Scene #6522: MECC: Doctor Strange vs Yang Xiao Long

Owner	Pose
Doctor Strange	Roughly seven feet above the floor of the arena, orange sparks burn into existence, as if someone somewhere were welding a hole in the air itself. The first few bars of ELO's 'Strange Magic' begin to play, seemingly piped in from nowhere in particular. From this downward-facing portal, the Sorcerer Supreme slowly floats down. The deep red Cloak of Levitation is wrapped around him, little of his form visible save for his crossed arms. As his feet touch down, he makes an authoritative swiping gesture with his hand, and the music ends. Strange presses one fist to his palm, respectfully bowing at the waist to Yang as she enters. When his hands part, strands of orange energy are tied between them. A series of intricate, fluid gestures weaves these strands together into a mandala, burning brightly in the air. It spits out a brilliant orange staff, adorned at the top with three rings which jingle slightly in the air. Strange twirls it overhead, dexterously spinning it, passing it from one scarred, trembling hand to another. He ends his demonstration in a low, crouched stance, then advances on Yang, rising to spin it around his neck and make the opening attack--a straightforward thrust, aimed at her center of mass!
Yang Xiao Long	Yang Xiao Long, Huntress, pugilist, flambouyant showman. She emerges from the contender doors, arms up and bellowing at the crowd, amping them up and getting them pumped for the fight to come. Her own theme music blasts over the speakers. The chorus segment of I Burn. Yang returns the gesture to Strange after her appears, and provides that bow, then brings her arms up defensively, Ember Celica unfolding along her forearms in the same motion. She watches the spinning staff, and crosses her arms to brace against it, staff striking firm against her gauntlets, sending out a resounding ringing sound. "Not bad... I actually felt that through my Aura." she jabs lightly, grinning over the locked weapons. "My turn~." Yang unfolds her arms, deflecting the staff away, then steps forward and in, bringing a right hook toward Strange's center mass in return. That's when the shotgun blast goes off, triggering a kinetic wave just before impact.
Doctor Strange	Strange grunts, his brow twitching downward as the staff is forced aside. The fingers of his off-hand make an odd gesture, pointed above and his opponent. It leaves him completely open to her riposte. When the shotgun blast erupts, it seems to strike a little too hard. Namely, it completely shatters the Sorcerer Supreme into... butterflies. There is a startled wave of gasps from the audience, followed by a rush of air that serves as Yang's warning. Strange falls to the ground from above, staff twirling rapidly above his head to build up momentum, before he lifts it overhead and brings it down with enough force to slightly deform the flexible weapon. Taking a page from Yang's book, Strange channels a secondary attack from the weapon, a cone of freezing cold erupting from the space between the rings!
Sarracenia	When she heard that two of her favorite people were about to fight, Sarracenia volunteered to comentate! She arrives in her standard billowing red royal gown and takes the appropriate seat. "Hello ladies and gentleman! Today I, the magnificent Princess Sarracenia Sundew, Crown Princess of the Sundew Kingdom, will be bringing you the fi-" She took a bit long preparing and announcing herself and... "Uwah?! A-and here we go! It is the dashing Doctor Strange vs the explosive Yang Xiao Long! Strange has selected an appropriate theme-song for himself in the form of Strange Magic! And equally as strange, he has formed a staff from the orange sparks of his ethereal talents! A quick swing and hit on Yang draws first blood so to speak! Yang looks undaunted though as she catches the staff on her gauntless and aims a power-packed punch toward the Doctor!"
Yang Xiao Long	Yang blinks a bit... "I didn't hit him that hard, did I..." she then goes wide-eyed, as that shift of air, and her danger sense triggers. She leaps forward, throwing herself into a roll, but still takes the blast of cold, chilling her legs as she comes back up into stance. "Tricky, ainchya." She quips, still grinning a bit. She then fires her gauntlets back behind her, launching herself forward for a quick closure, transitioning into a rapid flurry of punches, relying on impact only this time.
