Match of the Millennium

Description: In this round of SLAMFEST 2020, a triple threat match between three tough and quick competitors to see who has the next chance to stand against the one and only Victor Ortega. Watch The Dancing Spider take on both The Florida Wild Horse, Gunloc and the young up-and-coming Hotaru.

[GUNLOC]
Bang! Bang! Bang! Fireworks flare and flash, casting the packed CWA arena in series of red, white, and blue shimmers. A pealing, screaming electric guitar echoes over the screams of the crowd. They know who's coming. Taken out of action by mysterious circumstances, the crowd was robbed of his appearance. The one. The only.

"The Florida Wild Horse! GUUUNNNLOC!"

The man himself bursts through the curtains. Arms out, sunglasses catching the bright lights of the myriad cellphones in the audience. He walks slowly to the ring, carrying a swagger and a sway and a smirk on his face. He basks in the roar of the crowd welcoming back a favorite of the CWA. This is his crowd. His people. His arena.

Stepping through the ropes, he pops up on the other side. His arms rise, taking in the cheers. He steps up on the ropes and whips his jacket off. Holding it aloft, the crowd bellows.

He hops off the ropes and paces along the far side of the ring from the entrance. Rolling his shoulder, he pats a new, still vibrant and fresh, tattoo that runs along the length of his left arm. A spiral of a serpent. A hissing snake poised to strike from shoulder to his wrist.

He waits now, still with his sunglasses on, smirking, arms resting along the ropes as he watches for his opponents to come to their defeat.

COMBATSYS: Gunloc enters the arena, to the roar of the crowd!

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

[ARANHA]
It begins with an orchestral introduction. Then the bell tolls. The orchestra continues playing with the bell occasionally ringing and hip hop styled beats playing under it to give the classical song a bit of a modern touch. And that's when the athletically built, black shirt and white pants clad African American steps out from the entrance and strolls barefoot to the ring.

"Hailing from Metro City, New York... The Dancing Spider, UUUUUUUUH RAAAAHN YAAAAAH"

As he makes his way to the arena, he bobs his head to the beat as rap lyrics continue to play on the sound system. By the time he gets to the ring, the rap song is at the hook. He hops up on the apron and then the top turnbuckle. From there, he delivers a high side kick and holds it out there for a few moments to show off his flexibility and balance. He then hops down and brings himself into a one handed handstand before moving to his corner.

So glorious, victorious
We take what we want, we born warriors (Ay!)
So glorious, victorious
We take what we want, we born warriors (Ay!)
If you fall, get up and try it again (Uh-huh)
If you drop, get up and try it again (Uh-huh)
If you fall, get up and try it again (Uh-huh)
If you drop, get up and try it again...

With that, the music fades out from the sound system as Aranha himself gets himself ready to fight. Inwardly, he's grateful they chose not to mention his Majigen Series championship.

COMBATSYS: [Juelz Santana - The Second Coming] It starts out with an orchestra playing a sample of Berlioz's Symphony Fantastique as an intro with hip hop beats in the background. As Aranha walks out to the ring, this particular version of the song skips directly to the second verse. "We tired of being runners up, we coming up | We ready for whatever you put in front of us | Blood, sweat and tears, yeah | We dripped all three just to get here" So glorious! -- ARANHA is Ready to SLAM!

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Gunloc           0/-------/------=|======-\-------\0           Aranha

[HOTARU]
And following Aranha's eye catching entrance, the speakers begin slamming out the rock theme that has become associated with the young Kung Fu artist, Hotaru Futaba! Gaining confidence with each appearance in the SLAMFEST 2020 event, she moves out from backstage with a light jogging gait, spotlights following the youthful athlete's journey from entrance to the Ring of Destruction itself.

Trailing right behind her heels, a light brown flash of fur wearing a crimson scarf, the serpentine bodied Itokatsu races toward the ring with the girl. Hotaru waves her hands over her head, looking thrilled to be able to participate in yet another match, to meet new fighters, to test her skills against opponents she recognized for their established fight records.

Her match against the Warwolf and the Iron Mystic had taught her much about the spirit of SLAMFEST, of the art of performance combat wrestling greats are capable of, and of giving everything one has to the contest of strength, speed, and endurance. And now she was eager to have a chance to take those lessons to a new match.

The slender girl reaches the ring, one hand reaching for the lip of the mat as she vaults herself easily up and over the top rope, landing lightly in the ring. Eyes flick toward Gunloc - a wrestling professional, huge in stature. How much of what she sees is a projected ring persona verses his true nature she can't immediately surmise, having learned from her previous match that the lines aren't so easily discerned. What she can tell, however, is that he looks /tough/.

Sapphire eyes snap to Aranha next. Closer to her in height, she's glad to have an opponent that doesn't tower over her this time around. But he also has the build and bearing of one well acquainted with combat. This is hardly his first rodeo.

Grinning eagerly, Hotaru lifts her hands in front of her, palms open, bouncing lightly on black slipper-clad feet. The sway of her twin ponytails is augmented by the bounce of the crimson ribbons that tie them off near the base of her neck. Beneath the bright lights, the white of her loose Kung Fu pants and short, poofy sleeves look pristine, while the azure of her Chinese-styled blouse sparkles like polished gemstones.

Sucking in her breath, she closes her eyes for two seconds, centering her thoughts, then opens them, exhaling slowly.

"Hotaru Futaba, Kung Fu artist, and eager to show you what I've got!" she declares enthusiastically.

COMBATSYS: [Halestorm - Rock Show] It looks like they held nothing back for the new fighter. Powerful rock music fills the arena as Hotaru steps up. "Little girl, you like it loud, / Come alive in the middle of a crowd, / You wanna scream, you wanna shout / Get excited when the lights go down.. / At the rock show, / You'll be right in the front row / Heart and soul, they both know / It's where you gotta be..." HOTARU FUTABA is ready to SLAM!

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Gunloc           0/-------/------=|======-\-------\0           Aranha
                 [ |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|-------

[GUNLOC]
Reflective aviator shades shine with the bright lights. Gunloc sizes up his opponents. He sniffs and smirks. Keith Mason, kid from Metro, talented and dangerous. Gunloc's competitive spirit flares up with the idea of taking on someone with the accomplishments of the Dancing Spider. That said, the guy's a little on the small side. And the optics of the thing have to be considered when in the squared circle.

Over to the other side, the girl, smaller still than Aranha. Trained, no doubt, expertly given connections. Again, Gunloc has to acknowledge the talent against him in the ring. But again he has to consider the crowd.

It was a good thing he brought the sunglasses and the snake tattoo. Well, looks like it's time to work.

"What is this? A couple of little babies come out for the school dance?" Gunloc questions, waving a hand dismissively at the two opponents. "Is this some kind of joke? I don't got time for this!"

