Description: Fighting in a SMELLY RIVER. That's nothing. Now, fighting in a smelly river BOTH WAYS!? Now that's something. Watch a crushingly painful battle, that is closer than one might expect, between two fighters from two different schools! WATCH THE CLASH, NYAH! ( Winner: Acacia )
It's common to many major cities, across the globe. The river. There's always a river, winding through town, lazily snaking in from the country towards the open waters of the bay. The Thames in London, the Nile in Cairo. For so many of the world's urban centres were built upon the backs of shipping and trade, and upon the fertile soils of well-irrigated banks.
Southtown is no exception.
The Southtown River, though, isn't exactly mentioned in the same breath as those other rivers one might name. It's not a major tourist attraction. There aren't people lining up for pleasure cruises down its lovely length. In fact, where it's mentioned at all, it's usually in loud angry proclamations by local environmentalist groups. They like to point out the only fish in the river are the sort that float by belly-up. And that the water contains so many man-made chemicals per-litre that technically it isn't even water anymore.
Some would say it's barely even liquid.
Nobody really listens to the environmentalists, of course. Not in Southtown, Japan, where Howard Enterprises is king. This is a company town, after all, a corporate haven, home to one of the world's biggest multinational conglomerates and countless other businesses nestling in its shade. In this town, bitching too much about pollution, carbon emissions, and the poor ozone layer might well get you shot.
But, despite that...
Some bright spark in the Southtown Municipal Tourism Bureau has gotten the bright idea that maybe, just MAYBE, it might be a good idea to encourage people to hang out along Southtown's river. Make it glamorous, make it cool, like all those other great rivers other cities have. Southtown can be cool and have a riveira too!
Except, y'know, they're too cheap to actually...try and clean it up. Besides, the industrial sector would complain. So.
So they've convinced the Neo League to use the river as a fight venue, instead. To prove to the world that the Southtown river IS a great and awesomely nifty place to be and totally safe and not polluted at all.
Right.
Despite the publicity, the crowd lining the banks of the river looks...rather thin, at best. There's a smattering of folks around the railings overlooking this stretch of river, a stretch so liberally sealed in with concrete that in any other city it would be called a /canal/. A few brave souls peer down from the side of a large motorway bridge, as well. It's a bad turnout. That might be because of the poor weather - the sky is pretty overcast.
It's more likely they just don't care.
Especially since the river's looking particularly oily today.
Acacia wrinkles her nose. She stands under the embankment, adjusting the fit of velcro round her wrists - the matching gloves to a full-body wetsuit, covering her skin up to the neck.
"We're not," she observes, mildly, "getting paid enough for this."
No. They can't be serious. Superheroing is one thing, but doing it in a dirty, oily, disgusting..
She doesn't even have to argue it. She has to. It's something that she has to do or otherwise her fight ticket might be ripped up, or worse, she'd be pitched against.. Kyo or something WORSE. Despite that, Iincyo never did show up to the scene. But that doesn't mean no one is there. Catears, a cape, long pants, a shirt with plastic over the front, clear so the C! can still be seen, and of course.. a clipboard.. that is who has shown up!
CHAIRPERSON! HAS SHOWN UP. And is currently standing inside the dirty, nasty, disgusting river.. and stands there rather calm for the moment, before Acacia wrinkles her nose and mentions something rather simple.
Sounding nasally, with a laundry pin clipped around her nose, CHAIRPERSON! exclaims something simple. "Nyaaaaah. We get paid? I just know we're supposed to set off a show!" She exclaims, and that's certainly what SHE plans to do at least! "And Saikyo can defeat anything! Even the horrible .. nasty... dead fished... oily..." She looks a little green as she watches a few bubbles, and not the good kind, slowly move upwards and pop, sending a bit of a fizzle as it lands.
"AHHHHH IT'S HORRIBLE NYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Iincyo thinks it's disgusting, but CHAIRPERSON! is far more vocal about it, and leaps into the air, only to cause a bit of a splash of it, and shakes her head a bit. "Egghh.... Lets go fast! Lets fight, I'll show you all my might.. but please before it eats through the suits! Saikyo is strong, but this might be acid!" She exclaims to the girl, before falling into a stance.
Even with everyone around, her cape is .. hung high, tucked a bit into her clothes. Hey. She's NOT getting it all oily if she can help it. EW EW NO.
"BEEEGIIIIIIN!"
The enthusiastic shout echoes over the river, raising an enthusiastic cheer from the spectators. Well. Okay. Actually, no. More like a lethargic half-hearted attempt. Some of the audience may, in fact, be dead.
