[Stumble Alley] Learning How NOT to Die (Open)

[Zenai]

Season of Fall, Day 29, 511 AV

It wasn’t exactly a very good spot neither to train nor to do anything really but this was Sunberth and you will be forced fight where you stand. There’s little opportunity to retreat into a more favorable and terrain position. However, that isn’t the only reason why he chose this spot; Zenai wanted one of the quieter, less frequent areas where he and Eridanus can train without much interruption, hopefully anyway. Even despite Zenai’s best effort which isn’t much to begin with, there would be some that would observe them as spies or even some would stumble upon them by chance. It wouldn’t matter as who would care if a pair of swordsmen practices their skills in an almost-secret location. Some would care enough to observe them though.

Why there was a pair of swordsmen practicing their skills? Well, Sunberth is a dangerous place to live in and if one would want to succeed or even survive in this city of robbers, killers and conspirators, one has to have certain skills. One of the more obvious skills is combat skills which are used mainly to defend oneself from any one of the psychopathic killers in this fine cesspool of a city. Combat skills are one of the things respected by people and no one messes with anyone that could easily kill a man with just a swipe of a blade or casual toss of a throwing-knife.

“Ready?” Zenai asked.
Eridanus simple answer, “Ready”
“Alright, let’s do some stretches first. Don’t want to do get the cramps, do we?”
“Of course.”
Both of them got down to doing their stretches. No need to suffer a major cramp from their training. Don’t want to miss a day of work either. From top to bottom, they begin stretching the muscles of their neck then rotating their shoulders then twisting their spines then kicking their feet and everything else in-between. Bones cracked, muscles tensed. They took about 15 minutes to do their stretches.
“Okay, that’s enough of that. I think we’re good to go.” Zenai declared.

They both drew their weapon and got in their fighting stance. For a few seconds, they stared at each other, evaluating and analyzing each other’s strength and weaknesses. Both were inclined to dual-wielding swords but Zenai favored his Inarta talon swords while Eridanus preferred his long swords. Zenai may have more experience with his weapon but he was pretty sure Eridanus had a few tricks up his sleeves. It was now the game of who goes first. There are pros and cons to either striking first and striking second. Attacking first would give you the initiative but it allows your opponent to read your move first then counterattack.

Zenai decided to go for the gold and launched his attack; a double-sword downward cut. He charged and his attack was meant with double-sword parry by Eridanus whose blades met Zenai’s with a cross-sword guard. If Eridanus didn't realized that he unintentionally made an opening for his opponent, Zenai would have seen the opening and kicked with his knees into Eridanus’s exposed guts and Eridanus would have fell backwards. If he did, Eridanus would be able to counter Zenai's attack. Zenai would then have jumped forward and go for another double-sword strike to get Eridanus to parry with both his swords so they would need to push against one another to overwhelm the other. They would need jump back if neither of them was winning that contest of strength or any of them won, the loser would stumbled back while the winner can press on with the attack.

Zenai jumped back a bit so he can some distance from Eridanus. Once again, they initiated another staring contest. It was Zenai’s turn again; again on the charge but this time, attacking with one sword at a time. Short strike after short strike continuously to keep Eridanus on the defensive with little chance to strike back. It wouldn’t do much but Zenai hoped to create an opening. It was an easy thing for Eridanus to parry. Zenai swung his sword and Eridanus parried it. Eridanus then went for his own swing. Swing, parry. Swing, parry. Swing, parry. Swing, parry. Swing, parry. But there were the occasional parry then swing and other variations.

They continued to strike and parry again and again and again. They stood their ground, neither giving ground to the other nor they would need to. Strike, parry. Strike, parry. Strike, parry. Parry, strike. Strike, parry. It has become a rhythm of sorts. They kept striking and parrying each other and they don’t seem to care. They began to be less aware of the world and more attuned to the music of the clashing swords. Sparks flew and the wind was conjured in-between the swinging of their blades. It was an odd feeling, perhaps it was some kind of martial brotherhood?

oocOkay, Eridanus; you do the next 3 combinations. For the rest, you may chime in; either observing, joining in or otherwise. Just no killing. This is just training.

