ENDLESS JOURNEYS (O/A)

[Kerana]

Nova Blancke

"I know a few safe places. This being one of them. Either that or become as strong as you can so noone can take what you want away. I was in the same situation one time." Nova replied as he felt the wind.

"Look we're not getting anywhere... I've addressed my concern and that's all I wanted to do." The fox girl shook her head and took her seat with the others. Be stronger than the elders!?! Has he met them?!

She bit her lip as the fight progressed. C'mon Alec, you can do this. She noticed he used the Cat's Grace spell. Looks like he may have a plan...  

[PixelMuse]

Trinity watched the fight. It seemed rather one sided and unfortunately the boy wasn't on the side that was doing well. The dragon-kin seems have barely put effort into it while Alec is giving it his all and not making a dent. She thought for certain the fight would be a little balanced considering and ancient resided within. She noticed he some how was able to speed up. hmm... interesting... might need to ask Nova about that one..  

[Rikki Tikki Travi]

Nova Blancke

"Ahhh, so he does know how to Empower himself. Good." Nova commented."Looks like he has a plan."

Leo caught the boy by the wrist. The attack connected but again...magic did little to him. He turned and tossed the boy aside. He certainly was faster but Leo was a trained and seasoned warrior. It would take more than that to get the better of him.

Alec panicked for s split second before he felt his center of gravity correct itself naturally. It wasn't like when he was hit by the tail this time. This time his feet hit ground first. The claws on his feet dug into the dirt and stopped him just shy of a wall.

"Think of something quickly, Pup. I still need more time to prepare the spell."

Alec took a second to study the fight so far. Wind by itself was't working, and there wasn't much to use with his druid spells. The he thought of something.

He took a deep breath and stomped his right foot down while exhaling sharply. From his paw print sprang a sand storm that filled the battleground without spilling into the spectator seats. He hoped it would be enough to slow down his opponent.  

[Nova Blancke]

"More tricks. I was hoping for an actual fight..." Leo said mostly to himself. He didn't shield his eyes from the sand. His eyes remained open but a second set of eyelids protected his eyes, allowing him to keep his vision. But despite that it was hard to see. Never the less he charged at where he had tossed to boy.  

[Rikki Tikki Travi]

As soon as the storm kicked up, Alec noticed that the gathering spell in his hand was giving away his position by drawing in dust. He was using a small sheen of wind to keep the sand out of his nose and eyes, but it was drawing his mana quickly. He had to think fast. He remembered a spell he used during the fight with the rogue and dropped a small cyclone of minimal strength where he was standing.

He ran in a serpentine while dropping more cyclones and using his wind sense to detect where Leo was and stay ahead of him. He hoped the cycles would either draw him away or confuse Leo enough in combination with the storm to draw his attention away from what he was about to do.

Alec focused his mana below himself and summoned a gust of wind to lift him over the sand storm. He looked down to search out Leo and winced. The nearly complete wind sphere was vibrating violently in his right palm. It had grown to the size of his fist, and was compacted tightly with wind and sand.

"A few more seconds. You can release it at any time, but it will be most effective up close. Just try not to touch him with it or it may put a hole in his body."  

[Nova Blancke]

This had actually gotten Leo a bit more interested. Now the boy was hiding. But he did it right. He couldn't use any of his other senses besides touch or sight. The sandstorm made sure of that. When he reached his destination the boy was no longer there. Instead there was a small cyclone. He grinned. This cat and mouse game could prove to be somewhat entertaining.

He followed the trail but did so slowly. It had to be hard for the boy to detect him in the storm. However the tracks...ended. Did the boy make a leap? No....it would be too hard to see where too. Then dragon man looked straight up.  

[Rikki Tikki Travi]

Alec felt Leo stop moving in the cloud and zero'd in on where he was just as the wind sphere stopped taking in air and just began to spin in every direction within the compact ball.

"Now Alec! Let them feel the howling force of a typhoon!"

