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Shadumbra     Shadumbra clears her throat and broadcasts her greeting from the commentator's booth stationed high atop one of the desert's gigantic mushrooms.

    "Ladies and gentlemen and all others of the Multiverse! Tonight, the World Martial Arts Tournament is PROUD to present a contest between two exquisite warriors!"

    "YSABEL THIBAULT, famed hunter of mountain-sized monsters, may very well meet her match in the form of BARDOCK, a fighter capable of punching mountains into dust! May Elune bless the incredible competition to come! Join us live in the DIAAABLO DESERT! Or, if you like, tune your radios to WMAT 900.3, where I -- Shadumbra, that is -- shall be pleased to bring you coverage of all the unfolding excitement."

    After that's done, she gives an awkward look both to the left and to the right, then lets out a small sigh of relief as her cheeks warm with color.

    She's never had to do anything like this before...
Bardock     Bardock's first match was here. He hasn't seen this desert since then. The sand and dust, the rocky outcroppings, the blistering heat and blinding sunlight... He can still see the crater in the side of a cliff from where he blasted Vivio Takamachi into it. He can still see the hole that HE made when she got back up and clobbered him so hard he went flying, finishing the fight. This is where it all began. Is this where it will end too? That would be nice. To go full circle like that. But maybe his job isn't done yet. Maybe there's more people to fight. More people who he NEEDS to fight. Both for their sake and his own.

    He hasn't wasted time following his arrival, and is already in his Super Saiyan state. His hair is spiked and golden, his eyes a blue-green coloration, and a flowing golden aura continuously rises up around him. His Ki levels are stable for now. He's been working on learning to control this form, and this tournament has been a great place to practice. But most of his non-tournament training has been focused on raising his baseline strength. When his 'normal' body is stronger, the result of transforming will be greater as well.

    But will it be enough? There are so many powerful warriors in this tournament. Even putting aside his ego, acknowledging his role now... That it's his youngest son, 'Goku', who is the savior, not him... He can't deny his saiyan nature. He ENJOYS fighting. He ENJOYS pitting himself against other opponents. And... Every day, the primitive, savage part of him that needs to kill a defeated opponent to complete the experience becomes more and more alien to him: to who he's becoming.

    They have a commentator, though Bardock isn't sure if that adds to the fight or not yet. It does seem kind of cool, that people all across the Multiverse are watching this. Watching and waiting to find out whether this will be his final match a second time or not. He hasn't received any visions of the future in awhile, so he doesn't know what lies in store.

    He likes it better this way.
Ysabel Thibault     This guy is a saiyan, right? As far as Ysabel knows of that species, mostly thanks to such members as Serori and Vegeta, they're prone to gaining flares of power that shoot their hair into a golden crown, and they have enough strength to punch through solid rock and can blast lasers and various other energy projectiles. They're also able to turn into giant, hulking apes.

    So they're basically Rajangs, right? Just not already a giant hulking ape. Ysabel really hopes this one has a tail to aim for.

    It's with this in mind that the huntress comes to the Diablo Desert equipped for such a fight: her Kushala X armor, whose cold embrace protects her from the scorching desert heat, and the matching Daora's Casca, which lies on her back with the sea-turtle-like greatshield acting as a sheath for the broadsword. It's an elegant weapon, though one with plenty of surprises, as Ysabel's already shown before.

    The huntress strides in after Bardock's already arrived and entered his Super Saiyan state, loosing a quiet sigh to herself at the sight. "Already?" she mutters to herself behind her mask-like helmet. "Shit. I hope he isn't more like those Furious Rajang. Not really in the mood to deal with a /second/ power state today."

    Ysabel stops a good distance away, leeeaaaning to one side to try and peer behind Bardock. Good. At least he has a tail. Not like she's gonna cut that off for a tournament, but maybe a couple of nicks won't be so bad, right?

    The huntress straightens up again, lifting her hand in a lazy salute. "Hey. You're Bardock, right? Already got your hairstyle going and everything, nice." Her hand goes back to her weapon, then: notably, it's her left hand that she takes the sword in, while the right hand grasps the hefty turtle shield in a tight grip. She braces, taking a short breath.

    "Well, guess we shouldn't keep everyone waiting, huh?"
Bardock     Bardock smirks a bit as his opponent arrives and comments upon his current state. She seems to know about saiyans, based on checking for a tail, and recognizing what this transformation signifies. "Yeah, I'm Bardock. I've learned from experience that most people in this bracket are too strong for me to have a chance of winning against if I fight them without transforming. Just take it a sign that you're good enough that I can't hold back." For his part, Bardock knows nothing about his opponent. He has avoided finding out anything about them, so that it would be more challenging, and like when he fought Kongou, he also discovered that this can be a strength in itself. If he doesn't go into a fight with assumptions and expectations, he might catch things he otherwise wouldn't, because he'll be alert for ANYTHING.

