Match of the Millennium

Description: "Amongst those who have come forward, I find ALEXIS the most captivating. To think that she has come so far on such thin trappings. To that end, EADNI has disappointingly not come far at all. However, I find that the tournament has a way of whiling its way to finding the strongest. On the eve of the Grand Trials, perhaps I can offer a convincing boon. Consider this my charity for the one who mounts the station of SPIDER, as arbiter of this great tournament. I will hold your battle at the Kombat Tomb. For the winner, I offer an audience. Should you find the offer I make seductive, perhaps you may yet leave this place with your life."

[EADNI]
It was death.

The second floor of the tower was a home of the deceased, a home of the dead. The open-air mausoleum exposed at the sides, letting the hapless or desperate make their except straight down, if so inclined. The stonework was smooth, and stained with black and red. The air was not stuffy, but the stench of decay was drifting with the wind, fading with every breeze. Skulls are scattered throughout the tomb, embedded in pillars and walls and parapets and scones. There were only few amongst the stones. The symbol of yin-yang twists throughout the floor, carved in the fixtures across the tomb. High above, hanging over the center of the open-faced room, was spikes, jutting downwards. Some still have corpses on them. And of those, some still had rotting flesh clung to them.

One was still alive.

Amongst the spikes above, was a withered crone clinging to the spikes with deft agility. Her profile was thin, her motions serpentine. Her nose was long, almost reaching to her chest. And her skin was craggy and tanned, wrinkled beyond wrinkled. The scrawny woman was hunched over, dressed in woad rags that covered her body. It was almost simply an old lady... except for the fact she was clinging to the spikes by her bare feet as well as a hand. Her attention was on a skeleton still stuck to the spikes, the offending weapon driven between its ribs and pelvis. The witch was delicately tracing her gnarled fingertips along the skull, her attention fixated on it. Her presence here was necessary. She would be joining in Mortal Kombat soon enough.

But she had business to attend here.

[ALEXIS]
A shiver runs down Alexis' spine as she ascends the last step to the Kombat Tomb, the dull thud of her boots sending an echo through the chamber.

The macabre environs of the island's locales are familiar enough to the young Canadian by now; she's even been inside the tomb before, at a time where she was close to becoming one of its more permanent residents. She had been in the company of friends at the time, though, and now, confronting the deathly quiet of the chamber, she has a sense of being very much alone.

Alexis is dressed in black, in a garb traditionally worn for combat by Outworld assassins; the same style that she's dressed in for practical affairs since her arrival to the island. The black forearm-length glove on her left hand, though, is wound around the palm by a strip of cloth stained the rusty red of dried blood, the hand held in a tension that suggests that the wound beneath continues to make itself felt.

The footfalls come to a stop, allowing the slow, deep intake and exhalation of a single breath to be heard.

Looking around, the brunette fails to notice the movement on the ceiling. Presuming a moment of solitude, she takes a carved wooden instrument from its spot tucked into the wide belt around her waist, and raises it to her lips.

The sound of quiet pipe music serves to make the atmosphere a little less close and sinister, at least for a moment that may prove too brief...

[EADNI]
The arrival of Alexis is noted.

It begins with the smell. Always, it began with the scent of humanity. Her garb might have been of the assassins, but the witch cocks her head, staring downwards as she stops her muttering. The skeleton's eyes begin to glow with a green light. The witch watches, planning her attack, planning her ambush. She deftly picks through the spikes overhead like a spider, moving silently as she positions herself. Her black eyes stare, as the flute is brought out. And as the music plays, she stops. She listens.

There is a crack, as the witch falls to the floor.

The form of the woman is in a heap on the ground, for a moment. Steadily, the hag rises back up from the floor. Hunched over, it moves smoothly and subtly across the tomb, approaching Alexis like a breath of wind. "You must be Alexis, child." Comes the words, soft and with the faintest tremble. "What beautiful music... I have not heard a flute in so long." The old woman's smile endures as she lowers down beside the punk girl, crossing her legs as she takes a seat. "Would you play for an old lady, my dear?"

"Before we deal with this ridiculous tournament?"

