Description: Daniel Jack and Zach Glen have a (maybe) destined battle on a rainy night. (Winner: Daniel)
Thunder.
A flash of lightning.
The crew to the Neo Development Project wait in the shack, the rain pitter pattering outside. The cameraman adjusts the lens, wiping off the moisture. "Awful day for a match. You think they will show up?" The cameraman looks towards the judge, glasses beginning to fog. The brown-haired man shakes his head, looking nervously up at the roof of the ancient home. The glint of dozens of eyes, followed by the cackle of crows, loom over the crew. "This place is creepy enough in the day. I don't-"
Another crash of thunder.
Another flash of lightning.
Daniel Jack stands at the doorway, a trenchcoat thrown over his Zoot Suit. Water rolls off his trenchcoat, walking into the center of the room. In his hand was a watch; the detective was looking at the time. "Sorry I am late, scuzzies." The detective begins, looking up from the watch.
"Where is he."
A voice booms from outside.
"DANIEL JACK!"
A flash of lightning. A crash of thunder.
Zach Glen stands outside, stance relaxed, hands not quite closed into fists as the rain comes down. He is wearing no rain gear, not carrying an umbrella. A grin peers out from under rain-soaked blonde hair as Zach raises a hand to give a 'bring it' gesture. In a way, this is a welcome distraction from the issues that the war has brought into his life.
"This is long over-due. Get your ass out here. Let's do this."
COMBATSYS: Zach has started a fight here.
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Zach 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Daniel has joined the fight here.
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Zach 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Daniel
Amber light sheathes Zach's form as he slides into an orthodox boxing stance, and moves into a short weave, bobbing left and right. He waits for Daniel Jack, knowing the detective will not reject the direct challenge.
COMBATSYS: Zach gathers his will.
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Zach 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Daniel
Daniel Jack snaps his watch shut, and places it in his pocket. "Zach Glen. It has been too long." The detective begins, starting to head outside. The cameraman and judge spring to life, quickly setting up as Daniel beelines it to his opponent. "I heard you have been doing well for yourself. Been keeping busy myself. Didn't think you were going to join in on the Neo Development Project. Having trouble promoting yourself?"
Daniel stops short of Zach, the rain pouring down upon his hat and coat. The detective hangs there, hands dug into his pockets, holding himself in a neutral, grim stance. "I've wanted this fight for a long time, Zach. Nothing mean spirited, scuzzy. I just can't let you walk away after that last thumping you gave me. I got new tricks now. I got some old tricks as well. I just need you to do me a favor." Daniel Jack takes his hands out of his pockets, and adjusts his trenchcoat.
"Take my coat, will ya?"
The detective suddenly whips off the sopping wet trenchcoat, arcing it in a wide, wild swing. Hurling it straight for Zach, the detective attempts to meet his 'ready stance' by snapping the trenchcoat right across his face. A mere sting, a mere feint. But Daniel wasn't about fighting clean.
It was about fighting RIGHT.
COMBATSYS: Zach blocks Daniel's Thrown Object.
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Zach 0/-------/---====|-------\-------\0 Daniel
Zach's left hand snaps out, snagging the jacket out of the air. "Not so much promotion," Zach says easily. "As much as exposure." Zach considers for a moment. before bolting in, spraying up a rooster tail of mud and water as he closes the gap.
Golden light coalesces around his fists as Zach fires off a quick one-two combination before leaping clear. "After all," Zach says, "The fighting world is huge."
COMBATSYS: Daniel blocks Zach's Rapid Combo.
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Zach 0/-------/--=====|=------\-------\0 Daniel
Daniel Jack drops back in the defense stance of Aikido as the jacket is caught. Buying time. That was the most important part to him. To slow down Zach, and get himself in position. As Zach lunges in, the detective catches the blows, throwing up his own limbs in tandem with the punches. While the strikes are nulled somewhat, the raw psi energy burns through Daniel's body, numbing his limbs. The detective growls.
It has been a long time since he had to deal with Psycho energy.
As Zach lunges back, the detective keeps astride, moving through the rain with careful, cautious inevitability. "Exposure? The fighting world? Are you thinking of breaking out into the big leagues, Zach?" The detective throws out a left palm strike, followed by a right hand chop. As he closes in, the detective suddenly attempts to grab the old foe by his hip and arm. Should he grab him, he will attempt to hurl Zach to the ground with a smooth, deft motion.
Right into the mud.
COMBATSYS: Daniel successfully hits Zach with Tequila Sunrise.
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Zach 1/-------/=======|=------\-------\0 Daniel
"Maybe," Zach answers as he slides back unexpectedly. It's been a while since he had fought on anything that wasn't dry. Or uneven for that matter. Unable to get good footing, Zach is unable to prevent the palm strike from connecting. It goes downhill from there, with Zach throwing up a spray of mud and dirty water. Zach stays on his back for a moment, oddly.