Acacia's not very thrilled either. She makes a face, giving a final tug on her wetsuit glove. Then she walks down the rubbish-encrusted concrete incline, splashing into the shallow waters. Wading forward, stopping when she's waist deep in...well, she really doesn't want to speculate about what she's standing in.
Or what's that brown lump that just floated past her.
Acacia's legs aren't visible, but presumably she's in a ready stance. Her arms, certainly, go into a guard position.
In a laconic voice, she says to Iincyo:
"...'might' be? Only 'might'?"
A
COMBATSYS: Acacia has started a fight here.
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Acacia 0/-------/-------|
"Might... Ewww.. T-Then I'm REALLY sorry for what I'm about to do! Even while it's icky.. uh .. hold your breath?" She mentions, as she poses, looking on Acacia as she slowly slothes into the muck and worse than muck. But as Acacia slides waist deep in, Iincyo.. no CHAIRPERSON! salutes her, and stops for a moment. "Just might Ah ... I HAVE AN IDEA! I will start this off then .. so .. HIYAH!" And dashing towards Acacia, the cat eared, caped Saikyo defender .. wow that's slow. She's running towards Acacia rather fast, for water, but her movement is somewhat slowly.. although her arm movement isn't, which is the important part!
And just then, as she goes in close, she lets out of a piercing. "NYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH I APOLOGIZE.. It's time for the spinning DRILL!" And with that, she lashes around at Acacia, attempting to grasp the girl and heft her up a bit.
This might not really work.
And then LEAP upwards, before ... you got it. Inverting Acacia.
Pray she doesn't ACTUALLY land head first into that. "MEOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW!"
COMBATSYS: Iincyo has joined the fight here.
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Acacia 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Iincyo
COMBATSYS: Acacia endures Iincyo's Tornado DDT.
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Acacia 0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0 Iincyo
Though Acacia could probably use some divine intervention right about know. Certainly she must have her mind fixed on the celestial, because her reaction shows that Acacia thinks the other fighter...
.../must/ be out of her skull.
Acacia makes a small hiss of surprise as she's grabbed, her water-slicked neoprene wetsuit giving little resistance to the catgirl hero's questing fingers. Acacia's grabbed, hauled into the air at the apex of the rushing charge. As she rockets back towards the water, Acacia just barely manages to splutter.
Opening her mouth probably wasn't the best idea, though, as she plunges beneath the surface. She breaks up, though, a half-second later, lifting her head above the water and spitting out a mouthful of foul liquid.
"H-hey," Acacia manages, "aren't you..."
As she speaks, she makes a grab for her opponent - using their close proximity to try and snag the other girl's cape and pull her into the drink as well.
"...s'posed t'be the RESPONSIBLE one from Taiyo?"
COMBATSYS: Acacia successfully hits Iincyo with Quick Throw.
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Acacia 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 Iincyo
As Acacia is grabbed and then .. shoved under, willingly, Iincyo blinks WAIT WHAT. And then as Acacia comes up, spitting it out, CHAIRPERSON! is all like GREEN. "Yoooooou mean THAT was in your..." She gags once, twice.. and then as Acacia manages to speak, snagging her cape, CHAIRPERSON! tries to move with the grab, to no avail. Sliding with it, or tying.. she goes SPLASH before the grab is over, hitting the water and splashing rather hard. It's a nasty splash! And leaping from the water, THAT'S finally when she speaks. "GAH! That was horrible. Terrible. ICK. AGH!" She cries out, splashing about.
But stopping for a moment, she realizes what Acacia asked.. and then her eyes grow wide, as she slides in towards Acacia, giving a SHHHHHH look at her, before shaking her head. "It's not very secret but .. YES, I AM! .. And this is because Hurricane Hime gave me a project to work on .. to be more like this so when we go into fighting we can look just as good as we fight!" And well, ignore the implication behind that. "So we can strike TERROR and FEAR! Or .. something.. NYAAAH! AH I NEARLY FORGOT TO POSE!" She cries out, and leaps backwards, splashing around and nearly slipping. "I am .. CHAIRPERSON! And I will fight for everything, especially what I believe in!" Which could be alot, and then comes the .. HORRIBLE eruption of chi, it's noticeable as it bursts into sight. Just a sudden IMMENSE spike.
"HAAAAAAAH!"
COMBATSYS: Iincyo gathers her will.
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Acacia 0/-------/------=|=======\====---\1 Iincyo
Acacia blinks, once.
"Uh...huh," she says, "right."
