The Honor Circle (IC) [Fa Teen, for language]

[ardaron]

Ardaron felt a small sense of accomplishment as several of the crystals became lodged in Syphon's body.  But it didn't last long, and within seconds Syphon was charging him.  He darted away, using his wings as much as his legs for the needed extra speed, and tapping into his Agility side as well, making time seem to slow down as he put as much distance as he could between himself and Syphon.

As he moved, he was focusing on something else as well.  Ardaron concentrated on the crystals inside Syphon's body, causing them to grow; thickening and branching off in multiple directions as they grew.  It was incredibly slow work; Earth was a stubborn element, and even masters of it could not make crystals grow very fast, and Ardaron wasn't even a purebred Earth Dragon.  It was likely that Syphon would feel nothing at first, but in a few minutes he would start to feel the points of the crystals as they cut him from the inside.  That is, if Ardaron could maintain his concentration that long.

[TheGreyRonin]

Syphon followed Ardaron around the circle, not even slowing as he followed the dragonman around. He shifted course abruptly a few times, eating up the distance between them bit by bit.

He had nearly caught up with his opponent just as the first set of stinging pains began inside him. "Poison," he said, then lunged forward to tackle Ardaron's legs.

[Aisha deCabre]

As the fight started between Ardaron and his opponent, Aisha had been following their moves carefully, and from what the panthress had seen so far, the dragon seemed to have some of the advantage...as long as he was in flight, at least.  His control over the elements was the thing that caught her attention.  He's gonna take it, she bet herself and took another gulp.

She had almost forgotten about the other Circle, until she heard and saw the other two individuals making their way across.  The panther still couldn't get over how diverse it was in that place, fighers and personalities from unimaginable corners.

Aisha turned after a second to grin at Gareeku's statement, also to notice Risky moving away, tilting her head, only to shrug as she said nothing was wrong.  She smiled politely anyway, toward the other patrons.  "While I'm here, I forgot to introduce myself as well.  Name's Aisha."  Inbetween words, she glances back to the fight, and finishes her drink.

[Boog]

Tock watched the fight with interest, standing up and moving closer to the windows for a better view. Creative use of magic, and forms that according to my knowledge shouldn't work at all. I heard people mentioning other worlds, but from my understanding "world travelling" was just a matter of causing yourself to be on other sides of the various filters between what we percieve and what reality really is. However, if it's true then the magic used by these people may be entirely alien to what I'm familier with.
I should have brought a notebook.

[ardaron]

Ardaron let out a growl of surprise as Syphon tackled him; once again, he had dangerously underestimated his opponent, not expecting him to be able to move so fast.  Ardaron's concentration broken, the crystals inside Syphon momentarily halted their growth, and the dragon went down, managing to catch himself with outstretched arms before he hit the ground.  Having only barely recovered from the earlier energy draining, he felt that same sensation again, and knew he had to do something, and fast.

The dragon twisted around in Syphon's grasp, bringing his claws to bear.  Aiming for his face, Ardaron slashed several times in quick succession.  At the same time, he kicked his legs, taking advantage of any freedom of movement Syphon's grip would allow him, trying to do as much damage as he could with the claws of his feet, as well.  He flapped his wings as he thrashed, determined to escape from the energy leech's hold.  He managed to regain a little of his concentration on the crystals, but their growth was even slower now, since most of the dragon's focus had to be elsewhere.

[TheGreyRonin]

Syphon felt his opponent twist at the last second, but couldn't dodge the slashing claws. He felt them sink deep into his face, carving ragged slashes through his cheeks and gouging one of his eyes.

Howling in pain, he started to curl into a ball while Ardaron kicked his way free, tearing strips from his chest and abdomen. He rolled twice and came to a rest a few feet away, face down and unmoving.

[ardaron]

Freed from Syphon's grip, Ardaron's wings propelled him several feet in the other direction before he saw that his opponent wasn't moving.  The dragon got to his feet and stood where he was, not wanting to approach for fear that it was just a ploy, but not wanting to retreat further or attack Syphon for fear that it wasn't.  He stopped the crystals' growth again, because if Syphon was badly hurt, the dragon didn't want to make it worse.  Ardaron used his Life-based senses to judge how badly injured Syphon really was, almost appearing to be sniffing the air as he did so.

[TheGreyRonin]

Syphon lay motionless save for his breathing, which was slow and steady. The blood which had flowed from him had slowed and pooled, staining the stone a bright crimson.

At the bar Risky shook her head, then finished her drink. "Another, Stalker. And I think you've just lost your bet."

