Legend of the Sixteen Crystals

Chapter 19: Round One, Fight!

Narrator: Last time on Legend of the Sixteen Crystals, it was time for the qualifying rounds of the Verdeville Tournament! Arriving at the huge city and after being gifted a new set of communicators by Tensai, our heroes went about qualifying! Blackburn went first and after a small skirmish, came out victorious! Sorakaji went next and battled his way through as well! Finally, Ryuuichi was up. Feeling confident, Ryuuichi took on all three of his opponents and won in a quick and devastating fashion! Our heroes moved onto the main tournament, along with five others, including the three Marvellous Brothers! Sorakaji faces Mac Marvellous today on Legend of the Sixteen Crystals!

*Blackburn looks out into the crowd from inside the backstage area of the Verdeville Tournament. He paces back and forth, waiting for his friends to show up. He looks up, looks taken aback to see Sorakaji with his hair tied back and Ryuuichi, minus bandana, both dressed in the Gis they received from Father Toraken.*

Blackburn: Well, this is a surprise!

Sorakaji: What?

Blackburn: You two looking the part. Those are some nice uniforms.

Ryuuichi: Hey, you're just jealous because you're still rocking the "trenchcoat and purple shades indoors" look.

Blackburn: How many people are intimidated by cut-off sleeveless shirts or torn jeans?

Ryuuichi: Well, if you want to instill fear in people...

Blackburn: All joking aside though, those are some nice uniforms. So, where are Midori and Tensai?

Sorakaji: They weren't allowed back here. They had to buy tickets.

Ryuuichi: They had to tighten security measures after the Azul River tournament. They've thrown out the entourage rule too. If you lose, you're out of here. If you want to watch, you've got to do it from the stands too.

Blackburn: Well, that stands to reason. I wonder if my opponent's arrived yet.

Ryuuichi: That Jeremiah kid? He's hard to miss.

Blackburn: Yeah. There's something strange about that kid.

Sorakaji: What do you mean?

Blackburn: He seems so polite, clumsy and unassuming, yet he managed to qualify for the main tournament. Call me paranoid, but he doesn't strike me as the warrior-type.

Sorakaji: It's not like you to judge an opponent on how they look.

Blackburn: You're right, I just find him a little odd is all.

Sorakaji: If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were feeling uneasy.

Blackburn: Mm.

*Blackburn looks out into the audience as we cut to Midori and Tensai walking into the stadium to find their seats. The two sit down next to each other 3 rows back from the front.*

Tensai: This is different.

Midori: Yeah, they let me backstage last time.

Tensai: Yes, I have never been in the audience for a fighting tournament either.

Midori: Really?

Tensai: I am usually one of the officials at our tournaments. I am often the referee.

Midori: That must be fun!

Tensai: It can be. Some might say it is the best place to be in a fight arena.

Midori: Hey, is that Blackburn down there?

*Tensai squints and looks towards one of the entrances.*

Tensai: Oh yes, I believe s-

Midori: HEY, BLACKBURN!

*A couple of audience members look over in Midori's direction in annoyance. We cut back down to Blackburn who raises a hand.*

Ryuuichi: Who're you waving at?

Blackburn: Midori and Tensai are in the crowd.

*Sorakaji and Ryuuichi stick their heads out. They wave at Midori and Tensai. Midori smiles as we cut back to her and Tensai.*

Tensai: Please do not yell like that...

Midori: Oh, sorry Tensai! I just thought I'd let them know we were here!

Tensai: That is a nice sentiment, I suppose.

*Cut over to the Marvellous Brothers. Mac is taping his fists, while Marc leans against a wall, snarling.*

Mac: I'm not happy about this.

Marc: You're not happy? I can't wait to get my hands on that Kawashima prick.

Marvin: I'm disappointed I won't get to beat him up myself.

Marc: It's a damn shame. I'll smack him one for you.

Mac: Hmm...

Marvin: What?

*Mac finishes wrapping his left hand and looks at his hands.*

Mac: I'm not sure which hand to knock Shibata out with, my left or my right...

Marc: Who cares? Just make sure to break his jaw.

*Mac ties his robe shut.*

Mac: That's pretty violent, bro! *Contemplates for a moment.* I like it!

Marvin: At least you get to face a real fighter. I get a wrestler.

*Mac winces.*

Mac: Heh, looks like it's time to start the festivities.

