Description: A derelict building in the Metro City slums, all crumbling concrete and rotting timbers. It's here, ladies and gents, that we are conducting science. What happens when an irresistable force meets an immovable object? 'cause Choi is totally irresistable, yeah. No, really. Totally. Absolutely. But Acacia, she will not be moved, oh no. She doesn't like Choi. She really doesn't. And surprise surprise, Choi doesn't like her either. This isn't chemistry, folks. Unless it's the sort that goes boom. (Winner: Acacia)
Metro City. A home for hopes. Dreams. A bright new future in Americaland. However, not everyone finds their hopes and dreams here. Others decide to make like Grand Theft Auto, and bang hookers, shoot things, steal cars to run them over, fight the National Guard so they can steal a tank, and wield dildos in battle. Choi could see the appeal of the games, and here it the slums, he could get why the Scottish made such wonderful games about America.
The camera crews prop up around the decrepit building where the fight would take place. Built in the early 1920s, thanks to a combination of rent control and a hot place, it was nearly gutted from a combination of time, water, and fire. The roof was barely intact, only kept together through the magic of asbestos and Irish labor. Pipes jutted out like spikes as ancient plumbing warps and bends. Past the surface was foul blacks and tans that infested the soul of the hallways. Disintegrating wallpaper and rotted doors were only broken by deadfalls and what the vagrants had no use for. This might be where the battle would go. But for now, it would start on the rooftops.
Choi gingerly stood on a single rusty can, stretching as he balanced on it. Acacia. The Korean can't help to grin. He remembers her. The voyeur. Memories of Italian Wardrobe malfunctions and strong assertive females come over him. And then blackouts. And breasts! The little man lets loose a high-pitched chuckling, his eyes trailing around the crumbling parapets before resting squarely on his opponent.
The little man licks his cheeks eagerly.
The steady sound of footfalls echoes round the roof, the ancient fire escape creaking dangerously with the motion. The abused metal groans in protest, until finally, the weight's gone - and Acacia steps onto the top of the building, the soles of her combat boots crunching into the concrete. She brushes a gloved hand across the side of her dark jeans, rubbing off a few stray flakes of rust.
Then she raises her head, looking across the roof at her opponent. Her eyes twitch in recognition, her mouth creasing into a thin-lipped line.
"You," Acacia states, nearly spitting the single syllable.
If Choi's quivering with anticipation...well, Acacia's reaction is somewhat different. She stands on the opposite end of the rooftop, staring, eyes narrowed behind fluttering strands of hair, stirred by the breeze. After a second, she exhales, audibly, then slides into a combat stance, feet apart for stability and balance, one arm raised in a defensive posture. Her heavy camo jacket shifts slightly in the wind.
The stare off continues. Choi just licks his face, making it soft and tender, like the flesh of a small child. But he doesn't act. The camera crew had the video cameras going for about 30 seconds before Choi made his move.
The little man pushes off from the can with a sharp clang, sending the rusty thing off the edge of the building into the darkness. The midget dances delicately off the ground, avoiding a rude drop into the ground below. That honor would be held for the stony young lady. The midget suddenly stops his leaping to burst at the girl, running his tiny legs lightly over the moss-layered surface.
Groans erupt from the ground, followed by a small crack. The Korean became nervous... but not for long. Already he was upon the woman, and already he was making his move. With one final leap to avoid sinking through the floor, he curls into a ball and spins wildly. Claws out, he attempts to bowl over the girl with his whirling actions as he rises higher and higher up...
COMBATSYS: Choi has started a fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Choi 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Acacia has joined the fight here.
[\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////////////]
Choi 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Acacia
COMBATSYS: Acacia fails to interrupt Hien Zan from Choi with Aftershock.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////////// ]
Choi 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Acacia
Acacia's pupils widen, dilating, as Choi rushes towards her. She starts to react, but the unstable rooftop breaks her concentration - followed by the concrete itself breaking, crumbling beneath both fighters. Choi crashes into her like a tiny Korean cannonball, and she's flung into the air. The spinning edges of his claws slice through the fabric of her military jacket, and draw one thin line across her t-shirt, bisecting the collarbone.
