Description: In this week's Main Event, not only will Alma not shut up, he won't die, either. Alma and Kain's philosophical debate frustrates Mary about as much as Alma's dogged persistence frustrates Kain, and in the end, no one leaves this entertaining matchup with any energy left to spare. (Winner: Draw)
Another week, another fight. After last week's fight against Saishu it seems that Kain is back on top of his game, a fact to which the cleanup crew at Gedo can attest. There probably won't be quite as much destruction tonight, however. For one thing, the Howard Arena is absolutely packed with fans, and killing large numbers of people who came to cheer for you is pretty bad PR. Although if something should happen that Geese is going to have to pay to clean up it wouldn't be entirely unappreciated by Heinlein...
Still, after fighting Saishu last week, this matchup seems like a bit of a letdown. Kain certainly remembers Alma, and he wasn't particularly impressed. Alma's got persistance, but not a whole lot else. And Kain is aware of Mary as a competent fighter, but he's also aware that by herself she would have a great deal of trouble trying to defeat him. Putting them both together? Well... Let's just say that Kain certainly doesn't /appear/ to be worried. But then, how often does he?
Striding out from backstage, Kain makes his way out into the center of the arena to the roar of the crowd. They're looking forward to a nice, straightforward beatdown for at least one person tonight, and Kain is happy to oblige. He actually goes so far as briefly raising his right hand in response to the cheering, although he doesn't actually wave. Still, that's enough to get his fans going. Handsome powerful badass who's prone to some major acts of violence? Why yes, Kain /is/ quite popular in certain circles...
It's been a while.
Alma Towazu is not a man to hold grudges. For starters, he's still quite young, and there's always a lot going on in his life despite the simple routine he tries to maintain: any life that involves balancing a hectic modeling schedule, college courses, martial arts tournaments, and regular cookie-baking is going to be pretty chaotic. Another contributing factor -- and the same reason that Alma is able to survive this schedule of his -- is that he is, to put it simply, a pretty mellow guy, and such serene individuals rarely hoard bitter memories. Finally, the handsome youth is, perhaps surprisingly given his apparently easygoing nature, also a man of quite strong faith, and his passion for life does not tolerate any petty-minded frustration. If any grudges managed to survive his nature, his will would quickly burn them away.
But Alma is also a consistent person. Flexible, certainly. But consistent.
So if a person hasn't changed...
The tall youth steps toward the area amidst the cheers of the audience, snug and stylish clothing conforming to the contours of his powerful build. His long-lashed eyes are partially hidden under his swept blond bangs, but as he ascends to the restyled SNF arena and slips gracefully through the ropes in a quiet and composed entrance, his gaze easily pierces through that thin silky curtain. His poise is natural, his body relaxed, but his eyes -- his eyes are intent. He's watching Kain unblinkingly. It's... not exactly a 'hard' expression. But it's not a thoughtful one, either. He's not thinking of what to say. He is silently making his feelings known, through his eyes alone.
Yes, if a person hasn't changed...
...neither will Alma's reaction to them.
Fist in hand, Alma bows to his opponent slightly, his gaze never leaving his fellow bishounen's eyes.
Another fight -- though one that has a much less friendly setup than her past battles. At the very least, Blue Mary doesn't expect anything good coming out of it and from Kain. Last time she had encountered him, many had lost their lives and Mary's little investigation was a great failure, thanks to him. So much time spent into infiltrating this organisation reduced to nothing, thanks to him showing up.
As for her partner? Well he's competent enough. At the very least he managed to defeat her, so that's at least some points for him. Seeing how she had trouble taking care of Kain before, right now, with his help, this fight might not be too bad.. Yet she's not overtly pleased.. Not to mention this fight happens in quite a crowded arena, which has both its plus and down sides.
All the estrogene of this fight's concentrated on one person -- well maybe two, if you count Alma but... If you don't, there's just Mary, so that gives her a little fan factor! Still, she never was really big on fans.
She lifts an hand up in the air, more in a symbolic matter than anything else, before she strides over to Alma. Bowing? Ahah. Mary just gives him a little tap behind the head, as if to break his stance and pose, "Try not to break too fast," She teases. How can she help it? Little kids fighting. He's a young man, but still -- it's pretty young to face mature and veterna fighters.
Mary didn't mind breaking that little respectful bow with a tap behind Alma's head -- unlike many, she's not japanese and that whole 'a lot of respect' in fight isn't something she shares to such an extreme. At least not in streetbrawls like this.
The look in Alma's eyes is all that Kain needs to read the younger man's feelings like a book. It's especially easy to tell what's going on in someone's heart when the emotions involved or so strong. Kain apparently doesn't see fit to return Alma's bow, but he does favor him with a slow smirk. Kain may not be an actual mind reader, but it's not hard to make an educated guess as to why Alma is feeling the way that he does.
Slipping his hands into his pockets, Kain leans back against one of the turnbuckles, apparently completely unconcerned that the fight is going to be starting any moment. Just one more reason why the fans love him. A fact which he may be able to take advantage of some day, if a situation warrants it. Of course, in reality he's actually quite ready for anything that might be coming his way. But there's no need to show that. Besides, he's somewhat curious to see how Alma is going to react during this match. For now, though, the most pressing matter is the voice shouting out on the speakers saying, "Fight!"
COMBATSYS: Kain has started a fight here on the right meter side.
