Match of the Millennium

Description: Directed by Shang Tsung, Aya Hazuki and Lita Luwanda meet in the spike-topped Kombat Tomb for the darkest timeline version of an exhibition match. It seems to be a fairly tense battle of equals until a dangerous experiment on Aya's part makes things go horribly wrong...

[AYA]
Waking up has not been good for Aya Hazuki on this island. She's 0 for 2 on coming out of unconsciousness into some... awful and troubling new development, as of this morning.

At the very least, when she rose this morning, the swordswoman did so in a bed, one more comfortable than a ratty, dusty pallet in some ramshackle corner of Shang Tsung's island. She also wasn't surrounded by eight terrifying-looking monks this time, either; Aya reflected -- with some 'help' -- later on that the monks were standing in one of the patterns of the bagua, which gives her unexpected and seemingly mystical travel to the island itself that extra special air of supernatural creepiness. But after her conversation with 'the Dahlia,' Aya found herself slightly more at ease. As a participant chosen -- somehow -- for "Mortal Kombat," she had lodging, meals, and other necessities taken care of... necessities that, she wondered more than once, she'd never have been aware of given the way she arrived. For a few days, everything had been fine. Tense, perhaps; the palpable air of an oncoming storm surrounded the gathered warriors, after all. But still fine.

This morning, she'd woken up with a weight around her neck that she felt quite literally down into her marrow.

In the somewhat dusty mirror of her quarters, the nature of the weight became clear: a magatama. The color is unusual, as is the apparent material; the comma-shaped jewel, complete with black silk necklace cord, is apparently cut from smooth and polished citrine, rather than a traditional material like bone or jade. And as she put a hand to its surface, Aya noted that it felt exceptionally... warm.

Some part of her -- technically multiple parts of her, one of which isn't even her -- had a very, very bad feeling about it.

But there was no time for further reflection. The gongs rang; the warriors gathered, and their host delivered his speech. Looking upon Shang Tsung's creamily self-assured smile, Aya couldn't help but think that her joke to the Dahlia about this entire affair being a bad knockoff of 'Game of Death' was turning out to be amazingly on the mark. Something about the man unsettled her. And then he talks about 'gifts' from 'elder gods' and she cannot help but bring her hand to the unsettlingly... ALIVE-feeling gem around her neck. And then, the call for battle.

The trip to the indicated location is long, winding, and unsettling. Even without her awareness of spiritual forces being amped up as it is, everything about Shang Tsung's island makes Aya's skin crawl. At best, it's a hauntingly empty wilderness; at its worst, the landscape seems actively hostile, as though the island itself were attempting to kill everyone on it. She is too smart to 'hurry' -- not wanting to show fear in front of potential foes -- but also does not tarry anywhere for too long on her route.

Eventually, she winds up here, looking out over the balcony, taking in the stonework. She notes the taijitu emblem everywhere and thinks carefully about her observation about the monks. Lots of Chinese mystical elements on this island... perhaps those are the "elder gods" Shang Tsung spoke of?

Her train is thought is ruined when she turns her head up and spies the ceiling. "...charming."

[LITA]
It started before the fight announcements. Lita ended up receiving her particular Soul Shard in person from Shang Tsung due to recognition of her team's runner up finish in the King of Fighters. An effort that she hardly contributed to. But even though she accepted this necklace now tucked in her sleeveless one legged leotard, she had a bad feeling about it, but just as well she had a feeling she should keep it on her.

When Lita got her fight announcement, she started getting information. Or at least where it was located and then she worked on figuring out long it would be get there. There reason behind this. She needed to figure out if she was going to bring the polycarbon replica or her actual blade or both. When she found out how far away it would be, she had determined that it was too far of a distance to be carrying both versions of the sword and quite frankly she didn't know enough about her upcoming opponent to determine if she should go with the non-lethal version of her sword.

After some deliberation, she decided to go with the actual blade. The one thing she would truly miss about not having communication access to Delta Red was that she could rely on them for intel. Here, she was /mostly/ on her own and there were too many unknowns for her to justify leaving her real sword back at the castle. She didn't know the temperament of her opponent, she didn't know what could happen between the castle and the tower both coming and going.

When Lita finally arrives she takes in the sights looking for anything she can use as an improvised weaponry. There's nothing she can really lift. Her search eventually leads her to looking upwards. "Blimey."

