Description: Hometown hero Terry Bogard takes on Foreign freak Iori Yagami in the darkest part of the Met-ro Ghett-o (even though that's not where Terry's from). The loser wins unconsciousness, and the winner loses his fight money as a charity donation to the city. Terry wants to know if Iori's okei (on multiple levels) and Iori just wants this whole bloody thing over with. (Winner: Iori)
Charity fight, huh? Well, hell. Terry does that anyways. Sure, he usually keeps a couple hundred so he can eat and drink but that's really about it. Operating expenses. But, hey. It's a fight. The slum area is, well, a slum as always--not even the financial power of the SNF organization can fix -that-. But they've secured some benches and the sidewalk is roped off. This will, it seems, be an -actual- street fight. Go figure. Gonna make hitting the ground hurt just a touch more.
Already the crowds are gathering, as Terry motors up on his chopper, the engine's throbbing rumble going from a purr to a sputter as he pulls up. Engine off, helmet slung on the handlebars, Terry hops off and just strides up. Almost unnoticed by the fans, because he looks a lot like them, with his hair down, no hat, and the bomber jacket ensemble, but the SNF guys know him better, and so they don't complain when he steps into the 'ring'.
And that action sets the crowd off, since he's in the focus--the spotlight--once he crosses the line. He responds to the raucous cheering with a cheery wave and by showing off a few punches and kicks.
Fighting. Charity. Two things Iori Yagami really does... not like, and this is mostly understatement. Why would he help people he sees as too useless to care about, especially if it means a battle against whatever jerkwad professional fighter they'd trot out to 'amuse' him? The truth is, there really is no such reason. If it weren't for his intense need to fight Kyo Kusanagi -- a need that, since their brief Marvel Team Up to face down the Orochi, has only burned brighter -- then Iori probably wouldn't have any reason to participate in professional fighting at all. As it is, he sees no reason to make a scene.
Terry is a fan favorite. If Iori WANTED to be, he might have a chance. As it is, there's a certain... warped love he gets from the more misanthropic fans of fighting that are out there, a chunk of the stands actually filled with emo kids and reprobates who find Iori's tendency toward brief, sudden, fight-ending violence to be endearing. As it is, the Yagami scion's red-eyed gaze is as scornful of them as it is of anything else, his head turning their way when one dares shout his name. And then he's turning back toward the center of the ring, gritting his teeth. "Give me a fucking break."
This is why they like him.
If he bothered about how he appears, Iori would cut an imposing figure. He's almost hopelessly tall and fine-boned, dressed like a punk gone prep, with all the force of personality of a rock star. But he ruins the effect with his natural slouch, visible as he walks, hunched just enough forward, angular bones of his shoulders pulled just far enough out, that he's more like a stalking animal than a human being.
He arrives at the fight location and observes Terry Bogard, America's Favorite, with something approaching outright, unhidden disgust.
"If you're done pandering," he says in a low, gravelly bariton, "why don't we get this farce over with?"
Actually, they love him because he isn't an ass. Mostly. Bogard turns as Iori speaks up and his grin is no less than it was before--if a touch more snide. "Yo. It's Kyo's girlfriend, isn't it?" he says, with an expression that says 'this is just teasing really', and maybe that's even true! The 'friendly' banter further incites the crowd, but Terry appreciates the 'down to business' aspect of Iori, and he knows that, just like Kyo, he's not a man to be taken lightly. So he puts on his business face, too.
"You're right about one thing at least, Yagami. These people came to see a fight. Y'know, I've heard people say you don't like fighting," he continues.
"If that's true, then why do you do it? Compelled?" Terry understands that. But he also just likes fighting, because it's fun. There's no officials in the ring, but there doesn't need to be--for men such as Terry and Iori, an official call to fight isn't needed. Terry tightens his gloves and shrugs his shoulders, rolling them around... and then he just -goes-, because that's how he's wired.
He explodes out of the blocks with a low-arcing hop, aiming to hammer a fist right into Iori's forehead, his right cocked back to deliver that blow.
COMBATSYS: Terry has wandered into a fight here.
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Terry 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Iori has joined the fight here.
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Terry 0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0 Iori
COMBATSYS: Iori dodges Terry's Medium Punch.
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Terry 0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0 Iori
"Her NAME is Benimaru," Iori says with a totally straight face, "you _ass_."
For all that slouching, all that seeming nonchalance, Iori can move with considerable speed when it's called for. And while he might not have any more respect for Terry than he does for any other human being, Iori knows the Hungry Wolf's reputation isn't fluff. You don't want to take that fist to the forehead. And so the red-haired man fades backwards, a short hop to match Terry's own, letting the Hakyokuseiken fighter's fist swish harmlessly through the air. When all's said and done, Iori doesn't look any more emotional than he did before, his face still wearing his typical look of disdainful sangfroid... or at least, 'typical' for a situation where he's not attempting to claw another person's face off.
