Determining Supremecy, Carmaus Attacks!

[Ana]

A love like mine cannot be ended. A love like mine cannot be drowned.

Upon returning from Decimus Nocturne -- the ruins of a once beautiful Aura, the City of the Light, her heart was pushed past the point of emotional exhaustion to a near corruption of sorts. What had it felt like to be one of the remaining human civilizations then -- if not the oldest -- then to see it happen again? What kind of nightmaric paradise was this; she was the type to find a source of amusement bound to thrill and torment -- the one to harness a self-contained hellfire and spit it out like arsenic. In anger, that is. She should engrave her name into a blade and drive it into her creator's head, so that everyone would know she was the last thing on it's mind.

But take this not because she cared to bear a title of brutality, but because she trusted no one on the face of Vaenon, as they called it. For each will fall into sin and betray... one, after the other, after the other. And there is where the core of her drive flowed from: a crevice of agony; a mountain of defeat. The one who said the first shall be last; that is the core of her existence. But it had broken her also.

Araduial; the enscription bearing blade was drawn upon entrance to the Palace of Rahn, where the crowned King was likely to be; the man she had yet to admit her heart to. And would she, on her self-pedestaled fear of desolation, trust her lips to part with such an eloquency? She thought not... but perhaps words would not be necessary.

As she rounded a corner, a blade cut through the air toward her, and she raised Araduial to defend. The sharp edges of the two collided and clanged together...

"In case your aim is any better than your judgment!"

She exclaimed, knocking the sword out from the soldier's hands. The soldier stumbled backwards in dismay, mumbling an apology.

"Milady, I-I thought you wer-..."

She grabbed his sword from the floor and shoved it into his hands none too gently.

"Shut up; let's go!"

Death and honour are often thought to be the same thing; but often those unfortunate learn that sometimes they are not. She picked up her speed again, running through the immense halls of the palace with the embarassed soldier scrambling behind; he must have thought his end was near -- and though death is inevitable, she could see the relief in his eyes that he was not alone any longer. Saved by a woman? He'd never live it down.

And then she saw him.

Men...get out of here...I'll handle this, defend the rest of the palace...thats an order...

She distinctly heard the word men when it came to whom was to get out; and her flighting steps slowed abruptly to a stop, the soldier behind her colliding into her. They both toppled over with a thud -- and with grace, should be added.

"You IDIOT!"

She shouted, her voice echoing throughout the room.

[Carmaus]

"Well, it would seem that I did find you." Carmaus spoke towards Orion. He fixed his posture to that of standing straight up and then gave a mocking bow. "Oh King of the humans, what shall ye do?" he asked mockingly and then gave a light chuckle. "Now, now. Don't go determining who's evil or good at this very instant. If you know me that well you know that there is only one reason why I'm here."

Even with the tone of Carmaus' voice, anyone could see that he was just trying to push Orion into fighting. Though the dragon anthromorph could already see that he was going to get the fight that he wanted. However, Orion's expression wasn't one that made Carmaus feel very comfortable. "So it's all business and no fun eh?" he spoke barely audible. He closed his eyes and than spat to the side of him.

His crimson glare was fixed on Orion and the woman who had fell behind him. He gave a sigh as he looked onward. "I'll tell you the truth. Peace bores me." Carmaus spoke straight out without hesitation, "I could careless for what the creator has in mind. Besides as you can see your security is very lax and soldiers aren't that well ready in case something like this were to happen. At least you know which ones you need to weed out such as the woman behind you." The red haired man pointed to Ana the one that was behind Orion. "Either way, I won't deny that I did start this. But lets face it who likes to wait in line for a fight."

"I remember the day that you approached me to help you." Carmaus spoke and thought back, "Approaching me to be at your side to fight whatever evil may exist...all because I managed to crush a shinobi that threatened the world. Do you remember my words, champion?" He waited briefly to see if the king would give a response and didn't allow him to give one. "I told you not to get my intentions confused. It was for the fight that I fought him. I defeated him because he was my opponent not because of some silly idea of freedom or justice. It's in every creatures nature to have war. Even the anthromporhs have that same instinct...the thrist for bloodshed. However, they hide it just like every other race attempts to do...well, besides the shinobi that is."

