//------------------------------// // ch.4 part 2: Battle Royal/ Daniel vs The Paladin/ Jordan vs The Dualist // Story: The Unexpecting Journey // by dquiroga //------------------------------// Battle royal He explained that we were to be tested through combat. We would fight individually, and, if we pass, we will have one last match as a group. The king didn’t really say why we are being put through this, other than he wished to test our skills. We weren’t given a chance to object or even ask for an explanation. He gave us some time to prepare ourselves before our challengers arrive. Waiting behind a wall near the arena, we huddled up to discuss the situation. “Daniel, what are we going to do?” Taphy asked, not being stoic of the situation. “We didn’t sign up to be part of some mortal kombat sh#t.” Jordan added. I was rubbing the back of my head, unable to say anything. This whole situation came at us unexpectedly. “Heads up.” Jordan said, getting our attention. I looked up to see Gilda gliding down towards us. When she landed, she began to flex her injured wing, wincing a bit in the process. “At least your wing is healing up nicely.” I said, getting her attention. “Heh, you shouldn’t expect anything less…” she said confidently, “give it a day or two and I’ll be flying like nothing ever happened.” “Not to burst your bubble, but mind telling us what’s going on?” I asked, crossing my arms. Gilda’s ears began to drop backwards from hearing my question. “Oh… well… uh…” she was stumbling between her words, obviously knowing the answer, “you see, my old man told me that I need new bodyguards, and that I could choose who I want so-“ “So you decided to have us as your bodyguards.” I said, finishing her sentence. “Yeah.” She said, lowering her head a bit. I began to understand why the king wanted to test our skills in combat. He wishes to know if we’re capable of protecting his daughter, by having his best fighters go against us. I shook my head in disapproval of the situation. “Look I’m sorry ok. I just… I just thought that-“ she tried to explain herself, seeing our disapproval. I rose my hand to signal her to stop. Understanding my gesture, she stayed quiet. “Gilda, I’m not sure what you intended, but it would have been nice if you would have asked us first before volunteering us for guard duty.” I said, voicing my opinion. “By any chance, we can settle this without fighting?” Taphy asked, aiming for a less aggressive approach. “No, not really… unless you wish to live the rest of your life behind bars. This isn’t a request; this is a direct order from my father. Refusing it without good reason will be completely disrespectful…” she said, with all seriousness,” what are you guys so afraid of anyways? I see you take on like thirty bandits at once, with just your bare claws.” “Gilda, just because we can fight doesn’t mean we should. I was always against unnecessary fighting, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. Also, to be fair we fought under self-defense; we were never the aggressors.” I said, annoyed by how simple minded she’s being. Nothing more was said after that. Gilda only dropped her head in shame, making me feel bad. Unable to see her so sad, I sighed in defeat and went to kneel down next to her. Her head jerked up hearing my sudden approach. “Hey what’s with the long face? We all make mistakes, but we learn from them. Like my father’s father says ‘you never stop learning until the day you die’” I said making eye contact, “Just promise me that you’ll be more considerate next time.” I lifted my hand, offering her my occasional bro fists. She looked at me a bit puzzled at first, but, when she understood my gesture, she then gave me a smirk. “Yeah yeah, no need to get all philosophical on me.” She said, bumping my fist with her claw. We begin to hear trumpets and cheers, coming from the arena. “The fight is going to begin soon. You guys better get going.” She said, keeping her smile. “You heard her boys, let’s go kick some @ss!” I yelled, with random confidence. Jordan began to crack his knuckles, having a very neutral look on his face. Taphy looked more annoyed than anything else, probably from being forced to fight once more. “Let’s just get this over with… and you know this is going to cost you double.” Jordan said nonchalantly. I looked at him, with a confused face. “Double?” “Yeah, as in double drinks for both of us. You still owe us for the first one.” He elaborated. “What, oh come on!” I yelled, lifting my arms up. “You know the rules; extra work means extra pay.” He said, with a smirk on his face. “Wow you guys are killing me.” I said, giving a light complaint on their demands. My friends only laughed at me for my inconvenience. “Come on, let’s go give them a show.” Jordan said, wrapping his arms around my neck. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gilda After they left, I begin to make my way back to the balcony where my father would be. On my way there, I pondered about what Daniel told me. I guess I should have asked them first about all of this. They weren’t exactly happy about it, but luckily they agreed to do it. The threat of imprisonment probably had something to do with it. Regardless, I’m glad they are going through with it. I don’t know what it is, but I actually feel like I could be myself around them. Even after they found out about my royal status, their attitude towards me didn’t seem to have changed. Their friendship is something that I truly admire. It almost reminds me of an old friend of mine… or use to be friend. ‘Dash…’ I still haven’t forgiven myself for what I did. I only wanted to hang out with her, to feel normal again, just like old times, but she had other friends. I tried to push them away, but, through my selfishness, I was pushing her away instead. I was so angry, frustrated, and jealous, that I couldn’t see that I was losing her. Before I knew it, I snapped, saying such horrible things. I then forced her hoof to choose me or her friends. She didn’t choose me; so I ended our friendship. With a burst of anger, I spat out one last insult and flew away. Once I realized what I’ve done, I broke down. I lost the only normal friend I ever had. Even now I can feel the guilt of it all, like a wound that never healed. I begin to feel myself drag a bit, remembering my past mistakes. Suddenly, I remembered what Daniel told me. ‘We all make mistakes, but we learn from them.’ I begin to feel energy flow through me once more. ‘No, I’m not going to let this chance slip by me. I’m not going to make the same mistake twice; you can count on that!’ I ran for the balcony, hoping that I can make it to the tournament before it begins. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Daniel As we got closer to the arena, the eager cheers of the crowd were growing louder. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. When we finally reached the entrance, we stopped. I took a deep breath before I said one last word of encouragement. “Alright guys, all or nothing… let’s do this.” We finally entered into the arena and were mesmerized by the sight of it. There were hundreds of griffon soldiers, roaring in excitement of our arrival. ‘Jesus, this must be quite an event to have this big of a crowd.’ As we made our way to the center, they began to make a path for us. We continued on until we reached a square clearing, which was actually quite a descent size. After looking around a bit, I decided to look at the balcony. I could see a few griffon elites posted there along with the captain. I could also see the king, looking at us patiently, and another griffon that I didn’t recognize. I can’t really see any distinctive features other than his dark brown fur and lighter brown feathers, but he wasn’t wearing any armor. ‘Hmm, could be an advisor.’ The doors to the balcony opened, revealing a very tired Gilda. The king began to speak with her, probably asking if she’s ok, but she seems to be brushing off his concerns, looking at us in relief. ‘Congrats Gilda, you made it just in time.’ I begin to grow a small smile on my face, nodding in Gilda’s direction. She smirked and nodded back. I then noticed the king walk up toward the edge of the balcony, causing the whole room to be silent. Instantly, all the griffon troops begin to salute their king, with their balled up claw to their chest. The king rose his claw up in acknowledgement, causing the troops to drop their salute. “Soldiers of Gryphonia, you are all gathered here today to witness yet another group of brave warriors to become guardians of Gryphonia’s royal family.” The king said, making sure everyone in the room could hear, “the ones who have been chosen are not ordinary warriors, but the very mythical humans themselves. They have done many great deeds and have shown worthy of our nations respect. However, under recent events, my daughter is in need of new protectors, and she had chosen these humans to fit the role. They have graciously accepted the offer, yet there are others who wish to earn this right. Therefore, all challengers will have a chance to prove their skills in a one on one battle with the humans, and, in the end, should the humans succeed, they will face one last challenger. May the best fighter win.” The ground beneath our feet began to shake as the square space in the middle of the arena began to rise. I would say that we rose about three to four feet above the ground. Once the arena finally settled, the crowd began to cheer once more. Looking around, I could see the ring more clearly. ‘Almost looks like the ring from dragon ball Z… fun.’ “The first match will begin! May the following challengers stand ready!” the king yelled, announcing who will be in the first match. The three of us stood there eyeing the crowd in anticipation. ‘Right let’s see who goes first.’ Daniel vs. the Paladin The crowd’s cheers were soaring in excitement, but I ignored them. I wanted to hear what the king will say. “The first contenders will be Andor from the Talon guard, against Daniel the human!” the king finally announced. ‘Why is it that I always go first?’ I took a deep breath and made my way towards one of the corners of the ring. I noticed that my friends took the initiative to follow; so I kept walking till I reached the edge. I turned around to look at them. They looked at me with concern in their eyes. “You ok?” Jordan asked. “Yeah… just a bit nervous is all.” I said, shrugging a bit. “Hey don’t worry about it. It’s just like the spar sessions we had in basic.” Jordan said, patting me on the shoulder. “Or like the martial arts tournaments we did back then.” Taphy added. ‘Heh, count on my friends to have my back.’ Before anything else could be said, I took sight of a figure on the other side of the ring. I squinted my eyes, trying to get a better look at it. My friends turned around to see what I was looking at. I could see a griffon with sliver clad armor. His breast plate had Gryphonia’s national symbol on its center. The shoulder blades had a wing on one side and flat on the other. He had gantlets that covered his claws and reached all the way up his arm, but still looked as sharp as a griffon’s talons. He even had shin guards to protect his hind legs from any low attacks. A dark green cape covered his back, hiding his wings. I could also see a handle of a sword on his side but the rest of it was hidden under his cape. The armor that covered most of his body was of high quality, and the high craftsmanship was indeed unquestionable. The griffon himself had black feathers, and, the exposed part of his armor, I could see tannish fur. His eyes were fixed on me, analyzing his opponent. He then turned away to look towards the king and saluted. Doing so, I could see a symbol on his cape. It was the same symbol as one of the drapes under the balcony. ‘Must be the talon guard symbol.’ Once he dropped his salute, he returned his gaze towards me. Taking that as the signal that the fight will start soon, I decided to tell my friends that now was a good time to get off the arena. They gave me a few more words of encouragement, which I smiled and nodded in return. Once they got off the ring, I begin my way towards the center. My opponent did the same. ‘Alright, time to put my game face on.’ Standing on the center of the ring, I was now face to face with my opponent. However, he was still on all fours, making me tilt my head down and making him tilt his up. Just like most of the griffons I’ve seen, his height only seems to reach to my chest, but I’m sure, if he stood on his hind legs, he would easily beat me on height. As if on cue, he decides to stand up, showing me his full height. He towered me in a few inches, but that didn’t change my demeanor. “Right.” I quietly said, bobbing my head up and down. “You are Daniel, one of the human warriors who defended the princess against all manner of foes and brought her home to safety?” he asked, in a neutral tone. “So you heard of us. I guess news travels fast around here.” I said, crossing my arms. “News of your presence has only gone as far as the military district, but your deeds will not go unnoticed for long…” he said, now looking at me with a questionable look, “do you not have a weapon?” “Ah well, I don’t have a sword or axe, but I seem to be doing well without them so far.” I said nonchalantly, shrugging my shoulders a bit. He stayed silent after I said that, probably in thought. ‘Yeah we made it this far without using any weapons, but it wouldn’t hurt to have a sword or even some daggers. I almost got beaten in that last fight.’ “Very well then…” Andor said, while unsheathing his sword, “let’s see if your skill is as good as you say.” After pulling out his sword, he took a step back and stood in an aggressive stance. At the same time, I took a couple more steps back and took a defensive stance. Taking the time to examine his weapon. Andor’s sword was a bit larger than the other swords I’ve seen. It was a double edge sword with an arrow tip. The handle was large enough to use with two hands, in his case claws. The weapon’s design seems to match fluently with his armor. ‘Alright, armor looks thick with little to no exposure except for his head; so my hits won’t do much damage unless I aim high. However, his armor also looks heavy, which could make him slow. Now his weapon has a good reach; so I’ll have to be careful, and I’ll have to watch his wings as well. He could use them to trip me up.’ The arena was silent in anticipation, waiting to see who would make the first move. To my surprise, he charged at me with great speed. He then twirled his sword to slash me on the side, but I jumped back in response, seeing the sword miss by an inch. He didn’t give me a chance to recover, as he swung a multitude of strikes at me. ‘Crap, he’s way faster than I originally thought.’ I decided to roll away, hoping to get some distance. It worked but only for a moment. He quickly turned to my direction, getting back to his battle stance. He came at me again, making me dodge another flurry of attacks. When he swung diagonally, I was able to side step away and pull his arm forward, placing me behind him. Before I could attack, he quickly used a vertical strike while turning around. I backed up just in time to see the sword smash the ground where I was, making a loud clang. He looked at me with a smirk on his face then gave a small grunt, probably thinking that the match was in his favor. ‘I can’t keep doing this. He’ll beat me at this rate.’ He went for another diagonal attack; so I side stepped, but, to my surprise, he swung his fist right afterwards. Desperately dodging it, I became unbalanced. With a strong flap of his wings, he lunged at me. He slammed his shoulder against my chest, pushing me to the ground. The momentum of the impact sent me across the arena, stopping right at the corner where my friends are. “Hey Daniel, I’m not sure if you’ve noticed but I think he’s kicking your @ss.” I looked over to see Jordan, mockingly staring at me with a raised brow. “Oh really, well I suggest you keep your comments to yourself.” I replied bitterly back, only for him to chuckle in response. "Look out!" Jordan yelled, grabbing one of the soldier's sword that was next to him. He quickly tossed it to me and I grabbed it on each end, hoping to block my attacker. Apparently, I had a lucky break, because Andor was swinging his sword downward. Both swords collided with great force, as I mustered all my strength to hold back his strike. Without thought, I kicked him on his side to daze him and rolled away. The crowd was in an uproar from the sudden intervention. 'I don’t think what Jordan did there was legal.' I was worried that I got myself disqualified for cheating, but, as I was getting up, I noticed that Andor wasn’t looking at me but towards the king. I decided to do the same keeping the sword in my hand. The king held his claw up to silence the crowd. We all waited for his judgment, making me feel uneasy. I could also see Gilda looking at him with worry. "I will let this pass, just this once..." he finally said, "but anymore and I will disqualify you from this tournament." I gave a sigh of relief, and turned my gaze back towards Andor. He was already looking at me, giving me quite a glare. 'Sorry buddy, but I believe the playing field is even now.' (Song dance of eternity [stop at 4:28]) I gave the sword a couple of swings to get the feel for it; then laid it on my shoulder. Continuing to glare at me, Andor was in his fighting stance once more. 'Alright let’s try this again.' Just like before, he charged me, but this time I was ready. As he tried to swipe me from the side, I swung my sword to deflect his attack. I was quite successful, using my speed to equal out his strength. He continued to throw attacks at me, but they were either deflected by my sword or missed entirely by my maneuvering. In mere frustration, he screeched, while swinging his sword down at me. I jumped to the side to watch the sword hit the ground. The stone ground shattered upon impact, leaving an imprint where the sword hit. 'Dear lord, it’s a good thing I dodged that one. I probably wouldn’t be able to block that.' Seeing Andor leave his guard open, I decided it was my time to attack. I swung at him as fast as I could, hoping to hit my mark, but he was able to bring his sword up to block me. I then began to throw my own flurry of strikes. Unlike Andor's attacks that had a chopping effect, the extent of damage my attacks would give are more cutting in nature. It may not be as powerful but it's swift and continuous, forcing Andor to move backwards while blocking. I was able to get him a few times, but his armor was too strong for my attacks to deal any damage. 'This isn’t working. I need to find another way to beat him. Maybe if I get rid of his sword...' before I knew it, Andor flushed one of his wings at me, fazing me a bit. When I regained myself, I noticed he was coming at me with an uppercut of his sword. I tried to block it, but I was slow. With great force, he knocked the blade right out of my hand, sending it across the arena. 'Sh#t... yeah that sword needs to go.’ I could see a bit of a smile on Andor's face, after he disarmed me, and now I was back to square one. He wasted no time and started attacking me, swinging his sword furiously to take me down quickly. My speed and agility was my only defense, but I couldn’t keep it up forever. 