Description: The excuse may be a Neo League match, but K' has more than the irrelevant accrual of meaningless League Points on his mind when he challenges Hotaru Futaba to a fight. Differences are discussed, pasts explored, heated words exchanged as the two battle admist ancient ruins. (Winner: K')
K' almost never participated in the League. It was something that required entirely too much initiative and competitive drive for somebody who scorned and hated tournament fighting in the first place. Point totals, rankings, /winners/-- it all reeked far too much of /sport/ for K' to want to go near it. With SNF, all you did was throw your name in, fight your match, and leave with your money. You didn't have to think about it any more than that, because SNF did all the thinking for you.
That lack of choice, normally utter -anathema- to K', was fine in this context. He had no interest in taking an active hand in tailoring his fights. As if fighting were something fun, or glamorous! It was laughable. Besides, it was the unpredictability that kept him sharp.
Nonetheless, Neo League had its uses. Among them was the ability-- totally absent in SNF-- to specifically select an opponent and dictate the parameters of the match. And though one might expect this to be the LAST reason K' would want to utilize the League, considering how little he seems to want to interact with people... in actuality, it is that control over opponent and location that has drawn him to finally contact the NL.
He had tried to keep this low-profile, but-- as with most things-- word of it eventually got out. The media had buzzed with profound interest when they got wind of the fact that the reclusive, surly, and little-known K' had actually come out of his shell enough to issue a specific challenge to someone who, on the face, was his very antithesis: the popular and well-liked Hotaru Futaba. The context of it had been puzzled over endlessly, but in the end the journalists had to admit: they had no idea what on earth might have motivated this.
K' keeps his reasons to himself. He hadn't even given Hotaru any hints; the girl would have received little more than a brusque, nondescript request for an NL match. She might be able to guess, however, from his behavior in their SNF a mere week prior. K' interacted with very few people, and actually liked even fewer. But when it came to Hotaru, he had to confess some degree of curiosity.
The location was remote by his insistence; a patch of stately ruins in the tangled heart of South America. It was as if he were intentionally attempting to deter anyone but the NL staff themselves from showing up. He had arrived quite early, speaking to none of the staff and answering none of the questions of the few media that had struggled their way out here to show up. Fifteen minutes to match start, K' still hasn't said a word to anyone: holding his silence dourly as he stands by a shallow pool, considering the four fountains that feed it.
To say that the Neo League was her life would be exaggerating things to a degree. But to refer to it as a fairly prominent feature of her life might be about right. A regular combatant in it, just like the weekly SNF events, if one wants to get a feel for how Hotaru fights, they need only consult one of the well over one hundred videos of her competative appearances. Regularly ranked in the top ten, she has held the number one position for some while now, though fight enthusiasts expect some of the top contenders to start taking their shots for her rank before the season comes to an end. Competative fighting is her life, and she never hesitates to step up to the constant challenges thrown her way, surviving this long against great odds. She defies anyone who might call her weak, or a disgrace to the legacy of her father or an embarrassment to her destructively powerful brother.
She didn't think twice about the invitation to appear. It wasn't unusual for her opponent to go unannounced, even though such invitations often filled her with a certain level of nervous anticipation. Who will it be this time? A world legend? A neophyte just getting their feet wet? A friend? A stranger? The flight to the match is uneventful, the girl enjoying some peace and quiet on the plane. A relaxing change from the brisk pace her day to day existence tends to sustain.
South America. Matches there are always a mixed package. Typically staged at remote, exotic locals, the crowds tend to be minimal. Unlike the Southtown matches, where mobs of fanatics show up to watch the competitions, few make it out to the distant South American venues. And that suits Hotaru Futaba just fine. Not exactly afraid of crowds, and her history on camera suggests that she plays to audiences quiet well, remaining polite and friendly off stage as well as on - she still finds them a minor distraction at the least, an annoyance at worst, depending on how worked up they get.
On the other hand, the South American locations are so hot, humid, stifflingly muggy. It isn't comfortable for the girl normally used to the more temperate Southtown she's lived in the last few years of her life. It was on the jeep ride to the site itself that her escort mentions who her opponent is to be. The reclusive K' has ventured out to take on the girl in a Neo League match. Her initial reaction was one of quiet surprise, then thoughtful contemplation, the words exchanged during their zany SNF match echoing in her mind. She's really glad she came, she decides, a faint smile tracing across her lips.
Arriving at the ruins with some time to spare, she steps past the moss covered wall that obscures the majestic sight from immediate notice. The sound of water rushing from the aquaducts above is consistant but not overwhelming. Sufficent to drown out spoken words from the nearby cameras, however, and that, she ponders, might have been half the point for selecting such a location. Against the aged brown stone ruins, she stands out as a figure of pristine white, hilighted by blues and reds. Her fighting attire is her normal - white pants and blouse, a snug vest worn over her torso, decorated in gold gilded trim. Her hair is no surprise either, tied up off her shoulders and neck in a pair of almost perky pig-tails, each one held in place by a large red ribbon. Her attire is a careful blend of being classy without being too ostintatious. One might not know at a glance the cost of the custom tailored Chinese styled vest and her ears and fingers are free of jewelry.
Spotting the young man closer to the pool, she begins to walk toward K'. The mists caught by the breezes make the entire location cooler than the rain forests surrounding it. It might even be considered plasant. She opens her mouth, ready to greet the fire wielder, only to get cut off as one of the League officials comes up to bug her for an autograph. Not one to be rude, she pauses and turns, taking the offered pen and pad, and scribbles out a quite note, maintaining a friendly smile the whole time. A
quick note, maintaining a friendly smile the whole time. At least the reporter contingent is low way out here, she muses, at last turning toward K' himself.
The dark, dour figure perched on the edge of the pool, calmly considering the water, doubtless looks as if he is burdened beneath the weight of some deep and profound contemplation. His lowered head and sloped shoulders would certainly contribute to that image. In reality, however, he is simply wondering whether he shouldn't have chosen some place like Alaska or the Arctic instead. The everpresent fire under his skin ensured that he was almost never bothered by the cold; as such, everyone would have been a sight more comfortable.
The time for those kinds of thoughts is past, however. He can hear Hotaru arriving. He doesn't yet turn around to greet the girl, however. All things in their time. They'll get to the obligatory greetings and preliminaries when they're good and ready. That's another good thing about the remote and deserted locale K' has chosen-- nobody to rush them.
And as for that point about the sound of water drowning words? Yes, that's exactly why K' chose this particular -part- of the ruins.
hotaru's customary fighting attire might be suited to such a hot climate. K''s isn't: but he's still had to keep most of the elements of it out of sheer necessity in order to protect himself from his own fire. At the least, he's thrown off his leather jacket, leaving only the short-sleeved black shirt underneath it. The gloves stay on, the left black and fingerless-- the right, that familiar metallic red. The gloves don't just stop at the wrist, either... they continue up his arms all the way to the elbow, protecting his forearms like a pair of black leather bracers.
K' finally glances over his shoulder as Hotaru finishes her autograph. He says nothing for the time being, simply watching her as she writes, and when she finishes and turns towards him it's to find his yellow eyes resting on her. He holds his silence for a time, a distinct gravity to the way he stops to carefully consider his words before he speaks.
