Description: Femme Fatale. Arika's band. Up and coming stars of the punk rock world. They're in Southtown to promote their latest album. Unfortunately, not everyone's a fan. Enter Riko. She's a girl with opinions. Artistic opinions! It's critique, it is. Or maybe it's just a a thinly veiled pretext to pick a fight, serving some kind of insidious purpose. With ninja, you never know.
A bustle of activity surrounds the music store; at least there's a larger crowd there than many of the other shops in the mall at the moment. Large signage outside the music shop states that the punk band Femme Fatale will be on location today to do promotions for their newest CD 'Hawaiian Sabotage'.
Four young women, ranging in age from nineteen to twenty-eight (yes, some of the women in the band are -that- old) are seated at a table, all wearing Hawaiian style clothing. The lead singer - Arika Fade - is actually sitting -atop- the table as she signs CD covers for fans. The only difference she has in relation to the rest of the band is a gauze bandage that can barely be seen under her halter top, and another bandage upon her throat that's held in place by medical tape.
There's a particular quality about music stores. Vapid commercialism if it's one of those big chains...indie pretentiousness if it /isn't/ a chain store. You just can't win.
It's hard to tell just which direction this crowd's leaning in. The press of people, mostly teenagers and 20-somethings, is just so generically hip...it's hard to tell which end is attached to the pelvis. Metaphorically speaking. Maybe that's saying something about Femme Fatale's fan base. Or maybe it's just a sad reflection on youth culture in Southtown, Japan. Who's to say?
In any case, the girl approaching the signing table...she's pretty anonymous. She doesn't stand out. Not in this group. The in-line skates are slightly unusual, especially indoors. But that's fitting with the motif, after all. Everything else checks out - stereo headphones looped round her neck, plugged into an iPod clipped at her waist. Then there's the black t-shirt with the stylised band logo. Of course, that shirt takes on a somewhat different dimension, in light of the fact that...whatever else she might be, Riko Koganei is a trained ninja.
And she's wearing a Nine Inch Nails shirt.
NIN.
That probably explains the /ease/ with which she moves through the crowd. People don't exactly part for her like the Red Sea for Moses. But she somehow manages to slip through gaps, or gently persuade people to move aside...before they even realise she's there. And somehow, in a few eyeblinks, she's at the front of the crowd. Slapping a copy of the Femme Fatale album on the table. The jewel case smacks against the tabletop.
"Hi," Riko says, brightly, "I'd like an autograph for my copy of your blatantly commercial post-Grunge derivative product!"
It's to Riko's good fortune (or perhaps misfortune - time will tell) that the jewel case smacked down against the table beside Arika and not one of the others. While the others don't look to be the fighting type in any way, shape or form, they -do- look like the type to take a blatant insult to heart and become increasingly angry with the one who issued it.
All Arika does is look at the jewel case, spy the picture of Drake on that surfboard and smiles. The unveiled insult goes ignored for a moment while she signs the case with a scrawling feminine cursive; even being 'cute' enough to dot the 'i' in her name with a little heart-shape. The case is then slide down the table to a woman with jet-black hair who is currently rolling a set of drumsticks back and forth over the table.
"Nealy, sign that would'ja?"
With the CD being passed off, the blonde singer glances over at the little bint with the big mouth and smiles somewhat sardonically. "We'll 'ave that up for you in a jiffy, poppet. Don't worry you're pretty lil' head." The voice is soft, friendly and not at -all- dripping with sarcasm.
Okay. Maybe it is. Just a little.
"Oh, no, it's okay," Riko replies, with a dismissive wave of the hand.
It's...a very precise wave, actually. A casual gesture, yes, but still somehow...calculated. Much like her voice, really. In the same way that Arika's speaking. There's a subtle edge of sarcasm there, so subtle it's /almost/ invisible.
Almost. Not quite.
Riko cocks a thumb in the direction of one of the band's standees, one of the large vertical banners resting next to the table - with, naturally enough, a large blown-up version of the album's cover.
Sure enough, it's a rather nice picture of Drake "Domino" Vyril. On a surfboard, rocking out the whole Hawaiian theme. Quite a good shot, really. The man's photogenic, being a male model and 'face' wrestler...but this one...this one is art.
"I mean," Riko continues, pointing, "you're probably getting like a dozen vapid fangirls through here every second. Natural, really, since, y'know, you're obviously capitalizing on his image to appeal to a particular market niche. But I guess that's standard operating procedure in the world of pre-packaged pop music."
Turning her head in the direction of the cocked thumb, Arika's smile turns softer. Could it be that the punk rock princess has a particular thing for the male model wrestler, or is it just that the particular picture of him on that surfboard is exactly what the younger girl thinks; art.
"It ain't pop music, poppet," Arika says tersely, "but it's obvious that you're 'ere for that particular reason." Despite the iPod the girl is wearing, the punk rock diva doubts she knows what -real- music is. "Too bad 'e ain't 'ere to be signin' them either, but I didn't feel like pesterin'em to come all the way down'ere to be mobbed."
Nealy slides the CD down to Liz and then turns her attention to the conversation at hand. "That's wot models are for, kid," she quips up in a somewhat heated manner. Looks like -someone- doesn't like being social at all. Likely why she plays drums instead of being one of the fronts.