[ALEXIS]
The flute quavers harshly, hitting a wrong note as the witch drops to the floor, startling the younger woman. The moment of panic nearly sees the instrument clatter to the ground, but Alexis manages to seize it on a second attempt after the first swipe clips and causes it to twirl. Both hands wrap around the wood's length, clutching it close to her heaving chest as she catches her breath and steadies her nerve.

"What the hell - who the hell are you?" Alexis questions, proving that her somewhat notorious lack of good manners extends even to the elderly. An inkling of comprehension seeps into her eyes after a moment, though. When she speaks again, it's more carefully. "...Eadni, isn't it?"

Her tone and expression still hold an unnerved and hesitant air, signalling that while the name may have been deduced, there is no sense of recognition; the dissonance between expectation and reality has yet to be fully resolved. Alexis looks between the old woman and the instrument that she's holding in her own subconscious, trembling death grip. She considers for a moment.

"I..."

She inhales slowly, and her hands stop shaking and relax. "I don't usually do private shows."

A pause.

"But, fuck it. I just made this one up a couple days ago and no one else is gonna hear it before I die anyway. It's called 'Murderface.' Or 'I Miss My Cat.' Like, in brackets, you know?"R
Before she can fluster herself further, Alexis puts the flute to her lips again and starts to play. The melody is fast, seeming surprisingly upbeat for a song of its supposed theme. The instrument itself lends a sense of lightness to the tune, though the staccato notes seem more intended for play by an instrument like a guitar. It's not an especially long song; only about a minute and a half if allowed to continue uninterrupted.

[EADNI]
The witch's face does not change.

Black eyes transfixed, the woman is motionless. The corners of her lips are curled up in the smile, as she listens. When her name is said, a faint nod is given, no words. It could be a trap. Any moment, she could have struck out. Any moment, she could have attacked. And yet, she waits, and listens to the cacophony of a flute piece. She doesn't react through the brief song, waiting for it to end without interruption. And as it finally ends... then she speaks again.

"Murderface... I Miss My Cat."

"That was a very curious song, my dear." She says with a familiar backhanded critique. "You sound so pleased to miss your cat. It sounds like a happy loss. You've already accepted your death." The woman cocks her head. "You know my name, my dear. As to what I am, I am a very old woman. I have come to protect the Earthrealm from the invasion." Her head cocks to the other side. as she eases herself back into a stand. "This doesn't seem like your tournament, my child. A good girl like you should be home with her mother~" Was the coo, as she remains seated. The skulls around the tomb begin to twitch. Their eyes. Her hand drifts to her side, where a small satchel hangs. The bag is bound with leather, the faces of men stitched rudely across it. Drawing a hand in, a small, white-bone meal cake is drawn out, with an eldritch glow and a skull-like shape.

"A scone, my child?"

[ALEXIS]
Alexis' lips curl grimly as she lowers the flute, transferring it to her right hand and allowing her left to rest at her side, fingers bent inward.

"It's ironic," she says bluntly, an annoyed expression appearing on her face and only seeming to deepen by the moment. She sticks the instrument back through her belt as her eyes settle on the skull-scone being offered to her. She reaches out to take the grisly pastry before taking a step back. She holds the scone up in the light, turning it around as she inspects it closely.

Then, she hurls it at the floor, chasing it quickly with the sole of her boot and crushing it under her foot, drawing a momentary warm glow from the crumbling skull.

"Thanks, but I've had enough calcium for today," she says with a smile too sweet to be anything but sardonic. She grinds her heel as she continues, "And you've got two things wrong about me. First off, I'm not a good girl." She scatters the smoldering dust with a kick of her toe. Her eyes narrow, the pretentious smile fading.

"And second... I'm nobody's daughter."

As if her point hasn't been sufficiently conveyed, she steps back and spits on the spot where the scone had been when it was intact, then raises her fists. They start to hum with an energy that reverberates subtly through the chamber as the red crystal on the choker around her neck starts to glow.

"You're right about one thing, though. I don't belong here. But if I'm going home, I'm gonna have to go through you. And that, I'm okay with!"