When she looks at her opponent, she recognized her faintly from an old Saturday Night Fight... She only was half paying attention to it since she was working on paperwork at the time so she doesn't know any details.

She's from the same world as she which means she'll do her best but will avoid lethal tactics unless given a reason to use them.

"I suppose you would be my opponent."

[AYA]
Lita cuts an impressive figure, this much is certain; her physical appearance and style of dress are a night-and-day difference to the pale-skinned, dark-haired Japanese woman. Still, considering both of them are armed, and both appear to mean business, perhaps there is as much similarity as there is difference. Aya has no way of knowing that Lita left her less lethal option behind when she came here, but if Aya HAD that knowledge, it's a step she would personally have approved of. If you're going to be stuck in this sort of situation, then it is always wisest to be as prepared as possible for whatever might happen.

She is in the process of tying her ornately-sheathed family blade to her waist when Lita makes an appearance, and the severe mouth turns up in the ghost of a smile at the newcomer's reaction to the ceiling's array of almost-certainly-lethal spikes. "'Blimey' about covers it," she says with a nod, making the final pull and tug of a knot into place before testing its security, pulling firmly on the wooden saya and noting with satisfaction that it stays in place without being too firmly -- and thus inflexibly -- secured. "And yes, I imagine I am. You look fa--" She is about to say a line that any fool could obviously complete in their head, but then stops short, lips pursed. Shaking her head and clearing her throat, barely a beat passes before she changes tracks and continues. "King of Fighters. I am not sure I actually got a chance to see you fight, but that's definitely where I recognize you from."

There's a leaden pause, and then Aya sighs, shaking her head... though her demeanor is relatively relaxed, she is standing so that the heel of her left palm rests solidly on the end of her katana's hilt. That is to say, she's not deliberately threatening, but she's absolutely and clearly ready to defend herself if and when it comes to that. "I'm not a big fan of fighting on command like someone's trained dog," she says, glancing out off the edge of the tower balcony, before turning back to Lita, her head tilting to the side. "I don't know if you're like me and are here because you didn't have a choice in the matter, or not. But something about this--" and here she points upwards at the spiked ceiling, "--tells me that refusing our host's invitation would have consequences that are troublesome at best."

With a shrug, she rolls her right shoulder. "So with that in mind, I suggest we do our best to be sincere about things."

[LITA]
"Indeed. I only fought once in that tournament."

A part of her is very grateful that her reign as Western Pro Belt Holder which got converted to Blue Pro Belt Holder wasn't what she was recognized for. The memories of that are something she's still getting over. Also there was the fact that there are some out there that don't consider you a true champion until you defend your belt. She didn't.

"I, on other hand, fight for Queen and country. I was invited but considering the rumors of those who did get abducted, I get the feeling the invitation was a formality."

When her opponent points to the ceiling she glances up. It's clear that her opponent makes a good point and she doesn't say anything just nods in agreement. She resolves to be sincere, to be brutal, and to be vicious if she has to. But she won't go for killing blows and rob herself of a potential ally on this island.

She takes her stance that seems to be a military combative and then takes a deep breath. She's not going for the sword, yet.

[AYA]
An eyebrow goes up at 'for Queen and country;' there's something specific about that phrasing, plus the way Lita carries herself, that suggests military service. That's all tha Aya can deduce without poking further, however, and given the situation, she has no real desire to do so. "Does that mean you didn't have the full 'wake up on a strange island surrounded by weirdos' experience?" Aya asks, for a second almost looking surprised at the sound of her own voice, before continuing with a shrug. "I wonder who I upset to merit the less formal treatment, then." The question is delivered in the breezy tone of a rhetorical question, but in truth, part of her really does wonder why people like Lita or the Dahlia merited a less... severe introduction to the island.

Aya scans her opponent's form, for a moment, once she's said her peace. It's clear that she's looking for something, but not necessarily looking for something *on Lita*, though the agent is clearly the object of Aya's scrutiny. Apparently failing to find it, she lets out a breath, exhaling slowly. "I suspect we won't get those enthusiastic-if-weird-sounding announcers you see on television," Aya says, inclining her head with a casual nod toward \... well, *everything* about their surroundings. "So I suppose we should get moving, then."

