Hello guys! I am finally back!
Sorry for taking forever. So much stuff has happened to the point i can't remember exactly all, but it involves getting sick, having to catch up with university, poor time management and organization, a lot of tests, creative block and a lack of motivation. I hope i can release the next chapter before this month ends.
Sorry if this chapter ended up being so long, i tried to make it as "logical" as possible, while trying to expand the background for character depth. I hope you like it.
With nothing more to say, enjoy.
Miyuki stood nervously at the center of the area "Well, um... That was an amazing match! But don't get too excited, there are still three more before this round ends!"
She coughed a bit to regain her own composure "I knew there would be monsters in this event... but this is insane." She took a deep breath and looked up. "Well, let's continue!"
The 3d image of a red rabbit appeared above one tunnel as green lasers were focused on the entrance "From Berlin, Germany. Standing at 6'0, weighting 331 lbs and representing Yauger University. This young lady has shown her 'fangs' and is ready to take on the competition, no matter what! She is 'the Berserk Bunny' Alia Schmit!"
Smoke filled the tunnel's entrance and Alia walked out quickly. She german girl looked calm and seemed to be deep in thought. Her mind went back to the talk she had with her handler.
(Some minutes ago)
"You should be careful with him, a fighter that knows how to apply the knowledge of a doctor or a doctor that can apply his knowledge to fighting are dangerous opponents. If you want to 'go wild', suit yourself" Alia's handler had a relaxed look on his face while munching on a cereal bar.
The german girl stood there in silence for a while before speaking up "I don't like that ficker... But i won't lose my cool." She had a look full of determination. She will beat the crap out of this doctor and then she will have her match with Matías in the third round. Nothing will stop her!
(Back to the present)
She shook her head and smirked with confidence. Miyuki gazed at her with a tint of admiration, she was strong and confident... she was free. Shaking her head to get rid of those thoughts, Miyuki pointed to the other tunnel as the 3d image of a green cross with blood splatters appeared above it and red lasers focused on the entrance.
"From the west side of Chicago, in the USA. He stands at 5'11, weights 150 lbs and represents Green Cross. This doctor fears no pain or fighter, he will show us what medical science is made of! He is 'the Conductor of Pain' Seth Adams!"
Smoke filled the entrance just as Seth walked out. "Mmm, Alphonse was very surprised after he watched the kid's match. Hahaha, his face was something to record. But that fight was truly something priceless. Yes... amazing music, i must say."
Miyuki got away from the area just as Lloyd approached both fighters. The referee eyed them, focusing his gaze mainly on Seth "He is hiding something. If he passed the inspection, then he must be hiding some sort of drug or, in the worst case scenario, a bodily modification other than his metal limbs."
Lloyd raised his hand "Fighters ready?" Seth lowered his body, slightly bending his knees and spreading his hands a bit, as if taking a grappling stance. Alia took a middle stance with her hands closed in a slightly high guard.
"She must be planning to keep herself out of my range while hitting me and then use grappling when my stamina runs out. Well, at least i have this to shorten the difference in speed and power between us."
The doctor chewed a small sphere that was hidden under his tongue and swallowed its contents after grinding it with his teeth. The referee took notice of this, but he couldn't disqualify Seth... that was how the Kengan matches worked. Lloyd quickly lowered his hand with a yell, "FIGHT!"
Alia suddenly appeared in front of Seth, hitting his chest with a powerful punch and launching him back. The doctor almost lost his balance after landing on his feet and before he knew it, the german girl struck him with a crescent kick to the ribs.
Seth skidded on the ground and hopped over a sweep kick, before barely blocking a knee strike to the head from the side. Then, Alia stuck to close range and unleashed an onslaught of punches and elbows.
Seth was taken off guard and was forced to block her strikes while trying to back away. "Wha- Why is she sticking to close range!" Alia stopped for an instant, allowing Seth to step back. But the girl struck him with a mighty shoulder strike.
The doctor was thrown away by the blow, landing on his back. Alia, sprang forward and used an axe kick. Seth rolled to the side and quickly stood up before blocking a combo of low kicks.
