Description: The second half! What becomes of the INSIDE of the YFCC while the fighting rages on! But do they find what they're looking for, or is it all ... KAPUTSKI!? CAN'T stop me nooooow having such a good time, I'm having a ball!
Wonders never do cease. Frei's just standing there, and suddenly, Bison breaks through the door. Now that's interesting.. quite interesting. Literately a bull of a man, he is.
But that's neither here nor there. What with the staffer just standing there, as Frei points out that 'blowing up the door is against the rules', Mary laughs, shaking her head, "Only when it takes time darlin'. I reckon that was easier than opening it for 'im." The dress she tucks a bit, and looking up, she notices Zach finally. Glory Glory, ain't all of them just filing in!
Drake's not really noticed, and Mary keeps her attention forwards, on the two. "And we just wanna look at those here. It ain't that bad.. It's not like we came here solely to hurt any o' ya'll." She notes, leaning towards those inside..
She leans back afterwards, pressing against the wall with the broken glass. "Ya'll nice folk though .. so I'm sure ya'll understand."
Much as expected Igniz to start things off with a bang. That is more than fine for Eiji since it allows many distractions for him to move about rather freely without being seen. His own entrance into the building is much more subtle. Bison and Mary can have their own flashy way of entering in and garnering attention from those gathered inside that might stand up against the invading force. From the look of things he has yet to see much of anyone looks like much of a challenge. He is starting to wonder if he should have stayed outside to see if someone more interesting would present themself.
He lets out a quiet sigh as eyes scan over the room and he debates what action to take. For now he is going to let others do the work until something more interesting happens. He doubts his partners in crime will have too much of a problem with those gathered inside at the moment and he hates dirtying his hands on those not worth it no matter how well Igniz is paying him. He is here and the assault looks to be going in favor of Igniz and his forces.
Bison is pretty much like a bull in a china shop, once inside; people are running from him, literally, because he is goddamn scary. Really, Bison isn't noticing anyone except as targets. They'd do better to hold still--like the ancient Tyrannosaurus Rex, Bison's vision is based on movement. Or so it is said. Truth is, even some of the inanimate objects are taking punches from the heavyweight and current SNF Warrior's Belt holder; he's just kind of smashing things. And breaking them.
Hey, it's what he was hired for, right? Mary and Eiji? If they're here to help, that's great; if not, well, he won't make any special effort to crush their heads, unless they get in the way. This is the kind of thing Bison could do for -anyone-, though... as long as they were paying enough.
There's only one thing that would make the night complete--a few brave souls to crush like bugs on a windshield. "HEY!!" he shouts, suddenly, "WHY AIN'T YOU GUYS FIGHTIN'? AT LEAST THAT PANSY TANNING BED KAY-DASH _FOUGHT_ ME!!" ... oh Bison, you are -so classy-.
The one thing Frei learned about himself during the entire debacle with his lunatic brother causing trouble was how to really use his anger. It's typically an alien feeling for him, something that he doesn't indulge in and doesn't understand, instead preferring the perpetual smile of acceptance that is his trademark. But something he picked up is that there are times when anger is really helpful; when it spurs you to act when you otherwise might not. Now just happens to be one of those times, and it shows in the sudden transformation of his features; the freckled cheeks sink a little, the wide green eyes burn with quiet intensity. He doesn't look furious... perhaps just focused.
But boy, is he *pissed*.
"I don't care what you came for," he says to Mary simply, advancing a few steps so that it is clear to everyone involved he's stepping up. "But the safety of everyone here is my business. That includes K', by the way," he adds to Bison, taking a deep breath. "I don't care what you want, or why you're here. You're going to leave. And normally I'd give you a chance to turn and go, but I'm starting to understand that people like you don't quite respond to that sort of tactic."
His hands suddenly crackle with purple-blue chi lightning, reflecting light off the walls. "And since I doubt you'll just walk out, I'll have to *throw* you out." He then, simply and unceremonisouly, looks to grab Bison with those shocking hands around the neck and hurl him the hell out the door.
COMBATSYS: Frei has started a fight here on the left meter side.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Mary has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Eiji has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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|-------\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: M.Bison has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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|-------\-------\0 M.Bison
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|-------\-------\0 Mary
Oh, what the Hell. It's like feeding a water buffalo testosterone pills and giving it a caffeine IV. Drake's expression wries up as he observes Bison's antics. BISON ANGRY! BISON SMASH!
Deep amethyst eyes turn aside to the staff at hand again, and Drake just grins. Fight's on, then. If for no other reason than to keep from feeling -obligated- to donate more money.
...Well, okay, it's also for the sake of justice, but shh.
"Hey, Captain Steroids!," he shouts, a single gloved hand setting to his hip all cocky-like. "Why not try to hit somethin' a little more challenging than a wall? Like a -real- fighter!"
And with that, Drake is suddenly in motion to work with Frei, rushing across the floor towards the rampaging mammoth. As he moves, a luminescent white aura begins to glow about his frame, creating a 'shadow image' effect. He attempts to weave around behind Bison's back to lock his arms around his midsection. And if caught, Drake bridges his back to drive Bison's head and shoulders against the floor in a solid German suplex. But then Drake is rolling over with Bison to chain a second suplex! Only at the completion of this one, the white energy built up around Drake seeps to the floor beneath Bison's head... where it promptly explodes upwards in a geyser of concussive force, meant to blast him away.
COMBATSYS: Drake has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Drake 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 M.Bison
> //////////////////////////////]
|-------\-------\0 Mary
Fate would have it that the assault of the center happens with many of the YFCC's 'hands on deck', as it were. Quite possibly by accident. Or perhaps their patron seer saw what was coming and arranged for things to work out this way, without the individual pieces knowing why. It doesn't take long after stepping into the lobby, drawn out of the library in the back by the rather hard to miss 'knock at the door' Bison entered with, for Hotaru to start to piece together the situation.
Bison is hard to miss. Blue eyes dart toward him, wondering if he has simply wandered in under a drunken haze, determined to cause trouble. But there's that hauntingly pleasant voice that causes her to know better. Mary. Igniz's assisstant when the Cartel leader attacked her and Jiro at the park. This is them. An attack. It has to be.
The martial artist grits her teeth, glancing over the room, looking out for children in immediate danger, "Everyone this way," the girl yells, waving toward the library, "Back into there. Come on!" Urging children and teenagers alike to get out of the front room as quickly as possible, Hotaru sprints to the center of the room, eyes fixed on Mary... only to slide to an early stop, attention coming to rest on the third that she notices. "You." the pig-tailed girl declares, whirling to face the neglected ninja himself.
The problem is? As much as she harbors feelings of hostility for the ninja that had hassled her so in the past, she really doesn't know why he's here. Which is why in the end, the martial artist spins toward Mary, darting forward into a roll, attempting to come up at Mary's side and get a tight enough hold on her arm to pull her forward, then twist her around backward to spin her to the ground in a simple, effective arm takedown. "You're here with that man, aren't you. Igniz," she hisses at the strange woman as she attempts to get a grip on her arm.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru has joined the fight here.
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Drake 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Hotaru has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Drake 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits Mary with Medium Throw.
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Drake 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/------=|===----\-------\0 Mary
Oh, they're already going at it. It's quite nice to look at! The violence. But it turns out, Mary isn't really ready for any of it. Because Hotaru suddenly comes straight towards Mary, and comes up at her side, pulling her around and twisting her to the ground, the takedown doing all she needs to, really. And Hotaru is especially vicious about it as well..
Mary's body is wrenched as she falls over, despite her attempt to prevent it, and on the ground, she winces once, pulling her arm free only after it's been twisted about to a rather .. painful end. "Ya'll really bloodthirsty.. I jes' said we only came for others, but I wouldn't mind a good fight.." Mary exclaims, before bringing the parasol around! The blades erupt out of the sides. Lovely!
