6684/MECC: Yomi Isayama vs. Starbound Flotilla (Moonfin)

MECC: Yomi Isayama vs. Starbound Flotilla (Moonfin)
Date of Scene:	19 June 2019
Location:	MECC Fighting Stage 3
Synopsis:	Yomi Isayama vs. Moonfin (Starbound Flotilla)
Cast of Characters:	Yomi Isayama, Starbound Flotilla

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Yomi Isayama has posed:
The finalist matches! While Yomi has always been confident in her fighting abilities, she didn't expect to get this far. Most of her fighting is against monsters, not people, so this entire tournament has been a learning experience.

As she walks out onto the stage, Yomi takes her sword's case from her shoulder and sets it down by the entrance. She pulls out the sheathed blade and strides toward the center, awaiting her opponent and the signal to begin.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Moonfin, the soft-blue fishman, arrives with an activation of the MECC's systems that's quite stylish. Water crashes dramatically at the edge of the arena. Only the Starbound Flotilla could pump a small lake's worth of water into the facility, reality-warping zone or no. Moonfin steps dramatically out of it, ascending a staircase built below. Around him, several tiny islands rise, and trees rapidly grow from the earth using esoteric technologies until they bloom into cherry blossoms and begin to cascade their fresh flowery payload onto the field. This isn't even the MECC's field stuff, this is just the Starbound Flotilla doing homemade theatricality. He raises both arms out wide, calmly encouraging the crowd to cheer.

    His armor is a stylish mix between a samurai's armor and a diving suit, an aesthetic that matches an elegantly-crafted katana sheathed at his waist in what looks like a diver-style piece of industrial equipment. He draws it in one clean motion, whips it just barely above the surface of the water such that it stays dry while still kicking up a stylish slicing wake, and then steps to his corner of the arena and takes a ready position.

    "Finally." He says. "Someone who understands the proper path for this. Your chosen weapon may not be crafted with our quality, but that you model it at all after the superior form of Hylotl arms is worth some small measure of respect." His ready stance gets a little more taut, like a trebuchet about to fire. "Small. I shall test that you have the strength of soul and sharpness of wit to make a superior weapon into a superior technique. Now, human face the strength of the seas! En garde!!"

    When the starting chime goes off, he takes off with microthrusters in his armor, moving in fast and hard to rush Yomi down and do his best to strike her with a barrage of wide swipes to feel out her defenses and keep some distance. But not enough distance that he's not constantly moving in for a sweeping blow against her, with that enhanced, high-tech powered blade!

Yomi Isayama has posed:
Wow, that really is a theatrical entrance. Yomi looks sufficiently impressed, one hand resting on her hip as she watches the water flood in and islands sprout. Once the new terrain has spread enough, she neatly hops to one of the small islands, tapping her foot down for a moment to test how solid it is.

Her opponent is most definitely not human, but Yomi isn't quite sure just how inhuman he is. No better way to find out than to cross swords, though. "Mmm. Thanks for the compliment. I think." She smiles in amusement, bringing her hand to the hilt of her katana. "Shishiou is a family heirloom, so it's more accurate to say that it chose me. It's a great deal older than I am, though. Or you..." She pauses, looking her opponent up and down. "...probably."

As Moonfin charges in, Yomi draws her blade, bringing it up quickly to meet the first of the swipes. Sparks fly as blade clashes against blade, and she manages to parry several of the slashes. One finds a way past her defenses, though, cutting across her upper arm and drawing blood.

The exorcist leaps back for a moment to gain some distance, landing in a slight crouch. "I can already tell you're good. I'll give you that much." She shifts her weight slightly, then rushes forward, feet barely touching the ground as she moves. The first strike with her sword is a feint, and she follows by swinging her katana's shealth as if it were a backhand blade. One foot plants in the ground, and she brings Shishiou back again, a powerful slash diagonally upward as she recenters her weight.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Impact. Moonfin is forced to take the strike dead-on, despite an effort to maneuver. There two key things to note. The first is that his blade seems to be in motion before the feint is even complete, as if the motion were automatic! The second is that, even after he's forced to change the direction of his parry, he barely seems to respond to the sheath strike, letting it crush against his armor, denting it badly. He can only hold back and blunt the blow from the upward strike, as layers of armor shear away from his body. "A blade of history! Then, perhaps I will do my best to leave the blade un-damaged when I cast your exhausted form from this bracket! I have the utmost respect for such value!"

