Match of the Millennium

Description: Not all of Raiden's allies share his noble ambitions. Makai, a martyr chosen to battle youkai internally forevermore only to succumb to their power, wishes to see the world ravaged by the Thunder God's light. In the hopes that he will be spared the wrath of the divine being, the cursed exorcist assists Raiden with the very bound spirits that writhe within him, summoning the demons at his behest. There is but one way to stop these rites of damnation: Makai must be dispatched. Vanessa, the boxing detective, has been deployed by her employers to eliminate the mystic, and let nothing from hell stand in her way.

[MAKAI]
Informative individuals against the potential annihilation of Japan likely pointed Vanessa to a powerful surge of energy; it seems to be somehow linked to the ritual, although in what capacity isn't known. It is not certain enough for a massive strike team, only one of many such blips, but confidence must have been significant for a woman of Vanessa's caliber to make the trip. Indeed, striding through the frozen wasteland, the air feels wrong. The chill bites too deep, well-honed instincts seem to constantly keen as shadows swirl and mesh between naked pines. Even without coordinates, she could likely tell the right direction on her own.

And then she's liable to see a distant glow through the trees as she reaches the sparse forest's end into the valley proper. And the air seems alive, glowing with a yellow energy. Coalescing in swirls, crackles of lightning occasionally rumbling through, all of it appears to coalesce into a single point amidst roaring braziers.

In the center of it all sits a man wearing a dark cloak; purple so deep it is nearly black. The hood is drawn up, and within golden forearm and shin guards are settled over intricate gauze, etched with runes. A well-crafted oni mask is settled upon the figure's face. Before him is some manner of crystal, which seems to be absorbing the power with regular thrums.

Now and then, a great monster seems to tear out of him. As if literally living within him in defiance of physics, inhuman and twisted abberations almost the size of an elephant stretch out from his back, pulling free of some miniscule singularity. They seem keen to run in random directions for the most part, however... Any one of them might be an unwanted distraction for the boxer, hardly lacking in spiritual pressure and physique.

Is this man doing something to aid Raiden? It's hard to tell, but releasing unhappy youkai into the surroundings is by no means a potentially positive act...

[VANESSA]
The past few months have been rather unusual for Vanessa, to say the least. As one of the many high-class mercenaries operating throughout the world, the sudden onset of chaos brought about by the UN's war upon Heihachi had done much to keep her busy. Business was booming, you could say, and her day-to-day experiences had become rather explosive in their nature. Can women make dad jokes? Hmm...

For her part, she had been quick to jump on the opportunity to get involved. Not only was the money good but she couldn't simply sit back and watch the world burn down without trying to do something about it. Heidern and his Ikari Warriors had taken a strong moral stance on the matter, which was their own business, but she'd always made it a rule not to get emotionally or ideologically involved in her jobs if at all possible. That was basically guaranteed to cause problems.

But, his network of contacts continued to prove useful, whatever their reasons for doing so, and she wasn't about to turn down the help. Several days later, which involved a great deal of trying not to get swept up in the maddness spreading throughout Japan with varying amounts of success, she'd finally managed to get a solid lead and set off immediately to the northern reaches of the island nation.

Thickly layered snow crunches softly as the figure of the lone operative makes her way through the impressive maze of frozen forest, her gaze shifting between the seemingly endless array of frozen skeletal trees and a small device in her hand. Vanessa's usual choice of attire, which took the concept of 'business casual' in rather interesting directions, had been forced to give way to practicality in the face of the daunting climate, replacing the skimpy vest, loose trousers, and open-toed sandals with heavy winter gear. It isn't quite as natural and a bit more restrictive in her movements than she'd prefer but a bit of discomfort is preferrable to losing bits of herself to frostbite.

The GPS readout on the monitor of her portable computer continues to ping softly as she marches dutifully onwards, the weariness of trudging through miles of snow starting to wear off as she begins to draw near to her objective. The change in the air doesn't go unnoticed by the woman, despite her general ignorance of things spiritual in nature, and she stops to pull the fur-lined jacket about herself a little more tightly, glancing around with wary apprehension.

"Ugh, I'm starting to lose my mind out here," she grumbles to herself, shaking her head in annoyance after several seconds of standing around waiting for something to happen. "Where's a beer when you need it?"

The sudden break in the trees ahead of her fills the woman with a surge of relief and she actually breaks out into a quick jog to escape the confines of the freakishly silent forest. Her enthusiasm dims rather quickly, however, upon taking in the sight that awaits her on the other side.

"What in the...?"

A scene that looks like it was pulled right out of some Hollywood fantasy movie lays spread out before her. Eerily glowing clouds of supernatural energy, check. Ominous thunder, check. Ancient braziers, check. Creepy guy in a hooded outfit, double check.

"Well, you wanted something exciting to happen..."

As might be expected, the strange masked man at the center of all this spookiness gets most of her attention; particularly when she witnesses the first demon rip its way out of his back. Her eyes widen to roughly the size of dinner plates, jaw hanging open in dumb-founded silence for several moments. When her contacts had brought up all that stuff about Raiden and gods and magic, she'd thought it was hyperbole! What the hell is she supposed to do about this?!

Vanessa peers down at her empty fist, feeling slightly inadequate all of the sudden. Well, she doesn't see anyone else lining up to deal with this craziness. Who knows, maybe a few good shots to the temple will deal with this weirdo. The skinny guys in robes are usually weak to punching, right?

