Match of the Millennium

Description: On the Streets of Southtown, world famous superstar Johnny Cage just wants a little rest and relaxation with his adoring fans. However, the criminal element never lets a hero rest and the evil John Crawley descends with his murderous group of Syndicate thugs with an eye to ruining the streets for the good people of Southtown. Will the hero stand tall? Will he keep the people safe? Can he keep himself safe? Find out in Streets of Cage!

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
Even at night, the Business District of Southtown is alive and kicking. The glow of lights gleams off the skyscrapers that claw up to the blacked out night sky, the light of the stars drowning in the light of the city.

People move here and there, jostle for space and air. Some on the look for fun, some with business that can best be settled by and through people of the night.

The Syndicate takeover is full here, Howard Arena and Geese Tower dominate the district with their undeniable presence. Though it isn't simply through economic iron hands and shows of wealth and power that the Syndicate holds sway. They do so with a more personal touch at times. A violent touch, but a personal one. The many myriad street gangs around the district still thrive, lingering and loitering in the darker corners, and most of them serve Geese Howard in some capacity. Among them, wandering the city with sunglasses at night and leading a small group of men that look like they've walked out of a film about American wartime, is John Crawley.

He's on his rounds, to check on the bars and to rattle the private birdcages here and there. The places where the wealthy gather to remind them that sometimes their fellow money holders have people with more violent tastes on hand to take what's needed. A violent thug in a high price district, walking like a self-crowned king with his entourage.

[JOHNNY CAGE]
"Oh man, is that...?
"HOLY SHIT, IT'S..."
"Whoa... he's..."

So many heads turn and so many jaws drop at the sight of the coolest motherfighter to hit these streets since they got Raged. The expensive car of showoffitude is left parked in front of Expensive Taste, the nightclub with a very exclusive and wealthy clientele. And the individual that steps out of the vehicle is none other than...

"JOHNNY CAGE!"

The star of silver and small screen brushes off the jacket of his purple suit that he's chosen to wear this evening. He's rocking a pink silk shirt underneath, buttoned up with a black and purple tie loosely slung around the collar. As if taking a page out of one of his movies, Johnny's sporting a pair of purple and white sneakers for casual comfort. It's a celebration tonight. A celebration of Him showing up to this nightclub and looking oh so super amazing. As he always does.

Yes, he had someone do his make up too. Why not?

Anyway, Johnny Cage looks out at the crowd through the sunglasses that show just how much he belongs on the list for Expensive Taste. A big grin crosses his features as he regards the fans that immediately swarm towards him. He wields a pair of Sharpies like weapons as they approach and he gets ready to sign some autographs!

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
Screams? Crowds of people? A shiny car?

"What is this crap?" John Crawley mumbles to himself, hands in the pocket of his sleeveless fatigue jacket. the lights of the city reflect off his sunglasses, showing the scene playing out ahead of him. Of the pink and purple and black of this slicked up, showboating Hollywood star that's just blasted his way into the Syndicate's city. And showing up with this mob to fawn all over him? John Crawley spat on the idea of it.

But somewhere in his mind a dark realization occurs. He laughs, the thugs alongside him don't quite get why until Crawley cracks his knuckles. "Let's go show this guy whose town this is."

Through the crowd does Crawley push. "Get, get going, move it, clear the deck," he snaps and shoves his way by. He jabs a finger at the air with a violent purpose, emerging through the crowd and into the barest of space between the sharpie wielding superstar and the crowd of followers.

"Hey, Hollywood," Crawley shouts out. "You think you're something special? I've seen your movies, bunch of wire stunt crap. Bet you couldn't handle some real combat."

[JOHNNY CAGE]
"You talkin' to me?"

Johnny looks around himself and tries to egg on the fans in the crowd of him with a smirk on his face. Since he's going down this Taxi Driver riff road he might as well keep at it.

"You /talkin'/ to /me/?"

Johnny twirls the Sharpies back closed and tucks them away in the suit jacket. He reaches up to pull down his sunglasses a little bit and peers over the top of them at the person that has just dispersed his fanbase.

"I mean, I'm the only Award Winning Superstar standin' here. So you gotta' be talkin' to me."

