I wandered the city streets, looking for Shockwave.
Streetlights were flickering like crazy. Guess the electricity still flowed through these parts.
With Abyss and Venom defeated, I had taken care of the double-digit ranked Vipers.
Those two last fights were going to be insane, however.
Abyss was more of a mental challenge, but it was still insane. He trapped me in some shadow dome and I had to watch that bastard Blur kill Senator Red and the SWAT Team, while I was fighting The Trickster. That scene showed me just how cruel The Vipers were.
Venom was an intense physical challenge. Had I not gotten out of the sewer, I wouldn't have been alive by now. Venom himself was tanky as hell. No matter how many times I hit him, he never went down. I had to use Spinjutsu on him two times straight, plus hit his pressure points and injure him to win.
There were still nine more fighters to deal with, and Deathstroke was the grand finale.
Still, I wonder how strong Shockwave is compared to the two. Everyone says that she is decently stronger than them, meaning she's gonna be an actual challenge.
"Hey, Jay," Mark's voice cut in. "The Swordsman won't be there this time to capture Shockwave if you beat her."
"Is he taking on Blur?" I asked.
"Yeah," Mark confirmed. "I'm putting my money on The Swordsman, but you never know."
The Swordman was ranked 12th in The Vipers, I'm pretty sure. In my opinion, he was ranked 12th, because he was an all-rounder, while Blur was ranked 14th. So, if all goes well, The Swordsman should come out on top.
"True," I said. "He used to outrank Blur in The Vipers, but Blur's got that ruthless edge."
Suddenly, I got a message from SWAT Headquarters.
The Swordsman had crossed paths with Blur and The SWAT Team crossed paths with the ranked 13th fighter. Looks like they met at this "Hotel Avenue" place or something. They're all about to face off.
"Mark, it's going down. The Swordsman and Blur are squaring off," I reported.
"Sounds like it's gonna be a show," Mark replied. "Any sign of Shockwave?"
I looked around, but there was nothing.
"Not yet," I told him. "But I'm pretty sure she's close by."
"Think it could be an ambush?" Mark inquired.
"It's definitely an ambush," I said, but before I could continue, a new feminine voice chimed in.
"No, there's no ambush," the voice said.
I looked to see a girl with black hair, wearing a black flack jacket. She looked like she was from an East Asian country - Korea or Japan, perhaps?
"Are you-?" I began, but she shot some sort of a blast at me.
I barely dodged it.
"You guessed it," she replied. "I'm Shockwave,"
So she's the 9th-ranked fighter of The Vipers?
"First single-digit ranked fighter, huh?" I muttered to myself. "This could get interesting."
"This is gonna be a nightmare for you," Shockwave quipped as she fired another blast at me.
I swerved and dodged it - I was used to countering blasts.
I decided to strike back with some lightning, but she dodged it equally well.
"You're just like Nightshade," I said, pretty surprised. "She had some mad dodging skills like you."
"I'll take that as a compliment," she replied, then went for a kick.
I managed to block it, but then she did something shocking. She switched to a backward elbow to my face, catching me off guard.
She then followed with a kick, knocking me back.
Looks like she's got martial arts skills in her arsenal, but I couldn't tell which one.
"What style is that?" I inquired, still curious about her fighting technique.
She ignored me and attacked me again, still not using her powers for some reason.
I managed to block her kick, but it was way stronger than I expected. She followed up with a side elbow that I dodged, but then she switched to a back elbow and landed a hard blow to my face.
Compared to Venom, her fighting style was way more organized and calculated, like she actually knew what she was doing.
I was about to counterattack with a punch, but then she pulled a wild stunt. She went full gymnast, doing a handstand with one hand, and unleashed a two-legged kick with all her force, sending me flying.
"Damn, that was unexpected," I muttered in disbelief.
"Jay," Mark's voice came through the comms. "I think her style is Muay Thai."
"Muay what?" I asked, still trying to wrap my head around all these fighting styles in this world.
I'd learned about the popular ones like Jujitsu, Karate, Kickboxing, Kung-fu, Taekwondo, and Boxing, but this was a new one for me.
"Muay Thai," Mark explained. "It means 'Thai boxing.'"
"But what she did didn't feel like boxing," I pointed out. "She used an elbow and a two-legged kick on me."
"That's the thing with Muay Thai," Mark clarified. "It's pretty different from your usual fighting styles."
"Different in what way?" I asked.
"It's all about raw brutality," Mark replied. "Muay Thai fighters go all out with every strike, no matter where it lands."
"That explains why I had a tough time blocking those moves," I realized.
"Exactly," Mark continued. "Other fighting styles focus on balance, but Muay Thai is all about delivering maximum power and damage. On top of that, she's got some seriously advanced moves in her arsenal."
"Interesting," I remarked. "I need to be more careful with this Muay Thai thing."
"Who are you talking to?" she questioned.
"Well, since you didn't spill the beans about your fighting style, I figured I'd keep some things to myself too," I replied, dodging another one of her attacks.
"Fine," she sighed. "My fighting style is Muay Thai."
"Figured," I responded casually. "Talking to my own system here."
"A system?" Mark's voice buzzed in my ear.
"Just trying to keep it believable," I whispered to Mark.
"You took down Abyss and Venom?" she asked, a hint of surprise in her tone.
"Yeah, they're having a lovely time in prison," I answered. "You might join the party soon."
"Really?" she replied sarcastically.
"Yep," I said nonchalantly. "I heard you and Ripper are next in line. But hey, those two were pretty much carried by their powers. Abyss without his powers wouldn't even make the top 70."
"Harsh, but true," she admitted.
"Ever think about what you're doing?" I questioned. "All this hurting, why?"
