Completed Where True Strength Dwells [The Training Gallery]

[Xen]

Where True Strength Lies
Summer 70, 515 A.V.

“ ”
The crowd was alive!

Xen stood inside the ring: he was to fight against a viper only slightly as tall as he was. The crowds of constrictors and vipers were cheering them on, but probably not with good intentions in mind. Xen could see the bloodlust in the eyes of some dhani; they came here to see some bruises, and possibly broken bones, and blood. Xen was only partially expecting something like this. However, not to this magnitude. The excitement and bloodlust in the air was immense, which was more than enough to distract him from his opponent. ''Ssstart the fight already!'' Someone impatiently shouts from the crowd. That persons voice was followed by many ''Yeah's'' and ''Hurry ups''; it seemed things were about to get rowdy in the crowd.

Xen turns his attention to face his opponent and locks eyes with the male. He stares directly into the males eyes, then glares as menacingly as he could to intimidate the fellow. ''Ha! I've ssseen Akila Hound pups scarier than you,'' The Viper claims; yet, his legs were shaking. Xen was doubtful of The Vipers claim ''I sssuppose a coward like you would be intimidated by mere pups,'' Xen shrugs his shoulders after his reply as though saying ¨it-can't-be-helped.¨. A few of the male constrictors in the crowd chuckle, even a few giggles from the female constrictors in the crowd could be heard.

The embarrassment and frustration of Xen's opponent was very visible: his face was red and his eyes were filled with utter hostility. ''You think you're funny! Huh!? Hilarious?! You won't be sssaying much after I smash your face in!'' The Viper yells as he takes up a fighting stance. The Viper places his left arm behind his back while he extends his right hand with the thumb of his hand resting in the center of his palm. Xen had nothing else to say at this point; his opponent was serious now. He braces himself, sensing the impending battle.

The Viper steps forward once, twice, and then sprints towards his opponent. Xen did not want to be tackled and forced onto the ground. So, he begins stepping sideways, moving much like the crabs he'd seen in The Hotsprings.

The Viper follows Xen, quickly closes in on him before he can escape from his range, and throws a punch at his face. Xen leans sharply to the right to avoid the punch, but the fist grazes the side of his left cheek and narrowly misses his nose. Xen, realizing he still has time to react, throws his left fist upwards towards his opponents chin in a uppercut-esque fashion. The Viper steps back and manages to avoid having his chin clocked, but lower part of his nose is punched by Xen.

Xen then rushes forward. He was unwilling to give his opponent time to breathe! Xen throws his right fist forward, aiming for the chest this time. ''Kuh, you,'' The Viper voices his frustration before reacting. The Viper twists his body to left just as he extends his arm and uses the side of his left hand to guide and parry Xen's fist away from him. The action sends Xen's fist careening off course. Xen tries to recover, but was pushed by his foe and sent tumbling forward.

''Isss that all you got? Thought, you'd be more skilled than thisss,'' The Viper displays a look of disappointment as he spoke to Xen. ''Sssorry to disappoint. I'm too use to fighting monsters and beasts in the jungle,'' Xen backs away from his opponent to add space between them. ''I'll have to resort to underhanded tactics in order to see more of his techniques,'' Xen thought as the crowd cheers for more.

[Xen]

Where True Strength Lies
Summer 70, 515 A.V.

''And here I'm getting frustrated over your petty remarks,'' The Viper says as he backs away from Xen. ''.....'' Xen hones in on his opponents movements; his stances, how he punches, kicks, and how he guards against attacks. He needed to memorize everything that goes on in this ring! Xen charges his opponent—this time he would be on the offensive. Xen gave his opponent little time to read his movements as he opens his right hand wide to swipe him. The Viper slides his right leg back and leans backwards just slightly to avoid Xen's swipe.