"Seems to me you know exactly what it's like having to prove yourself," he finally says, his rasping voice breaking the silence. He finally turns around in the wake of those words, facing her casually: hands hooked into his belt loops, his shoulders sloped and head tilted slightly at an inquisitive angle. "Now you got a proper arena to do it in."
His expression darkens visibly, voice ekeing a little deeper, a certain seriousness weighing on his tone. From the look in his eyes, his motive isn't entirely altruistic when he finishes, "I want to see how you did ridding yourself of that crutch."
No, the time for considering location has definitely passed. The two are here now, the cameras set, the staff and crew bustling about on the sidelines, eager to complete the final preparations. As Hotaru looks away from her apparent fan, she reaches up to tug at her poofy white sleeves a little, pulling them down enough to force a little air to move about beneath them. The white clothing should help with the sun, but she's learned after last week's SNF within a sweltering oven, that there's only so much you can do with clothing before your only recourse is to shed it - and she's not about to do that.
She studies K' in that brief moment before meeting his eyes. That red glove a foreceful reminder of the discussion they had late one night at the YFCC when she was struggling with what he helped her define as a crutch. That's what it was. That assassin's technique, the Maou Satsujinken. She thought she could control it but it controlled her, propelling her into victories perhaps undeserved. In the end she mastered the technique, nearly taking the life of a young boy in doing so, and since that day has never touched it since.
"I didn't fight for over a month after it happened - the day I almost killed Kentou with it." she states somberly as he brings up that cursed technique. She is quiet then, her eyes cast to the side in a moment of thought, fighting back a resurgence of regret that had haunted her from the time she awoke to what she had done. Slowly she shifts her gaze back to the light ashen haired NESTs project, her reflective look fading into a slight smile as she then gives him a respectul, quick bow of her head.
Knows what it means to have to prove herself. From the day she entered the world of fighting to this moment standing beside the pool, water arching out over her head to plunge into the fountain, she has struggled to prove herself. At a glance, one can hardly be surprised. Small in stature, light framed, gentle in appearance, it's no wonder she's so often been doubted, criticized, or ignored in her life. That was, of course, until she started proving herself, each and every fight she could.
"You know," she states, seemingly out of the blue as she folds her arms in front of her, lifting her head out of that brief bow of thought. She exhales, uncrossing her arms, turning her side toward K', "When I got back into fighting a little over a year ago... I couldn't find anyone who would teach me. No one would take me seriously." Dojo after dojo turned her away as she sought someone out there to teach her. An amused grin crosses her features as she continues, bouncing lightly on her toes a little, "I suspect by now they wish they could rescind their words." A moment of satisfaction, a small triumph over the countless dojo masters who thought the determined Kenpo artist wasn't worth their time. It isn't the victory she strives for each and every day, but it serves as a small milestone all the same.
Both her hands reach up, fiddling with the red bow in her right pig-tail to make sure that it's staying snug, before she lowers her arms back into her ready stance, bouncing lightly on her toes. Her first fight after giving up that killing technique was to defeat Hayato Hekketsu for the SNF title belt, defying all odds and expectations. This fight is no less important to her, however. K' is asking her to prove something - and that is one challenge the girl cannot shirk from in the slightest.
That mastery is perhaps what frustrates and compels K' so much when it comes to Hotaru. That force of will that led her to control and master her foreign power-- and further, to decide not to -use- it-- seems so out of his grasp when he considers the powerful flames that his glove was meant to suppress. Some subconscious part of him wants to study her, to ascertain what it was she did that let her do what he cannot. What makes HER so able to discard the crutch? How did she do it?
The other thing about her that compels his attention is, of course, that past of hers that seems so starkly different from that of most professional 'sport' fighters: and thereby similar to his own. Continual rejection, ridicule, being dismissed as a failure, as someone of no worth compared to her brother... K' had read her biographies and history as well, and had learned that despite her affluent appearance, she had no /real/ family to speak of. Ironically, that had gained her some favor in his eyes; he hated and envied those with stable families, -especially- those who did not appreciate the gift that it was.
She almost killed with it, she says. K' evinces no reaction. It's almost as if he expected something like that to happen; or worse, as if the idea of murder has long since ceased to shock him. He makes no reply, not even to the quiet respect she pays him. He doesn't have to make obeisances to her to make known how he feels or how he views her. He expects her to be intelligent enough to know already-- and if she's not, then blowing the energy on acknowledging her would have been even more of a waste anyway.
It's not until her more extended comment towards him that he actually lifts his head in a halfway attentive manner, looking visibly as if he's listening. It could be taken as encouragement. K' instead chooses to take it as what it is: mere words. His head tilts in a birdlike way, yellow eyes narrowing on her. "But that's not enough for you." In a smooth, prowling movement he steps off the raised edge of the pool, stepping down to close the gap between himself and Hotaru. He still stops at least ten feet away.
"Do you think," he eventually finishes, abrupt and cold: from his tone, it actually seems as if the question is an -honest- one, one he himself would like the answer to, "anything will ever be enough?" Will they reach a point where enough is enough... or will they be proving themselves the rest of their lives? He leaves the question to hang in the air, even as-- in expectation of the match being called-- he turns slightly in order to slacken into that familiar, careless stance of his. He waits on her, eyes slowly drifting shut, the boy letting his other senses guide him for the time being.
"No, it's not," Hotaru answers back as he speaks about her progress not satisfying her need to prove something to herself; to the world. Her tone carries with it a hint of defiance and the sparkle in her eyes that accompanies the response seems to play off of that flicker of challenge. No, her progress thus far is most definitely not enough. She's shooting for higher, and every fight she participates in she treats as a step along the way. This match will be no different.
His question is met with silence, the girl focusing on controling her breathing, focusing passively on her stance - loose, feet a little ways apart, able to sway, lean, and dart quickly about depending on the needs of the moment. But that doesn't mean she isn't listening, thoughtful, sapphire blue eyes staring back at him, her mouth drawn tight, humor gone from her demeanor. "I think I won't know if there is a point that could be called enough... unless or until I reach it." That is to say, she doesn't know. Not yet. "Until then, I guess I'll just have to keep trying," she finishes, that glimpse of a smile curling the corners of her mouth.
Facing the young man again is a thrilling prospect to the girl. Last time she was restrained by the mechanics of the match. She had a partner - one who fell short of being able to participate for long, and was forced to fight against the Velcro that slowed her motion. The thought of getting another shot to fight K' without such conditions is gratifying. However, there's also the risks involved. His style is a far cry from the gentle lineage Kenpo she was taught as a young girl or the harder hitting varient she has learned over time in trying to discover the things her brother has demonstrated in his fights. She learned that quite well in the last SNF. He spared her an unnecessary plummet to the floor below, but he didn't hold back at all while the fight was in progress. And his style is brutally punishing for the slightest misstep. To say that she's highly motivated to bring her best skill to the test is putting it mildly.
"Thank you," she states, clenching and unclenching her hands once more, regarding K' with a level gaze. "For this chance." Best to say it now. She could very well be in no condition to speak by the end of this match. Breathing in then exhaling slowly, she pauses. It's time to show him what he wants to see. What he's giving her the opportunity to demonstrate. That hint of a smile returns, the girl looking for the briefest moment a little bit sheepish. How she ever came to think so highly of the rough edged young man who landed a YFCC job so long ago she can't begin to imagine.