COMBATSYS: Alexis has started a fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Alexis           0/-------/-------|

COMBATSYS: Alexis equips a lustrous Scarlet Soul Shard.

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

[EADNI]
Some children simply had to be taught a lesson.

As the scone is taken, the witch's expression does not change. Her smile stays coy and sweet. But when her gift is rejected, thrown to the ground, the witch clasps her hand, as she twists her head side to side. A sweet smile into a sweet smile. As the sound begins to build, the witch withdraws slowly, recoiling with careful, delicate steps. It was cautious. It was careful. And the witch coos with the softest voice, the sweetest voice.

"You rude little girl~"

An eldritch lights run through the tomb, as the skull begin to chatter. Emerald magic flows across the floor. The witch arm distends, lengthening to the ground. There, with a sweep, she carves a circle of green light into the stone beneath around her. One of her eyes burn with a yellow light, her own soul gem burning from within. "I'll teach you how to behave, my sweet daughter. Maybe I'll take your tongue and voice, and give it to a precious child who deserves it!" The witch gibbers as her smile endures, as she raises a gnarled hand up at her.

"Let Mortal Kombat begin!"

COMBATSYS: Eadni has joined the fight here.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/-------|======-\-------\0            Eadni

COMBATSYS: Eadni equips a twinkling Flaming Yellow Soul Shard.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/-------|======-\-------\0        [E] Eadni

[ALEXIS]
The hum in the air around Alexis' hands starts to disperse to encompass her person as she stares down the witch. She snorts with derision at the word 'daughter,' her body tensing and coiling in preparation for the attack.

"I've heard worse, eh?" She circles to the left slightly, eyes moving to the circle in the stone for a moment before raising back up to Eadni. "I generally disregard threats from anyone who should be wearing a diaper, though!"

There's a beat between Alexis' words and the moment that she springs into action. When she does, it's to charge at Eadni, as if aiming to tackle the crone head-on; instead, though, as she nears, she launches herself upward - fortunately not threatening to clear the level of the spikes on the ceiling - and aims to land on the witch's shoulders and wrap her legs around her head, channelling disruptive auditory chi briefly into Eadni's head before throwing herself backward and releasing her to be thrown across the floor in the direction whence Alexis came.

COMBATSYS: Alexis successfully hits Eadni with Medium Throw.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/-------|======-\-------\0        [E] Eadni

[EADNI]
She was expecting to be tackled.

Standing fast, she watches, waits, prepares, and moves. As Alexis makes her charge, she continues that smile as she ducks with stunning agility. It would have worked if it was a tackle. But instead, it served only to expose her to the pair of legs wrapping around her neck. The blast of sonic energy rushes through her, splintering- splintering her skin as it snaps and bristles into fiber strands. Hurled from her circle, she tumbles with it, perking back up into a hunched stand. And there, staring across with broken skin and a sweet smile, she raises a hand, tracing some invisible shape.

"Eyes of Fire, Teeth of Bone.

"Find the intruder, make her gone!"

The skulls suddenly chatter aloud. Some rip from their places, flying through the air in circles, leaving trails of green fire behind them. Others, in their place, simply twist slightly to stare directly at the punk rocker. And of those... the singler burning eye flares over.A jet of emerald flame bursts from the eyes of the skulls, criss-crossing through the tomb, trying to catch Alexis in the path. Their bones smolders into ash as it consumes themselves with the fire. Eadni, for her part, doesn't chase after Alexis as she finishes the gesture. She was dragging herself back, walking hastily towards Alexis... but not for her. She was returning.

Returning back within the mystic circle.

COMBATSYS: Alexis overcomes Shut Your Eyes from Eadni with Power Chord.
- Power hit! -

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/-------|======-\-------\0        [E] Eadni

[ALEXIS]
Alexis lands in a crouch after the impromptu scissor attack, her left palm reflexively smacking into the stone to catch her from falling forward. Her eyes close and teeth clench for a brief moment, a curse buried beneath the sound ringing throughout the tomb as she pushes up to her feet, cradling the bandaged hand against her side. When her eyes open again, they're met with the sight of the skulls around the chamber being brought to impossible life.