Sarracenia	"What a powerful punch! It was so strong that Doctor Strange has...turned into butterflies?" Gasp! "LOOK OUT! I-I mean, Strange reappears from above and brings his staff down in a twirling overhead strike, followed up with what seems to be a bit of a cold blast! Still, Yang is looking solid! A quick blast from her gauntlets and she is on the move, firing a flurry of punches! Surely Strange can't avoid all of them!"
Doctor Strange	Strange nods at Yang with an arch frown and a raise of his brow. Tricky is one word for it, certainly. When she advances on him so suddenly, it becomes clear that while he's competent, she's the more skilled close combatant. His parries are competent, but hasty, hurried, and perhaps a little panicked. The final punch in her flurry snaps the staff in two, dispersing it into little motes of energy that quickly fade away. Strange's eyes widen in surprise as her blow continues past the weapon, on a collision course with his face. Just before her fist collides with his jaw, the red cloak behind him billows outwards and yanks him to safety, his boots lifting slightly off the ground. His hands are moving as if he's parrying an opponent, but he's too far from her for it to do any good against her. As it turns out, his magic seems a form of martial arts--a double-fisted thrust sends a very angular, blocky ripple through the ground towards her position, and a movement of one hand that resembles turning a sword aside sends a ray of crimson force blasting from his fingers towards her!
Yang Xiao Long	Yang stops her momentum with a stamp of her foot, cratering the ground slightly as she brings her defenses up. The blast of crimson strikes her solidly, blazing against the golden shimmer of her Aura as she skids back from the force. A few moments pass, when the ray is deflected, not by the girl herself, but by a sudden omnidirectional blast that emanates from her body. She bellows in rage, eyes a blazing red while her hair emits little ember-like motes. "Now I'm gettin' pissed." she states through gritted teeth. Yang slams her fists together, a blast wave rippling from the impact. She then ratchets back, and with a big wind-up, she punches the air, sending a single, boiling packet of angry looking red energy right back at the Sorceror Supreme. It seems to home in, but isn't 'powered' so can only mildly adjust its trajectory. Should it strike, it goes off like a car exploding.
Sarracenia	"But, somehow, with a flurry of his own and some help from a moving cape, Strange avoids taking any hits! And after some fancy kata movements, Strange throws what seems to be two magic attacks! Something rippling through the ground, and a piercing ray of red! That one looked like it actually hurt! Looks like Yang is getting angry out there, and he won't like her when she's angry! She fires her own blast of red, and this one is more of a cannon shell than a beam, with a nice explosion to boot! Explosions really do make anything better, wouldn't you say?"
Doctor Strange	"I have a knack for that," says Strange with a nod as the smoke from his attack clears. He lowers into a grounded, defensive stance, hands working to create some new spell. When she winds up for that magical haymaker, Strange blanches and redoubles his efforts to cast it, those scarred hands working overtime. He isn't fast enough--whatever shape he's making with those orange strands of energy doesn't quite appear to be ready yet. Well, that'll be a lost cause, then. Strange shoves the mandala aside and extends one hand, the opposite hand held out behind him in a stance resembling the 'soft' styles of martial arts. Some of the energy of Yang's attack is redirected, traveling into his hand. He wasn't expecting it to explode, however, which it does almost immediately. The force throws him into the air, and his cloak billows outwards to keep him from losing altitude. His ears ring from the force of the explosion, but he presses on, yanking the earlier spell back to him and modifying its shape. Striking his fists together twice and flicking both wrists at Yang, Strange sends a volley of annoying little orbs that explode in her field of vision like fireworks, bright and colorful, to cover his approach back to the arena! He wouldn't just hover up there all day long. That'd be a dick move.
Yang Xiao Long	Yang winces as those firecrackers detonate around her, arms crossing as the blasts explode close, and leave streaky marks across her arms and legs. She snarls, lifting her angry gaze to glare at the sorceror, then shifts to leap up into his descent, the floor cratering beneath her feet as she launches herself. Fists come up, and a flying haymaker is delivered toward the good doctor, the shotgun blast coming again with the strike, though she's still dazzled from the fireworks.
