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Ryugi had to hand it to his pupil, that was pretty good. But, he was still using his powers, and Ryugi was not. As he sensed the energy from Dame, he clenched his eyes shut as the little zappy bolts hit him. It didn't do much other than annoy him and make his face twitch, but it was an interesting strategy. But, Ryugi quickly reacted. His reaction? A headbutt directly into Dame's nose...

Unfortunately, due to the angle that Dame was pinned under, his head would have almost no movement whatsoever, and his attempt to bite Ryugi would fail, his teeth chomping down just out of reach as Ryugi pulled his head back up and away.

Are you through?

Did it ever occur to you that maybe instead of trying to use your powers and a host of other desperate measures to use them...you just tried to struggle and overcome me?

Ryugi waited.

Friction was a fickle thing. Ryugi was not RESTING his hands on Dame's arms. He had them pinned, forcefully, to the ground, and was gripping them tightly to prevent movement. Friction might have had a little to do with it, but Ryugi's grip was strong enough to hold onto Ragnarok as he swung and flung the sword about. Holding tightly to an opponent's arm wouldn't be all that much more difficult.

Ryugi sighed inwardly. Once more his pupil was thinking too big. Too grandiose. He was focusing on the big goal instead of the immediate task at hand. He wanted to rip free from Ryugi, when that CLEARLY WAS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN. What WOULD have been a BETTER way to handle things would have been focusing on a way to hinder Ryugi's ability to keep the pin in place, rather than Hulking his way out of the hold. Ryugi wasn't THAT much bigger than Damrius, but he was stronger. Ryugi was using all of his strength to hold Damrius in place, and Damrius was using all of his strength to try and rip his way out of the pin. Lesser strength would NOT win out over greater strength if Dame just tried to do that.

Now, since Ryugi HAD to use all of his strength to keep Damrius in place, that would have meant he would have to spread all of his strength out to cover all the areas that needed to be upheld for the pin to remain in place. What Damrius had overlooked was that simple SIMPLE fact. He'd been so focussed on how to overpower or weaken Ryugi that he didn't consider this option. If Damrius poured ALL of his body's strength into, say, pulling an arm free, then Ryugi would have to either struggle to hold him in place, or divert strength from another area of his body to put the attempt down. That would weaken the balance and open it up for Damrius to quickly try and pull that part free.

But all Damrius wanted to do was smash his way through. He didn't WANT to take the time to think smaller and more refined thoughts. He simply saw the forest, rather than the separate trees that made it up. He simply saw the night sky, rather than the stars that made it up. And he simply saw a pin, rather than a complex balance of strength and force to prevent him from moving. It would seem that his pupil, had not yet learned enough. And so, Ryugi jumped up and off to the side, releasing his pupil, and walked off, not looking back.

You haven't learned enough yet. Don't fight me again until you've gotten better. I'll require some wins on your record next time before I'll even think about fighting you.

The next time we meet, I expect more from you...

Darkness covered Hono just as the blankets would on her own bed in response to her question. In it however shone a small circle, bright with color, alive with sound. The voices coming form it would of course be familiar to her, one of those voices being her own. Another belonged to a woman she called a sister once and the third was an old aquaintance of hers. Nedyfay Darkchild and Crsitopher Reinhart were the voices she heard. What she'd see in the 'display' before her would be something old, maybe something forgotten, but something she'd be forced ot remember now.

All three characters sat around a small table inside one of the Leviathan Stadium's many establishments. An old memory, nothing more. Why would the darkness force this memory on her and what was special about it? When Nedy's and Reinhart's lips touched for that fraction of a second the light was out and Hono would find herself back where she started.

Suddenly a chill as cold as death's grip crawled up Hono starting at her feet threatning to consume her. It fell short however, it covered her only up to her waste....

BOOM!

An explosion caused the light to flicker again and in it was Reinhart and herself, center stage at the stadium. Half her body covered in ice, Reinhart's right shoulder almost torn from the rest of his body. A blade planted by Hono herself in Reinhart's shoulder had gone off like a frag grenade in point blank range. Another memory, the first time they fought. No longer in that icy grip the light faded out once more.

A door fromed from the darkness itself, it stood just infront of Hono, voices could be heard on the other side. No walls, just a door, Hono, and endless darkness. Slowly the door opened, creeking lightly as it did revealing what was behind it. Fully open it moved to Hono as if forcing her inside a bright light followed and Hono was no longer surrounded by darkness. The door itself lay open, pitch black beyond it as far as the eye could see, however, dream or not Hono sat on a bed.

A bed inside the Leviathan Stadium inside one of the many guest rooms that housed it's many accupants. Reinhart stood not far from the bed in a towel fresh from the shower, a scar on his right shoulder clearly visible. A small cat sat on the bed as well, it was none other than Hono herself in Reinhart's room at the stadium.

Both Reinhart and herself fell asleep on his bed that day and the moment they shut their eyes the darkness swallowed Hono once more.