Description: Fate conspires to give Russian cult leader Vladimir a chance to succeed where his teammate had not, in slaying Farah Tenjou. However, the young psychic is saved by the timely intervention of Shiden. In the end, though, someone pays the ultimate price, and Vladimir and Shiden make some harsh truths apparent to a young woman perhaps not ready to deal with them yet...
EGYPT
THE PRESENT
Lit only by candlelight, in a room large and dim enough that the ceiling is lost in shadow, a deep chanting fills the air. The words are difficult to make out, one blending into the next in a steady litany that seems to resonate with power. One man, seeming to stand unusually tall in the room, stands at a simple candle-covered altar, hidden almost completely by his robe and cowl. Abruptly the chanting cuts off, and Vladimir lowers his hood, revealing a face gaunt with displeasure.
"You. Light more candles, but keep them toward the center, over there." An even more deeply cowled underling scurries about, ensuring the mood is set to maximum efficiency. Vladimir frowns, thinking on the time and effort required for these...proceedings.
SOME TIME AGO
Russia's second greatest lover (the best if you discount bear enthusiasts) wearily types in an order for over one thousand non-scented candles. He pauses, deletes the number, and writes in 'five-hundred'. After another moment, he then adds 'gold-plated chalice'.
NOW
Vlad regrets not bringing the ostentatious cup from his temporary home away from home, because the chanting is already drying his throat out in this hot Egyptian atmosphere.
"Alright, good. Sit to the side and I'll start, the flock should soon be arriving." The cowl flips up. The chanting begins again, because it is /important/.
Out in the streets of Alexandria, there is still much celebrating going on. For Farah, however, her walk home to her parents' house -- a nice side effect of the bout having taken place in her hometown is the fact that she gets to see her family -- it is not about partying so much as it is about contemplation and thought. The fight between her KoF team, which the media had been helpfully dubbing "Team New Generation," likely to the chagrin of the creator of their original name, "Team Buy Denji Some Food," and the Pacific Resistance has given her much to think about. She has no regrets about her battle with Preston Wellington, though when she hears audio samples of her quotes in the fight she might rescind that evaluation. She gave her best and while she'd hoped to be the young lord's match, it wasn't meant to be. As for the rest, well... at that point it was up to Makari, who managed t--
The young psion suddenly comes to a stop in the street, frowning and cocking her head a little bit, as if listening to some distant sound. Around her are the locked doors and shuttered windows of various tourist cafes and shops, and above her, the spacious (and often balcony-having) apartments on the second floors of those buildings. Her eyes dart up to those balconies, searching for something. A... presence. "One I haven't felt since..." she says aloud, the sound of her own voice reassuring in the dark, even as she trails off.
Her memory finally supplies her with when she DID feel such a presence, and it does so in the form of an image of Brihan's smiling face, likely intending to smack into Farah's own at high velocity.
This may be why she breaks into a run, all thoughts of King of Fighters conveniently forgotten. Is that woman here? Is she targeting Farah again... or someone else? The presence is faint, and doesn't feel entirely similar, meaning... an accomplice? So many unanswered questions. But the Egyptian surges bravely forward through the streets, using her powers to try and home in on that sense of wrongness, that feeling in the air. Before it's too late!
Who can say what vagaries lead people to cross paths? Fate, design, pure chance? Perhaps a touch of all three. He was distracted by the King of Fighters tournament--had to go beat some cops up, after all--but after his encounter with the zealots, he'd been doing some minor research of his own. Nothing important, but a few clues... and he's interested. Because the gathering and application of power, in all its forms, is something of interest to him--and they might have something he can learn from them.
But he doesn't -know- where to go, not for sure, and with Varvara locked up... he didn't have the time, or, to be honest, the inclination to bail or break her out.
She's tough and, if things go as he wants, she may be spending time in prisons anwyays; it'll make her even tougher. (Particularly if she has to deal with Wing.)
He may not have Farah's psychic talents, but he does have a knack for being in the right place at the right time. He spots Farah, noting her and remembering her immediately from a dark night in Southtown months ago... and when she takes off, he follows, though at a sedate pace. He's not trying to catch up with her, just to keep her in sight, and intuition tells him that she's running for a reason...
To be honest, Vladimir hasn't been paying much attention to the nitty gritty of King of Fighters. He's so busy, these days.
SOME TIME AGO
The Russian lounges about in a bath of wine and spices, for reasons just as religious as they are incomprehensible to lesser minds. This is /also/ important.
NOW
Chanting, candles, various instruments of faith, check check check. Satisfied that he's not missing anything, he directs his assistant (Sister Recursive, currently favored both because of her complete obedience and measure-twice cut-once attitude) to the side with a nod of his head, indicating that they're as ready as they'll get and she can go ahead and take a break.
ON THE BALCONY
Sister Recursive steps out past a heavy drape, reaches into her robes for a lighter and a smoke, and lights up while watching the evening sky.
The impact of sheer stupid luck on these sorts of situations should not be underestimated. It often succeeds when planning, forethought, and skill have been entirely exhausted.
The problem with Farah's power is that in sensing a presence similar to Brihan's, in some way, she has dredged up powerful, painful, and importantly _distracting_ memories keeping her from paying attention to important things, like the notion that someone might be following her. Or what she's even looking for in the first place. If the Soul Star were more reflective, perhaps she'd be considering going back and asking for help, collecting Makari or Wang from the KoF grounds and making sure she has backup when she finds whatever it is she appears to be searching for. Yet something inside simply tells her to run, to find, to stop.
The images of two dead men, lifeless eyes staring back at her, is enough. The knowledge that a woman ended those lives -- snuffed them out -- simply to prepare to meet Farah, to draw her there in the trap, is more than enough.
~ I won't let anyone be sacrificed! ~
And just as that thought enters her mind, reaffirming her resolve, she runs directly underneath Sister Recursive on a break.
She doesn't so much skid to a stop as bring herself to a slow deceleration, turning and looking up when she has moved far past the woman lighting up. Turning her eyes skyward, standing in the shadows of a cafe awning, the Egyptian takes in important features: she doesn't look like she belongs here, and she's dressed like an extra from 'Manos, the Hand of Fate.' And when Farah stops, and concentrates, well...
For anyone but a trained fighter, getting up there would be a nightmare. The downstairs door is sure to be locked at this hour, and the balcony would be too high for anyone else to jump to.
That Farah manages to grab onto the bottom of it and pull herself up is a partial testament to her not being 'just anyone'... but it's not exactly a Metal Gear Solid-class intrusion. Sister Recursive is bound to notice the sound of someone flipping herself onto that balcony.
Shiden isn't going to arrive on the scene just yet. He's probably a good thirty yards back at least, following Farah through the streets of the city. She's on to something, he can tell--and when Farah finds the dead men, he -knows-. He was right to follow her. That brings a smile to his lips, not a pleasant one by any means. Farah makes her bid for entry, but he'll wait, just a bit. She's already on point, might as well let her get them good and distracted, it'll make it easier for him to follow.
He's already picking out how he'll get up to that balcony--like Farah, he could probably jump to the bottom of it and haul himself up--but he's going to try something different. But to do that he needs a moment to look around and make sure the layout for his little plan will work.
The Chongquan practitioner slips behind a corner, waiting to see the outcome of Farah's going up on the balcony.
