Description: Mount Rushmore! Symbol of American liberty and leadership... also Looney Tunes-style deathtrap as three fighters battle it out atop the presidents' heads... blindfolded. As one might expect, with each person unable to see what the opponent is doing, the match takes some interesting twists and turns! (3KO)
"What," Frei murmurs to himself, "is with all the heights recently..."
Just earlier this week, the young sage of the YFCC battled the world's strongest woman atop a very high bridge in Australia. And for the same reasons that he took on that fight -- the reason he agreed to battle someone considerably more powerful and skilled than himself -- he threw his name into the ring for Saturday Night Fights this week as well. It's the challenge... or rather, his need to resolve his feelings about 'the challenge', in quotes. The bandages around his hands, neck and presumably shoulders speak to his recent injuries defending the Center, but he's just fine fighting, he says.
Up here on top of Mount Rushmore.
Way up here on Mount Rushmore.
Still, it's not as if the mountain completely ends on George Washington's round, smooth stone head; as long as they are careful about footing, all three fighters should be fine and not plummet to their deaths. Or so the SNF people assure him as they send Frei up top. The cameras are all remote, likely because of the limited space... it's just him and his opponents up there. Well, that and the mystery object: a black bag, with instructions to "open this and put what's inside on" when he gets to the top.
Having finally reached his destination, Frei considers what's going to come. Zach he knows, and hasn't fought in some time... doubtless the young American has improved since then. Nataya is a name he doesn't recognize, but should; though she never shared her name, this won't be the first 2-on-1 where Nataya and Frei have faced off. "Well... I guess I should just see what's in the bag and hope they show soon."
He opens it up.
And pulls out the black cotton blindfold.
The cameras get a really good shot of his D: from their vantage point, at least.
Zach comes walkinf across the Abe Lincoln's noggin, bag tucked under his arm as he navigates his way across the national monument. "What," he mutters to himself, "is with all of the cultural moment-type locations?" SNF seems to like putting the explosive American in fight locales that really should /not/ be exploded.
Zach's partner is something of an X-factor to him. Never met her, let alone heard of her, but the fight organizers teamed the two up against someone Zach knows, and works with. He frowns. Frei's going to be a challenging fight even without complications. He blinks when he sees Frei holding the blindfold. He pulls his bag out, and peers inside. Then he glances over the edge of Lincoln's head. He pales visibly, then glances at Frei.
"Are they serious about this?" he asks the monk.
In contrast, Nataya doesn't seem the least bit perturbed by the arrangement. The blindfold is already on her face by the time she arrives, walking about on the tops of the giant sculptures as if she was strolling around in a mall.
The reasons for this are several, but the primary one is the nature of her abilities. Nataya's already set out four beads, the tiny little pinpricks of light tapping the ground as she calmly steps forward provind the feedback that she needs to get around without sight as well as keep balance on the precarious battleground. In some regards, she's suited for this sort of thing. Then again, the vast majority of her blind training was against people that utilized a similar style as hers, so anything still goes.
Her hands are behind her as she steps lively across the edges of the momnument, either heedless or fearless... it's not readily apparent as to which given her bright smile and the complete lack of worry or concern on her face.
Names, and especially faces, since she can't see, are pretty much of zero importance to her. Free spirit that she is, she spreads her arms, feigning a balancing act along one of the anxiety-producing edges of one of the heads. Although Zach may not be addressing her, she finds the presence of mind to answer the question as she understands it.
"The question to best ask," she says, her voice light as she hops back onto more solid ground, "Is if you're serious about it. Any completely voluntary participation is really a factor of you, isn't it?" She laughs as she wanders about, the beads by her feet tapping into a solid object, namely a light rigging, and she makes a complete about face. "Don't worry about 'they'. Just worry about 'thee', and everything'll work out. I promise."
"Probably," Frei says to Zach, taking one end of the blindfold in both hands and pulling it taut in front of him, like someone snapping a belt. He's about to bring it to his face when he sees his other opponent stroll up, and the red-haired head tilts to the side a moment, regarding her carefully. Considering the trick with the beads, it seems decidedly unlikely that Nataya could be anyone but the girl who stepped in besides Aranha at the Center so many weeks ago. "I guess we're just fated to be in these two on one matches," he offers to Nataya, smiling... even if she can't see it.
