11517/A New Challenge(r)

A New Challenge(r)
Date of Scene:	21 May 2020
Location:	Avalon Heights, Avalon
Synopsis:	Katsumi needed to blow off some steam. Rave innocently volunteers herself. The result is a colorful collision! And perhaps oddly medicinal for the struggling Punk Princess.
Cast of Characters:	Bakeneko, Rave

---

Bakeneko has posed:
Life has been strange for Katsumi. An upheaval, even. Depressing. Painful. And surprisingly at the same time, uplifting. In the wake of all the sadness she's been enduring since everything she cared about was ripped apart, she managed to find a friend. An actual, genuine friend; no ulterior motives, no provisions or conditions, just a friend. But in her efforts to show her friend appreciation, she stirred up a longing she'd hoped started to settle. Katsumi belongs in a ring. She doesn't feel right without it, even with the other outlets she's been presented.

Maybe a little indulgence will help calm that down. But then, she can't just grab a stranger and demand a match, can she? Stupid social norms.

The middleground comes in the form of a gym in the middle of Avalon Heights, closed for the night yet still occupied by a single body. Katsumi had changed into her pro wrestling gear and hit just the lights for the ring dominating its main space. They hold boxing events in here - smallscale, local things. So it isn't the strongstyle corners she's used to, but the ropes work just the same. And at this time, the spry Japanese girl is running the span of the mat, freely utilizing that night-blessed superhuman speed to ping-pong from one end of the ring to the other, carefully not plying too much pressure to the cables as they stretch against her back and feed into her opposite sprint.

Rave has posed:
For Rave? Life had been interesting...but it had never been boring. If one were to view from the outside, she'd actually probably have them conviced that she'd always been as bright and joyful as she portrayed with every moment on stage, social media or even just running by. Perhaps it was a side-effect of the exhilerating rush her powers gave her, endorphines a-plenty, but the bluenette had never been happier than any moment she'd been working far.

She'd been in the neighbourhood visiting a friend, talking about gigs, but it was the lights left on the gym that had diverted the girl towards the building.

A sudden rush of neon, the glowing-haired girl appears in the hall...she'd come through the window. A figure still wearing the yoga-pants and activewear of her running, there was just a moment to stare at the sight of the other superhuman. "Huh."

Bakeneko has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro hits the ropes closest to Rave and dashes quickly across the mat, her boots patpatpat-ing the only sound in the otherwise silent gym. She pivots cleanly on heel, back pressing into the elastic cables, and she launches forward again! Only this time, she catches sight of a gym-goer with dyed(?) hair staring at her from the hall. Without stumbling, she rapidly bleeds off her momentum enough to simply grab onto the top rope closest Rave.

There, she stands with wide, inhumanly-magenta eyes and slightly agape. She's been caught. In recognizable clothes. For once, Katsumi is speechless; her voice is caught somewhere in the middle of her throat, and her mind falls flat.

Rave has posed:
Well. Normal was well and truely off the table. Go figure.

A sudden 'blink' of bright light, the girl was across the hall, way from the door and just sitting on one of the supports at the corner of the ring tilting her head. "That looked pretty cool," she comments, leaning forward lightly and tilting her head. "Is that how they do all the fake stuff? Superpowers and mutants? That's kinda awesome..."

No introductions right away, amusement and interest having made her jump right past the normal polite greetings. Patience and pace weren't always a speedster's best virtue after all.

At least it was pretty clear she wasn't 'normal' either.

Bakeneko has posed:
Indeed, normal is out the window the moment Rave moves. Katsumi inhales sharply and releases the rope. Her head snaps in her direction when she reveals her new location, and-

"The f*** did you just say to me!?," demands Katsumi, her feminine voice hitting an irritated pitch. "/Fake/?!"

Her expression has gone from cautious concern to confrontationally angry just that easily. Not many have accused the Punk Princess of being modest, much less cool-tempered. She steps towards the turnbuckle and reaches out to promptly grab for Rave's shoulder. And with no further ado, she means to strongarm Rave to the mat with an abrupt, downwards sling. Should all go well, the interloper may find herself hitting near the center of the ring on her chest with a rough landing. Nowhere near the full force of her strength, but enough that she feels would've made the point. "That feel fake to you, ass****!?"

There was sort of a compliment buried in the insult Rave had delivered. And a more reasonable person might have granted her grace for the misstep. But then, that just wouldn't be Katsumi.

