Round 2 Team Two Versus Team Three

Dark had felt the last round, even as severely unbalanced as it was, was over far too quickly. He had felled his own opponent, but his other half in the equation barely so much as busted a few bruises on his partner. And according to the coordinator, he was the ONLY person able to knock someone out. It was a weird mix of pride and confusion. He wouldn't carry that onto the field though. Instead, he'd step up into the colisuem with the wind at his back. Tail flicking softly in anticipation as the teams were announced.

He knew this one, actually. It had been a while, and he might as well had been a kitten around her in terms of strength back then, but it was all the same this odd little saiyan; Zuqetta. He watched her for a moment, long enough to get a faint recollection. The saiyan looked... Different. There was something about her posture, the way she held herself. That was dismissing her new getup too. She's been out doing her own thing, just as he had. And their powers?

So very much closer now. Both had grown, but he was fast approaching her level. He dare thinks he could take a King right about now. Both of them could, apparently. All the flowery looks and praise through social cues the young woman gave her was lost on him, not really used to such looks, but he could at least respect the opening words and confidence. How cute.

"Hah."
They were both at least on the same page. Two peas of a pod. There was no doubt in his mind who was fighting who in this tag team then. Hopefully the bot would get the hint without him shouting at it as he unfurled his crossed arms and got into a defensive stance as she shouted her full name.

"Haven't you changed since last we met, Zuqetta. I don't recall you being this proud and direct!"
He shouted back, digging his feet into the dirt underneath him as he grit his teeth. Sharp canines pronounced in his quick transformation. A stark yellow aura would pop around him as Dark called upon his Oozaru's wrath to empower him. Muscles tense, static shock bounces off parts of his body and between hairs, an his eyes gain a glow of burning auburn-yellow. The aura would push dust back and throw winds around at the slight protective walls around them before dissipating with it. Leaving on this Wrathful form behind.

"Well, you AREN'T the only one! LET'S TANGLE LIKE PROPER SAIYANS!"
His mild defensive stance bent even further into an aggressive position, fists replaced by clawed hands ready to intercept what he was expecting was opening blows. But that wasn't what he was getting. No, Zuq wanted a lightshow. Those clawed hands pull up from their readied position and come together at the wrists, palms facing outwards at the other saiyan. He wasn't going to pay the other two any mind now; He was focused.

"IF YOU'RE GOING ALL OUT, YOU BETTER NOT DISSAPOINT! SHOW ME THAT WARRIOR SPIRIT, GIRL!"
Yellow sparks started forming a ball out ahead of hi s clawed palms, throwing off heat and light from its culmination. As the wave of light-focused energy came pouring at Dark, he answered with his own barrage of deadly yellow ki blasts. When this ball grew too big to keep handling, Dark's hands pulled back and started launching them back forwards at an immense speed. Alternating arms and sending out large orbs with each movement to combat the incoming wave at the midway point of the colisuem. Each sparking ball that met with this symphony of light stalled it more and more until it started beating it back. Electric Strikes and Rays of Light being thrown and dispersed harmlessly at the center in what could be described by the crowd as fireworks.

Here's hoping OW-1 isn't distracted by the lightshow and actually DOES something.

---

Thread PL: 72,000

Dark initiates a Hunter's Wrath (x5), bumping his PL to 360,000

Dark is gonna clash the incoming Symphony of Light (450,000) with his own Cruel Crash (6KP 100% | 360,000). This miraculously hits the 80% fizzle threshold for both techs! (Yeah I was shocked too when I did the math)

PL: 360,000 (Hunter's Wrath x5)
KP: 0/6 (-6)
MP: 2/6 (+2)
DAM: 0/270% (+0)
CDN:

WC: 740

Portobello wasn’t sure how she made it through her first match, by all accounts the opposition’s combined strength should have been enough to handle her and Zuqetta’s efforts- a pair of fully-fledged Saiyan warriors, and a king on top of that? There'd been no chance!

…Especially with how she'd accidentally dragged the poor girl into the match half-asleep... she still hadn't had a chance to apologise for that... hopefully there were no hard feelings. But somehow the two of them had pulled through and claimed victory, really nothing short of a miracle.

Though admittedly... part of her didn't feel like she'd earned her win, it was no stretch to say Zuqetta was the one carrying the fight for both of them, Portobello wasn't delusional, she was giving the fight what she could but she couldn't hold a candle to the fighter she used to be.

Well... regardless of what her personal thoughts were, there was a match to get to and she didn't want to keep them waiting.