    Hopefully all the lessons he has learned from his previous fights with help him here. He has to think on his feet, not rely solely on strength. But fighting a battle of attrition's no good either. With how he is now, he won't stand a chance. Especially against someone smarter than he is. Satsuki Kiryuin proved that. His power is something to be proud of. But it's neither the greatest nor the only factor in these fights.

    "Let's see what I can learn from you," the warrior says as he lowers himself into a rough fighting stance, preparing for battle. As soon as the referee announces the match is beginning... He's off! Dashing towards Ysabel, kicking up a wave of sand and dust in the process, and launching a few rapid but restrained strikes with his fists. An armored opponent like this can probably take stronger blows, but he wants to know what he's up against first.
Ysabel Thibault     "Guess we'll find out just how much you need that transformation, huh?" Ysabel stays braced behind her shield; she's not going to show much of an opening if she can at all, especially not against someone whose species has been known to be a handful to a lot of people. Bardock might enjoy going into fights knowing little about his opponents, but Ysabel can't really shake the habit of trained caution and research.

    Unfortunately, she can still be caught off-guard.

    When Bardock suddenly jets over to her, she's not quite as ready as she should be. Her arm braces, and the shield rings out as Bardock strikes it again and again...but there's only so many blows Ysabel can endure like this. Soon a punch jolts her shield wide, and before she can move, several blows slam into armored plates with the same level of strength she expected. POW POW POW!

    The huntress grunts in discomfort, sent flying back until she can dig her feet into the ground and skid to a halt. Fortunately, she's pretty agile herself; she manages to push herself forward again, dashing off toward Bardock herself. She gives a sharp cry, and rather than swing with her sword, she actually tries to just /punch/ Bardock in the gut with the main body of her shield. It's not much more than a stunning blunt attack, but it does come added with an icy burst on impact for a bit of extra damage!

    Not much for mid-battle quips, is she?
Shadumbra     Shadumbra fixates on the action once the fight begins in earnest.

    "The fight begins! Bardock charges his opponent in a display of inhuman speed! The desert sands are kicked up into a cloud behind his heels. As Ysabel prepares herself to withstand his attack, Bardock lets loose a series of jabs and punches, no doubt testing her defenses."

    "Ah! And he pounds right through them! Ysabel is sent flying -- oh, but she's a tough one to knock over. Look at the way she digs in her heels to slow herself down!"

    Shadumbra gasps in astonishment. "A few quick steps forward and now she's the one engaging the offensive. Ysabel's shield thrusts forward to deliver a mighty blow!"
Bardock     Bardock is wearing armor of his own, though nowhere near as full-coverage. Further, its intended to allow him to retain mobility, so there's some amount of give to it. When Ysabel charges him and slams him in the gut, the Super Saiyan definitely feels it. And he also feels cold spike through him at the impact point as well. As he lifts off into the air to get some room, he narrows his eyes slightly as he looks down at Ysabel. Is she really...?

    He isn't sure. Maybe it's some property of the armor. But if so...

    He's facing two opponents in the same place who enhance their physical blows with some kind of magic or something. He really did come full circle.

    Hovering back several feet, Bardock lets out two brief yells as he thrusts one hand forwards and then the other, releasing a blue-white sphere of Ki from the palm of each. "Yaa! Yaa!" The spheres aren't super powerful, compared to his higher-end attacks, but they may cause a small detonation or two if they hit.
Ysabel Thibault     Once Ysabel has a little space with Bardock's retreat, she takes a moment to roll her shield-arm's shoulder a bit and try to work out the slight soreness that his fists left. Probably not the best idea to go in with that arm immediately after, but Ysabel often tends to think a little later than her instinct demands.

    "What's up? Not a fan of the cold?" The huntress' quip is only given once she notices the narrowing of Bardock's eyes. Maybe this ice /is/ effective against him. If her vague connections are accurate, then she should be able to rely on some old tactics...

    But maybe she should spend less time bantering and more time paying attention, because those ki blasts are pretty rough, even if they're not the best Bardock can throw out.

    Ysabel quickly tumbles to the side and forward from that first blast, but not quite fast enough: the resulting detonation jars her and sends her roll out of her control, at which point Bardock's second shot manages to slam into her and send her tumbling even further off-course from her attempted evasion /toward/ him. Again she rolls, and with a pained grunt shoves herself back to her feet.