In a huff, Gunloc turns and steps through the ropes. He stalks back toward the entrance. "I'm not wasting my time! First that stripper and now a pair of kids!?" he lunges at a jeering member of the crowd, feinting and laughing at the flinch. All while storming off and away.

Cue the boos, count the steps, pause and turn. Okay, he's worked things long enough to establish himself as the bad guy of the situation, and now Gunloc whirls around on heel to look back into the ring. He surges down the ramp, charging for the ring and with a flying leap he soars through the air like an albatross. His whole frame flying for Aranha with all the intent in the world to bring the Dancing Spider to the mat with a bone crunching, flying headlock takedown.

COMBATSYS: Aranha interrupts Flying Bulldog from Gunloc with Dead Man's Hand ES.
+=+=!= Power Slam! =!=+=+

[       \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Gunloc           0/-------/=======|=======\==-----\1           Aranha
                 [ |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|-------

[ARANHA]
This is the third time Aranha had set foot in the squared circle and the second time that he had been placed against someone taking on the heel role. He'd always assumed he'd be the heel because of the clothing he chose to wear to the ring. Perhaps they saw fit to package him as a tweener. Fine by him.

Aranha remains quiet as Gunloc starts draw heat from the crowd and instead just looks bored as he works the crowd. If he's going to be a gray, he's gonna work that angle for all he's worth. He's not exactly what one would call a babyface like the third competitor in this triple threat match.

Then Gunloc comes back to the ring as Aranha produces a small bottle of baby powder from a pocket in his shirt. He manages to pour a bit of it in his hand. He doesn't have quite enough time to rub his hands together before he suddenly has a flying wrestler in his face. Theatrics be damned as reflexes take over. Aranha brings a blue glowing, baby powder covered hand right across Gunloc's face with a loud smack that can be heard even from the nose bleed section. The bodies collide forcing the capoeirista to stumble back a step right before he follows up with a side kick to the ribs. A camera manages to catch the aftermath with a palm print left on Gunloc's face.

"You're awfully mouthy, kid. Don't make me put you in the corner."

He brushes the rest of the baby powder off of his hand before stepping back and eyeing the third party in this match up and readying himself in case she heads in his direction.

[HOTARU]
With her own music subsiding, leaving room for the sound of the audience to fill the arena and the voices of the fighters in the Ring of Destruction to be better heard, Hotaru Futaba looks taken aback at the comments made by the large wrestler, recoiling slightly, right hand resting at the base of her neck.

Babies? School dance?! Kids?!?

Okay, the last one is at least fair, in her case, even if the other member of the Free for All brawl doesn't really fit the bill. Hotaru's arms tense against her sides, small hands clenched into fists, shoulders hunched slightly as she glowers toward the loud American braggart. How dare he- then she notices the audience reaction. The hollers, the jeers, the boos, sapphire eyes gazing over the vast crowd now riled up into a united frenzy demanding Gunloc get the beating he so clearly deserved.

Her eyes flick back over to Gunloc as he surges into action toward Aranha. Was this like the Warwolf? An act? Part of the theater of wrestling that she had only come to even partially understand in the prior round of SLAMFEST? Maybe Gunloc wasn't really a jerk, maybe he was just convincing, knew how to work up a crowd, knew how to build that heat that added an extra layer of dramatic intensity to matches.

A loud crack of flesh covered bone against face snaps her out of her chain of thought, Hotaru whirling to the aftermath of Aranha's defiant response, wafts of powder still forming a small cloud near the point of impact. But not only was his counter attack impressive, his rejoinder was also snappy! Hotaru's eyes widen. Both of them are pros at this audience engagement thing. She needs to do well at it to to compete in this arena!

Extending her right hand toward Aranha with a point, Hotaru exclaims, "There's nothing wrong with being a kid, you know! Everyone is one once!"

And with that, she charges him, trying to slip in close enough to get a hold on his upper arms and use her forward momentum to convert her steps into a series of rapid, stomping kicks right up the front of the talented fighter, striking knee, thigh, stomach, chest, before kicking off his shoulder in an attempted backflip to disengage!

[GUNLOC]
Bang! Face planted. The world thrummed, but the crowd was louder. Sunglasses bounce off the mat and Gunloc bounces into the ropes; his chest hits hard against the cables. Leaning, he cocks his head to hear the battle cry coming from the girl. She was getting into the swing of things. Good on her.

But, things being what they are, he has a part to play in all of this. Maybe he had been a little too obvious and lenient on Aranha, and should've come in with more respect than throwing in with the high risk showmanship. He holds the side of his head for a moment before turning back around to see to what he'll have to go for.

Sizing up the situation, watching the world fall back into steadiness. He gulps air and catches his breath. Time to be the bad guy.

He surges forward, launching himself toward the young Hotaru. His heavy mass bears a crunching weight toward the center mass of Hotaru. A tackling, belly breaking slam of a rushdown intending to make the crowd rage at the sudden blindsiding of the small hopeful hero by the angry big man.

COMBATSYS: Aranha dodges Hotaru's Shinjou Tai.

[        \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Gunloc           0/-------/=======|=======\==-----\1           Aranha
                 [ ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|-------

[ARANHA]
Hotaru's hands find nothing but air as the nimble capoeirista takes a hop back to remove himself from the potential of being used as a step ladder. The wrestler is out of Aranha's sight lines but that's what makes his hearing all the more important. The use of the crowd to telegraph the intent of his opponents as well as using their individual footfalls to get a sense of where each one is located.

Aranha picks out some booing, indicating that Gunloc is about to make a move, a shout of look out from an audience member which he takes to indicate that he's probably going after Hotaru, and Gunloc's previously mentioned footsteps which pick up speed and then suddenly stop outside of what he'd consider his ideal striking range let alone his grappling range which indicate that he's taking to the air once more. The Dancing Spider realizes he's going to want to get his shot in and get the hell out of the way. If it helps Gunloc land his flying manuever, fine. If it hinders it, also fine.

Aranha hooks his foot behind Hotaru's heel with a capoeira styled sweep in an attempt to yank her foot from under her and ideally drop her down to the ground. After that, he drops backward, planting a single hand on the ground and then flipping backwards to give himself a bit more space to work with and watch how things develop between his opponents.

COMBATSYS: Gunloc successfully hits Hotaru with Gut Crusher ES.

[        \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Gunloc           1/-----==/=======|=======\=------\1           Aranha
                 [            |||||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|-------|=======

COMBATSYS: Hotaru blocks Aranha's Resting Hold.

