Description: Hotaru and K9999 face off in an American court house with Acacia called in to render Fair Judgement on the match. Neither fighter seems to care much for the other, which makes for the perfect setting for a bloody duel. It ends with a sweeping flag pole, a ghastly arm gone wrong, and an attack that should never have been. ( Winner: Hotaru )
Nothing says Traditional America like a traditional, old fashioned courthouse, and the Lowndes County facility fits the image perfectly. A large building, it is primarily occupied by the high ceilinged, all wood-covered hall where the scales of justice have been weighed time and time again. Countless criminals have met their fate seated before the judge's podium; an infinite number of half-truths spun by the crafty tongues of attornies and witnesses alike have echoed here.
But today the jury is the highly swayable public left to weigh the case by means of cameras piping these events to around the world simultaneously. And while the judge may not have decades of law experience under her belt, the burden of decision still ultimately rests on her shoulders as Acacia is tasked with rendering 'fair judgement' here and now.
There are no witnesses to call to the stand, no public seated in the benches, no attornies to banter and object. Here there is only a youth that is far younger than he even looks and two teenaged girls. The jury box is empty as are the other benches. The space between the judge's stand has been cleared of tables as well. On the right of the open space is Hotaru Futaba.
Diminutive, small in stature, she stands with her hands clasped behind her back. Done up as cute as a doll, her blue and white fighting outfit and darling pig-tailed hair makes her appear innocuous enough. Her expression is somber, reserved, her mouth kept tight lipped and neutral. The trial to determine the this fight's victor is about to begin and the girl seems content to simply prepare for that moment in silent contemplation.
Just aswell. The second participant of the fight had a strong tendancy to treat any environment he was playing in like some convenient set of props-- people included. There would be no hesitation if onlookers got in the way of say, collapsing walls or ceilings. Perhaps the organisers had taken this precaution of clearing out the majority of persons knowing this, either way, K9999 was dressed in his slim black and loud orange clothing and a fair bit more edgy than Hotaru. Where she was controlled and neutral, the clonal youth shifted where he stood, his red-eyed gaze settled on Hotaru, but far more impatient to get this done with. Every now and then a sharp 'tch' or muttered comment too low for the cameras to pick up as uttered. He flexed his fingers within their dark wrappings, a scowl more than once thrown, and the process was repeated.
K9999 was behaving as if Hotaru herself, by mere presence alone was an acting insult just waiting to be delt with. And maybe she was-- with her cutely done up hair and far more personable attitude. Whatever role Acacia was to hold in this he didn't care...till she got in his way. Anyone who got in his way would descover he didn't care to be interferred with, and for all the other's sweetness-- it would be a burden here today.
"Can we get this started already?" Sneering, "The sooner we begin, the faster she can get back to her mother crying."
As if in response to K9999's complaint, loud shuffling comes from across the courtroom. The door to the rear chambers opens. At this sign of motion, the baliff - or rather an appropriately dressed Neo League referee, starts to open his mouth - "All rise," he announces, "for---"
That's when the woman in the judge's robes gives him a nasty /glare/, her eyes narrowing into slits, her brow furrowing, lips curving into a thin scowl.
Taking prudence as the best course, the League official decides to forgo the ceremony, allowing the black-robed figure to push past him in a swirl of dark cloth. The magistrate stalks past the American flag, mounting the stairs to the judge's podium. She settles down awkwardly, before picking up the gavel.
Then she scowls again.
Acacia doesn't look happy. She looks, in fact, rather hot beneath that robe, and her hair is, for some godawful reason, actually done up in white curls. It doesn't seem to be a wig. Someone's permed her actual hair.
A crime has been committed. Someone needs to be PUNISHED.
Lifting the little wooden hammer, Acacia slams it down repeatedly.
As K9999 calls out to get things moving, Hotaru fixes her focus on the young man, studying him up and down, her mouth twitching faintly. He doesn't look like much. A bit scrawny for a male with a couple inches on her in height. She's never heard of him before, herself. But his comment resonates well. It's just like the hazel eyed younger brother of Frei said - Everyone dismisses her as weak. And it's her own fault. She hasn't done enough to prove otherwise. That needs to change.
Reaching up to the back of her head the girl tugs first one red ribbon, then the second one, drawing them both out, undoing her pig-tails and leaving her hair to rest against her back instead.