    Her next dash sends her rushing right for Bardock. She may be at a disadvantage, lacking any ranged assaults, but some quick feet can get her in close. As soon as she's near enough, her sword comes into play, delivering two quick slashes in a cross shape before she plants her foot and whirls around for a roundhouse swing of her sword, shouting roughly as the last is swung. Each strike of the sharp blade comes with an icy burst on impact, adding the pain of the elements to that physical cut.
Shadumbra     "...and Bardock responds by revving up the action! I've seen mages produce fireballs from thin air, but nothing like this blue-white energy he releases. It's almost like something shamanic, something...hm, something pure -- oh! OH! The bolts EXPLODE most magnificently on impact!" Shadumbra straightens up in her seat, silver eyes flashing in excitement. A smile quirks her purple lips.

    Then, she's cringing in sympathy as Ysabel goes for a tumble. "Ysabel's left steaming and roasting in her armor. It's a good thing she's as tough as she is..." Wince. "Proving my point, she's up on her feet already! She's about as fast as Bardock -- has to be to get in as close as she does." Slowly but surely, Shadumbra's grimace is replaced by another broad, feral smile. "Ah, but not TOO close! Seems she wants to bring that sword into play. The massive weapon in her hands transforms into a shining, colorful blur as it chops, slashes, and hacks its way through the saiyan's defensive stance!"
Bardock     "You just reminded me of someone. The cold's fine... To a DEGREE!" Battle puns! Bardock grins as he sees the results of his attack, and starts to fly in for a follow up, but that just leaves him open to Ysabel's series of slashes. Each one is definitely enhanced by some other effect. Whether it's magic or the nature of the equipment itself, it's augmenting his opponent's damage pretty well. He can feel the sting of the cold in his wounds even as he tries to dash out of the way of any further attacks, and gets roundhouse-sliced in the shoulder for his trouble.

    He flickers out of sight suddenly, bleeding already this early in the battle, despite the tough bodies saiyans have, and reappears behind Ysabel, trying to simply clock her in the back of the head with a Ki-infused punch. He can't do what Ysabel can do. He can't do what Vivio can do either. But he's been trying to mimic it. Now to see if his training has paid off. His knuckles glow, and his fists trails a 'tail' blazing golden Ki as he focuses his aura into that one limb, and tries to smash his opponent with it before she can react to his sudden disappearance!
Ysabel Thibault     After that roundhouse slash is delivered, the blue gem in the sword's hilt suddenly starts to crackle with a yellow light. What that means isn't going to be clear just yet, though, because Ysabel has to deal with something that completely surprises her.

    "What the fu-"

    Teleportation? Literally the worst thing ever. Even if it's not exactly teleportation and more moving so fast you can't be seen when you do it. /Sucks/.

    At least she has some reflexes that kick in. Namely, when you can't see your opponent, you /move/.

    Her sudden whirling twist manages to spare her from much more than the glaring force of Bardock's ki grazing along her helmet, allowing her to endure something much more tolerable than an immediate blow to the back of the skull. She staggers slightly, but now that she's whirled around she knows where Bardock is for the moment. It's all the information she needs to deliver a swift upward slash to his center of mass, driving up with that cutting, icy blade in what she hopes is a moment of vulnerability.
Shadumbra     "Whether he's moving too fast to be seen, or just teleporting, Bardock vanishes from the scuffle, only to reappear again BEHIND Ysabel! He's sporting a bleeding injury left by her stellar bladework. Ah, but I like his fire! He's not to be outdone at all. Far from surrender, Bardock retaliates, his fist ablaze with a yellow power like fire!"

    Shadumbra clutches the microphone within white knuckles. "He STRIKES at Ysabel using all his impressive strength! At the same moment, Ysabel whirls to evade him. His fist sweeps forward and she staggers from the glancing blow alone, yet in her dance, she manages to lift her blade into a slicing icy uppercut! A true counter to Bardock's fire!"
Bardock     The upwards slash indeed catches Bardock, slicing across his armor and cutting into it, leaving an icy trail. The skin underneath is also sliced, the magic of the weapon penetrating both his natural toughness and his transformation-enhanced durability. He's starting to understand how dealing with cold-based attacks could be a problem. Out of all the weird techniques and strange opponents he has faced, he hasn't had much experience with weaponized cold or ice.

    A lack of experience that might cost him. Previously he acknowledged to himself that a battle of endurance wouldn't work out in his favor. That if he just tries to tough out the blows, he'll lose. His ability to keep up his full fighting strength when transformed isn't perfected yet. So it's time to stop using smaller moves and work on bigger ones.