This is going to be a challenge, alright. Taking a deep breath -- and, since he doesn't have the benefit of a sounding object to tell him how far he is from the edge -- Frei steps back from the abyss a good degree and, taking a deep breath, pulls the black cloth across his eyes and pulls it taught behind him, tying it off. He wore a headband for so long that doing so is basically a snap. And indeed... except for the moire patterns sparkling in his now-darkened vision, he can't see a damn thing. "Good luck, guys," he offers, getting into stance. After a pause, he adds -- in far too singsong a tone -- "...don't fall to your deaths or anything."
He doesn't feel like charging in. Even in typical conditions Frei is a cautious fighter; in this scenario he's going to let the opponents come to him. Taking a second deep breath, he tries his best to focus, reading the lines of chi that are inherent in... well, everything. The stone is a smooth, ochre-tan expanse under his feet. Nataya is a pulse of bright blue, thanks to her control of her beads... but Zach is another story. Keeping track of him is going to be a lot harder, the chi sage realizes. Flexing his fingers, the already swift-moving wind atop the mountain speeds up a bit, resonating as Frei centers himself and prepares for the fight to come.
COMBATSYS: Frei has started a fight here.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Nataya has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Nataya
COMBATSYS: Frei has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Nataya
COMBATSYS: Zach has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Frei 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Nataya
> //////////////////////////////]
|-------\-------\0 Zach
COMBATSYS: Frei gathers his will.
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Frei 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Nataya
> //////////////////////////////]
|-------\-------\0 Zach
Zach eyes Nataya for a moment, before throwing a grin at Frei. "I think talking to her would give more headaches than you do," the psychic says jokingly as he pulls his ball cap off. He ties the blindfold on and resets the headware before settling into an uncharacteristically defensive stance. He considers for a moment, wishing that he were like more of the psychics that he was aware of.
He bets that Alma or Athena or Ingrid could pick up their opponents just by using that neat empathic capability that most users of psycho power seem to be capable of. Not Zach. He can't "hear" others over his own personal "volume," it seems.
Zach drops into a low crouch, one hand touching the ground as he lets out a low growl of a yell as if to psyche himself up. Not that any of the fighters can see it, but the viewers at home are treated to a radiant light show of purple flames that flicker and twist around the American's body.
COMBATSYS: Zach gathers his will.
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Frei 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Nataya
> //////////////////////////////]
|====---\-------\0 Zach
As everyone around her gathers their will, Nataya's will is already in a place where she can manage it. As a result, there's no real need for her to spend any time trying to get it all sitting in one place. Instead, she acts with the usual alacrity anyone that's ever seen her fight move with.
The four beads that she's been using as balance feedback instruments are drawn back to her and join the already hovering weaponized spheres that spin in front of her in concentric circles as mists pour forth from her long, billowing sleeves. The shining silver clouds raise up, funneling through the slowly rotating beads as Nataya builds up the powerful bolt of energy within.
It only takes a few seconds, but the powerful burst flies out to where Frei sits, his charging making him a beacon that disturbs the ether or whatever holistic silliness that allows Nataya to 'see' the man for an instant. The silver bolt of power, however, is followed hotly by nataya, who's foot speed allows her to keep up with it's flight, until she evaporates in a burst of smoke.
Just as the bolt reaches it's target, Nataya materializes next to Frei, attempting to hammer the Chi sage into hamburger with a series of devestating blows. An elbow to the face, follows by a body blow, and then repeated knees to the sternum and stomach. Six hits in all before she leaps back.
COMBATSYS: Frei blocks Nataya's Six Seals.
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Frei 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Nataya
> //////////////////////////////]
|====---\-------\0 Zach
In a sense, Frei's personal fighting style is actually well-suited to this sort of fight. He's not someone who relies on evasion, which requires you to see the opponent coming from a good distance away. And while the *ideal* deflection of an attack requires you to see and predict where strikes are going to go, in a pinch you can sometimes manage it just fine by letting your instincts do the work. That, and relying on chi sense rather than vision means that he notices Nataya *and* the bolt of power moving at the same time. It's very, very hard to tell where here fists are going to go, so to someone watching this from outside the result is ragged and sloppy: punches slap into forearms instead of palms, blocks are awkwardly placed. In the end, however, Frei manages to fend off the worst of it, giving a minimal amount of ground.
There's also the unanticipated benefit of triangulation.
There should be only three 'mobile' people where they are, that he can see. One is right in his grill. The other is farther away, but just as Frei's centering himself made him a target for Nataya, so too does Zach's make him a target for Frei. Extending one hand and taking a cautious step back, the young sage gathers a swirling mass of orbs of white light in his palm before flinging them out at Zach... or at least, where he expects Zach to BE right now. Hopefully he's aimed them well, as each delivers a painful burst of energy when it comes in contact with the YFCC handyman's body.