Dropping the ribbons on the floor, she glances toward the arrival of the arbiter then glances away... It takes a second before she glances back, realizing Acacia isn't wearing a hairpiece. Her mouth curls into a faint smile, but there's something forced about it, as if it's merely giving 'lip service' to the amusing props the officials have setup for this match. She's certainly endured plenty like it - swinging pendulums, little kiddie ball pits, Disney World tram rides...
Her focus is back on K9999, the girl lifting her hands, fingers tightening in small fists as she turns one shoulder toward him. Her feet are planted firmly on the ground, "Should be careful what you say - it's only give you more to regret when you lose," comes the quiet but firm response as Hotaru prepares to start.
The newly arrived woman in black robes and white curl-feathered wig earned an irritated glance and then a smirk as if even he recognised that Acacia should be pissed having to look like that. If it were him, he'd have punched the person in the face and tell them where to stuff it before walking out as is. They'd have to hold him down, K9999 never took well to instruction from others he didn't have to listen too. He even snickered for good measure. "Regret?"
Hotaru called back attention on herself, and he snorted with dersion, any hint of mirth gone from him. Instead there was an intense simmer just behind his features, as if he could barely hold himself back from meting out some due payment. And then, there was the hate, oh, it was different when reserved for a certain white-haired flame using youth, but it was hate all the same. "Why don't you shut up, I don't need any advice from you." Pleasant as ever, he thumbed his finger across his nose and lifted his chin. "You shoulda left your hair up, makes no difference to me." He'd trounce her like the brat he was sure she was-- in his head. Chip on the shoulder, K9999 would have her just as pissed off as he was for being here. Whatever the reason for him signing up...he intended to make it worth his while.
"Any time lady." And irreverent.
Up on the judge's stand, behind the imposing wooden bulk of the desk, Acacia...tilts her head. She looks from K9999 to Hotaru, still frowning faintly. Then she lifts the gavel again, pounding it against the solid disc of wood at the base. The sound rings out like a gunshot through the courtroom.
In a dry voice, amplified by the sound system, Acacia quips:
"Chaos, chaos in the court."
"I wasn't looking for your approval," Hotaru replies, mouth twitching just a little. She's tense, uptight, and very ready to get this match going. "So you can save your breath." The forced smile from before is gone, her right hand, held forward, clenching and unclenching as she gets ready for this little trial to start.
A glance to the side back toward Acacia as the white haired girl hefts the gavel, and then comes the resounding rattle of wood against wood calling out for the two fighters to begin. Hotaru is on the offense immediately, darting forward from her position near the jury box as she blitzes directly toward K9999 with a certain amount of recklessness.
Coming in fast, she slams her hands forward, cupped together as if looking to deliver a crushing blow to his chest, only to shift at the last moment into trying to grab for his forearms instead and pull apart any chance he has to guard while also leaving him open to a series of rapid, stomping kicks right up the front of him. Each kick delivered with a certain pounding force as the girl tries to use him a set a set of stairs. The last one would finish with a stomp for his face before Hotaru backflips away, landing more toward the center of the room.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru has started a fight here on the left meter side.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: K9999 has joined the fight here.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 K9999
COMBATSYS: Acacia has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: K9999 endures Hotaru's Shin-Jou Tai.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/-------|
K9999 almost spit, instead he settled for rolling his eyes at Hotaru's reply as if she were nothing more than a troublesome child let off her mother's tethers. He knew very little about Hotaru, but for the clone, this mattered little. His first impression had two modes: K' dislike, everyone else. She fell in with the latter, so atleast it wasn't truely personal. Now if he just didn't treat everything like a personal afront...
"Chaos." Time to start, atlast, all this pomp, he supposed to did add to the anticipation. He'd relish pounding this little girl into the polished desk Acacia had been set up on. Infact, it was definately on his list of things to do, not knowing why Acacia was frowning, it was already forgotten when Hotaru moved foward. K9999 would have to admit, privately, she had a little speed to her, but he deigned to dodge, infact he stood there forgoing any chance to avoid the attack. His mouth was twisted in a pardoy of a welcoming smile-- each kick landing home with brutal efficiency. Not only quick, was stronger than her size would let on...still, as his smile turned to a grimace, K9999 used it to fuel his response.
Pain was the fuel, the catalyst to unlocking everything, and his arm started to for better word, 'unravell'. "The first one was free." Uttering right before he charged for the girl, booted feet barely touching the ground as he sprinted for her well before she landed, his arm solidified into a wicked spear-point, the end plunged towards the girl hopefully before she caught her bearings. K9999 fought brutally, just as hard as he took.
