Neo League 976 - #981: Adon vs Zach

Description: Zach Glen faces off against the braggadocious Adon. Zach does not fight for justice, nor for revenge, but by his own will. Adon proves that it's not bragging if you can really do it. (Winner: Adon.)



What a terrible night to have a JAGGA.

The doors of the gothic castle swing open on this dark, foggy night deep in the Transylvaniann Mountains. Stepping out into the courtyard of the ancient castle, the Emperor of Muay Thai emerges from the depths of the keep. Weeds and moss overtake the grounds of the courtyards, tearing up the cobblestone of the grounds.

And tonight, it would be the site of a fated Neo-League battle.

Adon was dressed in his anklet and crown, his well-browned muscled form of the Emperor reaching the center of the castle grounds. There, amongst the aged stone walls, he crosses his arms. "So. Zach Glen." He states, calling out into the darkness, into the fog. "It has come to my ATTENTION that you has a VENDETTA against me."

"Do TELL me what wonderful way I did WRONG you."

Zach stretches out as he walks into the arena, pulling one arm across his chest by the elbow before doing the same with the other. "Me?" Zach asks with faux innocence. Golden energy slides along his frame as he keys himself up for the fight.

"You didn't really wrong /me/, specifically," the psion says as swings both arms in front of him, then back. On the back swing, his left hand calmly reaches behind him and pulls a unusual looking wakazashi from behind his back. "On the other hand," he says, as he draws the blade. Violet trim and highlights play along the length of the weapon, taking on an odd sheen. "You seem to have gone out of your way to piss off as many people as you can."

The golden light of Zach flows across the violet of the sword, throwing off a cascade of light. When it dies down, Zach is wearing a pair of metal and leather guantlets that look fairly high-tech despite the apparent lack of any power source. Zach... has that covered. "Some people bounce back from that kind of thing quicker than others," Zach says slowly, keeping a tight rein on his anger as he settles into a Detroit Style boxing stance, left hand low and cleched while the right hand hovers in the middle of the L shape made by the left arm. "One of them," he says coldly, "Won't /ever/ recover, becuase he's dead." Zach frowns, energy rolling and folding over him. "But I don't want you to misunderstand. I'm not /here/ to do anything so lofty as 'deliver justice,' or so base as 'get revenge.'"

Zach grins fiercely as he charges Adon almost before the bell stops ringing. "I'm just here to kick your ass six ways to Sunday!" The psion gets into range with blinding quickness, leaping just high enough to throw a right hook at the side of Adon's head. The punch by itself is sound in technique. The weight of the gauntlets, along with the considerable pop of Soul Power behind the whole thing just make it worse!

COMBATSYS: Zach has started a fight here.

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Zach             0/-------/-------|


COMBATSYS: Zach equips Violet Miraitou.

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Zach [E]         0/-------/-------|


COMBATSYS: Adon has joined the fight here.

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Zach [E]         0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0             Adon


COMBATSYS: Adon blocks Zach's Hook Punch.

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Zach [E]         0/-------/-------|=------\-------\0             Adon


He had toys now.

Adon glares across the way, eyes dead focused on Zach as he makes his entrance. Certainly, that swagger meant the confidence of youth. But Adon only smiles. To hear Zach's pain. To hear his anger. To hear his vow of vengeance. The armor looks powerful. His weapons look powerful. And his motives were powerful

And to all that, Adon only laughs.

"KYAHHAHAHAHHA!" Came the shrill cackle as he swiftly falls to his guard. Too fast to dodge, the Emperor is content to block the blows with his powerful limbs. The gauntlets brought more power, yes. But Adon was like a man of marble, not of flesh. Easily defending against the punch, the soul power sears his limb, numbing the nerves. The Emperor does not show any pain.

Only that twisted sneer.

"Get Revenge? My, has the man-child finally had his BALLS drop?" The Jaguar mocks, forcing back Zach's reckless assault. "You are swearing revenge over Quon's suicide? What RUBBISH. What STUPIDITY. You might as well BLAME ME for the SUN RISING and the TIDES FALLING!" The Emperor lurches in with stunning speed, opening with a jab with his fist. A stunning hit, naturally, for the true assault: Leaping on to Zach's torso, mounting it with his knees. Should he make the grab, he will draw up both of his elbows...

