Description: The Chest versus the Chin! In the mountains of Japan, whose physine will reign supreme! (Winner: Vega)
Within the mountains, there are a few choice locations for the Martyr of Might to continue his training in more subtle manners. The physical endeavors are better done without interruption; And there seems to be an excess of that at the moment. Placed before himself is a large and obviously well-used pole surrounded tightly with rope; And bound upon Grant's fist is a chain, which leads to an enormous stone all but attached to the ground. The tension is enough that he can't quite reach his target -- but that's the intent. Rearing back his arm, Grant strikes the pole hard enough to cause a groaning crack within. The huge stone lurches forward an inch, chain biting into his flesh. Arm spasming in rather obvious pain, the rock is moved back even further before he prepares for the punch once more.
What brings a man to the mountains of Japan? What brings the Lord of Shadaloo to such a place, as well? in this case, the two questions are intricately linked - one begets the answer to the other, and brings a sense of resolution and finality to both. In this instance, Vega has been seeking people of power - strength important to his bid for domination, needing to prove himself in this, above all things. He has heard rumors, whispers amoung the underworld of one whose physical might crushes all others, one that would be a true challenge to the world, and to Vega himself.
What else would draw him, in that case? Nothing. The Master of Psycho Power has found his way to this very same mountain, led on by a faithful minion, and then by the sound of flesh imposing it's will on the wood of the pole Grant tests his strength against. He makes no attempt to sneak up on the man, or to hide his own power - that dark aura that seems to swarm around him, his own personal cloud of dark, evil energy - something that seems to say 'determination and power above all else'. He waits until the stone is moved back again, and the next punch is thrown - then Vega brings his hands in front of him, and claps in a slow, methodical fashion.
"You are more powerful than any could have guessed - there are few men who would train in that fashion!"
Again the stone lurches forward, dragging a rivet into the ground. The chain rattles in the motion, seeming to be long worn. This is not nearly the irst time that such an endurance test was done; And given the appearance of the ground it might be counted in two or three digits. One of the better trained people in both sensing and concealing energies, Vega hits him almost like a sickening wave. Twisting around in a flicker of blue cape, the Martyr of Might looks towards Vega with something near recognition. Yet within his eyes, his very soul, there is no fear. Every aspect of his being lacks such, even unto death itself. His strength is not just his mortal coil -- his willpower appears to match it.
"Your aura... I have never felt one like it." Grant comments, tearing off the chain and tossing it aside. He walks a few meters to the right, spreading into a combative stance. Fingers spread and then tightly clench, entire body rippling a moment in power. "A man who butchured his very soul for power." There's still an odd lack of respect, however. Which, from the rumors, might be peculiar. "But you are not interested in the rite of fighting. It is an end to your means. You wish for the world... And for your own greed and independence..." Grant snorts mildly, but that seems to be a distant idea. First and foremost? Vega might be one of the strongest challenges Grant will ever face.
He then begins to crackle with energy, surging upwards like a cascade of invisible force. It matches Vega's own darkness; He has made the same sacrifices, he has made the same trials, but for what appears to be fundamentally different reasons in philosophy. The ground itself quakes and cracks, before he brings his forearms close and stares towards Vega with an utmost confidence few might be able to hold against the Shadaloo master with even a vague notion of his abilities.
"Come. I will show you the epitome of raw power. I will show you what one who walked the same path can manage, when his dream, his purpose, is for everything but himself...!"
COMBATSYS: Grant has started a fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Grant 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Grant gathers his will.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Grant 0/-------/---====|
"I did what I must for power. I would gladly do it again, and over - to better myself further."
Vega doesn't even try to hide his power, no not him. It's out there, flapping in the breeze, carried on the wind like a scent of decay, death or something suitably nasty like that. It's an icky, oily taint that saturates the area he's in - and never, ever seems to come out. As he approaches, one might think that he's lighter, faster than a man his size would normally be. His steps are accentuated with that accursed power, the ground pushing him away as if trying to escape his touch, speeding his movements. He listens to Grant as he works that stone through the grooves in the ground, accepting the statements the taller man makes - they are fact, after all.. And he has never been one to shy from the truth.