The dragon anthromorph then set his long bow down and took off the coat that he was wearing. It revealed muscle shirt of the color of white. His body toned perfectly for his size. He popped several joints in his body and then let out a breathe as he took his fighting stance. He clapped his hands once and flames were ignited and grew around his hands. He took his stance with his hands burning with red hot flames though there were no signs of the flames actually harming him. "I wonder...how much his majesty has improved since the tournament? Perhaps the outcome of this duel will show who truly is superior." Carmaus spoke his last words as he was now ready for the fight. His eyes showing a focus that only a true warrior could possess. Eyes that burned with the hunger of the fight. "It's time." he whispered softly.

[Xavier]

Upon the conclusion pertaining to the chastise of the kingdom’s men, their punishers being those who had been bound to chains and whips with forgotten mercy, Xavier retreated from his previous inclination. Sparing enemy lives was no longer his objective, the swords in his hands pulsating in dire need of more blood.

The pinnacle of the sporadic battle had just arrived, men ceasing momentarily to glance towards the scene between The Crown and The Culprit. Xavier took upon this moment to stab through his opponent and twisted his sword into the sack of blood and pulled it out roughly, kicking off the writhing creature from his object simultaneously.

The battles once more ensued, the dance between flesh and steel coming alive as what was left of an impromptu militia held its ground against stampedes of opponents. And despite his current position, the beast that charged through yet another victim kept his eyes settled on Orion; things were going to get far more hideous very, very fast.

[Orion]

Orion kept a steady gaze upon Carmaus Dracus, his eyes those of a master strategist and battle expert. He was sizing his foe up, remembering all information he had on the man. During the March Tournament, Carmaus had fought a dragoon, Drake Dalaran. Drake was a water dragoon, and a powerful one at that. The two had exhanged blows at first, and then had gone on to wielding some of the most powerful magics that fire and water had to offer. That was another thing, Orion knew that Carmaus possesed an extreme affinity towards the burning element. He had seen him summon fire almost anywhere, even underwater. Normal means would not work against someone who had the control over fire that Carmaus possesed. One last factor, Carmaus was an anthromorph, and not just any kind of anthromorph, he was a dragon anthromorph. Such a thing seemed impossible in this day and age, but the fact remained that Carmaus was perhaps the most powerful anthromorph in existance.

Looks like the odds are a bit against me. But then again, those odds are where I do best...

"You IDIOT!"

Orion's head snapped immediately around as he heard a voice behind him. His eyes widened in shock and amazement as he saw the one woman who had truly managed to capture his heart. Ana! She had returned, but when?! And at such a time! Although he was glad to see her, he was also somewhat worried. He had no idea how Ana handled herself in battle, he was afraid that she might only be a hinderance in this particular fight. He called out to her, his eyes fierce, yet caring.

"Ana! You have to get out of here! Let me handle this! Go!"

Just as he finished practically yelling those words, Carmaus began to speak. Orion turned back to face him, keeping a firm grip upon his sword as he listened to the firey anthromorph speak. His eyes narrowed slightly when he spoke of "weeding out" the people surrounding him. He was especially affected by his blatant disrespect for Ana. But still, he held his tongue, letting the man speak, Orion's icey blue gaze never leaving him. The longer he listened, the more the king came to realize exactly why Carmaus was doing all of this. The anthromorph was obsessed with fighting. He could never just stop and accept peace. The man held an unextinguishable fire inside of him, and it would always burn for the next challenge, no matter what it took to get to it. Creator? Was he referring to Seraphiel? The bastard, he had actually joined forces with a heartless demon in order to get what he wanted. How incredibly selfish and naive. Did he not realize what kind of power he was following?

"I wonder...how much his majesty has improved since the tournament? Perhaps the outcome of this duel will show who truly is superior."

Orion shook his head, sighing. He gave a slight smirk, looking his foe right in the eye, locking gazes with him. Raising the gigantic Ragnarok, he tilted it into a ready position.

