Description: Crazy Zhin's shop's inventory is reduced to fine powder as Shihong and Ayame battle each other without the beneefit of sight. Blindfolded, the two manage to land enough hits until one comes out the victor in the end. Winner: Not Zhin (Not Ayame either).
16:00. Southtown Village. Crazy Zhin's Antique Store.
"No! NO! I no agree to this! What you doin'?!"
Frantic and a nervous wreck, 'Crazy Zhin' has been practically flailing his arms, desperately talking to the SNF crews about this particular scheduled fight. Sure, Zhin needed the money and publicity that SNFs inevitably drive, but...at what cost? His entire store and its stock?
Very likely so.
"Please! I got family! Lots of children! Need money, need my merchandise! What you doin' to me!?"
Meanwhile, standing outside of the antiques store is none other than one of the two scheduled fighters, Shihong Mao. With one leg propped up behind her and crooked with her three inch heel supported on the brick exterior, she carries on a conversation as she's known to do, chatting contentedly into the sleek black cellular device in her pale hand.
"You wouldn't believe the shit they put me through," she remarks, tilting her head toward her shoulder, nestling the device there as she adjusts her coat with her hands. "Last week it was kicking and throwing tables at some weirdo and some dark-skinned girl, now I'm supposed to fight blind in some antiques shop. You'd think if they're throwing us in blindfolds they'd throw us in some adult novelty shop. It seems to be about the same thing."
Pause.
"But with a bit more violence. But you know, really; what's the difference?"
Clearly the woman is waiting for the go-ahead from the crew, waiting for the other fighter to arrive, her black blindfold tossed absently over her right shoulder as she stands there, killing time.
Ayame has considered her participation in the Saturday Night Fight events to be more training than anything. Outside of the instruction from her father years ago, her practice was attacking people in the streets at random. But now she fights, not just in the Blackjack arena, but in these strange venues that get set up each week. It's one way to improve, one way to get better.
And getting better means having the power to seize what she wants in life. That's how the world goes around, it's what she's seen time and time again. This week is apparently a lesson in learning how to fight without being able to see a damn thing. This is, for Ayame, a first. "Wait, and I'm supposed to- ... with this over-... And then-... and she is too-... in /there/?" The girl seems rather skeptical about the whole idea. And this comedy act is going to be on film too? She isn't sure what's worse - dressing up as catAyame or subjecting herself to stumbling around blind in a shop. But there's really no negotiating this one and Ayame finds herself standing next to a shelf full of rare pottery with a blindfold over her eyes, sighing.
In her left hand is her metal staff, already expanded to its full length. Her right hand is empty though over her right shoulder is a few loops of wire thin cable with a small rope dart clipped onto one end. "All right, this can't be too bad," the long haired girl remarks, lifting her right hand and clenching it.
It's about then that the poor shop owner's sob story reaches her ears and Ayame turns to the side and shrugs with her free arm, "Hey, I can't be responsible for what happens here. I mean, I've got this-" she hefts up her staff, unwittingly knocking one of the higher up pots off a shelf, causing it to plummet down toward her head, only for the girl to just happen to step forward.
The shattering against the ground cuts her off and her hand comes up, thumb extending to tuck under the blindfold as if to peek at what just happened, "All right, who threw that?!"
"No touching the blindfolds!!!" exclaims one of the officials through a completely unnecessary bull horn.
Ayame cringes, "Ja, ja, sorry. Jeez."
"Yeah, really. You couldn't begin to understand the crap I put up with on a regular basis. Fortunately, kicking people in the face makes me feel better, so it all works out in the end. ...really? Lindsey said that? I should have known..."
Still outside Crazy Zhin's, Shihong continues to carry on a relatively normal conversation with the other end of the line, long digits absently tap-tap-tapping against the cellular device. Unbeknownst to her, Ayame is indoors giving Zhin a heartattack. If he makes it through this...he can endure ANYTHING.