> //////////////////////////////]
|-------\-------\0 Kain
"Eh--?"
Alma's only slightly startled by the tap on the back of his head, but the sudden blink and jerk out of his bow gets a some laughs from the audience either close enough to see or those who were able to catch it on one of the big TV screens. The mild-mannered young man unthinkingly raises his hand to the back of his head where he was touched as he turns to the woman beside him, smiling down at her once he recognizes her. "Oh. Hello, Miss Ryan. It's an honor to be fighting by your side today..."
But his gaze shifts back to his opponent soon enough, his feet spreading subtly, arms going loose and an eerie purplish light already beginning to spark a little in the depths of his hazel eyes as he looks at Kain. "Yes," he murmurs softly in reply to her. "You be careful, too."
'Fight!'
Suddenly, he is moving.
"Let's go!" he says, unconsciously projecting while not raising his voice per se as he throws himself forward toward the man at the turnbuckle, a blaze of that purplish-pink light engulfing his right hand as he lunges into the air. Twisting, he brings his arm around, and aims to be the first to act by launching a quick blast of spiralling wave-like Psycho Power through the air to crash down like a cresting tide upon his opponent. "KUUSEIHA!"
And as he closes in, he speaks.
"Why?" It's low, almost harsh, but the words carry. "Why do you even do this, Kain?"
Gosh, something seems to be bothering him.
COMBATSYS: Alma has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Alma 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Kain
Standing by his side, Blue Mary rests her hands on her hips and she heaves a soft sigh as she keeps her eyes fixed on Kain. Though the other fighter mostly seems interested in Alma, for various reasons, since his own eyes aren't staring back at her, "Yeah, likewise," She says, probably with far less enthusiasm than Alma, but more like a formality. She has nothing against Alma, but she doesn't have anyone she really looks up at as a fighter.
Lifting her hand up, Mary scratches her cheek a little, closing her eyes for a moment, "Well we do have one advantage here," She tells Alma. Though before she can add anything, the announcement of the fight's beginning has already caused Alma to rush straight at Kain. Blue Mary just blinks and she heaves a soft sigh. Reckless. The typical quality of youth. Maybe he's a little masochist and he wants to have a beating real fast?
Who knows. Though Mary's not going to rush head in the fight -- those are plans to have both of them be left open. She'll let Alma take the first hit, she'll come in after to counter and try to use that as an opportunity to get a better and faster strike at Kain. She approaches slowly, walking, waiting for her time.
COMBATSYS: BlueMary has joined the fight here.
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Alma 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Kain
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: BlueMary focuses on her next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Alma 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Kain
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Kain blocks Alma's Sacred Wave.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////////// ]
Alma 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Kain
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/-------|
Kain casually slides his right hand out of his pocket as Alma comes charging in. As the wave of Pyscho Power comes streaming in toward him, Kain snaps his arm out toward it, and with a flash of blue light the purple/pink energy shatters and rapidly fades away to nothing, leaving only a few tiny specks to lap at Kain's sleeve. "It's quite simple, really. To keep myself from getting rusty, to experience the styles of numerous fighters, entertainment... And it saves me the trouble of arranging such things myself. It's impractical to simply go around trying to pick fights with people."
He shoots a glance at Mary for a moment, giving a brief grin. "Although occasionally there are people who won't be missed. Am I correct, Miss Ryan?" He doesn't wait for a response before turning back to Alma. "It provides a chance for experimentation, as well. There's only so much one can do when training by one's self." Straightening up from his position against the turnbuckle, Kain holds his right hand out, with purple flames swirling in his palm, and his left hand still in his pocket. "For instance..." The purple fire suddenly begins to grow, expanding and taking shape until it resembles a flaming sword clutched in Kain's hand. A sword with which he lashes out at Alma before it flickers out a few moments later.
COMBATSYS: Alma blocks Kain's Schwarz Cutter.
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Alma 0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0 Kain
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/-------|
Alma doesn't seem bothered by how easily Kain extinguishes his signiture technique, nor is he dismayed by the noisy way in which the audience appreciates it. He's already thrown himself into the flow of the fight -- the halo of light faintly gathering around him can testify to that -- and neither victory or defeat are on his mind. Only the moment; only the spirit of the fight. And yet...
Bringing his arms forward and crossing them in front of his face, Alma grits his teeth and crashes into Kain's sword-like attack, that gathering light forming a flickering auric shield that absorbs and redirects the majority of the force of Kain's strength. It's quite some strength all the same. But Alma, with his undeniable passion, won't be stopped, and aims to use his more powerful opponent's arrogance against him by continuing forward and giving Kain no room or time to escape his position by the turnbuckle. His eyes shine not with hatred or even rage, but a pure fury, the look of one seeking only to reveal the fullness of his being, whatever else may come to pass.
Yes, and yet...
...even as he lashes out with a soulfire-wreathed hand, preparing to unleash a close-range blast of now white Psycho Power flame, the young warrior-model continues to speak. "You're telling me how you train," Alma says, deep voice calm despite the intensity of his action just as his face remains relaxed despite the piercing focus of his eyes. "You're not telling me why you train. You amuse yourself with your strength; your power not a tool, but a mere toy. Aren't you ever--" And here he unleashes the brunt of his strength, finally lashing out with his gathering power toward Kain's body, aiming to crush him against the corner of the arena with the explosive force of his Psycho Power.
"--EMBARRASSED!?"
