Description: Kai Gabriel is back on her crusade to purge the world of sin, and this time her eyes are set on Castle Strolheim. Though she'd prefer some big name fighter, what she finds is Vince LaRose - one who promised her a demonstration of Rose Dansant in a pleasant conversation many moons ago. He fulfills his promise to her now as she attempts to "erase" him, demonstrating the finesse of his form and thwarts her attempts - which ultimately leads to her capture...
Mimiru was gone.
The past few months had not been kind to one Kai Gabriel, but her history hardly showed a stain besides on her heart. Prim to the core, her time was spent amongst other followers of the church of the worthy cause and as a result the slippage back into her old ways has been severe. She had a mission now and she was going to see it out. She would execute to perfection and one first class plane ride later she was in Germany. The tournament was growing quieter with every round, as teams were eliminated so was the occupancy of foreign fighters and thus her time was running out. With this in mind Gabriel hardly checks into her hotel before moving out that very night. Dressed in her usual clothing, mostly black silk with dragon designs, she fits well into the streets, avoiding lights and actually moving with a measure of stealth. No secret though that Gabriel intends ill with her black sash containing a sheath and in that sheath her weapon of choice.. A long shard of glass. The castle would be hard to break into under normal circumstances, but with the regular shenanigans of the fighter community it is no doubt that Gabriel will be simply ignored - far be it from the ninja she thinks she is, the organizer staff even becomes aware of her presence and just disregards it as one of the participants returning from a late night foray. Thinking she's in the clear Gabriel manages to scale one of the walls to a window into a warmly lit hall, empty of occupants it seemed on her crawling in and raising to her full height. Yes, no love lost in that cold stare.
Vince is just leaving his room at this time, dressed to wander the castle and maybe even the village for some entertainment and meditations. He knows he should probably lean more towards the latter, what with all that's been explained to him by his estranged sensei. But a boy's gotta have entertainment, too! And in such a rich culture as this, how could he possibly shelter himself?
So it's with a cheerful attitude that the swordsman makes his way through the empty hall, neverminding the fact that it's so dreadfully quiet. Castles are spacious places, after all - can't expect too much noise to be found! And really, that's a part of the charm!
But he also doesn't catch sight of the girl loitering by the window at the hall's end.
Flashing back to her instructions Gabriel remembers well the words of the high priestess:
"Gabriel, you must go back into the world for I fear it is in great peril. Seek out a strong arm to follow as you bring about the much needed change. You will save the world, but to do that you will need attention. There is a tournament in Germany, infiltrate it and use one of the competitors to gain your publicity. Go now with the blessings of the Goddess."
And go she did. Gabriel had taken the first flight, studied the pictures and names and bios of everyone still in the tournament, she even studied those who were not. While Vince might not see her, Gabriel notices him. She knows he is in the tournament and not one of the teachers. She might of liked to have found Ryu, but she will take what she can get.
Gabriel begins a slow stalk toward Vince. Menace is visible in every step. It would appear as though Gabriel doesn't care if Vince even sees her coming, or knows what hit him. While she isn't in a striking stance yet, or even distance, she's closing in fast.
Vince, unfortunately for him, is off in his own world. Marveling at the grand structure of Castle Strolheim, the wide-eyed teenager's love for the Renaissance is thrilled every waking moment he's here. So he continues to stroll along, cape wafting out behind him carelessly.
Except something is starting to pick at the back of his mind. Ever since he began to really focus on the chi - or magic, as his sensei puts it - around him, he's starting to become a little more aware in its shifts. This awareness is by no means incredible, but it's a peculiar feeling he's starting to pick up. It's a bit like another presence has entered the hallway, but...
Vince's forward movements slow down a little as he starts to indulge in the sense, starting to concentrate on his surroundings more than the architecture.