Both fighters were now near the wall of the area, Seth's back facing it while Alia stood in front of him. "If the info. i got was right, this arschloch knows the basis of how to strike, move and defend, but that's all. By the way it felt when i struck his arms and legs, he must have replaced his bones or reinforced them with metal implants or somethin' similar. His ribs felt normal though. I will rush him down and finish him with a good throw or submission... maybe a chokehold could be good, but i have to be quick. Keep your cool girl."
Seth, lowered his head and took a deep breath. The german girl stopped in her tracks for a second, something wasn't right. Seth, sprang forward with a flying front kick. Alia blocked it, but Seth spun around and delivered a combination of kicks to the stomach, stunning her.
She answered with an uppercut, but the doctor sidestepped and countered with two jabs to the body. The german girl swung a hammer fist, hitting Seth's shoulder as he tried to get behind her.
Alia, launched a spinning backfist and a hook, but Seth barely ducked under them. The doctor threw a jab and a straight punch, but the german parried them both. With a growl, she replied with a short flurry of straight punches. Seth barely avoided them, ducking and swaying to the sides as he kept his guard high.
The strikes of the german were leaving gashes on his face and even slowly tearing his clothes. Alia threw a strong palm strike, but the doctor blocked it and replied with a hook and an uppercut. The girl ducked under the first and stepped back before the second.
She struck him with a chop, but Seth put his arms up to block it and push her with a front kick. Seth threw 2 punches and the girl moved her head to dodge them, but the doctor finally struck her with a side kick.
Both stood away from each other. Seth was taking deep breaths while Alia grunted in frustration and rage. "I knew it! This fiker is a cheater! He swallowed something when the ref was about to throw his hand down! But cheaters don't last long."
Seth wasn't smiling, but deep inside he knew she was frustrated. "My reflexes and the custom-made drug i prepared are finally kicking in. Amazing. She heard me consume the it and figured i used a drug after noticing the change in my performance. Those university kids think they're so smart and deserving of praise after turning a human being into a lab rat. The nerve of those bastards."
Seth Adams wasn't a normal doctor. Since he was little, medicine and biology took his interest. He spent his free time researching and reading about those topics, this along his high learning capacity and talent allowed him to acquire an incredible amount of knowledge of these fields. Becoming one of the most skilled surgeons, medical doctors and biologists.
But as he grew up, he started to realise something: saving lives wasn't the best way to help, it was to prevent the need of saving lives. Following the steps of others before him, he turned his exercise routine into a training regime for a pro fighter, studying propper ways of attacking and defending.
But this and his vast knowledge weren't enough. He started to study his own body and it's limits, discovering a few interesting factors: An exceptional pain tolerance and reaction speed. And after finishing his analysis, he began a body modification plan. He modified his nervous system to increase his paint tolerance to the limit, along his already high reaction speed, and upgraded his immune system.
He followed these changes with the replacement of his limb bones. Using 3d modeling, he made templates to construct new ones made with a special material. Slightly heavier than normal bones, but notably stronger than the average strengthened skeleton. And after this, he installed a 'trump card' and contingencies to survive and recover from fatal injuries.
Of course, all these modifications were the 'phase 1' of his plan. He became an international agent and specialized as an info broker. After some time, he met Alphonse and both of them were tasked with a mission that involved the Kengan Association.
"So, are you going to keep denying that they turned you into a lab rat? Even after having an example of your little 'neurological issue' in the previous match?" Seth was having some fun, he could defy those who he thought believed themselves to be gods in the greatest way possible: fighting their little 'pet'. The feeling was truly addictive.
Alia lowered her stance and rose her guard, her fist shook, but she didn't go into a blind rage yet "Look who the fuck is talking! You go and replace your own bones while not being necessary, what kind of freak does that! Keep calling me lab rat and i'll turn ya into minced meat!"
The crowd yelled with excitement, when two fighters began a heated argument it was almost certain that things would get messy.
Seth zigzagged toward Alia. The girl threw a jab, but the doctor slipped under it and moved to the side. Seth struck her body with two quick punches before he was launched back by a low kick and an elbow to the face.