Rave has posed:
One would think that someone who could dodge automatic gunfire would be impossible to be grabbed...but noone was perfect. Maybe she was overconfident, maybe she truely thought it was entirely fake and it wouldn't really hurt at all. Either way there's a startled noise as she moves through the air and then lands with an 'umpf'.

Face still in the mat, the girl gives a little laugh and squirms for a moment. "Did I touch a nerve or something?" she actually giggles. Because that's that best thing to do with someone mad at you!

A bright flash of light, blinding neon simply errupts from the girl, intended to make her cover her eyes before Rave rolls over if she's successful and lash out with her feet to shove Katsumi back.

Bakeneko has posed:
"Hmf!," grunts Katsumi. Her lips purse together into a tight, disapproving moue and her fists plant to her hips. From an outside perspective, seeing the slender little thing behave so indignantly is likely much more adorable than she'd ever intend. She's angry, after all! And hearing the giggle in response seems to rile her up even more.

"What, are you remedial!? You don't learn so quick the first time!?"

Katsumi takes a single step forward before there's a bright flash. A girlish squeak in surprise escapes her as her hands lift to shield her eyes, leaving her flat stomach open for a pushkick! The impact would reveal the Japanese girl is deceptively solid for her appearance, but nevertheless, she weighs what she weighs. She's pushed back into the turnbuckle, her shoulders, midback, and rear bumping into the padding! "Unf!"

Rave has posed:
Deceptively solid, but much of physics is about acceleration. It didn't save her from 'backlash', but if she did it well enough she doesn't hurt herself. Instead there's a little joyful whoop from the bluenette and she rolls her shoulders, bouncing on her feet with a grin and lifting her hands.

Rave wasn't a wrestler, but she -was- a gymnast, and she knew fun when she was looking at it!

"I'm kinda stubborn," she winks at the other girl, giving a bright grin as a pulse of light flashes through her hair to punctuate her joy. "Maybe you should try to make it stick?" Flirtation? Challenge? Somewhere in the middle...or maybe she was just trying to annoy the girl.

Bakeneko has posed:
Both first and second things would manage to earn the third, so it's all cherry! Katsumi takes a second to push a few hanging bangs of silky black hair out of her eyes as she glowers at the new girl. "That's how it is, huh?," she asks. "Okay. Alright. Let's!" Katsumi rushes out of her corner to travel the short distance to the interloper, hoping to catch her by the arm and shoulder. And despite her irritation with the other girl disrespecting her sport and (former, sigh!) profession, she's still treating it with care. She doesn't know if Rave has any superhuman durability, so she only wants to use enough force to keep it on that human level.

As for the move itself?

If she can seize on Rave's arm and shoulder, Katsumi will pivot on her heel and pull on the arm to yank the girl inwards, then push on the shoulder to fling her towards the turnbuckle she previously occupied. And once there, chase her in to aim her knee for the girl's bare stomach. Maybe that'll take a little of the pep out of her step! Or at least stun her long enough for a better follow-up!

Rave has posed:
In the same way that Katsumi was limiting her strength, Rave was limiting her speed. When she lashes out with a punch that was decidely not a wrestling move it was awfully easy to see coming...but then Rave wasn't exactly read up on the rules of the sport she'd been teasing about. It was something easily 'tanked' to grab her and leave the speedster flung by the more experienced practitioner.

That didn't mean Rave wasn't above cheating though.

Flung towards the turnbuckle, the speedster's form seems to glow just a little as she twists, rightens and springs up the turnbuckle to fling herself high into the air and land behind Katsumi with a grin.

It was an impressive gymnastic display, but not one she capitalizes on just yet.

Bakeneko has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro can tell there's superpowered hooey at work here! But dangit, she's determined to meet that challenge head-on! To beat some respect into this girl! To utterly and completely savor the fact that she's in a ring and wrestling someone. But shh, that last one is a secret.

Rave glows and scrambles up the turnbuckle, only to artistically soar and land behind her! Katsumi blinks, hearing her land just behind her. And so, the Punk Princess responds with her training and experience, diverting her tactics. Without turning around, she displays her own finesse and nimbleness in a tight, controlled backflip. It's almost a flashkick, curtesy of Guile. But the attack isn't aimed forward. The shin of her wrestling boot is aimed to connect with Rave's head as Katsumi's body inverts.