"I'm so glad you care about my feelings, Bogard," Iori says dryly, looking the other fighter over for a moment. "It really warms the heart. So as for your question..."
Then Iori is all motion, jumping back forward toward Terry, one hand raised high like a claw, already alight with the amethyst flames of the tainted bloodline. His arm comes down with all the weight of Iori's short jump behind it, looking to hammer Terry into the ground with flame and the clawing arc of the strike. "HERE'S MY ANSWER, YOU MEWLING PIECE OF SHIT!"
COMBATSYS: Terry blocks Iori's Tsumagushi.
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Terry 0/-------/------=|==-----\-------\0 Iori
Terry whiffs and so he's preparing to defend himself even before he's landing; he comes down in a crouch and twists on his feet, coming up with his forearms crossed for a block, and that block meets the arm of Iori's flame-drenched hammer. There's an explosion that probably gets a few gasps from the crowd, but when it clears, Terry's still standing, having sunk back on his rear leg a bit, to help absorb the impact.
"Yeah, well, I'm told that emotional health is a key factor in a having a good life," he replies, dryly. He faces the world with a more relaxed air than he has in the past, very unlike Iori's anger-covered-by-indifference, and probably that is something that means they will never 'get along'.
But they don't have to. Terry pushes off of his block and backsteps, feeling his grin shift from easy to a more fierce mien; at the end of his hop he drops to a knee again and... he punches the ground. Not only that, but he shouts, too. "POWER WAVE!!" is what he calls, and accompanying it is a burstwave of white-yellow chi that flares along the ground for Iori's legs.
COMBATSYS: Terry successfully hits Iori with Power Wave.
- Power hit! -
> Determined Hit! <
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Terry 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Iori
Maybe it's because he's got that stupid tie betwen his knees on those pants.
But pants or no, Iori attempts to sidestep around that shockwave of chi in a circular pattern, and underestimates the speed and force of it, taking the blow in a very disadvantageous way and sliding across the grimy street with a crunching of gravel, dropping a hand down to stop himself at the last second. 'Emotional health,' huh?
He's cursed to die before he's 35, every time he uses his bloodline flame there's a feedback of intense pain, and his greatest desire is to flay his rival alive with his bare hands. And you're worried about his EMOTIONAL health?
Iori sure doesn't seem to be.
"I got enough lectures from Kagura on trying to be a better me," Iori snaps, before charging forward. He attempts to grab Terry by the throat, and if he does, the Hungry Wolf is going straight to the ground in a chokeslam made all the worse by a bloom of violet flame that explodes from the point of contact. "GUOOOOOH!"
COMBATSYS: Terry dodges Iori's Koto Moon Negative.
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Terry 0/-------/----===|====---\-------\0 Iori
Psy ops are a valid tactical manuever. Look it up. Not that Terry is thinking in those terms, precisely--banter has always been a big part of his fighting style, not on a technical level, but as part of what helps him focus on the task at hand. And speaking of focus, Terry has to marshal up some of it, because even that pretty tremendous impact isn't gonna keep Iori from trying to cut him up and fry him like a fish--and with that clawing style and those purple flames, he just might. Terry slips the grab for his throat, throwing himself into a quick tuck-and-roll that brings him up behind Iori.
"Hey, man, I ain't givin' you much advice. Just sayin', y'know. You gotta live your life how you want, not how others tell you. But you know that."
Terry's not relying on Iori being discombobulated by the evasion, or relying on the man's back -staying- turned. He launches himself into another attack series immediately--and one that all his fans know, for sure. "BURN!!!" is Terry's shout, part warning, part kiai, and all too funny given Iori's 'element', as he throws himself forward again, his right fist leading with a straight punch engulfed in that orange-yellow-white chi, aimed to take Iori in the upper chest area.
COMBATSYS: Terry successfully hits Iori with Burn Knuckle.
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Terry 0/-------/--=====|======-\-------\0 Iori
You don't think someone would be crazy enough to walk right into that, do you? They just... wouldn't be so stupid.
Even if the result's not to his benefit, though, Iori wouldn't consider the action 'stupid.' The truth is he's not... inured to pain, but he's used to its presence. Something about that burning reminder in his blood makes things like external pain an entirely different kettle of fish. And so he decides to take Terry's punch head-on. Why not? It could get the two in close and Iori is not at all concerned about his ability to dish out damage. That's in the bag. He just needs to connect, and he hasn't been...
