Description: When it comes to defense of his property, Kain doesn't cut corners. Even a warehouse that doesn't have any special importance is going to get some decent defenders when it's threatened. And there's plenty of threats to Kain's property in the Southtown harbor of late. But Mad Gear's Katana does not back down from a challenege! Possibly because he's not very good at calculating odds. A stubborn refusal to give up serves him well, though, despite charging into battle outnumbered, and refusing all help from his allies.
Southtown. Harbor District. 11 PM.
And too close to shore.
The foggy night was not serene, not silent. There were gunshots earlier. There was a specter of violence. There was a natural order in Southtown, a natural order in the Harbors. There was sometimes violence. There were sometimes guns. But nobody heard the guns. It was considered rude, if somebody heard the guns. Of course, it was rude to complain when you heard the guns. But the boys tried hard to make sure you never heard the guns.
But nobody was trying tonight.
There was a level of tension that was cutting through the fog. Good, hardworking night watchmen, well paid and well informed on the natural order of business in the docks, knew that this was outside that order. It was the 9th Street deal again. A bunch of sociopaths were on the prowl. But the good old boys would sort it out. No need for violence. No need for trouble. Just keep your head low, and stay out of the way.
That was, at least, what Mr.Takeshi was told.
Great heaving sobs comes an alleyway between warehouses. The source? A poor, uniformed night watchman. The reason? The six gangsters stomping down on him. Blow after blow comes, the six gangsters smashing with wooden bokken, kicking with steel-toed boots. The middle-aged Japanese man was bleeding now, oozing light as he writhes in pain. His body was bruised, his face swollen. But as one of the gangsters raises the bokken high... a shout erupts from behind them.
"ENOUGH!"
Emerging from the shadows, was a tall, bulky figure. Grabbed in the traditional wear of a true Samurai, the top was born of a kabuto, written with what seems to either be the kanji of 'shi', or the possible the kokoro of 'heart.' Beneath? A pair of blue jeans with tabi and geta over the feet. His face... well, it is impossible to describe his face, for his face is a mask, a terrible visage worthy of any true Samurai. At his hip was a pair of katana, the noble weapons of a true samurai warrior. The hulking form approaches the downed man. Looking at the gangster, he scoffs. "YOU FOOLS! Do you not know that this man is Japanese? He cannot understand you if you speak with curse words and fists, especially with your English language!" And there, the samurai lowers down on one knee, dragging upright their victim. Looking straight into the man's eyes, he begins to speak... in the elegant native tongue of the great Yamato nation.
<"Their warehouse where?! Please tell me where there is a warehouse that is protected of them!">
The man's eyes narrows violently behind the mask. The night watchman stares confused at the request, before pointing a feeble hand down the docks, towards a small, brick and mortar warehouse some ways from the dockside. A narrow path to it, a short walk towards it. Katana hurls down the man, drawing his swords as he strides the path. "It is there! Quickly! We must claim this in the name of Mad Gear!
"And in the name of Japanese honor!"
Inside the warehouse, there's an air of nervousness. Normally there'd just be two guys here, or one if he was particularly trustworthy. Just somebody to keep an eye on the place, scare off trespassing kids and call in backup if anything really goes wrong. Tonight, though, there are six men in place, a testament to the growing trouble in the city. Four of them sit around a crate, playing cards, but with weapons close at hand. The kinds of things that wouldn't raise too many eyebrows when seen on the docks; lengths of chain, crowbars and the like. One man in the restroom, taking a leak. And the sixth man is sitting on a crate, looking bored as he picks at his fingernails with a large knife, with a sawed-off shotgun sitting on his lap. He's a muscular man, and well over six feet tall. He doesn't look particularly bright at first glance, but even with the boredom on his face, his eyes still continuously rove around the room, sweeping the shadows.
They'd heard noises in the night; muffled by the fog and distance, but still disturbing. But they had their orders; they're to watch this warehouse, and protect all the shipments in it, but especially the ones with a certain destination marked on them. There are other watchmen for other warehouses, and none of these men are the kind to stick their necks out for others, anyway.