"Tsk. Nealy, behave. The wee poppet 'as a point. We -were- capitalizing upon Drake's ability to look good doin' anythin', even though 'e was doin' it as a favor for me."
By now, having spent more than a little amount of time at the front of the line...and having /jumped queue/ besides, the fans behind Riko are beginning to get just a little antsy. A black-haired boy tries to shoulder his way past her, growling something.
Without missing a beat, Riko adjusts her posture. And flicks an ankle out. The movement is so small, so minute, that most people would completely miss it. You'd need to be an expert in reading motion and body language to catch it...
...or a trained fighter. Like Arika.
The other teenager promptly finds his feet entangled, his forward motion deflected by one of Riko's baby-blue skates. Then he finds his face on the floor, his body a tangled mess of limbs. A girl behind him stumbles, as well.
Riko doesn't seem at all peturbed by this. She speaks, with her same cultivated air of innocence, tilting her head at Arika's band. She looks directly at the drummer, Nealy.
"Well, yeah, like I said, blatantly commercial shameless idealization of male beauty for profit, it's like image prostitution or something."
Then she turns her gaze to Arika, smiling sunnily.
"Which summarises the business in general, I guess!"
And just like that, the crowd starts playing fan-dominoes.
Arika slips off of the table and reaches down to help the boy up, only to have the girl stumble and throw her off balance. Pushed back against the table, she winces slightly and shoots Riko a dirty look. Girl's a troublemaker, obviously.
Busy righting herself and helping the two fans back up to their feet, Arika let's her bandmate field the young girl. Nealy, vocal as she is, offers a displeased grunt, shrugs her shoulders and basically ignores Riko.
Sighing as she hears the non-response, Arika sets her deep-blue eyes on Riko and says in a neutral, even tone, "If 'e didn't want 'is image used, 'e'd not be a model."
Riko pouts right back at Nealy, then sticks her tongue out in a razzberry. Supplementing it by raising a finger to the side of one eye, in that 'checking my contact lens' gesture used by the Japanese to mean much the same thing.
Two-hit combo!
She drops her hand when Arika speaks, turning. Riko flashes another artificially bright smile as she swivels round, skates scraping against the music store floor.
"Ah," she says, "that means he -wants- to be a commercial sellout, cashing in on his image for selfish personal profit and perpetuating the unhealthy glamour-focused culture pervading modern society! And, y'know, by extension, what does that say about you?"
Riko's argument goes completely over the heads of many of the crowd. But there's a few who catch it. Some laugh. Most get annoyed. Who -is- this kid, to come in and diss the band, huh? There's some angry grumbling, and a couple of girls at the front begin to approach Riko...
...before suddenly coming to a complete halt, and then backing off. Along with the people behind them.
Because Riko hasn't turned to face the threat. She's just lifted a hand, pointing her index finger towards them. Over her shoulder.
The fingertip is sparking, with bright blue flickers.
Nealy rolls her eyes that the exquisite maturity the young girl is showing, and slams her hand down onto one of the drumsticks. Popping it up, she uses it to point at the 'brat'. Flinging the chair behind her as she jumps up the drummer looks as though she's about to clamber up onto the table and dive into the crowd.
Peripheral vision allows Arika to spy this -before- it happens and she jumps between the drummer and the girl. "It ain't sayin' nothin' 'bout me, poppet. I am who I am, 'e is who 'e is. That's all there is to it." Is it though? Is that -really- all there is to it? Not a hint of doubt rings through in her voice as she speaks.
A slender eyebrow is quirked up at the blue flickering from Riko's finger though, and in a slightly sterner tone the punk rock princess warns, "Don't even think 'bout it, poppet."
"Think about what?"
Riko swings her hand round, such that it now points directly at Arika. Her thumb is extended towards the ceiling, her index finger outstretched, the other digits curled. In short, it's the classic hand gesture to signify a gun. A pretend gun, in most cases. Considering the fact that Riko's finger is -crackling-, though, sending off little tendrils and flying arcs of electric blue...the threat it represents may well be a credible one.
There's no threat in Riko's voice, though. There's nothing besides light and friendly tones. If anything, she's got a surplus of cheerfulness. The smile on her face is nothing short of manic.
Someone standing in the middle of a hostile crowd shouldn't be smiling like that.
"Oooohhh, I wouldn't do anyone any -harm-, we're just having a friendly exchange, aren't we? Though, I suppose, -hypothetically-, if trouble were to start, I'd at least give fair warning!"
The sparks dancing round her hand intensify, ramping up a notch.
"Fair warning!"
All the fans in the music store start giving Riko, and the band, a rather wide berth.
COMBATSYS: Riko has started a fight here.
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Riko 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Arika has joined the fight here.
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Riko 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Arika
The child has the audacity to ask 'think about what?'?
Everyone else knows what Arika's talking about; including Nealy who simply backs off a bit. Femme Fatale knows how to fight, but they also know the difference between an all out brawl and something that's meant to be one-on-one.
Nodding to her fans, the blonde songstress whips off the sarong-like skirt she's been wearing for the promo. This leaves her in a pair of boy-short bikini bottoms that allow for much more maneuverability for a fight. Fair warning has been given, but Arika isn't about to offer the same.
