Match of the Millennium

Description: Ryu seems to be getting plenty of visitors since the World Warrior Watches went out. This time, Duke seeks an answer to a question.

[DUKE]
Duke was brought down to earth, after the King of Fighters.

Humbled, was more like it. He had lost to Kasumi. He had been humiliated in front of Hein. And then, he barely proved his own against Eiji. Despite his set backs, he was now invited to the World Warrior, and was now fighting for his chance to qualify for the actual tournament. Duke was gripping his future white-knuckled, hanging on the precipice of oblivion. His reputation was in question: what kind of fighter was he, even?

That question would be answered at the shrine.

The crime boss is garbed in a thin cotton suit; black slacks and a breezy, light orange and black jacket, exposing his chest. Flames are emblazoned across the upper portion, ornate and intricate as they wrap around front to back. His collar was popped up, almost daringly so; it seems that fashion was the first thing he had invested his prize in. He was waiting at the small, unnamed Shinto shrine, standing fast as he waits for his opponent. He looks at his watch, looking at the time, scowling at the face. Impatient? He was even here early. But he demanded it. He expected nothing less, for this opportunity in the World Warrior.

To fight Ryu once again.

[RYU]
Ryu had stepped out to get some food and some bandages after waking up from that fight with Heidern. He had recovered, mostly, but when he shows up to the shrine with a bag of store goods, he frowns. He glances at his watch, then at Duke, then back at his watch.

He has not looked up the official list, obviously, but Duke is apparently on it.

"A rematch, then," Ryu murmurs as he sets the plastic bag down. "Very well," he announces before he walks out to the yard in front of the shrine. He takes his ready stance. "Let's go."

COMBATSYS: Ryu has wandered into a fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Ryu              0/-------/-------|

[DUKE]
Duke uncrosses his arms as Ryu steps forward.

Looking away from his watch, he glowers with yellow eyes, transfixed on Ryu. Already, waves of violet-red chi cascade over him, as the threat of battle invigorates. He did not care about the injuries his opponent wore, the bandages, the pain. If he fought recently? Then he should be strong enough to keep going forward. His opponent's succicient response is met with a growl, as Duke strides forward, falling into his brawler stance. "Last time we battled, it was inconclusive who was the strongest. A draw. I intend to answer that question here." Duke waits for him to take his ready stance, before unleashing a bellow.

"Let us begin!"

Duke hurls forward at Ryu. His speed was only passable, his strength undeniable. Stomping forward, kicking up the dead grass outside the shrine, he hurls out a bone shattering kick, aiming squarely for Ryu's abdomen. All unleashing a roar of his own. Power, pure power; he was be a human wrecking ball into his opponent.

He would expect nothing less for the World Warrior.

COMBATSYS: Duke has joined the fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Duke             0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0              Ryu

COMBATSYS: Ryu blocks Duke's Medium Kick.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////////////  ]
Duke             0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0              Ryu

[RYU]
Ryu snaps an arm down to deflect the kick, the jolt of it travelling up through his shoulder. "Understood," the Warriror answers as he pushes the extended leg away.

Duke is starting with raw power, Ryu decides to answer with the same, by throwing a heavy fist into Duke's midsection, throwing a punch so hard that Duke will feel /two/ impacts from the strike in swift succession!

COMBATSYS: Ryu successfully hits Duke with Hatobi Kudaki.

[   \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Duke             0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0              Ryu

[DUKE]
Power into power.

Duke's staggering kick is deflected, as Duke's momentum still carries him forward. As Ryu pushes the leg away, the crime boss was already turning, already moving to circle the martial artist. And yet, he expected more finesse, not more power. The heavy fist actually catches him off guard, as power turns to speed. Duke chokes as his ribs crack under the impact, Duke staggering backwards, stunned. He touches his chest... and unleashes a smirk at Ryu.

"Impressive."

Duke rumbles, as the smell of sulfur begins to build around him. "You never cease to disappoint, Ryu. Unfortunate I have no room for mercy for you, I have my destiny to take!" Duke bellows as he -stomps his foot down, unleashing a shockwave under the earth, rattling the trees as the crater spreads. Duke already draws back his fist, as he -slams- it forward with bone shattering force, attempting to overwhelm Ryu with a staggering, burning punch!

COMBATSYS: Ryu blocks Duke's Seismic Impact EX.

[   \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////////////     ]
Duke             0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0              Ryu

[RYU]
Ryu gets his arms in front of him to block the punch, as the Warrior digs his heels into the grass. Somehow, the man manages to hold his ground. Ryu frowns a bit; he knows he will not be able to weather this assault like this much longer.

Offense will be needed.

Ryu launches towards Duke, one leg lashing out in s spinning kick that is repeated not once, or twice, but three times as it lashes out at Duke's head and shoulders!

"TATSUMAKI SENPUU KYAKU!"

COMBATSYS: Duke fails to interrupt Tatsumaki Senpuu Kyaku from Ryu with Swivel Gun EX.

