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Post by Gray Callahan on Nov 6, 2011 15:18:06 GMT -5
The chosen environment; a fresh, wet rainforest of many plant species; but devoid of any animal life. The area is humid and misty, and the cover would allow for some stealthy tactics.
Zach and Nam are transported to the arena block, out of site of each other.
Have at it, children.
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Post by Zach on Nov 6, 2011 16:49:58 GMT -5
After waiting a veritable eternity for news of his match, Zach was finally directed via the P.A. system to proceed to one of the transit pedestals. He didn’t bother to check who his opponent was, as who ever he was fighting did not matter, they would get their butt handed to them just the same. At least that’s what he told himself. Looking up at one of the displays, just before finding his pedestal, Zach spotted his name and the name of his competitor go by and recognized him at once. Stepping onto his assigned transporter, Zach underwent the vertigo inducing process of transport and found himself strangely enough in what appeared to be a tropical rain forest with as of yet, no sign of his target.
“Heh, well at least I’m dressed properly for the heat.” the boy commented to himself, not loud enough to be audible and with a grin. He knew his opponent and he also knew that his opponent did not know that he could fly, a fact that would be an advantage in the thick, jungle-like surroundings. Reasoning that the place couldn’t possibly be an entire world as no one would be stupid enough to host such battles on a populated planet, Zach came to the conclusion that he was probably still on the station somewhere and thus this environment had limits.
Sticking to the ground for now, Zach started off running, making sure to proceed at an angle that was perpendicular to the direction he was facing when he appeared. It was only logical that the fight arrangers would start the contestants off facing each other, so by that logic, by going to the left or the right, he could effectively skirt to the edge of battle area and with any hope, maintain some cover. If in fact though it turned out that he was on a planet, then surely there would be some barrier indicating where one could engage in the contest and where one could not. In either case he was determined to find it and use it to his advantage.
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Post by Nam Reikonaga on Nov 7, 2011 15:01:04 GMT -5
“What?” Nam stepped away from the window as the beautiful stars of outer space were being covered by a white screen. The lights suddenly dimed and on the screen appeared a list of names and their faces. It didn’t take long for Nam to realize that the list was the tournament match-ups, but what had him curious was the fact that his name and face were on the screen. He didn’t remember telling anyone his name, and he definitely didn’t remember taking that picture. Could it be we were expected to participate? he thought.
After a few minutes pondering and chewing over his baseless thoughts, he decided to let it go and leave as it is. He took one more look at the list and immediately recognized his opponent. Wow… so I fight Zach right off the bat, huh? he turned around to look for Zach amongst the crowd, Nam didn’t even know he had been here. But just as he turned, he was suddenly transported to a different location. The transition was so fast, it felt like the scenario was changed and not him. He also felt a bit light headed, but only for a split second. It appeared to be a rain forest. It was humid and foggy, but there weren’t any animals around; which brought him to the hypothesis that they were in some kind of natural arena. It’d be easy to think you were in a planet, maybe even earth itself; but how would people watch the battle, unless there were hidden cameras. Nam crouched to observe a few orchids, Nah… he concluded, walking away.
He began to take a stroll around the rain forest, almost completely forgetting that he was in a tournament. He ran into a waterfall, it was beautiful: there were bromeliads, carnivorous plants, and saprophytes. Finally Nam put his game face on. Assuming he was in an arena and his opponent had been transported nearby, Nam concluded that he should try and take the advantage of surprise –before Zach does.
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Post by Zach on Nov 7, 2011 17:57:52 GMT -5
As Zach continued through the thick, tropical growth, he eventually found what he was looking for. Collided with it would actually be a more accurate description as the boy jogged strait into one of the bordering walls of the environment. Stumbling back, he straitened himself up and looked at the seemingly invisible wall that had stopped him. It actually wasn’t invisible at all, just disguised with such meticulous precision that it gave the appearance of ongoing jungle.
“Excellent, that will do perfectly.” Zach commented to himself and turned back to face the interior of the jungle. He didn’t possess the ability to sense energy and thus couldn’t pinpoint Nam’s position, but did know that others could. Not knowing if Nam could or not, Zach sided with caution and assumed he possessed the ability. Hoping he hadn’t already been detected, Zach started to walk slowly towards the interior of the jungle, stopping about a hundred feet away from the wall and then stopped.