Just what the hell is Alma talking about? Maybe she gave him a too powerful smack behind the head and he's just a little confused? Maybe another smack would actually put him back on the track? Still, with the fight going on, that might be a little hard to do. Mary just narrows her eyes and she snorts a bit at Kain's comment, "I thought you would have been mature enough to think otherwise," Blue Mary simply answers. She's not here to talk about philosophy, and so, she decides not to elaborate on the matter.
Beside, Alma seems to be taking care of the talking well enough, isn't he? It's a wonder he's not going to run out of breath. Blue Mary waits for the good opportunity to strike -- and it finally comes, right after Alma's attack. If that blasts Kain backward, he should be destabilized by the attack to actually give an opening for Blue Mary -- if not, well, he may have trouble reacting to her nonethless!
She rushes toward Kain and she leaps in the air, performing a flip in mid-air, "Spin Fall!" She shouts as she cascades down with her right leg extended, attempting to actually smack Kain's shoulder... Or not!
COMBATSYS: Alma successfully hits Kain with Self Expression.
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Alma 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: BlueMary successfully hits Kain with Mary Spider.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Alma 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/------=|
No, she's not hitting him with her feet. She merely lands on his shoulder and she gives herself a slight swing to get a hold of Kain,s arm and litterally force him to roll over to the ground, curling up around his arm and twisting it in the most painful way, before letting go of it.
Despite the fact that Kain gets knocked back against the turnbuckle by the explosion Alma unleashes, he looks remarkably unhurt. Still, to be driven back against his will, he definitely felt it. And then his knees start to buckle for a moment as Mary lands on his shoulder. There's only so much that strength can do against leverage, so he has little choice but to let himself be taken down to the ground. For all the good it does, as Kain's arm still appears to be in working shape as he rises to one knee. "A toy?"
Kain suddenly stands back up to his full height, shoving Mary away from him with his leg. His right foot bursts into flames a moment before he spins around, lifting it up to drive an explosive kick into the woman's jaw, and hopefully send her flying. It /is/ getting a little crowded in this corner. "You insult me. I train to increase my strength, I believe that should be obvious. And why do I seek strength? 'And do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the law'. Crowley was off the mark in many ways, but he did have a way with words, yes? But don't expect me to lead you by the nose to truth."
That aura of cold fire...
Alma remembers that, if nothing else. That chilling energy hasn't changed, and those he refuses to be intimidated, refuses to let his passion be dampened by it, it's as though his energy is simply being sucked into a vacuum. Striking Kain is like striking at a void-- though he feels himself connect at first, it's as though the power is just whisked away without doing any real damage.
But... it knocked him back, and unbalanced him...
"You speak as though power is its own justification," retorts Alma as he weaves out of the potential passage of Kain's kick, though it turns out to not be meant for him. Still, he aims to both help his ally and utilize his current momentum by dropping into a crouch as he moves, and twisting to lash out with a quick low sweep kick. If he manages to catch Kain in the middle of the man's own kick, Alma might be able to knock his legs out from under him. "What possible reason to you have to support that assumption!? Why should strength alone grant its possessor any moral authority!?"
Alma strikes with all his might.
"Do you have any idea what sort of world would be created, thinking that way!?"
His speech is just like his movement: passionate yet controlled. Not as though he's trying to restrain his true force, but rather simply that his true self, unleashed fully like this, /is/ naturally composed. For Alma, it seems, words and action are one.
COMBATSYS: BlueMary blocks Kain's Schwarze Lanze.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Alma 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
Kain's quite remarkable -- but thankfully, Blue Mary's reflexes are keen enough to allow her the time to react accordingly and prevent him from delivering her a beating as he rises back to his feet. She's shoved away by his powerful arms, but she at the very least blocks the flaming kick with both of her arms in midair. She's sent flying, but she catches herself, falling gracefully on her feet, gliding slightly on the arena's ground, the friction slowly stopping her.
Mary growls a bit, wincing slightly at the impact her forearms took. Her eyes venture over to Alma and she frowns. Still talking? He's worse than a woman on a phone, "What would you know about the world anyway? You shouldn't waste your breath and focus on the fight instead," She says. Mary straightens herself up and she shakes her head some, glaring at Kain before she rushes back at him.
Since Alma seems to be going for his legs, Mary attempts to get a hold of Kain's arms. If Alma suceeds in destabilising him by sweeping him off his legs, she should have no problem at all hurling him over her.
COMBATSYS: Kain endures Alma's Light Kick!
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Alma 0/-------/---====|=====--\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Kain blocks BlueMary's Medium Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Alma 0/-------/---====|=====--\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
Alma does indeed manage to knock Kain's leg out from underneath him. Luckily for Kain, he was expecting this, and he's able to shift his balance in mid-air so that he lands on his right leg as he sweeps it down from kicking out at Mary. And with his feet on the ground, Kain doesn't have too much trouble wrenching his arms out of Mary's grasp. "Who said anything about being moral? And as for what kind of world it would be... One where everyone would be able to do as they wish, and live their lives as they see fit. Although, I grant you that the concept of 'everyone' would be rather more... limited. Such is the nature of things."
There's a brief tensing of Kain's legs, and then he's suddenly launched himself into the air, up and over Alma and Mary to get himself out of the corner. As he passes overhead he swings out with a kick at Alma's head, chi swirling around his foot to enhance the impact.
