2017-07-16: Xantia vs. Fargo Foobach

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========================<* Lacour - Market District *>========================

The Lacour Market District does not rival that of the major commercial powers of Filgaia in terms of volume or value of trade, but it the class of the world in traditional weapons and protective gear. More than a hundred individual shops line the streets of the district, each bearing its own name, specialties, and branding. Almost any kind of weapon or armour can be found in Lacour, and odds are good that anything innovative will be found here first...or make its way here in short order.

The merchants of the Market District are proud and competitive, and walking down the streets is an exercise in patience, as they bombard passersby with litanies in praise of their work and curses for the rust-ridden works of their neighbours. At no time is this competition more fierce than during the Lacour Tournament of Arms; this annual exhibition to name the World's Greatest Fighter includes considerable prestige for the merchants sponsoring their entries, and talented fighters will find their services heavily sought-after.

BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bqMqHag86c

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

Pressure her, Mr. Foobach. Pressure her as hard as you can.

Force her to use her electrokinetic abilities. The more data we can gather, the better.

In the waiting chamber, Fargo slowly sets his hat on top of his neatly folded jacket and vest, undoing the buttons at the cuffs of his shirt and pushing the sleeves up to his elbows. He likes to fight. He is proud of his abilities - they were earned at great pain, and great difficulty.

However, he also likes work. Fighting for its own sake is a new experience to him. It occurred to him as he was preparing for this match that he should be upset as the fight being used for alternate means, and he sat near the flame and considered the issue. At length, he decided that... no. This is fine. Fighting should be done for a reason.

The more useful he is, the more useful Kent Hauch is - the more useful the Black Ties are. Kent wants Fargo to win for the ironic humor of it. Fargo is less concerned - if he has to sacrifice himself pushing his opponent to her utmost, this will be acceptable to him. After all, he'll then have time to finish tracking [that girl].

The match is called. Fargo stands, cycling a breath, clearing the consideration from his mind.

--

The Man in White has an unusually intent expression on his face as he strides out, hair already waving in his updrafts, skin heated to a dull red. He knows of Xantia already, but Xantia shouldn't know im - his status as the left hand of the Black Ties is a surprisingly well-kept secret, or at least has been. With the gang's meteoric expansion, who knows?

He leaves glittering bits of glass in his wake - to be fair, thanks to him, the sand of the colosseum sparkles in the sun, as nobody is in a particular hurry to clean this place. 

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

Lemina is almost certain she has to fight whoever wins this match in two rounds. Nothing against Arleph Ardan, of course, but she knows well enough how he fights, at this point, and is pessimistic about the strange symbologist's chances going forward. This match is one of two that probably decide her own future.

Accordingly, she's here eating popcorn and drinking orangeade and sprawling across most of a bench in the stands. As a participant, it's her prerogative. 

<Pose Tracker> Tethelle Cirdian has posed.

The person who has the rest of the bench Lemina is on is unimpressed.

That's Tethelle. She is unlikely to fight any of these people anytime soon (she already fought Xantia), but hey, she likes fights. 

<Pose Tracker> June Lim Ze has posed.

June is taking up a seat in the shady side with some more fried tofu and a beer. She is pretty relaxed at the moment. (Beer gives you powers, ask your dad.)

Her focus is on Fargo, though it's more of a sixty-forty split. 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei Fong Wong is present, but quiet, in the stands. He is rooting for Xantia but Fargo's matches always draw his eye. He has both sketchpads with him. Maybe he intends to do dynamic art again. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

The tournament organization, having taken note of the fact that Xantia's been going around Lacour in the company of Fei Fong Wong an awful lot in between matches, have taken it upon themselves to label this fight as a Grudge Match, hyping up Xantia's eagerness to take revenge for her comrade's earlier loss against Fargo. Most of the tournament-going public is all too happy to buy into that sort of thing, generating a particularly large amount of buzz - and thus revenue - for the upcoming battle. It's also generated its share of rumors regarding the exact nature of Xantia's relation to Fei.

None of this is on Xantia's mind, because this whole storyline is a massive embellishment, and she has no idea about anything that is even going on behind the scenes. She's super excited to fight another strong martial artist, and naturally wants to win, but she doesn't really consider this much of a personal matter at all. She doesn't have any idea who Fargo is, and she wasn't given the impression that his fight with Fei wasn't fair, so there's no need to treat this like anything unusual.

As such, her entrance isn't anything different from her usual, either. When Xantia's name is called - accompanied by the title 'Innocent Primeval Breaker', also completely made up by the organization for promotional purposes - she strides out briskly, all smiles as she waves to the crowd. This exposure may still not have led to anybody coming forward with information about her identity, but it's nice to see so many people happy to see her, all the same.

Approaching her opponent, she turns her cheerful expression and wave on Fargo, before greeting him verbally. "Hi! Good to meet you, my name's Xantia, as you heard! And I've heard about you, from Fei! Your special moves sound really interesting, I look forward to seeing them!" Even when she has some idea of what she's getting into, she manages to sound like she has no idea what she's getting into. 

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Jean, in the stands, is quiet and thoughtful. Well, she's sort of in the stands; she's more appropriately to the side of the benh Lemina is sprawled all over. Jean herself is seated with her injured leg heavily wrapped and also elevated, in a chair that Lemina moved into place. She has a beer in her hand and a plate of spicy poultry in her lap. ...Another other things. She's hungry.

"That's Xantia," Jean says, with a shake of her head. "She's really something. ...If you fight Xantia, keep in mind that getting in close she's real strong. In terms of raw force she's easily stronger than me. Fargo... Apparently lights on fire, so that's more your thing."

"This is going to be fun!" 

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

Pressure her.

As soon as Xantia appears, Fargo's eyes lock onto hers. Is this his own way of buying into the Grudge Match branding? Previously he's seemed relax and calm. Now he has a barely restrained heat in his remote eyes. He doesn't move aside from shifting into his strange jiujitsu stance as the girl nears.

Fargo says, "...". He has new portrait art in his dialogue box. There is no relaxation in his gaze - he looks prepared to kill someone in cold blood. He draws a breath in, the temperature around him ticking up a little more. Finally, the moment before the starting gun is fired, he says: "Brace yourself."

Xantia's size, gender, or youth affords her no hesitation from Fargo Foobach, whose leg smears in the air from the distorting heatwaves as he snaps it forward in a scything kick at the size of her head, slamming it right down into the ground and pivoting forward with two palm strikes toward her abdomen, hands glowing a dull orange. Finally his other knee comes straight up for her chin as Fargo does a sudden backflip, hurling himself away for some distance.