[Eridanus]

Eridanus raised a hand to signify a short break, panting. Now this was interesting. Zenai was one of the few humans in Sunberth who did not react to him in a hostile manner, either by running away, spitting in his face or even brazenly attempting to rob, murder or slave him. He even offered help sometimes and they got out of certain scraps together. He could even be an ally which tended to be rare in this kind of lawless city. The Vantha could not be too sure, of course, but the fact that their encounters had not been marked with anything of a transactional nature so far, which tended to be the basis of most 'alliances' or 'partnerships' between syndicate members, was a positive first step in their friendship. He had suggested a training session to improve their abilities, since together they somehow had the tendency to get into trouble, regardless if the faut lay with them or not. Unfortunately, they lacked the facilities nor the equipment for an ideal session and so chose this dark rundown area. It was known for its shady characters, sure, which was why they chose to do it in the day when there tended to be lesser criminal activity as compared to the night. It was to their benefit that they used real weapons in the event of a real scuffle emerging - which judging from their luck would probably happen sooner or later - but that also meant that they could not train to the fullest of their abilities for fear of hurting each other. He assumed a stance with his dual long swords, signifying that he was ready and his friend nodded, acknowledging his understanding. Steel in his right (master arm) and cold-iron in his left (non-master arm), he brought his blades closer together, for the closer quarters of the alley forced a combatant to narrow his attack angles or risk chipping them against the walls and opening a window of opportunity for attack. He was comfortable with close-quarters combat, though, since he favored mixing swordplay and martial techniques, though it was regrettable that the confined space would limit his repertoire of evasive manoeuvres. "My turn." He called out, the adrenaline beginning to fuel him as he charged forward. Dashing forward, he swung both blades from the top right to the bottom left of his target's frame, using minimal strength, however, in the event that it was not blocked so he could stop his attack and avoid dismembering his training buddy. Due to the low-investment of that attack, it did not matter if he was blocked, and he followed up with a slanted-angle snap kick. As per his style of lightning-quick but low force attack combinations, he then unleashed a series of thrusts and easy slashes, edging closer and following up with a flurry of jabs using both the base of his blades and his elbows.

OOC: this should be how you post combat. State your attacks while leaving the consequences ambiguous, and allow the other party to reply and make his own counter-attacks

[Zenai]

Zenai saw Eridanus’s move and went to counter it by parrying Eridanu’s two long swords with Zenai’s own two talon swords. Sparks flew and cling-clang of clashing swords echoed all around them. The hit was quite light since this was practice, not the real thing. They would just focus on skills rather than power which could be trained in another way. Zenai then saw an opportunity for a knee-kick but when Zenai was just about to hit Eridanus in the stomach, Zenai coincidentally countered Eriadanus’s own kick. Luckily, Zenai had worn the greaves gifted to him by Ol’ Leg. That was going to be more painful for Eridanus than Zenai.

Eridanus then delivers a flurry of slashes and thrusts which Zenai parried and dodged whenever possible. Eridanus then surprised him with a jab which almost hit Zenai in the face but Zenai ducked under it at the last moment. Too close for comfort. So Eridanus likes to play dirty. It wasn’t so much dirty as it was more of using whatever faculties you have at your disposal than just your weapons. Zenai admired people who would do more than the usual. Sometimes, some people are more conservative and uptight for no logical reason whatsoever.

Zenai had to be creative with his parries now. He saw another jab coming from his left. Zenai blocks and twists it away with his right arm so it the force of the punch would be nullified. A sword-strike to his left was parried by his left sword but then, Eridanus pushed to get an elbow-blow at Zenai’s face. Zenai had to raise his own elbow high to block the blow. Eridanus’s elbow slams into Zenai’s own elbow and the pain is going to linger there for a while. Eridanus is taking too much of Zenai’s personal space or rather his defensive zone so he pushed Eridanus away to reinstate his safety zone. Now, with a bit of space, Zenai took the offensive.

As he ran but before hitting Eridanus, Zenai twist and spun his body to gather momentum for a double sword strike at Eridanus. Whether Eridanus parried or dodged, Zenai would use the momentum of the tornado strike to attack Eridanus again but in addition to his blade attacks, he would go for a kick at Eridanus’s mid-region. Whatever the outcome, Zenai has to back out so he can get his two foot properly on the ground otherwise Zenai would trip and stumble. He would then just go for a flurry of downward cuts, one cut after the other in quick succession so Zenai would put Eridanus on the defensive and hopefully, make him retreat and trip over something. Zenai had to watch out for Eridanus’s kicks though.