    He's launched a bit upward and back by the force of blunting the blow, skidding and shedding bits of ablating armor. He stops the momentum by plunging his blade into the sand, kicking up a wave of it. "Anyone can tell that I am good. The question shall be whether you can see the details of it. Now, let us take this seriously. Third Sea Hylotl Style: Crashing Waves in Storms." This heralds a barrage of strikes from all angles, as Moonfin blasts in and now adds a strafing, multi-angle assault. He darts in tight circles around Yomi's stance, lashing in with thrusts that are increasingly difficult to get a good defensive angle on.

Yomi Isayama has posed:
Though she's fought armored monsters before, Yomi knows how important it is to test just how protective that armor is, against both bladed and blunt strikes. This first attack gives her a pretty good idea. "You have a lot of confidence, huh?" Moonfin is just so jovial, though, she can't be upset at it. Grinning back at the Hylotl, she tightens her grip on her blade. "Don't worry. Shishiou has been through a lot. Besides, Master Michael would kill me if he had to retune it so soon."

The exorcist quirks a brow. Now he's taking it seriously? As her opponent crashes in again, Yomi is more ready for him than the initial offensive. Her katana flashes as she parries blow after blow, occasionally using the sheath to block a strike at the wrong angle for her sword. It's not without effort, and she grits her teeth as she strains against the powerful attacks, waiting for just the right moment for an opening.

As soon as she sees an opportune moment, Yomi quickly drops down to a crouch with her weight on one leg, sweeping the other toward the side of a knee in an effort to knock him off balance. As she rises up, she throws her sword's scabbard high into the air and takes in a breath, pulling back her free hand. It takes only a moment for her to gather chi focused in her palm, though there's no visible effect other than the motion of air as she thrusts her hand forward at Moonfin's midsection with crushing force.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Moonfin looks like he's just about to take the strike to his leg, the sweep -- but he doesn't! "First Sea Hylotl Style: Still Waters." He plants his sword in the ground, forcing Yomi's kick to strike the flat of the blade and har his arm instead. The chi force strike washes over his body as he moves the way water moves when it's struck; dispersing, angling, blunting the strike so that it falls apart on his chest, despite the sparking and sputtering of the mechanisms in his armor.

    "You respect your master. Or perhaps simply fear them. Either way, I demand to see the heights of their handiwork, and to strike it down with style and grace." He pulls his blade out, drawing it and flicking sand off it to one side. "Fourth Sea Hylotl Style: Ice Reclaims the Breaker." His approach now involves dozens of low sweeps mixed with insane flipping overhead strikes that seem like they're there to accentuate the danger of this: That Yomi might stay in place, and start losing track of a good direction to get space in!

Yomi Isayama has posed:
This man knows how to handle himself against both a swordsman and a martial artist, that much is apparent. Yomi can feel the force of her blow being redirected even as it strikes, and quickly pulls back her hand after impact. Keeping an eye on her opponent's sword, she raises her arm, catching the scabbard she threw upwards a moment ago. "Master Michael is a great weaponsmith. If you want to know who taught me to fight..."

Despite how solid her opponent seems to be, he's quite fast. Yomi quickly steps back from the first sweep, raising her blade to counter an overhead strike. Blades clash, and she pushes back, straining against Moonfin's strength. "That... would be my father and my cousin." The angle is bad, though she manages to block the second strike. The third catches her at just the wrong moment, as her footwork to avoid being knocked off her feet brings her to stand on an uneven patch of the terrain. The exorcist lets out a yelp as Moonfin's blade draws blood again, this time on her left shoulder. As she twists from it, his next sweep manages to knock her off her feet, and she slams hard into the ground.

Yomi's fighting style relies more on speed and precision than power, and this close fighting gives an advantage to her opponent. She slams her scabbard down into the ground and kicks her legs up, flipping back to her feet and getting a little distance from Moonfin. "Style and grace I'll grant you... but I don't intend to be struck down so easily." Her foot digs into the soft ground below her, and she dashes forward with surprising speed. Rather than striking at Moonfin, she darts past him, stopping to turn and slash at the back of his armor. The exorcist lets her momentum keep her spinning, and she lifts her other leg, kicking toward Moonfin to throw him off balance.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Moonfin tumbles, but he refuses to lose balance. The slash at the back sparks, granting him a halo, or a cowl, of sparks. He transitions cleanly from a tumble into a roll, then into a micro-thruster-powered flip onto his feet. "I think not." He says. "For you misunderstand entirely. I shall not grant you an easy defeat. No, the defeat you are granted shall be tremendously difficult. When you fall, exhausted and beaten in this arena, it shall be with grace and with style. But it shall not be effortless. It shall need countless years of skill, and an unthinkably precise eye. It shall need speed and engineering of the highest order. That is what it takes to make /beautiful artwork/, and that is what I shall make of your defeat."

