Description: Anthrax (1985). It's business as usual in the Metro City Slums until the legendary hero Guy comes to break a few heads to keep the cities clean of illegal drugs, weapons, and skinheads. Blackjack gets caught in the middle while trying to make a good dishonest buck and is forced to face down one of their toughest opponents to date. Guy nearly tears through the three mercenaries until the greenhorn Camille's bold strike finally makes a dent in the rampaging Metro City champion, initiating a series of team maneuvers that allows Blackjack to escape by the skin of their teeth with the goods and money intact.
Some things are cliche'. However, what a cliche' usually indicates is that it's done often enough to warrant one. There's something to be said about tried and true methods. Even if the mass media has picked up on them, it doesn't mean that they're any less effective. Just that you have to be a little more careful when you have to be.
Elle keeps things careful, but sometimes there's just leaks. Metro City isn't as controlled as Southtown. For one, the only level of Syndicate presence is run by Duke, who hasn't been making a lot of waves lately. In fact, the whole of the Syndicate has been relatively quiet thus far, meaning Elle can move a little easier.
What that means is that there are some elements of Metro City that really don't want a mercenary that deals in stolen goods and drugs shipping her thrings through their fair city. So it was bound to happen that eventually, Elle would have to face the fact that her operation might get compromised someday.
But she's not an idiot. She's posted two of her more loyal employees as lookouts. Naerose takes the north point and Camille takes the east point, the South being covered by the sturdy bridge stanchions, and the west taken by Elle herself, which is also where the pick up point is.
Offloading from the various armored trucks are crates of the illicit substance, Glow. It's been harder to move since Burn hit the scene, but it's still a commodity worth trading, since Elle gets the stuff cheap, and it goes packaged well with goods and weapons to the various street gangs that roam this part of town like an infestation of maggots in mouldering meat.
"And that's six, seven, eight. Eight thousand," Elle says as she counts off the bills laid in front of her in a suitcase on the hood of one of the trucks, eyes flicking up to meet a skinheaded man of about thirty or so. Elle being a mulatto, it's probably fairly odd that she'd deal with the Aryan nation. But skinhead Neo Nazis need their drugs and guns, and Elle doesn't care who she sells to, so long as they're not being pointed at her. The skinhead grunts, shrugging the load as his compatriots load them into the back of tarp covered Fords. Just another busy day for business.
Camille is a good lookout, if nothing else. She's got pretty good eyesight and, frankly, she's twitchy enough thanks to the nature of who they're dealing with that she'll be pretty careful around even the slightest shadows. Fortunately, so far things have been fairly quiet, and she seems to be ratcheting down the obsessive attention now that the deal itself seems to be finishing up.
There isn't a lot to do as a lookout when no one actually invades the deal. Easy money, at least.
Cliche maneuvers seem to be in fine appearance this evening in Metro City. Guy, Bushin-ryu Ninja Master, is running across building roofs, leaping from place to place, sprinting along Metro City's skyline. As he makes way for the bridge, he replays the night's events in his mind.
He had only just returned from Japan that day, and Guy decided to check in with the local Mad Gear rifraff to see what the streets had to say about crime. A few caved skulls later, he met up with an informant who gladly urinated himself, then told Guy about a certain deal going down under the Metro City Bridge. Dispatching the punk with a swift kick to the face, the modern day ninja leapt to the skyline, and it was all athletics from there.
Minutes later, he arrived on the scene to see the money get exchanged. The ninja made a face, silently glad that he was wearing his dark blue attire this evening, else the night's work would be harder. Shadows don't conceal orange well. Silently, he made his way around the outfit, carefully picking his route to avoid Elle's posted guards. The Aryans were sloppy, and it showed. Chuckling, Guy whispered something in Japanese. "Haggar should take the front. Hah. Just like old times, except I'm pulling all the work." He did love his work, of course, and with a silent supplication to Japanese gods who may or may not exist, Guy waded in.
The first Aryan was the recipient of an elbow smash that caved his jaw into his throat. The man's gurgling alerted a few nearby Aryans, who were all too happy to charge the "slanty-eyed shithead" in short order... until a well-timed Bushin Senpuu Kyaku sent three flying into their vehicles. By that, we mean that the vehicles now had new hood ornaments. A few more Aryans charged in, and were sent flying, before Elle's counterpart stepped forward. "I love beating on chinks!" That was all he had left to say as a foot to the face silenced him for a great deal of time, dropping him like a sack of potatoes, and Guy spoke his first loud words of the fight.
"I really don't think you should have done this here."
For her part Naerose is probably a terrible look out. She was the sort to sleep on the job and for that reason alone she was given a chaperone. Someone else, someone not one of Elle's trusted, probably a pretty weak fella at that. His job? Watch and then wake the witch if there was anything to see, her job? Do something bout it. When sounds of fighting breaks out the witch is being shaken, violently.
"Freak! Get up! Somethin's going down! Daamn!"
Naerose is like @_@ and then gets up.
"Huh what where? Why?" Exclaims the witch and looks around. Her eyes need to adjust, because she's wearing shades in the middle of the night.
