Description: Taiyo High is generally a good place to ask girls out on dates. It's probably more effective if you don't beat the stuffing out of them first, though. (Draw Match)
Taiyo High
Taiyo High has the distinction of being the largest school in Southtown.
Part of that is its enormous campus, helped along by Howard Enterprises,
which saw the benefit of being allied with the town's educational system. The
other part is the students of Taiyo. Taiyo has one of the least restrictive
admission policies in town, allowing nearly anybody to attend classes. This
makes it a popular place, and despite the lenient admission policies, a great
many of the students share something in common: they are nearly all spirited
individuals, each with a strong personality within them.
The campus is dominated by three structures. Directly in front of you lies
the several-story high main building, which houses the classrooms, offices,
and other facilities. To the west is the gigantic Taiyo Dome, nearly
outstripping the main building itself. To the east lies the auditorium,
consisting of open-air stands which slope down a hill covered by an enormous
ramada.
Ironic that, just earlier today, Rock was talking about how much it must
stink to have to come into school on a weekend. And, sure enough... here he
is. Sitting on a bench near the assigned fight area -- Which is even more
packed than the Round One fights, surrounded by eager Taiyo students, local
fans, foreign fans, and a news team or two, one of which is in the process
of filming Rock as he does nothing remotely interesting; he simply sits on
his bench just outside the designated area, flanked by a few of his
quasi-friends from school and maybe one or two actual friends who cheer him
on. Here, at least, in his own high school, he seems to be the crowd
favorite. If the 'YOU ROCK ROCK' chants are to be believed, anyways.
Nearby, close to the athletic fields, a black helicopter comes in before
slowing, tipping its nose up before slowly lowering to the ground. As it
nears the ground, bowing up leaves and snow, the side door opens, and Kula
steps out of the shadows within the vehicle, dressed in her fighting suit.
She drops to the ground, crouching, and as she stands, her aura of cold
manifests, causing frost to appear about her as her hair flickers as if in a
faint wind. The crowd of onlookers parts as she walks in towards the
fighting ground proper, regarding Rock silently with her dead eyes.
The fighting area itself is in the Taiyo courtyard -- a roughly square area,
largely open save for shrubs and bushings flanking the outer edge, and a
small grassy area in the middle with two trees, currently bare from the
Winter. The area itself is open on two sides, with the Taiyo building
blocking off the other two sides. A fairly decent place to fight; it
combines open space with terrain, to keep things interest. And, of course,
it's easy on the spectators. Already, there are camera crews atop the
school, eagerly scoping out the action beneath them.
As Kula makes her grand entrance, Rock merely looks up at her, blue eyes
meeting red, with a very distinct scowl on his face. "... tch. I don't like
fightin' girls. Much less ones that give me the creeps." Not that he seems
to hesitate as he rises from his bench, begin to walk into the area to meet
her, knuckles cracked as he goes. "So, looks like it really is you, huh...
well, tell you what. I've seen you fight. I'm not goin' easy on you, Kula."
The helicopter takes off, the pilot hidden by darkened glass, and the
helicopter slowly begins to orbit the field from a fair distance. The 'whup
whup whup' makes for ambient sound, but it's muted by the crowd. Kula
herself stops, standing straight, her arms left unready at her sides. "It
doesn't matter.", she says softly. "You can fight as hard as you like." Her
voice as a slightly condescending tone, as if more than a bit confident in
her ability. Still, she has an almost bored look in her eyes, as if she'd
rather be anywhere but where she is at the moment.
Rock doesn't seem to respond to her, moving forward and towards the middle
of the fighting area -- Directly in front of one of the two trees in the
area, in fact. "Well... Fine." Slowly and carefully, Rock turns sideways,
his chin still pointed to her as he assumes a combat stance. Arms bent at
the elbows, Rock begins to pounce on the balls of his feet, indicating that
he's more than ready to start the action. "Then, it's ladies first." He
sounds just as confident as Kula is... but whereas she is bored, he seems
focused... almost worried.
