Match of the Millennium

Description: Two detectives face off in the Neo-League under the lights of Fremont Street. While both hit it off really well, their fans end up drawing lines between each other...

[BOB]
Robert "Bob" Richards has been quiet for a bit, but that has only helped stoke the excitement for his return to the Neo League. A gaggle of fans--many with homemade t-shirts and signs--have crowded around the cordon setting off the fan area from the street proper.

But Bob is not there, at least, not immediately. Instead, there's a heavy thundering of footfalls as he sprints in from the side, launching into a leap and then roll over the the edge of the stage to land like a cannonball and tumble into the street. As he comes out of the roll he springs up, launching on his feet before waving to the crowd.

Today he's dressed a white button up shirt, blue jeans, suspenders, and a flame-patterned black shirt. Several from the crowd cheer. One seems confused.

"Is that Guy Fieri?!"

[DANIEL]
It was better than Daniel's fans, to be fair.

The detective really didn't -want- to be there right now either. The problem was, there was a low-key style of dressage of Vegas, and Daniel fit that to a double crossed t. Daniel is in a bright orange zoot suit, bearing a wide-brimmed hat with a long peacock feather sticking out it. The shadow-skinned Darkstalker was trying hard to avert his eyes, as -his- fans were congregating at the edge for -his- surprise arrival in the Neo-League. Each one in black face, wearing bad detective cosplay, and each one a man. Not one female.

While wearing paraphinilia emphasizing his lady killer nature.

As the figure zooms up, the detective quickly gets his face on with a fanged smile and bright yellow eyes. The hooting and rude comments from the side was decent; he wasn't exactly -offended- by the flame shirt like how some others might be. Because his threshold for offense was worse. He also didn't quite know Bob very well, he was having a hard time without the internet. And yet, even then... as he waits for Bob to come on up, Daniel shakes his head, muttering quietly to himself after clucking his tongue.

"Some people just think tacky is fashion, I guess"

[BOB]
Bob's eyes follow the crowd, but never too closely. He never quite lingers on them too long, especially the jeers. He does, at least, offer a wave to those who seem excited to be here. The rest? He just lets that roll off his back.

"Tacky, huh?" Bob says, looking up and down the Zoot Suit. "I think our tastes are a bit different...but I like the color. It's eye-catching." The husky fighter rolls his neck before shifting into some arm stretches.

"But in any case," Bob starts again. "The Lady Killer, isn't it? You seem to have some dedicated fans." Bob assumes a fighting stance, placing his feet wide apart and raising his fists. "So let's have a good match for them, huh?"

[DANIEL]
Daniel fans himself at the compliment.

"If I wasn't so certain on your own lady killer talents, I would say you're flirting with me! It must be the season." Daniel states, looking aside a moment at the man's fans. "First Vin, and now you Bob? I'm getting some real charmers back to back. I'm sorry about the comment, you wear it well." The detective eases in the defensive stance of Todoh Ryuu Kobojutsu, Palms up, he gives a nod to the other fans. "But uh-"

"MELT HIS FAT LADY KILLER"

Daniel averts his eyes slightly. "Yeah, you know, I kinda wish horrible monsters would have a better fan base. Probably with a lot more ladies." A twinkle flares in his yellow eye.

"You dig it?"

COMBATSYS: Daniel has started a fight here.

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Daniel           0/-------/-------|

COMBATSYS: Bob has joined the fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Daniel           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0              Bob

[BOB]
"No harm, no foul," Bob says with a big smile. "Vin, huh? Haven't met him yet."

There's the shout from the crowd, but Bob rolls with it. "Yeah. Hey, though, maybe you can get some new fans with a good showing, huh?" The eye-gleam does merit a raised eyebrow from Bob.

"Good thing that nickname isn't literal." He adds "I hope," more quietly.

"Let's see what you've got!"

[DANIEL]
"It's definitely not literal!" Daniel explains, soothing all and any comfort in the most obvious form of power posing there is.

He waits for the bell, and once the fight starts, the detective, well, the Daniel fellow advances forward with a depressing walk cycle. Very slow, very methodical with steady foot work. Barely any speed, nor any real weight to it either. The shadow skin of the Darkstalker merely consumed the light unnaturally, as he closed in. "Vin's a nice guy, you absolutely got to meet him." Daniel begins as he opens up with a singular, stiff straight kick, aimed right for the center of Bob's chest. "He's a big rummy though, a total drunk, so you gotta be able to keep up with him."

"You drink much, Bob?"