It might be strange to hear a Japanese woman shout "En garde!", but it is a deliberate and obvious move on Aya's part, an attempt to make sure that her opponent knows 1.) things are about to get started and 2.) she values a fair fight, or something like it. There is nothing of the sneak attack in Aya's movements; she only kicks off the ground when it's obvious Lita's eyes are on her, and when she does make her move on the Delta Red agent, it's with a relatively simplistic ducking movement, twirling and lashing out with a spinning kick to the stomach, right hand hovering over the hilt of her undrawn sword... a clear window into her style of fighting.

COMBATSYS: Aya has started a fight here.

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Aya              0/-------/-------|

COMBATSYS: Lita has joined the fight here.

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Aya              0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0             Lita

COMBATSYS: Lita dodges Aya's Medium Strike.

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Aya              0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0             Lita

[LITA]
When Lita hears about the circumstances of Aya's arrival it starts with a raised eyebrow and then a full facial cringe. It was something she wouldn't wish on anybody except maybe her worst enemies. Just wait until she finds out how Daniel got here.

"No. I just receved the invite from my commanding officer and rode here on a long, boring boat ride."

As Aya studies her, Lita doesn't quite study her choosing more to rely on instinct to guide her. She's put in the training time. She has faith that the body knows the way. Delta Red Lieutenant raises an eyebrow out the shouted initiation but that now it's official they're about to begin. Her knees bend slightly and then she sees the attack and darts inside of the lashing kick and then uses quick footwork to strafe just a little bit ahead of the attack until the momentum of the kick bleeds off and she's in grappling range.

"I was half-expecting you to shout, 'Hajime!'"

Her pronunciation is not bad. It's possible that she's had some experience with Japanese martial arts. Her hands shoot towards Aya's sword arm and if she can get a hold of it, she'll wrench her face first to the ground and then perform a standing arm bar before releasing it.

COMBATSYS: Lita successfully hits Aya with Close Quarters Catch.

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Aya              0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0             Lita

[AYA]
Perhaps good sportsmanship is a costly maneuver, in Aya's case; the warning is honorable but also gives Lita considerable lead time with which to avoid the kick. Not connecting doesn't particularly ruffle Aya's feathers; after all, the goal was to give a gentle start to the fight. On the other hand, Lita's response is swift and being in close quarters means there isn't a lot of time to make a counter maneuver. And the problem is exacerbated when Aya considers her avenues for escape. Lita is clearly trying to grapple, so the natural inclination is to go airborne... and the look on her face, right before the Delta Red agent executes her combination, says everything about the timing of Aya's brain kicking in with the necessary information about why *that* is a bad plan.

As the pair stand in the surprisingly short space, the Japanese woman has a surprisingly short amount of time to consider her options... and yet somehow she has the energy to to grit her teeth and give in to the necessity of banter. "That would have been... so *expected*..." she bites out. Perhaps the distraction of conversation will be enough to give her time to--

A thought, unbidden. With her face pointed away from Lita's, the Brit wouldn't see the sudden widening of Aya's green eyes.

One arm is trapped in that arm bar; in point of fact, it's Aya's sword-drawing arm, meaning that most of her battoujutsu techniques aren't going to be suited to this situation. That said, her *other hand* is free, and this proves to be lucky. There's a fraction of a second where the air suddenly feels... different, like the tense change in pressure as a thunderstorm rolls in. And then, without much additional warning, the swordswoman's body itself erupts into arcs of violet electricity which course across her skin, coalescing in her left hand into the form of a blade made entirely of the purple lightning. With unceremonious but impressive speed, she suddenly jabs the blade *backward*, looking to ram it into her captor, if Lita is even still there after the initial jolt.

COMBATSYS: Lita blocks Aya's Futsu no Mitama.

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Aya              0/-------/------=|==-----\-------\0             Lita

[LITA]
With her hands clutching that sword arm, Lita is stuck with the decision of either releasing it and letting her opponent escape or holding on and dealing with whatever's coming. She has two things going for her though. First the fact that she still has superior positioning and the fact that she's still holding her. She grits her teeth as the electricity runs through her body but she's able to react to the blade itself. She takes her foot and steps over to intercept that free arm's path, not letting it get a full swing towards her body. She gets another jolt for her trouble but it isn't nearly as bad as it could've been.

She then releases the arm bar to drop down to one knee and deliver a punch to the rib under that arm she was working on before springing back to her feet and into her stance.

Now, she wanted to see what her fellow swordswoman could do. Even if she hasn't gone for her sword yet.