"Woah, I think I totally hear some fighting going on here." She states, the chaperone is like. . "Dude, I jus said that."
"Yeah. you er.. should go check on that!"
Sometimes all you can get is warm bodies, and Naerose is apparently filling out that spot on the roster fairly well. If not for the fact Naerose occassionally does something close to brilliant every so often, Elle would have probably airdropped her someplace in the Pacific already with a life jacket lined with mercury. As it is, however, the woman has that nearly idiot savant streak about her.
For now, she's useful, anyhow. But Naerose's general lack of interest in entering the fray means she's going to have to lean heavily on her other recruit.
"Alright," she says to Camille as Guy presents himself to be the superhero of the week. "We've been through this. We need to keep Japanese Batman here busy while the trucks get packed up again." Already, the mercenary is arming herself, snapping on the twin katars that make up her weapon of choice in fights like these. "Cover the trucks. I don't want to lose any more than one, or this evening's profits are blown." The command is muttered into headsets, coming in loud and clear to Camille and Naerose. Hand gestures are made as she motions for her two companions to flank him as she prepares herself further for battle.
Ambieant electricity begins to fill the air, electrical power sparkling up from the ground, causing the few streetlamps to dim greatly. The power rips forth, snarling coils of electrons feeding into her legs and hands as she starts to draw in energy for this fight. Energy that she's surely going to need as she mutters her next set commands into the headsets.
"Don't mean to alarm anyone, but that's Guy. One of the handful of whackjobs that liberated Metro the last five times it was invaded. I want A games people. No screwing around."
COMBATSYS: Elle has started a fight here on the left meter side.
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Elle 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Elle gathers her will.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|
And finally things go to hell. Not much of a surprise to Camille, really, and as such she's able to spring into action relatively quickly; she starts running full-bore toward Elle's position, looking ahead as far as possible. It's a little hard to make out /everything/ that's happening, but she can see 'Japanese Batman' (as Elle so eloquently put it) busting up the entire deal.
She reaches for that big, heavy sword as she runs, twirling it around effortlessly in spite of its gargantuan size as she moves out to flank Guy. Like Elle, she doesn't rush right into the fray and do something rash -- she at least knows better than to do that, thanks to a few recent scuffles (including her sanctioned fight with Ryo, where she found that staying aggressive is /not/ necessarily the way to go about things); instead, she hangs back a little, moving around to one of Guy's sides as she joins the battle.
COMBATSYS: Camille has joined the fight here.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Camille
COMBATSYS: Camille has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Camille focuses on her next action.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
Weapons. Now, isn't that cute? The ladies are arming themselves. Oh, and combat tactics, too. Folding his arms and shaking his head, Guy chuckles. "At least you didn't insult my heritage. Can't stand racists. I'll take whackjob." At that, all pretenses of nice guy are dropped. Business time.
Guy begins the casual, I'm Going To Wreck You!, walk towards the pair. His mind is already moving, plotting and counterplotting. Weapons mean he's going to have to be light on his feet. His wrists are padded, but only so much, and it isn't likely that they're going to stop weapons for a great deal of time, Ancient Ninja Secrets or not.
Game time.
COMBATSYS: Guy has joined the fight here.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Guy
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
Ninja. The red witch takes off her hat and pulls out a can of silly string. She shakes it and sprays it to test out the effectiveness. The verdict? Not very effective. Not very effective at all. She puts it back.
"Forgot my ninja spray, darn." She reaches into her hat and pulls out a grimoire.
"Lets see.. How to take care of a ninja.. how to take care of a ninja.. "
She arrives at a ripped off page.
"AWww darn, I must of used that one for the cookie recipe."
The witch scratches her head, gets her red razr out of her hat.
She sends a text message to basically all of Blackjack,
'Gtg, FECYCFM? TYSM!'
For those with the standard text message translator handy, it reads: Sorry for this terribly inconvenience, but my grandmother has just gone to the hospital, yes, I know I told you she died last week and the week before that was her birthday, but I really have to go. Can someone please cover for me? Thanks.
Then the witch gets on her broom, zips up to the top of the bridge, kind of like a trash can with a bomb stuffed under it and fingers the nearest cab.
From ambush to school summons to illicit operations--Aislinn does it all. Really, she was assured that Elle didn't need her for this--the Silent Assassin is still recuperating from her fight with Cracker Jack, though she is in operable condition--as she was quick to assure Elle. And even though she was told she wouldn't be needed...
Sometimes you just need an ace up the sleeve, and so Aislinn tagged along, as it were. With good reason, too, as Naerose... flakes. Fortunately, Aislinn's phone is set to vibrate... but she doesn't need to see the message. She got it when Naerose bugged the fuck out. A shake of the head, and an activation of her subcutaneously-implanted microphone later...
<<This is Aislinn. I'm moving into position to cover.>> To cover Naerose, of course--the only place that needs covering. And... Guy. Right. Well, maybe he might not have noticed her; she, like the ninja himself, was in the shadows. But she comes out soon after, her path moving to cut behind Elle and Camille, taking up position behind the Blackjack leader.