[        \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Gunloc           1/-----==/=======|=======\==-----\1           Aranha
                 [             ||||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|------=|=======

[HOTARU]
Fingers closing on air, arms sweeping through empty space, Hotaru finds herself positioned in an off-balance aggressive forward lean the moment the Dancing Spider eludes her attempt to catch him. Feet planted, she starts to pull back, to recover from the mis-timed aggression. For her league brackets, the Futaba girl is usually pretty swift. But against Aranha's instant retaliation, she finds herself flagging behind, hands coming up as if to ward off a strike.

He doesn't end up striking so much as trying to trip her up, his strong leg sweeping in, trying to claim her balance with a hook behind her foot. But maintaining balance is something she's good at it and it will take more than that to topple the featherweight as she shifts her weight to her other foot, letting the Spider's scything strike bounce off the back of her ankle. The impact is still slightly jarring, but it's clear she's going to be able to step out of engagement range easily enough.

None of this particularly matters when Hotaru is struck by the run away freight locomotive that plows into her from the side.The girl in blue and white folds over instantly into the blow, arms extended, feet swept clean off the ground as a pained gasp is forced from her lungs. Her flight into the ropes is instant and uncontrolled, her back arching against the covered cables as all of her crushing momentum ends up being driven into the second impact, jarring her spine and sending a sharp pain up and down her torso followed by a dizzying numbness.

Her flops from off the rope to the mat itself is unceremonial as Hotaru collapses, trying to catch herself with her hands but only barely managing to keep from outright face planting in the process. Curling up on the ground, cheeks red with the intensity of pain throbbing in her side, she gasps, forcing her lungs to breath again.

She can't stop now, not after just one hit, not after having watched the Warwolf battle on through two broken arms against the Iron Mystic just one round before. Gritting her teeth, she gets her knees beneath her, one hand against her side, the other against the mat, lifting her head to sweep her eyes across to the man who just made a special delivery from the pain train.

She can keep going, she tells herself, rising up to her feet, head ringing, deaf to the audience, the speakers, or anything else. Her only thought was that she had to try again and clinging to that thought, the Kung Fu artist surges forward, attempting to close distance with Gunloc. Ignoring the pain caused by her movements, she slides her left foot forward, bending her right leg, slipping into a low stance, her arms out at her sides.

It's a brief moment, a transitional state, as she then springs, launching into a leading palm strike toward Gunloc's stomach with her left hand. "HA!"

Twisting to the left, her right hand follows, as Hotaru devotes her leg, torso, and arm strength all into delivering a singularly strong right palm strike immediately following the left. "HAAH!"

COMBATSYS: Gunloc blocks Hotaru's Engan Soushou Da EX.

[          \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Gunloc           1/----===/=======|=======\==-----\1           Aranha
                 [              |||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|------<|<<<<<<<

[GUNLOC]
Well now, it looks like the two boys are ganging up on the young Hotaru. Pressure's on as the brave Hotaru defends against a two pronged assault. She summons up her strength and closes on in. A deft maneuver! Her palms slap slap against a tightly tucked tummy. The curled in grappler that is Gunloc bracing tight against the palm thrust. Each blow setting him back one big step as the crowd roars with excitement at Hotaru's push and Aranha's acrobatic style.

"Alright, pipsqueak!" Gunloc shouts out loud enough for the crowd to hear. "Down," he says a little quieter to the diminutive young woman. And it's about that time he pushes the crown of her head so that she's just enough of out of the way for what follows.

Gunloc's right hand cocks back like the hammer of a gun. The lessons of the Special Forces comes to the fore. A snapping, cracking right hook scythes through the air above Hotaru's head. Like a whip snapping the sound barrier, the air blasts and a spinning cyclone of chi energized sound hurtles outward. An energized sawblade of a strike cuts clean for Gunloc's new primary target, The Dancing Spider.

COMBATSYS: Aranha dodges Gunloc's Sonic Fist.

[          \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Gunloc           1/----===/=======|=======\==-----\1           Aranha
                 [              |||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|------<|<<<<<<<

[ARANHA]
It's probably a good thing that Aranha gave himself room to work. He can get a front most of front row seats to watching Hotaru work with precision as she delivers a pair of palm strikes that slap loudly against the braced body of Gunloc. Tensing of abdomen and going with the hit enough to both mitigate as well as selling the damage as slightly less as it could have been had he not utilized those two techniques in tandem. It was something he might not have noticed if he was watching this at home. The invested in the craft to make this possible was something he respected immensely.

What happens next is something that Aranha doesn't expect to see. At least not in this particular venue. First the whip crack sound that is vanguard of a sonic chi disc being sent his way. He takes a step towards the projectile, then hits the mat with a double footed stomp with the balls of his feet to give a bit of extra power as he flips forward with his body folded at the waist with a pike flip before landing on the ground.

He takes a couple small strides before he places his hands on Hotaru's shoulders to vault over her, taking advantage of the fact that Gunloc was pushing her down so he could send that attack his way. He goes up and over as both of his hands glow blue a moment just before he attempts to grab a hold of Gunloc and should that part be successful, send a burst of chi into him before curling up into a ball to shove him away with his feet as he flips over towards the ropes.

[HOTARU]
As her right hand is rebuffed by Gunloc's unbreakable defense, the Futaba girl starts to draw back from an aggressive posture, left foot far out in front of her right. It will take a split second to disengage, the young martial artist anticipating a potentially immediate retaliation from the huge American. After all, didn't he just call her a pipsqueak?! Isn't his focus on her?

She hears the 'Down' warning a split second before his hand reaches out, catching her just shy of slipping out of range, forcing her down another foot and leaving plenty of clearance for him to fire off his attack... at Aranha instead of her!

Hotaru blinks, skipping out of her low stance to whirl around and take in the ring, only fully aware of the sonic assault launched Aranha's way the moment the Dancing Spider manages to slip out of its trajectory. Wincing at the pain in her side, she gasps for breaths, but it is with a look of adrenaline fueled excitement that she takes in the situation. She understands Gunloc now - moreso thanks to her battle against Sven and what she learned about the spirit of professional wrestlers, their commitment and drive. It was easy to see mirrored in the tall wrestler and being able to participate in this medium against such amazing opponents only serves to fuel her drive even if she finds herself in a challenging battle.

But now she needs to make her move too! Pulling her hand from her side, refusing to have her presence in this match decided by a single if painful injury, Hotaru winds her right arm up once, fist closed, like a pitcher preparing to unleash a hell of a fastball-

Only to have Aranha use her shoulders to vault into an attack against Gunloc! Hotaru staggers a step from the brief pressure, but recovers quickly. Grinning, she surges toward Aranha from behind, right arm hooking out as she leaps, aiming to fly right into him with her right arm and shoulder, possibly pulling him forward down to the mat in the process if his balance is at all compromised!

