Duel at Dawn

[donnervark]

It was very early morning one of the deserted shores of Roguetown. Deserted save for a single Mermaid, wearing only a white chest band and an old pair of welding goggles. She had fair skin, heavily freckled but very fine complexion. Even though her upper body was well toned, she easily maintained the famed beauty of her kind. Her long, crimson red dreadlocks hung freely as she moved through the few kata's of Fishman Karate that she knew. She was in no way a master, but she maintained the skills she had to the best of her ability. Unlike normal Merfolk, or most Fishman, her form moved quite differently than others, more fluidly, due to her being an Octopus breed of Mermaid.

She could dip and sway with ease and incredible flexibility, able to shift her 'stance' and angle of attack very quickly thanks to her tentacle's elastic nature. She was practicing just beyond the treeline, punching the air with both her hands and tentacles. After a solid hour of this shadow-sparring, she moved to more intensive training, meant to sharpen her techniques. But first one tentacle slithered off to the side, lifted a rather large gourd, one of three, and carried it back to her.

"Just what I needed..." She took the gourd and upended it, taking several heavy draws before putting it aside with a heavy sigh. "Whoooo! That hits the spot!" Her cheeks were already flush, but where that might have been construed as heavy training, were anyone to be watching, it would be obvious she'd been drinking the whole time. "Now then...." She slumped forward at an almost painful looking angle, then threw herself back with a growl. As she flipped into the air all eight of her 'legs' drew back like some kind of unfurling flower.

"Eight Wave Thrust!" Simultaneously all her tentacles shot forward in what could only be described as a Octopus Mermaid-Drop Kick. Only her tentacles could extend eighteen feet, and smashed all at once into a two-foot thick tree with bone-obliterating force. The wood splintered and the tree buckled as she dropped to the ground. In a display of impressive athleticsm she rolled into a spinning ground recovery that spiraled her 'legs' around, using the momentum to quickly right herself as the tree crashed over. She then focused her attentions to a thicket of smaller trees and readied her next skill.

"Eight Sided Tempest!" One after another she began lashing out with her tentacles. They struck with the speed of a whip, but the force of a horse's kick. The trees withstood only a few hits each, splintering and cracking as she hammered away with a veritable storm of lightning fast blows. Within seconds, and after a great deal of noise, there wasn't a single tree standing within twenty paces of her in the direction of her attack. She swayed a bit after that, but she had a pleased look on her face.

"Well. Looks like I've still got it.....hmmmm..." She scooped up a couple thick logs with her tentacles, lifting them up so she could take them with her hands. She handled them with ease, as she was a shipwright and used to handling heavy objects on a daily basis. As she moved gracefully towards the shore she passively picked up her gourds, and set about building a fire. There was hot springs nearby, but she wanted to relax and watch the sunrise, cool off a bit before bathing. The alcohol helped her get a fire going, and keep her buzz going as well. Once all was set, she rolled out a large towel and got comfortable. Now that she was all riled up, she sort of wished she had someone to share it all with.

[Badman Zeek]

[black]

Shortly after his attempt to claim a Marine vessel with the aid of a couple of wondering pirates like himself, Cross became aware why their actions had only been an attempt. During their temporal path of destruction, the would be crew had devised a plan to take over the Marine vessel. Everything had been planned out perfectly and would have gone smooth, until the man Cross thought to be his first-mate, made the mistake of launching himself aboard the Marine's ship. It was, when restraining himself from killing the Marines in order to rescue his former second in command, that Cross determined he was not properly prepared to capture the Marine vessel. In the end he disbanded the small crew and continued his seeking out more promising individuals.

A new day was sure to bring more forth likely candidates. The only problem lay in the location. Cross was in Rogue Town, a Marine infested island, which has been set on alert since his earlier activities in a local tavern where he cut down about a half a dozen Marines. Regardless Cross was going to the transition from day to night. If he could find a worthy pirate in a marine inhabited town like this, they would easily be able to take a random ship at the docks, likely to be abandoned due to the amount of bars opened at the hour.

