Neo League 201 - #214: Heavy D! vs Acacia

Description: Boxer meets brawler in a cordoned-off section of Chinatown. And there's punches. Lots of punches. Did we mention the punches? (Winner: Acacia)



Round One! FI...wait, we haven't started yet? Oh, bugger.

But yes, no fight has started here yet. But one seems to be brewing, as crews start to stack up barriers to cordon off a block or two of street in Chinatown. Sure, it disrupts the commerce of the day, but most don't seem to mind when there's action to be had! And just who is fighting on this bustling day? Well, one of them happens to be the one and only man of the wedgehawk, Heavy D! himself. With shades still on his head, he quickly goes about his 'corner', jabbing in the air and going through a quick warm up as he prepares himself for the coming fight. But who's his opponent?

Someone not nearly as flamboyant, for one thing. A girl in a green army jacket enters the cordoned-off area from the other side. She stops briefly by the barricades, exchanging a few words with a man in a Neo League jacket. He nods to her, scrawling a few lines on his clipboard, and speaking into the microphone clipped to his headset. Acacia returns the nod, then enters the fighting area, boot soles sounding faintly against the asphalt.

D!'s got an image. And an exclamation mark. Acacia...doesn't particularly care. No energetic preparations for her, no shadow boxing. She just adjusts the straps on a pair of motorcycle gloves, then swings her arms back, stretching at the shoulderblades. With narrowed eyes, she regards the man across the street.

"Hn," she murmurs, "so..."

If you think D! is flamboyant, then you obviously haven't watched him much. So his hairstyle is a bit of an attention grabber, but the boxer is a nice direct sort of person. That becomes rather apparent as the Metro fighter turns around, givng a quick nod to Acacia as he slides into his usual boxer's guard. "So you're my opponent here, huh?" he says. Acacia...he's never fought before, and he's sadly not caught many of her matches. So he's kind of fighting blind here. No matter, though, not as if he hasn't done so before. "Don't hold back, alright?" he says, smiling before he settles in, hiding his face behind his fists.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD has started a fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
HeavyD           0/-------/-------|


COMBATSYS: Acacia has joined the fight here.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
HeavyD           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0           Acacia


Acacia gives a bemused sniff, and a tiny shake of the head. She returns the smile with an intent expression, speaking her reply in a level voice. "Don't intend to," she says, simply.

She adopts a ready stance of her own, feet apart, knees bent, arms in a guard formation, with her hands half-curled into fists. And she waits, sizing up her opponent...as the cameras start rolling, a voice yelling 'FIGHT' above the building roar of the crowd.

COMBATSYS: Acacia focuses on her next action.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
HeavyD           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0           Acacia


Heavy D! notices Acacia hold back even as the shout of Fight goes over the air. And seeing as it'd be a fairly boring start to have both of them just hang back to measure up the other, it falls upon D! to make the first move it seems. That suits the boxer just fine too. Quickly shuffling toward Acacia, the boxer reels back his right hand, as if preparing for a quick knockout blow. However, when the fist swings forward, what comes isn't a massive haymaker, but a series of stinging punches meant to search at Acacia's defenses. Not very painful, but enough to put some pressure on Acacia.

COMBATSYS: Acacia endures HeavyD's Jab Punch.

[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////////////  ]
HeavyD           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0           Acacia


Not very painful, no...and that's a judgement Acacia makes....in her decision to simply stand where she is and -weather- the blows. The punches crash through her warding arms, but she makes no move to shift her guard. She just grits her teeth and rides it out, the blows rocking her slender frame. But she doesn't fall, isn't budged a step. She locks eyes with HeavyD!...and then, before he can withdraw his arm, before he can pull it back in the wake of his final punch, she reaches for the limb, her own gloved hands seeking a grip. And then, using that limb...she attempts to lift and slam the larger fighter to the ground. Not through leverage or redirection of force, but sheer -brute strength-.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD blocks Acacia's Bonebreaker.