COMBATSYS: Kain successfully hits Alma with Medium Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Alma 1/-----==/=======|======-\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
Ignoring Mary's comments, Alma's eyes narrow as he sees Kain easily absorb the force of his kick and use the momentum to his own advantage. Rising from his crouch, the tall youth tries to press his advantage and prevent Kain from escaping while his ally recovers to assist him -- but Kain's words seem to affect him. Not too obviously, mind you. Not in a manner that the audience would notice. He doesn't seem to get angry, exactly.
But his eyes, they burn.
He lashes out with a fierce, blurring punch at Kain -- foolishly. He strikes not at Kain but where Kain was a split-second before, and because Alma can react a powerful kick slams into the back of his head and sends him crashing face-first to the arena floor. "Ghhnn--!" The youth has to take a moment to recover, but as soon as his focus returns he rises to his feet with a new surge of strength, standing resolutely as patterns of gathering energy begin to form around him. Fists clench and unclench, commanding inner energy flows -- and revealing his rising fury. The fire in his eyes has far from diminished.
"Survival of the fittest," Alma says, low voice free of any particular disdain or drama but, in a way, all the more menacing -- theoretically -- for the iron control he demonstrates. "As if nature needs any help perpetuating that." He shakes his head, and the light in his eyes intensifies. "You... you think strength somehow makes a person worthy. It's like you think it /means/ something, just in and of itself."
"Don't you have any respect for the less fortunate!?"
The purplish aura surging around him begins to gleam white and rosy gold as ripples of wind caress Alma's hair and shift his clothing around him. His eyes are like points of light, shining from within the eye of a storm.
"If you knew anything about /real/ power -- not just the ability to destroy -- you never would have treated my friend the way you did!"
COMBATSYS: Alma gathers his will.
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Alma 1/=======/=======|======-\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
The audience, for their part, while they audibly appreciate the action, seem to be listening, too. Alma's words ring out through the arena, amplified by the acoustics of the place -- and perhaps by his latent passion as well -- and, though obviously no one knows the source of his discontent with Kain, well...
...it is quite dramatic, after all.
Drama... Who needs Drama? This is supposed to be a fight, not a soap. The last thing Mary wants to see happening is Alma admitting is secret love for Kain or something of the like. If it becomes any more dramatic to turn to sappy, it might just be that. Might as well try to finish this as quickly as possible.
Since Alma's too busy talking and probably recovering, Blue Mary has to take care of everything! She rushes over to Kain and she attempts to feint him by quickly wriggling around him so she can press herself to Kain's back and wrap her arms around his waist. If she's successful, with a good grounding, she'll give a powerful yank up in the air and suplex him.
COMBATSYS: BlueMary successfully hits Kain with Backdrop Real.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////// ]
Alma 1/=======/=======|=======\-------\1 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/--=====|
Once again, the laws of physics see fit to favor Mary as Kain gets lifted off his feet and suplexed back down to the mat. After the actual impact, though, Kain whips his body about, rolling away from Mary and back to his feet. He's starting to actually look a little battered now, but it doesn't seem to have slowed him down much. "Ah, the fools who think everything comes down to fists..." This doesn't seem to be directed at anyone in particular, but then Kain turns his gaze to Alma.
Holding out his right hand, Kain causes a blue flame to spring into being there. "Do you really think that this is the extent of my power? You have no idea what works I have created. Shall I provide an example so you can comprehend? Our 'illustrious benefactor'", a brief sneer crosses Kain's features, but it's gone just as quickly, "here tonight is one of the most powerful men in the world. But did he build this arena with his fists? Does he fund these events by punching people?"
The flame in Kain's hand changes shape into a sphere, which quickly begins to expand as he continues to speak. "Real power is the power to do anything, not merely to create or to destroy. Although I must admit that the latter is quite useful when one is working to obtain real power." And then Kain thrusts out his hand, causing the now massive ball of flame to leap out and streak through the air toward Alma.
COMBATSYS: Alma slows Himmlische Seele from Kain with Full Confession.
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Alma 1/-------/=======|-------\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/--=====|
Alma's brow furrows slightly at the mention of 'our illustrious benefactor'. What? He files it away quickly and forgets about it for now, but it does remind him how little he really knows about Kain's past... but no matter what source this man's philosophy evolved from, as far as Alma is concerned, it doesn't make it any less wrong or unjust.
"Right," he says in response, even as Kain's power is building. "The power to do anything -- not just anything commanded by our instincts, by our base desires!" The young man also begins to draw his fist back, Psycho Power pulsating through his very veins. "Your craving for power -- your assumption that it has some kind of necessary value -- is your weakness, Kain! Because we can be more than mere agents of power, much more! And the irony you can't see?"
Alma steps forward, glowing with purpose, as his opponent unleashes his attack.
"Those sort of people that will survive in the world you envision -- those people who will seek power for its own sake, and thus be able to do whatever they want? They DON'T KNOW--" And he punches the ground, unleashes a geyser of searing soulfire towards his opponent's oncoming flame, and unleashes a mighty lion's roar to the heavens. "--WHAT THEY REALLY WANT!"
The two powerful blasts of energy clash in midair, and for a moment, just for a moment, it seems as though Alma's is actually pushing Kain's back. Just a little-- but then the boy flinches, unable to contain the sheer force of Kain's attack, and the spell is broken, and the remainder of the blast engulfs Alma and sends him flying back. "Aarghh...!" The handsome youth crashes against the turnbuckle opposite, and dazed, lies still for a moment, shaking his head weakly.