COMBATSYS: Lita knocks away Aya with Medium Strike.

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Aya              0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0             Lita

[AYA]
It's having your back turned that makes the difference, here; the idea was at least human instinct should suggest anything that is suddenly charged with electricity is a bad idea to hold on to, and in the interim Aya would have enough time to at least make some sort of defense despite the close quarters. The problem is that Lita, in defiance of human instinct, does *not* let go when her opponent is suddenly a lightning rod, and this presents a problem. It means that she's halfway through turning around when Lita basically punches her across the room.

Aya lands on a pillar with a really unsettling, heavy sound, a loud *SMACK/CRUNCH* that belies crumbling stonework behind her as the Japanese woman slides toward the ground, catching herself at just the right moment. "Alright, well," she murmurs, wiping a hand across her mouth and pulling herself standing. "Kid gloves are off, then."

She takes a step, leaning forward; if Lita's familiar with sword-drawing styles at all, this is immediately recognizable as a very old school battoujutsu stance, one with a versatile range of movement, Aya's right hand hanging cross-body over the sword on her left hip. And then, in a flurry of movement, she draws the blade in a flashing silver arc... one that is a considerable distance away from her opponent. This would seem silly, if the arc of her swing did not produce a swiftly-moving line of jagged ice crystals, sweeping a path across the floor toward Lita with impressive speed.

COMBATSYS: Aya successfully hits Lita with Hyouga.

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Aya              1/-----==/=======|=====--\-------\0             Lita

[LITA]
When the ice gets flung around, Lita seems out of her element(no pun intended). She attempts to slip away from the jagged ice shards but they come in faster than the close combat specialist can move away from them. It causes her to hiss in pain as she falls backwards but in spite of it, caused her to smile. It gave her something she could weaponize besides her sword or her kunai.

By the time she gets back to her feet and reaches down to snap off an ice crystal, it pretty much melts and disapppears. That smile then becomes a frown. So much for that plan.

She had some measure of success when she was able to keep the fight close range so she carefully moves in before attempting to perform a Muay Thai styled clinch with her hands shooting towards the back of the neck to lock in and then squeezing the neck at the sides with her forearm and performing a couple of knee strikes and swinging her around to do a couple more before releasing the clinch.

COMBATSYS: Aya dodges Lita's Random Combo.

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Aya              1/-----==/=======|=======\-------\1             Lita

[AYA]
Lita has noticed that a sword-drawing fighter is at a considerable disadvantage without space in which to actually draw the blade; unfortunately, Aya knows this all too well, and knowing that her *opponent* knows it, has every reason in the world for not allowing it to happen. By the time the Delta Red agent has started to close the gap, Aya has already sheathed her weapon and tried to steel herself mentally for what is coming next. As Lita draws close, she takes a breath and holds it, letting the stillness of that moment fill her. When the Brit reaches for her opponent, Aya glides out of the way with a very minimalist move, keeping her body low in that sword-drawing stance, sliding off to the side in a circular path. She's no interest in taking another one of those punches, that's for certain.

Pivoting back toward her opponent, Aya knows that if she wants to get out of this with her skin intact, she needs to pull out all the stops before it's too late. Kicking off the ground, she drives directly for Lita, hoping to catch her before the agent can recover from her own attempted attack. When she's within striking range, Aya stops short, slams her foot down onto the ground HARD, and steps in with a spinning attack with her *sheathed* blade, attempting to club Lita with an overhead strike at her shoulders... but regardless of if Aya connects with that attack or not, in the blink of an eye, she vanishes from sight.

She reappears at a completely different angle of attack, apparently having moved with sufficient speed that the naked eye couldn't track her. With one swift movement, she ducks low and draws her sword in a curving upwards slash, the opposite angle of the previous attack, before spinning and slamming the katana back into its sheath, the motion creating a burst of spiralling wind intended to push Lita away from the point of impact.

COMBATSYS: Aya blitzes into action and acts again!

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Aya              1/------=/=======|=======\-------\1             Lita

COMBATSYS: Lita dodges Aya's Crushing Strike.

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Aya              1/-------/=======|=======\-------\1             Lita

COMBATSYS: Lita endures Aya's Tsubame Gaeshi!