And attempting to catch the Kenpo user, and scoop her up, blades and all, before tossing her.. maybe to one of the others.
It doesn't matter to her.
"And who I come here is my business, darlin'." Her white eyes are .. relatively normal, for what they are.
And she just helps with the violence~!
Things couldn't end up turning out more perfect. All the money just becomes a bonus the moment that Eiji hears a rather familiar voice. A thing smile forms under the mask that he wears and the ninja's attention turns towhere Hotaru shows up. "My, if it isn't the Sakazaki family's pet." he murmurs quietly while finally stepping forward from the shadows, "What a treat to meet you in such a place. I feel like this job just became worthwhile."
He watches in mild amusement as Hotaru makes the mistake of turning her back on the ninja to instead pay attention to Mary. He has more problem in lurching forward and quickly extending a hand out that erupts with red chi as the ninja intends on slashing across the back of Hotaru in a rather quick and vicious manner in order to regain her attention. "I believe we should dance again for old time's sake. What do you think?"
COMBATSYS: M.Bison endures Frei's Medium Throw.
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Drake 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/------=|==-----\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: M.Bison interrupts Whiteout from Drake with Turn Punch.
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Drake 0/-------/=======|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|====---\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/------=|==-----\-------\0 Mary
Bison smirks at Frei. "I 'member you. You tried t' take mah belt. Guess you get yo' second chance." Bison opens his arms--and then Frei is grabbing him around the neck. He clenches his teeth against the electric shock--but he doesn't resist. Instead, when Frei turns to throw him, Bison is ready for it--gathering momentum, not just getting thrown around. In fact, instead of the doorway, Frei ends up slinging Bison right at _Drake_.
And for Drake, it isn't going to be pleasant at all. Because, you see, his intricate combination doesn't get anywhere--Bison simply lunges into the model-wrestler, shoulder first. The impact hurts a little--but the followup's got to hurt even more, as Bison's shoulder rush lifts Drake off the ground, and then suddenly, Bison's leaded glove is landing right in Drake's chest--possibly caving it in, almost certainly bruising something--and hurling the wrestler away.
"Real fighter? Show me one," growls the boxer. Clearly, he doesn't think much of Drake, and as usual, he's feeling cocky as hell.
"C'MON! YOU A FIGHTER? THEN SHOW ME!"
A grimace on the chi sage's face indicates that, at the very least, he knows what is about to happen before it happens, and in his head Frei is cursing himself for not remembering Bison's style better, sooner. And indeed, the boxing glove smacks into Drake -- who Frei dimly remembers, though he has little time to wonder why he's HERE of all places, at this of all times -- fulfilling the age-old prophecy. Still, Frei hops back, bouncing on the balls of his feet and fully expects Bison to leap at him next. It's going to be one of those days.
It's something Mary says, however, that gets his attention, and it's to the parasol-wielding woman that he turns, blinking briefly in surprise (and relief) at noting Hotaru in the room. That's going to make things a little easier, though he finds Eiji's appearance a little odd. "You might not understand this very well," he bites out at Mary, teeth clenched. "But they're not 'others' to us. They're friends. They're... family."
He's going to have to leave her to Hotaru for now, however; his goal right now is to be as annoying to Bison as is humanly possible, in the hopes that the rampaging bull will pay attention to him and not to more fragile things like the building or, worse yet, the students. Ducking forward, he tries a second grappling technique, but this is instead a grab from behind... and if Frei can immobilize Bison long enough, he brings his hand around to the boxer's sternum, surrounded by a cold-feeling aura of purple-black that he presses right into the skin above Bison's heart, delivering a painfully chilling burst of yin chi.
Drake actually thinks he and Frei are working in tandem. He believes that Frei is 'feeding him the ball', as it were. He feels that Bison is about to get owned, in a hard and spectacular way.
Drake was wrong.
Punched like never before, Drake is sent sailing back from Bison. His face is wried in what can only be considered agony. He'd likely be making a darn pitiful noise about now, if he actually had even a tiny bit of breath left in him. But no. His back SLAMs against the wall, limbs and head cracking against it in follow-up. The young 'rassler then drops to his boots, and finally his knees, attempting to cope with the blow he'd just been dealt.
That being said, he's been put through worse. Somehow.
Drake drags himself back up to his feet, teeth grit and scowl set on his face. "Th-that all you got?," he growls. "C'mon! I'm still standin'! I'm not goin' anywhere!"
As Frei attempts his assault, Drake moves in for another one of his own. Only this time, he assails Bison from the front. He attempts to grab the much larger man by the shoulders to begin drilling kneestrikes into his midsection, hoping to further stun him. And if successful, he means to catch Bison's head under his left arm in a forward headlock. He then grabs ahold of Bison by the shorts with his right hand, and he means to hoist him into the air, as if for a vertical suplex. At the last moment, however, Drake torques over to drive Bison onto his back while he slams himself across his chest in a suplex powerslam.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru blocks Mary's Mary Maypole.
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Drake 0/-------/-======|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Hotaru dodges Eiji's Bone Cutter.
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Drake 0/-------/-======|-------\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Mary
Dropping Mary to the floor briefly, Hotaru has the good sense to not stay too close. She has to release the woman's arm. With Frei and Drake keeping the raging buffalo busy, standing in one place for long would mean certain trouble if Eiji decides to step into things. And that's precisely what he ends up doing. "You make us fight with attacks like this," the girl answers the NESTs employee, eyes widening as she hears Eiji moving in on her, to attack from behind.
Taking a step back, her arms are raised, the parasol and its horrible blades bouncing off of her defense, leaving several gashes along her bare forearms in the process. It was the best she could manage in short notice, because in that moment the girl has to spring to the side, head first. Hands snap out, catching herself in order to land into a roll, coming up in a crouch as she rises slowly to standing, facing Eiji directly.
"Thrown your lot in with these sorts then, I see. It doesn't reflect well on the honor of Strolheim, does it." She draws her arms up, returning to a ready stance, bouncing lightly on her feet. Mary and Eiji are both considered, but her experience tells her that the masked fighter and his deadly, bladed chi, need to be her next priority.
She charges him swiftly, hands drawn together, as if ready to slam him in the stomach hard. But the instant she's closed that distance, the girl is reaching for him, attempting to get a grip on his forearms, prying his guard open, and leaving him completely vulnerable to a punishing series of rising, stomping kicks, each one taking her closer to his shoulders, from where she springs, feet planting against the wall briefly, before the young fighter finishes leaping down to the ground and whirling around to face him and Mary.
Watching on as Mary simply bounces the blades off her arms ... well they're probably nothing to a warrior like that. She's felt her strikes before. Painful she is. But as all things start, things must end. Infact, Mary continues to listen to the girl only for so long. "Ya'll fight because ya'll think you need to protect somethin'. But you'll never make a difference. Ain't a thing that can! So enjoy the struggle."
She calls, before she begins to walk off. "Because darlin', I certainly do."
Frei and Drake assault the Bison .. and as Drake attempts to move in, Mary follows him from behind. Up above, clouds spring to life. Up above, within the building, Mary kicks off a chair, then the wall, acid water beginning to come down upon her and the parasol.. before Mary plunges downwards towards Drake as he mentions that .. he's still standing.
"Ya'll right.. that should change!" She chips in, the parasol and Mary attempting to jab the parasol straight into the back of Drake.. laced with the acid chi as well.
It's just charming, it is. And painful.. but maybe it doesn't have to be.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru successfully hits Eiji with Shin-Jou Tai.
