Match of the Millennium

Description: "One of Outworld's most promising allies, LOTUS. I must admit. I am quite pleased by your performance. Perhaps you will favor the Emperor with another stunning victory. However, it is not the elder gods' will that you merely be handed victory. You will face a new arrival, whose blade the elder gods seem to favor. KENSHI. You will face your opponent in the dead pool beneath my tower."

[LOTUS]
When most people hear the name of a place, it gives an idea in the mind of what to expect. Most get a rather negative mental image from things with names like 'the pits', 'the dungeons', and 'the dead pools'. They rarely need to see these places to get the just of what to expect.

No matter how vivid the imagination, the reality is almost always worse.

Unsuprisingly, Black Lotus seems to quite like the decor. She hangs from one of the chains over the pools, enjoying the sights, smells, and general sense of foreboding doom and acidic death, holding onto the chain with a foot in the hook. No sense trying to ambush her opponent this time, since this was an announced battle, and the terrain doesn't generally support such tactics. Maybe Kenshi won't look up? Otherwise, she waits silently for her opponent to enter and the fun to start!

[KENSHI]
Suddenly, a flare of brilliant purple light illuminates the chamber, emanating from a swirl of misty energy that appears from nowhere on the center of them ain platform. The unknown energy twists about itself, rolling outward like an enthusiastic bank of cloud before dissipating as quickly as it came. Left standing in its place, head held high and shoulders squared, is the man who is likely to be Lotus' guest for the evening.
Kenshi, who's sword is apparently favored by the gods, is a tall, aging man. Beneath a sleeveless crimson coat he wears a suit of black and silver armor, somehow managing to convey the sense of an old school samurai while being constructed from more modern tactical materials. it is a strange look, but one he manages to pull off. Hell, with his somewhat shaggy salt and pepper hair, and full beard, he has a hell of a 40-something hot guy thing going on.
Unfortunately for Lotus, once the mist has faded, two things become readily apparent. Firstly he is not smiling. The hard, focused expression on his face suggests he is bound to be one of those serious champion types. And secondly, he is wearing a blindfold. So either this is going to be over very quickly, or else trying to hide above him where he can't see will be, well, pretty pointless.
"I have heard talk of you, Lotus." Kenshi says to the open air, his voice surprisingly relaxed for someone with that serious a look on his face. As he talks he slides into a combat stance, left hand lifting and head turning to face his ear forward. "If this match had not been given me, we would have spoken privately instead."

[LOTUS]
Yellow cat-like eyes take in this ramshackle fellows appearance, the blindfold being specificly of note.... Folks able to actually fight blindare usually able to do so due to not needing to stop to look.....

.... but if you can move faster than they can sense.....

Lotus decides not to hide further, since he likely knows exactly where she is. Besides, he's in this tournament. Only those truely competant are actually invited. "Spoken privately? Oooohhhh.. sounds scary. About what?". Her own tone is a mix of inquisitive and amused "I'm guessing i offed a good friend of yours?"

COMBATSYS: Kenshi has started a fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Kenshi           0/-------/-------|

COMBATSYS: Lotus has joined the fight here.

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Kenshi           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0            Lotus

[KENSHI]
"Too long I have allowed you to sew chaos into this tournament. Everything we hold dear is at stake, and your twisted pleasures are a burden upon the champions. If I thought you were trustworthy and sane, I would speak with you. But I sense that course has few paths worth walking. Defend yourself, Lotus. if you are worthy, you will live."
Kenshi's words, though intense, are softly spoken. He makes no move to reach for the sword protruding vertically behind his head, nor does he attempt to leap out over the acid and attack the pale woman with his hands. Instead he waits, head cocked and hand extended, perfectly at his ease.

[LOTUS]
A giggle is the initial response "So poetic! I'll make sure they add that to your tombstone.... it makes for a nice epitaph!". She grins ".... assuming your skills don't save you, that is! I mean..... why so serious?". She then leaps into the air in a blur, landing behind Kenshi. She doesn't stop to attack, though! She moves again, zipping around him and what she can of the room, slashing with her knives at him as she goes!

COMBATSYS: Kenshi blocks Lotus' Slice and Dice.