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Aya              1/-----==/=======|=======\===----\1             Lita

[LITA]
It is a moment that is both beautiful and brutal at the same time if one were to record this moment, Lita would be awe of the beauty of this moment if it weren't happening to her. Her hands grasp air as Aya dances around her clinch. Lita darts forward and under the sheathed weapon strike and is prepared to respond when the Eastern swords woman suddenly disappears from sight. She glances around and just resolves herself to wait until the strike comes and use that moment to respond.

Lita doesn't even bother to move out of the way. She doesn't even resist the push away from the point of impact at first. She now has her target and she's been pushed into her sword's ideal range. She hits the quick release latch on her scabbard freeing the blade and stepping forward as she swings the large blade laterally the first two times and then diagonally the third time.

Though vicious and brutal she's still being careful to avoid vital locations.

COMBATSYS: Aya blocks Lita's Triple Slash.

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Aya              1/---====/=======|=======\====---\1             Lita

[AYA]
It's a shame there's no audience here, because this is exactly the kind of fight that crowds like, especially bloodthirsty ones like the folks who have probably gathered to see Earthrealm and Outworld battle for supremacy. Lita's swings are all the more brutal for their efficiency, but Aya's defense this time is on point. The Brit's heavy blade slams into the Japanese woman's saya with a loud, ringing *CLANG*... but the look on Aya's face, and the clear tension in her body, makes it clear that you can do plenty of damage to someone with a sword even without cutting into their flesh. Each jarring impact makes her arms feel like she's lifting boulders with them; the third diagonal slash actually causes her to slide across the floor from the impact, kicking up dust the spreads out across the mostly empty floor.

"Well... wasn't that fun," she murmurs to herself, glancing at her opponent. Both Aya and Lita are clearly at the peak of their fighting spirit, and part of Aya knows that in the chess-like situation of a duel, making the first move is often disastrous. Never mind that the room's setup makes certain maneuvers she's familiar with that have strong vertical components basically out of the question. It's obvious that's what's on her mind as her gaze turns up toward the ceiling briefly. But sitting and waiting... that isn't particularly her style anymore, either. "I'd rather not get either of us skewered," she murmurs, looking around. "I guess I'll just have to wing it."

With that, she does what might be the most inadvisable possible thing: she kicks off the ground, diving right toward her opponent. When Aya gets close, she drops low, and then swings her entire body around in a high spinning crescent roundhouse, sweeping from Lita's left side to her right. This proceeds a second time, and then a third, creating a zig-zag pattern. Typically, this attack goes up, up, and up... but despite it all, the swordmistress would rather not impale anyone today, accidentally or otherwise.

COMBATSYS: Aya successfully hits Lita with Amagumo.

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Aya              1/---====/=======|=======\======-\1             Lita

[LITA]
Aya getting in close was actually what she needed to do. It would get her inside of Lita's ideal range since the rules have changed now that Lita was utilizing her sword. And Lita knew this which was why she thought her best option was to move forward shooting past her and to get back into that ideal range. Lita's just a half-beat too slow and she pays for it.

The Western swordswoman gets batted from side to side and the third one sends the soldier spinning to the ground.

She rises to her feet. She decides she's going to need to push the pace a bit. She goes in for a powerful shoulder rush, shoving Aya backwards and then she spins slamming the flat of her large blade into her three times.

COMBATSYS: Aya dodges Lita's Bum's Rush.

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Aya              1/---====/=======|=====--\-------\0             Lita

[AYA]
Problem: while that technique was useful for Aya to close the distance without sending either of the women into the spiked ceiling, it used up all of Aya's remaining room to maneuver. She'd hoped that the third kick might send Lita away and give her some lateral space, but instead the Brit ends up on the ground, so then when she rises back up and comes for Aya, the Japanese woman has... nowhere to go, for the most part. The result is that she needs to get out of the way of Lita's charging rush, but moving backwards out of the path of a relatively linear movement won't help unless she could backflip extremely far, and that puts her...

Again, there's a look on her face of surprise, like someone had just told her a secret she wasn't prepared to hear. "Alright," she murmurs, quietly, but loud enough for Lita to hear. "I can try that."

As the Delta Red agent gets closer, Aya... leaps upward, against all logic.