[  \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
HeavyD           0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0           Acacia


Well, that's surprsing. Sure, his punches weren't meant to be terribly painful, but it still usually got a reaction from his opponents. And the way Acacia just absorbs the attacks and reaches through, it's obvious she's got some endurance. When she reaches out to try and simply lurch him off his feet by his arm, D! wrenches back. His arm ends up jerked a bit, but it's better than being slammed down like that. It's obvious he's going to have to rethink his strategy...and that's just what D! does as he hangs back just like Acacia did, formulating a plan as he waits for her.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD focuses on his next action.

[  \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
HeavyD           0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0           Acacia


He resisted the grip, Acacia notes. Considerable strength, there...but she expected that. If a -boxer-, of all people, doesn't have muscle, then there's something wrong with the world. The girl nods, inwardly - but the introspection doesn't translate into any delays. No, she pushes forward. Even as HeavyD! falls back, Acacia advances, snapping out a rapid punch of her own. Probing -his- defenses.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD Toughs Out Acacia's Quick Punch!

[    \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////    ]
HeavyD           0/-------/-----==|=------\-------\0           Acacia


Much like Acacia did with his jabs, D! doesn't seem to shy away from the girl's following punch. However, unlike her, he doesn't just take the punch standing still. He actually charges in, taking the punch straight to his chest as he rushes. The punch doesn't slow him down any either as he drives forward. Once he gets in close on Acacia, he tries to slam an upward body blow right into Acacia's solar plexus, following up with a series of alternating, ascending hooks up her ribs, weaving about with each punch. Finally, he finishes up with a harsh, twisting uppercut, all his body weight shoved into the punch as he tries to simply level Acacia right off the bat.

COMBATSYS: Acacia endures HeavyD's Dancing Beat.

[      \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
HeavyD           0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0           Acacia


The brutal punch combination tears into Acacia, knocking her around...she stumbles, forced back by the sheer force of the onslaught. The final uppercut spins her head round, as HeavyD!'s fist collides with her chin. Acacia's spine arches, her entire form bending with the impact...

...before she plants one foot behind her. Her eyes snapping back to focus on D!, opening, glaring with laserlike intensity. There's a thin smile on her face, a look of respect, acknowledgement.

"Nice," she murmurs.

Just before she returns the favour. Like a jackhammer, her right fist explodes towards the sky. An uppercut, but not quite a mirror image of the boxer's final blow. A corona of chi energy bursts into being. Not light, but a -shockwave- that ripples through the air, producing a mixed whine overlaid by a bass rumble. Sheer concussive force wrapping around Acacia's arm up to the shoulder, as she delivers her own punishing blow.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD fails to interrupt Bonecrusher from Acacia with Rolling Soul Driver.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////        ]
HeavyD           0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0           Acacia


Alas, being agressive doesn't always pay off. And D! finds out the hard way. As he tries to charge in and light off a harsh, chi-lighted punch to stop Acacia midway through her punch, he instead ends up getting caught straight on the chin by her own energy-laded punch. He doesn't see it, but he feels it as it snaps him down, sending him flying off into the air before crashing down harshly on his shoulder a good few feet away. "Nghhh....dammit..."

And Acacia? She's in motion...before D! even hits the ground. She traces his trajectory, and lunges forward. Seeking to press her momentary advantage...and she's not above hitting a man while he's down. As the boxer crumples onto the street, Acacia leaps, twists, falling elbow-first at his prone form.

COMBATSYS: Acacia successfully hits HeavyD with Quick Punch.

[               \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
HeavyD           0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0           Acacia


The problem with being tossed into the air like that is that it's near impossible to muster up a proper defense, even if you're right-side up. And D!'s far from that. So it's not hard to see why he's unable to bring up his guard as Acacia drops that elbow down onto him, slamming him into the street even deeper. "GHhrkkk...." Feeling his injuries start to mount up, the boxer rolls away, desperately trying to get some distance between him and his opponent. Once he's far enough away, he leans against a nearby wall, heaving and altogether looking like he needs some serious rest.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD gains composure.