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Drake 0/-------/-======|===----\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Mary
The hand archs around missing the mark and Eiji is quick to use the momentum to cartwheel away before landing gracefully on both feet again. "To be honest I was consider this job quite boring till I found out you were here." he admits and then half nods to his cohorts. "I am not quite used to working with such low brow help afterall. I guess I am spoiled by Strolheim." That mask creases slightly again after the comment and he begins to get ready to move when Hotaru comes at him.
He only gets about a half a step back before the girl crashes into him with that rather effective array of kicks before leaping away. He is already moving forward while she is attempting to land, the stout ninja leaping forward to drive a knee hard into Hotaru's gut so he can lean in. "You should come visit. Shed the shackles of the worthless Kyokugen practices. Learn from the best. I might actually be sad if I have to kill you one day." Of course the rather monotone voice and the way that rather intense glare of his makes one have to wonder how truthful that last statementis. "We do have so much fun together, don't we?"
COMBATSYS: M.Bison blocks Drake's Flashbang.
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Drake 0/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/-------|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: M.Bison blocks Frei's Shihaku.
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Drake 0/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Mary
Man, just hearing Frei talk about friends and family is kind of pissin' Bison off. Then again, it may just be that instinctive itchy feel he gets when people talk warm and fuzzy. That itch tha can only be scratched by spilling blood and breaking bones. And it -is- a good day for spilling blood and breaking bones. Bison is sure of that. Frei slips behind him--and that negative chi is allowed but for a moment until Bison breaks Frei's grip, spinning away from the monk. This, of course, puts him face to face with Drake; a couple of knee-strikes hit, and then Bison pushes away from the wrestler, leaving him to grasp empty air. And he hisses, under his breath. "Yeah, you still standin'. But that's 'cuz I don' want you to FALL yet..." Bison likes toying with his food, sometimes.
Frei is.. still left alone--Drake may be feeding Bison some pretty standard lines, but honestly, it doesn't take much to get his attention. He'll turn to Frei soon enough, but first he wants to put the kibosh on Drake's talking--and that he's going to attempt with a quick combination of attacks, swinging a flurry of left jabs at Drake's face--setup punches, really, to position Drake for the hook punch that suddenly comes whistling in from Bison's right, aimed to clip him right in the temple.
COMBATSYS: Drake dodges Mary's No Explanations.
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Drake 0/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: M.Bison successfully hits Drake with Hook Punch.
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Drake 1/---====/=======|===----\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Mary
That terrible country accent penetrates Drake's concentration like.. well.. like her parasol's blades like to pierce skin. His head turns sharply to peer over his shoulder at the woman, and he promptly dashes forward to evade her intended mayhem. After all, that was pretty much just open space, what with Bison having mov-
THUMP.
Drake's head is jarred severely, eyes squeezing shut from the impact.
THUMPTHUMPTHUMPWHAM.
The hook punch connects with Drake's cranium, driving him squarely to the floor with a thud. There he lays for a moment, and a little groan escapes him, to boot. But despite how outrageously painful these shots have all been, Drake pulls himself up to his feet once more. Though by this point, the searing pain and dizziness from the blows are showing through in his slouched stance and difficulty in just plain standing.
"H-hey.. we're not through here.. my nanna hits harder'n you..," Drake taunts. Because, like, Bison wasn't in enough of an ape-like rage before. "Y'look like.. damn Bill Cosby gone Incredible Hulk. Now won't it be embarrassin'.. when a small fella' like me.. brings you down..?"
With a rather sudden, if not outright alarming burst of energy, Drake blurs in close to Bison and makes to clamp his hands down firmly on the man's shoulders. If caught, he immediately yanks him forward, doubled over to lock the man's neck between his legs. If caught, Drake promptly hoists Bison's body upside-down into piledriver position, arms around his midsection.
And from there begins the first phase of the Total Eclipse. The arms lock down and crunch on Bison's abdominal region, the pressure rapidly intensifying until his arms simply cannot go any further - whether for being blocked by crushed bones or what.
Securing and maintaining that pressure, Drake begins the second phase of the Total Eclipse and leaps into the air with Bison, curled into a veritable ball-of-person, ascending in a series of hastening forward flips. Stopping just short of hitting the ceiling, the two begin their descent, though now blurred into what can only be described as an opaque swirl of motion.
This ends only when Bison's head meets the floor, bringing the built-up momentum to a shattering halt, backed up by the elevation of the jump and their combined bodyweights.
None of this is going exactly how Frei planned, and more to the point, he's becoming increasingly worried about what's going on outside. But he can't split his focus right now, especially when Drake -- who has rather selflessly put himself on the line for people he barely-to-doesn't-even know -- is really taking a beating at Bison's hands. Apparently all their SNF bout did was show the boxer that Frei isn't much of a threat in the long run, perhaps... or he's saving the best for last. Either way, the sage's attempts to get the boxer to look his way aren't succeeding very well.
He turns to look at Hotaru out of the corner of his eye, but his pig-tailed teammate is apparently doing okay on her own. Taking a deep breath, Frei decides to keep focusing on Bison and, apparently, Mary... especially since the heavily-accented Evil Poppins is saying some truly fascinating things. Deciding that he doesn't want to be yet another burden to Drake, Frei takes the fight to Mary instead, attempting to keep her off Drake's back long enough for that technique of his to work... and hoping that it does. He recognizes the Total Eclipse from their NL bout, and doesn't envy Bison at all.
Swiping one hand down to his side from neck height, Frei's fist bursts into scarlet flame as he stares down Mary. "You can't really think that, can you?" he asks, conversationally, circling her for a moment. "Even if all we end up is unconscious on the floor, deciding to stand up and fight has meaning all its own." And with that, he simply tries to duck in and clock her one with the fiery fist. Quick, clean, effective... hopefully.
COMBATSYS: Hotaru interrupts Heavy Kick from Eiji with Tanshou Shin EX.
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Drake 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 1/-------/=======|==-----\-------\0 Mary
Hotaru lands after kicking off from the wall, sliding to a stop and spinning halfway around to face him. Only, the girl doesn't turn all the way around, keeping her side toward him, one arm crossed over to rest against her other knee as she eyes him diving in at her. His timing is precise, but the girl twists just a little, getting her arm into the way of his knee, grimacing from the impact but spared the more crushing strike at her stomach. She freezes then, breath strained, "They're not worthless..." the girl whispers back to him.
"It's where I learned to do things like this!" It's with a shoulder that she plows back into him, driving him back far enough to open space for the second strike. Both hands slam out, palms in opposite directions, one driving into the ninja's chest, the other shooting out backward for counter balance. She holds the stunningly strong pose for only a moment before drawing back, returning to a tighter stance, blue eyes fixed on him.
"Fun for you, maybe," she retorts with a bit of a frown. "But your attitude hasn't changed. Even still..." Her voice fades, eyes narrowing just slightly. "Someday I do hope to see what this Strolheim is all about in person." A swift glance is spared Mary, the girl not having missed her parting remark about enjoying the struggle. Another glance is cast toward Drake, grimacing as she realizes that he's been taking blows from that beast of a man who pounded her to the ground in a SNF several months ago. "Hang in there!" she encourages, sparing an instant to Frei, knowing that she has to count on him to hold his own like she's left to do for the immediate moment.
COMBATSYS: Mary dodges Frei's Fierce Punch.
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Drake 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\0 Eiji
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Frei 0/-------/------=|====---\-------\0 M.Bison
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Hotaru 1/-------/=======|==-----\-------\0 Mary
As Drake is able to get out of the way, Mary land, shaking her head a bit. "Well.. I can't argue about those results, darlin'.. you're not doin' so well!" She chirps to Drake, even if he leaves the area .. only to get smacked HARD.