Kula moves into action as soon as Rock finishes the word 'first', skating
forward as if on ice as a blur. As she nears, she drops to the ground in a
slide kick, ducking low as she assaults him. The sharp-eyed might notice a
trail of ice left behind, and Kula rises, coming back-to-back with Rock.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Rock 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Kula
COMBATSYS: Rock fails to interrupt Medium Kick from Kula with Fierce Punch.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Rock 0/-------/----===|-------\-------\0 Kula
Rock seems more than confident as Kula rockets towards him across the
ground, tracking her with his eyes. Trying to telegraph her moves, Rock's
fist lashes out at where Kula /should/ be in a split second or so... but her
kick is sooner than he could have anticipated. A moment before impact,
Rock's eyes go momentarily wide with realization: "Fast!" is all he manages
to get out before he's struck /hard/ in the knee, crumpling where she hit
him and hitting the ground on his other knee.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Rock 0/-------/----===|-------\-------\0 Kula
COMBATSYS: Rock counters Behind Slash from Kula with Joudan Crack Counter.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////////// ]
Rock 0/-------/----===|==-----\-------\0 Kula
"Not this time!" Twisting around despite his now aching leg, Rock catches
Kula's hand with a graceful motion of his arms. Using her arm as leverage,
Rock propels himself further, bringing his leg down on her right shoulder
moderately hard, enough to leave a significant enough mark for the fight to
come. Falling away from her with that exchange over, Rock puts a bit of
distance between himself and his opponent with a few back steps, grinning
broadly. "This isn't going to end like you think it will -- Even if you are
pretty tough, for a little girl."
Kula is hit, stumbling back, and loses her forward momentum. She skids back
on a patch of ice, not really replying to Rock's words. Instead, she raises
a hand to her lips, blowing forth - and her breath becomes a cold gust,
frosting over the ground in its path as it rushes towards Rock. She looks to
be expending herself a bit early, perhaps pushing a bit in order to regain
her early advantage.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////////// ]
Rock 0/-------/----===|==-----\-------\0 Kula
COMBATSYS: Kula successfully hits Rock with Diamond Breath.
- Power hit! -
This is, needless to say, not what Rock had in mind when he signed on for
this fight. Though he raises his arms to protect himself from Kula's
assault, it doesn't do him much good. Frost visibly gathers on his face and
hair, as he eventually as to lunge to the side to avoid further damage.
Grunting from the cold, Rock wipes the frost from his face with his right
hand, scowling... even though he's still pretty close to Kula. "... Is that
normal chi!? What kind of technique is this?" He doesn't wait for an answer,
as he immediately twists himself around, slamming against the ground with
one palm and driving his foot right up towards Kula's chin, his entire body
revolving like a top -- Generating a whole lot of momentum in the process;
it's a familiar technique, used by someone a whole lot more famous than Rock
is. "RISING TAACKLE!"
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////////// ]
Rock 0/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Kula
COMBATSYS: Kula dodges Rock's Rising Tackle.
Kula ducks, slipping out of the way. Strangely enough, as she falls, her
remaining hair freezes into sharpness, right where Rock is coming down.
"It's what I do.", she adds softly as she waits to see if the connection is
made... before taking some quick steps back.
COMBATSYS: Rock fails to counter Fierce Punch from Kula with
Gedan Crack Counter.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////////// ]
Rock 1/------=/=======|====---\-------\0 Kula
No matter what Rock does tonight, he seems to mess up. Once again, as Kula
tries to attack him, Rock attempts to grab at her fist and turn her attack
around on him... and fails, miserably. Struck square in the face again, Rock
hits the ground flat on his back, apparently staying there for a moment or
so.
Kula stands over Rock, and looks down at him. "Your data was ranked higher
than this...", she says quietly, and then yawns, raising her hand to cover
her mouth for a moment. She then takes a steps back, turning with her side
to Rock. Apparently she's pausing, content to let Rock pick himself up
rather than press the attack.
"Yeah, well... I don't like fighting girls." Rock grunts, as he tries to get
himself back onto his feet. ".... Plus, you're a whole lot tougher than I
expected." Only, he doesn't pick himself up. Rock might be an honorable guy,
but he knows to take advantage of an opening when it's given to him. Without
getting all the up to his feet, Rock snatches at Kula's foot, his arms
taking on a wind-mill like motion as he aims to fling her through the air...
and right up into one of the two trees in the area. Cycling his arms around
gracefully, Rock straightens himself regardless of whether or not the attack
succeeded, ready for what comes next. "Tell you what... how about we take a
second look at my data."
COMBATSYS: Kula blocks Rock's Shinkuu Nage.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Rock 1/-----==/=======|=====--\-------\0 Kula
Kula is grabbed, and tossed... but retains control, kicking off the tree and
then flipping to her feet. She looks over to Rock, shrugging gently.
"They're updating it...", she adds, before then quickly moving forward. As
she comes close, she lashes out with a punch... topped with a sudden burst
of ice, a sharp icicle aimed at Rock's gut.
