Tacitus vs. Deity [Flooded Athens]

::The Mystic Orinian appears on the battlefield - if one may call it such - in much the same manner that he arrived at the ring previously used to hold his matches. Shunkido is handy for getting toplaces in a hurry. Some eighty feet above the water, one could see the quiet Tonepian hovering in the air, head swivelling as he examines the area. Weird place to host a fight, he silently remarks.

Looking as young as his late teens, the slender boy is just over 6'4" tall, what skin is visible being of a pale, untanned shade. His long black hair spikes to the right, shorter locks aimed up and backward at the left of his scalp. A deep red headband is wound over his brow, foggy one-way lenses in his glasses helping in concealing his eyes. Together, these leave his expression looking rather blank. Crossing from the bridge of his nose across his right cheek is a marred line of darkened skin; a scar.

Deity's clothes consist of a fitted red tanktop, a matching skintight suit underneath that reaches his shoulders and halfway up his neck. Strapped around the left side of his chest and under his right shoulder is a belt, connected to a metallic black sheath behind him. The scabbard is four feet long, a slender fourteen inch-long hilt extending from over his right shoulder. What look like steel-padded armor plates line the leather sleeves that cover his arms from just above the elbow to his palm, the thin alloy slabs lining most of the surface of his forearm while still maintaining free movement of his arm and wrist. While the gloves within his armored gauntlet have the fingers cut out, a soft black material is worn underneath to conceal his fingertips as well.

Over his tucked-in shirt is a pair of black denim pants, loose enough to collect into baggy wrinkles around his knees; his jeans are overlapped by a pair of shin and knee guards, very similar in appearance and build to that of his arm guards. The leather sleeves to which the plates are attached go down a few inches over his black leather boots - strapped around the soles - so as to provide limited protection to his feet. The toe and heel of each boot is padded with the same metallic material as well. A black belt-like strap connected to his normal belt hangs down over his right hip; it holds up the dull sheath of what looks like another sword behind his hips, the black cloth-bound handle curved slightly. This scabbard stretches only two and a half feet in length, more or less resembling a katana with no curve.

Floating silently by himself, the tall stranger slips his gloved fingers into his pockets, his heels together with toes angled down. He makes no moves or sounds as he awaits his new opponent's arrival; it'll be interesting to see how this round fairs for him, as he defeated Lian via ringout, and there do not appear to be any bounds to this area.::

::Deity flinches lightly as he catches sight of his opponent to his left, standing on the floor of a ruined building down below. The longer he looks at his would-be adversary, the more his limited expression becomes grim. This guy looks terrible. Really terrible. Like, seriously. What the hell did he go through, the Orinian ponders. Pushing the thought aside, the tall boy shakes his head just slightly, slipping his left hand from his pocket and waving after Tacitus' words. He doesn't intend to attack now.

Actually, with his opponent in the state he's in, Deity'd probably feel bad for attacking even if he was given the okay. Ouch.::

::Well, he certainly doesn't move like someone being held together with bits of metal, Deity thinks, quickly taking his stance as Tacitus moves in. Left side forward, the tall Orinian tucks his right arm behind his waist, extending his left toward his opponent, palm up and fingers together. Keeping his hidden vermillion eyes on Tac, he senses the incoming attack, but braces himself for it all the same - the guy is bigger with that suit on, and decidedly more menacing wielding those guns. Typical guns aren't too much of a problem, but - considering whose hands hold them - they hardly seem typical.

Shifting his right hand slightly nearer to the hilt of Hayahanekon, the quiet boy brings his left foot back for only a moment before swinging it to his right, using the inner side of his armored boot to push Tacitus' kick away, namely to Tac's left. Not powerful enough to do damage, just divert the course of his opponent's foot. Pulling that leg in and flowing into his clockwise momentum, Deity now bends his left elbow to bring his hand closer to his shoulder, curling his stance just slightly.

A deft spin follows his parry, right knee curling toward his chest as he turns himself into a full revolution. As he makes his complete turn, his right foot darts from its poised position, heel aiming to strike Tacitus' torso. If the Orinian's opponent continues at the same speed as he just was - and the boy's parry succeeds, effectively leaning Tacitus' course to his left/Deity's right - the kick will be aimed to hit the right side of his lower back.::

::Were it not for Deity's ability to sense the malice associated with the intent of attack within his opponents, this match would be over this instant. Or, at the very least, well on its way to the conclusion. Fortunately for him, this isn't the case. Unlike last time, where the guns Tacitus held were more or less distracting - as his opening blow was a kick - this time the Orinian has a perfect reason to be wary of them. As Tac twists his body, arms extended to take aim, Deity's kick cuts short as he prepares to move. The only sure-fire way to avoid any blow is via Shunkido, but use of that technique would render Deity disqualified. He must rely on his extrasensory capability to...well, not get shot.

