[IC] [Ranked] Rilla vs DJAtomika | Bringing A Knife to a Fist Fight

[DJAtomika]

"This is your target."

A photo changed hands. Its intended recipient gave it a gaze, before folding it in twain to slip it in a pocket.

"Remember, we require proof of his defeat."

"No problem, boss."

"Oh, and one more thing, Cho."

"Hm?"

"We also require the job to be done...up close and personal."

"...duly noted."

---

The ancient coliseum stood silent. For ages it lay abandoned to the wastes of time, its previous occupants, fighters and spectators alike, were dead. This world was desolate, ravaged by the wind and rains and sunlight and heat. No one came here, for the world itself was almost dead.

No one, except him.

From one of the ancient stone walls within, broke free a shadow. The shadow slithered across the stands and bleachers, weaving past cold stone and into the back of the arena. It passed old, rusted weapons, shields and suits of armour, making its way to one of the many gates into the dirt circle.

It was quiet.

The shadow chose a wall upon which to rest. It grew in length, reaching the floor, where the darkness pooled and settled.

Then a man emerged from the wall, wreathed in shadows, dark tendrils of smoke slithering about his form as he strode forward towards the gate. The weapons he carried bore no resemblance to those that adorned the wall racks or the dry, dusty floor. As he approached the gate, his body briefly turned into darkness, seeping through the rusted iron bars, before forming back into a solid form on the other side.

A faint murmur built in the air.

Cho strode a few feet away from the gate and stopped, withdrawing the photo from his pocket to give it another study. The image printed on the thin paper bore no resemblance to anything he'd ever seen before.

Then again, that was to be expecting when one was working for a company from another dimension.

The human had long since left his home of Earth behind to wander the multiverse, selling his services as a gunman and sniper to whoever would hire him, and for whatever the price. Currently he was under the employ of the Raeym Corporation, hunting down a notoriously destructive boxer who'd cost the Corp a few units short of a lot of money's worth of damages in the past. Raeym wanted to collect on the old debt, and when news reached their ears of a mercenary looking for a quick buck, they jumped on the chance. So here he was, hunting the multiverse for one man, or whatever Tre'Yan was.

The trail had led him here, to this desolate arena, where he'd been last seen. A dead world. Perhaps the travelling boxer was searching for someone to fight?

"Hey boss, y'think he's here?"

Barr asked from within his (her?) sheath on his chest rigging. He sighed and shook his head.

"I don't think so, but the trail's gone cold. Nothing's here."

"But that's not right, boss! Hek sniffed him all the way here! He's gotta be here, he's gotta be! He's gotta be here so I can blow his face off!"

Kris piped up from where he sat against Cho's chest. The submachine gun had been antsy for the whole journey, craving violence, as was his norm.

"He's here. I can smell his scent."

"Can you?!"

"Of course."

Hek, his pistol, rumbled gently in his thigh holster. Cho knew that Hek was the biggest and smartest of the four demons he carried with him, though why he'd chosen to take residence in the second smallest piece of his arsenal was beyond him.

There was only one thing to do, though, and that was something he, and all the other demons, disliked the most.

"Well too bad guys, we wait. If Hek is correct, he'll show."

[Rilla]

It had been three weeks since the return bout with Dyayun Kurokawa, the returning and former King of Boxing. Like their last bout it was a vicious affair, one that only the dead could truly appreciate. Their rain of blows, counters, and even the unintentional rabbit punch. Oh that damned Dyayun, that shot had rattled his brain and he had never truly recovered. Tre'yan hadn't expected Dyayun to slip so low, but he had and used it to his advantage. Death hadn't tempered the soul of the former King.

Dyayun had failed to kill him, true enough, but for all the power he possessed, he was still able to knock him into a two week coma with his monstrous uppercut-hook combo.

Worst still, Tre'Yan, the Rookie King and Top Prospect of Boxing in the WBTO, had lost his last two in-ring bouts. Once to Jake 'The Under' Taker, who had been rumored to gain some supernatural abilities, and once to Dyayun. His coaches rode him harder and harder, noting that a third loss would see the loss of his numerous sponsorships, one by one.