"I know you will never accept pity my friend, but I still feel it for you. I understand your lust for battle, for the strong, there is no greater rush than the one gained from being in the midst of a fight, especially a challenging one...But Carmaus, the strong are just as able to settle down amongst those who do not share our strength, and we may use our power to help lead a life where the needs of one is sacrificed in order to make everyone prosper. That is the life I have chosen, and if you wish to make a stand against it, then I will fight with all I have in order to protect it...You wanted a fight, so now I will give you one. It begins now..."

He raised a free gloved hand, actually smiling. curling his fingers, he urged his opponent to make the first move, his own body already entirely tensed and ready for battle.

[Taylan]

Upon her arrival to the main level, Taylan promptly avoided being stampeded by a maid who fled from the clutches of a monstrosity of a man – and yet that was barely the surface of the scene unfolding before her. The infiltration was worse than expected and the root of such underestimation was the lack of reason behind the entire jailbreak. But there was no time for such matters and so she pressed them to the back of her mind and continued with what had been bestowed upon her.

Catching sight of a vase on a pedestal that had miraculously survived demise for so long, Taylan hastily grabbed it and with effortless precision flung it to the back of the predator’s skull, sending him crashing down to the ground unconscious. Spending no more than a moment to see the young maid’s retreat to safety, the dragoon rushed to where the convicts were without opposition and found herself encircled.

And yet that was not her concern, eyes spotting the unforgettable hair of her beloved friend being rivaled by what she knew was a flame breather, his aura radiating heat that she knew by heart it seemed. And hidden behind Orion was a beauty rare in design and yet with a sword. Before saving her own skin, Taylan vowed to protect Orion and all that he stood for – and she would let it be known that it was her every intention to do so, even if it meant crossing the line of fire between him and his fiery opponent. Thoughts were no longer allowed for Taylan as a sword came slicing through the air, threatening to sever her head from its partner had not she moved at the last moment to spite that idea.

Apparently, the thought of her ignoring the fight between the half of a dozen men had infuriated them and fueled those against her to lunge at her sporadically.
“Demon w hore!”

With naught but a blade and an anger, Taylan attacked back spitting at the idea of sparing souls and went in for the kill. For her wings, they had named her demon. For her fire, they had named her a spawn. For her sex, they had named her w hore. She would make sure they knew who Taylan Varkatzas was before their last aching breath.

[Carmaus]

"Aye, though with someone as such as myself, there is no reason for me to settle down." Carmaus spoke softly, "The fight is all I have and is my own being. Without the fight I am nothing thus a fightless time or a time without struggle is empty and void of meaning. Good guy, bad guy, I don't care how you look at tme. I might've been a hero but that word meant nothing to me. So let the fighting begin."

The anthromorph changed his posture into a more aggressive stance. The flames that were covering his hands flared brightly. He leaned forward slowly as if fixing to run and with a burst of speed and flames he had managed to close the distance between Orion and himself and pass up the human king by a few steps. He quickly around and went to deliver the first punch which Carmaus anticpated a block or dodge of some sorts.

He then dropped and rolled forward back towards the other side of Orion to avoid an oncoming attack. He rose quickly do deliver an uppercut using his right hand with red hot flames flaring and creating streaks as it passed through the air. The uppercut was then followed with a straight punch from his left hand that didn't lack in any sort of power. He ducked and leaned towards the left to dodge an anticpated counter strike if any and followed up with roundhouse rising kick with his right foot towards the human king's face.

Dodging, blocking, and countering whenever Carmaus could, he would do it. Eventually he withdrew from the close range and created some distance between him and Orion. The first confrontention was a short and simple one. A warm up one could call it. The flames that were only surrounding Carmaus' hands were now covering his forearms, feet, and lower legs. The flames neither burned his clothes or the anthromorph's skin. The cries of victims of the fires that were spreading and that of the convicts running free could be heard echoing through the halls still.

"You know what they say about fire." Carmaus said with a slight chuckle, "They double in size every four minutes. I don't think it'll be that long before this whole palace is burnt to the ground. Of course, that's the natural growth of fire...I wouldn't want to think of how fast the fire would spread if I was to aid it. Now shall playtime be over and the real fight begin or does his majesty require more time to warming up?"