The sudden CRASH of expensive antique pottery draws the woman's attention, her head crooking softly as she looks around toward the window of the shop. Inside she catches sight of a blindfolded girl being scolded by staff, a long silver cane in her hands. And blonde hair...
Black eyes hood, a flash of red as she squints. Is that..?
"Call you back. Bye."
Hanging up the phone, the woman puts the device into her coat and makes her way for the door of Crazy Zhin's. The door chimes with a soft ring of a few brass bells, and immediately Zhin turns to greet the woman. "HELLO WELCOME TO SHOP HOW CAN--noooo, not the other fighter. I ruined! Why did I say yes to fight??" Grabbing his head, the man pitches his body back, the old Asian man all but sobbing. Shihong ignores him.
Lifting her hands to her face, the woman puts the blindfold over her eyes with one fluid motion. Tightening the strip of cloth, the woman purses her lips before she lightly fidgets. This is unnerving. Part of her talent relies on her ability to 'read' others, but...
"Alright, missy," the woman states, her voice carrying. "Let's get this started, eh?"
Whether poor Ayame is ready or not, Shihong snaps a leg out, delivering a side-kick straight for the girl's side...or whatever of her she can kick with her damn eyes blindfolded.
COMBATSYS: Shihong has started a fight here.
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Shihong 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Ayame has joined the fight here.
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Shihong 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Ayame
COMBATSYS: Shihong successfully hits Ayame with Medium Kick.
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Shihong 0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0 Ayame
Taking a step backward, Ayame crunches what's left of the pot beneath her thick soled Doc Martin boots. *crunch* And it's then that she hears someone else coming in as well, denoted by the ringing bell. The poor old shop keeper reveals it to be her opponent and the teen tenses up, tightening her hand on her staff as she turns vaguely in the direction of the door.
The voice of her opponent is the first opportunity Ayame has had to know who she's facing off against, Shihong's tone matched against everyone she can think of until she picks her out in an instant. Quietly reviewing what she remembers about Miss Mao -... powerful kicks and painful energy the sorts that she's come to associated as targeting her on a different level than the chi strikes she can muster herself.
"Nn," she grunts with regards to getting started and then she's treated to a quick reminder of how Shihong kicks with a solid blow to her side causing the girl to stumble backward and to the side. She's still on her feet, bumping into a counter top display, sending a glass figurine falling to the floor to shatter into fine powder. "Oof."
Well, that's one way to figure out where her opponent is. Roughly. She charges back... not bothering with feints because what's the point? A swift, sideways kick of her own comes next, attempting to treat Shihong to a little quid pro quo, combat style!
COMBATSYS: Shihong endures Ayame's Light Kick.
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Shihong 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Ayame
"Hello again!" the woman calls out, as those three inch heels make purchase with poor Ayame. Good--she's not off to too bad of a start it would seem, despite the blindfold she's been forced to wear. It doesn't help the shop more or less gives away their location; it's hard to maneuver in, and all these fine, expensive antiques make it almost impossible to be sneaky and quiet.
"God, this is almost as obnoxious as Marco Polo," the woman then mulls, eyes squinting behind her fold. Tilting her head, the woman continues to squint behind her blindfold as the figurine falls and crashes loudly, lips pursing tightly before she then adds, "Did I do that?"
She shrugs. Meanwhile, Crazy Zhin wails and falls to his knees with despair.
The sideways kick from Ayame comes and, with a twist of her body, the woman lets the kick strike her on the side--for good reason. It lets her get her bearing in an instant, to know where Ayame is in relation to her person. So she capitalizes; suddenly dropping to the ground, her palms support her weight. Heels erupt with vermillion psychic energy, her legs swinging forward for Ayame and, should contact be made, she swings her legs up in a staggered motion; one flaming toe of her shoe will clip the girl's face or whatever, followed by the second as she rises into a handstand before she brings her legs back down--right onto a lower level of shelving, where a row of small pots crash and fall off onto the floor, noisily shattering into a billion pieces.
"NOOOOO! NOT MY DYNASTY COLLECTIOOOON!"
COMBATSYS: Shihong successfully hits Ayame with Coiled Serpent.
