Okay guys, I'm back. I've been kinda preoccupied with reading the 'Harry Potter' books for the first time, and I've been spending way too much time on Lord of the Rings online. Throw in all the other stories I'm trying to work on, and you've got a serious difficulty. Anyway. Finally getting on with this. Enjoy.
As Kadaj's head snapped back he felt a small sense of accomplishment. Pulling back he managed to dodge the right jab that snapped at his head, as well as the left straight that followed it.
"So that's it. No wonder it threw me off so much." he thought. "He was fighting southpaw." ducking under a vicious hook, he fired a powerful right at Cloud ribs. As the punch neared the blonde's body, Kadaj's world suddenly exploded into stars. As he fell to the canvas he could faintly hear the announcer screaming something about a blazing right straight.
"It was a right jab you idiot." he thought. Then he caught a glimpse of Cloud's feet. The left foot was closer. "What? When did he switch?" Kadaj's mind struggled to grasp just how Cloud had suddenly managed to switch as he hit the canvas, and the referee began the count. Kadaj stood as quickly as he could, and took up his fighting stance. As he stepped forward, he watched carefully as Cloud crouched slightly. Stepping in, Kadaj threw a vicious hook that would have taken the mans head off, had it connected. Cloud had duck under it. A short upper blazed past Kadaj's face, the wind coming off the glove causing his hair to brush against his face. Stepping back he tried to circle the smaller man, stepping to the right. He was met by Cloud in an orthodox stance. As he skipped back to his original position, he noticed that Cloud had shifted to a neutral stance that placed his feet an even distance away from his opponent. As Kadaj danced to his left he found himself facing Cloud in a southpaw stance. Kadaj shook his head, trying to figure it out.
To the side, Sephiroth slammed his fists on the canvas of the ring.
"How did I not see it before? A switch-hitter! He had to turn into a fucking switch-hitter!" Sephiroth growled as he watched Kadaj dance around the younger man, trying to find some way in. Then it happened, Cloud suddenly charged into Kadaj's chest and began firing powerful uppercuts and hooks into Kadaj's body at super-close range. Kadaj fired a short upper, but missed as Cloud jumped back and fired two long left jabs into the other mans face. The two began dancing around each other, slowly getting faster and faster until the audience could barely keep up. As Sephiroth watched he kept losing track of Cloud. A loud pop was heard and Kadaj was sent reeling back, blood streaming from his nose.
Cloud stopped.
Kadaj stared at him as the blonde fighter assumed an infighters stance, with his gloves tucked closely in front of his face. Kadaj stared incredulously.
"Peek-a-boo style defense? You've got to be kidding me, nothing easier to crack for me." Kadaj lowered his head and charged in, his blows slamming into Clouds guard. As the older man struck harder and faster, Cloud gave no signs of letting up.
Kadaj began to feel frustrated. His punches usually broke through this particular defensive style with no sweat. But now it seemed he was ineffective against the smaller man. As he swung a powerful right, and blow snapped his head back. Recovering his wits, he saw that Cloud had not left his stance. Stepping back slightly he glared at the blonde. How was this guy still standing? He focused as hard as he could on a way to break Clouds guard.
Cloud smirked behind his gloves. He had stood against Kadaj's best and his defense hadn't broken. Now it was time for the real test. Opening his guard he lowered his head, and charged at his opponent. He met with Kadaj in the center of the ring. Kadaj smirked confidently. Infighting was his specialty. But as Cloud slammed the first strong hook into Kadaj's side, his confidence vanished.
In the stands, Zack watched carefully as Cloud battered his opponent. Sitting next to him was Aerith, with Tifa next to her. Tifa's hands had been clenched in her skirt the entire fight, and her jaw had been incredibly tense. In her mind she was begging Cloud to be careful, though she knew it would do no good. She watched as Cloud sent shot after shot into his opponents ribs. Her eyes widened as Kadaj's jaw dropped in pain, his ribs finally giving out under the assault. A swift uppercut and Kadaj lay sprawled on the canvas. Tifa could barely keep from screaming out with joy as the referee started the count. Zack glanced at her, before smiling knowingly at Aerith. Looking back to the ring, his grin grew wider as he watched Kadaj fail to rise. The fight was over, and Cloud had won.
/
Cloud looked down at his fallen opponent as Cid dashed into the ring.
"YA DID IT, KID, YA FUCKING DID IT!" he shouted. Cloud didn't respond as he made his way out of the ring. His corner team followed as he walked back to the waiting room andsat down where he had been before the fight. Reno knelt next to him and began working on the cut over his eye. Cloud winced as Reno worked with a cotton swab dabbed in petroleum jelly to stop the bleeding. Cid was grinning like the Cheshire cat near the doorway, and Vincent, Zack, and Rude had come down from the crowd to congratulate the young fighter. But seeing the rapidly swelling bruise over his left eye, and the cut over his right, their congratulations had died in their throats. Reminded just how hard Clouds fight had been, they watched as Reno worked his magic. A light knock on the door caught their attention. Vincent pulled the door open a fraction, and saw Tifa and Aerith standing there. He opened the door and pulled them in before the mass of reporters that surrounded them could push their way in. Tifa gasped upon seeing the condition Cloud's face was in, and immediately set to work helping Reno bring the swelling down, as the redhead had already managed to stop the bleeding. Zack glanced over at Aerith, a slow smile spreading across his face.
"I think he's covered." he whispered to her. Aerith stifled a giggle.
"Yeah, and who knows, this may lead somewhere wonderful for them." she whispered back. Zack grinned as he put his arm around her.
"No less than us." he said as he reached into his pocket, pulling out a small, velvet covered box. Aerith gasped as she saw it.