This is a different man than the one who's been fighting. Though nobody in the stands or the arena may realize it, this is the hardened white blood cell of the Black Ties, the purifier who burns impurities out before they can harm the gang. 

GS: Fargo Foobach has attacked Xantia with Red-Hot Sequence!
GS: Fargo Foobach has completed his action.
GS: Xantia guards a hit from Fargo Foobach's Red-Hot Sequence for 60 hit points!

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei Fong Wong notices the shift in demeanor. He has to. he traded blows with Fargo so long he has a pretty comprehensive knowledge of how he hurts people right now, at least in the tournament. This is not the way he's been fighting. He doesn't recognize the why or how of the difference, he just can tell Fargo's playing much more seriously.

Fei looks concerned. He shifts his gaze over to Jean and says, "...I have a bad feeling about this."

Fei has a bad feeling like almost all the time though so it's probably nothing. 

<Pose Tracker> Kahm Yugh has posed.


Captain Kahm Yugh was also in the standing, continuing to masquerade as the fighter Seis Thurule even in elimination. He'd been interested to see how Xantia developed after she'd suddenly discovered she had what appeared to be Ether abilities midway through their initial fight; Fargo Foobach would now be the crucible through which those rare gifts were weighted and measured.

Pressure her. Those were the directions he'd provided.

Given the girl's growing association with Fei Fong Wong, Kahm's interest in this battle had grown accordingly. He scanned the crowd carefully from behind the heavy visor he wore, his brow knitting with dark scrutiny. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

If Xantia knew the injury that she's responsible for aggravating is recovering well enough for Jean to be in the audience, she'd be much relieved. But for now, she has an opponent she needs to keep her eyes on. Pleasantly, for now. The match hasn't started yet, after all.

Fargo's gaze would probably intimidate anyone with half a clue. Unfortunately, Xantia doesn't even have that much of a clue. She's mostly confused why he won't at least say hi to her in return. That's pretty rude. But that's alright, some people are just really serious. Maybe she can make friends properly after the fight.

Upon the starting signal, the red-haired fighter indeed does brace herself, falling into a defensive stance. And immediately forced into reaction, the initial kick avoided with a quick hop backwards, her bracer lashing out to guard against a palm strike - but there were two, the second impacting cleanly and causing a brief stagger. The increased temperature doesn't go unnoticed, but there's hardly time to pay attention to it, the follow-through impacting her chin, threatening to turn the stagger into a fall.

Xantia recovers in time, however, rubbing her chin with her left hand. "...pretty good. My turn!" And still sounding entirely too cheerful for a fight this serious.

Her rush for Fargo is fairly straightforward, ending in a leap into the air, and a flying kick downward at an angle. But even she seems to realize that this won't be enough, mostly trying to force a reaction. The follow-up, either as soon as she hits the ground or after rolling forwards, should Fargo have backed off, is a rapid series of palm strikes of her own, also aimed for the abdomen, with an uppercut as the final strike.

To an experienced martial artist who fought Fei before, it should quickly be obvious that there's similarities between his style's and Xantia's. Not quite identical... a different variation, perhaps? 

GS: Xantia has attacked Fargo Foobach with Rush Assault!
GS: Xantia has completed her action.
GS: Fargo Foobach takes a glancing hit from Xantia's Rush Assault for 42 hit points!

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

When Jean starts talking, Lemina sits up. "I think my fire is way better than his fire," Lemina notes, when it comes to Fargo. Xantia, though... that's a little harder. "Do you think getting ready with Hiro would be a good idea if I end up having to fight her, though? I mean -- he's also that way, but..."

She does notice the shift in the overall feel of the arena, and glances to Fei. "... Mmrrmm... no, I kinda do too," she admits. 

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Lemina sits up, and Jean nods. "Definitely I like your fire." She grins at Lemina, and actually winks, but that doesn't last for long. "That would help, but you don't have the time for much raw endurance training. so make it count."

"...Yeah," Jean says to Fei when he looks over at her, watching him briefly before she looks back to the arena. "He moves like a killer. I have a bad feeling, too." To Lemina, too. Jean watches Xantia's movements, waits for her to strike through so she can see how Fargo reacts. 

<Pose Tracker> June Lim Ze has posed.

"I'm kind of excited about it," says June, on the topic of murderposture. 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

"You probably shouldn't go light on her," Fei says. "She's tougher than she looks, but about as tough as she acts." That's pretty dang tough. He gives a nod to Jean and admits, "I...yeah. That's the kind of feeling I--"

He glances around through the crowd until he spots Kahm. His eyes widen rapidly.

FOUR MONTHS AGO

The Captain was at Elhaym's side in an instant, his hardened, blue-eyed gaze staring Fei down with all the ferocious intensity of another wolf from Blackmoon Forest. "Is this him, Elhaym?" He spoke without looking at her, refusing to take his eyes off the ponytailed youth for even a second.

Fei looks towards Kent, who is laughing at him, to a poster, that indicates he has a bounty on his head. He stammers, "Uh...so I know what it looks like...but it's actually one huge misunderstanding--"

"Don't move a muscle." The quiet, militant steel in Kahm's voice cut through Fei's quibbling like the sword that, for now, remained clutched at his side. His stance lowered, as if anticipating that the man's next several actions, "You're coming with us, after you lead us to the ge-"

And then Vash is thrown into him lips first. That was the last time Fei really saw Kahm Yugh (it is not the last time Kahm Yugh saw Fei), really.

NOW

Fei says, "Oh no... I knew I had a bad feeling...!!"

He has to turn his attention off the fight because he's now making his way through the stands for Kahm. He has to somehow convince him that he has nooooothing to do with Xantia so he doesn't throw Xantia IN A PRISON. 

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

Fargo notices the similarity, which is in line with a few things he's put together. It is, however, impossible for him to question it with things as they are now without giving information away.

Fortunately, Fargo isn't very talkative with people he's known for years, so staying a little quiet with an opponent isn't... really very difficult.

The flying kick doesn't hit clean. Fargo moves rather than guards, shifting back a step, robbing some of the momentum as the kick thuds into his chest. Hot air rushes out of his lungs. Her palms then pound into a tensed stomach. She doesn't knock any more air out of him, but the hits are clean.

Similar to Fei Fong Wong... then. One, two--

Xantia feels a flash of sudden heat before her uppercut smashes through Fargo's chest, his head blowing apart. But there was... no impact?!

Fargo's hands burst through his own mirage as he's falling back, clutching for the shoulders of her shirt. "Your timing is too similar," he says, one shoe driving up toward her abdomen, heat radiating from within like a trapped coal. The Man in White attempts to fall backward with her, hitting the ground, using the momentum of his leg to flip her over and slam her into the ground behind him. 

