Description: BRUTALITY!!!!! Duke and Vice engage in a brutal fight where one brutalizes the other with brutally brutal blows. Also, they do it in Dan's Dojo. HOW BRUTAL IS THAT?!!? (Winner: Duke)
The Hibiki Dojo, emptied of its students, echoes with the noise typical of a League fight getting started. The bark of announcers and the chatter of spectators crowds down the halls, mindless and upbeat in its blathering tones. It's peppy, and it reeks of showmanship and sportfighting, and it pisses Vice off. But she puts up with it for the moment: even if she doesn't pay attention to a single word the announcer is saying about her upcoming match.
The Orochi assassin could not care less about the specifics of what they're saying. She doesn't even listen to see who her opponent is. She's just excited at the prospect of a fight. She's been out of the rings and out of fights way too long, and she's starting to feel the cramp. Like spending too long in a cage a couple sizes too small.
This is her downtime from work. That is, when work isn't consistent enough to keep a girl like her entertained...
She's waiting by the side of the marked-out circle in the center of the dojo, impatient and unimpressed, her heavy-lidded eyes near-closed and her arms crossed. The army of cameras pointed at that little circle isn't what bothers her; the fact that she's having to wait at all is.
Dan Hibiki's Dojo of Saikyo-Ryu. Truly an awe-inspiring place.
If you're ten years-old, anyway.
Duke finds himself largely apathetic to his surroundings as he enters the fabled, legendary dojo of the mighty titan, Dan. The setting of a fight has never mattered much to him. A man who can endure through most any situation, Hell's Executioner has only taken much stock in the fight itself... which is the entire reason why he joined the Neo League in the first place. To take stock of the fighters. To see who was worth a damn, and to see, well -- just who is completely useless to him.
This happens to be the reason why Duke even deigns to bother being here today. Walking into the midst of the camera crews and the small crowd gathered around the makeshift 'arena' in the dojo's training, the SouthSynd enforcer's dark gaze turns to Vice. A thoughtful frown creasing his lips, Duke stands at his full, imposing height, shoving one hand into his pocket while the other nonchalantly cracks his neck.
"So... you're my opponent, huh?" he questions simply. He knows who Vice is, of course -- anyone who operates in the Underworld would. But he shows nothing beyond the icy, contained rage that perpetually burns in the depths of his eyes.
"Hopefully you make this worthwhile, then."
Vice's dark, half-lidded eyes skate over to Duke as the enforcer strides into her line of sight. She regards him up and down a moment, her gaze obvious and scathing, and then a snarl of a grin crawls across her face. She uncrosses her arms, stepping into the makeshift ring, and circles slightly around until she's opposite Duke: stopping with one shoulder turned to him, and a sideways-slanted glance to meet his eyes.
'Make this worthwhile...'?
At those words Vice stills, her entire body gone quiet and quiescent. Her cunning smile folds up into a look of blank regard. She stares at him a few moments, as if uncomprehending, dumb: a beast that understands no speech. And then, suddenly, she finds voice again. Loudly.
"Hey..." She turns to face Duke more fully, her stance widening, her body slinking low until she mantles in a predatory crouch. Her momentary blank look is gone, replaced by something crazily fervent: clearly unhinged. Her hands, coiling quite close to the ground, twitch slightly and set into claws. "...asshole. That's MY FUCKING LINE!"
COMBATSYS: Vice has started a fight here.
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Vice 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Duke has joined the fight here.
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Duke 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vice
COMBATSYS: Vice takes no action.
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Duke 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vice
So, Vice is about as crazy as they say. The sudden outburst on the part of the Orochi-touched secretary is met with a bland stare. A brow lifts, and the man's lips pull back into a dead smile. "... Hmph. Don't whine so much." Rolling his shoulders to relax the muscles, Duke leans in, his lifeless smile quickly fading away.
"It just makes you look pathetic."
