Siren vs Artifex Felicis '39

[Artifex Felicis]

The small red ball had a surprising amount of force behind it as it ricocheted off of the wall and towards the cat boy on the opposite side of his arena. There was considerable distance between the wall and its master, but that was crossed in what seemed like the blink of an eye. It bounced once on the smooth wooden floor before it met with the bat swung by Leon. The red ball left with a hard smash and went off kilter, hitting the opposite wall as well as the side wall. It lost most of its momentum, rolling along the ground until it came to a stop near the only furniture in the room.

The cat boy swore as he walked towards the small toy. He had seen the game being played sometime ago and thought it was interesting. The premise was simple. Hit the ball against the wall and keep it up for as long as he could. The cat boy's best score was only eight at the moment, though he usually only got three or four at best before the ball went off kilter or out of his reach. At the very least he had one advantage compared to playing the game outside. His arena provided a high, solid wall to use and the near complete lack of furniture prevented the ball from hiding. It was better then merely sitting around and sleeping until someone came.

The cat boy bent down, reaching with a hand under the hammock for the red ball and picked it up. This was just killing time before his latest challenger arrived. Not as many people managed to pass through the first tier of fighters, so Leon had a nice cushion. The spot of a master was not that bad either. He had a place to sleep, free food and actually got paid for it. The challengers who did manage to make it to him so far were not that much of a problem for the cat boy. His two tails swished from side to side in anticipation of the coming bout. The message had come earlier that day, but all infermation beyond that, even a name, was withheld at his own request.

He didn't bother to sit down, but walked forward a few steps, bouncing the red ball up and down on the ground. Leon Timyon fit the appearance of a master fighter like a round peg in a square hole. He was in incredible shape, but a sailor's muscles bulged compared to his own. He wore no shoes, and no noticeable armor. He only wore a t-shirt that day, with some of the sweat from the playing with the red ball already beginning to show. A mane of hair stayed in place and out of his eyes, but was not as polished compared to nearly everyone else on Althanas. Even his current weapon, the oaken bat, looked more like a kid's toy then anything else.

Appearances were deceiving though. That was one thing the nekomata was intimately familiar with. The tiny dragon could tear off a leg with ease, just as the giant of a man could be felled by a single stone. The cat boy grinned, sitting down with the oak bat across his lap. Even for his comparatively thin body, his muscles almost seemed to ripple as they moved. Everything went in an almost perfect movement, never more or less then what was needed. More energy was wasted sneezing then swinging a bat. He threw the small red ball forward, so it bounced a little off the door. Most of its momentum was gone by then, and it stopped at rest for the challenger.

((EDIT for Future Stuffs. Due to the fact Siren has failed to post within the time limit of 3 days twice, she has lost the match. The match is continued ICly simply for the fact it can be finished.))

[Siren]

Somehow, she'd gained a free pass to challenge a Master in the Dajas Pagoda. Even as she prepared to go to the fight, Siren still didn't know exactly what had happened. Sure, the Pagoda official had given the reasons, but she'd been incredibly drunk at the time and hadn't known left from right or up from down. She was reasonably sure she'd had her shirt on, but after eight or ten mugs of ale, nothing was ever certain with the beautiful half-Mer.

Still, she thought as she twirled her hair up and out of easy yankability, Orun's having fun doing this Pagoda thing. He seemed really excited. And maybe it'll be more fun than it sounded. Because going and poking someone else with a pointy stick in a controlled environment is really fun. Right.

Finished preparing, Siren checked her harpoons' harness and then picked up her spear, all beautifully polished driftwood and whale tooth. The weapons had served her well for a couple of years now, and she felt a special tie with them, for they, like she, had come from the sea.

She left the inn she'd been staying at. For once, her bed was empty, since she'd thought it best to rest her body before a fight. Orun's descriptions of the other heirarchs had made her opponent, Leon Timyon, sound incredibly fast, or at least built that way, but Orun pretended to be unimpressed with everything, so she couldn't be sure what his capabilities were.

"Well, nothing to do but go meet my match."