[Eridanus]

The Vantha swore as his legs impacted with Zenai's greaves. He did not wear armour himself, and the bruise he got from the flesh-on-steel collision would probably be there for quite a while. He reminded himself to persuade his buddy to shed the armour for further practice sessions. He doubted that he'd want to, though, not unless they were in a safer environment somewhere else. The important thing about combat is keeping one's thoughts fluid, and he mentally made a note to adjust his attacks to avoid any further leg-on-leg collisions, though this form if kick interception was one of his favourite moves. He admired the man's agility, though, for his flurry of blows were - even though some came close to contact - either blocked or redirected. This was his intention though, for his style of unarmed combat was to intrude on an enemy's space, constantly attack in extremely close quarters combat and thus not giving him time to react, both physically and psychologically. He could tell it was working, for the human finally pushed him off, the Vantha allowing himself to be pushed back to give each other some breathing space. They were practising after all, and unlike normal fights where he aimed to end things early, this was one of the few times where a dragged-out fight would prove beneficial for both parties for they would be able to reap more experience and improve their muscle memory and reflexes. Zenai seemed to be ready, for immediately after pushing his sparring partner away, the human ran towards Eridanus, spinning his body to deliver a double slash not unlike the powerful unarmed equivalent of the roundhouse kick. Except that this one would probably render a target in several grisly pieces if delivered with the appropriate force. Eridanus was not used to exchanging strikes against a dual weapon wielder, though, and usually the presence of a dual wielding skill-set tended to be a sign that the wielder was at least competent in his weapon of choice. A novice would tend to end up stabbing his own foot or dismembering his hand by accident. Still, it was a relishing challenge, for every slash was met with a resounding clang, and there was a sort of meta-game to the whole thing. It was like both arms were fighting their own battles against each other, occasionally interweaving and swerving into each other's territories before going back to their respective sides. Neither combatants were masters in dual wielding, and this showed in their techniques of generally keeping attacks made from both hands seperate or together in unison. It also showed in the way they had a master arm to direct the main offensive, with the other hand providing a defensive and support role. Eridanus rolled away from the whirl-wind strike, opting not to block the high-powered attack for it would be quite pressure-inducing on his limbs to take such an enormous impact simultaneously. While he was still on the ground, he spotted a flash of silver and he reactively spread out his legs to provide even support, and raised his swords in a loose 'L' or slanted 'T' shaped arrangement, bracing his body for the impact as Zenai's following slash struck him. He was in a disadvantageous position, and he struggled to move further back away to re-establish his stance, but as he was in the midst of vacating his position he felt a boot at his mid-region. It was fortunate that he was already on the move, and thus most of the force in that kick was not felt and the touch actually helped to propel him further away. Eridanus re-established his position, and readied his combat stance just in time to see Zenai dash forward again. From his observation, the human tended to favor high-damage but low-manoeuvrability attacks, opting to deliver a powerful and possibly lethal strike before recovering and trying again. Intending to use this to his advantage, the swordsman decided that position would of utmost importance, for the very nature of the human's attacks would be outmanoeuvred by the Vantha's style of low-power but high speed and great flexibility attacks. For now, though, Zenai did not seem too particularly motivated to repeat that strategy and satisfied himself to the standard flurry of quick strikes. Eridanus recognized that tactic, for he often used it himself to put a target on the defensive and to eventually overwhelm him. Not one to be defeated at his own game, he matched each attack equally, careful not to place too much force in defending one attack so that he would be free to quickly block the next. In this sort of combat, the name of the game was to force an opponent to either over-extend in blocking an attack so that the next one can go through, or to underestimate the force of an incoming blow, causing it to crush through his defence. He was not sure if the human knew, but as one who was intimately familiar with this style he was more experienced than most in detecting hits, and so did not seem too particularly troubled, holding his own ground. After a couple of rounds, he decided to take the offensive, and slowly edged forward, denying Zenai of more space to engage in attacks that required it, sometimes adding in a surprise thrust here and there when he felt that he had time to spare in between parrying attacks. As he neared the human, he stopped using large swings entirely and focused on tiny slashes and minimal stabs that required little investment in executing. He neared the point where he decided was ideal, and instead of parrying the next swing he ducked underneath it, using the dodge as a distraction for the real reason of doing so, which was the powerful stomp aimed at Zenai's knee with the intention of destabilizing him, and if he were an enemy to seize the window of opportunity to behead him, effectively ending the battle as quickly as possible.