Three on one, Guy... perhaps you should leave.
COMBATSYS: Aislinn has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/-------|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Aislinn focuses on her next action.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/-------|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
And here he comes. Looks like he's still int he boasting/intimidation phase of the game. That means Elle's somewhere close to the 'attacking without provocation' phase. She's always been one to think ahead. As Naerose bugs out like a bat out of hell, the arrival of Aislinn is definitely one that she's thankful for.
Praise and kudos come later. Right now, there's a ninja to take care of. Along with Psionic people, there's little in life Elle dislikes more than ninjas. Time to put those cute combat tactics to work. "Camille, left. Aislinn right. I'lllead off with the straight." She says as she concentrates, raising her non-weapon hand up into the air. She judges length and distance carefully, using her thumb as a guide for Guy's approach. Step, step, step. There it is.
She snaps her fingers, and the air near Guy seems to suddenly swell with the slightest forewarning just before she detonates the sonic burst. If he's a little slow on the uptake, the blast will knock him back, or flat to the ground, depending on how unlucky he is.
Camille makes a good grunt -- and this highlights it perfectly. She does one thing exceptionally, and that's follow orders; when she's ordered to flank, she flanks. And when she's ordered to attack after Elle does, from the left, well -- she'll attack, right after Elle does, from the left. "Understood," she says, nodding firmly and watching the rocker-turned-crime-coordinator lash out at Guy with that sonic chi blast.
Man, she wishes she could do that one.
The young lady finally gets squared away with her sword, looking at Guy and wondering just what the deal is with him -- a ninja, with tennis shoes? That's certainly a very... different take on the whole business, to put it delicately. Fortunately, though, she has the mental wherewithal to focus a little more on the fight at hand. Leaping forward, she tries to scissor her legs right around his chest, pin him to the ground, and then pound the hilt of her heavy blade on his face a few times.
COMBATSYS: Guy dodges Camille's God Save The Queen.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/-------|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Guy blocks Elle's Silent Scream.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/-------|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
Appearances can be deceiving.
Guy is all business when the first attack comes, and he believes it to be nothing more than a simple projectile type attack. Blocking it is the order of the day, and the afteraffect leaves Guy just a bit off his mark. -What the heck was that?- he wonders, but has no time to finish the thought.
It's a scissor-kick grab, with a bashing blade attack. Okay. How many times did Mad Gear women try to scissor-kick Our Hero? Too many. Guy simply steps to one side of the attack, letting the young lady fall. No time for planning, Guy is moving purely on muscle memory and instinct.
They want to play rough? Fine! Let's dance. Guy takes to the air, his form contorting into an almost wrecking ball-sized mass, spinning in the air. His target is Camille, and if he gets close enough with the high leap, he's going to grab her around the arms. If this occurs, she's going for a ride, flipping -over- Guy and slamming to the ground head first. Bushin-ryu is nothing if not stylish and quick.
Inadvertently, she's given a chance to see how Guy reacts to her teammates before she has to act; she's catching up distance-wise, but doesn't seem to be in any particularly hurry. Her steps are measured, her eyes alight as she watches Guy work. He's slim, which probably means he's fast. And speed can kill, that's for certain. Seeing Guy slip past Camille's attack and just take Elle's with little effort...
... Aislinn leans forward, starts speeding up, then leaps forward, tucking into a ball as she twists. It looks very much like Cammy White's famous Hooligan Combination--and in fact, it may be inspired by that very manuever--but instead of attempting to grab Guy out of the air... well, she's going to attempt to literally barrel right into him. So it's really more like a combination of the Hooligan Combination and Blanka's Rolling Attack, if anything else...
And unfortunately she's in no position to help Camille out first.
Elle, however, prefers to keep herself at range. Taking potshots at the hero of Metro seems to be her best bet. After all, he can't keep blocking them forever. As Guy sidesteps Camille and prepares to retaliate, Elle takes careful aim with her hand once more. This time, her fingertips curl into more of a claw configuration as she slowly steps to the side to allow for the tumbling angle of Aislinn's attack.
Bracing her feet as she hears the sounds of the trucks being packed behind her, Elle's fingers spark with a completely different kind of power. The blue lighting snaps from finger to finger as she slowly spreads her fingertips.
With a sharp popping noise, she unleashes a powerful bolt of electricity, nearly every bit as fast as the last burst of power. The sizzling energy rips towards Guy as she tries to barbecue him a split second before Aislinn crashes into him.
COMBATSYS: Camille dodges Guy's Bushin Izuna Otoshi.
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Elle 0/-------/---====|=------\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/-------|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
Though she's got that big sword out, Camille's not /just/ a hacker and slasher -- her grappling skills, for her newness to the fighting scene, are tremendous, and her raw technical ability in a grapple (while not much in the fighting world) could put a lot of even the best 'amateur' judoka and wrestlers to shame. Whirling her arm around the second she feels Guy getting in close, she gives Guy an awkward enough grip that she can pull /out/ of it before too long.