"I find myself at a bit of a crossroads," he admits as he thrusts his right hand at Daniel. It is only AFTER the controlled burst of Soul Power launches towards the Aikidoka, that Zach gets back on his feet. The blast connecting is only part of Zach's goal; he needs to see Daniel's reaction to the shot.
COMBATSYS: Zach successfully hits Daniel with Blast Punch.
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Zach 1/-----==/=======|=======\-------\0 Daniel
Daniel Jack stands over Zach, arms crossed, glaring at the man. "Maybe? That's not a great call of confidence. You thinking about traveling the world or something?" The detective shakes his head. "I expected more fro-"
*KABOOM*
The legendary power of Zach suddenly flares up as he lays on the ground. slamming hard into the detective, launching him through the air. After a second or two, the detective lands with a sloppy splash, near the wrecked fence.
His hat is missing.
The detective pauses for a moment, before dragging himself out of sucking crater he found himself in. Drenched in mud, the detective just -stares- at Zach, as his hat falls down to the ground between them. Pulling himself up, he begins to run back towards Zach, picking up speed as he snatches his hat from the ground. "Crossroads my ASS. Goddamn cannon ass..." The detective growls as he closes the distance, slapping the drenched hat on his head as he swings his arm. Letting fly a weak burst of orange chi, the detective roars out.
"KASANE ATE!"
COMBATSYS: Zach fails to reflect Mikansei Kasane Ate from Daniel with Gazelle Punch EX.
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Zach 0/-------/----===|=======\-------\1 Daniel
Zach sees the chi strike forming up; he knows there are lots of applications to Kasane Ate. He's modified many of them for his own Pile Smash bastardization, even. Zach drops into a low crouch, looking to build up some power as Daniel closes the gap.
The plan is simple and ambitious at the same time: catch the chi wave on a construct of psychic energy and shove the mass of conflicting energies back at the detective. Everything is lined up, and Zach is fairly certain he's got the energy flows right. All that's left is that first step. Zach presses upward, bringing his left hand upward. And Zach realizes the fatal flaw in his technique, his whole fighting style as it is today.
All of his boxing-based techniques (like the Gazelle Punch) require firm, dry footing.
Zach's step falters as the mud under his shoes gives way, causing the strike to fall short of its target. The Mikansei Kasane Ate slashes Zach across the chest, tattering his shirt and opening a bloody wound on his chest.
"Lots of options in front of me," Zach croaks, "Almost no idea how to proceed. 'Stricky. Like this mud here."
Daniel Jack continues the rolling offensive as he knocks Zach before Zach knocks him. The detective clearly had the fundamentals of Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu down, and was even beginning to perform well with it. The trouble was that spark of mastery, the man was just short of it. The detective looks at Zach, looking ready for another blast of power. Just WAITING for it. Daniel was studying, analyzing his opponent, before he lets loose those words.
"Don't begin that crap with me, Zach."
"Power! Fame! Money! Going home to be a family man!" The detective lunges forward, charging for Zach's left arm. Attempting to grab the man by his wrist and above the elbow, he would attempt to twist HARD, to wrench it behind his back. If successful, he would start force Zach to the ground, pinning the fight out of him.
"What is it do you SEE yourself in 10 years, man? What do you WANT to see?"
COMBATSYS: Daniel successfully hits Zach with Mad Jack Crack.
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Zach 0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\1 Daniel
Zach blinks at this line of questioning. He honestly hadn't given thoughts of a future since... Since King of Fighters, really, and even then that was thoughts of a future he was forced to set aside to deal with his burgeoning (and destructive) talents. Daniel drives Zach to the turf, forcing the air out of the psion's lungs. Zach lets out a gasp, before throwing himself into action.
His limbs are wet, slick with sweat, rain and mud. This allows him to snake out of Daniel's grip even as he unloads a purely physical right backhand across Daniel's jaw. The strike, and the shift, bring Zach's open and empty /left/ hand around towards Daniel's chest.
The lightning strikes, the thunder cracks, both events almost obscuring the burst of Soul Power that surges out of Zach's palm. He uses the opening to regain his feet. "I honestly," he wheezes, "Had not thought of any of that. There's always been some event, some crisis right in front of me. Had no time to think about the future."
COMBATSYS: Zach successfully hits Daniel with Body Blow.
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Zach 0/-------/--=====|=======\====---\1 Daniel
The detective twists some of the fight out of Zach, but not all of it. The fighter slips free, leaving Daniel to rise back up from the mud. But as the backhand comes... the detective attempts to endure it. He was getting in position now, trying to pin down the raging hurricane that was Zach. If it was just his raw physical power, the detective MIGHT have managed to shrug it off. But as the psionic energy flares up... the detective has the wind knocked clean out of him.