Of course, Duke would be more cordial to Rugal's underlings... but if he wants to get a good fight out of Vice, he's going to have to get her angry.
Fortunately that shouldn't be a hard task to accomplish.
He wastes no time, though. As soon as they're given the 'okay' by the technicians, Duke is already twisting on one foot, pushing off it to give a sudden, blurring -leap- into the air. He rushes forward, one leg lifting up high to come swinging down in a sudden, brutal stomping kick aimed right for Vice's middle. "Try to -KEEP UP-. GRAAAAAAGH!!"
COMBATSYS: Vice Toughs Out Duke's Light Kick!
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Duke 0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0 Vice
Whine? Pathetic?
Man, if Duke wanted to get a good fight out of Vice... that's certainly the way to do it.
Vice launches forwards like a bullet from a gun at the taunts, heedless even of Duke's attempt to attack her. She blows right through the kick, seemingly unharmed by dint of her sheer velocity, and goes straight for his face: aiming to seize him and sling him clear across the 'arena.' Accompanying her surging onrush is a shriek of absolute fury:
"SHUT UP AND FIGHT!"
Seems Duke will be getting just what he wants.
COMBATSYS: Duke endures Vice's Deicide.
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Duke 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Vice
Exactly what he wants.
Sheer, overwhelming brutality.
It comes with speed, and it comes with strength, but for all intents and purposes Hell's Executioner seems to not notice nor care. He makes no great effort to get out of the way of Vice, even as he acknowledges how she almost single-mindedly ignores the full brunt of his attack. Instead, Duke's legs subtly tense, and as he is gripped onto and then just -fling- forward across the arena... he has just one response to Vice's words:
"HRAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!"
Even in mid-air, Duke is re-orienting himself. If he's in pain, he certainly doesn't show it, lifting one foot into the air as he descends before just SLAMMING it down with such overwhelming intensity that the ground beneath him begins to shake. Violent tremors rip across the ground, seeking to unsettle Vice's footing. And at the same time? A circular -wave- of fire blazes outward from Duke's foot, expanding rapidly to slam into Vice in a fiery explosion.
COMBATSYS: Vice Toughs Out Duke's Seismic Impact!
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Duke 0/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vice
Shrieking laughter accompanies Vice's successful throw. She can tell that hurt him, and the knowledge thrills her unspeakably. And laughter is about all Hell's Executioner is going to get out of Bernstein's secretary in terms of conversation, because she's starting to have a bit too much fun to waste any time on useless talking.
Slightly put off-balance by the strain of slinging a man like Duke, she's ill-equipped to do much other than simply -take- his retaliation. She rides through the tremors, swaying this way and that-- but once she's got her feet under her, she lunges. Straight through that explosion. If it hurts... she isn't showing it any more than Duke is.
An incoherent scream of fury is all Vice really has to say as she closes with Duke, and the instant she's within range she's launched a stunning kick straight at his temple.
COMBATSYS: Vice successfully hits Duke with Heavy Kick.
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Duke 1/-----==/=======|======-\-------\0 Vice
It seems that Vice is a bit more crazy than Duke anticipated. That's fine, though; he'll just adjust acccordingly. As the enforcer lands, he finds her simply pushing -through- his assault, and he does what he has to in order to prepare; the man steels himself, waiting for the strike to come...
... but apparently, Duke completely underestimates the strength and speed at which Vice moves. For whatever reason, he is entirely ill-prepared to deal with what comes next. Vice crashes into him, and before he knows it, he's struck in the temple, sent staggering back by the sheer force of the blow alone.
"... hmph." Pressing a large hand to the top of his head as soon as Vice is finished thrashing at him, Duke snorts, taking a single step back. He runs a hand along the jagged scar that runs the length of his neck, observing Vice with a caustic glare. "... You're pretty good."
