Match of the Millennium

Description: In the red corner we have a young man who's perceived as a god in his home village. In the blue corner we have a never-aging man who's been trying to be a god for decades. Fighters, let's get it on! DING DING! (Winner: Igniz)

Predestination is a funny concept. Depending on your beliefs concerning it, you'll either wonder if it exists or if it's all just coincidence. In this case, it could be any of the above, though the nature of the surprise lends credence to the possibility that someone was watching Lykaio.

Traffic has been diverted due to a major intersection being cordoned off by local police and event organizers. A crowd, mostly teenagers indulging in some nightlife, has begun to gather, probably thanks to the camera crews wielding gear emblazoned with the World Warrior logo.

The impromptu arena is bare, save for a robed figure standing solemnly and silently in the far corner. A hood obscures most of his face -- at least, perhaps it is a he; the only other clue is several locks of long blonde hair.

They all seem to be waiting for the other challenger to show up, and will surprisingly identify Lykaio as the tardy combatant should any of the event organizers spot him.

A young greek man with violently white, messy hair in a business suit steps into the other corner of the 'arena'. He frowns slightly, pulling off his gloves, and looks over to the cloaked figure evenly, frown dissapearing. A slight incline of the head. "Good evening."
He raises his bare hands towards the sky, and electrical energy begins to arc between them. Slowly, three will-o-the-wisp-like orbs emerge from the constant electrical barrage, and begin to float around him in random, lazy arcs. He lowers his hands, and looks back to Igniz.

The organizers prepare to start the match while the local law enforcement deal with the crowds. Before it can be officially called, however, the robed man steps forward. There is a sudden change in the air, almost a feeling of foreboding. The robe lifts up as if a sudden breeze had swirled in, coming apart and falling at his sides in a much less obscured cape. The feeling continues to build, creating a high-pitched whine that sounds almost choral.

The man, Igniz, lifts his head towards the sky and raises his hands. Something akin to light, but more like a creeping photo-negative, plays in the air behind him. This gratuitous display of power causes a brief silence, and then a renewed outburst of chatter in the crowd. The referee, who had been briefly struck silent, lowers his hand in a chopping motion. "Fight!"

Igniz, still unresponsive to Lykaio's greeting, opens his eyes and waits as his multi-layered cape drifts lazily in the air around him.


[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  <
Igniz            0/-------/-------|

Lykaio's eyes widen slightly as Igniz removes his cloak. "You... I haven't seen you before." A momentary discomfort... but then, perhaps this man is new here too? An even fight, then. The greek still continues to watch, though, seeing how that cape moves. A faint smile settles onto his face as he grabs one of his orbs from the air. "...It seems we both have our little friends." He squeezes it slightly, releasing a bit of electricity to crackle along his arm. "The question is, do you rely on that cape, or is there something a bit further...?"
He tenses a bit at the referees announcement of 'Fight!', and begins to jog in towards his enemy. Ponderously slow, as if maybe underneath that suit isn't all muscle... but even then, it's a little slow.


[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Lykaio           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0            Igniz


[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Lykaio           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0            Igniz

A smile crosses Igniz's serene face, though he does not answer. Contrary to expectations, it seems to be very sincere. Not mocking, aggressive, or even cocky -- just a smile, maybe one of agreement or reassurance.

The cape seems to flutter by itself. A closer inspection, especially by a person talented in chi, will notice that it is being suspended in the air by Igniz's very aura. This is a trick that should be impossible.

Whatever the explanation, he takes no actions, waiting for Lykaio to advance. Beneath the surface however, his suit is reading cues from his nervous system.


[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  //////////////////////////////]
Lykaio           0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0            Igniz

Lykaio's smile widens a bit as he sees Igniz smile in response, and continues to jog in slowly until he's almost within kick range... then suddenly dashes in at full speed, letting out a flash of light to disorient Igniz. "Hah!!" He waits a second after the yell, then extends both hands, letting electricity arc out towards Igniz naturally. The cape, not being grounded, won't intercept this electrical charge... or such is his theory.
Let's see how that works out.


[           \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////// ]
Lykaio           0/-------/-======|=------\-------\0            Igniz

Igniz's expression changes. He becomes curious and attentive, tilting his head to the side and leaning forward slightly. His gaze flickers from Lykaio's hand to his eyes and back again. It all happens very quickly, and at the same time it takes forever.