She unfastens the front of her jacket, both to loosen it up so she can move a bit easier and to tuck the GPS device into an internal pocket as she starts towards Makai at a casual jog. Time to see if her movie knowledge is applicable to real life.

This seems like a good plan.

[MAKAI]
"...? Oh? A human?"

This is stated somewhat lazily. At no point did Makai's head seem to rise; especially given she was likely not heading towards him directly. Of course, a blind sensate feels the pulse of every soul around, and the very thrum of chi in air, dirt, and trees. This incredible ability to read the flow of all the world's energies is the very key to his strength, after all. And eyes only get in the way of such, or so he was told. Other rumors claim it's to limit the power of the user and force introspection. Irrelevant, in the end. How someone entirely humanoid might have the gall to say that is another matter, but every queasy sensation might confirm it. There's an odd uncanny valley to him, even though his voice seemed to sound normal... a younger male.

"Are you here to fight me...? I'm not interested in that. I have no investment in the success of that God. I'm merely using it as a pretense to gather divine energy for my own pursuits." He reaches down to graze the orb before him, thrumming with a heart of lightning. "The Taishokan cannot be properly bound without such things, after all... Would you like me to stop releasing my youkai? I don't mind. If that is your only goal, consider it accomplished. But... my artifact is not yet full... well, if anything, it might be very slightly slowing down his ambition. That's a good thing, right...?"

[VANESSA]
Vanessa's hurried approach slows to a stop as the hooded figure remarks on her presence with a very curious and concerning choice of words. Human? What else would she be? This situation is starting to get a little creepy for her tastes. She's an investigator and a mercenary, not some paranormal detective.

The rest of what the young man says doesn't make a great deal of sense to her other than the bits referring to what she assumes must be Raiden. Yet another person who has referred to the man as a god. That guy must have a serious ego. That or all the stories about him are true which would be its own kettle of fish to process.

The word yokai is also one she understands thanks to her fluent grasp of Japanese, a skill she'd aquired only a few years ago as part of the job. Demons. Is that what those things are supposed to be? Admittedly, she doesn't know much about the local culture or its religious beliefs, so the word could be metaphor for all she knows. Those /things/ didn't look like fancy turns of phrase though.

"Ugh, yeah, actually... if you could stop with the horror show, that'd be really appreciated."

Vanessa rubs the back of her head, a bit stumped on how to proceed. She'd expected the ominous figure to rush to the attack upon her approach, or atleast to launch into an evil monologue that made it clear he was out to destroy the world or something. That's what always happens in the movies! Is her amazing plan of 'rely on old cliches' destined to fail already?

"What... exactly are you doing here, anyways?"

[MAKAI]
"I'm trying to survive, as is any other in this world." Makai states, in a sort of lazy voice. He seems to be focusing on the gem, as the strange swirls of golden electrical energy continue slowly and listlessly swirling down to coalesce within it. Presuming these displays are not merely special effects, he appears to be creating quite the battery of sorts between his hands. "Are you familiar with Darkstalkers, humans? Many of us live a cursed existance. Vampires, werewolves, wendigos... afflicted unwanted by another. Infected. The vast majority driven into mindless monsters. Those who retain themselves, forced to eat souls. It is a cruel lot in life. One can hardly blame humans for not wishing to be cattle."

But then a slow, lazy sort of chuckle leaves Makai. "Although I'm a little different. I eat other Darkstalkers, you see... I ate humans for a time, until they could no longer sustain me. But my path cannot last forever. Eventually, my hunger will be insatiable, and I will die. What lies beyond the veil? If all creatures are judged on sin, and sin is the taking of an unwilling life, I would go to great measures to avoid it."

A huge bolt of lightning roars down, impacting the gem. Makai does not seem to flinch despite the blinding glare, however. "What of you, human? Do you judge me, too...?"

[VANESSA]
Vanessa's expression grows slowly more tense as the explanation she'd requested is offered freely despite its implications. Darkstalkers are a new phenomenon in the world, or atleast, the wide-spread acceptance of their existence is. The very idea that she is sharing the world with actual monsters had kept the woman up for many nights with terrible worry, not for herself but for her young child. The world was already becoming a dangerous place as society seemed to spiral downwards into various forms of degeneracy but humanity had believed the literal monsters conquered long ago as the forests and plains were replaced with concrete and steel. Now, instead of just creeps and criminals she has to worry about werewolves and vampires?

The very idea of having sympathy for a creature that would value its own existence so greatly that it would be willing to destroy the life of an innocent and desecrate their very soul is something that she has never once entertained. If this man has intended to change her mind about that he's not exactly doing a lot to make her amicable to the idea with the evil cultist routine.

She opens her mouth as if to speak but before any words can come out the bolt of lightning drops from the sky, interrupting her with a furious blast of light and sound. Vanessa grits her teeth, lifting an arm to shield her face against the brilliant display. It takes a few seconds for her ears to stop ringing and the swirl of colors to fade from her vision. When the brief disorentation has passed, she turns a frown upon Makai, and shakes her head.

"Sorry, but if you're looking for sympathy, you've come to the wrong person. Monsters are monsters, I don't really care about how or why. As a mother, I can't sit back and let dangerous creatures run about freely to threaten our children."