After his earlier departure from the pier Cross had returned towards the inner streets of the town. Although his intent was to stay in his room at a local inn, the pirate's insomnia refused to grant him the privilege of sleep. The restlessness that had been built from a few hours of sitting in the room forced him out into the surprisingly populated streets of Rogue Town.

Although the goal was to proceed with his original plans, sounds of destruction sounded in the direction of a rather abandoned beach. The sounds peaked the interest of the miscreant, who traced the sound back to the site of a deep wreckage. From the looks of things someone or something had destroy several trees along the forest edge. A survey of the beach presented Cross with the image of an eight-armed sea-person. While this was the first encounter the pirate has had with such a being, he was unsure whether she was a mermaid or fishman, though from what he could remember fishmen were often more fish like than human, so he concluded she must be a mermaid.

Good....a mermaid.

He'd never met one and was intrigued by her appearance, but really swayed him into approaching her was the idea that she had destroyed the trees. If she was indeed the one to do so, he'd use this chance to test his capabilities against the likes of a sea person.

"Hello there...", he called out before eagerly breaking into his intentions. "I suppose it was you who destroyed those trees over there. I've never met a person from below the sea. I don't mean to be so forward, but would you mind giving me the opportunity to clash with a mermaid."The entire time Cross spoke, the pirate's heart rate quickened with excitement as his signature smirk spread far across his face.

[/black]

[donnervark]

Nellix turned without standing when someone greeted her. One tentacle cautiously moved into her bag, and tightly gripped the handle of one of her large hammers....just in case. He was an interesting fellow for sure, covered in extensive tattoos and piercings. His body was very toned, enough to give her all kinds of sleazy ideas in case he was there for fun.

"Yes I destroyed *hic* them." She answered as she took another couple heavy swigs from her gourd. Then she rolled over onto her stomach, resting her face on her hands while lazily flicking her tentacles about, all except the one holding the hammer in her bag. Mermaids had a way of bringing out the worst in people, so she always tried to be prepared. "I hope it doesn't offend you handsome. But I prefer to train against something...hmmmm....something I can break." She had an unhealthy attraction to deconstructing things, almost as unhealthy as her drinking habits, but it had made her very good at her job. Part of shipbuilding was deconstructing, and in her opinion, fighting was all about deconstructing your opponent. Finding a weak spot in the armor, and opening it up, finding weakness in the form, and taking advantage, beating them down until they have no options, or are no longer conscious. She smiled at his next comment.

"Oh please...be as forward as you like." With that she sat up, listening to his request with more than a little interest. She was still plenty riled up from sparring, and loved the idea of a friendly match. She especially liked the idea of getting her tentacles around this lad. "Well aren't you interesting?" She more commented than asked as she stood up, taking a gourd with her as she did. "Most people who see a Mermaid for the first time have very...hmmm....different desires in mind." She took another heavy draw, emptying her second gourd with a sigh. "Lucky for you I'm an understanding woman." She stretched out her back and crossed her arms beneath her substantial bust, dangling the empty gourd from her pinky finger.

"So then. Weapons? Or fists? I might have a bit of an advantage if you don't use weapons." That wasn't an exaggeration. Each of her tentacles was multiple times stronger than her arms, and even those were very strong due to her trade. "And I don't mean that as an insult. Just want to make sure we both....hmmm...enjoy this as much as possible." Nellix wasn't underestimating him either, but people didn't tend to estimate her strength correctly until she was breaking them.

"By the way stud...." Nellix smiled and moved closer to the kid, holding out her hand. "...Nellix...Nellix of Rose." She couldn't imagine that this fellow was a Marine, not looking the way he did. So she decided it was safe to do a full introduction. "Shipwright, Pirate, and student of Fishman Karate." She waited for him to respond and turned back to her things. She liked the freedom of the chest band she was wearing, however in a real fight she doubted she'd make it half a minute before she fell out of it. So she removed a tight sleeveless shirt from her pack and slipped it on.