At the completion of the pele kick, Katsumi will land on her knees facing away from the other girl. But she'll be quick to turn around and survey the result of her snappy counter.

Rave has posed:
It wasn't exactly sporting, but it was also fun for Rave. The playful...well, 'game' of being evasive, a literal 'catch me if you can' was exactly up her alley. The fact that Katsumi still looked a little adorably aggravated at her while trying to do so was just another little 'kick' to add to it.

That leaping, jumping kick earns a bright "Aweso-umpf!" and there's clearly an impact, but it wasn't the desired impact with the head that Katsumi would find as she looks back: she'd probably left a bruise, but it was a bruise on the forearm of the girl who had made use of a rather simple block.

"You're pretty good!" she speaks, lightly tilting her head to the side.

Bakeneko has posed:
"Oh my god!," balks an outraged Katsumi, who thumps a small fist against the mat in frustration. Who blocks a pele kick!? No one, that's who! They're quick, poppy, and they hurt a lot! Maybe she should've tried to hit with the toe of her boot instead! Augh! Nevermind that Rave started to compliment her, she still needed to be brought down!

The spunky punk rushes to her full height and lashes forward with her arms in an effort to grapple with the speedster. Her right hand will be making a move for her collar just at the base of her neck, while the other hand grabs for Rave's upper arm, both utilized to try to hold on tight and force her back against the ropes. Naturally if this succeeds, it'll see Rave's back pressing into the springy cables while Katsumi leans her body heavily against her, nearly face to face with her.

Rave has posed:
It's less of a collar and more of a 'strap' given Rave's attire, but the grasp comes with a little pivot of her hip and a seizing of Katsumi's own arm. After all, she hadn't really tried to fight back yet aside from that hastey punch before, but now she was trying to pull off a really basic judo-throw of the wrestler.

If it succeeds? She'd be flinging Katsumi into the ropes instead. If it failed? It meant she'd end up pinned to the ropes with Katsumi against her back instead!

Bakeneko has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro did not study martial arts in the strictest sense. But strong style wrestling did involve that training - a hallmark of Japanese pro-style. That said, under normal circumstances, that throw would likely have worked on an unsuspecting person. But Katsumi's powers extend beyond strength, speed, and durability. As she's pulled over into the throw, a supernatural level of self-controlled agility kicks in, letting the girl lead with her feet to land standing, simply adjusting position with Rave, and ultimately - indeed - pinning her back against the ropes.

The look on Katsumi's face may suggest she didn't really expect herself to manage that. That aspect of her powers has been more or less unobserved until now. But she quickly refocuses on the taunting intruder, now pressured back against the ropes. "You're not so tough if ya can't move around, are ya?," she taunts. Her left arm loops Rave's neck, as if hugging her, as she turns the left half of her torso against her 'prey'. Her right hand leaves her strap in favor of swinging in for a series of repeated shots to the stomach. And though firm, the strength of the hits are kept to modest human limits, not wanting to really /hurt/ Rave still. Just rough her up and ready her for some attempt at dominance over her.

Rave has posed:
There's a literal impressed noise that didn't really fit any verbal real response from Rave...but thn she was wearing shots to her exposed and lightly toned midriff. With another little exclaimation from the impacts, Rave was feeling every punch from the angry asian wrestler. Then there was the taunting of her toughness and she gasps.

"I mean...no...but I'm clever..." she manages before that glow deepens and the skin Katsumi was touching grows a little hotter. "And I don't play fair!"

The other girl had her entirely dominated in a fair fight, more training, more strength, she'd literally had Rave pinned up against the ropes...but then Rave is a sudden blur of light in Katsumi's embrace and throws her head back to try and catch Katsumi's nose. The bluenette's hands slip back behind her rather than wrestle with her bonds, flats of her palms pressing between them against Kat's own body. If she manages it? There's a moment for the battered girl to grin before there's a bright flash and a force of a solid 'punch' errupts between them.

Bakeneko has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro can feel the other girl getting hotter. It's not meant as a euphemism! Though to be fair, Rave does clearly keep herself in shape. And there's such a weirdly thin line between anger and attraction. When Rave begins to retort, Katsumi leaves her fist resting against the other girl's stomach, as if encouraging her to fight back.

Which, tacitly, she is. She wants to earn her win over this chick. It isn't fun if there isn't a struggle.