    Even as he bleeds, aches, and feels the chill creeping into his bones, he blasts upwards into the air and lands atop one of the rocky pillars in the area. It's not time for his trump card yet. But he has something else. He gathers Ki into both hands, drawing them back, his aura surging around him, and then he unleashes a barrage of smaller Ki blasts, trying to just saturate the area below with impacts that flare and leave holes in the terrain!

    He hasn't seen any ranged attacks from his opponent yet, but maybe he can force another ability to be revealed if he ups the amount of firepower he's sending out.
Ysabel Thibault     Ysabel's next reflex is to stagger back a little after her assault and try to get out of Bardock's immediate range, but...that kind of backfires. Bardock's retreating way further than she can keep up with, especially since he can, you know, fly and jump. This is around the time where Ysabel really wishes she at least had an insect glaive in her arsenal.

    Unfortunately, the huntress still hasn't gotten around to investing in that strange weapon yet.

    "Hey! That's completely not fair-" Ysabel's frustrated retort is suddenly interrupted by various explosions, the first of which comes right off of her from a ki blast directly striking her chest. She flies back, but this time it's another explosion under her that sends her rolling aside to her feet; not the most comfortable way to right herself, but the huntress has learned to take what she can get, even if it leaves her as burned as she looks now.

    There's a slight limp when Ysabel starts her charge toward the pillar beneath Bardock, but she gets into a steady dash quickly enough. Another blast explodes beside her, but after that sends her stumbling aside, she's a little better with avoiding the rain of explosions until she's at the pillar's base.

    And from there, after sheathing her weapon on her back, she continues to show some remarkable agility with her speedy climb up the pillar's side. As used to clearing tall cliff faces under pressure as she is, it's not too hard for her to just start bounding up the pillar's side to the top, where she scrabbles up to try and catch Bardock before he flees again. She draws the Daora's Casca...

    ...and this time, the shield comes with the sword. A track extends from where the sword is sheathed in the shield, and the sea turtle shape flips 180 degrees as it slides up along that track. The turtle's eyes flare into a cyan glow, and its fins spread out as the blades of what is now a massive two-bladed axe. All of this mechanical transformation rolls through in the span of a second, all while what is now a giant axe comes crashing down on top of Bardock!
Bardock     Ysabel is pretty agile and fast indeed. Bardock can appreciate that. Especially how his opponent finds a way around the limitation of not being able to fly. Maybe he'll offer to teach her after this, if he's still conscious. As she comes up to join him atop the rock formation, however, he's already on his way down the opposite side, allowing himself to fall backwards just as that huge and deadly-looking weapon swings at him. He jerks aside in mid-air to avoid it, but though there's no direct contact, the weapon and its wielder are powerful enough and skilled enough to cause yet another cut to appear in his hardened skin.

    That turtle shell brings up memories of not only his prophetic visions, but of that old master Krillin who hangs out at Toki Toki City. The one who trained Cory. He wore a big turtle shell too.

    Bardock accelerated his descent towards the ground, not wanting to stay close enough to get hit with THAT thing again, and when he lands... He quickly kicks the base of the stone spire, shattering it, and then as it topples and starts to fall, he darts back a few dozen feet, gathers his Ki into one hand... Making it glow within a sphere of blue-white Ki that makes his palm glow brightly. And then he hurls his attack up at Ysabel as her perch falls out from underneath her!

    "RIOT JAVELIN!"
Shadumbra     Someone in a uniform steps up to the commentary booth to offer Shadumbra something from a cart. Distracted by the man's insistent tugging on her sleeve, Shadumbra finally leans back from the microphone to hear him out. "What was that about complimentary beverages? Aaah, yes, I am quite interested! What are you offering? Hmm? Why don't you bring me..."

    As she's placing her order, she leaves the microphone unguarded. That's when a large white paw shoots up from beneath the desk to swat the microphone to the booth's floor, stand and all! Shadumbra looks on, indignant, as a trio of toddler-sized black cats takes over her job in a rush of meowing speech. One black cat delivers commentary while two others stand guard, wielding big white plushy paws atop long wooden sticks.

    "Bardock meowers the field with dozens of energy blasts! Ysabel purries to and fro, rushing as fast as she can to avoid the bombardment, but she's pawsitively blasted!" The cat curls his paw into a tight, enthusiastic fist. "The huntress Ysabel then switches her nyaarmaments from sword and shield to GIANT AXE! Looks like a Daora's Casca for certainly sure! MYAR! But Bardock's too kitteny-fast for Ysabel to keep up! He squirms away from the axe, escaping almost unscathed!"