*The tournament announcer walks out, past Sorakaji and friends, along the path leading to the ring and finally into the middle of the ring itself. He taps the microphone twice. He waits for the crowd to calm down slightly before raising the microphone and speaking.*

Tournament Announcer: LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WELCOME TO THE 20TH ANNUAL VERDEVILLE FIGHTING TOURNAMENT! *Fireworks are let off and explode and large-scale party poppers go off, sending confetti flying around. The crowd cheers wildly.* We've got an exciting tournament for you this year, with competitors from all around the region! These 8 competitors will battle through this tournament until one man is left standing and leaves here today as the new Verdeville Champion! *The crowd cheers again. The announcer waits until they calm down to speak again.* On a more serious note, ladies and gentlemen, please rise as we give a moment of silence to our former champion, Arturo Ruelas. *The crowd rises and bows their heads. The fighters backstage follow suit, as does the announcer and the many tournament officials around the stadium. After the moment's silence, the announcer speaks again.* Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. *The crowd stirs.* If Arturo were here, he'd be ready to get into the action. So, Verdeville, are you ready for the first match?! *The crowd cheers.* ARE YOU READY FOR THE FIRST MATCH?! *The crowd's cheering gets louder.* Let's get this show on the road!
*We cut over to Sorakaji, Ryuuichi and Blackburn. Sorakaji exhales deeply.*

Sorakaji: Time to see how the training pays off.

Ryuuichi: You've got this. *Ryuuichi puts out his fist. Sorakaji returns the fist bump.*

Blackburn: Good luck, mate.

*Back to the ring.*

Announcer: First on his way to the ring, he is a 2-time former BWA Junior Middleweight Champion... From El Vago... HE IS MAC MARVELLOUS!!!!

*The crowd boos heavily as Mac walks out, hood of his robe pulled up, head down. He gets to the ring and bounces around in a full circle with his hands raised. He throws a few practice jabs. One crowd member's voice can be heard above the others yelling abuse at Mac. Mac turns and glares at the audience member.*

Mac: Sit down and shut up, fatso!

Announcer: And his opponent! He is the current reigning Fuego Heights Fighting Champion! Coming to us from Fuego Heights, SORAKAJI.... SHIBATA!!!!!!!!!!

*The crowds boos turn to cheers as Sorakaji walks out. He acknowledges the crowd's cheers as he looks for Midori and Tensai. He sees them and points to them as Midori smiles and cheers and Tensai cracks a small smile. Sorakaji steps in the ring and points to the rest of the crowd. He turns and stares down Mac. Mac takes his robe off and flings it at Sorakaji. Sorakaji catches it in mid-air and throws it out of the ring. Mac sneers. Sorakaji smirks.*

Referee: Fighters ready? Fight!

Mac: Hey, hang on!

Sorakaji: Ugh.

Mac: You wanna check those wrist guards he's wearing?

Sorakaji: Oh, for the love of...

Referee: Alright, present your wrist guards. *Sorakaji undoes his wrist guards and hands them to the referee while looking annoyed.* They're fine. There's nothing hidden. *The referee hands them back to Sorakaji who puts them back on.* Now, fight!

*The two circle each other. Mac runs in with a big punch. Sorakaji sidesteps with great speed and sweeps Mac's legs out. Mac hits the ground, but gets up immediately, looking annoyed. He circles Sorakaji, looking for an opening. Sorakaji circles with him, assuming a defensive position. Mac jabs at Sorakaji lightly twice, before swinging in with a right hook which Sorakaji sidesteps so fast we barely see him. Sorakaji trips Mac again, with the same results. Mac looks even more annoyed than last time. Sorakaji throws a smirk Mac's way. Mac returns to circling Sorakaji and he tries to sneak in a low jab which Sorakaji blocks. Mac feints low again before swinging a left hook at Sorakaji's face which he easily dodges. Mac throws a right hook and Sorakaji drops down, spins and takes out Mac's legs with a leg sweep. Mac springs back to his feet, beside himself with anger. We cut to Midori and Tensai among others applauding politely.*

Mac: ARGH! Stop doing that!

Sorakaji: All I'm doing is countering your moves.

Mac: No, dammit! No, no, no! I am a boxer! I am not a kickboxer! This is crap!

*The crowd boos. Cut to Blackburn and Ryuuichi.*

Blackburn: How old is he? He's throwing a bloody tantrum!

*Back to the ring.*

Mac: If we were in the boxing ring, you wouldn't stand a chance against me!

Sorakaji: Alright, well why don't you prove it?

Mac: What?

Sorakaji: Let's box!

*A large grin spreads over Mac's face.*

Mac: You're on!

*Sorakaji and Mac assume a boxing stance each. The two size each other up. We cut over to the Marvellous Brothers.*

Marc: You've got to be joking.

