Description: They can fight. But can they dance? Sakura, Nahid, and Pullum are brought to the stage of the notable fight venue, dance club, and definitely not hub of criminal activity Cabaret Candide, to show the world their moves. They were once warriors. They are now: the Breakin' 3. (Winners: Nahid and Pullum)
The Cabaret Candide. Home to some of the more seedy aspects of Metro City.
The stage is oddly shaped, perhaps for more ellicit dancing, the lights on the stage having been hastily ( but not throughly ) replaced, giving the air that something not entirely family friendly had gone in the past. The bloodstains hidden behind age old wooden fixtures, and highly marketable substances lacing more than just some of the drinks about the club.
Not that the fight that is bound to take place in is any more fmaily friendly, but it's sure to get a far more family friendly rating. Violence, after all, isn't the devil. Apparently neither is suggestive dancing - since the Saturday Night Fight has DEMANDED there be more smut on tv - and beefcake, if you dare count Nahid.
Dressed in her usual, and skimpy, arabian attire, Pullum may be wearing the most expensive clothing of the two present, what with the silk leggings. Despite wanting to see the world and broaden her horizens, she wasn't so sure that Blair entering her into these fights would land her in a seedy looking, seizure inducing, and somewhat skeezy club.
"What an .. interesting culture." Pullum remarks, meaningfully, as she skips onto the dance floor/battlefield, grasping a pole that happens to be in the middle, and twirling once around it. Well, they said dance!
Pullum is certainly better dressed than Nahid, who couldn't be bothered to dress up. They can (try to)make her dance, even if she hates to be forced to do anything but fight for the amusement of the audience; they cannot make her wear something else while she does it.
Well, they probably can, but Nahid can ignore it.
This means she shows up in her usual mismatch of sleeveless shirt with studs around the collar, an actual /collar/ around her neck, a jacket thrown overtop, metal-toed boots with spikes on them, short jeans with a wallet chain... Nahid looks like a punk and apparently does not feel in the least ashamed of not looking the least upscale.
"Huh," Nahid says, tugging up her gloves as she watches Pullum have a twirl on the pole. "Normally they have to pay before people start doing that one."
Sakura boogies in.
Or, more accurately, moonwalks in.
"Oh, man, I can't belive I pulled that off," she says quietly, to herself, turning around and hopping out of the motion with glee. "Sup!" Her fists are raised...
...but Sakura's fighting stance is adjusted for the stipulations of the fight. A kick drum hits on every note of the beat -- the classic disco staple. After all, if the kick drum sounds for the entire 4/4 beat... even dopey white guys can dance to it. Right?
So Sakura diddy-bops, shoulders bouncing from side to side. It looks like half-dance, half-boxing. "Oh, cool, you guys dressed to match! I like the whole like... leather and lace thing," she says, oblivious to any other possibility. "So c'mon! Let's DO THIS!"
Then the disco whistle hits, and the fight is on.
COMBATSYS: Sakura has started a fight here on the left meter side.
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Sakura 0/-------/-------|
Twisting around the pole again, sliding down it somewhat, Pullum hangs off, glancing at the collar wearing, bad attitude clad punk junkie that Nahid seems to be made out to be. Gloves slide on the woman's hands as Pullum, half upside down, and somewhat sheltered, processes Nahid's words.
"Paying to use the pole? I had no idea that dancing was so expensive here!"
She slides off it, flipping to her feet as Sakura leaves in reverse, sliding her way onto the dance floor. "Greetings!" She says to both, the beat causing her body to sway, an emphasis on the rear and front ends. "Of course! That's why I came here, though I'm not sure about my partner." She's just being polite.
Grabbing the pole again, Pullum has her own form of dancing, and it's not very subtle. She twists her hips about before twisting her entire body on the pole, using it as a launcher to leap off, one leg spiralling outwards, and leading the 'charge' towards Sakura.
COMBATSYS: Pullum has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Sakura 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Pullum
It could be worse. At least Nahid doesn't have any spiked wristbands or anything like that.
Nahid half-laughs, half-snorts at Pullum. "You're a little thick, aren't you," she says, stretching her arms one at a time in front of her. Once her warmup (such as it is) is done, Nahid vaults up onto the actual dance floor/arena right as the whistle sounds.