He's giving her 45 seconds before he starts going up as well--presumably she'll be able to take down the smokin' Sister in that time, or come close, and then his presence probably won't even be questioned, in the heat of the moment.
Shiden isn't going to arrive on the scene just yet. He's probably a good thirty yards back at least, following Farah through the streets of the city. She's on to something, he can tell--and when he spots the Sister in her unfashionable-even-for-the-Middle-East robes, he -knows-. He's -seen- those robes before. He was right to follow her. That brings a smile to his lips, not a pleasant one by any means. Farah makes her bid for entry, but he'll wait, just a bit. She's already on point, might as well let her get them good and distracted, it'll make it easier for him to follow.
He's already picking out how he'll get up to that balcony--like Farah, he could probably jump to the bottom of it and haul himself up--but he's going to try something different. But to do that he needs a moment to look around and make sure the layout for his little plan will work.
The Chongquan practitioner slips behind a corner, waiting to see the outcome of Farah's going up on the balcony.
He's giving her 45 seconds before he starts going up as well--presumably she'll be able to take down the smokin' Sister in that time, or come close, and then his presence probably won't even be questioned, in the heat of the moment.
From inside, Vladimir's muffled chanting continues, penetrating those who hear it to the core. It's just the kind of voice that you can /feel/ deep inside your chest, even when it's as soft as it is. Sister Recursive has a kind of dreamy smile on her face, just listening to it. Clearly, Farah isn't the only one who's been lost in her own head tonight. However, the young-ish cultist (it's sort of hard to tell, what with the obscured features) isn't so far gone as to not notice somebody deciding to increase their grip level just a few feet away from her.
"Wh-? M-master Vladimir!" Fortunately for the exotic young psychic, the Sister's immediate reaction isn't 'kick intruder off balcony', as she instead opts for the ever popular 'get someone to tell me how to react'. It's why she's come so far in this organization. She rushes inside past the drapes again, cigarette fallen forgotten to the floor. "Somebody is climbing up the balcony!"
The chanting stops dead, and from inside comes Vladimir's rich Russian accent. "Did you not simply kick the intruder off-- no, of course not. You were right, to come to me. Let us await our...honored guest. You could say I've been expecting her."
Sister Recursive just about passes out from a mixture of joy at being praised and relief that everything is clearly one hundred percent without a doubt under control.
With a dancer's grace, Farah does indeed land on the balcony in a crouch, just in time to see Sister Recursive run into the building. There's muffled words that she can't make out, but the closer she gets to Vladimir and his cult ritual, the stronger that feeling in her heart is. She knows something dangerous is near, though had she met Vladimir before now she might be wondering how something so dangerous can feel so... uh... not. She doesn't know if she should enter or not; this could all be a coincidence, really, and that woman could have been observing hijab. Of course, in Farah's experience, devout Muslim women observing that custom do not, on the whole, smoke. Plus something inside tells her this... is just how it is.
Something inside tells her she should prepare herself.
Reaching inside her pocket, Farah takes out her trademark length of blue ribbon, ceremoniously tying it around her right wrist with all the mien of a warrior girding himself in armor for battle... which, in truth, she more or less is. A somewhat sad expression flits across her face for a moment, as the Egyptian wonders when she crossed the threshhold that preparing herself for violence became a normal everyday activity. For Farah, fighting is still more about sport and expression than conflict resolution. Memories of her time under Vega's dark influence are more than enough to cement that. She will remember her desire to hurt people, always... actions people may forgive, but that Farah cannot forget.
In the end, she chooses not to knock. She brushes aside the curtain and steps inside, saying nothing. What COULD she say? 'I felt a disturbance in the Force and have come to check on it'? That would be silly. But when she takes in Vladimir, and the cultists, and the candles, her expression is... confused, to be sure.
Well, that wasn't what he expected. The cultests he encountered before the first King of Fighters tournament were... aggressive. Highly aggressive. That the woman flees into the building is pretty unexpected. But that makes Shiden's entry a bit easier--he steps out from the corner he was stationed behind and bounces once, twice, then takes off at a run, building up a quick head of steam then jumping--hitting the wall next to the balocny then pushing off, essentially jumping again, his gloved hands finding the edge of the balcony and letting him swivel around and drop to the surface relatively lightly.
His approach is as measured as Farah's--again, he's still about 45 seconds behind her, the young man's stride confident. Having invaded their warehouse, he's decently sure of what will be inside. Idly, he wonders if they're already sacrificing someone, and resolves to pay more attention to what they're doing--he's not a -spiritual- person, but he knows that, even if one discounts the power of the 'arcane'...
There's something to what they're doing, undeniably. If anything, it might be an effective lesson on how to cause terror.
All these people expecting human sacrifices, all the time; it's just unrealistic. Sometimes you just need to strengthen the faith the simple way: chanting and candles. That's all most people really want or need; the ceremony and a sense of belonging.
Of course, there's nothing like a good ritually killing to further bind them all to Vlad. And when a victim shows up of her own volition, completely out of the blue, well. You would have to be a fool to pass up the opportunity the world has so generously provided.
"Come in, come in." If nothing else, Vlad seems calm about the situation, completely unworried. This is all well in hand; after all, it's plain to see the resolve on Farah's face that has brought her this far. It's not like she's going to run away at this point.
"You're just in time for the ceremony, dear girl. In fact, I'm so glad you could make it that I'm making you the guest of honor." Slowly stepping around the altar, Vlad lowers his hood again, revealing a face that manages to smile without looking happy in the slightest.
"Be glad, be proud!" The Russian continues, his accent charmingly soothing as he orates at Farah. "You have a magnificent fate awaiting you."
Sister Recursive wordlessly comes up beside him, holding a sturdy length of rope. Though neither robed figure yet makes a move, the very atmosphere in the room seems to have darkened, chilled.
"Your blood shall be a gift to the Earth itself."
COMBATSYS: Vladimir has started a fight here.
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Vladimir 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Vladimir 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
COMBATSYS: Vladimir has joined the fight here on the right meter side.
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Sister Recursive 0/-------/-------|
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Vladimir 0/-------/-------|
Farah had thought that Brihan, with her terrifying smile and her casual disregard for the lives of others, might be the scariest thing she's ever faced. Considering the darkness in the African woman's heart, however, and the feelings of betrayal and sadness Farah felt from her, in a way the Egyptian almost pities Brihan, or at the least, tempers her fear with sorrow.
But looking into Vladimir's eyes... taking into account the smile, and the sense she gets from him of a deeply disturbing nature... the Soul Star may have to alter that reckoning. Brihan was terrifying, but understandable. All she can sense from Vladimir is an inscrutable serenity, and the absolute certainty that if she doesn't defend herself, he is going to absolutely kill her. The other one, she might have been reasoned with. This one... this one, Farah's not so sure.
The candlelight is kind to her dusky skin as Farah sets herself across the room from Vladimir, amethyst eyes flickering briefly to Sister Recursive before coming back to the cult leader. She'd rather not have this come to a fight, and so in spite of herself she HAS to try... but there is something in the jovially smiling yet somewhat feral aspect of his features that tells Farah this is for nothing. "What are you doing here?" she demands, bringing her hands up, ribbon tails streaming out behind her in the sudden movement before fluttering to a stop. "If you agree to leave, nobody has to get hurt..."