She hauls herself to her feet. Not the easiest of tasks when you're mostly submerged in foul water, stumbling on an uneven surface. The bed of the river's about as level as a mountain range, meaning not at all. Even the shallows are damn treacherous footing, almost enough to tear through the soles of her suit. Acacia grimaces as she regains her balance. She really doesn't want to think about what she just -stepped- on.
Acacia regards the...uh...CHAIRPERSON!...warily. Very warily. She's not precisely sure what that spike of energy entails, but the fact it's a chi flare /visible to the naked eye/ can't possibly bode well.
Still, instead of attacking, there's a pressing question Acacia needs to ask.
Needs to.
"Are you," she mumbles, "serious?"
COMBATSYS: Acacia takes no action.
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Acacia 0/-------/------=|=======\====---\1 Iincyo
As Acacia blinks, and then only watches on, CHAIRPERSON suddenly causes a burst of blue that eats into her actions.. because that burst of blue? It's not too good, because she audibly begins to breath harder, grinning. "Hah... hahaha... don't you see?! I'm absolutely serious!" She exclaims, out of breathe some how. She was doing fine a moment ago. What could she possibly have done?!
But she doesn't let this stop her. There's another spike, and after it, she was made.. weaker? What could this be about? Either way, Iincyo runs towards Acacia. "There's nothing hard about it.. it's true... I'm completely serious. I work hard... I help others.. and now Hurricane Hime is showing me just what I can accomplish this way as well..!" Leaping up from the muck, she starts forwards with a rather light kick. It's .. incredibly telltale, however, and is rather easy to see. Heck, it probably might be easy to lash out and grab her, and rip her from the air. JUST MAYBE.
"CHAIRPERSON KICK!"
It's a bit of a spin behind it too!
COMBATSYS: Acacia blocks Iincyo's Light Kick.
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Acacia 0/-------/-----==|=======\====---\1 Iincyo
But Acacia doesn't do that.
In fact, she barely even moves. The kick slams into the side of her skull, the heel, the striking surface of the foot...CRACKING against bone.
Water sluices around Acacia, rippling with the impact.
Then Acacia shifts her head back round. She lifts a hand, rubbing the back of her neck, fingers kneading the muscles and vertabrae.
"Oh-kaaaay," Acacia murmurs, drawing out the last syllable. She gives her opponent an odd look, one eye shut, her mouth partially open in an expression of sheer disbelief.
"You're...enthusiastic," Acacia manages, "that's...good."
She doesn't sound terribly convinced.
She does, though, snap out of her trance long enough to send a backhand punch whipping back at the other fighter, striking with the turned knuckles of one wetsuit glove.
Up above the river, the crowd gives another vague sound that might be a cheer.
COMBATSYS: Iincyo blocks Acacia's Strong Punch.
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Acacia 0/-------/-----==|=======\======-\1 Iincyo
As the kick slams into the skull, the foot .. what.. what just happened!? Her foot hurts a bit, but Iincyo jumps back, looking onto Acacia.. "Ow! Wow you're pretty thick aren't you!" She exclaims, as Acacia murmurs, drawing out the syllable. It's weird! Especially to a point. Especially with how thick the girl happens to be, strength wise. That's AMAZING! But she can't give up. Never give up! With Acacia drawing out the last syllable, giving her an odd look before she .. what's that look? THAT LOOK ISN'T RIGHT!
But as Acacia snaps out of her trace to send a backhand punch towards her, the turned knuckles of the wetsuit glove, Iincyo brings her arms up JUST in time as they slam against her, and drive her back with enough force that the WATER IS SPLIT from her body.
Man that's a dirty floor.
Standing up, she waves her arms. "Oooow ow ow OUCH. That was nice.. but CHAIRPERSON!, NYAAH, shall show you true strength!" And dashing through the water again, catching her breathe, she... dives under?
What the hell is she doing.
But then .. the water moves !!!!
COMBATSYS: Acacia interrupts Strong Throw from Iincyo with Mass Breaker.
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Acacia 0/-------/--=====|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2 Iincyo
"Don't tell me," Acacia mutters, as she watches the waters of the river part like the Red Sea. Except, of course, the other girl's considerably more nubile than Moses. And the water, in this case, is not so much red but a rather unpleasant shade of greenish-brown, flecked with substances best not speculated upon. It is, in short, not all that Biblical, save perhaps in proportions.
Acacia, though, she's staring at where her opponent vanished beneath the waves.
"You're secretly Nagare?"