The only kind of dancing Nahid knows is breakdancing and she doesn't bother to practice it, either. Still, she's a fighter, it's not the actual physical difficulty of the moves that's going to stop her. She leaps toward Sakura but falls short, landing on her palms; she spins her entire body around on them, lashing out with her legs in a long sweep that looks remarkably similar to a breakdancing flare. "I don't match her! Look a little more carefully, would you?"
COMBATSYS: Nahid has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Sakura 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Nahid
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Pullum 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Sakura effortlessly blocks Pullum's Light Kick.
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Sakura 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Nahid
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Pullum 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Sakura interrupts Falling Water Reach from Nahid with Shunpuu Kyaku.
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Sakura 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Nahid
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Pullum 0/-------/-------|
"Hup!" Sakura's diddy-bop is more than just Sean Combs' dance of choice -- it's also a great way to keep her guard up! When Pullum kicks, Sakura's elbow snaps out, catching the foot to her bicep and her forearm more than any real important point such as an internal organ. It's so fluid that it looks like Sakura didn't even plan it.
Or did she?
At the same time, Nahid charges, ready to spin into a windmill of devasation -- and Sakura fights fire with fire! Spinning away from Pullum's impact, she lets the move segue into a leaping spin, one leg sailing outward.
Imagine taking two ceiling fans, turning them both to maximum velocity, and then somehow making them collide. It's not pretty. Nor is the collision of Sakura and Nahid -- both girls come away a little worse for wear.
Sakura lands on her back -- before kipping up into the cabbage patch. "Whoa! Your spin was stronger than I thought!"
"Oh no, I'm just un-used to your culture. It's a mystery as to why dancing would cost money, when it's a pleasant pastime!" At least she is somewhat verbose. But her foot is caught, Pullum kicking off and flipping backwards, off of the girl.
Just in time to see the two collide and go spinning off, metal and wood fan blades tearing off. Or in this case two pairs of legs and bodies going sprawling.
Sakura's new dance though? "Huh.. What's that you're doing?" Pullum asks, looking to Sakura as she 'dances'. "I had thought we were meant to dance." Shaking her head, Pullum's brief confusion is tossed away, the sawying beginning anew before she thrusts out her stomach and throws herself into the air, a leg leading into a spiral of three whip like motions of her legs, each sending a spiralling light towards Sakura. Like some kind of air dance.
As if the place needed more light shows, though.
Well. That stung.
Nahid catches herself on her hands and goes into a roll, ending up on her back and some feet away. It only takes her a few instants to vault back to her feet, but in that time she has lost several valuable seconds of dancing time. She needs to find the beat again, dammit! "She's just no good at dancing," Nahid says, which is vaguely ironic given who's saying it. "Kicks good, though, I'll give her that."
Fortunately the beat isn't too hard to refind. Nahid advances again on Sakura, staying well away from Pullum's energy lashes, her heavy boots sounding against the floor in sync with the drums. For Nahid, who tends to plant her feet and stay put, trying to dance while fighting is difficult, so she does quite possibly the least impressive dance move of all time.
It's disco. The backhand fist aimed at Sakura's head midspin is probably not accidental, as Nahid circles around afterwards, keeping her hands and arms moving as much as her legs.
COMBATSYS: Sakura dodges Pullum's Kind Wind.
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Sakura 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Nahid
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Pullum 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Nahid successfully hits Sakura with Quick Punch.
Glancing Blow
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Sakura 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/-------|
Just because she's doing a dance as terrible as the cabbage patch doesn't mean that Sakura doesn't have moves. It's just that her moves happen to be incidental to the terrible dances. She sidesteps out of the way of Pullum's projectile, the lashes of brilliant air whiffing off into oblivion.
Sakura sidesteps -- right into Nahid's path, which sends the backfist right toward her head. Sakura winces as she's struck, her dance faltering: "Aaaowww!"
"You got me right in the EAR!" It's true. That backfist smashed squarely into Sakura's ear, missing the rest of her head. Regathering her rhythm, Sakura starts cabbage patching more furiously. "And I'll show you who can /DANCE/!"
The advantage of the cabbage patch: it's really easy to turn into clasping one's hands together and swinging a brutal axehandle right up at Pullum's grill, like a goddamn golf swing.
COMBATSYS: Pullum blocks Sakura's Medium Punch.
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Sakura 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/-----==|
Landing Pullum's stomach undulates in a rather risque way, but to her culture, this isn't being a whore at all. It's a dance! The winds explodes into more light before they hit anything, and Pullum watches as Sakura is struck in the /ear/.