COMBATSYS: Gunloc fails to interrupt Hunting Season from Aranha with Crescent Slash EX.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////    ]
Gunloc           1/---====/=======|=======\===----\1           Aranha
                 [             ||||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|------<|<<<<<<<

COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits Aranha with Medium Lariat.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
Gunloc           1/---====/=======|=======\===----\1           Aranha
                 [             ||||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|----<<<|<<<<<<<

[GUNLOC]
Here it comes. The moment coming close to fruition. The moment of the comeback that Gunloc's been waiting for. It was time to take things seriously and to put these wrestling ring neophytes to the test. The Dancing Spider is a talented foe, but Gunloc is ready to bite off more than he had to chew. So now it's time to rise to the occasion. To once again pull out all the stops and put down the moves he learned from his brother and the Special Forces.

With a hardy shift of his feet. Gunloc flares to life and burst forth against Aranha's waiting clutches. Only to be promptly clutched and propelled not only backward, but bouncing up and out of the ring and crashing to the mat below. Flat, sprawled, dazed. Maybe he really had been taking this match a little too glibly for what his opponents are truly capable of.

[ARANHA]
As embarassingly illegitimate as his championship match in the Majigen Series was, Aranha's path to the championship was legit. He had to have the skills to pay the bills to even get there. It probably would not be a good idea to underestimate him here at Slamfest.

As Aranha flips off of Gunloc he can see Hotaru beginning to set her feet in preparation to leap at him. It was Aranha's turn to underestimate his opponents. He figured he'd have enough time to set his own feet and avoid Hotaru flying in. He was wrong and unfortunately for the capoeirista, he does get caught by the extended arm. The fortunate part, is that his balance was compromised enough that he gets knocked into a roll. Not as controlled as he'd like and more painful than would be ideal but not as bad as it could have been.

The Dancing Spider quickly returns to his feet as he turns his attention back to Hotaru and delivers an outside crescent kick across the jaw.

COMBATSYS: Hotaru interrupts Short Kick from Aranha with Tanshou Shin EX.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////           ]
Gunloc           1/---====/=======|=======\===----\1           Aranha
                 [                |||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|-<<<<<<|<<<<<<<

[HOTARU]
Fully committed to trying to catch the Dancing Spider with an attack, Hotaru was only vaguely aware of the outcome of Gunloc's defense against Aranha. All she could see was her target. Not out of any malice or dislike for the extremely skilled Capoeira practitioner. But rather, the mastery of his art, the elusive nature of his movements, and the expertise with which he struck convinced the amateur fighter that it would take that singled-minded dedication just to land a hit on him!

And she succeeds, perhaps contrary to most people's expectations. A second later, she's landing on her feet, skipping a few more steps, moving along with Aranha's roll less because she's deliberately trying to keep pace with him and more because her own momentum has carried her forward.

He's on his feet an instant, transitioning from being hit, to rolling with the blow, to being back on the offense all so smoothly that it almost seemed like she hadn't actually struck him at all.

Resolve to put to rest any question as to whether she could actually hit him, Hotaru just preserves her momentum, surging forward into the kick that could have smacked into the side of her face, catching the blow instead on her shoulder as she heaves herself forward, twisting her right side into the impact.

That same shoulder-forward slam is how she initially strikes Aranha dead center as well before she pistons both of her arms out in opposite directions, left hand behind her, right hand forward, delivering a single handed palm strike to Aranha's chest, devoting every ounce of coordinated muscle she can muster into the effort.

"HAAH!"

[GUNLOC]
Down and outside the ring. The roar of the crowd a distant din. Even as they pop with the sight of the heroic Hotaru striking back with her all against the force of nature that is Aranha. Such a deft flip that sent the Florida Wild Horse outside the ring, and now he was shown up in the moment by the plucky girl. The lights from the camera's around the arena flash with each picture of that pristine moment. Already bootleg video streams leak onto FightTube.

But Gunloc isn't counted out. For one, there is no count-out in a triple terror, but for another he isn't down and out of the fight because of one flip. And if the Dancing Spider could flip, well, he'd learn that Gunloc was damn capable of flipping too.

With the intensity of the crowd laser focused on the two still in the ring, Gunloc gets about clambering to the ropes. High risk yields high reward. And it's only when he stands to his full height, arms outstretched like the wings of a soaring eagle, does the crowd's cries call attention to him.

And then, Gunloc soars. He sails from the top rope, body arcing in a rolling thunder toward Aranha. He falls toward his quick, talented opponent, aiming to slam down upon his back. And with his sheer momentum, carry the man over in a rolling driver to the mat. A desperation move in hopes of seeing the sun set on Aranha's hopes in the ring.

COMBATSYS: Aranha blocks Gunloc's Hyper Sunset Splash ES.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////              ]
Gunloc           0/-------/------=|=======\===----\1           Aranha
                 [                |||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|-<<<<<<|<<<<<<<

[ARANHA]
On one hand, it was something that one should've seen coming. Having started with so much momentum, it was only a matter of time that the focus would be on him. That didn't mean it was exactly easily dealt with. With Hotaru moving in to shoulder charge him so that instead of his foot connect with her face, his thigh gets caught on her shoulder. Were this a capoeira roda, this would most likely be the precursor of getting his foot swept from under him while his leg was caught in the air. Instead, a palm gets jammed into his torso sending him stumbling backwards, right into the path of Gunloc.

It almost looks coordinated how Aranha gets directed right into a rolling driver. Aranha responds to this much in a similar fashion to how he dealt with Morrigan attempting to slam him head first into the mat and pin him. He puts his forearms between himself and the mat and takes the brunt there as well as preventing a pin. He then gets his feet to the ground and squirms free from the hold before taking a step and placing a hand on the ground for extra stability as he aims to connect with his heel as he delivers a wheel kick to Gunloc's head.

[HOTARU]
Feet planted firmly on the mat, Hotaru pauses for a moment, arms still extended out in each direction. Her right arm trembles slightly while her left arm, offsetting her balance backward to keep her steady, remains still. A soft exhale follows as the girl recovers, spared a moment's reprieve as Aranha and Gunloc are engaged in combat once again.

Turning to watch the Dancing Spider once more wards off an attack that could have been brutally punishing if he hadn't managed to react perfectly at the critical moment. Hotaru smiles a little at seeing Gunloc in action. Once she had mentally processed that he had gone flying out of the ring, there was a moment's concern that he might have been severely injured. After watching Sven beat himself to a pulp fighting the Iron Mystic, she was not going to underestimate the potential danger at SLAMFEST. The same danger every fighter faces when they step into these bouts and put their all on the line.

But the American is back in action and seems to be moving well enough for it all. Time to give him a proper greeting in the form of another attack! Rushing toward Gunloc, Hotaru closes in around the same time as Aranha does. While he aims high, the kick Hotaru aims is a forward snap kick, targeting the muscled abdomen of the wrestler while attempting to use her kicking foot to push herself back away at the same time, trying to attack but create distance immediately after. She knows all too well from before what getting caught by one of his devastating blows feels like!

