Welcome to Gaia! ::

With a bit of help, the Green Lantern did a well timed backflip to avoid Luke's attack. Of the two, Cal felt that Luke was the one who was slightly more skilled. Mani was just a damned kid - one bioengineered for war, though. He didn't want to underestimate either of them. They were well trained and very deadly. Cal almost pitied them... they would no nothing of life except death and how to bring it to others.

Cal thought up a big hand and one emerged from the ring, connected to it by a green beam of energy that formed into the hand construct itself. The hand was the size of an average sized man and it flew right towards Luke, attempting to grab those massive green fingers around him then smash him to the ground like a ton of bricks. All the while though, the soldier kept his eyes and ears open for Mani.

This boy was certainly a trying individual, Jagan thought to himself as he sat, or rather stood, tight awaiting whatever tactic was coming his way. He almost pursued his prey on instinct as he watched the lean figure take to the skies, but patiently he waited until he saw a clear sign of flight. After all, going straight up wasn't exactly running away and as weary as the Deity was this far in, Jagan knew he'd catch up more than quickly enough, so there was no need to get antsy in the least. It would be rather hard to catch him off guard all the way up there though, so the massive being stood curiously below with his neck craned upward at the shrinking speck of a man above him.

A cloud of dirt, twigs, leaves, and anything else with virtually no real resistance, scattered under the force of the ascent, but there wasn't a tremendous display of force, which left Jagan wanting all the more. He could just barely make out the swiping motion before being suddenly bombarded with no fewer than a hundred kiai sweeping across the terrain. He'd have better cover under the cloud of loose dirt, so maybe taking a shot or two wouldn't hurt. At the same time, all the scattered debris flying all about reduced his vision and a thought came to him like a slap in the face. Maybe this was a diversion so that Deity could run.

Feeling a bit foolish, he took to the skies with an unimpressive amount of force, seeming to just jump like a normal person, though considerably higher. His elevation increased rapidly, paused, and then fell less dramatically as he raced after what he thought was his prize getting away from him. On the verge of uttering ‘nice try,’ he was almost caught unawares by a shrill whistling noise that belonged to a vermilion ball of energy very much unlike the standard version of such attacks. It was powerful, this much was sure, and his hasty dash headfirst only sped along the moment of impact. Thoroughly surprised, satisfied, and irritated all at once, the colossus had very few options available to him.

His best choice of action was to stray off of his intended path, which he did by falling into a nosedive. Shunkan Idou would have been better had he the time, but brimming with over confidence he had let his power level decrease gradually during his little speech. He was kicking himself for it now, but thankfully he was plenty swift. His body lifted out of the dive rather sloppily, his legs spreading wide and just narrowly escaping the rapid spinning ball of energy. Were it not for the lackluster performance, he’d have looked much like a bulky professional swimmer, but he was anything but graceful as he turned his back to trace the trajectory of the assault, which seemed to be rising higher and higher until he conjectured that it was no longer within the troposphere.

Certainly that had taken a lot out of the boy. Jagan was almost sure of this fact, taking note of the decrease in ki as well as the general look of fatigue decorating Deity’s features. If he was right, prolonging this fight any further wouldn’t be all that fun at all. Best to just go in for the kill and get it over with so that he could get back to the primary objective, he figured. Again his aura flared from his figure as he turned about face once more to face off against Deity, and again, no sooner was the done than his aura subsided quite obediently. Well there was no need for suspense anymore.

He raced at Deity just over 3000 times the speed of sound, an impressive sonicboom bursting from his initial location. No sooner was he in range than did he let fly an unnatural flurry of jab, hook, straight punch, and chop combinations; each strike aimed for his torso, upper chest, or head. Individually, they would only momentarily stun, maybe even bruise the poor boy, which Jagan saw as little better than a punching bag at this point. Eventually he changed the pace with a sudden Shunkan Idou so as to seamlessly throw in a left elbow to the back of his trophy’s neck before using it again in flawless succession to release a psionic punch dead to his chest, which would send him sailing for some miles before hitting the ground. Though he told himself not to drag this out anymore than he already had, he waited until the boy was well out of sight before brining a decent 7 inch diameter ball of ki to life. Despite its size, it had a phenomenal amount of compressed ki stored within, likely to burst against anything that resisted it head on.