[Zenai]

Zenai wasn’t exactly planning it all out in his heads. Quite the contrary, he was just winging it as went along, relying on both experience and muscle memory to do planning for him. Of course, he had to think at a few points during the fight especially when there’s an objective at hand or a new factor has come into the fight. For now, it was just Eridanus and Zenai; and both their objective was to spar with each other. Winning was optional but something worthwhile to aim for and it made sense; winning means not being killed and Zenai intends to win this fight by putting his sparring partner in such a position that he has to surrender either going for a “killing blow”, minus the actual killing, or tire him out. The former is preferable.

Zenai’s fighting philosophy is simple; go for the killing blow and everything else is a waste of time. Cut off the head and the body falls; simple yet more difficult to execute than it seems. The obvious problem was people tend to like their heads attached to their bodies and they would do anything to keep it that way. Most would prefer using their own weapons and armor to prevent that. However, Zenai is a flexible man and he’s not afraid to try new things. Sometimes, he would cut open their guts and let their stomach fall out. Sometimes, severing a limb would make them bleed out.

Recently, Zenai had to learn that sometimes incapacitating your opponent would be just enough to disable a threat especially when one is outnumbered or that particular target is needed alive. Another lesson Zenai had to learn was using his other faculties to aid in his fight. While training as a Syliran Knight, one tends to be too embroiled in “honorable combat” so throwing kicks and punches were frowned upon. He had to unlearn that and it wasn’t easy. However, through practice and fighting dishonorable individuals, Zenai slowly unbind his “honor” to allow him to throw punches and kicks as well as using his elbows and knees. He also tried learning how to use one’s environment as an advantage. He saw pit fighters throw dirt or spit into their opponent’s eyes to blind them. Just one of many examples of dirty fighting.

Zenai’s attacks went better than expected; he thought it would have gone quite badly. He already knew his first tornado strike would fail. However, it only serves as a means for the second attack to be effective and Eridanus fell into that trap. Eridanus may have blocked Zenai’s swords but his kick made contact and he tumbled backwards. One more step forward to victory. Zenai made sure he got a stable footing before launching the next phase of his offensive; a flurry of cuts and chops. It was mostly to keep Eridanus on the defensive and it worked or so Zenai thinks it works. Zenai had a feeling that Eridanus has a devious trick up his sleeves.

A thought sparked in his head and then panic filled his mind thus finally, re-strategizing. Zenai may be using too powerful of a hit against Eridanus. Actually, he used power attacks quite a number of times. Zenai rethink his objectives; he’s not going anywhere with this power attacks and Eridanus is Zenai’s equal in terms of skill. Petch! Looks like he has to tire Eridanus out but Eridanus seems to be quite ahead of Zenai as Zenai could feel his muscles straining. Looks like he has to go on the defensive and just defend until Eridanus slips up and opens a window of opportunity for Zenai. But what if they both go on the defensive and not attack at all?

Zenai couldn’t finish that thought as Eridanus is going for the offense now. Zenai had to twist his body to avoid being skewered by Eridanus’s long sword. The Half-Inarta replied by a powerful downward cut which Eridanus was able to side step. Conservative strikes, Zenai! Less power, more defense. Zenai nodded to himself. Zenai slowly used smaller, less powerful attacks against Eridanus but he had to give him ground. Zenai could, at least, tell that his attacks were more efficient and less tiring. Zenai and Eridanus traded steel for steel as block and parry each other. Then came Eridanu’s dirty trick; a stomp on Zenai’s right leg that collapsed Zenai.

Shyke! Shyke! Shyke! Those were the only thoughts as Zenai is collapsing onto the ground. He has to think fast otherwise Eridanus could effectively end this. Thinking quickly; a cute kitten is rolling in his little bed. By the gods, it’s so adorable. THINKING QUICKLY BUT ON TOPIC! Zenai remembered one of his earlier thoughts and he gave himself a devious smile as he fallen face first. Luckily, he had his helmet on otherwise his face would be all bruised. Even before the rest of his body contact the ground, Zenai rolled away from Eridanus as quickly as possible. No need to give him a stationary target. At the same time, Zenai scooped up some dirt and tossed it into Eridanus’s face. “Sorry, friend but here’s dirt in your eyes!”

