2017-04-18: A Memorable Battle
- Log: A Memorable Battle
- Cast: Xantia, Fei Fong Wong
- Where: Adlehyde - Town Center
- Date: April 18th, 2017
- Summary: Xantia's latest attempt to jog her memory prompts her to issue a challenge to someone with a very similar fighting style to her own: Fei Fong Wong. The resulting battle makes quite a splash.
=========================<* Adlehyde - Town Center *>========================= The centre of Adlehyde marks the intersection between the east-west and north-south roads that carve the city into near-quarters. Large shops are packed along both roads, offering goods and services of a variety rivaled only by the merchant republics of Aquvy. The intersection between the two roads is actually a large circle nearly a quarter-mile across, allowing wagons and other traffic to move with a minimum of collisions and profanity both. The area in the centre of the circle plays host to an informal gathering of food and drink vendors and other barkers, who ply their wares to merchants and wagoneers too busy to stop and rest. As a result of the considerable merchant traffic, the Circle and the major avenues are absolutely lousy with wagons from mid-morning into the early evening. The buildings throughout the rest of Adlehyde are built of stone and tile roofs, and are generally well kept; as one moves away from the major routes toward the walls, however, poorer and seedier enclaves have developed over time. Still, even the poorest resident of Adlehyde has an easier time of it than all but the nobility of Nortune or Bledavik, though only Drifters and other travelers would be able to make the comparison. BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MQRL7xws7w
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
The streets of Adlehyde are bustling as usual... but NEVER MIND THAT, what kind of person would actually use the streets to get around? Okay, normally just about everybody, including Xantia, but today is a special occasion. Today, she's looking for somebody. Somebody who many others are looking for, and who probably doesn't want to be found. It would sure be tough to find a person like that without any clues.
There is, however, one vital clue to be gained from Fei's arrival during the Cucco fiasco. He came from above. Ergo, in other to find Fei, Xantia also has to go up. It's all so simple! Or it would be, if she'd remembered at all which street she was fleeing through at the time. Alas, that was the definition of blind panic.
Which leaves no recourse but to simply start in a random spot and start leaping across rooftops! That's just fine, it's not like it's Xantia's first time doing that. Rooftops make for a fun obstacle course, plus they're among her favorite places to sleep. Saves money for food!
It's some time before the red-haired girl finally manages to locate the correct roof. She slows her approach then, trying to make as little sound as possible... with dubious success, there's no real masking the sound of boots landing on a roof. In the likely event that she is detected, she will immediately take action... by charging directly at Fei. Think fast!
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
LAST TIME ON ITS AN APOULTRYCALYPSE FEI FONG WONG
Fei: I'll save you! *run over by chickens*
NOW
Fei Fong Wong has a steady job now. Yes that job is working for a pirate king but its a good job that doesn't involve 'the murder'.
He is minding his own business, painting the streets of Adlehyde. His heart isn't really in it but he seems peaceful, more or less. He is attentive to his work but not so attentive that the red-haired girl landing on a roof isn't going to draw his attention.
"Ah..!" Fei says, raising up his arms defensively on instinct before pausing and saying, "Xantia?"
If he says more it might depend on what she intends to do after charging him.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
By all appearances, this is going to be a disaster. Xantia seems poised to bowl directly into Fei and all his painting equipment. And really, the way things have been going, does Fei have any reason to believe otherwise?
However, for once, disaster is averted. With a final leap, Xantia lands a short distance away from Fei and stops her approach there, raising her arms in a showy 'ta-dah' pose before addressing him. "Fei, there you are! Glad you're alright!" Referring to the previous disaster the two were involved in, no doubt. All things considered, one would be forgiven to wonder what calamitous situation Xantia's arrival heralds this time.
All seems fine.... until the girl points at Fei, claiming, "I have a great idea!" Again, one would be forgiven to experience a sense of dread upon hearing Xantia of all people has something that she thinks is a great idea. But perhaps if you hear her out...
"Fight me!"