The operative walks forward as she speaks, closing the gap between herself and the medium, carefully showing no overt signs of fear despite the power that he has displayed. That doesn't stop the newly born horde of butterflies from doing aerial cartwheels in her stomach, but it's important to maintain a properly brave appearance when you're menacing someone! To that end, she lifts her hands up from her sides and punches a leather gloved fist into an open palm with a resounding smack, smirking openly.

"So I guess it's time to find out if Darkstalkers can take a proper punch!"

COMBATSYS: Vanessa has started a fight here.

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Vanessa          0/-------/-------|

[MAKAI]
"I didn't expect pity or sympathy. We're natural enemies. But I do hope for some understanding. Still... I'm a touch busy focusing on this gem. Would you mind me using an intermediary? I've a particular creature that I have yet to properly test. If you best or or get bested, I'll take my gem and leave. Alternatively, you can challenge me yourself... but I won't take kindly to the interruption."

There's a sudden roar of energy swirling through Makai, as he bares the fangs of hundreds of beasts at once lurking unseen beneath his fake human shell. "And you're vastly outnumbered... ...hahaha. I kid. My leashes are not so tight that I can unleash an army on you." He does make to slowly stand, although continuing to hold his splayed fingers in focus over the orb between his feet. "If you kill me, hundreds of demons will erupt out. And I won't die. I'll merely find another vessel. So at the very least, I recommend against that. In my case, it would be inconvenient to be hostless. And your child... you don't wish them to grow up an orphan..."

[VANESSA]
Well that doesn't sound good.

Vanessa is caught sort of flat-footed as her foe sort of casually dismisses her desire to fight him as little more than an annoyance. She's used to being looked down on by people from time to time because of her gender but this is the first time she's been discriminated against as a human. It's kind of an alien sensation and it sends a shiver up her spine that manages to be noticable even through the pervasive cold of the weather.

The operative frowns at Makai, not particularly fond of the tone he's taking in regards to all of this. His offer is certainly one she's never been presented with before by any of her targets and that is enough to give her pause for a few moments, which gives the man time to give her a glimpse of what lurks beneath the surface of his mortal vessel. Despite herself, she takes an instinctive step backwards in the face of the countless monsters that claw and struggle to escape the confines of his binding, eyes wide.

"T-that wasn't very funny!"

Oh yeah, she's definately getting smashed after this nonsense. But for the moment, presented with a situation for which she is neither prepared nor familiar with, Vanessa is forced to conceed that the arrogant punk has a point. She's got a kid to worry about, and while her job is certainly dangerous enough to be considered life-threatening, what faces her now is something wholely out of her realm of expertise. To barrel ahead blindly would be incredibly foolish. Still, fighting one of these creatures might give her some insight into what sort of threat she's up against and if the man's word holds any merit, something she has to take entirely on faith at this point, agreeing to engage in his game will stop whatever arcane sheningans he's getting up to here.

"Fine," she says, offering a nonchalant shrug. "Let's see what sort of jack you have hiding in Pandora's box."

[MAKAI]
"Very well." Makai then suddenly grasps the front of his cloak and sweeps it open, revealing his chest bound tightly in gauze. He grasps it over his heart and yanks down. Beneath is an intricate seal, carved into his very flesh. Fingers curl before sinking into it, blood seeping out before he seems to literally tear off a hunk the same size as the tattoo-like marking. There's absolutely no reaction. No seeming pain, no flinch, nothing. As if he's some detached puppetmaster, and the pain of his vessel never reaches him. "Then let's see how you do... I've never had a chance to test them. One hundred and twenty-seven youkai of the highest regenerative and strength, all combined into a single gestalt being. Taming it took... quite a bit of time. It had best be worth it."

And then he flings the hunk of flesh into the air. Hands smack together, summoning a swell of demonic power. Before he snaps up his arms, and the sigils on the bodypart flare bright. Abruptly it begins to boil and expand. Doubling in size again, and again. In the matter of a few seconds, a gargantuan figure looms high, crashing down with incredible density to land heavily enough to shake the ground opposite Vanessa.

The beast stands perhaps fifteen feet tall. All thick, corded muscle; a massive mantle of fur covers the shoulders and head, while scales ripple along the sides. Chitinous armor like an insect segs down legs, ending in a pair of great hoofs, triple-jointed in anthropomorphic fashion. The left arm is a massive, misshapen limb topped with a huge serrated crab's claw, while the other seems almost boneless, flicking around with scythe-like fingers on the end. A single eye slits open in the center of what passes for a face, whirling around before settling on Vanessa.

Behind, a sea of tentacles easily ten feet long cascade down the back, with three long scorpion-like tails raising up. Power wells within it before it lets out a great roar, entire chest from the navel up to the chin bisecting sideways to show countless teeth and a pair of long tongues, the roar restonating and cracking the very ground.

"I would break it quickly if I were you. It has quite a remarkable life force...!" Makai's own flesh seems to be slowly boiling and knitting back together, hissing as purple energy surrounds the wound. Tapping into the innate abilities of his other trapped hosts; it's not a quick fix, but it seems he has no long-term effects from his little revelation...

COMBATSYS: Stitches has joined the fight here as a boss!

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                 0|---------------|---------------                


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Vanessa          0/-------/-------|

[VANESSA]
You know what they say about careful what you wish for.