COMBATSYS: Zach blocks Frei's Seiya.
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Frei 0/-------/-======|-------\-------\0 Nataya
> ///////////////////////// ]
|=====--\-------\0 Zach
Looking back at this fight, Zach will be at a loss to figure out how he knew that this attack was coming toward him. Maybe it was the sound of the projectile coming in. Maybe it was sound guessing on Zach's part as to Frei's first move. Perhaps it was the burning sensation on his skin as the chi started to near him, almost providing a very last second warning to brace for that all-too-familiar pain.
Whether is was one of these things, or a combination of them is of little relevance. Zach's response, to take some of that burgeoning psychic energy in his hands and force it towards the incoming orbs. The energies clash, flaring magnificently. Some of it still manages to get through Zach's makeshift shield, slamming into his limbs and torso. The force of the impact forces Zach back several feet. He doesn't feel his balance unsettling at all, no indication from the sounds of the scuffle that anyone is really moving around all that much, and his hands are already in front of him...
...so Zach channels some of that violet violence into the emptied palms, forcing out a short burst of energy that is sent sailing towards Frei and Nataya. Hopefully, Zach will hit the 'right' person!
Nataya's already leapt clear of Frei to the point where Zach's incoming attack will miss her by a good clip. Still, she drops down to the hard rock beneath her feet to ensure that she doesn't get clipped by any wayward shots. She lets out a low whistle: the pure unadultered energy flying from Zach is impressive! Still, Nataya's not about to be undone by the young American kid yet!
Clattering to the ground go a series of beads, already glowing like ball bearings under a sunlamp. The shimmering spheres roll forth from her, tiny hard shelled insects seeking to swarm towards Frei as if magnetically drawn to the kindly chi-sage. Nataya rather likes the man and his infinite cheerfulness. Still, she's not known for being particularly gentle in a battle.
The swarms form puddles, the little lights merging to blobs of quicksilver that swiftly move across the ground towards Frei as Nataya straightens back up, extending another four beads for balance as she skips along the edge of the monument without concern for her personal safety, seeking to sandwich her target between her and Zach.
The puddles, on the other hand, seek the man of their own accord. Should they hit, the glowing mercury will erupt in pillars of smoke and power, blasting Frei about dangerously on top of the head of Geroge Washington, who from afar will appear to have suddenly grown a mohawk!
COMBATSYS: Zach successfully hits Frei with Warning Shot.
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Frei 1/-------/=======|-------\-------\0 Nataya
> /////////////////////// ]
|======-\-------\0 Zach
COMBATSYS: Frei dodges Nataya's Five Precepts.
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Frei 1/-------/=======|-------\-------\0 Nataya
> /////////////////////// ]
|======-\-------\0 Zach
It's that damned power! Not that Frei thinks the word 'damned', himself; he's not exactly Ned Flanders but its use implies more anger than he typically expresses in a casual situation. By the time he can get a bead on Zach's return shot, it's too late; he actually, to the audience at home, appears to dive right INTO it rather than the other way around. He grits his teeth at the shockwave running through his nervous system, but perhaps it's exactly the wake-up call he needs. Nataya's beads are like tiny points of light in his vision, and he redeems his complete blunder into Zach's assault by dancing through the exploding pillars with surprising grace, tumbling past the last in a forward somersault that takes him dangerously close to Thomas Jefferson's brow... and a death on the rocks below.
Rising, he considers his situation very carefully. Ganging up on one person in a 2v1... it's not really his style. But as long as Zach is there, it's going to be progressively harder to defend himself. Thus it's the young sage's YFCC coworker that gets his continued attention. "Sorry about this," Frei mutters, setting off toward Zach and suddenly lashing out with a forward palm strike, swirling with green-white wind energy. The goal is to hit the man firmly in the stomach, accompanied by a burst of wind for extra concussive force. At worst, he loses his footing, perhaps... or so Frei hopes.
COMBATSYS: Zach fails to interrupt Fierce Punch from Frei with Third Stance.
- Power fail! -
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Frei 1/-----==/=======|-------\-------\0 Nataya
> ///////////// ]
|=======\===----\1 Zach
Zach frowns when he hears Frei speak; he had kind of expected this when he had heard about the fight. The fight conditions pretty much confirmed it for him. It stood to reason to Zach that people who knew a lot about chi, who were adapt in its uses could use chi flows as a sort of sixth sense.