Johnny flashes a grin and then pushes his sunglasses back up onto his face with his middle finger. "Listen, pal, maybe you and the rest of M.A.S.H. here should keep on walking. I can tell you right now that nobody dressed like that is getting on the list at this place."

Johnny figures that's enough of an insult to put this dude in his place and turns his back on him to interact with a couple more fans. Photo Op!

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
"Mad Dog" and "Killing Machine" are not epithets generally earned by people of placid and rational dispositions. John Crawley is not an exception to this rule of thumb. Crawley's eyes bulge behind his sunglasses, a vein on his neck bulges behind nothing. His fists clench when Cage's back turns.

"You want to mess with me? Fine then, let's see what you got, baby. Let's see what you really got." he snarls. Boots scrape, quicken on the pavement, and Crawley launches himself at the flashy superstar Johnny Cage with a heated big flying boot.

COMBATSYS: John Crawley has started a fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
John Crawley     0/-------/-------|

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage has joined the fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHNNY CAGE]
There's just time for the photo to finish being snapped. That selfie to get posted. Before Johnny Cage hears the boots scrape across the ground. It's a sound that pulls Cage into fight mode and creates a moment of cinematic slow motion that only few people get the opportunity to pay attention to.

Johnny Cage turns his head to the side, using his peripheral vision behind his sunglasses to predict the angle of the kick headed in his direction. A moment before that boot connects, Johnny sidesteps and raises a hand to catch that boot on his palm. His back still turned towards this sudden and inevitable opponent. A smile crawls onto Johnny's features as he speaks directly to those fans of his, "You guys might wanna' record this." He reaches up to pull his sunglasses down quickly and winks in their direction.

His next moment is pretty fast because he's spinning backwards and past that caught leg of Crawley's. But he's dropping low as he does, just in case of a follow-up punch and he's aiming the extension of his own leg in a sweeping fashion to see if he can't take this annoying dude off his feet.

It's showtime.

COMBATSYS: John Crawley just-defends Johnny Cage's Sweep!

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
The slapping of palm to leather. The crunch of landing back to the pavement. A sharp, swinging sweep of the leg. But John Crawley isn't entirely a chump. He sees the overconfident Cage coming and keeps a low in guard. That kick just strikes a waiting opponent and gets little more than a huff from the military maverick.

"Showbiz flash," Crawley sneers. "You gotta put a little oomph into things, Cagey baby."

Crawley leaps up high from his low down crouch. Soaring into the air, he slams his closed fists together with a war cry of "Smash!"

A blast of glowing orange chi, a sphere, blazes down at Johnny Cage, a heated blast that screams with the sounds of afterburners.

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage dodges John Crawley's Air Smasher.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////// ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHNNY CAGE]
Johnny Cage doesn't stop moving after his sweep attempt gets blocked. He rebounds off and backwards, sliding back up to his feet and backpedals to put some room between himself and the military muscles that want to make him bleed.

This is a new suit. He can't get blood on his new suit. At least, not his own blood.

"I'd love to but you're not exactly my type, man." Johnny flashes a smile as he gets into his classic fighting stance. "But if you've got a sister, maybe we can work something out."

Johnny's nonsensical words are aimed to keep this dude from being focused enough to fight him properly. When Crawley goes high for the launching of chi in his direction, Johnny takes off in a run and slides beneath, allowing that heated chi blast to burn up the street. He takes a little timing into account and extends a leg backwards, hoping to catch Crawley in the back of the head as he comes down from such aerial assaultry.

COMBATSYS: John Crawley dodges Johnny Cage's Back Kick.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////// ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
Twisting in the air, dropping like a bomb and landing in a low three-point stance. Crawley looks back behind hind to catch that cleverly timed kick and combat roll his way to safety and freedom.

"Need to try harder than that, Hollywood," Crawley sneers, bursting into a run that takes him quickly over to Cage's shiny car. A leap, a crunching, a denting, and a leap sends Crawley back up to the air for a second time.

A fireball doesn't come this time. Instead, he rockets down toward Cage, spinning like a violent drill downward towards his opponent. A rousing cry, comes with the spinning assault. "Let's kick some tires!"

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage blocks John Crawley's Spiral Leg Bomber.