Time for action. Time to move. A blur of white and blue announces the start of the bout as she speeds toward him. She's fast. Among the fastest people in the world. But she knows, from experience, that he's even faster; that final assault of his came from no where in their last match. That just means she needs to pick up the pace. It is with that alacrity that she drops into a low crouch from a yard away from the flame wielder, sweeping out with her foot in the process, going for his ankles, drawing his attention low.
The real threat may be the second strike, however, as Hotaru moves with her momentum, spinning upward and out of the low stance, snapping her same leg back out in a hooking kick for his side, hoping to catch an opening after drawing his guard low. "YA!" If permitted, she'll spin out of that second kick, dropping back into an extremely low stance, right leg out in front of her, left leg bent beneath her, propping her up, her arms extended flat out at her sides for balance. She calls it Tsubame no Kamae. Swallow Stance. It presents the ability for her to strike back harder than she might otherwise be able to by putting every muscle in her body into her attacks.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru has started a fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Hotaru 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: K' has joined the fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Hotaru 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 K'
COMBATSYS: K' blocks Hotaru's Medium Kick.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 K'
He thought not.
He makes no reply to her further elaboration upon her quick answer, feeling Hotaru to have stated all there is to say about the topic. A slow nod is all the response he gives, his eyes opening again: gaze settling thoughtfully on hers. He's looking at the flicker of defiance in her eyes, because it reminds him of what he sees in the mirror. To keep trying. That -is- all they can do, isn't it? A depressing prospect.
His eyes slip shut again. Though he looks relaxed and casual, almost asleep on his feet, in reality he might even be more prepared than the girl still moderating her breathing and adjusting her stance. His stillness belies his capacity for sudden violence. Not only is he the last person who would have any compunctions about punishing her for her missteps, he's likely to have no compunctions about putting her in the -hospital- should she insult him by not giving her all. That much should be clear.
It's true that K' is, at first glance, somebody one would hardly think capable of emanating charisma or inspiring respect. But those who are permitted to know the boy a little more deeply than can be achieved in a mere impersonal match or random encounter are often surprised to find themselves confronted with someone with an unexpected depth and complexity of character. It may not be a pristine character, and it may not be kind or even all that good: but then, who is ever really truly 'good?' Hotaru herself should know how even the most unassuming of people can hide a darkness within them.
She thanks him for the chance to show what it is she's learned, and K' hides a hint of a humorless smile: snuffing it before it can do more than tug at the corner of his mouth. As said before, his motive is not entirely altruistic. Perhaps he's hoping to learn something about how she got past that hurdle of hers-- something he can apply to his own similar situation. Perhaps he's simply overbearing and arrogant enough that he feels it his right to inspect the results whenever he does something so rare as take interest in another human being's affairs.
Whatever it is, he's not telling. All he does is lift his head and crack open one yellow eye as she speeds towards him. His gaze slants downwards as she drops and goes for his ankles, and he slips back as the swipe of her leg cuts towards them. Settling back down, hands lifting, his evasion prepares him for the real attack: he catches her ankle, absorbing the force of the strike, and then he lets her go. A flick of his wrist even adds a little momentum to let her spin back into her stance.
"So it took almost killing somebody for you to break yourself of relying on that power...?" K' grins to himself, largely without humor, as he lets his right hand lift: distinctive red glove visible for an instant before a sudden fire consumes it in a roar of sound. A wide swipe sends flame arcing everywhere, the holy fire snarling as it rushes forward in a sweeping swathe. Pity, he's thinking to himself, killing isn't really all that dramatic to me anymore.
Of course, he has missed the nuance that is the difference between killing 'someone' and killing 'a loved one.'
COMBATSYS: K' successfully hits Hotaru with Eins Trigger.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/--=====|==-----\-------\0 K'
His catch of her ankle catches her off guard. Sure she had expected him to defend, but that aggressive approach to it leaves her wobbling a little as she tries to slip back into a position from where to select her next action. He speaks, and while the words are heard, he doesn't get so much as a flicker of acknowledgement that she understood the remark, her attention focused on what she feels coming next - a build up of blistering heat impossible to miss at the small distance that seperates the two this instant.
But the time taken to prepare is insufficent for the swath of scorching flame that comes next. She springs up then, opting to try and escape, not trusting in even her ability to fend off the energy strikes of others as enough to contend with what is coming at her. But it isn't enough. Everywhere about her the flame roars, energy coursing over her body, fire flickering along her form. "AAH!" comes the exclaim of pain as she is knocked back off her feet, the wracking agony too severe for her to even keep her legs beneath her.
Landing on her back, Hotaru rolls, curling up for a brief moment before coming up on her side in a shallow puddle of water left by the swirling mists, gritting her teeth as she bites back a hiss, eyes closed. Fighting against the lingering flames, she at last manages to subdue them, the fire put out, the color of her surroundings returning to a dull brown, steam rising up around her from the now dry ground beneath her feet. Burnt bad, her right arm bears red burn marks, her white sleeves scorched black. Exhaling, she regains control over her breathing, forcing the agonizing moment behind her.
What transpired in seconds felt like a lifetime, but now she can focus once more. "It too far more than that," she at last replies, her voice a bit less steady as she pushes back up to standing, eyes breaking from him to scan the ruins about them. "Far more than I could have ever done alone." She crouches for only an instant before springing into the air, her leap taking her up against the stone walled aquaduct above.
She's there for only an instant before dropping down toward K' knee first, attempting to slip past his guard at a difficult angle. Should her knee connect, she follows up with a swift strike from her left leg, giving him a kick to the side of the head while also providing her with the support she needs to spring backward a little ways.
COMBATSYS: K' dodges Hotaru's Rengeki Shuu.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/--=====|==-----\-------\0 K'
K' swipes his hand back down, flame shredding between his fingers as the fire dies out. Her cry draws little more than a cold tilt of his head, K' simply waiting for Hotaru to recover from the cruelty of his attack. He doesn't ask her whether she's all right, doesn't express remorse over how hard he's struck her. Such things are nothing more than insults in his mind; he only ever asks if an opponent's all right if he wants to imply they can't -handle- his fire.
Relaxing back into a loose stance, he watches her as she pulls herself back up and regards their surroundings. His gaze follows her up when she suddenly springs, utilizing an admirable agility to scale up to a more advantageous height.
She replies as she moves, and confusion flickers momentarily in his eyes. They soon narrow, K' focusing on her, troubled by her words and the implications. "More?" He doesn't understand. How could he understand? He's never experienced real interpersonal bonds before, never known what it's like to be able to lean and rely upon others. The concept of something that is impossible to do alone is nearly alien to him. After all, he's tried to do just about everything else in his life alone.
She arrows down at him and he abruptly slides forwards -towards- her, a familiar spike of chi around him heralding what's coming next. His lithe form blurs around her, a splash of black marking his use of his odd chi, and he turns at the very end of his evasion: swiveling around smoothly on his heels to face her again. "What more did you need--" His stance sets, before he twists abruptly: whipcracking one heel at her in a sharp hooking kick, "that you couldn't do yourself?!"