Zenai hoped that the sand-attack would blind and distract Eridanus while Zenai himself gets back on his feet and into a ready fighting position. Petch! That was too close for Zenai. An amateur’s mistake but this was a lesson. Keep your guard up. Luckily, this was a practice fight otherwise Zenai would have been dead. Zenai has to be creative with his own attack and defense now. He hasn’t had much experience against another dual-wielder. Most of his opponents would have favored single-handed, two-handed or weapon-and-shield styles. Dual-wielding needed more finesse and practice than the other styles. There were also certain weaknesses but there are also the attractive strengths to dual-wielding. Still, practice is practice and Zenai relishes learning something new from this. Hopefully, his friend also learns a few more things as well. This was a learning experience that should be remembered.

[Bob Barton]

Normally Bob would not be in Stumble Alley unless he wanted to be caught...dead? But he was going to make the exception today because he wanted to know a little bit more about that pretty ghost lady and the freaky mob. So what better place to start than in the dangerous place he first met them? Obviously he won't go there alone, noooooo. He would need some backup in case he needed Antar but since most of his "friends" are busy, he would have to put up with man's best friend which would include his dog Jinsen.

The first signs that he should have just turned back and forget about all this was the sounds clashing swords. If there was one thing about taverns is that on one really fights in it unless it was a fun brawl. Unfortunately once they were outside all bets were off which would most definitely also include weapons. But still, if there was one thing in Sunberth that everyone could agree on that would be a good fight. Even if they would not join in, watching it was just as good and this mentality even extended over to Bob who gets in on the other side of the action as he always would. Which was why instead of running away he went more closer as quietly as he could.

It was like the battle he would soon see. All the participants planning for their next best move to come out on top. Bob was no different. Once he plotted the course he would take, which was the crates and bins he would hide behind, he would tell Jinsen to "follow, quietly" stressing on the word quiet because he would not want to be suddenly caught up in a fight and headed over to the first bin. Peeking out of it Bob could see the two figures at each other which would be excellent since with the battle they won't pay much attention to him.

Then he crawled over the second crate beckoning the dog to follow. Yes he had to crawl or the dog will make a big scene so Bob was trying to teach it how to move quietly by example which was hard because...even if he tried his best to avoid all the debris to not make any noise somehow his hand got nicked by a glass. Perfect...but he can take a little pain. Jinsen however better "keep quiet and follow me" as he continued crawling. When he peeked out from that crate he got a better view of not one..two...three but four swords! These men must be very skilled to use two each. Well, their movements were not that great but still they would be able to beat Bob in a fight which was why he would not join in.

Crawling over to the third crate Bob would look around to see if there are any other spectators but they were either hiding like him or had no interest in the fight. This also meant that there will be no interest for Bob since he can't join in with fun of his own. He got up and called over to "Jinsen!" and prepared to leave. Even if he got the attention of the fighter's now he still would have a head start but just as he was about to start moving he saw that it was Zenai fighting with...some other guy and Bob was so proud because he saw that Zenai finally had threw away the stupid notions of honour and threw sand at his opponent.

If that was the case then it was the prefect chance for Bob to act. Zenai can't complain about it being unfair to help since he already did something dirty and his opponent would be distracted enough for Bob to actually do something without much risk. Not Bob actually but "Jinsen, go and attack that petching fool!" because no one hurts Bob's friends but Bob himself whether by accident or on purpose. Especially old friends like Zenai who would have been hurt many times. Bob charged at the man hoping that Jinsen would follow when he said "pounce, bite...lick!" Lick only because the dog liked to do that a lot and if it won't attack it was the next best thing.

A smile of satisfaction turned into a frown of despair soon enough. While the dog did follow Bob's commands as it darted in front of him it went over to the wrong target. Jumping at Zenai's face to give him a sloppy, wet, lick. "No Jinsen...that's a friend..." so actually it might have done the right action, just at the wrong time. So it was all up to Bob to save the day. Holding on to the canesword with both hands, he would smash it on Eridanus at the knee from the side while following through with drawing it and aiming a prod right at his back no because that was where the true attack was. Soft enough because even if Bob liked unfair fights, he still frowned on killing. "So will you surrender now...or should I spill blood?" he asked hoping that Eridanus would take his advice instead of Bob being forced to find some other way to stop him.