[Badman Zeek]

[black]

This was a rather interesting encounter Cross thought to himself, taking a mental note of the one arm the mermaid had placed behind her. Perhaps she was reaching for a weapon? While it would be nice to experience a fighter who has eight arms in which they could use a weapon, Cross was more intrigued by the stories he had heard of Gyojin Karate. He felt it was likely that she had used a technique of the style in order to devastate the trees.

"I understand the need to feel something be destroyed by your own hands."

The further their conversation expanded, the more eager Cross was to experience a bout with her. Battle and action were his addiction and the urge to fight the mermaid were gaining in strength; so much that he had to consciously refrain from taking another step forward, to respect the fact that the mermaid seemed rather nice and was open to fighting him, and even went as far as to ask which form of fighting he would prefer.

"Anything goes...", he replied raising the sheathed blade he carried in his right hand. Although he hated going up against guns, he has had quite a few experiences with them, enough to make him despise the easy emission of death that came with it. Even thinking about his past few encounters with marines cause Cross face to be construed with slight irritation. But the thought was soon released as his focus shifted back to the mermaid.

[red]"...Nellix...Nellix of Rose.......Shipwright, Pirate, and student of Fishman Karate."[/red]

Hmm...

So she did know the ways of Gyojin Karate, and she was also a pirate who was good around a ship. For Cross such information made things all the more interesting. He did leave out today with the intention of finding potential crew mates, and beautiful mermaid would definitely be a great addition to any crew, especially if should handle herself in a fight.

"Interesting....Well its nice to meet you Nellix, the names Cross Royal, and I too am a pirate." He replied, extending his hand, while trying to to remain far enough to suppress his urge to strike Nellix. Afterwards while Nellix adjusted her attire properly, Cross stepped back a few paces, removing his sweater and exposing a larger mass of tattoos, even outdoing the amount of ink on his face.

He took his stance, crouching down and turning his torso to the right side, while bring his left hand to the handle of his sword. Through the tranquil silence that alluded to the battle to come, he called out "After this, I'd like to have a chat with you if you don't mind." Hoping that his intentions were becoming clear he began, rushing forward towards his lovely opponent.

Thus the beginning of so many possibilities.

[/black]

[donnervark]

Nellix was glad to hear he wanted to fight with weapons. She loved fighting hand-to-hand, but she reveled in any chance to use her hammers to break something. Though she wasn't thinking about killing Cross, just the idea of hitting something was profoundly satisfying.

"Cross Royal? Nice to meet you." She said after slipping on her shirt. As she turned back to face him her 'limbs' slithered into her bags and removed her hammers, Rose of Eights, and Eight of Blades. Their names were symbolic, as nothing in their construction was particularily impressive. They were simply very heavy mallet-style hammers with steel heads, primarily used in her trade. The names themselves stemmed from the deck of fortune cards her mother used while under the....employ of the Celestial Dragons. She gave them a stylish flick up into the air, and caught them in her hands. Though she could use them with all her limbs, she preferred to keep the tentacles free to perform Gyojin Karate techniques.

"Well now....I must say I'm excited...oh..." Nellix staggered, as that last heavy draught of liqour hit her system. About the same time Cross removed his shirt, exposing a dangerously attractive set of tattoos. "My my...aren't we interesting?" She had been drunk before, now she was slipping into that wonderful peak of intoxication where everything was just....wonderful. Cross had a wicked appeal, the sunrise was just right, the waves lapping at the shore like they were keeping time, and the weight of her hammers grounded her, like a reminder of what fun she was about to have.

"Alright....Royal...hmmmm...we can talk...after this..." She smiled and held her hammers out to the side, ready to counter attack if he made the first move. "...but only...if you're man enough to...make me listen!" And then Cross began the game by rushing forward, his blade still sheathed. What game was he playing? She didn't know much about swords, but she knew they needed to be unsheathed to be dangerous. However it was obvious that he was faster than her, so she couldn't let him take the initiative. She lashed out with three of her tentacles, striking at him in a whip-like fashion from different angles. Then she followed up with a spiraling motion, angling her torso at the right moment to bring Roses of Eights down at him. If it hit, it would be a devestating blow from the fifty-pound hammer. If it missed, she'd be open, only her tentacles to protect her.