And begin to smash in the Psycho Warrior's face.

COMBATSYS: Adon successfully hits Zach with Fierce Punch.

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Zach [E]         0/-------/---====|=------\-------\0             Adon


Zach smirks as Adon charges in. Missing the point to posture, yell, brag. Realization is starting to set in. Zach gets almost literally mauled by Adon, elbows crashing into Zach's head. If he had thought about it, if Adon was CAPABLE of thinking about it, might realize that attempting to give the explosive psychic a concussion might be a really bad idea.

"Man," Zach says softly after the barrage wears down. "You really don't pay attention, do you." Zach has definitely suffered some abuse just now. A knot is already starting to form on his brow, while a cut on his cheek leaks blood. "All I am here to do," Zach says, even still in that prone position, pulling his right fist away. "Is kick your ass."

Zach throws the fist forward, launching a sphere of Soul Power directly at Adon. While Adon is dealing with that, Zach climbs to his feet. "I'm not doing this for anyone. Not even Quon. I'm doing this by my own will!"

COMBATSYS: Adon dodges Zach's Blast Punch.

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Zach [E]         0/-------/--=====|=------\-------\0             Adon


Adon might consider giving Zach a concussion could be a bad idea.

On the other hand, why would he ever feel threatened by another fighter?

As the barrage of face smashes slow down, the Emperor keeps close. Keeping his legs tight on the boy, he was energetic as ever. "KEEK my ASS?" The Emperor asks, leering wildly at the fighter. "You think YOU are ANY DIFFERENT from the COUNTLESS PEOPLE I have FACED? I have hurt HUNDREDS, if not THOUSANDS of FEELINGS, and through it all, I do not CARE! If ALL you have done is to FIGHT for yourself, then LET me get you a TAMPON and a TISSUE, you SNIVELING CHILD-LIKE -WOMAN!-'

And promptly, he places his hands on Zach's shoulders.

The Emperor pushes as the blast comes. It was a close dodge; the Emperor had taken a risk going in close quarters. Flipping himself over Zach, he handstands high over the boy, the Psycho Energy surges past. He was still inside Zach's circle. This was damn dangerous. Continuing his maneuver over Zach, he finally plants his feet on the ground behind Zach, grip tightly on the boy's shoulders. "Your WILL is DISAPPOINTING ME THEN!" Getting his footing, he begins to pull. If Zach doesn't break the hold, he will use the momentum to hurl him across the courtyard, right towards the rusted metal fencing of the garden.

All with a shrill cackle.

COMBATSYS: Zach interrupts Jaguar Carry from Adon with Mirai Blade.

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Zach [E]         1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0             Adon


Zach /lets/ Adon make the grab. The psychotic kick-boxer fails to realize something: in that close? Zach has a number of advantages. The first being that he does not need as much room to throw a punch.

"Well," the psion says sarcastically, "I'd hate to disappoint." Soul Power surges through Zach's body, flowing into his right hand even as Zach throws the upward straight into Adon's jaw! "I don't care how many you've trampled," he says honestly. A second later, a katana easily as wide as Zach's body and made of golden energy erupts from the ground to hurl Adon across the arena. "It didn't then, and it didn't now."

"Because I know what's driving you, now."

Adon falls for the trap.

The explosion of Soul Power tears through the Emperor from beneath his feet, interrupting his own hurl of Zach. Only managing a half-hearted throw, the Emperor is launched far across the battle. The boxer was STILL dangerous with his psycho energy. When Adon hits the stone wall of the keep, he doesn't even feel it, the psycho energy numbing his entire body. There were dangers with dancing with Zach in close range, the Emperor considers.

But he wasn't going to win this fight by keeping

"What DRIVES me?" The Emperor asks in disgust. "What DRIVES ME is to PROVE not only MY STRENGTH, but the whole STRENGTH of MUAY THAI! Sagat is THROUGH with MUAY THAI, at least THROUGH as far as I am concerned. He believes MUAY THAI is to better oneself! I believe ONESELF should BETTER MUAY THAI!" Bolting across the courtyard, Adon blazes with the stunning agility of Muay Thai. As he finally closes in on Zach, he bounds through the air once more.