[  \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHNNY CAGE]
Johnny Hollywood whiffs but takes it in stride. His leg comes down and he's already preparing for a follow-up when he watches Crawley crunch and dent his car. "Hey! That is a /rental/!" Johnny frowns and doesn't even have his hands up in fighter's position anymore. "Oh, that's gonna' come outta' your hide, G.I. Joe." Johnny wags a finger in Crawley's direction... only to realize this crazy dude is back in the air and drilling towards him something fierce. Thinking quickly, Cage spots he has no time to try and dodge so he just raises his arms up, digs his sneakers into the street and braces for the impact of those spiraling legs.

Cage ends up taking a step back as the assault moves him. A slight wince from the pain of the attack smacking into his arms but nothing he doesn't shake off in the next moment. A quick swing of his arms to dull the pain they feel.

With the space made, Cage pulls an arm back and thrusts it forward, slinging a blast of green chi energy in Crawley's direction!

COMBATSYS: John Crawley blocks Johnny Cage's Out Take.

[   \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////////////     ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/----===|==-----\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
Kicking hard, meeting defenses, not feeling the soft and yielding break of a Hollywood Star's face on his feet. Not quite there yet. Looks like this guy has more tricks up his sleeve than he lets on and it's unsettling to John Crawley. Guy's like Cage should fold under pressure.

"Tell it to the Syndicate," he retorts, looking back to the dented hood of that shiny little care that Cage showed up in. Crawley dusts his lapel off in time for the glowing green light of Cage's chi ball to reflect in the lenses of his glasses.

Arms up, crossing at the wrist, a thin sheet of orange chi distorts and burns against the powerball hurled by Cage. Leaving a sore Crawley to shake his hands out and look back with cold fury at the actor.

"C'mon, Cage, that's all you got?" he asks, squaring off, tensing, ready. The air around Crawley's shoulders begins to warp and waver, as though the man were building up an intense heat. He starts to cry a wordless rage. And above that sound, the distance scream of a jet's engine starts to pick up and cry overhead. A culmination of powers building up to a head.

COMBATSYS: John Crawley gathers his will.

[   \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////    ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/----===|======-\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHNNY CAGE]
Cage bounces on the heels of his sneakers as he keeps a close eye on Crawley. Even with all the sounds and the chi displays, Cage knows not to let himself be distracted and not be focused on his opponent. Especially one that seems to be so visibly angry at the fact that Johnny Cage is around!

"Tell it to who now?" Johnny's not above asking for clarification. He's definitely not someone that pays attention to things that don't involve his life in some way. "The Syndicate? Come on. Please tell me that's just a temporary name. Like, did you guys even workshop it or...?"

Cage takes a moment to himself and to banter it up with a bit of wit. He makes no steps towards Crawley, instead looking to fall into a more defensive stance. Just in case.

A moment to brush off one of his shoulders helps him to keep his head in the game.

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage is either getting serious or in fact the opposite.

[   \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////    ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/----===|======-\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
Energy building, rage rising, the fight heating up both literally and figuratively. Feet planting, Crawley's arms cock back in a horse stance. The air shimmers, the distant sound grows. And then it all stops.

The focus is on the Hollywood punk. "Locked on target," Crawley states. "Ready to deploy payload in 5."

"I feel the need, Baby. But have you got the speed?" The Mad Dog cackles out, slamming his fists together. A roaring burst of power and a shot of chi screams out like a tire peeling the pavement.

"Mega Smash!" cries Cage's assailant. Not content on giving him a moment to collect his thoughts, just strike with overwhelming firepower in a case of streetside shock and awe.

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage blocks John Crawley's Mega Smash EX.

[     \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////    ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/---====|======-\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHNNY CAGE]
Cage can both see and feel the energy that's gathering up in the localized area and is immediately putting his defenses up. He clenches his fists and braces his arms together as Crawley's next explosive chi move comes sailing at him with such violent and enraged fury.

Cage doesn't move this time, having had a moment to prepare, but the new suit that he's been worried about catches a series of singe streaks across the arms and chest of his suit. Even while his fashion statement is being ruined, Cage has to grit his teeth through the burning energy. It still stings.