It also stood to reason to Zach that for people like that, people like him were a lot harder to sense that way. Nataya would likely be easier for the monk to handle than Zach would in this respect.
Zach slides one foot back as he hears Frei rushing in. He sweeps an arm upward vaguely in the monk's direction. The resulting slash of psychic energy that lances upward from the ground... goes wide. Zach takes the strike full force in the sternum, throwing him tumbling across the 'arena' before sliding to a stop. He pales as he realizes that his arm is dangling off of the side of some president's face. He carefully pulls himself to his feet, and tries to make his way towards more horizontal venues.
Well, this isn't looking too great for Zach, is it? Nataya can feel, if not outright see, Zach getting mowed down by superior firepower. So far, things are looking pretty bad for the pair, and Nataya sets her pace, planning to even up the score.
She only smiles. People presume lots of things, but Nataya's not very forthcoming about what she is and isn't capable of. All she's focused on is making sure that her hits connect and that they do as much damage as she's capable of inflicting. Between that and just genuinely being happy all the time, it makes her an interesting fighter to some.
And if that doesn't do it for a person, her techniques tend to be a little on the unique side. The beads rise up angain, forming a spiral in front of her as she passes her hand through the silver clouds in front of her. Mantras are chanted under her breath as she calmly arranges the beads. Once they fall into place like a rank and file of obedient soldiers, they begin to glow. Once again, they seek out Frei of their own accord. This time, however, they start to fire small beams of pure force. Like little starfighters attacking a larger enemy, the beads swirl about Frei until their charge is used up completely. But not before thy do a last dive bombing assault, attempting to slam themsleves into Frei like so many buckshot.
COMBATSYS: Nataya successfully hits Frei with Ten Perfections EX.
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Frei 1/---====/=======|==-----\-------\0 Nataya
> ///////////// ]
|=======\===----\1 Zach
Luck swings one way, luck swings the other way. That and Frei is already wincing a bit when he feels his hand connect, as if he realized after the fact that he was hitting Zach -- or trying to hit Zach, anyway -- with an attack that would produce significant lateral movement on unstable footing. Even as he stands up, he breathes a sigh of relief that there is no Wil E. Coyote-style whistling sound followed by a distant *PAF* that indicates the poor American is on the ground somewhere, or perhaps multiple somewheres.
He is so absorbed, in fact, that when Nataya lashes out with her assault -- one he should be able to 'sense' much easier -- it's all but too late by the time he notices. The lances fire right on through a sudden swirl of gold-white chi that passes behind a sweep of Frei's hand, keeping him nicely in place for the final blow that slams *him* in the stomach. Let's see how you like it, Frei! Well, he doesn't like it... not one bit. Especially when his relatively light frame goes RIGHT OVER THE SIDE of Thomas Jefferson's face. Apparently, however, danger provokes genius: as soon as he notices that his fall is not being broken by the ground he surrounds his right hand with heavy, concussive earth chi and simply lashes out in the direction he thinks the mountain is in. What results is that he literally drives his fist INTO Jefferson's forehead, just below the 'lip' of climbable space.
It takes a second or two for him to climb back up afterwards, and when he does finally get back there he's in no shape to fight. Instead he takes a breather and tries his *damndest* to figure out how he's going to finish this fight without dying. "Sorry... for the beauty mark... Mr. President..." he mutters breathily. That was scary.
COMBATSYS: Frei gains composure.
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Frei 1/----===/=======|==-----\-------\0 Nataya
> ///////////// ]
|=======\===----\1 Zach
Zach feels, as well as hears the impacts of Frei's movements. He winces at what must have resulted from Frei's earthbending. He waits, hears some scrabbling. He hears Frei gasping for air. Zach sidles slightly to the side, remembering (roughly) where he is, where Frei is, and where the edge of the mountain is.
And then Zach charges for the monk. Purple energies flare to life around Zach as he goes in fast and low. The sound of heavy footfalls, followed by a roar of a kiai are likely the only warnings Frei has before Zach plows into his co-worker kitted out in what would look like a brief flash of purple plate mail made out of psychic energy. The impact, unless someone does something to alter momentum, should keep the pair on the mountain top. Zach wants to win, but he doesn't want Frei dead. That'd just be mean!