"I hurt, not kill," she responded.
"Why hurt at all?" I pressed. "What's the gain?"
No response. She just launched another attack.
"Fine, let's get serious," I said, gearing up for a real showdown.
I blocked her punch and countered with my own, but she deflected it. Trying a kick, she dodged with finesse.
"Fast, huh?" she remarked, attempting an extended kick. I maneuvered out of its way.
Closing in for a punch, she surprised me. Dodging and wrapping her arm around my shoulder, she landed a brutal knee to my solar plexus, followed by a punch to my core.
I coughed in pain as she executed a skillful throw, sending me crashing to the ground.
"Do you really think I'd lose to a no-skill fighter like you?" she taunted, preparing for an axe kick that I barely managed to dodge.
If I didn't have my suit, I'd be out cold by now. Shockwave's strength is on another level compared to Venom. The strategies that worked on Venom won't cut it here.
"Do you have a fighting style?" Mark inquired.
"Yeah, a mix of Karate and Kung-fu from my ninja days," I responded. "I'm not showing all my cards to her, though."
"She's like Nightshade, but not as strong," Mark noted. "Nightshade's a whole different league."
"Yeah, Nightshade's has better strength, speed, and endurance," I agreed. "But this Muay Thai style is new."
"Nightshade used a mix of styles, but not Muay Thai," Mark confirmed.
"She had Karate, Taekwondo, and Jujitsu in her arsenal at minimum," I said.
"Well, are you confident in hand-to-hand against Shockwave?" Mark questioned.
"Just not sure which style to go for, Karate or Kung-fu," I replied.
"You should just do whatever comes to mind," Mark said. "It's the only way you can advance in this fight."
Right...regular techniques won't be enough for this.
"Alright, I'll admit it," I said to Shockwave. "I underestimated you, and yeah, I've got a fighting style."
"Really?" she challenged. "Show me."
She lunged at me with a punch.
I blocked it in a stable stance and countered with a punch of my own, which she managed to dodge.
She tried to grapple me, but I broke free.
I launched a roundhouse kick at her, but she blocked it.
She then tried to land a low kick to my knee, but I managed to move out of the way in time. If that connected, it would have been bad.
I went for a back-to-knuckle punch, but she skillfully avoided it.
Well, that gave me an advantage.
You see, a back-to-knuckle punch is directed to the face because that's where the knuckles would go in that case.
She did dodge it, but she's in perfect range for my reverse-crescent kick.
Given how the reverse-crescent kick works, at the position we're in, it would be impossible for her to dodge or block with one hand. She would have to block using both.
I threw my reverse crescent a, forcing her to block with both hands, leaving her disoriented.
Seizing the opportunity, I landed a roundhouse kick in her face, thus, causing her to shift her hands to the side, leaving her solar plexus open.
Capitalizing on her opening, I swiftly executed a powerful spinning back-kick, a common kyoukushin karate move on her solar plexus.
I maintained the pressure, landing a front-punch on her face, causing her to stagger back even further.
With her completely off balance, I swept her leg, and she fell to the ground.
She looked pretty dazed at this point, meaning that she was completely open—one more strike, and I'd win.
I almost landed a punch on her, except she managed to wrap her legs around my neck, effectively choking me.
"I-I'll acknowledge this," she conceded, regaining most of her composure. "If that front punch landed, I definitely would have lost this fight."
I managed to wiggle out of her hold by shifting my weight.
Looks like she's got some Jujitsu skills in her arsenal too.
"This ain't good," I muttered. "But even without using their powers, she's still more dangerous than Venom and Abyss before those two used their true powers,"
"If she's throwing down like this in her basic form, imagine when she kicks in her powers," Mark chimed in. "The Swordsman spilled quite a bit about her, huh?"
"Yeah," I nodded.
I usually with The Swordsman under my Detective Walker alias. Our discussions usually revolved around The Vipers' other fighters, with him filling me in on the details.
"Shockwave..." The Swordsman muttered. "Brings back some memories."
"Memories?" I inquired.
"She used to be a close ally in The Vipers," The Swordsman explained. "Well, until she became the 9th rank."
"When did she hit 9th?" I probed.
"About a couple of years Nightshade cut ties with me," he responded. "Once she climbed the ranks, our communication went dead."
"I see," I acknowledged.
"It's strange, though," he continued. "She started as ranked 22nd in The Vipers before directly jumping to 9th."
"That's a massive leap!" I exclaimed, surprised.
"Well, Abyss, Venom, Shockwave, and Ripper joined The Vipers a bit later than me and Blur did, and she didn't showcase her powers until down the line," The Swordsman clarified. "I freaked out when I saw them for the first time."
"Damn," I commented. "How did you two meet?"
"I was just doing Viper business when SWAT attacked, and at that time, I was still on the wrong side of the law," he began, hesitating, aware of his past.
"Look," I said, offering support. "The past is the past. It's about now and the future."
He composed himself.
"I found myself surrounded by too many SWAT agents," he continued. "That's when she showed up and saved me."
Their close friendship made more sense now; they had each other's backs. It would have been better if The Swordsman had followed Shockwave instead of Nightshade.
"I wish I'd chosen her over Nightshade," The Swordsman added with a hint of melancholy. "It would've been so much better."
"To be fair, she seems the least insane out of the four," I remarked. "Abyss, Venom, and Ripper sound crazier by your descriptions."
"I genuinely believe she's a good person," The Swordsman asserted. "If you ever face her, can you try to save her? I don't want her to end up like I did."
"I'll try, but you're the real MVP in this," I assured him. "If anyone can pull her out of The Vipers, it's you."
"I see," The Swordsman nodded.