"Holy shit," she breathes. Then, her face breaks out in a scowl. "Hey, that doesn't even -"

The barrage is coming too fast to finish her thought; one skull wizzes past her ear in a plume of green flame. There are too many to avoid them all, at least in the punk rocker's mind. Normally, she'd probably just assume she'd be inevitably boned and take the assault full force, but right now, Alexis is pissed.

Because there's very little that aggravates the punk rocker more than forced rhyming.

"Hair of white, breath of skunk, get your ass kicked by a punk!"

The words are belted out in an angry rapid fire, the final word shouted at full volume. The noise becomes a wave of energy that explodes outward from Alexis the moment before she's struck, shattering and deflecting the flying skulls. The wave continues outward in a ripple, rapidly dissipating, but threatening to perhaps knock the crone off her feet if unavoided.

COMBATSYS: Alexis successfully hits Eadni with Power Chord.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/------=|======-\-------\0        [E] Eadni

[EADNI]
It was, in fact, a pretty forced rhyme.

As Eadni gets into position, she did not expect the shockwave to break the flames. But as the power of rock is unleashed, the jets are consumed and the skulls are sent hurtling. Eadni suddenly realizes that her music mastery was a challenge to even her magic. As the rock wave rushes for Eadni, she tries to turn, tries to curl up and roll with it. All she gets is a blast, blowing her flailing.

And the witch falls into her circle, blasted in.

"Wretched child~" The witch coos, as she coils her body back around. The stench of turpentine begins to grow, the fresh smell of pine filling the tomb. "You dare defy a mother wishes? You'll learn your lesson soon enough. You and your awful noise!" The circle begins to grow brighter, as the witch traces a few more symbols. And then, she shifts her attention back to the girl, plucking away the splintered skin.

"I might simply cook you in my pot~"

The circle begins to mutter and hum, as Eadni surges back towards Alexis, crawling on all fours. The hag's movements are far swifter now, skittering low and fast at the punk rocker. Should she close in, she would claw ruthlessly into her shins, trying to overwhelm her with viscious, aggressive slashes, low and fast. All while the mystic circle grows in power.

All while it reaches its peak.

COMBATSYS: Alexis endures Eadni's Medium Punch!

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/----===|=======\=------\1        [E] Eadni

[ALEXIS]
Alexis is left panting as bone chips and dust settle to the ground around her in the wake of her outburst. The effect is greater than intended or expected; likely the result of a power growing since her arrival to the island.

The rush leaves her heart pounding, and distracts her perhaps more than it should from the oncoming assault. Eadni is practically on her by the time she shifts her stance, bracing for an attempt to tackle - but the crone instead claws at her legs, and Alexis can only steel her shins to try and keep her footing under the slashing swipes. The black boots that protect her legs prove to be of little effect in doing so; gouges are ripped through the relatively soft and flexible material and the skin beneath, drawing blood. The pain caused is clear in the brunette's expression.

"Real cute, Granny," Alexis hisses between grinding teeth. The Canadian steps her feet apart, bending down to try and grab Eadni by the shoulders as her jeweled choker flashes scarlet. A rather wicked glint comes into Alexis' eyes. "Hey, mind doing something while you're down there?~" she asks in a tone that may seem bizarrely sultry in context as she tries to wrestle the old woman's head up to her thighs and trap her opponent between them. "Like /getting wrecked!/"

As she shouts those words, the jewel at her throat shines and howls with the sound of distant souls, and she'll make a surge of effort to establish control before throwing her feet up and pushing her weight down to try and smash Eadni's head between the floor and her hips. Should the execution succeed, a tangible sonic burst like the sound of an electric guitar being slammed into the stone would be released at ground level, scattering the dust on the floor to the winds.

COMBATSYS: Alexis channels the strength of the killing fist.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/-----==|=======\=------\1        [E] Eadni

COMBATSYS: Eadni dodges Alexis' Drop D EX.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/-----==|=======\=------\1        [E] Eadni

[EADNI]
She was fast.