But it seems Mary has to get back into it.. because Frei.. well.. Frei suddenly decides to interrupt her as well, and decides.. maybe .. it is a good idea. It's mostly, at least. What's the worst she could do, after all?
As Frei decides to plumb these depths, getting involved.. Mary speaks up. "Hmm? .. Ya'll create whatever meanin' ye want .. tell me what it'll do to change us." She smiles as she says this.. And then the fiery fist comes in .. and Mary pulls back, the parasol's handle away.. yanking her from harm as she lands on a table.
Snapping it around, the woman swings it towards Frei.. intent on scooping him up by the leg and tossing him away from her as well.
"Ya'll just want to feel you're doin' something.. and that's aaaa okay with me.. I won't tell anyone."
COMBATSYS: Drake has left the fight here.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\0 Eiji
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 M.Bison
> /////////////////////// ]
|==-----\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: M.Bison has left the fight here.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\0 Eiji
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Hotaru 1/-------/=======|==-----\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Frei has left the fight here.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Hotaru 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\0 Eiji
> /////////////////////// ]
|==-----\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Mary has left the fight here.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Hotaru 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\0 Eiji
NOT SEEN HERE-> COMBATSYS: M.Bison interrupts Total Eclipse from Drake with Buffalo Head.
[ \\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|======-\-------\0 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/------=|==-----\-------\0 Mary
"Embarassing?" queries Bison, as if he can't quite imagine. "Haw! Maybe it would be. If you gon' take me down, though..." Drake blurs forward, and indeed, it -is- fast--very very fast. Bison's shoulders are grabbed before he can react--and he's pulled forward. However, Drake's good speed, and his good intentions, end there; Bison does let Drake get his legs around Bison's neck. And then Bison rears up, despite the painful squeezing of the man's legs, and literally tosses Drake off, shaking his body like a wet dog.
However, that probably won't hurt Drake. What -will- is the way Bison spins towards the released Drake and -leaps- upwards, aiming the thickest, hardest part of his cranium for Drake's chin. Laughing evilly as he makes impact, the pain is probably jarring, but not quite enough to take Drake out... that might've been planning on Bison's part, though.
"If you gon' take me out, -boy-, you gotta bring somethin' better than that -weak ass s**t!!!-" delivers Bison, his voice subconsciously changing, shifting, emulating some of the country accent overtones and undertones, thanks to Mary.
Tones reminiscent of his childhood, of course.
Well, that attack didn't go quite as Drake had intended. It was supposed to be a thing of epic wonderment, saving the day and all that hooplah. Instead, Drake is bucked off and headbutted. Raging Bull, anyone? And man, does that headbutt hurt. Drake is easily sent into the air from the force, and crashes soundly against the ground.
Splayed and groaning, it looks for a moment like this could really be it for the supermodel. His gloved hands lift to cover his face momentarily.. then he rolls over onto all fours and very, very slowly drags himself back up to his feet. "O-oh..," says Drake weakly, grimacing through the pain. "It's.. c-comin'.. don't you worry about that.. pain's.. on the way.."
Drake wobbles slightly in the process of standing up, then shifts into a slouched, weakened version of his stance. His hands draw back slowly, fingers spreading. A sparkling white aura begins to flow along his right forearm to fingertips, and a shimmering black aura coalesces to life along his left. As the hands pull back, the auras intensify and brighten, growing more into reality.
"Domino...!"
Suddenly, the hands thrust forward together.
"HELIX!"
The energy rushes along the arms and forms into two massive beams of radiant energy, white from the right hand, black from the left, entwining betwixt each other and forming a single, spiraling double helix beam. The force pushes Drake back a few inches, his stance deepening as the flowing, continuous beam races towards Bison.
COMBATSYS: Mary successfully hits Frei with Snare Whip.
[ \\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/----===|======-\-------\0 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Mary
A whatnow? Perhaps Mary's unusual weapon is her big advantage, all things considered. Frei tries to step away from the sudden swing of it but doesn't time it very well, getting tripped for his trouble. He stands up quickly enough afterwards, however, not looking that much the worse for wear. He breathes out heavily, brushing himself off, and gives Mary a sort of distant look. "I could throw those words right back at you," he says, perhaps more calmly than he feels. Just doing something to feel like they're doing it? It's not exactly untrue, is it? One green eye shuts as the chi sage thinks that over, then shrugs. "Maybe I am doing this just to feel like I'm doing my best. That doesn't make it wrong, nor does it mean I'm somehow deluded."
He catches Drake out of the corner of his eye, and bites his lip. Emotionally, he really wants to take the fight to Mary... but he can't let the wrestler take on all the trouble of fighting Bison alone, especially when he volunteered for no real reason to help fight the attackers off. Instead, he slides toward Domino with measured steps, adopting a defensive stance and summoning up what courage he has left, as if to interpose himself between Bison/Mary and Drake. "It means I'm doing what my heart says I should. Nothing in the world is more important than that."
COMBATSYS: Frei gathers his will.
[ \\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/----===|======-\-------\0 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Frei 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Mary
M.Bison and Drake are getting to know each other extremely well it seems. And it seems that M.Bison may have a little CAJUN side. Well, Country. And really, Mary isn't one to argue. She's not like some southerners.. after all. Her skin is white. She'd see herself as a FREAK if she came to that decision!
"Ya'll really tryin' too hard darlin'." She explains to Domino, whom goes on to speak of pain.. especially with how much he's GETTING. But she's not going to really joke much about that. No real purpose too. Hopefully M.Bison can make it a joke, in the end. Yet as Frei tries to step away, he ends up tripped.. and that's an interesting thing that he decides he's really not too wounded.. and that it's possible to throw it back at her?
"Hahaha! Oh darlin', no way. That's too much! I ain't a dreamer, but I'm certainly just enjoyin' this! You may not be an I understand it.. but y'know those fairy tales, where everythin' always works out in the end? .. It ain't real honey! Jes' so sad..."
And with Frei goin' on about what's more important, Mary grins. "Oh I KNOW what's important! 'An I'll be happy to show you a bit of what I think is nice enough." The Parasol spins once, before the front points towards Frei, and Mary .. leans against the wall?
All the sharp tops of the umbrella are thusly launched in one slow, powerful salvo.
"Here's somethin' for your troubles darlin'! It'll make it all go down so much easier!"
COMBATSYS: Drake successfully hits M.Bison with Domino Helix.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-
[ \\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\0 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Frei 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Mary
"Pain?" The powerful salvo--the bolt of energy--strikes Bison true in the chest. In fact, it almost seems to stagger him; the impact is pretty hellacious, or so it seems, engulfed in the chi force of the young wrestler. The bright light fades, though... and Bison's still standing there. He doesn't look impressed--even after he notices he was forced back a few steps.
"That it? That what you call 'the pain'?" Bison sneers at Drake, outright. "You ain't got it, boy. You ain't got it. Now, you wanna keep goin'? I promise you, if ya do... I will pound that pretty face o' yours into hamburger. You be drinkin' meals for weeks. I'll break every goddamn bone in there and some that ain't." The threat is delivered with utter casualness, the boxer's low voice grating, grinding.
"But if you wan' walk away, then you can. Right out those doors. Prob'ly save your career."
Of course, even as he says it, he's walking forward, and if Drake isn't fast enough, Bison's just going to pop him one in the face. A quick punch, more merciful than anything -else- he could've done. It'll still -hurt-, though.
COMBATSYS: Frei blocks M.Bison's Light Punch.
[ \\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\0 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Frei 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Frei blocks Mary's Long Shot.