Look what all of the talking had done now? Alma can't focus and he's taking a beating. That's his own fault for all of this, of course, and Mary merely growls a bit in annoyance at the outcome of the events, "Why don't you just shut up and concentrate on the fight? Maybe that would give us some results!" She says with a snarl.
Since Alma at least got all of Kain's attention, she's free to act as she pleases with Kain. The woman rushes toward him and she attempts to give him a powerful elbow smash to his midsection. If she suceeds, she'll then quickly attempts to lunge on Kain and sweep him off his legs with an O Soto Gari, holding him so she can slam him down to the ground once he's off balance.
COMBATSYS: Kain blocks BlueMary's Combo Throw.
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Alma 1/-------/=======|-------\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/-======|
Kain grabs at Mary's elbow as she rushes in, pushing the attack down and to the side so that it strikes him on the hip rather than plowing right into his midsection. He then twists his arm around, attempting to snare Mary's arm in an iron grip. That in and of itself does little; it's just meant to hold her in place. "So, you prefer a world where people have to live in pain and suffering? You know it's not possible to help everyone; why shouldn't those who are willing to help themselves succeed?"
Flame erupt all over Kain's body, scorching the mat beneath his feet and engulfing Mary if she hasn't managed to free herself in time. "You don't even understand what it is you're upset about. Perhaps you should listen to Miss Ryan here and simply stick to the matter at hand."
COMBATSYS: Alma has saved the state of this fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Alma 1/-------/=======|-------\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/-======|
"Pain's... nothing to be ashamed of."
Alma, sweat beaded on his brow from the sheer concentration required to maintain his focus, begins to get to his feet. Despite the beating he has taken and the badgering from his teammate, the young man's resolve doesn't seem to have faltered even slightly. His face might seem more haggard than usual, but the look in his eyes hasn't changed.
"Or afraid of," he continues, as he rises from a kneeling position. "It's something to struggle against. Part of the challenge of living. It's something to be thankful for, to be proud of." Alma steadies himself against the ropes as he regains his footing, a droplet of sweat trickling its way down his chin and dripping to the floor of the arena. "And we share it. Whether we like to or not, we share it, because we aren't static beings. We're changed by those around us, added to by their mere presence -- so our strengths are not our own."
He takes a step forward, somewhat haltingly.
"I'm upset because you're so powerful, and you think you're entitled to it. I'm upset that you don't seem to feel the need to do anything constructive with your life and your power, and I'm upset that you don't believe what I'm telling you. But those are just emotions. Those are natural. They don't have to be important." Speaking of power: as he's talking, it looks as though that aura of his is starting to surge back into existence. "What's important--" He begins to dash forward, his gathering momentum leaving streaks of light through the air. "--is that you hurt one of my best friends--" He draws his hand back, rushing into the midst of the fray unheedingly.
He strikes.
"--and you need to know how it feels!"
With that single blow, Alma unleashes all of his fighting spirit, and the three fighters, just for a moment, become silhouettes admist the flash of light that accompanies the mighty mental blast.
"SUFFER! AND REPENT!"
COMBATSYS: BlueMary dodges Kain's Schwarze Kreuz.
Seeing her attack being rather inefficient, Mary quickly shifts into an evasive stance to prevent Kain from actually getting a hold of her arm. Despite her bulk, she has quite some grace when she wants though and she manages to wriggle herself out of Kain's grasp fast enough, just in time to avoid the flames that erupts from Kain's body to scorch her.
Blue Mary pants softly and she closes her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath. Her eyes venture back over to Alma, who's still going on and on with his speech, which makes Blue Mary groans a little. He doesn't know what's the meaning of a battle, right? Well, might explain why Alma seems into a much worse condition than she is.
Though Alma's rush of spiritual power and all of the light makes Blue Mary takes a step back or two -- for the time being, she'll probably take a few seconds to regain her bearings since her coordination with Alma when it comes to attacking Kain is a little lacking, thanks to Alma's whole attention being on talking with him.
COMBATSYS: BlueMary gains composure.
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Alma 0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Alma successfully hits Kain with Absolution.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////// ]
Alma 0/-------/------=|===----\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
"Do something constructive? Oh, if only you knew... But this is hardly the place. As for your friend, he came to me..." And then Kain is engulfed in the flash of light, reduced to only a silhouette and then vanishing completely as eyes and cameras are overwhelmed by the brilliance of the attack. And just as the vision of the spectators is starting to clear up, Kain's foot spears out toward Alma's stomach. "...And he understood the risks."
Kain's definitely looking battered now; his suit has tears in a number of places, his hair is matted down, and there's a trickle of blood running down his face from a wound somewhere on his scalp. And yet he remains standing without wavering, not yet ready to fall.
COMBATSYS: Alma blocks Kain's Medium Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////// ]
Alma 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
As the light fades from the arena, so too does it begin to fade from Alma's eyes. He's expressed his indignation. He's unleashed the power of his overwhelming passion, through the offensive medium of his Psycho Power. He's given his all.
And Kain is still standing.
His reflexes seem slower than usual, but Alma is still just barely able to bring his arms up and catch the kick that Kain lashes out at him, getting bowled over in the process all the same. The tall youth manages to turn his momentum into a rather graceful backwards roll, ending up in a relatively poised crouch, but he seems significantly drained. Not fatigued, exactly; though he's battered, he doesn't seem to have run out of stamina yet. But the essential element that makes Alma the warrior he is -- his righteous passion -- has been expended. Right now, he's just a young man. A powerfully built martial artist of a young man, to be sure, but...