Down low, she tears into the woman's legs. She could sense the child's rush with the powers. The young ones tended to always go past their powers. For the witch, she required her unnatural form to compensate for her martial ability. The yellow energy within, a gift from the Elder Gods, could help as well. But the witch was aiming for smaller hits, weaker hits, a gradual grind early on, to harrass and heckle.

While the circle drew in its strength.

Alexis, to her credit, doesn't fall over from the low assault. Instead, she stands fast, and with a deft gesture, pulls her towards her murder thighs. In response, Eadni's entire body twists and winds like a serpent, utterly boneless in a singular motion in tandem with the howl of souls. She was trying to establish control. And to that end, Eadni almost seems to panick, writhing out of the grips of Alexis, slipping through her legs and past her as the slam comes hammering down. Eadni uses the shockwave of a sonic burst to roll with it.

And then, come crawling back.

Eadni asserts her grips on the stones on all fours, skittering across the tomb low and fast. She had a distance to close now; with the girl showing dangerous power both innately and through the souls, Eadni had the difficult task of keeping pressure on her AND avoiding her grasps. "Child, you will learn to respect your elders~" She coos as she lunges in low for the ankles again... before falling to the ground, flipping forward. Her legs, boneless and wiry, arches over her head, the bare feet flattened into twisted shapes. It was a kick, she was trying to 'sting' her with both legs into her chest.

And the circle only grew brighter.

COMBATSYS: Alexis blocks Eadni's Medium Kick.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/----===|=======\=====--\1        [E] Eadni

[ALEXIS]
Alexis frowns in frustration and apprehension as her elderly opponent proves too shapeless to capture with her intended attack. Her eyes follow warily as Eadni skitters across the floor, her feet stepping back and her body stooping slightly forward as she anticipates another low attack and positions herself to guard against it. She only has a moment to identify the flip forward as a change in vector for the attack, and she swings her hands up to protect her chest from the jabbing feet. She sucks in a sharp breath through her teeth as the impact drives her back, her left hand recoiling harshly and causing her torso to twist to one side to let the one foot continue past, giving way on her left while absorbing the collision on the right.

"Yeah? Well, I'm gonna teach you to respect biology," Alexis retorts as her left hand hums with power and she forces herself to ball it into a fist. Her body unwinds forcefully as she hammers her hand down at Eadni, not aiming for any particular part, but at the center of the witch's definition-defying shape in general.

COMBATSYS: Eadni channels the strength of the killing fist.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/-----==|=======\=====--\1        [E] Eadni

COMBATSYS: Eadni counters Fierce Punch from Alexis with When The Bough Breaks.
-+- CALCULATED HIT -+-

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Alexis [E]       1/----===/=======|=======\=------\1        [E] Eadni

[EADNI]
"Child, there is nothing you can teach me here~"

The words come so soft, so sweet, as the flip finishes with the witch curling into a ball, rolling past the rocker. And just as deftly, the witch rises back up into a stand again. Her body still stank of turpentine, but the splintered flesh was now groomed down into bark-like scabs. The witch's face was scabbing over as well, the creature's mask falling back into form. The witch was already turned towards Alexis as that windup comes. And she is charging in, as the full force comes. It doesn't seem like much at first, as she takes the twisted walk towards the punk star.

And the woman distends.

Her limbs stretch, and the woman begins to grow taller. The frame of the witch suddenly grows too lean, as the shape narrows and lengthens. With a snake-like sway, the witch suddenly slips around the punch. The fist sails past its shoulder, and that could have been simply enough. But with the evasion, the hag's long limbs lash out to the punk star's torso. The viney arms wind around her, constricting tightly as she continues to charge forward. With a pivot, she spins around, whipping Alexis around once. Her long limbs, nearly 6 feet in length now, sweep high in the air at the end of the first and only spin, before coming to bring her right back down to earth.

And she slams her into the circle.

