@Double Wait, is it my turn and stuff? We've done the montage. Am I handling the landing?
I dunno. I was just going by the fact we were going back and forth up to now.
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I dunno. I was just going by the fact we were going back and forth up to now.
@FalloutJack You, uh... you still around, bro?
Seifer didn't lose a single ounce of his confidence. He'd been working on a way to answer a counter like this, and now was as good a time as any to give it a field test. Seifer brought his baton-arm forward to meet the incoming swing from Zack, luckily for him his opening thrust was a feint and so adjusting for a different attack was relatively easy to do. But like with many of Seifer's tactics, this was not something to take at face value. A split moment before his arm's movement, he loosened his grip on the Struggle Bat handle and let it fall into a backhanded grip. This sort of swing could come faster and with less of a tell than fronthanded swings, at the cost of losing some reach and swing power, not that Seifer needed either of those at this moment. A quick change of grips like this was actually the same tactic that had ultimately done Seifer in at the finals last year. Clearly he'd learned from that defeat and decided to "borrow" that strategy for himself. Though not without adding his own modification to it.
There was one final reason for Seifer's preference for holding his weapon straight and forward. It often allowed him to use his baton-arm as a makeshift measuring stick in order to more easily calculate and the reach of his opponent's swings and react accordingly. This was doubly the case for opponents whom Seifer had fought before, such as Zack, since that meant Seifer already had a decent idea of how far Zack could reach with his swings. And so, the speed of the backhanded swing combined with Seifer's method of calculating his opponent's reach made catching Zack's swing with his baton rather easy.
After catching Zack's baton against his own, Seifer used this moment of closeness to attempt the modification he'd made to the strategy he borrowed. The Struggle Bats all had handles that ended in a hook shape. Already holding his bat backhanded, Seifer moved to grab hold of Zack's bat using the hook end of his handle and tried to force the bat out of Zack's hands. A disarmed opponent would make for easy pickings, and an easy win.
There was one final reason for Seifer's preference for holding his weapon straight and forward. It often allowed him to use his baton-arm as a makeshift measuring stick in order to more easily calculate and the reach of his opponent's swings and react accordingly. This was doubly the case for opponents whom Seifer had fought before, such as Zack, since that meant Seifer already had a decent idea of how far Zack could reach with his swings. And so, the speed of the backhanded swing combined with Seifer's method of calculating his opponent's reach made catching Zack's swing with his baton rather easy.
After catching Zack's baton against his own, Seifer used this moment of closeness to attempt the modification he'd made to the strategy he borrowed. The Struggle Bats all had handles that ended in a hook shape. Already holding his bat backhanded, Seifer moved to grab hold of Zack's bat using the hook end of his handle and tried to force the bat out of Zack's hands. A disarmed opponent would make for easy pickings, and an easy win.
<Snipped quote by Double>
I hear you on that. Took me a bit to decide how to have Zack start off his end.
Are you ok with predetermining the winner of Tournament proper?
If you're the only one planning to take part then I presume it would be you who wins.
@Wayward I'm good. I think I've written and scrapped like 3 different versions of how Seifer responds to Zack's counter. Writer's block is a bitch.
@Wayward For the record, Seifer isn't the defending champion.
@FalloutJack@Balthazar007
So like... if/when we take down the MMC, a presumed Global Corporation, exactly how many Governments do you think Han and Niko will have pissed off? If there's one thing huge corporations love, it's lobbying money at governments to get laws and stuff passed that favor them. And if there's one thing that pisses the Government off more than anything, it's losing large sources of money. Is that, like, gonna be a follow up storyline for later? Han and Niko ending up on the wanted lists for however many different governments because of their actions against the MMC and having to deal with that little hornet's nest?
So like... if/when we take down the MMC, a presumed Global Corporation, exactly how many Governments do you think Han and Niko will have pissed off? If there's one thing huge corporations love, it's lobbying money at governments to get laws and stuff passed that favor them. And if there's one thing that pisses the Government off more than anything, it's losing large sources of money. Is that, like, gonna be a follow up storyline for later? Han and Niko ending up on the wanted lists for however many different governments because of their actions against the MMC and having to deal with that little hornet's nest?
I've hit a bit of a writer's block, but I do have one idea. It involves me taking control of two characters introduced by you @Double. Namely, I have an idea for Goda, the high level assassin that sent those six assassins after you, and Han's father himself.
I only want to control Han's father for one post, a quick cameo if you will, but I'd like to use Goda for more, as in one of the big bads that you'll have to fight on Mars.