"Selfishness and greed are constructs - those concepts are useless when one attains true power. And that, I HAVE!" With that, Vega leaps to attack, rushing the tall man with his hands blazing, the inky purple-black of his psi flaring up over his hands. As he closes, his eyes flare bright white, and he simply reaches for the other man, going for the fist that holds the chain and the rock beside it. Should he manage the grip, well - he'll show Grant power. He'll throw the man to the side, using as much of that vaunted psychopower he can manage, and attempt to move the rock as well. Weak? Vega is no such thing - and when he fights - he fights for blood.
COMBATSYS: Vega has joined the fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Grant 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Vega
COMBATSYS: Grant endures Vega's Psycho Fall.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////////// ]
Grant 1/-------/=======|=------\-------\0 Vega
[OOC] Kim says, "Vega is intense like a Pro Wrestler on drugs. Drugs that give him Psycho Power."
[OOC] Vega loves his drugs. >.> And fears the next attack.
"I am not speaking against your strength." Grant responds, simply enough. "You have that in spades..."
There's no attempt to stop or even dodge the incoming blow. Grasped by the wrist and hurled aside in a burst of horrific burning chi -- a burn that Grant has never felt before -- he lands hard upon his shoulder, skidding along the ground and kicking up a trail of dust and stone. But he rolls in the last leg, coming to a stop in a crouch before hurtling up through the air. His cape trails behind, swirling like a comet's tail, before he rears back his arm and descends with all the force he can muster. The downwards blow is intended to strike Vega right in the head, to drop him to his knees. And then a raising uppercut thereafter follows, Grant throwing the entirety of his weight. At the apex Vega would be released from the churning piston of kinetic force, Grant slowly falling and landing with the grace of a ballerina.
"It is your ambition. You are corrupted by your power..." Grant's frame sparks with force, breath coming heavy and long. "You allowed yourself to fall to sin... And no matter that you draw the deepest echalons of strength from it -- that is your weakness..."
COMBATSYS: Vega blocks Grant's Kyou Chou-Jin.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////////// ]
Grant 1/-----==/=======|==-----\-------\0 Vega
"A corruption I willingly accept!"
Vega's defiant yell is full of anger, rage - after all, that's where his true power lies. He's eager to accept this new challenge, and he isn't willing to do anything less than his best, here in this fight. As the blow comes down, Vega's arm moves to intercept, the crack of flesh on flesh sounding more like stone and metal hitting, the downward force propelling Vega to the earth, in a crouch. He's prepared then, for that rising uppercut, deflecting it with his shoulder, keeping the brunt of the attack from any more difficult part of the body to hit. And then - he rises, and steps towards the man, one slow movement after another. His grin widens, that creepy smile that is full of cruelty, hate and disgust.. All for his current, wonderful opponent.
"I had expected you to be more of a challenge - perhaps I was wrong about your strength!" Vega hasn't felt it yet - but those crushing blows to his limbs are sapping strength - something that he will desperately need in the fight to come - and certainly something that would be very useful when Grant's next attack comes barreling in. But no matter! He is VEGA! He leaps in towards Grant in another smooth motion - his hand coming up, and then blazingly fast, drawn back down before the other man. It's an amazing sight, what happens next. A blazing purple wall of psi appears in front of him, a short blast of dark, evil energy, for Grant and Grant alone to weather!
COMBATSYS: Grant dodges Vega's Psycho Wave.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Grant 1/-----==/=======|===----\-------\0 Vega
[OOC] Vega drat! :D
The descent is met by Grant as well; He does not back up, he meets the challenge. An incoming wall of dark psionic energy? Grant has meditated within the depths of the soul that Vega so greatly embraces. And although he has not felt Psycho Power until now, it is nothing. He is the Martyr of Might. He is moulded from pain. He has descended to the pits of his soul and sold it, but he has /never/ succumb. He controls the beast that is channeled through his Ankoku Karate -- a simple but mayhaps resounding difference in what otherwise might be kindred souls. His shoulder bursts with deep purple chi, in what seems to be the same color. Bursting through the incoming wave of psycho power, it doesn't so much as graze Grant.