Money down the drain.

Tre'Yan had been pressed into taking a vacation, while his coaches and the Universal Fighting Championship matchmakers set up his next fight. The bout was said to be against a draconic creature named Evvie, who could ignite their hands.

Fantastic.

---

Three days later, well into his vacation, Tre'Yan stumbled upon an ancient weather assaulted coliseum. His first thought was to bypass the place, but something strange pulled him through the doors and his exploration began.

Oh, he knew of ruins and places where fighting was supposed to have happened for the pleasure of kings and queens, emperors and Gods. It was no different than the spectators in the crowd watching a boxing matches, where two modern gladitors would fight for the camera, for the belt, for the purse, for their sponsors.

The earthenware walls crumbling beneath the weather of the area, where blood was spilled for sport, it reminded him of home.

He found a tunnel, long and slightly wide.

This was where they would enter, anticipating their opponent. Oh the fight would have already started, long before sandled feet and th4 ends of spears touched sand. The crowd would have been in an uproar for anything else.

Light illuminated the end of tunnel and he made toward it, yes, this was home.

A sharp wind blew through the tunnel as he neared the end, his cloak flapping behind him. He raised his hands, taking up his orhodox stance. Give the crowd a show, kid, his coach would always say.

He burst through the tunnel, hands raised like the match had begun. No one was there, no stomping and cheering or jeering fans. No announcers, no commentators, no coaches.

No one being there was wrong.

There was one.

The man seemed to be deep in conversation with someone. Were the more people here than initial sight provided? Something was very wrong here.

Tre'Yan turned. Gates slammed shut. The stands were filled. Oh the dress was authentic. An Emperor raised his hand, oh what ghostly visage he put on.

He cared little for the reaction of the other man trapped.

"Welcome to the Coliseum, it's been so long since we've had worthy opponents," Tre'Yan's head immediately snapped back to the direction of his opponent.

"Forfeit or death, thus are the rules to escape." The Emperor said matter of factly.

He sighed, more dead surrounding the dead. Was his opponent dead as well? A game of chance. Too many chances.

Tre'Yan dropped his cloak, revealing his bony image. He headed towards the center, knowing there would be no talking down the game of ghosts. Truly, they had forever. He took up an Orthodox stance, the hand and foot on the right taking the lead. His knees slightly bent as he began to bounce on his toes, ready to move and keep the distance.

Another fight.

[DJAtomika]

Suddenly the arena erupted with sound, making him start slightly, bringing Kris up to bear on the ghostly apparitions that appeared in the stands.

"Woah what's going on who are those people can we shoot them please please please please -"

"No, Kris. Those are ghosts. They must've reacted to something."

"Ahead of us."

Tac spoke up from his long silence, pointing out a figure ahead of them that wasn't glowing or translucent. A figure clad in a robe that was discarded in short order.

"Tre'Yan."

He recognised the figure in the photo as the very same...man (thing?) standing in front of him. True to form, Tre'Yan took up a boxing stance as soon as he was spotted. The man was expecting a fight.

"Boss, you need us?"

"Nope. I only need one of you."

Cho strode forward to close the distance between the two. Nearby, on a conveniently placed shield, he laid down first Kris, then Hek after he drew the pistol from its holster. Then he removed Tac from his shoulder and laid him down gently on the dirt, flipping out his attached bipod to make the rifle...comfortable? At ease? He didn't know.

"What're - what are you doing boss?!"
"Boss?"
"What's going on, boss?"

"Relax, fellas. I got this."

He gave the weapons a brief glance, then returned his attention to the boxer in front of him. With one hand, he drew Barr from his sheath, and with the other he unzipped his combat vest and dropped it to the ground.