[Badman Zeek]

Thump thump...

Thump thump...

Thump thump...

A pulse that was once inaudible now resonated with life, rattling the entirety of the silver haired hellion. It reacted faster than his movements, accelerating with the expansions and contractions of his heart. Each step was an attempt to reach a satisfaction he hadn't been able to claim in a while. He longed for its presence and yearned for the gratification and sense of accomplishment that could only be achieved through the medium of a deep maroon ink. It was his form of expression, and it was an art skill he was so proud to hone. A craft that brought death to many, but in doing so left roads and bars as canvas for his work of art.

It was hard to believe that so few found the death of others as a trade or hobby instead of a job or an assignment. With the killings being part of a mission or job, one couldn't properly indulge on the beheading of men bound to to some proclaimed order bestowed upon the world by the likes of self righteous, egotistical Blue and Whites, whose so called power has no origin, but merely a seemingly everlasting presence that would be rid of those who lived and died by the way nature intended. The strong whether mentally, physically, or spiritually, would survive and the rest would die off.

The strong will survive...

Somewhere far back in the depths of Cross' mania the principle to life repeated itself. While it was likely he was unaware of why he had such a lust for blood, the fact remained that he would naturally seek to become an apex predator. The top of the totem pole. But to do so, others would have to learn why he would be the one. It would be him who would remove the wannabe top dogs; the Blue and whites. But to get to them he had to work his way up from the bottom, starting with this dear mermaid. Though the bout was of a casual standing, he couldn't help himself, the urge to fight was there, flooding his body with adrenaline, driving him forward until he was a few feet away from Nellix, purposely continuing into her range and suffering the front of her tentacle strikes, but taking the damage as a means to opening her up for his own attack.

As each tentacle struck his neck and shoulder, Cross drew his blade. Though it began in a similar fashion to a lot of sword drawings, his would not stop at that. No his movement continued bringing both arm and blade through a diagonal arching motion, that while at such a distance was still enough to inflict a deep wound upon the Mermaid. Though the intent was to strike the opponent before the succession of her follow up attack, Cross couldn't be sure that she would be capable of continuing after receiving such an attack, but he did know that at the least she was sure to suffer a wound great enough to spill blood.

Would Cross prevail? Would he shed red ink upon the sands of this remote beach? Would he reach satisfaction, even if only for a little while?

SPOILER: Click to show

Name: Tameshigiri • Test murdering
Description: The foundation of Battōjutsu, applies the basic concept of drawing and attacking all in one motion and is included as the initial attack involved in all Battōjutsu techniques. The intent of this technique is to kill or render the opposition with no way of fighting back all in one strike. Its focus is on directing all strength and speed into the sword to increase the intensity of the force behind the strike to accomplish this. The force produced from this strike is twice the amount the user would normally produce.


Read more: strawhatforum.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=updatedprofiles&action=display&thread=11038#ixzz206CkumAL

[donnervark]

It surprised Nellix when her opponent did nothing to dodge her initial attacks, taking the severe force of her tentacles, each possessing several times the strength of a normal humans limbs, with relatively little effect. However, she was no combat strategist. She understood fighting, and she knew how to kill, but swordplay was foreign to her, and she would never have expected someone so small to take damage in order to deal it. In fact, had she not been so intoxicated, she would not have had the flexibility to react as she did.

As her hammer fell she saw him draw his blade. He seemed intent on causing serious harm rather than have a friendly spar. However she was too far into the swing, and even her strength could not bring it up in time to block the slice. The best she could do was pull back as hard as she could and try to evade. Her hand didn't make it far before steel bit into her abdomen, trailing at an angle from her hip up to right below her breast. She cursed loudly, as even her drunken pain tolerance was pierced by that strike. Her stomach screamed sharply in agony and deep red blood flowed heavily from the wound. The pain came first, then came clarity, then came anger.