"Do you... really think Jiro understood? That he actually comprehended the risks? I don't think... you even cared..." Alma manages this, but the force behind his words seems to be fading, and it sounds like more of a simple retort than an actual continuation of his argument. For the first time in a while he casts a glance in his teammate's direction, and the expression on her face doesn't give him any comfort. It's subtle, but the handsome youth actually winces slightly.
~ I... guess I got a little caught up in the moment. ~
He stays in his crouch, taking deep breaths to center himself, and though his face remains pointed toward Kain, his eyes are trained on Mary, waiting to see her next move. Maybe the now somewhat abashed young man can make himself a little more useful.
COMBATSYS: Alma gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////// ]
Alma 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
The two man may be battered, but Blue Mary, on the other hand, hardly have a scratch on her. The little showdown between Kain and Alma is quite impressive, but now that Alma's momemtum slows down a bit, Blue Mary has an opportunity to barge in and try to give him an hand so he doesn't get slaughtered.
"Alright! Enough talking for you guys, cut the line, we got a fight to do here!" She shouts as she lunges at Kain. Blue Mary has given up on trying to figure out what they were talking about and she decided to focus on the fight -- probably why she's the only one who doesn't seem too beaten up so far. She rushes over Kain and she attempts to give him a powerful kneeshot to his midsection, getting into close-quarters fight to get his attention.
COMBATSYS: Kain dodges BlueMary's Light Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////// ]
Alma 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
Kain glances at Blue Mary as she shouts, then lightly jumps to the side as she comes lunging in at him. As she flies past him, he gives her a brief nod. "You do have a good point. I think the time for talking is over. As for Jiro..." Kain turns back to look at Alma, and begins walking toward the other fighter, his pace rapidly increasing. "If he didn't understand the risks after the many, many times they were explained, then he deserved to fail. I really don't care anymore."
Kain quickly closes the distance between himself and Alma, purple fire swirling around his clenched right fist. "And I am tired of wasting my time trying to educate you. It's time to end this." Swinging his arm forward, Kain attempts to drive his fist square into the center of Alma's face, with the impact followed by a focused explosion of flame.
COMBATSYS: Alma interrupts Fierce Punch from Kain with Divine Intervention.
[ \\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Alma 0/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/---====|
Alma's head snaps up as Kain lunges toward him. The young man has not yet risen out of his crouching position, and he's in no place to make any worthy defense, nor does he have any hope of dodging the attack. Not to mention it looks as though one solid punch from Kain would drop the youth for good.
But at the older man's words, Alma's eyes spark once, gleaming in the stage lights.
"You're right."
Blurring forward, he lunges suddenly, right toward the punch.
"It's time to end this!"
Two fists strike simultaneously: Alma unleashes an intense close-range beam of focused soulfire directly at Kain's chest just as the man's fist crashes into his face. The tall youth goes staggering back from the mighty blow, swaying with one palm held to his face--
--and then steadies himself. He removes his hand, and through his daze, he glares at his opponent defiantly. The crowd 'oohs' its approval. That... wasn't really expected.
Alma actually has one thing right here -- it's time to end this up. "Not so fast, I'm not through with you yet!" Blue Mary shouts as kain rushes away. No matter what'll happen between Alma and Kain as they're about to clash with each other, Mary'll lunge into the fight and add a little bit of her own to the fight. It's been Kain and Alma in the spotlight for just a little too long to her liking.
While Alma's staggering from Kain's strike, his counter might just give Blue Mary just enough time to break through Kain's guard. With a growl, she leaps upward, attempting to give him a very high kneeshot, right underneath his chin to send him up flying and knocking him back to the ground. Her motion's so fast and fluid, that for a moment, one almost has the impression that Mary has blurry forms of herself following her.
COMBATSYS: Kain dodges BlueMary's Dynamite Swing.
[ \\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Alma 0/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/------=|
If Kain was a more emotional person, this is probably where he'd be ranting at Alma something to the effect of 'why won't you die!?' after he goes staggering back from the blast to his chest. And doing that probably would have given Mary the opening she'd need. Luckily for Kain, that isn't one of his flaws. He smoothly ducks beneath Mary, reaching up with one hand to make sure she continues the arc of her flight before she can try to reorient herself for another attack.
But if Kain is going to have any hope of actually winning this fight at this point, he has to bring it down to a one on one, and Alma definitely seems closer to defeat than Blue Mary. So. Despite his injuries, Kain rushes toward Alma at high speed, ducking and weaving as he approaches. A blue glow surrounds his hand as he leads with what looks like another blow aimed at Alma's face... But then he suddenly ducks and flattens out his hand, aiming a chi-enhanced chop with the side of his hand at Alma's throat. Maybe that'll take care of the talking.
COMBATSYS: Kain successfully hits Alma with Jab Punch.
[ \\\ < > /////// ]
Alma 1/-----==/=======|=====--\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/------=|
Well... good effort, Alma, but there's only so much Psycho Power in the world, and you can't have all of it. Enormously drained by his constant effort and apparently drained of his passion for the fight, his attempt to block might as well have come a year later. He can't match Kain's speed, and the chop to his neck drops Alma to his knees.