The circle suddenly boils upwards into a volcano of crimson energy, profane rites and rituals violated. The circle breaks, as the seal explodes upwards. And to lift Alexis up, driving hard in the center of the circle, was the shadow of a tree, growing rapidly up to the ceiling of the tomb. Withered shapes of leaves fills its limbs, as the crimson-lined shadow is all too real, all too briefly. Whether Alexis was tangled in the limbs or not, did not matter, as Eadni writhes her long limbs together, the witch at a full height of nine feet. Her features had faded into the craggy shape of a stump. The smile was only barely there, as the creature's maw opens, revealing row after row of splinters as teeth, with the occasional iron tip embedded in there. "Child..."

"It's not to late to apologize, my dear~"

[ALEXIS]
Alexis' eyes close for a brief moment as she turns into the punch, bracing for the pain that a solid blow would likely bring. It doesn't come.

They open wide again as she feels the limbs tighten around her body.

"Oh, fuuuuUUU-"

The rocker cries out and kicks her legs as she's swung about, the words becoming an unintelligible scream as she's driven into the circle and engulfed in eldritch energy. She thrashes to free herself from the tree-woman's limbs, but not before the damage is done; the searing energy burns Alexis' skin, and tears in her flesh and the fabric of her garment have formed in the process of disentangling herself. She tumbles away in a log roll, shifting to her knees and trying to push herself up quickly. She doesn't manage it, though, as the pain shooting through her back causes her to double over again with a growl of pain and frustration. She turns one eye up to Eadni, glaring from behind her bangs as she puts her hand to her back. Her clenched teeth part to speak in a sabulous voice between heavy breaths.

"I'm not gonna apologize for anything I've done so far," she says, "but you can consider this 'sorry' in advance."

The hand behind her back comes around again, now holding the flute from before. The carved instrument now has a somehow more sinister aspect, the eldritch light from the witch-tree's magic and something in the angles giving the knots along the pipe the apearance of being covered in faces in agonized relief, the holes for the player's fingers becoming the mouths.

Alexis takes a deep breath and raises the pipe to her lips in a single motion.

The sound that fills the tomb has none of the pleasantness of the ode from before; instead, it has the sound of a chorus of whistling demons, utterly lacking in harmony. The wretched noise is only made more so by its sheer volume; not only does the singer have fairly impressive lung power, but the impossible decibel level and look of concentration on her face suggest that her own soundsmithery is augmenting the volume to eleven.

Other than extreme unpleasantness, the increase in sound has no immediate, tangible effect; however, the sound does seem to be gathering around the Canadian rocker almost visibly as dust swirls in the air around her...

COMBATSYS: Alexis surges with the power of rock!

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Alexis [E]       1/=======/=======|=======\=------\1        [E] Eadni

[EADNI]
She was in her full power now.

Eadni towers over Alexis, her long limbs swaying loose beside her. She had no face. Only a woody stump, with the vague shape of human features. She was towering nearly nine feet tall now, lean and gangling. Her eyes were still there, but there was a bright yellow sheen in her right socket, burning with a piercing glow. The tree endures, the magic of the realm filling it with just enough power to remain in the midst of the tomb for a few moments more.

Or would have, if it wasn't for that infernal racket.

As the flute blows, it shakes the crimson sheen from the tree. With that, it collapses into white ash, the tree blasted apart as the sonic waves pound. Eadni twists away, bringing her arms up to shield herself. The cacophony rushes outward, the sound overwhelming. But Eadni would not stop. She would not be driven away, even as the ritual breaks her magic. She returns her yellow eye upon Alexis. And her words slink out, over the sound of the flute.

"Your music won't save you now, child."

And she lashes out. Those long limbs arc forward, twisting as they force their way at the punk rocker. Should she make contact, She would constrict her long limbs around Alexis once again, binding her tight. And there, she would bring her close, closer. And once she captured her? The witch would snap open her maw, and dig those rows and rows of splintered teeth directly into her shoulder, before giving a ripping chomp.

A dangerous thing to do in the face of rock n roll.

COMBATSYS: Alexis channels the veins of the burning blood.

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Alexis [E]       2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|>>>>>>>\-------\1        [E] Eadni

COMBATSYS: Alexis blocks Eadni's Don't Say A Word.