GS: Fargo Foobach has attacked Xantia with Mirage Tomoe-nage!
GS: Fargo Foobach has completed his action.

DC: MISS! Xantia completely evades Mirage Tomoe-nage from Fargo Foobach!

<Pose Tracker> Kahm Yugh has posed.


There is a moment where, eyes locked across from one section stadium to other, Kahm and Fei catch sight of one another. The Captain's reflective instinct to clench his fists in quiet anger is met by the martial artist's own discomfiture-could he have somehow seen though his disguise?

Whatever the case, the wanted man appears to be headed in his direction, and Kahm is only too happy to oblige. He makes a concentrated effort to check his restraint as pushes through the stands while keeping an eye on Foobach's fight.

Whether or not this all went awry was now on both their actions. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia has seen evasion through mirages before. But it never seems to stop surprising her when people do it. She notices the lack of impact, alright, but this not meshing with what her eyes tell her just happened confuses her long enough to be grabbed by the shoulders. "Too similar to wh--aaa" is what ends up escaping her lips, already in the middle of a throw.

Though she may seem rather hapless a lot of the time, her reaction to this shows that she knows what she's doing. Her struggle isn't desperate, but precise, grabbing onto Fargo's leg and -shoving- it away from her. Momentum lost, and grip broken, Xantia somersaults backwards, landing neatly on her feet. Powering out of a throw already in progress, the first indication of Xantia's true ability in this fight, as well as her abnormal physical strength.

She's also not wasting any time to try and capitalize on the unexpected escape, immediately dashing back towards Fargo to deliver a single roundhouse kick. A simple move, but with all the power she can put behind it, one that's not to be underestimated.

Only after that does she pause to try and converse again, unable to put that comment out of her mind. "Do you know something? Do you recognize my fighting style?" Now she's even unknowingly parroting Fei. 

GS: Xantia has attacked Fargo Foobach with Crash Kick!
GS: Xantia has completed her action.

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

Goodbye, Fei. Lemina scootches toward Jean. "Yeah -- I'm a little nervous, honestly, about next round. I mean, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna end up fighting Zed..." She frowns. "And then after that it's probably one of these two. If it turns into a big, long slugfest, I dunno if I have the speed or the conditioning..."

Lemina? Admitting weakness? Well -- maybe just to Jean. 

GS: CRITICAL! Fargo Foobach critically Guards a hit from Xantia's Crash Kick for 27 hit points!

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

Well, Fargo thinks as Xantia pushes his leg back, this is why there aren't a lot of grappling styles outside of the Badlands.

He grits his teeth as he ignobly lands on the colosseum floor with no thrown girl, on his back and in the least advantageous possible position, except that Xantia also threw herself back. He has enough momentum from the way she broke the throw to keep rolling back, rising to his feet. His black hair is now rippling above his hair, fluttering in a... well, appropriately flame-like manner.

Xantia charges in. Fargo sets himself, hands out, stance low. This one, he's gonna hold. He has an instant to see the roundhouse kick coming, Xantia's leg smashing into his hands. Steam bursts from his skin as the powerful kick drags him along the ground, teeth gritted. The muscles in his forearms stand out. Naturally, she's stronger than he is, but with the proper control of his chi...

He looks her in the eye. Pressure her. Physically and psychologically. His eyes narrow. Fargo Foobach looks infuriatingly knowing. He smiles, thinly.

The man pulls on the now-captured leg, trying to keep Xantia off-balance as he drags and shifts to try and bury one knee into the back of hers and again bear her down to the ground in order to bend that leg farther than it should be permitted to go, his hands like branding irons. 

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Jean gets ready to answer Fei, and then suddenly ei is... moving. Moving, with his bad feeling. Jean watches him and says, "Be careful, Fei."

But now Fargo is still moving, and sees a hit sees--a mirage. Jean leans in, eyes narrowing. "Illusions..."

And Xantia's power moves on. Lemina, scooched towards her, gets a pat on the hand as Jean picks up some of her chicken by the bone. ...Then goes for a gulp of beer first.

"It's fine to be nervous, but don't let it psych you out. Half of any fight starts in your head. If you don't think you can do it, follow through, then you won't be able to." A beat, "...And if that's true... Then don't turn it into a big long slugfest. Hit as hard as you can, or toughen yourself up. Focus on your strengths."

Jean takes a cartoonishly big bite. 

GS: Fargo Foobach has attacked Xantia with Furnace Lock!
GS: Fargo Foobach has completed his action.
GS: Xantia guards a hit from Fargo Foobach's Furnace Lock for 54 hit points!
GS: Cripple! Statuses applied to Xantia!

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei says, "I will," to Jean and approaches Kahm. Did he see through Kahm's disguise?? Well, he is wanted and he's heading through the arena stands towards the other man. He has to scootch by a variety of people. Some tell him to 'get down in front' because this is an exciting moment where Fargo's doing something cool. Sooner than Fei expected, he looks up and finds himself face to face with...

...

Fei opens his mouth, stalls, and then says, "..Oh." He looks embarrassed. "Wrong guy. Sorry, I uh...thought you were someone else."

Yeah how DID he evade you for four months Kahm?? 

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

"Yeah, that makes sense," Lemina says, shoving some popcorn into her face as she continues to watch. The fight hasn't hit fever pitch (ayyyyyyyyyyyy) yet, so she isn't quite committed to watching it yet -- though she does have a decent sense of what each of them has as a general gameplan at this point. ... not that she didn't before, granted, given that she's watched each of them at least once before.

Just being in the same arena as Fargo is a little exhausting. Lemina rains some snow on both herself and Jean again, for good measure. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia grits her teeth when her kick is blocked. That was surprising. A block in and of itself wasn't surprising, but that amount of force usually has more effect than this. He really is strong, she thinks, a thought that brings a small smile back to her face. When it comes to fighting, not having to hold back at all really is the best.

But then Fargo gives her that look, that non-response. She can tell what that's meant to convey. He does knows something. But he's not telling her. Why? Her smile fades away, replaced with a narrowing of the eyes.

Her leg is caught in a really bad position, she realizes too late. Though resisting the attempt as much as she can, the situation rapidly goes from uncomfortable to intolerable with Fargo's insistence on trying to force her to the ground. Her leg is under serious pressure. And his hands are hot - too hot. It must be causing Xantia serious pain, though the sounds she makes are grunts of exertion moreso than pain. She's managing to retain her focus. Searching for a weak spot to aid her escape.

Suddenly, her right hand lashes out. A single open palm strike, directed towards Fargo's thigh region. This one might give Jean some painful flashbacks, but it's purely coincidence, it just happened to be where she thought to see an opening. Though certainly painful, the main aim of her pinpoint strike is an attempt at chi disruption. To try and put them back on equal footing.