'I need my sword.' as Andor tried to hit me overhead, he left himself open for a counter, and I went for it. I quickly grabbed his sword arm and gave him a good hook to his head. After dazing him, I brought down his sword arm on my shoulder, causing him to drop his sword and squawk in pain. I then threw him over me, getting a good distance even with the heavy armor. Taking the opportunity, I ran for my sword, while he was down. I ran with all my might, hoping to get my sword in time. The crowd was in a frenzy, seeing the fight escalate this far, but there was something else I could hear other than the crowd. It sounded like wings, and, to my dismay, it was getting louder. 'Crap, crap, crap, crap! He’s catching up.' my sword was only a couple of feet away now; so I dived for it. I grabbed the sword, while rolling over it. I heard a loud crash behind me, probably from Andor smashing his sword where I was. Taking no chances, I decided to keep running. I looked over to see Andor holding his stance towards me. 'Alright, I hope you’re ready, because I’m coming right for ya.' I continued running, curving around him to see how he react. He turns with me, refusing to allow me to be behind him. I eventually made my move and began to sprint towards him, keeping the sword behind me as I ran. As Andor began to brace, I leaped into the air, rotating my body in a three sixty spin. As I came down, I brought my sword at him. He was ready to block it, but, thanks to my momentum with the spin, my attack was a lot stronger then he realized. The impact caused him to kneel down, giving me the opportunity to attack again. I continued to strike down upon his sword, throwing more force within each attack. My assault kept him from doing anything other than blocking; so, when he least expect it, I swung my sword in a under hook. To his dismay, I swatted the sword out of its defensive position, leaving him wide open. I backed elbowed him in the face, forcing him to the ground. 'Here’s my chance.' as he was desperately trying to get up, he held his sword at me. Holding my sword with both hands, I swung it like a baseball bat at his, knocking it out of his claw. 'Homerun!' Andor was now unarmed, but he wasn’t defenseless. As thoughts of victory ran through my mind, I instantly felt a sharp pain against my side. I fell back, grunting in pain. Looking down, I could see three cuts on my side, evenly spaced out and bleeding. I then see Andor with his claws up. One of them was dripping with blood, my blood. "Right, claws." I grumbled, as I held my bleeding side with my hand. Without warning, Andor leaped at me, holding his claws out to swipe at me. I was now dodging these vicious talons, occasionally blocking some with my sword. He screeched and swiped, and his eyes were filled with determination, unwilling to surrender. However, I saved the best for last. Using my skill in capoeira, I dodged one of his swipes with a back flip. Half way into it, I kicked him below his beak with my strong leg. Time seemed to have slowed down a bit, as Andor's head recoiled away from the impact. When my legs touched the ground, I spun forward with a back leg swipe, making him fall on his back. Seconds after he hit the ground, I was bringing my sword down on his head. Thanks to my momentum, the whole process was like a blur. Then I stopped. My blade was only inches away from impaling Andor's head to the floor. I knew he was stunned because he didn’t move from his position. In fact, the whole arena fell silent, showing that the crowd was to bewildered by the outcome of the fight. 'And that's how it’s done.' taking in a deep breath, I stood up, bringing the sword away from him. I then offered my free hand to him. He looked at me and my hand with such confusion in his eyes, as if my actions were conflicting with his reasoning. "Come on, the fights over." I said with all seriousness. He opened his beak, probably to protest, but he couldn’t say anything. Eventually, he sighed in defeat and accepted my helping hand. Bringing him up wasn’t easy, he was still heavy and I was tired and hurt. The wound on my side stung bitterly, making me wince a little. Once he was on his paws, he just looked at me, still a bit bewildered. "Why?" he asked. "Why what?" "Why didn’t you end the fight? You had me at the point of your sword, yet you retracted it before I claim surrender. If it was considered an act of mercy, then why humiliate yourself as to assist me?" his questions had earned him a chuckle from me. Before I answered, I had a small smile on my face. "As far as I know, the tournament was meant to prove who had the better fighting skills, not a fight to the death." I said, trying to clarify my actions, "what I did was not an act of mercy, but of respect. You fought with courage and determination, unwilling to