The only way K' could understand something so personal being impossible to do alone is if it requires a teacher. When it comes to the acquisition of benefits, that sort of relationship is the only one he understands.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru dodges K''s Medium Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/--=====|===----\-------\0 K'
He corrects for her dive, slipping out of the way with remarkable speed - a blur of ebony energy cluing her into his ability to move so fast. She felt it before in their last match, though hadn't quite put two and two together. Now the signifiance sinks in. He's /fast/ when he needs to be. She corrects quickly, landing on her feet as she snaps her foot down beneath her trajectory.
She isn't still for a second. He doesn't afford her that. Training can't deliver the stress, the pressure she's under now. Only the heat of battle, in every meaning of the word, can push her this fast. Spinning up to face him, she's moved by the time he kicks, flipping backward into a back hand spring, hands planting against the stone as the girl twirls out of the acrobatic technique to land on her feet a few yards back, a soft exhale escaping her lips. "In the instant I broke free of what that man had done to me - Kataki - what I needed was Kentou." she states with no uncertainty in her voice. Had he not been there, with his faith in her, his trust propping her up, she isn't sure where she would be now.
"In the weeks that followed, I needed my other friends. People who understood." Her eyes stay focused, but there's a certain steeliness to them, a hardened look as she reflects briefly on those cold facts of her rampage earlier in the year. "And in the weeks before, I needed friends who cared. Sakura... Frei... so many others. Cared enough to be there for me; cared enough to tell me what I needed to hear." There is a shift in her expression, a pointed look as she clenches her hands and unclenches them, scooting back toward K' slowly at first. "Like you did."
She drops back down into her low stance, her movements smooth, graceful, preparing, it may seem, for another direct strike to be sent his way. "It isn't a failing to get help when you need it," she continues, her voice lower now, as if she is speaking to herself as much as him, reminding herself of the lesson she had to learn the hard way. "It takes a different strength to accept it - especially when you've spent so much time trying to prove something."
She acts then, tucking herself into a tumbling ball as she attempts to roll to K''s right side. Springing out of the roll, both hands go for his right arm, attempting to get a tight hold. And should she get that, one hand stays clasped at his wrist, while her other smacks up toward his chest, attempting to drive him back hard enough that she can twist him right over her extended knee and send him to the ground - the entire assault happens in an instant, her movements smooth, controlled throughout.
COMBATSYS: K' blocks Hotaru's Medium Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/--=====|===----\-------\0 K'
When he needs to be, K' is virtually ephemeral. The secret to his impossible speed is, ironically, the one thing NESTS did not give him: the chi he already had, long before that cartel ever got its hands on him. It is Krizalid's mastery of wind manifested in a distinctly different way, appearing as a defensive ability to force the surrounding chi to carry him where he needs to be at a dizzying pace. He'd long since become accustomed to the vertigo inspired by moving so fast.
And now, it seems, he finds himself confronted with someone that relies upon brutal speed as much as he does. His attack meets only air, the girl vaulting out of the way with a surprising swiftness. He recovers quickly, completing the motion to spin himself back to a ready stance: his jaw tightening as she replies his question.
It's strange how the scales tip. Months ago K' was the one speaking, giving the hard facts; today, it's Hotaru speaking to K', telling him things he doesn't entirely understand or like. The idea of relying upon other people bothers him; he has seen what happens when you associate too closely with a place or a person. They become the next target. "Not everybody has the luxury," he finally settles on saying, straightening up, his voice tightening, "of being able to get others involved in their affairs." He heard that pointed quality to her voice.
There is something a little bitter about his eyes now. He thought he might learn something he could try himself, something he could use, somebody he could turn to in order to teach him-- but as it turns out, what Hotaru did in order to rid herself of her crippling dependence is something he does not want to consider.
"And that is why..." He turns as she attacks. One hand snares his wrist, the other slamming towards his chest: his free arm comes up in a crossing guard, glancing the strike off his forearm and giving him time to twist free. "...I left the center." Doubtless she heard of the decision, but likely did not know the reason; he gives it to her now, even as he straightens and lunges in a sudden snapped kick straight towards her shoulder.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru blocks K''s Minutes Spike.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 K'
He fends off her attack, her smacking arm blocked by his arm, her grip on his wrist pried apart as he applies his superior strength to twist away. This time Hotaru is quick to defend, drawing back, turning her shoulder toward K', raising her arms, right arm in front, left arm bracing. It's just in time as his kick comes plowing into her with the force at his command. She weathers it better than she managed while dangling from a ceiling, though her feet slip all the same, her right arm smacked to the side, forcing her to roll with it and spin around, pushing off the remaining force of K''s forward momentum at an angle.
"In your shoes," she replies, lowering her guard as she straightens out, her tone grave, "I would have done the same." She relaxes her stance a little, arms raised to a ready position. "Leave, that is." she clarifies as she does, her need to breath interrupting her spoken words for only a brief moment. "Those at the center never asked to be drawn into your affairs. Leaving them out of it was the right thing to do."
She bounces lightly on her toes, watching K', studying him, trying to get a better feel for how to fight against him. Trying to get in a clean hit against someone with superior speed and strength is always a challenge. "But there are people who chose to get involved." she continues, closing her hands then opening as she stretches her fingers. "You can't keep them out it, even if you try." Her tone is softer, reflecting on her own experiences, her own attempts to drive others off only to have them get involved anyway. "It's just how people are. It's how friends are."
She steps forward then, flowing easily mid-step into that low stance he has seen a couple times now. Her forward momentum doesn't slow for an instant as she shifts right out of that low crouch into her next attack. A quick intake of breath, then she strikes, rising up out of that low stance into a double palm press at roughly stomach level. Her right foot slams forward, both palms rushing in at the same time, lending a lot of force to the pressuring attack. "YAA!"
COMBATSYS: K' fails to interrupt Medium Punch from Hotaru with Quick Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-======|======-\-------\0 K'
Forcing against her blocking arm, K' pushes off to land lightly a short distance away. Hands hooking idly back in his belt loops, he circles a little around her, watching her as she replies. Something about her reply seems to gratify him-- or at least, to reassure him. He -did- make the right choice. It -was- right for him to leave. No one at that place needed to get caught up in the troubles that follow him. His issues were his and his alone. He needed and wanted no help.
But soon he realizes that Hotaru isn't going to leave it at that. There's a but. And as she continues on to elucidate just what that but is, his expression shifts from its initial complacency to a look of suspicion-- and then, a mere narrow-eyed glower. He's remembering Frei, who bluntly told him that he'd accept and support him even though he had barely the first idea who he was. And he's remembering Alma, who insisted on providing the protection of the YFCC even at risk to himself and others under that roof.
"I'm enough, by myself. I don't need help-- and I thought you didn't either. I -told- you; everyone relies on their own strength." He steps forward, even despite the fact Hotaru is attacking, as if to prove this. After all, to accept assistance would imply he's not good enough, wouldn't it? It'd cement the fact that he really was a failure-- someone who couldn't accomplish a single thing by himself. An incomplete thing.
She moves faster than he expected. She strikes home before he can get a good enough grasp on her shirtfront, her momentum knocking him back before he can retaliate. Hissing out a breath, he retreats a few more paces, watching her narrowly. "I don't need anybody else involved," he repeats. Perhaps he's trying to convince himself.