[ardaron]

Ardaron's Life-sense, not to mention his eyes, told him that Syphon really was badly hurt.  He rushed forward, concern written on his face, crouching next to the motionless body, and asked, "Are you alright?"  Even though the answer to such a question was obvious; the dragon was really only looking for any indication of consciousness that Syphon might give him.

[Stygian]

Stygian looked up, and shot a glance at the ongoing battle in the circle. He was curious as to how Moira would fare; after all, she did have a tendency to exaggerate certain of her human traits. But the other battle was just as interesting. Not because it was spectacular or because it was that easy to discern just what the both combatants' real strengths were, but because what appeared to be a normal human man thought he could go up against a dragon, however small, and because the dragon wasn't thinking ahead as much as he should have been able to...
   "That one doesn't seem to go very well. I'd watch out, if I were that dragon," he said to Keaton.

[TheGreyRonin]

Syphon twitched just a bit, then suddenly shot both hands up and grabbed Ardaron by his harness. His face was a mass of healing scars and his left eye was only partially healed back into its' socket, but the look of triumph on his face was unmistakable.

"Gotcha," he said, and willed his power on full, draining Ardaron's life-force at a rate that would knock a human unconscious in twenty seconds.

[Boog]

Tock continued to watch, a slight twitch of disapproval crossing his face. "Faking a forfeight; poor show..." He murmored into his drink as he took another sip, "Poor show indeed."

[ardaron]

Angry at himself for falling for such a simple trick, and at Syphon for pulling something so low, Ardaron once again struggled to escape, thrashing and flapping his wings in an attempt to fly away, but his strength was fading fast.  Whatever he did, it would have to be quick.  He had noticed earlier that Syphon seemed to be using Ardaron's energy for himself, which now gave the dragon an idea.  Syphon wasn't the only one who could absorb energy from an outside source.  Quickly, Ardaron focused upon his Death element, reaching out for the souls of all those who had died within this Circle, asking to borrow their strength; someone watching might have seen strands of eerily glowing grey mist snaking their way into Ardaron's body.  It was enough to buy the dragon several extra seconds.  At the same time, he concentrated as hard as he could on those crystals, urging them to grow as fast as possible.  It was all-or-nothing now; everything rested on who could hold out the longest.

[TheGreyRonin]

Syphon held on tight, feeling explosions of pain within his body as the crystals grew. His body swelled in four places as the crytals grew, and the energy he was draining fought to heal him.

As they broke through his skin he released Ardaron, falling heavily to the ground. On his knees he screamed as his body used his opponent's energy to expel the crystals, blood streaming from four massive holes that sealed over slowly.

Shuddering, coughing up clots of blood, Syphon rose shakily to his feet, the tatters of his clothes hanging from his body. He glared at Ardaron where he hovered unsteadily. "You win," he said through clenched teeth...

...Then collapsed to his knees, the world a grey blur that spun around him.

[Boog]

Tock nodded as the fight ended. Some of this he'd recognised. The calling of spirits, for instance, was a trick he was used to seeing Gabriel perform, seeing as he often had too little power of his own for his purposes. He placed down his drink on a convenient nearby table and applauded. It really had been quite the show.

[Gareeku]

Shrugging slightly as Risky said she was fine, Gareeku turned towards the fight, only to find it ending with the dragon as the victor. As he had been talking to the others, he had been noticing the fight out of the corner of his eye. Turning his head, the wolf glanced at Keaton.

"Excuse me," Gareeku said politely as he walked over to the jackal. "I would like to fight you, when you are feeling up to it."
Gareeku was quite eager to fight the succubus, as part of him wanted to see if that manic personality would emerge in battle once more.

[ardaron]

Ardaron was seeing in tunnel-vision, clenching his teeth, fighting off unconsciousness himself when Syphon conceeded the victory.  "It . . . was . . a . . very close . . fight," Ardaron panted heavily, his exhaustion obvious as he put his hands on his knees to rest.  But now that Syphon was no longer draining him, his vision was beginning to clear, and he saw that the man was in an even worse condition than him.  After a moment or two, Ardaron thought he had enough strength back to help Syphon without risking blacking out himself.  He offered the man a hand to help him up and asked, "Are you alright?", this time in earnest.

[TheGreyRonin]

Syphon shook his head to clear his vision, and ignored the helping hand as he slowly rose to his feet.

"I don't need help," he growled, then staggered from the circle and back to his table, collapsing heavily into his chair.

Stalker said nothing, but placed two coins into Risky's outstretched palm at the bar. She pocketed them, and mimed a curtsey. "I knew he could do it. You've always been to cynical, Stalker." she said. She claimed her fresh drink as well, and wandered over by the pool table to watch the odd furry creature play.