She says it in a flat tone. Hard to tell if she's amused. Especially since her response is to lift one foot and -slam- it down into the murky river beneath her. Instantly, a shockwave of chi blasts outward from where Acacia stands, churning the water and sending droplets spraying hither and yon - raw concussive force transmitted straight through the fluid medium. Like an Allied depth charge from the age of U-boat warfare.
PTOOOIE.
The water spits out Iincyo, causing her to spin up and out of it, causing her to land on her feet as she lands on the ground, legs standing wobbly as she takes a step forwards and points. "I'm about to show you .. just what true strength is .. nyah .. ow..." She exclaims, before... what? She runs on the water, or seemingly might be. Her technique is far faster than it should be, and as she closes the distance, she's trying to get there before the other girl can respond!
"Hah... you're close.. I'm not Nagare.. but you'll find .. I'm full of tricks!" She calls out, grinning, as she speeds towards Acacia, attempting to simply sock the girl one.
"That's why no one can ever expect CHAIRPERSON!" She exclaims, trying to drive that fist HOME!
COMBATSYS: Acacia blocks Iincyo's Strong Punch.
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Acacia 0/-------/--=====|=======\==-----\1 Iincyo
But the punch doesn't land. Not quite. At the last moment, Acacia throws her own arm up, intersecting her opponent's attacking limb between the wrist and elbow - just barely deflecting the blow. The effort of stopping it draws a hiss of breath from her lungs. She regains that breath quickly, though, and stares at the other girl while they're still locked in close melee.
Water trickles down Acacia's face, running in small streams from her sodden hair over her brow and cheeks. She's forced to clench her left eye shut, but her right still stares forward.
"You're," Acacia asks, sardonically, "the Spanish Inquisition?"
COMBATSYS: Acacia focuses on her next action.
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Acacia 0/-------/--=====|=======\==-----\1 Iincyo
As Acacia throws up the arm, intersection her limb between the wrist and elbow, deflecting the blow a bit simpler than expected, CHAIRPERSON! .. has this to say. "WOAH. You stopped it!?" She is honestly surprised.. That never failed. And now it just did! SHOCK!
Leaping back, she watches as the girl has water trickle down her face, clenching her eyes and simply standing there and staring at her.. "No. CHAIRPERSON! is far from an inquisition all by herself.. she's a soldier. a SAIKYO SOLDIER!" She poses a bit, before throwing herself at Acacia once more.
This time, it seems to be a difficult maneuver! But she flies through it, for what it is, sending two heavy palms, and then spinning with a heel, straight towards the girl, water all over her as she causes splashes over and over, with her SPIRIT!
"Now to break through your guard.. HUUAAAAH!" She exclaims, and then suddenly!? THUD.
SLAM!
BAM!? "NYAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
COMBATSYS: Acacia blocks Iincyo's Rock Breaker Stance EX.
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Acacia 0/-------/-======|=======\==-----\1 Iincyo
Dirty water rains down from the sky, splattering some of the unfortunate spectators standing too close to the bank. A loud chorus of complaints comes from the audience, probably the most riled up they've been for the entire match.
But Acacia? She's still standing, one arm held before her face, shielding her head. A small tremor runs down her lean frame as she drops her guard, opening and closing the fingers of that hand. Absorbing all that damage stung, even through the constant renforcement of chi she's forcing through her body, hardening bone and sinew.
"Can't say," Acacia states, "I care for the..."
She lifts a finger, tapping the side of her head - indicating the conspicious absence of fake cat-ears.
"...or the cape. But...not bad."
Grudging acknowledgement echoes in Acacia's tone as she regards her opponent.
For a moment.
Then she attacks. Stomping through the shallow water, smashing a leg up and through the river surface with a rising wave, driving a kick right back at the other girl.
COMBATSYS: Iincyo interrupts Heavy Kick from Acacia with Front Stance EX.
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Acacia 0/-------/=======|=======\-------\0 Iincyo
Wow. She took that head on? CHAIRPERSON! Is both amazed and unsure. How can she take such a force of nature like that?! But with Acacia absorbing it with only a slight blow, the girl has to break through. She has to go beyond the normal strength that she usually finds in herself. She has to .. GO ON! And yet it's somewhat hard to, really. She can STILL try though AND THUS SHE SHALL.
With Acacia absorbing the damage, Iincyo can't break her guard, and even worse, she's just glancing off everything she throws at her! It's difficult to comprehend, but when Acacia taps her head, and mentions the cape.. she almost falters. "What!? You dislike the .. and the ..." CHAIRPERSON! stares, and then nods to herself, before rushing towards Acacia, as the FIST comes through the river surface, a rising wave driving the kick right at her .. and CHAIRPERSON crashes right at it. "NYAAAAAAAH!"
