The tournament is finally drawing to a close. Just a few more matches, and it'll be over with. Tomoe is back in the waiting room, once more sitting as far away from everyone else as she can get, her head bowed, Chimera on her lap. Her eyes are only partially open, focused on the little beast in her lap. He's been doing well. If only the same could be said about her opponents' angels. Not all have been disappointing, but honestly, she'd hoped not to be disappointed at all. A silly hope, she realizes.

Misaka Keiichi makes his way into the waiting room since his next match was coming up. He knew this opponent well enough, and knew that this time around he couldn't afford any mistakes. He just hoped that the layer scenery would be kind to him this time around. Quiet steps carry him towards the girl, pausing a short but safe distance away from her with a faint smile on his lips. "Inugata Tomoe. You've done well again this year it seems, and at the last tournament we were in too." His gaze shifts towards the ground for a moment as he makes an idle pause, but then continues, "I won't make the same mistake again, Inugata-san. I promise you that." His eyes have a determined and confident look in them, but he wondered if he would be able to prove it or not.

Tomoe lifts her head as Misaka Keiichi approaches, frowning slightly as she looks to him through the curtain of her hair. There's a slight nod in acknowledgement of his words. " . . . See that you don't, Zombie-boy." Her voice is a bit more than a little cold, and her eyes narrow very slightly, unseen through her hair. She bows her head again, then, and looks back to Chimera, moving a hand to just beneath the thick cervid neck. At least Misaka has the sense to realize how badly he messed up. That's something, at any rate.

When Tomoe's attention shifts back down to Chimera, Keiichi can only smirk slightly at the results. She wasn't the friendliest of people normally, but even he could tell that the temperature between them was well below normal, he would have to be at the top of his game if he wanted to shore things up a bit he supposed. A small sigh is offered and then a nod, "See you on the layer then, good luck." With that he walks over towards the tunnel entrance, waiting for the announcement to begin the match.

Winding into the next match of the round, the intermission was short enough to not be too much a bother. The lights in the arena kick up once more, swirling and shifting about before they make their way over towards the Announcer. He's done a pretty good job so far, having run the gauntlet of matches without any signs of wear or tear, one had to respect the man's endurance, if not his fashion sense. He was still wearking that purple suit of his, with that giant red bow-tie and sunglasses and his spiky blond hair showed no signs of losing its wildness. Who could blame him for the glasses though, those lights were bright!

Now it was time to begin though, so he lifts the mirophone to his mouth and calls out in a loud voice, "Ladies and gentlemen! Are you ready for another ANGELIC FIGHT?!" He pauses there for a moment, to allow the crowd to roar in approval and bask in the cheers. He then grins a little before nodding his head, "Excellent. Then without further ado, I will present to you a match that provided a big upset in crowd expectations last year."

He pauses for a moment to give the people time to mull that over, and then continues, "In the West corner, the deus is Inugata Tomoe with her angel, Chimera!" The name is spoken in a low voice, as if to add a creepy element to it. "They've done a good job so far this tournament, can they keep the momentum?" He lets the crowd mull that over for a moment before moving on, "And in the East corner, a strong contender for qualification for a third year in a row, the deus is Misaka Keiichi with his angel, Zankoku!" This name too is spoken with a low voice, in an attempt to add a similar element as the last time. The call was given, so the Announcer takes a little break while waiting for the chairs to be filled.

Tomoe rises from her seat as the announcer begins his spiel, making her way a to the tunnel. Her pace picks up a bit once she gets there, hurrying through that forboding hall, and even more so onece she's out in the lights. Best to make it to her chair as quickly as possible. She keeps her head slightly bowed for the entire walk, avoiding even the quickest glance to the crowds, and turning her attention to the layer as soon as she's in her seat. Her headset is slipped on quickly, with her hair pushed back at just the last moment. The battle will begin, soon.