"Is that what I think it is?" she asked. Zack smiled and nodded as Aerith picked up the engagement ring.
"I'd wanted to wait for a more appropriate time, but I just couldn't wait any longer." he grinned and shrugged sheepishly as Aerith looked up at him.
"Do you really mean it?" she asked. Zack sighed.
"Yeah babe. I mean it." Aerith couldn't speak, so instead she threw her arms around him, breaking down and crying into his chest. Zack just held her.
"Can I count this as a yes?" he asked after a moment. Aerith looked up at him, and managed to nod. Zack pulled her close and kissed the top of her head as she continued to cry. Looking over at Cloud, Zack saw that Tifa was giving him a light massage, and that the blonde seemed to be falling asleep on the bench. 'Well, I guess he'll have a shock later on.' he thought before pulling his new fiancé out of the door and closing it behind him.
Okay guys I'm finally back. Unfortunately no one could guess the difference in Clouds fighting so I guess I'll have to try an easier problem next time. For those of you who don't know what a southpaw or a switch-hitter I've included a glossary of some of the terms in the story just below this. I love hearing from you all, and look forward to continuing this story.
Bell- a simple bell used to signal the beginning and end of each round.
Bob and Weave- a simple tactic used to cause an opponent to miss his shots. Executed by moving the head out of the way of the incoming strike and following with the body.
Clinch- getting in close and wrapping the arms around your opponent to get a moment of respite from the battle.
Cloth wraps- long strips of cloth, usually cotton, that are wrapped around the hand and wrist to prevent injury to the knuckles and wrist as well as keeping the glove on.
Contract- an agreement to fight, usually for a certain amount of money.
Corner- the corner of the ring where a fighter rests between rounds. His corner team will usually tend to any cuts or swelling on his face as well as try to advise him on a pattern of attack for the next round.
Counter- a blow that occurs as the opponent is punching. Because the opponent is moving into the punch, the counter is often more damaging than a regular blow.
Cutman- a member of a corner team who is in charge of stopping bleeding and reducing swelling. Usually has a kit containing various coagulants, petroleum jelly, and cotton swabs.
Debut match- the first fight that a professional fighter has.
Double end bag- a round bag with elastic ropes attached to the top and bottom. Used to train a fighter to bob and weave.
Gloves- padded gloves with no fingers that a boxer wears when fighting. 8-ounce gloves are used in the professional ring, and 16-ounce gloves, which have more padding, are used in amateur bouts and sparring.
Headgear- essentially a padded helmet. Used to protect the head in amateur bouts and sparring.
Headhunter- one of two meanings. One, a fighter who consistently punches at the head. Such a fighter is easy to predict and may be vulnerable to fighters who are able to protect the head effectively. Two, a fighter who seeks to cripple or otherwise permanently injure other fighters, preventing them from ever fighting again.
Heavy bag- a large sandbag suspended from the ceiling used to give a fighter the feeling of hitting something. These bags range from 40 to 200 pounds in weight.
Hook- a punch that loops around from the side, aiming for the side of the head or the ribs, liver, and side.
Jab- a straight punch thrown from the forward hand. Very fast, but usually light. Used most often to judge distance or to cause an opponent to keep his distance.
Medicine ball- a large ball weighing from 5 to 20 pounds. Used to strengthen rotation and to accustom the stomach region to being hit.
One-two- a jab followed by a straight.
Orthodox- the usual stance of the boxer. Left foot and left hand lead, while the right hand is held farther back.
Range- the length of a fighters arm, or the distance from one fighter to another. Various ranges lead to different kinds of fights.
Super Close- this range usually has the two fighter shoulder to shoulder, with power punches being thrown at distances of as little as one inch.
Close- the fighters heads are usually close, but not close enough to butt heads. Short, compact punches are the name of the game here.
Middle- this range is the brawlers paradise. All punches can be utilized here, and all have the potential to be devastating.
Long- long straights and looping hooks rule this range, though uppercuts can be challenging.
Super long- only straight punches here, and only fighters with very long arms can pull this range off.
Ring- a square ring that is roped in on all four sides. Size of the ring may vary from 9x9 to 12x12 feet.
Road work- mostly self explanatory. Running.
Robe- some fighters enter the ring wearing a large robe. The robe serves a dual purpose in keeping the fighter warm as he approaches the fight, and can show who he is.
Rounds- a round is a period of time for continuous fighting. Round length and number of rounds is determined by how good the fighter is. The current professional length of a round is three minutes, and the number of rounds is limited to 12. In this story however, an older statute of fifteen round fights applies.
Southpaw- a left handed fighter who stands with his right foot and hand leading as opposed to the orthodox left hand.
Sparring- practice fighting.
Speed bag- a small bag suspended at head height. Usually filled with air. Used to train hand eye coordination and rythm.
Switch-hitter- a fighter who can switch between orthodox and southpaw styles at will. Extremely rare, as the fighter must be able to use both hand equally well. Most trainers do not or cannot train their boxers against these fighters because of their rarity.
Tape- used to wrap the hands, non reusable.
Tapes- videos of a boxers matches. Used to study an opponent and form a strategy.
Ten count- when a fighter is knocked down, he has ten seconds to stand up and take a fighting stance. If he fails to both rise and take his stance he is considered knocked out, and loses.
Weigh-in- a meeting before the match to make sure both fighters are within the proper weight limit. If one fighter is above the limit he cannot fight.
Weight class- a method of dividing fighters so that a smaller fighter doesn't end up fighting an opponent twice his size.
Hope this helps clarify some of the terminology used in this story, and sorry for putting it up so late.