In this case, however, Vanessa wished for no such freaking thing! She was expecting maybe a goblin or an ogre or one of those weird raccoons with the giant balls that seem so popular in the gift shops. This thing that stands before her is beyond classification.

Aberrant. Abomination. Monster.

There's plenty of other words she might use to try and encapulate the horrific hellbeast but it's something of a pointless effort. No one would ever believe her if she told the people back at headquarters about this. This is straight up late-night horror show fodder, as if crafted by those weirdos who think slapping random teeth and bodyparts onto something vaguely human constitutes the peak of creativity. She's seen things like it plenty of times on the big screen but being in the presence of a literal demon makes the experience slightly more concerning.

"Talk about a face only a mother could love..."

The grotesque mixture of assorted fleshy features causes Vanessa to wrinkle her nose in disgust. She really has no desire to get anywhere close to that thing, much less punch it. Unfortunately, she's already kind of locked into dealing with this situation and running away right now might have unfortunate consequences - assuming she could even get away. Only one thing for it then.

She takes a deep breath but immediately regrets it as the stench of the thing invades her lungs. Turning her face away, she coughs a couple of times, but quickly shakes it off, waving a hand in the air infront of her face. Dropping into a hunched over crouch, the operative brings her fists up in a boxer's fighting stance, her body bouncing up and down in a rythmic fashion as she prepares herself to engage.

The first blow comes swift and suddenly as she takes Makai's advice to heart, quite eager to see this slavering creature sent right back where it came from. She ducks down and lunges, dashing forward in a blinding burst of speed that carries her towards the monster's bloated body. A fist lashes out as she skids to a halt, her body twisting at the hips to put power into the downwards blow which she aims at one of its knees. Vanessa flows fluidly from the first strike into a second, twisting the opposite way to drive her other fist up in a powerful uppercut at whatever looks soft and in reach of her long arm, probing for weaknesses.

COMBATSYS: Stitches blocks Vanessa's One-Two Puncher.

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                 0|---------------|--------------=                


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Vanessa          0/-------/--=====|

[MAKAI]
Stitches falls asleep.

Stitches wakes up.

The massive entity seems to be rather twitchy and tense, many areas upon it pulsing or flexing as if it was somehow unstable. The single eye roves to and fro, somehow seeming less than sentient despite it all. The words of Makai behind appear to be entirely ignored, and there's only something of a pained rage within it. "I'm not sure how useful it's intelligence is. I created a weapon, but one that cannot follow orders... hmm." Makai offers. He doesn't seem to be feigning; by all accounts, whatever he's doing with the strange gem and divine offshoots of Raiden's ritual is taking all of his concentration.

And then Vanessa rushes forward. The creature seems to shift to take stock of her rather belatedly. The massive claw slams down, impacting the ground before Vanessa's advance in a spray of dirt and stone. She's little choice but to follow through with the attack; the first one sends a sizeable dent into the shell, and the second causes a satisfying *CRACK* that splinters out a foot in all directions. But keen eyes would notice that those wounds seem to immediately begin to hiss and pulse, spiderwebs of strange growths appearing around them as the unholy beast starts recovering at frightening speed...

With a great snarl of that unhealthy torso maw, the fluid and boneless other arm whips up, scythe-like fingers splaying broad before lunging out; attempting to sink a few of them rather deep into Vanessa's side, where she might realize they are serrated... a fact made more relevant if the maneuver succeeds, and it makes to rip them out immediately after!

Stitches falls asleep.

Stitches wakes up.

Stitches falls asleep.

Stitches wakes up.

COMBATSYS: Stitches successfully hits Vanessa with Rend.

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                 0|---------------|-----------====                


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Vanessa          0/-------/-======|

[VANESSA]
The impact of the mighty claw startles the boxer for a moment but her training and momentum both insist that she follow through once commited. Her fists impact upon the shell of chiton with mighty crashes that send rippling cracks through the thing's unnatural limb, but she pays for that aggression with a reverberating recoil through her bones as her knuckles clash with the hard surface. Wincing, she takes a step back and holds her hands up in the air, shaking them back and forth while muttering tiny noises of pain like someone that accidentally stuck their hands into water that was a bit too hot.

"Owowow! It's like punching bricks!"

Even more annoyingly, what little damage she seems to have caused quickly starts to mend itself right before her eyes. That's just not fair! She doesn't get the chance to voice that particular objection, however, as the massive beast takes the brief pause in her assault as a chance to strike back at her.

Vanessa lifts her arms up, creating a shield infront of her body with the sturdy surface of her toned forelimbs, but the boneless whip-like fingers easily bend around her guard, raking and slashing at the operative's side. She twists sideways at the last moment to avoid being skewered but the serrated edges of the tendrils rip open her jacket with frightening ease and cut down to the soft flesh below leaving several weeping lacerations.

"Gah! Why you...!"

Rather than flinch away from the aberation, she ducks to the side, moving away from the lashing squid-fingers in an attempt to flank the giant. She already proved that her attacks are effective, atleast temporarily, which means that all she has to do is find something soft and keep hitting. Vanessa's evasive movement causes her body to blur momentarily as she shifts positions and expertly launches into a flailing onslaught, her fists swinging wide but powerful arcs through the air as she wails on the monster's scaly hide that ends with a viscious uppercut.

"Let's! See! How! You! Like! /This!/"

COMBATSYS: Stitches barely endures Vanessa's Machine Gun Puncher.