It probably helps her that her clothing doesn't make it easy to grab hold of her by the front, snug fitting as it is. Her palm press sends him sliding back a little, forcing him to withdraw for an instant of precious time for her to catch her breath. Pushing back on her forward foot, she turns to the side, arms raised, prepared and ready for retaliation that doesn't come just yet. At least, not physically.
"I thought I didn't need others either," she retorts, her voice a blend of stern patience. "That's /how/ I fell into the problem I did. I was manipulated, sure, by Kataki... but he only drew forth doubts I already had. I thought needing other people was a weakness... that's /why/ I turned to my short cut. My crutch." Unlike her previous stance where she was mobile, the girl stays perfectly still, arms raised to pass over and under the level of her face, staying tense, ready to move, to put that lightning speed of hers to use, looking toward K' from the side.
She exhales softly, expression softening in the process. "-Everyone- relies on their own strength?" she asks back, twisting her body to the side, facing him directly as she continues to adjust her posture to prepare for the options she continues to weigh in the back of her mind, circling around him as she goes, looking for that critical opening. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but... it seems to me that you have an army after you - not just one person." She smiles faintly then, "I'm not sure trying to take on a legion by yourself is going to work out... You can't fight them all solo." She pictures those she knows for certain are NESTs from experience. The frightening Igniz, the spokey woman with the umbrella, the tall amazon with the rapier, the throngs of underlings they brought with them whenever she saw them... "Eventually you'll be overwhelmed by sheer numbers. And what then? Is there no one that depends on you? Can you afford to leave them behind because you refused everyone's help?"
Her questions are persistant, as is her tone, the girl seemingly stubborn in her stance, convinced of the lessons she learned during her months of violently driving off everyone who tried to help. "Hn," she continues, circling around him, hands raised, finding his defenses, even with his slouched, relaxed ready stance, a formidable challenge. She knows better than to dismiss him as unprepared. "Maybe you're right. Accepting help of someone else is admitting that you're not invincible, untouchable, unreachable." She looks a bit forlorn, perhaps finding his stubborness nearly enough to counter her own. "But then, are you even alive at that point?!" The words are kept from the cameras by the rushing sound of water overhead, mists rising in the humid jungle air as Hotaru completes her circle. That is until she raises her voice, of course.
And in that instant she moves, a blur of white and blue, sprinting from her tense, tight stance into a powerful charge, pouring everything she has into speed, hoping to find it within her to get through K''s defenses. Her hands reach for his arms, hoping he tries to simply guard, not realizing the extent of the attack to come. And should she secure a hold, she'll try to pry his arms open, leaving him vulnerable to a series of rapid stomping strikes up the front of him, targeting knees, stomach, chest, and shoulders as she tries to spring forward off the taller fighter into a forward flip through the air in order to land behind him. Is he untouchable? How good are his defenses against her charge? Against her questions?
COMBATSYS: K' interrupts Shin-Jou Tai from Hotaru with Eins Trigger EX.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////// ]
Hotaru 1/---====/=======|=======\=------\1 K'
Breathing evenly, head bowed, K' keeps his shadowed eyes-- hidden beneath long bangs-- fixed on the ground even as Hotaru speaks. This, he hadn't known. He had thought she turned to that foreign power merely in order to prove her strength: in order to augment it. Self-centered and self-absorbed, he had assumed everyone else was the same way-- that everyone else also did things solely for themselves, without even -thinking- of other people.
Eventually, he straightens. He doesn't turn his gaze to follow her as she prowls a circle around him, remaining immobile: a sleek black figure, as statuesque as if wrought from steel. "You can't imagine," he eventually replies, "what I have after me. And you don't want to be in the crossfire." He finally lifts his head, his yellow eyes coming to light, fixing a sharp gaze on her. "But every snake has got a head. I--" And then, of course, she asks if he hasn't got anyone dependent upon him, that he cannot afford to leave behind.
K''s jaw shuts on his words visibly, the line of it winding taut first in surprise: and then sudden anger. The kind of anger that only appears when a nerve has been hit. Seishirou had already impugned his ability to protect his sister, taunting him with the knowledge that K' could not be there all the time. Making it manifestly clear that, at any moment, she could be taken from him. He says nothing... but the way his eyes have slitted-- his expression distinctly stung-- makes it clear enough that there -is- such a person in his life.
He makes no verbal response to Hotaru. Not yet. He simply -glares- at her as she arrows at him in the wake of her words, her last thrown question pinging around in his mind. He knows already how he's going to answer.
His hands come together as she reaches for them, left hooking onto the right briefly with a quick motion just before Hotaru wrenches them apart. The jolt sent through him by that motion ultimately serves his purposes, however-- he had undone the clasps on his glove, and with a little additional flick of his wrist the thing falls -open- and off his hand, dangling only by the bracer strapped up his right forearm.
With his glove hinged open, there's nothing to stop the sacred flames from bleeding freely out of his veins. Without effort on K''s part, completely without warning, they fountain violently down his arm, rushing so fast that the roar of sound-- hard-pressed to keep up with the speed of the unchained Kusanagi fire-- rips the air instants -after- the flame. K' snarls through the sudden agonizing sear of the flames coursing down his arm, likely almost as damaged by the action as Hotaru is by the blasting fires: his wrists, in her hands, are shuddering in distinct pain.
"Do I," he replies viciously, his hissing voice mixed seamlessly into the fire, "-look- like I believe I'm unflawed -now-?!" His arm twitches in her grasp, spasming under the burden of the loosed flames: his wrist weighted by the fire as if by a shackle.
His reaction is lightning fast. She knows even before she reaches him that he's ready. She continues on anyway. Fearless, determined, not about to slow. Her hands clamp down on his wrists, but not before he has done what he wanted. The glove is off and the result is another swath of uncontrolled flame coursing free from his arm directly into the path of the young Kenpo artist. She can't stop it from happening any sooner than she can stop herself from her committed attack. All she can do is hold on.
The fire surges over her, a second taste of that which has burned her once before this fight. But this time she fights back, her own aura contending against the unleashed danger, keeping it from harming her to the same degree as her last contact with it. Her hands stay clamped on his wrists, tightening as she shares his pain. The gout of divine fire washes over the both of them. She grits her teeth, clinging on in spite the agony that wracks her body once again. "Some of us... are already in the crossfire." she hisses, tears that would collect at the corner of her eyes evaporated away by the intensity of the inferno before they can roll free. "You can't protect anyone by turning your back on them all...!"
Her hands tighten further, the pain becoming overwhelming. She can't fight it off forever. The conflagration pours down around the duo, dancing against the dry stone at their feet. The world, for the girl, is a furious shade of orange, a haze of red, and behind it all, that dark figure of the young man she wishes she could reach. "Do you think," she continues, her voice softer as she focuses the rest of her strength elsewhere, taking a step backward, attempting to pull K' forward, off balance. "...you can control it all alone? If that's all it took, why haven't you mastered these flames yet?!"
She takes a second step backward, this time twisting her body in the process, attempting to draw K' to her side before crossing her arms, still gripping his wrists, attempting to flip him over sidways in the process, sending him rolling into the shallow pool at their side. It's little more than a symbolic effort. She knows full well no common fountain water can douse the fire that rages from his arm - a living, hungry beast.