And he continues downwards, extending a kick towards Vega that is completely sheathed within the energy he has summoned. The attempt is to hit Vega mid-air, who was likely not expecting such a masochistic defense. And to strike him into the ground with tremendous force, enough to shake the very mountain for a dozen yards around.
"MESSHOU... HISETSU!!"
COMBATSYS: Grant successfully hits Vega with Messhou Hisetsu.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Grant 1/--=====/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vega
"Hnng! Power!"
Vega is rapidly revising his opinion of the so called Martyr of Might. It's impressive that he can blow through one of Vega's most powerful attacks with little more to show for it than a wind-swept hair or two - something that other men would simply die from. The recovery he attempts to make is slow - far too slow, and it shows by the way his body is blown back by the attack, slammed into the ground, the turf churned up beneath his body. He pulls himself from the rocks and rubble, clutching at his shoulder - the area he'd been hit screaming in something akin to pain. But still - he stands. And still, he fights.
"Good, good - very good indeed!" Vega's crafty now, wily - looking to exploit weakness where he can, to find that hole in Grant's defense that will allow him the victory. Fighting for fighting's sake - it's insanity iteself. Vega fights to win - and to do so, well.. He'll do anything. This time, as he approaches, it's with a careful series of strikes, fast punches towards the stronger man's body, his hands still bearing that flaming insignia of psychopower - it seems to always show, and each strike is infused with it..
COMBATSYS: Vega successfully hits Grant with Jab Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Grant 1/-======/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vega
The incoming barrage of chi-imbued punches is met by Grant seeming to focus himself once more, spreading into a horse stance and brimming with power. Each strikes hard, sending Grant into a haze of pain, but he doesn't react. It seemed he tried to gain strength from the blows; It failed, but that doesn't stop the reciprocation. His right leg suddenly flares with chi, and slithering forward he brings it backwards before unleashing a vorpal slash of purple chi upwards, slicing through the air like a hot knife. What makes this significantly more dangerous it that Grant does it -multiple- times... Twelve, to be precise. He finishes with a downwards strike of a chi-imbued shoulder, a vicious kick similarly flaring with energy, a forward skull-splitting punch and a final ram intending to send Vega flying towards the nearby wall with due force.
Regardless of hit or miss, Grant falls back into a strong position, breathing hard and channeling the chi through him. Deep purple crackles like lightning over his frame. No more words; The time for that in Grant's mind has passed...
COMBATSYS: Vega endures Grant's Majin Engetsu-Rin.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Grant 0/-------/-======|=======\=------\1 Vega
"AGAIN! AGAIN!"
Vega roars out the challenge as he sees that stance, senses the focusing of energies in the tall, strong man - he's been waiting for this - a chance to truly prove himself to another amazingly powerful warrior. And so - when the attack starts - Vega simply drops his defenses completely. He doesn't attempt to move, to protect himself at all. Instead, he just laughs, a cackling breath as he soaks up damage and damage again and again, even as the smashing kicks crush against bones, pound his flesh down.. The finale, the ramming motion, BURIES him into the side of the mountain - but still, from within, his echoinng laughter can be heard, a mocking motion, belying the incredible pain he must be in.
"Now.. let me show you _my_ power.." he whispers from within the newly formed cave - the inner recesses of the stone flickered with evil, angry energy - the result of all his pain and rage at being so close to defeat. This time, he will prove himself - this time, it will be a certain victory! As he builds his power, those evil tendrils of psi start to crawl towards the entrance - and then in a blazing rage, an inferno of evil, it blasts forwards! In the midst of the raging storm is Vega, hands outstretched, almost _flying_ towards Grant, murder in his white eyes. His power - his time to prove himself - it all comes down to this!
COMBATSYS: Vega successfully hits Grant with Psycho Crusher'.
[ \\\\ < > //////// ]
Grant 1/-======/=======|=------\-------\0 Vega
There's really no way to defend. Grant attempts to throw up his forearms, but all he can do is endure. He's struck dead on by the explosive force, send hurtling backwards like a comet. The psycho energy trails behind him, in dark wisps, as Grant hits the ground face-first and begins to roll away for a good one hundred feet. As he comes to a stop, cape billowing around behind, he seems to be dead. But then he stirs, a deep shudder. Turning over, Grant begins to rise. /Rise./ That did not defeat him.