COMBATSYS: Daniel successfully hits Bob with Light Kick.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Daniel           0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0              Bob

[BOB]
"Believe it or not," Bob says, "Not really. I'd say something about empty calories." Bob adjusts his footing. One foot to the left, the other to the right. His knees bend. The distance between his fists and his chest tightens.

He darts in, ready to intercept the stiff kick with an aggressive forward charge. Instead, he the kick catches him off-guard with its speed, impacting with a heavy thump that throws the big man backward and off-balance.

"Hooooof," The excalmation isn't a word so much as a deep exhalation as he shifts to regain his balance. "--as I was saying," Bob recovers, moving to reach out for a grab as he snaps forward, aiming to palm strike Daniel, push him back, then pull forward and sweep the leg.

"It's more of a judgment thing. Bad decisions, you know?"

COMBATSYS: Bob successfully hits Daniel with Quarter Deck.

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Daniel           0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0              Bob

[DANIEL]
"I'd believe it!"

Daniel's response is cordial; after all, it was a good clean fight. After the Shadow detective makes his simple plain kick squarely in the chest, he shifts to slip back into his defense. While he didn't mention it, the sudden burst of speed gave him rise. He had fought big boys before, but they tended to be slow, plodding types. Testing the defenses was sturdy, yeah, but when Bob not only recovers from his failed rush, but is already at his flank with the palm strike?

He was beginning to realize that this guy was damn fast.

He tries to bring his palm to stop the blow, but fails in time. Staggering back from the impact, he is thankfully more prepared for the sweep. Hitting the ground in a roll, he tumbles along, his shadowy form diffusing and spreading apart, making him more indistinct. "Nice shot! But yes, that's pretty smart of you. You make all kinds of bad judgements when drunk. Or with ladies. Personal experience." He adds coolly as he rises very close to Bob. "I made a lot of mistakes before I became the monster before you." He adds dramatically, as he brings a hand for the upper portion of Bob's shirt, and another to his belt line. Should he grab the clothing? He would pivot and slam him straight down into the street.

"So yeah, man, have you ever done Boy Scouts scuzzy?"

COMBATSYS: Bob blocks Daniel's Strong Throw.

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Daniel           0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0              Bob

[BOB]
"Oh yeah," Bob says, "I had my fair share of experiences when I was a little younger, then I settled on perfecting my craft, you know?" Bob draws back as Daniel rolls out of the sweep, swinging his leg back and away to shift it to the back foot so that his grounded leg becomes the basis for his reaction.

"Uh oh," Bob says, "Do you wanna talk about it? It sounds like you've had a few wild nights yourself...hup!" Bob is grabbed and, thanks to Daniel's strength and leverage, the huge man is flipped over. He twists and guards, landing on both forearms to soften the blow until he can somesault over and right himself

"--Boy Scouts? Yeah, I was in them for a while. Why do you ask?" Scuzzy? Bob thinks.

But then he slams forward, closing the gap with a sprint before thrusting forward, both palms extended into a two-handed strike.

COMBATSYS: Daniel dodges Bob's Granchi Cannon.

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Daniel           0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0              Bob

[DANIEL]
"You know, it's a kind of feeling."

As he flips Bob over, he makes sure to get more tightly back into his defensive stance. Any extension now was a big risk. And sure enough, Bob is already sprinting in. Orange energy flows around Daniel, as he watches Bob's motions precisely. As the palms surge forward, he precisely and carefully turns. The palms blast just past his chest. Taking two diligent steps back, he repositions cautiously as he continues. "A general benevolence and love of man. The kind of feeling that you're a real nice guy, Bob."

And he raises his arms up.

Surging with energy, the space between himself and Bob was short. And any charge up was risking a serious danger of interruption. But Daniel continues as the energy builds around him. "I used to be Interpol, before the Mortal Kombat tournament. It was bad, real bad. Ruined a lot of friendships there. Hurt a good man." There is a flicker of red in Daniel's palm, before it dies down as he slams his arms down. Bringing down a tsunami of orange energy, the blast of force surges out. "KASANE ATE!" He quickly belts out, as a hemisphere wave erupts around him outward, threatening to catch Bob up in the blast back. "What is that craft, by the way? I see the Karate, but not a specific kind."

"Is it all your own?"

COMBATSYS: Bob blocks Daniel's Chou Kasane Ate.

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Daniel           0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\1              Bob
%Bob's approach is methodical, this time. He moves in, feints left, then snaps in with a short, strong kick where he pivots, and backsteps toward Daniel.