"... close," she says to herself, more pleased and surprised than anything -- in truth, she wasn't expecting that to work as well as it did. Giving her sword a quick whirl and putting it away, she decides to apply herself a little more to the side of her talents that seems to be serving her so well; stepping in, she grabs at Guy's waist and seeks to plant a knee right in his stomach quickly.
COMBATSYS: Guy endures Aislinn's Medium Kick!
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Elle 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/-------|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Guy dodges Elle's High Voltage.
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Elle 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/-------|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Guy auto-guards Camille's Light Kick!
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Elle 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/-------|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
Landing, Guy knows he's missed, and is in a world of dire straits. His muscles take over, honed to perfection, even if it's been a while since he fought.
The kick coming in just can't be stopped, and so Guy turns into the kick itself, trying to let it hit somewhere less damaging. He doesn't completely succeed, a wince crossing his face. This turn, however, gets him out of the way of Elle's electricity. An arm is flung out in the direction of Camille's kick, though, an arm that shoots it offline of the attack towards his body, and Guy crouches. "Enough."
He leaps into the air, springing up with a grace and beauty that belies the deadliness of his art... oil barrels beware. Breakables, run for the hills. A Mad Gear thug somewhere wets himself. Spinning in place, Guy executes his famed Bushin Senpuu Kyaku kick, spinning in place rapidly. If the two girls don't get out of the way very soon, they're going to be swept up in one heck of a headache-giver.
COMBATSYS: Aislinn endures Guy's Bushin Senpuu Kyaku.
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Elle 0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/--=====|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
Well--that didn't go quite as expected. Aislinn lands from her tumbling attack and is then... faced with Guy, spinning about, attempting to boot her in the face, repeatedly. Well, her and Camille, but understandably, Aislinn isn't able to really concern herself there for the moment. That foot slams into her head, repeatedly, Guy's spinning, rising whirlwind kick being about as painful a strike as Aislinn would ever want to take.
But she took it--and with good reason. She might've been able to dodge, or just to block and tank the hit... but she couldn't. She was busy, see--concentrating. So even as her head is twisted about and she's forced to stumble in the direction that Guy's spinning...
A wide, lancing blade of bright white chi electricity, edged in a dark, fiery red, is shooting up out of the ground, aimed to take Guy right midline and up through the center of his body.
Guy seems to be weathering the round after round of constant attack, but it remains to be seen if he can keep it up for much longer. Elle's played attrition games before, and has been on both sides of the odds pile, both as a winner and as a loser. When it comes down to it, the fight becomes a matter of resource control.
So she starts to control her resources properly. Elle starts to close in on range now, on the theory that narrowing the gap will put her in range for adding an additional target to guy's line of sight. Now that he's embroiled, an additional target may very well put him off his game.
As she does so, Elle's not simply just watching the fracas, but continuing her constant electrical buildup, primarily because she knows that unless someone lands something with force soon, Guy's going to get the momentum he needs to put someone down. Once again, power crackles across her body, feeding up from the ground into her as she closes the distances. Ten yards. Eight yards. Six yards...
She just hopes Camille and Aislinn can hold out just a little longer.
COMBATSYS: Elle gathers her will.
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Elle 1/------=/=======|=======\-------\0 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/----===|
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Camille 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Guy successfully hits Camille with Bushin Senpuu Kyaku.
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Elle 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/----===|
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Camille 0/-------/--=====|
Aislinn definitely handles the kick a lot better than Camille. That high-speed rotating kick sends her sprawling, the girl making a hard impact with the ground headfirst not long after the foot makes impact with her head. She groans weakly, trying to pull herself off of the ground and marshal herself to keep going. It doesn't go so well at first, and twice she fails to get up before she actually reaches her feet, pointing out at the Bushinryu ninja.
"Bollocks," she mutters under her breath, as she realizes that she hasn't even put a decent dent in Guy yet as near as she can tell -- she's starting to feel that 'weak' feeling she's always felt since she started her fighting career. Of course, that just makes her want to take a few more wild risks; she can get knocked out and still contribute if she soaks a few blows or does something nuts. In this case, 'something nuts' consists of stepping forward, raising a foot, and kicking out as hard as possible for Guy's chest, then adding a quicker kick with the other leg a second later. She definitely seems to have some powerful legs, though perhaps not as much so as /some/ girls out there.
COMBATSYS: Guy dodges Aislinn's Shining Edge.
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Elle 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/---====|
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Camille 0/-------/--=====|
COMBATSYS: Guy dodges Camille's Heavy Kick.
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Elle 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 Guy
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Aislinn 0/-------/---====|
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Camille 0/-------/--=====|
The Sneaker Ninja is moving before anyone can blink. Once he lands, Guy is immediately on the evasive side of combat. The best defense is to not be there, after all, and it's a clever bit of ninja maneuver that takes Guy out of the line of attack from Aislinn's chi maneuver: he leaps at her, springing out like a coil, planting a hand on each of the girl's shoulders. It's a common ninja evasion, but it serves the purpose of getting him to safety.