Yep. That's... the whole idea, apparently. She has her eternal bright smile going still, but she's completely serious about this.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
"Oh, uh, thanks." Fei says, lowering his arms. "Glad you're okay too." He does mean it. Xantia is probably one of the closest people he has to a friend that isn't a pirate lord or a child right now. He sets his paintbrush into a water can and shakes out his hands before looking back to Xantia.
"How have you--" He begins but Xantia is already telling him her great idea. He looks at her bright smile and endearing face. It is completely innocent of ill will as far as Fei can tell. And she is a nice woman whom Fei would love to help if he could.
"No thanks."
And that's why, he thinks, he can't fight her.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia's face falls, turning into a frown as she awkwardly lowers her pointing finger. That was clearly not the response she was expecting, nor hoping for. "Why not? You're really good at fighting, and... and you fight like me!" There's a lot she doesn't notice, but she did notice that much, even through all the chaos that was going on at the tail end of their last encounter. Despite that ending poorly for the both of them, she certainly seems completely undaunted.
"Come ooon," she pleads, raising her arms in a fighting stance despite the very clear refusal. "I'll let you attack first! Don't worry about hurting me, I'll be fine!" She can't see any other possible reason to refusing to fight. Fighting is fun, isn't it?
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Come to think of it, Xantia did fight like him, didn't she?
Fei holds up his hands, "Hold on a second--you're saying you fight like me?" He was mostly concerned with the chicken army than his past but he knows he doesn't have his memories. He said he didn't want to find them but Xantia is different. She wants to know.
"Are you--trying to remember your past?" Fei frowns. That does put it in a different context, doesn't it. "Through fighting me? Seeing if it jogs your memory?"
To be honest, he could totally see Xantia neglecting that aspect entirely anyway just to enjoy the whole fighting part.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
"Yup!"
Right on the money. Xantia sounds happy to confirm it. She does seem like the kind who would assume people could figure that out, or just didn't feel like that was the most important aspect of all this.
However, her fighting stance relaxes somewhat then, her expression turning oddly... sympathetic? "I wasn't going to say anything... I know you don't like to talk about this stuff. I thought we could just have fun and maybe... maybe at least one of us would remember something." She was intentionally hiding her true motivations all along, if not very well, and sorely mistaken about what the best approach here would be. But she only had the best of intentions. Even if it turned out to be Fei who remembered something instead, she'd be happy. This could help the both of them, and that's why it's such a great idea!
Not that this changes anything, in her mind. She settles back into her stance, asking the only question that really matters, as eager as before: "Will you fight me now?"
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei Fong Wong listens to Xantia. He closes his eyes. He argues with himself for both sides, one for one against. He'll just hurt her. She is plenty strong. He can't control himself. There is no gear here. You use martial arts all the time against monsters and nothing bad came of that. And also, how much longer are you going to spend your life painting streets.
"No, no--I get it." Fei says, stretching out his legs, one after the other. Once he's done he moves his painting supplies to one corner of the rooftop before raising his hands and turning to face Xantia.
"If you think it'll help you...then I'll do it!" Fei says with an unusual determination coming from him. Who knew that taking his feelings into account and explaining yourself with words could sway this guy???
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia certainly didn't! She has no idea how that worked, but she's glad it did! Of course, since she thought her original approach would work just fine, that's probably not a big surprise. Her response to this turn of events shouldn't be a big surprise, either.
"Yay!"
BATTLE TRANSITION
UNIQUE BATTLE THEME - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5Pd0o5wElU
Xantia's stance unsubtly changes when Fei faces her. Is she... mimicking him? Yep, that's exactly what she's doing. She has no idea what the 'proper' stance is supposed to be, so it's worth trying something slightly different. It doesn't occur to her that imitating somebody who also lost their memory might be a bit questionable.
"Okay, here I come!"
Xantia abruptly dashes forward, fist extended. What happened to letting Fei attack first!? To be fair, this isn't putting a lot of force behind it, and is aimed straight for Fei's guard. This is just to provoke him into action, in case he needed a bit more help to get motivated.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei blocks the strike Xantia throws at him. Xantia is as strong lady but if she's not putting a lot of her strength in it, Fei won't get thrown off the roof like that. But how did someone like Xantia lose their memory, Fei wonders, do they have a shared past? Or is it something else? Even Fei doesn't know how he knows what he knows.