"By the way, what's her fighting style?" I asked. "I heard she's skilled in hand-to-hand combat too."
"Her main style is Muay Thai, but she's got some Jujitsu moves in there too," The Swordsman shared. "She's a heavily offensive close-ranged fighter."
"Got it," I said.
"I talked to your friend," I mentioned. "Remember The Swordsman?"
"The traitor?" she scoffed. "Yeah, we used to be friends, but he went solo after failing to beat Electro-Punch."
"You know, you two would make an insane duo," I remarked.
"Not with a ranked 12th fighter," she retorted.
She then launched a hook kick at me.
I sidestepped swiftly, drawing on speed from my ninja training.
With precision, I landed a front punch to her face, followed by an elbow that caused her head to recoil.
Despite her momentary setback, she quickly regained composure, landing a punch on me.
I don't give up that easily...
I retaliated with a kick, forcing her to step back.
"Kyoukushin Karate," I declared. "It's not just a more balanced style; the experience is on my side."
"You had this the whole time?" she asked, likely feeling the impact.
"That's right," I affirmed. "I would have won, but I got caught off guard by your Jujitsu."
"Let's see it then," she challenged.
The score was 1:1 at this point.
Let's make it 2:1.
We charged at each other.
This is where I decided to even out the fight. Her using two styles and me sticking to one seemed pretty unfair.
I'm gonna throw in some of that Kung-fu or whatever they call it from my Ninja training. Should be useful, I reckon.
She inched toward me, clearly taking the offensive stance.
She went straight for a kick to my calves, but I dodged it. Next up, a high side-kick, but I blocked it using my right arm.
Then came the reverse crescent kick, but I smoothly dodged it.
Seems Muay Thai and Kyoukushin Karate have some similar moves, but hers was all about brutality – more knees, throws, and grapples. She is definitely a pretty experienced Muay Thai fighter because she uses a combo of low and high kicks with that brutality, not just sticking to low kicks or knees.
"Interesting," Mark muttered over the comms.
We both exchanged techniques at the same rate, with none of us having the upper hand.
This honestly felt like those martial arts movies, where there are equal fights for a very long time and nobody wins.
Every time she did a technique, I countered it with my own, and the same goes vice-versa.
She threw another punch, that I blocked, but then she grabbed me.
The thing was that this grab felt different.
She threw me to the ground a decent distance away from her.
I managed to get back up, but she hook-kicked me in the face causing me to go back. She then landed a roundhouse kick as well to my knees, restricting my movement.
She then swept my leg, and punched me down to the ground, while I was still midair.
She was about to land an axe-kick, but I dodged by rolling back.
She tried to land a low roundhouse-kick to my knee, but I pushed myself to the side, effectively dodging it and getting back up.
She tried to grapple me again, but this was where I found a good opening.
Looked like she liked to do the same thing if it worked, and I don't blame her for that. It was likely that she was trying to make me do the usual thing that a street-fighter would do, and then get the upper hand on me.
Well, I'm not most people now, am I?
I did a sweep and took us both down to the ground.
Now, it was down to who would get the upper hand here.
Well, she got on top of me first and was about to land a punch to my face, but I moved to the side and kicked her off.
We got up and back into our fighting stance, facing each other, our guards up.
I threw a crescent kick, but she blocked it, and pulled me in, trying to land a thrust in my solar-plexus.
I blocked it and did a back fist with the same hand towards Shockwave only for her to block it as well.
She suddenly grabbed my fist and pulled me back.
She then got on a handstand and I instantly realized her plan.
She tried that two-legged kick that she used before, but I effectively blocked it, just stepping back a tad.
She instantly followed with a roundhouse, but I moved my head back to dodge it. It looked like that roundhouse kick was just to gain momentum for her next move.
She spun back, gearing up for a tornado kick – easy to avoid, rig-
Hold up, a wall?!
She did all that to limit my movement on purpose?!
She had good battle IQ as well, but I had a workaround to counter it.
Time for a switch, so I decided to throw in some of the things I learned from my Ninja training - I think they called it a style of Kung fu.
I grabbed her hand when she was about to kick so that I would get solid ground for the move that I was about to make. I needed to have solid and sharp movements for this move, given how much greater the gravity is here than Ninjago.
She went for the tornado kick, but I ducked and then did something unexpected.
I moved forward while ducking, ending up right under her midair. Drawing on my experience, I launched a straight high kick at her, hitting her straight in the stomach, while she was still in the air before she landed on the ground.
"What the?" she asked, shocked as she landed on the ground.
Getting struck midair hurts more than a ground hit, no doubt. If you get struck midair, you get left at a huge disadvantage, because you got all the wind knocked out of you.
Either way, sweeping her leg again was off the table. She could pull a jujitsu move while on the ground. Luckily, she ended up in front of the wall now – practically we swapped positions.
I threw a punch, which she barely blocked, still recovering from that kick.
I followed it up with another thrust punch, hitting her solar plexus and dropping her right guard.
I landed another punch to her face, this time from the right, causing her to stagger to the left.
I'm not a fan of being brutal, but it seemed necessary to take her down. Maybe I could finish her off before she pulls out her powers.
She attempted to launch a sonic blast at me but at this point, I was way too used to blasts, so I dodged it easily.
Looked like she was still pretty dazed from the moves I did back at the corner, meaning that I would be able to get to her before she blasted me again.
There was technically a way to defeat her by taking her down, but it wouldn't work with her lying on her back. She needed to be facedown on the ground because that's where Jujitsu won't work.
I'm skipping the suplex route since she knew Jujitsu, and Nightshade had wriggled out of my suplex using that very martial art style.
I went for a leg sweep but executed it in reverse, ensuring she fell face-first instead of her back hitting the floor.