Or lack thereof, as the case may be, because whether or not she manages to get her leg back first, Xantia isn't able to stay standing any longer, dropping to the ground and attempting to roll away to gain a bit of distance. She could really use a little breather, as unlikely as it is she'll be granted one. 

GS: Xantia has attacked Fargo Foobach with Disrupting Palm Strike!
GS: Xantia has completed her action.
GS: Fargo Foobach takes a glancing hit from Xantia's Disrupting Palm Strike for 52 hit points!
GS: Cripple! Statuses applied to Fargo Foobach!

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Fargo does a hold, puts on the pressure; Jean can see what she thinks he's doing, even before the heat of his hands. It's just fighting. "You do have time to do some practice," Jean comments. "It'll help."

Then a beat, "Haha, nice!" as the snow comes down, leaning back in her chair. She keeps going with food, and--

If Jean didn't have so much experience in pain and injury, she would wince at Xantia's leg strike. As it stands, the green-haired dancer jut feels it at the core of her injury, shaking her head.

"...Another thing. Don't bother relying on pain to slow Xantia down. Looks like not for Fargo either. Pain works best on people who aren't that experienced." 

<Pose Tracker> Kahm Yugh has posed.

Kahm stops just a few feet short of Fei. His mind had already run no less than four different potential scenarios with which he could several degrees of justifications for any actions taken to pacify the fugitive on the spot. Some of them would mean blowing his cover. All of them depended on what the martial artist's next actions where.

He opens his mouth to say something. Kahm subtly shifted his weight back, pulling up his guard under the cloak of a casual lean backwards.

Fei claims to have the wrong guy.

It's fortunate Kahm is wearing that opaque visor so that Fei can't see the 'Seriously?' expression that flashes across his eyes right before giving way to an overwhelming sense of indignation that this fool was somehow able to evade him for the past several months. No matter, he thinks-if he could manage to stand this man's presence for a few moments without doing anything untoward, it would all fall into place.

"No worries." The man said in a cool response, his chin lifting as he glanced at match and back. Foobach's doggedness was serving him well.

"You were a contestant as well, yes? She fights like you. Not completely, but similar." His head tilted to the side, eyes narrowing behind his visor, "Is she your student?" 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei Fong Wong stares dramatically into Kahm Yugh's eyes. The screen splits ninja gaiden style. And then he has the wrong guy. He misses both his exasperated expression and, of course, his inner thoughts and schemes.

"Yeah," He says. "I'm Fei." He offers his hand. "...Oh! I mean, uh, Dragon Slaying Slacker. That's my code name. Don't tell people I'm Fei." Don't worry Kahm, it probably won't get any worse than that.

He looks to Xantia and shakes his head. "No, actually. I'm pretty sure no." He frowns. "She has amnesia up till a few months ago, and me too up until like three years ago, but I doubt I was teaching martial arts at fifteen!"

He looks back to Kahm. "Besides, she's doing better than I am in the tournament so really, she'd be the teacher. I know our styles look similar but...it's not the same."

Wait, maybe he shouldn't be speaking so freely on this topic? Hmmmmmm.

"Fargo...he's really something, though. She might not win. I got tough opponents early out. He might go all the way, Fargo. June too." 

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

Pain... no, pain is only a side effect of the moves both Xantia and Fargo are exchanging. The way Fargo is twisting, he is trying to outright damage Xantia's joint. And Xantia's answering strike...

Xantia is rewarded by seeing the killing intent in Fargo's face finally crack, his eyes widening before he's even struck, sensing the blow. He does in fact give up the leg in an attempt to back away, and the disrupting strike again doesn't manage to hit fully.

It's enough.

"Ghh--!" Fargo Foobach grabs at his leg, which starts shivering. "Internal techniques... so then, different teachers..." The crowd starts to rumble. This is like what happened against Hiro. Fargo has outrageously good chi control, necessary to play havoc with his own body heat, but his body has lost all natural ability to control heat on its own. Xantia can see his skin slowly paling as his heat starts to leach out through the cold spot on his leg.

Very well. End this fast. Smoke 'em if you got 'em.

Fargo keeps the pressure on without even moving. He splits the focus of his mind, trying to repair the natural flow in his leg while also pushing heat where he needs it, shifting and putting both hands to one side like he's dragging something. He leans directly on the struck leg, using the lance of pain from putting his weight on it to sharpen his focus. "Shhuuuooooh..."

He throws his hands forward. "--hah!" A translucent blue wave of curling heat explodes out of his body, racing along the ground at Xantia, leaving sparkling glass in its wake. The wave doesn't have any mass, no force, barely disrupts the dust except for the air shifting due to the temperature. It's just pure heat, chasing her down. 

GS: Fargo Foobach has attacked Xantia with Blue Heat Wave!
GS: Fargo Foobach has completed his action.

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

Lemina realizes that she lost mostly because of lingering pain when Jean mentions that, and it's hard not to take it as personal chastisement. She makes some more snow for good measure, because oof.

"I'm generally not a pain kinda person," Lemina notes. "I mean -- strike first and strike mega-hard, right? That's how you win!" She takes a long drink of her orangeade, electing to sprawl across much of the bench again and watch from a deep recline.

"I think even I'm going to get mega-heatstroke," Lemina complains to Jean as Fargo pushes to end the fight quickly. "nnnnNnNnnNnNNNNNNUuuhh." 

GS: Xantia takes a glancing hit from Fargo Foobach's Blue Heat Wave for 70 hit points!

<Pose Tracker> Kahm Yugh has posed.

"I have heard of you." Kahm says evenly when Fei gives his name, then responds in kind, "My name is Seis Thurule. I was fighting as well, until recently."

For a man on the run, the martial artist is awfully forthcoming on himself. Later Kahm will reflect that these were the most words he had ever exchanged with the man he'd been trying to apprehend, but right now it took all his considerable willpower to maintain the facade of leisurely conversation and not begin strangling the other man where he stood. "Three years is a long time to lose." He reflected solemnly, his mind juggling a few dawning facts in tandem. An amnesiac of three years ago, and Xantia six months ago..and similar fighting styles that seemed vaguely familiar, although he could not quite place it.

The Captain was not fond of coincidences.

"He possesses a rare a gift." He said with regard to Fargo, "Both of them do."

However...

He looked back on the fight. There was a drawback to Fargo's technique that he was witnessing now...could Xantia possess something similar? They wouldn't know until she used it.

'Draw it out, Mister Foobach.' Kahm thought. One gloved hand tightened on the railing. 