And attempting to latch on to Zach once more.

Trying to force a clinch onto Zach, it is the same Adon tactics as before. Close in tight, and unleash the limbs of Muay Thai. This time, this was a thrusting knee, aimed right for Zach's groin. Attempting to pummel the poor boy's groin, Adon would shift his grip, trying to seize the sword. He does not try to take it from Zach, no. But he would try to control it as he attempts to slam Zach right down to the ground.

Right into his own sword.

COMBATSYS: Zach dodges Adon's Jaguar Slam.

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Zach [E]         1/------=/=======|======-\-------\0             Adon


The sword, a construct of pure Soul Power, evaporates as soon as its job is done. Zach eyes Adon's arc carefully and at the last moment, when the Jaguar commits to his move, and slips to his left. Adon will quickly find that he doesn't have a hold on Zach, despite his efforts.

Zach skips back several steps, keeping a tight stance as smirks at Adon. "Look at you," Zach says. "Yelling, bragging, boasting as if you're something great and fearful." Zach tilts his head to the side slightly as more of that bright amber power slides up from the ground and around Zach. Granted, it doesn't come from the earth at all, but appearances do matter in some cases. "Almost like a three year old whose mother won't look at what they are doing."

Dust flits away from Zach, carried on a psychic breeze as the psion continues. "You've been rejected. Found unworthy. And it eats you up. /Tears/ at you. You don't know how to handle it, but to throw a huge fit. You took you pain out on Quon Chen, and you take it out on everyone you can." Zach smirks. A cruel grin splits the psion's face. "I'd /laugh/, if it weren't so pathetic."

COMBATSYS: Zach gathers his will.

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Zach [E]         1/--=====/=======|======-\-------\0             Adon


Bitterness.

Missing the boy completely, the Emperor stands. Anger ran through him. But as Zach insults him... the anger seems to fade. Sneering, he looks at the boy. Listening. Chest puffed out. Only a few weeks ago, those would drive like knives in his heart. "Look at me? Zach, if you had confronted me BEFORE the Tournament, before Quon's suicide, you might have meant something. Truly, I brag because I grounds to bragging. Or had grounds. I have been rejected, I have been found unworthy. It HAD devoured me."

"But Zach Glen, you are -late-"

The Emperor's grin does not break. His composure does not break. "I spent a full week rotting in a hospital. That was soon followed being sandwiched between Athena and Mukai. But there is one thing you don't understand, Zach. QUON chose to abandon you all, to abandon SAGAT! It is no secret that Sagat and I have only the ILLEST BLOOD between us. Yet, as the entire SUICIDE and MURDER hung around my neck, the titanic BUFFOON gave me the WORST INSULT he could have given!"

"He stood UP for me, against PEOPLE like YOU!"

"SAGAT, despite his UTTER ABANDONMENT to MUAY THAI, sought to DEFEND ME! How DISGUSTING. How TERRIBLE. And yet..." The Emperor takes pause. "How HONORABLE.

"That I had TRULY lost sight of MUAY THAI."

Adon uncrosses his arms, lowering himself to a pounce. "To FIGHT for GLORY? To FIGHT for the SCREAMS of the AUDIENCE? To INDULGE in the FRUITS of being the EMPEROR? Worth NOTHING if you cannot defend the HONOR of MUAY THAI. I fought for the WORTHLESS opinions of clods and clowns. I fight for the BETTERMENT of MUAY THAI, until I cannot serve MUAY THAI no more. And when that happens? What does the man who is truly alone fight for?

"He fights for himself, Zach."

Adon leaps through the air, flipping forward. Heel coursing with chi energy, he raises it high. Dropping the heel straight towards the forehead of the Psion, he howls the name of the attack, crying out across the castle courtyard.

"JAGGA KEEK!"

COMBATSYS: Adon successfully hits Zach with Jaguar Kick.
- Power hit! -

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Zach [E]         2/<<<<<<</<<<<<<<|=======\-------\0             Adon


Zach's eyes narrow. He was off. Only in his timing, but still off and not even completely. Adon is still throwing something of a tantrum.

