Ultratech Corporation: Chemical Lab

          Fulgore-X limped through the hole in the wall that led to the Training Room on the other side. He held his left arm by the elbow as he pushed himself across the floor. Slowly but surely, he eventually reached his destination; the main computer terminal. The screen displayed -

ANALYSIS COMPLETE - UNCLASSIFIED SUBSTANCE - MANY FOREIGN ELEMENTS PRESENT

          Fulgore-X began accessing menus and sub-menus, until a certain screen popped up -

MORPHOGENIC MATRIX - COUNTER AGENTS

          Fulgore-X pressed a button, and a list of chemicals appeared on screen. Looking over it very quickly, Fulgore-X committed it to his memory. Then, the cyborg straightened himself very rigidly and teleported away.

Ultratech Corporation: Chemical Storage

          As far as names go, Chemical Storage could not have been a better choice for this room. It was nothing but chemicals; the walls each had three shelves on them, all containing chemicals of different colors in beakers of different shapes and sizes. There were five tables arranged in columns neatly in the center of the room; these also were packed with chemicals, beakers, and test tubes.
          Chemical Storage was next door to the Chemical Lab. Fulgore-X chose to teleport here though for his own reasons. He appeared standing in front of the center table. As soon as the teleport sequence finished, Fulgore-X accessed the list of chemicals he stored in his memory.
          “That alien will recover soon,” the cyborg thought, “I don’t have time to waste. First compound; Hydrogen Benzene...” Fulgore-X began searching the wall shelves.

Training Room

          The Training Room, for the first time since the fight started, was serene. One of the overhead lights had fallen; it swung to and fro on its one remaining support, with a spark occasionally flying outward. The other lights flickered on and off, alternating between darkness and poor illumination in the room.
          The serenity was quickly broken. Small, tiny, silver droplets began rising from the edges of the room. As they surfaced, they slowly began sliding towards the center of the room, joining together to form a puddle. Other droplets began to rise and migrate towards the center of the room, increasing the puddle’s size. When no more droplets joined the center, and the puddle had reached it’s maximum size, Glacius emerged. He remained on one knee, holding his head in his hands.
          “Damn Fulgore-X..” he said softly, “I’ll...get...you…you coward...”
          Glacius got up shakily. He staggered towards the hole in the wall. “You’re in there...aren’t...you?” Glacius said. He extended his right arm forward. “You...will pay...for Shadow...and for Kim...now is your time to die!” Glacius’s head perked up, his blue eyes enlarged. From his hands shot a barrage of basketball sized energy shots. They pounded through the hole in the wall, slamming the Chemical Lab with a fierce intensity. The room shook violently. A massive fireball rolled out of the hole, stopping only a few feet from Glacius, who continued to fire into the Chemical Lab.

Chemical Storage

          Fulgore-X kept perfectly still, as he poured a test tube containing hydrochloric acid into a beaker that was a quarter full with an orange liquid. It was the room that moved. Some of the chemicals on the wall shelves and the tables flirted with throwing themselves off the edge; however, a hasty plasma shield erected in front of the shelves and around the perimeter of the tables kept them honest. Eventually, the room stopped shaking, and everything was still. Fulgore-X cut his eyes to the direction of the Chemical Lab.
          “Hmm…sleeping beauty’s awake...I’d better hurry this up. Now, I need Sodium Pentane...”