DAMN that psycho energy hurt.
Staggering back, the detective burns, his body SEERING with energy. "nNNNggh" The detective groans, struggling against the raw pain. Still, his mind was focused; while he was set on winning, he can't help but continue to give Zach more advice. Raising his right arm back, he moves back into Zach's circle, keeping what is left of his guard up with his left. "So what? You think a crisis keeps me away from my goals? I'm in the middle of investigating a major watch theft ring! And I still find time to promote Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu! What is your goal, Zach? I mean it, scuzzy. What do you want to do with your life?" The detective swipes his arm with renewed vigor, shaking away the numbness consuming him. A long arc of chi charges forward, attempting to cut Zach once again, with greater force.
"KASANE ATE!"
COMBATSYS: Zach fails to slow Kasane Ate from Daniel with Pile Smash.
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Zach 0/-------/-======|=======\====---\1 Daniel
Zach regains his feet, kicking himself for allowing Daniel to get inside his head like this. He eyes Daniel warily. Then it comes.
There is a time, in any given fight, where the flow of the whole thing hinges. Where, if you can seize control of it, then you can ride that flow in any way you like. It is only fitting, in this fight, that it comes down to a single technique. One shared, after a fashion, between both men. Even if one of them could never /truely/ execute the legendary Kasane Ate.
Daniel's arc comes in. Zach, for his part, throws a sharp downward hook. The 'traditional' method of bringing forth the technique doesn't fit Zach's motif. Where Daniel brings in a shimmering arc of power, Zach summons up three tightly focused sheets of Soul Power. The two energies collide, and Zach is thrown to the ground once more.
Zach regains his feet quickly, rapidly assessing and reassessing the situation. He considers Daniel's likely angles of attack, his own possible responses. The psion does, and considers, many things.
One thing he does NOT do is answer Daniel's question; there's a fight on. Zach had forgotten that.
Pile Driver.
The stolen technique of Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu. Daniel Jack . But the detective has become the master of the three techniques of Todoh-Ryuu Kobojutsu: The Grapples, The Combination Strikes, and Kasane Ate. That last one is what ultimately brings the detective over the edge; the skilled form of the Pile Driver, as Zach knew it. Chi meets Psycho Energy, and in the end... Daniel overcomes the energy. But there is no smug grin on his face, no air of arrogance of showing Zach a lesson. Instead, Daniel Jack shakes his head.
"You will never learn."
"I'd thought you would have matured since we last fought!" The detective states firmly, crossing his arms in the rain. "What did you expect, Zach? Beating me would have inspired you to some sort of glory? Reopening old rivalries would bring you meaning in your life? I fought not because I need to fight you, Zach. I fought because, well, the same reason I would fight Rust. I would fight Marz. I would fight the whole of the Kyokugen Dojo. It isn't about petty diferences."
"It is about brotherhood."
Daniel Jack uncrosses his arms, charging himself up as he winds back a fist. "Fighting for the sake of fighting... it is not a way of life. But the friendships built from fights... that is something to live for. I will teach you something that you have mocked; that is mocked by many. So little understand the wisdom of Todoh, because they see only a selfish, senile old man! I have seen the ways of Todoh, and the ways of Kasumi. I have seen the art from the eye of someone outside that wacky family. If you wish to find what you want in life..."
"Then I must destroy all pretenses left in your heart.
"It is time." The detective states calmly, his fist now a roaring fire of chi. "You will find what you want in life, Zach. One way or another...." Daniel Jack takes a deep breath, and approaches his rival, his old friend. The detective murmurs the beginning of the attack, enough so Zach will hear, and know. ".... Fantastic..." He begins, closing in on Zach. There would be many chances for Zach to interrupt. To prepare. To begin it, to end it. ".... Todoh!!!...." The detective unleashes the fist, driving back the rain with explosive force, attempting to blast Zach with the same force that Daniel knew from the rival. It may strike. It may be stopped. And Zach may ultimately avoid it. But Daniel knew, in his heart, that it truly did not matter. He came into this fight to see Zach again.
And in the end, that is all that matters.
"PAAAAAAAAAAUNCH!!!!"
COMBATSYS: Zach blocks Daniel's Fantastic Todoh Punch.
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Zach 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Daniel
Zach's eyes narrow at Daniel's speech. His face twists into a scowl. However, he doesn't rise to the verbal prodding. This allow the psion to prepare. He doesn't try to end the fight, not just yet. It is too soon. However, Zach also know he cannot take that punch squarely.
So he doesn't.