He waited and listened, looking for any sign that his opponent was near by, but the thick plant life was too dense to permit him to see very far and as of yet the only sounds he could detect were those of nature. ‘Well, I guess I should just send up a flare.’ he thought to himself. Taking his usual high, defensive stance, Zach tensed up every muscle in his body, intentionally putting himself under as much strain as he could for a few moments to force his energy output to be readable over a distance. He didn’t let it crest too high though, not wanting to break into his transformed state just yet. This environment was perfect for sneak attacks and cheap fighting tactics, both of which Zach abhorred. He preferred to fight like a man should, with his fists, toe to toe, not dancing around hiding and shooting energy beams at each other. That being said though, he was prepared to lower himself and use the environment to his advantage, hence why he’d positioned himself so close to the outer wall. With the spike of energy he’d put out, it would have no doubt alerted Nam to his presence, provided the other young man could sense energy of course. If not, Zach would simply wait, cautiously watching his surroundings for a few minutes before sending out another signal, this one verbal.
“Well, come on, I’m right here!” the blonde would yell into the jungle if he hadn’t Nam after a few minutes.
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Post by Nam Reikonaga on Nov 8, 2011 17:23:31 GMT -5
Nam’s course of thought was suddenly interrupted as he felt a chi signature not too far away. He recognized it too, it was Zach. Nam wondered if Zach was planning some sort of tramp, why else would he give away his location? Nam ran on his toes towards the direction of the energy signal. He stopped by a large tree and hid between the 15ft buttress roots, laying his scabbard on it. Nam approached the edge slowly to try and take a peek at his opponent; Zach was out in the open, “Well, come on, I’m right here!” he yelled. It seemed to Nam that Zach was looking for a head on fight, like the first time they fought.
“I didn’t think I’d have to fight you in the very first round…” Nam said, revealing his location as he walked out of the large roots of the colossal tree. “Are you ready for this?” he smiled, standing 8ft. away from his adversary. Nam was wearing his usual black martial arts gi, representing the Victory School emblem on the back and left chest side. His hair was neatly combed backwards in a wavy form and a long strand of hair fringed on his face which slightly fluttered in the almost nonexistent winds.
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Post by Zach on Nov 9, 2011 11:35:02 GMT -5
As Zach stood ready and called out to Nam, he watched the woods carefully for any sign of movement. Unfortunately with the sheer quantity of foliage, his visibility as somewhat hampered and he did not spot the other young man until there was a reply. Turning his gaze to Nam, the blonde grinned and replied.
“Neither did I. Right after our spar back at the school, I was dragged strait here by a friend of mine. You would think that who ever organized these fights wouldn’t make us fight each other. Oh well, I’m ready, the question is, are you?” Zach responded and extended his right arm, making the universal ‘bring it’ gesture. Bringing his arms back to a defensive posture, Zach stood ready and watched Nam carefully. Unlike his opponent, Zach wore no shirt and one could plainly see that their surroundings were indeed oppressively humid as the boy was already slick with sweat that simply wouldn’t evaporate. He didn’t know how well Nam would deal with the humidity in his uniform but wasn’t going to make any suggestions, at least not until after he’d won.
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Post by Nam Reikonaga on Nov 9, 2011 16:35:54 GMT -5
Nam smirked and began to feel excited. “Well, I’m here aren’t I?” He decided to accept the bait as Zach gestured him the initiative; so Nam charged in forward. The orchids danced as he dashed past them. As he did, he began to feel the humidity and the sweat crawling down his face, but it didn’t bother him just yet. Nam didn’t really have a starting plan, he was just coming to try and punch his opponent and then depending on the result, he’d go on from there.
Surrounding them were big and tall trees, they were on what seemed like a trail of tall grass which allowed them to focus on nothing else but the person in front of them. Above you could partly see the sky, which was covered by the bed of leaves and branches of the humongous rain forest trees. Nam still wasn’t very sure about the place they were in, but it seemed real enough to him, if you didn’t count the complete lack of animals.
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Post by Zach on Nov 9, 2011 19:11:41 GMT -5
Holding his ground, Zach watched as Nam charged at him and tensed up. As the other young man closed and launched what looked like a good strong punch, Zach tightened his pectorals and took the blow, grunting in the process and then attempted to capitalize on the opening that would be left by Nam having his arm extended. Breaking his guard, Zach tried for a grab of Nam’s shoulders and should he manage to get a hold, intended to keep that hold and ram his left knee up into the other young man’s stomach. He would of course then attempt to repeat the knee as many times as he could before Nam could react.