The dragon anthromorph stared long and hard towards Orion. His eyes protraying that he was getting the thrill that he desired. The high of adreline rushing through his very body. It was what he truly desired. The thrill of the fight and that with someone strong. Orion known as the mightest human in existance was one of the few that ever intrigued him. There were others but the rumors of Orion were much greater than any other.

[Orion]

"The fight is all I have and is my own being. Without the fight I am nothing thus a fightless time or a time without struggle is empty and void of meaning. Good guy, bad guy, I don't care how you look at tme. I might've been a hero but that word meant nothing to me. So let the fighting begin."

Orion looked straight into the eyes of his firey opponent, seeing the truth in his words. He almost pitied the anthromorph. The man had an unquenchable thirst, he lived a life where he would never truly be satisfied. He would be that way until his dying breath. Deep down, there was a part of Orion that felt the same way as Carmaus. When peace had finally arrived and he was crowned king of Rahn, his days of a wandering Champion were over. No longer would he be searching for the next battle, the next opportunity to prove his strength to those that believed in him. In a time of peace, such a hero was unnecessary.

Orion's eyes narrowed as Carmaus began to shift position. Every muscle in Orion's body tensed, ready for the oncoming assault. It came quickly, Carmaus right next to him in seemingly milliseconds. Seeing the hand come towards him, Orion quickly shifted the weight of his sword into one hand, his now free palm moving to meet the anthromorph's attack. Their gloved hands collided, the force of impact sending out a wave of force, an indication of the power level this fight was being waged upon. Immediately, Carmaus broke away, Orion's eyes never leaving him. He did not pursue, anticipating his foe's reactions. As Carmaus moved to the other side of him, dropping low, Orion quickly shifted Ragnarok to his other hand again, just in time to lean back just enough to avoid the anthro's firey uppercut. Immediately, Orion's sharp eyes caught the simultaneous punch heading straight for his gut. Twirling the hilt of his giant sword effortlessly, he quickly shifted the position of the sword just in time to have it bear the powerful blow before it could hit its true target. The force sent even Orion skidding backwards a few inches. Clearly, Orion was dealing with an incredibly strong foe, perhaps with strength to rival his own. The roundhouse almost hit Orion straight in the face, had his free hand not been there to catch the foot and push it away in time.

For now, Orion was very limited on offense. Not because he couldnt attack, but because he was observing Carmaus's movements, judging his speed and its comparison to the amount of strength allowed with each movement. From just a few attacks, Orion could tell he was dealing with quite a warrior. The man truly did live for battle, and as such he was like a fine polished blade, with little room for imperfections or mistakes. The few punches and swings Orion put forth also told him that Carmaus was just as good at defense as offense. It would seem that normal battle tactics would be rather useless against him. Therefore Orion would have to think outside of the box in order to even land a hit on his firey opponent.

When Carmaus backed away and began to speak, Orion took the time to glance around him. He could smell his castle burning, and hear the sounds of his subjects and followers fighting fiercely for their lives. He cursed the fact that he was not here when this whole thing started, but still he remained calm. He returned Carmaus's obvious joy with a casual smirk, staring his foe straight in the eyes. For a moment, he was silent, the two staring eachother down, as though time were frozen about them. Finally, he spoke.

"Fire cant burn through everything, at least not without your help. Wood and cloth may perish in this chaos, but the stones I have helped to lay down in the building of this kingdom will remain strong. I will keep you occupied while this madness slowly comes to an end. You are right, the warm up is over, now let the true fight commence..."

Gathering his strength, he raised the mighty Ragnarok blade, giving out a silent plea for it to lend him its strength. He could feel the sword becoming one with him, the blade itself seeming to radiate with power. With a yell, he swung it horizontally, sending forth a hurricane-force wind towards his opponent, Immediately, he followed up with a vertical slice, another powerful gust shooting forth. Following the strong winds, the king of Rahn charged towards his opponent, ready to fight fire with fire, flames of passion burning in his eyes as he moved to defend his kingdom with all he had.