Of course, there is now the matter of the double-kick from Camille. It's aimed nicely, of course, but Guy is far too quick to be taken down that easily. His hands move quickly as he spins out of the way of the attack. They inadvertantly caress each kicking leg as he moves, simply to give the rest of his body a base as to where the attack is, and where /not/ to be.
Senses tell him that danger may be approaching, but he must react quickly. There's no reason to hesitate now, of all times, and his target seems to be Camille yet again. Simplicity is the order of the day as his own legs position themselves. His right foot comes up to his left thigh and shoots out very quickly at Camille's head. It's the quickest kick he knows, but it's also the weakest.
Damn; he dodged it. Aislinn frowns; attacking like that takes a lot of energy out of her. "Apologies," she murmurs, towards Camille... before kicking off with her right leg and backstepping quickly away from Guy. She is retreating--but not very far, really, maybe a whole ten yards away. Like Elle, she needs a moment... a moment to get things in order.
In this case, 'things' means... a buildup of chi. That red-white electricity crackles and snaps from the ground, crawling up her legs, zapping up to her hands and forearms, producing quite the lightshow... and that's only the visible-spectrum part of the energy she's pulling in. If they're going to down the meddlesome ninja they're going to need to bring out the big guns.
COMBATSYS: Aislinn gathers her will.
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Elle 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 Guy
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Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
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Camille 0/-------/--=====|
COMBATSYS: Elle endures Guy's Light Kick.
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Elle 1/----===/=======|=======\==-----\1 Guy
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Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
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Camille 0/-------/--=====|
Camille's in dire straits, and Aislinn needs time. As a result, there's only one real recourse a leader can take and still call themselves a leader at the end of the day: and that's just flat out take a hit. The Blackjack mercenary darts forward, far faster than she honestly should be able to, and grabs Camille by the shoulder.
The woman doesn't even look. SHer hand clamps roughly around Camille's arm as she hauls the enforcer out of her way, flicking her wrist to put Camille behind her just as the kick comes swinging for her head.
Elle doesn't even so much as pause. The attack shoots towards her head like a bullet, crackling along the side of her skull. After taking so many hits to the head, Elle should probably have some kind of damage, but for some reason she still keeps trucking, regardless.
Elle doesn't stop to feel her brain throb. Instead she's diving away, using the force of the blow to roll across the ground as she skids to a stop on one knee, the steel ont he bottom of her boots kicking sparks as her greives shred across the ground, her mace already in hand.
The weapon's head snaps open, revealing several wicked barbed spikes, and Elle twists her hand. The mace head fires with a deafening crack, a puff of smoke announcing it's launch. A chain trails behind it as the barbs shoot out to slam into Guy's chest.
Should it hit, Elle will send a deadly amount of electrical power down the length of the chain to barbecue Guy into senselessness before snapping the weapon like a whip, hurling him to the ground and freeing her weapon before turnign her head to check to see if Camille is still capable of moving of her own volition.
Elle does something that's going to win a lot of loyalty from Camille in the long run, something that no amount of debt slavery or fear will ever tease out of her. She takes a hit for her. That quick kick to the head doesn't hit /her/ thanks to that quick jerk out of the way, surprising her to no small degree -- she looks toward Elle, and though she doesn't say anything to the dark woman immediately, she mouths, "Thank you," after a quick sigh of relief.
Getting herself focused again, she rolls her neck and draws her sword yet again, focusing herself on Guy as she makes a note to send Elle a thank-you note and maybe some candy later. Something small, but heartfelt. The fast fighter has Camille second-guessing every move, every little trick she tries, and that makes it difficult to keep her head in the game. Trying to shake the proverbial cobwebs out, she gives a quick, techniqueless hack at the Bushinryu fighter, turning her head to nod back to Elle
COMBATSYS: Guy dodges Elle's Slayer.
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Elle 0/-------/-------|=======\==-----\1 Guy
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Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
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Camille 0/-------/--=====|
COMBATSYS: Guy endures Camille's Medium Strike.
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Elle 0/-------/-------|=======\===----\1 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Camille 0/-------/--=====|
It doesn't take a Tactician to notice Elle's maneuver, and Guy isn't too suprised by the action. After all, his Bushin Senpuu Kyaku really knocked Camille for a loop. So when the woman goes to the defense of her teammate, the only thing that goes through Guy's mind is "Not Mad Gear. Who are they?", and his respect for Elle goes up.
That only goes so far, you know.
The weakest link has been exposed. But first, Guy needs to get out of the way of this mace shot. He does so in the only way he can: pure evasion. However, Camille's the apparently weak one here, so there's only one way to benefit from all this. He leaps over the barbs in Camille's direction, letting her attack hit him in the side. It seems to hit the wraps of his waist, though, so there's not a whole lot of damage.
Unfortunately for Camille, that means a very pissed-off Ninja is standing right next to her. The only thing he says as he peers down his nose at the girl is something in Japanese, one word that echoes through the area. "Izou!" With that, an uppercut.
Should the uppercut land, Camille is launched into the air, where a series of two punches and one kick rain down on her form before one, final roundhouse kick sends her flying at the ground at breakneck speed.
