Description: In the second round of the Devil's Tournament, the wandering Ryu faces off against the former student of his rival Sagat. If Adon can pull out a win, it will mean a great personal triumph against both Sagat and Ansatsuken (and thus Ken), but it looks like Ryu has his own reasons to push for victory... (Winner: Ryu)
Reckoning.
The Emperor of Muay Thai binds his hands tightly with the sacred wrappings of a true Muay Thai warrior. Sitting in the locker room of the Mexico City International Fighting Arena, Adon broods, focusing his attention on the fight before him. Everything was in place now. He had Aranha disqualified, so Adon wouldn't risk a wild loss against such a minor player. Now wrapping his foot, the Emperor considers all that has brought him here to Mexico City. The Devil's Tournament was the venue, of course, but the Emperor was not drawn only for the money, nor for the dominance of another tournament. No, he had only one victim in his eyes.
Ryu.
Adon could still taste the last time the two had fought. The young World Warrior had entered the ring, and in one blow, had knocked Adon clean out. The Emperor rued and spit, but that was not the true insult. Finishing the bindings of his feet, he begins to place upon his head the crown of Muay Thai, and the Anklets of a true Emperor. Dressed as an Emperor, not unlike Sagat. Not unlike the former emperor, who fell to Ryu. Who fell, and in his shame, abandoned Muay Thai. Who still refuses Adon, like everyone refuses Adon. But no one would ever refuse the Emperor again, when he reclaims the jewel of Muay Thai, the true honor.
By defeating Ryu in fair combat.
The Emperor steps out off the hallway, swinging open the doors to the arena, where thousands upon thousands roar, cheer, boo, and hiss. The Emperor's eyes cast down the walkway to the center ring, raised above with four turnbuckle posts, and bordered with three taut ropes. That was where Adon knew that history would be made. As the crowd continues it's chaotic blend of hate and love for the Emperor of Muay Thai, the King begins to swagger towards the fighting ring.
Show time.
Meanwhile...
While his normally staid demeanor would never give a hint of it, Ryu is... frustrated. He'd hoped that there would have been SOMETHING after his bout with Maki, some sort of response, or indicator from the tournament organizers about the identity of the mysterious 'Akuma.' Other than a big (proverbial) pat on the back from the production staff, and of course the normal benefits that come with any fight -- an opportunity to practice, to refine, to learn -- there's been nothing. And it truly is information that Ryu craves now, some sort of answer to the growing unease within his heart. An unease that's beginning to affect him in ways he hadn't imagined, so far.
An all-you-can-eat buffet at a nearby tacqueria. He had two enchiladas, some mole and rice, and that was it. Considering the World Warrior's most bizarre public foible -- his endless appetite -- the bookies in the city who've had this information trickled down to them are starting to up Adon's odds in the various pools. After all, the Jaguar has an intense and personal reason to want victory over Ryu, and while the Wanderer loves a challenge, he keeps no real heated rivalries, with two notable exceptions. Everyone believes that Adon's pride and rage will drive him to new heights. Far from any fait accompli, in the eyes of the spectators this is very much anyone's game.
And whoa, are there spectators. The arena, expectedly, was once a bullfight arena... and perhaps still is one, though watching humans battle it out is often more exciting (and more humane to the bulls) in the long run. It is dusty, red-tan-brown sand and adobe brick rows of seating. And from one end of the arena, out into the center, steps Ryu. Barefoot, red hachimaki tails fluttering behind him in a wind befitting a desert faceoff of the Wild West style. Four embroidered characters blaze gold in the sun on his worn black belt: "Fuu Rin Ka Zan". Be as swift as wind, silent as the forest, fierce as fire, and solid as the mountain. Shingen Takeda's creed and banner, now repurposed by the Ansatsuken Wanderer.
When he reaches the center, he tightens his belt, faces forward, and nods. He doesn't need to speak. These two know who the other is and why they're there. And perhaps some part of him knows, if he starts talking now, Ryu might say something he'll regret.