The barrels face his way, and Deity deftly takes advantage of his position in the sky, barrel rolling to his right and down. As he moves, his ki signature blasts through the roof, his body overtaken by a white, pinkish ethereal aura that flares around him like fire. As the sounds of the rounds discharging reverberate through the area, so does that of the Mystic Tonepian's aura expanding with a 'boom' as he blasts away in a tight arc, hitting his top Level One speed of nearly one thousand times that of sound. The force of his flight does not rival that of Tacitus' projectiles, however, the added impact of his taking off not really standing out at all as pieces of the structures around him crumble and shudder like big, dusty Jenga towers.

Tac's four rounds hit the water below, Deity ending up behind his opponent at roughly the same height, about three yards away. His first thought is that he'd be in serious pain had he not gotten out of the way just then; he felt the impact of the rounds and could sense their trajectory, but didn't actually see them. Those rounds were ridiculously fast. Rather than move in again, Deity waits a moment. Immediately after his stop, though, his hair shifts slightly, lifting itself to a higher angle than before. Doing so seems to give his aura a mildly deeper crimson shade. With the mild change in appearance, Deity's ki jumps again, increasing by another half. He doubts he will need this much power - he's using it for the speed.

Since he faced Malazar, Deity has not had to activate Level Two again, but if Tacitus proves anymore difficult than this, the tall boy may have to consider shifting into Level Three. Without a need to gradually power up his attacks at this level, Deity readies his hand at Hayahanekon before making any other moves.::

::Odd, the boy thinks, that these projectiles are so drastically slower than those preceding them. Though maintaining the notion to keep track of and be wary of those larger shells, their current speed is low enough that he can move in safely. Hopefully, anyway. Also worthy of note are those bolts of electricity - or what looks like it - arcing away from the suit his opponent wears. Electricity itself shouldn't be too much of a problem, but, as the holes in the nearby stone suggests, they can leave an impact. The boy must remain wary of those as well.

Keeping these thoughts in the back of his mind and retaking his stance from before, the tall Orinian speeds into motion, left side first with his open palm forward and right forearm behind his back. He moves through the air at an even greater speed than last time, following a wide curve around the larger shells in so short a time as to hardly slow his advance; his slender frame travels one and a half times faster than before, another indicator of his power-up.

His body slightly horizontal as he moves in, the quiet Tonepian brings his left hand up and around to his opposite shoulder, fingers curling but not clenching together. As he approaches Tacitus - who appears much larger now than the 6'4" boy in that powered armor of his - Deity brings his arm forward again, swinging it in a quick forearm chop to the chest....ish section. Not intending to fly right by or through whatever he hits, while he does let his momentum into his attack, he comes to a stop just as he does. No need to have Tac sidestep and shoot Deity in the ass as he passes by.::

::Indeed, the Orinian caught a glimpse of the large shells changing their trajectory as he passed by them. Didn't see that one coming, the boy remarks sarcastically to himself. Wherever they're going, he needn't worry about them at such a dull pace, given his movements themselves are several hundred times faster. Still, no need to ignore them.

While Deity can easily sense the surge of electricity pulsing through his opponent and into his own arm, the Tonepian doesn't really feel it. While electricity itself would pose no threat to his higher Levels, what protects him now is the insulating material inside of his gauntlets. That, however, isn't the trouble - said gauntlets have been pierced to some degree, blades on Tacitus' suit arm pricking his skin with an uncomfortable sting. Thankfully not intending to hold his arm there, the quiet boy pulls his left hand back just after impact with Tac's block. Moving right into his next maneuver, Deity shifts his left arm to the side - keeping his open hand at shoulder level - as his right leg snaps up for a kick to Tacitus' left side, his armored shin aiming to strike just below what would be Tac's ribcage.