Eyes never leaving the young girl -or- the sparking energy around that hand, the punk rock princess makes a small circle around her (for lack of a better word) opponent. Once behind the young girl, she swings an arm out and tries to lock Riko up in a simple stranglehold meaning to crush in against the girl's throat. If the hold is managed, she'll attempt to further incapacitate the girl by pushing her knee up into the other's back placing a steady pressure there and drawing the body back so that it's being stretched fairly tightly.
COMBATSYS: Arika successfully hits Riko with Diva Attaca.
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Riko 0/-------/------=|=------\-------\0 Arika
Riko makes a small squeaking sound. The singer moved faster than she'd expected. She figured she could clear the area in time...but no. So now she's being choked, with a knee driven into the small of her back. And rather nasty pressures being exerted on her spine. Oh, such pain.
She grins, though, a facial expression totally at odds with said pain. Because, quite clearly, goading Arika into action was what she wanted to do. That's why she came here in the first place.
Now...it starts.
Riko doesn't struggle, doesn't try to twist out of Arika's grasp. She just twists her hand round, and -jabs- her finger toward the rocker, at the woman behind her.
The charge she's been building /releases/, in an eyeball-searing display of azure pyrotechnics.
COMBATSYS: Riko successfully hits Arika with Light Fantastic.
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Riko 0/-------/-----==|====---\-------\0 Arika
*FLASH*
Eyeball-searing is right, and with it aimed in the manner it is, Arika is finding difficulties backing away from it. Lashes fall closed over her deep-blue eyes and she releases Riko. Staggering back a few feet, she hits one of the promotional signs and sends it toppling to the floor with a rather loud crashing noise.
Funny how cardboard cutouts make such a racket when clattering to the ground, isn't it?
Her head is given a shake, and she slowly begins to open her eyes and focus on the young girl again. That... really should have been expected. Sadly though, the diva was more concerned about her fans for once instead of herself and totally set herself up for it to happen.
Angry at her moment of true blondeness, the diva springs into action once more. Lunging toward Riko, she sends a knife chop with her right hand toward the girl's chest and follows through with an open-hand strike to girl's shoulder with her left hand. A basic one-two punch.
COMBATSYS: Arika successfully hits Riko with Strong Punch.
Glancing Blow
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Riko 0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0 Arika
The first strike, the knife-hand, crashes into Riko's ribcage. The girl winces, but the hit doesn't seem to really faze her. At least it doesn't stop her from dodging the second blow. She flows out of the way, Arika's follow-up attack meeting only air.
"Jeez," Riko chides, "temper temper! What kinda example is this for your fans?"
Well, yeah, some of the fans -are- shocked. But most of them know that Femme Fatale's front woman is a fighter. Obviously. And many of them are cheering. Some have even recognised Riko, too, since she's a known - if not popular - face on the fight circuit. Heck, some of the folks packed into the music store are probably assuming this is some kind of /publicity stunt/.
Riko rolls back a few steps, sliding on her skates. Then she, quite deliberately, lifts the stereo headphones hanging round her neck, settling them over her ears. She drops a hand to her side. Draws her fingers across the iPod at her hip.
Grins.
COMBATSYS: Riko gathers her will.
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Riko 0/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Arika
Hopefully it can be passed off as a publicity stunt. As it stands, the young Brit is trying to figure out exactly how much damages to an establishment like this are going to set the band back. Not like they're made of money.
Arika doesn't let the roller-girl get too far away though. Half-expecting another flash of energy from the younger girl, the diva spins around and then lunges toward Riko. Again with a one-two punch, though this time there's a fast jab angled toward the girl's face followed by a palmstrike to the chest. The difference is that this time, the open palmed strike sees her left hand imbued with a bright violet energy that adds a little more 'oomph' to the attack.
COMBATSYS: Arika successfully hits Riko with Diva Allegro.
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Riko 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Arika
Riko gasps, as air is forced, rather suddenly, from her lungs. Courtesy of the energy-charged hand pounding into her ribs, knocking her back. She crashes into one of the promotional standees, smashing into the metal frame used to hold the banner up. She tumbles over the almost life-sized picture of Drake, and into the wall behind.
"Whoa," Riko says, from floor level, "not bad! Good hit!"
Amazingly, she actually sounds genuine with that praise.
Quick as a flash, though, she's on her feet. Sweeping up the fallen stand and the attached banner - holding the top end, and swinging the base towards Arika. The heavy bit with all the weight in it, meant to keep the stand stable.
COMBATSYS: Riko successfully hits Arika with Fierce Strike.
- Power hit! -
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Riko 1/-----==/=======|=======\=------\1 Arika
Fighter though she is, Arika still feels awkward trading blows with someone so much younger than she is. A wince is given when Riko goes crashing back into the Drake standee (an amazingly good likeness of him too!), which turns into an apologetic look before she takes a step forward to help the girl.
Then she remembers...
... she should be looking out for number one! Herself.
Catching Riko's movements out of the corner of her eye, she attempts to sidestep the large bludgeoning object being swung in her general direction. The move brings her to the side, but with all the weight of the fallen stand being directed at her it's not surprising when it crashes against her ribs and sends her staggering backward into a rack of CDs.