[ \\\\\\ < > /////////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\0 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|===----\-------\0 Mary
Why did Frei slide toward Drake? Exactly this. Bison really wants to give the model-wrestler what for, but Drake is not looking so hot... and if Frei has a history of anything, it's a willingness to step into the fray to protect others. Having already maneuvered himself close, it's not that difficult to slide a bit over so that he's in the way of that punch, the boxing glove slamming into his upraised palm with a surprisingly loud sound. Mary's volley of sharp projectiles slam into his other forearm, raised in defense. He grits his teeth as a few draw blood, one even sticking there even after he's brought both arms down. All things considered he didn't escape that unscathed by any stretch of the imagination, but he doesn't appear bothered by that quite yet.
"The world is actually a very cruel and angry place," he says quietly, eyes hooded. "People are cruel and selfish. Nature doesn't care about you one way or the other. But you know what?" he adds, raising his head to look between Mary and Bison. "If the universe is cruel I'm going to choose to be kind. If there's no happy endings I'm going to choose to believe in them anyway. That's just how I roll, as the kids say it."
His hands come in toward his chest, palms facing each other inward, and a sphere of greenish light starts to form. "So you can walk away right now and we'll forget all about it. Otherwise you'll be answerable to me..." With that said, he suddenly pivots on one foot and hurls both hands out at Bison, the green sphere erupting into a short-range flurry of spectral 'leaves', like blades of cutting wind, swirling everywhere in a chaotic pattern. "And I'm no pushover!"
COMBATSYS: M.Bison blocks Frei's Reiki.
[ \\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|=======\-------\1 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Frei 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Mary
Drake braces himself and prepares to deal with Bison's fist.. again.. when Frei is suddenly intercepting. Amethyst eyes, widened and surprised, stare openly at the monk for a few seconds, taking in that act. Well, so much for figuring he was in this by himself. Maybe the fight could do with a bit more teamwork?
"'Sides!," says Drake, energy a little renewed and spirits picked up slightly. "I'm a pro-active person. I like to make my own happy endings!" Which probably goes for Frei, as well. But he doesn't presume to speak for him.
In tandem with Frei's attack, Drake attempts to maneuver around Frei and flank Bison, attempting to hook his arms around the larger man's midsection to bridge his back and drive his shoulders and head against the floor in a hard German suplex.
As Frei takes the assault, and while he takes it all.. and looks between her and M.Bison.. he focuses on Bison .. it seems at least in the end.. and Mary decides to take this time to go around, slowly slipping begin Frei and his way of striking at M.Bison and putting himself in the way of the other two.
Simply put.. while the Frei's are away, the Mary's will come and play!
But Drake decides to flank Bison. And Mary is there. Watching..
Which is why, as Drake goes to suplex, Mary is already ontop of Drake, leaping into the air, and heading towards Drake with a wide sweeping kick.. parasol open and holding her up, as she intends to make Drake's flank .. HIS LAST!
"Too bad then.. ya'll in a grimm story tale now! Ya'll just have to accept it!" She calls, laughing, before jamming the heels towards Drake! And perhaps then into him, if he gets knocked over!
COMBATSYS: M.Bison fails to interrupt Medium Throw from Drake with Medium Punch.
[ \\\\\\\ < > /////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Frei 1/-------/=======|==-----\-------\0 Mary
Frei's chiburst is... negligible; Bison simply lowers a shoulder, letting the energy wash over him. Drake proves, finally, to be a bit more problematic--Bison turns to give the model one final punch, but instead is snagged and thrown off his feet, suplexed into the flooring. Bison grunts, as he hits... but if he's feeling any pain it isn't showing, really, as he tears free of Drake's grasp. He does, however, continue to look even more pissed off--and it makes him uglier and uglier.
By no means handsome in the first place, Bison's ugliness doesn't really show as a physical deformity--it's something intangible, more so than the anger that clearly shows in his features, in the way his fingers clench, his knuckles jutting prominently. Once again, he finds his priorities changing. Drake's blather and Frei's blather, together, are almost too much for him to really let go--so, he decides that he -won't- let it go. They've been tenacious, but he can be tenacious, too. He's not going to stop 'til he's broken someone.
COMBATSYS: Drake dodges Mary's Steppin Time.
[ \\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Frei 1/-------/=======|==-----\-------\0 Mary
Bison is suplexed to satisfaction, and Drake has only enough time to bring himself back up to his boots before Mary is leaping at him with those heels poking out at him. He weaves around in a quick spin, cleanly evading the attack. "Buzz off, gnat!," is all the retort she gets. It's strange enough for Drake to talk during a fight he's actually treating as such - he isn't going to devote -too- much attention to chit-chat in the midst. Only a stray comment or two will usually be heard from him when opportunity presents itself. Unless he's trying to drive a point or somesuch. And that's not the case at the moment.
Bison is the target, though. He's the greater threat. The biggest deal in the room, and the greatest threat to the building and its occupants that he can get to right now. And whether morbidly confident or just plain insane, Drake rushes right back at the beast past Mary. This time, he attempts a more martial variety of attack, leaping into the air and turning aside with a flying sidekick aimed for Bison's head. "YAH!"
Well, that's handy; Drake is spared further pain due to his handy evasion of Mary's unusual kick. The wrestler's doing quite well, but Frei's fought him before and knows his skill firsthand, and thus isn't terribly surprised. Unlike Domino, however, he IS a chatty one, and when he sees Drake dive back at Bison past Mary, he immediately moves to interpose himself between the curious warped Southern Belle and the wrestler. "There hasn't been a bad thing in my life that's happened to me that I haven't been able to accept," Frei says evenly, looking at the parasol-wielding fighter, tilting his head somewhat afterwards. "Can you say the same?"
Pushing off the ground, Frei dives at Mary, attempting to get a hold of her parasol, of all things. If he can get that grip, he applies some torque and shoves it back *at* her, attempting to throw her off-balance long enough for him to sweep a leg through hers and knock her over in the process. Of course, the sudden invisible burst of chi that follows with the parasol shove may make that easier than it looks from the outside!
COMBATSYS: M.Bison dodges Drake's Light Kick.
[ \\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Frei 1/-------/=======|==-----\-------\0 Mary
There's this thing about flying kicks--they're actually pretty easy to dodge. You just... -duck-. Which is what Bison does; he dips low, swaying and ducking, and that flying foot passes through where his head would be. And then Bison raises his head. Once again, he stalks towards the wrestler--not moving too fast, nor too slowly--his fists raised. When he reaches Drake's position... well... well.
Then he begins punching. The punches are faster than they are strong, but each impact is designed--meant--to bruise. If the combination of jabs and straights strikes, each one will strike with the loud, sharp *smack* of a punch quickly retracted, the kinds of impacts that raise welts, and break blood vessels.
They're mean punches, punches meant to injure as much as they're meant to hurt.
COMBATSYS: Frei successfully hits Mary with Medium Throw.
[ \\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Drake 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Mary
As Drake moves out of the way, being told she's a gnat, Mary really doesn't have interest when she's being tossed away in such a way .. a gnat. How degrading! But there's greater trouble when Frei comes towards her, and speaking. God! His words are so bland, she belief. "That's because you're just a mistake, darlin'. And are refusin' to accept it."
"No one lives without regret, honey." And then of course, Mary is wrenched, and then she's thrown off balance and is knocked over and there's chi. It's all very complicated.
That said, Mary takes the time to moves towards Frei with a chain .. and simply try to wrap him up with it as she slides about, before trying to tie it tight .. and then squeeze him, before unwinding it and sending him spinning away!
But gone are the words. M.Bison has it down pat.
COMBATSYS: M.Bison successfully hits Drake with Medium Punch.
[ \ < > //////////// ]
Drake 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 M.Bison
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|=====--\-------\0 Mary
Landing neat on his boots again, Drake pivots around to face Bison - and instead, all he gets is a series of fists. They slam into him exceedingly painfully, hammering his body back with too much rapid succession to even give him enough time to make a pained noise. When the final punch lands, Drake is slammed back against the wall, eyes squeezed shut and teeth grit together.