COMBATSYS: Rock blocks Kula's Ice Strike.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Rock 1/----===/=======|=====--\-------\0 Kula
Rock seems to realize how badly things are going, judging by the cringe on
his face. Fortunately, he seems to have at least some semblance of sense. As
Kula strikes at him, Rock deflects the attack with one arm, not only
avoiding direct impact but penetration at any point on his skin. Shoving it
away, Rock immediately moves into action. With the same motion that he used
to deflect Kula's attack, he sweeps one arm over the ground, sending a wave
of energy ripping across the terrain in her direction... and with his other,
he repeats the gesture, as the two large waves of energy meet and become
one, speeding right at Kula at a reduced, but still decent rate.
COMBATSYS: Kula fails to reflect Double Reppuken from Rock with Counter Shell.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////////////// ]
Rock 1/---====/=======|=======\-------\1 Kula
Trying to bring forth an icy shell of protection, Kula is a moment too late,
launched backwards by an explosion of energy. She skids to a halt, the chi
energy flickering across her protective suit as she cries out in pain,
closing her eyes for a moment as she regains her balance. She returns her
gaze to Rock, seeming to shift to a lower, defensive crouch.
Rock finally allows himself to grin at this impass -- Now he's got a bit
more of a chance at this. Once Kula gets smacked with his attack, Rock is
already out to follow it up, with something suitably dramatic. An explosion
of chi sends him rocketing forward with one fist in front, giving Kula no
time to breathe. Only, there's more to this punch that meets the eye -- His
entire fist explodes with golden chi, stretching back over his form as he
darts forward like a giant human arrow. If he manages to connect, it's only
the beginning; without ever touching the ground, Rock somehow manages to
gather enough momentum to spin upwards in a motion almost identical to his
Rising Tackle; all the more damage to add to an already desperate situation.
"SHINE KNUCKLE!"
COMBATSYS: Rock successfully hits Kula with Shine Knuckle.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > ///// ]
Rock 0/-------/---====|=======\=====--\1 Kula
Though she raises a shield of ice, Rock shatters right through it,
connecting with her jaw and then launching her into the air. She lands with
a rather audible *thud*, bouncing once before going into a roll. Her motions
are mechanical, cold determination and training overcoming the pain coursing
through her body, and she rises into a crouch. Leaning forward to slam her
hands on the ground, she cries out for once, actually raising her voice.
"This is..." Her words are interrupted by an icy spray, a rapid-fire burst
of icicles from the ground aimed to nail Rock where he stands. "... the
end!"
COMBATSYS: Rock dodges Kula's Diamond Edge.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > ///// ]
Rock 0/-------/---====|=====--\-------\0 Kula
"Collect THIS data!" As Kula scatters icicles in his direction, Rock
simply... vanishes, charging straight into the brunt of the NESTS weapon's
assault. There is no scream of agony, no blood spray across the icicles.
Why? Because he's using them to his advantage. All eyes turn up to find Rock
standing at the very top of the icicle nearest Kula, his hand wrapped around
the very point to suspend himself on the slippery surface. "I don't know
what's wrong with you, or who you work for, but I'm not going down that
easily!" Releasing his grip on the icicle, Rock slides down while
maintaining his balance, heading straight for Kula in smooth motion. As he
reaches her, both arms reach out to grab her shoulders as he falls
backwards, hitting the ground just as he sends one knee up into her gut,
intend on swinging her upwards and smack into the hard ice that she herself
created.
COMBATSYS: Kula blocks Rock's Strong Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > /// ]
Rock 0/-------/---====|======-\-------\0 Kula
Though caught, Kula rolls with the throw, the knee hitting her... but just
sliding across the icicle rather than impacting with it. Springing away from
it, she lashes out at Rock, raising her hand in an arc as she leaps
forward... a sharp, biting arc of ice springing forward where she swings. At
the very least, the attack should carry her away from Rock and into a safer
position.
COMBATSYS: Rock blocks Kula's Claw Bites.
[ \\\\ < > /// ]
Rock 0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0 Kula
Rock suddenly comes alive -- He's not being beaten around like a chump
anymore, it seems. Holding both arms over his face to shield himself from
the ice, Rock is undeterred as he races towards Kula with one fist leading
the charge. Catching the brunt of the Claw Bites with his left arm, Rock's
right arm does the rest of the talking, directed at Kula's gut to hopefully
bring her down.
COMBATSYS: Kula dodges Rock's Fierce Punch.
[ \\\\ < > /// ]
Rock 0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0 Kula
Not leaving anything to chance, Kula weaves out of the way of the punch,
skating backwards on small patches of ice. She doesn't stop moving as she
raises her hand once more, breathing over it in an icy gust as she turns to
try and circle Rock, and keep her distance from his potent fists.
COMBATSYS: Rock blocks Kula's Diamond Breath.