          Glacius surveyed his work. The Chemical Lab had been completely devastated. Whatever wasn’t a wall was broken into many pieces, scattered about on the floor. Parts of the room were on fire; the intense heat made it difficult for Glacius to stand to be in the room. He labored through however; throwing aside debris in a futile attempt to find the cyborg. Glacius ventured inside the wreck of a room as far as he dared, before finally exiting out of the hole in the wall. From there, he left the Training Room from the main door, stepping into the hallway. As the door shut behind him, it created a very deceiving illusion. Both the doors to the Training Room and Chemical Lab appeared to be very normal. The doors masked the devastation inside. Glacius took a quick look down the hall. Only one other door was within sight; the one for Chemical Storage.
          “Maybe he’s in there.” Glacius said to himself, as he set out for the door.
          Fulgore-X now held a beaker nearly full of a crimson red liquid. In his right hand, he held a test tube containing a clear liquid. He carelessly dumped the contents of the test tube into the beaker, then tossed the test tube across the room, where it broke somewhere on the floor. The cyborg was looking into the beaker when he heard something. Footsteps. Heavy ones.
          “Damn it!” Fulgore-X thought. “I’m almost done.”
          Without moving, Fulgore-X activated his cloak. He sat down behind the table closest to the left wall, on the side hidden from sight of the door.
          The doors slid open, and Glacius entered the room. Taking a look around, the alien could immediately sense that something was wrong. This room was next door to the Chemical Lab, and if the shaking from the explosions were as bad here as they were in the Training Room, every chemical on the wall and the table should have fallen on the floor.
          But they weren’t.
          Maybe the shelves were reinforced, and the chemicals were protected. It was a possibility. However, one sole test tube lay broken on the floor, near the back wall. Glacius narrowed his eyes.
          “He’s...here...” Glacius said slowly.
          “Damn it.” Fulgore-X thought. “Gotta go ahead and do it.” He accessed his internal command menu.

_open right claw unit
_WARNING! YOU HAVE REQUESTED A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS OPERATION
_bypass security feature C. open right claw unit

          There was a “phffffft-pssh!” sound, as the top of Fulgore-X’s right claw popped open. Glacius cut his eyes. He turned his right arm into a cannon, and began to visually scan the room. Fulgore-X poured a small amount of the plasma in his right claw out onto the floor. The cyborg took the beaker he was holding in his left hand, and carefully poured the liquid out into his claw. When the crimson red liquid mixed with the light blue plasma, the claw began to take on a purple color; or at least it would have if Fulgore-X hadn’t been cloaked.

_close right claw unit
_WARNING! FOREIGN SUBSTANCE DETECTED - RIGHT CLAW UNIT. INITIATING JETTISON PROCEDURES
_cancel jettison procedures
_JETTISON PROCEDURES CANCELED
_inquiry - how many plasma storm weapon shots will it take to eliminate the presence of the foreign substance?
_WORKING........
_IT WILL TAKE THREE