But much like the Brit's previous defiance of conventional wisdom, there is a plan here. On her way up, Aya suddenly swings her blade free of the scabbard, sending a spiralling wave of frost *directly at the spikes*; her landing zone, in the process, changes from 'spiked death' to 'big chunk of ice.' Sword still in hand, she inverts her position and then strikes out DOWN with the sword. The result is that when she lands, Aya is on the ceiling, 'standing' on the frost covering the spikes, katana neatly inserted into the frosty foothold like a mountain climber's belaying piton.

Exhaling with as much surprise as relief that such a gambit worked, Aya kicks off the icy perch, diving down at Lita from above; midflight, she sheathes her blade, as four glittering, chi-formed clones of herself appear on the ground, converging on their target with blades of pure light, the falling Aya wielding such a blade herself as she drops out of the sky like a shooting star.

COMBATSYS: Lita parries Aya's Byakuren!

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Aya              0/-------/-----==|=====--\-------\0             Lita

[LITA]
"Creative"

Lita had to respect those who took what they had and the situation they were in and were capable of improvising. It's one of the skillsets she preaches to her subordinates that they needed to constantly improve. It was the type of thing that could people into her good graces instantly and it put a smile on her face.

As Aya comes downward though, Lita's sword is held at the ready. Just as the blade is about to make contact, Lita, in one motion, bats aside the katana and moves in shoulder first once more. This time, she's relying on the timing to throw her off. If she should get that, swing her sword once more, swinging it like a cricket bat across the body of the katana wielder.

COMBATSYS: Aya dodges Lita's That's Not Cricket EX.

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Aya              0/-------/-----==|=====--\-------\0             Lita

[AYA]
There is definitely a lot of acrobatic followthrough going on right now, for certain. As Lita somehow deflects a blade made entirely of chi -- perhaps subconsciously extending her aura into her blade? -- there is a perfect, wire-fu moment of Aya suspended, head down, in the air above her opponent. In this instance, however, the fact that she's *not* using an actual blade works to Aya's advantage. As Lita comes at her shoulder-first, the energy blade vanishes from Aya's hands, which the Japanese woman suddenly thrusts out *onto* Lita's shoulders as the agent comes in to strike once more.

Aya's touch is brief and feather-light; it's definitely no sort of attack, but there's a moment as Lita passes beneath her, the swordswoman effectively front flipping over her opponent, landing in a crouch, and then immediately kicking off the ground facing *away*, intent on doing nothing more than putting distance between herself and Lita. Aya lands in crouch, kicking up dust once more as she slides across the floor in her landing, spinning to face her attacker in a three-point stance, hand to the ground.

As she rises, Aya can't help but grin. "Not bad at all. I bet people underestimate you all the time... their loss," she says, smile wolfish. The Delta Red agent has been a worthy and skilled opponent, much moreso than the shape of her huge weapon might imply to a casual observer.

That said, Aya can feel her own breath being shallow and hurried; the length of this fight has taken its toll, and thensome. Charging back in, she wastes no time in attacking Lita again; when she draws close, there's a sudden swing of the sheathed blade, as if she were going to make another drawing arc, but at the last second the katana stays in its saya; Aya twists, bringing herself in a low spiral, attempting to scythe Lita's legs from under her by swinging the sheathed blade through her legs.

COMBATSYS: Lita dodges Aya's Random Strike.

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Aya              0/-------/-----==|=====--\-------\0             Lita

[LITA]
"I was never was what one would call talented. I was just willing to put more work in than most."

That's all Lita has to say in reference to the comment about being underestimated all the time. It was true and while it's also why she's had a constant chip on her shoulder, it was also why she considered herself the weak link on the Interpol team. While she was willing to work hard, she wasn't quite where her team mates were.

She forces those thoughts out of her mind. She still has a skilled opponent standing right in front of her swinging the saya right for her legs. Lita leaps up over it in a spin as she latches the sword into place. By the time she lands. It's on one foot inside of Aya's sword range as she delivers a kick to her sword arm.

COMBATSYS: Lita successfully hits Aya with Light Kick.
- Power hit! -

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Aya              0/-------/--=====|=====--\-------\0             Lita

[AYA]
"Don't sell yourself short," Aya says, rising, even as Lita heads up and over. The swordswoman has enough perception to track her opponent, but makes a troublesome error in dealing with the problem: she attempts to cover her striking arm with her off-hand, but in the process of attempting to move it across her body to intercept the kick, Aya effectively puts her elbow directly in the path of the strike instead. As Lita presumably rebounds away, Aya sucks her breath in through her teeth, grimacing. The hit itself wouldn't have been so bad... but a blow to the inside of a soft joint is never a fun time.