In a rather unimpressive, though satisfying gesture, his right arm rose slowly up behind his head, the balloon of ki throbbing as it tried to sustain itself without bursting. Still, he kept himself in suspended animation until he got some clear sign of a crash. Even if Deity is out of sight, a rising pillar of earth stuffs would be hard to miss. Only then would he conclude this with one last, rather impressive explosion. He felt it fitting that nothing of his victim should remain save the memory Jagan would carry with him into future battles.

Now with the upper hand, Diana was against herself with feeling, wanting so be sure she hadn’t inured Epithany in any severe way while at the same time wanting to totally incapacitate her as quickly as possible. Were it not for her physical medications of all sorts, she might not be able to handle this type of fighter. All she had ever experienced before were melee and ki based tactics. The ability not only to clear entire areas of forest, but also seemingly control nature with such ease and so little wear was an amazing feat indeed. Had she the time, she’d have loved to learn such tactics, but alas her fate was not so.

Her entire body reared back in a manner than indicated that, visibly, she was only the top most part of a serpent’s body; though to be sure, there was nothing connected to her at the base of her feet. The swift jerk back was like that of a snake prepared to strike, and as might be expected from the outside looking in, the moment the kick passed the point of contact she was upon her mark again. Her body practically flung forward from the look of it, hoping to catch Epithany just as she got her footing, if she were able, her body would cling to the mage and then wrap itself like ribbon about her front side. There would be pressure on the emerald haired woman’s torso and each limb as far as the elbows and knees as Diana’s own body began to constrict around it, clearly intending to break bones.

If she weren’t repelled, perhaps the worst of it all would be Diana’s head, lying just over the mage’s left shoulder. Though fatal, a venomous bite might at least impair Epithany enough to void much continuation of this battle.

Ravana had no other reserves, and few thoughts ran through his mind. There was simply the object of beating User into the ground at this point. It wouldn’t take much longer and the gleam in his eyes indicated that he was just waiting for that moment of triumph, short lived though it may become.

Another right hook, the same as always. He could feel the sensation in his eye trying to fade, but with his left jaw the receiver of all User’s attacks, a gentle reminder blared at mid level warning. He could keep his eye open if he wanted, but he’d have to strain to see with it at that point. At least with it closed, he could maintain a calm expression on his face as he finished this fight.

Luke was none too surprised to be the object of green affection. Seeing as he was most disturbed by the ring and its seemingly inexplicable manifestations, why should he not be most subject to whatever came out next? He kept himself on the move at the sight of a massive hand coming for him, first strafing away to this right, circling this rival military man. Very subtly, he closed the distance between the two, gaining an inch here and there or losing them elsewhere so as not to arise suspicion. Of course not much good would to getting between a man with a ring and whatever the ring commanded. From his eyes were fired two ki lasers from toward Calvin’s left shin. If he was right about the man needing focus to use the ring, then hopefully the distraction would dismiss or at least hinder the large hand. If her were wrong though, then it didn’t matter all that much did it? His opponent might end up injured, but he’d still be swirling around like a minute hand on a clock.

Mani on the other hand had been practically ignored. The boy knew better than to assume that others were undermining him, even when they were, for their lack of confidence in his ability was coupled with a certain paranoia that seemed to settled upon those exposed to him. Not without good reason of course, but he rarely had the element of surprise on his side.

Still though, he wasn’t directly under attack, so he had plenty of time to summon up a massive beach ball of ki no more lacking in energy than the Pacific was in water. His arms had be lifted above his head as the large bluish-white ball expanded as it gained more and more power. The energy was highly corrosive, as could be noted when the 12 year old boy threw it towards the Lantern. As it traveled its course, the ground beneath was totally eaten away, causing a six inch deep ridge of scalded earth to trail behind the large ball. It was none too likely that anything that got in the way of that thing would get away with anything less than a severe burn.

::As the numerous battles have gone on, the tall Knight has spent his time catching his breath and collecting himself. The things that Kirra handed to him to take care of are now safe in his pocket, his long legs carrying him gradually closer to his son as he fights that supernatural warrior. Unfortunately, as fast as they both are, the fight refuses to stay in one place, moving further and further away. However, very quickly the fight seems to be taking a turn for the worse. Deity has taken a gamble on a final attack, but it seems to have been for nothing. Nearly able to feel the impact of Jagan's blows as he unleashes his attack, Sir Aaron growls as he kicks into a sprint again.::

No...damnit, no!