[             \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
HeavyD           0/-------/-======|====---\-------\0           Acacia


Acacia rises in a crouch, watching as D! rolls away, staggering upright and leaning against a wall. She frowns, judging his condition. Acacia's got her own injuries, of course...but D!'s clearly in far worse shape than her. A point in her favour, it seems. But not if he gets a chance to recover...and Acacia's certainly /not/ underestimating the boxer's ability to bounce back and come up swinging.

So.

Acacia springs out of her crouch, rushing D!'s position. Blazing into a headalong run, aiming to crash -into- D! ... and ram him straight into the wall behind him.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD Toughs Out Acacia's Quick Throw!

[               \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
HeavyD           0/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0           Acacia


Heavy D! ends up slammed right into the wall, Acacia's mad rush pinning him right into what seemed to be the only think keeping him upright. However, even as D! is smashed into the wall, there seems to be some life in him. Looking down at Acacia as his body is driven against the building, his arms come up, left arm cocked back wide. Then, with a big swing, he snaps out a vicious hook right toward Acacia's temple, hoping to give her some pause with that hit.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD successfully hits Acacia with Hook Punch.

[              \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////          ]
HeavyD           0/-------/=======|=======\-------\0           Acacia


And pause it gives. The punch slams home, D!'s fist impacting against the side of Acacia's skull with an echoing crunch of bone. A blow that leaves Acacia's vision blurred, spots of light flashing before her. She mumbles something weak and incoherent as she reels back, eyes tightly shut. Her balance fails her, and she crashes to the ground. It's her turn now, to roll aside, coming back up on one knee. Cracking one eye open, studying D! warily.

Acacia gives a small, self-depreciating laugh.

COMBATSYS: Acacia gains composure.

[              \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
HeavyD           0/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0           Acacia


Ah, some breathing room. Not that it's helped much lately, but still, D! has a bit of a better chance at mounting some sort of comeback now. Watching Acacia stumble back and pause to gain her composure, D!...hangs back. Sure, he's got some room now, but he's obviously still not on the good end of the stick here. Time to hold up and think of a different approach here...

COMBATSYS: HeavyD focuses on his next action.

[              \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////       ]
HeavyD           0/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0           Acacia


Acacia, on the other hand, has done all the thinking she wants to do. And she isn't going to just kneel here and exchange glances with D! - no, far as Acacia's concerned, it's time to resume the offensive. She pauses for a moment longer, though, catching a final breath. And then, in a dry voice, she quips, "So...we just gonna stare at each other?"

Another heartbeat...before she answers her own question, breaking the impasse. Acacia flows forward a step, two, keeping her body low to the ground. She plants her left foot solidly into the asphalt, then pivots on her heel. Swinging her other leg in a low kick, an attempt to cut D!'s feet out from under him.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD blocks Acacia's Fulcrum Shift.

[                \\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////////         ]
HeavyD           1/-------/=======|======-\-------\0           Acacia


The attempted judo-esque throw seems to go off without a hitch as Acacia's right leg snaps out to sweep D!'s feet from him and drop him to the ground. However, at the last moment, D!'s able to plant his hand on the round and muster up the balance to keep himself on his shaky legs. "Nghh..." While he's not exactly in prime position to retaliate, the boxer still tries, winging a sharp right hand right toward Acacia's thigh. Looking for that charlie horse effect, it seems.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD successfully hits Acacia with Medium Punch.
- Power hit! -

[                \\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////           ]
HeavyD           1/-------/=======|=======\-------\0           Acacia


Acacia grimaces, her face contorting with repressed pain. But she fights the wail of protest coming from her freshly stricken limb, keeping herself from collapsing onto the street. Her denim-clad leg buckles, but doesn't give way beneath the punch...though only barely. Abused muscles cry for attention as Acacia scrabbles back, not-quite-standing, but doubled over...unable to properly recover from her aborted takedown move. She growls, a gutteral sound from the back of her throat, eyes fixing D! through strands of silver hair.

Then she throws a straight-line punch towards HeavyD!.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD Toughs Out Acacia's Quick Punch!