"SO! The GREAT and CELEBRATED RYU has decided to show his FACE!"
The shrill scream of Adon pierces the air of the Arena, the Emperor twisting up his nose at the World Warrior. Approaching the ropes, he begins to duck and bow, showing his respects to the ring before pulling himself into the arena. Standing tall, he gazes at his opponent with fierce eyes. While Ryu held no aminosty, the Jaguar of Muay Thai only held pure spite for his opponent. "It has been MANY YEARS since we last faced off, Ryu! Since you last took the crown from my WASHED UP FOOL of a teacher, and brought SHAME to all of MUAY THAI! Now! I! ADON! The EMPEROR of MUAY THAI! Shall RETURN HONOR BACK to ALL of MUAY THAI, by CRU-"
And then, a cupcake lands in the arena.
The pink-frosted cupcake hits facedown by the Emperor's feet, catching the man's attention. From the audience, a loud faction hurl cupcakes from the front row, attempting to pepper the Emperor with the baked goods. Judging from their appearances, they were not locals. But the chant from the group, however, matches the large banner they were holding up high, directing their heckling right for the Emperor.
"'Your cupcake has been denied!'"
Whatever effect it had on the Emperor, it cut to the bone. Veins swelling, eyes turning bloodshot, the Emperor moves to the ropes, howling out at the crowd. "SHUT UP! SHUT UP!!! I! ADON! THE EMPEROR OF MUAY THAI! DEMANDS RESPECT! YOU CANNOT DENY ME MY RESPECT! I AM ADON! I AM THE EMPEROR! JAGGGGAAAA!" Clutching his head, Adon turns around, his face burning. "ENOUGH! I am not to be HUMILATED!" Throwing a finger pointed straight for Ryu, he screams, throwing down his challenge.
"I have NO TIME to mince words with YOU, RYU!"
Throwing up his arms, the Emperor puts forward the boxing stance of Muay Thai. Picking up on one foot, the Emperor readies his other leg, keeping it raised up to meet any low blows... or to erupt with a kick at any notice. A wild, manic grin spreads against his face, the Emperor who, in spite of his screams, had the arrogant sneer of pure confidence. Lashing out with a jeering tone, he nods at Ryu, howling out the final warning.
"PREPARE YOURSELF!"
Alright, that... doesn't make a lot of sense. Ryu makes no bones that this is his opinion of the sudden heckling of Adon. That the Muay Thai Jaguar doesn't have a lot of public friends is no surprise; he is abrasive, arrogant, and violent... not necessarily endearing qualities. Still, this sort of shenanigans doesn't seem like the sort of thing that one might expect in retaliation. And of course, the Wanderer doesn't even have a digital watch, let alone a smartphone, and he spends most of his time travelling from place to place in what most people would call 'the wilderness.' It's not like knows if Adon had DONE anything to deserve this.
And so impassively, he lets the drama play itself out, briefly shutting his eyes and taking a deep breath. The fight is going to demand everything, and so he must prepare to give all that the fight demands. It's a mindset, one cultivated on awareness and serenity. It certainly doesn't give a damn about cupcakes. But when his eyes open again, the Ansatsuken Wanderer glances at the tide of bakery sweets piled up around Adon's feet, then at the Jaguar.
Fortunately for Adon, Ryu has no reason to mock or vilify the New Emperor of muay thai. Instead he nods assent, saying clearly, "That's true. Words are just words. Express yourself with your fists." And then there's an almost impercetible shift; a half-step slide of one foot back, a bringing up on both hands, balled into fists, that says 'I'm ready.' "Whenever you are ready," Ryu says guardedly.
COMBATSYS: Ryu has wandered into a fight here.
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Ryu 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Adon has joined the fight here.
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Ryu 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Adon
For Adon, it made too much sense.
