[Spring Tournament, Round 1] Play Time!

[Damian]

Damian walked into the modest fighting area shocked by the amount of people. If he had his tail, it would be in movement so quick that the air would whistle. He noticed the amount of people as they watched from above and all around. A shit eating grin was plastered across his face as he strutted in proudly. His red eyes darted from person to person, so many people all at once with their eyes on him. The confidence boost overwhelmed him. He wasn’t sure what he had gotten himself into, he didn’t quite understand the festival in the slightest. All he knew was he wanted to be the center of attention. He had grown fond of human beings, as he coexisted with them, but still didn’t quite understand their ways. Humans continued to be, odd, to Damian. “This is going to be fun!” He spoke aloud to himself and jumped around from foot to foot. “I wonder who I get to play with next? Maybe it will be another dog! Roof, that would be fun!” He waited for his other opponent to arrive as he continued to kick soil and play around in the arena.

[Malavos]

One long stretch of preliminary fights and Malavos was finally getting back into the fighting scene only this one was not forced on him. This one was not filled with spectators wanting to watch one fighter being felled by another. He understood that it was an event to honor an individual that is of great influence to the city but then again that did not make him feel any better. Ravok also had someone who stood out above all others in charge of the city and he only had to look at his own life to know how that turned out.

Unlike his opponent Malavos did not like the people in the arena and like in the pits he tried to ignore them because they would only make him angry as he remembered. When he entered, his eyes was fixed on his opponent, his hands on the hilt of his sword that rested on his shoulder, his legs planted firmly on the ground so that he can stand taller than...than this man who was acting very strangely. In all his fights, Malavos has never encountered something like this before. Normally any actions before the fight by anyone was to him either to intimidate their opponent or to win over the crowd.

Instincts took over the void left by reason and Malavos dropped his sword to the ground so that he may start hitting his chest. Roaring as the air was forcibly pushed from his lungs as loud as he could not for the spectators, not for his opponent but for himself.

Because only by seeing how his opponent would react could Malavos think about fighting him.

[Damian]

With a twitch of his ear and a tilt of his head, Damian was curious about the roar. The clatter of the sword as it settled on the ground was a racket to the dog. However, as he eyed the long piece of metal he couldn't help but think, "Fetch?" With very little hesitation Damian took off running toward Malavos. The wind whistled in his ear, while the crowd's noise tickled the rim. He didn't care about the man only about that shiny instrument. "Play, play, play," he chanted with each step he took. When he was within range of the man he quickly dropped to all fours and slid by that sword. His hands just barely grazed the hilt, but overall he missed the stick. If the man was like any other he knew that they'd retort to such a bold action. Thinking on his feet, his toes curled into the soil as he took a leap away from the man only to turn back around, still crouched on all fours. He kicked up some dust as he bounced around on his hands excitedly. The fun had only just begun and Damian was in heaven, even as the crowd chanted his acquired nickname, "Go Fool!" They shouted which only mad a low growl of excitement vibrate from his chest before he suddenly made another grab for the sword.

[Malavos]

The man did not even wait until Malavos was done and seized the opportunity. It was completely unexpected and only brought the thought that this was an opponent that could not be compared with the earlier half assed cowards. His challenge would be met. Malavos drew back his arm preparing for a strong blow once his opponent was within reach but then another surprise. The arm extended to meet no resistance but the air which rushed past his bare skin.

A growl of annoyance wondering where did the man disappear to until the words fool reached his ears. In the Pits there were many who liked to say that word with a lot of malice and although this was not the tone used, rage clouded his judgement as Malavos stared around the arena as he made a spin growling until his eyes fixed on the person who was making a fool out of him.

The same person who is now growling at him. This was getting on his nerves especially when the same method was used again to try and ridicule him. Not this time, not any other time! Arms extended straight across, Malavos charged as well ready to smack his opponent away and into the reality of the tournament that they were in.

[Damian]