Success!
She hit the ground face-first.
Flipping over, she tried to transition to her back and I think I heard something, like a sonic sound.
She was about to use her powers, wasn't she?
Well, luckily I had the upper hand.
Before she could fully turn on her back to blast me with her sound waves, I landed a final punch in her face, finishing the fight.
She was now fully unconscious.
"I think I won," I said. "Looks like she underestimated me too much and paid the price,"
"Wait, there are survivors nearby!" Mark yelled through the comms. "You need to evacuate them!"
"Shoot!" I exclaimed. "Shockwave might wake up before the SWAT arrives. I need to stay here to make sure nothing goes wrong,"
"That...isn't good," Mark remarked.
I sighed.
"Innocents come first. If she wakes up, I'll face her again, probably with my powers." I said as I walked to the coordinates.
What I didn't know was that this decision would be one of my dumbest mistakes.
"Jay," Mark said, as I was about halfway there. "The coordinates were false, they got removed."
"False?" I asked. "Isn't everyone already evacuated?"
"Yeah, this is technically a safe zone," Mark replied. "Wait, how far are you from Shockwave?"
"Pretty far," I replied. "But she shouldn't be awake now, ri-"
Suddenly, I was blasted away by a sonic blast.
"Alert, communications damaged," the system reported. "Unable to communicate with the host."
I realized I couldn't talk to Mark anymore.
"Let's do this for real now," Shockwave said. "That was just a warm-up for me."
"A warm-up?" I asked.
That sounded pretty similar to what Nightshade said when I first fought her.
"I'm talking about our fight just now," Shockwave replied with a smirk. "In fact, I'm the one who sent the fake signal and then destroyed it."
"So, you weren't unconscious?" I inquired. "You're good at faking stuff."
"Actually, I was unconscious for a long while," Shockwave admitted. "I'll be honest, all my reactions during the fight were real. I just wasn't using my powers so I could gauge your abilities."
"Why would you want to do that?" I questioned.
"I don't know," Shockwave(ranked 9th in The Vipers) replied. "It's what Nightshade told me to do, so I did it, except at the end, where I had to use them."
"Well, I guess now the real fight starts," I replied, charging up my lightning.
_______________________________________________________________________________
The Swordsman strolled into Hotel Avenue.
"I know you're here," he said. "This is your hangout spot now, right?"
"Yeah," a voice replied.
It was Blur (Ranked 14th).
"Honestly, I don't get why you were ranked 12th," Blur remarked. "You were better off at 19th, don't you think?"
"I wouldn't have had to bear such a burden if I were still ranked 23rd," The Swordsman retorted. "It would have been much better."
"You wouldn't be ranked like that if it weren't for Nightshade," Blur snapped, annoyed.
"Nah, she's the reason I worked hard," The Swordsman replied. "Turns out, I did it all for the wrong reasons. I hurt many people."
"So what?" Blur shrugged. "We don't need reasons for that now, do we?"
"Power-Punch did the right thing beating the hell out of you," The Swordsman said through gritted teeth. "You deserved every ounce of that beating."
"And you can do the same?" Blur challenged.
"I was ranked higher than you, remember?" The Swordsman shot back.
"Higher," Blur scoffed. "Wanna know something else?"
"What?" The Swordsman inquired.
"I guess you got rusty while you were out of the game," Blur stated. "I've been training. So any gap between us is now gone."
"We're gonna see about that," The Swordsman replied.
"Nightshade sent me to end you," Blur declared. "If that works, I could take the 12th spot you had."
"Nightshade, huh?" The Swordsman mused. "I can't wait to see the look on her face when she learns that The Purge failed and I'm fine."
Blur instantly reacted, attempting to punch The Swordsman's face, but the shot hit.
"What the?!" The Swordsman exclaimed, startled.
Blur kicked The Swordsman back.
"I've gotten a lot faster since last time," Blur laughed. "What makes you think you're gonna win now?"
"A Swordsman never quits," The Swordsman replied, holding his sword in a defensive fashion.
"Yeah, let's see," Blur replied, launching a punch at The Swordsman.
The Swordsman skillfully blocked it and swiftly counterattacked, hitting Blur in the face with the sword.
"Urgh!" Blur groaned as The Swordsman followed up with a powerful kick.
"Who says I've gotten rusty?" The Swordsman quipped. "I've been honing all aspects of my abilities."
In response, Blur drew a blaster.
"You'll die today," Blur declared, firing a blast at The Swordsman, who skillfully deflected it with his sword.
"Nobody's dying today," The Swordsman retorted. "You're going to prison."
Rushing at Blur with his sword, The Swordsman faced a couple of blaster shots. This time, his enhanced sword had the ability to fire powerful blasts too, countering Blur's attack and hitting him in the face.
The Swordsman then delivered a final sidekick, sending Blur crashing into the wall.
"Admit defeat," The Swordsman urged. "Continuing will only make it worse."
"I'm not done yet," Blur laughed, pulling out another blaster. "Rapid-fire mode!"
"Oh, shoot!" The Swordsman realized as Blur unleashed a flurry of bullets.
Despite deflecting some, The Swordsman couldn't fend off all the bullets.
"Damn it," he muttered, falling to the ground on one knee.
Seizing the opportunity, Blur swiftly kicked him.
"Huh?" Blur said, glancing at something. "Hey, I got news!"
"News?" The Swordsman inquired.
"Power-Punch and your girlfriend Shockwave are about to fight each other," Blur announced.
"An enemy won't be my girlfriend," The Swordsman replied, as he got back up.
"Suit yourself!" Blur yelled, as he blasted multiple shots at The Swordsman.
