up in a broad overhead chop, as if she intends to simply split Munin down the middle - but it becomes apparent when the blade comes down that the sheath is still wrapped around it, turning it into a blunt club.

"Ougi!", Ryuko yells as she launches her assault, declaring her intention both to distract the woman and because it's freaking cool to yell out attack names. The sheath crashes down at her head in a dramatic and obvious fashion - perhaps a little too obvious, like she wants Munin to see it coming and deflect the blow.

Even should this happen, however, the truth of the attack becomes clear only after the first blow is struck. Ryuko whips the blade of her sword free of the sheath and spins in place, delivering a horizontal slash at waist level. The initial blow was just a feint!

"Kakushi Ken!"

COMBATSYS: Ryuko successfully hits Munin with Ougi - Kakushi Ken.

[                        \\\\\\  < >  /////////                     ]
Munin            1/-----==/=======|==-----\-------\0            Ryuko

[MUNIN]
Munin just can't seem to get her stride in this fight..... she rarely fights weapon-users, and while she knows the basics of draw-style Iai, she doesn't know this particular persons techniques well enough to respond effectively....

Her eyes do indeed linger on the sheath, and she backs up tracking it. She never sees the slash coming until it's too late. A long, nasty gash bleeds freely along her waist, her jeans thickness and attempt to back up the only things really from preventing unrecoverable damage in this battle at this late stage of events!

However, then something strange happens.... Munin evaporates and vanishes. Was it an illusion? Was it real? Hard to tell initially..... A creak of one of the boats floorboards potentially gives the attack away, as Munin launches an attack from the rear with a lightening fast flanking manuever using an illusory image to keep Ryuko distracted! The red line at her waist indicates that the slash DID strike, and that this is more or less a last-ditch effort to try to take out her opponent!

The stabbing attack from a glowing chi-lance comes in low, aimed at the soft area below the ribcage but above the waist, far enough over to not hit anything vital.

COMBATSYS: Munin successfully hits Ryuko with Shadow Strike.

[                        \\\\\\  < >  //                            ]
Munin            0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\1            Ryuko

[RYUKO]
Ryuko isn't surprised when the girl simply vanishes. Another illusion. However, she doesn't know exactly what to expect, which puts her on the defensive. The sword is returned to its sheath in a swift and smooth motion, the weapon returning to her hip as she drops into a defensive posture, eye searching the shadows. The boat is only so big, how could she...?

The obvious answer to the question makes itself clear even as the expected illusion presents itself. Ryuko narrows her eyes on the image infront of her, searching for something out of place, and it hits her rather quickly that the girl is making no sound as she approaches.

Too late, the tell-tale squeak of old boards behind her reveals the source of the true strike. She turns and twists to the side, attempting to throw herself out of of the way of whatever is coming but the swift energy spike punches squarely into her gut and out the back just as she faces Munin. Ryuko lets loose a choking cough as fresh intense pain surges through her body, crippling her senses for a few brief instants. In that moment, her instincts take over and she throws her head back in a roar howl of agony.

The scream, however, turns out to be a little more than just that. The girl's voice amplifies to staggering levels and the bellow of pain becomes a physical wave of force that explodes out around her in an explosive burst of raw energy.

COMBATSYS: Ryuko can no longer fight.

[                        \\\\\\  <
Munin            0/-------/-----==|

COMBATSYS: Munin blocks Ryuko's Tenryuko no Hoko.

[                          \\\\  <
Munin            0/-------/----===|

[MUNIN]
The gambit seems to pay off as Ryuko starts to go down, and with no shortage of time. One or two more exchanges and Munin is reasonably sure she would not be getting back up....

At first her shout is just uncomfortable, but as it raises in pitch, two and two are put together, and quickly Munin puts her fingers into her ears, and widens her stance, leaning down and to the side to her her back to shield herself from as much sonic energy as possible. The effect rattles her bones and makes her grit her teeth in resistance, but she stays standing as the effect dies down again.

She takes a moment to catch her breath before going to check on her opponent "Are... you alright?". She isn't sure how long she'll be standing herself at this point. All the cuts, slashes, and bruises are going to catch up to her as soon as the adrenaline wears off....

[RYUKO]
Ryuko's power-infused scream dies away after only a couple of seconds and she slumps to the floor of the boat, falling back onto her rear end. One hand snaps out to catch the edge of the boat and she manages to avoid collasping into a dishevled heap. The other hand remains firmly upon her sword, refusing to allow it out of her grip out of some passive sword-wielder's instinct.

Her head lolls back and she lets out another groan, this time without the ear-drum shattering force of the first. She hurts... pretty much everywhere. A mental tally of her condition leaves only her face, one arm, and one leg free of any injuries. The places where the burning chi touched her still throb with a dull ache, the worst being the stab to her stomach. It hurts but it's nothing worth crying over. Builds character and experience, as her father always says.

"Yeah... yeah, I think so."

She drags herself over to the curved surface of the boat's side and leans back against it with a wince. Her grin slowly returns and she tilts her head to share the expression with Munin.

"That was a pretty good fight. Never seen anything quite like that before. The round is yours."

[MUNIN]
Munin gives a pained nod. She hurts too much in general to know specificly what is where yet. "Thanks.... not bad swordwork either. For your first match you did extremely well". She looks over at the cameras "We're done. Send in the medics". She meanwhile plops down against the side of the boat "That was to the relative wire.....".

The sound of additional boats approaches as the crews and medics move in

COMBATSYS: Munin has ended the fight here.

Log created on 20:47:25 08/16/2016 by Ryuko, and last modified on 00:55:45 08/17/2016.