[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Kenshi           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0            Lotus

[KENSHI]
There is no witty response. No attempt at banter as the lithe woman blurs into motion. Kenshi stands with his ear cocked, hand out and a slight frown of concentration tugging down on the corners of his expressive lips. His posture does not change as she appears behind him, but he does begin to exhale sharply.
And then she moves, and he is moving with her. Her first blurring strike sparks off of his left bracer as he shifts it up an inch to guard his face. The second is batted away with the metal plate on the back of his right glove, and the third is caught on his right shoulder blade, sharp knife tearing a thin cut through his cloak before glancing off of the metal beneath.
It is as Kenshi is twisting away from the strike to his back that his right elbow lashes back in a quick, brutal blow aimed squarely for Lotus's gabby mouth. there is nothing fancy about the blow. It is a street brawler's tactic. Take an armored bit of his body and smash the other person in the face with it. The only thing that separates Kenshi from most street brawlers is that he's fast.

COMBATSYS: Lotus blocks Kenshi's Front Punch.

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Kenshi           0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0            Lotus

COMBATSYS: Lotus equips a radiant Dark Red Soul Shard.

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Kenshi           0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Lotus channels the glare of the vicious eye.

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Kenshi           0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Lotus channels the strength of the killing fist.

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Kenshi           0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0        [E] Lotus

[LOTUS]
As expected, this guy isn't a pushover. Despite his blindness and her speed, he still manages to deflect her attacks!

Impressive.

When his attack comes, Lotus is fully expecting it, and is not disappointed. The bunch impacts her raised forearm, the shock making her wince a bit, but no serious damage is done "Niiiiiiiiice. This could be more fun than i thought!".

Grabbing at his striking-hands wrist, she tries to pull him close, while jabbing her taloned gauntlet deep into his stomach, as the gem set into her chest gloooows red! Two more swift strikes occur from her other hands weapon, slicing at major arteries across his body!

COMBATSYS: Kenshi blocks Lotus' Exsanguinate.

[   \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////////////  ]
Kenshi           0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0        [E] Lotus

[KENSHI]
Even as Lotus's fingers begin to curl around his wrist, Kenshi twists his shoulder and gives a powerful down and out jerk of his arm, breaking the hold with the ease of someone who has studied at least some Judo throughout the course of his life. This frees him just in time to snap his left forearm up and deflect the clawed hand violently off to the side, the razor talons scoring three parallel lines across the silvery metal of his bracer.
Apparently done being on the defensive, Kenshi's right hand flashes up to grab the hilt of his sword, drawing it up and out in a single, blindingly quick motion. One moment he is unarmed, and the next there is a sword blade flashing down in a brutal diagonal cut from Lotus' left shoulder to right hip. Only once the cut has completed, hit or miss, does the blade of his weapon come fully into focus. Where once there might have been solid steel, dark and beautiful in its forging, there is now crystal corruption. The blade of his sword has been shattered, shard sticking out like jagged teeth from the veins of glowing red crystal that hold it together. A faint, blue glow streams from the metal of the blade, mingling with the crimson energy of his shard to form a purple halo of power around the weapon.

COMBATSYS: Kenshi successfully hits Lotus with Blind Swordsman.

[    \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////    ]
Kenshi           0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Kenshi equips a warm Light Red Soul Shard.

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Kenshi [E]       0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0        [E] Lotus

[LOTUS]
Unfortunately for Lotus, she overcommits, and when Kenshi pulls his hand free, her balance is completely off. For all her speed, she is only half-way out of the path of the blade with it strikes her across her chest, blood spraying from the gaping wound!

She then leaps, giving a spin in the air, attempting to fleck blood from her wound at Kenshi. Between the touch of the blood droplets, and the patters on the ground, hopefully it'll distract his delicate senses enough for her to land on him with an axe kick with her heel on the shoulder!

COMBATSYS: Kenshi channels the glare of the vicious eye.

[    \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////    ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/----===|==-----\-------\0        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Kenshi interrupts Crushing Strike from Lotus with Rising Karma.

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Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0        [E] Lotus

[KENSHI]
The very tip of Kenshi's sword taps the stone floor at the end of his downward cut, muscles bunching beneath his armor as he readies himself for the next blow. If Lotus only knew. Only understood the killing rage of the corrupted spirits trapped within his blade. New the cold desire for vengeance that clogged his heart of hearts, she would likely not be so bold.