She tries to sound strong, but in her heart, Farah is also trying to bolster her resolve. She should have gone back, should have gotten the others. Wasn't the whole point of her reunion with them that being together is their strength...?
COMBATSYS: Farah has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Vladimir 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Farah focuses on her next action.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
Suddenly, Shiden! The man walks into the room casually, tugging his standard issue fingerless gloves into place with one last tug each. "Oh, on the contrary, I think that someone has to get hurt... I think it's inevitable." There's a certain dry satisfaction in his tone, a dark, sardonic smile curving his lips, as he moves in.
"It's a little naive to think that a man such as this would be cowed by your words," he remarks, speaking to Farah though his attention remains strictly on Vladimir.
"He has already declared his intention to sacrifice you... that should tell you that he has no intention of giving up. And I'm sure the young lady there will happily sacrifice herself for his whims... no?" he says, with that same sardonic smile, addressing Sister Recursive next.
"That -is- the usual thing, is it not? Well, there's really only one way to find out." And, so saying, Shiden darts forward, not for Vladimir, but for the Sister, striking simply--a claw-shaped left hand streaking out for her throat, to literally rip it open.
COMBATSYS: Shiden has joined the fight here on the left meter side.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive blocks Shiden's Aggressive Strike.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
Vladimir continues to smile his mirthless smile, heavy eyebrows arched downward. "I owe you no answers...ahh." The expression lightens as revelation dawns. His eyes close in concentration, recalling distant details. "Farah...Tenjou, was it?" They open, now full of recognition; he's never seen her in person, obviously, but some people require a closer watch than others.
Also, suddenly some other dude shows up. "Sister, remind me, did someone install an elevator on the balcony?" His clipped tone indicates his annoyance; one intruder is easy to account for, but two begins to cross boundaries into the absurd. "No, don't answer that." He cuts off her response before it can begin, which is fortunate for her because it leaves her unoccupied when Shiden decides to try to prevent her from answering anything ever again. As is, she moves quickly to defend herself, one thing she has no difficulty doing of her own volition.
An arm flicks up, wrist interposed between claw and throat, and she takes a step back, tossing the rope to the side as she prepares; it only takes her a moment before she dashes forward again, aiming her fist right at Shiden's jaw in silence.
"Good. Now, what was I saying..." Vlad turns his attention back to Farah, content in the knowledge that his underling is on the proverbial case. "Your friend is right, more or less. Someone /does/ have to get hurt. If you simply submit, I can make your end relatively painless, but I'm afraid your death has been mandated by a higher power than I." As if he would kill someone on a /whim/, pshaw.
"Regrettable, perhaps..." Vladimir takes a long step forward, reaching out for the top of Farah's head with one large, lanky hand. Reaching for a grip, that he might backstep quickly and slam her face into the ground. "...but I'm afraid you have no other option."
COMBATSYS: Farah dodges Vladimir's Bannik.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
Now things are very confusing. When Shiden enters, Farah's head whips to the side to track his movement into the room. This is the second time they've met, or maybe even the third... and for some reason, they all seem to involve a third party of great darkness. As he speaks, the memory of Juri flickers across Farah's consciousness as well. However, it's Shiden's words that seems to bring a sad look to Farah's face. Frustrated, she turns from him and stares at Vladimir, Shiden's words about the futility of talking ringing in her ears. "I know that!" she says, more testily than she intends, emotions raw and open in the strangeness of the situation. A fist clenches at her side. "I know that... but you can't just embrace principles when it's safe." A hand comes up, fist unclenching, into the open-palmed stance of her style once again. "Even when it might cost me my life..."
And then things are moving so fast. Shiden is trying to strike out at the strange cultist, while Vladimir himself attempts to begin the sacrifice process early and in person. Reading the intent of his movement from the way his body moves, the Egyptian suddenly ducks back, moving back in a seemingly effortless way, the Russian priest's grip slicing harmlessly through the air.
"Don't be deceived," she says to Vladimir, surging forward, preparing to counterattack. "That doesn't mean I won't fight to save my own life!" With that, she seeks to slap her grip around his (hopefully) still-outstretched arm. Her other arm pushes forward toward Vladimir's stomach to unbalance him with a shove, before she uses the leverage of his arm to slam him to the floor, much as he intended to do to her.
COMBATSYS: Shiden blocks Sister Recursive's Quick Punch.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
Shiden's smile tinges a touch feral, when the Sister proves to be adept at defending herself. As his arm is drawn back, she fires her own fist forward; it impacts against his other arm, Shiden sweeping the arm around in a short arc to deflect the punch and move it out of position. As he defends himself, he speaks. "Your principles are not what are at stake here, Tenjou," he replies, shortly, and that line itself probably reveals his own principles. He knows that the girl will fight--he's seen it himself.
But then there's little time for verbal dueling--*real* dueling is afoot. Regarding the Sister, one of the ostensibly 'weaker' sex... he proves himself to be an egalitarian at least in one regard, as he continues what would be a vicious assault, looking to grab her by the neck--to lock her up like a muay thai kickboxer--and introduce his knee into her stomach, twice, before twisting and hurling her--towards Vladimir, maybe to spoil his fun, as it were, or maybe just to get some more room to work with.
"I don't think she'll kill you," he remarks to the cultists, "much to my disappointment..."
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive dodges Shiden's Combo Grapple.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
COMBATSYS: Vladimir blocks Farah's Medium Throw.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
Unfortunately for Farah, she will find that Vladimir continues back away from her, despite his failure to find purchase on her person. While she does grab and tug on his wrist, his weight is already set against her, and his long arms prevent her from coming anywhere near his stomach.
"So be it. In truth, it matters little; your fate is an inescapable one, and I care not whether you embrace it willingly or not." He is dead calm as he says it, staring directly into Farah's eyes, completely untouched as he confronts the idea of murdering a living, breathing human being.
Taking a single step forward, he acts to make it a reality, long arm snaking in to strike at Farah's midsection.
MEANWHILE, a few steps to the side, Sister Recursive does her best to stay out of her master's path, which for the moment means not getting thrown at him. She reacts and ducks back with admirable speed, and then even goes so far as to respond to Shiden since Vladimir is so clearly occupied.
"It's not we who you should be worried about." A feverish smile cracks her face, a sickly dark purple energy gathering around her hands. Gathering it into a ball over her head, she brings her arms swinging down to hurl it forward with all the force she can muster.
"Divine providence is on our side!" And she just seems ecstatic about it, even as the dark energy continues to crackle along her forearms.
COMBATSYS: Farah blocks Vladimir's Quick Punch.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
"Tell me why!" Farah demands, whipping one hand around and stopping Vladimir's punch with an open palm, the blow resoundingly slamming into her guard and sending a jarring bolt of pain running through her arm. She had hoped that he might not be on the same level as Brihan, but that hope was dashed. It's going to be another uphill battle, with her life on the line. Perhaps that's what drives the desperation in her voice. Fighting, she can handle... battling for her life is something else, something the young woman isn't sure she'll ever get used to. Comparatively, Vladimir and even Shiden seem to be handling it with aplomb, even disdain, as if it's nothing.
It's a situation both enviable, and hateful at the same time.