She walked through the bustling streets of mid-morning Scara Brae with a swaggering step that was both confident and incredibly alluring, taking in the sights of the cobblestone streets and stationary buildings again. It never ceased to amaze her how easy others found it to live in one house in one town in one country all their lives, and how easy it was to do the same job day after day. They'd only been in Scara Brae a week, and already Siren was itching to get back to sea. They were just waiting for Orun.

The incongruous pair of half-breeds had come from Corone just after a cannon-rescuing mission. The plan had been simple: get some crew, then go to Alerar or Raiaera to "acquire" a ship of their own. She'd gotten the crew on their first night, sound sailors all. Well, most. One was a scruffy looking mage and another a flighty fancier of song, and a third was one she'd brought on because he was nice to look at. But other than that, they were sailing sorts.

And then Orun had gotten bored, and next thing he knew, he was a warrior in the Dajas Pagoda. It was prefect for the half-Orc. Absolutely perfect. He could be a violent bastard to his heart's content, and Siren knew how much he enjoyed being a violent bastard.

It also gummed up their entire operational plan. She'd thought about just leaving him behind, but the burly greenskin was a very good hand to have in a tight spot, and she could trust him to not be too distracted by her perfectly hourglass form to work with her on important tasks.

So she'd taken her own opportunity to visit the Pagoda. Couldn't hurt to kill some time until either Orun got bored or got his ass handed to him, and she could use the opportunity to challenge stronger people.

The Pagoda itself was very impressive. An imposing wall enclosed several buildings. The first six were smaller than the rest by a little bit, and as varied as they could possibly be. There was one that almost resembled a cathedral, and one that resembled the graceful training centers of Akashima. Siren passed by Orun's stone collossus, thinking that maybe she'd drop in to pester him, but the door was shut; he was busy.

In the distance, she could see a much grander building, but standing between her and that was a row of three buildings that dwarfed the Warriors' six. Leon's was on the right, and with a shrug she headed into it, opening the simply styled door just as a red rubber ball rolled to her feet.

She stooped to pick it up, then looked at the two-tailed neko creature lounging on part of the decor.

"Lose something, kitty cat?"

Please allow a day or so so I can look over this and get it edited, due to circumstances I'm pressed for time right now.

[Artifex Felicis]

((I'm just assuming you won't edit anything differnet then what you did.))

The door opened without a sound. Leon hated it whenever a creaky door squeaked, so he had personally made sure that the door’s hinges were well oiled every few days. It was one of the minor details he loved about his arena that he had chosen. There was nothing complex or hidden. Merely a bare room, the only furnishing was the hammock he sat on. Even then, it didn’t touch the bare ground. It was kept immaculate but the steady sweepings of a broom. Even the walls were well cleaned, the only decorations several weapons which the cat boy employed in his fights. Lately though, he had taken to not even using a sword or shield, but going in with what his mother and father had given him. He joked every once in a while that he was already excessively armed and that anything more was simply overkill.

“Call it a prize,” Leon replied, getting up lazily. “If you do well, you can keep the little red ball as a memento or something. Like a prize at a festival game.” He was comfortable upon his spot, but he didn’t have much choice in the matter. He used the bat like a cane, pushing himself up and letting its tap follow his stride towards the girl. There was some room between the two before the master stopped, scratching one leg with the other. He balanced on the bat, fighting off an involuntary yawn that came when he rose from a resting position.

“Anyways, I’m Leon, Master of the Dajas Pagoda and all of that garble,” the cat boy explained. He did yawn this time. He licked his lips once, watching the girl and keeping track of her. Every once in a while, though so far only in the Citadel, he had faced an opponent who simply charged right from the door. Not bad tactics, and it made for a tough fight at first.

“I'm sure you heard it before, so after you're ready,” Leon paused. A silly smile crossed his face. The bat went under his arm, pushing it into his side to prevent it from falling. He raised two large front paws, careful not to let their wicked claws show to the girl. The nekomata waggled his hands. “Rawr.”

[Siren]

warning to me for being late.

A grin flitted across Siren's full lips in response to the feline's as her eyes turned a playful aquamarine. She didn't miss the blue eyes tracking her - predator's eyes, despite the goofy grin and clownish posture he'd adopted. She'd seen her fair share of skirmishes, but there had always been obstacles, and it had almost always been on the deck of a ship, with an unstable floor under sure feet.