Gabriel's chi manifested as 'faith based'. It was just a way to describe an golden glow, except usually it came off with a more sinister purple looking flames - perhaps an indication of where her heart truly sat. The Crusader reaches a striking point and stops moving for a moment. There was of course the part where she actually had to strike Vince that hadn't been fully planned out. What was she going to do, blow on him? Something needed to be done of course. But the question was what? A hit to the back of the head might suffice, really fast and direct could bring someone down, but she was by no means an expert at the critical strike, infact she had expected him to have noticed her long ago. The glaring seemed kind of pointless now at the back of his head, even so these sorts of things just didn't occur to her. She had a job to do and didn't really care how it got done. Having wasted a fair bit of time, no matter, Gabriel draws her shard of glass, cutting her hand in the process and dripping warm crimson onto the carpet then raises it and prepares to strike.
Vince is, to some degree, aware of her presence. On some level, he knows for a fact that the flow of chi in the room has shifted. But Vince feels it in a different way - like the room's air has a gentle ebb and flow that's been mildly disturbed. This may become more profound the longer he studies and hones his senses, but for the time being... he just -knows- something, somewhere nearby, is different from how it was a moment ago.
Finally, Vince turns. It's a slow, deliberate process, looking as though he already expects someone to be behind him. But what he sees, he's clearly not prepared for. Gabriel, glass shard in hand and raised to strike. "Wha-.." Momentary confusion taken away, Vince instead lunges at her in return, attempting to grab ahold of her elevated wrist with one hand, and her shoulder with the other in hopes of suddenly throwing her back against the nearby wall, and hopefully pinning her there. "What are you doing!?"
COMBATSYS: Vince has started a fight here.
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Vince 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Gabriel has joined the fight here.
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Gabriel 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vince
COMBATSYS: Gabriel blocks Vince's Quick Throw.
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Gabriel 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vince
As she has her wrist taken, Gabriel decides to sacrifice the glass shard in the interest of preventing her loss of freedom. She can't afford to be captured in her goal and therefore the weapon is allowed to break on the ground. That makes a noise, Vince makes a noise. Still a castle full of fighters, no one is going to come running, but they might eventually have questions. Taking a few steps back, Gabriel steals a moment to adjust her watch while studying Vince through narrowed and cold green eyes.
"Five minutes..." she states and starts a timer All the while studying, there isn't an attack, and she isn't as attuned as he is, instead she is forced to rely on her eyes and they take time. There is no response however to the question. She has no need to explain herself, she only falls into a open handed fighting stance.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel focuses on her next action.
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Gabriel 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vince
Failing the pin the girl and restrain the threat, Vince watches her intently in her quick backtrack. In defense, his right hand dips to his side, drawing the long, elegant blade of his rapier free from its sheath. "I know you. We met before in the woods..," he says.
Her stance, however, keeps him on guard. Icy blue eyes affi on her greens, blade's tip angling on her torso. His left hand, open, hovers at chest level in a typical fencing stance.
"..You were playing the violin, I think." Though as he recalls, 'playing' is a more generous term. Of coruse, having just been threatened with a shard of glass could be coloring his opinion a bit. Still, however, he eyes her intently. "Why are you attacking me here, now?"
COMBATSYS: Vince focuses on his next action.
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Gabriel 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vince
"Vince LaRose..."
Gabriel says the name in the tone of one with a robotic purpose, far from a thinking machine but rather something programmed. It might not be far from the truth, cults often having been colored this way. An emotional appeal may well fall on deaf ears. Still she does recall.
. . . The woods.
Vince was polite and they had a pleasant meeting. It was a short conversation though and having no purpose to the meeting only brief mentions of interests came. They share one mutual interest in swords, though Vince seems to prefer real swords while Gabriel... Shards of glass.
Then comes the answer. . . "I am here to erase you."
Then she makes her move, approaching to try and grab Vince and fling him into the air.. If she can manage that she'll leap almost with slow intent to try driving him back toward the ground viciously.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel successfully hits Vince with Angel Rising.
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Gabriel 0/-------/------=|===----\-------\0 Vince
The words are a little on the jarring side. She's here to "erase" him? That momentary confusion is enough for Gabriel to get through his defenses and grab him. The young noble is tossed into the air, and promptly slammed back down with a graceless 'THUMP'.