She lands roughly, ignoring the trickle of blood. She has just enough time to snap her head up, glaring dangerously at Choi.
"Fast," Acacia observes, matter-of-factly. That much, at least, she'll give him. It's true.
As the floor gives, the battlefield doesn't even out, oh no. Choi's technique is more talent than brains, to be honest. He just keeps throwing attacks out until one hits. But when one does hit, that very well may be the start of a long, painful hacking.
Once Choi lands a hit, he pushes off a tiny bit. Rolling quickly but just lazily pushing through the air, he quickly breaks out. As Acacia looks up, she has about enough time to let loose her deadpan comment when Choi drops towards her, claws swiping downwards to spike her viciously.
COMBATSYS: Acacia interrupts Power Strike from Choi with Ground Effect.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////////// ]
Choi 0/-------/-======|======-\-------\0 Acacia
Beneath Choi...is a very bad place to be. In more ways than one. In ways that probably shouldn't be speculated on in a prime-time programme, despite what the fight commentator voicing over the telecast might think.
Acacia falls, still twisting in the air, as chunks of shattered concrete and broken roofing rain around her. She's not an aerial fighter. Far from it. Acrobatics aren't her style. As Choi swoops in, she's nearly helpless.
Or not.
Acacia snaps her head up, eyes pacing Choi as he drops towards her. She inhales, drawing a breath through her lungs. Then she /reaches/.
The air distorts around her, as she forces raw chi out from her body, punching it out from her aura in a visible display. An instant later, the sound hits, a concussive roar of crashing thunder. It's an almost excessive expenditure of spiritual power. Inefficient.
But enough. Her fall slows, then stops entirely, as she releases a massive wave of energy straight /downward/, pounding into the rooftop. The entire building shakes, as if in the grip of a fist, the roof surface cratering far beneath Acacia. Then she /blasts/ into Choi, head on towards him, whipping her own arm forward to punch straight into his oncoming slash. She ignores the lacerations, ignores the blood, and simply powers her knuckles into the edges of his claws.
Choi did not expect her to recover so quickly. After all, that is why he struck out: to take advantage of his last attack. He figured that to keep on hitting that over and over again, he would overwhelm her... and she would panic. Unfortunately, she spat back quickly. TOO quickly.
When the blast erupts, Choi just tries to cut through it.
For a brief moment, they touched knuckles.
For the next agonizing 10 seconds, Choi is launched backwards and downwards, spinning like a ragdoll. He hits the roof at about a 30 degree angle. He goes through it. Not directly, no. He goes through it longways. The little man rips through the concrete and plywood, only being stopped by a jagged mass of piping. All through this, the cave in worsens as the top floor begins to shudder more violently. It seemed that Acacia's last shockwave was too much for it, also.
Choi hangs on to the piping longer than he ought. Splinters were painted over his body, blood-soaked bruises acting as a fine undertone to them. The only good was that the metal didn't impale his body, only slash it up violently. Speaking of violence. In his punch-drunk haze, the little man sees the top of the room sliding towards him. The midget pulls himself from the piping, slipping across a sinking sands of rotted floorboards moving downwards to the next floor. Bounding off the crumpling walls, he once again tried a new approach.
While Acacia may have her own issues to deal with, the midget had the shadows on his side. Moving quickly and lightly, he tried to keep an eye on the girl. With rubble falling all around, this was easier said than done. Despite her location, the little man knew what to do. Closing in, he suddenly slides... then dives. Bouncing off the wall, he uses the kick-off to get a blast of spin. Claws out, the little man zooms through the air, bending and twisting as he pierces the debris to drill his screwing body into Acacia's torso.