"You certainly have an interesting aim -" She goes to ask Nahid about the potential headshot, but is interrupted. It's as Pullum becomes a victim or certain circumstances that she can really get her motions off the ground. She actually moves towards Sakura.
The axehandle towards Pullum's grill/face crashes into an combination of arms as Pullum bends forwards, riding the swing upwards, twisting her legs as she's swung upwards, as she grabs for the same hands that moved to launch her. "I'd love to return the favor!"
She flips behind Sakura, hands planting on Sakura's back as Pullum's feet hit the ground a moment before, giving the girl an almost spring loaded strike.
Also, that axehandle left Pullum's arms more than slightly sore - but she got off lucky compared to what she saw earlier. A fan collision it was not!
"So move your head next time!" Nahid stops dancing entirely for a couple seconds to turn and back up. She's allowed - she's not /fighting/, she doesn't actually have to dance every second of this entire event, does she?
It starts again once Nahid has gotten some distance. Perhaps unexpectedly, she doesn't charge back in, or throw an energy blast - not that she can, anyway - or anything else. Nahid just stays near the edge of the dance floor and dances. It's slow at first but quickly turns into all-out breakdancing, more a display of athleticism (which Nahid has) than breakdancing skill (which, technically, Nahid does not have).
She doesn't press the attack, either. It's hard work, dancing like that, but it does seem to be doing a pretty good job of getting her fired up and ready to go again.
COMBATSYS: Nahid enters a meditative state.
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Sakura 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Nahid
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Pullum 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: Sakura parries Pullum's Arakul Wrist!
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Sakura 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/------=|
Nahid drifts away -- and so Sakura focuses on Pullum. After all, Pullum is /messing with her, right this second/.
The 'spring-loaded' strike would hit right in the square of Sakura's back -- if the schoolgirl didn't leap up and do a split. Her arms shoot down and seize Pullum's as the more salaciously clad fighter shoots out beneath her...
...and Sakura keeps hold, effectively turning the move into a bout of swing dancing! She jerks Pullum around in some pretty poor swing-dancing moves, keeping hold of her wrists. "Sorry, but it looks like your friend left the party! Maybe you could go get her back over here -- it's no fun with just us!"
Sakura suddenly jerks herself around into a strong spin -- and /hurls/ Pullum at the furiously breakdancing Nahid!
COMBATSYS: Nahid dodges Sakura's Large Random Weapon EX.
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Sakura 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/------=|
Extending upwards, Pullum strikes - a pose!
There's no Sakura there, so her body stretches out, her eyes opening wider as she waves her hands where Sakura /should be/. "Where did she-" Sakura seizes her a moment later, swinging her around like some kind of toy. She's light, at least, but probably not as light as the swing/er/.
"Woah!" She comments at first, but then moves onto something more helpful. "You're right! She shouldn't just be standing all alone!" Nahid was anything but ugly enough to sit in the corner of a dance party without a date! I'll go over and -" She doesn't finish that thought, instead, Sakura hurls her right at the breakdancer.
It's a combination of Nahid's awareness and Pullum's flexibility that the two don't become one jumbled mess. Pullum bends, hitting the ground a little early, arcing above Nahid - but not enough that she would, alone, clear the girl.
"You know Frank, what I'd do to get my hands on that little Arabian dream. I'd show /her/ 1001 Arabian Nights!"
"Tch, Joe, now you're just dreaming."
Moments later, Pullums slams hard down onto the midsection, a bit less than gracefully. "Uhm, please excuse my intrusion at your table!"
Joe grins, "See Frank? Dreams do come true. C'mon baby, stay awhi-" Pullum leaps away, using his crotch as a launchplace, and in the process, kicks his meal towards Sakura, spinning away as well.
"Hrk!" "Hahaha, Joe, you poor b-" A looming shadow, with two moustache points upwards, appears above the two, the colored light doing nothing to quell the red in his eyes.
Nahid makes a pretty low target about half the time (now, anyway) and is moving pretty constantly, if not particularly quickly in any given direction. When Pullum is launched toward her, Nahid presses her back against the ground and slides, Pullum going right over her body.
Nahid pushes herself up with her legs, doing a handstand briefly before springing off her palms and onto her feet. She tugs her shirt straighter again. "Consider me got," she says, apparently none the worse for wear for all the exertion. "I was just warming up - figured I'd let you two play a while. But sure, if you want some of this, I'll join right back in!"