"Tre'Yan T'Mass, the Raeym Corporation extends its regards. Recently, they have been...concerned about the losses you've cost the company after your two losses previously. Now, it's none of my business about how you lost and why, but they've hired me to make sure debts are paid in full. And they wanted me to do the job...up close. Nothing personal."

Cho brandished the knife in a backhand grip and adopted a simple stance; knife hand close to his face, blade pointing outward, free hand loose and easy in front of that with palm open and facing his opponent, left foot forward and right foot back, body in a slight crouch.

"Alright, boss! We gonna carve this guy up or what!?"

"Don't underestimate him, Barr. I've heard that Tre'Yan is an amazing boxer. We're going to have quite the fight on our hands."

[Rilla]

Raeym Corporation.

They were his biggest sponsors, in fact, they were one of the biggest corporations in the gigaverse they were living in. They started in minor cybernetic upgrades to people, evolved into the same for mythological creatures, and then even further into various other dealings. The Corporation, while not an official shareholder of the Universal Fighting Championship, may as well have been - they sponsored someone in every fight. In the last two, it had been Tre'Yan.

In the last two. Tre'Yan had lost.

He supposed he shouldn't have been surprised that they were coming for his head, they were a business and were looking to cut their losses. Tre'Yan was a loss, and judging by that wicked looking Ka-Bar knife, they were looking to cut this particular loss.

His opponent was fairly close, and had dropped his combat vest. Behind him, the rest of his walking armory... arms, had been placed down. Raeym Corporation must have had a lot of faith in this hitman, if they had advised him to take care of this particular piece of nasty business.

Tre'Yan's boxing knowledge kicked in - his opponent held his knife in high guard in the high position on the compass he had been taught. His non-weapon hand was positioned in front of that. Tre'Yan noted without speaking that the man had some type of combat training, and was now utltizing a primary high guard.

This man would be the Raeym Corporation's ticket to a load of money, perhaps tripling what they would gotten had Tre'Yan won his previous two matches. Oh that clever corporation, they probably betted a sizable amount on his future opponent. Even if he didn't die here, again, he wouldn't be in any shape to put up a capable fight.

Without knowing the capabilities of his opponent, Tre'Yan wouldn't risk going for an all out physical assault. Instead, he began to use his motion to move from the forward to the back, presenting a moving target, hoping to open up Cho's, whose name he had not yet learned, defense and hit him quick. Hit him hard.

Tre'Yan had adopted the style of a defensive out-boxer, but unlike the common defense boxer - Tre'Yan had the supreme capability to finish. The tactic was simple, force the opponent into a false sense of setting the pace, and then surprise them with a combination of basics and speed.

[DJAtomika]

Cho frowned. He immediately sensed that this was not going to be any easy fight. He held onto Barr tighter as the undead boxer slowly advanced forward, the bobbing and hopping of his feet on the dirt kicking up tiny dust clouds that slowly faded away in the wind. His opponent held his hands up but kept his arms loose, his legs and feet as well. Classic boxing stance. He'd seen this once before, when he was watching professional boxing back on Earth. Pay-per-view.

Slowly he sized up his opponent, keeping in mind that the other was slowly moving towards him. With a careful step, Cho began to move backwards and to the right, keeping his front towards the boxer at all times.

He could feel the atmosphere bear down upon him. All around, the ghostly crowd had fallen silent, though they were watching intently the unfolding fight. Two powerful, capable combatants, sizing each other up and circling like predators.

The tension was thick.

"What're you gonna do, boss?"

The daemon's words were crystal clear over the silence. If the fact wasn't clear that the knife had someone living inside it, it was now. Cho held tightly onto its grip and grimaced. This wasn't how he was hoping things to go. It looked like they were evenly matched, sure, but since when had a knife ever beat a professional gigaverse boxer?

Only one way to find out.

Anticipating to get beat in the face right off the bat, Cho took a step forward, raising Barr up and behind his head. With another quick step forward he was within striking distance of Tre'Yan, and he swung downward quickly, aiming a blazing fast downward slash straight at Tre'Yan's face and chest. If it did connect, it would rake downward and diagonally right across his shoulder down towards his hip.