Nataya, on the other hand, is almost 100% positive that everyone on the mountain is smart enough to survive. After all, everyone is supposed to be superb fighters, right? Still, there's a matter of consideration. Balancing helpfulness with the intensity of combat tends to be a precarious balance at best, and Nataya's all about finding balance.
However, talking about equilibrium and doing something about it while waltzing about on top of a curved mountain... that's a whole different story. Zach's attack is heard and felt by his otherwise unobtrusive teammate, and she seems to count off something quietly.
Zach's attempted impact is a set up for Nataya, and she times a short leap. If she's right on the money, Frei will take a vicious right elbow/left hook combination regardless of whether or not Axch manages his hit. Granted, the move's timing is a little bit more deliberate than normal... but that's what happens when you can't actually see and are trying not to overextend yourself so you don't go flying off a mountaintop.
COMBATSYS: Frei endures Nataya's Strong Punch.
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Frei 1/---====/=======|==-----\-------\0 Nataya
> ////////////// ]
|==-----\-------\0 Zach
COMBATSYS: Frei interrupts Burst Strike from Zach with Ashura Ressenjin.
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Frei 1/=======/=======|==-----\-------\0 Nataya
> / ]
|=======\===----\1 Zach
Team attacks are a lovely thing! In fact if he could SEE them to compliment them on it, he would... but Frei only knows there's two 'senses' bearing down on him, from opposite directions, and coordinated or not he has to do something about both. And mobility is sort of at a premium, here... so he's going to have to do his best to work with the little space he has. Thus as both fighters rush him, Frei's course is already decided, both hands down at his sides and beginning to pulse with auras of purple-tinged black energy, cold to the touch. "Now or never..." he grits out, preparing himself.
Nataya is easier to notice; it's simply a fact. Thus Frei chooses her, and in fact runs right AT her. The elbow lands, without a hitch... but slightly earlier than it should, perhaps the monk lady's clue that something is amiss. Planting his foot, Frei lets the right cross slam into his cheek but ALSO lets the force of it move him... one fist up, and extended. Praying that it works, he turns the recoil spin of Nataya's blow into an effectively blind punch into nothing in the *opposite direction*.
There's a great moment, camera-wise, as that psychic 'mail fist' slams into Frei's stomach just as Frei's yin chi-coated fist slams into Zach's face.
Working through the pain of what just hit him -- which is not insignificant -- Frei doesn't let up; the punch is followed by a rapid series of palm strikes and arcing kicks, each coated with that enervating, cold black chi.
All of which serves as a rather impressive clotheslining of Zach, throwing him to the ground with enough force to bounce his head off of the ground. Zach stays down, his teeth gritted in a rictus of pain. His eyes snap open underneath the blindfold, purple energy spilling forth from underneath it as the cap rolls off of his head.
The cameramen start to back up quickly, realizing what might be coming.
A moment later, Zach erupts in a geyser of psychic energy without any kind of control or constraint. It tears up the immediate area, creating a rather large crater with an unconscious Zach right in the middle of it...
COMBATSYS: Zach can no longer fight.
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Frei 0/-------/--=====|==-----\-------\0 Nataya
In order to better assist Zach, Nataya uses the cacophony of the young man's explosive detonation to take a little subterfuge. She breaks into a run, getting clear of the incoming burst to whip around the strage, rocky battlefeild. Her body shimmers, then again disappears into a burst of smoke.
Without a so much as ahow-do-you-do, she's materialized behind Frei.
Now, as stated before, nataya likes Frei. He's a nice guy, pretty polite, and seems to know hiw way around a pair of fists. If Nataya were a constant apologist like Rust was, she'd probably be all kinds of apologizing to the monk guy all day long. However, a fight's a fight, and she really hopes Frei understands as she tries to wrap a string of beads around Frei's shoulder.
Using all the strength that she's been given by the powers that be, the strand of beads is connected to her ankle, and she attempts to slam the man into the ground with her leg once, twice, three times before she tries to hurl him into the exploding Zach.
Teamwork! It's a wonderful thing. It works better if one of your teammates isn't horribly exploding... but Nataya'll take what she can get.
COMBATSYS: Frei blocks Zach's Storm Flare.
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Frei 0/-------/=======|==-----\-------\0 Nataya
COMBATSYS: Nataya successfully hits Frei with Three Marks.