Keiichi watches as Tomoe passes, but doesn't say anything further to her. He'll let their talking be done ont he layer at this point. He turns and follows her out in silence, shielding his eyes a bit as they burst forth into the blinding radiance. He offers a friendly smile and wave out towards the crowd before making his way to his seat, where he settles in and sets up his headset as well.

After the deuses settle into the assigned seats, a click is heard beneath them and a smooth motion carries the chairs up high above the layer. This allowed a wider view of the layer than a normal piffle princess run, and it also made it easier to toss the angels in. When everyone was ready the cameras pan over towards the announcer once again.

The Announcer rises up in his chair, arms crossed over his chest as he peers down to the layer below, then nods approvingly. The microphone is brought up to his mouth once more, "And now it's time to set the stage! What sort of wonderful location will our battle take place today I wonder?" His arm flicks out in a flourish before pointing down at the layer below.

The glowy white layer flickers away and a vast array of different sceneries begin passing one by one, almost too swift to see. First is a pit of lava, a serene valley of grass, then a steel mill, but finally it settles. The layer is dominated by a large clock face, but the battlefield itself seems to be the internal workings of it. Indeed the footing is bad at best, and the quarters are cramped and don't offer much in the way of escape.

"Oh ho! It's the clock for the second time for our friend Zankoku, let's hope he has an easier time with it this time around! ENTRY ANGELS!" The Announcer calls out the final words very loudly, while giving a flourish of his hand towards the layer itself.

Tomoe keeps her eyes on the layer as the scenery settles into place, then nods very slightly as the clockface stabilizes. It looks tricky, and she's never fought on it. Very good. One hand is extended, holding Chimera aloft, and she lifts her voice. "Fight fierce, Chimera. Fall-in!" Simple and short, but it works well enough. There's a flick of her wrist, and she throws her angel towards the layer.

Chimera comes to life as soon as he passes through the layer barier. That single wing shoots out, and the heads pull back very slightly. Forefeet extend, before pounding down onto a particularly large gear. Hindfeet soon follow. Tri-split tail lashes, and the wing is pulled back in. The beast begins a very slow stalking movement, then, the pace just enough to keep him relatively stationary on the steadily moving gear, as he waits for the appearance of his undead opponent..

Keiichi makes some final adjustments to settings after his chair has risen to where it is supposed to be. When it finally reaches the apex, he sucks in a deep breath and then sighs it out to steady himself. This opponent may not be Mikage, but she has defeated him before. He knows her potential and knows that if he wants to win, he can not take her lightly. Not this time. Determined eyes peer over the layer towards Tomoe, offering a smile her way and a nod.

Finally Zankoku is lifted high above his head, and then in one sweeping motion is tossed towards the layer while Keiichi calls out, "Never give up, even when staring in the grim face of death, Zankoku!" The angel is launched, spinning through the air before passing through the layer barrier and sending ripples out from the point of impact. While passing through his body is coated in a bright energy, shortly followed by the zombie-angel's eyes opening slowly and flashing a brilliant red. The energy coat then twists and corrupts into a dark purplish colour before it is sucked into his body, followed by a flexing and a twist that sends him hurtling down into the clockwork mess . . . this place again huh?

Careful flips carry him down towards the floor of the clock, where he lands in a little crouch before rising up to his feet and visibly frowning at the scenery around him. This place is what made his fight against Rei even more difficult than it might have normally been, what havoc will it wreak in this match against Chimera though? Oh well, no time to worry about such things.

The Announcer grins his wide grin, makes another flourishing motion with his free hand before adjusting his sun-glasses. "Everything is set, so it's about time to begin! A fight to the finish on a tower of steel, and only one can come away victorious. Let's find out who with another, ANGELIC FAIT-O!" That was the queue, the timer begins counting down indicating that now was the time for action!

There's a very low, triple-voiced growling sound as Zankoku makes his appearance, but Chimera simply continues his slow stalking motions. He can't keep it up for long, though - another gear, set slightly higher, is steadily swinging a pendicular bar closer and closer to the beast. Chimera leaps away just before the mechanism hits him, landing on yet another horizontal gear, and continuing his stalk from there.