Both diva and media crash to the ground, and the cracking of jewel cases can be heard as Arika lands atop them. Needless to say, jewel cases do not make for a nice cushion and more than one piece of plastic shrapnel works its way into the bare skin on her legs.
"Bloody 'ell, you're strong for a wee lil' poppet!"
Ribs are clutched tightly as she draws herself up to her feet in a shaky manner. Once her footing is stable, she makes an over-pronounced pirouette and comes in toward Riko with a back kick akin to an angry donkey striking out at something it doesn't like. Her foot twists at the last second and aims for the left side of the girl's ribcage in retaliation for the ones she thinks are cracked and broken within her own body.
COMBATSYS: Riko dodges Arika's Heavy Kick.
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Riko 1/-----==/=======|=======\==-----\1 Arika
But that foot never lands.
The punk diva is right. Riko -is- strong for her size, but that still doesn't completely overrule the laws of physics. The banner stand she was swinging around, with its weighted base...that thing is heavy. Heavy enough that the follow through from the attack -kept her spinning-, even after Arika was hit.
Now the end of the standee is planted into the ground, just behind Riko.
But the banner and tubular metal frame are -bent-, curved in an arc. The top of the stand gripped securely in Riko's hands. The only reason why the stand's bent like that...is her weight, and her grip. It's not something that can remain for long. The metal is -trembling-, tension almost at breaking point.
"Thanks, I try," Riko replies, glibly.
Then she hops into the air.
With a loud metallic WHANG, Riko springs into the air. The stand is still planted into the ground, held by the mass in its base. But Riko's spinning -round- it, hanging on to the top end as it whips around wildly. That takes her totally out of the way when Arika launches her kick...
...and a heartbeat later, Riko comes flying -back-, one skated foot racing to the side of Arika's head.
"Not bad yourself!"
Really, what's with the praise? Didn't -she- pick this fight?
COMBATSYS: Arika fails to counter Improvised Tactics from Riko with Dominant Diva.
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Riko 1/----===/=======|====---\-------\0 Arika
Foot missing its mark, Arika pirouettes around again due to her momentum. Coming out of it, she hears the metallic WHANG and can only presume one of two things.
One! That the stand is about to spring itself back toward her, which she compensates for by side-stepping before turning around to face her little foe.
Two! That the girl is about to launch an attack!
The aforementioned side-step brings her directly into Riko's path of trajectory but it couldn't have worked better than if she had planned it this way! Situating herself so that when the younger girl draws near she can make a dash behind her, she miscalculates the kick coming toward her. A wheeled blade to the temple sends her staggering backward, a hand immediately rising headward so that she can check for damage.
As she draws her hand away, she spies the blood upon it and shoots a harsh glare toward the youngster.
The wound may only be surfacey, but head wounds tend to bleed a lot more than a cut anywhere else on the body so it actually looks quite bad - even though she's trying to staunch the blood that wants to trickle down the side of her face.
The poor abused stand is now rocking back and forth, quivering. The base making small groaning sounds. The thing was designed to hold promotional banners up, not be used as an improvised weapon - or gymnastic device. By now, the printed canvas with Drake's image on it has come totally undone, fluttering to the floor. Surprisingly, though, the stand itself is still upright. Very surprisingly.
Because Riko's still -perched on top of it-, like some sort of perverse female teenage Spider-Man. She's precariously close to the ceiling, like that. In fact, her hair's almost brushing it, at the top.
Back and forth, she rocks, following the motion of the unsteady stand.
"Hey," Riko asks, looking down, "you okay?"
She's not the only one concerned. The impromptu audience in the music store, peeking around from a safe distance - and around the makeshift barricades of the CD racks and aisles - have no doubt spotted the blood by now. But for Riko to be concerned?
Well, seems like she is.
"I just wanted to pick a seemingly random fight with you on a thinly veiled pretext for my own insidious purposes, you see," Riko explains, "not permanently scar you or anything."
COMBATSYS: Riko takes no action.
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Riko 1/-----==/=======|====---\-------\0 Arika
"You talk a lot for a kid," Arika remarks as she shakes her bloody hand, reaching down for her sarong so that it can be wiped off. Once she's got the thin material in her hand, she dabs it gently at her head to wipe the remaining droplets of blood and clean the trail that's threatening to drip down her cheek.
Whatever concern is offered, the diva doesn't seem to notice it at all. Balling the sarong up in her hand she twists it about her palms; looking as though she's prepared to lunge in and try to sweep the younger girl out of her Spider-Man like stance. Feet begin to move in a back and forth motion, matching the rhythm of the music that's playing over the speakers. Each little movement brings her one step closer to Riko.
Once she's about a foot away, the material is flung upward - more of a distractionary technique than anything else - and she swings her head in a circular motion.
Swing. Swing. Swing.
After three head circles are made, she launches herself up and forward, trying to crack her skull against her opponents face, not really caring -where- it hits, just making the attempt.
COMBATSYS: Arika successfully hits Riko with Harmonic Headbang.