Alec used the last of his mana to create of burst of wind that sent him flying toward Leo like an arrow. He thrust his right arm forward as he came within tail distance of Leo and cried out, "Howling typhoon!"

The sphere violently exploded and unwound outward from Alec's palm. What sounded like a cannon blast resounded through the arena followed by a prolonged howling sound. The grand wind spiraled into the arena and flattened the sand storm before the sands began to shift and blow in every direction with high intensity with the center of the typhoon focused over Leo.

Alec had locked his elbow with anticipation and immediately regret it. The force of the explosion traveled up his arm and dislocated his elbow and shoulder. He flew into the spectator stands while crying out in agony. The wolf spirit lent what little help he could and kept Alec from breaking his spine on the steps that made up the seats.

He exhaled sharply from the impact and lay still for a bit. He was still conscious, but that was the most pain he'd been in for quite some time.  

[Goruk Devon]

Goruk watched the storm and watched as the battle concluded with an emotionless stare. "Seems the boy may have potential after all..." he thought to himself as he stood up to see how the dragon-kin would fare after an attack like that.  

[Nova Blancke]

Nova was nothing short of impressed. And it wasn't just him. Every single eye was on what was happening in front of them. He honestly did not think the young wolf was capable of this feat. Alec is the perfect underdog. Never did he show such skill but then again Nova has never pushed him like this. No this was all his own determination that got him this far. There was a great sense of pride for Alec right now. Yes, Nova truly was proud of Alec. This journey is the best thing that could have happened to him despite the hardships. That move was somewhat nostalgic to Nova. It made him remember Zephyr even more fondly. It was one of his moves. Nova just there with a smile. Part of him wanted to howl in response.

"It's not over yet Kerana." Nova said to Kerana in case she wanted to run towards which she most likely wanted to do. He knew how tough the Dragon-Kin could be.

Leoxandre saw exactly what happened in front him. He had underestimated the young wolf and paid a high price for it. However....he couldn't help but grin at this threateningly excitected moment. His talons dug deep into the soil, arms crossed before him to guard himself from impending attack. Oh and what an attack it was. A loud howl with the force of typhoon! It was way too late to even try and dodge so he took the full brunt of it. Leo grit his teeth right before impact. The sheer strength of it was too much for his natural resistance. It felt like countless hammers rained down on him. The man did his best to hold his ground but it was in vain. In the end he lost his grip and the force of the assault crashed him against the wall. Air escaped his lungs on impact. He fell flat on the ground.

It was as if every person held their breathe in these few seconds. His vision was blurry, everything hurt. It has been a while since someone did this much damage in one go. The man made a fist and grabbed soil. Forcing himself to stand, he failed the first two times but did managed to get up. His blood felt like it was on fire. Oh how he wanted to fight more....but barely could.  

[Rikki Tikki Travi]

Alec slowly hoisted himself up on his good arm and looked down into the arena from where he was laying. He couldn't believe that the dragon-kin was still standing after that. But then again his natural resistance to magic probably helped.

Hey spirit, think you can help me back down?

"I can do more if necessary. If he insists on continuing, you may need to ask your charge for permission to use the spirit cloak."

Alec grit his teeth at the notion. The spirit cloak was something that was only supposed to be used when a guardian's charge is in immediate danger. The real catch was that the fox-kin had to give verbal permission to use the cloak.

He had a strong feeling Kerana wouldn't agree to it. The cloak has a tendency to reduce the guardian to little more than a raging animal that takes commands from only one person. The Fox-kin they're sworn to protect.

Alec, with every bone in his body trembling, stood back up. His right arm was making painfully audible cracking noises, and he was sure that he had broken a few ribs on impact with the stairs.

He cautiously made his way down a few steps, and was just about to hop down into the arena when he lost his footing and tumbled over the railing. A strong gust of wind cushioned his fall, but he still landed with a fairly hard thump. He groaned and stood back up as unsteadily as he did the first time and began to approach Leo. His right arm dangled and cracked as it swung disgustingly from the elbow in the wrong directions. He was visibly panting and wincing with every step.