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Frei 1/------=/=======|===----\-------\0 Nataya
He knew it was coming, actually. It had something to do with the lack of resistance in Zach's body as Frei was delivering that final series of strikes... a note that told him what was to follow. Thus the side of him that's facing Zach is already flickering with a hazy defensive field of chi... not entirely visible, more like a ripple in space, a heat shimmer. When he goes up in his customary fashion, the brunt of the explosion splashes against that shield and off to the side, likely giving a fantastic light show to the people down below. Not all of it can be so deflected, however; shards of purple psychic force slam into him and significantly delay his reaction time for dealing with Nataya's attack, which sends him sliding across the ground to stop just at the edge of Zach's self-created crater.
Groaning, the young sage gets to his feet, holding his head... and sucking in long, full breaths through his teeth. "Just like... I warned Chun-Li..." he says, distracted by pain and not necessarily choosing his words very carefully. "Wanting to win... I don't like it. I don't like the things it... does." Yet even still, he suddenly flicks out his wrist toward Nataya, a spray of ice shards swirling toward her in a chaotic pattern in an attempt to keep some space between the two. He even gives a ragged laugh... one that becomes a cough that sounds a little too wet, at the end. "But you can't stop yourself from trying."
COMBATSYS: Frei successfully hits Nataya with Hatsuyuki.
- Power hit! -
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Frei 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 Nataya
Nataya has been having troubles of late just avoiding attacks she can /see/. So when the assault comes in, she does her best to run through the bursts of somethings that flciker about in the back of her head. Dim warning signs that can't be acknowledged in the middle of the attack smash her backward, dealing a serious blow. Frei may be down, but he's not out!
The attack tears through her like bullets through a wet paper bag, and Nataya's charge slows and stops dead. She crashes down onto the hard stone with a grunt. The chill of the ice does nothing to numb the gashes that they've torn int her robe and her arms that were thrown up to protect her. Still, there's the fact that she doesn't seem too upset by it.
It's part of the game, after all. When you purposefully put yourself in front of this sort of thing, griping is kind of a silly behavior.
"It's the nature of humanity to want," Nataya says, her smile invisible but her tone palpable. "Faulting anyone for that is like cursing them for breathing. Understanding the reason for want and controlling it is the best we can do in this life... and just hope for a better hand the next time around, right?"
As she speaks, the beads that swirl around her shimmer, shake, and shudder as the rise up... and Nataya sends forth the entire group as a deadly barrage. The whipping clouds colasece around them, forming four long, shimmering spears that turn horizontal to Frei on their trajectory. Should Frei fail to get out of their way, the weapons with slam into him like steel bars, sending up bright sparks of energy, and then proceed to smash into the Chi sage over and over like baseball bats.
COMBATSYS: Frei dodges Nataya's Four Stages of Enlightenment.
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Frei 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Nataya
Sometimes, the primal instincts are the best instincts. Case in point: when you can sense that your opponent is about to hurl a massive attack at you, and you don't have much left in you, and you're not entirely sure what it is or where it's coming from -- only that it's powerful -- sometimes the best thing to do is trust your reptilian hindbrain and run like hell. Or, in Frei's case, somersault like hell. Praying that he's oriented properly in regards to the edge of the presidents' heads, he simply dives to the side, inelegantly, landing roughly in a crouch. The margin by which Nataya's attack misses him is a hair's breadth.
Breathing heavily as he stands, Frei crouches forward a little, exhausted, physically and emotionally. "It's one thing to give in to your natural desires," Frei says carefully, forcing himself to stand. "It's another to recognize something you don't think you want, but your situation suggests you do." Is he dissembling? Perhaps. It's unlike Frei to throw blame elsewhere, but it is in effect what he's doing: I am here, in this competition. The competition made me do it.
His strength IS coming back to him, little by little... the question is whether or not it will do so in time to handle the relatively fresh Nataya's continued assaults. "I don't think it's a matter of 'want' versus 'do not want', but rather wanting the right things for the right reasons." It's probably foolish to close on Nataya now, considering his condition, but he does it anyway; trying his best to home in on the bead-controlling fighter, he rushes toward her and suddenly ducks low, trying to scythe a kick through the back of her legs and knock her down, adding a swirl of ice around his foot to make things a little slippery for good measure. Down, not over... hopefully we can make it through this with nobody's terminal velocity-induced demise.
COMBATSYS: Nataya endures Frei's Light Kick!
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Frei 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Nataya
Nataya hunkers down, her eyes closed behind her blindfold. She listens for sounds, movement, and seems completely ignorant of her sourroundings. "The problem is 'want'. The differentiation as to what you want is largely irrelevant," she says, and then tenses just prior to impact. The smashing assault crashes straight into the monk girl, almost bowling her over but for the fact that she prepared for it.