back down, and I respect that. For what I understand, the moment my sword was above your head, I had won. So instead of claiming your admittance of surrender I decided to do something better." "And what would that be?" he asked, curiously. "The right thing." I said, lifting my hand up for a shake. Based on the look he was giving me, I knew I had to explain. "It’s a human gesture. Opponents would shake each other’s hands after a match as a sign of respect." before he responded, he looked at me for a few seconds, making me think he wouldn’t accept. "Hmmm... very well." he finally said, smiling while shaking my hand. "The winner of the first match goes to Daniel the human." we both looked over king to the king, who announced the victor of the first round. Even though the crowd was bewildered by the events that past, they began to cheer in respect. After looking at them, I looked back at Andor to see that he was back on all fours. He bowed and saluted me, and I bowed my head in return. We then departed towards our respective corners of the arena. As I looked over to where my friends are, I could see them cheering along with the crowd. Once I got over, they begin to congratulate me for my victory, giving me compliments and pats on the back. I was able to earn us a small victory, but we still had three more fights ahead of us. I would have to place my faith with my friends; for they need to earn their own victories. Jordan vs. the Dualist I had to say, that first fight was quite intense. If I hadn’t tossed that sword to Daniel, he probably would have gotten his butt whooped. Yeah sure, the soldier had some complaints, but he aint complaining now. Once the fight got going, everybody went silent. It was so exciting, that I was about to scream. However, I did my best to keep silent and watch, but let me tell you; it wasn’t easy. When Daniel finally took that griffon down, I was about to burst with excitement, but something happened. Daniel drew back and helped him up, but that wasn’t what got me. It was the fact that the whole arena fell into an eerie silence, making it seem like he did something wrong. I couldn’t hear what Daniel said to him, but I didn’t care that much. My attention was on the king, A.K.A. Gilda's father. He didn’t look upset, but actually interested, like he wanted to see how the events unfold. I brought my attention back to the arena. Daniel still seems to be conversing with Andor, while he stood there with a confused look on his face. Eventually, they shook hands... claws... claw and hand, giving the indication that the match was over. Then the king announced that Daniel was the winner, and boy did I let out a cry of approval. "Daniel, you crazy son of a gun! You almost gave me a heart attack!" I yelled, when Daniel finally came over to us. "Well what can I say; I know how to put up a show." he replied, with a smug on his face. When he got down though, he winced a bit in pain, clenching his side. "Yo, you alright man?" Taphy asked, coming over to assist. "Yeah, he just got me real good there with his claw is all." he said, still holding his side. 'Yeah that’s right, he got ya there that time. Darn it Daniel, you have to be more careful.' "Alright, let’s see the damage." I demanded. Daniel rose his arm in compliance, being a bit slow so he wouldn’t feel as much pain. The injury was as clear as day; three red streaks across his waist. It was still dripping with blood, staining the cloth around it. 'It doesn’t look that bad, but I don’t have a med kit to treat it.' "You’re lucky it’s just a scratch, but we're going to have to disinfect it later." I said, once I was done analyzing the wound. "Oh don’t worry. I can take care of that." I turned around to see a griffon, carrying a large brown pouch. She also had an armband on her shoulder, displaying a red cross. "Now let’s see here." she said, looking at Daniel’s injury. We all looked at her with a bit of confusion. "The names Nova, if you were wondering." she said, while picking through her pouch, "I’m part of the medical team that works in the castle, and I was assigned to take care of any injuries, that you may sustain in the tournament." Now understanding her presence, we weren’t confused by her intrusion. She didn’t seem as big as all the other griffons; so she was probably young. She had blue eyes, white feathers, and a black coat with a pitch of white on her chest. "So, is this your first time working on humans?" Daniel asked, while the rest of us waited patiently for her to finish. We all knew the answer to that, considering our race was nonexistent in this world. "well to be honest, this is kind of my first assignment." she admitted, with a embarrassed smile, "I just came out of training field, and ,wanting to earn experience, I took the first job out there." "I’m guessing that was being our medical doctor for the tournament." I said. "Yeah... I heard the rumor that there were humans in the castle, but I just scoffed it as a hoax. When I got this assignment though, I didn’t know how to feel about it, whether to be frightened or excited. Eventually, I knew that this was the best way to earn experience under my wings." she said, finishing the bandage. "Well I don’t know about you, but I say you work like a professional to me." Daniel said, flatteringly. "Oh... uh, why thank you." she replied, blushing through her feathers. 