Sadly he must not think much of Terry, because he underestimates the impact of the Burn Knuckle by a considerable margin. The two fighters are carried forward together by Terry's momentum, but Iori's chance to strike back is missed in a haze of fatigue and fury. From where he briefly crouches as the two separate, Iori's voice bites out, "I could almost stand the preaching... if you didn't pull that equivocating bullshit afterward."
And then he's swinging. Wild, a little untempered, just a straight-up one-handed punch to Terry's manly jaw. It has zero elegance but, like most of Iori's techniques, it more than makes up for this with brutal power intended to lay a man out flat in a single go.
COMBATSYS: Terry endures Iori's Strong Punch.
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Terry 1/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Iori
Just before that punch, Terry relents, a little. "Ha, alright, I'll--*CLOP*" Get his teeth bashed in, apparently. But the reel that Terry goes into isn't entirely real--nor is it entirely fake. In fact he sort of knew that the punch was coming, and my god, while it hurts, it actually gives him the space he needs to respond in kind--his right leg shooting almost straight up.
It's fired like a piston, and the impact is probably just as strong, if it makes it, the back edge of Terry's heel aiming to meet the point of Iori's jaw. Hitting fist-to-face is often risky; a fraction off and you're breaking your own knuckle on some poor sop's cheek, and that hurts. So, kick. Besides, it'll look cool, and Terry subscribes to the Rule of Cool, even if he doesn't know it.
"Jesus. At least you hit harder than Kusanagi." Sort of a backhanded compliment there, and he isn't even sure it's true, but hey, gotta keep talking, if only to make sure he didn't bite his goddamn tongue in half.
COMBATSYS: Iori interrupts Strong Kick from Terry with Yami Sugi.
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Terry 1/-======/=======|===----\-------\0 Iori
Close-quarters fighting. For a brawler-type like Terry who wants to mix it up, you'd think a 'beat-them-until-candy-falls-out' type like Iori wouldn't want to actually in that game, would he?
Heh.
Terry's leg comes up, but instead of impacting the bottom of Iori's jaw, it slams into the Yagami scion's suddenly interposed shoulder, blunting a lot of the force of the kick and then giving the red-haired fighter a chance to talk back to Terry.
"That's because that little fucking rat fights to show off," the Orochi-tainted man hisses, before shoving Terry off-balance and then sweeping one arm up; as Bogard falls back, he finds himself wrapped in a lance of amethyst flame that surges from the ground in the path of Iori's arm. "Whereas I..."
Then the other arm sweeps up, with a second lance of fire. "Really don't..." And then, finally, Iori sweeps both arms down, and the ground in front of him erupts in a massive geyser of purple fire, intending to launch Terry well into the air and away from Iori, who finishes his part in the repartee: "...GIVE A DAMN! BURN, YOU WORTHLESS BOY SCOUT!"
Well. Looks like he got -some- reaction out of Yagami. A painful one, as he's sent flying by the gouts of purple fire. Terry crashes to a heap on the pavement and it's just as painful as he expected--maybe even moreso. Rising takes a moment, but Terry's all serious now. "Yeah, I can see that you don't," he replies. The boy doth protest too much, in his opinion, but he doesn't come up saying that.
Instead, he sounds almost soliticous as he asks, conversationally, "Are you okay?"
Hell, there's no reason not to be polite. Terry gathers his energy, then starts moving--two steps, left, right, and then he plants his left--and he's -gone-. Not invisible--moving fast, as he attempts to make up the distance and then some. He's leading with his right again, his dominant hand, and the energy is flaring around it--but held in reserve is far more. Should he impact? Well, then there'll be an explosion, as Terry grips his right wrist with his left hand, that'll rake Iori from head to toe, a blast of pure life energy formed to unfriendly ends.
COMBATSYS: Iori dodges Terry's Buster Wolf EX+.
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Terry 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Iori
'Are you okay?'
Terry rushes in. If you thought Burn Knuckle was a pain trip, wait until you see Buster Wolf. It's a technique bearing the Hungry Wolf's very own nickname, after all. You really don't want to be in the middle of that when Terry's raging fighting spirit explodes, pretty literally.
"What... a stupid question," comes a voice from somewhere behind Terry, once the technique is over.
Apparently, Iori WASN'T in the middle of that lightshow.
There's no time to waste on pretty words, or anything of the kind. That's not how Iori does thing. He DOESN'T enjoy fighting, actually. He thinks it's a waste of time. He thinks a LOT of things are a waste of time. This is why, despite nobody knowing it, Iori Yagami is an efficiency expert. He knows the exact, direct, most expedient route to his time no longer being wasted. Right now, that route runs directly over Terry Bogard's unconscious body.