This time, the more focused Swordsman managed to block all the blasts, despite a lot of difficulty.
"This isn't what I expect," Blur said, shocked.
The Swordsman pulled back his sword.
"So, you hooked him up with Neodymium," The Swordsman mused. "He's got that look of determination, huh?"
"Absolutely," Mr. Parker nodded. "He says it's the key to surviving The Purge."
"Maybe he's the guy to finally shut this whole Purge mess down," The Swordsman pondered. "Guess I'll have to fight with Blur."
"Think you can take him?" Mr. Parker inquired, curiosity written all over his face.
"Not with my current skill set," The Swordsman admitted. "I haven't fought in a while and he's likely leveled up by now."
"I can help with that," Mr. Parker offered. "Ever looked at those sword games with special moves?"
"Played a few," The Swordsman confirmed. "Are you planning to do something with them?"
"Pretty much," Mr. Parker grinned. "I'll also level up the power on your blasts, maybe even better than Blur's."
"I'm just trying to figure out how to aid Power-Punch against those four," The Swordsman sighed, clenching his fists.
"That's a tough one," Mr. Parker sighed back. "But truth be told, you can't go toe-to-toe with those four, even if you did years of training."
"I just want to be helpful," The Swordsman admitted.
"And you are," Mr. Parker assured. "This upgrade might just make you more so."
"How does my sword get better?" The Swordsman asked.
"Your sword is about to become its own powerhouse," Mr. Parker explained. "I'm tossing in an Artificial Intelligence system. When you shout out a move, the AI tells the sword to give you enough energy to pull it off."
"Give me energy?" The Swordsman raised an eyebrow.
"Yup, the sword's getting an energy upgrade, turning it practically electric," Mr. Parker elaborated. "Whenever you want to throw down a move, the AI will give your hands the energy boost through the handle."
"So, I'm getting the boost through my grip," The Swordsman concluded.
"Exactly," Mr. Parker grinned. "Just remember, you gotta make those moves yourself, practice them enough so the sword catches on. And hey, don't forget to give each move a cool name."
"Got it," The Swordsman said, ready for the upgrade.
"You create the right move, you can wreck Blur with it and maybe even match Abyss, Venom, Shockwave, and Ripper someday," Mr. Parker said, patting his back. "Now go on, become the legend you're meant to be."
Except, he lost to Abyss. Before he could even pull off the move, Abyss yanked him away from his own sword, sealing his defeat.
" I lost to Abyss," The Swordsman muttered.
"Should've known your limits, huh?" Blur taunted. "You're just a piece of trash who couldn't even impress Nightshade."
The Swordsman's grip on his sword tightened.
"A move from that range?" Blur laughed. "Who the hell do you think you are, Superman?"
"It's time for you to go to prison," The Swordsman declared, holding his sword parallel to Blur.
"Are you insane?" Blur scoffed as he powered up his blaster.
"Create the right move, and you can wreck Blur with it, maybe even match Abyss, Venom, Shockwave, and Ripper someday."
He'd put too much effort into the move he was about to unleash on Blur. The sword had undoubtedly caught on to it. This was the right move to use.
"Hard work isn't going to waste," The Swordsman affirmed. "I'm not letting talent win."
"In this world, nobody gives a damn about hard work," Blur retorted. "It's just about how good you are."
"Not this time," The Swordsman replied, getting into his attacking stance.
"Just die already, you piece of trash!" Blur yelled, unleashing a barrage of blaster fire at The Swordsman at full speed.
"Linear," The Swordsman muttered, darting forward.
This move was something else.
In Linear, The Swordsman charged straight at his opponent, cranking up strength, speed, and endurance to the point where it became a blur to the opponent. Improved awareness was also part of the package, breaking through any obstacle.
Easily, The Swordsman tore through the barrage of bullets as Blur watched in utter shock, unable to process what just happened.
Strike!
The Swordsman blitzed through Blur with his new move.
Blur hit the ground face-first, instantly knocked out.
The Swordsman let out a sigh of relief.
"One day, I'm gonna beat Abyss," he breathed, dropping to one knee due to the immense energy drain from the move.
The downside of Linear was its energy consumption.
The Swordsman pulled out his phone and dialed The SWAT.
"Yeah, I got Blur," he reported. "Get his cell ready, he's going for a nice trip to prison,"
The SWAT barged in, slamming the door open.
"Blur's down!" shouted a member of the SWAT team. "Let's get this bastard restrained!"
"How's the situation with the ranked 13th fighter?" The Swordsman asked.
"We took him down," a SWAT team member responded. "It was a brutal fight, but we came out on top."
"Good stuff," The Swordsman nodded. "Our business with The Vipers is done. Now it's just sweeping the city for potential survivors caught in the crossfire."
"Roger," the SWAT team member acknowledged.
"Power-Punch is fighting with Shockwave, right?" The Swordsman suddenly recalled the news Blur had spilled during their brawl.
"Yeah," the SWAT team member confirmed. "Power-Punch's got this, right?"
"Who knows?" The Swordsman mused. "Abyss and Venom might be one thing, but Shockwave is an entire other level. If Abyss and Venom are level 1 mini-bosses, Shockwave is the level 1 final boss, if you get what I'm saying,"
"Really?" another SWAT team member interjected. "Shockwave is that much stronger than Abyss and Venom?"
"Decently stronger than them, yes" The Swordsman affirmed. "But at their level, 'decently stronger' is pretty much the same thing as 'much stronger',"
"Shockwave and Ripper really show the ultimate power of these elite fighters, huh?" the SWAT team member remarked. "Looks like sheer willpower won't cut it this time,"
"So, that means..." another SWAT member trailed off.