The Mystic Orinian isn't exactly sure what kind of damage he can possibly deal via physical blows to someone covered entirely in a mechanical suit of armor, but he won't know until he tries.::

::Merely using a snap kick, Deity's leg is pulled back immediately, but he takes note of the pain shown in Tacitus' aura. That one seems to have struck a nerve. No time to think, though - hello, gun. Half expecting such a counter, Deity's left palm swings up as Tacitus takes aim, gripping the armored suit above the elbow and pushing up and to Tac's left, hoping to throw off his aim with that firearm in the process.

Not taking only this action, the Orinian also pivots clockwise, hovering over to his opponent's right as he takes his own right arm from behind his back, fist clenched near his chest. Not only spinning, Deity is moving in a semicircular path - simply put, he is turning about-face, positioned barely behind and to the right of Tacitus. Here, while not out of the line of fire of the incoming shells, he may perhaps be able to use Tac himself as a means to slow them down. On completing his turn - and releasing the temporary hold he had on Tac's arm - the Tonepian springs loose his own arm, a heavy right backhand aimed for the back of the power armors neck.::

::The moment the Orinian feels pressure against his gauntlet he loosens his grip, only to see a piercing spike plow out of his opponent's arm and into his hand. Deity hisses with pain, matching the speed of the spike and then some as he instinctively yanks his hand back. Despite his efforts, he now has a hole in his left palm, though the gauntlet seems undamaged. Does this thing have weapons everywhere? Fighting in this way isn't going to be very effective, from the looks of things. The only effective blow thus far was the kick to the side.

Realizing his predicament, the Orinian swiftly moves to his left, turning so that he flies backwards, keeping vertical with his hidden red eyes on his opponent and the incoming shells. He keeps a speed similar to that of before despite the pain in his hand, his fingers very loosely curling around the bloody wound. Best to try and create some distance before making his next move. As he flies, the Orinian reaches up over his shoulder with his available hand, taking hold of the long hilt of the weapon on his back. Giving the weapon a swift tug, Deity unsheathes Seinorei, holding it at his side.

Finally coming to a stop over a relatively undamaged section of flooded structures, the boy is just more than a mile from Tacitus - he is sure the shells will continue to follow him and perhaps speed up further, so he wastes no time in speaking his desired spell. The words are soft and nigh inaudible, but clearly not English to any that could hear. In result, Seinorei emits a brilliant white glow, the eight foreign symbols on the side glowing even more brightly for an instant before vanishing, leaving the side of the blade bare. The blue-white glow of Seinorei is a considerable contrast to the light red of the boy's aura, both illuminating the surrounding area well.

Indeed, he's not screwing around - if there's a possibility that he could lose the use of a hand, he needs a weapon that needs not be held. Having only limited time at his disposal, Deity may not be able to do much more without being interrupted.::

::Good thing, too. That would hurt something awful.

Thankfully, given the distance, Deity is able to maneuver out of the way of the high-speed rounds without sacrificing his task at hand; no pun intended. Hovering quickly to his left to avoid providing Tacitus with a stationary target, the pure glow of Seinorei glides from the blade itself and into his right arm, encasing nearly the entire limb with a brilliant light. Then, perhaps unexpectedly, the Orinian comes to a gradual stop and tosses the sword away. The slender blade hits the stone with a metallic clatter, the eight glyphs on the side and the glow that previously emanated from it both gone.

Deity's arm maintaining the glow from before, blue energy can be seen spiralling down the length of his arm, what is apparently ki in constant movement around it - any sensor of Tacitus' that could read such energy would now find two different types and signatures within the boy. Wincing slightly, he narrows his vermillion eyes before curling his right arm in, balling his fist tightly and holding his forearm vertically before his face. The energy in his arm spikes suddenly, a heavy 'boom' filling the sky as an airborne shockwave explodes from the Tonepian's person at over two million feet per second.

Unlike a shockwave made from an explosion of some sort, what transpires is an invisible dome of pure physical force, expanding outward in all directions. This thick 'wall' of force is intended to collide with the incoming shells, hopefully stopping them, but it can very well be used to damage Tacitus, this all-directional kiai capable of reducing all of the buildings here to rubble and blasting the area dry for miles - for a few seconds, anyway. Fortunately for Deity, such an attack isn't enough to damage the vacant Seinorei blade. He will need to search for it later, though.::

::What does it take, the tall boy thinks, donning a comically exasperated look despite his hidden face. From the result of his attack, he discerns that these shells not only follow him, but appaerently do not....do whatever it is they do...until they hit Deity himself. Simple impact with another object won't do the trick. Perhaps they can be destroyed. Taking a look down at his left hand, the Orinian sees the blood flow come to a stop, his soaked glove still dripping, however. With the eighth spell of Seinorei activated, the other seven can be as well without having to name the encantation. Convenient, though he hasn't quite the ability to utilize the Spirit Blade to its fullest.