The man raises his hand, gesturing broadly as if snatching the initial flash out of the air. The chi simply disappears, though Igniz acts as if he is holding something. As Lykaio takes that last step before he strikes, the scientist moves his hand forward just an inch.

Suddenly, where there was life there is now nothing. The very air in front of Igniz becomes dead as all the chi -- the very energy of the world -- commits a sudden, forced suicide. The lightning that Lykaio projects meets this dead zone straight on, and cannot pass. The taint spreads to it, and the rapidly dying energy angrily turns on its master before disappearing with a muted shriek.

Lykaio falls back onto the ground, convulsing spasmodically as the tainted electrical energy runs through him. He just lies there for a moment, staring at the sky... then rolls to one side along the entire axis of his body. Not the most stylish or effective technique, but... he begins to pull himself back to his feet with a grimace. This sort of pain, he's used to.
He looks back to Igniz, and manages something like a smile after a moment. "...I have no idea why I haven't seen you before. I... don't think that was a fluke...."


[        \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////// ]
Lykaio           0/-------/--=====|=------\-------\0            Igniz

Igniz lowers his hand, and the blackened yet shimmering nothingness disappears, allowing chi to seep back in to the area once more.

"Take your time," he says in a quiet but firm voice. "I won't rush you." Again, it is definitely not trash talk, and isn't spoken condescendingly, though it could easily be taken that way. Of course, perhaps this is a sort of learning experience.

Igniz takes stock of Lykaio's current position and, not feeling rushed, takes the time to mentally command his suit to discard the projected action sequence attributed to his target and develop a new set of numbers. Inefficient, yes, but Igniz wanted to take the time to get to know this fighter as best he could.


[        \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////// ]
Lykaio           0/-------/--=====|=------\-------\0            Igniz

The greek blinks, a bit nonplussed by this response, then smiles slightly. "Thank you. One question, if I may...."
He closes in on Igniz again, slowly circling him as he tries to seek out any openings with his eyes. Inefficient, perhaps, but neccessary for one not graced with advanced technology. "That power... does it come solely from the suit you wear?" Lykaio sounds slightly skeptical of this notion, but considers it for a long moment, then raises his fists again to snatch two orbs from the air, squeezing them to release energy, and slowly whirling in to smash his arms at the mechanical-suited man.


[                   \\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////////////  ]
Lykaio           1/----===/=======|===----\-------\0            Igniz

"This suit?" Igniz muses, his voice harmonious with the sound of his chi playing through the air. "It is as the leaves on a tree. How can power come from anything other than yourself? Action, any and all action, creates power."

He smiles again, as if sharing a little joke. "No, I have no crutches. I will show you what the suit does."

Lykaio begins his approach, but is suddenly forced to deal with the lightning-fast threat of Igniz's cape. The blonde man steps forward, putting his weight on his leading leg, and flourishes the edge of his cape with a practiced gesture. The edge of it, weighted as it is, carries enough physical force imparted by Igniz's deceptively powerful arm to knock Lykaio high into the air and across the arena.

Lykaio is hurled back like a rag doll to smash against the pavement just a few inches from the cordoned off section, facedown. He tries to push himself back upwards, and falls back to the ground, then turns his head to look back towwards Igniz. "...That's true. Even someone who... steals the world's greatest sword... can't use it without any power...."
He grits his teeth and slowly rises to his feet, arms resting on his knees as he trembles somewhat, gathering himself for one final effort as he stares towards Igniz. "Still...."


[                   \\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ////////////////////////////  ]
Lykaio           1/----===/=======|===----\-------\0            Igniz

"Though the sword may be stolen," Igniz responds with a peculiar half-smile, "its power was attained through action."

Igniz raises his hand, palm outwards. The space in front of it pales and flickers, turning photo-negative before bursting into a bright radiance. With the merest of thoughts, it is propelled forwards at incredible speeds, arcing downwards to destroy the other fighter.

"But we have reached the final page of this volume."


[                 \\\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  ///////////////////////////   ]
Lykaio           1/----===/=======|==-----\-------\0            Igniz

Lykaio's eyes widen as the negative space flies through the air down towards him - and raises one of his hands, still grasping the orb that he had when attacking Igniz a bit ago. And just before impact, he squeezes it, the air letting off a soft roar of thunder as lightning is suddenly released in a torrent, vaporizing the arrow in midair. The electrical energy then sinks back into Lykaio's body, a bit of a grimace on his part as he does so, but also a smile. Confidence quickly oozing back up into him. "Come now... at least take me a little seriously...."
...And then he suddenly falls forwards, landing on his knees and supporting himself with one palm. The smile is still there, though, as he pours negative electrical energy through the ground. The power pooling at Igniz's feet before it surges up towards the sky repeatedly, as heaven and earth try to balance what the Greek has wrought.