Marvin: That idiot. Mac's going to chop him down. It's not even going to be close.

*The two fighters circle each other. Mac throws several rapid-fire jabs at Sorakaji, who blocks every single one. Sorakaji throws a couple of jabs at Mac who ducks and weaves under them. Mac feints a left at Sorakaji's body. Sorakaji falls for the feint, blocks and Mac hits him square in the jaw with a solid, loud right hook. The crowd oohs at the sound, as we pan to the crowd.*

Marc: (v/o) Game.

Marvin: (v/o) Over.

*We see Midori and Tensai looking concerned.*

Midori: SORA!

*Cut back to the ring and Sorakaji hasn't fallen. However his head has titled stiffly to the right with the punch, as Mac looks shocked. Sorakaji turns his head back around, cracks his neck and smiles. We have a reaction shot of the Marvellous Brothers, stunned in shock, Midori and Tensai looking relieved and Ryuuichi and Blackburn not looking shocked at all.*

Mac: What?

Sorakaji: C'mon, you've got to be able to hit harder than that!

Mac: ARGH!

*Mac backpedals quickly, throwing jabs as Sorakaji moves in closer. Sorakaji easily dodges Mac's jabs as Mac keeps trying to backpedal.*

Sorakaji: Where are you going? I thought you wanted to box?

*Mac continues to backpedal until Sorakaji traps him near the edge of the ring. Mac looks behind him and gulps. Sorakaji moves forward, but Mac dive-rolls past Sorakaji, who turns, amused.*

Mac: Don't just stand there! Fight, dammit!

*Sorakaji shrugs.*

Sorakaji: Alright.

*Sorakaji gets back into his boxing stance. Mac closes in and throws several jabs. Sorakaji weaves away from them and hits Mac with a counter uppercut to the jaw, flooring him! We have another split-screen of reactions with Sorakaji's friends looking elated and the Marvellous Brothers looking shocked and disgusted. Mac hits the ground and the referee gets to a count of seven before Mac pulls himself off the ground and shakes his head, trying to clear it.*

Mac: Ugh. What the hell was that? Prick! Oh, that's it! You're finished!

Marc: (v/o) Here we go.

Marvin: He's through.

*Mac puts distance between he and Sorakaji and begins side stepping around him. He keeps going faster and faster around the outside of Sorakaji until he's a blur.*

Ryuuichi: (v/o) The hell is this?

Blackburn: Mac's special move, he calls it Terminal Marvelocity. He moves so fast it disorients and opponents, then springs forward with a sharp right cross which puts them down and out.

Ryuuichi: Uh oh.

*Mac continues to spin as Sorakaji looks to have lost Mac in the whirling vortex. Sorakaji continues to stare until he drops his guard and shrugs.*

Mac: Hah, gotcha!

*Mac stops spinning and rushes in with his right cross!*

Sorakaji: WRONG! *As Mac rushes in, we see Sorakaji's boot connect with Mac's jaw and we hear a crisp crack from a superkick! We freeze-frame the action in the ring with Sorakaji's boot on Mac's chin and pan over to a wincing reaction from Tensai with a look of awe from Midori. We see Ryuuichi with a smile and a fist pump while Blackburn smirks. Marc looks shocked and disgusted while Marvin face palms. Back to the ring and we watch Mac drop to the ground, prone, nobody home as Sorakaji turns and stands.* And that's three-for-three!

Ryuuichi: (v/o) When in doubt, just kick 'em in the face.

*The referee begins his count. Mac doesn't stir as he gets counted out. The crowd cheers at the count of ten. Sorakaji leaves the ring and heads to the back, not before saluting Midori and Tensai in the crowd.*

Tensai: Superb!

Midori: Wow! Sora looked great out there! Oh hey, I think Blackburn's next!

Tensai: Oh dear. I do not like his opponent's chances.

*Mac comes to as his brothers come out to help him out of the ring. Tournament officials come out to try and help lift him up, but Marc threatens to hit one of the officials and they scatter. Marvin and Marc support Mac and drag him to the back.*

Marvin: Bah. We'll get even.

Marc: Mm. I'll destroy Kawashima after that Pyre scumbag fights his fight.

Mac: What happened? Did I get hit by a truck?

Marc: No. You got beat.

Mac: Uh. That's much worse.

*Mac leans on his brothers as they haul him out back. We move over to Sorakaji meeting up with his friends post match.*

Sorakaji: So, how was it?

Blackburn: That was cruel.

Sorakaji: Huh? What do you mean?

Blackburn: You could have finished that whenever you wanted.

Sorakaji: Well... yeah, maybe.