    Shadumbra reaches with uncertainty for the microphone, only for the other two cats to swat her hands away. Confused, she looks to the uniformed man beside her, who only pleasantly smiles and shrugs.
Ysabel Thibault     Ysabel's first reaction when her attack misses is to curse loudly and vehemently. It's a moment before she gets her weapon condensed and sheathed on her back once more, and in that moment, Bardock /decimates/ exactly what she's standing on.

    Well, shit.

    There aren't many options for Ysabel up here as she feels the structure collapsing beneath her. She tries to dash to the side, but with the way the pillar leans and crumbles, she's suddenly knocked off her feet again. She tumbles, scrabbling to find her footing or grasp onto some kind of handhold...and then a blast of ki explodes through the rock she's still trying to keep a hold of, decimating it and blasting straight to her.

    Fortunately Ysabel isn't buried under tons of rock. Unfortunately, she still lands on those tons of rock after being blasted through with an explosion of ki. All in a day's work for her, really.

    Steaming and sore, the huntress ends up prone on the rubble of the pillar for a few seconds before she manages a groan. It's mostly thanks to her armor of steel dragon plates that she even managed to endure that, plus the combined fall; it's doubtful she'll be taking much more of those, though.

    Shoving herself into a roll, Ysabel tumbles down to the ground to her feet, where she pushes against her sore muscles and aching body to run toward Bardock again. "I'm /really/ getting sick of those energy blasts," she shouts, clearing the time it takes her to run to him - at which point she suddenly draws that weapon again. Straight back to the giant axe form, but in a different format: Ysabel swings it horizontally this time, attacking from a much greater distance than the sword and shield format would allow. The great weight of the weapon carries it around into a /second/ swing after the first completes, looking to strike Bardock twice!

    But that's not all the weapon has in store. Each of those two ice-laden strikes also sticks a large, spherical mote of yellow energy to Bardock on impact. Only once the pair of swings finishes does anything come of those motes: they suddenly detonate with concussive force like sticky bombs, and while those lack the ice element of the main sword, they're certainly going to be unpleasant to deal with on top of those blows.
Shadumbra     Shadumbra, meanwhile, swats back at the big white paw-sticks. She and the two 'guardian' Melynxes get into a slap-fight while the commentator does his best to continue talking over the sounds of a nearby cat scrap.

    "Bardock shatters a big rocky pillar with a solid KICK! Too bad Ysabel was hoping that'd give her a solid perch, myaaar! The force pro-pawlses him forward, and as he rockets away from the collapse, he squirms around again to fire a bolt of energy from his paw! It's the big one, folks! This could be it! OH, YOU'VE GOT TO BE KITTEN ME! That huntress falls right into the rubble, but she's able to get up even if that attack from Bardock really hurts!! Ysabel counters by swinging her axe through giant swings, and also pelts Bardock with a pair of sticky explosives! A-meow-zing!"
Bardock     "Your weapons aren't exactly fun to get hit with either, you know." Bardock grumbles in response to the complaint. He wasn't expecting Ysabel's weapon to have the range it does, so he gets chopped solidly in the side, slashing through his armor and planting into his ribs. The impact hurls him out of the path of the second swing, partially through the force of it and partially through his own attempts to fly out of the way, but he still gets clipped by it. His armor's looking pretty ragged by this point!

    But that brief reprieve gives him the time to notice the glowing mote attached to him. He doesn't know PRECISELY what it is, but a remote-detonation Ki attack isn't unheard of, and sheerly through the experience of countless battles is he able to react in time to concentrate his aura and try to smother the explosion!

    Unfortunately, he can't do anything about the second one, and it blasts a hole in his armor on the opposite side. "Augh!" he cries out as shattered armor fragments fly outwards from the point of detonation. Then, he decides that if his opponent prefers hand to hand, maybe he'll give it to her.

    He suddenly, rapidly goes rolling through the air, closing the distance between them swiftly, and comes out of the roll with an elbow aimed right at her head with the full strength of a Super Saiyan behind it. Of course, there's the helmet and all, but he has crushed helmeted heads plenty.

    N-not that he wants to crush Ysabel's head or anything...!

    Also her helmet is probably tougher than standard issue Planet Trade armor.
Shadumbra     Shadumbra continues trying to reach for the mic as the Melynx trio continues to hold her at bay. "Oh, please! Give the microphone back to me -- I -- I was the one invited to commeowntate -- I mean commentate!"

    The commentator leans over the mic with a growl of excitement. "Reflexes as good as any cat's save Bardock from eating dirt! Or...sand! His armor gets shredded up worse than a scratching post, and he's starting to look just as mrrragged himself. "Bardock tumbles back into the fray and comes up with his elbow flying right at Ysabel's face! It's a great hit -- a real clonk to Ysabel's meowggin! What's Ysabel's keikaku to get out of this one?! (Keikaku means plan.)"
Ysabel Thibault     CLONG.