Damian stood and studied the man as his hips swayed with excitement. The lack of a tail only made the gesture look even more foolish on the older male. Damian didn't like how the cheap fabric draped across his body was so loose. But he had learned from earlier experiences that clothing, as the humans called it, was a necessity to fit in with the crowd. His rough habits were apparent as the cloth was torn around the knees. The shirt was filthy and torn in many places, the dog had only one set of clothing. Regardless, Damian's mind wandered back to the man. Excitement wasn't the first thing he gauged by the male's facial expression. No, it wasn't anything playful at all. Rage boiled beneath his opponent's skin and the bestial, distinctly inhuman expressions told Damian much. The crowd continued to chant and distracted Damian from the man who began to charge forward. He only turned his head back in time to feel the strong body blow through him. He was knocked off balance by the force and fell back onto his back end and slid. The crowd roared with excitement as the first attack was landed. The round had finally started and the bets had begun to be placed. Damian used his hands to slow his skid and scraped the palms along the rough, red, soil of the ground. Dazed, he quickly shook it off as more baser instincts began to surface. No longer was he there just for the fun of it, but by the looks of his opponent he was there to fight. Quickly he shifted to a better stance. He swung his legs under his body and dug his bare feet into the earth. Unfazed by the weak human toe nails that bent from the force of his movements, he quickly charged back at the man. "Mmm, big fella isn't having fun. Lets see if I can change that," he thought to himself; he changed his plan of attack. He darted, circled, around the man and watched him closely. After he had rounded behind the man, he stumbled as he shot toward the discarded sword. His fingernails scraped at the surface of the arena as his hand wrapped around the hilt of the sword. He slid on the ground, the metal clattering against the soil mixed with hard stone. He wielded the sword from the ground as if it were a tree branch. The sharp blade outstretched toward the man, nails caked with dirt. "Hey fella!" He called to his opponent, "I got your stick." The silvery surface glimmered in the sunlight as it was waved around as if to entice the man. He stood back up cautiously, eyes locked on the other man's own in a fight for unspoken dominance. He knew he didn't know how to use one of those, things, sword! "You want the stick?" His voice sounded playful but in a way that a parent would use with a child. He waved it in wide sweeps now, "I bet you want it don't you?" Damian paused a moment before he brought the sword back. His posture looked as if he was about to swing the sword sloppily toward the man. However, it came to a surprise to the audience when Damian swung his entire body around and threw the sword over the man's head. His chest hurt from the tackle, he couldn't deny that, as he chucked the heavy piece of metal. It came to crashing halt on the ground far on the opposite end of the arena. "Go get it boy!" Damian said excitedly. Hopefully the man would be up for this fool's game.

[Malavos]

Did he understand yet that they were in a real fight that people could get hurt or gods forbid, killed? Malavos did not like the latter a lot. He has had enough of it but with the way the man was ridiculing him with his strange behavior so far, he might just accidentally do it. It was unfortunate that they were not able to meet on different terms because Malavos would have loved to talk to another kelvic about the misgivings of clothes...and the disgusting humans which forced it on them.

But this was a fight and all his opponent would get is a smack. A hard one by the looks of it as the man skidded on the ground. Of course Malavos would wait until he got back up. As angry as he was he could still remember one of the things that was taught to him in the Pits, that the crowd wants to see a good show and not a quick one. Wait! Why did he care about that now especially when his opponent wanted to get hit bad? Seeing that the next charge was coming, drew his arm back again.

Because he was going to go for a knockout but he could not do it when his opponent did not come anywhere near him! Malavos still at ready spun in place to try and keep his eyes on his opponent but it proved too much because he got dizzy pretty fast. Before he knew it and could recover, his sword was already gone and pointed right back at him. Of course this made Malavos take a few steps to get out of its range already halfway losing that battle for dominance.

That was until he knew that he was being ridiculed even more. Not only was his opponent patronizing him like he was some sort of whelp but the rest of the crowd, those humans were taking a few laughs at him too. One word which can be easily applied to Malavos is proud and when he stood up straight again to assume a defensive stance, he wanted everyone else to know it. He never replied to the man's mocking but his eyes which stared straight ahead said that he was not going to back down.

Anticipating the sword cutting right through him, Malavos was going through the options and decided to just bend down since his opponent was projecting his movements in a way that could not be missed. It did come as a surprise when Malavos saw the sword flying over him and the crashing sound that followed. This was going to be his chance. A chance to grab his weapon and start the battle for real.

Unless it was playing right into his opponent's hands. Malavos was seething in anger because his opponent actually thought that he was stupid enough to show his back and make himself vulnerable. Instead he started stalking towards his opponent and cracking his knuckles. In a way, his opponent did him a great favor. Now Malavos did not have to play pretend and get on to using his natural weapons.

His fists. Which will be flying as swift as possible as soon as his opponent was within arm's reach.

[Damian]

Damain's strength came from the multiple skills he had acquired while he lived among the forest. Surprise, stealth, sloppy precision, eat food that night, unfortunately none of those resources where available to him. He had been in numerous fights, all informal, mostly with other canines as they fought for territory or played with each other. He was never very good at formal spars. He was unsure what to do as he dodged the punches to the best of his abilities. "Come on," he said with a hint of sadness breathing heavily, "cheer up don't you want to play fetch?" The man didn't know what to do, how to make the man less angry than he was. But as the crowd began to become rowdy, they had come to see a spar not just idle play time. "Fight, fight," the crowd chanted. The noises and conflict of sight and sound overwhelmed Damian for a moment. His opponent appeared to be ready to fight, the crowd chanted for one. It was time to go to work so to speak. With the sword on the other end of the arena, he wasn't going to run for it once more. He'd have to face his opponent. Or at least get past him, "he seemed to be afraid of the stick, maybe I can go and get it again?" He thought to himself as he crouched low to the ground and almost spider crawled across the ground toward Malavos. His eyes never left his opponent's own as he slowly inched his way forward slowly, "So you want to play huh? I want to play too!" Damian shouted at Malavos, but was there a hint of playfulness in that tone?

[Malavos]

Crap. By the looks of it even the fool knew better than to come charging in again. There Malavos was with his fists in the air for a fight but his opponent was trying to talk him until the fight ended. Not going to be fooled another time, not like when the humans talked with all those sweet words to spring a surprise attack in the pits. Of course it did not work that time or Malavos would not be here but there was always that uncertainty in fights.