On the layer, Zankoku watches Chimera warily for a moment, expecting an attack of some sort to come along. Fortunately, there was nothing this time around. The zombie-angel was not going to sit around to see what the beast was up to though, and so he starts off by rushing towards him while trying to avoid the cogs and gears. Instead of attacking outright though, instead he aims to ram the beast back into one of the gears and get him caught up if possible. He hated this place, and figured Chimera probably did too. Thus it was an attempt to both do harm and inconvenience his foe.

Chimera makes no attempt to dodge, but rears up on his hind feet as Zankoku rushes him, allowing the zombie to plow directly into his chest. The beast is shoved back against a vertical gear, and there's a sharp breaking sound as Zankoku's shoulder manages to push in /through/ the monstrosity's chest. Chimera spasms, and a jet of corrosive, gooey black 'blood' shoots forth from the wound. It sprays wide, hissing and sizzling as it contacts with dessicated flesh, metal gears, and wooden supports. Even as the substance eats into all it touches, Chimera shoves forward, using his hind feet, wing and tails to propel himself forward in an attempt to crush the zombie between his unbalanced weight, and the now-damaged gear they both stand on.

On the layer, Zankoku visibly frowns when he hears the crushing noise, because he knows exactly what is going to follow it. The acid splashes all over him, doing plenty of damage along the way, but before Chimera can come back down he rolls back and away to avoid the blow. His cloak snags on a gear which then proceeds to tug him off balance a bit before he tears away and rushes in again. He pivots into a twist and sends a roundhouse kick towards the central head.

Chimera growls as Zankoku rolls away, and makes a lunge to charge after him - without really realizing how much damage the combination of his acidic blood and the force of his slam had done to the gear. Zankoku's kick lands solidly against the side of the central head, and the cervid head twists sharply, sending that vicious rack of antlers at Zankoku's gut - just as the gear's support gives out, and the gear itself begins to fall.

On the layer, Zankoku's stance shifts a bit as the gear begins to give way and while the antler's come rushing in for his gut. Dark energies crackle about his feet and flow up into his body, helping to power him up. He had a feeling that Chimera would be using the cervid head to counter, and seemed to be prepared for the impact towards his guy, both hands grabbing on and pushing to halt it from causing significant damage. Afterwards he twists about while using the antlers to pull himself higher and send another kick towards the central head, this time it was going downards and with more force. He attempts to use the impact to spring up towards another horizontal gear, to try and use it as a stable platform. He peers over the edge, hopefully watching Chimera tumble down into the mess he created for himself.

Again, the zombie's kick impacts solidly, and Chimera does begin to fall. Claws, talons and sharp-edged hoof scrape against metal as the beast attempts to pull himself up, and then the single wing beats solidly, sending him into a powerful leap. The gear crashes into a gear mechanism below, causing painful screeching sounds as the clock becomes stuck - and Chimera pulls himself up onto the same gear platform that Zankoku had chosen. The moment he's up, he pushes off after the zombie, central head bowed low to expose those heavy spiral horns. If the zombie like the wolf-head so much, the beast would be glad to re-introduce him to it.

On the layer, Zankoku arches a brow as Chimera begins his leap off the falling cog. Hmm, that didn't work out as planned. He slides back and away from the edge before crouching low and placing both of his hands upon the flat surface of the gear. Dark energies crackle all around as dirt and dead grass seem to cover the metallic object. There is a shake and a low rumble as headstones begin to rise up out of it. There isn't a lot of time though, as Chimera is already closing in with nice shiny horns ready to impale. Using some energy, he throws himself into a leap away from the charging beast and rolls before coming up into a low crouch.