"EIGHT SIDED TEMPEST!" The mermaid's eyes had a furious gleam in them as she unleashed a barrage of strikes in all directions. It wasn't the collected action of a focused counterattack, rather the rage-fueled response of a drunken woman who had been expecting a friendly contest. The three previous strikes had been playful, the first couple pokes to suppress and control her opponents actions. Even her hammer strike had not borne the full strength she could have thrown into it. It would have done heavy damage if it had hit, any normal person might even be killed, but she honestly doubted that it would have hit in the first place. However this time anger overwhelmed control, and these strikes numbered in the dozens, her hammers crossed over her stomach as she lashed out with significantly more force and speed. This was the product of Gyojin Karate fused with the power and elasticity of her eight limbs. "You just cut into everyone you spar with boy?!" She bared her teeth at him, if he could even stop to watch her under the pressure of her attack. He would not be able to take these, unless he was far beyond her league to begin with. This technique could level a house if done from the inside. He would have to dodge, or maybe go for a kill-strike. If he dodged, then she could keep the technique going for a few dozen more strikes in order to stall and/or tire him out. His actions made it clear, he wanted blood. She hadn't seen it on his face because of her intoxication and the mild attraction she had towards him, but now it was obvious, this man was a killer.

"Fine! You got a taste for blood?! DRINK YOUR FILL!" Her attacks kicked up sand, and demolished her fire-pit, tossing ash and cinder into the air as well. Cinders....the burning sparks ignited memories she normally suppressed with drink. But with the adrenalin came clarity, and with the clarity came the nightmares.

Running. He just kept running. Nellix clutched herself to his chest and cried. She could feel the impact through his body as two bullets slammed into his back. One into his shoulder, jerking him forward, but he kept going. She screamed, torn between screaming for him and for her mother. The second hit his side, pitching him over. They rolled, she screamed again, but he didn't let go. He rolled over, firing back. He hid her eyes, but she heard them scream. Then they were moving again. He gripped her so tight. She whimpered. He was so strong, mother was so strong. Mother had kept going through all the torture, the humiliation, the degradation. She kept going. He kept going, through the pain, through the blood and fire, he kept going. All she could do was cry. It was all so wrong.

"DAMN YOU!" Nellix growled, snapping back to the present. She hated those memories, ones she could never be rid of. This man had made a terrible mistake, or a perfect play considering his bloodlust. If he wanted to see what she could do, then he was about to get a full demonstration. The sand was obscuring her view, so she didn't know whether she'd hit him or not, or how he'd reacted. But the moment she saw a form she broke her technique.

"Breaking Eight!" Five of her tentacles shot out, closing in at different angles like vipers going for the kill. If she was on target, and actually ensnared him, then her limbs would take hold, and send him flying into a tree hard enough to splinter the trunk. Of course he could just cut his way free, but she was too drunk, and too mad to think about that. And of course, he'd have to manage that while being constricted by five separate tentacles. "LOCK!"

[Badman Zeek]

[black]

His blade tore through the mermaid's flesh, opening her up from her above her hip, just beneath the breast diagonal to it. He watch as Nellix slipped just enough out of range to avoid the lethality of his strike. In doing so her initial follow up with the hammer bore no threat, as it moved back with the mermaid's motion. Though the opportunity was short, Cross used the sliver of time to retract his forward motion, withdrawing a few paces in order to assess Nellix's reaction.

Blood had been drawn and the air began to fill with a scent reminiscent to iron. The stage had been set, the pieces to the board have both initiated an assualt upon one another. It had taken little to no time for the drunk to switch from playful to an angered woman. But for some reason Cross's smirk only grew wider once she sprung into action. He was glad to have created a bit more distance between them, because as he expected she lashed out with her rather long tentacles. "Lash" being an understatment that didn't properly describe the angered fueled onslaught of significantly long extremities.

He loved it.