Bloody droplets pepper the swordsman's face and chest as his smaller opponent takes to the air, but he doesn't even seem to notice. For a brief second both the blue and the red of his blade flare, near blinding, as they combine into a purple sheathe of energy that roils and smokes along the length of his blade. Both hands drop to take hold of the hilt, and then he strikes.
The strike itself is too quick for the eye to follow. One moment he is hunched forward, blade down and Lotus hovering above him with her leg out. The next, he is hanging in the air above the woman, sword held near vertically above his head. The only link between the two images is a brilliant line of purple energy prescribed through the air, marking the path of the blade as it was lifted from the ground, cleaved up Lotus' groin and across her chest, passed over her left cheek, and ended poised above her head. Her foot thuds against the armor guarding his right ribs as he hovers there before her, robbed of most of its crushing strength by the force of his blow. And, as if that were the signal for gravity to take over, the blind man drops from the air to land heavily on both feet, the weight of his armor nearly driving him to one knee.

[LOTUS]
Moments after the clash of attacks, Lotus is sent flying through the air by Kenshis counterattack! She bounces along the path over the slime several times, leaving a messy smear of red all along the ground.

After a moment, she rises to her feet. Her clothes are torn, blood leaks from multiple gashes, and plops on the floor in a pool. Despite this, she doesn't seem the worse for wear. Either she is ignoring the damage for now, or just doesn't care.

She takes off, making a beeline towards Kenshi, not bothering to try to disguise her position since he doesn't actually see her and won't be thrown off by it. She leaps high into the air once again, a pair of throwing daggers sent at the ground beside him to potentially thow off his hearing, as she descends with both her metal claws towards him, attempting to jam them into his shoulders and pounce him to the floor, her gem glowing once more!

COMBATSYS: Lotus channels the glare of the vicious eye.

[        \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////           ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Lotus channels the strength of the killing fist.

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Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Kenshi just-defends Lotus' Catch the Prey!

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Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0        [E] Lotus

[KENSHI]
Shifting his sword to his left hand, Kenshi silently waits for Lotus to return to her feet and continue the fight. He has no doubt that she will. He understands her strength, is sure of her limits. She has a desire for violence and bloodshed beyond most people, to the point of obsession, and this makes her predictable.
So it is that as she charges him and leaps once more into the air, Kenshi is ready for her. His right hand lifts, palm out, fingers spread, and a much more subdued purple glow blossoms from his palm and spreads up his arm. At the same moment, misty purple energy forms around the thrown daggers, halting both them and Lotus in mid air. There they float, suspended in a shell of soul power, as Kenshi begins to bare down on them with his mind. The daggers crumple and twist with metallic shrieks, while an immense pressure begins to try and squeeze Lotus into a smaller and smaller ball. It is as if a giant fist has closed around her and is attempting to crush her into the fetal position and beyond, to grind her bones into powder and pulp her organs. And if that weren't rough enough, as the pressure continues to build, Kenshi gestures forward with his hand and the Black Lotus is hurled backward through the air on a collision course with the slick stone wall at the edge of the platform.

COMBATSYS: Kenshi channels the beat of the tireless heart.

[    \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////             ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Kenshi blitzes into action and acts again!

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Kenshi [E]       0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\0        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Kenshi successfully hits Lotus with Lost Way.
- Power hit! -

[       \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-======|=======\===----\1        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Lotus dodges Kenshi's Off Balance.

[       \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/=======|=======\===----\1        [E] Lotus

[LOTUS]
Lotus blinks as she is suddenly caught in mid-air. She grunts and struggles, blood beginning to pour out of the corners of her eyes, ears, and nose, as well as her injuries, as the energy begins to crush her.....

Then, abruptly, she is thrown back into the air towards the wall!

Twisting unnaturally in the air, Lotus repositions herself, and when she impacts the wall, her legs act as a spring, bending with and absorbing the force, before leaping back out once more towards her target of choice! (and at present, the only one present to do so!)

Her gem glows brightly once more as she comes like a bullet at Kenshi! She goes right for his throat, attempting to sing her teeth deep into his neck, and pump him full of very potent poison!