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Jean stares intently at Fargo and his strange manipulation of chi, something she didn't hae a chance to watch in detail much before. What else can he do? Does he really have control over this sheer heat?

She doesn't know. But she can see he's moving, using that wave of heat...

Jean doesn't seem to notice having said something against Lemina that way. Maybe she does. She tilts her head in her direction, "If you can pull it off, that's a good approach. Overwhelming force can blast through anything if you're strong enough." She glances down, and shakes her head. "...Nevermind, I don't want to teach you about that." Jean takes another drink from her beer. She pauses, "You can lean over here if you want. My chair's not moving."

The snow falls, and Jean laughs. "You'll be okay, this is nothing! Try it in an big hot outfit." A grin, as Jean sets down the next spent bone and ruffles Lemina's hair. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia manages to get her breather. A hard-fought, short breather, but it's something. Really, it's all she was aiming for when she struck her blow, a momentary disruption to buy some time. As she struggles to regain her footing however, she notices the full effect of her strike, and her eyes widen. She doesn't know where her knowledge of the workings of chi comes from, she doesn't even know the nature of that knowledge to begin with, but somehow, just seeing that, she instantly understands what this means, regarding Fargo's techniques. It raises a number of concerns.

She's not able to act upon it immediately. Other than shout out, "Wait--!" Of course he's not going to wait, even Xantia doesn't actually expect that. Looks like she has no choice but to brace for whatever's coming, try to intercept it.

This isn't going to be an option, she realizes as soon as the blue energy wave is sent towards her. There's nothing to physically block. She's going to have to move. Exactly the thing that's giving her trouble right now. But there's little choice. Despite the discomfort, she leaps aside at the last second, intending to have the wave harmlessly pass by.

It wasn't nearly as harmless as she hoped. The unbearable heat lasts only a moment, but it feels much longer than that. Moreover, the displacement of air involved causes her to be knocked aside while in the air, and hit the ground an an awkward angle, landing on her left shoulder. More pain, shooting through her arm this time.

But she doesn't stay down for long. In fact, she's on her feet surprisingly quickly. Too quickly, with the shape her leg should still be in. A soft white glow covering her body hints that chi may may be involved here, too. A glow which quickly drains from the rest of her body to converge in one spot: her right hand. A tell, shortly before she throws a massive punch with said hand.

The punch was nowhere near Fargo, but it didn't need to be. Upon being thrown, there's a mid-air detonation, an explosion of energy displacing the air forcefully enough to still make it feel like a solid punch was thrown from directly in front of Fargo.

Only then does Xantia get to voice her concerns. "Your technique-- it's dangerous, isn't it? Why are you using something like that?" It really is pure concern in her tone. Xantia, what are you doing worrying about this guy who just tried to roast you alive? 

GS: Xantia has attacked Fargo Foobach with Exploding Fist!
GS: Xantia has completed her action.

DC: MISS! Fargo Foobach completely evades Exploding Fist from Xantia!

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Seis Thurule....Fei says, "Oh uh. I mean... I only have memories of the past three years."

Fei looks over to the battle, frowning. Fargo has a strong advantage because, well, he has faced Fei. The styles are just similar enough. Xantia just has to surprise him when it counts. He remains woefully unstrangled.

He frowns. "Xantia, in this moment, that's really dangerous..."

He looks back to Seis. "Honestly it's a relief to be eliminated. I don't have to get punched, set on fire, or shot anymore!" 

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

It's coming. Fargo is beginning to draw things out of her. He just needs to bring out [that]. It is certainly not surprising to the Man in White to see another projectile technique. Fei was likewise capable of them. It's something of a badge of honor for a martial artist of sufficient chi control.

The tell - the real reason Fargo prefers to do his fighting in his full suit, the reason he was taught to keep heat through all of his skin when fighting. He attempts to mirage step, but can't do it properly on his leg. He smears across the air instead, throwing himself aside, rolling and stopping himself with his good leg. The fist blows through the heat mirage, shattering the distorted Fargo streak apart.

And then, she worries about him.

Drifters. All the same. Stretching themselves too thin. Stretching until they've cracked. Damaging people with their softness right up until they turn too hard themselves. He clenches his fists until his knuckles are white.

Shortly, so is the rest of him. He'll brute force his chi back into place. His skin glows, body so hot it shouldn't even be possible, and then--

"OuuuurrrrrAAAAAH!"

With a white flash, the air shatters around Fargo as he starts flooding out the energy stored in his chest. The air ripples violently around him, displacing with a violent crack, a shockwave of dust and glassy sand rolling away from him. He's standing in a hemisphere of distortion. It's difficult to actually see Fargo in it as anything more than a splash of white, shifting and bending as the tortured air warps around him.

That splash starts limping toward Xantia, lyrics cutting into the boss BGM. "It is an insult not to fight at the pinnacle of your ability, whether the fight is an exhibition, or to the death. To not unlock everything within yourself. That is a form of weakness. It suggests you refuse to face your own ability."

"Do you fear becoming as so many Drifters have before you? Do you not have the spirit to resist your own strength?"

Unless Fei was watching his fight against the swordsman Hiro, he didn't see this one. 

GS: Fargo Foobach has attacked Fargo Foobach with Heat Haze Stance!
GS: Fargo Foobach has completed his action.
GS: Fargo Foobach takes a solid hit from Fargo Foobach's Heat Haze Stance for 0 hit points!
GS: Hyper and Quick! Statuses applied to Fargo Foobach!

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

Scootching toward Jean but not quite leaning on her just yet because it's much too hot to actually make physical contact with another person, Lemina glances over to the beer and notices that it's about half full.

"... Hey," she notes, looking at the beer. "Want me to try the thing?" She can tell that she tripped over something with Jean here, and is eager to divert... or maybe eager to work with ice magic more detailed and complex than 'random snow' as Fargo makes the hot arena even hotter. You know -- whichever. 

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Xantia asked Jean to wait too, and she definitely didn't. So she mostly waits on Xantia to react, sees Xantia fall, and frowns in concern. Xantia's up again quickly, and that doesn't surprise ean from what she saw; it's good to see from this perspective instead of the other though. That technique...

"I remember that move," Jean murmurs. "Xantia, be careful trying to talk in a fight..."

But Fargo tries to shift in a blur, and ten his skin is glowing. Jean doesn't trust this kind of maneuver, not the air shattering and ripple not the shockwave...

Her eyes widen at what he says about an insult. She looks away from the fight a moment, away from Lemina. But there's Lemina asking something, and Jean smiles faintly.

"...Yeah, go for it." Jean hands her beer over, watches the fight go on. "...Some strength needs to be held back," Jean says, as if it's a normal thing to say, still staring. She shakes her head, goes back to eating.