A quick, dashing gut punch, then a second with the opposite hand, before both hands grip together and become a third hopping hammerfist to bring the combination to a close. Violent, savage... efficient.
COMBATSYS: Terry blocks Iori's Aoi Hana.
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Terry 0/-------/---====|===----\-------\0 Iori
Terry comes to a skidding halt, dust wakes literally skidding up from the soles of his shoes. "Y'know," he says, as he comes out of his skid having to defend himself--block down, then to the side, and then forearms thrust upwards to catch that hammer fist--
"--I don't think even Geese hated life as much as you do." And Geese is a hater. Like, he is a -serious- hater. Terry isn't even being flippant when he says it.
The smashing attack still drops him to one knee, but he surges up out of it back to his feet immediately. And he comes up swinging, employing a classic punch combination--not the one-two, but a one-two-three--left jab, left jab, the shortest of pauses, and then a right hook. Not likely to drop the Yagami on his ass for good, but it could score some telling hits if he isn't avoided.
COMBATSYS: Iori endures Terry's Medium Punch.
>> Decisive Hit!! <<
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Terry 0/-------/--=====|====---\-------\0 Iori
Avoided? No. But from the look on Iori's face once he's been punched not once, not twice, but three times -- and has failed to fall over or even be moved -- it doesn't look like avoiding it was on the menu in the first place. Still... that's going to leave a mark, for sure. Even if Iori managed to stay on his feet, he still had to get punched three times by Terry Bogard to do it. No small feat.
But something about the Wolf's words really makes Iori want to drive his point home.
"Whatever, you clueless hobo," Iori says, eyes narrowing. One hand drops to the side, and inside a blossom of purple flame begins to glow. "I don't hate life. I just hate clueless, arrogant, do-gooding FUCKWITS."
And then he's ascending, a quick spiral, both arms rising and then immediately falling. A helix of purple flame blazes quickly in the air as Iori performs his own dark mirror to one of Kyo's signature techniques... an attack that, whether he likes it or not, serves as Iori's living reminder that once upon a time the Yasakani and Kusanagi were allies. Before that whole Orochi thing just RUINED it.
Fuck those guys. Seriously.
COMBATSYS: Terry fails to interrupt Oniyaki from Iori with Rising Tackle.
-* CRITICAL FAIL! *-
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Iori 0/-------/--=====|
COMBATSYS: Terry can no longer fight.
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Iori 0/-------/--=====|
There isn't even a choice, really. Terry isn't in a position to weather the strike and keep going. This is the turning point of the fight. As soon as Iori starts the movement he recognizes from fighting Kyo, Terry moves to counterstrike--and when he puts his hands on the ground to push himself upwards? Disaster strikes.
Disaster in the form of a flattened cardboard burger box that shoots out from underneath Terry's hand and ruins the manuever. He has no momentum. He has no spin. All he has is a lanky body exposed to the ravaging strike of Iori's Oniyaki. The crowd gasps and ooohs and winces as Terry is hurled away by the strike, arcing semi-gracefully and over the retaining rope--the stands clearing just before he crashes into them. He's out, for sure--long enough for the officials to call the fight.
But he's not totally kayoed, and so he stirs a few moments later, and pushes up to his feet. "Don't forget," he says, with tired, battered good humor, "you gotta donate." And he turns, limping towards his bike. A night of Jack'll heal his wounds. And Mary. Where the hell is she.
You gotta donate?
They come up to Iori with a big novelty check while the fiery kiss of his Oniyaki is still fading heat on Terry's body. And the officials, the fans, even some of the crew... they look like this was the moment they were dreading. The bad guy won. Everyone expected -- wanted -- Terry Bogard, the feel-good movie of the year, to take it home. Instead a pissed-off Japanese pretty boy is about to 'donate' an SNF main event purse to their neighborhood.
A few of them look like they're wondering if they'll even HAVE a neighborhood in the forseeable future.
Inside him, a little voice tries to tell Iori that all he needs to do to slake his thirst, to quell his anger, is give form to the violence that rides in his blood. And it would be so EASY. Compared to a tough target like Terry, these people are ANTS. Just lay into them. Sacrifice them.
This thought is running through his mind as the host hands the novelty check over to a representative of the city, and when they hesitantly ask Iori for comment, the pupils of his red eyes seem to shrink to pinpoints.
Giving in to that urge would make him another Yamazaki. No, thanks. That would be... inefficient.
"Enjoy," he says to Mayor McCheese or whatever person is there to pick up the money, "your god damned cash. Why not just have them beat it out of a fucking pinata?" And then he's stalking off, leaving a terrified audience in his wake.
Log created on 13:50:12 12/03/2011 by Iori, and last modified on 23:30:26 12/03/2011.