"Power-Punch is in for the fight of his life," The Swordsman finished.
_______________________________________________________________________________
I geared up for a showdown with her.
"Jay!" Mark's voice crackled over the comms. "The Swordsman took down Blur!"
My audio systems got a quick fix thanks to my fancy suit - good thing all my repair stats got a boost.
"Nice," I said.
"What's nice?" Shockwave chimed in.
"It's good news. The Swordsman handled Blur," I replied. "Fresh off the wire."
"Not good," Shockwave retorted. "Looks like I'll have to settle this now."
"Can you handle it?" I smirked.
"You're still talking to that guy, huh?" she asked.
Suddenly, I clamped my hands over my ears, courtesy of Shockwave's eardrum-shattering move. No idea what she was up to, but it was louder than a rock concert.
"Alert! Communications critically damaged!" the system blared.
"Try chatting with him now," Shockwave said. "He's the reason you aced me in hand-to-hand, right?"
"Fair point," I admitted. "Let's settle this."
I tried to zap her with lightning, but she countered with a sonic boom.
Then, she unleashed a sound blast on the ground, sending shockwaves my way.
Hold on, did she just tap into Cole's earth element?
Could her powers indirectly control the ground?
My lightning couldn't hack it, and I got tossed like a ragdoll. If she was actually using Cole's element like that or whatever, I was in deep trouble.
"This ain't looking good," I muttered.
Before I could react, she used sound waves to launch me sky-high, proving her attacks weren't just one-way streets.
"See," Shockwave grinned. "My sound attacks? They can go anywhere they want."
She blasted herself to me using her own waves and crashed into me mid-air, delivering a kick that sent me crashing through a wall.
I staggered to my feet, barely blocking a sound blast with my lightning.
"Your powers," I gasped, "It's stronger than Abyss,"
"And not touchable," she smirked. "No hands-on defense like you did with him."
I lunged with my lightning, but she sidestepped and shot me back up with her sound waves.
To my surprise, she propelled herself into the air, heading straight for me. A heavy kick hit my solar plexus, knocking the wind out of me.
It dawned on me - compared to Abyss and Venom, Shockwave was like playing a different game. Beating her was gonna be harder than the other two. If she was this strong, facing Ripper would be on a whole new level, one that I wasn't prepared for.
And without Mark on the line, this fight just got a whole lot trickier.
________________________________________________________________________________
Nightshade's POV:
I strolled into the warehouse, facing off with the gang of thugs.
Those idiots had snagged a vital energy source, crucial for our realm generator. I wasn't itching for a fight, but I'd give in if it came to that.
Power-Punch was likely duking it out with Shockwave (Ranked 9th) now, so I had a breather. Maybe Shockwave would even take him down.
Her Muay Thai and Jujitsu were no joke, and considering her powers, she could probably handle Power-Punch. Hell, she might even climb the ranks to become an executive in The Vipers one day.
A thug eyed me with confusion.
"Who's this hotty?" he blurted.
I barely held back from attacking him for that charming introduction.
"I'm here with a warning," I said. "You're holding onto something crucial for The Vipers."
"Why the hell do you want the energy source?" another thug questioned.
I couldn't spill the beans about the realm generator; that's top-tier executive info. Only Deathstroke, me, and the other four executives know about it. The rest, except for him don't know about it.
"It's for a special project," I replied. "Something that would give us an edge. Your lame-ass Texas gang doesn't even compare to us."
"Wanna bring in The Cartel?" the thug threatened.
This guy clearly missed the bigger picture. We could've wiped The Cartel off the map if we weren't fixated on that realm generator.
"The Cartel knows better than to mess with The Vipers," I shot back. "Soon, we'll have them bowing down to us too."
The thug clenched his teeth.
"You know, I ain't afraid to hit a woman, right?" he challenged.
Finally.
"Let's find out," I sneered. "You guys are in for a world of pain."
The thug aimed a kick, but I blocked it and countered with a straight punch to his gut.
"Urgh!" he groaned, crashing to the floor, out cold.
"W-what the?!" the other thugs exclaimed, clearly surprised.
Another thug came charging, aiming a punch, but I smoothly sidestepped and drove a knee into his chest, leaving him unconscious.
"Is that the best you've got?" I quipped. "This isn't even a warm-up,"
Two more thugs, probably catching on to my skill, rushed at me, accompanied by a third wielding a metal bat.
I casually deflected the first thug's punch, sidestepped the second one's kick while snagging his arm, and deftly avoided the metal bat swing from the third.
Mr. Bat-Swing tried to nail me again, so I ducked and tripped him.
I yanked the first thug close, landing a roundhouse kick to his face, followed by a back-kick that sent him crashing into a stack of crates, unconscious.
Balancing on a two-finger handstand with my left hand, I choked the second guy with my legs, squeezing the fight out of him. He was a pretty big guy, which worked in my favor.
The third thug attempted a headshot with the bat, but I blocked it with my right elbow.
"What the heck?!" he exclaimed. "She just shrugged that off? It's like hitting a brick wall!"
I grabbed his head with my right hand, pulled him down, and met him forehead to forehead with a solid headbutt.
"Aargh!" he howled, collapsing in pain.
I released the leg lock on the second thug, allowing him to crumple to the ground, unconscious.
A swift kick to the back of the head put the third guy out cold as well.
"Who's next?" I challenged, scanning the now frightened gang.
"Nobody feeling brave?" I taunted. "Alright then, let's liven things up."
I zoomed toward a thug with a burst of speed, planting a knee right in his face, rendering him unconscious. Another one thought he could sneak attack me from behind, but I spun around, greeted him with a sidekick, and sent him sprawling on the ground, unconscious as well.