This arena was more than slightly simple, it was true, but it was also more to her disadvantage than anything else could have been, against an unknown and dangerous foe. She knew that Orun would probably laugh at her if he could hear how her thoughts were going, but that didn't matter.

All of a sudden, it just mattered that she survived to recount this tale over a tankard of beer or a glass of brandy. But to let Leon see her unease was sure death. If he could see her eyes clearly and mark the change from light blue to an uneasy gray-green, she'd already given herself away. It was her hope that he wasn't that perceptive.

With a languid motion, the half-Mer reached back with her right hand, flicking at where her multi-hued hair would be out of instinct before empty air reminded her that she'd tied it back. Since he could already see her hand hovering above the grip of a wickedly pointed harpoon, she grinned.

"I'm simply Siren...and I guess I'm ready."

With a quick yank, she released the first harpoon, and with a step forward, flung it at the feline as though he were a particularly large fish.

That quickly, battle had been joined.

[Artifex Felicis]

His hands were lowered only somewhat. They were tensed a little, ready to snap and fire off when the perfect moment came. His whole body was almost like a coiled spring there, all of the power to his muscles constrained just barely by self-control. The girl was close to him, not much more then one or two bounds by his strong legs. From there, a simple swipe of a wicked claw and her life's blood would trickle onto the floor. All of it could be done in the span of perhaps three breaths.

The predator controlled himself though. Such a tactic, while effective at times, relied too much on an ambush and surprise. While the girl was put off somewhat by him, there was no reason to suspect she was a fool just yet. A well placed knife or spear and his little pounce would not be as successful as he would like. He could shrug off a knife cut or three, but not one impaled into his chest.

His mouth opened into a smile, revealing white teeth made to tear and rip, as the girl put her body into throwing the sharp spear at him. His feet gripped the wooden floor as he hunched down, only the very tip of his whitish hair close to the harpoon. The bell round his neck jingled merrily as it went this way and that, almost echoing the clatter that the fallen harpoon made on the floor. His free fore-paw pushed at the ground as his legs kicking off and launching him forward. The leap brought him close to the girl, enough so that his swinging arm could throw the wooden club in his hand at her with a fair degree of accuracy.

[Siren]

I wasn't sure if you were throwing the stick or just standing there, so if you don't like the bunny, PM me on my main and let me know.

She hadn't expected the harpoon to hit, but watching it brush just by him was maddening, like he was trying to taunt her. His fanged smirk proved it, proved to her that he thought he could stalk her at leisure in his open-floored cage. He wouldn't be the first stalker she'd had, and she'd always found that a good crack in tender places tended to make them think again. She'd have to try that here.

The stick that flew at her head forced her to duck as well, her slender form moving with an agility gained only by years at sea and reflexes gained only by the hard experience of dodging collapsing masts lest they crush you. Here, there was an advantage in that the floor wasn't water-slick and the waves underneath weren't doing their damnedest to fling an unwary sailor into the merciless jaws of the sea.

It was one less thing to think about, and with this opponent, she knew she'd need every advantage she could get - but he was familiar with having a good grip under his feet, and she wasn't. It wasn't much of an advantage, especially since she knew that his tails would have granted him superior balance even if they'd been fighting on greased ropes over a shark pit.

Her eyes had never left her opponent's center of mass; a center that seemed to shift as the felinoid commanded. It would be difficult to unbalance him, and even moreso to keep him unbalanced. It didn't look as though he was wearing any armor, though, and cat flesh pierced at least as easily as human flesh.

If I draw a good, solid first blood, I can even the field a little.

She brought her spear to bear, taking a few quick steps forward and thrusting the razor-sharp tooth that tipped it forward with each pace. If she wanted to hit him, she'd have to distract him without herself being distracted.

Unfortunately, Leon Timyon didn't seem interested in her most distracting assets, the ones that made her clothes tight at certain places. That left her only one option, and she could just as easily distract herself as him. No point in not trying, though. Dead was dead.

"Here, kitty kitty. Hey, kitty kitty...what are you doing in a cage?"