Drake starts to slide down to the floor, knees evidently giving out on him gradually. But before he gets too low, something in him seems to steel itself. His hands ball into tight, trembling fists. "N-not.. done yet..," he barely chokes out, forcing his eyes to open and lock onto Bison.
Suddenly, Drake leaps into a butterfly kick, right knee aimed to smash against Bison's torso. As his body twists over, his left boot launches under the man's chin to vault him into the air. Drake's jump alone propels him enough to ascend alongside the boxer, until the two have nearly smacked against the ceiling. At the pinnacle there, Drake twists over again in a second butterfly kick. Only this time, the knee is aimed to smash against Bison's face, and the leg extends straight to drive against his torso and launch him across the library.
COMBATSYS: Drake can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Frei dodges Mary's Sleeping Time.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
He's usually not one for acrobatic evasions, but Frei is an experienced fighter; in a pinch, he can perform something LIKE an acrobatic dodge if need be. He's still stinging from the double blows he received before, and has absolutely no desire to be wrapped up by Mary's chains. Thus when she hurls them out he dives backwards, landing in a crouch as the chains sweep harmlessly by. Sadly, he gets up just in time to see Drake make his final stand against Bison, and his face falls somewhat. The guy really give it his all for people he barely even knows.
"What good is regret?" Frei asks of Mary, trying to decide what to do. Hopefully Hotaru still has the upper hand against the mysterious third opponent, but that fight isn't in his field of vision. Of course, the quicker he can end this the faster he can go she if she needs help... but something in him feels compelled to responded to this mysterious woman's words. "What's done is done, and it can't be changed. What's important is here and now."
Perhaps it's not the smartest thing in the world to do, but rather than pursue Mary, Frei turns and dives at Bison, hoping to capitalize on Drake's last attack and also perhaps give himself a much needed advantage once this becomes two on one. Fist swirling with an aura of blue-white ice, Frei attempts rather simply to drive his fist into Bison's face. Maybe not the smartest attack to use on a champion boxer, but the best he can do in the circumstances.
COMBATSYS: M.Bison blocks Frei's Quick Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Drake successfully hits M.Bison with Lunar Eclipse.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|=======\===----\1 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
Frei is shrugged off again--and yet, Drake finds his mark, with the series of kicks. They are, however, not quite enough to really knock the boxer across the library; he staggers back, but actually lands on his feet. And, despite Drake's big words, Bison's still standing. He finally turns to Mary, and just points at Frei.
"Do somethin' 'bout this fruit," he grunts, as he takes a few steps away. He might not be down, but he's a little too close for comfort, all told; and he's been exerting himself rather heavily to take down two yahoos--his own, scientific analysis of Drake and Frei, of course.
He just needs a moment, really, some time to recover. He'll never show it while he's conscious, but those last few hits -did- hurt quite a lot...
COMBATSYS: M.Bison gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
God, what good is regret? EVERYTHING. But the 'monk' is about as thick headed as a turnip and a few cows she used to know. So it's udderly obvious how she responds. Taking the parasol, Mary walks away a bit, watching as Frei continues to turn on Bison. Like Frei does. Like Drake does once more after he's struck. This is just lovely!
She nods to M.Bison, "Ya'll don't worry, he's not that bad." And she spins the parasol, before pointing it towards Frei once more. "I'll see what I can do." But to Frei? She doth not speaketh. She has another.. better way she learned down on the farm to speak to such ... simple animals of no whimsy or regret.
"Moooooooooooooooo~! Darlin'. Mooo."
More of those projectiles are launched, the tops fired out of the top like some kind of mini-gun.
Hey. Strafing fire and all that.
COMBATSYS: Frei dodges Mary's Power Shot.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|=======\==-----\1 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
A few more of those projectiles? Perhaps thankfully for Frei, he's still on the ball defensively, diving to the side in a roll once he hears them coming toward him; somewhat unfortunately the shots embed themselves rather firmly in the YFCC wall... not so great. Still, perhaps better than getting shot in the face. "'This fruit'..." Frei says, in an almost wistful and quizzical tone, tilting his head at Bison as he stands up. He glances behind him to make sure Drake isn't in any real danger, and is relieved to find him merely unconscious, or about to be... not exactly desirable, but he'll live, probably. Frei, on the other hand, has other fish to fry.
He holds one hand out in front of him, a swirl of pure white light forming into seven golf ball-sized orbs. "What I don't like is treating people like objects and things you don't like as if they have no value to anybody," he says quietly, body eerily illuminated by the swirling light in his hands. "Not just this center, but the people in it. K'. Mizuki. Myself..."
With one sharp movement, he flings his hand out, twirling it at the wrist. The seven spheres of light swirl out at Bison, then bury themselves in the floor. With another gesture, Frei yanks his hand up and clenches it into a fist... giving an apparent signal for those spheres of light to erupt upward as pillars of pure white energy that are going to give the boxer quite a jolt if he can't mitigate it somehow.
Kicks delivered as heavily as Drake can manage after the beating he's sustained and the weakness that follows, Drake does his best to stay in the fight. To keep himself going. But really, he's hurting much, much worse than he's been letting on this duration. All a part of his fighting philosophy.. and a part of why he doesn't like talking during real fights.
Still, even as he falls to the ground from near the ceiling, he struggles to keep the agonizing pain in check. But when boots hit solid ground, it's entirely too clear that this is not a possibility. His knees give out, dropping the supermodel into a heavy slouch. Pure cussedness grants him only a few more seconds of consciousness - long enough to give Frei an encouraging look and hint of a nod - before he simply can't sustain himself any longer.
Limp, Drake collapses back onto the floor, incapacitated, and very likely in need of medical treatment.
COMBATSYS: M.Bison interrupts Hokuto Rekkoudan from Frei with Gigaton Blow+.
*KNOCKED AWAY*
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Frei 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
'Mitigate'? Now there's a fancy words that Bison doesn't understand. But he -does- understand glowing chi projectiles, in as much as he hates seeing them. Really, the 'fruit' epithet isn't meant as a particular derogatory--that is, he isn't calling Frei gay. At least, not in this instance. "What you -like-? I don't give a damn about what you like. All I care 'bout is what _I_ like. An' I like money, and a man promised me a damn good amount of it if I came in an' broke stuff. Well, here I am. What you gon' do?"
Of course he has Frei's answer already--in the form of those spheres of energy. As they blossom into the columns, Bison is surging forward--caught by the first, he manages to avoid the second, his body turning towards his right, leading left.
And then he's punching forward, a single, powerful, elephant-felling punch, reaching across time and space for Frei's face.
"'cuz that's what I'm gon' do. I'm gon' beat yo' face in an' take m' damn money."
As Frei keeps on talking, Mary almost.. almost.. is a bit tired of hearing the guy. Okay, much like M.Bison, he is MOSTLY tired of hearing the guy! And honestly, as he keeps going, it's not helping. "Then ya'll just have to think .. you're not the only one here, now are ya." But there's no more to say! Especially as Frei assaults M.Bison .. and then as they're sent out ..
M.Bison punches the hell out of him.
Mary claps, really. There's nothing quite more to it. "Well, let me be a bother yet to him, hmm?" And Mary continues her attempts to be really damn irritating..
And the parasol continues to fire .. but far less. Honestly, there's a little .. smaller amount that is ... weaponry left.. and she just emptied the barrel of the darn thing! "Oh bother."
At least she emptied it towards Frei.
COMBATSYS: Mary successfully hits Frei with Strong Shot.
[ \\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Frei 1/-----==/=======|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
Well, that stung.