COMBATSYS: K' blocks Hotaru's Quick Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Hotaru 1/---====/=======|=======\-------\1 K'
She isn't letting go. He's done attacking, done making his point, ready to clasp the glove back on and let her go-- but -she- isn't letting go. He stares at her, not comprehending what she's doing, not understanding why she's not just backing off. She talks, and the words eventually filter into his consciousness through the haze of snarling fire.
"I'm not turning my back." His teeth bare, eyes narrowing, the harsh firelight carving vicious edges onto his expression. His look is that of a young man who's hearing something he doesn't like and doesn't want to acknowledge. "I choose not to involve--"
He can see that he's burning her, far beyond what's strictly necessary; and for once, he doesn't take any pleasure in making another person feel what he feels every minute of every day. She's willingly -sharing- it, and that makes all the difference. He tries to dim the fire, but largely fails-- he tries to rein it in, but only succeeds in pulling it back far enough that the brunt of it falls back on him. "...Let go." The two words fall like a guillotine, an absolute imperative that gains an added edge of anger when it finds itself ignored. His wrists twitch backwards against her grasp, only to find that her grip can't be broken. "Let -go-."
Shackled, K' starts to fall defensive: straining to break away and regain his space. Hotaru tries to pull him off-balance, and sensing that attempt K' leans back. Her final question, however, completely wrecks his composure; his eyes flick wide, mingled shock and sudden rage searing to the surface, and in that moment of distraction Hotaru gets the better of him. He twists in the air before he can land painfully on his shoulder, instead skidding to a splashing halt in the midst of the pool. The water instantly hisses loudly as it meets the flames.
K' doesn't try to put his glove back in place. Still braced on all fours, weighted heavily by the wracking flames, he compels his breathing to stabilize: seeming now to exist purely as force of will. The water from the pool evaporates entirely, murdered by his fire-draped presence: its exorcised ghost pours from the basin in clouds and purls of steam.
"I..." Visibly, he struggles in an attempt to control and harness the fire, trying to calm his mind enough to direct that force under his skin. His left hand twitches towards his right-- he's close to giving up. "...I need -time-. I need to do this alone. If I don't-- if somebody hands it to me-- I'll never know whether I'm worth shit." He needs to know he has that capability within him-- else he'll never stop regarding himself as a failure.
COMBATSYS: K' gathers his will.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////// ]
Hotaru 1/---====/=======|=======\====---\1 K'
Let go, he demands, not once but twice. She doesn't let go, her grip vice-like firm, fingers white-knuckle tight over his wrists. It's undeniable that the blaze hurts her too, but still the girl doesn't relent. Not until she attempts to turn him on his side do her hands loosen their grip, letting him go free. He takes with him the brunt of the inferno, leaving flickering traces in its wake. She doesn't pursue as a water is forced to vapor, filling the ancient ruins with steam. Her proximity came at a cost, the last traces of fire coursing over her form as the girl is forced to stave off the last fo it - a faint shimmer of blue visible around her as her own aura contends with the final remnants.
She exhales, letting her guard down for a crucial moment, staring back at the young man visible behind the newly born mists. Perspiration rolls down her temples as her body begins to struggle against the heat of the environment. The week prior she conducted a match within a scorching oven. This very moment, such a venue seems almost benevolent in comparison. The thick vapor is stiffling, but she can't stop now. Can't drop her focus. She's touched so many nerves in the NESTs escapee it's any wonder he's still speaking to her by now, and the perceptive girl knows it.
Her bangs and pig-tails are whipped about, but it isn't by some gentle zephyr but rather the heated currents of air whipping about the two, driven into a frenzy by the individual at the center of it all - the man on fire.
She can sense it. The ebb and flow of energies as the tortured being attempts to force the blaze to obey his will. She can feel his struggle, sharp eyes perceiving the flicker of his left hand toward his right, that desire to seal it off, to at last douse the flames, finishing the job that the water could not even begin with that special, precisely engineered glove. His crutch. "No one can hand it to you," the girl speaks up, her mouth curled into a hint of a frown. "Just like no one could save me from myself from what I had become..."
Her hands tighten, energy beginning to build up around her. With so much power in the air, it is trivial to draw upon it. Chi flows in abundance here and now, the air alive... drenched with it. "In the end, it had to be me. But that doesn't change the reality. The truth that throughout it all, others were there. A fact I only came to realize in the aftermath. The words, the support, the faith and trust, and in the end... the /need/ for me to recover, to master it and myself, to regain control." An aura of blue continues to churn into existence about the small fighter's figure, whirling about her legs and waist as she raises her closed hands. "Each person who extended a piece of themselves for me added to my strength. With them all I became more than I could alone."
The young chi user unclenches then clenches her hands a second time, power swelling about her, drawn from the flames setting the ruins aglow. And then she finally moves, bolting toward K', driven by stubborn determination, resolve, dedication. She was unflinching in her decision to prove what she could do against a fighter better than she was. And the only way to do that is to go all out. And it is with that in mind that she speeds K' now, leaving a small ring of risidual fire burning where she stood, having been drawn toward her own chi manipulation.
In an instant she is in front of him in that low stance of hers, arms out at her sides, entire body tensed up, ready to be committed in full to the attack that comes next, Hotaru rising into K' with a punishing backflipping kick, propelled not by muscle strength alone but energy as well...!
COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits K' with Ten-shou Ranki.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-------|>>>>>>>\>>>>>>>\2 K'
It's with the best that she's got that Hotaru's kick plows into the NESTs escapee. The force behind the collision is significant, the smaller fighter striking with power beyond what any might expect from one with her stature. She ascends into the backflip, a swath of blue energy forming almost a beam of support beneath her, granting her the leverage she needs to make required corrections. A small twist of her body at the apex and suddenly the girl is diving right back down from the angle she had come, her trajectory taking her directly into K'.
She plows into him with the kind of force it takes to drag him to the ground, sliding over rough stone on his back. All of that latent energy in the air - the flames, the breath of life, the well of sapphire blue begins to be drawn in on the girl firmly ensconced over K''s stomach, her two hands pressed against his chest, fingers curled into his shirt, her mouth closed, teeth gritted, eyes fixed on his as she pulls together everything she has. A sphere of blue builds up around her, evidence of the final strike due shortly. But the source of the chi she's drawn so heavily upon continues to affect her own attack, evidenced by the traces of fire that flicker over the sphere.
Pinning K' for that brief moment, Hotaru finds herself wondering if there was anything else she could say to her captive audience. Anything more she could do than she has done. But nothing comes to mind. She's exhausted herself with what she's already gone through, and as she begins to accept that, the power coursing around her collapses. Like a globe crushed beneath incredible pressure, the chi swirling about her implodes back into the young martial artist only for her to redirect it all down her arms, funneling a surge of chi, a blend of so many energies at once, directly into his chest.
An explosion blows back her pig-tails, sending forth an invisible blastwave that scatters the vaporized water from around the two of them, forcing it to retreat back just a little. And in the silence that lingers following the blast, Hotaru speaks quietly, "No one can hand it to you. But that doesn't mean they can't lend a hand... It's not the same thing." And with that, she pushes down against him, using his chest for support to prop herself back up to her feet, eager to back off as quickly as possible.