::Each blow softens the young Mystic's energy, chipping away at it until blowing it away entirely. As little of a chance as Deity had at that level, he'll have none at all in his basic state. Doing his best to stay upright and keep going as the Ringer detonates high above, Aaron pushes himself harder to run faster - he already knows he won't make it at this rate. A final blow sends Deity even further away, a sense of carelessness tearing at the Knight's heart. He lost one child's life and another's heart. He can't lose this one. Each long and heavy stride pulls at his lungs and brings him closer to his fallen son, but the sight of Jagan readying a final attack takes away any chance he may've had at catching up in time. Without any other choice, he raises his right arm, hand open and catching the suddenly-appearing tetsudama weapon. Gripping it tightly, he begins a swing to throw it up at the large man.

Yet something stays his hand. Strangely coming to a stop, the ancient wolf demon just stands in the marred dirt, chest heaving as he stares into the distance. His thin white shirt soaked around his arms and neck with sweat, he wears only a confused look on his face. Were the situation any different, he'd have started running faster still. His right arm falls back to his side as he comments on the oddness of what he's feeling. That can't be who his heart tells him it is.::

I don't...why is he...?

If it were Jade on the outside, then she might have felt insulted a little. But Kirra didn't seem to care about the 'involved in a real fight' comment. The womans green eyes darted back to the fading smoke that was a sign of Vali's supposed crash; unfortunately, it didn't seem that way. This guy wasn't leader of the pack for nothing, it appeared.

At Keno's comment, Kirra just smirked. "I'll do what I can, but no promises."

She took off right after Keno, leaping free of the branch, her own added force tearing it from the trunk and sending it crashing to the brush below. She flew down, arms raised up and fists by her head as in mid-leap, up higher than Keno and aiming for a suckerpunch to the wolfs head. He might have a harder time trying to block two attacks to vital areas at the same time.

However, in mid attack, a scream only Kirra could hear tore through her head so loudly that she visibly winced and hesitated just slightly in her attack before continueing. Any fool able to sense ki energies would be able to figure out what happened.

Deity's signature had dropped off of the map, the large explosion overhead contributing to that, and Jade was obviously panicing.

"Shut up!" Her voice was low, but strict, like a mother scolding an out of control child. "We can't do anything to help him, we'd never get there in time."

The one-way conversation might confuse Vali if he overheard it, but Keno should be able to figure out quickly what was going on. Jade was practically pleading with Kirra to go and assist Deity.

"Pops is nearby, and if you'd calm down, you'd realize that someone else showed up." Kirra didn't say who, but the smile on her face showed that even she was pleasently suprised. Who would have thought that Taliman, of all people, would show up to save his brother's life?

Now, back to the matter at hand, punching Vali in the left side of his jaw with a heavy, Two-Layers sucker punch. Maybe she'd be lucky enough to disintegrate the bone.

White flashed in User's eyes and pain shot up the left side of his face as his jaw just snapped in that distinct sound of bones breaking. Ravana would probably be oh so happy to know that he had seriously injured the Saiya-jin Prince. User noted his vision was becoming blurry and unsteady, that his mouth now had a good deal of blood in it, and that his stance was unsteady. He was losing it - he tried to focus, tried to clear his brain of the fog that overcoming it. By now, his green aura died off - soon his imperfect Legendary transformation would follow.

Regardless, he kept it all together as best as he could. User was going to make Ravana fight for every inch until there was no fight left in him. The Prince swung again, this time for his enemy's jaw just like he had been doing all this time.

The entire planet seems to transform beneath his mighty frame as a wonderful red tint sweeps over the expanse of the horizon. It screamed destruction and praised mayhem as a thunderous clap rang throughout the land and an ominous rumbling growl calmed the illuminated landscape. Poetically it spoke volumes even to Jagan as his eyes soaked it all in, a very content and passive smile on his face. He knew now what it was he had avoided but did not admit his luck in the affair, for were he to have moved even a bit slower his existence would easily have been wiped clean. With pride swelling in his chest, he prepared his final strike, only to realize he had wasted precious time as the smoke signal that his victim’s limp body had created blew away under some new power.