Muscle memory tells him what to do. He throws a quick trio of kicks for Xantia--more to try and force her back than to harm her--that culminates in a round house. Fei is afraid he'll lose control if he gets too excited so he's playing more defensively than he normally would. This isn't like fighting skeleton monsters, after all.
"Just let me know if your memory starts coming back..." Fei says. His art's certainly more 'strike' than 'throw'.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia is going to be making triple sure to hold back on the force behind her punches. She only goes all out against monsters, not people. Definitely not people she doesn't want to hurt in the first place.
If only she knew how she lost her memory, and how she learned to fight. Her reactions are pure instinct, backing away and moving her body in the proper directions to avoid the initial kicks, then executing a backflip to dodge the final roundhouse. But it feels so familiar. Like she knows the follow-up moves in advance, because... well, it just feels like it makes sense to string a combo that way.
"Don't worry... I will!"
So promising, Xantia starts to push back. A series of palm strikes aimed at the torso is followed by an elbow strike to the head, and a final uppercut. Unsurprisingly, her focus too lies on strike attacks. What may be more surprising is that the same is true for her moves - it's a very formulaic series, the next move easy to predict to those who use the same fighting style. It's not just similar, it's identical.
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei doesn't feel the same way when sparring with Xantia as he does the mere presence of Elly. One is a dull familiarity constantly throbbing against his skull and the other is a stabbing pain of nostalgia that goes right through the heart. He's not sure how to reconcile these feelings but so far--they're just feelings. He doesn't recall anything coherent that he could put words to.
Fei weaves backwards as Xantia throws palm strikes at him. That's the solar plexus and not a place he wants to get clobbered in during a spar. He raises his arms up to block the elbow strike but before he can reposition himself, Xantia follows through with the uppercut, catching him on the chin.
Fei flips back instinctively and then nearly falls off the roof. He sways unsteadily for a moment befor running back at Xantia, leaping into the air and trying to step kick off Xantia's head to fly past her.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia is the one who wanted this fight, and yet, she visibly panics upon landing a hit on Fei. She was expecting him to keep dodging! Immediately her mind is flooded with worry that she might not have held back enough and caused serious harm. It's a legitimate worry - she managed to make a monster literally explode when she wasn't holding back at all.
She thus makes a bit of a silly spectacle of herself, rushing after Fei as if trying to catch him from falling, all the whole going "Omigosh omigosh omigosh are you alright??" Aaaand then Fei bounces back, and proceeds to bounce off her head. That catches Xantia completely off guard, and she falls over on her behind.
She sits there for a moment, rubbing her head, appearing dazed... then she laughs out loud. "That was a good one! Didn't see that one coming!" Just like that, she's already over it, all smiles again as she picks herself back up. "Alright, you wanna do tricks? Let's do tricks!"
She doesn't offer any hints about what she might mean by that, though she does look deathly serious all of a sudden. What she's about to do takes a moment of concentration, she can't afford to mess this one up. It would be bad if the next punch was a direct hit.
Abruptly, she rushes Fei once more, right arm drawn back. But she stops short, letting out a loud yell before throwing her punch, which is intened to fall short of actually hitting him. She put a lot more power into that punch than anything else she's done so far... and the result is a shockwave, aimed to literally blow Fei away with the displacement of air. What happened to that earlier concern regarding knocking him off the roof!?
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
"I guess that's why you'd do it." Fei says. "Nobody expects the headstomp." Not until CHAPTER 3: MUSHROOM KINGDOM anyway.
As Xantia might expect, Fei raises his arms into the air to protect himself against the punch but is thrown off by the punch coming up short. That's not a move in Fei's repertoire so it's a surprise to him as so far Xantia hasn't been showing off any surprises. He raises his foot to try and counterattack but then the displacement comes and he's sent flying off the rooftop and towards the Adlehyde fountain.
So much for this not drawing any eyes.