Meanwhile, watching from the head of the courtroom, Acacia scowls, her face hardening into a grim mask beneath her white curls. It makes her look quite the imposing figure, sitting there in her black robes...the very picture of justice. Except it's not for the benefit of the cameras. She seems genuinely bothered by something.
And it's not even the same look of distaste she wore earlier, when she had to come out dressed in the absurd costume. No, this is something different. Acacia leans forward over the edge of the podium, not quite rising off her chair. The gavel, clutched in her hand, hovers over the top of the judge's table...frozen in mid-motion. Acacia grips it tightly, her slim fingers curling round the haft in an almost white-knuckled grip. She stares intensely as the two fighters clash, her eyes intent. She tracks their movements...Hotaru charging into K9999 - and the subsequent brutal retaliation.
It's not the violence in itself that bothers her, though. No. It's just...there's something not quite right about this picture.
...her frown deepens.
COMBATSYS: Acacia focuses on her next action.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|==-----\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: K9999 successfully hits Hotaru with Shut up!.
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Hotaru 1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/-------|
The timing is just right and Hotaru's aggression costs her as K9999 weathers the attack well enough to retaliate fast enough to catch her the same moment the girl's feet touch the ground. The spearing arm catches her completely off guard as her mind is left reeling at the question of where the 'weapon' came from in the first place.
Only after the savage strike has sunk into her torso does she realize that it isn't a concealed polearm but rather his own body that has skewered her. The pain is incredible and were it not for the weapon itself propping her up a little, the girl's hands coming forward to clasp the youth's transformed limb for a brief moment of support before she staggers back, pulling herself off of it, blue eyes wide with a fair amount of shock, her cheeks a little pale.
Her mouth opens as if she has something to say but nothing comes out, the girl clamping it shut again as she clenches her fists, taking another step back before stopping short. Lifting her hands up in front of her she ignores the distressing amount of blood staining her blue vest, evidence of a wound severe enough to end the fight on its own given enough time untreated, and simply holds her ground.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru focuses on her next action.
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Hotaru 1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/-------|
"Stupid girl." K9999 hissed, relishing his sucessful strike in a manner that was far more primal than anything human. The intensity in his face and he wrested his morphed arm free with a wicked twist showed he felt no guilt, no remorse for his actions. If Hotaru bothered to step into a fight like this, then it should be expected and accepted what injury may come. He did, and he did it without hesitation, the pain from her earlier inflicted kicks long buried beneath the surge of adrenaline that had him wrapped within it. His hand slipped back into it's original form, albiet a bit shinier from the blood now slicked on it. "And still standing." Was that a compliment? No, more like her being a nuisance. Whatever Acacia was going on about over yonder in his head, he didn't see it, focused more on the girl trying to face off with him.
A slight flicker in the thickness of the air, "What a waste of time. Get out of my sight!" What a coincidence the wave of air that suddenly exploded into being and rushed towards Hotaru, the attack was also called this! Instent on pushing her off her feet and maybe even into the Judge's booth behind. His derisive hand slash called it into being, the damage to be done without even touching her.
The wave of immense air pressure does indeed blast into the judge's podium, smashing against the crest affixed to the heavy wood - and splintering it, sending shards pinwheeling in all directions. Behind, Acacia tumbles to the ground, onto the raised platform behind what used to be the magistrate's desk. She doesn't seem shocked, though, almost like she was expecting it.
Yeah. Seeing that guy's arm /morph/ like that, it was a shock. And the blast of wind just confirmed it.
She rises from behind the wreckage, sawdust and splinters spilling off her robes. A somewhat annoyed look on her face. Growling, she whips her arm forward, sleeve billowing - sending the judge's gavel speeding through the air, the mallet flashing for K9999's face.
"YOU," Acacia yells.
There's a note of annoyed recognition in that shout.
Isn't justice supposed to be blind?
COMBATSYS: Hotaru reflects Get out of my sight! from K9999 with Kobi Kyaku EX.
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Hotaru 1/-----==/=======|=====--\-------\0 K9999
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Acacia 0/-------/-------|
He tries to back up his demand that she get out of his sight, but the small fighter seems to have no such intentions. Little by little the color returns to her face as she forces back the pain by pure force of will, her jaw tensed, small beads of perspiration forming along her hairline.
But when the wind comes tearing through the distance between them, the girl is ready, stepping forward, right forearm raised, her left hand coming up to brace it by gripping at the wrist. What starts as a small spiral of red-orange energy coursing along the length of her limb turns into something else the moment it gathers in hand. The bleeding Kenpo artist pulls her hands apart, stretching the churning energy into a barrier in front of her.