Nahid taps her foot a couple times, glancing back to make sure Pullum's not dead or something. Nope, she looks fine. Turning back, Nahid takes a couple springing steps, then vaults into the air, spinning furiously like some sort of ballerina. She comes down not with a kick but with the points of her spiked boots, like a drill aimed at Sakura's shoulder; her ankles do something painful and twist, making her spring back off after she hits. If she hits.
COMBATSYS: Sakura dodges Nahid's Strong Kick.
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Sakura 0/-------/---====|====---\-------\0 Nahid
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Pullum 0/-------/------=|
COMBATSYS: Pullum successfully hits Sakura with Thrown Object.
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Sakura 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/------=|
She doesn't hit -- Sakura drops to the floor to get out of the way of that mighty bootswing. And then, to keep dancing, as is the standard of the day, Sakura begins furiously and powerfully doing the worm. She pops up from that in time to get blasted in the face by Pullum's kicked meal. Food glops in her face rudely: "Ackpth!"
Still dancing, sort of, Sakura spits out potatoes and whines, "This is a /dance-off/, not a /food fight/! /Gross/!"
Apparently gross enough to demand retribution. Unfortunately, that guy liked lots of pepper and spice and crap so Sakura's eyes are stinging -- she blinks furiously, struggling to see through what feels like being deliciously maced. She swings herself toward Pullum, trying to wrap an arm around the Arabian fighter's neck -- and then tense her man-like biceps in time to the music, to choke her out to the beat!
COMBATSYS: Pullum interrupts Sakura Strangle from Sakura with Prim Kick EX.
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Sakura 0/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/--=====|
"I apologize, it wasn't my intention to get the food on you - merely prevent the ... gentleman from having his meal." She notes, landing after the spin, her hands up, her body rotating in a slow clockwise movement. After all, who knows what the man eats?
Well, other than Sakura.
Oddly enough, the mishap gives Pullum an advantage, one she decides she may as well use! Mainly because while Sakura's style is sloppy, her arm is still wrapped tightly around her neck, and is beginning to choke her out!
"Ghhack!" The response to Nahid is less than womanly, but as her body twists, she bends. kicking off the ground to give her some leeway to move, her body twisting upside down, bringing those biceps to choke her even more! But her legs free her, trying to forcefully faceplant Sakura, allowing Pullum to continue to /breathe/, as well as to continue to dance.
The second flip she does is more to get off and away from Sakura as she gapes for breath. She moves but it's certainly nothing fancy, like before!
Nahid hits the floor instead. It's a little awkward, the angle she impacts at; Nahid is forced to take a little hopping step to actually remain more or less upright, using a shuffling slide to turn back toward Sakura and Pullum.
"We could do both at once," Nahid says. "I mean, why not? This dancing fight is kind of shit. I can't do the kind of dancing I like to do and beat you up at the same time, that's like telling me to stand up and sit down at once." She at least tries to bob to the beat. That's a start, right?
She /thinks/ the pair of them have the upper hand but that could change any moment. Nahid glances around the area, glancing for something she can use. There's not a lot of it, so she presses the direct attack instead, practically gliding across the dance floor to drive the flat of her hand, stiffened to granite hardness, directly into Sakura's side; she actually does it to try to keep Sakura away from Pullum, giving her temporary partner some time to recover from being choked. Now if only she could figure out how to plant her feet and dance at the same time, then she'd be set.
COMBATSYS: Nahid successfully hits Sakura with Stone Hand Soul.
- Power hit! -
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Sakura 1/-----==/=======|======-\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/----===|
Sakura is swung over Pullum and kicked away. She windmills to her feet, skull smarting -- but at least all the food has been knocked away. The teenager is one her feet, just in time to
POW
That's more or less the sound effect that would rise from Sakura's side as she's blasted right in the ribs by Nahid's palm, if sound effects rose from things. But they don't, so don't be ridiculous. Instead, what rises is quite a bit of pain, as Sakura is sent flying, crashing into the pole in the center of the stage and bending it so forcefully and into such a sharp angle that it wrenches its root out of the ceiling.
"Unngnhghgh," Sakura groans, getting back to her feet. "That... super sucked," she mumbles, trying to shake her head clear of the pain, and wriggle her ribs back into place. She also does the monkey, because dancing is necessary. But between her palms, chi begins to crackle, which can't be good.