[                  \\\\\\\\\\\\  < >  /////////////////////////     ]
Lykaio           0/-------/-----==|=------\-------\0            Igniz

Igniz's smile fades into steely intensity as Lykaio develops a solution to his attack. He plants his feet more squarely, feeling the air around him change, vibrations carrying across the arena from his opponent to him. Being so in tune with the world, the vision of expressed chi dances in his head moments before it actually occurs.

For a brief moment, he is engulfed with lightning. It is most assuredly quick, for speed with which the lightning is levelled against Lykaio is enough to give pause. Igniz, floating admidst the storm with his cape fluttering around him, conducts an invisible orchestra as he guides each bolt through a hideous transformation of purpose.

There is no Adamant Thunder, only the sickened Nega Thunder, dancing and whirling back to Lykaio.


[                         \\\\\  < >  /////////////////////////     ]
Lykaio           0/-------/=======|=------\-------\0            Igniz

"....You think you can stop me with my own lightning!?" Lykaio looks... slightly offended for the first time in this match, and there's audible disbelief in his voice. He jerks his hands to snatch up his two remaining orbs, blocking the first lightning strike with them. The second lightning strike hits him, causing him to fall backwards onto the pavement and begin convulsing. The third and fourth course through him, then flow into the orbs, which explode, shocking him once again. Finally, the Greek slumps back to the pavement, smoking quietly.


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


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

Igniz gently floats to the ground, his cape falling to his sides as he ceases to manifest chi. The referee, after watching Lykaio for a few moments, calls the fight: "WINNER! IGNIZ!"

A burst of light appears next to the NESTS leader. It fades away, revealing an elegant blonde woman in a golden dress. She slips her arms around Igniz's waist, murmuring something to him as she smiles. Igniz seems less than attentive, stepping forward to stand next to Lykaio.

He watches as the woman, who followed him over, watches on with an expression bordering on annoyance. "You have a talent with the expression of your chi. Where did you learn?"



"....guess you can...." A very faint voice. Lykaio slowly looks up to Igniz, and manages a bit of a grimace of a smile. "Self-taught." He shifts his eyes over to the woman, and blinks, then looks back to Igniz. He slowly pushes himself up into a sitting position, half-closing his eyes for a moment.
He looks up at Igniz for a long moment. "...What about you...? I've never seen anyone do anything like that before...."

Igniz smiles that same genuine smile, enhanced by the passive feeling that there is light playing around his head. "Action, and careful action, have lead me down this road. When I spoke of power before, I spoke from fortunate experience. I am a studied wielder of chi."

He seems to look through Lykaio for a moment, or maybe looking at something else -- something in him? "To have energy as such and to have never had a master! How rare! But ultimately sorrowful; I implore you to find someone who can help you cultivate this talent quickly."

What is not said but indicated is that Igniz might be such a person.

The Greek smiles back easily... also genuine, it seems. "I knew that power could not come from technology alone. But careful action...? I see." He slowly rises to his feet, biting his lip for a moment.
"Movements like mine... could it be otherwise? A lot of people in this town, watching them is like watching a dance." Lykaio shakes his head slightly, still smiling. "I have had a teacher for a small time." A short pause, and the smile fades just the slightest bit. "I... haven't actually learned anything from her about power so far, though. She seems more concerned with safety. But perhaps all teaching is like that, one step at a time...?"

Igniz glances at the woman behind him. She smirks sardonically, crosses her arms, and disappears in a flash of light.

"This is perhaps not the finest place to discuss such matters. I am eager to help, and if you are eager to accept, contact me."

He produces a business card in his hand, offering it to Lykaio. Immediately thereafter, he too disappears like his secretary.

Lykaio raises an eyebrow slightly as the woman vanishes. He smiles and takes the business card, then blinks at the second dissapearance. A strange expression finds it's way onto his face as he looks down at the business card, and he finally looks around, and contemplates vanishing as well...
But, he's still not quite in the shape he'd want to be to run that quick under the cover of light... so, he merely steps over the cordoned and begins to walk away, looking quite happy considering he just lost his ticket to the World Warrior tournament.

Log created by Lykaio, and last modified on 06:14:38 03/15/2007.