So inspired by the scene before him he had failed to register his awareness of not one, but two other beings within the vicinity. He could sense that one was ready to charge him, yet remained idle, for reasons he could not foretell. Though not a sitting duck, there was very little reason to not take a shot at him if that is truly what one wanted. Not being a threat though, Jagan took notice of the other, being much closer to his mark than he thought rational. Were perhaps this second being a lesser creature or some wild beast, he’d have overlooked it as coincidence, but he sense an intention from this new player who seemed to be several times more experienced with combat and several times more willing to fight. Jagan could not deny the high pedigree of this new warrior, but just who the hell was he and why had he emerged now of all times?

Unable to identify this new guest, the Kodiak took care too dispose of his still throbbing ball of energy, which faded slowly into nothingness, restoring the liveliness of his aura for but a moment. Taking flight, he seemed the archetype of the angel of death departing from the heavens, the red light bathing over his light skin; his pants, eyes, and scar glowing menacingly. His silhouette seemed to grow no larger in proportion with the closing distance, his approach slow and patient, his mind confused and intrigued. Though he very much wanted to claim victory, it was pretty much in the bag as it was and keeping that single moment at bay only made him appreciate it all the more. Might as well see what this was all about, because if this newcomer were some sort of savior, he’d be entirely sore to throw anything anywhere only to have his prize stile away from him in the explosion that ensued. Oh how that would piss him off.

As the two came into view he relied less and less on his eyes as he searched for signs of life. If Deity were already dead, an accident on Jagan’s behalf, there would be no need to bother with the other guy at all. However, even a bit of life would mean he’d have to stay and do whatever he could to finish the job because he’d never get another chance again, even if the boy were to recover and rehabilitate. Vali would not allow this to happen again and he knew it. Suddenly the pressure began to consume him as he became absolutely mad with desire to stay behind after all was said and done with KenoTao. By all means necessary…

When his feet finally touched down on the broken ground, he had a look of intense determination and irritation on his face. His left hand balled into a fist, his right leisurely open and both hanging at his sides, he took notice immediately of how much smaller this red head was. Like Mani though, he has a considerable amount of power, much more than the taller collapsed frame beside him. Unlike Mani though, he was not quite in league with 97 just yet. As though ignoring him he returned to Deity, smelling the life still in his, barely hearing the lungs at work, but definitely noticing his chest struggling to keep up for dear life. This was mixed news all things considered since it put him in a potential bind. Did he really want to bother fighting someone else just to crush this man’s chest in a fraction of a second? Was it truly that important? Raion, Diana, and Luke all said immediately, but Ravana and Mani said yes. Vali said nothing, but of course everyone knew what he was thinking and there was no point in trying to argue the point either. In the end though, it wasn’t up to them.

Looking back at the fox eared man, something he hadn’t noticed the last time, he took in his appearance much more thoroughly. They apparently shared the same taste in shirts, he thought to himself, but at the same time the red leather pants didn’t exactly scream “take me serious.” If only he knew he was facing a galactic emperor, he’d perhaps have been more respectful, but in the back of his head he was mocking the bushy tail already. Were it not for his eye patch, he’d have taken the demon for just another pretty boy, much like Luke, but most people didn’t wear eye patches just to look cool, did they? Either way, he didn’t appear to be randomly strolling through the woods, which would have been hard to do with some six other fights in the area.

“Step aside,” he demanded, looking at the short statured figure square in the eye. “I’ve got a job to finish if you don’t mind.” As though to show how little he cared about the stranger’s intent to stand there or not, his right arm came back up, palm facing straight at Deity as the same seven inch ball of energy pulsed into being. Jagan was only gonna wait so long before he fired it off with no concern for anyone else’s well being.

“Oh mah. This certainly changes ev’rythin’.”

Diana sat suspended in the air, or rather standing within a…thing she didn’t quite understand. Were it not for the fact that she knew Epithany did not use ki in the same sense she did, she’d have gambled she had been somehow trapped inside of a barrier. She wasn’t going to waste her time though trying to resist it too much. The mage herself had informed the serpent the field was now self sustaining which meant that it would likely take much more than a crushing strike to break free. Instead, she worked on another tactic. The first part was to send a request for help to Vali, which wasn’t that hard since the seven were all linked up already as it was. The second part was to shift her assault from physical to mental. Usually the Unit resisted psychic assault, but they covered their bases as best as they could.