One of the card players throws down his cards with an expletive, leaning back and muttering to himself. Then another one smirks, glancing at the two remaining players. "All in." The large man, meanwhile, stops picking his nails, gazing toward the warehouse doors and frowning slightly. One meaty hand moves to lightly rest on the stock of the shotgun.
Who were they to question Katana?
The eccentric-dressed gangster from Mad Gear was hardly a veteren of the Syndicate, but was one of the most active and renowned of Mad Gear. It was his idea to break away from the others as they built up their defenses; that showed initiative. And besides, it was more fun to scout around and bust balls than it was to pound dirt and build up fortifications. Katana knew that. The night watchman writhes on the ground behind them as the six gangsters follow after Katana lead.
But unlike their leader, they were watching the shadows warily.
Katana himself wasn't shaking his focus. His mind was set on one thing: Find a warehouse of the rival gangsters, beat them up, and take their warehouse for his own. The plan? That was the plan. As he walks through the alleyway, he reaches the loading and unloading entrance, where a large garage door stands. Striding onwards with that expressionless resolve he walks up to the door.
And stops dead at the garage door.
He is staring in silence as the other six gangsters arrive. At the alleyway, they stop dead. They had not actually been informed on the details of Katana's plan, either. But they were keeping low at the alleyway. Keeping cautious. "What... what is he doing, dawg?" One of them asks. Another gangster brings a finger to his lips. "Shhh! Maybe he is listening, to hear who is around?" Katana simply grips his swords tightly. Gingerly, he backs up...
And then he charges the garage door.
The Samurai rips through the metallic garage door, swords crossed before him. As he breaks through, he stumbles, misstepping as he regains his foot. But his expressionless facade does not break. The mask looks up, staring at the six men... and he does nothing. He only readies his blades, and loudly announces, in real Japanese, an ultimatum to the six gangsters. <"I am the sword! Great warrior who lived until now! And, your shit all, are going to get slap without any honor in you!">
And Katana crosses his blades, daring the others to come at him.
COMBATSYS: Katana has started a fight here.
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Katana 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards has joined the fight here.
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Katana 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
There is a long, silent moment as the warehouse guards stare at Katana. A cigarette falls from one man's mouth and lands on the concrete floor. There's the sound of some hurried movement from the back room, as the guy in the bathroom tries to wrap things up and figure out what the hell is going on. Meanwhile, one of the poker players manages to sum things up. "What the fuck?"
Even the larger man spent some time staring at Katana in confusion rather than immediately going to beat his skull in. The armor, for one. And then trying to figure out what he actually just said. But really, his intentions are clear enough. And so the large man frowns, tightening his grip on the shotgun and bringing it up in one smooth motion to point at Katana. He's definitely not getting paid enough to put up with this crap. And then he pulls the trigger.
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards successfully hit Katana with Huge Thrown Object.
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Katana 0/-------/-----==|-------\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
Oh dear.
The Samurai attemps to deflect the bullet with his blade. And from the sound of the ping, he does exactly that. A single pellet of the shotgun is sent flying away, ricocheting off the wall and striking off the wings of a distant gnat, non-lethally. Probably. However, the rest of the buckshot catches him HARD. Knocked flying backwards, he is sent flying through the garage door, smashing through a new hole. Landing outside on his back, his swords scatter outside the warehouse. The six gangsters are on the move. "Come on, boss! Get up! How many are there! We can probably take them-"
"NO!"
Katana slams his fist on the concrete, as he sits straight up. His expressionless gaze is forces on the six men that came with him. "A true samurai warrior has no need for assistence against a worthy foe!" The samurai explains as he rises back up. Immediately collecting his blades again, he takes a deep breath in, and raises them up. "I am not Damnd! I am not even the honorable Rolento! I am Katana! Master Samurai of the Mad Gear!" The Samurai begins to charge the door again.