This time, there's not a lot of warning. Three lights pop up, and three lights shoot forward, the spiralling energy bursts growing in size in a relatively short period of time to strike at the Chi sage and blast him back against the mountainside. Over the sound of the keening energy buildup, Nataya calls out.
"The want for anything is a cause for suffering. That's the human condition. Don't worry about it's existance. As long as you're human, you'll have want. Accept that, and life becomes a lot easier, I've found." The smoke rises, chasing after the spheres like contrails.
COMBATSYS: Nataya successfully hits Frei with Three Gems.
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Frei 0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Nataya
It's true. There isn't a lot of warning, and thus Frei's attempt to actually get out of the way of said strike doesn't work at all. Of course, he's a little too resilient to be blown away just yet; the beams smack him into before he can mount a significant defense, but he somehow remains standing rather than flying into the nearby low rock walls. Still, he's pushed back more than a few feet in the process, and when he stops moving he slumps forward, breathing labored, hands on knees. He clearly can't take much more of this, and that's the truth.
"Really? I don't think want causes suffering," the young sage replies, sounding... intrigued? Confused? Some amount between the two, perhaps. "Being consumed by want certainly causes suffering, but why is that the fault of 'desire'?" he asks, still taking deep breaths in between each sentence, trying to gather himself. It's not over... not yet.
His hand glows gold-silver as he lets it drop to his side, trying to get a bead on Nataya. "I've already accepted 'want'. But I want to choose if I'm going to be controlled by a want that's not... me, or guided by a want that's resonant with who I am." With that, he ducks forward a step and sweeps his glowing hand up in an arc, looking to 'slice' both his hand and the glinting metallic arc of chi right through his opponent's body, the attack making a sound like a struck tuning fork if it connects.
COMBATSYS: Frei successfully hits Nataya with Houken EX.
- Power hit! -
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Frei 0/-------/-----==|=======\==-----\1 Nataya
The blow strikes Nataya clean, smashing into her and causing her to pinwheel back. She's clearly barely keeping up, clearly outmatched by the the monk. Nevertheless, she's not out yet, despite the burgeoning pain creeping up, threatening to interfere with her ability to fight.
"'Consumed'? No... go back and read your Pali Canon. 'Want' in an of itself is a quality of humanity. Life, period, is the cause of disquiet. It's just how it is. Seeking to rid yourself of wants is a way to break the cycle... but until then, just come to grips with the fact that there is 'want'. Controlling what you wan't isn't going to get you happiness. Controlling the /want/... that's the secret."
She forces herself to stant, slamming one hand against the wall of rock beside her. The slouds around her feet boil maddeningly, swirling around as the beads jump, cavort, and gambol, as if awaiting commands. "I don't enjoy fights, you know. I do them because... it's something I can do. Is it want? Yes. There's a contradiction in terms that I don't deny. I want to elevate myself past the need for want." She smiles. "But... that's how it works. After all, I'm only human."
And with that, Nataya leaps forward, her leg whipping about with along strand of beads looped around the ankle as she attempts to repeat a previous maneuver. If it connects, Frei will be wrapped up in a series of beads, connected to Nataya's ankle, and she'll do a triple spin kick, smashing the Chi sage into the ground like a sack of rocks.
COMBATSYS: Frei dodges Nataya's Three Marks.
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Frei 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Nataya
Is this the power of philosophical debate?! It might be; it just might be that Frei is so determined to keep this conversation going -- hard to do while you're unconscious -- that his body is willing to give considerably more than it should be able to do at this point. That, or perhaps fatigue is getting to the both of them. Either way, as the bead-empowered foot comes for him a second time, Frei kicks off the ground, doing a quick backstep and landing in a crouch, the sweep of the strike passing harmlessly overhead. It looks easy from the outside, not that Nataya or Frei can see it, but only because Frei is making a herculean effort to keep himself together. His body is just along for the ride; bereft of vision, barely able to stand, the young sage is working entirely on instinct and intuition at this point.
Standing, he tries to focus on Nataya's voice, her presence, to bring this to a close. Those were Chun-Li's words, after all: a fighter who claims to never have had a competitive moment is lying through his or her teeth. "Like I said last time... I don't put much stock in canons or orders," he muses thoughtfully, tapping his toe against the rock underfoot, trying to gauge where he is and how much distance he can cover. "As for what will bring me happiness, I'll decide that on my own. I think happiness is very personal... though speaking as a former Buddhist, former Taoist, and former lots of stuff, they're very useful ways to organize one's thinking about it."