[Eridanus]

Eridanus grinned in satisfaction as his deviously enacted plan succeeded, succeeding in fooling his friend and crushing his knee downwards, effectively forcing him to kneel down. He thought he accidentally used more strength than necessary when Zenai actually fell face flat on the ground instead, his mind immediately filled with thoughts of sympathy and apologies. His sympathies would immediately change, though, when the next thing he knew, he ate a face full of sand. Now, on hindsight he would have marvelled at this bit of ingenuity. It was the oldest trick in the book, and he would not have expected it, since it was... well, the oldest trick in the book, and he would have expected Zen to know that he would have known and thus not do it. Okay, serious case of reverse psychology there. But still, it was pretty creative and extremely apt in a situation, effectively turning the tables in one swift motion. He was all the more caught by surprise because he knew of Zenai's noble upbringing and he assumed that his code of honor would have prevented him from doing so. Well, this was one lesson that he learned - the more you know about someone the easier it becomes to assume things that might or might not prove detrimental in further dealings. That was why he probably had his guard down more than he should have when fighting with a random stranger, for he had to assume the stranger would be capable of anything and thus more suspicious. In the present, though, his immediate response was to start swearing, uttering a few choice vani words that aptly described Zenai's parents in a not-too-flattering manner. He spat out the sand that was in his mouth, his nose accidentally breathing in a few grains and choking him. That was only the icing, for the main problem was that he was temporarily blind. He wonder if this voided the spar. He shook his head, trying to rub the sand out of his eyes as he stumbled backwards, having dropped his swords to free his fingers for more important tasks. Like restoring his visibility, for one. It was then that Eri realized that the blindness was still the icing on the cake. The main dish appeared, in the form of a diminutive man capping his knees painfully with his signature cane sword and drawing it to threaten him with it. Not that he knew any of that, though, since he was busy stumbling, flailing and generally looking like a complete idiot. A small part of his mind wondered what it would look if he was doing this exact same thing in his Ethaefal form, an oxymoronic juxtaposition of grace and clumsiness. Another small part of his mind told it to shut up and focus on not getting skewered by this new threat. He felt a sharp poke at his back and his body immediately started increasing the dosage of adrenaline, numbing some of the pain in his knees and partially ignoring the itch in his eyes. He immediately rolled forward, finally clearing enough sand from his eyes to make out a short figure holding a shiny, sharp and thin object and instinctively grasped for his blades behind him, feeling empty space and realizing that he had dropped them in the confusion earlier. He swore again, looked around frantically for his buddy to aid him against this new attacker. He should have known that Stumble Alley was a pretty bad idea to conduct training sessions, as one was apt to be jumped on. Still, the figure was not moving forward to engage him and the other figure he assumed to be Zenai did not look like he was going to provide assistance any time soon. In fact, Zenai looked pretty weird from this angle. He squinted again. It was like he had grown a second monstrous head or something. An inner part of him wanted to giggle but the Vantha suppressed it. Signs of mirth in the middle of a tense combat situation? Not exactly appropriate. His Ethaefal personality that was in the back seat mentally nodded in agreement. Eri decided to stop the wild thoughts and he squinted again, making out a familiar face. It was then that he realized that the man was at a same height as him. While he was in a kind of half-crouch position. The collections of memories from a week back struck him and he pieced together the clues that was the man's mischievous grin and unmistakably short frame to deduce his identity. "Skies be damned, Bob. It's me, Eri!" He swore at the midget. "Now put that sharp thingamajig away." He had no wish to be skewered by someone almost half his frame. It had something to do with personal pride. Or maybe an innate human desire to not get one's ass kicked by someone physically weaker than oneself.

[Idue]

It seems I'm saving you again. Sorry for a rushed post, but I was rushed by my step-mom.

To some, Stumble Alley was a bad place to be, but to Idue, it was just another location in Sunberth. The Benshira found himself wandering the alleys, not looking for anything in particular. He wore his usual outfit with his turban situated atop his head. His hands were on top of his handaxes that were thrusted through his sash. His blue eyes scanned around, looking for any trouble that might occur. He didn't want it, but he didn't want to get caught off guard. And then he heard the clash of steel. Idue sped up, cutting through passageways to come onto this fight happening. He wondered who was fighting, and if he should be of assistence. He enjoyed helping those in need, and maybe this was one of those times to be of assistence. Pulling one of his handaxes out, he stepped out of the area where the fight was being held, and nearly dropped his weapon. Eridanus was there, fighting a red-haired man, while a dog ran around them. But the oddest thing was a very short man swinging a cane sword at Idue's friend. As funny as it was, Idue knew that Eridanus might be in trouble. What if that midgit was an expert assassin? He needed help from a friendly Benshira again. Running forward, Idue sent his leg upward towards the midgit. He hoped it would slam the midgit in the back and give Eridanus some breathing room. "It seems I must save you again." As Idue continued fighting, he realized something. Stumble Alley was full of surprises.