[ \\ < > /// ]
Rock 0/-------/=======|=======\-------\0 Kula
Rock has seen this attack before -- and the moment he sees her hold a hand
to her face, he reacts in a rather unconventional way: He shoves his left
hand into her face. The ice-cold gust is still released, as frost gathers
along the jacket sleeve on his arm, but most of his body remains unharmed...
It looks like his palm might be suffering from minor frostbite, though. His
tactics don't change, however. He's just trying to bring Kula down, by
whatever means necessary. "You're tough... Real tough... I don't have a
/clue/ what the deal is with you..." Holding his combat stance steady, Rock
sidesteps gracefully, before smirking. "Tell you what... No matter who
wins... why don't you and I go see a movie sometime, or something?" Yep, he
just asked his opponent out. Is it just a tactic to throw her off-guard?
Regardless, he doesn't wait for an answer, as he drives his fist forward
towards her gut again, trying to knock the wind out of her and put her down
for the count.
COMBATSYS: Rock successfully hits Kula with Fierce Punch.
[ \\ < > ]
Rock 1/-------/=======|=======\==-----\1 Kula
Not responding to his comment, Kula simply tries to catch the attakc.
However, she's a bit too slow, and is hit in the gut. It looks like the
lights are going out in her eyes... but at the last moment, her hands
gesture towards the ground, and in the wake of the impact, a blue mist can
be seen on the ground. An instant later, that mist erupts into towers of ice
springing up between both Rock and Kula, as if she's uncaring whether or not
the attack strikes her or not at this point. It looks like this is the final
blow - one way or the other.
COMBATSYS: Kula can no longer fight.
COMBATSYS: Kula successfully hits Rock with Diamond Edge.
[ <
Rock 1/--=====/=======|
There's no way he could get out of the way of this attack. He threw
everything into nailing her with one last punch -- He never even figured
that she might have more steam in her. But, he doesn't seem pissed off... As
soon as her hand goes up, Rock catches it, scowling at himself. "Tch... just
like me. No sense for predicting counterattacks..." It's more of a
resignation than anything else, as he finds himself blasted straight
backwards, one icicle stabbing him in the shoulder for what looks like a
shallow, but still disabling wound... before knocking him all the way to the
edge of the ring, momentarily unconscious.
Kula is knocked high in the air by her own blast, flying through the air and
tumbling to a heap on the ground. She becomes very still, seemingly having
knocked herself out... though her suit makes it hard to tell just how hard
she's been injured. It seems that the two fighters have given it their
all... with no certain conclusion.
"We... um..." Stepping out in the center of the combat area, which has been
surprisingly battered by the work of the fighters, the referee simply
scratches at his head. He waits a few moments, for someone to get up, or
respond in some way. ... None comes. "It would seem that we have a Double
Knockout! There is no winner!" Almost immediately, a disappointed 'BOO!' is
issued forth by some members of the crowd, many of whom were expecting to
see a victor. Most, however, are able to appreciate the fight for what it
is: Excellent.
Gradually, one of the two fighters comes to. Rock Howard blinks his eyes a
little bit, sitting up very, very, slowly. "Ow. ... Ow. Ow ow ow."
Immediately, Rock's hand slaps down hard on the shallow stab wound on his
shoulder, confirming the injury's existence with his eyes. "... Shit! My
jacket's all messed up... dammit. ... ... Ow." After checking himself for
serious wounds, Rock turns his attention towards Kula, apparently not eager
to get back on his feet without assistance, at least not for a few minutes.
Is she up? Or is she being dragged off by whomever it is she seems to work
for?
The black helicopter lands, and what looks like armed commandoes in masks
make their way out... though they're hardly brandishing their firearms or
anything. Making their way over to Kula with calls of 'out of the way!' and
'move!', they move to pick her up. In the distance of the helicopter's dark
hatchway can be seen a vague silhouette of a woman with curly black hair,
overwatching the scene with a long fencing blade over one shoulder. Lisa
pages, "Current consensus amongst us is that you get to fight again, but if
you guys can work something out ICly so that one of you gets the win, that's
fine." to Rock.
Rock doesn't seem to be eager to get up, though he stares at the
militaristic spectacle that rapidly engulfs Kula from where he is on the
ground. "... Tch." is the only feedback he has to add, however, as he begins
to get himself up to his feet, presumably with the help of local medical
personnel.
Kula is quickly carried off by the mercenaries, and vanishes into the
helicopter as the rotors spin up, taking off and heading into the sky. She's
gone, it seems, taken by the very people that brought her here.
Log created by Kobun, and last modified on 17:25:16 12/06/2005.