The last line of his infamous interview, lead by Ryu's fellow student, Ken Masters. The context was gone, of course, but Adon claimed that he would eat his cupcake. These... buffoons. These crass trolls were seeking to mock him for his greatness. Adon won that interview. He kept telling himself he won.. There was no reason for him to be ashamed of who he was, the Emperor of Muay Thai.
And yet, the shame pierced through.
At the least, Ryu proved himself an honorable opponent. But despite the respect that Ryu showed, it seemed to only enrage the Emperor more. It was one thing to face an opponent who loathed you. But one who did not care? That was the greatest insult. Eyes bloodshot, he gnashes his teeth with that mad grin. "Express myself? I AM but an ARTIST, showing my WORK in EVERY FIGHT! My fists are my brushes! And so, RYU...."
"Let me TURN your FACE into my CANVAS!"
Dropping his leading foot down, the Emperor launches forward. The Emperor tries to draw the first blood as he bounds like a jungle cat. Shifting his knee forward, he leads with a flying Muay Thai knee, attempting to drive the joint hard into the jaw of the World Warrior. Adon was trying to his Ryu as hard as his could. To punish him. To make him fear.
To make him react.
COMBATSYS: Adon successfully hits Ryu with Medium Kick.
- Power hit! -
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Ryu 0/-------/------=|-------\-------\0 Adon
It makes for a really great slowmo replay, that's for sure.
Riled up is not a state Ryu would want to face almost any fighter in. Given that this is Adon, who doesn't respond well to threats against his pride, well... it's no wonder what when Adon tries for his first, decisive knee strike, it breaks through the warrior's guard, slamming painfully into the side of his head, sending sweat flying and rocking Ryu's head back a considerable degree. That stung, even more than it might have normally. Turning back toward Adon, Ryu wipes a handguard-covered fist over his mouth, then narrows his eyes at the 'Emperor'.
This is going to be difficult indeed.
"I am glad to see... your spirit is unaffected," Ryu says, before deciding on his own attack. Twisting, pivoting almost at the wait (from outside appearance), the World Warrior surges forward, almost sliding, on one leg, while the other pistons forward like a battering ram, looking to deliver a vicious blow to Adon's stomach, one intended to separate the two fighters with speed.
COMBATSYS: Ryu successfully hits Adon with Joudan Sokutou Geri.
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Ryu 0/-------/-----==|===----\-------\0 Adon
"KYA HA HA HAAAA!"
The ecstatic cackles tear through the arena air as Adon lands that first hit. He broke through the guard. That in itself told the Emperor that he would have his cupcake. No longer would he be knocked out in but a single punch by the World Warrior. Ryu? Adon already felt that Ryu was old news.
But then the gi-wearing fighter rushes forward.
Having well overextended himself, Adon knew that he couldn't evade the blow. Body tightening, the Emperor begins to flex, letting his body turn akin to marble. Digging his heels down, the Emperor attempts to endure the oncoming blow. But despite his footing, Ryu showed that he was still as strong as ever, knocking the Emperor stumbling back. And yet, his grin was unbroken. Eyeing his opponent, he howls back. "MY SPIRIT?" The Emperor questions into a scream, before dropping his voice to a growl.
"My spirit is UNBREAKABLE."
His gaze fixes back on the fighter's jaw, having tasted blood with his opening blow. Sneering, he tumbles forward into a front flip. Heel raised high, the burning chi flares up on his foot. The Emperor twists as he moves forward, swinging the vertical heel drop into a nearly horizontal cut. The kick wasn't aiming for the man's body, no. Adon was aiming for that same hole in the defense he exploited before, the same weakness the Emperor had found. He was aiming for that jaw, another bone-shattering kick. And if Adon gets his way, bones may very well be shattered.
"JAGGA KEEK!"
COMBATSYS: Ryu blocks Adon's Jaguar Kick.