Does that sound okay for you? @Double
That's fine. Goda's whole thing is that he was formerly Yakuza before joining the Wuye-ying. He was the son of a Family Patriarch that wound up losing a conflict with a rival family, and Goda was the only survivor. He only lived because Laoguai happened to witness the fighting and decided to save Goda both because he saw some potential and because it would ensure Goda's loyalty. As far as fighting goes, Goda focuses on sword-based techniques. And as for Laoguai, he just acts distant and calculating most of the time. Should be all you need to know for controlling them.
Well, it was a good thing Niko was able to pilot the ship, because Han didn't know the first thing about Space or flying. In retrospect, it would have been pretty awkward to have to find a pilot on such short notice. Thankfully there was no need. But now, three weeks of training and preparation were ahead of them. And frankly, also three weeks of them being together and with little choice but to better get to know each other. That was fine, he supposed. When it was all said and done, the two could probably stand to gain a bit more trust in one another and this seemed the best way to do that.
Speaking of his background to someone was a bit awkward at first. Where would he even begin, except with his childhood as that was really where it all began for him? Much of the story wasn't a pleasant one, and it largely included Han's rather Spartan-upbringing by his father, who was always more concerned with his own legacy than Han's well-being. Still, Han's techniques had to come from somewhere, and that was it. These parts of the story were told during the first few days, when the two were still getting used to the increased gravity. And for Han, he wound up splitting that time between physical exorcises and meditation. Meditating in this gravity almost reminded him of sitting underneath a waterfall, albeit a rather strong waterfall.
Han trusted Niko's word on the scheduling. Such things were never something he put much priority in so it seemed wise to let the person with experience in such work be the one to plan it out. If asked, Han delved a little deeper into his story by recounting how his training actually began. At age 11, before any actual martial arts training was had, Han was first made to go camping in the wilderness alone for an entire week, armed with nothing but a knife. His father apparently believed this was a way for him to see how much of a natural survival instinct Han had, and the act of hunting for food would go a long way to prepare a young Han for the concept of killing another. It was only after this that the training had begun in earnest.
Once the sparring began, Han found himself reminded of his later training, and even talked a bit about it if asked. Starting at 13, Han's father had secretly instructed one of his previous disciples to attack Han at least once a week when the boy least expected it. He apparently wanted Han's reflexes to stay sharpened, and for him to develop the ability to anticipate traps and ambushes. The one doing the ambushing was in fact Li, one of the two men Han mentioned as a Lieutenant of his father. Li never actually hit Han or tried to kill him of course, instead merely going for a harmless tag or tackle. But from that point on, Li had become the go-to sparring partner for Han's training. And in time, Han began to see a brotherly figure in Li. In fact it always seemed as if Han had more fond things to say of Li than he had of his father. But even his former relationship with Li paled in comparison to one other person.
If there was one thing about his upbringing Han was always willing to talk about, it was his great-grandfather. He was the only one who ever interacted positively with Han. His father had always been distant, and even Li often only acted within the instructions he was given. In fact Han seemed to find every opportunity to bring up his great-grandfather when telling his story. For instance, it was Han's great-grandfather who taught him how to compose haikus. And it always seemed like he had some nugget of wisdom to offer for virtually any difficulty Han was faced with. To hear Han tell it, it was pretty clear that while his father was only interested in turning him into an assassin, it was his great-grandfather that made him into a more honorable martial artist.
Han had no qualms about attempting to the increase the gravity. Part of training was to always push yourself and discover just how far you could go. This seemed no different, to him. But as Mars loomed ever closer, and their arrival more imminent. Han found himself becoming increasingly on edge. It was something that had been nagging at him all along, but now it was becoming impossible to ignore.
"I won't lie to you." Han had said to Niko one day. seemingly out of the blue, "I want to put a stop to my father's machinations no matter what, but..." he gave a long pause, appearing to a tremble a bit, and not due to the gravity, "...the prospect of fighting him. Of fighting Li. Killing them, if it comes to it?" he didn't say anything further, because he didn't need to. It was obvious he was still coming to terms with the idea of possibly having to kill them, and wasn't sure how to process that or whether that would impair his judgement in a future battle. The last thing he wanted was to be a liability, but was he supposed to do?
@Balthazar007@FalloutJack
Speaking of his background to someone was a bit awkward at first. Where would he even begin, except with his childhood as that was really where it all began for him? Much of the story wasn't a pleasant one, and it largely included Han's rather Spartan-upbringing by his father, who was always more concerned with his own legacy than Han's well-being. Still, Han's techniques had to come from somewhere, and that was it. These parts of the story were told during the first few days, when the two were still getting used to the increased gravity. And for Han, he wound up splitting that time between physical exorcises and meditation. Meditating in this gravity almost reminded him of sitting underneath a waterfall, albeit a rather strong waterfall.