Despite a small groan, he hops back up to his feet and narrows his eyes. "You're not good enough to 'erase' me..," he challenges coldly. Any semblance of favor she had before seems lost now.
Blade draws back in a smooth, glinting whirl. In the process, the length of steel comes to life with a swirl of gray energy, coursing from hilt to tip. Suddenly, the blade is driven at Gabriel's torso - and the swirling energy coalesces into a single, lance-like shape before the blade. This lance of wind energy pierces at the girl, meant to drive through her and make a clearing for Vince's sword to run her through.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel fails to reflect Venteuse from Vince with Mimic.
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Gabriel 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Vince
Chi coming at her, Gabriel is well prepared and experienced in what to do in such a situation. She reaches out to try and touch just the chi, like brushing of a sheet in the wind hung out to try, or finger tips testing the strings of a harp before sitting down to play. The delicate balance between stroking the chi, learning it, feeling it, understanding it, then stealing it is of the utmost importance. It was more finesse than muscle. Gabriel had to visualize her move. She was going to absorb the wind chi used to attack her and copy it on Vince before he could stab her with his sword, the timing was critical because unlike the chi, she could not reverse a physical sword around on it's owner. Her only hope was to beat him in speed.
It took only one mistep to find the chi striking her head on and the sword following suit, an attack that might kill a normal person, but even with the blade piercing her, causing Gabriel to gasp in pain, and while there is blood, oh there is blood, she is still clearly alive with fight in her.
"T.. sch.. " she growls, but for the moment stunned.
Vince settles easily back into his stance and eyes the girl critically. "Don't worry - I won't kill you. Questioning a dead girl will do me no good."
The swordsman advances keenly, footwork graceful and concise akin to a dance. The rapier suddenly flashes into motion, piercing at her upper-right torso. It then draws back and immediately stabs low towards the center of her abdomen. Drawing back once more, the blade drives towards her left shoulder. Following the final pierce, the blade is withdrawn and Vince whirls neatly on his left boot in a pirouette. His right boot touches down again in a much deeper stance, blade slashing at Gabriel's torso from right hip to left shoulder to finish the combination.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel blocks Vince's Staccato Cut.
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Gabriel 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Vince
How do you block a sword without having one yourself? Gabriel will have to answer that question as she herself finds that there isn't really a great deal of options here, her glass shard? Hardly enough. Sacrificing her body is the only choice. With proper torque a sword can do a lot of damage, so Gabriel denies Vince that. Stepping in to make slashing hard and giving him forearms where he sought the soft flesh of body. The continued attack is really staring to take it's toll. The crusader gives another 'Tsch' to illustrate her growing frustration as time tick tocks away. She had intended to have this dealt with a lot sooner.
Her next attack, a double palmed thrust. Fierce and perhaps leaving herself opened but she needs to do something major to finish in time. And her war cry? "Re-pent."
COMBATSYS: Vince dodges Gabriel's Strong Punch.
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Gabriel 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Vince
The palm thrust pushes solidly against only air, as the lithe swordsman's graceful footwork carries him just to the side. Though now she seems free of harm and danger from the rapier in his right hand, as she's presently on his left side. His free hand dips to hook the petals of a rosette hanging from his belt, however.
"Repent? For what?"
The long, slender green and red stiletto whirls between his fingers to catch it by the blossom. Then with a quick flick of the wrist, he launches the blade at her ribs, hoping to catch her before she can recover fully from her own attack.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel fails to reflect Medium Fling from Vince with Mimic.
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Gabriel 1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vince
Finese. Again. To catch a thrown object with a blade requires perfect reflexes, you're not really trying to stop its momentum so much as redirect it completely, it helps to use your entire body - like a sling shot, to send it back. You might use two fingers, just grip the flat of the blade, but not too hard, then instead of using your own strength, follow it's speed, it's path, spin your body around, let go when you have it aimed back where it came.
Close range was another story. You had to be very fast at longer distances to do this sort of trick, but with Vince in her face Gabriel is just too slow and ends up catching it in her ribs.