Xen doesn't let up! He arches his left hand back and swings it at the face of his foe. The Viper ducks down and twists his body counterclockwise in the same motion. Xen tries to punch his opponent in the head, but was stopped by a sudden pain on his right foot and then weightlessness. The ticks that followed afterwards didn't make sense to Xen. The moment happened so fast that his brain could not process it. But it was already too late. Xen found himself laying on the ground in pain—his heading was spinning slightly, probably due from him hitting his head on the hard wrestling ring floor. Xen looks around with his partial, hazy vision and saw the figure of his opponent standing a few meters from him.

''What was that? Did he kick me?'' Xen thought as he gets up and stands to his feet. When he stood it felt as though his sense of balance had been destroyed entirely. The ground beneath his feet was slithering and writhing, like the back of a serpent due to his physical imbalance. Xen tries to balance himself by focusing on his bodies center, but fails in doing so and falls. ''I hit my head too hard,'' Xen thought. He stands up again—still a tad bit dazed—and shakes his head in an attempt to dispel his dizziness. The attempt fails and leaves Xen as confused as he was before.

''Had a nice trip?'' The Viper sarcastically asks Xen. Xen just looks in The Vipers direction with an expression that was similar to one a person would have before vomiting.
''Are you mad at me? That low kick caught you by surprise didn't it?'' The Viper continued. Xen eyes were roaming all around the place at this point; his attention elsewhere. He ignores The Vipers question and just recklessly charges his opponent again. Xen couldn't run in a straight line in his current state. So, with the gracefulness of a meatball with spaghetti legs, he zigzags forward.

The Viper cringes at Xen's clumsy and uneven movements. He was appalled by ungraceful things and Xen had become the embodiment of his dislikes. Xen closes in on his opponent, clenches his right fist, and then throws that clenched, dizzy fist forward. The Viper casually sidesteps and avoids the fist, which had no skill behind it whatsoever. Xen brings his right arm back to his side and then rears his left fist back. He flings his fist forward with strength behind it this time, but the punch doesn't connect.

''Keep...still,'' Xen thought. Xen did not realize his futile efforts—this losing battle he was fighting. The fight between him and The Viper was looking very similar to an older brother toying with his little sibling, who he had spun around in a circle, and was now dizzy and trying to combat him.

''''

[Xen]

Where True Strength Lies
Summer 70, 515 A.V.

“ ”
Xen was trying his hardest to land a blow, but all his attacks were being evaded. Xen gave chase, though, and exchanges blows with his opponent, The Viper. The Viper tilts his head to the left to avoid Xen's right fist and leans back to avoid Xen left fist too.
''It's like he can read my movements,'' Xen thought as he pulls his left arm back to his side to retract his fist. The difference in power was too great! But, Xen kept the pressure up and continuously assaults The Viper, but he couldn't harm him, nor change the tide of the battle.

Xen was beginning to see the difference of intelligence and skill between beasts and monsters, and the myrians, and constrictors. Beasts and monsters rarely attempt to avoid a punch or a kick—those that did were usually experienced in combat and less reckless. The myrians attacked in swarm and at full force, and did evade as well as ambush. Xen has never seen the constrictors in battle, but they were probably more covert and sneaky—he assumes—given that he knew their natures a bit more than the myrians.

The Viper crouches and focuses strength into both of his legs. Xen, noticing his opponents odd, crouched stance, jumps back to avoid another potential low kick to his ankles. He couldn't afford to take another one of those. When The Viper notices Xen's jump, he jumps also, resulting in them both adding distance between one another. The crowd applauds The Viper and Xen with yells and claps of excitement, but the two fail to notice them. They were too busy with one another to hear the crowds cries.
''Why do you fight with such desperation?'' The Viper asks with a serious voice.

''...'' Xen ignores the question and behaves as though he didn't hear it. Xen runs towards The Viper at full speed and rears his right fist back with the Viper's question echoing in the back of his mind. The question itself stirs something within Xen and makes his insides writhe. Xen then punches at The Viper with all his strength, but the Viper catches his Xen's fist seconds before it could collide with his face
''You didn't answer my question,'' . In that moment Xen saw the true difference in power between The Viper and himself. To be able to catch a punch like that so effortlessly and with so much strength behind it. How skilled was this viper dhani? A cold and dreadful feeling began to consume Xen as he faces the reality of his weakness.