"And I am immune to bullets!"
The samurai explodes through the garage door again, ripping through a brand new hole. He roars again, ignores the blood seeping from underneath his Kabuto. <"Your gun does not affect me! I'm a master samurai! And, I also request that you speak to me in Japanese!"> He bellows furiously... while not slowing down. He continues to keep charging, as if he was an unrelenting train. 6'7 of pure muscle comes bearing down on the larger man, attempting to catch him with his crossed blades. If successful, he will KEEP running, dragging him along the ground, as he tries to smash through the card table. Katana may be dumb.
But he is damn dangerous.
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards blocks Katana's Daikyou Burning.
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Katana 0/-------/-----==|==-----\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
Well, the shotgun was not really intended to have to be fired more than once. The guard tosses it aside, shifting his grip on his knife as Katana comes barreling toward him. He actually manages to get his knife in the way of one of Katana's blades, disrupting his attack, but it doesn't keep him from getting pushed backwards, eventually slamming right into the makeshift card table. The poker players scramble out of the way, collecting their weapons as their larger friend works to extricate himself from the shattered crate.
One of the guards growls, hefting his crowbar. "Had a damn full house!" And then all four of them start laying into Katana with their varied weapons. Probably they should pay some attention to Katana's associates, but well, he's right there. Meanwhile, granting Katana's wish, the larger guard, who actually is Japanese (not always the case, as Southtown supports a quite multicultural criminal element) is cursing in Japanese as he gets back to his feet.
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards successfully hit Katana with Gang-Up Beating.
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Katana 0/-------/-======|===----\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
In Katana's mind, everyone from Japan is Japanese!
Someday, HE would be from Japan.
And then he would be Japanese too!
The Mad Gear gangster catches the kn- I mean, the tanto with his own katanas, and while he doesn't get a full hit, he at least manages to smash on through. As his victim screams in Japanese, however, he begins to squirm excitely. "HAI! HAI!" He cries out in glee. This was JUST like his animes!
And promptly, the Samurai begins to get wailed on from all sides.
"GAH!" He exclaims in pain, as he feels them smashing not his armor, as they are supposed to, but his legs. His poor, exposed legs. "WHAT DISHONOR!" He exclaims, before correcting himself. <"WHAT DISGRACE!"> He exclaims in the proper language.
And finally, he breaks from the big man.
Winding back his arms, he begins to hack around him violently, wildly. His finesse in the swordsmanship... was not. However, those blades were well taken care of, and they were very well and sharp. A whirlwind of chops, he attempts to tear into each of the four of them, or at least, drive them off his back.
"HIKEEBA!"
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards blocks Katana's Fierce Strike.
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Katana 0/-------/-======|====---\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
The swords are, indeed, very sharp. Luckily for the guards, though, they are all actually armed. And while a crowbar, for instance, may not be nearly as refined and graceful a weapon as Katana's swords... it's still a thick piece of steel. Though there are some impressive sparks flying from the impacts, and a few shouts of pain as some arms get cut up. It doesn't slice the guards to ribbons, but the flurry of attacks does serve the purpose of getting them to step back for a moment.
At least, until the largest of them lunges at Katana, attempting to grab him from behind and lock both of his arms. Big as he is, Katana is still bigger, and he probably can't hold onto him for too long... but while these men may be thugs, complete idiots don't tend to last too long in an organization run by someone like Kain, nor do cowards. So one of the men takes the opportunity to come swinging in with his prybar for Katana's midsection.
Meanwhile the man who was in the bathroom has stepped out far enough to see what's going on, then quickly ducked back behind some crates. He thinks for a few moments, then begins climbing up to the catwalk, moving as quietly as he can. All the shouting and things being struck is helping in that regard.
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards successfully hit Katana with Hold and Punch.
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Katana 1/-----==/=======|=====--\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
The other Syndicate gangsters begin to regret their night time adventure.