          Fulgore-X narrowed his eyes. “Only three? That’s not a whole lot; better make each shot count.” He thought.
          Glacius carefully approached the table closest to the left wall. As he did, something caught his eye; a small pool of plasma. Glacius smiled. He turned his left arm into a solid block, and sent it suddenly crashing down into the table. Beakers and test tubes were thrown about as the table collapsed under the weight and force of the block.
          The glass hadn’t even stopped breaking before Glacius caught something out of the corner of his eye. A purple plasma storm shot, coming from directly behind him. Glacius dropped into the floor to avoid it. The shot hit the ground and dissipated harmlessly.
          Fulgore-X uncloaked, standing behind the fourth table. He looked disgusted to have missed. Glacius shot up out of the floor, and made a dash for Fulgore-X. The cyborg didn’t move; he merely teleported away as Glacius closed in to within a meter of his position. Fulgore-X reappeared above the table, as Glacius used both hands to stop himself from crashing into it. The cyborg fell towards Earth, firmly pressing his feet into Glacius’s head. Fulgore-X then back flipped away, landing amidst the wreck of the fifth table. He threw his right arm forward, preparing to fire another shot, but then thought better of it. Glacius sprung up quickly, but did not charge. He retained humanoid shape, except he turned his right arm into his standard blade arm. Now, he charged at Fulgore-X.
          Glacius took a few quick, short swings at the cyborg; all of which were deflected by his claws. The alien then went for an overhead strike; Fulgore-X countered by momentarily teleporting away, reappearing only one half second later, half a meter away from where he previously stood. While Glacius’s momentum carried him downward, Fulgore-X threw a fierce punch at Glacius. The alien corrected himself very quickly and caught the punch. Fulgore-X then executed a quick series of sidekicks, catching Glacius in his exposed side. Fulgore-X then tried to do a roundhouse kick to the midsection; but his foot stuck in Glacius’s side. Glacius violently jerked himself forward, causing Fulgore-X to go flying backwards, crashing into the left wall shelves. The chemicals tried to fall on top of Fulgore-X, but the cyborg got a quick plasma shield up around him to protect himself.
          Pushing himself off the wall, Fulgore-X lunged at the alien with his right claw extended. Glacius dropped into the floor, letting Fulgore-X sail past his position. Glacius came up out of the floor, facing in the opposite direction, ready to strike Fulgore-X in the back as he supposedly stumbled away.
          However, as he turned around, Fulgore-X wasn’t there.
          Glacius spun around to his original direction. This allowed him to see Fulgore-X standing right there in front of him, right hand extended. A purple plasma storm shot had also been fired; Glacius’s spin around enabled the shot to hit him in the chest instead of the back. The alien careened backwards, sparks flying from the point of impact.
          Fulgore-X watched as Glacius fell backwards. Activating his foot booster rockets, he began to hover in the air. Nonchalantly, he fired another plasma storm shot into the ground; as he did, his right claw returned to its normal light blue color, instead of the purple that it was.
          Glacius picked himself up slowly. He took one aggravated look at the cyborg floating in front of him. With a fierce cry, he threw his blade arm forwards. Unfortunately, that was about all he did. Glacius continued to keep his blade arm extended and pointed towards Fulgore-X. He looked at his arm with great uncertainty, then pulled his arm back and tried the motion again; still nothing. Glacius’s face displayed extreme bewilderment.
          Fulgore-X’s eyes were smiling. He crossed his arms. “Doesn’t work, does it?” The cyborg asked. Glacius growled. He pulled his arm back and tried the motion again; nothing still. It was extremely unsettling.
          “Hmph.” Fulgore-X said indignantly. He suddenly teleported away.
          Glacius spun around again, catching another glimpse of Fulgore-X in front of him. The cyborg quickly peeled off a set of quick punches; half of which Glacius could block. Fulgore-X spun around and nailed Glacius with a powerful fierce punch. The alien reeled backwards. Fulgore-X dashed in again and threw a set of boxer like quick jabs into Glacius’s stomach. After about the twentieth jab, Fulgore-X spun around on his right heel and hit Glacius with a backhand. He then took another step forward and thrust his palm into Glacius’s chest. Fulgore-X let it rest there for a few moments, then he spun around on his heel, slinging Glacius around and into the center table. Glacius hit the table awkwardly, but he got up very quickly, and started in towards the cyborg. Fulgore-X jumped straight up, spun around in mid air, and hit Glacius with an awesome roundhouse kick.
          Glacius doubled over backwards and tried to retreat. Why couldn’t he morph? What was going on?