Of course, this was such an orthodox move that Cho was waiting to have the move blocked. If it were, he would simply accept the block and take a quick two-step back, out of range. Testing the waters, as it were.

[Rilla]

The Raeym Corporatiion must have really wanted to send him a message, just like the mob of the old earthen days, they didn't play about their money. This assassin, using the high guard, had been given special orders to handle him up close and personal. It was a play straight out of the playbooks of infamous mafia members Lucky Luciano, and his cohorts.

Tre'yan studied the man, using the boxing compass to quickly pinpoint the different areas the man could potentially attack from.

He continued to bounce backwards and forward, staying light and virtually on his toes in order to quickly react with speed and precision. His hands stayed in front of his body, the guarding and offensive positions having not yet changed.

The bout was on! The ghosts took an inward gasp as the assassin, armed with the vicious Ka-Bar knife, lifted the weapon overhead, and came forward, aiming to rip Tre'Yan in twine with the sharp edge.

The compass.

High right, Tre'Yan's High Left.

It was angled to his Low Left, Tre'Yan's low Right.

It would be brutal should it manage to hit.

Using his exceptional footwork, Tre'Yan slipped to the back, avoiding the blow as it came ripping down. The knife hadnt't changed position, so a counter above the knife would result in a cut along his dominant arm.

Smart ploy. Another boxer would have fell hook, line, and sinker. Earth expressions.

No, Tre'Yan kept the distance, taking only a step forward, as Cho would step back, and feinting with a right jab, purposely aiming to make the attack look like it was coming for the body, instead of a head shots.

Body offered a bigger mass, after all.

[DJAtomika]

The boxer deftly evaded his slash, as he expected. When he stepped back a bit he drove in with a step forward and a thrown punch from his right hand. It would come in from his left side, aimed at the body of course. Knockout boxers and their powerful moves. Psh. Figures.

Cho wasn't a boxer. He was a military fighter.

He stepped inward to counter the punch but suddenly found it coming up short, stopping before it even hit him.

A feint.

Shit shit shit.

Welp no choice but to roll with it.

Ignoring the feint he took another step forward, bent low, reared back his knife hand and threw a simple punch aimed for the boxer's gut. Hopefully Tre'yan didn't see the panic in his expression from being faked out like that.

[Rilla]

The feint Tre'Yan threw worked like a charm. The professional boxer in him could pinpoint the exact moment Cho, his yet to be named opponent, fell into the deceptive trap.

But man, oh man, did Cho make up for it masterfully. Had Tre'Yan been a novice, or anyone without any real combat training, he might would have missed it.

But Tre'Yan was neither of those things. He was one of the top boxers in the gigaverse, and he would prove it now. As effortlessly as breathing, his knees bent puttign him into a crouch.

He stepped forward as Cho fell into the trap of the feint, Tre'Yan didn't blame him for the hiccup, many others fell for it as well. Here, nothing was different! Tre'Yan, utilizing his speed and footwork, stepped in an executed one of his most basic, yet powerful counters. It was commonly called a 'One-Two', a quick shot with the lead hand, in this case, Tre'Yan's right hand, and then a powerful follow up with the hand in waiting - Tre'Yan's left.

The counter would effectively use the moment gathered by Cho as he came forward, with the momentum gathered by Tre'Yan. That's what made counters so deadly; it was an application of momentum coming from either direction.

Tre'Yan's hands would be a near blur, aimed directly at the face of his opponent, hoping to, if not end the match out right, rattle the brain of his opponent, assuming the dead had one, and disorientate him for the rest of the match.

[DJAtomika]

Cho had no time to react before a tape-covered fist slammed first into one cheek, then the other in extremely quick succession. His forward momentum got turned into backward movement from the force of the punches, and he landed on his face after being thrown backward an inch or two.

Dazed.

Reeling.

Cho shook his head free of the clutter and staggered to his feet. The boxer was fast, way faster than he could ever be.