If however his opponent managed to avoid his shoulder grab, Zach intended to then work the lunge into a twisting motion, the same as he would have used to bring up his knee, and instead, bring his elbow across the other’s face. For the moment he would leave his discovery of their environment’s boundaries alone, not yet seeing a need to take advantage of that piece of knowledge.
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Post by Nam Reikonaga on Nov 9, 2011 19:58:38 GMT -5
I hit! Nam cheered, as his knuckles rammed into his opponent’s chest, he felt strong and tense pectorals. Since Nam hadn’t planned his moves he couldn’t think fast enough before his opponent nabbed onto his shoulder and retaliated by striking Nam’s abdomen with his knee. Just as Nam detected Zach’s knee from his peripheral, he tightened his abdomen and exhaled strongly. As the attack made impact Nam let out a grunt. In this moment Nam would’ve used his Zanzoken technique to sly away, but since Zach was grabbing onto his shoulder, he couldn’t move so easily. Nam’s adversary took back his knee and seemed to be about to land another one. Nam acted quickly and used his free hand to catch the blow and he would then slam his forehead onto Zach’s.
If it hit, he’d expect his opponent to lose his grip and Nam would immediately engage in a round house kick to the face. Nam only thought of two possible ways Zach could dodge a headbutt; that would be to move his head to the side, which in that case, Nam would also jab Zach’s Solar Plexus with his left knee. Scenario two; Zach would let go of Nam’s shoulder and recede, in which Nam would then charge a chi blast and toss it at him.
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Post by Zach on Nov 9, 2011 20:57:00 GMT -5
As Zach managed to get his hold on Nam’s shoulders and succeed in ramming his knee into the other’s stomach, he could feel his opponent tighten up as well as the exhaled breath flow over his chest. While he wasn’t surprised that Nam had managed to prepare himself for the blow, Zach was determined to make him hurt a bit and pulled his knee out for a second attempt. However just as he was about the let his leg fly, Nam reared his head back, alerting Zach to exactly what the other was about to do.
Being they were so close and Zach had most of the control as to how they were moving given his grip on Nam’s shoulders, the blonde shifted himself to the right while at the same time forcing his opponent to the left and pulled him closer, effectively into a clinch, with his left shoulder against Nam’s chest, and Nam’s left shoulder against his own chest. While a brilliant move to prevent the other young man from landing the head butt, Zach’s arms were occupied with Nam’s shoulders and thus his stomach was vulnerable. The boy’s muscled were tense when Nam’s fist pounded into his upper gut, but the solar plexus was a sensitive spot away and Zach gasped, feeling his lungs stutter and almost seize up. He had to respond and quick, but he couldn’t let go and lose this wonderful advantage. Since his left leg was still held back and ready and his weight was on his right, the boy, still cringing from the shot to his breadbasket, thrust his left knee forward again, hoping to land another blow into his opponent’s midsection.
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Post by Nam Reikonaga on Nov 9, 2011 22:06:34 GMT -5
Nam’s assumptions were correct and Zach avoided the head butt. Nam was actually relieved that Zach had chosen that as the attack would hurt him as well. He felt his attack connect and thought it actually caused quite an impact as he heard his adversary gasp. Nam assumed he was partly winded. As Zach forced them into a clinch with each other’s shoulders resting on their chest, Nam saw from Zach’s back his left leg moving and instantly foresaw another knee attack. Nam countered Zach’s attack with his right knee, since his weight was shifted to the left; meeting with his right. The impact was painful and Nam let out a soft grunt, tightening his grip on Zach; but Nam proceeded using his Bukujutsu to lift each other in the air as he held on tightly to Zach. Nam wasn’t very sure whether Zach could fly as well, for he had not revealed it to him. But he admitted that if he couldn’t that would automatically give Nam the control of this airborne struggle.
The fact that they were in the air allowed the use of the other leg and Nam intended to use the force of Zach’s left knee to provide support and power to his left and so he thrust his left knee towards the abdominal cavity of his opponent. Nam expected the possibility that Zach would also use the same masochist method and counter with his other knee; that, or let go and pull back. If he didn’t pull back, and indeed countered; Nam would then proceed with his right knee, and keep alternating legs; turning this into a test of resistance.
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Post by Zach on Nov 9, 2011 22:44:38 GMT -5
Clinched tightly against Nam, Zach swung his left leg forward and attempted a second knee to the young man’s gut. It was stopped though when his leg collided with Nam’s in a bone jarring impact. Then Zach felt the other young man’s hands against his sides, the pressure of them taking his weight and finally the loss of traction by his right foot. He still didn’t want to show any of his cards yet, preferring to take the fight as far as he could using just his skill, strength and if need be, his armor. However with both of them off of the ground, Zach knew he was in trouble and spotted the jerking motion Nam made to bring his left knee up, just in time to tense up, but not to deflect it using his own right leg.