          “That purple plasma storm...Chemical Lab...of course!” Glacius thought. “He’s found a way to counter my morphing abilities! That slimy little...oh well, no time to worry about it now. Just gotta fight with what I got!”
          Glacius shook off the pain and charged at Fulgore-X with a weak swing from his blade arm. Fulgore-X deflected it, then threw his own stab attempts from both claws. Glacius deflected those; then found an opportunity to sneak a standing sidekick in. The kick hit Fulgore-X squarely, but had little effect. Glacius dashed forward and threw a powerful punch at the cyborg. Fulgore-X blocked it, but the impact of the punch caused him to slide backwards for a few feet.
          After dropping his defense, Fulgore-X charged at Glacius with his left claw extended. The alien waited for just the right moment, then spun around to turn his back towards the approaching cyborg. Glacius tossed his left arm up and behind him, and caught Fulgore-X’s charging left fist. Twisting to his right, Glacius used Fulgore-X’s forward momentum to shoulder throw him. Holding onto the cyborg’s wrist, Glacius jerked the arm downward as he threw the cyborg, slamming Fulgore-X into the center table. Fulgore-X had just barely hit the table when Glacius went for an overhead swing with his blade arm. The cyborg rolled forward very quickly, just in time to escape being cut in two. Fulgore-X stopped himself very quickly, got back to his feet, then spun around and hit Glacius in the chest with an extremely quick sidekick. Fulgore-X dashed forward over the wreck of the table, burying his right elbow in Glacius’s face. Within milliseconds of the impact, Fulgore-X hit Glacius with a medium left punch.
          Glacius covered his face with his left hand and took a hasty swing with his blade arm. He was very surprised when the blade cut nothing but air. He looked to up see Fulgore-X’s feet vaulting over him, as he flipped over the alien. Glacius spun around quickly to face the cyborg. Bad mistake.
          As soon as Glacius spun around, Fulgore-X pasted him with the snap kick. Glacius was forced into an impromptu flip, landing on his side. Fulgore-X looked down on him condescendingly, then motioned for the ten count. However, Glacius was stirring at the count of eight, and back to his feet before six.
          “What in the...he should be...” Fulgore-X thought, backing off. His eyes widened for a moment, then narrowed. “Oh. Right. He’s not human. Damn. Oh well, in that case, I guess it’s time for extreme force...”
          Glacius was shakily regaining balance when Fulgore-X rushed in, thrusting his shoulder into Glacius’s stomach. As Glacius doubled over, Fulgore-X squatted. He then pushed himself upwards, raising his right fist and claw forwards. Fulgore-X embedded his claw into Glacius’s stomach, then extended his arm as he went up. The claw went straight through Glacius, finally emerging out of his chest as Fulgore-X’s fist landed under Glacius’s chin. Standing now, Fulgore-X jumped, with his right arm extended high above his head, taking Glacius with him. As Fulgore-X rotated in mid air, with a swift motion, the cyborg tossed Glacius off of his fist and across the room. Glacius landed in between the remaining tables and the right wall.
          Fulgore-X landed softly on his feet. He bowed his head, closed his eyes, opened his palms, raised his hands to shoulder height, and then connected his arms by the wrists. He brought both hands back to his right midsection. His hands began to glow with plasma energy.
          “Err...” Fulgore-X let out a low growl. The plasma glow became more intense. His hands began to shake.
          Glacius was just now getting up off of the floor, clutching the slash in his torso caused by the plasma slice uppercut. He was extremely dazed.
          Fulgore-X screamed. He thrust his hands forward, wrists still connected, and immediately afterwards, a massive beam of plasma energy shot from his hands. This beam was about half the size of the room. Glacius looked up, but could do nothing about the oncoming blast, because if he could move, there’d be nowhere to move to.
          The beam engulfed Glacius, along with almost everything else. It continued on, completely destroying the right wall leading to the already destroyed Chemical Lab.
          Fulgore-X continued to project the beam for a good five seconds. During that time, his eyes glared an intense red, as plasma energy ran up and down his body. Finally, the massive beam stopped coming out of the cyborg’s hands, and Fulgore-X shook a little from the discharge. He stood there, frozen in pose for a few moments, then he erected himself. The room, perhaps the building, still shook from the energy of the beam, which continued on, now deep into the East Wing of Ultratech.
          Fulgore-X lethargically made the motion for the ten count. As soon as he did, he clutched his left elbow with his right hand, and left the room (with a slight limp) through the door, as the ten count progressed in the background.