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                 0|---------------|--------=======                


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Vanessa          1/-------/=======|

[MAKAI]
Vanessa can probably punch holes in a brick wall just fine; the fact the claw only survived with cracks is testament to it's own defensive power. Not invulnerable, but she's going to have bloody knuckles by the end if she doesn't find more vulnerable points to impact. The beast merely roars, the massive vertical maw upon it's torso spreading broad. Countless hooked, sharp teeth jutt out, lined with a few rows like some kind of abyssal shark. Spittle spraying out, the force of the roar likely possible to make Vanessa slightly unsteady...

As it's boneless arms draw back, suddenly the creature stamps forward, only to find the superior speed of Vanessa zooming to her side. It's entire body seems to clench, before a series of blows rains down. Here, it's surprisingly soft now, fists building up a series of dents into the strange scales and flesh. Instead of defend, it twists it's head away from her. Suddenly those sea of tentacles trailing down it's back snares out, before attempting to flick out and wrap around Vanessa as the uppercut slams deep, finally causing a shriek of pain and stagger from Stitches. Yet if she can't retract in time, she'd find herself assailed, the powerful tentacles attempting to grasp Vanessa and apply a ruthless crushing blow, before snapping away to hurtle her off towards some nearby trees!! The one ability of a monster that she likely has no interest in facing.

COMBATSYS: Stitches successfully hits Vanessa with Crushing Grasp.
- Power hit! -

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                 0|---------------|--------=======                


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Vanessa          1/--=====/=======|

[VANESSA]
Finding that the creature's flank is a far more appealing target, Vanessa lays into it with her considerable strength and speed sending ripples of force through the turgid mesh of flesh and scale. The final blow brings a grin to her face as the creature bellows in pain, adding more fuel to the belief that she can actually beat the thing, but her reverie is short-lived.

"Hah, didn't like that did you? Not so tough are yoooou?!"

The mass of writhing tentacles slap wetly against her body as the thing suddenly jerks sideways, engulfing the operative like a nest of constricting snakes. She lets out a choking gurgle as the air is crushed from her lungs. Is that the sound of her bones creaking?! Fortunately, she doesn't have to find out the answer to that question, as the squeezing sensation instead becomes a flying sensation when it hurls it through the air. The impact with the tree that stops her fall isn't much more pleasant, however, and Vanessa's voice rings out in another involuntary grunt of pain as she wraps sideways around the skinny plant.

"Ugh. Waiter, check please..."

The woman flops to the ground, her landing cushioned by the snow. She rises to her feet, wiggling the fuzzy blur from her vision with a vigorous shake of her head. It'll take more than one nasty hit to make her punch-drunk but that one was certainly a doozy. The operative makes a mental note to assume that everything on the creature is dangerous in some fashion from this point onwards.

"Okay, big boy. Round 2! Fight!"

Still full of vigor and pep, Vanessa drops down into her boxing stance again, bobbing and weaving her upper body back and forth for a few moments, psyching herself up. Her approach is low and centered when she finally moves in again, arms up in a defensive guard that protects her body and head. There isn't a lot of subtley to her assault save for the occassional weave she throws in to try and keep the angry blob guessing where the first strike will come from.

A final sudden shift in direction as she closes the gap puts her on the same side as the one she had pounded on before, aiming to hammer away at the bruise she'd already given it. Her fist whirls around from the side in a sharp hook, driving square into the same spot - or, atleast she thinks so, it's hard to tell with all the scales and layers of skin. This is but an opening strike, however, and she rebounds from the first punch defensively only to dash in again a moment later, driving another powerful uppercut at the monstrosity's hide.

COMBATSYS: Vanessa blitzes into action and acts again!

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                 0|---------------|--------=======                


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Vanessa          1/--=====/=======|

COMBATSYS: Stitches blocks Vanessa's Dash Puncher.

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                 0|---------------|-------========                


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Vanessa          1/-======/=======|

COMBATSYS: Stitches fails to interrupt Hook Punch from Vanessa with Rampage.

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                 0|---------------|-------========                


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Vanessa          1/=======/=======|

[MAKAI]
Makai seems to be paying close attention, as much as someone who is blind to the world can. Yet he can see far more than simple light, in exchange. He's intent on finalizing whatever ritual he might have been doing throughout, but that appears to be an act that primarily draws in his combative power, as opposed to his perception. "Interesting. Your technique is excellent. Such kinetic flow... this beast is the choice parts from many mindless youkai. It is intended primarily not to die. Although it's mass can make it somewhat dangerous..."

That durability is being tested, however. It began to stomp towards Vanessa once more, great hooves sinking into the stone and dirt. This makes it easy to rush towards it, single wild eye glaring down at her. The classic one-two punch, executed with a level of mastery that would make Mike Bison give a grudging nod of acknowledgement. She swiftly strikes, hitting the chest firmly. A pair of ribs are felt cracking with a gurgle. Does it even /have/ ribs, if much of it's front is a hideous mouth? Both claws and tubulous arm then scythe closed, trying to snatch Vanessa, yet she ducks beneath and unleashes a powerful uppercut. This one nails it right in that eyeball, and she'd *finally* feel something painful. Blood pools within the off-white scelera of it, and it begins to reel and shriek once more, huge hand and a couple tentacles flitting across to block it. Durable it may be, but it's sense of pain appears to have not been removed!