He rolled on the ground and stood up after spitting blood, but the german already was throwing a barrage of kicks and knees. He barely dodged them until he was struck by a roundhouse to the side of his head. "Damn it, she really is a beast!"
Seth spun around and delivered his own flurry of punches and kicks. Alia blocked some and redirected others, but some were still landing on their mark and making her flinch "Scheisse! How could i forget he was a doctor?! Of course this schlampe knows 'nerve striking' and all that crap!"
Alia, suddenly spun around and struck him with a spinning backhand. Seth was able to block it, but the girl tripped him and struck him with a double palm strike. "Did she let her guard down on purpose?!"
Inside the tunnel, Alia's handler was talking with one of the researchers "While i expected him to use drugs for the match, i never thought we wouldn't be able to get this information sooner." The handler turned to him with an eyebrow raised "So what? It's no use crying over it. No matter how drugged he is or the modifications he has. He doesn't have the training she received nor her parameters. I am sure she will come on top."
The researcher scowled and spoke with a sarcastic tone "And here i thought 'we' were the arrogant ones."
In the stands, Kenta and Taaru were watching the fight with great interest. The former was cheering loudly and the latter had one of the biggest grins he ever showed. "Is this what Kenta called Karate and chinese martial arts? One direct and strong while the other is more fluid and reactive. Heh, first the kid and now the girl... after Shibo is done for i will have a round with them."
Seth did a backflip and landed on his feet. Then, he rushed toward the german girl once more. He did some spinning kicks as feints to deliver a hard punch to her liver.
But she grabbed his arm and, using a wristlock and Seth's momentum, she threw him onto the ground face-first and kept him pinned down. Seth tried to turn his body, but his opponent started punching his face non-stop. The doctor did a sweep, barely able to make Alia lose her balance, but enough for him to get away.
Seth threw a kick to her face and she redirected it. The doctor tried an uppercut, but she sidestepped and the girl put him once again in a wristlock. Using the momentum, she put his arm on his back and made him turn before using a takedown. Alia mounted him and put her opponent into an armbar.
Seth was desperately trying to get out of her grasp. But his other hand was free enough to do something. "Aaahh!" He pinched one of her nerves with all his strength, allowing him to get away. He took a look at his arm: it was dislocated. He reseted it back with ease though.
"Scheisse! Trying to go for his joints isn't gonna work if he can reset them that easy." The doctor looked at her with a frown on his bloody face, his own patience was running out. "You say you aren't a lab rat. Then, what about all the tests? The research? All the training regime? What about the isolation?"
ISOLATION!
Isolation...
Isolation?
As far as Alia could remember, she was far from isolated. Her parents always treated her with love and care, whenever she did something that wasn't right, they will scold her like any other child. School wasn't very different, even if she had to skip some grades, she had loyal friends that supported her.
Even the people of the research team always told her to remember she was a human being like anyone else.
When her mother was pregnant, she was diagnosed with a disease that could compromise Alia's birth. While she could recover, there was little hope for her daughter. Until one day when a researcher of Yauger University met them and gave them an offer: They could turn Alia into the subject for their 'Peak Performance Project' or 'PPP', which had a very high chance of saving her.
Without another option,- other than doing nothing -Alia's parents agreed.
Not only was she saved, in turn, she gained a body that possessed an amazing potential. Stronger skeleton, a more efficient nervous system, a more powerful heart, stronger muscles, more dense musculoskeletal tissues, and more features that range from very uncommon to never seen.
After finding out her enthusiasm for martial arts, her parents and researchers began to look out for instructors.
All in all, she wasn't isolated in the least! And it angered her so much that a stranger, whom only knew stuff about her thanks to taking a peek at her civil status, talked bad about her loved ones. Who does he think he is?!
Full of rage, Alia yelled to the doctor "Don't you fucking dare say that kind of bullshit about my family, my friends and my life!" The doctor was taken aback by the outburst, not because of her aggression, but her words. He expected rage, but not one that was born from loved ones being insulted or hurt.