[        \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////////      ]
Duke             0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0              Ryu

[DUKE]
Duke was ready for it.

Already, as the attack hammers at Ryu, the crime boss was lifting his leg. Already, he was preparing to -rip- into Ryu, as energy cascades over him. The offensive pressure was building, and Ryu would yield. He would begin to evade, begin to avoid. Duke had his expectations of what Ryu would do. But as he takes to the air with a kick, Duke snarls. Offense? Against his offense again? Duke could not believe it.

And he pays for that mistake.

Ryu's kick connects before Duke's, as Ryu interrupts Duke's own interrupt. Knocked off-balance by the first kick, his momentum carries just far enough that the second knocks him backwards, sending him backwards. The third kick drives deep, and Duke lands with a crunch on the grass, face bloodied and bruised, body burning. He rises again, face twisted into a rage-filled scowl. Duke doesn't say anything this time.

Only stares, as he begins to smoke.

[RYU]
Ryu lands lightly on both feet, his arms snapping to his hip as they gain an ethereal azure glow. Duke's ability to recover from injury is well know and impressive in its own right. It will not be enough to simply endure; an advantage must be gained. Gained and grown, if one is to come out ahead of the mosterous Duke.

Power swells and crackles in those cupped hands, a globe of pure energy that Ryu shoves towards the Mad Dog! "HADOOOUUUKEENNN!"

COMBATSYS: Duke endures Ryu's Hadouken EX+.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
Duke             1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0              Ryu

[DUKE]
Duke was already burning with energy by the time Ryu's chi was building.

Duke begins to his steady stride towards Ryu, even stomp coming with the weight of a shockwave. Fire was boiling over him. As Ryu moves to take his advantage, Duke just keeps forcing through. The energy ball connects squarely with his chest, as the sound of a death rattle lifts from his throat. Duke actually pauses mid-step, the blast halting him, blowing his thin cotton suit jacket to pieces, the remains of the orange and black scattering around him.. Duke grits his teeth, forcing that final step towards Ryu. Just close enough.

And he raises his hand.

Waves of black and violet energy pulse before him, hammering the air with incredible power. Duke was attempting to brings the full weight of the force down upon Ryu, down upon him. To smash him, to crush him, to drive him to the ground. Duke's body was burning, the fires were licking all around him. And soon, the power is too much, as he shuts his fist. Ryu could escape, he had to escape. But if he didn't?

The smell of sulfur and hellfire would be damning.

COMBATSYS: Ryu fails to interrupt Gravitational Wave from Duke with Sakotsu Wari EX.
*KNOCKED AWAY*

[                \\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////             ]
Duke             0/-------/---====|=======\-------\0              Ryu

[RYU]
Duke was closing in. Ryu, anticipating an attack of some sort, had already brought his fist up with the aim of slamming it into Duke's collarbone. To meet the man's offense with offense.

He pays for that mistake, the blast launching Ryu across the clearing and into a sturdy maplke tree and is held there by the sheer force of the attack for a moment before slumping to the ground in a seated position.

The Warrior's breath comes ragged and rushed as Duke prepares his next assault!

[DUKE]
Duke's assault wasn't slowing down.

Already, he was drawing his arms back, already he was building another wave. The pressure of the first wave was still lingering; having knocked Ryu away, he did not even need to stride towards him. Both arms drawn back, the fires coarse over him, as the stretch of sulfur and hellfire builds around. Was this the man that Hell spat out? Topless and aflame, his body already knotting it's injuries, the bloody-faced, burned Duke slams his arms down, a tsunami of violet fire rolling straight towards Ryu, all with a roar.

"GRRAAAAGH!"

COMBATSYS: Duke knocks away Ryu with Sledgehammer.

[                \\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////                    ]
Duke             0/-------/------=|>>>>>>>\>>>>---\1              Ryu

[RYU]
Ryu does not even have time to react as the second blast smashes him through the tree at his back. Dust and splinters go flying as Ryu bounces dangerously several times across the forest.

When the Warrior stands, however, things... change. The tension in the air becomes palpable, and there is an eerie violet glow coming faintly from where Ryu was last seen bouncing.

The World Warrior stalks towards Duke, that odd glow roiling off of his body like a lurid smoke. Steam issues forth from his mouth as he watches Duke carefully. Waiting for the opening the big man will most certainly give him.

COMBATSYS: Ryu focuses on his next action.

[                \\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////                    ]
Duke             0/-------/------=|>>>>>>>\>>>>---\1              Ryu

[DUKE]
Duke was breathing hard.

wave after wave after wave of energy was exhausting him, draining him. Duke was becoming wrung out, drains away to pieces. He needed to pace himself, he needed to catch his breath. He needed a hundred and one things, and not one was coming his way. He needed to stop his offense, he should know better. And yet, as he knocks Ryu away once again? As he blows him away? Ryu stops coming at him. He was waiting. He was waiting for Duke. The crime boss snarls, a sneer on his lips.