Now it begins to get interesting, as the earth tills and shifts before the various headstones, zombies rising up out of them with their unearthly moans. It doesn't take long before they are on the attack either, the small horde rushing and leaping in towards the beast with claws swiping this way and that trying to overwhelm him with numbers. Zankoku was not going to sit idle though, and he rushes in to aid his minions, sending a clawed hand swiping towards the central head's eyes. A few other zombies try to do the same with other eyes as well, since their master knew disabling the vision on one head was pretty useless by itself.

Chimera is quickly engulfed in crawing and scraping zombies. They bear down on him, heavily, scraping at heads and flesh - it would seem as though the beast is done for. But then, a hallow-sounding, tripple-voiced barking echoes throughout the layer. There's a flash of darkness around the mass-o-zombies, and then the form of a massive, three-headed dog bursts forth, with several of the zombies adhering to his dark and matted flesh. The demon-dog bounds from gear to gear, before disappearing into a dark chasm that had laid just out of sight, bringing those zombies that stuck to him back to the underworld, where they belong.

Chimera does not let the distraction go unused. The beast roars, loudly, before that central maw yawns wide, and a blast of seering-hot flash erupts from between those heavy fangs. Chimera turns as the blast continues, attempting to bathe as many of the zombies - and their master - in what would be a funeral pyre.

FWOOSH! Many zombie minions are sacrificed to the flame of the beast, sending their bodies to oblivion and freeing the energies that moved them. Zankoku manages to just barely backpeddle out of the way, holding a few zombies up to block just in case the flames get too close. He stops just at the edge of the gear, slipping a little and almost falling off before recovering. Whoo, that was close!

He rights himself again as a few more zombies slowly rise out of the ground. Unlike the prior matches though, there are no further changes to the landscape as he had no intention of destroying the clock completely just now. The small zombie crew rushes in towards the beast, attempting to distract him with their smaller attacks while Zankoku rushes in. He runs in an anime-fashion, both arms held out behind him as he hunkers low. Dark energies crackle and sizzle about him, focusing in his fists and when he is close enough he slides in and snaps both arms forward in an attempt to smash the central head. It seemed to be his favorite target today for some reason.

Chimera growls as the last of the flames lick from his maw, and he seems about to lunge directly into Zankoku's charge. He stumbles, however - and it's not the clock, or any of the Zombie Lord's minions, that pull him down. The momentum is enough to send the beast forward even as he collapses, and there are some very faint spasms - and Zankoku barrels directly into the beast just as his life energies deplete. There's no further movements from Chimera - it would seem as though he truly is finished.

On the layer, Zankoku manages to pull his punches at just the last second, sending a swish of air forward with the force of his attack that caused the mane to flutter a bit. He holds for a moment and stares warily at the beast, expecting him to spring back to life at any moment. He's done it before you see, so there was no harm in making sure. The buzzer goes off though, indicating the match has ended, and the zombie rises up fully while staring down at his defeated opponent. He offers a small nod of recognition for Chimera's strength, and then sits down to await retrieval.

The Announcer calls out after the buzzer sounds, loud and excitedly. "Zankoku Win! After a fast and furious battle, this match is over!"

Once the buzzer sounds, Tomoe nods. She says nothing as the chair moves to allow her to collect Chimera, and then descends to let her off. The bestial angel is held a bit close, but she makes her way immediately back into the waiting room. Still, as she passes by Keiichi, she mutters a quiet, " . . . Much better, Zombie-boy." He may or may not have heard - she does't linger long enough to find out. Better to get out of these abyssmal lights and deafening crowd-sounds.

Keiichi sucks in a deep breath as the end of the match is indicated, and then he nods to himself. That went off well enough, but he realizes easily enough that he could have lost. The chair shifts and moves down to allow his retrieval of Zankoku and then down to the ground to let him off. He gets off and stretches a bit then nods to himself just before Tomoe passes by. He's able to make out her words well enough, and it makes him smile a bit but only after she's passed by. He offers another wave towards the crowd himself, and then wanders off towards the waiting room to get away from the lights and people.