The Next Day
Ultratech Corporation: D Cafeteria

          Orchid sat in solitude at one of the tables in the center of the room. Her hair was slightly wild, her eyes looked fatigued, and her jumpsuit was a little wrinkled. Her head rested in her hands; below her chin was a bowl of soup, which had not been touched. Orchid freed her right hand from her jaw to pick up the spoon, but she only played with it. The illumination in the room wasn’t great, but it wasn’t poor either. As a result, a slight shadow was cast over Orchid’s features.
          The door to the cafeteria opened quickly. Orchid sat with her back to the door; she made no motion to glance backwards to see who opened the door. Whoever it was slowly walked across the room over to the serving area on the right. She could hear him (or her) gathering food on a paper plate, then getting a drink from the automated faucet. It wasn’t until the person crossed the room in front of her until Orchid saw who it was. Jago.
          He took a seat opposite Orchid. She seemingly wasn’t even aware of his existence. His sword was strapped to his back, in it’s rawhide casing. On his plate sat a roast beef sandwich and a few potato chips. He carefully set down a soft drink to the right of his plate. Jago looked up at Orchid, waiting for her to say something. Words never came. Jago quickly gave up and took a bite out of his sandwich. After thoroughly chewing, Jago decided to resume his attempt to get his sister to speak.
          “So...how’s Glacius doing?” Jago asked.
          Orchid didn’t move. “He’s doing well. Whatever Fulgore-X hit him with that caused him to lose his morphing abilities must have been temporary at best. Glacius has been regenerating for the past 15 hours; he should be back to full health in another hour or two.”
          “Hmm. That’s good.” Jago went for another bite of his sandwich, but put it down instead. “Every day, Fulgore-X becomes a bigger threat. I mean, he figured out a counter agent to Glacius’s morphing, made it, all of this during the fight no less, and then shoots Glacius with it, effectively canceling the edge Glacius had over him. And let’s not forget that attack Fulgore-X ended the fight with; man, how much of Ultratech did he destroy with that energy beam?”
          Orchid still hadn’t moved. “Sections 24B through 57D. There’s also minor damage to 225A, 32C, Genetic Imprinting, and Microchip Development.”
          Jago shook his head. “And the worst part of it is that according to our figures, that wasn’t even half of his full power. He’s going to be one tough fight, for sure.”
          Orchid said nothing in response at first. She flirted with actually eating her soup, but opted instead to use the spoon to push a breadcrumb across the surface of the soup. Finally, she looked up at her brother. “Say Jago, don’t you usually meditate before a fight? Why aren’t you now?”
          Jago decided to take a sip of his soft drink before answering. “Well, I meditate before a serious fight. This is not a serious fight.”
          Orchid raised an eyebrow. “Is that your way of saying I’m not much of a fighter?”
          “No no no, not at all! It’s just that, I’m not going to fight you seriously. That’d be stupid, what with the final round coming up, and the fallout against Gargos just around the corner. What if one of us should get injured? Besides, I can’t fight my own sister. I figure we’ll just go out there and throw a few kicks for five minutes, just enough to keep Gargos satisfied. Then one of us’ll throw the fight.”
          Orchid put her spoon down, now displaying total interest in Jago. “Throw the fight...in whose direction?”
          “Huh? What d’ya mean? I mean, you do know that whoever wins between us is going to fight Fulgore-X, right? So what...” Jago trailed off.
          “I was thinking that we’d let me win the fight.”
          “What?! You...I mean...you can’t be serious! No offense sis, but why?”
          Orchid looked directly at her brother, completely serious. “Well, brother, you have been fighting more than all us since the KI7 tournament. You must be extremely tired.”
          “Truthfully yes, but, I’ve probably been in the same amount of fights as you.”
          “Maybe so, but your fights have been more strenuous. You had to face the original Fulgore and Fulgore 2, among a host of others. To top that off, I don’t think I’ve seen you use Ultratech regenerative medical equipment not even once. I doubt you’ve ever gone into the MediLab for yourself. You must be awfully fatigued. If Fulgore-X is as formidable as you say he is, he’ll dismantle you in five minutes...or less.”
          Jago smiled. “What a wonderful story you tell. Has all that experience as some sort of ultra secret agent helped any?”
          “Story? What could possibly lead you to believe that I’ve just told you a story?”
          “Oh no, please don’t mistake me. I know you probably are genuinely concerned about my well being. I just know why you really, really, want to fight Fulgore-X.”
          “Oh is that so? My dear brother and spiritual guide; please enlighten this humble heathen...”
          “You really shouldn’t say such things sis.” Jago now played with his sandwich, similar to the way Orchid teased her soup. “But I guess it can’t be helped. What with the tournament winding down and all. What happened to Kim Wu and now Glacius. Fulgore-X straight ahead and Gargos around the corner. It’s only natural that tensions should run high, I suppose. Anyway, I was saying that there’s one major reason why you want to fight Fulgore-X. It’s a revenge thing. You became so strange about halfway through the tournament in the past; even more so when we came back. I really didn’t know what had happened to you until you told me the story about our parents. Not long afterwards, I finally realized why you had wanted to fight Fulgore 2 that day. You want revenge, don’t you? Not just for our parents, but what you think he did to you and me. Turned two kids, who had the potential to be ‘normal,’ whatever that is, and made them the reclusive secret agent and the spiritual warrior monk. All alone in the world until they coincidentally meet at a strange martial arts tournament. You probably resented the fact that it was I and not you who destroyed Fulgore 2.”
          Orchid snorted at that last statement. Jago continued. “But now, here’s another Fulgore cyborg. Supposedly, he’s got parts of Fulgore 2’s programming in his head. And that’s enough for you, isn’t it? That makes him enough Fulgore 2 for you to hate him passionately. Not to mention Fulgore-X killing that ninja. I can’t put my finger on it, but there was something concerning you and that Shadow guy that you’re not telling me, or anyone else for that matter. Yes; you want revenge against Fulgore-X. And that is exactly why I and not you should fight him.”
          “What does that have to do with anything?”
          “If you did earn the right to face Fulgore-X...when you stand toe to toe with him, just seconds after the fight starts, will you study his movements, trying to predict his next move, or will you charge at him with everything you’ve got? Because this is revenge for you, you’re going to charge. You’ll fight with your heart, not your head. Sometimes, that can help you. But not here. Fulgore-X is too smart, too clever to fall to something like that. He’d tear you to shreds in five seconds, if that.”
          Orchid went back to playing with her soup. “Well then, if I’m too bloodthirsty, and you’re too tired, who will fight Fulgore-X?”
          Jago wasn’t given a chance to answer. The fight alarm sounded loudly, blaring throughout the cafeteria. Jago and Orchid rose in unison. Without word or gesture, they straightened themselves and solemnly left the cafeteria.