Han trusted Niko's word on the scheduling. Such things were never something he put much priority in so it seemed wise to let the person with experience in such work be the one to plan it out. If asked, Han delved a little deeper into his story by recounting how his training actually began. At age 11, before any actual martial arts training was had, Han was first made to go camping in the wilderness alone for an entire week, armed with nothing but a knife. His father apparently believed this was a way for him to see how much of a natural survival instinct Han had, and the act of hunting for food would go a long way to prepare a young Han for the concept of killing another. It was only after this that the training had begun in earnest.
Once the sparring began, Han found himself reminded of his later training, and even talked a bit about it if asked. Starting at 13, Han's father had secretly instructed one of his previous disciples to attack Han at least once a week when the boy least expected it. He apparently wanted Han's reflexes to stay sharpened, and for him to develop the ability to anticipate traps and ambushes. The one doing the ambushing was in fact Li, one of the two men Han mentioned as a Lieutenant of his father. Li never actually hit Han or tried to kill him of course, instead merely going for a harmless tag or tackle. But from that point on, Li had become the go-to sparring partner for Han's training. And in time, Han began to see a brotherly figure in Li. In fact it always seemed as if Han had more fond things to say of Li than he had of his father. But even his former relationship with Li paled in comparison to one other person.
If there was one thing about his upbringing Han was always willing to talk about, it was his great-grandfather. He was the only one who ever interacted positively with Han. His father had always been distant, and even Li often only acted within the instructions he was given. In fact Han seemed to find every opportunity to bring up his great-grandfather when telling his story. For instance, it was Han's great-grandfather who taught him how to compose haikus. And it always seemed like he had some nugget of wisdom to offer for virtually any difficulty Han was faced with. To hear Han tell it, it was pretty clear that while his father was only interested in turning him into an assassin, it was his great-grandfather that made him into a more honorable martial artist.
Han had no qualms about attempting to the increase the gravity. Part of training was to always push yourself and discover just how far you could go. This seemed no different, to him. But as Mars loomed ever closer, and their arrival more imminent. Han found himself becoming increasingly on edge. It was something that had been nagging at him all along, but now it was becoming impossible to ignore.
"I won't lie to you." Han had said to Niko one day. seemingly out of the blue, "I want to put a stop to my father's machinations no matter what, but..." he gave a long pause, appearing to a tremble a bit, and not due to the gravity, "...the prospect of fighting him. Of fighting Li. Killing them, if it comes to it?" he didn't say anything further, because he didn't need to. It was obvious he was still coming to terms with the idea of possibly having to kill them, and wasn't sure how to process that or whether that would impair his judgement in a future battle. The last thing he wanted was to be a liability, but was he supposed to do?
@Balthazar007@FalloutJack
"Forgive me I don't hold my breath." Seifer said in retort. He kept his Struggle Bat pointed squarely at Zack, letting his wrist twist back and forth to cause the weapon to sway almost rhythmically. It was a stance he developed for the purpose of letting him parry attacks more easily, and the swaying motion kept his muscles from tightening too much from tension. The movement also tended to make his stance ever-so-slightly more intimidating as well.
"Let's make this quick. First to score a point wins!" and then he lunged forward. His usual M.O. for an opening move was to go in for a quick, straight thrust. There was a trick to this maneuver, however. Sometimes Seifer's lunge remained straight and unswayed, while other times he would hold back at the lost possible second, using the feint as an opportunity to attack from a different angle. Whether this opening lung was straight or a mere feint, was always decided intermittently and in such a way that Seifer's opponents often had no way of knowing which was coming until it was too late.
The "point" that Seifer referred to was common knowledge among those who competed in the Struggle. Struggle matches were based on a point system. Combatants would come at each other until one successfully landed a hit on the other, which would score them a point. Matches were always restarted after every point scored, and the first to score 5 points was the winner. Seifer had apparently decided that a full 5-point match would be a waste of his time, thus his suggestion that this match be decided by a single point rather than five.
"Let's make this quick. First to score a point wins!" and then he lunged forward. His usual M.O. for an opening move was to go in for a quick, straight thrust. There was a trick to this maneuver, however. Sometimes Seifer's lunge remained straight and unswayed, while other times he would hold back at the lost possible second, using the feint as an opportunity to attack from a different angle. Whether this opening lung was straight or a mere feint, was always decided intermittently and in such a way that Seifer's opponents often had no way of knowing which was coming until it was too late.
The "point" that Seifer referred to was common knowledge among those who competed in the Struggle. Struggle matches were based on a point system. Combatants would come at each other until one successfully landed a hit on the other, which would score them a point. Matches were always restarted after every point scored, and the first to score 5 points was the winner. Seifer had apparently decided that a full 5-point match would be a waste of his time, thus his suggestion that this match be decided by a single point rather than five.
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