She doesn't seem to notice the heat, though she's sweating. 

<Pose Tracker> Kahm Yugh has posed.

"Even more so, then." Seis said, dwelling no more on the correction Fei offered.

The fight intensified, and he began to see what he was looking for from Xantia's end. That was more like it. If Fargo kept at it, they should be able to get a fair amount of further data on what the girl was capable of.

Her had little but an inner sigh for the girl's outer concern for Kent's man, and wasn't sure whether to place that on her youth or the fact that she was a drifter. Lieutenant Van Houten had a little too much of whatever that was in her as well...hopefully her next assignment would cleanse her of it.

His face turned back to Fei.

"He's not wrong." Seis admitted, looking down at his hand, "Had I followed that advice, I might still be in the tournament myself." 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei looks over to Seis with wide eyes, and then back to the arena. Despite talking to Xantia, he feels like Fargo might as well be talking to him personally as well. He curls his fingers inward, looking vaguely distraught.

"The pinnacle of my ability..." Fei says. "...It's not meant to be an insult. It's just--I have a feeling bad things will happen if I start thinking that way." He lets his hand drop. "I know others here have the same issue. Maybe one day we can fight at full strength, but I guess our 'spirit' isn't where it needs to be yet." He pauses. "To use his words, I mean." 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

The answer that Xantia receives is... not what she expected, to put it mildly. Willingly using that technique to empower himself... what is he thinking? She just can't see this ending well for Fargo, in the long run. While she should be very worried about a man who's almost literally on fire approaching her, with obvious intent to cause her harm, try as she might, she can't push away her concern. Though now, anger and frustration is slipping in, too. She can't understand this man's way of thinking, not even a little.

"What are you doing?! Is that what you call resisting your own strength? Stop this! If you keep doing this sort of thing, you're going to end up burning yourself out, literally!"

This sort of lecture would probably be frustrating enough on its own, but at this moment, Xantia manages to do the most unwise thing she's done yet during this fight, or indeed any fight.

Absolutely nothing. She doesn't take the brief opportunity that she had to attack Fargo at all. Just when it looked like she was about to start going all out, show what she was really capable of... she stopped doing anything at all. 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

"Wellp," Fei says. "He's going to murder her. I'm going to see my friend die today." 

<Pose Tracker> K.K. has posed.

Heat ripples like the beat of a heart, like it was a living thing unto itself. And amidst the haze of distorting white and bending air, lost within the sea of the crowds in the sands, a figure settles comfortably into a seat in the back of the rafters of the coliseum.

Dressed in little else than a plain, tan cloak, hood kept up to overshadow their features even within the broiling waves of heat, the figure settles hands into their lap and simply watches, wordlessly, as Fargo unleashes all of himself, and berates Xantia for not doing the same. The Man in White hones his chi like an unstable weapon, living just at the edge between utter control and utter lack of it. A man who caught the flame.

From within the depths of that darkened hood, a bright, gold eye turns, to peer at Xantia with curiosity as, in the face of it all... she just stops. Like someone at wit's end, too frustrated to even act. Against their lap, the figure's gloved fingers spasm subtly. Or...

But the cloaked figure remains silent. They just watch, head tilting at a curious cant, as Xantia reacts -- their interest pinned solely on her like someone invested in the outcome of this particular exchange. Someone who wants to see. 

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

Fargo keeps walking. The white smear shifts, but whatever gesture he's making is difficult to see.

"I am a fire. My father was fire. His mother before him. You do not know my motivations, my limits, or my past. Your softness is self-destructive, Drifter. If you are not willing to drive yourself to your edge, you cannot live in this burning world."

The Heat Haze starts rolling forward. From the outside, it doesn't even look like a person is moving in there, just this warping sphere hoving across the arena toward Xantia as he breaks into a run. She isn't moving. She won't.

The Haze envelops her. The air is horrific within, dry and hot, thin and twisting. Fargo cracks back into visibility for her as she passes within.

His face and hands are glowing almost blindingly. Unable to properly marshal the emission, there is a burnt hole in the leg of his pants over Xantia's old strike location, another unstable Heat Haze blurring around it. "Please understand." This whole time, despite the remoteness of his face, his harsh words, he has remained polite and calm. "I must reject your kindness."

He pushes his hands toward Xantia's chest, a screaming noise coming from the air around them. "It cuts too deeply."

From the outside, things have become... difficult, the two of them simply appearing to be warping blurs with a shining light between them. 

GS: Fargo Foobach has attacked Xantia with Thermal Lance!
GS: Fargo Foobach has completed his action.
GS: Xantia takes a solid hit from Fargo Foobach's Thermal Lance for 128 hit points!

<Pose Tracker> Kahm Yugh has posed.

"Bad things will happen whether you will them to or not." Seis advised, working to keep his tone in the check. The Lieutenant may have found herself sympathetic in the face of Fei's apparent naivete, but it only stoked the fires of the Captain's anger further. That such power should be wedded to ignorance...the danger was incalculable.

"Power that can't be used responsibly is a threat to those with it and without it alike. The world will not wait for your spirit to be aligned." He said, whatever that meant.

On the matter of Xantia, he is even more clinical.

"If she dies, she dies." 

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

Lemina scootches toward Jean again, eager to show off her talents; she doesn't look on the fight with the same direness that Jean does, and is perfectly content to divert her attention from it to do her thing. She takes the beer in hand, waving her other hand over it once; a chill wind starts to swirl inside it.

An icicle forms in the middle, and swirls it around, meanwhile; this keeps it from forming large chunks as it freezes. When it's returned to Jean, thus, it's a light, fluffy snow of beer.

In other words: Lemina has made a slurpee. It rules. Part of her expects more hair-ruffles as a result. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

He's talking about... being fire? How could people be fire? The way he's talking, it sounds like he wouldn't mind if he did burn out. This viewpoint is impossible for Xantia to understand. For all the stupidly risky things she's done, she's never done them without regard for her own well-being. She probably should think things through a little better to fully realize exactly what her chances of coming back alive from things are, but that's beside the point.

She doesn't move. Soon, she can't move. Surrounded, trapped by Fargo's Heat Haze. There's no protecting from this. She struggles to breathe. She's asked to understand the rejection of her kindness. She fails to do so. Fargo's hands reach her body, exposing her to a truly unbearable amount of heat. She's hit with the realization that there's no escape from this. She shouldn't have let her guard down.