The remark about playing fair nearly gets a retort from the Asian. She doesn't play fair either, after all! She's a heel! She cheats! But that's not likely to come about here so much. Not when her own regular punches pack more impact than a folding chair or kendo stick ever would.

However, the direct headbutt catches Katsumi's nose, earning a startled and even panicked squeak! Her nose remains undamaged, but she felt it all the same! It still carries that visceral, knee-jerk reaction, that need to protect the more easily damaged bits! And with them being nearly face-to-face, there wasn't much she could do to defend against it without lessening the hold on her opponent!

So that's what Katsumi does. Her hands withdraw, both from hugging around her neck and resting against her midsection, to cup her nose. Palms set to her torso, and *bamf!* It feels like she's been punched!

"Unh!"

The punkette shifts back a step, hands immediately removed from her face in favor of pawing over wherever she was 'hit', as if searching for wound. No, it doesn't quite hurt. The impact was there, but no damage. It's the alien nature of it that's earned Rave this opening to counter!

Rave has posed:
This was far from kayfabe, after all Rave could fake a hologram, but not a punch! Besides, Katsumi clearly looks like she can take it!

After having been on the back foot so far, it seemed the speedster wasn't going to lose the window she'd created. A rush forwards, the rapid-fire trio of punches thrown low, high and mid in turn before she twists and tries to sweep Katsumi's legs out from under her. It was pretty straightforward, basics from any decently-taught Karateka rather than any master martial artist...but Rave did have a distinct speed advantage!

She surges forwards, trying to force the other girl off-balance with a bombardment of high-energy blows rather than any expert technique.

Bakeneko has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro wasn't exactly playing gentle with her! Well, perhaps if one judged from the wellspring of power she could be drawing from versus the hits she's giving, one could argue that she is. But that isn't her intention! She's trying to hit and grapple with adult human strength! To rough up her 'foe' properly! So she isn't exactly judging Rave for answering in kind. Katsumi just happens to have an unfair advantage when it comes to toughness.

That said, the speedy bombardment mixed with Katsumi's persistent adherence to physics and mass (more or less) are seeing Rave take the lead. The first shot is low, landing in Katsumi's stomach in return. "Ung!" Her body twitches at a slightly forward hunch. The next shot hits her cheek, forcing her head to turn aside. "Anh!" And the third shot nails her on the chest, getting a gasp. Lastly, the kick takes Katsumi's legs out from under her, no level of preternatural grace saving her this time around.

"Umf!" The slender grappler hits the mat on her back in a sprawl!

Rave has posed:
Backing up, Rave was breathing harder, the glow was ebbing and she just sort of...bends for a moment to brace her hands on her knees and give a little breathless giggle before raising a hand. "Alright, alright. -You- are clearly not fake."

Another breath, she reaches up to adjusts the strap of her top that had been cast askew by grappling and stands straight. "But I meant the stuff on the TV, y'know? -That- has got to be at least a little fake, right?"

Bakeneko has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro thumps a fist once again to the mat. Huff! She twists over quickly onto all fours, then pops back up to her feet. "Duh, I'm not fake! I'm the realest f***er you're gonna run into! But you're still talkin' s*** about my profession!" Read: what she loves. It's also important to note that this isn't really what the fight is about anymore. It's about not wanting to let this moment end before a satisfying finale. "We're not done here!"

She reaches for Rave's arms again, this time attempting to seize her at the biceps and squeeze. Tight, but not tight enough to bruise. Ideally just tight enough to pull her away from the ropes and closer to the center of the ring. "Ya ran your mouth, blueberry! So you're gonna be eating one of my finishers! But I'm feelin' /nice/ tonight, so I'm gonna let you pick your own doom! Squeezed'n slammed? Brutalized? Or something more flashy from the top rope?"

Rave has posed:
Seized, grabbed, caught...she's probably fast enough to run away if -really- wanted to, but Rave herself was unashamedly having fun...and she'd probably be able to heal from all of the 'rough-housing' pretty quickly as long as the lights stayed on! Giving a little 'umpf' of effort as she was pulled in closer to the middle and giving a little laugh. She couldn't nearly keep up the facade and trash-talk like Katsumi could, clearly!

"Suprise me," she simply responds, giving a little smirk. "Laser-blasts are probably against the rules, so show me what you've got!"

Bakeneko has posed:
There's a nonplussed blink. Laser blasts? Does this chick shoot lasers? Katsumi quickly forces on that tough look again, scrunching up her features. "Damn right they are!" But she wants to see what she's got. She can oblige. It'll just take a little bit of setup first.