This buildup of chi culminates in a bright light, as Sakura slips into positively David Brent-ian spin, ending with a flourish of: "HADOUKEN!"
Still breathing heavily, Pullum isn't exactly sure what to make out for Nahid. She watches on as the girl goes after Sakura, claiming the dance fight is ... bad!? "I can understand dancing isn't your thing, but I find it to be the better part of fighting!" Then again, when you make your style some sort of dance, it's kind of cheating.
As she finds her breath again, Pullum turns to see Nahid plant the most solid blow she has seen since she had began - and actually gasps for breathe once more, though this time it out of surprise. Sakura's body /bends steel/. "Is she okay?!" Pullum cries out, even if she tries to actively beat on her.
Skipping forwards, and clapping twice each skip, Pullumextends her hands, swaying back and forth and stretching them out as she moves closer to Sakura - and lashes out with a highly telegraphed strike to her side, both hands moving together, palms out!
"Such a build up of energy.. watch out!" She's surprised Sakura's managed to even get up - - but that massive build up of energy right after?!
COMBATSYS: Nahid fails to reflect Large Hadouken from Sakura with Solitary Peak Palm.
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Sakura 1/---====/=======|=======\====---\1 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/----===|
Nahid shakes out her arm after smashing the hand into Sakura with all the force in her body. "Heh," Nahid says. "How about we get you to do a fight where you can't move, huh? I bet you'd just /love/ that. It's the same thing."
She looks from Sakura to the bent pole. Yeah, that had to have hurt - but this is a trained Street Fighter here, Nahid isn't counting on it to put Sakura out. And she really shouldn't, based on the fast that she's doing the monkey, and her hands are glowing.
Wait, her hands are glowing?
"Shit!" Nahid realizes what Sakura is preparing to do at about the same time Sakura spins to do it. Nahid pulls her own power into her hands, a faint ripple surrounding them, invisible except for the distortion and occasional flecks of silver light. She swings, a mighty punch aimed /right/ at the ball of energy.
If Nahid was better (or luckier), her own power would have shoved the Hadouken back the way it came. What actually happens is that it explodes as soon as Nahid touches it with her fist. The blast is enough to send her flying all the way to the wall, which she slams into hard enough to dent. The impact actually stops her from dropping for a few seconds, though eventually she does slide down it to end up sitting against the wall, dazed and trying to fix that.
COMBATSYS: Sakura blocks Pullum's Quick Punch.
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Sakura 1/--=====/=======|=======\====---\1 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/----===|
Sakura doesn't seem fatigued at all. Banged up, yes. She's got bruises beginning to visibly form -- especially from that punch to her side -- and her movements, though sprightly, are clearly wracked with varying degrees of pain. But somehow, none of this slows her down. Sakura is the Duracell teenager, as she proves when she starts doing the watusi after her Hadouken claims Nahid's life. (Or -- or something.)
"Man," Sakura says, "I sure am glad all those dancing lessons paid off!" They didn't, and here's why:
SOME TIME AGO
Han Dibiki, who is a lot like Dan Hibiki but I don't feel like asking Dan if it's okay to use him in a flashback, is training Sakura in the ancient art of Not Saikyo-ryu. "And this, Sakura, is what you do... if you get /served/."
Han Dibiki, who wears a pink gi and has a long devilock looking thing going on with his bangs and squinty little beady eyes and a giant chin, turns on a tape of "Macarena" and begins to perform the Macarena.
Sakura frowns slightly, but quickly picks up the rhythm of the dance, and within minutes has mastered it.
NOW
Sakura's watusi arm movements smack away Pullum's punch -- it hurts, but not as bad as a punch to the anywhere else. "Hey! I forgot a dance I totally meant to work in! The can-can! Check it out!"
Sakura leaps at Pullum, attempting to launch one leg upward to smash a heel into the woman's jaw with an Andrew W.K.-esque high kick.
"Get it?! The can-can!"
Angel arrives from elsewhere.
COMBATSYS: Sakura successfully hits Pullum with Strong Kick.
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Sakura 1/-======/=======|=======\====---\1 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 1/-----==/=======|
As Nahid takes the energy headfirst, Pullum's dance slows down, giving her ample time to gaze at the truck like hadoken that crashes towards Nahid, much like a meteor towards a planet. Nahid /attacks the energy ball/. "Don't, it's too powe-"
And it envelops her, sending her flying towards the wall, slamming and denting against it - and she doesn't look so good. "You must get up!" Pullum chirps as she skips over, backing off. The punch is smacked away, and so is Pullum - but momentarily.