K''s left hand twitches against the clasps of his glove. The temptation to fall back on that easy way out-- to slam shut the glove and let it resume its control of his fire-- is so great it hurts. He knows he's running out of time in which to act-- knows that if he doesn't take his opportunity to break through her charge early, he won't be able to defend against it. But--
It's hindering you more than it's helping. He can hear the words in Geese's scathing voice. It's a crutch, little more than a foolish toy that stifles your capabilities.
Is he so weak, so flawed, that he can't do what Hotaru did? No-- their circumstances are different, he tells himself. She picked up that power of her own volition, and so she could discard it again easily. For her, the 'help of her friends' was little more than their hands reached out to pry that corrupting power out of her grasp. He, however, was -engineered- a failure. His inability is part of his very blood.
How can other people help him, in the way she's claiming, with something written into his very blueprint? He needs someone to -teach- him how to rid himself of that fault in him, not to -believe- he can. He needs to fix himself. The belief of others is near-worthless to him; primarily because he has so little faith in himself that he doesn't trust the faith of others. K' has had no shortage of people express their belief in his ability-- but somehow, he never can bring himself to accept it. He feels like such a shell of a person, such a false excuse for a life, that he doesn't even know why anyone wastes time on him.
Proof enough of that insecurity comes when, hating himself, he finally shuts his glove: turning back to the only stable thing he's got. But the motion comes too late. He doesn't regain focus from the disorienting effects of having the glove off until Hotaru's already within striking range. He tries to defend himself, but severely underestimates the force with which she's striking: knocked clear off his balance, he skids painfully on his back some distance, trying to rise, before Hotaru comes arrowing back in to pinion him to the ground forcibly with her weight.
The close contact touches off something violent and instinctive in him. He snaps to frenzied life beneath her, striving against her pinning form, his eyes fixed murderously on hers as he attempts to tear her clear of him. The culminating surge of chi, however, blasts his resistance to shreds. All that energy poured into him at once reacts poorly with the fire in him, and K' slams back against the ground as much in pain from Hotaru's attack as he is from the sudden agitation of the fire in him.
Movements slow, the young man momentarily stunned, he turns his gaze towards her as she leans in to talk to him. His yellow eyes stare levelly at her, not seeming to comprehend and offering no response. He simply watches her as she pushes away, trying to rise-- to get away.
His eyes narrow, something behind them snapping.
He moves so quickly it's near-impossible to see how and when he rises. One moment, he's still-- the next, he's lunging so fast he streaks in a blur of black. Fire laces him as he attempts to smash straight -into- Hotaru, sinking a hand into her to slam and pin her against the stone of the nearest aqueduct.
"We," he snarls, "seem to be different after all. You can afford to be close to other people. You -deserve- to be. But who wastes time on a failure...? What normal person could I ask to risk anything for somebody without a name? A past? Some-- machine that happened to fall off the assembly line?" His voice is so low probably even Hotaru can barely hear it, much less the cameras. They're thoughts he's never spoken aloud to anybody-- hate-ridden, internal lashes, all pointed like spears at his own self.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru just-defends K''s Heat Drive!
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-------|=======\-------\1 K'
She could see the menacing wave of emotion flooding over him as she had him held briefly against the rough stone. Maybe she's pushed him too far, beyond the point of hearing anything she says. Possibly. Given the chance, she would do it all again. Her feet touch down lightly, kicking up baked dust from off the ruin floor, having retreated. Retaliation will come. And it will be swift. And it will be painful. She knows this from experience.
Last time he decided to end a fight against her, she couldn't even see the attack, his motions defying her trained eye, the impact happening before she knew he moved. And in knowing that, this time... she doesn't wait. The chance is preciously narrow. No ordinary defense will do. When a man like K' slams into you with that kind of speed, with that fire behind him, will simply raising one's arms be enough? The pig-tailed girl raises her hands, narrows her eyes, focusing on the energy all around her. With the unleashing of such powerful attacks, with emotions worked to a frenzy, and divine flames unleashed... there's more than enough chi to spare.
He will find no resistence as he slams into the young fighter, carrying her easily with the force, planting her back against the wall. But there no sickening crunch as her journey backward comes to a stop. The piller behind her cracks a little, dust and rubble knocked loose from the aquaduct above pouring down around the two fighters, but as K' leans in, his voice so very low, Hotaru stares back at him, blue eyes perfectly aware, perfectly cognizant.
He might become aware of a dim blue glow between them. He might realize that his hand, rather than buried into her chest, is instead cupped by both of her smaller hands. The flames that flicker over his body are intense, but lack the necessary proximity to harm her now, as she holds his hand tightly in hers, her back pressed against the wall for support. The sheath of flame over his arm that would harm her is kept at bay by the blue energy of the martial artist to which he speaks, the two powers colliding, frenzied flames crashing against a barrier of calming blue.
"I wonder," Hotaru speaks up, her voice stronger now, "Who it is... that keeps feeding you that lie..." A mixture of sadness and anger is reflected in her visage. How can he be so damn stubborn? How can he be so convinced? "That you're a failure, a mistake." Her eyes narrow a little, her hold on his hand tightening, "Is it Igniz? Someone else at NESTs?" She knows all about who Igniz is now, having the misery of encountering the man more than once. She's silent for a second. She knows the real answer. "It's you, isn't it." She pushes back then, releasing his hand, slipping out from being pinned against the wall.
The cerulean hue along her arm fades, the chi she borrowed from the world at large drawn back into the girl, reinvigorating weary muscles and soothing minor aches. "I know this because when I succumbed to doubt, there was only one person telling me what a failure I was..." She takes in a deep breath, returning back to a tight ready stance, collecting herself, her breathing controlled. "Myself."
She drops low, tensing up, readying another one of her many lunging attacks. "Are we that different...? Or am I just on the other side of where you want to be? You must want to know how I got here. And now I've told you. If you wish to reject what I've said..." she extends her arms slowly for balance, crouching even lower, her right foot the furthest forward. "... it doesn't make them untrue."
And then she's springing back at him, a small hop, a twist through the air, the girl swinging out with her arms, aiming to deliver two swift palm strikes at chest and shoulder level. And as her feet touch down, she delivers the real attack - a punishing palm strike, one hand slamming out in either direction, coordinating every bit of strength she has in her body into that strike.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits K' with Soushou Shin.
- Power hit! -
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|=======\==-----\1 K'
He wasn't entirely certain when this encounter had deviated from what he had originally intended. He had expected to have a look at Hotaru's progress, to see if she'd listened to his advice from months ago-- to find out what it was she'd done to shake herself off the path he'd already gone too far down. Maybe he thought he would learn something of use.
But now, he's being told things he doesn't want to acknowledge. He's being told things he isn't ready to hear. The part of him that doesn't want to consider anything she's saying regrets letting this come so far and drag so long: tells him he should have taken earlier chances to silence her and end this early.
Well, better late than never, he tells himself. He'll simply end this derailed excuse for an exercise now. With full intent to violently silence her and thereby -force- the argument to end, he attacks; but soon enough he slowly realizes the girl has managed to -defend-, catching a strike she shouldn't even have been able to see. Clear surprise flickers in his eyes, his fire hesitating; his subsequent movement backwards could only be called a recoil, his hand twitching before ripping itself free of her grasp. He steps back, trying to collect himself enough to focus on the actual fight, but his racing mind betrays him-- he starts to guard far too late, the girl eeling easily around his slowed defenses and slamming him back hard enough to crack him against the far aqueduct.