This was going to be a battle of wits now. He couldn't stand to take another hit from Tre'yan. If the boxer so much as tapped his head again, he'd go down for the count proper.

He switched his grip on Barr from a backhand to a forehand, and charged. Cho closed the distance within a stride and twisted on the ball of his left foot, spinning round clockwise to kick at Tre'yan.

A feint, of course. Being rather speedy himself, it would only be a split second of his right leg coming up in the motion of a kick. With a hop he changed feet, using his clockwise momentum to keep spinning on his right foot while he swung around with his left in another kick.

Which was yet another feint. Using his own speed and momentum, he bent his right leg and took a short hop into the air, converting his horizontal spin into a downward fall. With knife in hand, he extended his right arm, rearing back in the fall to slash at the boxer's left ankle, aiming to sever, or at the very least cut. Cho would land on his right side, kicking up a cloud of dust from the floor.

[Rilla]

His counter combo rocked his opponent hard enough that Tre'Yan could feel the impact in each fist. Especially the left.

The thud they caused was sickening, but a professional boxer had no time to celebrate momentary hits unless victory was assured. The punches he connected with would have felled a lesser man, perhaps ripped his neck from his head, but for Cho - no, it knocked him back an inch or so, spun him around, and dropped him on his face.

His assassin was no normal man.

Tre'Yan would have to keep up the pressure.

Hands already back in position, he watched as Cho shook his head and made it back to his feet. Tre'Yan granted him that, the man was tough. He let him get back to his feet. It was the training.

The professional boxer noted that his opponent switched the knife to a forward grip. The backhand must have been detrimental to him, so a forehand grip would provide more of a tactical advantage. As a T'Mass he had seen many different types of combat, and forward grip was always preferred.

He went back to the bouncing, forward and back, waiting for another opening.

Now, as a boxer, two things were true. You don't throw kicks, so you don't expect them to be thrown, and you, as a rule, can't fight on the ground. Not enough torque for punches.

So, when his opponent went for a kick, it didn't phase Tre'Yan at first. No way he was going to throw a kick, couldn't be possible. And then, he went and did it again, and Tre'Yan fell for it hook, line, and sinker. He immediately crouched down, adopting what he referred to his 'ground' game, which was basically, his ability to crouch and fight low. He had seen it on a video game called 'Tekken', being utilized by a man named Steve.

His low crouch set his left guard, and brought his left leg back, as his opponent shot forward, aiming to slash his left ankle. The guard somewhat served its purpose, blocking the majority of the strike, the blade cutting along a smaller portion of his arm than anticipated. It burned like hell, what the hell was that? He had been cut before but this was something different, it felt wrong.

Tre'Yan quickly pushed himself away, latching is right arm immediately to his left to try and ease the pain. As a dead man, his blood didn't flow, but the cut showed no signs of actually caring. He flexed his arm, still holding it - and it hurt, he had to do everything to fight the urge to scream out in pain.

That knife in his hand was dangerous, if it had of managed a better cut on the arm, or its intended target, he would have been in a percarious situation, and worst still, if he survived, he would have been in no condition to fight in his scheduled fight against Evvie.

He gritted his teeth, "Damn it," he said, looking across at his opponent. Stay away from the knife. End this quick. He needed to use his Sunday Punch, the Right Hook, he killed Dyayun with.

[DJAtomika]

A singular strike.

Press this advantage.

Barr hissed and growled as flesh was cut, though no blood was spilled. Cho wondered briefly if his opponent was undead too, but was brought back to the present by the muttered curse from Tre'yan.

"I cut him boss. Why ain't he bleedin'?"

"I do not know, Barr. I do not know."

"Better cut him more, just in case."

The serrations on his blade curled into a growl as the eye on the knife's hilt swivelled up to peer at their wounded opponent.

Cho quickly analysed the situation from his position on the floor.

Left arm cut, in pain from the daemon magic. Disabled. Right arm still functional, as were feet.