"R.. repent.. " she manages and while staring fixedly at him, "The world is full of sin, selfish desires and filthy fantasy swims in the minds of people. They are cesspools of wickness, virtually everyone alike. Repent, for your actions may seem just your heart is where the evil lies. That evil I will erase."
Everyone tries to grab the rosettes. Something about the smooth, long blades seems to draw people. Or they see just far too many action movies. In Vince's mind, however, it's a sort of compliment. He likes to think people want to catch the unique daggers because they're just so gosh-darned beautiful. And considering he crafts them all by hand, it just delights him.
But not as much as when it slips through their fingers and finds its mark.
Vince raises a blond eyebrow at her and shakes his head. "What of arrogance and pride? And because of that, hypocrisy? Are you, yourself..."
Vince pivots his hip, footing suddenly switching up in a clean reversal, along with a brisk, sudden horizontal swipe of his blade along her torso.
"..Not guilty of these!?"
COMBATSYS: Gabriel blocks Vince's Quick Strike.
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Gabriel 1/-------/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vince
To respond to the incoming blade, Gabriel kicks her foot up and takes the brunt of the attack along the bottom of her boot. This might hurt later, but for now with the blood pumping Gabriel is okay to let it be instead of hitting her square where intended. Furthermore she tries to get past Vince's guard and makes a move to try a repeat of her double palmed strike on him. Ducking and thrusting with her shoulders and hips, the strength going through her rather diminutive stature into her arms and finally palms which she tries to deliver into Vince's gut.
And a response to his words?
"Confess!" So much for reason.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel successfully hits Vince with Strong Punch.
- Power hit! -
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Gabriel 1/-------/=======|=======\-------\1 Vince
So much, indeed!
Vince is a little slow in withdrawing the blade as it scrapes over her boot, and in a fit of small frustration, starts to make another stab at her. This really doesn't help him too much, especialy when she ducks under it and drives directly into his trim midsection.
"OUF!"
He's knocked back several steps from her, hitting the wall and doubled over a hint. His teeth grit and he pulls himself back up, however, eyes narrowed on her. The girl he thought before was just a little conversationally awkward, but polite enough, is apparently psychotic! He can't let this continue too much longer - it needs to end, and soon.
Vince's left hand extends to the side, fingers spread.
The window from which she entered is suddenly thrown open as a small figure sweeps in - a gray falcon with solid black eyes. The avian emits a sharp cry, course set on Gabriel's head. The bird's feet turn inwards, bearing its talons at her in preparation to collide with and sweep right past her down the hall, leaving only a strong gust of wind in its wake.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel endures Vince's Spirit Falcon.
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Gabriel 1/-----==/=======|=======\=------\1 Vince
Swooping in and finding its target in motion, the bird indeed strikes Gabriel, but she hardly pays it any mind while passing it to get to Vince. He was right, this needed to end soon, her cloak was reaching the witching hour and that meant she would have to leave or face being captured. It was not an option.
"Ye of detestible name and virtue, false apostle, thou art bayed back into the abyss!"
With her rambling Gabriel reaches to take Vince by the hand and tries to twist it behind his back, the charge through the bird closes the distance, but that is all it guarantees. If she can get his arm twisted she'll shout,
"Deliverance!" Before charging a purple chi blast into his back.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel successfully hits Vince with Deliverance.
~ Cruel hit! ~
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Gabriel 0/-------/-----==|=======\======-\1 Vince
Just blaring through the considerable ferocity the falcon is really not something commonly done. As such, the fencer's wrist is taken and twisted behind his back, drawing a surprised look from him. "You're -insane-," he growls, despite a wince here and there. But mostly, it's the sudden explosion of chi that really hurts. "GAAHHh!"
Seething and trembling both from pain and anger, his head suddenly turns to peer over his shoulder at her. "This ends now..."
Without warning, the ground beneath Gabriel's feet comes to life with a roar. A raging cyclone of wind energy surges from the floor to the ceiling, meaning to catch Gabriel and force her up, shearing and ripping at her along the way...