The bullets in the wall are a distant memory, probably because Frei just went *through* one. Literally. It's actually a while before he comes back, probably because he was riddled with... whatever the hell Mary is firing... en route, attempts to twist out of the way while dazed and hurt notwithstanding. The point appears to be moot, since to all appearances he's probably dead. Blood lines the edges of the wall he just crashed through, and there was a metallic sound a reasonable amount of time after he landed in the first place. It's surprisingly quiet, all things considered, afterwards; there's a sound sort of like a shower that suggests Frei hit a water return, perhaps.
But eventually he reappears.
It's not a pretty sight. Blood runs down his face from his forehead, and his clothes are ripped as well. One arm is held down at his side and the angle his wrist is sitting at doesn't look 100% like it's the way anatomy intended for it to be, either. His movements are jerky and slow, too. But he's standing there, regardless. His voice is scratchy and somewhat wet-sounding, but he talks all the same. "That must be a sad existence, all things considered," he offers finally. "But in the end I guess we're all responsible for the choices we make."
He stands up, as straight as he can. "Just leave. It's not too late for you to turn around and go." He doesn't actually attack -- how could he? -- but that doesn't mean he's going to sit there and roll over. Not just yet.
COMBATSYS: Frei gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
> ////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Mary
If Bison were capable of feeling compassion or pity, he might be feeling those now. But he only understands compassion in the parameters of whores and beggars and pity only for those he's defeated. It isn't exactly a good working model. So to Bison, Frei... looks like good handiwork. So if Bison were a functional, decent human being.. he would probably say 'sorry', pack up, and leave. Unfortunately for Frei, that is pretty much the exact opposite of what Bison is.
If one could force Bison to undergo psychotherapy (as opposed to Vega's brand of Psycho therapy), there is probably a Cambodian minefield of issues stewing in there, knocking around, and exploding. All that comes out in his fists, of course. And so it is that Bison turns to Mary.
"You came t' look for somethin', right? Go look. I got this guy." And he turns towards Frei, walking slowly, his right hand already dropping... dropping low, for a slow, obvious, but oh so painful punch, swung upwards nearly from Bison's knee.
That must be his secret weapon. Mary is sure of it. This guys secret weapon is /talking you to death/. "Darlin', you ever heard of the phrase.. 'Sticks and stone will break my bones, but words will never hurt me?" She mentions, before nodding. "Alright.. but iffin' he comes for me, I'll do what I need ta do." She exclaims, before she turns her back and takes a breather, stretching out and tossing the parasol over her shoulder as she begins to skip around.
"Come out come out wherever you are, darlin'! You must be in here somewhere, and when we fiiind you~!" Of course, that's obvious enough. "At least stop this .. poor poor hopeless man's suffering." And of course, she's probably .. probably too caring about her own safety to THINK about Frei's! Just how nature intended it!
But.. she'll be here somewhere..
If she's any bit like these mooks she's LIKE them.
COMBATSYS: Mary gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
> ///////////////////// ]
|====---\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: Frei dodges M.Bison's Uppercut Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////// ]
Frei 1/------=/=======|===----\-------\0 M.Bison
> ///////////////////// ]
|====---\-------\0 Mary
He might be bad off, but he's not THAT bad off. Bison's punch likely has the power behind to utterly obliterate him, but it's also not... moving very fast. Thus Frei has ample time to shift sideways out of the path of the blow before it connects; it's not a pretty evasion, and the ragged steps he takes afterwards prove that, but it IS an evasion. "I think words hurt more than sticks and stones ever would," the young sage says quietly, collecting himself. "But they're much more subtle about it."
He really does not want Bison close to him any more, and so the boxer still retains Frei's attention. Raising his good hand, which glows blue-white, Frei makes a gesture, the air around Bison likely developing a telltale chill before it all but flash-freezes around him, hopefully doing damage through bitter cold alone rather than the impact of shards of ice. As for Mary's comment, all he can do is laugh, turning into a cough a bit. "I think I know who you're looking for," Frei says, with surprising calm. "And I've already told him to ignore my 'suffering'."
COMBATSYS: Frei successfully hits M.Bison with Hatsuyuki.
- Power hit! -
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //// ]
Frei 0/-------/-----==|=====--\-------\0 M.Bison
> ///////////////////// ]
|====---\-------\0 Mary
Un. Pleasant. Bison's body is suddenly very, very cold. Very -very- cold. "F-f-f-f-f-fuck... this..." Bison seems suddenly disgusted with this, with Frei's refusal to politely roll over and die. And he turns away.
"Finish 'im if you want. An' tell Igniz I did my part, so I better be paid." It's a curt thing to say, but Frei probably won't be able to help feeling better when he sees the Bison's broad back vanishing out the (wrecked) doors of the YFCC. And he's right--he -did- do what he was hired for.
Whether NESTS can follow through, well, that's none of his business. "Need some motherfuckin' -hot chocolate- up in this house," he mutters to himself. Yes, that's right. He loves the hot chocolate. (With Bailey's.) Think anyone's going to comment about it to his face?
COMBATSYS: M.Bison takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/-----==|====---\-------\0 Mary
COMBATSYS: M.Bison can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/-----==|====---\-------\0 Mary
As Bison tells her to finish him, Mary turns to face Frei and Bison. Oh. OH this is just lovely. So the hired help was help.. and well, yes, it worked quite well didn't it. What with M.Bison leaving, Mary just turns around. Well. Now this is something alright.
"Alright darlin' you run off any enjoy yourself. Please." She waves to Bison! And then coats the parasol with a rather interesting amount of acid, by clouds she creates in the air. It's really not important in the end.
Really.
What might be is the fact that Mary is suddenly.. gasp.. plunging towards Frei with the Parasol, attempting to head .. to the other side!?
COMBATSYS: Frei blocks Mary's No Explanations.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Mary
Once Bison starts leaving, he might as well be a stick figure as far as Frei's determination to see this through is concerned; the powerful and destructive Raging Buffalo is leaving, and that's good enough for him. Mary, on the other hand... that's going to be a challenge of a different stripe altogether. Rather than let the frosty energy he just used go to waste, Frei gathers it back up instead, his hand still glowing white-blue. As the acid-soaked parasol heads toward him, he grimaces, braces himself, and thrusts out that hand *into* the hit. As he had hoped, the acidic chi freezes harmlessly solid when it hits the burst of chilly energy, dropping harmlessly to the floor in tiny shards. The parasol is another story entirely; it smacks into his shoulder as Mary passes by, and causes a sharp hiss of pain from the chi sage in the process.
"He's not here. You can still walk right out the door, no questions asked," Frei says to Mary calmly, though he knows she will probably do nothing of the sort no matter how nicely he puts it. "Otherwise, I'm going to have to make you leave." He sounds stupidly confident given that he appears to be on his last legs, while Mary is comparatively fresh as a daisy... but that's just how he feels about it, in the long run.
COMBATSYS: Frei focuses on his next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Mary
And as Frei continues to 'talk big', Mary continues to perform her job as she hopes to. And that's, at the moment, spinning her parasol about.. what with Frei just there.. and standing there.. and well as he stands there, Mary's response is rather bland. It's nothing wordy. It's nothing that would show Mary to really find any interest in this point of the job.
The hired help simply spins the parasol as she moves closer, and watching that M.Bison is leaving, she attempts to simply scoop up Frei under the pointy bits on the end of the parasol.. and then toss him upwards.. and then toss him .. AWAY! It's a rather /brilliant/ plan that Mary has concocted that has a failure rate of ten scoops of a waddle dee!
Whatever a waddle dee is, at least.
Yeah, she's trying to seal him on the spike before tossing him away.