[Xen]

Where True Strength Lies
Summer 70, 515 A.V.

''I don't need to explain anything to you, '' Xen responds coldly to The Viper and rears back his free hand. The muscles in his arm flex as he forms his hand into fist and tries to plunge it into his opponents face. '' Earlier it seemed as though you were up to something, and you were. I don't know what underhanded methods you were plotting, or aiming for, but they end here, '' The Viper says in an authoritative and certain voice. He then raises his hand to seize Xen's incoming fist and frowns as he does so. The Viper believed he understood Xen's level of skill now and felt that he did not need to use the full extent of his skill.

In the beginning he thought Xen was just hiding his true skill and behaving oddly to disrupt the flow of battle. But nothing he thought of came true. He only saw a boy throwing his fists around like a mad man for the last few minutes he's been in the ring. There was no poise behind Xen's movements, nor was there precision behind his punches. This infuriated The Viper slightly as Xen was fighting without spirit, which even most novices should possess, basically.

Xen instinctively twists his waist in the direction of his opponent just before his fist collides with the soft surface of his opponents face...wait a second. He was expecting his fist to be caught ''Huh...?'' Xen was at a loss now. '' You're fighting just to win and not for the spirit of it...Why should I fight someone like you,'' The Viper does not acknowledge the pain and the fist that was causing it. Despite just being punched square in the cheek, The Viper behaves like the punch didn't happen. Xen jumps back from his opponent, using the strength of both his legs, when he realizes how ineffective his blow was.

However, he doesn't stop there.

Once his feet touch the ground Xen grips the floor with his toes and jumps forward. The Viper casts aside all thoughts of avoiding Xen's tackle. Instead, he welcomes it, and takes the charge head on! Xen collides with his opponents waist and immediately tries to push him down in order to subdue him. It was only that his opponent was putting up fierce resistance—refusing to fall. Xen then wraps his arms around The Vipers waist, sensing that he wouldn't be able to push his opponent over. So, he changes his game plan and aims to lift and throw his opponent down.

Now it was a wrestling match!

The crowd was loving it!

Then something unexpected happens.

Xen manages to lifts The Viper off the ground slightly and then slams him down onto the ground. Afterwards, he jumps and tries to body slam his opponent, but two feet extend forward and catch him in midair. Xen was surprised by this and tries to recover, but was tossed over his opponents body and slams into the ground. The full force of his move was thrown back at him, which Xen realized as he writhes on the ring floor in pain. ''This is the difference between those with spirit and those without it, '' The Viper stands over Xen; his eyes looking down on him. How did he get up so quickly? ''Within the mind, spirit, and soul: that is where true strength dwells, '' The Viper walks pass Xen and leaves without anything else to say.

''You,'' Xen slowly stood up and glares at The Vipers back. ''I will beat you, '' Xen declares as his battle in the wrestling tournament comes to a close.

[Dravite]

Xen

XP Award:

• Observation: 1
• Socialization: 2
• Endurance: 2
• Acrobatics: 1
• Wrestling: 1
• Unarmed Combat: 3
• Intimidation: 1
• Tactics: 1
• Running: 2
• Bodybuilding: 1

Lore:

• Dhani: Blood thirsty
• Tactics: Using what you know
• Tactics: Stay on top of your opponent
• Planning: Thinking ahead
• Medicine: Mild concussion
• Myrians: Attack as a group

Penalties:
Xen will feel a bit sore for the next four days. He will feel dizzy for the next 24 bells.

Notes: Great little thread, Xen! Felt good to be able to finally read some of your work. Just a little tip! When someone knew speaks, start on a new line, for example:

"Isss that all you got? Thought, you'd be more skilled than thisss," The Viper displays a look of disappointment as he spoke to Xen.
"Sssorry to disappoint. I'm too use to fighting monsters and beasts in the jungle," Xen backs away from his opponent to add space between them.

Would love to read more of your stuff soon, enjoy the rewards and let me know if you think I have missed anything here. Be sure to edit your grading request!

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