[                 \\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////           ]
HeavyD           1/------=/=======|=======\-------\1           Acacia


The punch is taken to the chest again by D! as he rises...but again he seems to shrug it off, forcing himself forward if only on adrenaline alone. As he surges forward, his right arm reels back. This time, there's no feint, as it snaps out like a cannon shot, swinging forward like thunder toward Acacia's chin.

COMBATSYS: Acacia counters Fierce Punch from HeavyD with Stonewall.

[                     \\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////           ]
HeavyD           1/---====/=======|-------\-------\0           Acacia


And D!'s fist meets bone, in an explosion of force. An impact that echoes across the cordoned-off street, a collision that draws pause from the crowd and camera crew.

The sound of HeavyD!'s fist crashing into Acacia's palm, smacking into the leather of her glove...and stopping dead, the girl's slender fingers closing round his much larger hand. Holding it still, in a grip of iron. Acacia's arm trembles with the effort, shakes with the exertion of stopping such a punch...but it doesn't give way. And Acacia makes eye contact with HeavyD!, her gaze a wordless challenge...

...as she strikes with her -other- hand, a fist into HeavyD!'s gut.

....yeah, that was stupid it seems. D!'s punch only seems to serve as an opportunity for Acacia to show him that this plan is about as pointless as his last ones have been. Slammed in the gut with the massive counterpunch, D! lurches forward before falling to his knees, any sort of momentum he had completely stalled at that point. "NGhh...." Finding himself on his last legs, he scrambles back a few feet before dropping down again, his breath coming shortly. Still, he can't give up at this point. Squeezing his eyes shut, he funnels every ounce of energy he has left into his right hand, hoping that his ace can change the shape of this fight.

Once he's fully charged, the boxer pushes himself up onto his shaky legs, left leg clomping down in front of him. Then, with a full twist of his body, his chambered right arm snaps forward with an explosive punch, all his chi bursting from his knuckles like an explosion.

COMBATSYS: Acacia blocks HeavyD's D. Magnum.

[                      \\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////              ]
HeavyD           0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0           Acacia


And another thunderous detonation shakes the Chinatown street, the concussive power of HeavyD!'s punch releasing like a bomb, obscuring Acacia in the blinding light.

But when the glare fades...Acacia's still on her feet. Her forearms crossed in front of her face, HeavyD's fist resting at the point of the X. The sheer force of HeavyD's blow shoved her back, her booted heels actually -digging into- the road's surface, leaving two short trails of crumbled asphalt...but she stopped most of the damage.

Acacia's arms part, as she releases her guard. Swinging her own fists in retaliation, two successive punches to drive D! right back.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD just-defends Acacia's Quick Punch!

[                   \\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////             ]
HeavyD           0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0           Acacia


...yeah, that? That's not a good thing. Even if Acacia was shoved back by the sheer force of the Magnum, she's still standing. And that's bad news for D!. Still, when the following punches come out to try and tag the weakened D!, he manages to weave himself underneath the punches. Though his moves aren't as smooth as they would be if D! were at 100 percent, he still manages to just wing himself away from the punches. Long enough to snap out a sharp set of low set hooks, the final sweeping out at Acacia's legs in hope of pulling her off her feet.

COMBATSYS: Acacia counters Ducking Combination from HeavyD with Icon of Stone.

[                        \\\\\\  < >  ///////////////               ]
HeavyD           0/-------/-----==|==-----\-------\0           Acacia


Acacia tracks D!'s moves with a half-slitted gaze. The speed with which he weaved away from her punches...was a surprise. Granted, this kind of combat must be -his- forte, as well. So she should have been expecting that. But she wasn't...and that leaves her in a bad position, overextended, with D! -under- her guard, jabbing punches towards her lower body. Acacia backpedals, but -knows- she isn't swift enough to avoid them entirely...or, in this awkward position, to do any sort of conventional block.

But that doesn't mean she's vulnerable.