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Riko 1/---====/=======|=====--\-------\0 Arika
Riko rocks back and forth. Back and forth. Peering curiously at Arika. Surely she knows that an attack -must- be incoming; the older woman certainly isn't surrendering, after all. When the sarong is thrown into the air, her head snaps up...
...and then her head -really- snaps up, as Arika rams her skull into Riko's face. The crown of her head neatly meeting the little ninja girl's nose.
Riko falls backward, off her perch, reeling. Ouch. Her nose isn't /broken/, not quite, but her expression is almost comically cross-eyed. Totally pole-axed.
She recovers before she hits the floor, though. Landing cat-like in a tidy, compact crouch, knees flexing with the impact. She rolls backward on her skates.
"Well yeah," Riko retorts, "communication is essential for a polite and developed society!"
With that, she accelerates.
Her body still tucked in close. It shouldn't be -possible- for her to just reverse direction and speed up like that. Not under normal laws of physics, anyway. But Riko's a ninja. And round the wheels of her skates, on the blades and panels, sparks of blue dance hither and yon, driving her /forward/.
Electric chi. Basic electromagnetics. Induction motor.
She whips round Arika, speeding in a circle. Leaving a trail of glowing blue.
And then, from the floor beneath Arika's feet, reaching to the ceiling...
...lightning strikes.
COMBATSYS: Arika dodges Riko's Level 360.
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Riko 0/-------/---====|=====--\-------\0 Arika
Blink.
Girl's still moving around after a direct hit to the face? What is she, some kind of robot? That's got to be the only thing that's keeping her going, right?
If not, it's going to be hellaciously embarrassing to get her arse whomped by some girl who barely looks old enough to be shopping by herself let alone have so much energy and power behind her moves.
Moves which are watched with fairly large, round eyes. No way a person can move like that! As Riko whips around her in a circle, she knows something is up. Feet leave the floor not a moment too soon and she throws herself into a backsault, head snapping up to glare at her opponent again.
Springing up to her feet, Arika literally -jumps- at Riko attempting to wrap her throat about the girl's neck as she uses her weight and momentum to pull herself forward toward the stack of previously crushed CDs; hopefully pushing the younger girl onto her back before her own impact.
COMBATSYS: Riko endures Arika's Strong Throw.
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Riko 0/-------/-======|======-\-------\0 Arika
Riko is grabbed, Riko is slammed. She's driven into the debris that was once a CD display, spiked like a football in an end zone - sending a fresh shower of glittering plastic shards into the air, along with chips of composite wood-board from the shelving unit behind.
Two things, though.
One, Riko's grinning.
The LCD screen on her iPod lights up. She's been wearing her headphones all this while - and now, the volume spikes up, quite distinctly. The techno backbeat's audible even -beyond- her headphones, a muffled bass throb at discordant odds with the music playing over the store's PA system.
Second, Riko's glowing.
The blue light jumps from the iPod screen, travels up the wire, then suffuses her body - about a heartbeat before the electricity /releases/.
"Gotcha!"
COMBATSYS: Arika blocks Riko's Light Fantastic EX.
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Riko 0/-------/-======|=======\-------\0 Arika
Arika's body follows through, and when Riko hits the plastic she rolls quickly to the right. This does absolutely nothing to stop more shards of plastic shrapnel from attempting to brutalize her body, but at least the pieces are large enough that they can easily be picked out of skin.
Both the grin and the glowing are missed as the diva's vanity kicks in. Pieces of the plastic are pried from her extremities and a larger piece nudged away from her side where it's threatening to pierce.
The word 'gotcha' rings in her ears, and Arika turns her body just in time to miss the brunt force of the electrical energy that's being unleashed in her direction. When the static begins to flow through her body, she slams her feet to the floor in order to ground herself and then presses them down hard enough to draw her back up to her feet.
Losing her footing slightly, she makes a grab for the shelving unit which has seen better days. Using that to her advantage she yanks a broken shelf from it and gives it a few practice swings like she's seen batters do on television.
The shelf is not, however, utilized like a bat. After determining that it weighs a sufficient amount to satisfy what she intends to do with it, Arika pulls the board in close to her body, jumps up into the air tucking herself into a forward somersault and aims herself to uncurl from it directly over Riko's head, unleashing the board upon the girl's skull.
COMBATSYS: Riko dodges Arika's Random Weapon.
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Riko 0/-------/-======|=======\-------\1 Arika
"Hey," Riko observes, "you stopped talking. That's no fun."
Once again, the little teenage ninja is perched in a most improbable position. This time, it's at the -end- of Arika's makeshift weapon. Riko's balanced on the board, the blades of her skates slotting neatly round the edge of the loose shelf. Riko's skates are stunt models, so there's a nice groove between the main wheels for grinding action.
Of course, no normal skater would be able to pull what she's pulling. And -logically-, if she's standing on the weapon like that...Arika should be grossly overbalanced right now, holding the other end. But no, laws of basic leverage seem to have gone totally out the window.
Riko -leaps-, spinning over Arika's head. Landing behind her back, near where this originally started. Riko alights on the table the band was using to sign autographs. And grins, again.
COMBATSYS: Riko gains composure.