Time to fix some of those.

From where he laid on the floor, Cho gathered himself and pounced, rising quickly from the floor as he brandished his knife menacingly at his target. Knowing that his opponent fell for his feint, he knew that the thing he'd expect the most was another feint. So what he did was attack proper.

Coming in from Tre'yan's left, Cho swung his knife from low right, cutting upwards and diagonally to Tre'yan's high right, from hip to shoulder. With the momentum of his swing, he stepped forward slightly and swung again, horizontally from Tre'yan's right to left, shoulder height. One more swing ended his attack combo, an overhead slash straight down the center.

[Rilla]

His left arm was nearly dead, whatever the knife was crafted from or magicked with had seen to that. His opponent, still sideways in the dirt, had been sent on a mission and whatever it was, he was damn near close to completing it with startling effect.

Tre'Yan slipped himself back to a boxing position, left arm barely raised in defense, right hand poised to strike. He bent at the knees, posing himself to move again, should he need it. His muscles in his right arm tensed, aching for a release. It was a good thing too, Cho had no intentions of messing around.

The man sprung up and forward, executing a slash that was intended to travel the diagonal length of Tre'Yan's body, starting from lower left to upper right. Having no intention of feeling the metal of that blade again, he quickly leapt a small distance back.

His body had to keep moving, as Cho came forward as the blade whistled back, with a right to left slash at shoulder height. Being a boxer, he was proficient at having to dodge strikes that came in rapid succession. Cho was trying to kill him, and Tre'Yan needed to survive.

He ducked, and decided to execute the end game of this match.

He twisted his hips forward, generating the momentum he would need to fire off a vicious uppercut. He combined it with his rising motion, gathering the momentum from the uprising to use. Tre'Yan could dent steel walls at the fullest extent of his powers, something he hoped would help him here. The plan was near perfect, even if modified. His rise saw the firing of an explosive, in relative terms, uppercut that was aimed at the chin of Cho.

Tre'yan's arm would snake back swiftly, albeit it, faster if he connected. Assuming his opponent's head was rocketed back, he would be in prime position for the end of the deadly combination - a right hook. Usually it was left uppercut, right hook, but his left arm was basically dead in the water.

[DJAtomika]

Cho saw Tre'yan's arm rear back as his overhead slash hit nothing but air.

His reflexes were superhuman, but nothing prepared him for what hit him next.

Even as he turned his head, he saw the punch incoming, scattering the myriad dust particles that hung in the air from their scuffling about in the engagement.

He immediately made to duck, and duck he did, crouching low as his free left hand came up reflexively to cover his head.

Fast, but not fast enough.

The oncoming fist grazed him; barely two of Tre'yan's five(?) fingers met his raised hand and head, but they were enough. The sheer force of the punch sent him flying to the right (Tre'yan's left), a cloud of dust in his wake and a loud crack in the air that rang for several seconds. He tumbled for a good second or two before rolling to a stop, face in the dirt, ears ringing, eyes spotty with darkness. His head hurt, like someone had driven a truck over it. But he was still conscious, albeit barely.

Cho dragged his tongue across his teeth and felt one come loose.

Dammit.

He braced the floor with his hands and struggled desperately to his feet, the weakness that held him, however, made him fall to a knee almost immediately.

With the fight in mind, Cho willed himself to make a status check.

Brain: injured, oh definitely injured, but still in the mood to fight.

Skull: fractured in several places. Any more jostling and it'd break, sending shards of bone into his brain, ending him instantly or at least until he regenerated enough to recover. That would take days, if not a week or two.

Balance: shot to shit. The impact on the left side of his head had scrambled his inner ear.

Hearing: his right side still functioned, but his left was shot. That would heal within minutes.

Head: bruised heavily along the top of his cranium.

Barr.

"Boss, you alright?"

Cho shook his head, trying to clear his mind and get his balance back. He could feel the dark within him slowly knitting and restoring his left inner ear, but the process would take at least a few more minutes. In the meantime, he was a sitting duck.