[BOB]
Bob turtles up, sweeping his arms around and locking them together, forearm crossed over forearm, to absorb the brunt of the Kasane Ate and ride the wave of chi backward even if it means giving up the proximity advantage.

Bob comes out of the hit in a slide as the tsunami passes, then he drops into a half-crouch to use his hand to stabilize himself. When he slides back into his fighting stance, he repositions, raising his guard again and keeping his distance this time.

"That obvious, huh? I'll take it as a compliment..." Bob furrows his brow. "But it sounds like a tough time. Don't think you were alone there, either, from the sounds of how that Mortal Kombat thing went." He lowers his head a bit. "But to answer your other question, that's right. I put it down as Freestyle Karate. I'm building off those foundations after all. Seems wrong to give it a pretentious name, you know?"

Bob's approach is methodical, this time. He moves in, feints left, then snaps in with a short, strong kick where he pivots, and backsteps toward Daniel.

COMBATSYS: Daniel interrupts Medium Kick from Bob with Jumping Jack Flash EX.

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Daniel           1/-------/=======|=======\======-\1              Bob

[DANIEL]
Daniel was building the pressure carefully.

As the shockwave rolls out, he adjusts his position, falling back into his defensive stance, palms up in time with Bob's own adjustments. As the karate fighter comes, the detective responds with an even tone. "I guess, but you hardly have any reason to be modest. I mean, Bob Karate does sound kind of lame, same way Kyokugen K-" Daniel takes the bait on the feint, rushing in to punish it. But by the time he comes in, he can see it. The feint. The trap.

ANd it's like a switch hits.

Daniel takes the kick hard on the pivot. So hard, in fact, that a large chunk of him discorporate into a shadowy mist. The pained expression on Daniel's face contorts into a fanged fury, as the shadow and orange surges like a firehose straight into Bob. Carrying the pair up in the air, Daniel reforms with the karate expert hoisted high above his head. Balancing him neatly, Bob would flare with a blazing rush of orange chi before Daniel with nail the fighters straight into the asphalt with a singular spiking impact. All with a second shockwave cascading around Bob.

"KASANE ATE!"

[BOB]
Bob chuckles. "It does, doesn't it? Maybe if I think of a snappy name I might use that, but--"

Pressure is not unfamiliar to Bob. In some ways, as both a detective and a professional fighter, Bob thrives under pressure. When the stakes get high, that strengthens his resolve to succeed.

But everyone cracks under pressure sometimes.

Bob is lifted up by tremendous strength when Daniel transitions into a chi rush he's spiked down, cracking the pavement with a signature move from Todoh-Ryu. The noise from Bob is a pained, a sharp exhalation as the wind is knocked out of him. It takes several moments for him to get back on his feet, the big blond staggering to reposition.

"Hurgh...not bad! Not bad at all! That trick there--that was interesting." He adds. "I haven't seen much like that. Let me show you one of mine!"

And Bob is surging forward, drawing back a fist as he goes in low, rushing toward Daniel with his fist drawn back. He swings, aiming wide--only to transition into a grab instead, aiming to pull Daniel off-balance to launch an upward elbow. From there, Bob attempts to loop around, changing positions like a figure skater swinging his partner around.

Except he holds on, aiming to bring Daniel's arm around into a painful joint lock. With pressure from that, Bob goes for a strong kick to the back to bowl the man over while he's reeling from the joint pressure.

COMBATSYS: Bob successfully hits Daniel with Cooler Shaker.
- CRAZY Hit! -

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Daniel           1/---====/=======|=====--\-------\0              Bob

[DANIEL]
"That's no mere trick. That's Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu!"

Daniel chirps brightly at the whole trick thing. He had the whole pitch ready to launch. Unfortunately, by sticking Bob right where he wanted him for the follow up, it placed him perfectly for where Bob could follow up on -him-. The surging karate expert gets the jump on Daniel and the detective has his palms up, ready to the catch the wide blow. At that moment, the initiative finally caught up on Daniel too fast. He tries to go for the reversal on the grab, only to get an elbow for the trouble. Daniel's chasing Bob, his own defenses trying to keep, and just falling a split second too slow. As he is twisted into a joint lock, he gives a pained groaned as he is put in the position... until finally, the combination comes to a close with a savage kick straight to the back, knocking Daniel flipping straight into the pavement with a hideous 'splat.' For a moment, there is only a black shadowy smear on the asphalt.

And then, it rises up, reforming swiftly into a humanoid shape one more.