"KYA!"

COMBATSYS: Gunloc blocks Aranha's Big Boot.

[               \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////             ]
Gunloc           0/-------/----===|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2           Aranha
                 [               ||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|-<<<<<<|<<<<<<<

COMBATSYS: Gunloc blocks Hotaru's Short Kick.

[                \\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////             ]
Gunloc           0/-------/---====|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2           Aranha
                 [               ||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|-<<<<<<|<<<<<<<

[GUNLOC]
% A scything heel at his head. A devilishly sharp strike that Gunloc leans the bulk of his arm into. Smack! Boot meets the meat. And Gunloc's still standing. "C'mon. Call that a kick?" he taunts. "All that dancing left you too small. Where's the beef?"

But there's more than one kick. The second swings in, and Gunloc slams his foot to the canvas. His body tenses, muscle bulging from the strain as the second blow is similarly absorbed. "Wimps. I'm surrounded by wimps!" he cackles. Playing up against the tiredness. Playing up against the roar of the crowd. He has to be insurmountable. He has to be the big and bad meat truck of a fighter here. And in this moment, he's showing it off against the pain that's ebbing and pushing his body.

And with a bursting forward. He sets out to prove his point by reaching for Hotaru. Hands stretching out to take ahold of her wrists and to simply bodily hurl her away and toward the ropes.

[ARANHA]
Aranha watches as his kick and then subsequently Hotaru's kick are stopped cold by the significantly larger wrestler. He can see things that audience can't see because he's in the ring with Gunloc. He can see his fatigue and he can see how hurt he is and he can see the adjustments that Gunloc made to weather the storm of dealing with two different fighters kicking him at the same time.

Seeing as Gunloc is taunting him and his kicking prowess, regardless of whether or not it's kayfabe, he feels almost obligated to respond to it by kicking him some more. He does a little bit of heavy breathing before going right for the wrestler once again.

The capoeirista swings an almost lethargic roundhouse engulfed with blue chi right for his body.

COMBATSYS: Hotaru dodges Gunloc's Irish Whip.

[               \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////              ]
Gunloc           0/-------/---====|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2           Aranha
                 [               ||||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|----<<<|<<<<<<<

[HOTARU]
Finding her kick rebuffed by rock solid muscle, Hotaru continues with her plan of pressing against Gunloc's stomach with her foot less to dislodge or harm him and more to propel herself backward. Her arms just barely slipping out of reach of his grasp, she does a short spinning hop to disengage, landing a five feet back from where she had struck from in a low crouch, left foot forward, right leg bent beneath her, arms out at her sides.

With Aranha closing in to keep the pressure on the huge American wrestler, Hotaru is afforded a split second to weigh her options. On one hand, Gunloc sounded like he was challenging the both of them, questioning their striking strength after weathering both of their attacks seemingly unphased. On the other hand, she knows full well she can't let off the pressure on the Dancing Spider either. Sapphire blue eyes flick back and forth between the two opponents, the girl sucking in a much needed breath to keep her strength up in the grueling bout.

She makes up her mind to answer the challenge.

"I'm not a wimp!" she exclaims back. "I'll show you!"

Resolve to try and defend her honor as a martial artist, Hotaru Futaba launches herself back at Gunloc, demonstrating her aerial acrobatic skills as she takes to the air, flipping in a steep arc aimed at clearing right over the top of the professional wrestler.

Her descent would aim for his upper back, Hotaru trying to crash into him from behind, knees first into his shoulders, using her less than intimidating free fall weight combined with her slightly more impressive leg strength to potentially knock the man over! Maybe this will teach him!

COMBATSYS: Gunloc endures Hotaru's Ri En Ryuubu.

[                   \\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////              ]
Gunloc           1/-------/=======|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2           Aranha
                 [                |||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|--<<<<<|<<<<<<<

COMBATSYS: Gunloc fails to interrupt Aggressive Dance from Aranha with Sunset Splash EX.

[                       \\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////             ]
Gunloc           0/-------/---====|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2           Aranha
                 [                |||||||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|--<<<<<|<<<<<<<

[ARANHA]
The kick looks lethargic but the entire time, the capoeirista was watching him. The moment that Gunloc seemed commit to move out of the way or, in this particular case, try to interfere with his kick, he would suddenly accelerate the kick and adjust its path to slip that chi enhanced kick into the opening. But then there's more to that attack. He jumps into the air delivering a spinning jump kick to the jaw before turning his back for a moment and flipping backwards to deliver a final chi engulfed down upon his head.

When he steps away, he's no longer breathing heavy and smiling like he got one over on the designated heel. He had been fighting at an even pace so while he doesn't look fresh, he doesn't look as affected by fatigue as the other American.

[GUNLOC]
A clever trick, well implemented. A spirited young woman, throwing herself into the fray. Both are close in on Gunloc. Both have shown their might. Hotaru crashes down, weight bearing down upon Gunloc's back. The wrestler roars against the force at his back. He shrugs upward. Throwing himself through the pain and pressure kicking down from Hotaru.

All of this mighty surge because he was waiting for the moment he could throw himself against Aranha. To capture the flipping Dancing Spider and roll him over for a finale worthy slam to the mat!

But nothing of the sort is to happen. Aranha's strike is clever, planned and it crushes hard against Gunloc. The blow sends him to the canvas. The ring shakes, quaking with a thunderous boom. The taunting heel dashed to the ground, rolling toward the outside, he falls away from the ring.

Down below, he stays in a lump, his hands over his head. He needs a moment to take a breather and bring himself back from the brink with all the back and forth from the two other opponents. They're a damn fine set of opponents. He couldn't ask for better ones. He'd have to question Aranha at some point after this whole showcase.

Gunloc's handlers at the agency might have something of import, and this showcase tells Gunloc quite a bit about the capabilities of these two combatants.

[ARANHA]
Aranha spares a glance at Gunloc. Yes, Gunloc's down but he's not out but with him currently in a lump he still has no choice but to consider Hotaru the current biggest danger to him. That isn't to say that Aranha is ignoring him. He figures that it would be appropriate for a heel to try to catch him unawares while he's dealing with the Kenpo stylist and he has no plans to make himself vulnerable.

The capoeirista walks back and forth for a few moments, studying Hotaru carefully considering his approach. If he isn't careful, the young woman, might break his rhythm once again. The walk suddenly stops and becomes that ginga as he approaches her. An amused smile appearing on his face, he was having fun and the two opponents were dangerous enough to push him to his limits individually. Dealing with them in tandem during this Free For All forced him to be at his most creative and adaptive.