The world around her grew dangerously red, her eyes falling victim to light effects and glowing menacingly as she designed an image of herself and caught Epithany’s psychic signature, sending what would feel like a psionic wrecking ball to collide with the mage’s mind. Wonderfully, psychic warfare involved a lot more than just spells and strength. A simple match of wits could be the deciding factor between the victor and loser. She’d have asked one of the others for help, but they were all engaged elsewhere and to perform optimally, they’d have to shift focus and skilled though they may be, they were still limited sentient beings. Hopefully Epithany was no different.

Excellent. User’s jaw had finally given in. No doubt he was in an distinct sort of pain from the strike and of course Ravana was delighted in it. The light that fell upon them all had illuminated their battle at the very moment of impact, increasing the feeling of dread he hoped his rival to be feeling at this very moment. Here he was, a mere level three super Saiya-jin actually defeating the Saiya-jin of legend. What greater thrill than to know he was capable of destroying the myth of the mightiest warrior with his own hand?

His jaw was grew sore, but it wasn’t yet broken. Soon the left side of User’s face would be nothing but a hole, and maybe he’d end up with a fracture. Maybe. Either way this would be over soon unless he found a new bone to break. However, to let prolong User’s fate would not be honorable for him as the victor or the proclaimed prince as the loser. One more punch perhaps? If he showed the resolve to continue, he could live, but the moment he lost his will, Ravana would do what must be done.

The girl he did not threaten him, but being so unaware of who she was, he feared perhaps she’d serve as a decent distraction if nothing else which would compromise things severely. Being able to work so well with KenoTao didn’t make him feel much better about his new situation either, but he wasn’t sweating yet. A sour look was on his face by the time either of them had reached him, though his frustration was focused elsewhere at the moment. Were Jagan doing as ordered, this wouldn’t be nearly as difficult, and Ravana wasn’t on his good side either with his little punching game. Both had clearly finished what they set out to do, but weren’t satisfied, as usual. One of these days they were gonna be asking for it and chances were slim that he’d be able to do anything to save them.

To answer both warriors at once, he stepped forward, actually getting closer to the punch, but his body was spinning counterclockwise as he did so, his right foot sweeping over the ground instead of resting on it. Bending at the knees, this maneuver successfully dropped his head out of harm’s way as his left arm came up to protect it from Keno’s incoming kick, causing a recoil effect when the two opposing limbs came into contact with one another. His body rolled to his right with such precision that any veteran would know he had planned it out, and the force of the impact blew away most of the settling dust which seemed to be more than happy to just linger about in the air on its own. His body rose stoically as the red light from an attack in Jagan’s general area erupted somewhere nearer the exosphere and swept over the countryside. The fading power he felt announced the end of the resistance sooner than later, but something else was getting at him too.

Mani The name was all he needed to say and the boy who used to be nearby was gone, via teleportation to assist their encased serpent ally. She had apparently fallen in with an abstract fighter and no time should be wasted in allowing these people to regroup. Having issued the order, he returned his attention to KenoTao and the woman fighting alongside him. He had no opening with the counter he had chosen so patiently stood by for them to do something foolish.

Luke was distracted for but a moment when Mani was pulled away to assist Diana who had been stricken with a bit of bad luck apparently. Of course the boy was gone at just the sound of his name through the minds of the others, but Luke paused all the same, only to curse himself for not staying focused. As he turned back to the Lantern, at this point barely able to lift a finger from the looks of it, he noticed the instrument that had struck Mani earlier was being drawn nearer him. That damned thing was the reason they were having such trouble as it was already. Allowing him to use it again would be a mistake plain as day.

With a mad dash he raced for the device and reared his right foot back. Coming into range, he left fly a vicious kick as though hoping to hit a ten mile field goal at the Lantern, watching it soar helplessly through the air. Turning back to his opponent, he knew it was but a matter of time before the man was finished. Then he’d return to help Vali and level the playing field a bit. KenoTao’s defenders were proving to be a bit more difficult than they had imagined. Was it possible that they had underestimated them so severely? Something else was at work with these people, but it was not something Luke could understand.