The aggression. The explosiveness. All that Nellix was now presenting appealed to Cross. Such was his nature, for chaos is always drawn towards itself, and he the embodiment of the convoluted state was very much drawn to what lay before him. The only solution was assimilation. He sought to make her one of his; a secretary for his would be crew perhaps. 

No. 

Her capabilities were best suited amongst his nakama unless proven otherwise. As for the situation at hand, it was quite obvious that he should evade her flurry, and it honestly made the most sense. All he'd have to do was keep it up until she tired herself out or an opening to slip past her guard presented itself. 

He bobbed. He weaved, slipping in and out trying his best to avoid the tentacles lashing out with the hammers. While his efforts paid off, his still received damage from some of the other tentacles. As the bashing came to an end Cross saw his opening; he moved, banking left and releasing his sword, simultaneously transitioning into a diving somersault as a means to move out of the path of  Nellix's following.  Though his body was beginning to ache from the abuse it had suffered, he pushed forward closing the distance once more before striking out with his sheath aiming at the side of her head hoping to knock her unconscious before their bout grew into something more serious.

 

[/black]

[donnervark]

Where her limbs should have ensnared a body, they hit nothing at all. Nellix barely had time to cursed as she realized he'd evaded her attempt to catch him, before she realized he was attacking her again. She tried to spin, which normally would have been easy for her limber body, however the slash up her torso screamed out as she did so. The wound impaired her mobility more than enough to make his counter strike effective. Then came a different kind of pain, blunt instead of sharp, not the piercing cut she was expecting. Her skull was rattled by the impact of his sheath, and she crumpled to the ground. The blow wasn't enough to knock her out, but she lost almost all feeling to her limbs.

"Damn...it..." She swore through the numb pounding of her skull, her fingers trying to grip sand, having lost the strength to hold her hammers. "You piece of shit..." Even the sand eluded her, and all she could do was hold her torso up, midst the mass of her tentacles. She might as well have been sober, for the sharp pain in her abdomen, combined with the hammering in her head fully pulled back the sweet fog of intoxication. This let her memories flow unhindered, only enhancing her searing disgust towards this man.

"What...now? Why...why not kill me?" She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing her this weak, but any pretense of strength was gone now that her memories were in full playback. The entire reason she drank was to kill the pain, smother the nightmares in booze and vice. Sober she was a shell of a person, barely competent. "Damn you..." She hissed. What kind of sadistic bastard did she have the misfortune of meeting? Her day had been going well. She'd plenty of money, plenty of booze, and she'd spent the whole day relaxing. A pleasant training session had almost ended in a gorgeous sunset by the fire. But this man needed blood, he had to have his flesh. What she thought was going to be an arousing spar turned into the worst possible scenario imaginable. She was now at the mercy of this sadistic human, and whatever aim he had for her.

"Just...just get it over with. Whatever you're going to do....just do it...and leave." Really it was her fault. For accepting the challenge. She could have just said no, enjoyed her sunset. But no. She had a thing for dangerous looking guys, tattoos and tight figures. So of course she fell for it. "Hurry up! What the hell do you want?!" Nellix wanted him to leave before the tears came, and they weren't far away. Memories of her mother flooded through her mind, of the things she had to watch done to her, of the things she did to protect Nellix. Then came the guard, the man who loved her mother enough to cross the most powerful people in the world. The man that saved her from her mothers fate. Nellix curled up in the sand, cradling her abdomen, trying not to cry in front of this beast.

[thelizardboy]

Crimson fluttered across bare skin on the edge of tree and sand of the coast of Roguetown, scars and training written across muscle and tanned hide. A Fiery vermilion mane poured down the figures back, bent against its shoulders beneath an enormous trunk of a felled tree, balanced and held up like a press on a prisoner.

Squatting along the sandy brush of the meeting between beach and wood, Spade let out a deep sigh, every muscle in his body tensed to a bristling form of rock, his core tightening into a bricked abdominal slab. Wind whipped along the drowsy beach, like a headwind to a ship, as if it were drawing him onto his back. Holding firm, Spade held the log with both hands, clawing at the bark, digging notches into the wood with strain. The sudden wind died just as quickly as it came, the beach suddenly silent, the gulls, the waves, the stirring animals of the forest, all was silent as if it was waiting for the finale that the world around Spade knew, the ending to the training session, the test of strength.