Adon is also throwing one hell of a chi-laden kick right at his skunion! The crack of impact can be heard through the venue, drawing a hush among the crowd. Adon got some /great/ feedback from that kick; it almost certainly would shut Zach up, if it didn't take him out of the fight completely.

Zach is sent flying into the rusty fence, kicking up a cloud of fine brown dust as he wobbles unsteadily for a moment. However, when the dust clears out enough for Adon to see Zach...

...not only is Zach still standing, but still has a burning gaze locked on the would-be Emperor. A wide stripe of crimson splits the psychic's face in two. "And yet," Zach says hoarsely as he fights through the ringing headache, "Here you are, trying to tear down everyone who even thinks of showing themself in front of you." Zach wipes a gloved palm across his forehead, cleaning the blood off if only temporarily.

"It's good, though," Zach says as he snaps his right hand out to the side. Flecks of blood whip off of the gauntlet. "Dedicating yourself to something, it's never easy." A tiny speck of Soul Power emerges from the lifted palm, hovering about three inches from Zach's hand. "Though again, I think you misunderstand me." Soul Power floods up Zach's arm and into the sphere, which starts to spin in place. "If I really wanted to get you for Quon's death, Sagat would not have been enough to stop me." Zach takes a step towards Adon as the sphere grows a bit. The sphere follows Zach perfectly, growing and spinning at an increasing rate.

"If you really want to prove Muay Thai is the best," Zach says as the sphere sinks slowly into the open palm, fingers curling around it almost tenderly even as it continues to rotate in his grip. "Then meet your opponents with the pride you've shown me here."

This done, the energy gathered and molded into shape. "My only request," Zach says loudly, "Is that you also consider the pride of your opponents." Zach's pace, at first slow, quickens. "Just as you stake your pride in Muay Thai," Zach roars, "I stake mine in my soul!" Zach charges, almost flying the distance between himself and Adon as he chambers a right straight. The sphere of Soul Power Zach holds warps with its frenzied rotation, resembling a drill.

Zach adds to this a legendary power: the corkscrew blow. Technique and psychic energy merge into what may be Zach's true Ultimate Technique as he powers that corkscrew straight directly at Adon's chest!

"HEARTBREAK SHOT!"

COMBATSYS: Adon endures Zach's Heartbreak Shot.

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Zach [E]         0/-------/---====|=======\====---\1             Adon


The blow, hitting right the eyes, is shattering. A clean hit. A powerful hit. A hit, more important to the Emperor, that created another opening. But as he lands again, Zach is stepping in. Glaring into the eyes of his opponent, Adon's eyes open wide. And to the psion, he roars back, spitting at his opponent.

"PRIDE?"

The Emperor cackles shrilly. "I understand you TOO WELL, Zach. You are staring into a mirror, but JEER at how HIDEOUS your reflection is. You TRIED to tear me down, as I tried to tear you down. That is the way of the ring, the way that Quon could never understand. The way that you are beginning to understand. In a fight, you should tear your opponent down. You should never hold back in defeating them. If they come in arrogant? Then you must knock them down, just as you tried to be with me. I am too similar to you?"

"Why, you are too similar to me, Zach."

The Emperor tense his entire body, crossing his arms before him. Body flexing, he prepares his body. He could have tried to dodge. He could have blocked. Why, he could have punched the attack right out of Zach. But he had to show him how much power he had. How much STRENGTH he still kept. The blast consumes Adon, the punch driving him back through a cloud of debris. Dust hangs in the air, concealing the fallout of the blast. And through the cloud, a question rises above it all.
"Is that what you want to be?"

Adon stands firmly in place, already moving towards Zach as the dust clears. The question still hangs in the air, however. "You sound as if you wanted, you could kill me, Zach. That is so much more than what I could do, Zach. Do you want to be that? This isn't a question of being better than me, oh no. This is a question of WHAT you want to be better at. Hate? Vengeance? ARROGANCE?" The Emperor bounds through the air. "You are turning to me, Zach. You are consumed by your art, by your style. This is the path of being the strongest. You are forming your own school, I hear. Is that what you want to BE?"

"To be the EMPEROR of the THRONE you have BUILT?"