"The other one, the woman..." Farah says, taking a deep breath, staring down Vladimir. "She had the same goal. What have I ever done that merits a death mark from you? I think I have the right to know!" Egalitarian to the last. Deciding she'd rather go on the offensive than wait to be attacked, the Egyptian surges forward, aiming three successive palm strikes at Vladimir. The attacks, drawing on her knowledge of Bagua, form a series of connected circles, more intended to knock him off balance than overpower him. She can't take him down until he's answered her question... or at least, that's a normal person's logic.
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive successfully hit Shiden with Gospel Blast EX.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|==-----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
The dark energy slams into Shiden, the force of it pushing a gasp from his lungs as he is struck. He stumbles backwards, but the energy doesn't leave any lasting physical evidence, save wisps of purplish energy flaring off his chest like smoke. "So. Words I've heard before, sister... 'divine providence'..." Shiden's lips split again, into that harsh smile, as he takes up his stance again, his feet a bit wider and deeper than a traditional stance.
His own chi, orange-red in color, flares into his hand, as he opens it, cranking his fingers back, the flare forming a ball in his hand, almost like a miniature sun...
"... I don't believe in divine providence... but even if I did... I wouldn't care. I'll still carve your heart out...!" And then he thrusts his hand forward, that spherical projectile exploding towards the Sister with a sound not unlike the snarling cry of a tiger attacking its prey.
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive endures Shiden's Tiger's Shout.
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Farah 0/-------/-------|===----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/----===|-------\-------\0 Vladimir
COMBATSYS: Vladimir endures Farah's Summer Storm.
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Farah 0/-------/------=|===----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0 Vladimir
"Do you truly wish to know? Very well. You..." Vladimir does not retreat, instead taking another step forward, directly into Farah's blows. He doesn't even look down, doesn't make any indication that he even felt himself be hit; his eyes are locked on Farah's, that unsettling stare impossible to divert.
"You are an aberration." Immediately he reaches down again, grasping for her throat. A ghostly bluish glow surrounds his fingers as they seek purchase, not to lift or push, but simply to hold. The true nature of his attack, in this instance, will become clear as Farah suddenly finds it very difficult to breathe.
"You, isolated child, cut off from this bountiful planet that ever nurtures you, uncaring and unfeeling of its wishes." Chi, taking the form of water, seeps through skins, penetrating deep into the body, fully materializing only when it reaches the lungs. "Merely by existing, you cause her pain, /agony/ such as you have never known, such as you are incapable of understanding."
And then, just like that, his hand unclutches, the water vanishing as though it were never there.
"Return to the Earth from whence you came, lost and lonely little child, and bring peace to the both of you."
Sister Recursive, who can't help but eavesdrop, smiles even more broadly, if that is even possible. Emboldened by her spiritual leader's very impressive speech, she barrels forward directly into the path of Shiden's energy blast.
"I am protected!" she cries triumphantly, despite the obvious damage to her person, robes tattered just enough to be saucy without being too revealing. "Fool! Against us, the sharpest claws are made blunt!" She positively cackles, drawing in and driving one palm forward directly toward Shiden's midsection, inexorably advancing.
COMBATSYS: Farah reflects Rusalka from Vladimir with Soul Arc EX.
- Power hit! -
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Farah 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/----===|==-----\-------\0 Vladimir
And there it is. The naked cause, laid out in front of her. Brihan impied the same, but it could have been anything... yet it's not a sentiment Farah hasn't heard before. She's known she was different. In fact, that feeling of loneliness, of being cut off from others who have that connection she lacks, is one of the things that drove her so powerfully to despair before, determined to prove that she was stronger and better than those with chi powers. Since then, she has learned valuable lessons about the nature of that power... and, more importantly, the dangers of not accepting her own power for what it is. But it's still hard to hear, point-blank.
And then her eyes widen, as Vladimir's hand closes around her neck. Beyond that point, there's no responding at all, her voice gone, making slight choking sounds. That water attacks her in a... surprisingly violating way, all things considered. It's hard to muster the strength to fight back, but somewhere deep inside her, a self-preservation urge kicks in. Her eyes, wide with terror, fix on Vladimir... and behind them, the bright violet of her eyes suddenly spills into a deep cobalt blue, the color of her Soul Power, as she focuses it deep inside herself, circulating within her like her own blood.
Slowly, surely, Vladimir's watery chi is expelled the same way it might enter, forming a bright blue sphere between the two fighters. Gasping for air, Farah slams her foot into the Russian's stomach, separating them, before whirling her arm around with an inarticulate yell, the long tails of her ribbon -- charged with psychic power -- slamming the water energy back whence it came, tinged with her own Soul Power energies.
Stumbling back against the wall, the girl has no response, instead clutching a hand to her stomach and taking wet, gasping breaths, coughing.
COMBATSYS: Shiden interrupts Righteous Blow from Sister Recursive with Immovable Mountain.
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Farah 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\1 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Shiden 0/-------/--=====|==-----\-------\0 Vladimir
Yes, let's talk about blunt objects. Blunt force. And blunt force trauma. "Protected? Do you take a pill for that?" he asks, conversationally. If 'claws' won't work... then perhaps this will. Watching the cackling woman come at him, he... smiles. Playing into the strength of Chongquan... The impact of her open palm is not defended against in a conventional manner...
It's just that Shiden braces his legs in a modified squatting horse stance, and by the time she's committed to her attack, he's firing his own counterpunch, his right fist flaring with that harsh orange energy as he hammers it right into her sternum, a single telling blow. If it can be considered a trade, surely it must be an unequal one.
"Perhaps your divinity is realizing that you lack the fortitude and the skill to truly make their chaos reality...?" Ostentatiously, he even takes the time to brush his shirt off.
"Really, you ought to reconsider your position and leave these sorts of things to people who really can do it."
Vladimir is driven back a step by Farah's counterattack, her alien energies surging through her body, denying his assault. But his eyes, his eyes never leave her, he never acknowledges the pain, the injury inflicted on him. Bent, but not overcome, he slowly straightens, shaking off the lingering pain.
"Nothing else to say? I am unsurprised." His rich baritone rumbles serenely despite the setbacks caused by Farah's spirited defense. "But for how long can your cursed, unnatural power stand against me?
He accents his point by reaching into his robes, producing a small metal marble, a prayer bead, dwarfed by his hand. A dark blue glow rises, surrounding it, clinging to it. Then he slings it at Farah's head, not giving her opportunity to recover.
"Against the power of our faith?"
At the same time, Sister Recursive's mad zealotry is definitively punished by Shiden, the man's fist crushing her ribs and sending her physically flying off the floor and into the altar.
"You make light of that which you do not understand, heathen, but not for much longer!" The sister clambers to her feet awkwardly, in obvious pain and doing a far poorer job of ignoring it than Vladimir. She awkwardly barrels back at Shiden, lunging at him with hand outstretched to grab his face and bring him crashing down backward to the ground.
"I WILL NOT TOLERATE YOUR SASs!"
COMBATSYS: Vladimir successfully hits Farah with Ala.
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Farah 0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\0 Sister Recursive
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Shiden 0/-------/--=====|===----\-------\0 Vladimir
She wants to ask this man, what does he know about faith? At the last second, however, she realizes that might not be the appropriate question. There is a greater, more pressing issue involved here.