[Zenai]

If there’s one quality Zenai likes about Sunberth, it’s that it’s full of surprises. Some are nice while others are more of a detrimental nature to one own health. Zenai had expected they would be found or even spied on but such a coincidence only happens uncommonly or even rarely. Zenai expected to be watched by a dozen street-rats or weasels taking bets on who will be the winner. Worst case scenario was they would be found by drunken Daggerhands spoiling for a fight or, something of Zenai’s self-induced problem, a band of dragoons looking for revenge. However, he didn’t expect friendly, yet dirty, faces like Bob and that axe-wielding fellow.

However, Zenai has more immediate concerns like having a dog spitting its “venom” onto Zenai’s face. “Jinsen. Jinsen! For the love of Eywaat, get off me, you stupid dog!” Zenai had to let go off his swords. It would be more convenient just to slash or even pommel strike the dog but it was just a dog. That’s a couple of levels higher than a rat. With his hands free, he was able to get a hold of Jinsen. Gently, he lifted the dog of his face which still attempted to lick Zenai and get the dog off him. He immediately got up and wipes the dog saliva off his face. “Jinsen, I appreciate the affection but can’t you find a cleaner way to do it like bringing me a corpse?” He’s going to need to wash up after this or even go to one of those fancy bath houses.

With the saliva wiped away with his sleeves which he noted he shouldn’t use to wipe his mouth or nose later on, Zenai picked up his swords and sheaved them. Zenai then assessed the situation; Zenai had almost fell to the ground by Eridanus’s kick in which Zenai immediately rolled away from Eridanus while throwing sand and dirt into Eridanus’s face. Zenai noted down that that tactic should be used more liberally. However, Bob suddenly came to “save” Zenai. Zenai assumed that Bob wanted Jinsen to attack Eridanus but knowing the dog, it instead went for an “attack” against Zenai. Bob, despite his small frame, tripped Eridanus who then fell on his stomach. Bob then drew out his sword part of his cane and pressed the tip of the blade against Eridanus’s back. Another surprise came in the form of a dual axe-wielding turban man who kicked Bob in the back. Luckily, it was just one of Eridanus’s associates.

Zenai half-expected another one to show up but after a few tense seconds, Zenai just shrugged and went over to Bob. Zenai grabbed the under pits of Bob then lifted him up. Zenai could feel how light Bob was and there was an aching feeling just to lift Bob over his own head and toss him over the horizon but he thought otherwise. Zenai helped Bob get on his own two feet then dusted the dirt off the short man. “Bob! good to see you, old friend. Never expected in this kind of places. Good to know that I have a friend watching my back though I would expect you to take bets on our fight. Still, always good to have a friend like you.” Zenai said with much honesty. Zenai stood up and look at the newcomer who then helped Eridanus.

Zenai also went over to help Eridanus up, also dusting off the dirt and sand Zenai threw at Eridanus earlier. “Well, this is most unexpected, isn’t it? I think we were too caught up in our fight to notice Bob and this…other fellow here. We need to take note on that. This is Sunberth after all.” Zenai said-as-a-matter-of-fact. Done with cleaning up Eridanus, Zenai turn to the turban-wearing dual-axe wielder. “My name is Zenai. That stout comrade you just kicked is Bob. Pleased to meet you. I assume you are one of Eridanus’s acquaintances?” Zenai held out a hand for a handshake.

This…Benshira, Zenai assumed from the way he dressed, was quite the odd one out in Sunberth. Then again, Zenai is a half-Inarta who’s a former squire while Eridanus was dead then was reborn by the ocean. Sunberth is quite the place indeed. What’s with people and dual-wielding? Zenai thought he was a rare breed but looks like what they say is true. Birds of a feather flock together. However, Eridanus and Zenai had noble intentions while Bob wants to suck as much mizas out of Sunberth as he possibly could. Zenai had to ask, “So, uhm…Eridanus’s friend, what brings an exotic person like you all the way to Sunberth if you don’t mind me asking.”