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Riko 0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\1 Arika
Left to stare at the very odd young teenager as she goes about -skating- on the top of the shelf she's holding, Arika tries not to gape. What the girl is doing is highly improbable, but considering some of the things she's seen recently not at all impossible.
What is more improbable is the fact that mall security hasn't broken through the crowd of fans yet and dragged either of the fighters off. Then again, with everyone's interest drawn into the fight, it's highly likely that no one's bothered to go harass a guard. Even more likely? The guys on security are standing at the back, watching this all with amusement.
Board still in her hands, the diva twists and chases after her opponent. Nearing the table, she swings the makeshift weapon out toward Riko's legs in the hopes of toppling her backward.
COMBATSYS: Riko interrupts Random Weapon from Arika with Metamysticparallectrolysis.
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Riko 0/-------/=======|=======\====---\1 Arika
Now, here's the thing with fighting on wheels. You've got incredible mobility, yes. But stability has to suffer. Granted, if you're as agile as Riko is...the skates aren't -usually- a problem. But that stability thing, it's still a fact. And in this case, it means Arika doesn't have much issue knocking Riko's feet out from under her. Swiping at her legs with that board. Riko's knocked off the table...
...but she's twisting as she flies. She anticipated that. She /let/ herself get hit, get knocked back.
A weakness isn't a weakness - if you use it to your benefit.
Riko flips head over heels. Travelling at an upward angle. High enough that she hits the ceiling, smashing against a ventilation duct.
Which glows. Blue.
Then the light -moves-, before Riko even drops back to the ground. Travelling from the vent to a light fixture. From there, straight down. Into the board that Arika holds - and all the way -up-, tracing an improbable electrical pathway. Into her hands.
Before finally reaching her head, and the metal of her earrings and studs.
Glowing blue.
Moving light.
Electricity flowing -through- a board and up into Arika's body.
Earrings that are acting as conductors for said electricity and pretty much sear the skin in which their in.
Fingers move quickly and deftly to remove the earrings before they can do any lasting damage (vanity prevails!). Earrings are then dropped to the floor, and Arika falls to her knees sliding the hands up to her hair to brush it down from the static charge that has built up from the sheer power of the attack.
From this point, the punk rock princess knows she's done for. The fans know she's done for (a murmur to that effect is currently sweeping its way through the crowd). But she doesn't want to disappoint.
Despite her fatigue, and despite the fact that she's not exactly looking top form at the moment, Arika presses on. Levering herself back to her feet, she glares at Riko. Just who in the Hell is the little troublemaking brat and what the Hell is her issue with the singer? At the moment, the diva doesn't care.
This isn't for the girl.
This is for the fans.
Staggering back she raises her left shoulder up on an angle and glares menacingly at the younger girl. With her left arm out to the side, she is about to set herself up for an air guitar.
Nealy spies her though and tosses her an electric guitar.
Catching it, Arika grins. This is even better.
Holding the guitar in her hands, she sets the fingers of her left hand up for a bare fifth power chord. The fingers on her right strum and gives her just the right vibration. As this happens, all of her energy is focused into a sharp point. Hitting the chord again, she unleashes the pent up energy and it explodes behind her in a burst of color; meant to dazzle her opponent -and- the audience. The energy then focuses into a beam that arcs forward, directly toward Rico.
COMBATSYS: Arika has reached second wind!
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Riko 0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Arika
COMBATSYS: Riko blocks Arika's Siren Song.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Riko 1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Arika
Riko lowers her arms, crossed in front of her face. Wisps of smoke rise from her skin, along with faint residual crackles of energy - both her own and Arika's, flickering in the air, a corona, a nimbus.
She stands across from Arika, a few feet away. On the other side of the little open space, the impromptu arena in the heart of the music store. Ringed by spectators, the members of Arika's band. Shelves of CDs. And all the debris from their fight.
Riko breathes, heavily. That must have hurt. With the way she's breathing - yes, definite exertion. But her eyes are bright, sparkling. And there's a grin on the girl's face.
"Okay," she says, cheerfully, "I take it back, you're pretty hardcore."
COMBATSYS: Riko gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Riko 0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Arika
"Somethin' like that," Arika mutters through clenched teeth.
Her own breathing is quite labored, deep gulps for oxygen taken as her body heaves with the action. Trying to shake off the fatigue she's feeling, she turns to the gathered fans and nods. She's not trying to be cocky at all, but simply let them know that she's still alive.
Exhausted though she feels, she pushes herself forward. Likely suicide, but she can't help it. Things like this need to be done so that she doesn't lose face. Fight until she's down, the way any good brawler would.
Somewhat shaky steps carry her forward, picking up speed as the diva moves across the open space. Two. Three. On the fourth step, she hurtles toward Riko, both fists pressing together before being flung forward in the direction of the girl's chest.
COMBATSYS: Arika successfully hits Riko with Strong Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Riko 1/------=/=======|====---\-------\0 Arika
Another -whuff- of escaping air, as Riko is once again knocked back. Breath forcefully expelled from Arika's blow to the torso. She's a remarkably. Her backward flight is arrested by the wall - or rather a wall display of CDs. Copies of the Femme Fatale album, actually. More plastic hits the ground. Riko bounces back, though, still on her feet.