Facing his restored palm to the incoming shells, hovering high over the barren, muddy streets of the old city, the Mystic Tonepian rears back his right arm. The energy in his glowing appendage spikes once before he swings his arm in a wide, horizontal curve, a beam of light trailing his hand. Along different points of this arc are released eight blades of energy, looking much like glowing blue sword blades with two tips each and no handles. Each are roughly on yard long. With four of them turning onto their sides, all eight begin spinning rapidly as they fly through the sky, all gaining speed enough to resemble thin discs.

For each large shell, two of these spinning blades home in. The horizontally-oriented of the two arcs around above the shell before turning down, aiming to cut it into two pieces. An instant later, the vertically-positioned blade flies headfirst into the shell, cut or not. The intention is to cut the shell apart before drilling it away into nothing. More than capable of cutting their way through the planet given enough power, Deity hopes the blades are enough to take out the bullets fired by his opponent.

The youthful Orinian flies upward, the auras of his retracted Spirit Blade and overflowing ki energy wavering accordingly, leaving thin trails in his wake. He reaches an additional fifty feet above the previous water level, knowing said water will return shortly. No doubt he could use the water as a cover, though he really doesn't think he'd find it useful.::

::Never relying on only his eyes in battle - his eyesight actually not as great as other warriors of his caliber - Deity can still detect the shells, ripped apart from their previous forms. He remarks on the strangeness of the situation, on how the blades affected the large rounds and how said rounds seem to be functioning still. Deciding at this point to try his luck at defense, the tall Orinian brings forth his right arm again, a bolt of blue energy racing down from his shoulder to his palm.

Slowed again, the shards of...whatever it is give Deity just the time he would need to cast his shield. Waving his palm in a semi-circular motion, a large, translucent blue orb appears around him, about ten feet in diameter. Lowering his arm again, the boy intends to wait for the shards to impact the shield, wondering what they may do. Only so much oxygen is within the orb, so he won't be able to remain in here the whole fight unless he holds his breath. That can be tiring.

As for the eight blades, the four that were turned onto their sides fall horizontally again, and change targets. Rather than continue in their pursuit of the shattered rounds, they all arc upward and give chase after Tacitus. They don't seem to be focused on any particular point of the suit Tac wears, simply aiming to hit him. If his suit were a normal material, it could possibly be burned through. Since that hardly seems the case, the Orinian keeps an eye on his opponent to see what may transpire.::

::Tacitus' means of defense do well to deter the homing blades, though none are destroyed, each spinning blade of energy careening wildly away from the suited man as though simply pushed or kicked away. The initial blast of force only slows their approach - the accompanying electrical surge doing just about nothing at all - while it is the second assault that is successful. Several of the eight blades are forced down to the earth, sliding right into the muddy ground and slowing to a stop before zipping right back out to move in toward their target.

The Orinian watches this event for a moment, crimson eyes focused on Tac up until the shell remnants impact his shield. Sort of. Weird, he thinks to himself, how the shield affects them. Able to block out the atmosphere itself, and only half-stopping these things. Leaning away just slightly, shoulder up, the boy lightly reaches out to the slow-moving fragments. With his glowing right hand, he taps at one of them with the back of his gauntlet. Maybe it'll go 'boom'.::

::It....tingles? Weird thing for a tank-shell-looking projectile to do. Then again, the fact that the fragment just passes right through Deity's armor is also rather odd. Not a terrible lot about Tacitus is normal, the boy concludes. Dropping the shield of energy around him, the Orinian turns to face his opponent, who's in the process of beating away Seinorei's blades with his maces. From the looks of it, those weapons are made of material similar in property of the armor, and perhaps these shell shards. Otherwise, they would not survive a single blow against a single blade.