It's the /kick/ that envelops the arabian dancer's face that really sends her launching. She might have even found it funny, save for the fact that she's sent spinning through the air in a way that she was, probably, not supposed to! She slams into a table, cracking it in half, as she stares upwards. Oh, that's about as much pain as she had ever felt in one of these fights. Her eyes are wide from the surprise and the sudden spike of pain. Oh she knew she hit hard - but /that/ hard?
Too bad it hurts when getting up as well, and Pullum manages it barely, pulling a splinter from her side and rubbing her jaw.. She's a bit more marred now, which doesn't do her looks any good. "I... think I might get it." She claims, shaking herself off, the shock passing. Pullum's body shakes at once, and in a display of refusal of failure, she attacks!
The bent dance pole, twisting up onto it, spinning about it and .. moving faster and faster? "But you're right!" She recalls some of Nahid's words from before, "So I should be playing up my specialties!"
Man, it sort of feels weird to talk after that kick. She's glad she didn't lose a tooth!
COMBATSYS: Pullum focuses on her next action.
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Sakura 1/-======/=======|=======\====---\1 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 1/-----==/=======|
Nahid spends a few moments looking at the pretty stars while slumped against the wall.
Eventually, though, through the roar of sound in her ears, Nahid realizes that that's /not/ ringing and she's actually still in front of a crowd. She's not out of the fight yet, and there is no way she's going to fall because she's a moron and tried to punch a Hadouken.
She lets out a slightly pained grunt and uses the wall she just hit to lever herself back up. "'kay," Nahid says, followed by, again: "Okay. That's it. I have had enough of this stupid thing and I am going to kick your ass!"
Poledancing seems to be a theme. Nahid thinks it's her turn to give it a try - but she doesn't run at the pole (Pullum has it anyway), she runs at /Sakura/. She attempts to grab Sakura by the shoulders and use the lift to scissor her legs around the other woman's waist; Nahid must have thighs of steel, because if she manages it, it's a lot like getting squeezed by a vice while she twirls around on it, dropping one foot to the ground after her spin like a triumphant pole-dancer.
And then she tries to punch Sakura in the just-squeezed gut to make sure /all/ the air got out. Things might be a little different if, of course, Sakura gets the hell out of the way.
COMBATSYS: Sakura dodges Nahid's Mountain Force Press.
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Sakura 1/-======/=======|===----\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 1/-----==/=======|
While Pullum violates the laws of thermodynamics with her crazy spins, Sakura focues on Nahid -- and the fact that Naheed is coming at her with a body sissors whoa okay not cool.
Sakura leaps /over/ Nahid as the other girl comes at her, leaving those steely thighs to squeeze nothing but air. Sakura herself skids to a landing on the heels of her sneakers, and turns it into a pretty vividly terrifying display of popping and locking. Sakura's arms wiggle in perfect rhythm -- first one way -- then the other -- then back again -- and then into a punch aimed square at the side of Nahid's head.
One good ear-punch deserves another.
Nahid's crazy attempt is certainly something - Pullum wasn't even sure what she was trying, but it was impressive none-the-less. It's a bit hard to see when you're orbiting a pole at the speeds she might be. But the pole isn't what she came there to accomplish - it was the dance fight.
Twisting around, and off the poll, Pullum is treated to the sight of Sakura's ear punch assault - and just in time. She has her own assault to accomplish, and a teammate to assist!
"I'm not sure what dance that was either but ..." She cartwheels, using the speed she gained on the poll to her advantage, leaping into the air and bringing both arms down, one hand a ball, the other grasping the first, towards Sakura's side - not her head though.
She doesn't get all the head shots!
COMBATSYS: Sakura successfully hits Nahid with Fierce Punch.
- Power hit! -
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Sakura 1/-======/=======|=======\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 1/-----==/=======|
Nahid slides along the floor on her ass after shooting right past Sakura. Well that wasn't embarassing at all - oh wait, yes it was.
On the plus side, she can pretend she did it on purpose like some kind of rock star. Though they normally slide on their knees.