Guy is proving to be... slippery, as befits a speedy ninja type like him. It's frustrating, but it simply calls for a change in tactics. Aislinn shakes her head and continues analyzing, trying to find a weak point to take advantage of... she hasn't seen much other than pure speed, and the hit she took spoke volumes about Guy's strength. Aislinn nods, briefly, as Elle runs in to take the hit for Camille... and frowns, as Guy continues to deal with the three women in a most effective manner.
While she's analyzing, though, she doesn't have to remain idle; indeed, it would be best if she didn't.. inactivity is going to get the three women killed, in the proverbial sense. Guy clearly knows who's been the most injured--she can see it, obvious, in the way he continues to pressure Camille.
Time to pressure him as well. Lunging forward, Aislinn takes a quick series of stutter steps forward, before committing herself to a full-on leap, once again flying at Guy's position... this time attempting to catch him while he's still in mid-air, with a picture-perfect flying kick.
It would seem that Elle,'s going to have to redouble her efforts. Despite his demonic speed, Elle's not shaken. not yet, anyhow. All of her fighters are still faring alright for the time being. Even though Camille is taking a pounding, there's no reason for her to panic just yet. Elle herself is still in the game as well, which accounts for a little.
And that means she's going to have to study Guy a little more. The sheer numbers she's tossed at the man has given her a lot of time to keep track of him, and even if it means that she's going to have to let Camille lead the target this time, she's going to have to take the opportunity.
Camille's thanks are not necessary. Elle protects her people. That's all there is to it. It's a hassle to get more, and she'd rather work with those she knows. Taking a moment to concentrate on Guy's speed and tactics, the mercenary readies herself for an opportune time to strike as Aislinn comes in to deliver pain.
COMBATSYS: Elle focuses on her next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Camille 0/-------/--=====|
COMBATSYS: Guy successfully hits Camille with Bushin Hassou Ken.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Camille 1/----===/=======|
Guy's technique is incredible, and he puts Camille down clean and efficient -- the uppercut hits her dead-on, sending her right up into the air just as Guy plans, her massive claymore flying away. The subsequent punches and kicks hammer her body like few physical blows ever do, thrashing her around like a rag doll -- and finally, the kick sends her down and away to the ground. She skids along for a fair way, and when she gets up, Ms. Irvine is much the worse for wear. Her shoulder in particular is shredded; /that's/ going to require some bandages later.
Her head's still in the game, though -- that's the important thing. And when her head finally gets in the game, and she's not using that huge, ridiuclous weapon... well, that's when she shines. ... if someone doesn't duck, of course. Stupid Ryo. She's /still/ a little sore about that one.
She stomps her foot down on the ground as she tries to get her footing again, and then rushes at Guy with a series of quick sidesteps, keeping her exposed body profile relatively small -- like a fencer, perhaps. Leaning back oh-so-slightly, she raises an arm, and without further ado, she swings her foot up.
Time seems to slow down. Everything else Camille has tried so far seems sloppy in comparison to this one aggressive kick. The form is near-perfect, and the force is tremendous -- it's clear she's committing everything, putting her entire body into it. If Guy doesn't move fast, he's definitely gonna' feel it.
COMBATSYS: Guy blocks Aislinn's Light Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Camille 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: Camille successfully hits Guy with Broken Dream.
- Power hit! -
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-------|======-\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Camille 0/-------/-----==|
Ninja are supposed to move fast. Guy sees the kick coming, and decides that there's got to be a point where he stops dancing and starts fighting, so he blocks the kick. There's more oomph on the kick than he previously believed, and this startles him...
...just enough for Camille's kick to completely throw Guy for a loop. He tries to maneuver around it with a sidestep forward, but this just puts him /more/ in line with the attack, and he gets sent flying, landing with a hard OOMPH! a few feet away.
Rising, Guy finally shows some real emotion in his face. Guy. Is. Pissed. The target of his rage is pretty obvious, and as he rushes at Camille, he seems to really be pouring on all the energy. Once he's close enough to Camille, he throws a foot out to plant in her stomach. If this attack connects, he will use it to springboard in a backflip kick in follow-up.
Even Elle has to take pause at the kick Camille lands on the otherwise seemingly untouchable ninja. That looked particularly painful, and the sharp noise the kick makes when it connects almost makes her wince. Almost. She's certainly seen nastier attacks, but very few just look like they came out of an action movie. Most of her own attacks are just flat out ugly looking by virtue of her trying to cause extreme amounts of pain over style. Camille just happened to be able to do both.
That much alone is enough for Elle to nod. Props to Camille. Now, nack to business.
Elle's feet slam the ground again as her legs churn like the wheels of a locamotive. Hopefully Aislinn and Camille have given her an opening, because she comes in hard and fast, the punching dagger on her left arm already gleaming in the fading light.
She rears her arm back. The dagger shoots forward as she tries to ram the thing to the hilt between the ninja's ribs. If the weapon finds purchase, Elle will stab again, and again, and again, her arm jackhammering into the man in an attempt to finally bring him down.