The german girl charged with all her anger. Even though he was distracted, Seth already accomplished his goal: making her go into a blind rage.
Victory was his.
Alia threw a powerful punch, followed by a quick combo of low kicks, aiming for the doctor's legs. But Seth sidestepped, avoiding the punch and he started blocking her kicks. The german let her guard down, leaving her upper body wide open. That instant was all Seth needed. With all his strenght and speed, he struck her neck, chin and temples with a quick barrage of hand strikes, finishing with a finger strike to her neck.
"Ah!" Alia felt her vision fade and dizzines wash over her. "He blinded me!" Seth smirked with satisfaction. He struck her with his trump card: His Sleep Needles. They were special needles he hid in his fingertips, coated with a special drug that can knockout people with a single dose, each finger carried one.
"'When man carries a weapon, they become stronger than a beast.' Sorry girl, but i have a job to do and you wouldn't quit if i asked you. You made some good music thou-"
CRASH!
"Cough!"
Seth now layed on his back. The ground under him was cracked and he kept coughing blood. "How?... I was sure i struck her nerves and injected her artery with at least one of the needles." Seth was feeling something that he forgot long ago he could feel: Pain. Alia slammed him into the ground with a shoulder throw.
The girl stood near him, panting and with an unfocused gaze "Scheisse... that bastard took away my sight, but i have other means to sense him!"
Alia's senses were that sharp. And indeed, she could even hear Seth's heartbeat. Her kinetic vision was exceptional and was one of the reasons she was able to avoid so many of the doctor's strikes. Her other senses were good enough to allow her to fight, even when her sight was temporarily unavailable.
The girl took a deep breath and calmed herself down, she lost her cool and that was how the man got a lucky shot, but that won't happen again. When Seth was standing up, she quickly stood in front of him and shifted into a strange stance, one whose origin was hard to identify.
(One year ago)
Outside, in the garden of a green dojo, Alia stood with her bleeding hands on her hips, panting and sweating. She was using grey sweatpants and shirt.
Behind her stood a tall man with grayish hair, wearing a dark blue chángshān with brown pants. "Very good, you broke it much faster than last time, with less damage to your body and with far less hits too." In front of the girl stood a shattered boulder with blood splatters on it.
"Sifu, huff... What the hell are those things- wheeze! Made of again?!" The man chuckled in amusement before answering "I already told you, Alia. They are carved from high pressure mineral deposits inside deep mines. In other words: they are chunks of metal, gems and other rocks. Ores, which reminds me..."
The man approached the rubble and took a handful of crystaline and shiny metallic fragments. "You did an amazing job separating the components."
The girl finally caught her breath and went to take a water bottle from a bench, washing the blood of her hands and taking a few sips from it before sitting on the bench. "Don't know what is so great. There are harder things, from how you said it, it could have been harder to break it."
The man shook his head with a smile "Don't look down on yourself, i was starting to get used to your excess of optimism." Both of them laughed for a bit. This man's name, was Walter Davies, a master of many styles of chinese martial arts. With his talent and through trial and error, he managed to blend all those techniques and training methods into a single highly optimized, complete and efficient style that he considered 'true kung fu', something that represented the efforts of countless practitioners.
The man took a seat next to her "I will be honest with you. I really envy your body. It is full to the brim with potential and your talent for martial arts is also unquestionable." Alia rolled her eyes and replied with a mocking tone "Pfft, a trophy would have been enough, hahaha." With a smile, Walter kept talking "You could still do better though."
"Heh? What do you mean?" It was strange for her to hear such a remark. She could do better? What was her master talking about?
Walter cleared his throat "I am aware of the fact you train at Johna's and Ishiguro's dojos too, so i would make this short: You lack connection." Johna was an afro-italian karate master that walked a similar path to Walter, he studied several styles of karate and took their techniques to make the most complete version of the art, along a few changes like allowing strikes to the head with no restrictions. Ishiguro was a renowned japanese master of Judo and Aikido who moved to germany with the intention of further refining these disciplines using more scientific bases.