After a few moments, five of the blades have been destroyed, taking about four hits apiece before detonating upon the fifth impact. The yield of the explosions would be significant - just more than enough to kill a human - but would pose no threat to Tac. When only three remain, a casual wave of Deity's hand calls them off, and the blades simply don't come back for another go, cutting into the planet and likely out the other side. This leaves just Tacitus and Deity - and what's left of the tank shell, if it's still poking along after him. Quickening his pace, the Mystic Tonepian rises to about the same elevation as Tacitus - enough to be at eye level - about six yards away.

The light around his right arm stays bright, the blue energy snaking down from shoulder to fingertip. If those maces are what they seem, pitting Hayahanekon against them would be unwise. Even something that can cut the hardest metals can't compete with something that can smash the Seinorei's blades without a scratch. Lifting his left hand, the Orinian uses his middle finger to shift his glasses higher onto the bridge of his nose. Lifting his left knee slightly, the tall boy leans forward, shoulders up and eyes focused on Tacitus. Rubbing his fingertips against his palms, he doesn't attack immediately; if given a moment, he intends to spend it quietly before continuing.::

::Or not. Silently questioning where all of this dust on Tacitus' body is coming from, the Orinian braces himself for the attack. The energy snaking along his arm suddenly lengthens, twirling down into a glowing, ethereal blade just over four feet in length. The ornate cross-guard of Seinorei is vaguely represented by the brightest, largest collection of ki just near the boy's open hand, the long hilt appearing to be gone. A spark of generated electricity races down the length of the Spirit Blade, Deity assuming a more defensive stance as the blade emerges.

With his left side forward, the Mystic Tonepian's corresponding arm is forward, hand loosely balled into a fist at waist level. His sword arm is higher, upper arm level with his shoulder, forearm just higher with the blade itself pointed down across his torso. Left foot down and right knee up, Deity brings Seinorei down to block the incoming mace swing, the bright energy blade contacting perpendicular to the weapon as it comes in for the boy's ribs. The heavy impact would generate a shudder and a spark, but nothing worth mentioning as an attack; each movement made by the sacred sword left a wavey trail of energy, much like the wielder's own aura.

The length of the blade allowing him a bit more distance against this somewhat larger foe, Deity counterattacks by twisting his wrist outward and bringing his sword for a deft slash horizontally across Tac's chest area. The suits chest, anyway.::

::As more of a flowing mass of energy than a solid inanimate one, the Spirit Blade seems unaffected by Tacitus' attempt to hinder its movement. So much so, in fact, that Deity doesn't appear to notice said attempt, preoccupied with bringing his weapon back down for a second block. He blocks similarly to last time, this time with the point of his sword up, upper torso pivoting back slightly with his arm extended further down in order to effectively deflect the strike. He then returns with another swing of his energy blade; turning his wrist clockwise until the tip of his sword is pointed behind him, he swiftly slices up at an angle toward the left side of Tacitus' ribcage - just underneath, more specifically.

Despite what it looks like he may be doing, the Orinian doubts he can cut through this armor, should he even hit his intended target. The impact would pack over twice the punch of his previous blows, however, the tall boy hoping to land a successful hit without endangering his limbs.::

::As the Spirit Blade deflects away from the surface of Tacitus' armor, it pulses with a spark of energy. This generates a slight shockwave that acts as a sudden gust of wind, blowing the ambient dust away in an unintentionally dramatic manner. As though in direct response to the old man's spin, Deity spins in the same direction, his sword glancing away and lowering as he deftly rotates nearly a full three hundred sixty degrees. As he does, Tac has come around as well, his large mace aiming to strike the boy's left knee. Using it as an oppurtunity to kill his movement, he brings the sword once again across the mace, another spark filling the air.

Before the tall boy can manage a counterattack, he sees the left-handed mace swinging in as well. With a mace both above and (sort of) below, the Orinian can either get himself out of the way, or block this second strike and attempt a counter, risking getting plowed over should he fail. Considering the circumstances, he decides to take the risk. Swinging Seinorei straight up from the first mace and pivoting his wrist, the sacred blade turns and its edge impacts the left mace, the boy keeping his arm stiffly extended. Just as he makes this block, he opens his left hand and thrusts his arm out, fingers curled to frame his palm.

Eyes flashing a bright red for an instant, a pitched hiss emanates from the Tonepian's body as he fires a kiai. Roughly the size of a basketball, the supersonic pocket of force aims to blast into Tacitus' abdominal area with incredible strength. It would be much like if Deity had punched him full force in the gut. But it's an invisible ball.