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Alexis [E]       1/--<<<<</<<<<<<<|>>>>>>>\>------\1        [E] Eadni

[ALEXIS]
The position she's in - still kneeling on the floor - and focus on her 'music' don't lend themselves to Alexis avoiding Eadni's lurching limbs. The Canadian is caught, interrupting her infernal piping as her arms are wrenched in opposite directions by her own flailing. The noise doesn't stop, though - the chamber still rings with the godawful sound as it lingers in the air.

Alexis flinches and grunts in pain as the limbs constrict her midsection, pulling her toward Eadni's maw. Her feet try to dig into the stone floor, attempting to arrest her movement as she draws ever nearer. It's not until the last moment, though, that she manages with a surge of strength to break free, leaving the wooden teeth to snap at the air where her shoulder was moments before.

"We'll see, eh!" Alexis yells as she brings the flute up again, still held tightly in her left hand. She gasps sharply, returning the air that was forced from her lungs by the winding limbs to them, then blows again.

This time, what issues forth is not mere noise - it's music, barely, full of dissonant, forbidden chords and notes; perhaps a taste to be acquired, though one might go mad in the effort. More importantly, it's released in waves of rippling energy at the tree-woman, threatening to batter and shear the monster with their force. The jewel at her throat glints as a chorus of howls join in the hellish tune.

COMBATSYS: Alexis channels the strength of the killing fist.

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Alexis [E]       1/--<<<<</<<<<<<<|>>>>>>>\>------\1        [E] Eadni

COMBATSYS: Eadni blocks Alexis' Shredding Solo.

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Alexis [E]       0/-------/---<<<<|>>>>>>>\>------\1        [E] Eadni

[EADNI]
Explosion.

She had the girl in her clutches. She had her in her grasp. And as the towering witch looms over, she was ready to take her bite of the child. But As Eadni moves in for the taste, the explosion of power comes. Cracks and groans comes from her limbs, as they splinter and snap. The witch rips away, spinning from the initial blast. Limber as she was, she was agile enough to curl her wounded arm around her when the riot of sound tears across her. The blast sends her rolling in her defensive curl, sending her towards the edge of the tomb, the edge of the tower... and over the edge.

She catches the edge, before she falls into a ring out.

Pulling herself back up, she had a full stage to charge over. But her strides meant it wasn't too long. Her long limbs break into a strange gallop, her body leaning forward to help her move faster. "Noise! Wretched noise child! I will steal your song! I will steal your music! Your all will be mine!" She calls out, her tone still too light, too soft. She suddenly falls forward, rolling with the fall.

And the wooden cauldron rises.

Manifesting from the stones underneath, the cauldron rises up around the witch, matching her momentum. It was not sculpted of wood. No, it looked grown into the shape, crudely twisted and shaped into a large pot. The witch falls into the cauldron, reaching behind her. Almost at the call, a single giant pestle rises up as well into her hands. The cauldron and pestle continues to rocket forward, as the witch rides within, guiding it as she rockets forward.

Daring to run Alexis over with her cauldron.

COMBATSYS: Alexis endures Eadni's All Through The Night.

[                       \\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////          ]
Alexis [E]       1/-------/<<<<<<<|>>>>>>>\>------\1        [E] Eadni

[ALEXIS]
With the force of the attack expended and the witch tumbling over the edge of the tower, Alexis lowers her instrument. A second passes before she remembers to breathe and starts to inhale slow and deep - just as Eadni reappears over the stonework. She shows a rare moment of hesitation as Eadni charges, the appearance of the cauldron surprising the punk rocker in spite of all that she's already witnessed. The pipe is flung from her hand as the cauldron collides with her, doubling the punk over as she clings to it - perhaps literally - for dear life. She tries to glance over her shoulder to identify whether she's flying toward a wall or toward the precipice on the other side, but her bangs whip about her vision, obscuring her view. Whatever the case, it's not a fate Alexis can afford. Her body hums with lingering energy as she presses her boots against the cauldron's side, letting out a bellow of torment at the strain on her bloodied shins as she tries to push herself up over the lip. It's not working fast enough, though; with her strength fading, Alexis decides to commit to a more risky tactic to try and escape her fate.