Peering in from a safe distance, they could see Katana getting wailed upon by the gangsters within. One of them mentions to the other. "We outnumber them, why would we NOT help him out?" The other one? Just shrugs.
Of course, none of them help Katana out as he grabbed from behind.
"WHAT?!" He exclaims as his sword arms are each grabbed. Wrenched behind, he begins to twist and struggle as the other gangster begin to pound into his small exposed portion of the gut. "So this is how a true ninja like Guy feels!?!" He exclaims, a moment of clarity overcoming him.
Well, a proper ninja could slip out of a grab like this.
Katana slips out of the grab, ripping free from the grapple... and diving straight for the crowbarred gangster. Both swords swipe forward, but not to simply cut him in half. Instead, he attempts to catch the man with the swords. If successful, he will leap up into the air, before slamming them down into a piledriver.
A SWORD Piledriver!
COMBATSYS: Katana successfully hits Warehouse Guards with Butsumetsu Buster.
# Disabling hit! #
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Katana 1/----===/=======|=======\-------\1 Warehouse Guards
The crowbar goes clattering to the ground as the guard gets caught by the swords, and then dragged up into the air, shouting. And then he gets slammed, hard, into the concrete floor and goes limp. The remaining guards take quick steps back from Katana, one of them uttering a "Holy shit!" Katana does look intimidating after all, and while they thought they were getting the best of him, they're having second thoughts now that he's shown them just what he can do. The big guy is just frowning, but the other three are looking kinda nervous.
Other three? Wait, what about that guy who was in the bathroom? Right, about that... having managed to make it up onto the catwalk, he circles around to get to a position above Katana, takes a brief glance down to check on the relative positioning of his buddies... and then gives a heavy kick to the crate on a top of a tall stack, causing the whole thing to wobble and then send the top several crates toppling down toward Katana.
COMBATSYS: Katana catches Huge Thrown Object from Warehouse Guards with Kasumi Breaker.
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Katana 0/-------/----===|=======\-------\1 Warehouse Guards
The gangsters outside -wince-
"Uh, maybe he doesn't need our help?"
The samurai takes up the man, and executes him with one of his signature wrestling moves. Whirling his blades around once, he turns to face the guards, his mask... expressionless still. The big guy doesn't back down though. He begins to approach, swords ready in each hand... And he hears the sound overhead. The crates. He looks up.
And Katana focuses.
Time stands still.
He comes in tune with the warehouse interior. A deep breath in. A deep breath out. He could feel the singularity of the universe around him. He could feel it. The moment of enlightenment. He had reached flawless serenity. He knew immediately what he had to do with this moment of absolute clarity.
Katana bats away the crates with his sword.
"<Hah! The crates was too close!>"
The guards up on the catwalk peers down to observe his handiwork, frowning as Katana uses oneness with creation to knock the crates aside. The guards in general are suitably impressed, especially given the horrendous crash made once the crates do actually reach the floor, accompanied by the sound of splintering wood. The big guy starts cursing again, glaring at the others. "GET HIM!" And then he charges at Katana, dropping down to come in low and send most of his mass crashing into Katana's knees.
The intention here, of course, is to send the armored man crashing to the floor, at which point all of the warehouse guards can throw everything they've got at him with weapons and feet (most of them are wearing pretty heavy boots, too.) The guy up on the catwalk briefly considers jumping off to try and land on Katana, then stops and realizes that is a terrible, terrible idea. Instead he starts moving around for a safer way back to ground level.
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards successfully hit Katana with Gangbang.
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Katana 0/-------/=======|-------\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
The crates were neutralized.
<"Hey! Your chest will not be able to stop me!"> Katana exclaims, as he turns to face the big guy who was speaking such awesome words. He could feel the tug at his jeans... as suddenly he is charged. Body braced, he lets himself go down. And once again, he ganged up upon. Outside, the gangsters look to one another. And then, the loyalty begins. "I, uh, gotta tell the boss." He says, as he nips away. Another nips away. And then, a third. Only three remain, as Katana screams out.