[VANESSA]
"Ugh, gross!"r
Vanessa withdraws quickly upon making her simple but effective strike to the creature's cyclopean face, grimacing at the sticky mess now coating her leather handguards. It almost looks like she'd dipped her fingers in honey or jam or perhaps that gooey gunk that always seems to form on the surface of ghosts and demons as if stepping through the veil of reality into our world left some kind of lingering film. That's the movie explanation atleast and she's not giving up one Plan: Movie Tropes!

"I've been slimed! I'm going to have to burn these gloves..."

Hoping to take advantage of the brief window of opportunity her telling blow has created, the operative stays up close and in the pocket she'd created. Normally, getting in someone's face offered a lot more advantages like easy shots at their head or the ability to play mind-games with her bobbing and weaving. This thing, however, is so large that all she can really do is just pick a spot and keep hitting. Plus it seems to have some difficulty reaching her when she's right underneath those big arms, she just has to watch out for any further tentacles.

Vanessa leans in and drives her fists out in a quick barrage of light jabs, pacing herself a bit while also probing the thing to see if that cracking noise earlier really was a rib or two breaking. If this creature feels pain then she can exploit that. Normally, she might be somewhat hesistant to be that cruel to an opponent but monsters are an exception to her empathy!

COMBATSYS: Stitches dodges Vanessa's Medium Punch.

                              STITCHES                              
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                 0|---------------|-------========                


[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Vanessa          1/=======/=======|

[MAKAI]
Well, nobody said this creature wasn't strangely crafted. With the pressure of the boxer adjacent, it has few meaningful methods of driving her off. The apparent action of choice is to suddenly... inflate. It's great chest maw snaps shut and it balloons out, her attempt to land a series of punches sliding off a surface encroaching at rapid pace, either thumping into Vanessa or forcing her to retreat, ruining the opportunity to attack. It then violently releases that odd measure in a great roar filled with miasma, before bringing up that huge claw -- the pinchers spread apart are not much smaller than Vanessa's entire body. It then swings down in a whistle of motion, displacing air violently as raw brawn and compressing muscles offset a lack of skill or true speed, trying to flatten the woman beneath that great shell. It's power might be less than expected... for a creature of fifteen feet, it is like being hit with a great wave from an ocean, rather than a condensed jet of water able to penetrate steel. Although the surroundings seem to be bothered, especially given the great burst of debris from the attempt, the utter lack of ability to concentrate this with martial techniques means that Vanessa's ruthless punches likely pack little less destructive power... in a much, much more condensed package! Yet the wounds she's building pulsate and twist. Those cracks initially punched into the crabclaw are already gone, leaving only a strange knot of pulsating flesh. Durability, indeed!

COMBATSYS: Vanessa just-defends Stitches' Impact!

                              STITCHES                              
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                 0|---------------|-------========                


[           \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Vanessa          1/=======/=======|

[VANESSA]
Vanessa's first punch smacks into the creature's hide with a soft thud, producing a notably different sound and sensation than what she had experienced before. By the time she's drawn her fist back to strike again the reason for this becomes quite apparent as the monsterous frankenstein creation balloons outwards like a pufferfish. Hurriedly, she moves away, seemingly having no trouble dashing in reverse with just as much speed by throwing her upperbody backwards and using some fancy footwork to catch herself before she falls down.

"What are you up to now?!"

She is answered by a terrible roar, all of the gathering air and putrid gasses within its flabby hide expelling outwards at her in a burst of wind that sets her jacket and hair aflutter for a couple seconds. Once more the sheer stench of the thing almost bowls her over entirely on its own and she doubles over, gagging openly.

"I have never been... in more need of a tictac in my life... than right now."

Her somewhat overly dramatic display does not prevent the woman from reacting when the lumbering monstrosity's crab-like claw arm is raised menacingly in the air. Instead of retreating or attempting to evade the massive smiting blow, Vanessa rushes forward to place herself directly underneath the impact zone. Grinning openly, she hunches down and waits for the massive hammer-blow to fall, only to meet it with one of her own. Her long slender arm snaps upwards in a viscious uppercut, fist catching the wide surface of the chitinous shell with a thunderous smash. The downwards momentum of the blow is halted outright and then repelled in its enrity leaving the operative unscathed and unbowed in a small depression of packed snow.

"Starting to kind of enjoy this!", she says, bouncing in place a few times. "Been a while since anything kept me on the edge of my toes!"

Not wanting to give the thing time to recover, the woman lunges forward again, coming in low and fast with a barrage of swift body blows. They aren't her strongest punches but she puts some pepper on them nonetheless in an effort to make a more noticable dent in her opponent.

COMBATSYS: Stitches endures Vanessa's Rapid Combo.

                              STITCHES                              
  [                     ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 0|---------------|---============                


[           \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Vanessa          2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|

[MAKAI]
Stitches falls asleep.

Stitches wakes up.

The attrition war is not going incredibly well for Stitches. It's attempt to leverage raw force turned out to be a mistake. When the great claw descends, the simple quality of the incoming attack is clear. The fist slams into it, and there's a spray of greenish blood and chunks of chitin as she knocks the great limb back upwards, staggering the beast with another shriek of pain. And then Vanessa begins to rain down those powerful blows, driving the gargantuan figure backwards progressively. Only it suddenly looms forward. That vertical maw stretches wide, taller than Vanessa is, and it suddenly descends in an attempt to snap shut on the boxer's entire upper body, leaving just her legs poking out the bottom. Were the maneuver to succeed, it would try and draw her inside entire with wicked inhuman tongue, as if intent on ending this conflict by simply swallowing her whole...!