It will have to wait. Most of Farah's energy was expended dealing with that last, most terrifying attack. When the Russian produces a single prayer bead, enhanced with his own power, she is in no position to return that power to him, as she had before... but she's also in little position to avoid or evade it, either. The thing strikes her hard, sending her crashing back to the wall she was just using for support, in a much more ungainly way this time around. Gritting her teeth against the pain and the ringing in her ears, however, she forces herself standing, taking a deep breath.
Now... now she can ask the question that's on her mind.
"What sort of faith demands you kill others not like you?" Farah says harshly. As an Egyptian, she's grown up in a part of the world defined by the ways in which faith can drive men to kill... and she has commensurately little patience, nor understanding, for how adherence to some religion can justify taking the life of another. Her passion and rage only fuel the psychic energy that feeds on her emotions, however, as her hand comes up, glowing with a nimbus of starry night sky-colored Soul Power. "Anyone or anything that demands you believe that... isn't worth your reverence!"
With that, her hand whips out, the energy coursing down the suddenly fluttering tails of her cobalt blue ribbon, and then lancing out at Vladimir in a bright blue bolt of psychic energy.
COMBATSYS: Shiden endures Sister Recursive's Medium Throw.
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Farah 0/-------/----===|=======\-------\1 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Shiden 0/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Vladimir
She's on him despite her wounds, and he knows he felt ribs crack under the single punch; her hand wraps around his face and she bears him downwards, Shiden choosing to simply fall, rather than attempt to defend against the leaping woman; he puts his effort into keeping hold of her as he lands, trapping an ankle, not to twist but to keep track of her as he rises--and to keep her on the ground.
His goal is to keep her pinned, slide around onto her back, straddling it, and... well, and simply to grab her by the head and smash her forehead into the flooring, twice. "Are you saying I don't understand pain, blood, and death? You're wrong about that," he informs the cultist, as he grips for her hair, his voice less cultured, a low growl creeping into it.
"But you're right, I have never understood those who put a belief in some nebulous, false -thing- over themselves..."
He's not holding back the brutality anymore--this might tip him over to 'as bad as the rest' in Farah's eyes. Not that he's particularly concerned about that.
COMBATSYS: Vladimir dodges Farah's Sacred Heart.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/----===|=======\-------\1 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Shiden 0/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Vladimir
COMBATSYS: Shiden successfully hits Sister Recursive with Combo Grapple.
-+- CALCULATED HIT -+-
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Farah 0/-------/----===|=======\===----\1 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Vladimir
For a moment, Vladimir almost seems puzzled, attempting to use his stare to bore into Farah's brain and see just what it is she's thinking. He's not used to not knowing; typically, it's just so easy to get into someone's head, to know what they feel, to change it as suits him.
"You speak as though a single life is some great thing, as though the history of all religion weren't bathed in blood. What would you have mankind do, then?" It's almost as an afterthought that he sidesteps the blue bolt, disdainfully denying its violent touch against him even as he continues calmly walking toward Farah. "Abandon belief altogether, left with nothing to cling to?"
He takes another step forward and goes low, fist striking directly at Farah's stomach. Immediately it goes higher, reaching for her shoulder with an iron grip to lift her slightly off the ground and then spike her downward like a football.
"Nothing to hope for?"
He seems wholly uncaring in regard to the plight of the poor, battered Sister Recursive, who even as he speaks and fights is getting her face pounded into the ground, each time coming away with less blood and more flooring. She spits blood, taking an uneasy step back.
"You...hahaha. Nebulous?" Energy begins to build again, balling up even larger than before over her head. "I have felt the power of our lord enter me, FELT IT, granting me power, burning in my blood, giving strength beyond mortal men..."
"FEEL IT NOW!" She slams the ball straight down into the ground, where it quivers for a moment, and then explodes in a long, ugly purple slash that rend the very ground they stand on, racing toward Shiden.
COMBATSYS: Farah blocks Vladimir's Bolotnyi.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|=======\==-----\1 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Vladimir
The young Soul Star's mind is, as it ever is, not closed. If anything, it may be TOO open, for she has nothing left to hide from it, having seen the consequences of secrecy. However, that doesn't mean the message is easy for others to read... especially others who don't share her convictions. And while fighting for her life may be alien to her, the idea of sharing her beliefs with others is not. While her body may ache, Vladimir may have made a mistake in engaging her spirit. One of the two has received much more training and tempering than the other, after all... and recent events have in many ways hammered the rust and imperfection out of the blade of her soul.
The Russian madman's fist slams into Farah's stomach, but it is a feint of her own, letting the man get one strike home so that the other can be more fully defended against. As his hand comes up to grab her shoulder, the Egyptian reaches up and grips it, then spins forward and past Vladimir to the opposite side of the room, the two making a complicated dance as they break apart. It is no fancy deflect; Farah does little to give herself the advantage, other than avoid being slammed to the ground. However, that in and of itself may be enough.
"They should believe in each other," she says to Vladimir, eyes blazing, hands coming back into stance. "Once you accept that taking one life is okay, then you're halfway to accepting that any life but your own is worth nothing. That would be..."
A pause. It's hard to bring herself to say it, because she herself so fully fell into the trap of not taking her own advice. How she longed to slay anyone who opposed her, under that... dark influence. Yet something inside her never let it happen. Hurt, yes... but somehow, even a single life was too much for her to take.
Even as she has broken these prohibitions, in so doing, Farah has seen their truth.
"That would be," she finishes, staring down Vladimir, "a very lonely world."
With that, she surges back onto the offensive. A hand comes up, looking to grab Vladimir's arm. If she can get the grip, she pulls that long limb out full extension before slamming a palm into his elbow joint hard at the same time that she hooks a leg behind his, pulling him forward, before finishing the entire complex combination off by pushing forward with both hands, hoping to send him crashing to the floor behind.
COMBATSYS: Shiden dodges Sister Recursive's Gospel Wave EX.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|=======\==-----\1 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Vladimir
It's a shame, a real shame, that these most-zealous of cultists are so... zealous. They might otherwise be workable... the Chongquan Assassin lifts an eyebrow, as she rises up, her face a mess, and that purple energy fills her hands again. Beyond mortal men? No, not at all--and he'll -prove- that, as the slash of energy rips the flooring between the Sister and himself... he takes two wide steps to the left. "Your power," he informs her, calmly, "is eating you alive..." He knows. He's touched the edge himself--and he enjoys it, in a sick way.
"But then... it isn't really -your- power, is it? Merely a drop borrowed from your 'god'... You haven't really learned how to use it..." Casually, although not slowly, he starts stalking forward, before abruptly speeding up and dragging his left toe along the flooring for a moment before firing it forward and up, aiming to bury the toe of his foot in her sternum--a blow that might just snap that bone and send sharp fragments of it tunneling through her flesh.
"Borrowing power like this is like giving a five year old a gun... They're just going to shoot themselves." Sure, she has power. Shiden doesn't think she's worthy of it. What -he- could do with power like that...
COMBATSYS: Vladimir fails to interrupt Strong Throw from Farah with Topielec.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/-======|=======\==-----\1 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/-------/=======|====---\-------\0 Vladimir
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive Toughs Out Shiden's Medium Kick!!