Picking herself up, Nahid gets about halfway to turning around before a fist comes out of nowhere and hits her. It hits her ear, all right; it mashes her ear against her head and sends her reeling, though given how hard Nahid's head actually /is/, it is unlikely to have caused permanent damage.
It does elicit a string of rather impressive curses, about two thirds in English and one third in Persian (those are the more impressive ones). "Hands off my HEAD!" she essentially roars at Sakura; almost forgetting to dance entirely, she spins, coming up with a strong punch at about gut level.
She remembers afterwards to turn it into the monkey, because she will shamelessly rip off Sakura if it stops her from being disqualified.
COMBATSYS: Sakura dodges Pullum's Strong Punch.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Sakura 1/-======/=======|=======\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 1/-----==/=======|
COMBATSYS: Nahid successfully hits Sakura with Strong Punch.
- Power hit! -
[ \\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Sakura 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 1/-----==/=======|
Well, that certainly hurts. Sakura swerves her body out of the way of Pullum's strike like she was doing some kind of sassy, skirt-shaking Latin dance -- and then follows it up with whatever dance involves Nahid punching her in the stomach so hard that she launches into the air, does a kind-of-but-not-really flip, and lands on her head.
That would be this dance.
http://shabot6000.com/blog/uploaded_images/2006/dance/sytycd1.gif
Sakura pushes herself up, clearly looking a little groggy. "Wh... I... I don't think I know any other dances," she says, spitting up the requisite amount of blood to show that this is, in fact, a totally real-ass fight. "So I guess I have to... I guess I have to..."
"FREESTYLE."
Sakura freestyle dancing shouldn't be the nightmare that it is. But it is, and then some. Like something out of a Seinfeld episode mixed with something out of Brazilian variety television mixed with one of those inflatable tube guys with the arms, Sakura is a flailing mess of limbs that nonetheless barrels toward Pullum with a wide, spinning kick that she should know better than to use because upskirts.
COMBATSYS: Pullum interrupts Flowering Kick from Sakura with Reswal Kahna.
[ \ < > ////////////// ]
Sakura 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 1/--=====/=======|
Nahid manages to strike Sakura so hard that she flips - landing on her head!? Pullum winces - even as she only gets a glimpse. It is a horrifying sight, and even causes Pullum to stop dancing for a moment as well.
Until Sakura stands up, beginning to freestyle.
"I..." She glances to Nahid, apologetic. "Take back what I said. What she was doing before were dances...." But these... no. They are but an insult. Of blood and flesh. Of /sin/. ( Look those upskirts are even brazen by Pullum's standards ).
But it's as Sakura flails towards her with spinning limbs, and a kick circling around, towards her, Pullum makes a split second decision, moving into the sea of limbs, meeting Sakura's spinning kick from side to side with a kick from up to down, the flat of Sakura's heel slamming against her stomach.
It doesn't prevent axe kick after axe kick, Pullum flipping forwards in something of a dance, spinning about in a single revolution and then following up with an axe kick with the other foot, continuing for three legs long, before she flips back and away, bruised in the stomach, and slightly purple about the jaw.
"You're .. very skilled at fighting but... not very at dancing." She finishes, clapping twice. "But I'm sure you can improve..." Fatigue has completely caught up, now, to her.
Nahid does the bad dance.
It's super effective!
She does the robot for lack of anything else to do while jerkily approaching the downed Sakura. Nahid switches to going /away/ instead when Sakura attempts to freestyle and ends up spasming like she was being electrocuted instead.
"What the /f - /" Nahid breaks the dance to jump back, out of Pullum's way, before continuing her slow, jerky movements. They let her catch her breath. "And stay down," she says, unhelpfully, while continuing the mannequin-like gestures. She does not actually expect Sakura to get back up, which is why she's looking at Pullum now, considering. Hmm...
COMBATSYS: Nahid gains composure.
[ \ < > ////////////////// ]
Sakura 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|======-\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Sakura takes no action.
[ \\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Sakura 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|======-\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/----===|
COMBATSYS: Sakura has reached second wind!
[ \\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Sakura 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|======-\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/----===|
Sakura gets axe kicked about a hundred times. That's what it feels like, anyway. She goes down, and stays down, and may or may not be dead. The song plays to its natural conclusion.
Then suddenly Sakura launches up from the ground, gasping in a deep horse-gulp of air. Her eyes are wide, and her expression is wired but distant, possibly concussed. "DJ!" she roars.
"PLAY MY SONG!"