As Fei tumbles, he thinks: I only wanted to help.
This may end with a large SPLASH.
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia doesn't even notice the result of her special move right away, asking, "How's that?" before looking around in confusion. "...Fei?"
Unfortunately, even if she saw it happen, she wouldn't have been in any position to help poor Fei. She isn't that fast. She may thus be tipped off to what happened by a SPLASH, or by Fei's attempt to avoid such a fate.
Whatever the case may be, that wasn't supposed to happen. She was expecting Fei to be duly impressed and then do a special move back! This is awkward. What else can she do but approach the edge of the roof and yell loudly, "SOOOOOOORRYYYYYYYYY!"
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
SPLASH
Hey. When she comes down to check on you, drag her into the water and drown her.
...
She's still on the roof.
Fei is soaking wet and his bangs are clinging to his face so he can barely see. Fei starts to stand up but slips and ends up splashing into the fountain again, this time on his butt.
He looks up towards Xantia and fixes her with a look. And then..he can't help it...he just starts laughing. He keeps laughing and laughing. Its painful to laugh so hard. There are tears in his eyes. He braces against the fountain for support and lifts himself up. He looks down at his soaked body and laughs some more.
He's rusted.
He takes in a deep breath and says, "It feels familiar but I don't remember anything yet but..."
He chuckles, more measured this time.
"I think I needed that. Thanks, Xantia."
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
That look... Xantia can't help herself. She starts laughing herself, right around the same time Fei does. She's more used to it than Fei is. To the point that her laughter dies down before Fei does, and she has enough time to get slightly concerned about whether he's actually okay over there. But then, laughter never means anything bad, does it?
Fei manages to take it all in stride, in the end. And Xantia apparently sees this good humor as the perfect excuse to leap off the roof herself, all the way back down to ground level. She lands in a roll, springs back up, and keeps on running until she reaches the fountain, then leaps right in beside Fei. After getting herself good and soaked, she has similar problems standing back up, ending up grabbing onto Fei to either use him for balance, or, if he can't keep himself steady enough, pull him right back down again.
Either way, she gets stuck in another laughing fit before she can manage to actually speak words again, declaring happily, "I can't remember a thing, this was a really dumb idea! But it was worth it!"
<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.
Fei Fong Wong takes Xantia's hand and--
--no, doesn't pull her down into the water. When Fei's an asshole it's usually due to not thinking clearly or as an offhanded gesture. He steadies himself and says, "Thanks," again. "I guess I couldn't really cut loose but maybe we can try this again in the wilderness." He feels like he's been thrown off his balance and thrown into something before. A dim inkling of an old man. The--old man.
"Right now I've been working with this guy named Bart Fatima. He uh--broke me out of jail. I actually checked with Gebler about you but I don't think they knew anything." He shrugs his shoulders. "But uh--maybe we're from the same place?" Maybe some place that got blown up and that's why they lost their memories? It feels a little unreal but surely it can't be all coincidence right?
"Either, uh, either way. I've been keeping a lookout for him here so you can find me here pretty much any time. Bart seems to know a lot about the territories for a pirate so he might have some leads."
<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.
Xantia gratefully accepts the offered hand to get back to her feet, still looking like she might start laughing again at any time. All things considered, she sure wasn't expecting Fei's suggestion to try it again sometime. "If you want to, sure! I'll... try to be more careful next time." So she says, but she still has no idea how this even happened. Fighting's just too much fun, it's so easy to get carried away!
The more serious turn in conversation was even less expected, causing her to blink several times. That's quite a bit of new information to process. She looks away at the notion of being from the same place, which gets a "Maybe..." out of her, but she seems distracted.
Until she abruptly wraps her arms around Fei, which thankfully is not a deadly bear hug but merely a regular hug, if still on the tight side. "You were trying to help me, even though you're in all this trouble... thank you, Fei."
Xantia's bright smile is back again by the time she releases him. "Bart Fatima," she repeats. "Sounds like a good idea! I'll have to talk to him!" She glances down, and concludes, "But maybe we should get out of the fountain first."