The time has come to bring this to a close, Frei hopes; one way or the other, he or Nataya is probably going down in this next salvo... or perhaps most likely, BOTH are. "It's a shame that you don't enjoy fighting. I know where you're coming from, though... I really do. I'm not sure I like fighting for the sake of fighting either." His hand glows a faint prism of colors as he brings it up to his chest, clenching his fist, the glow collapsed between his fingers and spilling out, somewhat. "But I've learned to enjoy things ABOUT it, regardless." Taking a quick step forward, Frei looks to close the gap between himself and Nataya but keeps his step on the ground 'light'; when he opens his palm an invisible blast of chi ripples the air, looking to deliver a nice punch to Nataya and conveniently pushes Frei AWAY from her in the opposite direction, like a maneuvering thruster.
COMBATSYS: Nataya endures Frei's Reiki.
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Frei 0/-------/---====|=======\=------\1 Nataya
Nataya gets hammered. There's just no real way to describe it. The blast sends her shooting off the moutainside like a small, woman-shaped rocket. The smoke and series of beads trail after her like Pokemon after Team Rocket. Launched off the side of the monument, she looks like a flea has decided to jump off of Roosevelt's head.
The plummet gives her enough time to reflect on the things that Frei said. Former Taoist. Former Buddhist. The monk has a lot to say and according to him, has a very solid foundation.
The woman then is enveloped in smoke. The soft 'whump' of the implosion can be heard only by very delicate ears. But she's managed to get herself back on top of the mountain. "You know," she says, still smiling despite being practically doubled over. "I wish I had the self assurance that you have... to dismiss thousand of years of teaching as 'nice' organizational tools."
She slams down to the ground, breathing shallowly. "I don't know who's closer... to enlightenment, admittedly. Someone that beleives in something... or someone that's stopped beleiving in everything except what the world means to them." Her eyes struggle to stay open, then close.
The smoke, however, refuses to accept this. The whriling clouds trembles, shake, as the beads leap up. If it were a living thim, it might be characterized as... angry? Furious? But it's likely a byproduct of random brain firings from someone that's incapable of controlling the power still left.
The boiling silver lurches at Frei, a shape trying to emerge. Beads clatter, scrape, and weld together only to fall apart a moment later. With a final push, the beads explode in a fury, attempting to hurl chunks of half-created silver bars at the monk beforerunning out of steam and raining on the ground like so much hail.
COMBATSYS: Nataya can no longer fight.
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Frei 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Nataya successfully hits Frei with Four Stages of Enlightenment EX.
[ \ <
Frei 0/-------/=======|
There it is, the sound he was dreading: or rather, the lack of sound he was dreading. He didn't hit her *UP*, so even though he knows he connected with Nataya, he expects to hear her hit the ground soon after. He... doesn't. It takes every ounce of energy in his body NOT to rip the damn blindfold off right then and there, dive off the side, call in an air strike, do SOMETHING to keep the woman from dying.
The sound of her feet on the mountain -- against all logic and physics -- make him slump in relief.
There's still her final strike to deal with, though... the energy radiating silver-blue in his 'vision', erratic and powerful... and Frei's body has hit the limit of what he can ask of it in this fight. Not that he doesn't try; in fact he starts to move with a speed that is rare even by his standards, but even a sudden burst of evasive maneuvering isn't enough to clear an attack he can't 100% see, and the empowered bead strike slings him through the air to land on his back on Thomas Jefferson's head, breathing deeply.
"I'm not very... enlightened," Frei says, reaching behind his head to take off the blindfold slowly, turning his head to find Nataya up on the battlefield. If nothing else, it's a sign that he can't go on any more than she or Zach can. "I just... I don't want... to live by rules I don't agree with. If Buddhist thought about... killing desire, subsuming the ego... if you agree with it, then you should do it." He pauses, shutting his eyes for a second, before opening them again, watching patterns of clouds move by overhead. "I think... if enlightenment and happiness are the same thing... then both of the people you described are equally well-favored on their own paths."
With that, he shuts his eyes and leans back, taking a rest he SHOULD have well before now. The announcer shouting the 3-KO is merely a distant sound in whatever dreamland he's inhabiting.
COMBATSYS: Frei takes no action.
COMBATSYS: Frei can no longer fight.
Log created on 14:33:50 09/13/2008 by Frei, and last modified on 18:46:52 09/13/2008.