That's it. That's teamwork. Ais's kick wasn't much--but it was enough to pin him in place for Camille's own incoming kick to smash Guy's chin. Yes. Teamwork. Aislinn nods to herself, again... suddenly... they have a chance. And thankfully, they don't have to go to him--he's coming back to them. Before she can act, though, Elle is rushing forward... and maybe it's time to change up tactics. Aislinn darts off... to the side.
There she's found a weapon... of sorts. Actually, it's a big tire, probably off a semi or something like that. Aislinn doesn't care. She grips, pulls, heaves, and spins around twice before launching the tire for Guy's head. Yeah, it's slow and unwieldy... but that isn't the point now, is it?
COMBATSYS: Guy successfully hits Camille with Kamaitachi.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-------|=======\-------\1 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
[ \\\\\ <
Camille 0/-------/-======|
There are few people Camille can think of who have been quite as punishing in pure physical combat as Guy has proven tonight; the series of kicks puts her down hard, and she doesn't seem to have anything left in the tank to get up from that yet /again/. Enough is enough for Camille -- she may be tough, but she's not /that/ tough.
However, she can at the very least try to do something to aid her teammates with her last hurrah. As Guy comes down from that second backflip kick, Camille swings an arm up into the air, considering going for a punishing low blow like none other... but, mercifully, she doesn't fight /quite/ that dirty. Those classic British sensibilities come back into play at the last second of that upward swing, and Camille aims a full-power punch right for Guy's gut...
... and then keels over, groaning, as the full pain of those kicks hits her.
COMBATSYS: Camille can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-------|=======\-------\1 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
COMBATSYS: Elle successfully hits Guy with Ace of Spades.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-----==|=======\===----\1 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
COMBATSYS: Guy blocks Aislinn's Large Thrown Object.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-----==|=======\====---\1 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
COMBATSYS: Guy dodges Camille's Power Of The Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-----==|=======\====---\1 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/-------/=======|
Well, Guy's getting a bit winded. Landing, he easily moves out of the way of the uppercut as he falls, getting a good footing away from the now-fallen woman. He tries to guard against the large, flying tire, throwing up a token block in an attempt to absorb the impact. It works, but it still hurts like hell... but not as much as the stabbing from Elle. Memories of the Mad Gear fights go through Guy's head briefly as he winces.
Unfortunately, this leaves Elle standing right next to a bleeding, pissed-off ninja, who decides that the games are over, playtime has ended, choose the cliche.
Two arms reach out for Elle, and if they manage to grab the girl, she's going to go through hell as a flurry of punches and kicks ravage her form. Each hit seems to be powered by Chi, giving the darkness of the evening random glows as each powerful blow lands.
Right. The desired result was achieved--Aislinn smiles to herself, briefly. The 'win' is assured now, for the most part, she believes--of course, anything can happen, but statistically speaking, Elle and Aislinn have a major advantage. While Guy is busy attempting to pummel Elle...
Aislinn holds back. Again, she's got good reason for it; she tenses her muscles, and almost invisibly, chi starts flooding her body. It isn't as flashy as before... but it's just as effective. Her stance is a typical horse stance... and while she doesn't glow with battle aura, everything else about her pose suggests a rather anime-ish pose.
Clearly, she is buliding up to something potentially awesome and terrible...
COMBATSYS: Aislinn gathers her will.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Elle 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/---====/=======|
COMBATSYS: Elle endures Guy's Bushin Musou Renge.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Elle 1/-----==/=======|-------\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/---====/=======|
Elle's not afraid of pain. She's not going to run fron it, especially when she's poised to retaliate instantly. However, that doesn't mean pain doesn't hurt. While she's been hit by some spectacularly devestating moves in her time, this has to rank somewhere up high on top of the heap.
The fists crash into her like missiles. Each explosive punch generates a searing, explosive amount of pain. Ribs crack, internal bleedings starts, and she's fairly sure a kidney is going to rupture fairly soon if it takes any more damage. Such is the life of a mercenary. These things happen, and she's learned to accept that, as absurd as it sounds.
Nevertheless, it still isn't something she'd be willing to stand in front of again if she had the choice. The fact is, sometimes you have to sacrifice yourself a little for the tip off. She'll recover. She can heal. And what she can't, well, there's people for that.
She can't even scream, really. It hurts too much. The best she can do is issue a rasping, ugly gasp. She coughs once when the final punch lands, and she slams to one knee, crumbling too the floor. Her hands are splayed out on the concrete, and it hurts so much she can berely move.
Granted, she doesn't really have to at this point.
The ground beneath Guy's feet explodes.
Elle channels enough electrical power into the concerete below his feet to let loose a massive explosion, the blast erupting underneath his feet like a pillar of incandescent white fury. Guy still very well be able to escape the explosion, but the effects are dramatic.... and hopefully enough to distract him from the encroaching Aislinn of Death behind her as she spits up a gob of blood.