New York: Above a Skyscraper Rooftop

          “Hey! Get closer, will ya! I can’t hardly tell what kind of lipstick that chick is wearing from this height!” Cameraman Jake Ramón called out to the pilot of the helicopter. Jake sat on the edge of the chopper door, holding a large camera that was propped on his shoulder.
          “You want closer? I’ll bring us so close, you’ll be able to tell what she was havin’ for lunch!” The pilot called back.
          “Perfect!” Jake replied.
          Phil Martin, a member of the technical crew, came up behind Jake. He didn’t have a camera, but a headset instead.
          “So....you got money on the fight?” Phil called out, over the noise of the chopper.
          “Who don’t?” Jake said.
          “Of course. Who’re ya good for?”
          “Odds slightly favor Jago, so I’m going Orchid. If she wins, it’ll be a major payoff. I think she can pull it off.”
          “Yeah, the babe’s got a chance. However, you just don’t fight a Fulgore cyborg without learning a thing or two. I got my cash on Jago.”
          “Heh heh heh, well, you just remember that when you’re beggin me for cash, after you’ve lost...son of a-!” Jake cut himself off as his camera abruptly fell from his hands, floating downwards towards an inevitable crash with the pavement some fifty stories below.
          “Hey Jake!” Phil shouted. “What’s up? Got a case of the butterfingers alluva sudden?!”
          “Damn! I’d swear my camera hit somethin’...”
          “Dude, we’re up in the great wide open, what the hell can you hit?”
          “Man, I felt it too, my camera hit somethin’...looked almost like...like a...a man...”
          “Up here? Dude, don’t tell anyone else that, or you’ll be grounded for quite some time! Wipe the grease off yer hands; I’ll get cha the spare camera.” With that, Phil retreated to the back of the chopper, to fetch the spare camera deeply buried under a palace of electrical equipment.
          Jake looked at the air above the rooftop. For a slight second, it seemed as if there was a distortion in the very space itself. This distortion was humanoid shaped, almost like a very built man, and it had what seemed to be a ponytail. As quickly as it appeared, the distortion vanished into nothing.
          Jake shook his head. “Man. I’ve been up here way, waaaay to long.”