"Oh, you didn't know? I'm both Fast..." Johnny breaks out into a swift run, sliding to a halt when he gets close to Crawley. He smiles. "And Furious."

That leads right into a swift combination attempt as Cage aims a Left Hook quickly followed by a Right Hook and a Jab towards Crawley. His other fist glowing with that same green chi energy comes up quickly to finish the job!

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage successfully hits John Crawley with Fatal Strike EX.

[     \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////////         ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/-======|=======\==-----\1     John Crawley

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
"Keep jawing, baby," Crawley says, stalking toward Cage in the aftermath of his show. "I got this in the bag."

Cage comes at him, Crawley steps back, can't get back fast enough. He throws up an arm to blow the rapid left hook, but it's not enough. the right hook cracks against Crawley's cheek. He lurches to the side, quick enough to catch his sunglasses. The jab snaps his head back, he skitters and thuds against Cage's parked car. The third hit strikes with a snap hard enough to crack the glass window of the fancy automobile.

With a frustrated growl, Crawley slams his glasses back on and rolls up and back, acrobatically clambering up to the roof of the car. From there, he leaps to the air, crashing down with a fiery fist that crashes with a heated shockwave. A one man bomber slamming down to Cage's dome.

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage interrupts Napalm Drop from John Crawley with Cliffhanger.

[         \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////               ]
Johnny Cage      1/------=/=======|=======\======-\1     John Crawley

[JOHNNY CAGE]
Cage is in the middle of doing some celebratory stepping backwards as he gives Crawley some room to reel from his onslaught of punches. It doesn't take long for Crawley to recover... and for Johnny to notice that his car is being used as a launching off point.

"I should've got the insurance." is muttered mostly to himself as he watches Crawley take to the skies. He can feel something huge coming so he crouches quickly himself. Launching off the ground, Johnny aims to meet Crawley in the air. His body goes into a backwards flip kick motion, legs surrounded by his signature green glow. As his feet connect with Crawley, Crawley's fist connects with Johnny and the resulting chi-plosion launches Johnny back down towards the ground.

A further ruination of his suit and Cage spares a moment to straighten up his own sunglasses.

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
The blast sets off alarms, cars scream, windows crack, a few phones dropped to the ground as a random thug and a Hollywood action hero throw down on the streets of Southtown. Crawley, thrown by the blast hammering back at him from Cage's own explosive entry into the close in fray, lay a few feet back on the ground, smoking from the impact's heat.

The glasses lay broken beside him. "You're gonna replace those," the Mad Dog grumbles as he pushes, lurching really, back up to his feet. His posture leans forward, listing toward Cage, moving ever forward against his opponent. With a snap, he pops his shoulder back, and resumes a basic posture, bouncing on the balls of his feet.

"You ain't half bad, though," he tells Cage, skipping toward the star, "But I ain't done yet!" he shouts, darting forward. He swings a basic snap jab with his left fist. Followed with a spinning back knuckle from his right. Crisp form and steady basics. The stance and motions of a man used to training soldiers in how to kill with their hands.

COMBATSYS: John Crawley successfully hits Johnny Cage with Medium Punch.

[            \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////              ]
Johnny Cage      1/----===/=======|=======\=======\1     John Crawley

[JOHNNY CAGE]
Even Johnny Cage has been rocked something fierce by the collision of combat that he's been engaged in with Crawley. Enough so that a random fan helps him stay on his feet from a bit of a wobble. It's almost cute. The fan gets a wink from Cage in return and there's a shared moment of bliss.

He's going to have to get her number after this is over.

"I'll send a whole case of those cheap knockoffs to your funeral, pal. Consider it a parting gift." Cage don't play when it comes to sunglasses, alright?

When Crawley announces his spectacular attack, Cage seems to be playing it cool. He's bouncing on his own heels, ready and waiting. Maybe even a little too ready and waiting. He's been telegraphing all of these high impact moves from Crawley that he's not actually ready for some Basic Fist Fighting 101. He zigs out of a zag and his face becomes the smooth recipient of Crawley's snap jab. The follow up knocks Cage back the other way and the Hollywood star is spun right out of his stance and stumbles back into that pretty wall of a fan from a few moments ago. "... this might take a little longer than I thought." Even with the blood starting to drip from his mouth, Johnny Cage looks as cool as a cucumber.