He wasted no time closing in on Calvin and pulling the man by the top of head up to face him. Eyeing him carefully he gambled that he was the one between the two with the harder head and aimed it squarely at the Lantern’s left temple. If this barbaric display of strength worked, he would no hesitate to throw the man through the woods to let nature batter the rest of his body. If he stayed down, their job would be made several times easier.

Mani arrived in a matter of seconds upon the clear expanse that made up Diana’s battle ground. No wonder she was having so much trouble. Fighting one-on-one wasn’t likely the problem, but she’d have been done with this a lot sooner were the trees still up. Well now that he was there, maybe he’d be a bit luckier with this affair.

He’d have taunted Diana for just sitting around when she should be trying to escape, but the boy knew that the woman was hoping to plague Epithany’s mind as a substitute for being unable to strike her body. Unfortunately, Mani did not understand love as Diana or anyone else saw it, and his awe was not quite as prominent as the serpent’s. With the same ravaging hunger that had so bothered the Lantern the boy moved in so quickly, that his aura tore a whole into the earth and left a trail of loose debris behind him as he moved in on the woman. Diana had already informed him of the unnatural perception this creature had, but she was still in a position of fatigue when he moved and she’d have less than even a thousandth of a second to move out of the way of his attack, which turned out to be a ball of ki fired from his right foot, whose heel would serve as a kick to the right side of her face.

Diana begged him to be gentle, but he ignored her as though she were a whining child and the fact that he didn’t sense her letting up wasn’t convincing enough for him to believe she really wanted him to anyway.

Jagan eyed the fox with a look of contempt. Not only had he gotten in the way of the intended attack, but he was speaking politely. Too politely in fact for Jagan to believe that a single word had fallen upon his large pointy ears just a moment prior. He couldn't blame the guy though for Jagan seemed to only just be looking at Taliman as an actual presence for the first time. Re-evaluating this interceptor of his win, he grew more agitated as he hadn't expected this to actually be stalled again. Apparently he wasn't clear enough when he told the man to move.

The fact of the matter was, he could clearly tell how much stronger he was against this demon as well. Imagining that he had just been told to let Deity live so someone else could kill him later was laughable. In fact he did laugh when he thought about it; or rather he scoffed, though he kept his arm raised and the ball of energy glowed just as dangerously. Were it not for the fact he wanted this so badly, he actually would have left, but no. His damn obsession was taking over again and he couldn't say he was trying too hard to come to his sense.

"I don't know who you think you are or what this boy is to you, but as you can see I've succeeded in rendering him immobile as well as unconscious, so why should I not be allowed the pleasure of killing him?" In his own mind, whoever had claimed Deity as their 'quarry' first hadn't done a good job with taking care of him, so why should he not have the right to succeed where someone else failed? Clearly someone out there had let him live far too long, right? Wait that's not true...someone might have just recently placed a separate bounty in Deity the same way his COs had marked KenoT-

Bullshit.

"Please move," he requested in a similarly calm fashion, though the impatience in his tone could not be denied.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, my boy."

Wesley dons a smile, eyelids narrowing in an expression that could be considered both friendly and mocking. He may as well be physically unable to get out of the way. Though sensing the man's intentions, Taliman finds hismelf unable to penetrate the boy's mind. A powerful barrier prevents any intrusion. Nonetheless, he confirms what he was already thinking: this is a warrior of the "Unit 97", a group of engineered fighters sent to kill the Earthling KenoTao. Taliman has no interest in Unit 97, KenoTao, or Earth. Were it not for Tybron's clumsiness he wouldn't be here. Tali is preventing his brother from falling to the wrong hands.

"The whelp behind me falls to another. It would be for your best interest to let his destiny unfold as it should."

Lowering his head slightly, Wes' gaze grows more serious, the smile fading. Knowing the future can for some become a huge burden. Pieces of the puzzle are often left missing, but one can build a basic idea from their findings. The Emperor pauses only long enough to let Jagan roll the words in his mind. He concludes with a query before allowing any comeback, despite the palpable impatience emanating from Jagan.

"Do you know me, Earthling? Taliman Wesley?"