D!'s seen this once before. When Acacia -caught- his punch, displaying resilience and strength out of proportion to her tiny frame. And now, Acacia does it again. She lets -chi- soak through her muscles, flowing into sinews and bones...

D!'s last punch crashes into her legs.

And Acacia doesn't budge. It's like punching a brick wall. Worse than that.

She doesn't move an inch, her legs rock-solid beneath the strike. Then she raises an arm...and drops it, elbow first, against D!'s skull.

D! just can't seem to win, can he? Even after avoiding those dangerous sharp punches, he tried to fight back...and only got an elbow to the head for his troubles, the boxer the one crumbling with just the one hit. This has pretty much been the pattern this whole fight has followed it seems. And D!...well, he doesn't have anything much left in him it seems. Even as he tries to drop down a final gambit, his fist smashing to the ground to create a desperate explosion of chi in front of him, it's seems obvious to anyone here who the winner already is.

COMBATSYS: Acacia fails to interrupt Soul Flower from HeavyD with Quick Punch.

[                         \\\\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
HeavyD           0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0           Acacia


Or is it?

Tough call to make - especially with that blast of chi engulfing the air in front of D!. Certainly not a move Acacia was expecting. She tries to ride it out, to dive -through- it, attempting a knockout blow. But the blast hits far harder than she was expecting, throwing her aside, a hiss escaping her lungs. She hits the ground, shoulderblades crunching into the street...then flips back to her feet. But the exchange obviously winded her.

Well, that IS a heartening sign. Desperation has its perks after all. As Acacia is thrown away by the blast, D! decides it's in his best interest to scramble away and gain his wits again, hoping the short bit of rest will give him some new life in this match.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD gains composure.

[                      \\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
HeavyD           0/-------/-----==|=====--\-------\0           Acacia


Acacia, of course, has other ideas. She shakes her head, clearing away the cobwebs...then moves to attack, once more. Regaining her own balance, she breaks into a run, throwing herself forward. Sticking one arm out in a clothesline, an attempt to simply collide and -knock D! over-, spilling both of them to the ground.

COMBATSYS: HeavyD blocks Acacia's Quick Throw.

[                       \\\\\\\  < >  ////////////                  ]
HeavyD           0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0           Acacia


The attempted clothesline hits D!, but he manages to stay on his feet somehow. As he stumbles back, he snaps out another straight, sharp punch, the left hand aimed straight for Acacia's nose. Short, sweet, simple.

COMBATSYS: Acacia blocks HeavyD's Medium Punch.

[                       \\\\\\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
HeavyD           0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0           Acacia


A punch that Acacia blocks, with a raised forearm, D!'s fist deflected by rigid muscle. Acacia's tired as well, so the defensive move isn't quite as fluid as it -could- be. But it's enough. Acacia disengages, dropping low. Sweeping a leg out to ensnare D!'s own, trying once more to destroy his balance and introduce him to the cold, hard ground.

COMBATSYS: Acacia successfully hits HeavyD with Quick Throw.

[                           \\\  < >  ///////////                   ]
HeavyD           0/-------/--=====|======-\-------\0           Acacia


Alas, it had to end. D! ends up caught once more, legs swept out from under him and taking him to the ground. Hitting the ground hard, he groans, his head pitching about, but the rest of his body essentially unmoving. Looks like he's a beaten man....

COMBATSYS: HeavyD takes no action.

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


COMBATSYS: HeavyD can no longer fight.

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


Acacia takes a step back, retreating into a wary stance. She regards her fallen opponent with careful eyes...she's fairly sure he isn't getting up, but she's not about to take the chance that he's feigning. Seconds tick by...before Acacia glances towards the Neo League officials watching from beyond the barricades.

In the background, Acacia hears the announcer call her name, proclaiming her the winner of the match. She also hears the cheer from the crowd...but she barely registers those things. Instead, she bends down, and offers D! a hand.

"Good fight," she says, softly, too low for the microphones to pick up.

COMBATSYS: Acacia has ended the fight here.

Log created by Acacia, and last modified on 10:42:51 03/03/2006.