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Shihong 0/-------/---====|======-\-------\0 Ayame
"Never played it, but based on the rules of the game, I'd have to agree," Ayame replies regarding Marco Polo. She asks about the figurine and Ayame grunts, "I think that was me. Or maybe the crazy guy flailing around. He's going to get clocked if he keeps running around here." the girl remarks dryly. But the banter gives her an approximate idea of which direction Shihong is coming from, which leads to an attempt to account for that by backing away.
She only becomes aware of the energy lacing the kick at the moment of impact, the strike jarring the girl and driving her backward with a marked amount of accompanying pain from the vermillion power the criminal woman weilds. Ayame hisses, resting her hand against the counter she had bumped moments ago before raising it up to rub across her cheek where she got clipped.
Jarred by the strike, she hasn't much idea at all where Shihong ended up after her attack, her senses too scrambled by the wracking pain she's struggling to fight off. And so the girl breaths in hard, holding her breath and falling completely silent, taking a step backward, only to grunt as her foot comes down on a chunk of porcelain. So much for staying off the audio radar.
COMBATSYS: Ayame focuses on her next action.
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Shihong 0/-------/---====|======-\-------\0 Ayame
"You're not missing anything," the woman replies, as long spidery fingers reach up and draw from her face errant locks of pitch black hair. Despite the woman's dislike for the situation she finds herself currently faced with, it's really not so bad. If anything, it's practice. What doesn't kill her makes her stronger, as the old adage goes.
So rather than scowl, Shihong grins to herself. "I'm sure he'll get compensated for the broken wares. I doubt it's anything of worthwhile value." From the distance, Zhin hollers loudly, flailing his arms before he points at Shihong and spits off insults in Cantonese. Sure she understands them, but damned if the Chinese woman's going to let that get to her. In fact, she lifts her leg up and hits the back of her heel against the upper level shelving. A few vases teeter before they crash to the floor. Zhin sobs into his hands, a broken man.
"Hmm," the leggy woman in black remarks, lifting a hand up and absently rubbing at her cheek as she stands there, eyes still blindfolded. The hard breath is noted before the silence, which causes her thin brow to arch slightly. The chunk of porcelain breaking under the poor girl's heel lets her know where she MIGHT be.
"Tag!" the woman cries, charging forward in Ayame's general direction. Leaving the ground, a leg swings out, the top of her foot aimed to clip the girl in the side of her head, her body twisting as she follows through with the motion to land in a crouch.
...but not without bumping into a glass case with a few antique figurines held inside is rocked, teetering precariously. Will it fall..?!
COMBATSYS: Shihong successfully hits Ayame with Short Kick.
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Shihong 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\1 Ayame
Her silence broken, there's no getting out of the way of an attack she can't see. Ayame has already started to figure that out the hard way this bout. Vision - it's keen. The sound of the approach encourages her to crouch a little but not in time, the side of her head getting struck by the other woman's foot rather hard.
Another stumble to the side, but Ayame recovers quickly, her right hand coming up to join her left in gripping her staff tightly. She's blind to Shihong's energy, but she doesn't know if her own manipulation will send off a warning bell to the other woman. Only one way to find out!
The surface of her staff becomes coated with a dark green, earthly aura. Thin and dense, it coats the weapon and makes it weightier than it would normally be. And then the girl is on the offense, twirling the weapon out in front of her. What she lacks in being able to know precisely where Shihong is she makes up for with wild, sweeping swings, just trying to land any stray strikes against her that she can. Of course shelves, display cases, and anything remotely fragile in the vicinity goes flying every which way as well. "Just sending some junk back to the dustbin then - I think we're doing the world a favor."
COMBATSYS: Shihong dodges Ayame's Requiem For Fallen Blossoms.
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Shihong 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\1 Ayame
Landing as poor Ayame is struck, the woman kneels deeply before she swiftly rises up, pivoting on her heel, despite the case that wobbles behind her. A moment later it falls to its side, and another heart-wrenching cry escapes Zhin from the background. His priceless antiques...ruined! What a cruel hand fate has dealt him!