COMBATSYS: Frei blocks Mary's Beg Your Pardon.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Mary
The first part of that attack is... relatively unusual, and there's not much that can be done to avoid it, particularly as hurt and tired as Frei is right now. Thus the 'snap up' part goes off without a hitch. However, at that point evasion becomes a little easier. The first upward bounce, rather than falling right back down onto the parasol, finds Frei angling his fall so that he lands in a crouch on the ground, rather than back on for another, farther toss. A shame he can't just inhale that parasol and use it to whack Mary over the head; that sort of thing only happens in video games, though.
Staying in the crouch for a moment, Frei shrugs. "Well, have it your way." He extends his good hand, fingers pointed as if delivering a knifehand punch, and it begins to glow with a gold-silver light. Leaping forward out of the crouch, Frei swings his hand in a parabolic arc at Mary, the gold and silver light making a metallic, crescent trail in the air in the path of the strike... and producing a ringing sound like the striking of a tuning fork, if it connects with the woman's body.
COMBATSYS: Mary blocks Frei's Houken.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Mary
As Frei continues to push, and as he crouches.. the fingers point give a punch! Followed by a gold-silver light which Mary uses to her advantage.. by pulling the parasol about her, the crescent trail stopping at the metal and ringing it. Have it her way. Far better, far better, she believes. But it's not quite done, oh no, oh no.
Pulling the parasol back from the punch and the ringing, Mary skips backwards. And suddenly there is the trouble of the assault!
Why, what could she possibly do .. it's almost too hard to imagine! Albeit not so difficult.
Leaping forwards, Mary pulls the parasol back, closes it.. and then swings it around, attempting to catch Frei.... with the butt end of the parasol. Oh yes!
Not very amazing, nor flashy, but perhaps effective.
COMBATSYS: Mary successfully hits Frei with Strong Punch.
[ \\\\\\ < > ///////////////// ]
Frei 0/-------/-======|=====--\-------\0 Mary
The truth is, Frei's just too damned tired to do much more in the way of evading attacks right now. He grimaces as he notices the parasol coming at him, but he can't do any fancy footwork; the best he can manage is trying to tilt his torso out of the way, and that's just not enough to do it right now. The end of the weapon catches him full in the face with a nasty cracking sound, but despite his injuries and everything else, it fails to bowl him over. Even if it's with his dying breath, the chi sage is determined to see this one through until he can't give any more.
"Tell me something," he mutters, good hand dropping in front of him and swirling with a sudden gathering of energy, motes of light of all different colors converging into a prismatic halo. "Why do you want him so bad? What's worth it that you're willing to hurt innocents and destroy property just to get?" He told himself for a long time that he wouldn't pry into K''s past, but it's becoming clear to Frei that some of it... he needs to know. Just enough to set this to rights, enough to know what he's giving his blood and sweat for. Not that he'd stop regardless of the answer, of course. "I suppose it doesn't matter in the end, but... I'd like to know!"
Surging forward with surprising strength, Frei flicks that hand out, the air between himself and Mary suddenly exploding with a massive, invisible shockwave of chi that makes the very air ripple, like a pond after a pebble's been thrown in.
COMBATSYS: Frei successfully hits Mary with Reiki.
[ \\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Frei 0/-------/-----==|=======\===----\1 Mary
As Frei is struck backwards, Mary is much as well .. and well, when Frei goes on towards Mary's case, the woman attempts to slide out of the way of the shockwave of chi .. but to no avail. Because Frei's invisible shockwave catches her and draw her backwards.. but it's really just not enough.
There was a halo. It's gone now.
"Non." She speaks, borrowing a bit of French she heard. "... Oh yes, they want that reject they told us to kill on sight. Darlin', of COURSE they want the reject who they could have easily have grabbed by now! It's brilliant, isn't it, that we set all of this up.. for someone who'd probably be happy to come out in the open."
Sarcastic alert, but then Mary isn't in the best of minds. Chi blasts always hurt, but she weathers it well enough.
"No. You ain't knowin'... cause you don't have an inklin' of why we're even here!"
And then Mary begins a long attack sequence!
Of course, this involves, after coming up to her feet.. and after getting to her feet, Mary dashes forwards. Towards Frei.
But it all depends if that parasol makes contact, as she swings for the hills!
Or roof, really.
COMBATSYS: Frei just-defends Mary's Supercallifragilisticexpialidocious!
[ \\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Frei 0/-------/-----==|=------\-------\0 Mary
The parasol, deadly and skillfully wielded, comes in.
Frei catches it between his index and middle fingers.
"Of course I don't know," he says, in a ragged and even weary tone. "That's why I'm asking. You're not compelled to answer, of course. But that seems like a silly response, all things considered." Having effectively sucked the kinetic force right out of what might otherwise have been his total destruction, the monk backs off a few steps, brushing a hand through his red hair and shaking his head in disappointment, if nothing else. "I'm so sorry you think of him as a reject, though. He's rough around the edges, hard to understand, maybe even a little violent, but..." And here, Frei actually gives Mary a cheerful smile, even playful. "You could say that about us too, right?"
He doesn't attack, not yet. Instead he centers himself, getting into a defensive stance and preparing. That's his goal here, after all: not to beat Mary bloody, but to convince her to LEAVE as soon as possible. "But I'm going to protect that reject because he's my friend, whether you like it or not!"
COMBATSYS: Frei gathers his will.
[ \\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Frei 0/-------/-======|=------\-------\0 Mary
As Frei catches the parasol, Mary is entirely surprised. And with Frei just walking backwards a bit and then speaking on about how K' is a reject.. Mary sighs. Oh, quite. Yes. She just loves being in this position that she so truly hates. Something she tried to get away from! And here she is again. But with Frei smiling, going on to even say it's like that about them, and preparing in his lovely defensive stances...
"What a boring view of life... and do protect him then... I really have no interest, and neither does anyone else, in him."
The Parasol is swung towards the broken window, the hook catching as Mary begins to walk up the wall, pulling herself as she goes. "I really don't gave much to say about you all. Rejects? No .. no, there's more to it then that, but I was never one to waste words.. and spend time where I'm not really wanted."
And then she reaches the top of the window. She might only be there for a little longer before she leaps out, however.
COMBATSYS: Mary has left the fight here.
[ \\\\\\\\\ <
Frei 0/-------/-======|
Breathing heavily, Frei is whip-tense as Mary moves across the room, more than a little on edge today all things considered. Her words are more than a little confusing, but as she decides to, well... leave, the YFCC defender can't particularly complain about that. There's a pause after the figure vanishes out the window, and then Frei seems to unfold like a ribbon caught in a gale, body slumping to the floor almost bonelessly, legs sprawled in front of him as he leans against the remains of the front desk, head tilted back and staring at the ceiling, arms splayed.
For a moment, his head lolls to one side as he checks to make sure Drake is okay; finding him to be so, Frei shuts his eyes and leans back, again. Hopefully Hotaru is doing alright against Eiji, because in the state he's in now the sage isn't going to be of any good to anyone without a good 12 hours of sleep and some emergency medical care. Still, Mary's words have given him things to think about, at least. 'What a boring view of life'... 'I really have no interest, and neither does anyone else, in him'.
Well, what the heck were they here for, then? The boxer just wanted to smash things for money, but certainly if this NESTS is as smart as K' implies, they'd have to know it wouldn't work very well as an intimidation tactic. Just simple revenge? What IS going on here? Sadly, however, those are thoughts that require more energy than he has at the moment; instead Frei shuts his eyes, tries to will himself to recover as quick as he can, and pray that whatever's going on, the children are safe.
COMBATSYS: Frei takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\ <
Frei 0/-------/-======|
COMBATSYS: Frei has ended the fight here.
Log created on 23:17:56 08/22/2008 by Mary, and last modified on 21:05:11 09/03/2008.