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/-======|=======\===----\1 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Vladimir
As one might have come to expect from him, Vladimir does not seem overly peturbed by either Farah's less than perfect but still adequately acrobatic defense OR her philosophical musings. He continues to meet her stare, refusing to look away, to back down.
Even if some things might be hitting dangerously close to home. It's not that he even cares about what some random psychic girl thinks; but he /does/ have an image to maintain, a vital image that he cannot allow to be compromised. Not by her or anyone.
"I see." He is silent as she approaches, lets her grab his arm, and then begins to speak anew. "You are blind to the truths in front of you, to the togetherness that our faith has brought." His other arm tenses, ready to strike Farah down as she proceeds to push and twist his body, seeking the right moment to penetrate her defenses. It does not come, and he's driven back again. He lands heavily with a grunt, but doesn't pause before he begins to stand again, already picking up where he left off.
"Indeed, it comes at the cost of a life, but death is no punishment, no thing to be feared. It is a release, returning one to the loving embrace of the world, the lifeblood of Gaia." By now he's standing, and awaiting Farah's response, whether it be verbal, physical, or both.
At the same time, Sister Recursive, painfully aware that the cult is not kind to failure and incensed by Shiden's attitude and continued success in the face of her god's power, makes a decision.
Shiden's foot penetrates flesh, but only flesh, digging in like a bullet. The gross part when the flesh starts squeezing back, the sister's entire body tensing up and coiling like a spring to entrap her foe.
"I can use it well enough! For him! Our lord! And..." She trails off, purple power rippling along her skin, tearing at her robe, her very flesh. And she erupts with a cry, chi pillaring upward around her and (hopefully) Shiden, twisting and spiralling so that for the briefest of moments, it almost looks like a living being.
"VLADIMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIR!"
Now would be a really good time for her to catch her breath, and so for the moment that's what Farah does. Stepping back from Vladimir as he goes down, the girl pauses and tries to refocus on the fight at hand. Up until now, she hasn't had much time to pay attention to Shiden or Sister Recursive, having had her own problems to worry about. Now, at least, she can take a moment to see that the Chongquan Assassin has all but dismantled his opponent, and not just in physical combat. It's easy for Farah to sense the rage, resentment, and frustration boiling under the Sister's surface... that, and the heady note of fear. It doesn't take much to realize that she is motivated not just by a genuine love of Vladimir (or his ideas, anyway), but the knowledge that failing him will be worse than anything Shiden could do to her, and this is a man who started the fight by trying to rip her throat out.
Swallowing, she stares at the cool composure of Shiden for a moment, both awed and repulsed by the glacial calm and disdain he shows in the execution of whatever motivates him to stay in this fight. She's thankful that his intervention may have saved her life, at least... but at what potential cost?
Pulling her gaze from him reluctantly, she turns back to the cult leader who has called for her death. "Maybe you're better than the other woman," Farah says quietly, speaking of Brihan, which Vladimir might realize if he was privy to the Eritrean's plan to kill Farah. "Maybe family means something to you... maybe being part of something means something to you. But I don't think any of you have the right to decide life or death for anyone!" Grimacing, Farah puts a hand to her chest, palm down, staring intently at Vladimir, not defiant, but desperate for answers. "There was... such a great darkness in that woman's heart. Something drove her to be what she is. And I feel like she could change, someday, if someone believes in her, but you..."
She doesn't have the heart to finish the sentence.
COMBATSYS: Farah gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Farah 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Vladimir
COMBATSYS: Shiden blocks Sister Recursive's Holy Genocider.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > //////// ]
Farah 0/-------/---====|==-----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/----===/=======|===----\-------\0 Vladimir
So the Sister finally shows some true life... well, that's not entirely true--she's done quite well for Shiden, all told. The flesh twisting around his toe momentarily holds him--but he twists hard, yanking his foot away just as she explodes in that pillar of chi, the energy splashing against his back as he stays turned for the duration of the storm, forced forward four or five steps... and then he turns, his eyes fairly gleaming with that dark amusement. "That wasn't bad, girl, but if that's your best..."
Then it's -his- turn to leap at the Sister, his hands formed into claws again, as he seeks her throat once more, to rip it out, striking twice, his orange energy flaring into bright harsh life once again.
"It's time to -end this-, girl, and give your god the death he wants... -yours-!!" His leap would take him past the Sister, towards the altar, leaving him skidding and crouched on a knee.
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive blocks Shiden's Pouncing Tiger Strike.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////// ]
Farah 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > ///////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/----===/=======|===----\-------\0 Vladimir
The lull in his own battle gives Vladimir time to catch up on Sister Recursive's performance, and he is not impressed. Her devotion is, as always, admirable, but the results are far from ideal. He has no mercy in his heart for failure.
"Sister. I hope you're not finished yet; I know your faith is yet deeper than that." And that's the extent of his aid. He could help her; could use his own power to heal wounds, soothe pain, just like he's done for so many people before. But he doesn't.
"Now...why would I need to change?" He begins his advance toward Farah again, ever calm, ever threatening. "I lead a fufilling life, full of joy and spiritual riches." His fist draws back, windmilling around to slam toward Farah.
"All that I do, I do for our faith, and it is good."
Sister Recursive, driven completely to the brink by everyone around her with the possible exception of Farah, is basically insane now. It's with a madwoman's speed, almost feral, that she brings her hands up to intercept Shiden's. His strikes are prevented once more from destroying her esophagus, and with Vladimir's support behind her, she's quick to respond in kind.
Dashing after him, she reaches out for his neck, to slam his forehead into the altar, see how /he/ likes it. Even though at this point she's pretty much beyond words, reduced to incoherent weeping, although out of what emotion is in question.
COMBATSYS: Farah counters Strong Punch from Vladimir with Deneb Kaitos.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|==-----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/----===/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vladimir
His words to Sister Recursive are encouraging, if you listen only to the words. But there's something... under them. An undercurrent, a thread of... something. Farah can hear it under the words, feel it in the tone and the man's aura. And then he's coming right at her, and she sees her opportunity. Soul Power, after all, is about connections between people, reading their hearts, understanding their spirit. With Brihan, Farah forged a connection deeper than she had wanted by throwing so much of herself into it, but if she were to try something less drastic with Vladimir, smaller scale...
The punch is her opportunity. Her ribbon tails sweep up, pulled taut with the opposite hand into a line, glowing with psychic energy, giving them the strength to stand up to a hammerblow fist from a trained fighter. Farah says nothing; instead, she catches the punch on the ribbon, letting it go from rigid shield to wrapping around his arm in an eyeblink. More than that, though, the psychic power charging it flows into Vladimir's body, making a brief connection between the two, mind to mind, soul to soul.
When she realizes what the undercurrent was, her face contorts in disgust. Accompanying that is a heave of her arm, the ribbon unwinding and the force of it sending the Russian spiralling through the air onto the floor, Soul Power still coursing through him. "You... how dare you!" Farah says, voice cracking. She should have accepted something like this might be true. Still, the shock of it is frustrating, aggravating. And it makes Vladimir's claims of holy faith even more infuriating. "It saddens me what that woman is enduring for the sake of someone like you."
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive successfully hit Shiden with Quick Throw.