It is doubtful that Tacitus can do a terrible lot with that right mace in the time it takes Deity to attack - despite the quiet boy otherwise being wide open - but he's pulled such surprises before.::

::Lots of light, dust, and - of all things - glass. Seeing as neither fighter is anywhere near the ground, and that armor would need to be impossibly dusty to have so much wafting away with each movement, the Orinian decides to just avoid it; for the sake of safety. Already having been careful not to breathe the stuff in - which he does anyway when thrown into water or clouds of dirt and dust - the boy quickly moves backward after he fires his kiai, waving the energy sword through his wake. A second dome-like kiai fires, though so light that it affects just the glass and plume of dust for the most part, scattering it away from the boy.

It is as he does this that Tacitus brings his two maces together in a furious impact, causing all hell to break loose. Deity at first opts to maintain his position and weather the impact of this wave, only to see something vaguely recognizable within the incoming onslaught. Orange bolts of energy pierce through the air along with the wave of force threatening to slam into him; they look quite similar to the arcs he saw tearing through nearby buildings earlier.

Taking the hint and deciding to steer clear, the Mystic Orinian bolts down and around his adversary from afar, his followed path illuminated by the red glow of his aura. Though he does his best to weave through the violent web - the impact of the wave itself doing little to divert his intended course - he is stricken in the left leg by a spark of this strange energy. A sudden, piercing pain pulses throughout his slender frame, radiating form the front of his leg. The pain is evident in his face, teeth gritting together as he strains to keep himself moving. He hasn't the time to stop and see the damage, a narrow gash of flesh missing some four inches above his knee.

A few other of these bolts come close, and another comes into contact with his right arm, but it strangely has no effect. Just as quickly as it started, the wave passes by, the Tonepian coming to a stop. He seems to be somewhat more out of breath now, shoulders slouching as he lets out a heavy exhalation through pursed lips. If given the moment, he briefly lifts his left knee with a groan of pain, surveying the wound. It looks as though the flesh of his leg was simply erased, neither burned nor torn. An even better reason to avoid that attack, then.

Bringing his eyes back to Tacitus' location, he keeps the glowing Seinorei energy blade at his side. The distance at which he healed his wounds last time was much greater, allowing him a smaller degree more time to kill. He isn't as far from Tac this time, knowing he'll not be able to relax while casting any spells. If even given these few seconds to think, the tall Orinian retakes his stance from before - this time, he lets his left leg relax a little more, Spirit Blade hovering near his chest. Left arm forward, his palm is open, fingers curled in slightly as though gripping a spherical mass. He may as well try his hand at a different method of attack, as long as his options are open to him.::

::Sure enough, here the old man comes. In a none too friendly image, those large maces are spinning madly around his hands as he approaches, looking suddenly much more reminiscent of a meat grinder. This evokes a startled expression from the Orinian, who hastens his effort to retake his stance. He takes note of the energy around him, but - as Tacitus might have guessed - he makes no attempt to escape it just yet. Too risky. Meat grinder.

Instead, he holds the Spirit Blade further to his right, (apparently) not able to reach the wall of energy around him despite the length of the weapon. He flicks his wrist once, causing the four-foot energy sword to wave up and down at a ninety degree angle. When he stops, a thick crescent shape of translucent blue energy is left behind, very similar in appearance to the spherical shield the tall boy used earlier. However, it also seems to follow each of his movements rather than remain stagnant.

This new addition hanging at the very tip of the sword, Deity seems to have created a scythe to use, his arm rearing back behind him as his adversary closes in; at his side, he begins a swift focus of ki into his left hand, this fact going unnoticed to the eye. Perhaps strangely, he doesn't wait for Tacitus to come within reach, but rather makes his move once the maces are some five feet away. He thrusts the Spirit Blade forward as though trying to stab the armor-clad warrior just before he's even in range, keeping the crescent of energy horizontal. The maddeningly spinning maces collide with this flat shield of energy with a shudder, unable to penetrate it.