Still, even as she slumps forward in her stance a bit, it isn't enough to drop her... not yet, anyway. Voice thick with pain, she nevertheless continues her statement from before. "Hard work is important. But no amount of polishing will turn coal into a diamond."

Shutting her eyes for a moment, Aya takes a long, slow breath, centering herself. Pain has a surprising way of sharpening the mind... but for whatever reason, she looks... distracted? As if she's looking toward Lita, but not really seeing her. And to make it particularly weird, her lips are moving, barely perceptibly, though she's not speaking aloud.

Until, eventually, she DOES say something aloud, if quietly. "Okay. Both together then. A little of me, a little of..."

Her eyes snap open, her expression coming into sharp focus. Through her dark brown hair, red highlights streak outward... and around her, the air suddenly becomes alive with whorls of wind, drifting petals of unseen flowers, more spectral than real, dancing across the room.

"Prepare yourself," she says to Lita, before she kicks off the ground, dashing across the distance between the two women so swiftly her body is nothing but a barely-visible blur, her sword-drawing slash intending to take her THROUGH Lita and around the other side, the path of the strike suddenly exploding with green whorls of slicing wind as well.

COMBATSYS: Lita blocks Aya's Kamaitachi.

[                     \\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////                       ]
Aya              0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0             Lita

[LITA]
The fact that Aya looks as though she's talking to someone else that's not Lita. It's weird but she's heard of weirder things so she's not going to question it. Just be ready for whatever is happening.

It's a powerful attack. Lita barely has time to free the two kunai from her bandolier the attack happens so quickly. As Aya blurs right by her, there's a sound of metal clashing and then a silence that seems to fill the room.At first Lita stands and then all of a sudden Lita drops to one knee as blood runs down her side from where the force of the slash drove her dagger into her. It was nowhere near as bad as it could be.

Lita takes advantage of the low position to roll so she's facing Aya once more and then she pulls three more kunai bringing the grand total to five which she then throws in the Eastern swordwoman's direction.

COMBATSYS: Lita successfully hits Aya with Kunai Spread.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-
# Disabling hit! #

[                             \  < >  //////                        ]
Aya              1/----===/=======|=======\-------\1             Lita

[AYA]
The problem with experiments is that they sometimes go awry.

Whatever force or... something... that Aya released in that confusing moment is what's making the wind react to her every moment with surprising intensity. It speeds her movements, brings force to her attacks. It's not sure how long it will last; it's clearly a move intended to settle things before they get out of hand. But there's... surprisingly little sense of surprise in her face despite this being a relatively new thing.

She turns, as soon as she hears the whistle of Lita's shuriken heading her way. With surprising gracefulness, she turns, sword sheathed, arms twisting...

And the cyclonic aftermath of her movements, quite unintentionally, gathers the knives up and drives them into her flesh. Hard, and deep.

The result is far worse than Lita could have possibly intended. The driving wind makes the impact ten times worse than it would have been if the throws had simply hit her; each successive strike knocks Aya back farther, as if she'd taken a blow to the face, staggering, the knifes drawing deep red lines of blood from where they land.

The last one clips her neck just as the Japanese woman hits the edge of the balcony; a crimson line shears across her neckline where it meets her shoulder, before the swordswoman tumbles off the side in the howl of a gale that, after it dies away, leaves only silence.

COMBATSYS: Aya takes no action.

[                        \\\\\\  <
Lita             1/-------/=======|

COMBATSYS: Aya can no longer fight.

[                        \\\\\\  <
Lita             1/-------/=======|

[LITA]
She can control where she places her throwing daggers, but she can't control what her opponent does once the bladed weapons leave her finger tips.

As soon as she can see her weapons get close, she starts to smile but then it's cut short when she sees how Aya moves in response to them. And then she cringes as each one connects and when the final one connects to her neck, Lita goes charging in hoping she could grab her before she falls over the edge but her reaction is just not quick enough. She is helpless to watch as Aya fall over the and she rushes to the window to see if she could get line of sight on her opponent but she can't find her. She can't help but assume the worst and drops to her knee in frustration as punches the floor. And when she rises, she's silent all the way back the castle.

Log created on 15:26:06 09/16/2016 by Aya, and last modified on 01:44:05 09/17/2016.