With a swift fluidity, I took down the remaining members of the gang.
"Aw, shoot!" the boss exclaimed, clearly rattled. "Where are you four at?!"
Four fighters surrounded their boss in the center, all looking pretty experienced. I think they all know one martial art style based on their stances.
"Get her!" he commanded, and they all lunged at me.
The first guy swung a kick my way, but I dodged it, and he followed up with a knee strike. Looked like he knew Muay Thai.
I'll be honest: I don't know any martial arts. I don't know any fighting style like Karate, Muay Thai, or Taekwondo. I just picked up my moves up from all the fights I had. Call me a streetfighter, I guess.
It brought back a memory...
I was watching IP Man 3: one of the best martial arts movies there was.
IP Man was fighting this Muay Thai fighter in an elevator, and he was having some trouble. I don't blame him for that: Muay Thai fighters are deadly as hell in close range and he was trying to protect his wife.
However, once IP Man got out of the elevator, he easily overpowered the Muay Thai fighter, and that with almost zero effort.
That's right, zero effort.
That was when I might have figured something out after watching the fight. The Muay Thai fighter did a lot of ranged and brutal attacks, but if he lacked one thing, it was relocating after he striked.
"I think I just found out how to take down Muay Thai fighters," I said with a shocked look on my face.
Author's note: IP Man 3 is a real movie, I recommend watching it.
The first fighter swung a kick my way, but I gracefully sidestepped, immediately bouncing back to nail him with a swift kick to the shin, knocking him out cold.
It was an easy way to beat a Muay Thai fighter; after a heavy move, they were wide open. Have good speed, and that's your opportunity to win.
Author's note: PLEASE don't try this irl. You will get wrecked.
The second guy attempted an elbow strike, but I deftly raised my arm to block it, spun around, and connected a backward elbow to his face.
"Urgh!" he groaned, taking a step back.
Seizing the opportunity, I landed a side-kick on his solar-plexus, sending him crashing into a pile of crates. He won't be getting up from that for a while.
The third and fourth fighters teamed up, charging at me together.
The third guy aimed a crescent kick, but a quick backward shuffle kept me clear. However, the fourth fighter managed to snag me, wrapping me in a choke with his legs, backed up by the third guy.
As the third fighter swung a punch my way, I sidestepped and shifted the fourth guy's weight, causing him to take the hit instead. I capitalized on the opening, locking the fourth guy in a headlock.
Using my legs, I kicked the third guy backward, leaving the fourth guy ripe for a chokehold.
The third fighter circled around, attempting to strike from the side. With a leg maneuver, I sent him stumbling away.
Before long, the fourth fighter was done, knocked out cold, and I charged at the third fighter.
He initiated a reverse crescent kick, which I blocked. He followed up with a roundhouse, and I deflected that too.
He tried a spinning back-kick after that. I think his style was Kyoukushin Karate.
I dodged the kick perfectly, moving to his side.
I sent a side-kick, only for him to block it.
However, I flicked the keg I kicked with and kicked him straight in the head.
"Ugh!" he groaned, struggling to regain his composure.
I could have easily finished him off there, but I decided to wait. I have a tendency to toy with my opponents.
He tried to hit me with an extended side thrust kick, but I moved back, successfully dodging it.
I then sent front punch, but he blocked it as well.
Is this what Kyoukushin Karate is like?
I threw a round-house kick at him, and he tried to block it using both of his hands, moving them down. He would have blocked it, but I had something else in mind,
The truth was that he fell for my trap
I stopped the knee and instead switched to a powerful punch right into his face, sending him airborne before he crumpled to the ground, fully unconscious.
Everyone was unconscious now except for the boss. He looked at me in fear.
"Is that all?" I taunted the boss. "Honestly, your gang's performance was pretty disappointing."
The boss did look pretty muscular with a decently big size. It could intimidate the average person, but not me...
Size and muscle didn't faze me at all; it was all about skill.
The boss charged, throwing a punch my way, but I blocked and tripped him. I poised for an axe kick, halting just before impact.
"Where's the energy source?" I demanded. "Every time you stay quiet, I break something, starting with your legs."
"Why should I tell you?" the boss challenged.
Crack!
My axe kick landed on his right leg, breaking it.
"Aargh!" he screamed.
"Where?" I pressed.
"W-wait-!" he pleaded, but I silenced him with another kick, shattering his left leg.
"Where?" I repeated.
"I-!" he stammered, but I coldly snapped his right arm.
"Where?" I asked one more time.
"I-It's in the safe, code 4290!" he cried. "We'll leave, I swear, just let us go!"
I knocked him unconscious with a hook kick to his face.
"Thanks for the information," I muttered, making my way to the safe, entering the code, and retrieving the energy source.
Leaving the warehouse, the night sky welcomed me with its cool vibes.
I'm an enthusiast for the night, especially the stars.
If The Purge wasn't wreaking havoc and that idiotic gang hadn't snatched the energy source, I'd be chilling in the grass, watching the view of the city with the night sky and the stars.
But, reality hit with a phone call.
"B-boss!" the caller stuttered. "I-I'm ranked 44th in The Vipers, and I-"
"Just spill it," I cut in. "No time for intros."
"The Swordsman defeated Blur!" he blurted. "All the elite fighters, except Shockwave and Ripper, are behind bars!"
The Swordsman did what now?!
But why would he win?
He's been off the scene for a bit.
"Details," I pressed. "What did The Swordsman do? I was sure that Blur would have won,"
"He used this 'Linear' word and, one-shot Blur with it," the 44th-ranked guy spilled. "Before that, Blur had the upper hand, I swear!"
"Ugh," I sighed. "Did he level up his sword or something?"