The Emperor flips again, a repeat of the last assault. The heel is raised again, burning with chi. Aiming to smash it into the bloodied forehead of Zach, he doesn't scream the name of the previous move. It is too obvious what this is, however, as he unleashes the second flip, and second heel drop. And the third. By the time the fourth comes, it is still aiming for that precise weak point, the precise point where Adon struck before. The first hit bloodied the skull, cracked it. Four more strikes there could nearly be lethal.

"JAAAAGGA REEEEEVOLVEEEEER!"

COMBATSYS: Adon successfully hits Zach with Jaguar Revolver.
~ Cruel hit! ~
-+- CALCULATED HIT -+-

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Zach [E]         1/----===/=======|===----\-------\0             Adon


Zach gets questions, pressing questions, from Adon. However, he doesn't have /time/ for answers right now. He's seen the move before, is well aware of just how quickly that kick will come down. He brings up both arms, an effort of will sliding into the limbs to help absorb some of the force.

The first kick slams down on his raised gaurd, and Zach drops almost immediately to his knees. Still, he has to grin. He got Adon to bring it all on. Zach feels like he still has enough to continue the fight, and starts to stand back up.

And then the second kick comes down. The only thing that saves Zach is that he hadn't dropped his guard just yet. Once more, he is driven to his knees. Pain screams through his whole body. Zach bites back a scream thanks to sheer willpower. He starts to rise a second time. He refuses to stand down.

The psion's arms are completely numb when the third kick crashes down, blasting the arms away. That it does not strike Zach's crown is nothing short of a miracle.

The fourth kick, however, does. The impact is just as thunderous as the first Jaguar Kick. Zach wobbles, but stays standing. Bleary eyes, one of which is already swollen shut, remain locked on Adon's gaze. "Emperor?" Zach says softly. He can't manage volume at this point; it takes all that he has to simply /stand/. "Wrong direction." Zach takes a weak step towards Adon, throwing out an incredibly slow jab. Even if it were to connect, it would not do any damage.

It was never meant to damage. It was meant to gage distance.

Soul Power surges once more around Zach, screaming into his right hand as the boxer dips into an astride stance. Zach is already pulling the jab back when he throws the three-quarters punch with his right hand, which is aimed at what Zach /thinks/ is Adon's jaw. Regardless of whether or not the strike actually /hits/, a detonation of Soul Power follows the end of the follow-through.

"Not an Emperor..." Zach says quietly, "A firm foundation."

With that, Zach falls to the ground face first.

COMBATSYS: Zach can no longer fight.

[                        \\\\\\  <
Adon             0/-------/----===|


COMBATSYS: Adon dodges Zach's Dynamite Punch.

[                        \\\\\\  <
Adon             0/-------/----===|


And soon, Zach yields to the assault.

The fourth kick seals the fight. Landing on the ground, the Emperor recovers. This was a close fight. This was a reflective fight. And like many fights with the psionic boxer, it was a fast one. And yet, Adon felt alive. His body was still burning from the psionic flare from before. The Emperor doesn't wish to risk another hit. The final jab comes, aiming for the Jaguar of Muay Thai's jaw.

But he isn't in the path.

The slow jab is parried by a sweep of the Emperor's arm. That jab would be nothing. But the Emperor senses the surging psionic force. Still grinning wildly, the Emperor swiftly sidesteps, his mind accurate, locked on the boxer. He keeps rotating around the boxer. Keeping on the move. He was dazed, confused. Zach couldn't track him. He couldn't fake him out. He would keep the agile repositioning...

Until the boxer finally collapses.

Adon throws open his arms, planting a foot upon Zach's hindquarters. "KYA HA HA!" Comes the cackle. "Not an EMPEROR! NEVER and EMPEROR! I! ADON! THE EMPEROR OF MUAY THAI! Have CLAIMED VICTORY over ZACH GLEN! AND THUS BEGINS MY WINNING STREAK TO CLAIM ALL OF THE NEO-LEAGUE ONCE AGAIN!"

"JAAAAAAGGAAAAAAA!"

COMBATSYS: Adon has ended the fight here.

Log created on 17:28:07 05/30/2012 by Zach, and last modified on 16:09:07 05/31/2012.