Stitches falls asleep.

COMBATSYS: Vanessa fails to interrupt Inhuman Maw from Stitches with Crazy Puncher.
*KNOCKED AWAY*

                              STITCHES                              
  [                     ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 0|---------------|----------=====                


[                   \\\\\\\\\\\  <
Vanessa          0/-------/-<<<<<<|

Stitches wakes up.

[VANESSA]
The reactions to fear among humankind are wide and varied. Some people freeze up, paralyzed by their emotions. Others might scream and run, tapping into the ancient primal instict to flee at the first sign of unknown danger.

Vanessa's automatic reaction to the gaping hellmaw that opens up before her is to punch it. A lot.

She doesn't even have time to worry about tactics or rational responses, her fists taking over the thought process for her as her weaving barrage of light jabs suddenly takes on an entirely new demeanor. She lets out a loud cry, half aggression and half fear, lunging forward to try and slide past the terrible teeth to unload some of her actual power onto the thing's exterior as it chomps down at her.

She is a moment too slow. The gaping mouth snaps down on her arm, yanking the woman off her feet with a ferocious jerk that flips her up into the air. Helplessly, she sails down into its open gullet and disappears into the disgusting mass of bulging flesh and sticky fluids. The creature's entire body seems to churn and wiggle as it chews but a moment or two later it suddenly lets out a wheezing gurgle and hocks the boxer lady out onto the ground like a loogie.

Vanessa splats wetly on the ground, pockets of snow sticking to her slime-encased body. She lifts a hand to her face and hurriedly claws away the gunk covering it, sucking in a deep breath once her nose and mouth are clear. That might be a contender for the worst experience of her entire life.

[MAKAI]
Well, the punches work, to a degree. She punches it in the mighty uvula, but that hardly hurts it to any level that is meaningful in the fight beyond an angry choking noise. Given the brutal bite that follows and ruthless chewing, that was probably a poor trade. The huge beast then roars, spraying spittle in all directions, before advancing upon Vanessa in a stampede-like rush. It swings out to try and grasp her in a great claw while she's yet to free herself from the awful layers of saliva, aiming to sink the vicious barbs upon the inside deep within her. Only then would it twist to fling her towards a nearby rock, aiming to tear through the stomach and sides of her heavy winter outfit.

Makai hisses out a last breath before the gem before him flashes bright yellow. And then he collapses to his knees, panting heavily as the dense gem slowly thrums. A shaking hand takes it, plucking it up to feel the energy within. Yes; a small bit of divinity. Not much, but... enough for the next stage of his plans. And the girl is still alive? Even more impressive. There's no doubt a direct conflict would have ruined his ritual, win or loss...

COMBATSYS: Stitches successfully hits Vanessa with Tear.

                              STITCHES                              
  [                      |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 0|---------------|--------=======                


[                      \\\\\\\\  <
Vanessa          1/-------/<<<<<<<|

[VANESSA]
Covered in the sticky saliva, Vanessa is basically helpless as the creature descends upon her again. She lifts her arms to intercept the rending claw but they prove of little use against the massive apendage or the poisonous barbs, merely spreading its vile injection over a wider area. The jacket, already ripped from the earlier fighting and further damaged by the chewing simply comes apart under this final shredding assault as the operative is tossed about yet again, exploding into a shower of furry confetti as she pulls free from the spines.

Vanessa hits the rock with her side, blunting some of the blow as she defensively curls. Worse than the impact of that, however, is the sudden rush of numbing cold that assails her now exposed limbs, left with only the short sleeveless vest to protect her torso. Gritting her teeth, she pushes back to her feet, staggering against the pain of the venom now coursing through her body. It isn't looking good for her, but until she can't throw a punch any more, she's not out of the fight.

"Nrgh..."

Ignoring the various injuries that have been piled upon her, Vanessa digs deep for some last bit of energy that might see her through this. She didn't do all that training to get knocked down like some cheap thug! For a moment, her bravado appears to falter and she staggers forward a step but it quickly proves to be a feint as she uses the motion to launch herself into a mad dash at the bloated creature.

"Now, go down you overgrown pile of pus!"

The boxer lays into the monster with everything she's got, hammering away at it with a flurry of jabs, straights, and body blows that flow into a combination that only pauses as she dashes around to various sides of its wide form in an effort to constantly keep it guessing and unable to pin her down.

COMBATSYS: Vanessa successfully hits Stitches with Crazy Finisher.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-

                              STITCHES                              
  [                                    |||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 0|---------------|===============                


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

[MAKAI]
The massive beast begins to lumber after Vanessa once more, the many wounds from her relentless fists scabbing over with those strange, pulsating masses that seem like scars. It's strength is slowly leaving it, the energy of recreating damaged flesh hardly minute, but Makai is finding it's durability to suffice. Which is good; he had bluffed, to a large degree. Right now, he has almost no ability to defend himself. If his creation falls, then repelling Vanessa will be a matter of careful bluffs.