"Connection?" Walter let out a sigh "Karate and chinese martial arts are similar in some aspects, yet they still are different in execution. I guess you are familiar with the terms 'direct motion' and 'circular motion'. The problem here is your stance. You need to change your stance whenever you want to switch between karate and kung fu. And that change is not minor, you have to readjust everything, your guard, your footing... you get the idea."
The german girl nodded in agreement "Well, i think i know where this is going, but i want to hear your opinion, sifu."
The man stroked his chin, looking deep in thought before replying "There are 3 pillars you will want to build. The first is a new stance. One that either allows you to fight with kung fu and karate techniques without changing it or one that allows to do so with minimum changes. The second is learning how to fight without relying on your sight. No matter how amazing is your kinetic vision, if you can't do a thing after losing it. All of your senses are very amazing, so you should start fighting while restricting them. Hearing and smell can become very useful tools. This should also boost your confidence enough that, at a subconscious level, you wouldn't feel as threatened at the possible loss of a sensorial organ, thus countering your 'anger issues' to some degree."
"Oh! Wait! What about the third?" Walter looked up at the sky and smirked, "A trump card. You need your own special technique. I saw how easily you learned the principles behind the one-inch punch, fa jin and the impact dispersion. With the degree of control and coordination you have over your muscles and joints, you could make some amazing techniques. I only know of one other person with a bodily control as fine as yours. German science really produces the greatest results. Hahahaha!"
(Back to the present)
Alia's stance was the result of her teacher's advice. Even without her sight, her genetic modifications and her training gave her the tools needed to keep fighting.
She was readying to unleash a move using all the muscles and joints she could. Her bodily control was superhumanly fine, enough that it allowed her to use this 'tool' as a formless technique. She used it as her latest shoulder throw and now she was going to use it to deliver the most powerful strike her body can perform.
It was...
"Geflügelter Gottschlag!"
BANG!
Alia struck Seth with her mightiest jumping uppercut. The doctor's reflexes barely allowed him to put his arms on the way, but the punch broke through the guard and struck him in the jaw. The blow threw him away and made him land on his back once again.
Alia was taking deep breaths while she slowly approached her downed opponent. Seth wasn't moving, he wasn't making a sound. Was he dead? He had to at least be unconscious. She couldn't hear his heartbeat at her current distance yet.
The crowd grew silent in both awe and doubt, many wondered whether this was the end of the match or something else was going to happen. The german girl kept moving forward, but suddenly, Seth sprang forward and struck Alia's knee with a kick.
The girl was stunned and the doctor threw his hand with the intent to poke her eyes. When his fingertips were mere centimeters from Alia's face, she swayed back and kicked the doctor away.
Seth looked at her with a grin as he kept his guard high "Playing dead really paid off, that last punch almost knocked me out."
Alia's skin had a reddish hue, her pupils were dilated and she had a look full of anger and hostility. He was about to take a step when the girl jumped high and tried to smash him with a punch, but the doctor rolled out of the way.
The german struck the ground, cracking it and throwing dust around. She quickly rushed at him before throwing a vicious kick. Seth sidestepped, letting her leg crack the wall of the area. "Damn it, the drug's effect is about to wear off. But if my guess is right, her increased heart rate should allow the needles to do their job faster... if the effect is not fully nullified. I must hit her with another injection!"
The doctor now had a plan, but would he be able to pull it off?
Alia let out an animalistic roar and chased Seth around the area while trying to hit him and causing more collateral damage.
The crowd cheered loudly, Kenta looked terrified and Taaru had a look of bewilderment "What happened? One moment she was fighting like any trained person would do, but now..."
In the medical room, seated on a weelchair, was Andreas and next to him was Tony. Both of them watched the fight on the tv screen of the room. "Well, mister Leon. What do you think?"
The greek man stared at the screen while scratching his chin "Mmm, it looks kind of different."
"Huh? How so?" Andreas seemed deep in thought, his eyes never left the screen while answering "I am not a technique man, but i can tell the obvious difference. During our match, she acted like a wild beast... she literally bit off my tendons and wrestled me like an animal. But now it looks like she is just an angry... brute?"