The ninja girl regards the singer with level eyes. She's still coming, Riko thinks. Determined. A real fighter, not just a celebrity amateur.
Well, that's good to know.
That smile hasn't left Riko's face.
The girl drops low, flicking a leg out. Sweeping the ground. Kicking the fallen CDs and jewel cases into the air. Then she begins to glow, a familiar bright blue-white. But this time, it reflects, -refracts-, engulfing the airborne CDs. Bouncing off the mirrored surfaces into a /dazzling/ display of crazy-quilt light. So bright it almost hurts to look at.
There's a name for this.
Distraction.
Before the light fades, Riko's -behind- Arika, shimmering into view, launching a spinning kick at the punk princess' spine.
COMBATSYS: Arika blocks Riko's Chaos Tactics.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Riko 0/-------/-------|=====--\-------\0 Arika
Several more deep breaths are taken, the punk rock princess feeling the need to catch her breath above all else. After sending Riko backward, she doubles over, placing her hands to her knees and trying to stretch her body out a little.
Sadly, while she can make her body a little more limber, she can do -nothing- for the apparent frizz her hair has taken on thanks to all those little (and not so little) electrical charges.
Eyes on the floor, Arika spies the leg sweeping along the ground and stumbles back a few steps. The glow causes her to shift her eyes about as she tries to decide how best to approach this new burst of energy.
Thus, she's thoroughly distracted.
Pushed forward by the spinal kick, the diva winces. Hands crash to the floor, breaking the fall.
It looks like she might be down. In fact, she doesn't move for a moment.
Suddenly her body springs to life, twisting until she's on her aching back. Kipping up to her feet, she swings her right leg up into the air, bringing her knee nearly up to her chest before she snaps her foot forward; aiming for Riko's jaw.
COMBATSYS: Arika successfully hits Riko with Heavy Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Riko 0/-------/----===|======-\-------\0 Arika
My God, Riko thinks, it's full of stars.
Then she crashes back to earth, the moment over. Pounding into the hard, hard, floor, head all a-spinny. She hauls herself back upright, trying to focus her blurred vision. The world's a big haze of colour, all soft and fuzzy. But she can make out enough. If the signing table's there, and the CD shelves are -there-, and if -those- are just folks watching the fight...
...then /that's/ Arika.
Thankfully, she's right. It'd probably be embarrassing if she ended up attacking a cardboard cutout of Drake or something.
There's still a couple of those standing around.
Forward, she moves. Skating to build up velocity, before just -slamming- a knee as she collides with Arika.
COMBATSYS: Riko successfully hits Arika with Light Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///// ]
Riko 0/-------/----===|=======\-------\1 Arika
Embarrassing as it would be, it would likely be amusing at the same time.
But that doesn't happen.
No, even Drake's cardboard visage is left virtually unharmed.
Taking a knee to the stomach knocks the breath out of the diva. Arika doesn't make a sound other than a strained gasp as she's pushed backward into the crowd. Someone gives her a small shove forward again, but at the moment it's not really much use. Pained tears are welling up in her eyes, but she refuses to let them spill over. Not yet. Not until the fight is complete!
What the shove -does- do though is put her close to the girl again. With her right arm swinging out, she makes a grab for Riko's throat. Nothing so simple as a choke or stranglehold though. If she manages to catch the girl, she's got every intention of lifting the youngster off of her feet and slamming her down into the pile of CDs face first.
COMBATSYS: Riko blocks Arika's Strong Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\ < > ///// ]
Riko 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\1 Arika
Riko hits the ground, alright. But she doesn't do so with her face. Not exactly. She absorbs the impact with raised arms. Some of it, anyway - catching the brunt of the damage on her forearms and elbows. The broken CD shards lacerate her skin, drawing blood.
She ignores that, though, squirming away from Arika. She's still mostly on the ground, but without getting up, she just lashes out with another kick. Kicking straight /backward/, the heavy plastic-clad heel of her skate boot flashing towards the singer's gut.
"Okay already, can't we just be friends?"
COMBATSYS: Riko successfully hits Arika with Light Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\ < > /// ]
Riko 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 Arika
Heel hits stomach with alarming precision, sending the punk rock princess up and backward.
Note: plastic-clad heels leave tread marks.
Lines from the heel can be seen on Arika's toned stomach, looking quite red. A bruise will likely form, but in the broad view of things at least -this- fighter isn't trying to gut her, claw her or otherwise seriously maim her.
A snort is the only response that is given to the question as the diva tries to take hold of the heel and and subsequently the ankle so that she can push Riko's knee forward in a reverse Achilles Tendon hold.
COMBATSYS: Riko dodges Arika's Quick Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\ < > /// ]
Riko 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 Arika
Riko isn't inclined to cooperate, though. She flicks her foot back, just an instant before Arika gets a firm hold. It's a close thing - the punk diva's fingers actually begin to close round Riko's ankle before the skate is pulled free. But close is good enough, at least this time. Riko's face is towards the ground, her arms resting on the floor - as is her other leg, the one not being grasped at.
That's three points. So she's got enough force to just -push- off, springing into the air. Flipping round...and dropping as gravity reasserts itself. Riko falls directly towards Arika's back, aiming to -shove- the musician into the ground.
Hey, turnabout's fair play.