This is it. Fargo has Xantia pushed to the absolute brink. If she is to have any hope of escaping from this, there's no choice. She'll have to give it everything she has. Though Xantia's will seemed to have faltered, in this moment of crisis, it flares back to life. Which was the plan all along - to draw out her inner abilities. Except something else ends up happening. Something that nobody could predict, because it's never happened before.

Abruptly, a flash of red lances out from Xantia's arm. No, from her ARM. The bracer on her right arm, of which she didn't know what it does, or how it works, suddenly sprung to life. Exactly what just happened is difficult to make out in the haze of heat surrounding the two combatants. A red light was heading straight for Fargo's body, that much is clear, but other than that...

Things are different for Fargo. He has a split second to notice Xantia's sudden change in demeanor. All emotion drained instantly, leaving her expression blank, lifeless. The attack that follows may not have been an attack completely out of nowhere, but it's fast, real fast. And notably different from Xantia's previous attacks in one important respect. There's no mistaking that behind that attack was an intent to kill.

At this range, it's not a matter of hit or miss. Fargo's reaction will make the difference in exactly where he gets impaled by this unforeseen weapon: a red blade, formed out of pure energy. The weapon remains in existence only for a short while, not long enough to ever be clearly visible to the spectators. Well... most of the spectators. 

GS: Xantia has attacked Fargo Foobach with Crimson Flash!
GS: Xantia has completed her action.

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Xantia stops. She just stops. "No," Jean says, and looks forward, "You don't open yourself up like that--"

Fargo rejects her kindness. Fargo strikes back. And Xantia does something after that attack. She moves quickly, does something she didn't do to her. Red energy...

Jean sees it.

She keeps staring for a moment, until Lemina starts, and then she looks to watch the younger Fiend. It's impressive; Jean takesit, and smiles. "Thanks, Lemina. This looks great!"

She starts drinking, "Mm! This IS great!"

She looks to the fight again... But feels better. "Cold and... hot!" Chicken. Mm. Another that she tears at with her teeth. 

GS: Fargo Foobach takes a solid hit from Xantia's Crimson Flash for 143 hit points!

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei knew that was going to happen.

He is bewildered at first by Seis's words. And then angered. He doesn't focus on anything but that sick Rocky IV cut. "That's my friend," he says. "That you're talking about. Please be careful about how you talk about someone's friend." He says it so mildly.

But there's a familiar rage behind those eyes. Something inside of Fei is trying to claw its way outside of him and take over. Almost as if it's resonating with Xantia's own touch with the crimson. He doesn't strike. He doesn't attack. But the demon behind Fei's eyes can see Kahm Yugh. It doesn't remember him. It doesn't have to...

...but it's ever so grateful for that little bitty push.

FEI PSYCHO 15

Something's wrong with Xantia. He distractedly looks back and sees Xantia unleash a flash of red. The demon from behind Fei's eyes steps back because something intriguing just happened.

Interesting...

And Fei says, "It...it can't be. No, it's not the same." He shakes his head. "It can't be." He frowns. 

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

It's complicated. Fargo's... he's complicated. Perhaps one day, things will be more clear. His hands burn. What kind of training does a person have to undergo to use chi like this without seriously injuring themselves? Is he seriously injuring himself? Is he trying to kill her for real? Will he pull back at the last second?

Pressure her.

His reflexes are the only thing that keep him alive. He smears five different ways, the mirages shattering and falling away as the blade scrapes across his chest. There is an explosion of bloody, red steam.

He staggers away, teeth gritting, and falls, bubbling blood running from the life-threatening wound. The Heat Haze shatters a few moments later, leaving the unexpected tableau of Fargo on the ground and Xantia standing there.

The man lifts his shaking hands and drives them onto his own chest, pulling the heat away from there. There is a nightmarish sound and a dismayingly delicious aroma as he cauterizes the horrible wound.

Steam rises from his body, the pain forcing him to sweat, his heat immediately evaporating it. He starts to get up, staggers, and collapses, hands to the side, horrible burn across his chest.

There is a booming roar from the announcer, halting the match. People are crowding the official booth, deliberating.

Through the pain, Fargo smiles. Slightly. This is definitely the worst he's felt, aside from the day his training was finished. 

<Pose Tracker> Kahm Yugh has posed.

When gathering intelligence in such a sensitive environment, there was always a questions of risk against reward. In his fight against Xantia, Kahm had assessed to risk of drawing out her powers further to be too great. There was his cover to preserve, principally, but also the consideration of disrupting the tournament with an incident so early and threatening the chance to learn more in further matches.

Here, at this point, and against Fargo, 'acceptable risk' took on a slight different definition. And they were very much reaping reward.

The man is unphased by Fei's warning, though he derives some comfort from what he gleans of the man's demeanor.

Rage. Finally, something he understood.

"If you have a problem with my words." He said, his head slowly turning to regard the demon-eyed man. That look only set him back for a heartbeat. Where had he...

"..then you can answer me with your fists. I understand some sponsors are trying to arrange an exhibition match between us."

As if he had not arranged that himself.

He puts his eyes back on the arena, squinting to try and perceive Fargo in the chaos, but seeing only something very red flash very quick. At the same time, he listens intently to everything Fei says.

By the time he can see Fargo, the match has been stopped. 'Well done.' The man thinks, though it's a bit of a shame. 

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

As the arena clears, Lemina looks down... and winces visibly. "Hhhhf, " she breathes, pulling back from the fight slightly as she sees its conclusion. Yikes.

"... They're gonna be okay, right?" Lemina asks, looking to Jean with a little worry in her face. Gebler, the Black Ties -- She obviously doesn't have the tools to even remotely attach those nouns to this battle. Right now, both Xantia and Fargo are just competitors, and the fight looks dire indeed.

She winds a few fingers nervously in her fluffy blonde hair. 

<Pose Tracker> K.K. has posed.

"..."

Xantia leaves herself open. And in the end, she pays for it -- perhaps in a way not unintended by some. Within the mass of spectators, that robed figure watches as the heat make contact with the young girl. White meets her, envelopes her, makes everything difficult to discern...

But they see it, within the haze. That flash of red. They see it, a clash of intents, stripped bare of everything but the most basic of motives. A red blade, set to skewer.

The figure swaddled in those encompassing tan robes draws hands against each other, fingers lacing and clenching exactly as that indistinct smear of clashing colors reaches its zenith.

"... Is this the truth of you?"

It is a question, muffled, that will go unanswered, posed to no one but the girl standing above the freshly fallen Fargo, steam rising like a morbid sign of victory. The crowds roar. Some shouting, some applauding.

But the robed figure does not join them. They just watch Xantia, the power she brought to bear gone as if it never existed save for the near-fatal blow it delivered upon a man who looks more like a victim now than an aggressor. Within that hood, gold eyes shine with quiet intensity...