    Ysabel can evade pretty well, but against these kinds of swift attacks, she's not at her best. Bardock's elbow suddenly slams against the side of her head, and while her head's suddenly ringing as she stumbles aside, the beginning attempt at an evasion that she made at least made it so she /can/ recover. She's suffered worse...and better, but mostly worse.

    At least Bardock won't be disqualified for decapitation.

    The huntress stumbles, but even with her head ringing like a bell, she can manage to make use of her weapon's reach again to deliver a strong uppercut of the axe to Bardock's frame, shouting out in mixed exertion and fury. That's usually enough to send smaller monsters flying, even though Ysabel stumbles with the sheer weight of the weapon. There's no mote from the interior phial this time, but surely that should buy her a second or two to get over this headache and think more clearly, right?
Bardock     Bardock's armor is slashed so heavily this time that what remains of it is cut right off, only the broken sides and shoulder straps remaining. Blood sprays from the deep gouge reaching from belly to collarbone and he's hurled backwards and into one of the rock formations in the area, smashing into the side of it! Breathing hard as he tries to retain focus and bolster his Ki reserves, the Super Saiyan pulls himself out of the crater, and then just powers up suddenly, blasting the remains of his armor off of himself and causing his skin to seem to glow gold in a blinding display of energy build-up!

    The formation he just slammed into crumbles from proximity to his Ki, turning into boulders that go flying away from him, and then further shatter into 'smaller' rocks that rain down on the surrounding area, causing tremors from their impacts. Sand and dust swirl around him in a double-helix as he clenches his fists and focuses his power. It's time to stop holding back. They've both shown their strength, speed, skill, and ingenuity. They're both hurting pretty badly.

    Now it's time to show what else the warriors have in store for each other.

    Bardock finishes powering up as a pillar of golden light, crackling with bolts of electricity streaks up into the sky, turning the clouds the same coloration as his aura. The flare of lightning being artificially induced from the changes to the atmosphere overhead can be seen and the boom of thunder can be heard as all that power just keeps streaking up into the heavens.

    Then that tower of Ki comes back down, contracting and compressing until it fully engulfs Bardock. With his serious face on, bloody, bruised, cut all over, and feeling the physical fatigue of all this exertion in this transformed state, Bardock's blue-green eyes settle on Ysabel. Then he's gone so fast that Ysabel might not realize he's gone until AFTER he appears right in her face, leaving an after image in his wake. Then he unleashes a series of attacks: a punch to the face, a reverse side kick to try to knock Ysabel up into the air, then attempts to fly after her (or if she stays ground-bound to simply launch his next attack right then and there), punch her even higher into the air (or simply into the air if, again, the kick failed to achieve such), before flipping up and over her head to try to grab her and knee her in the back, and finally to double axe handle punch her in the head to send her back towards the ground!
Shadumbra     The Melynxes and Shadumbra continue to vie for microphone control. Commentary still makes it out, but there's a lot more yowling and growling in the background, especially now that Shadumbra's taken the form of a large panther. "Ysabel STUMBLES beneath a skull-ringing elbow! Like the waves of the ocean, though, she might be retreating now, but she always comes crashing back to shore -- Bardock's swept away by an axeblade as meowty as any tide! No explosions follow...he should count himself lucky. Or not -- look how deep he's cut this time! That's almost a direct chop, MYAH!"

    That's when Bardock takes to the air and flashes gold, and all four sets of feline eyes turn skyward in amazement. "Pawesome..." the commentator gasps. "Even bleeding and broken and about to be harvested for parts, Bardock's still fighting! He floats up into the very air and turns all shiny before flashing into view in front of Ysabel! The huntress stands up staunch and strong, but her resolve will be sorely punished by the powerful blows raining down on her body meow! KEEP GOING, YSABEL! Could that have been the decisive attack?! Mya! She's in a bad spot!"
Ysabel Thibault     Ysabel thankfully has enough space to stop her head from ringing and to let her eyes focus into seeing /single/ rather than double, but...it's much more time than she actually has. She looks up just in time to see Bardock's power flaring into the air...and him blasting into her face.

    Much like the Rajang she compared him to, his blazing fists pummel her with the force of a raging storm. That first blow sends her staggering, bloodied behind her helmet; it's only a sudden burst of focus that lets her bring her weapon in front, quickly reverting it into its shield state to block that kick and spare her from more than being forced to stagger back a few steps as it shifts back into the axe. That's left her open, though, for the raw power of that next punch tears her free of the ground, and she's left open as two blows slam into her back and head. The silver knight hurtles to the ground, crashing against the earth in a cloud of dust and sand.