Regardless of the man's plight, Shihong continues to fight, despite her surroundings and impaired vision. Now she has to rely on other senses, and clues the other fighter unknowingly or accidentally may give her. Even her sixth senses have to help her here, where her eyes cannot; and they do precisely that.
Ayame's staff suddenly coats itself with that nasty chi stuff she so dislikes, warning bells of Shihong's own go off. With a push off her heels, the woman leaps back and away, out of the vicinity of those wide motions of her titanium staff, avoiding the brunt of her potentially nasty blow altogether. Unfortunately, her backside crashes into a rack, causing a bunch of 'priceless' vases to fall and spill all over the ground at the Chinese woman's feet.
"Damn it, this is more of a hassle than I figured," she laments aloud. Oh well--she has to fight, right? "Feh."
Crouching briefly, Shihong leaps up and forwards, her body twisting midair as she spirals feet-first at Ayame. Midflight, however, her body encases itself in that rich red energy as she drives a path right for where she THINKS the girl may very well be. "HIYAAH!"
COMBATSYS: Ayame counters Strutting Crow from Shihong with Harvest's Reaper.
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Shihong 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Ayame
Her flailing staff swings meet with no success, doing destruction to pretty much everything in sight BESIDES her opponent. Dents in the walls, more cracked glass, vases, shelves... The floor is becoming treacherous to tread upon, but it doesn't pose much of a problem for her boots to just keep crunching against.
Eventually she has to just give up, coming to a stop and bracing, holding her staff in front of her. The green energy on it falls off almost like scales, drifting down toward the ground like flakes. A fancy display for everyone but her opponent to see. That Shihong evaded the attack so well clues her in a little. She can't sense the woman's power, but the enigmatic woman can sense hers she's convinced.
A change of approach will be required... A chance to strike without giving her the ability to avoid her. Ayame focuses, putting aside doubts about the disadvantage she feels she's in given the circumstances, and just concentrates on Shihong. If that woman can sense her use of chi why can she not sense her vermillion hued energy? There has to be a way...
Exhaling softly, the moment comes. A flicker, a spark, a quiet hint of something building up coming at her again. That's it. That's that psycho power so many seem to have used on her. She CAN sense it after all!
Her retaliation comes fast, quicker than anything she's done in the fight thus far. A violent upswing of her staff, laced with angry, red chi, catches Shihong before the woman can tag her with enough force to take them both up into the air, leaving her vulnerable for a second slam from below and finally an overheaded slam to drive her back down to the shop's floor. Ayame lands a little ways off, exhaling softly after such exhertion.
"Oh my god! What you doing! This not right! AIEEE STOP!!"
Crazy Zhin whines, arms still flailing before he...attempts to actually MOVE into the fight itself. Fortunately for him, a few SNF crewmembers latch onto the skinny old Asian man, who protests loudly against them. His inventory is ruined! How can they torture him so? This is cruelty!
Meanwhile, Shihong is dealing with her own problem. The moment her feet are MEANT to hit the girl, a chi-imbued staff catches her legs before it slams her into the floor, drawing a loud grunt from the woman upon impact. It hurts. It stings. And she remembers how much she hates that crap.
"HI-YAAAH!"
With a loud kiai, the woman plants her hands on the ground and thrusts her feet upwards from beneath Ayame with every intention of rising into a sharp and sudden handstand, her heels aimed for the girl's face...or anything she can dig her heels into! Nothing nasty, but it should get the point across.
COMBATSYS: Ayame fails to counter Medium Kick from Shihong with Medium Strike.
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Shihong 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Ayame
Well, that worked. All she has to do is sense her use of that strange nerve-wracking power of hers and then she can take her apart, Ayame decides, preparing herself behind her staff as she bunkers down with a wall to her back. Only way to get to her is through her weapon now...