The crowd certainly had the right idea but how about the other fighter? Again he was talking about play and assuming another strange stance. Soon the excited chants changed into annoyance with the both of them idling. As much as Malavos did not want to fight for their amusement, what they were demanding for seemed to be the sort of things he wanted to do most right now.

"Tenderize him! Break his bones! Knock him out to next season!" was some of the nicer suggestions they gave him.

And why not especially when his opponent was so obliging? Crouching down like that and moving forward slowly only made him look like he was submitting to Malavos. The bigger one, the stronger one, the dominating one and following the kelvic's instincts he wanted to show just how much that was true. With a roar he charged forward, each step slowly counting down to the point that Malavos can connect his foot at grovelling opponent's head.

No mercy was going to be given to someone that has ridiculed him so much because mercy was for the weak. Malavos knew he was not.

Without allowing himself time to catch his breath the airborne foot will plant itself on the ground after the first strike. Even if it did not hit it should be good enough to disorient his opponent long enough to bring his fist down following the strength he collected with his kick. Fist, arm, elbow, chest, they would all be used straight for the head except for the knee at the end of it all to show that playtime does not suit everyone's tastes because it can upset the stomach.

[Damian]

Damian was nimble on his feet as he focused on being more dog like. His knees were lifted off the soil as he crawled on the balls of his feet as well as finger tips. While he waited for his opponent to make a move he began to strip off his clothing. The larger opponent was going to take some fancy foot work to get around. It was when he began to wiggle the loose pants from his waist when the attack finally came. His eyes followed the man, the fight for animalistic dominance had been started, and Damian would be damned to yield to some human unwillingly. The pants caught around his legs, he struggled as he nearly dodged the foot. It hit the ground with much force and smashed small grains and shards of rock into his eye. He growled and rolled as he kicked off the rest of his pants. His eyes were red and irritated as he re-orientated his position quickly. Still crouched low, he was naked as he prepared for what he wanted to do. But it would come at a later time as he barely saw an elbow contact the side of his face. The inside of his head rang as the world seemed to spin for a moment. Somehow, he found himself a few paces away from the opponent. Perhaps he had blacked out momentarily, however when the world returned the playful fool Damian once was did not wake up. A loud long growl came from his chest as he swung himself back to his hands and feet. His eyes glowed as the cells that allowed him to see in the dark re-oriented themselves and reflected the sun light. His lips were pulled back in a large snarl. His teeth show before his toes and sole bare into the ground firmly. His leg muscles flex like a spring as he begins to sprint back toward his opponent like a wild dog he was. Damian was only a few paces away before he leaped out of the low, dog like run. His hands were outstretched as if he was about to tackle Malavos. Instead whips of blinding light began to stretch out around him. The streamers of frail, bright, light wrapped around his body as they moved like the light bends in heat. Such a close proximity of the shift would no doubt be brilliant and overpowering to whomever may be within the immediate area around him. Regardless, Malavos wrist soon found a sharp pain pierce up the arm. Damian's jaws wrapped around the man's wrist, sharp pointed teeth dug deep into the human skin. He could taste the iron taste of blood as Malavos' heart pulsed and pumped his life force through the ruptured veins. The pain only grew greater as Damian's strongly built, lithe, and black silk veiled body lost its momentum. His torso arched as he swung his legs toward the ground and shook his head some. The jerk of his body and twist of his head only adding pressure to the wrist. He growled as he hung from the limb as he realized he had grabbed the wrong limb, he wanted the neck.

[Malavos]

Even if the trick was the same one used a lot to surprise his adversaries, Malavos rarely was the receiving end of it. Is that how the others felt, enchanted by the bright light? Still he never should have given the dog his chance to prepare the attack. The warm glow only lasted for a moment until he was introduced to the red of his blood and along with it, the familiar sensation when something pierced into his flesh.

It was pain. After so long recovering in that peaceful island, Malavos almost forgot what it was like when the humans kept him. Everyday to hurt and be hurt while never discriminating between the races whether human, kelvic, dhani, isur and never caring about the reason whether survival, the thrill, glory, malice. So intense the experience that he cannot even remember but here his opponent was trying to remind him. The dog should have continued its clueless freedom instead of going for the kill in nothing but a show competition.

There was no doubt that Malavos knew his opponent's intentions after having been in so many fights where life and death may be settled with a single chance. From the quick flash to the explosive leap and then powerful chomp, Malavos knew he needed to end the fight fast. Like the dog he was now free and so he had no owner to ensure him fighting another day. He had to take care of the damage to his arm on his own. There was no point in persisting when there will be other times to call on his strength.

Before he could end it, Malavos has to get rid of the mutt. Quickly acting he started raining blows from his only free arm on the dog's head. At least this way he knew where and what the dog would be, an easy target. After a few blows, Malavos stopped to give his arm a shake to see if the dog had enough before continuing. Each hit getting stronger the more he squeezed his fist to make it harder. It cannot be that he had to do more. He only had one hand but even so it was one strong hand.