COMBATSYS: Acacia endures Choi's Houkou Tenkan.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Choi 0/-------/=======|=======\-------\1 Acacia
Contact, then - and plaster explodes into a cloud of drifting white as Choi slams like a human missile into Acacia. She'd just barely regained her footing, up on what was left of the roof. Now, as Choi erupts from beneath, she's thrown off balance, momentum sending her flying over the yawning abyss, over the gaping hole leading down to the interior of the ruined building.
Acacia, though, doesn't bat an eyelid.
She remains calm, even as the razor edge of Choi's spinning claws grind into her midsection, tearing up her t-shirt and breaking the skin across her stomach. Blood splatters from the fresh spiral wound as she arcs backward.
Then she speaks:
"Not..."
She thrusts an arm forward, before Choi can fully disengage. It's like sticking a hand into a blender, trying to stop the blades with utter disregard for the consequences. She does it anyway, trying to grab hold of the little man. Trying to snatch him out of the air, and send him towards the ground far below.
"...talking much?"
COMBATSYS: Choi blocks Acacia's Strong Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Choi 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\1 Acacia
Choi manages to land another blow, though at a cost. The girl simply ignores him. Or not. Her brief moment of dialogue cues the midget in that she might be ignoring him fully. Rather, when she snatches him, the little man knows all too well. At the mercy of the woman, the Korean looks briefly frightened... before he is hurled to the abyss.
The End.
... But wait. There is no splash! Or crash! Instead, there is a high-pitched cackling. "Toots, lets face it. You're not really interesting. Physically, emotionally, verbally, hell ANYTHING. You are like a rock in FAR more ways than one."
Light scurrying is heard echoing throughout the ruins of the building, followed by even more creaking. "Personality, for one. You contain the excitement of the average rock. Fighting style, you are like a loud rock. Physically, you are built like a rock... and your face looks like it was formed from years of wind-swept erosion." Another crack is heard. "And one more thing that you share with a rock..."
The Korean's claws rip through the floor of the roof, attempting to snatch Acacia by the ankles. If contact was made, she would find her own body being tripped down, down, down into the lower floors of the building.
COMBATSYS: Acacia blocks Choi's Quick Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Choi 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\1 Acacia
The impact echoes through the old structure - the shockwave rushing through the ruins, blowing out the few remaining windows in a spray of razor glass. A cloud of choking dust rises, swirling round.
Acacia lies in a crater near the base of the old building, just a floor above the lobby. The structural beams of said floor groan in warning, just barely cradling her weight.
She rests with one knee amidst shattered wood and carpet, the foot of her other leg planted square against the ground. A controlled fall, cushioning her weight. She rises, then, flecks of shattered masonry falling from her back and shoulders. Acacia lifts her head, looking straight upward, regarding Choi.
She stares for a good long moment, before the corner of her mouth tilts upward, her cheek crinkling ever-so-slightly.
"And," she says, "you're a troll...doesn't mean we can't be -civil-."
She spreads her hands, palms turned upwards to the sky.
COMBATSYS: Acacia channels her chi.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Choi 1/-------/=======|=======\==-----\1 Acacia
Choi? Being civil?
Yes, in theory, that can happen. Not very likely, of course. After all, he is a twisted little midget. Poking through the roof, he inspects the bar he had the fortune of catching. Or misfortune, if you ask his chin. In any case, he peers over the edge of the pit, flinching only when he hears the crash. Taking one last look, the little man grins...
Then frowns. The woman survived. Unharmed, even. The midget fumed, and snorted. The insult struck him boldly. Howling, he drops off the edge of the roof... and falls.
On the way down, he begins to drift to the side. At every free point, he kicks off, forcing himself down faster and faster. The little man seems to be shaking with rage. "I'll show you civil, rock jaw! I'll cut you with civility!" Choi seethes, pushing off the 2nd floor to dive down at... the floor. Hitting into a roll, the little man blasts along the ground right by Acacia's feet, before exploding out with a sharp jab of his claws right towards her solid well-toned glutes.