The kick slams her, but she slides around, even with the horrible pain, and causes both palms to strike through the assault, slamming her back with all her force.. it's something! It's definitely something. "Well.. do you care for that, NYAH!?"
She staggers backwards, grinning.. even if she's hurt!
A few bubbles rise from the depths. The surface ripples. But Acacia's nowhere in sight. There's only the river, slowly settling back after the momumental splash caused by her body, after a brief flight courtesy of CHAIRPERSON righteous indignation.
A second passes. There's nothing.
Two seconds.
Three.
That's when water blasts skyward in another explosion, Acacia's silver hair glinting with reflected light, a slick sheen covering her skin and wetsuit. She crests the wave right into Iincyo's face. There's no physical contact, just a wave of force. A blast of chi that displaces the water, and /pounds/ into the riverbed, the outer edge of the shockwave even stirring the spectators on the nearby bridge - a fact that causes no small consternation.
For Iincyo, though...Footing and balance was already dangerous enough, wet and uncertain. This makes it a million times worse.
"Actually," Acacia observes, mildly, "yes."
COMBATSYS: Iincyo interrupts Aftershock from Acacia with Demonstrations EX.
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Acacia 1/-----==/=======|==-----\-------\0 Iincyo
COMBATSYS: Iincyo can no longer fight.
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Acacia 1/-----==/=======|
With Acacia .. disappearing from the strike, CHAIRPERSON! blinks, looking around. "Where did she go?" She wonders, before the water blasts upwards, Acacia's hair making the question unnecessary, as well as obvious. She looks on to see Acacia .. and then the wave slams into her face. And the blast of chi pounds into the riverbed.. crashing into CHAIRPERSON, she stumbles at first, almost falls.. but then grits and pushes forwards.
"You .. see... I ... I... Refuse.. to.. FALL!" She takes one foot forwards. Then another, before she's running forwards, a clipboard out, as she makes her target obvious. The girl strains herself to push forwards, determined to go straight to Acacia.
And boy, she makes it at just the right time.
"GOOD, then you'll love this!" She adds, the clipboard brought around to strike Acacia, before a fist comes, and then a palm strike.. more kicks. A few punches. Add in as well an elbow strike and then finally swinging the clipboard as hard as she can..
Before finally being blown clear away, landing on the riverside from the force of Acacia's shockwave.
"Ow.. Nyaaah..."
Acacia winces, gingerly bringing a hand to her scalp. She picks out an honest-to-God long and sharp splinter from amidst her sodden hair, now streaked with a faint trace of blood in addition to the river water. Her head was probably harder than the clipboard, but not by much. She tosses it aside, letting it drop into the river. What's one more piece of litter?
She resists the urge to rub her eyes. It'd get the water out, but at the risk of grinding more bacteria and chemicals and GOD-knows-WHAT into delicate portions of her anatomy which she'd rather not risk.
On the other hand, her opponent's probably worst off.
Acacia grimaces, as she turns, and trudges through the now rather choppy water, wading up to the bank where Iincyo lies. Dripping, she climbs out of the river until she's beside the other girl. Acacia crouches, then pokes Iincyo in the side with a finger.
"'ey," Acacia asks, "still breathing?"
COMBATSYS: Acacia has ended the fight here.
Wincing, the girl reacts. A good sign! "Agh!" She responds, swatting the hand lightly a bit. "Sore all over." She comments, before slowly leaning upwards a bit with her elbows, shaking herself a bit. She .. apparently was barely knocked over there. It was a nice fight for her, in the sense of things however.
"Hah... Yeah.. it will take FAR more to cause CHAIRPERSON! to get taken o... ooooh I feel dizzy." The mark of blood that's flowing from here and there from Acacia's rock hard strikes certainly isn't very good.
"I'm breathing alright.. but it looks like Saikyo's might .. wasn't enough this time.. but .. I'm sure it .. gave you some challenge." She adds.
"That's some horrible stench...."
"Yeah," Acacia says, scrunching her face up, "maybe again, sometime. We can..."
She pauses.
"...nngh, yeah..."
Acacia wrinkles her nose. She lifts her arm, twists her body, sniffing herself. And immediately regrets it.
As the gathered spectators erupt into scattered pockets of noise, Acacia gets to her feet, then pads down the riverside, leaving wet footprints across the concrete. Over her shoulder, she calls back at Iincyo:
"...looking for a /hose/."
Log created on 19:22:57 05/12/2008 by Iincyo, and last modified on 04:17:00 05/13/2008.