Nam’s knee planted it’s self cleaning against Zach’s tensed abs, drawing another grunt form the boy. Keeping with his style though, Zach used the opening provided to bring his right knee up and attempted to crash it into Nam’s left side, either in his obliques or if he could get it high enough, right into the floating ribs.
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Post by Nam Reikonaga on Nov 10, 2011 18:23:45 GMT -5
Nam managed to plant another one on Zach’s gut and heard as his opponent let out a grunt. Detecting Zach’s retaliating knee, Nam also repeated the last move and met with his knee; again, the impact was painful and Nam didn’t know how much longer he could keep up the strategy. Especially since he was aware that Zach hadn’t used his armor yet. If for any reason Zach decided to use that technique, Nam would have to avoid further contact with the knees at all costs. With that in mind, Nam began to brainstorm on how to get his adversary to let go; thus, freeing him from the clinch. They were both holding on very tightly at each other, with their left arms under the respective right arms, which hooked to the back. Zach had a better grip since all Nam had to grab onto was his sweaty skin. Nam thought about trying to slide his body off of Zach’s wet arms, but he was wearing clothes, which Zach would remain gripping.
As of now, Nam decided on one of two possible solutions that his mind was able to process. The use of his bukujutsu by making them fly and twist around in the air; moving violently from one end to the other. Or, he could always slam each other to the ground, but Nam was tired of those masochist strategies; and so, he began to rotate, tightening his grip on Zach and dashed through the air.
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Post by Zach on Nov 12, 2011 1:38:31 GMT -5
Failing to land his knee as he would have liked and having just taken a third such attack from Nam, Zach was getting both frustrated and winded. True he’d tightened up the protective muscles of his abdomen but taking three knees, one of them to the solar plexus was enough to wind just about anyone. He was about to try for another when he felt the other young man’s grip on his back strengthen and then noted that the world around them was starting to spin wildly out of control. It wasn’t in fact the world that was spinning, but them and Zach couldn’t help but wonder exactly what Nam was thinking he would accomplish by the erratic flight.
“Heh… What are you trying to do, make me sick?” he asked Nam as they tumbled through the air like an airplane in heavy turbulence being piloted by a drunk man. True the flight was a little inconvenient, all Zach could do if he didn’t want to let on that he could fly was to hang on. He also didn’t understand why Nam would be trying to get away so much as he’d landed three clean blows. Zach didn’t know how badly he had been hurting the other young man’s legs as he’d not blocked any of is opponent’s knees in the same fashion. Truly he didn’t know what to do, either Nam was trying to get rid of him by making him loose his grip or nerve, or was planning to crash them into a tree or some other object during the unpredictable flight in the hope of having the environment do some damage. Siding with caution and not wanting to put distance between himself and his opponent, Zach hung on and attempted to swing another knee into Nam’s side. After all, from his perspective, the worst that could happen is they crash and then what happened to one would likely happen to both.
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Post by Nam Reikonaga on Nov 12, 2011 14:13:11 GMT -5
“Something like that…” Nam grinned at his opponent, responding to his previous question. He then continued to focus on giving Zach the best roller coaster ride he’d ever have, waiting for the moment he’d either become dizzy and let go, or just simply let go; but instead he felt his adversary’s grip on Nam’s clothes tighten, which led Nam to the thought that perhaps Zach really didn’t know how to fly. With this conclusion he decided to let go of his grip, since Zach would do all the work for him, keeping his hands out freely. As he was about to jab Zach on the obliques, he felt Zach’s knee ram into his guts, which was followed by a grunt and jerking disruption in the flight; almost crashing into a tree, but he managed to evade just slightly. Nam had forgotten about his defenses and allowed Zach to put one on him. A bit winded from the blow, Nam couldn’t seem to command his abdominal cavity to tighten; so Nam attempted to jab Zach on the obliques, continuously.
Both fighters were still flying, but Nam ceased from spinning and kept Zach towards the ground. He intended on gradually lowering himself at an attempt to grind Zach against the ground, while keeping his attention focused on the multiple jabs; although, he was quite vulnerable to possible continual knee attacks as he had not recovered from the first, which would not allow him to tense his muscles. All he could do was exhale the air every time he’d receive another attack.
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