---

The feline made her way into the arena closely behind Zuqetta, while Portobello didn't share the girl's confidence (though it was good to see her in high spirits at least), she was still comfortable with the proceedings, whether she was accepting defeat today or not. She was content strolling forward at a leisurely pace, tail swaying behind her as she took in the crowd... if she wasn't mistaken Mel should have been among them... curious coincidence they were both interested in the same event though it wasn't surprising, he'd been getting a little... antsy regarding the Accords situation lately so maybe it was best he took a break from Earth for a while.

She raised an eye at the announcer's proclamation of her "retirement", retired from gallivanting round the galaxy, yes, but she was in no way retiring from her day jobs just yet (though business on the teaching end had shrivelled up with all the new surveillance) rules in place, even if she was elderly for a Shruumian, she had a good few years left in her before she'd have to give up what she loved. 

Getting ever closer to the centre she was able to get a much better look at her opponents across the way, a large robotic sphere of some unknown make... going by the name "OW-1" apparently whatever that stood for... and then the catlike, what she assumed was a hybrid, Saiyan who was currently the object of her partner's... um, infatuation... Portobello eyed her with a surprised, but then amused look... oh dear, those were just as bad as the pickup lines she'd tried at that age...

She supressed a laugh at the teen's display of romantics, before lowering her voice to a level hopefully only Zuqetta was close enough to hear to save her any potential embarrassment. 

"Zu, perhaps save it for after the match?"

She seemed to compose herself, which was good news because they'd made it to their starting positions. The match was to begin momentarily, Portobello would begin to shift her stance- but not before Zuqetta loudly announced she had something to say, Portobello side-eyed her a little surprised, she hadn't spoken to Zuq at length between matches but she didn't have her pegged down as a speech giver... Well, was certainly something- first an apology for the underwhelming match they had the other day, laced with venom towards Taori, and then a proud affirmation of her heritage as a noble of Plant... an interesting revelation and a lot to unpack in one, Portobello was a little concerned by the vitriol in her tone, it seemed like there was a lot more to this girl than she assumed... but it was to be expected from someone she'd known for less than a week- hopefully her shift in demeanour wouldn't mean anything concerning for this fight.

As it seemed Zuqetta was ready to start, Portobello raised her power in tandem, green sparks now emitting from her fur. Her first move was to backpedal away from Zuqetta as her energy rose to monstrous heights, she wasn't keen to be in the way should they have something planned- and there was, one concerning comment directed at the robot, then her full power was released in a blinding wave of energy that shook the earth itself- some part of Portobello worried it could break the barrier shielding the audience, which would spell disaster, though fortunately that wouldn't come to pass as the feline-Saiyan Dark was capable of matching the energy with his own impressive display of fireworks. Deep-down, the shift towards recklessness began to worry Portobello, power like Zuqetta possessed shouldn't be thrown around lightly, especially in the company of civilians, but she'd have to put those concerns to the side as she sensed the robot beginning to make it's move.

She twisted to face them, stern eyes meeting an unfeeling lens before its mechanisms reshaped into a canon. Immediately wary of the robot's intentions, Portobello was pre-emptively forming a yellow-tinged disc of ki over on of her arms. Then with a cryptic statement the droid shot forth a powerful beam- Portobello reacted quickly, moving the shield covering her arm to intercept the beam's trajectory, though it did very little, shattering almost instantaneously before she was hit with an explosion to the chest. She let out a yelp and was sent flying backwards, coming to a stop as she hit the sand with enough force to send up a small dust cloud. 

She lay motionless, fur and parts of her gi were now singed and smoking slightly, a few seconds passed before her eyes shot open and she took in a deep gulp of air. If Portobello was allowed the respite she'd begin to slowly and gingerly get back to her feet.

“Hah… good shot… and a philosophical type too?"

She'd have guessed from the weird void talk anyway- that or the robot was insane and was spouting whatever nonsense it's algorithms pointed at. One of those meant she was probably going to be at the very least unconscious in the immediate future and the other...  it was a long shot but maybe she could convince the robot not to finish her off so quickly into the round.

Trying to ignore whatever chaos was happening between the two Saiyans, Portobello put on a weak smile and raised her hands as if to appear non-threatening.

"So OW-1 are you? We're going so fast we haven't even been properly introduced! Wouldn't it only be polite to know each other before we resort to blasting people without warning? Like... say, why did you join the tournament?"