<"WHAT KAMINA DO!?"
And then he thinks.
And then, he rises.
Shooting straight upright, his kabuto was dented, his legs fractured in countless places. But as he rises, his hands grip the swords as he shoves into the big guy... and tries to charge him forward. If successful, he will cut the charge short with a fast, overhead slash. All while crying out.
<"Do not believe in yourself! Believe me, believing in you!">
COMBATSYS: Katana successfully hits Warehouse Guards with Jigoku Scrape.
- CRAZY Hit! -
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Katana 1/-------/=======|===----\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
The big guy doesn't have a weapon quite as suitable for parrying as his crowbar and chain armed associates, but he does still have his knife at hand. He just needs to get it up there in time- but no. He's moving the knife into position as Katana's own blade comes down, and then the knife is falling to the floor, along with several fingers. Such small bones aren't enough to actually stop the blow, although it turns out the collarbone is. Only being quite beefy in his own right saves the guy from dying instantly, but he still falls to the ground clutching at his neck with his good hand, gurgling. If he doesn't get medical attention pretty soon, he's probably a goner.
The remaining three guards on the ground floor are looking pretty worried now, but... they felt how solid those impacts they were giving Katana earlier were, none of them have more than superficial wounds, and they still outnumber him unless his guys work up the nerve to come in and help. Also, running away is not a wise move if Kain hears about it, unless you brought useful information or he's convinced you had no chance of winning. Having a bunch of your buddies still surviving doesn't help to convince him.
And then the fourth guy finally gets down from the catwalk, edging slowly toward the fight. One of the guards licks his lips nervously, and they all glance at one another, then back at Katana. They take deep breaths, and then all four of them rush at Katana, swinging their weapons at him.
COMBATSYS: Katana fails to counter Reckless Attacks EX from Warehouse Guards with Shiraha Catch.
- Power fail! -
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Katana 1/----===/=======|=====--\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
COMBATSYS: Katana has reached second wind!
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Katana 1/----===/=======|=====--\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
Three gangsters becomes two, outside.
As Katana draws blood, the Samurai coughs behind his mask. "*Ack Kaff!" Drawsing back his blades, he holds them up high, daring the others to come. And they come. Spinning around, the Mad Gear fighter lets the blades whirls swiftly in his hands... as they drop to the ground with a clatter. "Uh oh." He says, as all of them knock him facedown, right into the concrete. For a moment, there is silence.
But then he is back up again.
"Whoa! Whoa! TIME OUT!" He demands, regaining his feet. He checks his gauntlets, staring at them blankly with that empty mask. And slowly, he starts to crouch. Lowering down, he picks up his swords again. "Hold it! I mean!" <"Holding It!"> The Samurai begins. He sighs loudly, and then brings up his weapons. Holding them tightly, he pauses a moment, and then nods.
"<Time inside!>"
The guards stare at Katana, first startled that he managed to get back up, then in confusion as they try to figure out what he's doing. "Time out?!" They're feeling a bit more confident now, and start advancing on the 'samurai', weapons raised. "You're gonna regret coming here, you bastard!" The first of them comes in, swinging a crowbar for Katana's face, even if it is behind a mask, while another lashes out with a length of chain toward his ankles, trying to trip him up. The other two aren't far behind, lashing out with their own weapons. There's not really a lot of technique here, but they know where to hit someone to make it hurt, and they can swing their weapons pretty hard.
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards successfully hit Katana with Power Strike.
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Katana 1/--=====/=======|=====--\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
Did... Did Katana actually know how to fight?
The thought comes to mind as Katana recovers, and as the men come back... he tries to spin away, as if he was some kind of ninja. It works about as well as the flashy counter attack earlier. "AGH AGH NO!" He cries out as the weapons come hammering into his armor. A crack is heard, as the armor gives in, and a rib is snapped.
And a red flame glows in the eye sockets of the masks.