Drawing in a slow breath, Spade moved a leg forward, slow and methodical, keeping the log balanced along his shoulders, his body crawling to its limits. His foot spun slowly, planting into the sand, his leg muscles locking and tensing, his lungs filling, chest swollen with muscle and air. Space seemed to become more and more dense around him, air almost audible, the tangible tension freezing time until the very edge of his movements, then a pause. The trees whistled slightly as another gust crept its way against Spade's skin, seeming to set off the spark that lit every muscle in the man's body, rippling from his legs, his core, his chest, and his arms, slinging the girth of the log from both shoulders to one, like a bazooka mounted on an artillerymen's, and both hands turned to carnal claws that gripped the wood with force enough to hold as he lifted the enormous mass, slinging it in an arc forward through the air.

"KYAAAAAAA!!"
The log whistled as it bulled its way through the dense aura, gaining speed every second as Spade's body turned into a rippled mass of mountainous muscle, every fiber in his body tensed and stretched to its maximum, channeling every atom of energy through the log. Before it had began it was finished, sound seeming to lag behind, an echoing THUD calling out to the beach and woods, the wind and ocean, challengers and the gods alike, all watching him at that moment. Red streams snaked down the bark of the trunk, dripping down to the sand below, his fingers embedded into the wood. His lungs filled with air as he peeled his fingers from the defeated tree, dropping it to the ground, and he slowly rose to a straight stance, his eyes closing once again, both hands floating up his core, over his chest, and forward, strength spilling from every pore, mixing with the salty coastal breeze.

The thick air seemed to blow away with the breeze like a fog lifted, away to another part of the world, where another champion reigned. Spade's body finally relaxed, skin soaked with sweat, dripping off of him in droplets. That was enough for training....for today..

[SHADE SMASH]

Ehhhh? So this was the esteemed Loguetown?The buildings stood large and proud in an array of colors that mostly resembled a light cyan color. The pathway appeared to be made of bricks. Shops of all kinds seemed to flood the island and it was even more so packed with bustling people who seemed very cheerful. Everything was so happy and giddy and packed even at this time in the morning and the air was filled with the smells of a bakery that seemed to be cooking down the street. The perfect vacation spot.

How disappointing.

Millie thought with a hint of annoyance deep down in the crevices of her mind as her blue hypnotizing eyes lazily glazed over the island as if it was nothing special. Seriously, what was the hype to this place? Sure the pirate king came about and all, but other than his execution pedestool, it was nothing out of the ordinary. Not only that, none of these people here portrayed any significant traits. They were all.

Boring...

It was true. Even though you could brush it off as being too early in the morning, they were all just too boring. Who would want to do experiments on these people? She bet that they would all just scream and cry and beg for their life. You know, the boring stuff that happens when you experiment on people. These people would probably do that ten fold though and at the moment she had nothing on her that would shut them up other than her fists and she much preferred to keep her hands for archery, not for brute force. That was never her thing anyways.

Sigh. Yes, she sighed. Only two minutes on this island so constantly bragged about and famous and she was already bored out of her mind. At least it was better than being in her boat, a small dinghy a few feet away that displayed prominent symptoms of sinking as seen by the foot of water already filling it. Well, thats one thing she needs to get, what else? Supplies would also be very much welcome. After burying her hands in the pockets of her jacket and blasting her music to the point that her ears were ringing, she finally decided it was time to walk forwards. She never knew, maybe she would come to something interesting.

Nope, an hour later and the most interesting thing she found was the end of the islands very elaborate shopping sector and into a rural area of lightly treed field. She adjusted her glasses angrily, gripping the bag of items in her hand tightly enough to turn her knuckles white. Maybe she should settle for the pathetic people in the town...