Ryuuichi: So why didn't you just punch him out and finish it quickly?

Sorakaji: Because I wanted a fight! Besides, this was the best way to test out how quick I've gotten!

Ryuuichi: True...

*Just then, we hear a commotion from behind the boys. They turn to see Jeremiah run in like a bolt of lightning.*

Jeremiah: Oh no! Oh no! Oh no! I'm late I'm late I'm late I'm late!

*Jeremiah doesn't see Ryuuichi and collides with him.*

Ryuuichi: Dude, the hell?

*Security guards come running in.*

Security Guard: HEY! What do you think you're doing? This is an area for fighters!

Ryuuichi: Relax! He's one of the fighters in the tournament.

Security Guard: Him? Yeah, right!

Sorakaji: He's Jeremiah Nanashi. He's taking on Blackburn.

Security Guard: Hmph. *Sizes up Blackburn, who leers at him.* Fine. Poor kid.

*The security guard leaves. Jeremiah picks himself up off of the ground.*

Jeremiah: Oh my gosh! Thank you! Oh no! Don't tell me my match is over!

Blackburn: Settle down. Sora's fight just finished. We're up next.

Jeremiah: Oh. OK then. Whew.

*Ryuuichi looks to be fighting back laughter. We hear the announcer in the background.*

Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, what a scintillating opener! We've got another three matches in this qualifying round for you ladies and gentlemen, so let's move onto the next one! Our first competitor, not much is known about this young man, but he fought his way courageously through the qualifiers. From Ninguna Parte, JEREMIAH NANASHI!

Jeremiah: Oh, that's me!

*Jeremiah walks out, amazed by the crowd. He gets polite applause as he walks to the ring and looks around at all of the people in the stadium and mouths a big "WOW!" We cut over to Midori and Tensai.*

Tensai: Oh dear. That is Blackburn's opponent?

Midori: Well he must be good to have gotten this far, but he's a lot smaller than Blackburn, that's for sure.

Tensai: Blackburn is not an easily defeated opponent.

Midori: Yeah, Ryuu had a hard time with him in Azul River.

Tensai: I believe Ninguna Parte is quite far away, too. You do not see people with blue hair out this way very often.

Midori: I'll have to visit sometime!

*Cut back to Blackburn, concentrating on Jeremiah with an intense glare. Sorakaji looks at Blackburn, puzzled, as does Ryuuichi.*

Ryuuichi: What's with the fixation, man?

Blackburn: Like I said, there's something about that kid...

Announcer: And his opponent, a veteran of the tournament scene, known around Tierra de Suenos as the Pyre Valley Nightmare, BLACKBURN!

*The crowd erupts at the mention of Blackburn! We see Tensai politely clapping as Midori cheers. Blackburn continues to stare a hole through Jeremiah as the crowd waits.*

Ryuuichi: Dude, he announced your-

Blackburn: I know. *Removes his jacket and hands it to Sorakaji.* Hold this, will you?

*Blackburn storms to the ring, no-nonsense as usual, with the crowd cheering.*

Ryuuichi: What's up with that guy?

Sorakaji: I don't know, but I'd say he's picking up some seriously weird vibes.

*Back to the ring, and Blackburn paces around, maintaining eye contact with Jeremiah. Jeremiah on the other hand, looks suitably intimidated.*

Referee: Fighters, ready? And FIGHT!

*The two circle each other. Blackburn charges in, but Jeremiah exclaims loudly and moves rapidly away from Blackburn to the other side of the ring.*

Blackburn: (internal) The hell? He's faster than Sora! *Blackburn chases after Jeremiah, who simply keeps sprinting away from Blackburn.* Oh, come on, fight back!

Jeremiah: Uh, um, crap! OK... uh...

*Jeremiah changes directions and runs toward Blackburn who puts his foot out for a big boot. Jeremiah grabs Blackburn's foot to the big man's surprise and pushes it back, causing Blackburn to fall backward. The crowd laughs. We look at Ryuuichi and Sorakaji. Sorakaji looks confused. Ryuuichi facepalms.*

Blackburn: Wha-? I don't even... What was that?

*Jeremiah looks freaked out as Blackburn pulls himself up.*

Jeremiah: Oh crap!

*Jeremiah throws a few kicks at Blackburn's legs, trying to take down his vertical base. Blackburn grits his teeth, the kicks obviously bothering him and he shoves Jeremiah away. Jeremiah goes straight back on the attack and gets shoved away again. Jeremiah continues kicking Blackburn again, but this time Blackburn responds with a hard right punch to the face which knocks Jeremiah down. The crowd boos. Blackburn looks annoyed.*