'Still don’t know how they can do that.' Before the second match started, the soldiers brought us a series of weapons for the tournament. 'I guess they didn’t like it when I pitched in that sword.' the pile consisted of spears, swords, daggers, and maces. We were quite grateful for their gifts. "I shall now announce the contenders of the next match!" the king yelled," Falco from the sky rangers vs. Jordan the human!" 'I’m next huh... alright, I got this.' "Going up against Falco huh. He’s one of the best sky rangers out there." Nova said out loud. "So, who are the sky rangers?" I asked, looking through the pile of weapons. "Oh well unlike the Talon Guard who are your typical soldiers in the Gryphonian military, the sky rangers specialize in air combat. They are light, fast, and agile; perfect qualities for a flyer. Oh, and if you are wondering, there is a third group; the sorcery guild. they're the ones who possess the ability to do magic. I don’t really know much about them, other than their the smallest of the three, since it’s a rarity for griffons to do magic." Nova said, informing us to Gryphonia’s military. 'So there is magic in this world after all. Daniel did say there would be, being in a show and all... man this is weird.' I ended up equipping myself with a sword and a dagger as a sub weapon. I put the dagger under my belt for quick access. Daniel and Taphy wished me good luck, as I got up on the arena. Making my way down, I could see another griffon gliding down towards the center. The crowd was cheering as usual, showing their interest for the next match. Once we finally met in the middle, I gave him a once over. His armor was lighter than the other competitor, only having a breast plate, gauntlets, and shin guards. The breast plate was mostly leather armor with iron plates on the chest, sides, and back. The gauntlets were also leather with iron plates in certain areas to allow more movement. They seem to cover all his arms except his claws. The shin guards were leather with two iron plates. One covering the thigh, while the other covers the leg. His armor type made since, knowing he was trained to fight in the air then the ground. I could also see two swords on each side of his waist. 'Dualist, fast, agile, likes to be airborne. This is going to be interesting.' His features as a griffon were pretty simple. He had white feathers with a bit of red shading around the eyes, and his fur was of a lighter brown. His height was the usual, being above my waist. "So your one of the humans everyone’s been talking about. Well I am honored to have this match with you, and a fellow dualist to. Ha, this will be an interesting match indeed." Falco said, with a bit of excitement. "So you must be Falco; heard you’re quite a flyer." I said, returning the gesture. "Well I don’t like to brag but I am one of the best sky rangers in the force..." he stated with pride, "I’ve heard you guys are pretty good fighters, if that last match proved anything." "Heh, will I aint one to brag, but I guess we are pretty good." I replied back, showing a little pride in it. The crowd was becoming restless, roaring for action. "Well I guess that concludes our conversation." he said. "Yup... may the best fighter win." I concluded, receiving a nod from him. (Song Magdalena) we both took a couple of steps back, keeping our eyes on each other. I stopped and reached for my dagger, pulling it out real slowly. Falco did the same for his two blades. Once our weapons were out, I crouched a bit keeping my blades in front of me, while he had one in front and the other by his waist. Then like a slingshot, he thrust his wings and dashed towards me. He thrashed both his swords at me, one coming after the other. I intercepted his attack, making two clangs for each sword. The fight continued as our blades came in different directions, but, as I dodged one of his strikes, I tried to slash at him. He quickly leaped back and took flight, hovering above me. He then began to dive straight towards me, making me brace myself. Once he was close enough, he swiped his swords at me, but I rolled out of the way. He then went back up in the air and hovered. He flew at me again, but this time I tried to counter him. I swung my blade towards his, with the other following suit. However, the momentum powered his strike with such force, it almost knocked the sword out of my hand. I stumbled back a bit trying to prevent myself from falling. Before I could turn to face my opponent, I felt a shock of pain on my back with a gust of wind blowing against me. I looked over to see Falco looking back with a smug on his face. I only glared at him, knowing he swiped at me while I was disoriented. He came at me again, but this time I decide to just dodge and think. 