Unless, you know, she expects it and proceeds to mop the floor with the little fellow.
COMBATSYS: Acacia endures Choi's Geketsu Tsuki.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Choi 0/-------/=======|=======\===----\1 Acacia
"That's not," Acacia observes, "very civil."
Her voice is calm. It normally is, admittedly - barely registering on the gun microphones aimed at the fighters by the crew outside. It's hard to hear her over the sound of shifting debris and the clash of combat, especially since her inflection is so flat to begin with. She doesn't show any sign of disdain, though, or sarcasm...she just regards Choi with a cool dispassionate gaze, tilting her head gently to one side.
Once again he comes at her. And once again, Acacia holds her ground. She stands amidst the cratered floor, boot soles planted upon the shattered floorboards, digging into the structural concrete below. She watches him rocket across the ground, accelerating into a blur almost too quick for the cameras to follow.
She shifts her weight at the very last instant, dropping her forearm into the path of Choi's blades. It's not a block; her arm meets the blades edge-on, and they slice her jacket sleeve into tatters, piercing the flesh, stopping against bone.
It's only /after/ that the surge of chi comes, renforcing Acacia's muscles - the arm locked with Choi's claws suddenly a bar of unyielding stone, a second burst of strength driving it forward in another attack.
COMBATSYS: Choi blocks Acacia's Quick Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Choi 1/-------/=======|=======\===----\1 Acacia
Acacia arrogance was beginning to grate on the little man's nerves. Twice now, she did nothing to defend against his attacks. Her arm then tenses up unnaturally, warding off his tiny little pinpricks. And she continues her deadpan snark... without the snark. Her lack of reaction was just disturbing to the little man. It wasn't natural for a girl her age!
Then, the little man feels himself tossed away. Breaking through some drywall, the buildings jars again, creaking as one side slowly collapses. But Choi... isn't really bothered, as he already is leaping through another part of the drywall. Looks like the little man knows how to tuck a roll. "Yeah, but look on the bright side! You are learning to be cut like a perfectly fine young lady!" The midget squeals, landing on his feet with a few short hops. And a few more short hops. And with another hoot, he launches in the air, off the ceiling, and right down at Acacia's face, attempting to deface the rugged thing with a rapid swipe.
COMBATSYS: Acacia blocks Choi's Quick Strike.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Choi 1/-------/=======|=======\===----\1 Acacia
Sparks flash in the air, as the tip of one claw screeches across the studs of one leather glove - Acacia meeting the blade with a turned hand, knuckles against the weapon's edge. She stares at Choi, unblinking.
He's right. She /is/ playing with him.
Amazing how the clawed wonder brings out the best in people. He should totally consider a second career as a motivational speaker. Certainly Acacia seems motivated right now. Admittedly, she's more motivated to bash his skull in than anything else, but that totally counts, right?
Right.
She spins on a heel, sending a cloud of dust flying from the abused floor. The old building makes a dangerous sound right there, shifting and settling. Right now, though, Acacia doesn't care. Her guarding arm falls, and her free leg rises, the heavy rubber sole of her black boot racing high at Choi's midsection.
COMBATSYS: Choi fails to interrupt Light Kick from Acacia with Houkou Tenkan.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Choi 1/---====/=======|=======\====---\1 Acacia
Choi's midsection is normally an elusive target. However, something happens that mixes things up. As his swipe is shrugged back, the Korean positions himself into a spin. He pressures the leather glove, trying to drill through it... and he angles himself to dig right into the woman's chest...
Until he is easily leg-spiked aside right into the tiles.
Much like a dead cat, he bounces.
Acacia grounds her leg, scraping the heel across the floor. Then she regains her balance, carefully measuring her footing over the unsteady ground. She stands there for half a second, watching Choi.