"Gghh..."
Slumping, the youth tries to focus, and maintain consciousness, but...
COMBATSYS: Alma takes no action.
[ \\\\ < > /////// ]
Alma 0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/------=|
...er, wait.
It... doesn't look like he's done.
...Alma, you jerk.
That's the last time Blue Mary tries to use a knee smash against Kain. They just don't seem to do it. She lands down, behind him, having missed him totally and now, he's rushing off to finish off Alma so he'll only have one person to worry about. Very clever. Well, Alma seems pretty far off, but Blue Mary might as well use his last stance to her advantage and try to get Kain from behind.
Blue Mary rushes over Kain and she growls as she attempts to wrap her arms around Kain's neck and get him into a straggle hold and force him backward. "Alright, I think it's time you let him go..." Blue Mary says with a growl.
COMBATSYS: Kain just-defends BlueMary's Fast Throw!
[ \\\\ < > ////////// ]
Alma 0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/------=|
Without even looking behind him, Kain's right hand shoots up to grab Mary's arm as she attempts to get him into a stranglehold. "You are very persistant, which I admit is a good trait. I hope you will not consider me to be too much of a hypocrite, however, when I say that I am starting to find it irritating." Karma is probably going to come back and kick Kain in the ass pretty soon for the way he keeps brushing Mary aside, but having Alma sniping at him while trying to fight her is not a situation he wants to put up with.
Darting away from Mary again, Kain lunges at Alma once more, this time trying to grab him by the throat rather than striking him there. And if he should manage to snare his annoyingly persistant opponent, he'll lift him up off the ground and hurl him in Blue Mary's direction. Let him be a distraction for her this time!
COMBATSYS: Kain successfully hits Alma with Large Thrown Object.
[ < > ////////// ]
Alma 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Kain
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/------=|
It doesn't take much to pluck the choking Alma off the ground. He does protest a little, if "Hrrk?" can count as a protest, but even he realizes that at this point he's not so much 'fighting' as 'being not unconscious'.
But, even in the midst of semi-consciousness, he can tell that he's about to be hucked at his teammate -- and even if he doesn't have any passion left to motivate him, he /does/ feel the twinges of guilt. If he's going to slam right into Mary in a few seconds, he'd better try to redeem himself somehow before he does so.
So even as he's begin hurled away to certain unconsciousness, one last surge of fire forms at the handsome youth's fingertips, his tired eyes shining a faint pinkish-purple from behind the shroud of his bangs. With a last gasp, he launches a moderately impressive, if rather wobbly, fireball at his opponent, and then--
Well, we're about to see what then.
COMBATSYS: Alma can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
BlueMary 0/-------/------=|======-\-------\0 Kain
COMBATSYS: BlueMary blocks Kain's Large Thrown Object.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
BlueMary 0/-------/-----==|======-\-------\0 Kain
Out of the conversation and almost quite litterally out of the fight for the last part, Blue mary's a little shaken as she fails to do much of anything for the time being. Well, looks like it'll be the end for Alma. At the very least, Blue Mary's nice enough to actually catch him in midflight rather than let him just crash off some distance and get hurt all the more.
She braces for impact and groans a little, taking a step back not to fall as she catches Alma. The woman heaves a sigh and she kneels down to lie him there. Looks like his big mouth got him enough in trouble as it is.
Well at least, now it'll be just her and Kain, and there won't be more nonsense being said here and there. Getting into her fighting stance, Blue Mary dashes toward Kain and she attempts to give him a quick punch to his abdomen.
COMBATSYS: Kain dodges Alma's Full Confession.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
BlueMary 0/-------/-----==|======-\-------\0 Kain
COMBATSYS: Kain blocks BlueMary's Quick Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
BlueMary 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\0 Kain
With almost no aim behind it at all, it's not hard for Kain to simply lean to one side and let Alma's fireball sail past him. Hopefully it fizzles out, or hits a wall or something, rather than an audience member. Kain's certainly not going to spare the attention to find out. Because even after all of that, he's still got an opponent standing.
When Mary charges in at him, Kain swings his left arm down, striking it against Mary's just as she tries to land her punch. Her blow gets knocked away, glancing against Kain's leg almost harmlessly. "Sorry about the wait, but he was being quite insistent, wasn't he? Now then..." Kain tries to shove Mary backwards with his right hand as he leaps away from her, then reaches up toward the ceiling. "This has been rather more trouble than I was expecting, and I commend the both of you for it, but I really do think it's about time to wrap things up." There's a flash of golden light in Kain's raised hand, and then suddenly the sky is falling. Or at least, the portions of it that have suddenly turned into waves of raw chi, slamming down into the arena with sledgehammer force. It's rather indiscriminate, as well. Just because Alma happens to be out of the fight doesn't mean he's out of danger.
COMBATSYS: Kain successfully hits BlueMary with Himmlischer Atem.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
BlueMary 1/---====/=======|-------\-------\0 Kain
One of the waves of chi slams into the arena mere inches from where Alma's prone body lays, and it sends him bouncing limply away, finally rolling all the way to the side, whereupon he slips bonelessly out from between the ropes and lands on the floor with a quiet thud.
Is... is he alright?
"...mhn... no, Xiangfei... no more ice cream..."
...
For a given value of 'alright', perhaps.
When Blue Mary let Alma's body on the ground, she hoped that Kain would actually focus his attention on her. Though he goes to rather extreme measure when it comes to finishing off the fight, and the massive width of his attack actually endangers Alma's well being.