The italian man seemed to understand the meaning of it and now, only one question remained in his mind.
"Who do you think is going to win?"
Andreas stayed silent for a few seconds before replying with a dark tone "If this keeps up, Adams will DIE for sure."
The PPP granted Alia a chance to live and a body others could only dream of having, but it came with a cost. As a sort of side effect, she developed what the researchers dubbed as the 'Super Heightened Aggressive Response Disorder' or 'Berserk Trigger'.
Her fight or flight response was strengthened toward fighting to survive. Fortunately, it only kicked in moments of dire need, the risk of losing sensorial organs and fatal injuries for example. Once it kicks in, a series of bodily processes are triggered, intensified or slowed down in order to achieve maximum performance.
But it left her in a trance-like state. During this time, she will keep attacking until her target is unable to fight back or dies. This animalistic state would have made her lose to Seth very quickly, but...
Somehow, she was using preprogrammed moves instead of a wild beast-like behaviour. Was it her determination to try to stay calm? Was she modifying her nervous system unconsciously?
Seth tripped Alia, making her fall on top of him and trying to put her in a type of chokehold.
Alia's handler smirked full of confidence, this was it, she won. The doctor was exhausted and was weaker than her, trying to grapple would be foolish.
Alia grabbed him with all her might while Seth put his arms around her neck.
...
Everything was silent. The crowd ceased to yell, they stopped talking, none made a single sound.
Lloyd approached the girl and the doctor. After checking for the pulse, he stood up, followed by the winner. "The winner by KO: Seth Adams!"
All the crowd roared with mixed disbelief, awe, anger and excitement. Seth walked away while fixing his coat and trying to wipe the blood of his face "Good thing i kept my other hand free. If i had made a mistake in my calculations i wouldn't have been able to inject her the remaining doses. What a tough one... At least, that was some great music."
The doctor had a job. He was bruised, but nothing was broken, no ruptured organs, no internal bleeding- a miracle, by the way. But even if he was focused on his job, he couldn't shake off the feelings that... girl, gave him during his 'trash talking'.
(Some minutes later...)
Matías was walking by the tunnel, wearing his jeans, gray hoodie and sport sneakers. A great portion of his body was covered in bandages and was in the middle of doing some stretches. "Caraaajo. I can't believe i missed Alia's match. Well, it couldn't have been that hard to win, right? Doc Pain is not that dangerous if he doesn't have high enough parameters."
His grin disappeared when, near the med bay, he heard what he believed to be grunts and yelling. "Huh? Strange, that sounds like-"
"Fick dich, du verdammter Betrüger!"
Realizing the identity of the source, he ran into the room.
Alia was sitting on the side of a bed, clutching her knees with rage. The young man was puzzled by her attitude, what happened to make her so angry? With worry and a friendly tone he asked her "Hey, so what's the problem, what did i miss?"
"That hurenshon! He cheated! I knew he swallowed something, i heard it! And then he used a fucking drug!"
Feeling awkward, Matías asked with audible discomfort "But... you won. Right?"
Alia was still very angry, but she stopped yelling to answer more clearly "Ugh, i wouldn't be complaining if i had won."
An awkward silence settled in the room. Alia was still furious and groaning with frustration, but calmed down after the young man put his hand on one of her shoulders.
"Don't worry about it. After all, cheaters never make it far." A chill ran down her spine. Alia didn't know what it was, but something in his voice triggered her survival instincts. It was a feeling similar to when a small animal watches a ferocious predator just about to kill it's prey.
Matías gave her a short hug while stroking her back before leaving "You fought very well." Alia was able to catch a glimpse of the dead gaze on his eyes.
Matías kept walking until he was out of the building, at the beach. A small boulder was infront of him. Suddenly, he kicked it in a swift motion, smashing it to pieces with a loud crash.
The young man was clenching his hands with such strength his fingernails almost pierced his skin. His red eyes were now bloodshot with rage, his teeth were grinding and all his body was shaking.
"THAT. FUCKER. IS. DEAD!"
TBC