COMBATSYS: Vince successfully hits Gabriel with LaRose Storm.
- Power hit! -
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Gabriel 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Vince
With his prey caught, Vince suddenly turns and leaps directly into the tornado as well! And though his cape flutters wildly around him, he is neither torn, nor shred by the winds. He instead appears to ride the tornado to its top, meeting with Gabriel in the air.
And that is where he gives his promised demonstration of Rose Dansant.
Vince's right arm blurs out of existence, as does the rapier grasped by it. Only silver flickers and flashes through the air indicate - far too late - where the blade has been. But this doesn't mean its presence is at all questionable. Relentless stab after stab drives against the girl's body, each one driven hard and fierce, ranging from her legs to her collar. The number of strokes given? That would be as easy as counting raindrops in a storm.
But the mutilation process does come to a finalizing end, punctuated with a deep, severe stab into the girl's gut with force enough to drive her out of the tornado and against the ground.
Following this, Vince rides the tornado smoothly until he drops out of it, landing neatly on his boots again. Behind him, the winds die back down into little more than a whisper.
And being beaten around in the storm is no picnic. The crusader is helpless to the furious attack, unable to but get beaten about in the wind that carries her and take every stab, like death from a thousand needles that hardly seem to be anything like needles. No doubt that with the cries of dismay Gabriel manages and the plop onto the ground, with the winds, perhaps to Vince's back he expects she won't get back up. And in the silence her watch starts to beep. Five minutes is up.
"Tsch.." Gabriel grunts as she does slowly pick herself up. The injuries she has are many, but still, she stands. At the ground is the shards of her glass weapon.. No doubt a culprit for cutting her in the windstorm. If she thought spitting was proper.. Instead Gabriel picks up the shards and chucks them at Vince and then.. she decides to turn and run the opposite way toward the nearest window.
COMBATSYS: Gabriel can no longer fight.
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Vince 0/-------/----===|
Though despite her efforts her injuries are too great and only after a few steps does the young woman collapse into a heap again. The attempt at covering her escape wasn't quiet enough.
COMBATSYS: Vince blocks Gabriel's Thrown Object.
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Vince 0/-------/----===|
Vince turns to spy Gabriel, and as he does, he sees her standing on her feet again. His left hand starts to reach for a rosette, but he catches a glimpse of refracted light in the air. Glass. His eyes narrow to slits of icy blue, and his blade lifts to catch the glass against his steel. It shatters further, raining specks of glass against him. Tiny, miniscule cuts. They'll sting, but hardly worthwhile.
The more interesting part, however, is that she's collapsed on the floor. So much for her distraction and escape, looks like! With a smug smile, Vince whirls his rapier in a circle with his index finger through the ringlet of the hilt, then slides it back into its sheath. Now with full use of his hands, he reaches down to grab ahold of the girl and turn her over to face him, examining her face - checking for consciousness. Or life.
COMBATSYS: Vince takes no action.
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Vince 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Vince has ended the fight here.
She was host to an amazing healing ability, not unusual, others were known to do what she could do, but still enough to help her weather a lot of attacks. It was likely that healing ability she was counting on in allowing her escape, but the damage was too great, it did however, at least give her more than a clinging hold on life. Still pushing herself beyond the bounds of what most can do before passing out took it's tole and Gabriel was done for now. More peaceful in rest then likely ever when wakeful.
Vince pulls the glove from his right hand and holds it before her face to feel for breathing. Satisfied, he slips the glove back on and scoops her up into his arms. The gesture would probably look a bit heroic or romantic, were it not for the fact that the two of them are a little bloody - on account of each other, no less. But at least he's being somewhat gentle now.
With her in tow, Vince marches back down the hallway with her and turns, promptly kicking open the door to his room. That done, he steps inside the well-decorated space and turns to lay her on his bed. He'll have to find something to sit her on and some restraints, he believes.
Log created on 18:26:27 01/22/2009 by Vince, and last modified on 21:54:35 01/22/2009.