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Ryu 0/-------/----===|===----\-------\0 Adon
Sadly for the Muay Thai fighter, Ryu is not to be fooled a second time in a row. Ansatsuken is a supremely adaptable style and the Wanderer got where he is today by being able to shift focus in an instant, moving from offense to defense, flowing like water as the fight demands. In short, it means that Adon's attempt to land another blow on a sore spot finds a pair of red handguards in its path, the kinetic force of the blow mostly shifted aside. There's a leaden pause at the point of contact, and then a loud noise as a burst of air from the impact sends dust in the arena flowing away on all sides.
When the dust clears, however, Ryu appears in the center of the cloud, back in stance, unbroken and unbowed. His evaluation of Adon is now as it ever was, and a helpful reminder of the urges Ryu himself must avoid: the self at all costs, and victory at all costs. In his head, he can hear Gouken urging him to remember that in the fight, the self should fall away, leaving only the purity of action, and the call and response of battle.
"As I said before," Ryu says evenly, "words mean little here."
With that, he takes a confident step forward and attempts to get a grip on Adon's arm; if he can secure it, the World Warrior then smartly pushes his entire torso forward and down, judo-style, dragging the kickboxer with him and, if it all goes well, depositing him flat on the ground on his back.
COMBATSYS: Adon blocks Ryu's Medium Throw.
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Ryu 0/-------/----===|=====--\-------\0 Adon
"DAMN!"
Adon belts out a curse as the dust clears, his Jaguar Kick stopped cold by . By now, the crowd is chattering. For all expectations, the match was at a stand-still. Neither warrior had a clear advantage over the other. One clean hit was met with another clean hit, and now, back to Ryu's favor. Adon feels his arm gripped, and still grinning, he makes sure to look Ryu straight in the eye. Adon had no fear in his heart now.
The thrill of the fight had claimed him.
Tossed with the grace and perfection as expected from the Wanderer, the Emperor refuses to land flat on his back. Instead, he rolls with the impact, tumbling away from the point of impact. Rolling back up, the Emperor recovers, his body still sore from both the powerful punch, and to add to it, the throw. But with his body no longer tensed up like a piece of sinew, his predatory eyes were locked upon the World Warrior as he tumbles back up.
"And YET you still speak, Ryu!"
Swaggering back towards Ryu, the Emperor begins to pick up speed. "Why am I winning, Ryu? Is it because you are WEAK? Or maybe you are UNDERESTIMATING ME? Or perhaps you are simply an ARROGANT FOOL, holding back your TRUE STRENGTH?! Let me show you MY TRUE STRENGTH, the TRUE STRENGTH OF MUAY THAI!"
"JAGGAAAA!"
Roaring back into the Wanderer, the Emperor of Muay Thai hurls himself fiercely through the air. Leading with his knee once again, the Emperor curls back both of his elbows above his head. Should he make contact with Ryu once again, he would keep the pressure off his knee. Instead, he would use it as a pivot point, snapping both of his elbows downward into a vicious crunch into the top of the World Warrior's skull. The Emperor's strategy, it seemed, wasn't to wear down Ryu with body blows. Instead, he was aiming for critical hits; aiming to cripple Ryu, to deface him.
To insult him.
COMBATSYS: Adon successfully hits Ryu with Fierce Punch.
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Ryu 0/-------/--=====|=====--\-------\0 Adon
It's swift, and powerful; the blow hits home with no trouble. Certainly, the World Warrior feels it. But if Adon expects that such a blow is enough to cripple his opponent, he's got another thing coming, and's that's a fact; even with the closing of knee and elbow at the same point, Ryu has enough strength to shove Adon away and bring himself standing without much trouble. Again, his handguard-bedecked hand comes up and wipes a bit of sweat and blood from his mouth, but he's been dealt much worse blows. If anything, he knows that the best he can do is appear unfazed, let whatever flame is igniting Adon to burn itself out.
Still, the Jaguar's offense is... intense. There is something to be said for the fire that burns behind such words. But as for this being the Jaguar's 'true strength'?