A thought lit on fire in Zenai’s mind, they, specifically Eridanus and Zenai, were supposed to train and not having tea time with biscuits and tea. Those can be done after the training. Perhaps a few more rounds then Zenai can call it a day but then they have two guests; a midget with a dog and a Benshira Axer. Zenai thought for a while as whether or not to invite the two to sparring. The Benshira brought another dual-wielder into the fight but instead of swords, he had axes. Quite dangerous and had its own quirk to it. Bob had his small size and cane-sword as well as Jinsen. Bob could deadly in his own right but only at the right opportunity like the when Eridanus was distracted by the sand Zenai threw in his face. He should ask out of politeness.

After the others picked themselves up and clean off the dirt and saliva, Zenai addressed the motley crew. “As to clear up this whole misunderstanding, Eridanus and I were just practicing our combat skill. Sunberth is a dangerous place and we thought we should be a bit more adept at self-defense. So we thought of coming out here to a deserted part of Sunberth to practice but it looks we’ve attracted some attention to our spar. Luckily, it was you guys instead of some assassins or bandits. If you’re interested, you can come practice with us if Eridanus have no objections.”

[Bob Barton]

Pride? That was what Bob was feeling right about now when he had in a way come out on top of Eridanus who was a pretty good fighter. No one really cares about how its done because the results were only what mattered. It was actually pretty funny and Bob gave a little chuckle while he celebrated the fact that he "got you there didn't I? I wonder how was it you-" and then it happened. Just like Bob caught Eridanus off guard, he was caught off guard by some stupid heroic wannabe. There were just too many of those in Stumble Alley lately. Was this really one of the most dangerous places in Sunberth? Maybe just to the usual brand of scum then.

Of course unless you were a Bob who always does things stupidly awesome, randomly jumping into things would qualify as dangerous too. As much as he wanted to not kill Eridanus earlier and now wanted not to hurt the ethaefal after knowing his identity, the sudden blow to his back made things a whole lot different. The sharp thingamajig was already pointed straight at Eridanus if it was not already prodding on him. Benshiras who were totally out of their element here should not act rashly and look at circumstances properly because someone might get hurt like the people they were failing to save.

Along with his body which was being propelled forward from the blow the sword would without doubt head straight for the target it was pointed to as well. Everything slowed down as Bob shrieked "pe-tc-h!" until he realized what was going on. In a matter of moments, Eridanus would be stabbed by the sword right through the chest. Best thing that Bob has done in his life ever. Saving the trouble for their unknown assailant to finish off one of theirs before the fight even started and no doubt Zenai would blame him for it after that.

Doing his best so that the blood of Eridanus won't be splattering all over him, Bob twisted his body to move the sword. Not an attack like always but to prevent an accidental attack. And so the sword went to the side but not as fast as Bob had hoped because he felt it digging into something soft which tried to halt his movements. Could it be clothes, skin or flesh? Only time would tell when they examine it, after Bob fell sideways on Eridanus and getting some of that icky red stuff all over his clothes. If Zenai thought dog venom was bad he should see how bad stains were.

Zenai got him up soon enough where Bob admitted that "I would have, if you two had a better match to draw a crowd. It is all so fake..." but with Stumble Alley's reputation even Bob would be mistaken of the events. While Zenai went to make some new friends Bob looked at Jinsen asking if "that mean old Zenai hurt you anywhere?" patting it over to see if his dog was still alright. Just the regular stupid slobbering one who put his venom all over Bob's face which made him "gasp! I guess you are alright enough."

Bob could not allow this x-man hero to think he got away with it and he was really happy to hear Zenai's suggestion. "Practice? That sounds very good" when if offers Bob a chance to return his humiliation. His hands were petting all over the dog continuing to encourage it like he did earlier but sneakily when his hands went down, he grasped a handful of sand preparing to do the attack he saw Zenai doing earlier.

Then picking up his sword and cane he walked up to the dual wielding Benshira who is not that scary with the idea of a little spar and looked to Zenai and Eridanus telling them "I choose this one." Without warning or waiting for his opponent to prepare himself, Bob tossed the sand straight at Idue's eyes and swept at his legs with the cane deciding that any proper attack should wait while the Benshira was blindly swinging his axes around until he became tired or opened himself to recover.

OOCTold you I'd do it Nathan so no surprise there XD