As this occurs, Deity pushes them up and out of the way with a clear show of effort, raising his arm whilst bringing his left hand forth. With a vermillion spark of ki he opens his palm and thrusts it toward Tacitus' abdomen, still a couple of meters of distance parting the two men. Rather than a ball or beam - or a kienzan from before - the Mystic Tonepian lets loose a tremendous blast, a wide torrent of searing ki energy aiming to smash into Tacitus' armor with heavy concussive force. Though intended to only burn or blow away targets, given how much the suit has been able to take thus far, it's possible that the blast may just explode. That would suck, perhaps, but it could also be helpful.::

::The direction of the blast sends the bulk of the explosive force toward Tacitus instead of Deity, though he must still brace himself to prevent being slammed back into the box he remains trapped within. He shifts back roughly a foot or so, keeping an eye out for how the five-sided chamber reacts to his movement. As the unfocused attack runs dry and smoke clears from the attack, the tall boy also takes note of the damage done to Tac's armor, but only to his arms. Odd.

The scythe-like shield at the end of Seinorei vanishes in a wisp of blue energy, the blade reverting to its narrow four foot length. Even given Deity's long arms, Tac is a bit too far to strike without advancing. Narrowing his glowing eyes, he brings his left hand back to his side - hovering it near shoulder level - while bringing his sword hand forward, twisting his hips to keep his left leg at the fore. With an arc of electric energy racing down from hilt to tip, the sword lengthens an additional yard, giving Deity more than enough range to land a successful strike.

As the blade lengthens, the quiet Orinian swings his arm with a deft jerk, almost as though cracking a whip. The weightless energy sword snaps sideways, aiming to slash across an exposed area of Tacitus' right forearm. Through flesh the blade would cut just as any other material sword, but with far less resistance.::

::At first, Tacitus' words don't mean too much to Deity. Easy way out? It takes him a moment to think on the situation. Yes, being trapped in a translucent glowing box isn't exactly advantageous, but even the most grim-looking situation doesn't prepare him for much without explanation. Thankfully, in the time it takes Tacitus to finish speaking, the wound on Deity's leg has closed up, leaving a patch of bare skin in the middle of his jeans. Unfortunately, lost energy is lost energy, and the boy cannot yet use the type of spell required to recover it. Too many more injuries isn't a good thing, despite the healing properties of his blade.

His posture relaxing a little, the Tonepian keeps his left side forward, pulling his right arm back before extending it to his side. The ethereal Seinorei sword is easily able to reach the wall, so the tall boy tests it by batting at it a few times to see what may come of it. If his sword can penetrate it, he may be so bold as to put a hand through. Deity keeps his attention only half on his examination of the box around him, not wanting to be distracted from an incoming attack.::

((Yo, Tac. Got a little concern. How does this box works, because really there shouldn't be any type of porting allowed. Even creating a portal that teleports is going against the rules. Deity brought this up, so I'm going to have to ask if you can get rid of that effect. Thanks.))

((Tac, no porting, no matter the type, the duration, nor how much, is allowed. Placing Deity into a box of teleporting simply breaks the rule. Because even if it's not your character being ported, it's still porting, because you're the one who brings the ability into the match. Now I will ask you again, get rid of the effect. Clash made it specific that any type of teleportation made by someone was an instant DQ. It enters a complexity into the match that shouldn't be there.))

Quote: Wrote:

> ((Teleporting someone else against their will DQs them in the same manner as a TKO.))

No, because unlike regular TKO, you cannot force a person out against their own will with any ability that is not allowed, aka teleporting. It's not like a legible TKO, and I don't know why I'm speaking of it at this time of the tournament since TKOs don't exist in this round (though they will be in the next one), but teleporting is still teleporting and is not allowed at all. It's evident enough about the Dyne vs Gelmax match due to it being a long debate, so that's easy enough to distinguish that even Clash was finding a problem there.

But this isn't Clash, it's me, and I'm saying get rid of the ability or I'm going to DQ Tacitus in this battle. This is my last warning, because nothing says fault in rules than letting anything slide that easy. I can't give you any leeway in that, so get rid of the effect. I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to resort to those actions if that request is not met. It's up to you whether you decide to or not.))

<>

::The boy takes notice of the effect the strange barrier seems to have as he passes his sword through it. There is no impact at all, denoting that the cage is indeed of some form of intangible energy. Retracting Seinorei, his arm keeps the soothing blue-white glow about it as he grips the hilt of his smaller Hayahanekon sword, positioned behind his waist. Spinning the sword in his hand so that it's aimed tip-up, he arches a brow as Tacitus speaks, listening to his words.