"Such strength... might be beyond your reach," Ryu says carefully, bringing his hands together at waist-height, gathering a swirling blue ball of not-quite-fire that should be familiar to anyone watching this fight. No... in the Wanderer's opinion, Adon's true strength is barred to him by his obsessive focus on transient things. He's seen people -- knows one intimately -- that have perhaps found strength despite that, but Adon's not one of them. Sagat is living proof.
Hands thrust forward, palms out, and the roiling mass of chi that is the Hadou comes for Adon now, a return shot that is no longer testing the waters. Ryu's in the fight full-time, all doubt dispelled. "HADOUKEN!"
COMBATSYS: Ryu successfully hits Adon with Hadouken.
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Ryu 0/-------/=======|=======\=------\1 Adon
The crowd was now hushed, as the Emperor not only rolled with the last throw, but returned with another surge of power. The two fighters, blow by blow, were dead equal. The anti-Adon crowd continues their chant, however, trying to throw the Emperor off his game. Adon would not so easily be distracted though, his predatory edge cutting to the bone with those crushing elbow. Shoved back, his takes a second to wipe the spit from his mouth, ready to roll into him once again.
But then came the Hadouken.
The Emperor, arrogant, begins to twist away, trying to dodge the energy blast. But at this range, the Jaguar could not evade such a signature technique. Knocked across the ring, the Emperor screams, rolling across the ground. Adon was now slowed down, his relentless offense nubbed. Seething in pain, he stumbles up, glaring at the Wanderer with burning eyes. "You DARE dismiss my STRENGTH? How DARE YOU! The DEVIL'S TOURNAMENT is MINE! The HONOR of MUAY THAI will be RESTORED! And I ALONE will be the one to meet this MYSTERIOUS DEVIL, and when I defeat him as well..."
"I WILL BE THE GREATEST WARRIOR IN THE ENTIRE WORLD!!!"
Surging back across the ring, the flips forward again, screaming out fiercesomely as his heel once again ignites with that orange chi. However, Adon does not stop with just one. Flipping over again and again, the Emperor attempts to hammer away at the skull of the World Warrior. Ryu may find the opportunity to block such an obvious assault to the same place. But Adon's plan was to hit in the same weak place again and again. Ryu had a jaw strike, and a skull strike. Eventually, those head injuries would stack up. The confusion would settle in. And then, with the former champion disorenated.... Adon would close in with the coup de dat.
"JAGGA RE-VOLVER!"
COMBATSYS: Ryu endures Adon's Jaguar Revolver.
-+- CALCULATED HIT -+-
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Ryu 1/-----==/=======|-------\-------\0 Adon
Going berserk, attacking a weak spot over and over and over again, attempting to break the target utterly, physically and even mentally if those blows are to the head... certainly, that's one way of accomplishing victory. The name 'Jaguar' is well-suited to Adon: a rapid, savage predator that continues assault after assault, wearing the opponent down until they can do no more. But Adon's not the only person here with a purpose, and it may be that the Jaguar's grandstanding has finally made this match pull a sudden swerve despite Ryu's typically placid avoidance of too much trash talking.
Even as Adon advances, his words ring in Ryu's head: 'I WILL MEET THIS MYSTERIOUS DEVIL!' The Ansatsuken Wanderer is typically happy just to fight, to see new styles, to push his limits. And this fight has delivered, there. But some inner flame burns whenever he thinks about the mysterious name behind this tournament... some buried memory that is nothing but flashes of red and black, and the deep crimson character, barely visible through his tears, on the wall behind a man he had called father for so long...
Blow after punishing blow rains down on him. Time and time again the impact on his head makes the World Warrior want to simply pass out right there. But for the first time in a long time, the need for something PERSONAL is blazing bright in Ryu's heart. And so he stands his ground, bracing himself, for blow after blow after blow, until Adon has expended his fury. And then Ryu, head bowed, who should be broken and quiet, suddenly surges forward with a viciously swift, bone-shatteringly powerful uppercut to the center of Adon's stomach. If it connects, well...