[Artifex Felicis]

His weapon now rolling on the floor, the cat boy felt a momentary feeling of uselessness. Whenever something was done without any true effect, it always sort of pained him to see the waste of energy and life. It was not a total waste though, for he gained a little knowledge about his curious prey. She was not human; he picked that out the very moment she stepped into his studio. He was willing to bet that she was part fish or something close to that. Not that it mattered; an insult to mermaids would apply to someone part fish anyway. Then again, "siren" was a big top off that she had a little fish in her.

The nekomata's voice did not make itself known immediately. The girl, Siren she called herself, decided to take the space that he had given her. A long spear, its tip sharp and ready to split flesh, was in her hands. She held it differently then Leon would have liked and it annoyed him slightly. It was like watching a new swordsman, drunk on his first victory in the Citadel, show off his skills to everyone at the nearby bar. Fast and fairly sure, but a bit too sloppy, predictable and consistent.

He feet back pedaled, his upper body shifting this way and that, dodging the point of the spear. Her last strike nearly touched, but a heavy paw slapped it lightly to the side and out of harm's way. He nearly stomped his foot back down, sending him back far enough to have some breathing space. He held up his paw, grinning sweetly at the girl. In a single swift moment, his chest was bare of clothing and the shirt that covered his body was in his hand. His chest seemed to be covered in scarring, many only the paler flesh that remains after the wound had healed.

"I'm catching a little fishy fishy fishy, a little fishy fishy that was betrayed and forgotten by the sea," he explained, adjusting the shirt so it wrapped around his right hand and forming a rudimentary glove. He grinned again, showing his point teeth as he began to advance slowly on the girl. At one point, probably as he took of his shirt, his allowed his claws to shoot out from his feet. The little clicks against the wood seemed to become magnified in the small space. He did not hurry, nor contained the energetic, swishing tails that betrayed his mood. His whole body seemed to step in time to some inner beat, tapped out by his own claws.

"A little, tasty fishy that got caught in a net."

((EDIT - Warning that three days have passed. Not sure what the rules exactly say on this are.))

[Siren]

The fact that he so easily evaded her attack was annoying to Siren, but it taught her something: you can harpoon a cat fish, but that doesn't work so well on a cat boy. Actually...it was worse to be called a fish than to miss her target. She didn't have scales like the Fish Folk of the Southern Seas did, or the Serpent Folk that lived in in-land lagoons. The Medimerians were dolphins or porpoises all, and much more agile than the cold-blooded half-fish.

"Fishies are tasty, but you're not getting any of this, kitty kitty."

Siren knew that the only way that the battle was going to go her way at all was if she got the high ground, and fast. Fortunately, the high ground was a hammock - it would shift under her feet like ropes did, and that was a combat situation she could tolerate. She'd just have to hope that Leon couldn't tolerate it. He was definitely a predator, and definitely on the offensive. The sooner that changed...

Now I'm starting to think like Orun. Eesh.

She brought her spear to bear again, pointing the razor-sharp tooth straight at the felinoid as though she were going to lash out at him, and then she took a swift sidestep, letting her momentum lead her into a leap that carried her to the hammock. She landed shakily, one foot catching and the other almost missing, leaving her swinging haphazardly for a few moments as she found her balance. If Leon's claws tapped out his rhythm, the rocking of the hammock tapped out hers, and in response to a fight with familiar motion, the Mergirl's eyes shifted color once more, deepening to a deadly cobalt.

"Mrowr. Here, kitty kitty. If you want this to be a shirtless fight...you'll have to come and get mine."

[Artifex Felicis]

The cat boy followed her carefully, watching for any movements by his fishy opponent. She wasn't too much of an idiot though, moving back rather then charging the master of the Pagoda. He silently applauded her inside for taking a smarter move then he would have given credit for. Of course, as she moved and he followed, keeping a set distance away, it slowly began to die. When she jumped on where the cat boy often slept, it was mostly gone.

He frowned as he circled her as she swung on the hammock. She was close to his wall of weaponry, even within touching distance. Then again, if she ever tried to, she's get a small electric shock and find out that the small dagger weight about fifteen times her own weight. The nekomata was not a fan of retrieving more then a single weapon per fight, but this was quickly becoming a special exception, a mischievous idea in his mind already forming. He came to his own wall, taking down a set of two iron and bladed rings. Their exact name wasn't quite as common, but Leon was proud to admit he knew what a chakram was.