Without so much as a second's hesitation afterwards, Duke clasps his hands together, raising them above his head. In one single, violent downwards swing, Duke SLAMS his fists into the dojo grounds with such force that it literally -explodes- into a massive wall of fire, tearing up the ground as it makes a straight path towards Vice. "GRAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!"
COMBATSYS: Duke successfully hits Vice with Sledgehammer.
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Duke 0/-------/------=|=======\==-----\1 Vice
Vice crashes gleefully to the ground in the wake of her kick, landing on all fours like an animal. The compliment? Well, any girl's going to like a compliment, even insane, violent, probably nonhuman ones, and so-- for the space of a moment-- Vice fails to attack. She simply grins ferally, uncoiling back to her feet, ready to rush in again--
--except Duke beats her to the punch. Quite literally.
Taken completely by surprise by the manner of attack, Vice doesn't have time to get out of the way of that line of fire. She's hit head-on, tumbling back with a cry, and only a quick air recovery manages to land her on all fours rather than sprawled on her back. Dazed and singed, she doesn't move for a second, regaining her equilibrium after that attack-- and then, she snarls audibly. She shakes her head ferally, like an animal, and lunges forwards: seeking to plow her shoulder straight into Duke.
COMBATSYS: Duke interrupts Mayhem from Vice with Seismic Impact EX.
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Duke 0/-------/---====|=======\======-\1 Vice
Rising up from the aftermath of his attack, Duke makes a single, casual brush across his jacket, wiping away dirt and rubble from the scarlet and black affair. Dark eyes gaze upwards silently towards Vice as she comes to a stand, frowning as she still manages to recover herself -- even after such a brutal attack. "... hmph."
Shifting himself to the side, Duke prepares for what he knows is going to come next. Watching as Vice tears forward, the man waits for the opportune moment... and then simply CHARGES forward himself in a gesture most might find wreckless, or potentially foolish. "HAAAAAARGH!!!" -Slamming- himself into the 'R' secretary with almost equal brutality, Duke doesn't even pause for an instant as his foot crashes into the ground only a second after. The tiles of the floor -explode- outward, slamming into Vice in the wake of those same vicious tremors... just before a blaze of fire ROARS out into being, the wave of chi-laden flames washing over Vice with enough force to simply blast her away.
Another shriek rips the air as Vice finds her attack interrupted and her slighter form blasted backwards: but it's not a shriek of pain or surprise, but of rage. The woman is near-frothing by the time she manages to pick herself up in the wake of that fiery blast. She -felt- that one-- the pain of the fire is still searing along her skin, though the flames have gone-- and she's pissed off about it.
She doesn't even bother with caution. She simply lunges forwards with an incoherent howl, abruptly flipping forwards in an attempt to snare Duke about the throat with her ankles. Should she manage that, she'll simply backflip impossibly again two times, smashing her opponent against the ground punishingly each time before finally releasing and slinging him into the nearest wall.
Despite appearances, she really is quite entertained. Anybody that can hurt her this much is far from boring-- and boredom is the one emotion Vice despises most.
COMBATSYS: Duke endures Vice's Negative Gain.
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Duke 1/----===/=======|===----\-------\0 Vice
The more punishment she gets, the stronger and faster she becomes. Duke could appreciate that, if he were even putting forth the effort to make that much complex thought. Instead? He drives himself purely on instinct, much like his newfound friend. Eyes burning with intensity that has lost all sign of rationality, Hell's Executioner just lets himself go...
... and runs -straight- for Vice with a complete and total reckless abandon.
The flip comes as expected, and Duke is snared. Yet the man only gives a low, unpleasant growl as he is secured. He is quite solidly SLAMMED into the ground not once, but twice, the two impacts causing sickening cracking sounds and causing the Syndicate lieutenant to cough up bright crimson. But still -- he doesn't show much in the way of pain, despite the obvious damage he's sustained. Instead, as he is flung...
"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!"
He just ROARS out in a single, blood-curdling moment that heralds nothing but pain.