Before, quite deliberately, taking a step back.
She moves away from the centre of the building, away from the gaping hole above the two fighters, leading all the way up through a succession of broken structural elements to the roof - shifting closer to the walls and bits of floor more able to take her weight.
When she speaks again, her face is blank. Deliberately so.
"And...you? Learning anything?"
COMBATSYS: Acacia takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////////// ]
Choi 1/----===/=======|=======\====---\1 Acacia
Choi staggers up, his face twisted awfully. Either that was from a faceplant landing, or he was grinning. He looks at his enemy, positioning herself. "Yeah. I learned something." The midget sneers, wriggling his body. "I learned that just because you are ugly on the outside..." He starts, making as disgustingly cute of a voice as he could make. "... Doesn't make you beautiful on the inside."
The irony escapes Choi.
Instead, the Korean adjusts his hat, and begins to pirouette. Faster and faster he spins, whirling like a top, no, a tornado. Wind sucks at the inside of the building, causing it to bend dangerously inward. Blue streaks intertwine with the wind, giving a very visible element to the storm centered on Choi. The little man winds and winds around as the tornado consumes him. The cyclone hangs there, swaying back and forth in place. Then, with little more warning, it tears through the building, attempting to suck Acacia into the wreckage of the maelstrom.
COMBATSYS: Choi successfully hits Acacia with Shin! Tatsumaki Shinkuu Zan.
-**- LUNATIC HIT!! -**-
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////// ]
Choi 0/-------/----===|=======\=======\1 Acacia
Hurricane-force winds smash through the building. A building already derelict, badly damaged through years of neglect...and made worse in these past few seconds of violent fighting. There's no way it can take that kind of abuse - and it can't. A pillar gives way with a mighty -CRACK-, concrete and steel parting, along with shattering timber. The entire floor disintegrates, plunging down into the ground level beneath, ceremic, wood, and glass raining in all directions.
Acacia slams painfully into the earth, digging an impact trench as gravity asserts itself. She tumbles, out of control, before finally smashing into one of the few remaining structural walls...a wall that topples, as the whole structure caves in on itself.
It's a long moment, as the dust settles, rising in a dirty plume that blankets the street. The whole site looks like a bomb went off - no controlled demolition, this. Car alarms are screeching round the block. The League TV crew is coughing and choking. The cameras are still rolling, though, sweeping the destruction for any sign of...
...movement.
Acacia stands, slowly, her head bent, shoulders slumped. Her eyes open, though, searching through the smoke. Then they narrow.
"What's," Acacia rasps, her throat hoarse, "inside?"
She moves.
One step, two, then three, four, her boots slamming over the uneven ruins. She rushes her opponent, rushes Choi. As she closes in on the Korean, she swings a fist. A punch, just a punch.
Except charged with explosive force equal to what he just unleashed, payback in one single blow - concussive energies focused tightly into Acacia's balled hand, set to detonate only upon contact with Choi's body.
/Within/ Choi's body.
COMBATSYS: Choi dodges Acacia's Godshatter.
[ \\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////// ]
Choi 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Acacia
The tornado rages, leveling the building with surprising fury. Finally, it begins to fatten and soften, dissipating with a shower of debris. And Acacia. But Choi... Choi is well done with spinning. Instead, he stands there, stretching a bit.
And grinning like a total and utter douchebag.
When Acacia bursts from the ruins of the Korean's overly destructive act, the Korean seems to be a little worried. But not enough to keep from being a total jerk. He watches the energy pinpoint in the stone girl's hands, and watches the powerful punch... sail by him. Choi simply sidesteps, keeping near the girl as he orbits around. "Weren't you listening?" The midget coos, sticking his foot out to trip the girl.
"Nothing!"