    He takes a dramatic pose. "SO! Here is the first of three strikes! And upon the third, you will certainly fall! Strike me down before then -- pour your heart into stopping me before my opus is made. Halt my artwork, but do not struggle to perservere through it, for if you stand after my work is complete, all it will earn you is a more ugly defeat still! I say again: En Garde! Second Sea Hylotl Style: Tumultuous Waters!"

    His blade begins to blaze with power, charging up something dramatic. It's so strong that the shockwaves of stray energy are enough to be a strike of their own. The battering, bruising impacts of the waves lash out at Yomi!

Yomi Isayama has posed:
"I... thanks?" Yomi looks perplexed, but she thinks that's a compliment. Of sorts. "So you treat swordsmanship as art. I can respect that... even if I don't personally share the same feeling." When he poses, the exorcist slides her foot back, preparing to guard against a dramatic attack... which is not what she expects. Her left arm comes up, despite the injured shoulder, and braces against the shockwaevs of energy. Yomi winces as her arm is jostled, hair and uniform whipping from the pressure of that energy.

"Three strikes, was it? I may just have to foil your plans." She takes a breath and begins gathering chi again, but this time channels it into her sword. "Win or lose, this fight has taught me one thing. I need more training..." Violet eyes close briefly, she takes a deep breath, then opens her eyes again and charges forward. Her sword flashes out, making a quick strike for Moonfin, though it isn't a particularly powerful one.

"Ranguren!" Misdirection. Should her opponent focus on her, he might not notice the Divine Beast's appearance until too late. Fading into existance from nothing, the great nue takes solid form, breathing out puffs of steam. It kicks up sand and debris behind it as it leaps, paws outstretched to swipe at the armored swordsman and try to crush that armor some more.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Moonfin parries hard, blunting only a little of the strike from Yomi's blade. "Hmph!" He sounds imperious, especially haughty about it. "Is that all?!" It isn't. It's only when the armor's visor reveals his third eye opening to focus on the sound of the beast that his whole body braces. "Ghhh--!" He can barely get the blade between him and the paw. "Blunting" it would be too generous, it's more like he reduced the brutal strike as it shears off chunks of durasteel. He goes flying back, but does not tumble. "A beast of legend, then... I respect your choice in creates that might grant you assistance, but no host of myth can hold back my blade. This is not enough! Pour your heart into halting me, or you will stand no chance! TWO! Fifth Sea Hylotl Style! Lightning Striking Waves!"

    He kicks up a wave of sand as he bounds towards the Nue, leaps high, and flickers as he falls with more speed than gravity ought to grant him, blade down. There's enough force in the impact that it'll likely impact even Yomi, but he intends most of all to disperse Nue, drive it out of the fight, or otherwise render this battle once more a one-on-one. No matter what, he'll kick up a huge wave of sand with whatever impact happens -- the perfect cover to lash out towards Yomi with a terribly sudden slash meant to jar her arms right through a blocking blade, to batter her, to sort of... challenge her directly.

    "Listen well! When the third strike falls upon your form, do not dare to blink! Do not miss a moment! Your challenge is not to win, your challenge is not to /outlast/ the strike. Your challenge is to simply /see/ the strike! Your challenge is to witness the artistry, and I shall not forgive it if you should not see it!" Once he's done with his battering barrage, he takes a harsh, offensive stance. That final assault will come the very moment she launches her own!

Yomi Isayama has posed:
As the armored swordsman leaps, Ranguren takes a few steps back, all of its eyes focusing on him. It's not fast enough to avoid the strike completely, but it does manage to avoid what could have been a lethal blow. Still, the blade strikes deep along its side, and the Divine Beast lets out a roar of pain.