He suddenly enters kicking range and swings a powerful roundhouse for Hotaru's jaw, should that connect, he'll swing that same foot around, hooking his heel behind her head and yanking her face down to the mat.

COMBATSYS: Hotaru interrupts Face Down from Aranha with Senkai En EX.

[                       \\\\\\\  < >  /////////                     ]
Gunloc           0/-------/---====|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>-\1           Aranha
                 [                    |||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|=======

[HOTARU]
Hotaru pauses as Gunloc takes a tumble, having landed on her feet, her hands raised to the ready. With the huge wrestler out of commission for a moment, she comes to the same realization that Aranha does - for the next moment, they're going to be facing each other. Whirling to face him, her ponytails catching up a split second later as they whip behind her neck, sharp blue eyes lock on the Dancing Spider as the girl takes a few cautious steps backward.

She's managed to last this far, in the Ring of Destruction with two very capable fighters. Having experienced their power early on, it was fair to think she might not have stood much of a chance fighting either of them one on one. But facing incredible odds has always been a part of her fighting career from the moment she started down this road, and she isn't going to be disheartened no matter how tough the challenges are that she faces.

Lips drawn back in grin, she watches Aranha's approach with caution. She isn't familiar enough with the ebb and flow of the ginga, the movements impressive and, to some small degree, intimidating - where is he vulnerable? Which direction will he attack from? What are his defense options? She isn't sure how to read it... but she knows he will eventually launch out of it into some kind of offense and she holds back, waiting for that exact moment.

Right before Aranha gets within his deceptively long kicking range, Hotaru drops low, left foot slipping forward, arms out at her sides as if wings. She isn't sure if she's reading his attack right, but there is an instant where she's pretty sure he's striking out, and in that split second, the girl launches herself upward into a devastating backflipping kick, the likes of which would make a certain fighting family man proud.

Both feet crash into Aranha's chest as his leg smashes into her side. Normally, she would have flown upward in a graceful, backward arc, and come down to land on her feet safely. But Aranha's striking power is no joke and the blow to her ribs folds the girl over right after her feet slam into him, sending her flying into an uncontrolled tumble across the mat until she comes to rest face down.

Panting for breath, she pushes down with her left hand, her right hand pressed against her side. The kick had struck the same place Gunloc hammered her near the start of the match and the flush in her cheeks was caused far more by the freshly renewed pain than exertion. Gasping for breath, Hotaru musters the strength to get back to standing, pulling her hand away from her side so that she can return to a ready position.

She's not sure how much longer she can give this, but until every iota of her strength is exhausted, she'll see this match through!

[GUNLOC]
Down and out. Out of the ring and down on the mats again. Gunloc continues to lay flat on the floor as he considers the last breath of a hope he has at seeing to this match. Exhaustion pulses through his body. The world is a tunnel growing darker, closing and opening with each breath. He took everything sent at him, and now he was paying for it. Okay, it was time to get back up, and to put things to where they need to be.

Upward rises the wrestler, somewhere a commentator speaks and the crowd roars with realization that the Florida Wild Horse isn't done yet. And he isn't quite done with the hell antics either. Pasting on a smug grin, he falls into the ropes shortly after he rises to a stand. Arms spread along the ropes, he takes a deep breath and recollects himself. He watches the small Hotaru as she succeeds where he's failed time and time again. And he knows it's his time.

He would love to help the girl. But he's not the face in this scenario.

He charges forward, running with big, open, clomping steps. His big boot raises upward to bring a sharp and potentially devastating yakuza kick for the side of Hotaru's face.

[ARANHA]
It happens so quickly that Aranha doesn't have a chance to correct for Hotaru's slight crouch nor the backflipping kick that slams into his chest just as his roundhouse connects with her ribs. Not the most ideal location for that kick but he can see that he hurt her with it. He is sent crashing down to ground.

As the capoeirista rises back to his feet, he realizes something. They've developed enough respect for his speed that they weren't going to let him move around freely and would attack the moment of vulnerability created by him attacking. As a result, he decided to respect the level of aggression that would be directed towards him and back off for the time being.

When Gunloc moves towards Hotaru, to deliver a theoretically devastating kick her way, Aranha just opts to take off his shirt, exposing the collection of scars obtained before he made the trip to Shang Tsung's island. He's content to just watch and remains standing.

COMBATSYS: Aranha studies the situation for a moment.

[                      \\\\\\\\  < >  /////////                     ]
Gunloc           0/-------/---====|=======\======-\1           Aranha
                 [                    |||||||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|=======

COMBATSYS: Hotaru instinctively blocks Gunloc's Big Boot.

[                      \\\\\\\\  < >  /////////                     ]
Gunloc           0/-------/--=====|=======\======-\1           Aranha
                 [                        |||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|------=|=======

[HOTARU]
Hotaru holds her ground for a moment, taking advantage of the brief reprieve to catch her breath and gauge her condition a bit more clearly without being under intense pressure. The throbbing in her side was indicator enough that her rib cage had been a bit overly tenderized this round of SLAMFEST and she had really better watch it before she lets it get any worse.

Then there was the condition of her opponents. A glance is cast toward Gunloc, the girl noticing that he was still moving in spite having weathered a storm of attacks sent his way over the course of the match. But he was still in the process of climbing back into the ring which means she can keep a wary focus on Aranha instead. Eyes flick back to him, the girl taking in breaths with deep heaving gulps of air.

Can she catch him directly? Her self-sacrifice plays against his strikes have taken their toll. She'll have to test his defenses head on next time-

She doesn't notice Gunloc's approach, attention fixated on Aranha for a moment. She doesn't hear him thundering across the ring, her ears ringing and deafening her to much of the environment around her except for the steady roar of the audience. But she feels the tremors in the mat shaking beneath her feet. There's no time to look, no time to anticipate reactively.

Instead Hotaru raises her right arm up to the level of her head, left arm lifting to grip and support her forearm just in time for the crushing kick to hammer into her from the large wrestler. Like many of the attacks before, Hotaru is sent sliding across the Ring of Destruction. She may not have suffered a clean hit, but even having guarded against the worst of it, there's no question he just about dropped her all the same! Coming out of the slide, the Kung Fu artist staggers back a step, catching her hand on the rope behind her, shaking her head and wincing at the pain in her shoulder.

Eyes focus back toward the source of the latest attack, her scattered thoughts congealing into a plan of attack. Grinning, Hotaru pushes off from the ropes, rushing over to test her speed against Gunloc's formidable strength. A leap from halfway across the ring takes her to the air again, the acrobatic young fighter demonstrating a clear penchant trying to compensate for their height disparity with her athletic jumping ability.

Anling her right foot down, heel first, she attempts to slam her foot into Gunloc's shoulder before using the tall man as a launch off point to fly the rest of the way across the ring and land on the opposite rope with a hopefully smooth demonstration of her talent for balance as well! "YA!"

COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits Gunloc with Koushuu Da.
COMBATSYS: Gunloc refuses to stay down!

[                        \\\\\\  < >  /////////                     ]
Gunloc           0/-------/-======|=======\======-\1           Aranha
                 [                        |||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|-----==|=======

[GUNLOC]
A true onslaught has come down. Rough enough storms to require a good long trip to a hot tub, and maybe only a few drinks before turning in. Something cozy like. Because each step, each breath, each beat of his heart felt like the rise and fall of a tidal wave of pain against the barrier of his will.

But Gunloc trained under the best. He trained with the best. Haggar, Biff, Ortega, his ever serious brother. He was playing his role, but he wasn't about to pull any punches, or take a fall so easily.

The Spider was stalling, no doubt biding his time to strike. Hotaru, she was coming right for him. He had been focused on the wrong guy, he should've counted on the small one to be the fierce one.

He turns, goon-faced as she rises up toward him. The sharp crack against his shoulder. Gunloc winces, stumbling backward, into the ropes, rolling into the turnbuckle and leaning his head down into the padding.

He needed a breather. He needed a moment to seriously collect his thoughts this time. He doesn't drop, not yet, not when the chips are down. He was on the ropes, literally, but he could still hang in. He could still hang on.

"You goddam couple a wusses!" he shouts, more into the pad than at his opponents. He whips around, reclining against the turnbuckle. "One of you is too chicken to fight, standing back and letting the little girl try to take me down. And the other." He smirks, lolling his grin toward the fine balancing act of Hotaru. "You're just a little girl. None of you got what it takes to go against the champ. Not if you can't take me down!" he calls out, stamping, standing his ground, drawing a big target on his chest. "And all these fans, they're just stupid for thinking either of you could ever beat a real CWA champ!"

COMBATSYS: Gunloc gains composure.

[                    \\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////                     ]
Gunloc           0/-------/--=====|=======\======-\1           Aranha
                 [                        |||||| ]
                 Hotaru           1|-----==|=======

[ARANHA]
Both opponents measure was taken and now it was time to execute. Surprisingly, none of them chose to go after him. His altered physiology was slowly working to fix the injuries from early on in the fight but he knew that his body wouldn't hold out much longer. It was an energy intensive process that was more demanding the longer he was in a fight. It was only a matter of time before his body would knock him out so it could divert more resources to repairing the bumps and bruises that he received.

There's still a show to put on and so after Gunloc is done, he lets his his lips form into a smirk of his own as he swings that removed shirt onto his shoulder. He slowly, casually, circles the ring counter clockwise as he claps three times, loudly, in a slow cadence which would usually indicate sarcasm.

"What. An. Incredible. Show. Of. Bravado."

He takes a moment to stop and halfway curls forward as if trying to stifle laughter.

"Let's be real, homie. You almost passed out just now. And if we're being honest..." He pauses for a moment to gesture to Hotaru before continuing, "She," then gestures to the audience before continuing, "and they can all see that you're barely holding on by a thread. But, go off."

He then slowly takes a few more steps towards Gunloc with one finger held up as if he was finally ready to make his summation.

"Just remember, when you wake up somewhere that is not in this ring, you asked for this."

This is the point where being the designated tweener in this match has its advantages. The capoeirista whips his shirt up into the air(careful to not actually throw it at him) to obscure Gunloc's vision right before a glowing roundhouse kick goes right for his ribs.

[HOTARU]
Her heel smacking down, Hotaru presses off the tall wrestler to spring lightly to the ropes behind him, rushing along the length of them to a corner apart from both Gunloc and the Dancing Spider before hopping down onto the mat, releasing a gasp of breath. She was putting her all into keeping up with the two, making every effort to carry on the lessons learned in her prior bout - about commitment, about resolve, about there always being more to give. It was enough to augment the moxie she already had for difficult challenges, turning the small girl into a capable competitor that could never be discounted simply due to her stature or youth.

Upon landing, the Kung Fu artist glances between Aranha and Gunloc, but it is the American that demands her attention the most. In him she could see another wrestler who would not be counted out as long as there was an iota of strength left in him. It was inspiring to see in action, and an honor to share the ring with the like. But it also meant she needed to keep stepping up her game as well!

Lifting her hands as Gunloc taunts the two of them, claiming there was no chance for them to take him down even if they both worked at it, the girl bites back a grin. The performance was impressive, just the kind of diatribe audiences eat up she's come to realize, but it was also on her to treat every moment of the match with the same dedication to maintaining the mood, of playing her part as a teenage martial artist trying prove her place in a world that could just as easily disregard her.

Gunloc bravely dared them both to take him on now, at the culmination of the intense three-way battle, and Hotaru would not be one to ignore such a challenge. Aranha raises a finger and responds with a rebuke the crowd goes wild over, but Hotaru bows her head briefly, closing her eyes, focusing. She needs to make the next several seconds count, everything comes down to this!

When her sapphire blue irises settle on Gunloc next, her mouth is set in a committed, tight lipped expression of concentration, and then she breaks into a sprint toward him. It's around the time that the Dancing Spider makes his move that the Futaba girl springs into a small hop from four feet out, twisting in the air, unleashing two windmilling hand strikes, left, then right, her body turning to the left in the process.

But the instant her feet hit the ground, she begins to pivot back to the right, her right hand slamming out hard, a singular palm strike targeting Gunloc's abdomen in a straight, piston-like smack of her hand. Leg, torso, and arm muscle combine in a singular effort to deliver a truly stunning attack, one of her hardest single blows in her arsenal.

"HAAH!"

COMBATSYS: Gunloc blocks Aranha's Royal Flush.

[                       \\\\\\\  < >  /////////                     ]
Gunloc           1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0           Aranha
                 [                        |||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|-----==

COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits Gunloc with Soushou Shin.

[                           \\\  < >  /////////                     ]
Gunloc           1/-----==/=======|====---\-------\0           Aranha
                 [                        |||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|-----==

[ARANHA]
And that roundhouse is immediately followed up with more roundhouses, and side kicks, and spinning back kicks, and wheel kicks. Aranha proceeds to take Gunloc through a tour through almost every kick in capoeira's arsenal, all engulfed in blue energy and then it culminates in a spinning handstand kick before he crouches to the ground to pick up his shirt and toss it to one of the turnbuckles.

[GUNLOC]
It's almost time to go home.

The show's been a good one. And now it's time to set things the way they should be. A broad, loud slap across his own chest to bring the attention on him while Aranha puts on his airs to show how little the heel in the match matters. But performance for the crowd matters only so much compared to the performance of the muscle.

And Gunloc brings every moment of that to the table. The knee coming in finds a tensed, tucked in Gunloc toughing out the battering.