"...Your hatred..." Grant begins, crackling with purple chi. "Your greed..." Grant spreads his stance, raising his arms. His eyes are now burning green, and he seems to more be a zombie then anything else. "...Is nothing to me..." He begins to swirl with chi now, and his mass seems to grow. It whirls inwards, a literal vortex, before Grant snaps forward. He's impossibly fast, coming to a stop right before Vega.
"Let me show you PURE POWER!!"
His right leg then kicks upwards. A gargantuan pillar of pure, concentrated purple chi flares towards the sky, raising like a geyser of lava. It's as wide as Grant is, and extends upwards impossibly far. If Vega is caught in the whirlwind of energy, it's definitely going to end the fight.
"MAJIN HATEN-DAN!"
COMBATSYS: Vega dodges Grant's Majin Haten-Dan.
[ \\\\ < > //////// ]
Grant 0/-------/---====|=------\-------\0 Vega
So this.. This is pure power..
It's a beautiful thing, really - a spiraling vortex of purple chi that blazes into what seems like infinity. Far from the fight, there are probably children who look to the mountain, point - and parents who tell them that it is a demon fighting a demon, and the monster who wins will come and eat them of they do not go to sleep right now! An attack appropriate for a monster - or perhaps, even just a force of nature. It would be awesomly devestating.. were it to hit.
Were it to hit.
Vega vanishes into the wave of chi as it appears, to watch the brilliance of the attack from behind Grant. His eyes are open wide - this is a level of power that Vega himself may never reach - but one to strive for. After all - he wishes to prove himself the strongest in the world - and this fight has shown him that he still has much to learn. He moves, almost a blur as the stream of energy fades out, his eyes narrowed, his focus intent. He brings one hand up, and then back down, attempting to crush the other man's abdomen with a fist of pure psychopower - an ending to this fight, if he can!
COMBATSYS: Vega successfully hits Grant with Psycho Vanish.
[ < > /////// ]
Grant 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Vega
The strike to Grant's abdomen works much as intended. It doubles over Grant, causing his already stressed and broken body to begin to lax. But he has one last vestige of power left within him; And in a final burst of force, he /strikes/ forward. His chest thrusts out, attempting to hit Vega with the epitome of what it is he strives for -- power. It would be little more then that, a kinetic impact focused through Grant's chest. His entire body stretches backwards, arms held to the sides, shoulders tense. But something gives... And Grant then drops to his knees, arms scarcely managing to get in front of him before he begins to breath heavily. That's all he has, apparently. ...But it was definitely a lot.
COMBATSYS: Grant can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\ <
Vega 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Vega dodges Grant's Ma-Heki.
[ \\\\\\ <
Vega 0/-------/----===|
Vega's grin spreads wider as he feels flesh under his punch - the crushing of one's body. He knows, there is _no_ way to damage Grant's spirit - this is involatile, unbroken, unbowed - and in the end, this defeat will only stress the man to fight harder. Which.. Vega is looking forwards to. Eagerly, in fact.
As Grant moves to the attack, Vega simply - seems to levitate backwards, buoyed by his psychopower, the dark aura helping him ignore gravity for just long enough to stay barely in front of Grant's leaping attack, waiting until he falls to hands and knees before allowing Vega to return to earth.
"You are a person to be feared, Grant - I will.. battle you again, I am sure. Lord Vega always enjoys a challenge - and this.. " he starts, then turns on his heel, back towards civilization, back towards home, and towards his throne room, to savor this victory.
".. Has been most educational."
COMBATSYS: Vega has ended the fight here.
There wasn't a lot that Grant could of done. The fact he managed even that final vestige of power is impressive; But he doesn't seem apt to rise. "Yes, dark one..." Grant responds dully, looking up towards the psycho master as his eyes flit away. "We will meet again..." There's almost a foreboding to that, as the Martyr of Might finally loses his attachment to consciousness. Falling forwards, his face impacts the stone, and the familiar blackness -- even if it will not consume him -- rushes back into his being.
Log created by Vega, and last modified on 07:58:15 01/30/2006.