... before, as the crowds rise, that figure simply... disappears. Lost like a figment that never was. 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia keeps staring Fargo in the eyes as he collapses. Or is she staring past him, or through him? Either way, there's no more sign of any of that previous kindness. It mustn't take kindly to being rejected. Still, her eyes are the only things that move. She doesn't seem very motivated to strike again.

The heat haze clears, just as Xantia's expression changes somewhat. She looks vaguely confused. She raises her right hand. Her bloodied right hand--

Instantly, her eyes go wide. "No... NO!!" In a blind panic, she tries to run from her own hand, an obviously futile effort that just lead to her slipping and falling on her behind.

Only now does she actually clearly see Fargo's condition, and properly starts to process what might have happened. This is like her match against Jean... but worse. She doesn't even remember how she attacked him. What did she do?! "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry!" She doesn't know what she's apologizing for, but... whatever it was must have been terrible.

The tournament organization, though baffled by the apparent failure of the wards that should have prevented injuries that are actually life-threatening, reaches a decision. Fargo's injuries are ruled too severe to continue the fight in good conscience, leaving Xantia the winner.

Xantia does not feel like a winner right now. Far from it. 

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Jean stares to try to get a feel by sight alone for what just happened after the two clashed in flashes of light. But she can see for certain that Fargo has fallen, can hear the match being called, even if even her keen eyes couldn't put everything together, make sense of movements too heat-hazed to follow. No, though.

Xantia makes her apologies, and Jean watches her hand. That panic...

Jean shakes her head. "...The medics back there are really good," Jean says to Lemina. "So don't worry, all right?" Jean sets a hand on Lemina's shoulder, rubs there before she takes it back. "Don't worry."

Jean worries. 

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

Fargo is down, but conscious. Heat is rushing out of his body, he has too much to be able to control it along with the pain, but he stops when he returns to a normal skin-tone.

A moment later, a sturdy-looking woman and two men come belting out of the side of the arena Fargo entered from, outpacing the medics behind them. They run like they were trained to. The woman is wearing a clean white shirt and black trousers, while the men are more plainly dressed.

Despite the medics hollering, she helps Fargo up, shooting a fiery look at Xantia. "You're," she starts to snarl, and then abruptly stops. She ducks her head, letting her brown hair obscure her face.

Fargo looks surprisingly healthy. Of course, he has control over heat and really didn't lose too much blood, so it makes some sense. He looks up at Xantia. He's back to normal, bizarrely, his face calm through the pain. "You see? Too soft." His voice pitches low as the medics approach, his next words only for Xantia.

"You use things you do not understand. Things you refuse to understand. You Drifters are either drunk or afraid of your own power. This is why I am willing to go to the edge - so that I never go into denial of what I am capable of."

The strangers start to lead Fargo off, forcing the medics to catch up again.

"That is why there is always a debt that must be claimed." 

<Pose Tracker> Fei Fong Wong has posed.

Fei looks back towards Seis. That brief flash of red seems to linger longer on him.

It's some kind of trap, Fei tells himself. Why would they want a double loser like him to-- The smart thing to do will be to decline and back off. It may be the only real option, actually. After everything you've said, if you seriously hurt somebody because you 'lose it' again--

He flexes out his fingers and then tightens them against his palms. He looks back towards Xantia. He watches her panicking, fearful. It's so unlike her to be like that. He never wanted her to feel that pain. That was why he TOLD HER. He TOLD HER that some memories are best left buried. If it truly is the same thing affecting their amnesia, then--

He says, "Fine." to Seis. "I'll see you in the ring." Hopefully the bear trap Kahm is setting up here will catch the bear and not the Kahm here. 

<Pose Tracker> Lemina Ausa has posed.

Lemina, for her part, does not, and while she notices that Jean seems burdened, well... Jean often seems burdened -- enough so that it's hard to tell when she's facing new, exciting burdens and when it's just Jean being Jean.

"Do you want to go anywhere before we head back to the hotel? I don't think there's any other matches today..." Lemina notes, with a smile. "I've been in the mood for a mega-shopping trip while we're somewhere nice, but we've got plenty of time, so..." 

<Pose Tracker> Xantia has posed.

Xantia doesn't have a defense against the mystery woman's aggressive demeanor, and Fargo's following words. Thinking clearly is difficult enough as it is. She doesn't get any further than, "I... I..." But all that will come to mind is 'I'm sorry', again. Rather than repeat herself, she hangs her head. It's true that she doesn't understand anything about what she uses. She would have claimed that she would like to understand, that she isn't afraid... but, for the first time, she's unsure if that's really the case.

It's not until after Fargo leaves that she mumbles a response. "But I don't know... what I'm capable of..." She's less sure of that than ever, after today. This tournament was a bad idea, after all... it's hard to feel any different, when her ignorance of what she can do keeps causing people to get hurt. 

<Pose Tracker> Kahm Yugh has posed.

Fargo would live. Xantia seems barely aware of what she achieved, and could do nothing but apologize for it. She was no different than the one standing next to him.

More untamed power in the hands of the ignorant and undeserving. True madness. Kahm sighed in spite of himself-they really did have their work cut out for them on the surface.

"Very well." He acknowledged Fei's conviction with a nod, his eye looking over the man's shoulder to where, just a second ago, a hunched, robed figure had been sitting.

'Someone was there.' He thought, but gave it the creeping suspicion no further credence as it crawled through his heart.

"Reticence will not serve you well against me." He returned to Fei by way of advice, leaving the other's presence thereafter. He ought pay a visit to Fargo when it was convenient, and get his report in the meantime. He supposed Kent might have an issue with him orchestrating this little session, but he'd deal with that when they came to it. 

<Pose Tracker> Fargo Foobach has posed.

LATER

Fargo limps his way into the camp the Black Ties are using during this excursion with a horrible wound on his chest.

Kent Hauch says, "lmao" 

<Pose Tracker> Jean has posed.

Jean keeps her eyes on Xantia's obvious gloom, on the difficulty that she's having. "Maybe I should try to talk to her," she says, concerned, less so looking at presumably Fargo's friends or allies. The medics are left to catch up, and Jean wonders about him, and them.

"Hmm," Jean says, smiling again at Lemina, and she doesn't really even have to force it. "Yeah. I'm real hungry, and a shopping trip sounds nice if you don't mind carting me around. I won't be able to try on much, but I can look!"

A laugh, "Or we can put it off. But I could use go for some new earrings." A pause. "...And maybe we should look for new clothes... Yeah, let's go! It's not like you have to twist my arm to go shopping." Another glance to Xantia, and a sigh.

Jean works on finishing what she has.

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