Roundhouse cracking against forearm. A rolling toughing out of each kick in succession. Enduring the bright bursts of power coming from the dancing spider's heavy heels. Under it, Gunloc huffs, exhales, powers through all of it. It can't be time to go down yet. It can't be the end to him.

"That everything you got?" Gunloc asks, talking even as he drops to one knee. "I give it a B+ at best."

Talking isn't a free action here, though. Unprepared, he isn't looking when the straight shot of Hotaru's devastating strike slam against him. He coughs, air forced from his lungs. In that moment of connection, the world stops. He doesn't feel the ground beneath him. Soaring through the air, just above the mat. A still, empty feeling of weightlessness, no breath, the energy within him rushing away.

5t Bang! The turnbuckle halts his flight. Once more the mat finds him. He flops to the canvas, head lolling and screws loose. He's done. Ring the bell because his is rung. But as he opens his eyes and sees the world slant and slide left and right, he knows he has to put one last bit of pep out there to make a point of things.

And thus he explodes. Outward, rushing, sloppy. A mountain of a man raging forth from the corner with a wild whooping scream. The heel is dropped here, the rushing backflip of a kick comes forth, the kick itself sparking with a cold edged cutting energy along his heel. A flashing, flip of a kick. A screaming somersault kick surging for Aranha.

A final shot, because he doesn't even know if he connects as he lands. He simply lands. And then drops to his knee. And then down to the canvas where calls of the referee and the roars of the crowd are muted and muzzled under a daze as though under a fathom of ocean.

COMBATSYS: Gunloc can no longer fight.

[                     \\\\\\\\\  <
Aranha           0/-------/---====|
                 [                        |||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|-----==

COMBATSYS: Aranha dodges Gunloc's Enraged Crescent Slash ES.

[                     \\\\\\\\\  <
Aranha           0/-------/---====|
                 [                        |||||| ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|-----==

[ARANHA]
Aranha's don't find their targets on Gunloc as the wrestler deftly weathers the storm coming from the capoeirista as he sought out to batter his defenses. That's the point where Aranha realizes that he wasn't the only one taunted by the Florida Wild Horse. Where Aranha fails to slip his attacks through, Hotaru succeeds. He can only watch as the first windmilling strikes and then the brutal palm strike find their mark and takes the much larger man off of his feet. He winces, slightly exaggerated for the benefit for the crowd.

"Oooh... Better you, than me."

He gives a shrug once again for the audience but that's when he hears the rumbling of a large man charging right for him. It's almost fluid how he spins around to face him and then Gunloc's foot slashes upwards with a backflipping kick. Aranha diverts his focus into moving as quickly as possible. He knows he's going to pay for this when this fight is over but he's not sure he can afford to not lean hard on his movement speed considering how hard and how consistently the remaining opponent has managed to tag him with her strikes as well as considering how nasty that final gasp of an attack from Gunloc seemed to be. As fast as Aranha seemed to move earlier in the match, there seems to be a significant increase as he seems to move in blur to side step the energy trailed kick.

He then turns to Hotaru and in a blink and you'll miss it moment, he suddenly darts past her to leap on to the top rope and rebound off of it to deliver a jump kick from a hard to defend angle.

COMBATSYS: Aranha successfully hits Hotaru with Sky's the Limit.

[                     \\\\\\\\\  <
Aranha           0/-------/--=====|
                 [                             | ]
                 Hotaru           0|-------|=======

[HOTARU]
Her strike delivered, Hotaru is slower to retreat than before. The relentless pace of the free for all bout has taken its toll. Not that her movements are slothful, but there is a certain shift to her back-steppping gait, a sense that she is forcing herself to keep going past some inner limit of endurance, that she's refusing to surrender to the demands of exhaustion.

Blinking her eyes, she glances toward where Gunloc hits the turnbuckle, the solid post creaking under the weight of the impact. Sucking in her next breath, she shifts her focus toward the Dancing Spider, the young man looking strong in the aftermath of his successful, energetic combination assault on the powerfully built wrestler.

Her head pounds, her side throbs, her cheeks flushed pink with pain and exertion intense enough to nearly cross over into being dulled by her waning consciousness.

But still, she was determined to keep going. She could still move, she could still stand, she could still strike, she could still fight.

A moment later, she watches as Aranha slips nimbly around what could have been an utterly devastating combination as at last Gunloc's defiant durability finally runs out. She knows immediately what that means and wastes no time, pivoting to face Aranha, feet planted, showing no signs of trying to escape from his inevitable strike. Her hands raise as Hotaru turns her left shoulder toward him as he rushes past, feet taking to the rope for only a brief instant, before he leaps right back her way.

She spins into his attack and he would realize she was attempting to do what she had done before, to blunt the strike slightly if it means a chance to strike him back at the same time! But this time his blow connects solidly, catching the side of the Kung Fu fighter's head with stunning power.

Hotaru reels back, eyes closing as she fights against the momentum. "Always more," she whispers to herself, finally defeating the backward motion to twist against it, pushing off the mat into a low, spinning hop. "More to-"

Aranha will have a moment to respond, to avoid a battering of two wind milling strikes similar in nature and speed to the ones she had delivered to Gunloc only a moment before. "To give!"

There would be no landing on her feet out of the attempt, however, unconsciousness claiming the girl's capacity to fight before she could possibly touch back down, an ungainly face plant to the mat her most likely fate.

COMBATSYS: Hotaru can no longer fight.

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

COMBATSYS: Aranha parries Hotaru's Enryuu Banda!

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

[ARANHA]
The traceur would raise an eyebrow at Hotaru's approach to defending his attack if he wasn't so busy attacking. He had his doubts whether the girl could stand her ground against his parkour inspired attack after all the shots she had to withstand to get the fight to this point. This time, his kick lands solidly and his feet land softly on the mat.

He watches as the girl manages to spin into a better position for herself. He readies himself for her go after him one last time. She was just too fiercely determined to not try to take him down with her. Hotaru does not disappoint. He now gets to see the windmilling attack up close and personal and with that focus placed on moving and reacting faster, he becomes a blur once more stepping to the side with a kick chambered. He doesn't perform the counter attack knowing that it would be a waste of time, energy, and could possibly piss enough people off to prevent him from getting booked for fights ever again.

Aranha rolls Hotaru on to her back and then goes for the pin.

With the match finally over, Aranha remains standing with his arm raised in the air and then he goes to the ramp to leave and that is about when his own body gives out and he falls over. He never quite makes it to the locker rooms.

COMBATSYS: Aranha decides that discretion is the better part of valor.

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

COMBATSYS: Aranha has ended the fight here.

Log created on 11:27:06 02/21/2020 by Gunloc, and last modified on 10:20:04 03/07/2020.