Dark let the winds, light, and sparks fly and settle before letting his stance loosen from its firing stance. Letting some heavy breath out past his extended arms as he brought them back closer to him for his fighting stance. One clawed hand outstretched and the next held closer to his side as he watched. He was just about as excited to see this outcome as Zuq; He never had an attack like that match someone so strong.

"Hah..."
He rolled a shoulder and pried those eyes away from the now gone attacks and looked back at Zuq. While not entirely sure what she meant by 'the one', he could at least understand admiration. In its baser forms, it was one given out of respect for skill and strength. But he sensed... Something else was afoot here. He couldn't put his finger on it, but this was definitely different than just stock awe. That grin preached his face again as he showed the crowd and his fellow saiyan his sharp canines again.

"Entertained? This is what we live for after all! Come on!"
Dark would lower himself and start off in a blazing dash at Zuqetta at that very same moment - Focusing solely on his partner in fight here and pulling his own sort of five li assault out on her. Knuckle to the knuckle, knee to foot, a lot of their blows either canceled one another or flew past and equally dented at the other's armor or bodies. Dark's fifth limb of choice, however, wasn't his tail. And he made certain to stay a bit away from her more prehensile oozaru tail. No, if he managed to close in a few times with an elbow, he would try smacking her with his head.

"Tch!"
Zuq had the edge on him currently, as it was taking him every ounce of concentration and instinct combined to keep from losing out in their scrap. Exhausted of ki as they both were, he doubted he'd get another chance to even the playing field or score his own hit for a moment. His buddy would have to pick up the slack for a bit with his own opponent.

---

Dark is gonna bap @ Zuqetta!

PL: 360,000 (Hunter's Wrath x5)
KP: 2/6 (+2)
MP: 3/6 (+2)
DAM: 0/270% (+0)
CDN:

WC: 392
TWC: 1132

The robot responded to her post-knockdown musings by stating the obvious- of course they were here to fight, why would they have joined up otherwise?

"...Fair enough."

She shrugged, voice still hoarse from the pain of getting hit with a high powered laser. She tried not to let it show besides a slight frown but secretly she was disappointed they hadn't given her any more info to work with, on first impressions the orb didn't seem like they'd wish to humour her wish for a good fight- granted, she asked for it by joining a tournament that would inevitably attract some of the strongest people in the galaxy who'd probably expected someone better than an old fighter past their prime, but she deserved a little fun now and then too- besides, it wasn't like she wasn't capable... just not on their level.

Her opponent's... interesting comment caused her to spare the pair of Saiyans a glance, their fight was in full swing already, both trading blows with the enthusiasm she expected to see from a Saiyan in their youth... she was glad to see it, even if she had apparently missed out on her chance to see some humorously questionable flirting while being blown across the arena. 

However she had her own fight to focus on... whether she could get a fight was a whole other question- she didn't know a lot of robots personally but they tended to be pretty stubborn in their directives... so if it was content blasting her into oblivion to assist it's teammate then she was just going to have to deal with the pain she'd be feeling when she woke up after the match. 

Though after a moment, they did seem willing to elaborate! Her ears perked up as the feline appeared a little more interested in what OW-1 had to share... violence was beauty? Oh... they were a plain old killer robot weren't they? Portobello looked slightly put off by that statement- maybe disappointed, annoyed even... she hadn't exactly learned to enjoy killing machines when she had to fight them off herself, so regardless of how correct her judgement was, she wasn't particularly happy if out of all the AIs she could have met, it might be one of those again... 

Not having the proper opportunity to voice a response, the android then charged its canon a second time, this blast being much more choreographed as it climbed into the air she had somewhat more time to react before it came crashing down- not willing to be a punching bag a second time, Portobello summoned up as much energy as she could muster after her last technique was so effortlessly broken through and kicked off from the sand with a crackle of ki, somersaulting through the air as another large plume of sand was kicked up by the impact of the canon fire. She landed a good 10ft or so to the right of the plume as sand rained down. Panting much harder than she'd like from having needed to spend so much energy on what OW-1 probably saw as an inconsequential attack, she found it mildly frustrating on a self-worth level to see how effortlessly she'd been pushed to her limits because somehow this one robot was giving her more trouble than the entirety of the last fight... but maybe sensing she didn't quite have it in her to react to whatever was thrown at her next she would unfortunately resign herself to the fact that words were her only way to leverage the situation in her favour.