The Rooftop

          Jago and Orchid stood face to face with each other. Orchid held Shadow’s long staff, somewhat loosely. Jago’s sword was still strapped to his back, but he made no motion to go for it.
          Jago straightened himself, pushed his right closed fist into his left open palm, and bowed over. Orchid crudely imitated the gesture as best as she could.
          From the helicopter overhead, Gargos’s voice broadcast faintly throughout the crisp New York winter day.
          “Ready Jago........ready Orchid........fight on!”
          Jago and Orchid began to circle each other. Jago was smiling; Orchid displayed a quarter smile. They continued this ritual circling for a few more seconds, then finally, Orchid shifted her stance. By a slight adjustment of her knee position and hand location, she turned a potential offensive stance into a defensive one. It was her way of saying “you first.”
          Jago nodded his head, acknowledging the gesture. He shifted his feet around to assume an all-offensive stance. Jago rocked backwards a few short inches, then charged at his sister.
          Jago took a few lethargic swings at Orchid with his right arm. Orchid evaded all the shots. Jago then tried a series of kicks, which were also lazy in nature. Orchid evaded these as well. Suddenly, Jago spun on his right heel, quickly bringing his left leg around for a quick forward kick. Orchid back flipped out of the way.
          Landing back on her feet, Orchid cracked a few knuckles in her hands. She cocked her head a flashed a half smile as if to say “nice try.” Jago straightened himself and assumed a defensive stance. Now, Orchid charged at her brother.
          Orchid’s staff swings were even slower than Jago’s. Jago avoided most of them easily, but he chose to block the final in the series, an overhead strike, just for the hell of it. Orchid withdrew her staff, and rushed in with her right shoulder set forward. Jago flipped over her dash. Orchid stopped almost instantly, and threw herself backwards. She spun around on the small of her spine, sticking her legs out as she spun; a simple break-dance move. Jago had to roll forward to keep from getting hit; even so, he just did manage to evade the attack.
          Jago clapped his hands together twice, bowed, and then grinned. “Hah. When did you become a breaker?” He said in between laughs.
          “I was undercover on a mission once; I had to become a break dancer to keep my cover.” Orchid said, also in good nature.
          “Heh. You will have to tell me about that mission sometimes.”
          From nowhere, Jago charged at Orchid. This time, he threw quicker (but much weaker) jabs at Orchid. They were too quick to dodge, so Orchid blocked them all. Orchid caught both of Jago’s fists, then threw herself backwards, lodging her feet into his stomach. As she softly hit the ground, Orchid tossed her brother up and backwards. Jago hit the ground with his hands and sprung up, to land on his feet. Orchid was up very quickly, coming towards her brother. She went for a series of consecutive overhead strikes with her staff. Jago did a little dance to avoid getting hit. He carefully timed the next blow attempt, hitting the staff with a roundhouse kick as it came to about head level. Orchid’s body twisted left due to the force. Getting his footing back, Jago buried a soft right shin into Orchid’s exposed gut. She backed off for a few moments.
          Jago straightened himself. He looked after Orchid, concerned that the attack might’ve been too strong. Orchid gingerly held her stomach, with both eyes closed tightly. Then, she opened one eye, smiled, and charged at an unsuspecting Jago. She was able to get in three forward kicks to the chest before Jago got his bearing back and threw up a defense. He back flipped away, then charged at his sister with a punch. Orchid tried to catch it, but the force behind it was too great, and Orchid tumbled over backwards. She jumped up and threw her staff into the ground, causing it to bounce up, flipping end over end, towards Jago. Jago back stepped to avoid the staff. As it hit the ground, Jago saw Orchid flying towards him with a jump kick. As reaction time was next to nothing, Orchid solidly placed the kick into Jago’s stomach. Jago took a few involuntary steps backwards. Orchid rushed towards her brother, and as she reached his position, she threw herself forward and towards the ground. She hit the pavement sharply, rolled forward one body length, and then lifted herself up as her shoulders and neck were firmly planted into the rooftop. She used her momentum to begin to spin around, opening her legs up slightly as she spun as a modified version of a helicopter kick. Orchid hit Jago five times with this before he fell backwards. Orchid loosened her shoulders, causing her to tip towards the ground. In almost the same motion, she sprung back up to her feet.