Of course, that doesn't work too good when the next attack that comes her way isn't laced with the vermillion energy but rather just a solid heel that catches her hard in the shoulder. She tries to swing back but she's out of range by the time she even reacts, having been caught completely off guard by the strike.
Gritting her teeth, Ayame tightens her hold on her staff and waits against the wall, not pausing to lift her hand to rub at the sore spot on her shoulder. This is an area she's going to have to practice at - not being able to depend on her eyesight. She knows better fighters than she can handle it... they had to learn /somehow/ after all...
When the woman's heels hit the girl's shoulder, a tiny, almost coy grin paints itself across her pale face. At least she's doing something right here, she muses to herself. She's not as rusty as she'd believe herself to be, or as she may have feared before taking up the fight. But she can't count herself too fortunate yet; no way. The fight isn't over yet.
From a handstand the woman kicks her feet back and rises to a stand once more, her hands lifting and dusting together in front of her, removing them of pottery debris and other floor junk that has otherwise marred the shop floor at this point.
Turning her head, the woman lets her ears do the listening for her, desperately seeking to pinpoint just where Ayame may very well be amidst the whining of Zhin and SNF crew members trying to calm the man. When she THINKS she has the girl pinpointed...Shihong jerks forward.
Lunging in Ayame's general direction, the woman's arms move; one lifts up, resting her forearm across her forehead as the other coils back tightly before she thrusts it forward, a burst of vermillion psychic energy aimed right for the girl's...well, she HOPES it's Ayame's abdomen, anyway.
COMBATSYS: Ayame dodges Shihong's Swallow's Wings.
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Shihong 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Ayame
There comes that energy again. She can sense it, Ayame realizes. She's been exposed to the damn stuff enough, it's about time. If she were a more mirthful girl or in far better health than she is right now she'd probably laugh out loud. But right now she's busy moving out of the way, the psychic energy smashing against an old fashioned Grandfather's clock that will never be the same.
Whew. The girl concentrates, trying to put out of mind the shouting going on. The distractions of a very silly man who really shouldn't ever open his door to SNF officals ever again if he's remotely sane. She has to focus on the other woman. She fought her in the streets before after all, she KNOWS how frightfully tough Mao is.
Right now she has a trajectory on Shihong though and Ayame tries to take advantage of it during the precious little time she has to act before the woman may have relocated. Gripping her staff hard, the girl steps forward into a full bodied spin, sweeping it out across the surface of the table at her side, sending debris flying out toward Shihong. It's a shotgun approach - maybe a couple of the figurines, vases, and jewelry boxes will hit her!
COMBATSYS: Shihong blocks Ayame's Medium Fling.
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Shihong 1/----===/=======|======-\-------\0 Ayame
Well that sound certainly doesn't sound like Ayame grunting in pain.
The old Grandfather clock groans, wood splintering as the energy bursts outwards, one last, weak and pathetic chime echoing in the shop before the clock itself simply collapses into a sad heap of wood and brass. Zhin wails. How can this be..? That was priceless!!
Like the many figures and vases (and a jewelry box) that Ayame sweeps off the table right at Shihong.
Fortunately for the Chinese woman, she hears the clatter and clamor of junk flying at her. Spinning around on her heels, the woman 'faces' the general direction of the noise, lifting her arms to shield her face. Struck with the antiques, they fly at her and crash against her arms and body, busting and breaking into pieces, making a mess at her feet.
Shihong frowns lightly in response, before she walks past them, stepping ON the debris as she moves toward the direction she thinks the junk flew at her from. ...before she suddenly leaps and twists her body, attempting to fire off a midair turning kick, before following up with a second kick with the opposite leg, another turning kick aimed for Ayame.
Naturally, Zhin weeps.
COMBATSYS: Ayame counters Change-Up Kick from Shihong with Random Weapon.
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Shihong 1/-======/=======|====---\-------\0 Ayame
Eek. Here she comes again! Ayame is alerted only because of the sheer amount of BROKEN CRAP Shihong has to traverse in order to get over to her. Shards, fragments crunching against the ground, all of them give Ayame the help she needs in figuring out that the attack is coming. Don't wait for the energy, she reminds herself, leaning down low, tightening her hold on her staff after she finished sweeping the debris off the table. She has no idea how many hit or if any did. That's the downside of a launched attack, she muses.