COMBATSYS: Elle successfully hits Guy with ACDC.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > / ]
Elle 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/---====/=======|
And that's really just about it. The lightning erupts at Guy's feet, and he's simply too tired to get out of the way. As the lightning strikes him, his thoughts drift awry... and there's not much else he can do in the face of such damage. All he's got left is the energy for one more throw, and since the arbiter of his defeat is within range, the Ninja takes it. Reaching for Elle, he throws out a token effort to toss her away. Maybe his Genin will reach him in time, or maybe a passerby will come along and pull his fat out of the fire, but it's going to take him more than a moment to gather enough strength to make any sort of an escape.
COMBATSYS: Guy has reached second wind!
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////// ]
Elle 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/---====/=======|
Except... he's still up. Heh. Never underestimate the power of the Hero(tm). Well, that's quite alright with Aislinn. She's prepared. Lunging forward once more, she wants to see just how strong Guy is... and the method is simple. Even though he's grabbing for Elle, what he'll find--hit or miss--is Aislinn, in his face, planting her feet, left forward, and swiveling on that booted foot to thrust her right leg straight up for his jaw, just like one of Chun-Li's famous kicks; her right arm extends along the same line as her right leg, her left thrust out for counterbalance.
It may not be necessary.. but there it is anyways. Overkill is the best way to make sure someone -stays down-.
COMBATSYS: Elle interrupts Quick Throw from Guy with Wrathchilde.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > // ]
Elle 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\0 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/---====/=======|
Elle's eyes narrow at the sight of the incoming attack, and her lips turn downward in whatever passes for a frown on her. The man seems to still have a lot more fight in him that it previously appeared. Very well, then. Elle's got still more tricks up her sleeve.
The hand grabs her by the arm, but Elle's twisting her body around. He may have caused a severe amount of damage to her, but she's still got enough presence of mind to defend herself against something like that. With the sharp motion of her mace hand, Elle hurls the weapon towards his face.
Once again, the head of the weapon bursts free, the long electrified chain shooting forth to collide with Guy's gut. On the collusion, Elle's attack detonates with a powerful chi blast, knocking him free of her, allowing her some time to recuperate. Hopefully, Aislinn will finish the job....
COMBATSYS: Guy blocks Aislinn's Strong Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > ]
Elle 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\1 Guy
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/--=====/=======|
Guy finds himself still standing. What, did he find a turkey on the ground? Heck no. It must be his muscles going now. Guy sure looks a bit out of it, more so than you'd think having taken a beating like this. The interruption to his attack /hurts/ though, and just before Guy loses consciousness, he can feel his muscles propelling him into the air. Finally, what is likely Guy's last attack in this fight, is his signature maneuver once again. The two are close enough, but it's definately a last ditch effort. Even if Guy's Genin are on their way, they may be too late...
COMBATSYS: Guy can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Elle 0/-------/---====|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 1/--=====/=======|
COMBATSYS: Aislinn counters Bushin Senpuu Kyaku from Guy with Plasma Reverse.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Elle 0/-------/---====|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 0/-------/----===|
Not this time. Aislinn recognizes this. She plants her feet, and is pulling her chi to the fore even as she raises her hands. That spinning kick smacks right into her hands... and she doesn't move--doesn't budge. Not an inch. Her hands, strong as bands of steel, grip that leg briefly...
...and then Guy gets lit up, power flaring through his body in the form of pure electricity, red-white crackles of power pouring through his body through the contact of Aislinn's hands. She takes just a few moments to release the full power she had stored up... and then she releases her grip, and, almost negligently, turns away to stare at the remaining workers... reminder that they should've been packing up and shipping out while the battle was being fought.
COMBATSYS: Elle blocks Guy's Bushin Senpuu Kyaku.
[ \\\\\\\\ <
Elle 0/-------/--=====|
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Aislinn 0/-------/----===|
As for Elle, she has no ability to sheild herself from any kicks past just taking the blow. The foot crashes against her side, but Elle manages to toss up an arm just in time. The fact that Guy is nearly done and gone barely registers. It's time to get the hell out of dodge.
She looks up to Aislinn, and gestures vaguely. She's going to need a lot of time to recuperate. "Vicki. Go pick up Camille. We're getting out of here," she mutters into the com as she stumbles towards the supply trucks. "Let's get out of here before someone else shows up and wants a peice of the action."
The last thing she needs is Edie E. or someone worse sniffing around, wanting a cut or asking for jailtime. She didn't budget bail into this mission.
Apparently, Guy's not a total idiot. The Genin of the Bushin-Ryu School of Martial Arts were notified of Guy's return, and they set out to find their Master. Unfortunately for him, they're about ten minutes behind him, which means that they're only now arriving on the scene. There's definately enough of them to beat down any grunts, but Aislinn and Elle are going to get away scot free.
As a matter of fact, they're all going to get away. The Genin make straight for Guy. Only people attempting to do more harm to him are attacked, and then it's only distractionary measures while the others pick their Master up. Guy is /out cold/ as the Genin, four of them, lift him into their arms. The largest Genin gets the duty of slinging Guy over his shoulder, and as quickly as they came, they are gone. Trucks and people are paid no mind, their mission is one of retrieval.
Log created on 21:37:36 12/27/2007 by Elle, and last modified on 05:23:56 12/28/2007.