'I need to get him on the ground.' After a cycle of air raids, I decided it was best to change tactics. I sheathed my dagger and tossed my sword some ways behind me. Falco looked at me confusedly but decided to ignore the fact and to attack, while I was unarmed. However, I brought my hands back up and knees bent, bracing for his attack. He then proceeded to bring down his blades at me, just like I hoped he would. I then grabbed his arm with both hands and twisted my body towards the ground, throwing him off. Just like I predicted, the momentum was so strong it threw us both to the ground. As I rolled passed him, I begin to crouch keeping one hand on the ground for balance as I slid. While I was sliding, I reached out with my other hand and grabbed my sword. I held it in reverse keeping the blade behind me. Once I came to a stop, I began to charge him. He was still on the ground, slowly getting up, but, when he noticed me, he frantically got up to collect his swords. I thrashed the sword I had in reverse, twisting my body to gain momentum. He desperately tried to block me, but my attack broke his block, leaving him open. I then switched the grip of the sword to the correct position and slashed in the other direction, without pause. I sliced at his chest making a mark on his iron plate. I then punched him square in the face, sending him back to the ground. He lifted his sword straight at me, in attempt to keep me back. I decided to back off for a bit to let him get up. He spat at the ground, staining it with blood, and then glared at me. 'You aint smiling now aren’t ya.' as he was getting up, I went back to my stance, bringing my blades up and knees bent. I then proceeded to taunt him by waving my hand, telling him to come at me. His glare intensified after that, seeing his grip on the blades tighten. He screeched and charged at me, slashing his blades wildly when he got in range. I maneuvered myself to dodge the blades, deflecting some attacks with mine. Falco got more frustrated as I continued to dodge and block. To me, it was just a better chance to find an opening. after awhile I decided to make a move, I dodged and spun around him with a strike of my own. however, He seen me coming, so, instead of stopping to turn, he spun around and tried to counter with one blade and attack with the other. I blocked both blades with one, using all my strength to hold it. I then pushed forward to get closer to him. Our blades were shaking, trying to overcome the other, but it was about to come to an end. "Sorry to say, but I win." I said, with a smile. "What are you talking about!?" he grunted. My smirk only got bigger, while he was trying to understand what I meant. Suddenly his eyes began to grow wide in realization and looked down. What he could see was my dagger pointed right at his stomach. He took a deep breath before he eased off. Once the stress between the swords subsided, I drew back my sword and dagger. "Well played human; well played." Falco said, as he sheathed his swords. "Heh, you really gave me the run for my money there..." I contemplated, sheathing my weapons as well, "if that match lasted any longer, you probably would have beaten me. After all, you did do a number on my back." “haha, I guess I was to confident then." he joked, scratching the back of his head. "Maybe next time." I said, reaching out my hand for a shake. "I’m looking forward to it." he replied, laughing a bit while retuning my shake. Although another of their champions have been defeated, the crowd still cheered on. "The winner of the second match is Jordan the human!" the king finally announced. The crowd flared in approval. 'Well that’s that then.’ We both gave a respectful nod and parted ways. I got back to my friends, receiving fist bumps and congratulations. Nova immediately came to treat my wounds, but not after expressing how awesome that match was. Noticing the looks we were giving her, she stopped in embarrassment. At that point, we couldn’t hold it in; we began to laugh to our hearts content. She pouted in disapproval, and asked what was so funny. Once we stopped, we apologized for our outbursts and explained how adorable she looked. She obviously disapproved, giving us a scowl. We promised that we wouldn’t do it again, but we all know it aint true. 'Laughs aside, Taphy should be next. Good luck to ya man, and we will be right here to back you up as best we could.'