The chi driven forward by K9999 crashes against the girl, but her wall of chi keeps her safe from harm - unfortunately plenty of it passes around her and does a number on the wooden podium. But the portion that hit her barrier - some of that energy goes ripping right back toward its creator. "If you want me to leave you're going to have to muster something more impressive than that," the girl remarks as she lets the barrier fall, lowering her arms against her sides as she begins to walk toward the NESTs project.
COMBATSYS: Acacia successfully hits K9999 with Large Thrown Object.
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Hotaru 1/-----==/=======|=======\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: K9999 endures Hotaru's Reflected Get out of my sight!.
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Hotaru 1/---====/=======|=======\=------\1 K9999
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Acacia 0/-------/------=|
What a damn bother. Hotaru was getting more and more annoying by the second, narrowing his eyes at this new phenomena, he almost heard that loud 'YOU' at the last minute. Glancing in the other's direction with clear irritation, a look of suprise flicked across his dour features a split second before the hammer nailed him right in the face. It snapped his head back and he staggered, a hand clutching his nose where blood had begun to trickle. And as if that wasn't enough, he was unable to do much to step out of the reflected wind-blast of his, knocking into him and throwing him more off balance. The sight of his blood was enough to make a shudder run through him, though it did far from weaken or put any concern for his wellbeing into him. Infact, it did the opposite.
Lips peeled back into a raw snarl, red smeared across his face, he rubbed some of it away, this time spitting on the ground in Hotaru's direction as she approached. "Bitch." Dripping with acid, which one did he mean exactly? Well, Hotaru was offering herself up, but Acacia...no, he didn't forget. He just had to mow down the upstart first, "I'll make you bleed, I'll make you bleed ten fold for this!" The air thickened once more, but no rising gale surfaced, it hung there like a lingering storm. Instead that arm of his that had shifted into the speared-weapon did so again, and he charged at her bringing it up-- a gun. Of all things.
It's rapid wild fire promised that it wasn't just for looks, its bullets melded chi, it raked the area infront of him, hoping to beat a path to the so-called judge. God knows alone what she was on about, maybe he looked like her ex.
Acacia doesn't seem particularly peturbed, as the guy's arm starts to spit honest-to-god /bullets/ of chi energy. The gunfire doesn't phase her. She drops back a step, the long enveloping fabric of her judge's robe swirling round her. She backs up near the wall - and one hand snakes to the side, closing round the burnished brass of a flagpole. The stars and stripes flutter through the air as Acacia pulls the pole from its mounting, sweeping it in front of her - physically batting aside the one or two stray rounds of chi that actually manage to reach her, all the way across the courtroom.
"Contempt of court," she shoots back, "emo kid."
Grounding the flagpole butt-first on the battered floor panels of the judge's platform, she watches the clash between Hotaru and K9999. Watching it carefully. It seems despite her own ire, at least -one- person here hasn't forgetten her job in this televised match.
COMBATSYS: Acacia focuses on her next action.
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Hotaru 1/---====/=======|=------\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: Hotaru dodges K9999's You get lost too!.
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Hotaru 1/---====/=======|=------\-------\0 K9999
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Acacia 0/-------/------=|
"With your lack of ability, I have my doubts about that threat," Hotaru replies. His rain of fire forces her to divert from off her straight march toward him, a burst of speed necessary to slip to the side and out of the way, leaving the floor and jury box to be riddled with the chi laced bullets, sending wooden shrapnel flying every which way. But Hotaru's course hasn't diverted much from her aggressive approach, correcting for the new angle as she just barely manages to avoid getting mowed down.
"I suppose for you being vulgar is a way to conceal your weakness..." And then her foot comes down for her next step and Hotaru is charging forward, from slow gait to a blue and white blur of speed. A couple feet out she crouches, blue, soft shoes sliding along the wooden floor, her momentum bringing her within striking range... And then she launches, a backward flipping kick, a swath of blue chi powering her to strike with more force than she would be capable of with raw muscle power alone. "Ten-shou..."