Who is it, she asks. Who keeps telling you these things? He says nothing, hanging back against the stone with an uncharacteristic hesitation, watching her with his unusual yellow eyes. Most of the other times Hotaru's met them, they look harsh, predatory and cruel, cold of emotion and devoid of anything but spite or hatred. Most of the time, they affect a world-weariness and experience far beyond what a normal teenager should have. Today, however, they just reflect an odd and childlike lack of understanding.
Predictably, that instant of vulnerability is quickly replaced by a resurgence of anger.
"Don't say those names. How do you -know- them?! How do you know -anything-?" He pushes away from the stone, advancing, his hands twitching shut. "It's easy for you to call it a lie, because you don't know shit about me. You do not know what it is LIKE--" That sudden word comes punctuated and half-drowned out by a surge of fire, the flames down his arm reflecting his temper: the power finally properly controlled again now that hated crutch is secured back about his hand. In a carving arc of fire, he lunges in a vicious swipe punched at an upward diagonal from hip to shoulder, a movement repeated again should the first connect. Forgetting all he's been taught in recent months in favor of simply trying to -end- this conversation via sheer force, he attacks spurred by both a blind and stung anger, and his nervousness over his perceived loss of control over this interaction.
COMBATSYS: K' successfully hits Hotaru with Heaven Drive.
[ \\\\\\ < > ////// ]
Hotaru 1/-----==/=======|-------\-------\0 K'
She drives him back against the wall with the power of her palm strike, having poured everything she had into that attack. Her hand snaps back, her other arm providing the counter balance she needs to recover quickly as possible. He shouts back at her, insisting she knows nothing about him and the girl is quiet, exhaling softly, knowing she's said and done what she could. There are limits to what can be accomplished here, and in the instant he lunges, it seems those limits are about to be realized.
She draws back, having already used perhaps her best shot at keeping herself from harm's way with her previous defense. There's little she can do to stop him, even as her arms come up to try and ward off the worst of the assault. It doesn't work. Crushing through what guard she can muster, K''s flaming uppercut rips across the more fragile fighter at an angle, easily taking her off the ground with the force behind it.
"AAH!" comes the second scream of pain she's released this fight. She has the wherewithall to try and twist out of it in mid-air, but his follow up sees to that, punishing her for the attempt with a debilitating force to the stomach, forcing her breath from her lungs, her mouth open in a silent gasp. She drops out of the air, a smoldering wreck as she lands hard, smoke rising up around her.
Rolling onto her side, the girl comes up kneeling, one hand resting against her stomach, her complexion pale. Her blue vest is scorched, a black scar angling across it, and a trickle of blood seeps from the corner of her mouth. Her other hand presses against the floor, keeping her propped up a little. When she lifts her face to look toward the young man, a flicker of a smile tugging at the edge of her lips. "It's all right," the girl speaks up, her voice unsteady as is her ability to stay upright. "I said all the same things to each person who reached out..." Her breaths are becoming harder, a sharp pain punctuating each one. She suspects a rib is to blame, bruised at best, cracked at worst. She isn't going to be able to continue much longer.
Biting back the pain, the girl makes one last attack. Springing out of her crouch, she bolts toward K', trying to convince herself that she isn't about to make her injuries worse. A brazen leap into him, shoulder first, is intended to brutalize his defense even as she touches down. What comes next is a flurry of windmilling strikes, the Kenpo artist unleashing one last combination before pain will finally overcome any level of determination.
If she manages to slip through his guard one more time, she finishes with a second shoulder slam, and a single roundhouse, the effort provoking a pained cry as she spins around that last time. Hand going to her side, she slumps to her knees with a wince before falling over onto her side, helpless against the stone. Panting for breath, she plants her hands, making an attempt at moving but finding she's unable to do anything beyond simply lie there, taking in crucial breaths, seeming to have nothing more to say.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\ <
K' 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: K' dodges Hotaru's Ten-ren-ge.
[ \\\\\\ <
K' 0/-------/------=|
Perversely enough, cruelly enough, striking Hotaru seems to sap a great deal of the anger out of K', his temper satiated and spent in that one punishing strike. Hissing out a long and angry breath, K' finally lets himself calm down, letting go of that rage: forcing it to drain out of him. His head lowering, he concentrates on moderating his breathing, standing there in silence and focusing on keeping himself upright long enough to finish out this fight.
He finally looks towards Hotaru once her small form stirs in the corner of his vision, lifting his head and settling a harsh gaze on her. His eyes narrow on the smile. It's perhaps the last expression he expected from someone who just took so hard a strike-- and it's soon explained when Hotaru speaks up: her voice gentle, even now.
K' stiffens visibly. His expression wars between a stung anger at the potential patronizing tone of her words, and something a little more unreadable. "I never disagreed with you," he eventually replies, and leaves it at that.
He's expecting her to attack again. He knows already she is not the type to give in. And when she lunges towards him, he's already stepped halfway into one of his characteristic shadowy evasions, twisting around her with an odd sort of grace. He lets her slump to the ground afterwards, watching her all the while, slowing out of his flickering speed into a measured circling prowl around her. He waits a few moments, taking in her state, walking off the pain he himself feels chewing at his battered frame.
Then, abruptly, he leans down towards her, reaching to shut a hand in her shirtfront. His arm doesn't waver or tremble even as he hauls her up, closer to him, but the utter -tenseness- of it should be clear enough indication to her of how much pain he's currently hiding. He hardly came out of this unscathed-- anything but-- and that is something he will acknowledge.
"...You proved yourself." With a sharp movement he releases her again, a gentle shove forces her back against the stone, making it clear he intends her to stay there and strain herself no further. Straightening up and stepping around her, he starts to walk away, forcing himself to move smoothly and ignoring his own battered state. "Enjoy that feeling."
COMBATSYS: K' has ended the fight here.
Her last ditch combination misses completely, K''s speed taking him safely out of harms way. By the time she has collapsed, he's circling around the girl, but Hotaru hardly seems to be too aware of his positioning. Giving up on trying to stand again, she brings one hand to rest against her side, testing it tenderly, trying to get a sense of how bad off she is from that powerful uppercut of his.
Her self-inspection is cut short, however, as he leans down, grabbing hold of her shirt in order to heft her up. With the fight taken out of her, the light framed girl is easy to lift. Her own hand comes up to grab at his wrist loosely as he holds her there, meeting his eyes with her own, though she's shaky in trying to keep her head up, a slight tremble coursing through her body.
He speaks and she listens, a faint smile managed in spite the pain she's in. In the sum total, she didn't fall short. He may be the victor of the fight, but she doesn't care. She did what she set out to do from the onset. "I know..." she whispers back, voice strained, "...you can do it." He lets go and shoves, and Hotaru rolls back against the stone ruins with a grunt, content to simply lie still for now, eyes closing as she exhales a sigh of release. The intense pressure of the fight is off her shoulders now. She did her best. His approval, difficult to obtain as it may have been, is more than sufficient reward for this hard fought battle of force and words.
Log created on 00:23:31 07/31/2008 by Hotaru, and last modified on 20:33:09 08/02/2008.