          Jago wiped a small amount of blood from the corner of the mouth. He got back up to one knee, and reached for his sword, then cut himself off abruptly.
          “What do I think I’m doing?” He asked himself.
          Jago quickly let go of the sword handle, leaving it sheathed in it’s casing on his back.
          Jago rose and charged at Orchid. He extended his right arm in another charging punch attempt. Orchid remembered her mistake last time, so this time, she jumped up, hoping Jago would pass under her. Instead, Jago stopped abruptly and pivoted forward, causing his feet to shoot upwards, until they squarely hit Orchid in the chest, sending her flying backwards. Jago let himself fall slowly back to the rooftop. Wasting no time, he ran towards Orchid, and jumped when he was only four feet away from her, flipping up, then straightening himself over her, in a stomp attempt. Orchid quickly brought her legs up, perfectly catching Jago’s feet with her own. She then brought her legs quickly towards her head, tipping Jago over backwards where he fell on his back on the ground. Orchid continued moving her legs back, inverting herself, until the tips of her toes were making contact with the roof. With a push, Orchid straightened herself to be standing on her feet. She grasped her staff and went for an overhead swing at the prone Jago. Her brother stuck his right leg up, catching the swing with his foot. He then quickly spun on his back, letting the staff crash down as he slid to the side.
          Orchid pulled herself up and went for a side swing at Jago’s knees. He quickly pulled his sword and thrust it into the ground, blocking the shot. Jago pulled his sword up and threw the base of the handle towards Orchid’s head. She deflected it with her staff. Jago spun around with the momentum and went for an overhead slash. Orchid blocked that with her staff. She pushed forward, sending Jago’s sword a little ways backwards. She then hit Jago in the stomach with a series of quick blows from her staff. Orchid spun around to try to hit Jago with a fierce staff blow, but her brother deflected it with his sword. He charged in, hitting Orchid in the chest with a few short kicks. He then backed off, giving Orchid a little bit of time to recover. She did, then went for a massive overhead strike. Jago took a hop step back, then dashed in, and tried his rising uppercut. Orchid took a hop step back of her own, but Jago still managed to catch her somewhat under the chin. Orchid staggered backwards, but did not fall. Jago landed and was forced into a squat, but pulled himself back up. He pointed the tip of his sword towards his sister, breathing heavily. Orchid was bent over, holding her jaw in her right hand. She looked up slowly, and her eyes met her brother’s, with the tip of the sword somewhere in between. For a few tense moments, the siblings only stared at each other. Finally, Orchid erected herself. She took another look at Jago, and if one didn’t know better, it looked as if she flashed a quick, quarter smile. Orchid then crossed her right arm across her chest, resting her fist on her left shoulder. She then went down to one knee. Jago looked blankly at his sister.
          Gargos’s voice came out from the helicopter again. “Jago wins by means of surrender!”
          Orchid used her staff to help herself up. Jago twirled his sword around a few times before thrusting it into the casing on his back.
          “You okay?” He asked.
          “Oh yeah. Fine. You?”
          “I’m all right.”
          Orchid brushed hair out of her eyes. “I never did finish my lunch. Let’s say we finish it, eh?”
          “I’m not very hungry at the moment. I’m afraid I’ll have to pass, but don’t let me stop you. Let’s go.”
          Jago walked towards his sister and the building roof access. Orchid waited for him, then began walking as he reached her. She put her arm around his back.
          “So...” Jago said, “now you’re going to have to tell me all about that break dancing thing.”