Cage straightens himself back up and reaches up to knock the half of his sunglasses that didn't get smashed from Crawley's fists off his face. As he smooths out his suit, he pulls an identical pair of those glasses and slides them right on.

Johnny takes a couple steps and leaps into the air, spinning towards his opponent and extends a leg in stylish manner, his body twisting and bringing that heel of his now dirty sneaker towards the face of his opponent.

COMBATSYS: John Crawley blocks Johnny Cage's Roundhouse.

[         \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////                 ]
Johnny Cage      1/---====/=======|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2     John Crawley

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
Time for a beat down. Serious, stern faced, mad-eyed John Crawley stares at Johnny Cage with a fury. "This is war, pretty boy. You ever face combat like this?" he asks with a cold, hard edged tone that barely rises above whispering.

He bounces back and forth on the balls of his feet, arms checked and ready. He watches Johnny slip the new pair of glasses on and his lip curls into a sneer. "Gonna take those off your hide. Now come on, get up and hurt me."

Step back, step back, arms up, clap of Cage's instep hard against Crawley's tucked and curled arm. His head tilting, guarded from the blow. He snorts, and he grins.

Raging forth, turning hard into Cage, John Crawley snaps. A quick kick high, one low, another in the center. A machine-gun like pattern of quick snapping kicks and short in hip-height roundhouses. A furious asault, cannon kicking at Cage's midsection. The crowning, a high handed whirling haymaker of a fist aimed square for Johnny Cage's pretty, pretty face.

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage dodges John Crawley's Overdrive Kick.

[         \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////                  ]
Johnny Cage      1/---====/=======|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\1     John Crawley

[JOHNNY CAGE]
Maybe Johnny Cage has shifted into a more showoff method of combat expression. Maybe there are just more pretty fans than he realized watching. Or maybe he just likes it when his opponent gets angry. Either way, Johnny Cage seems to be making things happen. Or at least making a spectacle of himself. Which is just the way he likes it.

It's also probably the reason he's wearing his classic Troll grin when Crawley seems to be getting more emotionally involved in this whole ordeal.

"I've been in worse battles than this on the red carpet of the Academy Awards. Let me tell you, Clooney hits harder than you'd think."

When Crawley steps in to take him out, Johnny's already moving like there's wires all over him. Or that they've kicked the CGI up a few notches. Every kick that comes in his direction gets a chance to 'just miss' the Hollywood star. He dips, twists, sidesteps and even goes Matrix Dodge on that final haymaker, letting it pass by him while he looks on with slightly widened eyes behind his Spare Shades. It's kind of easy to tell from the way his eyebrows are slightly raised.

Cage hops backwards, putting some room between himself and Crawley. "Some fancy footwork there, dude. You sure you don't want me to see if I can get you on Dancin' With The Stars?" The sudden arrival of that green glow happens again, as Cage slides across the ground with a single leg up and aimed for Crawley. There's a whole trail of Green Shadow Cages following him.

"... or would you prefer I just make you see them?"

COMBATSYS: John Crawley interrupts Shadow Kick from Johnny Cage with Atomic Smash.

[                 \\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////                      ]
Johnny Cage      2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|====---\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
Making him look a fool. Dancing and leaping like that damn ninja. Crawley murders the air in front of him, but there isn't much doing when it comes to a man who is just too fast to hit. Too quick on his feet and a lot more clear-headed and confident in himself and his little tricks. There's just not always a good way to catch up with a man like that.

But sometimes you can catch them if they let themselves get too close. "C'mon, baby, dance for daddy," he punctuates his taunt with a trickling, guttural laugh. His fist cocks back, Johnny goes green, the kick comes.

"Bang! Bang! Boom!" Crawley punches into the kick, from his fist comes a streaking sphere of orange. It smacks into Cage, hot, burning, splashing. What is left of Cage's momentum feeds into Crawley, staggering him back, but he keeps on swinging and with each swing he hurls a fresh blast of heat.

Less than aim than a shuddering spray of fire, cars, street, buildings all take the heat and buckles at the wild energy being thrown out with each of Crawley's mad fists.