[Cogidubnus]

Giles simply smiled the wider at Moira's words, and stepped calmly into the circle. His steps echoed on the stone floor, steady, regular thuds into the rock, and he turned. He grabbed the haft of the spear on his back, and yanked it out of the stone sheath at his hip with a crack. It hissed as it met the air, emitting a foul smell to whoever stood close to it, and he set the glowing tip down in front of him. "You don't got ta worry about me going easy, eh? I got two speeds, slow and fire." he said, his eyes suddenly coming alive. His earlier, sleepy demeanor left, and he seemed suddenly infused with a renewed vigor. He suddenly moved, and slammed the butt of his spear into the ground. Flames erupted from where the stone met wood, fanning out in a small circle and fading away just as fast. He grinned savagely, and waited for her to get ready.

[ardaron]

Ardaron stood back to let Syphon get up on his own, saying nothing more, then followed him, walking with heavy steps back to the bar, sighing gratefully as he sat down in his chair again.  He folded his tired wings against his back, as the feathered limbs vibrated from the previous exertion they'd had to endure.  He was quite pleased with himself for his victory, and relieved that the duel was over and he could rest.  "Could I just have a glass of water?" the dragon asked of Stalker.

Ardaron looked over at Syphon, briefly considering whether to try to make conversation with him, or whether to just leave him alone like he seemed to prefer.  But Ardaron's diplomatic instinct to try to be sociable won out over what may have been his better judgement, and he said, "That was quite some power you have, sir.  Our duel could have honestly easily gone either way."

[TheGreyRonin]

Syphon rolled his shoulders painfully, then turned a cold glare on Ardaron. "It won't happen next time." He turned away and began peeling off the remants of his shirt, wincing as his still-sore muscles moved.

[Stygian]

Moira chuckled, and followed closely. He had been the one to ask for this battle. Now, that meant that she could set some rules...
   The moment her booted foot touched the ground inside the circle, it was as if someone had decided to slap a camera objective onto the rest of the world and change the focus. Slowly, the world distorted, and what was outside became... wider somehow. And Moira herself became smaller and smaller in the distance to Giles. When she stopped, three feet within the border of the circle, it seemed about a thousand feet between her and Giles to the both of them. Unseen by the man, she grinned with her once again smooth, mouthless face somehow.
   The crate on her back made a crashing noise as it smashed hard into the ground. Next, she swept off her jacket and top. She was going to need them off for this. Then, she kicked off the latch that held the crate together, and grinned.
   Inside was enough mechanics and machinery parts that the crate must have weighed like a big motorcycle, maybe more. The machine-woman bent down, and wires began flowing out of her arm. The thing powered up, and with clicks and metallic rasps began flowing up and attatching to her back. It took about a dozen seconds until it finally locked into place, two huge cylinder-like power cores and a pair of enormous extra arms on top of some other mechanics and modules now on her back. One of them swung down, landing a long two-pronged conductor to her side and pointing it at Giles, steadying at a lock-on.
   "Burn this!" she said.
   The thing crackled, and then a bright beam of white, purple at the edges and fizzing with electricity, like a solidified shaft of lightning, tore against Giles. The two power cores on her back thrummed.

[Cogidubnus]

Giles spun as the blow tore at him, fire spewing up and curling as he turned, the white energy searing the right side of his body. His armor was half-melted, the gold salamander on the front glowing blindingly bright, and it was perhaps that enchantment that saved his arm from destruction. His arm had locked into place where it was, the metal in the joins fusing together, and Giles cursed loudly and vilely at Moira's treachery.
"So, y'think ye can just pick me off, eh?" He said, beginning to run diagonally towards her, his own arm stiff at his side, the other holding his spear tightly. "As ye say! Shoot this!" he yelled, suddenly spinning in a rather strange fashion, until gouts of flame suddenly began to spread from his body and outwards, and yet outwards farther, bathing him and a large area around him in flames. Spinning the spear in one hand, and starting to mumble some old battle-chaunt under his breath, more and yet more fire spread out from him, obscuring his figure and beginning to take the shape of a massive cyclone. The heat emanating from it was terrific, and inside the whirling flames, something else was going on - the fire began to expand outwards, creating almost a curtain of fire. From somewhere unseen within the roiling flames, Giles called to Moira.
"I hope those aren't shot with blackpowerder, m'dear!"