[Lord Blithman]

Listening to the samurai speak he sighed, he had offered this guy a break but it sounded like he didn’t want one, but for now Terence didn’t really care, he had to find the culprit who had set the prisoners loose he had no time for a samurai he felt was not guilty of his crimes and fighting him would waste time instead he would hold him to his word. Holding the rusty blade he softly passed it to him and said

“take the sword but as you do you are now indebted to me and after you complete your oath you must return and repay your debt to me but I worn you if your original dept should endanger the innocent life’s of the citizens or my friend the king I shall stop you and believe me you don’t want that. Ive have had a bad month and don’t have time for petty games, now I must go but remember my words you owe me and one day I shall call upon you to return the favour as far as the records of this battlethey will show the man you where before as dead now you are someone else try to live that way living for people less fortunate then your self because the strong should always strive to protect these who can not defend them self’s.”

With that he walked past the man and hoped the man would find peace in his life instead of what ever was tormenting his soul. He could hear a voice in the distance it sounded like Orion but the king was away in a meting with the other races leaders And with that he began to run toward the sound of the voice slicing and destroying anyone who dare think to kill anyone or destroy the city he had helped make he would not lay his greatest friend and kings hard work go to waste he would find Orion and then he would know what to do.

Skidding round yet another corner he nearly bumped into a maid as she stopped he said

"Its ok head toward the armoury I left men there to protect the civilians.” Pausing he softly added “have you seen the king?”

The lady simply pointed to the direction she had come from before running off toward the armoury, Terence then turned the corner she had come from he saw a woman and a group of men, the men where prisoners and the woman was Taylan Varkatzas she too protected the king but he had never met her properly only seen her a few times never the less she was an ally although he could sense she needed no help he would help anyway.holding his hand out a ball of energy shot forth sending one man into a wall his fighting days where over walking forward he said

“Need a hand?”

[Nahtanoj]

The samurai clutched the rusted blade in his own hand and dropped the sword he was weilding. This one suited him much more, however, the one that he was about to engage had left. Little was known but the oath that needed to be fulfilled belonged to the anthromorph that had gotten him out. However, he had no intention of harming the soldiers or knights. In fact, Carmaus' words were to fight and clear them. At least to the best of his recollection.

The white haired bushi didn't save anytime to standing there as he made it towards one of the nearest exits...or at least he thought he was heading in the right direction. He found himself pinned inbetween amongst an all out brawl between human warriors and the captives. Nahtanoj was dragged in by both sides. The prisoners thinking that he was some sort of reinforcement for the guards while the guards knew that the samurai was a convict. He had no choice but to fight them both.

In a brilliant display of the art of bushido and some other sword arts, it made the fighting seem easy for Nahtanoj. Though he did not injure either or greatly, but simply disarmed and rendered armor useless. Perhaps it was more directed towards the guards than the captives, but either way those that fought him either found themselves knocked out or fled to exit the palace.

"This place is confusing." he spoke silently to himself knowing very well that he didn't even know the very substance that this place was made of. His rusted blade didn't seem any different during the fight. Though for that reason was it more difficult for him to harm anyone. He eventually found himself where the two dragoons were at. One that he had met before and the other one was someone that he had passed by while exiting the dungeons. He gave a sigh and looked at the two. "Hello again." he gave a weak greeting.

[Carmaus]

"Oh, but fire can burn stone." Carmaus said mockingly. The flames covering his forearms, fists, feet, and lower legs burned a brilliant orange red. The dragon anthro watched the human with crimson eyes that were a blaze with bloodlust. He resumed the position of fighting as he knew what was coming up next. He expected it, but not so soon. The merging of the fighter and his blade was something that he witnessed at least once before, though he didn't truly know the full strength of such a thing.

Thus the first gust of hurricane strength winds had caught him off slightly. Though the warrior stood his ground with his arms raised forward as if to act as a shield. The flames that were covering certain parts of his body enlarged by the gust of wind and made them flare even hotter. As the flames resumed at normal levels it revealed a sort of armor or at least that's the appearance the fire gave. Orion's follow up was impressive as the initial slash had missed the now fire covered dragon anthromorph completely, however, the shock wave of winds gave Carmaus a ride up into a wall that was behind him.

Rahn's king was now charging at him, Carmaus dodged the attack with a duck and side step. Then giving the exposed king a strong body body blow. He jumped back out of the corner so that he wouldn't be stuck in one place. He let out a cough as he needed to regain some breath. "I see that I might have underestimated you a bit...of course, who ever would've guessed that you would've jumped to using that technique of yours so early in the fight?" he spoke to delay some time.