Katsumi releases her arms in favor of tucking Rave's head beneath her left arm. Her right hand sets to her hip. And with the use of that supernatural strength, hefting Rave's modest weight into the air doesn't even constitute a challenge. The girl will be whipped up, and brought back down to the mat squarely on her back with a snap suplex.

Following the impact, Katsumi rolls aside and quickly pops up to her boots. "STAY DOWN!," she orders before turning to the turnbuckle...

Rave has posed:
It was probably boarderline insane to let this play out, but Rave herself was almost certainly a little bit crazy. Her little 'pout' at the comment about banned lasers being against the rules was suddenly muffled with a noise of suprise as she was brought into the headlock and then pulled into the air outside of her control.

"Ah cr-"

THUD. She lands on her back with a loss of oxygen and squirms, making to proper herself up and shaking her well-disturbed hair out of her face and looking up to try and fix her glowing eyes on the girl in blue. Then she spots her at the turnbuckle.

"Oh poop."

Bakeneko has posed:
It was all going swimmingly, and Katsumi intends to capitalize on it. Facing the turnbuckle, she grabs onto the top ropes at either side and smoothly vaults herself up to perch on the pad. Still facing away, she raises to her full height, delicately poised between the ropes - surprisingly steady, even to herself, despite having repeated the motion countless times. Suddenly, she vaults herself from her perch!

The maneuver is intricate, artistic, and executed perfectly. The girl's svelte body whirls in a clean backflip and a half. But in the same process, spins rapidly like a top until just a half-second before her landing. And that landing? It will be her bare stomach falling directly across Rave's own bare stomach, mashing abdominal tone over abdominal tone!

Rave has posed:
A resounding -umpf!- comes from the blueberry as she's 'squashed' off her elbows. A full-leap to the dam forcing the air from her lungs and she's caught, bare skin to bare with a pained giggle from her lips.

"Ahhnn that's what it feels like," she groans, letting her head fall back and her arms dropping in defeat.

Very much real.

Bakeneko has posed:
God, it feels amazing to land her finisher on someone. Granted, back when she used the move last, this impact was pretty painful for both involved, leaving her own stomach mashed by her opponent. But now, with the supernatural durability, she didn't feel anything! Well, she did, but nothing unpleasant. She can clearly feel Rave's midsection pressed beneath hers.

Katsumi's head turns to look past her shoulder towards the girl's face. She props herself with her left elbow, and her right arm reaches back to hook Rave's thigh, pulling it into the air to set against her ribs. Thus, the Punk Princess lies in pinning position over Rave.

Katsumi is pinning a superpowered person. What a feeling.

"One!," she shouts energetically into the otherwise still air, her back arching to press her stomach tighter across Rave's.

Rave has posed:
'Amazing' isn't really the word for Rave to use, having the air forced out of her lungs and someone squishing her back. There's a grunt, a flare of bright and heated light for a second before she exhales and the light fades down. "Alright..." she speaks, exhaling a breath and slumping. "I got nothing without...exploding something."

With a little grunt at that painful tug of her thigh, Rave gives a sharp hiss of breath. "Are you really going to count through all three..."

Bakeneko has posed:
"Hell yeah!," squeaks Katsumi, happily perched across the intruder's tummy. She isn't intentionally causing additional pain, at least. She's just trying to keep the other girl down for the full, official count. "You mouthed off! This is how we settle things!"

The bright magenta eyes shift briefly. She should get back to counting before the other girl cheats worse than the super speed she was already using.

"Two!," she calls out. She briefly nips onto her bottom lip. Rave may not be loving the feeling, but it's doing wonders for the punkette atop her. "/Three!/"

It's hard to describe, the feeling of accomplishment and personal satisfaction. She doesn't care if there was an inherent threat to up the ante. As far as an 'athletics challenge' goes, Katsumi's come out on top. To her, this is a superpowered person she beat. Someone superhuman that she can wrestle and overcome. It doesn't matter why they started fighting so much anymore. What matters is the result, and the swelling feeling of both relief and euphoria.

Maybe she doesn't need to be so scared of things. Fighting is comfortable. Wrestling, even moreso. In a weird way that she's probably not going to adequately express, Katsumi appreciates the speedster pinned beneath her. But, shh. She can't know that. Privileged information.