COMBATSYS: K9999 blocks Hotaru's Ten-shou Ranki.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-------|===----\-------\0 K9999
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Acacia 0/-------/------=|
K9999's face darkened, and no it wasn't because of the drying blood that had stained his face. He was breathing a bit harder from his toils, like a flash fire, burning hot and intense then dieing out the next... He wasn't near finished however, and there was still that interferring pmsing judge on the still-intact stand he wanted to get too. Hotaru however was in the way, and until he could swat her aside like a bug...he laughed. It was an inhinged sound, the kind right before breaking into maddness. If he heard Acacia's insult, Hotaru would get the backlash. Ofcourse, she threw in her own two cents.
Stepping into the kick, K9999 braced with his arms held high in a cross, accepting the burn of the chi powering it and then shoving foward roughly to shove her out of the way and interrupt her follow through. He was angry, evinced by the further leadning of the air and the aura about him. If this were a storm, the floor would be tearing itself up by now, instead, there was only the faintest of quivers to his frame. Holding it all in, having it build. For all the calls of weaknesses, it couldn't be denied...K9999 had strength, how it was used left something to be desired for finess, but the fact it existed was undeniable.
"There is nothing to conceal." Grating out inbetween when he caught his breath from the laughter, "When I'm done with you, there'll be little left. You and that simpering bitch up there hiding behind that podium." Organisers be damned.
COMBATSYS: K9999 gains composure.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0 K9999
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Acacia 0/-------/------=|
"I'm not hiding," Acacia says, mildly.
She's still clutching the flagpole, her fingers sliding down the length of burnished bronze. Then, in a single explosive motion, she tosses it higher - high enough that the rounded end of the pole almost smashes against the light fixtures overhead. Gripping the flagpole near the base, now, she leaps off the judge's area, crashing down the steps. The dark official robes flare out behind her as she makes the jump, making her look, for just a moment, more like some kind of martial warrior monk.
Or possibly a warrior nun.
Then she lands on the courtroom floor. The pole whips through the air, flag swirling behind it, the metal slicing a massive crescent arc through the melee.
"No," Acacia states, flatly, "offense."
COMBATSYS: Acacia successfully hits Hotaru with Random Weapon.
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Hotaru 0/-------/-======|=------\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/-----==|
K9999's defense against her last attack leaves Hotaru landing, recovering from the expenditure of effort with a slow rise back to standing. That... didn't leave the punch she was hoping for. The strain on the wound she got from his spear earlier is catching up with her fast though as she feels her strength dwindling along with probably too much blood to stay standing for much longer...
Her back is toward Acacia but she isn't completely oblivious to her. But she's too far away to interced right now... or so the focused Kenpo artist thought. The flag pole that crashes into her side begs to differ, however, as the sadly fragile fighter is slammed up hard against the wall with a crushing thud.
Coughing, her left hand comes up to rest against her side as she winces once and peels herself away from the indentation in the old, now rather damaged courthouse's wall. Time is running out... it's time to aim big, time to draw on something she had held back on until now... It takes a moment to focus her blurring vision on K9999's direction, but the moment she has it, the girl begins advancing on him again, her right harm aglow with a swirling, red-orange power building up primarily in her fist.
Not sprinting, but not moving slowly either, the girl attempts to get in close enough to the young man to seize his right forearm with her left hand and twist it up and to the side, leaving half of his chest exposed... And then comes the forward slam of her right hand, palm stopping just shy of striking him, and all of the pent up energy in her forarm discharging all at once at point blank range. The energy is savagely powerful, capable of piercing right through clothing and skin as if made of sharp blades of flame as Hotaru attempts to blast K9999 back harshly.
COMBATSYS: Acacia successfully hits K9999 with Random Weapon.
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Hotaru 0/-------/---====|=====--\-------\0 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits K9999 with Maou Satsujinken.
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Hotaru 0/-------/=======|=======\======-\1 K9999
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Acacia 0/-------/----===|
She couldn't be serious about--
That was about as far as K9999's thoughts made it when he turned intime to see Acacia swinging of all things, a massive flag and pole of /JUSTICE/. The steel of it and the strength behind the swing was formidable he would have reflected in passing where he not busy having his breath knocked, floor and sense out of him. He hit the ground hard, almost folding over with the distinct pleasure of the knowing he'd done more than cracked a rib or two. The stabbing pain in his chest was just the start of it, and he coughed, rolling back onto his feet in a daze. Standing upright had to be done in stages at this point.
He was about halfway upright when Hotaru'd move in for the follow up, recovering faster than he had to slam home an chi blast that made short work of his clothing and skin. He had no 'genteel' come backs this time, it was as if something snapped within. Blood welled up in the back of his throat, the sharp tangy taste lost in the blankness of his staring eyes. It vanished a split second after in a moment of clarity, his eyes fixing on the last source of his torment. A throaty gurlge that would have represented a word barely made it out, looking as if he were about to collapse afterall...