"I'm serious," Riko continues, "friends?"
COMBATSYS: Arika dodges Riko's Quick Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > /// ]
Riko 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 Arika
Another snort for the question.
It's not that Arika has a desire to -not- be friends with the young, agile fighter. It's not even that she's indifferent to it. It's the fact that she's fairly focused on the fight now, trying to maintain a good standing, when she's quite obviously (at least to her way of thinking) been outmaneuvered.
Inhaling rather deep breaths through her nose and exhaling them slowly through barely parted lips, she conserves her energy until Riko makes her move. Twirling her body around to face Riko as she begins to land, Arika throws her body to the side, curving her body up into a ball-shape as she rolls to the side of the broken matter of CDs and shelving and then comes up into a crouch.
A grin is offered to the girl before sends herself into a forward somersault, her foot sweeping out just as she lands before Riko's body in an attempt to either sweep the feet out from under her, or send a hooked kick to the back of the girl's legs - all dependant on how quickly the girl catches her balance after the missed drop.
COMBATSYS: Riko blocks Arika's Light Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //// ]
Riko 0/-------/--=====|=======\==-----\1 Arika
But Riko lands just a little more elegantly than Arika might have anticipated. Gracefully enough that she's able to twist round just as the musician sweeps her leg in. The wheels of Riko's skates sketch an abbreviated circle on the floor, running over the glittering remnants of broken CDs, the twisted shards of albums smashed in the fight. She spins quickly enough that a few of these flash into the air, driven by the force of her turn.
Riko pivots, low. Her entire body close to the ground. She catches Arika's leg with one raised forearm. The act of blocking -itself- hurts, since that arm's already battered and bleeding. But she ignores that.
She'll worry about pain later. For now...
Riko snatches one of the smashed jewel cases from the floor. She flips the plastic square, then drives one edge into Arika's side, dagger-like.
Brightly, she chirps: "Nothing personal!"
COMBATSYS: Riko successfully hits Arika with Weapon Jab.
[ \\\\\\\\\ < > // ]
Riko 0/-------/--=====|=======\===----\1 Arika
Crouched as she is after the foot sweep, Arika has little chance to avoid the plastic shanking the younger girl is intending. The diva does try to slide to the side, but finds the square of the jewel-case lodged into her side. It actually causes her to cry out in pain, and she draws up to her feet in order to survey the damage.
Eyes flit to the plastic piece sticking out of her side and she makes no move to take it out just yet. As such, blood begins to well up around the plastic but isn't dripping down the diva's body just yet.
Nothing personal? The girl's kidding, right? Forgetting all about the fight, Arika focuses her anger toward the girl before her. No verbal tirade is forthcoming. Instead, the punk rock princess is eerily silent.
With quick and precise moves, she circles behind Riko and reaches under the girl's arm with her left hand, trying to bring her hand up and around the other's neck. Right arm snakes around to grab the other arm and lock the girl up in a somewhat convoluted half-nelson.
COMBATSYS: Arika can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\ <
Riko 0/-------/--=====|
COMBATSYS: Riko blocks Arika's Punk Rock Breakdown.
[ \\\\\\ <
Riko 0/-------/-======|
Locking her arms around Riko's neck, Arika lifts the younger girl high in the air, spinning her around to show off to the fans that are still cheering her on.
Each subtle turn with the spinning causes what would be a normal 'turn' into a quick whirlwind movement that ends with the punk rocker stopping rather abruptly before she quickly slams the girl down to the ground, using the full force of her body.
The diva has no illusions though. After this is done, she's either got to stop or force the younger girl into knocking her out cold.
Wanting to avoid the embarrassment of being KO'd by one so young, the Brit staggers back a few feet and presses herself against a wall which she then slides down, gasping for breath as she wipes a thin sheen of sweat off of her forehead.
"Oh, wow," Riko says. She's curled up on the ground, amid a little crater of shattered floor tiles. Almost a foetal position - designed to absorb impact. Presently, she uncoils, getting shakily back to her feet. She wobbles a little, on her skates. Rubbing the back of her head with one hand. Amazingly, her headphones are /still/ in place. She removes them, now, and thumbs the stop button on her music player.
Then she peers at Arika. For a moment. Before her gaze turns to the store.
"Eh-heh-heh," Riko laughs, nervously, looking around.
She skates over to the table Femme Fatale was using for the autograph session. Reaching into a pocket, Riko pulls out a wad of bills, strips a few off, and lays them on the surface. US dollars. Not enough to pay for /all/ the damage, actually... but enough for a considerable chunk of it.
Still strange. Where would a girl her age get that kind of money? Why would she have it on her?
Unless she anticipated this outcome from the beginning.
Smiling sunnily, Riko raises a hand in salute. The effect is marred somewhat by the scratches and cuts all over her arm, but she still manages to look terribly casual, regardless.
"Anyway, like I said, nothing personal. Thanks for the fight! And I'm sorry for insulting your music. Ja ne!"
With that, she skates into the crowd, weaving her way through until she reaches the exit. Which isn't too difficult, since people are giving her a generous berth.
COMBATSYS: Riko has ended the fight here.
Log created by Riko, and last modified on 23:26:16 04/29/2007.