Alexis kicks off hard against the wood in a flash of red, swinging her feet over her head as she throws herself forward in an attempt to flip full on and crash body-to-body into Eadni, hopefully knocking the witch off-balance and establishing some momentary control. If she can manage to do so, she'll follow up by simply pounding both fists into the body (or trunk?) of the witch-tree, one after the other, bursts of sonic dissonance released with each blow, heedless of the pain it might cause her own hands as the gem at her throat glows and cries.

Heedless, also, of the toll already taken on her body in oxygen and blood, as well as the danger looming at the cauldron's destination...

COMBATSYS: Alexis channels the veins of the burning blood.

[                       \\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////          ]
Alexis [E]       1/---<<<</<<<<<<<|>>>>>>>\>------\1        [E] Eadni

COMBATSYS: Alexis channels the strength of the killing fist.

[                       \\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////          ]
Alexis [E]       1/---<<<</<<<<<<<|>>>>>>>\>------\1        [E] Eadni

COMBATSYS: Alexis can no longer fight.

[          \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Eadni [E]        1/------</<<<<<<<|

COMBATSYS: Alexis successfully hits Eadni with Beatdown in Three Four EX.
~~ Alluring Hit! ~~

[                   \\\\\\\\\\\  <
Eadni [E]        1/------</<<<<<<<|

[EADNI]
She wasn't supposed to surge back.

The moment Alexis hurls into the cauldron, she isn't run over. She smashes through the front of the cauldron. And with it, the full smash into the body to body blow hard into the towering form of the witch. Doubled over, the tendrils of the witch instinctively wind around the girl, releasing the pestle. The long arms and legs of the hag lash around Alexis, gripping her thighs and her chest, holding on to her as the sonic assault builds into a cataclysm.

Somewhere, Ash Williams was giving a groovy.

If Eadni wasn't mired in the girl, she could have released. But the sound waves only rip deeper, and deeper, and deeper. The trunk of the witch splinters apart, as deep rifts of black tar oozes from the wounds. The witch does not scream. The cauldron continues to riot forward, towards the edge of the tower floor.

And Eadni break from the vessel.

The legs of the witch releases from Alexis, as she pulls from the cauldron on to the stone floor. The broken pot sails over the edge of the tomb. The witch stands fast, body splinted and split across. But clinging to her chest, the tendrils wind and writh. "Child~" The witch coos, as the stench of turpentine builds. "You will not sing anymore." And she lowers Alexis downward slightly....

Before slamming all her force up into the spikes above.

[ALEXIS]
The last of Alexis' energy is spent trying to take the tree down. Only too late do Alexis' eyes widen with the realisation that... it's not enough.

As the Canadian is slammed into the spikes covering the ceiling, she starts to scream - but the sound is cut short to a whisper as her lungs are penetrated by iron, gouts of red blossoming and falling from the front of her black bodysuit as the tips of the spikes emerge from the other side of her body. Alexis' eyes remain wide in shock as the room starts to rapidly become more quiet, the ringing and howling fading to a faint feedback hum. The scarlet jewel flares for a moment before going completely dim, a faint wispy white essence falling out of it with a sound of distant crying.

Alexis shudders as she watches her blood spill down toward the witch in her last moments.

And then, Alexis dies.

From somewhere, a voice intones:

EADNI WINS.

FATALITY.

[EADNI]
Eadni rises up to watch Alexis.

As she remains impaled, the hag watches, waits. Writhing her hands. A yellow light peers from the depths of his eyes. She was silent, as the life leaks from the girl. She was patient. The witch's body was healing slowly still. But for the witch, her attention was on watching over the last moments of a rude little girl.

And then Alexis dies.

Eadni's long gnarled fingers pluck away the essence, drawing it out like a bit of fluff. And carefully, she places it inside her black eyes. She softly caresses Alexis, cocking her head. "Poor child..." She coos, as she begins to shrink in size.

"If only you listened to mother."

Log created on 14:42:59 12/07/2016 by Eadni, and last modified on 19:49:57 12/15/2016.