Even though they were not of good quality, they still held a wicked edge that would always cut true on their first use. He held the two small throwing weapons steady in his hand as he moved back a little, well outside of the fish girl's range with her spear. A moment of preparation, and the cat boy throw both of the wickedly sharp weapons towards the girl, far lower then a killing shot. The cat boy regretted the action, but knew it would be worth it as the first chakram cut loose one end of the hammock, and the other sunk into the wall harmlessly. A grin was the only other true movement the cat made as he waited for how the fishy would deal with this new problem.

[Siren]

Apparently the kitty didn't think that she'd had things thrown at her before. Hardly had the first ring of death parted from his claws than she saw that it was going to cut her rocking floor out from under her, and that the second was going to try to slice off her arm.

Slamming one of her feet back, Siren made the hammock swing hard while she twisted slightly away, getting out of range of the higher deathring. Then she slipped the tip of her spear through the hole in the center of the other chakram, but the weight of the thing made it fall straight to the ground. She'd wanted to throw it back at her opponent, but at least he couldn't use it against her again without giving her an opportunity to spear him through his throat.

"Well, normally I'm not the one doing the penetrating, but I guess this time, I can make an exception. Come on, kitty kitty."

The hammock still swung back and forth beneath her, and to anyone else, it would make any sort of offensive manuver impossible. But Siren was a sailor, and had fought her fair share of times on slippery ropes that shifted as the boat rocked and the wind tried to buffet her down to the deck. Whatever his next move was, it would be against a moving target.

[Artifex Felicis]

The master of the Dajas Pagoda watched the girl on his bed as she swung back as forth. An ear twitched in annoyance. A part of it came from his own shaky and whenever it came to throwing a weapon, but the girl was a far greater source of irritation. There was just something about a good plan suddenly being stopped, and that probably by mere luck, that grated on the cat boy's nerves. He had played chess a few times beforehand, and this was just like over looking a pawn that prevented checkmate. Something small and tiny, but more then enough to set his plans back a few steps.

He loosened his grip on his shirt, pausing and sighing as he did so. He had planned to use to to block a spear thrust or two, but there wasn't much use putting a handicap on himself now. He didn't have much fear of the girl attacking him right now. Even if she was able to keep her balance on such a ground beneath her, moving was considerably tougher. Even more so since the hammock was only so large. He kicked his shirt to the side, careful to let his claws slide back into his foot before he did so.

Her little remark towards him went by unheeded. The battle was interesting, that was to be sure, but there was something old about it now. The cat boy knew it was coming to a close, whether he continued to play with the girl or not. He really only had one or two tricks he could perform as well, leaving his options of playing severely limited to those and then ending it quickly. He shrugged, walking towards the girl carefully. Even with the hammock on her, she was still slow and an easy target.

He stopped for a moment, close enough for either of the two combatants to attack if they wanted, but not without devoting all of their being to the offense. If the offensive strike didn't work, then nothing good would come of it. A grin came onto the nekomata's face though. The standoff was far more one-sided then the naked eye would reveal. Of course, the cat boy was very far from a fool when it came to tactics in battles, and knew his own skills very well. Unless the girl had a very strong ace hidden somewhere on her barely clothed body, there wasn't much that could change the cat boy's vision.

"You sure you don't want to come down?" the cat boy asked casually. He placed his paws inside his pockets, standing up straight as he watched he swinging form. His tails followed, swishing back and forth as the girl kid. He felt no chill despite his bare chest, not even a bead of sweat or out of breath. "I'm sure you don't want to get caught in a net that easily." He paused, then said as an afterthought, "That's kinda my bed too, and I don't really want to clean it without a good reason."

[Siren]

Siren grinned, giggling slightly as she settled into the steady swinging sensation of the hammock. Sure, it was a real fight, but it hardly felt that way with all the back and forth banter.

"I love the sensation of the air in my hair, kitty kitty. Besides, it's so rare that a man asks me to leave his bed...nah, come on up and fight me. Unless you'd be afraid of getting caught in your own net."

She jabbed at him a couple of times, playfully, never actually getting in range of striking him. She was more than happy to keep the balance as it was until someone got bored and zapped the net from under her feet or until he got irritated and came on up to fight her.

"If I'd known I was fighting a kitty, I'd have brought a string to play with."