The heat started to pick up quickly in the room. The temperature's radiating from the flames that were all around. Though they were indeed an example of Carmaus' power. He was not being affected by this. In fact, he was changing his form. Wings suddenly bursted out of his back were the shoulder blades normally would be. His hands and feet forming claws that could easily tear through flesh. Teeth and fangs that could pierce and tear through the hardest of bone and stone alike. His eyes becoming dragonic as his pupils formed into slits. His skin taking on the hard scale like crimson plates that dragons would have. His firey red hair become a mane of sorts as horns grew from the back of his head. His height increased by another foot and his body was definitely more defined then what it was previously. The form of the anthromorph between animal and man. The humanoid dragon then began cracking various joints and bones in his body as if they hadn't been used for extended periods of time.

Carmaus stared down his foe with a gaze that told it all. The battle was now going to be more than just a tussle of pure power. He enhaled and spat, yes spat, five rapid balls of flames that were no bigger than small cannon balls. This was only the beginning but something had to help him start up. He dashed forward at speeds that were more than before and swung for a punch that would possess much more power than what his pure human form would give.

[Taylan]

Thrust into the fling of angry men was one thing but having them try to rip off your wings ravenously was another. She had avoided many incidents of the likes but was soon cornered for a moment as her sword had been kicked out of her hand. Taylan looked shocked for a moment; as though being mortal despite her abilities was something new. A quick glance was spared towards the direction of said sword before her eyes shot back to the men lurking towards her. No matter, she thought hastily, she was not weakened by being bladeless.

They were ready to attack once more when a force like no other blasted their attempts away, literally sending them flying off to the other side. Her avenue was suddenly clear and Taylan looked to the man who had saved her from wasting time and blinked. Realization hit her quick and she gave him a chaste smile despite their circumstances. Lord Blithman, loyal friend to Orion; she had never met him but knew who he was and was thankful for his arrival.

“A hand and a sword, really.” She smirked and reached for her weapon, moving towards him to avoid collision with a battle between two stubborn males. Mayhem was flaunting its horrid body all over the forte and it would not decease no matter their tries. And it only seemed to get uglier.

In the midst of such distress, she kept a cool head but her eyes always diverted towards Orion’s fight – at his first sign of trouble, she’d jump in. No point in being wounded in the first battle, Orion… her conscious worried over, almost forgetful that he was one of the strongest beings on the green earth. And in extension of keeping such a calm disposition, Taylan went to strike up conversation with Blithman when another man appeared, his quiet greeting striking her odd. Nevertheless, she offered him a faint smile and almost childishly waved at him.

And it was as if she were almost blinded by the fights, the blood and the gore for she had just then noticed the fires breathing destruction into the palace. Eyes widened at such a slow reaction and Taylan turned her sudden anger towards Carmaus as she looked to him. Not on her time was she going to let him burn down what held generations of peace.

“About that hand,” Taylan spoke to Blithman without removing her eyes from a huge source of fire, “watch my back for a moment….”

She had practiced long and hard enough to do it correctly…she assumed. And rose a palm towards the direction of hellish flames consuming the castle walls. So Carmaus thought he was going to incinerate the stronghold? A smirk came to her face as she watched the flames cease to grow and gradually simmer down. Focusing all energy on that want to control the fires, Taylan made the fires die down to shimmering embers, her eyes lighting up at the small victory. There it was.

And there it went.

Feeling the intense shot of energy rising, Taylan snapped her attention towards Carmaus and watched in slight horror how he morphed into a stronger entity. Almost no time was given to contemplate when a zooming fist charged towards her face and she violently sidestepped to avoid it. It seemed the mayhem would only get worse…

_
(ssucky post V_V )

[Orion]

At this point, there was definitely no turning back. Orion had to fight Carmaus, the man would never listen to reason, only the fires that burned deep inside his soul. The only way to stop this madness would be to stop Carmaus, in any way possible. The first wind attack was withered by the dragon anthromorph rather quickly, reminding Orion just how resilient this man was. The second caught him a bit more roughly, and at this time the king of Rahn was already charging towards him, sword raised, ready to follow up in his attack.