And Duke could not deny Ryu of his silent challenge.
Duke stomp hard as he builds momentum, building speed. And then, he takes a leap. Bounding in the air, his body twists, as his massive limb comes around. Heel held high, the crime boss delivers a bone-shattering axe kick, aiming to hammer the leg down -hard- into Ryu's shoulder, to dislocate the limb. He felt the trap. He sensed it. ANd yet, he couldn't back down. He had to face it. He had to survive it.

To prove his ultimate strength.

COMBATSYS: Ryu interrupts Strong Kick from Duke with #Metsu Shoryuken#.

[                     \\\\\\\\\  < >  /////                         ]
Duke             0/-------/-======|-------\-------\0              Ryu

[RYU]
Duke steps in with the axe kick, perhaps looking to smash Ryu into the dirt. To prove his superiority. To prove that he is the /best/.

And there is the opening.

That violet chi erupts around Ryu's left arm, destroying his glove in the process as the man lets out a feral roar. There is the crouch, and the kick lands. It almost, /almost/ puts Ryu in the dirt for good. But the punch chambers, and Ryu launches into the sky. Purple ki swirls and rages around that upraised fist, seeking only to destroy... to /kill/... the man it is unleashed against.

Ryu lands in a heavy crouch, steam rushing from his mouth as he watches Duke.

[DUKE]
To kill.

Duke's crushing kick is met with a rending uppercut, the block slicing Duke's flesh, tearing across his body. A familiar scar, maybe. A too familiar scar. It was the killing intent, the line that would not be crossed, the drive to be the best in the World Warrior. The blow knocks Duke back, sending him hurtling on his back. It should be a familiar replay for Ryu, a familiar return to his darkest side. Duke could very well be dead now.

But the killing intent is wasted on the man who would not die.

Duke rises again slowly, far more slowly than before. His body ached immeasurably; his body was in pure agony. The slice was wet across his chest; organ poking, bones in his chest sliced clean. And yet, Duke's glower was only building more and more. "Is that..." He groans, body aching. "Is that all you -have?!" He rumbles, as he throws himself forward. Hurling out a single fist, he attempts to return back into the clinch with Ryu with a single, forceful punch.

Not even aimed correctly for Ryu's face.

COMBATSYS: Ryu parries Duke's Medium Punch!!

[                    \\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////                         ]
Duke             0/-------/-======|>>-----\-------\0              Ryu

[RYU]
Ryu's hand snaps out to catch the punch and divert it away from him neatly. One last huff of steam eases out of his mouth. Regret later, win the fight now.

"No," he says. "It is not." And crouches again. Chambers the same punch. All of it devoid of that murderous intent, that ugly purple chi. And he launches skyward once more.

"SHORYUKEEEENNN!!!"

COMBATSYS: Duke barely endures Ryu's Shoryuken EX.

[                         \\\\\  < >  /////                         ]
Duke             1/------=/=======|>>-----\-------\0              Ryu

[DUKE]
Unstoppable.

Ryu snaps out in perfect timing, as he hurls back, slipping around the punch at just the right moment wit ha clean diversion. Duke was exposed, and Ryu exploits it. Another uppercut comes, And Duke takes another structural blow, actually structural. Duke's own body was threatenign to collapse. The crime boss's face was contorted in rage and pain, as Ryu takes to the air.

But Duke does not yield.

Stones rise with chunks of grass, as Duke's volcano of power boils over him. Duke Snarls as his chest nearly spills open, the gore oozing likely. The second time, Duke was not backing down. Energy builds around him, as he throws his arms in the air. "NOW! DIE!" He roars, before slamming his fists down.

And unleashing the cataclysmic explosions around him, in a blast cloud of chi.

COMBATSYS: Ryu fails to counter Ground Zero from Duke with Tesshin.

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

COMBATSYS: Ryu can no longer fight.

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

[RYU]
Ryu knows what's coming next. The answer seems fairly straight-forward. Stop the strike, stop the blast. He charges in, left arm raised to catch the fists with his right ready to throw what should be the finishing strike into Duke's chest.

He is not in time.

Ryu is blasted into the shrine, and slams through the back wall of the humble structure. The World Warrior does not rise again.

[DUKE]
That was too close.

Duke's chest continues to burn, as the rancid chi of the killing intent continues to rot and seeth in there; biting and snapping at his restorative energy. Even as the aftermath of his explosion fades around him, he groans. It was too close; he saw in the flicker, the last attempt of Ryu to knock him cleanly out of his attack. Duke was falling apart, he could barely stand.

But he could still stand.

That was enough of a difference. Staring across at the broken wall, the aftermath of his blast, he gasps, stretching himself into a stand. Drawing back a fist, he considers finishing the job.... before lowering it. "You fight well, Ryu." Duke rumbles. "But my question is answered." Duke turns his back to Ryu, not even looking to see if he lives, or dies.

:Clutching the still burning wound left upon his chest.

COMBATSYS: Duke has ended the fight here.

Log created on 12:34:48 02/05/2018 by Ryu, and last modified on 03:23:47 02/06/2018.