As soon as he is thrust forward, Duke is already reorienting himself. He lands, feet first on the wall, and before it can simply crush inwards from the momentum Hell's Executioner pushes OFF of it, slingshotting himself from the wall, straight towards Vice at impossible speeds... with a single fist cocking back and SLINGING forward in a single, brutal haymaker.
COMBATSYS: Duke successfully hits Vice with Volcanic Bomb.
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Duke 0/-------/-----==|=======\=------\1 Vice
One punch is all it takes. Duke slams into Vice with an untold amount of strength, more than enough to floor the woman. But before she can, Duke lashes out, gripping onto the secretary's legs and beginning to simply -spin- her around and around, over and over. One, twice, three times... picking up momentum so that she lifts higher and higher until the fourth rotation, where he simply deems fit to -release- her in a sudden fling through the air.
As Vice soars dangerously close to the dojo roof, Duke rushes underneath her, becoming a blur of black and crimson until she begins to fall. As she does? He LEAPS up, greeting her halfway through with a sudden, solid grip that ends in a single, debilitating POWERBOMB into the dojo floors, delivering it with such force that the entire ground simply EXPLODES in a mess of tile and concrete.
"HRAAAAAAAARGH!!"
A piercing scream cuts the air, and this time it's half rage-- and half sheer pain. Caught by that crushing punch, snared by the ankles, she's thrown like a cat and powered -straight- back down into the ground with brutal force. Any normal person would have snapped clean in half from such wanton punishment... but then again, Vice isn't really a 'normal person.'
"I'LL... I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!!"
Nope, not a normal person by any stretch.
Veritably spitting with rage, bloody and lacerated and in a considerable amount of pain, the secretary still manages to find strength for a last retaliation: true to her shrieked word. She surges upwards like some insane second wind, her hand snaking straight for Duke's throat, and if she can find any kind of purchase... she'll throw him straight upwards with unnatural strength, follow him clear into the air, seize his leg and sling him back into the ground with crushing speed and force. Then to top it off, she'll land clear on him with her full weight, for good measure.
COMBATSYS: Vice can no longer fight.
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Duke 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: Vice successfully hits Duke with Withering Atlas.
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Duke 1/-------/=======|
COMBATSYS: Duke takes no action.
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Duke 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: Duke has reached second wind!
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Duke 0/-------/------=|
She'll kill him.
"... You can certainly go ahead and try..."
Duke lifts up off the ground, peeling himself up and away from Vice. Despite the blood pouring down his lips, staining his goatee, the man is completely impassive-- as if that damage should simply not be there. His neck cracks in a slow, disgusting process, as the tips of his right fingers press against his scarred neck.
"... but you probably aren't going to get very far."
Attempting to maneuver out of the way as a last gambit, Duke proves to be woefully slow in the wake of Vice's last, fevered thrashings. Gripped by the throat, Duke once more finds himself airborne... and yet all he can do is give a glare of rage towards the secretary as she leaps up towards him. Not even so much of a single grunt is given as she slings him into the ground. The flooring EXPLODES once more, dust from pulverized tile filling the air in a blinding wall before Vice soon follows after, dispelling the veil of dust in a sudden onrush of air. That final slam impacts into Duke with enough force to knock the air from his lungs, force a fresh spout of blood from his lips. Yet... immediately afterwards?
"You can't kill what's unkillable... you idiot."
One massive hand lifts up, to clasp against Vice's shoulder and simply, violently, push her -off- Duke's body. Slowly, Hell's Executioner lifts up from the ground, shaking his hair free of dirt and dust before giving a vaguely contemplative glance behind him. Interesting woman. But...
"This fight is over. Go home."
Without so much as a second glance, Duke walks away -- hands shoving deep into his pockets as he goes.
COMBATSYS: Duke has ended the fight here.
Log created on 21:03:37 09/06/2007 by Duke, and last modified on 05:59:23 09/07/2007.