Just as the thought came into her head, she heard a rather loud yell that sounded somewhat feral but definitely human. A malicious glint appeared in her eyes through the glasses and she smiled, the first one since she has came onto the island. That certainly sounded interesting. Approaching closer to where it came from, her eyes searched the landscape and quickly found the person to yell. Her eyes also settled onto another site of two people fighting...or were fighting. It appeared they were done by now but she wasn't so concerned about them. Even if they did appear rather abnormal. One covered in piercings and the other an interesting mermaid. Yes, very abnormal, but she already had her sights on the other man. Besides, if she times this perfectly she could nail all three of them and create a special expermient just for them.

As she considered her options, she marveled how perfect of a place she seemed to be in. Although her dark jacket and hair made her very noticeable in her green surroundings, unless either of them were looking for a fight she was in a very inconspicuous position and could pray with ease.

She smiled again.

This is gonna be fun.

She thought as she drew and arrow and took off her headphones that now became silent seeming to understand the atmosphere.

[Badman Zeek]

[black]

The blow was struck.

As by his hand the storm was created, so too was it with his hand the tempest that was Nellix had been calmed. Or rather, she'd been halted; refrained from going any further. While she wasn't quite unconscious as he had hope, the fact that she was still aware of everything proved how resilient she was. Even now, while being batter and bruised Cross smirked. He found one, a person he was sure he could rely on so long as he remedied the issues he had stirred up in getting to involved in the spar.

"No, my dear Nellix." He began while turning to retrieve his sword. "I have no intention of killing you. However I must apologize for the way things have turned out. I simply wanted to evaluate your combat capabilities before extending an invitation to join me."

As he spoke he returned to where his victim lay, those his eyes were not on her, for he suddenly became aware of a figure in the distance. It was a man with a head covered in flaming orange hair that spiked down his back. Though he was within a good distance from the two he hadn't seemed to noticed their bout. Cross shook his head removing the thoughts to acquire yet another piece, especially since he hadn't obtained Nellix's approval. Reaching down he extended his hand.

"Please allow me to make it up to you by getting you fixed up. From there we can converse properly."

Unbeknownst to those on the beach, an additional pair had witnessed the bout. Though in the eyes of the man and his son they saw not a spar, but instead a silver-haired devil attacking a mermaid. Once blood had been spilled upon the sands of the beach they had no choice but to seek the authorities. The left in search of any marines nearby, not seeing the results of the fight and the offer of peace amongst the silver-haired man and the mermaid. All they new was that she'd been injured by his efforts and they needed to save her.

Would they make it in time before things got worse for the mermaid?

[/black]

[thelizardboy]

Flexing his hands, Spade checked the blood dampened gashes along his fingers and palms, accomplishment dripping from his body in the form of blood and sweat. The sun was finally lazing it's way below the horizon, its belly sinking into the black ocean. The day was ending as the forest concealing Spade's bag was awakening. The buzz and chimes of the insects that littered the woods began to swell, and the silent movements of the animals who ate them tagged along.

Spade ambled to the dark border between beach and brush, stepping onto the leafy, cold ground and retrieved his bag from behind the dark figure of a proud tree. From it he tugged ribbons of bandages, quickly wrapping his bloodied hands and tying them off, biting the end off and returning it to his things.

As he bent to a knee to stuff the bandages back into his bag, his body tensed and his eyes focused on the glimmer of light against claws, trailing his vision up the pair of black velvetted paws and limbs to a pair of golden eyes. A jaguar, king of his woods, stood before him, still and cautious as night itself. It had crept up on him before he could have even hoped to notice its presence, and now they found themselves at an introduction.

Spades hand fell carefully to his bag, digging around for a moment before retrieving a wrapped parcel, bringing it to his knee and unfolding the cover, revealing a sandwich. He glanced for a moment to the sandwich, digging into the parts and tugging out the chunk of meat that laid inside, returning his gaze to the beast who stood before him. His hand floated through the darkness of the forest, raising the morsel towards the golden rings that stared at him, unblinkingly.