"YOU ARE NOT BEING FAIR!" He roars out in English, as suddenly he charges the last two men coming in. Initially hacking his swords about fiercely, he slashes once, then twice at the other man. Upon a third slash, both swords come around to try and seize the last of the two. There, Katana will leap high into the air, whipping him high into the air... before slamming him down HARD into the second man. But he won't stop there. He will then drive both of the men hard forward, ripping them along the ground...
And straight into the other two men.
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards blocks Katana's Ten Chuu Satsu.
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Katana 0/-------/------=|=======\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
On the one hand, Katana is prevented from following through completely with his attack, which is good for the guards, as a group. The guard responsible for preventing him doesn't get off that easily, though. After the first blow he staggers, and ends up taking the slashes for the guy next to him. Then there's a further spray of blood and an unsettling butcher noise... three of the guards are still standing, but one of them emphatically is not, sliding off of Katana's blades as he comes to a halt, then smacking wetly into the floor.
"Shit! Just stay down!" There's plenty of adrenaline going now, and when it comes to fight or flight, these are man whose first insticts are fight. At least, as long as they're still a group. Once more they come in with crowbars swinging, spreading out to try to flank Katana as they do so. He hasn't proven himself to be very good at avoiding getting smacked around... but somehow it doesn't seem to actually be stopping him.
COMBATSYS: Katana blocks Warehouse Guards' Synchronized Beating.
[ \\ < > ///////// ]
Katana 0/-------/-----==|=======\-------\0 Warehouse Guards
The two gangsters outside remain.
They had their bets on Katana being a winner. And if they were right... well, they might have helped captured the first objective in this whole thing. That was GREAT NEWS. If not? Well, there might be points in dragging Katana out of here. As Katana manages to only to drop a single one of the gangsters, it was still up in the air. But as the warehouse guards lunge with their crowbars, the unthinkable happens.
He blocks.
The first sword comes swinging, catching the first crowbar, while the second deflects another. As the third one comes, the Samurai twists his body, deflecting it with his shoulder, as his mask stares blankly. The fire was out now. But as both swords recover from their blocks, they meet back together again in a scissoring fashion.
Right for the third gangster's abdomen.
COMBATSYS: Katana successfully hits Warehouse Guards with Crushing Strike.
[ \\ < > // ]
Katana 0/-------/-----==|=======\===----\1 Warehouse Guards
What happens next is something that any children viewing at home should not be allowed to watch. Suffice to say, there are only two guards standing when Katana is done. The newly deceased one isn't /quite/ in two pieces, but it's pretty close. The remaining two guards back up, one of them retching and barely keeping from vomiting. They share a quick glance, then look back at Katana. "Oh, fuck this shit! He's a damn monster!" And then they're both running like hell for the back door, barreling through it hard enough to damage the hinges as they make their hasty retreat. One of them drops his crowbar as he flees, with a clang of metal on concrete, though the other manages to hold onto his, just in case.
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards lets out a large yawn, slouching.
[ \\ <
Katana 0/-------/-----==|
COMBATSYS: Warehouse Guards can no longer fight.
[ \\ <
Katana 0/-------/-----==|
And there is honor.
Katana rips through the gangster. Only two remaining? No. None remaining. As the guts spill across the concrete, there are moans of disgust from the remaining Syndicate gangsters outside. But then, the remaining men flee the scene. And Katana? Katana just stands there.
He does not pursue.
The other two gangsters take their time, before entering the Warehouse. They clutch their bokkens, looking around warily. They didn't want there to be another ambush. And yet, Katana simply stands there, silently, the blood dripping from his blades. "Holy shit man, I didn't think you could, uh, take them on so easily." The first says, while the other one nods, tapping the sword at the ground. "Yeah dawg, that was totes tight." There was no response. "... Dawg?" There is a twitch, as Katana slowly falls sideways, into a heap.
And a loud snore comes out from behind the mask.
COMBATSYS: Katana has ended the fight here.
Log created on 20:53:45 06/24/2013 by Kain, and last modified on 19:08:37 06/26/2013.