"We-we don't know, ma'am," he stammered.
"Whatever," I brushed it off. "Focus on putting Power-Punch in his place. How's Shockwave doing?"
"All communications are toast," the 44th guy replied. "But word is, Shockwave's owning the situation."
"Good," I nodded. "I don't give a damn how it's done; Power-Punch needs to die,"
"Got it, ma'am!" he acknowledged. "I'm out."
Call done, I headed back to my apartment, flipping the switch to my Emily Coldstone mode.
That Jay Walker guy doesn't look like such a bad person. We even had similar interests and views on life. Maybe I should invite him more often.
Anyway, tomorrow Deathstroke gets the energy source. This energy source should speed up the realm generator.
"You better win, Shockwave," I muttered. "I know you'll win, but you must,"
_______________________________________________________________________________
Jay's POV
Losing badly, every move I pulled, even Spinjitsu, got countered effortlessly by Shockwave.
She's on a whole different level compared to Abyss and Venom. Ripper would have to wait; dealing with her was what I needed to do.
"I-I never saw this coming," I admitted, shocked. "You really are a shockwave..."
"This fight was decided from the start," Shockwave responded. "Now, it's torture time."
"Torture?" I questioned as sound hit me from all directions, making me go down on one knee.
"Tell me," Shockwave, the 9th rank in The Vipers, demanded. "Who the hell are you? What's your real name?"
"No spilling today," I declared.
In response, she cranked up the volume. The noise threatened to tear my ears apart, but I resisted. Luckily, my system offered increased resistance to sound.
"Wanna hear a little story?" I suggested.
"What is it?" she asked.
"I spent almost ten years stranded in a desert after being betrayed and cast out by everyone I trusted," I confessed. "I survived scorching days, freezing nights, insane storms, and more."
"Damn..." she muttered.
"And you know what?" I continued. "I survived against all odds. No matter what happened, I held onto hope that things would get better, and they did."
"I'm guessing it's this Power-Punch thing?" she speculated.
"Exactly," I confirmed. "I found a new crowd, people who supported me. I got a second chance at life, despite everything I went through."
"It's an inspiring story and all," Shockwave acknowledged. "But why are you telling me this?"
"Because I won't spill anything," I insisted. "I've endured the worst, both physically and mentally. Why would I suddenly just give in to some stupid torture and spill everything about myself?"
She amped up the volume.
"Did you know sounds exceeding 200 or even 185 decibels can be lethal?" she threatened. "I can go there if I want."
"But you won't," I pressed.
"Why is that?" she asked, a surprised expression on her face.
"Because you've claimed before that you only hurt, not kill," I explained. "If that's been your motivation, this wouldn't be the first time for no reason, right?"
"Why are you trying this hard?" she questioned. "What's the point when you know you're going to lose?"
"The Swordsman told me about you," I revealed. "He said you have a good heart and that you're redeemable."
"Why should I listen to the words of a traitor?" she retorted.
"Deep down, you don't want to do this," I asserted. "Deep down, you have a good heart, but you're using it for all the wrong reasons."
You don't know the history, me, or my past at all," she said, her voice angry. "You don't know what I went through, do you?"
"I know it's bad," I acknowledged. "But that doesn't give you the right to replicate it on others."
With that, I unleashed Spinjitsu, breaking free from her attack and knocking her back with my blue tornado.
"I should have known," Shockwave retorted. "You're the same as most people."
"What?" I questioned.
"You used me to break free from my hold," she accused. "People use each other to get what they want. All you want to do is win, not to redeem me or whatever you were saying."
"No, I was, but not like that," I clarified. "I'm going to do it through fighting you."
"You're...different," she said, visibly surprised.
"The 'most people' you mentioned are as well," I responded. "Obviously, there are outliers, and those are the ones that need a spot in hell."
"I-I can't betray Nightshade," she said. "S-she's a good person, even if she doesn't look like it,"
"She's not the saint you think she is," I pointed out. "Don't you remember what she did to The Swordsman for failing to beat Electro-Punch?"
"S-she let him go, right?" Shockwave asked. "Maybe she changed,"
"Only because I beat him," I revealed. "She probably saw no more use in him and left him completely."
Shockwave sighed, realizing that I was right.
"You'll be punished for failing, won't you?" I questioned. "If we join forces, you won't. And I know you don't want to hurt innocents."
"The Vipers," Shockwave mused. "I see it as something that I must commit to. In the end, no matter what we do, it's what we do."
"You're not thinking—" I began, but she blasted me back.
"I'll acknowledge you as the one person who actually made me feel shocked about something," she replied.
"Shocked about leaving The Vipers and joining me, my friend, and The Swordsman," I corrected with a smirk.
"Let's see," Shockwave challenged, assuming a fighting stance.
Suddenly, something Master Wu taught me when I first became a Ninja popped into my mind.
"The best way to defeat an enemy is to make them your friend," I recited.
"Yeah, right," Shockwave scoffed. "You and me? Friends? Me and The Swordsman? That's never happening, no matter how hard you try."
She launched a sound blast at me, but instead of countering, I gracefully dodged it.
She charged at me.
"Jump up, whip back, kick around, and spin," I slowly sang, performing those moves and landing a spin-kick to her face, sending her backward.
"A mantra?" she asked, surprised.
"No," I responded. "It's my training as a Ninja."
"Ninjas are real?" she questioned.
"Damn right they are," I affirmed. "I was a Ninja, but the teachings stayed, and those very same teachings will defeat you."
"So, you're going to show me the way of a ninja?" she asked.
"Wrong," I corrected.
"Then what?" she pressed.
"I'm going to show you the way of a hero, not just a ninja," I declared, getting into my fighting stance.
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