Sarracenia	"There we go! Strange can't quite avoid that one! He was weaving something, but Yang's attack is too fast this time! The explosion sends Strange skyward, but that cape of his comes in handy once more. Did he get it from Mario, I wonder? Oh! How pretty~ Strange is putting on a fireworks display for us, even in the middle of a fight! I knew I liked him." Pause. "Oh wait, it looks like it wasn't for our benefit! The already dodgy Doctor seems to have used them as a blinding distraction to keep up his wily wizard ways! It isn't looking good for Yang so far, but we all know that one good explosive punch from Yang can end a battle!"
Doctor Strange	Strange lands, and Yang closes the distance quickly, as that seems to be one of her strengths. As she swings with that explosive haymaker, Strange activates some cantrip with a mystic, two-handed gesture, weaving around the blow and leaving afterimages of himself. The blast goes off right in Strange's ear, loud enough to rattle his teeth. At this distance, Yang can see the beads of sweat forming on his brow, and possibly (through the daze of the firecrackers) the way it furrows with concern. It seems as though he's more than aware of her strength, having felt just a fraction of it already. The battle needs a decisive end--he can't keep this up forever. He decides, against his better judgment, to try fighting her on her own turf. Whereas she favors punches, the doctor seems to favor kicks. He retaliates with a jumping back kick to earn himself some space, then makes a series of roundhouses, ending with a flashy but risky flip-kick!
Yang Xiao Long	Yang's never been good at dealing with kickers... though she does manage to spot the sweat on the older man's brow and the concern in his eyes. She can still beat him, she just needs to land a hit. The kicks land hard, blunted only by the brawler's reflex of jumping backward, the strikes hitting her aura and causing it shimmer and crackle. She's losing integrity quickly, but doesn't really look concerned. In fact she's looking even angrier. Yang slams her fists together once she's gotten some space, her hair billowing out from the force of the shockwave, and looking much like golden flames now. Her eyes are glowing like hot coals and she looks like she's about ready to tear the sorceror in half. "Get ready old man. Lets see how you like this!" She leaps straight up, and at the apex, seems to alter her momentum to come straight back down at Strange's feet, slamming her fist into the ground and firing a slug into the floor, sending the arena to shuddering from the force. Rock spikes erupt and try to spear through the good Doctor, sent flying by the raw force of the blonde berserker.
Sarracenia	"This is unexpected! After distracting Yang with some fake Doctors, the real Doctor decides to actually engage Yang in proper melee! And it turns out he is not bad at it, either! A series of well placed kicks and a stylish flip-kick leave Yang's aura looking weaker and leave the crowd pumped! But even though she's taken some hits, Yang keeps going with one of her signature attacks! With a leap and a slam, spikes of rock erupt from the arena floor! Will this leave Strange pinned like a butterfly on a board?"
Doctor Strange	Well, it looks like she's hulking out, and Strange doesn't seem eager to face her. He hovers slightly backwards, ceding ground to her anxiously. Her challenge, however, incenses him. "Old?! Hey, I'm not even 40 yet!" This he says more to the spectators than to Yang. "Probably. I don't know..." He wobbles a hand, still keeping his distance. "How old I am... exactly... anymore. It's a whole thing." Perhaps in the air, his muttering looks like the words to some magic spell, but it isn't. It's actually "Oh, shit, she's coming right for me." This attack actually gets him to turn tail and run, flying away from the point of impact to narrowly avoid the initial explosion. As the spikes fly all around him, Strange rolls, pitches and jukes, earthen spears zipping past his vitals as he does. He ends up upside-down in the air, slowly re-orienting himself as he prepares another spell. His hands as if knitting some invisible force together, the motion ending with a pose similar to many 'hard' styles of martial arts. The ending of the kata sees two mandalas burn into existence before his hands, each flanked by a rotating ring of glyphs. "Alright, well, if we're getting serious," he says. The mandalas are aimed at Yang, and Strange makes a flurry of punches resembling Wing Chun's famous 'sticking hands' exercise. Globs of magma fly from the mandalas as the glyphs surrounding them lock into place. They harden in midair, becoming superheated stones which rain down over the arena!