But it had no intent to defend itself, believing the prey defeated and gone. The relentless assault begins to pound great deformations into the creature, shattering chitin, splintering scales, causing blackish blood to spurt out. The eye is hit, crushing it inwards in a messy fashion, a few teeth knocked out to spiral away. It sweeps out a slash and a slam of it's claw, but such does nothing to deter her final blow. When she's worn herself out, Stitches crashes to a knee, entire front of his body a mass of wounds. But visibly, flesh begins to seep back into place, like melting wax flowing across a statue. It's eye inflates once more, and it suddenly reaches up with the great claw, trying to smash Vanessa into the ground. It's roar pierces the air so loudly Makai himself winces to cover his ears, sinuous other arm trying to grasp the boxer and begin lifting her up to repeatedly smack into the ground. Both limbs then raise for a final, destructive blow that sends great arcs of splintering ground in all directions, trying to literally peg Vanessa down with ruthless intent!!

COMBATSYS: Vanessa fails to interrupt Annihilate from Stitches with Parrying Puncher - Upper.
- Power fail! -
! VENGEANCE !
*KNOCKED AWAY*

                              STITCHES                              
  [                                   ||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 0|---------------|--------=======                



COMBATSYS: Vanessa can no longer fight.

                              STITCHES                              
  [                                   ||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 0|---------------|--------=======                



[VANESSA]
At this point, Vanessa has no choice but to face any further agression from her foe head-on. There isn't enough fight left in her to do anything fancy, most of her final burst of energy going into that all-out assault. She gives a grim determined grin at the devastation that her fists leave behind but as before her hard work begins to vanish right before her eyes as the flesh bubbles and reforms. The woman chokes out a laugh as she hunches over, breathing heavily.

"Godamn cheating monsters..."

When the claw comes at her, the operative stands her ground, teeth gritting as she prepares to face the end. That doesn't mean she's going down quietly though. Her fist snaps sideways at the massive pincher, aiming to repeat her earlier performance by smashing it aside so that she can lunge forward with her own counter-strike. There just isn't enough strength left in her for that dream to become reality, however.

The great crab arm snatches the woman up in its powerful grip, plowing through her parrying strike with only a mimimal sideways drift. Vanessa lets out a grunt as the air is crushed from her lungs, one eye squeezing shut in response to the fresh agony. The horrific roar blasts her at nearly point blank, turning every sound into a sharp high-pitched ring as it fades away. She doesn't have time to suffer long under this new ailment. The monstrosity lifts her into the air and repeatedly smashes her into the ground, snow and dirt flying in all directions as her body digs a divet in the frozen soil.

The final blow is largely unnecessary. Vanessa hangs limply in the creature's grasp, offering no resistance to its massive overhanded smash that leaves her half-buried in the fractured crater. Blood covers her face and side from the many lacerations she has sustained and the snow around her slowly begins to change hues to match the crimson vitae.

[MAKAI]
Stitches falls asleep.

Stitches wakes up.

It's dubious to say that the great golem of countless darkstalkers won the fight. Vanessa beat on it so hard that she injured herself, and in the end lost a long-term battle of attrition. The great wounds she tore into it from her final assault have mostly regenerated, bubbling and popping as if some strange liquid replaced the flesh and skin of the beast. Vanessa is left to lie in the frozen cold, Makai depositing the orb within his clothing with a flourish. "Well. I kept my word. I've not the power to reinforce the Thunder God now, even if I had a mind." He invokes the powerful seals shackling Stitches, before the creature spasms. Limbs begin to collapse inwards, the beast falling in on itself until it forms a great round mound of flesh. Purple chains then swirl to compress, drawing it smaller and smaller, until it's the same size as what Makai tore from himself at the onset. Only then does it return to it's owner, pressing against the large wound on Makai's chest and slowly seeping back into position. The tattoos and sigils reappear on his skin, although Makai instantly staggers and nearly falls as he's forced to supply the wounded creature with more energy once again. "...Hrrm. More wounds than I thought. Well. No matter. I suppose our business here is done." As the braziers slowly whisk out from the growing wind of the cold, Makai turns and begins striding towards the darkness, flicking his outfit around himself. Vanessa is left, to live or die, as nature and fate see fit...

COMBATSYS: Stitches has ended the fight here.


[VANESSA]
It is several minutes after the spirit medium has left, his creation withdrawn and his ritual complete, that something on the scene changes. The snow stirs slightly as the half-buried woman underneath gives a sudden start, gasping sharply at the dull ache that has consumed her entire body. She pushes weakly to her knees and glances around, finding so further signs of her monstrous opponent or its master.

Shivering, she inspects her wounds, finding that the various slashes in her flesh have ceased bleeding due to the cold which is both a relief and a matter for concern. A quick search of the area turns up several of the larger fragments of the fur-lined jacket which she had arrived with and with a bit of ingenuity she manages to cobble them back together into something that provides atleast some protection against the frigid weather. Atleast her arms aren't going to freeze and fall off in the next few minutes.

The next order of business is to get the hell out of this horrible place. She'd walked into the forgotten valley but that had been a trek of many hours through dense forest and she isn't in the mood to try that again in her current condition. Reach down to the small metal band on her wrist, she clumsily fumbles for the tiny button on its side with her quivering fingers until a small green LED begins to pulse under the casing. The distress beacon isn't anything fancy but any number of her contacts would know to be on the watch for it.

Now all she has to do was try not to be dead when they get here to pick her up.

Log created on 22:31:45 11/27/2017 by Vanessa, and last modified on 06:55:30 12/03/2017.