[Stygian]

The man began advancing on her, and Moira smiled to herself. He was still fast for being such a big guy. Still, she had the upper hand. She slung back the two-pronged conductor, the lightning cannon folding itself together, and the arms on her back slammed their huge, three-fingered hands into the ground, moving her back along with her legs. The machinery on her back almost seemed to act apart from her humanoid form, folding and reshaping itself, but she moved both with the same precision and skill, preparing to keep her distance from the man in the armor.
   The wall of fire grew closer, and Moira's sensors instantly changed spectrum into the higher ranges of radiation. She still had trouble seeing him in some ways, but she could lock on him very accurately anyway. This time, when she steadied herself, her weapon switched to a six-barrelled monstrum, clacking into place swiftly, feeder cables sliding into its side as if they were alive. She opened up, the barrels whirring around for half a second before it began spewing bullets of energy at him at a minigun-like rate.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

The pool player glances up, raises one eyebrow at Risky, lowers it again, and goes back to his game.

He does, however, mutter some pithy epithet about Syphon's reaction to Ardaron, in passing... although under his breath, this time.

[Aisha deCabre]

Aisha winced as she saw how the fight came to a close, so attentive with it that she didn't know whether anyone had responded to introducing herself.  There was a slight, almost unconscious sneer on her face at how the dragon's opponent had played, deceptive, but tough, at least.  As they came back in, she nodded her congratulations to Ardaron.  I should've bet someone else that time.

It was then that she had heard Gareeku's challenge to the jackal 'Cubi, and her ear quirked in that direction, followed by a curious look.  Now that would be something to see.  With a smirk, though concerned, Aisha turned her head back to the Circle, tilting her head at how the new combatants started.  "There's something you don't see every day," she muttered, regarding the mechanical woman.

Aisha noticed then that finally, one of the Circles was open for the next round.  Smirking, the huntress figured that she'd finally take the chance, after waiting for a while in almost hurtful suspense.  She stepped down from the bar in a sort of enthusiastic leap, her cape flaring as she stepped past the tables and in towards the grand arena.  After a pause, looking it over, she stepped in and threw her cape to the side, taking a deep breath to calm her adrenaline, her eyes closing partially as if in meditation while awaiting a challenge.

[TheGreyRonin]

Stalker rummaged behind the bar for a second, then came up with a bundle of cloth. He stepped out from behind the bar carrying it and a huge tumbler of ice water and walked over to Syphon's table.

He handed the ice water politely to Ardaron. "Good fight." He turned to Syphon, and threw down a shirt and pants. "Lost and found. Either you or the trash," he said to the mostly naked man. "You don't owe me anything."

He headed back to the bar as a whirling cyclone of flame rose in the second circle. His face shifted, eyes watching the fight as a second set formed to watch where he was going.

[Gareeku]

No sooner had Gareeku finished speaking when he heard something. Glancing round, he saw that Aisha had decided to enter the circle that was not being used. With a grin, Gareeku gazed on for a second before turning back to Keaton.
"My apologies, but this is an opportunity I cannot pass up." he said apologetically, before turning and making his way to the circle where Aisha was. Looking down as himself, he realised that he was still wearing the same clothes which had been damaged in the previous fight. Removing the tattered remains of his blue top,, though stil wearing his sandals, fingerless gloves and blue pants, Gareeku entered the circle, this time with his katana fastened at his side.

"Finally couldn't resist, hmm?" the wolf said to the pantheress with a playful smirk, stratching slightly to ease up his muscles. "Looks like you want a weapons fight. I won't use any magic. It'll be purely about weapon skill."

[Boog]

Tock raised an eyebrow. As soon as one fight ended, another began. If he wasn't quick next time he may not get any turn at all. He smiled upon seeing another construct involved. And what a construct! And here I thought my sort didn't get angels, he thought bemusedly as Moira fired shot after shot at the blazing Giles. Then again, do angels get miniguns? I shall have to check with Silas.

[Aisha deCabre]

Aisha quirked an ear at the voice opposite to her in the Circle, with a grin to the familiarity of it.  She glanced up to view Gareeku, her crimson eyes opening and looking as if to mirror the fire in her blood.  She straightened herself with a light stretch, her bracer gleaming in the light, and then nodded lightly to the wolf after listening to his terms, grinning with anticipation.

"Very well, I accept," she answered, laying a hand on her weapons belt...the ice-magic whip she had on her arsenal she decided to do away with for the time being, putting it where her cape was, leaving one long-range and one short-range evenly...her boomerang and her sword.  She decided that since the wolf had only his blade, to be fair she'd use hers only one at a time.

She stood with a ready posture opposite of the wolf, drawing her magic-resistant sword from its sheath, and raising it in front of her respectfully before placing herself in a defense posture.  "The first move can be yours if you wish," she smirked.