-* CRITICAL HIT! *-
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////// ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|===----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/-======/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vladimir
Shiden's head bounces off the altar, and when he comes back up... his face is a mask of blood. The pain actually wakes him up a little; he's about to fall over when he suddenly straightens... and his eyes open, and his lips split in a wide, unnatural smile. He's been to the edge before--hell, the MCPD cop Thomas Miracle took him there courtesy of a shotgun blast to the face. And he reaches up to pop his neck back into position, his hands coming away covered in his own blood.
Surgery will fix the broken nose and mashed lips--not that he's thinking about it right now. No, instead he is, once again, looking to tear the Sister's throat out--snapping his left hand out... and attempting to close his hand around her throat and squeeze, fingers somehow able to rend flesh and... well, if he gets the grip, it won't be pretty, not in the least.
Children and those with delicate constitutions may want to turn away...
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive fails to interrupt Jab Punch from Shiden with Sanctimony Strike.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > / ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|===----\-------\0 Sister Recursive
[ \\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Shiden 1/-======/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vladimir
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|=====--\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/-======/=======|
COMBATSYS: Sister Recursive can no longer fight.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|=====--\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/-======/=======|
The ribbon catches Vlad, psychic energies pour into him, and he is tossed aside. And still he gets up, not quickly but steadily, unfaltering in the face of the pain. But Farah seems to have made a discovery, /knows/ that in truth, there's far more buried beneath the surface he presents. An ugly truth, for some.
"I see." But Vladimir remains calm, sparing a glance toward Sister Recursive to see if she's in any state to hear anything. She is clearly not, coursing futiley with corrupted energies even as Shiden reaches out and crushes her throat. There's a crack, blood foams at her mouth, and she falls limply to the altar without further ceremony.
At least /somebody/ is getting blood sacrificed.
"And who are you to judge?" Now that she's not listening, Vladimir talks freely. It's not like people knowing the truth, however basic their grasp may be, are a threat to him and his position. "I gave her purpose, a reason to live." He stalks forward again, implacable in his assaults, reaching out for Farah with both hands to pick her up over his head and just huck her toward the drapes.
"A reason to die. She was glad."
COMBATSYS: Farah dodges Vladimir's Medium Throw.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/-======/=======|
"You..."
For the first time, she's found a person whose presence she simply cannot suffer. Amazingly, those fighters that have inspired Farah -- Rose and Alma -- must find that feeling familiar, but to the young Egyptian, it is a joyless thing. She wants to inspire people, to encourage them, not tear them down. If there were only some way... but in her heart of hearts, Vladimir's words have proven that there is no way. It's how he feels, deep inside. It both saddens her, and deepens her desire to see him... punished in some way.
His hands come at her, and Farah surges forward, twisting around Vladimir's body, sprinting past him to turn around. Her eyes turn to Shiden, taking in what just happened. The cultist dead at his hands, and Vladimir proving the assassin's point all too well. Her resolve is high, but it isn't a good feeling. A lump sits in the pit of Farah's stomach, cold and hard, as she thinks about her situation.
Looking back at Vladimir, she says what is on her mind, hardly any response to the priest's assertion of his right, but apropos nonetheless: "I never... wanted this..."
She dashes forward, looking to fully extend her hand and slam her palm into Vladimir's stomach as hard as possible, spinning before the strike, ribbon spiralling through the air. "I never wanted this!"
Amidst the sound of the body dropping, Shiden simply throws the gobbets of flesh in his left hand down, a final wet *slap* to punctuate the nature of his fight. As he turns, he meets her gaze, expressionlessly... and as she goes after Vladimir again, he can see from the way she's moving that some hard truths are being discovered. Is he going to help her? Maybe. But not immediately, because, well, the Sister took a lot out of him, for all his posturing.
Leaning against the altar, he does just take a breather, a rest... he deserves it. Hell, without him Farah would probably be the one being sacrified right now. Not, of course, that she'll take much comfort in that. She's a hero, he knows the type. She won't thank him, and he doesn't need it.
But now he has an opportunity to investigate just what it is they're doing here--a chance to get a better look at the altar... of course, he's also curious to see if Farah's outlook will have changed significantly.
COMBATSYS: Shiden gains composure.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > /////////////////// ]
Farah 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/--=====/=======|
COMBATSYS: Vladimir interrupts Strong Punch from Farah with Heavy Kick.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Farah 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/--=====/=======|
This is not the first time that Vladimir has found himself as an object of loathing; it's not common, thanks to natural charms and oratory ability, but it is hardly unknown to the Russian. He takes it in stride; if anything, it's surprising that it's taken this long.
"Nonetheless, this is what has happened. Wishing otherwise is a child's folly." And naughty children, as everybody knows, need to be punished in one way and one way alone: stomping on them. Farah dashes in and spins and punches, and Vladimir uses his height to his advantage. One long leg raises and then SLAMS back down on top of Farah all the way to the ground below. Clearly, Vlad is more spry than he looks.
"This is the price you pay for your actions."
He's basically content to ignore Shiden for as long as Shiden continues to ignore him, though there's no saying how long that could last. Unfortunately for the assassin, the altar is really rather plain; underneath all that blood and candlewax, it's pretty much just a stone block with a nice little red sheet over it. After all, simplicity keeps the spirit pure; and more importantly, Vladimir prefers to utilize his resources elsewhere.
She can't help but cry out; Vladimir has a significant weight and strength advantage over her, and Farah knows deep down that she acted in anger, not reflecting on her actions. She pays the price, and it's a painful one, the Egyptian's body all but bouncing off the floor before she rolls backwards and pulls herself standing, unsteadily, ears still ringing.
'Wishing otherwise is a child's folly'... well, that statement is one Shiden has already made in his own oblique way, and it really is true. Wishing things were different won't make them go away, or change.
"But," Farah says, hand closing into a fist, as she looks defiantly at Vladimir, fighting to overcome the sick feeling in her stomach and the tightness in her chest, as she braves these waters that are, for her, dark and uncharted. "Wishing things can change, dreaming of something better... they're worth something, if they drive us to act!" That is what she has to hold in her heart. That thought, right there.
She will do for this man what she did for Brihan. That is her way. "Maybe it's impossible to change what's in your heart," she says quietly, looking at Shiden briefly, making the point that this is as much about him as it is about Vladimir, to her. "But if I can't believe it's possible, then I might as well give in and be like you... and let every life but mine not be worth anything. I won't do that!"
She stays in a ready stance, body limned with cobalt blue Soul Power. She makes no gesture, but waits for her chance.
COMBATSYS: Farah focuses on her next action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////////// ]
Farah 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/--=====/=======|
Shiden wipes the lower half of his face (relatively) clean of blood, and looses a dry chuckle. "Maybe you're right," he says, without censure or patronization. Not that pursuing a dream means that one is doing the 'right' thing... that one's wishes are things that -should- come true. Rolling his head, eliciting one final pop from abused joints, he ignores the stink of his blood and the Sister's, closing his hands into fists once more.
"Few enough are those who walk our path... few enough who have the strength..." Implying that Farah isn't strong enough. Or just doesn't have the right kind of strength. So Vladimir's ignoring him for now--that's fair. But life -isn't-, and Shiden has no illusions about his chances against the man alone.
He coughs again. "Right... let's keep this little love-fest going," he says, and then lunges forward, slashing out with those claw-like hands, looking to tear Vladimir open entirely, orange chi flaring along his fingers as he strikes, leaving slashes in the air.