She flicked her tail to remove some of the accumulated sand and stared intently into the lens of the machine in front of her, visibly exhausted already, it was clear OW-1 was far superior in the combat field at this juncture. So she likely didn't have anything to offer that would catch the droid's interest, still, she had to try- less she be out cold for the rest of the match. The feline was a little nervous in anticipation of taking a painful blast to the face now she was defenceless, though through deep breaths she'd attempt to get out a proposition to the battle-hungry robot.

"...Can't say I'd agree with violence being beauty, my career used to revolve around the stuff and trust be when I say it was rarely pretty... but I'm not going to change your mind here am I? So I have another idea... you know what the announcer said about me being retired? Well, beating up someone who can't defend themselves won't teach you much, but if you'd refrain from blasting me at full-power, I can show you some fighting techniques you've likely never heard of... we have a deal?"

Man, if there was one reason to dislike team battles. Dark was sweating keeping up with Zuqetta. Event eh few blows he did land were luck or she seemed to enjoy them. Like, a little too much. There was battle lust, then there was this. OW-1 would have made him spit out a drink if he was drinking up. The elbow he got as Zuq turned was a shocker.

"What?! Get... Get your head in the game, bot! You realize who you're talking to!?"
He was going to say Zuqetta had the right idea, but what she was saying had his head turning. Even still kinda entangled in a brawl, the cat Saiyan squinted at the smaller apparently earth-bound Saiyan. So, that's it huh? Dark, for one, did not know how to take that. He... never really thought about that flowery stuff. All his teen hormones went towards violence, and anything remoting something like Zuq's flagrant fawning flew over his head a lot. But he got the more direct incredulous stuff like this.

He wouldn't let his mind get lost in that tho; Zuq was suddenly upon the bot. Actually, he had messed his opponent up pretty well already. It was just a matter of him surviving Zuqetta, cause he clearly outmatched the other alien cat warrior. Which... he had been ignoring for a while. And would continue doing so as he came soaring after his own opponent.

"Duck and get out of the way! Focus on your own fight, 'OH-DUBS'! Less you are concerned with... HER, the better! HYAH!"
Zuq might get a few punches in on OW-1, but Dark is into flying kick her at her shoulder. Aiming to knock her off balance and get her to focus back on him. If this turned into a ground tumble, so be it.

---

Dark tries getting Zuqetta to focus on him again, cause team battles stimky. Tries ignoring Porto.

PL: 360,000 (Hunter's Wrath x5)
KP: 4/6 (+2)
MP: 4/6 (+1)
DAM: 0/270% (+0)
CDN:

WC: 342
TWC: 1474

Several of Zuqetta's light attuned strikes had met her foe, but it seemed Dark intended to continue their date apace as he rushed in with a swift kick to knock Zuqetta away. Sent flying back, she'd quickly catch herself in the air; readying a defensive stance immediately as Dark sought to continue the assault. Things were looking grim on her partners end; while she had no idea what they were speaking of from so far away, Zuqetta could sense the building of energy as OW-1 took to put an end to the old cat.

"Dark, as much as I wanna just spend all my time with you-!" Zuqetta would begin as illusory walls began to spring up around the two of them, "I've got a prior engagement ta house sit another cat!" She'd exclaim before vanishing behind one of the illusory walls; breaking off from her engagement with Dark and rushing towards Portobello and Ow-1!

The Light Aspected magic that emanated from Rhapsody would die down before vanishing completely; in it's place, tendrils of whisking Dark Aspected magic would begin to surge and envelop Zuqetta's form. Due to the distance Dark had forced upon her, Zuqetta would move at full force as she closed the distance; cutting it close as the laser of energy OW-1 shot would come directly down upon her, robbing OW-1 of his initial target. The energy of the laser would be absorbed by the Dark Mass that shrouded Zuqetta, before inevitably being dispersed.

"Tell me B, just how sentient are you?" Zuqetta would ask the bot as the Dark energy around her question lashed out in all directions around her, "Can you feel fear, robot?" She'd finish as the surging Dark Magic would take a suddenly offensive stance, raining down upon OW-1 in a devastating manner which riddled the area around him with small craters.

While the Dark Magic may have looked fluid in nature, it's form was ever changing and rampant; it whipped through the air with ease, before taking a form similar to a spike and shooting downward at maximum speed. Any singular strike would have been devastating, and the proof to this would be the area around OW-1 as the terrain became less and less recognizable. It was an over exhaustion of energy, but a necessary expenditure to insure her partners safety; as well, if OW-1 was intent to continue his teasing, then it would merely be comeuppance!