Instead, doing the opposite. All that heaviness to the air sharpened to a knife point as his arm began to change, his right hand raked fingers into his left shoulder, digging into the skin, the flesh itself seemed to liquify almost and shift as the snapping of joints and bones echoed. Hotaru and Acacia may have expected another weapon at this rate, but what they got was a writhing mass of unrealised design. Without reason or plausibility, it went from reforming to suddenly exploding outwards with a surge of force behind it, right for Hotaru beneath his enraged howl.
That word, what had it been? Ah yes, 'die'.
COMBATSYS: K9999 can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\ <
Hotaru 0/-------/=======|
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Acacia 0/-------/----===|
Acacia spins to a halt on the courtroom ground, the soles of her shoes skidding against the once-polished floor. The brass length of the flagpole comes to a stop, the orb at the end drawing sparks as it screeches over the tiles. The American flag trails in its wake, amazingly still intact despite the massive abuse and the complete /destruction/ left by its passage.
One anarchy under God.
Acacia's ribs heave, as she catches her breath. She stares, levelly, at both the other fighters. Amazingly, she doesn't even -blink- as K9999 all but explodes...
She just watches.
COMBATSYS: Acacia takes no action.
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Hotaru 0/-------/=======|
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Acacia 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Hotaru dodges K9999's Power... losing control!... YAH!.
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Hotaru 0/-------/=======|
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Acacia 0/-------/----===|
So that's how it is, Hotaru muses, lowering her right arm slowly, watching the youth with a certain amount of indifference. That's what it's like to command power of that capacity with simply a touch. Her right fist clenches then unclenches, a painful ache lingering in her tendons and muscles. Blood drips to the floor at her side and she begins to wobble just a little where she stands, face becoming somewhat ashen. Some of the crimson flows down along her forearm before dripping to the floor, though the girl can't really tell if it's her own blood or his.
It's hard to say how much of K9999's change she even really sees, eyes blinking a few times before she squints, struggling even to just make him out at all.
"Hn..." She can hear the growl though and the ghastly snaps of flesh and bone taking on shapes that it isn't meant to. Only half shaken from her reverie, Hotaru's evasion is almost sub-conscious as she drops to the left into a roll behind the banister leading up to the judge's podium. The sound of brick, metal, and wood crushing beneath the impact of something devestating is all the evidence she needs to know she just avoided a savage attack of some kind.
Hotaru is slow to pull herself up in the aftermath, but by the time the cloud of dust has settled she's standing, one hand clamped white-knuckle tight against the banister as she gazes back toward her defeated opponent only vaguely, vision still not particularly cleared. "...That's what I thought," She murmurs softly. "I knew I could show them."
As for K9999, when the dust clears he's sprawled out on the ground, unconscious. No doubt he'd have had some bitter retort for Hotaru's little empowering self-speech, but lost to darkness, he looks almost peaceful where he lay. Clothing utterly ruined, blood stained and injured, there was a lot to clean up in both fighters and the court room. Both of those girls he'd not forget however, and when next they met...they'd better prey it wasn't alone.
Acacia eyes K9999's fallen form with a half-lidded gaze. Then she exhales, releasing a breath. She lets go of the flagpole, allowing the length of heavy brass to clatter loudly to the floor. Acacia straightens, tilting her head to-and-fro, rotating her arm at the shoulder to burn tension from her muscles.
"Guilty," she says, in a dry voice.
Then she turns her gaze to Hotaru, studying the other girl carefully.
It's not that Acacia thinks there's anything -wrong- with complete bloody-minded aggression. After all, she just smacked the hell out of both fighters with a freaking national symbol. But she's never seen -Hotaru- so...so...pissed off before.
She doesn't say anything, though. Acacia simply nods, once, in acknowledgement.
Looks like she won, Hotaru muses. Blue eyes narrow for a moment until she makes out that it's Acacia. The nod is percieved and returned with a quiet one of her own, seeming to have nothing to say to the girl she's long considered a friend.
Turning away, Hotaru releases the banister and approaches the officials, ready for medics to tend to the spear wound from early in the fight. It's a win, but why does she feel so unsatisfied?
COMBATSYS: Hotaru has left the fight here.
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Acacia 0/-------/----===|
Log created on 16:58:45 02/02/2008 by Hotaru, and last modified on 16:53:47 02/05/2008.