He stopped at the same distance he did when the match first started and let go of his right arm. He took the same readied stand he did before, except that his right arm was limp and the fur matted with blood that was just then beginning to drip.

"Ready...when you are." he grunted.  

[Goruk Devon]

Goruks gaze hardened in surprise as he watched the pup walk to the arena with many wounds and a few possible broken limbs. He crossed his arms and a small smile came to his face as he then roared a mighty roar out in congratulations to the young pup for walking back to the arena after such an attack. If the battle was to continue he hoped his roar would inspire the young pup if not at least playing his role as the "Different" Dragon-kin and to let the others know of Goruks approval of the young one.  

[Nova Blancke]

Right after Goruk cheered him on in his own way Nova cupped his hands in front of his mouth and howled like a wolf. Shortly after that the rest of the crowd erupted with cheers and their traditional stomping that came with it. They came expecting nothing but they certainly got a lot more than they thought they would.

Such a young wolf. Broken but not defeated. It was beautiful in his eyes. He wanted to continue to fight against his better judgement. It would almost seem insulting to deny the young wolf after having shown such determination. But Leo did not wish for the wolf to be permanently broken. But if the young man was foolish enough to continue then he would answer out of respect.

"You have my respect Alec Yaetes. You have proven to be worthy of passage. Not just to me....but every single person here thinks that you are worthy. You can walk among us with your head held high and you will always be welcome. Do you still wish to continue? I would advice against it." Leo spoke with respect and sincerity to the young wolf.  

[Kerana]

Kerana watched in horror. Her tail wrapped around her stomach as she bit the nail on her thumb, her ears were lowered as she worried for Alec as he was tossed him. Her eyes squinted as she tried to find Alec in the middle of the dust storm he caused. What are you doing Alec? Are you really ready for this sort of fight?! Will you be able to make it out in one piece? Please don't die Alec…I-I need you. Then she saw some upward motion, which lead to seeing Alec above the sand storm. She could not believe her eyes. She saw something in his hand, she started to wonder softly out loud, "What spell is that?" The spell was unleashed and it was a powerful one at that, "Howling typhoon?" Her eyes were on Alec as the spell did its work "ALEC!" She wanted to run to him and heal him but was being held back.


Trinity held her hand. After Nova pointed out it wasn't over, Trinity nodded, "He's right."

"Are you mad!? His back could be broken! I need to go to him! This fight is stupid, why did he put himself in there... just why?" tears started crawling out of her eyes.

"Just watch…" she pointed toward him as got back on his feet.

Kerana watched. She felt relieved seeing him on his feet. He could have been dead but he wasn't and yet he was going back to the arena for more?!? What has gotten into him? He'd never placed himself in a fight like this before, he knew better. What has changed so drastically that would compel him to do this?! The wolf-kin was barely holding himself together, his arm…dangling. "No Alec, don't." she shook her head. 'Ready when you are?'… Where is he getting this? Kerana feared this new found confidence, Alec has aquired. The others seem to see it as a good thing, a step in the right direction. Was it too late? Has he become an alpha with so much confidence that will lead him down foolish paths that could get him killed for the thrill of it? While the whole arena was cheering him on, accepting this new Alec, she was searching. Wondering where was the Alec that was shy, wrote poetry and drew pictures? Where was the Alec she knew and loved? "No... no... this is not right at all..." She darted off outside of the arena, weeping cat_crying  

[PixelMuse]

Trinity cheered along with everyone else, not paying attention to how upset Kerana was or that she left. She looked next to her and found that fox girl left. What's wrong with her? I thought she'd be happy…  

[Nova Blancke]

Nova didn't bother to stop the little fox from running away from reality. He just sighed as she did.

He glanced at Trinity who seemed confused about it. " Just leave her. She thinks she is losing Alec because she doesn't know this side of him and doesn't like it." He turned his attention back to the fight.