The initial strike was avoided, Orion quickly tensing his arm muscles to stop the sword in mid-swing before it could get stuck in the stone wall where Carmaus had been moments before. Seeing the bodyblow coming, Orion again used the same defensive move as before, twisting his wrist at the right angle so that his sword pivoted downwards at an incredible rate, just in time to take the blow, again the force of it making Orion scoot backwards. No man could wield the Ragnarok like he could, and his link with the legendary blade made his movements with it superhuman. He smirked at Carmaus's response, noting that he had actually winded the anthromorph a little from his assault.

"Ive grown a bit since that day at the World Tournament, I know a few more tricks besides that one..."

Orion leaped backwards as the flames around Carmaus began to flare up. Raising his sword again, Orion ignored the nagging pain in his joints from moving about so quickly to block the anthromorph's attacks. He raised an eyebrow as the man began to transform, his body becoming scaled, his hands and feet sprouting claws. Before he knew it, Orion was seeing Carmaus before far more than a man, but a cross between his human and dragon counterpart. His mind flashed back momentarily, remembering when the water dragoon fought him in this state, and did not fair well soon afterwards. Orion gripped the hilt of the Ragnarok blade tighter, knowing that the warm up was over, it was time for the real fight to begin. Smirking, he nodded, knowing he would have to take things up a notch as well.

Even as Carmaus continued to transform, Orion slammed the Ragnarok into the stone floor, the massive blade sticking into the stone as though it were sand. Reaching down, the king of Rahn pulled at his leggings. Undoing the straps, he lifted the first, then did the same to the other, until he had both in each hand. Smirking just as Carmaus began to crack his joints, Orion tossed both leggings at the anthro's clawed feet. With a crash, the leggings hit the floor, creating a small crater in the stone floor. Shaking each leg, Orion looked to see Carmaus spit forth several balls of flame right at him. Yet before any could collide, the king of Rahn vanished, yes vanished, right before his firey foe's eyes. The fireballs crashed into the wall behind where he had once stood, dealing incomprehensible amounts of damage.

"You missed..."

Orion stood not far from Carmaus, crossing his arms. He might not have had his legendary blade at the moment, but obviously his speed had just increased tenfold. Disappearing again, Orion reappeared where Carmaus's fireballs had obliterated a part of the wall. Picking up an enormous chunk of stone seemingly effortlessly, he chucked it at the anthromorph, calling out to him.

"Catch!"

(Ok in case you are wondering, the details to his speed are this. Not only does it wear him out to go really really fast, but I give you permission to land ONE hit if I type that Orion is speeding towards Carmaus at superspeed. Just trying to keep things balanced.)

[Carmaus]

Studying with the outmost scrutiny that someone of Carmaus' skill could possibly give. Why was it that such a thing be possible. But then again he knew that humans were always finding ways to better themselves one way or another. And apparently this one decided to improve his speed far beyond normal limits. His eyes snapped towards the direction of the voice seeing him there for a brief second and baffled slightly. Though the anthro showed no signs of it.

Scent wasn't going to help and neither was sound for as Orion's footsteps were barely audible and even then slower than the speed he was really traveling. His eyes finding it difficult to follow as the human king managed to change his position back to where the fireball had landed into the palace wall. Turning to see that he was there only in enough time to hear his words and a large chunk of stone being hurled at him.

The dragon anthromorph would have to take advantage of this. Taking a deep breath which was followed up with a hurl of fire from the lungs of Carmaus. The flames collided and engulfed the same stone that was coming towards Carmaus and weakened it a bit. He then swung his tail and on contact caused the boulder to shatter and send them in the opposite direction. Now this was his plan. With the smaller flaming fragments still airborne and some hitting the ground, he created a great gust with his own wings. This caused the flames to amplify in their intensity and velocity to pick up as they sored back towards Orion.

Carmaus also decided to follow it up. Following the fire storm he made within the hallway that was heading towards Orion. The warrior would have to try and avoid them though they wouldn't deal that much damage to the human. They were a simple means for Carmaus to be able to deal his next strike and sure enough the smaller flaming stones did so. As Orion took his action Carmaus noticed a small group of them change from the rest and took long swing with his right arm and claw like hand. He felt the body of the human king get caught as he slammed the human into the nearest wall and held him there. He couldn't give the king a chance to attempt performing rapid attacks while at the higher state of speed.