The DJ, not having any clue what Sakura's song is, shrugs and puts on 'I've Got the Music in Me' by Yvonne Kay. Sakura doesn't seem to care, because suddenly she starts dancing in /perfect sync/ -- like she'd been choreographed for a music video. And to her opponents:
"BRING IT ON!"
Pullum turns away. Clearly, Sakura has been axe-kicked into oblivion. There is little more that can be done, save releasing her spirit to wherever.
But then, as she does so, she hears something. DJ, play her song? Pullum simply stops, hair sagging a little lower. Looks like she wasn't done /just yet/ with them. "You're even better than I thought..." Unlike Sakura, Pullum is not long for fatigue - and while Sakura keeps on trucking, Pullum can see the white light - and green and yellow and /how many colors does the place have/. The flashing lights are distracting.
She glances to Nahid,- who was glancing at her. "It doesn't seem like we're done.. just yet." She raises her arms, sways like a snake, and crouches... and then lunges like one! Flipping and twisting in the same motion, she lashes out with a leg, the opposite side's palm moving to break up the dance routine!
it's not fair she gets /special music and was pre-pared/.
"YOUR SONG SUCKS!"
Nahid makes a lot of noise, if nothing else; she drowns out the music while she's yelling. But that dancing is actually /good/. She's startled. Is Sakura secretly a dancing superstar under all that apparent failure? Some sort of...Dancing Queen?
No, Nahid thinks. Never let ABBA into your head or you will /never/ get it back out. She can already hear it.
Nahid backs up and bumps into one of the freestanding speakers on the edge of the dance floor. Hmm. Getting behind it, she squats down and immediately goes into that Russian Cossack dance - you know the one. On one of her wild kicks, the two-foot speaker goes flying like a cannonball, trailing a detached power cord behind it. "I don't even know what this music is and I hate it!"
COMBATSYS: Pullum successfully hits Sakura with Combo Attack.
[ \ < > ////////////////// ]
Sakura 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=====--\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Sakura endures Nahid's Large Thrown Object.
[ < > ////////////////// ]
Sakura 2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|======-\-------\0 Nahid
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/---====|
Sakura is definitely concussed -- it's like in that one movie where the guy hit his head and could suddenly play the piano like some sort of Billy Joel. Or in Rookie of the Year, where the kid managed to fall 30 feet straight up into the air by screwing up 'taking a single step,' and break his arm in such a way as to turn him into a genetic baseball superman. Her dancing is immaculate.
Sakura's dodging, though, is not. She straight up gets jacked in the face by Pullum's kick, and her dance routine abruptly ends. She spins in place, woozy, confused, and when a speaker flies right at her, she pulls some sort of ill-advised Haggar and tries to tough through it. This results in a speaker smashing into her, full-on.
Sakura falls to one knee. She's not sure if she can go on. Will she hold out -- can she hold out?!
COMBATSYS: Sakura takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Nahid 0/-------/-======|
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Sakura can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Nahid 0/-------/-======|
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Pullum 0/-------/---====|
No.
As she manages to strike Sakura, Pullum lands, feeling herself begin to be unable to go on as well. Of course, it's different. For one, Pullum isn't Sakura - and two, Pullum wasn't hit in the face by a foot and then a speaker. Wait, a SPEAKER?
Pullum turns towards Nahid, somewhat staring. "I understand you no longer wished to dance - but striking the woman who so enjoyed herself, even if it was combat... don't you think it was too much?!" So she speaks a bit much and verbose, but this is the way she learned the other languages. She gloewrs for a moment before moving past.
As tired as Pullum as, she still keeps a bit of pizazz in her steps, moving over to a chair and collapsing onto it - a large mustached man just having finished taking care of two ruffians.
"She had it coming," Nahid grumps, immediately slumping slightly. That took more out of her than she's going to admit.
She came to learn about Sakura, but honestly, she probably learned more about Pullum tonight. She thinks she can call that a success... and hey, it looks good on her fighting record, too. Stepping off the stage, Nahid finds an empty table, drops into a chair there, and tilts it back about forty-five degrees.
Yes, she will break and relax while Sakura can't get up, why do you ask?
COMBATSYS: Pullum has left the fight here.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ <
Nahid 0/-------/-======|
COMBATSYS: Nahid has ended the fight here.
Log created on 15:11:22 10/24/2010 by Sakura, and last modified on 12:11:31 11/03/2010.