The shockwave is enough to keep Yomi from immediately charging in, and she's forced to stand her ground and bring her sword down toward it, dispersing some of the force to either side. It still hits hard enough to send her skidding back a short distance, though she remains on her feet.

"See the strike? I think I can manage that." If nothing else, Moonfin has been... interesting to fight so far. Never has she encountered someone so obsessed with the literal art of the blade. She's not going to disappoint him by missing his attack, but she also isn't going to allow it to strike as intended. "Ranguren! Come back!"

The nue glances briefly at Moonfin, then takes a few steps back and seems to fade away. It reappears behind Yomi, however, crouching as if ready to pounce again. "Since you have demanded it... I'll put everything I have into this strike. I trust you'll do the same." Taking a breath, the exorcist closes her eyes briefly to center herself, driving the scabbard of her weapon down into the ground next to her so she can grasp Shishiou with both hands. Behind her, Ranguren opens its mouth and lets out a loud roar, the force enough to send Yomi's hair whipping around her. Her foot slides back until it's touching the Divine Beast's paw... and then violet eyes snap open. Yomi kicks off her nue's foot and propels herself toward Moonfin. She holds her sword back as she charges, only bringing it up just before she reaches her opponent, and brings it down in one powerful slash.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Moonfin... sheaths his blade. "Good. Let this be a fitting conclusion." At last, someone to match his technique's true nature. Microthrusters rumble, build, and suddenly seem like they're going to explode with force. The building energy in Moonfin's blade reaches a peak. The shockwaves coming off of it are the perfect match for Ranguren's roar, and sand is tossed in all directions in two perfect, swirling storms. The trees atop the small islands have all simultaneously begun to shed their blossoms. The air suddenly is still; each petal falls naturally.

    And Moonfin is behind Yomi. A clean line of petals is sliced in half, from where he was, to where he is. His blade is out ahead of him, the tip a single millimeter from Ranguren. His strike is complete. He pulls his blade back, stands straight, and draws the blade along the sheath gently, before beginning to slide it in. As he does, only then can either brain process the details of what happened. A lashing blade in a perfect, precise arc. A speed so great, so intense that it split atoms in the air as it did, cleanly knocking nitrogen in half along a fine-tuned monomolecular razor's edge. Her strike crashed against him, and sparks had flown. A deep gash in his armor, from shoulder to hip, shows where it barely managed to keep the cut a shallow strike as Moonfin's blow wove around it like water slipping around a blade. Blood pools in the sand beneath his feet, and water washes it away as waves come in.

    But what happened with the clean, horizontal slash that arced out towards Yomi so quickly? It's hard to say just now. One has to sort the memories, and puzzle it out after the fact. Exactly what happened will be much easier to see and to know, indeed, the moment Moonfin's blade finally slides all the way into the sheath, gently coming to rest with the hilt in place. As it slides its final inches, he says, "Sixth Sea Hylotl Style: Burial at Sea."

    Click.

    Cue spray.

Yomi Isayama has posed:
Just a few fractions of a degree. That's how far the angle of her strike was off. But that meant the difference between a deep cut and a shallow one. As petals fall, Yomi comes to a stop some distance past Moonfin. She snaps her blade out to the side, standing firm for a moment and closing her eyes.

...and then she staggers forward, collapsing to one knee. Her chi falters, and Ranguren fades away again, still staring at Moonfin the entire time. With a wet sound, Yomi coughs up blood and lowers her head, free hand resting on her knee in an attempt to keep from falling over. She gave her all to that final strike, and she could tell that her opponent did as well. She wasn't going to pass out without at least acknowledging the fight.

"...I saw it," comes a soft voice, the loudest Yomi is able to muster before slumping forward.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Moonfin breathes out a breath he's been holding for an agonizingly long time. "Good. I reward the efforts of your heart with the beauty of your defeat. Let it be remembered and admired. You fought well." He says, as if it were some kind of ceremony. He turns and bows that unique sort of haughty, arrogant bow of a rival samurai's victory. The haughtiness is broken only by a short wince, a sharp breath drawn as he feels the pain of the gash along his body. "Tch! ...Perhaps too well."

    He turns back away and strides back into the water from whence he came, giving the Shrine of Adversity the space it needs to get to work on restoring Yomi Isayama, letting his diving gear take over, and exiting the arena with all the drama he can muster. That one was a /good/ one. Too close for comfort, but every artist risks and suffers. It was a /satisfying/ conclusion.