((yuck, I know it's not the greatest so please forgive me of my suckiness in this post.))

[Orion]

(quite alright my friend, it happens to the best of us)

Orion knew his increased speed might be his one advantage over the anthromorph. They were seemingly equal in strength, Carmaus could control fire while he could barely summon a simple ball of flame, and as far as the variety of battle tactics, Carmaus in his shifted form had the upper hand. He was counting on the anthro's unequal speed to allow him to have enough time to land any sort of attack. Unfortunately for Orion, this superspeed had its limits. The faster he ran, the more exhausted his body became. He had to end this battle as quickly as possible, or he would have nothing left to oppose Carmaus.

He watched as the huge chunk of stone soared towards Carmaus, having a feeling that the anthro would counter in some way. With ever cautious eyes, Orion beheld the sight of Carmaus blasting the stone with flame, then smashing it with his tail. The king's every muscle tensed as some of the flaming chunks flew back towards him. One step was all that could be visible as Orion once more dissapeared from sight in order to avoid the incoming projectiles. Even as he ran, he felt some of the debris brush against him, the heat luckily unfelt due to his high speed. But then suddenly, Orion was stopped in mid-run, having met resistance stronger than a brick wall. The wind knocked out of him, Orion looked bewildered as his eyes traveled along the scaly arm, seeing his captor none other than Carmaus. He coughed, air having a difficult time entering his lungs. He managed to gasp out as he gave a crooked grin, looking his foe dead in the eye.

"...Touche..."

Things were looking bad. Orion knew he had to do something or else Carmaus could crush him, smash him, or whatever other painful attack he desired. Orion's eyes wandered across the room. Luckily, most everyone had evacuated. In the distance, he could make out the form of Taylan and a few others, fighting nonstop. He could not let them down, he had to break free and defend his kingdom. He'd gotten himself out of much worse situations in the past, there had to be a way.

Ragnarok...I need your strength...

Still stuck in the floor, the gigantic blade began to give off a golden glow. Rising from the cracked floor, it began to hover, carved runes in its blade beginning to appear where there had been none before. Orion's eyes closed and his grin widened. The blade began to soar towards the pinned king, heading straight for the anthromorph. There would be little time to react, only dodge. Feeling his foe's grip release, Orion fell to the ground just as the massive sword collided into the wall above his head, causing huge spiderweb cracks to form along the stone surface. Orion took in a deep breath, coughing the rest of the stale air out. Rising, he gripped the glowing hilt, feeling empowered by the magical sword. Looking over to his foe, he chuckled, raising the huge blade with newfound energy.

"Round Two...If I were you, Id pull out all the stops now..."

[Xavier]

Yeah, this was definitely going to be a battle written in history for years and years to come. Had he been someone who did not know the strength of Orion in face-value, he would have felt the blood in his veins freeze at such a sight. Doubting thoughts would cloud his mind and his fighting would grow weaker without will – like some of his young comrades seemed to be experiencing.

But he did know what godly strength Orion Armstrong had and he'd be damned before any shot of concern blew through him. Yes, he noticed, the young king's opponent was a force to be reckoned with and respected. And even though Xavier could clearly see perspiration on his friend's flesh, there was nothing but fury for victory in him. He had faith, if one would call it that, in Armstrong.

Slamming away his current opposition, the assassin stormed over to a freshman soldier and gripped his collar, glaring dangerously into his fearful eyes. “What the hell are you staring at?!” He yelled to the boy, no older than seventeen. “You're supposed to be fighting you damn idiot! He's got enough on his hands! Fight!” Releasing the trembling body from his grip, Xavier restrained himself from whacking him upside the head and slashed through what was an arm of a now disabled prisoner.

That seemed to get them back working, adrenaline no longer boiling at the bottom of their stomachs but rushing through the course of their veins. There was no need to say he now became alert to the fight between Orion and Carmaus but as promised to the land he called home, Fortis would defend his mother country before all.