One could construe him as rather arrogant, though the Orinian has run into those types before. Still, if what he says is credible, Deity is able to attack while within this confinement. As a second test - not answering Tac's query with more than that glance - the quiet boy extends Hayahanekon and taps the tip against it. There is a significant difference. In fact, while the Spirit Blade was completely unaffected, Hayahanekon taps firmly against it as though it were a solid wall, added pressure doing little to penetrate it. So Deity - as a body of solid matter - can't pass through, though apparently his energy-oriented attacks can do so freely. Interesting technique.

Tossing the light sword into the air and catching it tip-down, he slides it deftly into its scabbard once more before again summoning the ki sword. This really isn't the most ideal situation, he says silently in his head, but it's not as one-sided as first looks may figure. Focusing his attention once again on Tacitus, the Tonepian takes note that the scarred armor of Tac's arms has replaced itself as the one-sided conversation carried on. So, doing damage to the old man is only tough so far as his armor can withstand what he puts it through, and that blast was a bit much.

Figuring it best to continue on despite the circumstances, the tall Orinian swerves into a sudden counter-clockwise rotation, red aura flaring about as he spins. As he comes around full circle, his left arm swings out as though in a backhanding motion. From the wave of his aura are released four red ki orbs, each with a rough diameter of five inches and a high velocity expected of their creator. They speed from within the cage, paths arcing only slightly as they close in on Tacitus; all four appear to be concentrated on the chest and midsection.

Unlike the attacks used earlier, the ki balls will not follow the armor-clad man, but also can't withstand a blow from his maces like the Propeller Blades could. Upon an impact forceful enough these orbs will detonate, though all four together still shouldn't be as great as the boy's last attack.::

::The Seinorei energy blade fleshes out into a wide shield, suddenly resembling an umbrella as the boy sees Tacitus take aim with his guns. Only when the powerful shells stop upon contacting this odd box does it dawn on him that they, too would be stopped. That thought in mind, he recalls them passing through both his gauntlets and his barrier earlier, and ponders the idea that they may still be capable of passing through the wall of energy.

The ki orbs that were fired all detonate, filling the area between Deity and Tacitus with a sudden cloud of smoke. The maces collision did in the first two, and while the shells only managed to glance off of the other half of the volley, the impacts veered them away from the old man and made them unstable enough to be set off some distance away.

Right arm still forward, Deity makes quick use of his shield, which shatters like a glass window. Dozens of large shards of blue energy - roughly the size of a hand - scatter from the center, each flying out of the glowing cage. The Orinian readies himself by bringing his limbs in closer to his torso, making any sudden movements - should they be needed - somewhat easier. Trapped for the moment with long range ki attacks left as his only option, the quiet Orininan begins to build energy into his left arm, intending to do so for as long as his opponent allows him to.

The ki shards that result from the shattered shield all curve about to make their way for Tacitus, resembling a volley of airborne arrows sailing in to run a target through. Not quiet as potent as the Propellers used previously, the shards are aimed for no one point, some even looking to miss whether Tac moves or not. Though explosive if broken, the effect would be comparable to a firecracker to Tac, though more like a grenade to a human. Still, there's a lot of them, and that should count for something.::

::Not surprised in the least that the shattered ki shield is doing little to deter his opponent, Deity completes the concentration of ki into his left arm, aura flaring more swiftly around it. Rather than unleash yet another attack, he instead turns away from Tacitus with a spin and a twist of his hips. His glowing right arm is held forward, tightening left fist rearing back in preparation for a strike. Arm poised only for this moment, the quiet boy's arm explodes forth in a heavy straight punch, armored knuckles aiming to crash into the wall of the cage opposite Tac.

The motion of his attack brings his left side forward again, right arm curled at shoulder level between himself and his opponent. If pure energy can't touch it and a tap doesn't phase it, it's worth testing more thoroughly, the Tonepian imagines.::

::That's an odd sensation, the boy thinks to himself as he forcefully tugs his hand back to him. Perhaps even more odd is that the wall doesn't react hardly at all to the force of the punch - normally something so durable hits back a little when one hits it full strength, while this thing neither budges nor hurts the boy's fist. Hearing Tacitus' rounds going off behind and around him, Deity wonders why exactly the old man would be shooting - with no effect - at a cage of his own creation. Rather than ponder on it, he quickly decides to give the wall another shot.

His right arm staying away from the wall and at the ready, the tall Orinian curls back his left again before firing it out in a second hard punch to nearly the exact same spot. If the reaction is the same, he'll pull his arm back a third time and swing again. Perhaps a difference will emerge at some point.::