When she finally reacts it's just in time, the girl stabbing her staff out and to the side, prying it beneath a very lavish, expensive mahogany with carved glass occupying the center of it. It's a really nice piece of work. Someone would spend a ridiculous sum of money to have it sit in their tea room to show off to guests...
Or, well, they WOULD have, were it not for the fact that the second Ayame has her staff wedged under it, she pries the whole thing up, literally intersecting Shihong's assault by slamming the table into her path and rolling off to the side to avoid any subsequent fallout. At least with a big table, accuracy in aim isn't TOO important...
Kick, interrupted.
The moment Shihong leaves the ground, Ayame is readying herself to intercept the woman, blind or no. The result? The woman collides into the table that's lifted up and wedged between her body and the girl's own. The Chinese woman collides into it, rolling off its surface and onto the floor with a groan and a crunch of broken porcelain and glass. Ow.
Rising to her feet, the woman lets out a breathy sigh, shaking her head softly. Rubbing at her head, she shakes out the fuzziness before she simply purses her lips, locks of black hair tumbling past her shoulders as she tries to collect her wits about her. What a hassle this has become. But no matter. She can't lose focus yet.
"Alright kiddo," she remarks, rolling her shoulders with a soft pop. Hands clench and unclench, an amused tone hidden beneath the seemingly grave words she offers. "It's time to stop toying around, I think."
And with those fateful words, dashes forward into a short hop before she hits the ground on her hip, sliding into Ayame (she thinks??) with her legs flaring furiously, psychic energy radiating from her body..!
COMBATSYS: Ayame fails to counter Guardian of the Gods EX from Shihong with Weapon Jab.
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Shihong 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: Ayame can no longer fight.
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Shihong 0/-------/-----==|
Glowing like crazy from head to hip--not that she could SEE this, mind--the Chinese woman collides into Ayame's legs. As result, a burst of psychic power erupts, to jar the girl and disorient her. Meanwhile, a leg snaps out from her grounded position, sweeping the girl's feet out from under her. At the same time Shihong follows the momentum, swinging her legs around and coiling her body into a crouch, hands planted on the ground beneath her. For what?
Why, to launch herself legs first into Ayame, and launch her skyward with another burst.
However, she isn't meant to sail freely on the air condition breeze. Instead, Shihong leaps up and gains height, to come down with her glowing heels into the girl--still blindfolded, mind. She's working a miracle here SOMEHOW, bear with me here--and drive her downwards, for another and final burst of psychic, vermillion red power to help launch the Chinese woman off of Ayame, where she lands a short distance away...
...before she bumps into a china cabinet, knocking every single plate within off.
Zhin faints. This was too much!
There it is again. Ayame braces behind her staff, ready to snap back the moment she thinks Cherise is close. Oh jeez, this is IT. Blindfolded, and only vaguely cognizant of how to go about sensing the psychic energies, the girl is definitely in tune enough to detect the major build up. She lashes out, trying to pry herself free of Shihong the moment the woman is upon her.
The fact that she's kicked around solidly and blasted with energy laced kicks and explosions would indicate that she wasn't successful in that endeavor. She crashes through another table on the way down with a cry of pain impossible to keep back after such an assault.
From the wrecked table, the girl rolls, dropping her staff as she catches herself on her hands and knees. A pained cough escapes her lips as the girl reaches out to try and find her weapon. She's going to need it to prop herself back up, she decides...
But in reaching for it her other arm trembles and gives way and the teen fighter collapses face forward onto the floor. "...blind fighting, eh..." she mutters into the carpet. "...they can take that idea and shove it... where... mrphmphl...."
With Zhin out cold, it's up to the rest of the staff to let Shihong know the fight is over!
Log created on 22:57:09 01/19/2008 by Ayame, and last modified on 18:52:34 01/22/2008.