COMBATSYS: Acacia fails to interrupt Quick Throw from Choi with Unyielding Stance.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////// ]
Choi 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Acacia
A massive BOOM echoes round the ruined building site, a geyser of earth and man-made materials erupting from the ground as Acacia spills into it - her attack discharging in a way she surely didn't intend. Not fast enough to rein in the chi-charge. Not fast enough to secure her footing against that sweep. She groans as she climbs out of the fresh crater, ribs heaving as she takes a heavy breath.
She narrows her eyes back at Choi, managing a quip all the same:
"You're nothing?"
Choi brings a clawed hand to his ear, cupping it. "Sorry, could you speak up?" The midget coyly calls at the girl climbing from the crater. "I can't hear you over the FAIL!"
The little man squeals with laughter, staggering side to side as he deftly leaps in the air. Raising his arm high in the air, he attempts to repeat what he tried before: A spike. Bringing his claws down towards the beaten girl.
Which is weird, considering he STILL has the open wounds of his previous attempt at doing this.
COMBATSYS: Acacia interrupts Power Strike from Choi with Fracture.
[ \\\ < > //////////// ]
Choi 1/------=/=======|===----\-------\0 Acacia
So has he learned? Hard to tell. Choi's stubborn, it seems.
Then again, so's Acacia.
The blades bite into her torso, skidding across her ribs, drawing a nasty jagged wound. But they don't penetrate completely. Because she's got a hand buried in Choi's stomach, now, her fingers spread, /gripping/ his abdomen - her arm driven into him with enough force to stop his forward motion completely.
And with that grip, she gives a solid heave, /slamming/ him into the ground, into the shattered concrete, glass, and broken wood littering the ruins, using enough strength to bury him.
She snorts.
Choi feels rough hands on his body. And at that moment, he realized that playing an aerial approach may not have been such a good idea.
*CRUNCH*
Choi remains under the layer of building material for a while. The combination of lacerations, bruises, and his spine being shoved out of alignment did a number on the middle-aged man. Already the darkness of unconsciousness was enveloping him. Nothing could recover him. The lights from above were growing dim as the little man struggled, forcing himself to look around...
But what? Huh? That thing in the light. Choi focuses his eyes, trying to make sense of the object. Those curves... that skin. It was paperback, yes. But it was... beauty. Choi reaches for the magazine, and feels a warmth enveloping him...
With one last burst of energy, the little man explodes from the depths of the debris, tossing the magazine in the air as he charges towards Acacia. And stumbles. My, it seems that Choi has a compound fracture. Oh well. Scooping up the magazine, he clenches tightly as he leaps on one leg towards Acacia and...
COMBATSYS: Choi can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Acacia 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Acacia blocks Choi's Hou'ou Kyaku.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ <
Acacia 0/-------/---====|
And begins to tear into the arms of Acacia, starting with a front flip kick.... and into a backflip kick. He spins around and around, clawing madly before entering a tight ball to bowl up and over the girl. On the other side, he glances over his power magazine...
Quickly, the color drains from his face. All spirit to fight leaves him. Falling over, the Korean collapses into the rubble, the copy of Transvestites Monthly spread over his face.
Acacia blinks, once, twice, three times. She rubs a hand across her face, smearing away blood from a few fresh scratches, before finally untensing from her guard position.
A look of puzzlement creeps onto her face, replacing her usual expression of composure. She stares at the fallen Choi for a few moments, nudging him carefully with the toe of one boot. Once she's sure that he isn't faking, Acacia crouches, then gingerly lifts the tattered magazine off his face, flipping it round to see what bothered him so much----
----ohgodno.
Acacia cringes, twitching badly. The publication slips from nerveless fingers, and she rushes back to her feet.
The League camera crew starts to move in, the commentator approaching her with a microphone. Which Acacia waves off, as she stumbles away, eyes clenched tightly shut.
No. Just. No.
COMBATSYS: Acacia has ended the fight here.
Log created on 22:33:01 09/15/2008 by Acacia, and last modified on 21:35:20 09/16/2008.