COMBATSYS: Lotus channels the veins of the burning blood.

[       \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/=======|=======\=====--\1        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Lotus channels the strength of the killing fist.

[       \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/=======|=======\=====--\1        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Lotus channels the glare of the vicious eye.

[       \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/=======|=======\=====--\1        [E] Lotus

COMBATSYS: Lotus successfully hits Kenshi with Deadly Kiss.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////                    ]
Kenshi [E]       1/------=/=======|==-----\-------\0        [E] Lotus

[KENSHI]
Once more Lotus comes hurtling through the air toward him, and Kenshi stands his ground. his expression is hard and implacable, lips pressed into a firm line as he releases his sword, allowing it to float from his left hand to his right. As his fingers close once more around the hilt, he thrusts his left forearm up, attempting to smash it into Lotus's chest and hold her back from his neck.But for the first time, he seems to misjudge the strength of her ferocity.
Staggering back with the lithe warrior clinging to him, the swordsman jerks his head away from her snapping teeth, leaving his neck temporarily exposed. Small white fangs pierce the leather between articulated metal plates and sink deep into the flesh beneath, poison racing into his bloodstream like boiling lava. But still, the psychic sword saint does not fall. Instead, he uses a burst of telekinetic power from his left hand to shove Lotus backward, then, with blinding speed he erupts forward in a one-handed slash from her left hip to her right shoulder, before swinging the blade in a loop and reversing the cut to try and cleave her viciously from right hip to left shoulder. Turning then, he thrusts his left palm toward Lotus's chest...

COMBATSYS: Kenshi successfully hits Lotus with Karma Eruption.
- Power hit! -

[               \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////                          ]
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-------|======-\-------\0        [E] Lotus

As Kenshi's palm comes into contact with the center of Lotus's chest, a great blast of telekinetic force rolls out from him, hammering her in the sternum and sending her flying backward into space, the bubbling acid below and endless chains and hooks all around.

[LOTUS]
Lotus, damaged as she is, is unable to react to protect herself..... All she is able to manage after the pulse throws her back after her bite is to thrust her fingers forwards towards Kenshis stomach! Once in, either way, the strikes with the blade hit cleanly, and when his palm-strike hits, she is flung like a ragdoll into the air, screaming weakly as she is impaled on one of the hanging hooks!

Hanging there, bleeding profusely... she starts giggling.... then into a laugh... then into an insane cackle that echoes around the walls of the cavernous room!

COMBATSYS: Lotus can no longer fight.

[               \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-------|

COMBATSYS: Kenshi dodges Lotus' Deep Strike.

[               \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Kenshi [E]       0/-------/-------|

[KENSHI]
Beneath his armor, Kenshi's muscles tense up in expectation of yet another impact, the blind swordsman taking a single step back that causes Lotus's last desperate blow to come inches shy of landing. Then, all too soon after, the spidery combatant's back impacts one of them any dangling hooks and the pitted point erupts from her chest in a spray of bloody gore.
"The power you carry will be put to good use." Kenshi informs the insane woman, stepping carefully across the slimy floor to stand before her at the edge of the bridge spanning the gargling acid. A flick of his sword clears it of blood before he slides it once more into the sheathe on his back. But though his weapon is stored, Kenshi is not yet done.
Extending both hands, the psychic gathers the might of his mind. Purple light flows up his arms as he presses both hands together into double fists, encasing Lotus's upper torso in a sheathe of power. Baring his teeth with effort, the swordsman then jerks his arms violently apart, and, mirroring his action with an explosion of bone fragments and vital organs, Lotus's upper body is torn in half. Both of her arms and large bits of her chest are flung in opposite directions, while her now exposed spine stretches, then snaps under the weight of her lower body. As her legs and pelvis splash down into the pool below, Kenshi brings his hands clapping sharply together, causing the woman's scull to implode in one final blast of over the top violence. This leaves nothing but a ragged stump of neck and chest hanging from the hook where once a fighter struggled, slowly dripping gory chunks into the bubbly gunk below.
Kenshi wins.
FATALITY!

Log created on 17:22:49 11/06/2016 by Kenshi, and last modified on 07:56:51 11/07/2016.