    The huntress winces, then coughs. She's endured blows like this before, sure, but there's only so much even /she/ can take. Dents are already all over her armor, and it's doubtful she's holding up under all that either. She's much slower to scrabble to her feet this time than before.

    Still, she's not down yet. Not /quite/ yet. Ysabel finds her footing, and while she's not quite as straight as she was before, she's standing. She can hold her weapon, and she does, gripping the massive axe in both hands and keeping her gaze fixed on Bardock.

    Despite the powers granted to her by the equipment she's made from slain elder dragons, Ysabel can't be nearly as flashy as Bardock in her attacks. It's not quite as brilliant when she pulls the Daora's Casca back, crouching and holding it almost like a batter ready to swing. There's a strange flare, though, when the axe blade rotates another 180 degrees and slips down to the sword's hilt, and the internal phails suddenly flare a yellow aura around the large blade. And it's not until Ysabel swings, bringing the weapon up as the axe blade rotates and slides back up into place only so that she can slam it right back down into Bardock that anything powerful happens.

    That frigid strike is a jarring enough impact on its own, but it's not a single mote of yellow energy that sticks to Bardock when it hits. It's /five/, all stuck to him long enough for him to realize what's about to happen.

    Steam hisses through the interior components of Ysabel's weapon, and the axe head rotates back down, swinging its blades in and condensing its track to become a sword once more. And the moment Ysabel draws the sword free from its sheath in weary silence, all five of those concussive motes stuck to Bardock explode in rapid sequence, one right after the other.
Shadumbra     Now all the cats -- Shadumbra included -- are fixated on the action. As Bardock lays down the law, the Melynx struggles to keep up with events, and to convey exactly what he's witnessing. "The huntress reels backwards after one hit before bringing her shield up in a quick maneuver...mya! She's left open -- the weapon she carries shifts again -- it transforms back into its axe mode -- YSABEL'S DOWN!"

    A deep GASP precedes the next string of hurried words. "The referee looks like he's gonna call it -- MYA! YSABEL GETS UP AND HER AXE GOES ALL SHINY TOO AND AS SHE SWINGS! THAT! AXE!" The Melynx leaps up to the top of the commentary desk and continues shouting into the mic. "IT RELEASES THOSE STICKY YELLOW EXPLOSIVES! Bardock is absolutely COVERED in TIMEBOMBS! Ysabel shows him NO MYERRRCY AT ALLL! If those explosives all go off at the same time, Bardock's DOOMED! What a turn of events! How can one saiyan survive all of this?!"
Bardock     After that pummeling, after all the other attacks Ysabel has suffered so far, that she is still able to get up makes him glad. He doesn't want this fight to be over. No matter what complaints his body is making, he feels the sense of fulfillment that going all out in battle gives him, but also the deeper fulfillment that getting to have so many fights like this and to stray away from his dark and bloody history provides. When Ysabel's weapon is transformed, he steps into the swing, trying to side-step it so he can cause all that effort to go off into thin air.

    No dice. Too strong, too fast, too big of a weapon. He gets slashed hard, the freezing chill almost like the grip of death that he felt once before, right before he woke up a thousand years in the past of his homeworld. The pain likewise is severe hurling him off his feet. And then, while he's still in mid-air, those bombs detonate all across his body. He can't divide his aura to block all of them. Not enough time, not enough practice, not enough power.

    The explosions engulf him in a bright light and crackling energy. When he hits the ground, his whole body is trailing smoke from multiple points, his chest is burned, and that blood-stained bandana he wears has come loose and blows off in the wind.

    As he sucks in air painfully and forces himself back up onto his feet, the only thing that visually distinguishes him from his son Kakarot are his scars and what remains of his clothing. He'll have to go retrieve the bandana later. Now, battered and beaten, but not defeated, Bardock falls back on that trump card of his. The trump card that hasn't won a fight yet, but has proven to be an effective attack. If also a very draining one. He knows that if he doesn't hit with this, if it's deflected somehow, if it's avoided, if it just plain doesn't get the job done, he'll probably be in no condition to keep fighting.

    But he'd rather risk it. Because he's already at peace with the possibility of being defeated. This opponent has shown she has the adaptability to overcome circumstances, the spirit to keep pushing herself forward through hardship, and the potential to grow and grow. She has faced monsters and overcome them.

    Bardock himself still feels like a monster most days.

    If he fails here? Oh, well. It will be only fitting that she should triumph. If he succeeds? If it's him who's the victor? Maybe he'll get the chance to work on feeling more like just another man. A warrior. A fighter like Ysabel Thibault.