To try to defend yourself or to actually save Alma? There's no dilemma there. To protect and serve, she'll always live up to her ideals and her plan's clear in her mind. She turns around on her heels and she's just about to rush over Alma to make a safe when...
Well, he's gone, a wave of chi... What the hell? Mary just stands there dumbfounded for a second and well, that's one too many second that makes it so she's actually a sitting duck right in those waves of raw chi that washes away the arena. Bang boom boom crash. That's definately not going to do the arena any good, that's for sure, but the more impressive, the better.
Barely untouched from the beginning of the fight, just being caught in that well... finished Blue Mary off pretty much. Blue Mary groans a bit, coughing up a bit of blood as she tries to force herself to her knees. Her head hurts, quite a lot, considering the massive surge of chi that just rushed through her. She's just trying to recover from all of that.
COMBATSYS: BlueMary gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
BlueMary 1/-----==/=======|-------\-------\0 Kain
If there's one thing you can count on Kain for, it's not going easy on his opponents. Fell down? Broke a limb? Just found out your puppy died? Just found out your puppy died because one of your stray fireballs blew up a bus full of nuns and a burning tire landed on said puppy? Doesn't matter, Kain is still going to keep pressing the fight. And so it goes now.
Even as the shockwaves from that massive blast are still fading away, Kain is already summoning fire into both of his hands. Drawing back both arms as he sees that Mary is still moving, it's only a moment before Kain thrusts both hands out toward her, sending a pair of purple fireballs spiralling in toward the reeling woman.
COMBATSYS: Kain successfully hits BlueMary with Schwarze Flame.
[ \\\\\\\ < > ///////// ]
BlueMary 1/=======/=======|==-----\-------\0 Kain
Mary's not just quite ready to actually keep on fighting yet. She's barely on all four on the ground, and those fireballs rush down right at her, hitting her dead on. She wasn't really ready to keep on fighting and odds are that she won't really be ready to keep on going. The fireballs merely just blast her a couple of feet away and she goes rolling about a little. It's just even worse than the list time she fought Kain.
Time for one last effort, and after that, she'll be done. With a growl, as if trying to gather her strenght, Mary leaps up toward Kain, a very high leap, attempting to quite litterally fly right pass over him and wrap her legs around his neck as she passes over him.
COMBATSYS: BlueMary successfully hits Kain with Mary Typhoon.
- Power hit! -
[ \\\\\\\ < > / ]
BlueMary 0/-------/-----==|======-\-------\0 Kain
And with her legs wrapping around Kain's neck, the woman gives herself a swing in the air to cascade down and roll to the ground, forcing Kain to litterally flip around in the air and follow along, "Mary Typhoon!!" She shouts as she slams him hard, head first into the ground, the impact causing a lovely rose shaped burst of chi that is totally harmless, but... It's there. God only knows why.
Kain's vision goes white as head gets slammed into the floor with impressive force, and there's a brief spray of blood from his mouth as he gives a choking gasp of pain from the impact. That's almost certainly a concussion. But he still hasn't /quite/ lost conciousness. Not enough time to summon up any real power, or do anything fancy... But he does have enough time to at least lift his hand up toward Mary.
There's a quick shimmer of blue energy around his hand, and then a number of small chi sparks shoot out at Mary, like a cloud of needles rushing up at her. Needles that happen to go off in a series of small explosions after impact. Ideally, this would make for a good way to force an opening in Mary's defenses, to continue the assault. Unfortunately, by the way Kain's body goes limp afterwards, he's not in much of a position to try pressing the attack.
COMBATSYS: Kain can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\ <
BlueMary 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: BlueMary interrupts Schwarzer Funken from Kain with Vertical Arrow.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-
COMBATSYS: BlueMary can no longer fight.
He doesn't want to go down? Well fine, Kain's not the only one who can play dirty and be mean. At this point, in those past minutes in this fight, Blue Mary had accumulated a great deal of rage. A rage that burns so deep and full of hatred toward a lot of things. The fact that they were talking more than focusing on the fight for one, and the fact that once it was settled, Mary took the fastest beating she ever felt in a long time.
All of this built up rage inside of her, Kain felt a great deal of it in one single strike but now -- he still has some strength left into her, and that's quite a mistake. He should have just lied down and played dead. Blue Mary takes her last strength, fuelled by that rage and she litterally snarls out loudly, "Oh no you don't bastard!"
She rushes right over Kain, through the rain of needles and she spins around on her heels, her voice loud and echoing through the arena as she gives Kain a powerful, a very powerful high kick right under his chin, hurling him high off into the air, "Vertical Arrowww!!" She shouts, smoke following her body from the rain of chi needles.
And just in midair, she wraps her thighs around Kain's neck and she twists around, forcing Kain right down to the ground headfirst again, slamming him hard into the rumbles of the arena, quite litterally screaming as if to empower that one last hit.
"Huh... That's... Payback for the bar incident..." She coughs a bit, attempting to get back to her knees but having satisfied her burning quenching rage, she has nothing really fueling her body and so, well she just crumbles down.
Kain is halfway buried in the arena floor, and doesn't appear to be moving. It looks like he's /probably/ still breathing, though. And somewhere, Geese is probably laughing his ass off right now.
Log created by Alma, and last modified on 21:19:34 09/02/2006.