"DAmn!" Daniel's even more diffused than before; where the shadows start and the detective begin were becoming even more indistinct now. But amongst that shadowy blob was that ever present pair of yellow eyes, and a white fanged maw curled into a grin. "Very impressive technical work! Much better than Kyokugen Karate. Okay, you've dealt with the fundementals of Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu. Strikes! Grapples! Kasane Ate! And you've tasted how they all mingle together. Now for a little more mixup!" In the shadows, the faint shape of the zoot suited man solidifes, sweeping his arms around in two mirrored circles, palms out. Orange chi flaring around him, he draws back his right arm, hooking it preemptively as he digs his feet in.

"FANTASTIC TODOH---"

And he explodes forward, rocketing straight for Bob with a full forced lariat, aiming to connect straight into his chest. Should it manage to reach the man, he wouldn't be simply sending him into the ground: he would be carrying him all the way down the street, before finishing the charge short of the crowd, and straight into a lamp post. And should he make it that far? The impact will erupt into a blast of orange and shadowy chi, swirling around in a cataclysmic eruption around himself and Bob.

"PAAAUNCH!"

COMBATSYS: Daniel successfully hits Bob with Fantastic Todoh Punch.

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Daniel           0/-------/------=|=======\=====--\1              Bob

[BOB]
Bob's technique, while slightly unorthodox, smoothly combines strong karate fundamentals with his unique blend of SPEED and WEIGHT. Hard style meets soft style as the joint-lock greases the gears and the solid kick gets them turning. Unfortunately for Bob, each action comes with a reaction, and he is not prepared for such a Fantastic Todoh Punch.

He is not prepared at all.

Chi gathers and Bob braces, but it's a futile effort. His guard raises, tightens, but the charge is coming for him and fast. In the simplicity of the technique there is power and practice. A move honed through drill after countless drill, like a stone sharpened to a perfect, flawless point.

It impacts with a sharp exhale from Bob, the wind knocked out of him as he's launched and then carried by the impact, smashed into a lamppost with enough force that it warps around him. For a moment, he lingers then, then drops to the ground with a heavy thud.

And he's out, briefly, before shaking his head wearily.

"Yeah," Bob groans. "You got me with that one. That's--" Another pained grumble. "A pretty fantastic move."

COMBATSYS: Bob takes no action.

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

COMBATSYS: Bob can no longer fight.

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

[DANIEL]
Simple, practical, dangerous.

Daniel slams Bob down, and comes to a halting stand. The waves of momentum were continuing; he was just about ready to start continuing the endless chain of mixups even after a street clearing rundown like that. But as Bob staggers around, his offensive momentum gradually shifts to a passive defensive stand. When Bob goes down, Daniel drops his guard. Adjusting his cap, he tips it down to the karate expert. "You're pretty fantastic, Bob. It's been a real pleasure. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come in so-"

Daniel is interrupted by a milkshake getting chucked at his head.

Dripping with jamocha, the shade staggers, turning towards the audience that did not appreciate the change of fate. The judges move quickly calling the fight for Daniel, but it might have been too late now. "Booooooo" Comes the cat calls, as the audience starts throwing stuff at Daniel. "You beat Bob!" Explains one. "You cheated!" Stated another. "What a jerk!" Daniel lowers his head, looking down at Bob. "I'm sorry." He says softly to his opponent.

And then Daniel's fans start fighting back.

"Get them! We have to defend the Ladykiller!" Was the rallying cry as the fans form their battlelines. "If she breathes, she's a thaaaaaaaauht!" Security descends to break up the brewing fight, as Daniel, well. Steps backwards, a sour taste in his mouth. And once he manages to hit a spot of darkness. Daniel nervously sinks into the shadows, keeping his hat low. First the cruise ship, and now this. Well, they all can't be bad.

Right?

COMBATSYS: Daniel has ended the fight here.


[BOB]
"Not your fau--" Bob doesn't manage to get it out, groggy as he is, before the crowd picks up and intervenes. It takes time for the other show to drop, for Bob to realize what exactly happened. He opens his mouth, closes it, then gets his head on straight and picks himself up.

"Hey," No response. "Hey." Louder this time. "Everyone calm down for a second! This man won fair and square. There's no reason to get mad at him--" Bob turns, but Daniel is likely gone by that moment.

The big blond bruiser rubs the bridge of his nose. "Well," Bob says, "I guess I have someone to track down later."

Log created on 15:17:54 01/08/2021 by Daniel, and last modified on 23:07:24 01/18/2021.