COMBATSYS: Ryu successfully hits Adon with Shin Shoryuken+.
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Ryu 0/-------/-------|=======\-------\1 Adon
For a moment, once fist meets flesh, Adon can look down into Ryu's blazing eyes staring up at him with square-jawed ferocity, and hears the words of eerie calm in that moment before the stormfront arrives: "If you want to conquer the world, first conquer yourself."
And then he is rising, another uppercut, but this one to the bottom of Adon's *jaw* with a force that feels like it shakes the entire arena. "SHIN!" At last it finishes, the perfection of the technique that downed Adon's mentor, the coiled leap of the Dragon ascending skywards. The force is enough to separate the fighters by a considerable margin and, rising from the dust and into the air with the force of his own blow, Ryu ascends into the sky, his final cry of "SHORYUUUUUKEN!" echoing through a now-silent arena.
When the man in the white gi lands, he stares ahead blankly for a moment, and then slams his leg down, hand outstreched, into a horse stance, as if challenging the very gravity that drew the soaring Dragon back to earth.
Adon's shrill cackles fills the air. Blow after blow comes, the Emperor surging with the fire. He was young again. He was strong again. He truly was the Emperor of Muay Thai. He felt the greatest. He WAS the greatest. He would strike down Ryu. He would crush him. And then, he would hold him high. Make him his own. Make him his toy. Make him an example before all! And then, Sagat would truly see him as the true Emperor. The greatest. The screaming laughter continues, roaring out fiercely. "KYA HA HA! KYA HA HA! HA! HA! HA-"
But then, it stops dead.
The Emperor's eyes bulge bug-out as the punch connects. The laughter catches in his throat, the entire rundown stopping dead cold. Adon knew what this was. He felt it. That punch in the stomach. The World Warrior Tournament surges back to him. The audience. The younger gi-clad warrior. The Emperor only has enough time to mutter one word. Not a scream, not a howl. But a mutter. A gasp of terror.
"No-"
And the uppercut comes.
Adon is sent flying into the air, the uppercut connecting cleanly with the jaw. The grin is shattered, the smile knocked clean off. The jaw shatters, broken from the force. The Emperor is already limp as he reaches the apex of the uppercut. Adon doesn't even have any strength as he falls to the ring floor again, his body limp. His mind dead. Just like the World Warrior tournament. The flame dies, as it died so many years ago.
One Shoryuken.
Total Knock Out.
COMBATSYS: Adon takes no action.
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Ryu 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Adon can no longer fight.
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Ryu 0/-------/-------|
It takes a moment for this all to register, and not just for Ryu; the entire arena was holding its breath in the span of the past few seconds, which is all it took for Adon to unleash a hellish assault and Ryu to fire off his return shot. When it's all over, however, everyone lets out a breath they didn't know they were holding as a scream/shout/cheer/cry, the almost ghostly silent arena effectively exploding with sound. For his part, Ryu looks almost entirely unaffected by it, letting his brown-eyed gaze fixate on the Thai kickboxer for the moment.
The truth is that the young Ansatsuken warrior's emotions are conflicting. Part of him is repulsed by Adon; by the arrogance, the grandstanding, the tendency to unneeded violence and savagery. Yet at the same time, Ryu sees in the 'Emperor of Muay Thai' a thing that haunts all fighters of all levels of experience and wisdom: the desire to win, to prove one's skill, and to emerge victorious. "I can't feel disgusted by you," he says aloud, though nobody but himself may hear it in this din. "Not so long as there's that part of us we share. But for what it's worth," the Wanderer says, turning away and walking back out of the arena, "that means there's hope for you, doesn't it?"
By the time the reporters show up to grill the winner, he's already gone.
Log created on 19:44:14 05/04/2012 by Ryu, and last modified on 09:32:52 05/07/2012.