COMBATSYS: Vladimir fails to interrupt Pouncing Tiger Strike from Shiden with Topielec.
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Farah 1/------=/=======|=====--\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/-======/=======|
"And if we possess all we desire, if we have nothing better to dream of? I am content with my humble lot in life," Vlad responds, again speaking in half-truths, as much to keep Farah off-guard as make any real point. He's about to press the assault again when her unlikely savior decides once more to act.
"It is a shame the Sister couldn't finish you." The tall man turns to the assassin's assault, fist clenching as he prepares, but Shiden's ferocity is overpowering. Long, bleeding rents are gouged into Vladimir's flesh, visible even through his heavy robes. In a disturbingly short time, there is a great quantity of blood around the Russian, who is forced to step back. Not clutching at his wounds, severe though they are, but deciding how to react to the situation at hand.
"I seem to be outmatched. Hm."
None of this has turned out the way she had expected, and Farah herself is just as confused as to how she should proceed. Part of her doesn't want to let Vladimir leave here, certainly; it's clear he will only hurt others in the future. But part of her knows that she cannot do what would REALLY be required to keep him from hurting others in the future, something that Shiden seems prepared to: actually kill Vladimir. The thought of it makes her sick, never mind the terrible hypocrisy of it all. She has no right to pronounce judgment over anyone's life. But even the thought of... disabling him somehow is troubling.
And what would she do otherwise? Hand him over to police ill-equipped to deal with his power? It's unlikely they could hold him for very long, or that it would change him in any way.
The dissonance is tearing her up inside. She meant what she said, about dreams driving her to act. She wants to be the star that guides people to a better way. But how can she do that, if what it calls for puts her beliefs in question?
It paralyzes her, a sad expression on her face. "That..." she starts to say to Shiden, wanting to argue his claim that only the strong can take a life, but she doesn't have the heart. "I don't know what to do..."
COMBATSYS: Farah takes no action.
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Farah 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/-======/=======|
Were this a philosophical debate over tea or sake, he might point out that it is not necessarily the taking of life that is his path... but the -wanton- taking of life. The ability to take a life without caring about it... that is perhaps the darkest of paths to take, ever. A path that his feet are firmly upon, and, as he suepcts, Vladimir is also upon.
The assassin offers a brittle smile to the Cultist. "I suppose it's only sporting to allow you to flee. It's what she would do." Without looking, he gestures towards Farah.
"But if you stay, then you'll full well understand what the consequences could be... she might let you live... I will not." Bald, plain, and simple. That said, Shiden withdraws again, back about five big steps--just enough to be out of immediate reach. He's still hovering on that edge, the incipient burn of compounded pain taking its toll on him...
COMBATSYS: Shiden gains composure.
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Farah 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/--=====/=======|
"Lost, helpless child..." Vladimir slowly shakes his head. Were it just Farah here, her resolve weak and her thoughts clouded, then there would be no question; an opportunity to painlessly remove an enemy must be taken. However, with Shiden here...
"Could you kill me, I wonder?" Obviously, it's not a question of intent, but rather capability. Certainly, wounded though he is, Vladimir doesn't seem to have slowed down; if anything, he's faster now, more alert, more dangerous. And victory isn't impossible; but, why? Why take that risk, just to kill a girl who can't even decide to fight the man trying to kill her?
"It doesn't matter. I accept." In the end, Vladimir's own life is more valuable than Farah's, more valuable than whatever foolish pride he inevitably feels as a fighter. There will be another day, after all, and he is the only one who knows now what has happened here. He has a conveniently dead scapegoat...yes, everything is fine.
"If you'll excuse me, then..." Vladimir turns away, walking toward the stairs like an actual human being instead of taking the balcony like a simian.
COMBATSYS: Vladimir takes no action.
[ \\\\\\\\\\\\\\ < > ////////////// ]
Farah 1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0 Vladimir
[ \\\\\\\\\\ <
Shiden 1/--=====/=======|
Farah can feel the dismissiveness of it, knows deep down that Vladimir is basically blowing her off, and only for the sake of Shiden being there. She doesn't say anything as the Russian leaves, doesn't even watch him go. Instead, her eyes are fixed on poor Sister Recursive, if that's even her real name, lying lifelessly on the floor. In all of this, she is the real loser. Using a power that wasn't her own, devoted to a man who cared less for her than the clothes on his back, and now having paid the ultimate price for her devotion to something she couldn't fully comprehend.
In the silence after Vladimir leaves, Farah walks over to the poor woman, then kneels down next to her and gently closes her unseeing eyes. She doesn't look back at Shiden when she talks, and her voice is quiet, maybe even a little hoarse all things considered. "If you hadn't stepped in, I'd probably be dead now," the Egyptian says. It isn't effusively grateful, but she doesn't necessarily think Shiden expects such heartfelt thanks. It is, more or less, an observation of the honest truth. "Whatever else has happened, and for whatever reasons, you saved me. Thank you."
Slowly, she stands up, then turns to face Shiden, brushing a stray lock of hair from her face, expression solemn. "He was right. I couldn't kill him, any more than I could kill you. I know... you think that's weakness. I don't really know how to prove you wrong, yet, though. So even though I condemn what you did, I wanted to say..." Here, a pause, before she shakes her head and sighs. "I at least have listened to what you said."
Another pause, before she clears her throat. "I'll wait until you're gone to call the police and tell them about the body. I owe you that, I guess."
Surprising. Shiden lets the surprise show on his face, for a moment. Reciprocation of an odd sort, certainly one he wasn't really expecting to gain. "You're welcome," he says. As he turns to leave, he remarks, offhandedly, "You wouldn't have been able to get out of this situation without someone else... but you wouldn't have been able to get out without injuring her, at the very least. Such is the depth of their zealotry. As misguided as it is, it makes them very effective... as attack dogs." As surely she mut recognize, now.
"I did her a favor; were she to have lived, she would have likely found a more ignominous end... though," he says, with a quirk of the corner of his mouth, "she may not think so. Well, she's dead, anyway." By now he's at the curtained entrance, and pauses to look back at Farah, for a long moment.
Truly, in her he sees what his parents must have wanted for him.. and that incites a mix of emotions within him. "You know that these cultists aren't anywhere close to being stopped. The next time you come up against them, you'd better have what it takes to make your wishes reality."
And then he's through the curtain and, by the time anyone else might come along, he's... gone.
A few hours later, Farah is sitting in the living room of her parents' house. They have long since gone to bed, after chatting with their daughter about the KoF match. She puts on an amiable face for their sake, not wanting to get them involved in the evening's dark matters. Once they've gone to bed, it's easy to find a payphone and call the police, informing them of Vladimir's 'altar'.
For now, she sits in the room with the TV off, legs up on the couch, drinking hot tea and surrounded by lit candles. Shiden's words echo loud in her mind: 'you'd better have what it takes to make your wishes reality.'
It will be long hours yet before she sleeps, that sentence making its way around inside her head as the girl looks up at the stars and ponders, the flickering light of candles carving deep hollows of shadow in the lines of her face, seen by no one.
Log created on 20:14:27 03/26/2011 by Farah, and last modified on 19:11:36 03/27/2011.