Zach crosses his arms, placing both forearms between his chest and the incoming punch. Even that won't be enough, Zach thinks, and so he summons up a layer of Soul Power to butress the arms. Daniel's fist, and the chi, slam into this prepared guard. Steam and rain are thrown about in equal measure as Zach slides back on his heels for several feet.
When the mists clear, Zach has his right hand tucked in close to his chest, the arm oddly rotated. "You don't know me nearly as well as you think you do," Zach says without any malice. "My fights, all of my fights, are not just with the person in front of me." Zach steps forward, twisting at the hips as he drives the right straigh punch out from his shoulder. The whole arm rotates, adding piercing force to the blow. Mixed in with the pure technique driving the punch is a spiraling flow of Soul Power, like a whirlpool.
Or perhaps a drill. "I also fight myself."
"HEARTBREAK SHOT!"
COMBATSYS: Daniel dodges Zach's Heartbreak Shot.
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Zach 0/-------/-------|===----\-------\0 Daniel
Daniel Jack's punch strikes with soul-shattering force. Chi meets Psi again, as the detective brings forth wave after wave from within. Ultimately, though, Zach chooses to block the attack. The detective, recovering swiftly from the blow, crosses his arms as he looks upon Zach with an ever-strengthing presence. Despite how broken the psycho-energy made his body, the true resolve of Todoh kept pushing him along. No malice sat with Daniel, but only pure intensity. As Zach winds up his own punch, the detective looks down the barrel of a Soul Power gun. The drilling energy of the Heartbreak Shot launches forth, as Daniel....
As Daniel sidesteps.
The detective isn't even clear what happened. One moment Daniel was there, and the next, he had moved cleanly to the side. His arms were even still cross. Perhaps the wisdom of Todoh wasn't just bluster; perhaps the detective truly was channeling the mysterious arts of the Wandering Ryuhaku. Uncrossing his arms, the detective's face remains unchanged. Dropping into the stance of Aikido, Daniel unleashes the first palm strike. As his left hand lashes out, the detective finally speaks, answering Zach calmly with utmost seriousness..
"How can you fight for yourself, when you don't even know who you are."
The detective unleashes his right hand in a hand chop.
"How can you fight for yourself, when you don't know where you will go."
The detective turns, thrusting in his left elbow.
"I believe you are right, scuzzy. Your fights are not with your opponent before you..."
The detective swings around, unleashing a backwards mule kick with his right leg.
"But only with yourself."
COMBATSYS: Daniel successfully hits Zach with Zoot Suit Riot.
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Zach 0/-------/-----==|====---\-------\0 Daniel
The psion does not respond. The Heartbreak Shot goes wide, fails to connect. Zach, quite simply, gets pummeled. He's winded, battered, and his body simply is not moving the way he would prefer it to.
"Not true," Zach says as he keeps his feet through sheer force of will. "I'm Zach Glen. Fighting psychic, for all that entails." That, at least, is fundamentally accurate; Zach's fighting career has been short and intense, and in many ways defined by the energies at his command.
Zach throws one last punch, something between a hook and an uppercut. Like the rest of Zach's punch, the form is sound, if giving the tells of a strike only recently learned and relentlessly honed. There is, of course, an explosive gout of soul power at the end of the punch.
Zach does not keep his feet for long, regardless of whether or not the punch connects. He slumps to his knees, then to his side. The medics are already on the move.
COMBATSYS: Zach can no longer fight.
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Daniel 0/-------/---====|
COMBATSYS: Daniel dodges Zach's Dynamite Punch.
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Daniel 0/-------/---====|
As the final kick lands, the detective takes his time to find his center again. And yet, his stony face remains unbroken. "Fighting psychic? If that is all that defines you, then you are no better than Vega! Than the dolls! If you make yourself out to be nothing more than a weapon, then that is all you will be good for. Until you burn up... or burn out." As the final punch is unleashed from the psion, the detective hurls off his orange jacket, drenched from the rain. The jacket buys him distance, buys him a fake target. As the punch piles through his suit coat, it tears it apart, ripping it to shreds.
But the detective was clear away.
Daniel Jack stands tall, his body still numbed by the psycho energy. The burns of the strange psychic force would not heal easily. But as the judges come out with the medics, the detective just stands. "Winnar! Daniel Jack!" Was the call from the judge. Daniel Jack shakes his head, turning around to leave. However, the detective halts, as the medics rush to Zach's aid. Not knowing if the psion can hear him or not, Daniel Jack turns around, remembering the words of wisdom from the mouth of Kasumi Todoh herself.
"... Come back... when you grow up."
COMBATSYS: Daniel has ended the fight here.
Log created on 21:22:49 04/02/2012 by Zach, and last modified on 21:57:51 04/04/2012.