Yang Xiao Long	Yang rises from her strike... she missed. Quake Slam never misses! She roars in outrage, and then starts firing explosive bolts to intercept the incoming hot rocks... but she ends up just making it worse for herself, turning the larger stones into a shower of near-molten shards that blasts around her and finally shatters her Aura, some shards slashing through her skin, leaving bloodied marks leaking the red life fluid along her body. Yang falls to one knee, panting hard as she goes over a plan. It's reckless... it's stupi-- already doing it. Yang stands again, and with a stamp that craters the ground she roars to the heavens, her Semblance at its peak. She leaps at Strange, using her gauntlets to chase him down if he dodges, trying to come in from an odd angle with directed blasts from her gauntlets... it's like trying to fly using a shotgun, high bursts of speed, but not much fine control. She finally swings in, and goes for a tackle, trying to wrap her arms around the Doctor, then squeeze the life out of him.
Sarracenia	"Somehow, Strange avoids all of those spikes with some dizzying, acrobatic flying! Even he looks a bit dizzy after that as he stops upside down in the air! He does more magic martial arts, and then there are burning rocks manifesting from thin air and raining down on Yang! COME ON YANG!" Pause. "...what do you mean impartial?! I happen to sympathize strongly with the underdog." Pause. "Ugh, fine. Yaay let's go Strange, too...he is doing quite well though. Yang tries to defend against the fiery rocks, but her efforts just turn the rocks into a rain of fiery shards! Yang has had just about enough, in both the sense of frustration and exhaustion! She takes off like a rocket, using her shotgun gauntlets to haphazardly direct her flight on the way to giving Strange a deadly hug!"
Doctor Strange	Strange sees Yang coming, making another one of her immense leaps, and attempts to flee once more. He presses his arms and legs together to reduce his profile, gaining a little speed. Something's odd, though... why is she shooting her shotgun things? He doesn't hear any projectiles zipping past, but the blasts are getting louder. He looks over his shoulder just in time to see her flying towards him, arms wide. Strange rolls mid-air, working his hands to make some sort of emergency spell, but before the glyphs on his little mandala target shields can lock into place, Yang traps him in a bear hug and yanks him down, causing a dip in his flight path. Her arms contrict upon him, and there is an unseemly popping noise which escapes along with the sorcerer's breath. Strange struggles, trying to knee her, shake her off with rapid barrel rolls, even a headbutt--but she's just too strong to shake. The sorcerer traces an erratic path across the sky, before finally flying stright up. He inverts, going into a nosedive in a last-ditch effort to try and scare her off. She's either too stubborn or too pissed, perhaps both, to let go, however, and he ends up crashing into the ground before he can pull away. The force of the impact throws him clear, his body skipping twice across the arena before the Cloak stops him just short of a fallen spike of earth. It lifts him into the air, placing him back on his feet, revealing a patchwork of skid marks, a torn spot in his robe with dark purple bruises, and his disheveled, sweat-soaked hair. Strange approaches Yang, making sure she's alright--he knows the Shrine can handle it, but there's no reason to be standoffish, especially after such a trying fight. "You really put me through my paces, Yang Xiao Long."
Yang Xiao Long	Yang's far too stubborn, even when not pissed off to the max, to deviate from a path she's set to taking. As the Doctor slams into the ground, the impact finally finishes off the young huntress. She's released the Sorceror, and just kind of lays there, panting and bleeding until the Shrine hits the reset. Even then, she doesn't move, staring up at the ceiling. When Strange approaches, lilac eyes lift to focus on him. "You're not so bad yourself, for an old timer." she quips, grinning a bit. "Y'wanna grab somethin' t'eat? I'm starvin' after that workout." she says, kipping up onto her feet and turning with hand outstretched. "Good match, I concede, so it's all square."