"Fighting's like breathing, baby!" the former soldier bellows out in the wake of his carpet bombing the streets of Southtown. His arms held out as though waiting for absolution. "You smell that, baby?" he asks, inhaling deeply. "Napalm. And you know what smells like, do ya?"

[JOHNNY CAGE]
There's a chance that Johnny Cage knows what's about to happen. He was just hoping his foot would be faster than his opponent. Turns out that he's wrong and that first expulsion of napalmic chi strikes him dead in the center of his body. It rocks him and burns straight to his core, sending him backwards as the series of strikes each of which come with their own sense of fire and burning.

Cage is knocked clean off his feet and ends up colliding with the ground in front of his fanbase. A fanbase that is also feeling the burn. It's a complicated thing and the blood that pours from Cage's face as he turns his head to see his Spare Shades slowly melt before his eyes only adds insult to the injuries that he has recently obtained.

"Ugh..." Johnny uses most of his strength to flip his body over and starts pushing himself up to his feet. His suit is in burned tatters, falling off his body as he rises slowly. Turning around, there are burn marks and soot all across his body, so much so that even his JOHNNY tattoo is slightly obscured. He wobbles a bit but attempts to regain his footing quickly. "... Yeah." he finally responds. "Like Sunset Boulevard on a Sunday morning."

Johnny uses what's left of his energy to stumble towards Crawley and tries to keep his hands up. He looks dizzy and feels even worse but there's got to be some serious damage going on inside of his body. But the Acting fades away as soon as he's close enough to be able to drop down into his signature splits and aims a strong right hand, followed by a stronger left and then a final powerful crushing fist... all aimed for Crawley's Nuts. After which, Cage leaps from the full split and into the air, aiming to come down on Crawley's back with a vicious backbreaking elbow.

COMBATSYS: Johnny Cage successfully hits John Crawley with Ball Buster+.

[                 \\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >                                ]
Johnny Cage      0/-------/<<<<<<<|====---\-------\0     John Crawley

[JOHN CRAWLEY]
"Time to put you to bed, pretty boy," Crawley's tlaking again, still looking up, breathing heavily, battered, but standing.

He drops back into a fighting position, arms crossing at the wrist, ready to take the strikes from Johnny Cage and just dish on back more. But the kick he expected never comes. Cage drops down. And then bells are rung.

Each crushing blow hammers home. Choking, sputtering, near vomiting, bent over from the low blows, Crawley's eyes bug out and he struggles to find a bit of breath to do anything but feel the exploding white hot pain reverberate through his body.

He's still bent over when the elbow crashes down atop of him. Barely a crack and a cough when the street thug crashes to the pavement with a dull thud.

There he lay for a good long moment. Flattened, beaten, taken out of consciousness it seems. Only for him to surge back up to his feet, stagger weakly forward a few steps, teeter, and fall back into the arms of several of his similarly dressed thugs. Crawley manages a battered, swollen faced sneer to Cage. "Not half bad," he murmurs through his broken face, "But you better watch your back here. Syndicate rules Southtown."

Battered and beaten, Crawley is pulled back and away by his cronies. Afraid to take on the man that beat their boss, they take their best chances at making good to get the hell out of the way. To recoup and recover, and maybe, to plot revenge for a sequel.

COMBATSYS: John Crawley takes no action.

[                 \\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Johnny Cage      0/-------/<<<<<<<|

COMBATSYS: John Crawley can no longer fight.

[                 \\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Johnny Cage      0/-------/<<<<<<<|

[JOHNNY CAGE]
Johnny Cage watches Crawley and the Cronies make their exit with his fists ready and still looking like he's got some more fight in him. Probably doesn't but the acting is fierce.

"Not for long, pal. You tell the rest of the Syndicate that now these are my streets. These are... the Streets of Cage."

And the moment those military dudes are out of eye line and ear shot, Johnny crumples into the arms of his fanbase. "... Oh thank god. I need a drink." The fans hold him up and they all start making their way back towards Expensive Taste.

"... and somebody call hair and make-up. Stat."

Log created on 13:09:59 03/30/2019 by John Crawley, and last modified on 15:11:44 03/31/2019.