    He draws his hands back and cups them at his side. "Kaaameee..." he begins. A sphere of Ki forms between his palms. "Haaaameeee...!" The ground beneath him shatters outwards in every direction, a wind tears through the desert from nowhere, sending sand and dust and small rocks pelting over everyone, maybe even the audience and the commentators (feline or otherwise). His features, his form, his whole body are thrown into a sharp contrast of brilliant blue-white light, and deep shadow. Like a relief of cobalt and obsidian, in three-dimensional form.

    Then he throws both hands forward and unleashes the torrent of raw power in a massive beam, headed right for Ysabel, so strong it makes the area BEHIND him crumble and fly skywards from the force of it. "HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"
Shadumbra     It's pretty much chaos in the commentator's booth as the Melynxes bounce around and Shadumbra watches the battle's conclusion with biiig eyes. "IT'S OVER! IT'S OVER! BARDOCK'S LOST IN WAVE AFTER WAVE OF EXPLOSIONS! Ysabel's axe just can't be beat! Bardock's down for the -- meow? Mya? NYAAAAAAA! After Ysabel gives it her best, Bardock somehow keeps moving!"

    The Melynx hops onto his right foot. "More than that, he's charging up his OWN kind of attack! In response to those explosions wrought by Ysabel, it seems he wants to make an even BIGGER explosion!"

    The Melynx hops onto his left foot. "He's doing it, he's charging up -- that's a big bright light in his hands, and -- nyaaa! By my uncle's WHISKERS, the whole DESERT is shaking! Is there a Jhen Moran about to emerge?! No! It's shockwaves from Bardock's own paws! There's a blast...!"

    All three cats dive face-first into the booth's floor and cover their eyes and ears with their paws. Shadumbra hunkers down, too. That's a big blast.

    As the glare diminishes..."I'M BLIND! NYA!" Then the Melynx takes his paws off his eyes. Blinkblink. "Ysabel is -- wait -- YSABEL'S DOWN! NO! A REVERSAL OF FORTUNES! An unfortunate twist of FATE! BARDOCK WINNNNNNNNNNS! BARDOCK WINS!!"

    Panting, the Melynx collapses back against his comrades. "OooOOhOhhh...I'll need a felvine after that, nyaaa..."
Ysabel Thibault     ...and he's still not down.

    Ysabel heaves a heavy breath, trying her best to stay upright. If she tried to roll right now, she'd probably just fall over; a block likely won't manage much, either. There's not a ton in her reserves, and she made a point not to bring any items with her, considering this /is/ a tournament...

    Ki roils between Bardock's hands. Ysabel does all she really can at this point, with him too far away to reach in time and with her energy. She lowers, bracing her shield up, trying her best to hide behind it.

    The huntress is engulfed in a blazing torrent of blue-white, as powerful as the raw strength of an elder dragon brought to all its blinding fury.

    When the light clears, Ysabel is left in a stark crater, prone on the ground face-down and steaming. Her weapon is on the earth beside her, the silver sword and shield tossed from her hands. Clearly, her attempt to block didn't work, and she certainly doesn't look like she's going to get up.

    After a few moments confirm that Ysabel is, from what anyone can tell, totally out of it, a dust cloud appears in the horizon! A small wooden cart pushed by a pair of white Felynes charges through the desert, barreling over the sand and down the crater's wall. With incredible speed, the duo hoist and toss Ysabel onto the cart with her weapons, rush back to the cart's handle, and speed her on a bumpy ride to the medical bay.

    QUEST FAILED. https://goo.gl/9Emo8U
Bardock     Bardock falls to his knees after that attack, drained. After waiting to ensure that his opponent is really down, he allows his transformation to lapse. He's gasping in deep lungfulls of air as his hair drops back down and becomes black once more, his eyes doing the same. His aura is completely gone. That was quite a fight. He can still feel the freezing cold from those blows. To say nothing of the cuts. And the explosions. And the bruises.

    He starts to get up to go check on Ysabel, but then there's... A cart... And... Cats... And... Just...

    ...What.

    "...Sure, why not," he remarks and then lies down for awhile as he waits to get the strength back to go see a medic.

    He has one great emotion in his heart right now.

    Gratitude. Gratitude that he lived to face so many great fighters, and to make something of himself, after a life time of being only relatively less awful than Frieza. This tournament is pretty great. The opportunities provided by the Multiverse are endless. And it seems that...

    ...The Multiverse isn't done with him yet, because he's advancing to the next round.

    He just feels very... Very... Thankful.

    And tired. So tired he falls asleep while waiting to be able to stand back up.