"Boss?

With a daemon-possessed knife.

Cho spit the tooth and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Barr? I think it's time I fed you again."

"Oh great. I was hoping for a meal."

Cho put his left hand to his injured ear and found it bleeding. The thick, black blood that only he bled was...unappetising to say the least, but he brought his blood-soaked hand back to the knife's blade. The glossy black metal slowly sucked up the blood, and a faint growling grew in volume.

"Peeeeeeeeeeeerfect."

He drew in a breath, held it there, and let it out slowly. Ahead of him, the undead boxer was still in the fight. That right arm had to go down.

One nick from Barr would end his fighting game.

"We gonna go, boss?"

"Yeah, but it'll be mostly you now. My game's kinda shot to shit from that."

"Yeah well, so far you've been doing fine. Just keep at it and we'll get through just fine. Your blood's a nice little appetiser, but now I'm really raring for a taste of his."

"Right. I'll try not to let you down."

"Oh you better not. I'm just a knife, I can't fight by myself."

With an unsteady gait he slowly walked back to where Tre'yan stood, waiting. His balance was shot, no, half-shot. He could still fight, just barely.

With Barr still in a forehand, he readied himself again, standing in the same stance he had been before. Cho gave Tre'yan a little nod, a small smile on his face.

"That really, really, really hurt. You're the best fighter I've fought in, like, ever."

With a roll of his shoulders, he squared them and prepared himself.

"But you know what they say about hitting a dead man; you can't really put him down that way."

Play defense.

He's only got his right. His offense game is just as shot as your balance.

Play it right, you'll come up trumps.

[Rilla]

Oh Cho was fast, Cho was faster than Tre'Yan had ever given him credit for because the man was able to avoid that swift, powerful uppercut that came from below, and only managed to get a glancing blow. Two fingers out of five connected, but even Tre'Yan could feel the power behind the blow.

Cho flew to his left behind the punch, and slammed to the ground in dramatic fashion, rolling across the dirt once or twice before coming to an abrupt stop. Tre'Yan didn't drop his guard, the man had proven fiesty before and he would not make the same mistake. From across the battlefield, he watched Cho get to his feet and immediately drop. If this were a boxing match, he would have lost the match then and there, a technical knockout, victory for Tre'Yan, money in the pocket.

Alas, this wasn't a boxing match and that made it all the more deadly. Cho managed to get back to his feet and seemed to be having a conversation with that wicked knife that had all but killed his left arm. Then the man did something wicked, placing the blade on his bleeding hand.

Even from the distance, Tre'Yan could tell that Cho wasn't feeling one hundred percent; the man was just lucky it wasn't Dyayun punching him. Pound for pound, and even in catchweight, Dyayun had the hardest punch that Tre'Yan had ever felt. No, Cho was lucky he was facing Tre'Yan.

The man was unsteady on his feet, his brain had to be rattled, and he was sure he felt something in the head of the man fracture, if not outright break. Yet the man still managed to walk forward, even if it was unsteady.

The man talked, but Tre'Yan didn't answer.

It was time to put Cho down, and put him down for good. That knife was a problem, but Tre'Yan had one more trick up his sleeve. He lifted his right arm, forward as if executing an orthodox stance of right hand lead, left hand guard. Instead of the left guard, however, he began bouncing side to side.

He was going into the early stages of Speed Hell. The speed of his movements picked up steadily, his right hand tossing feints; straights and jabs. In a moment, Cho would see two of Tre'Yan, then after that four, and so on and so forth. The most deadly aspect of Speed Hell was that it left afterimages of the user, used to confuse the opponent and allow for unpredictable attacks.

The downfall was that it exhausted the user, and even Tre'Yan's high grade of stamina couldn't maintain it for long without feeling the strain. Didn't have the proper training with the weights.

Draw'em in.

[DJAtomika]

As he watched Tre'yan do his thing, Cho noticed something.

Both fighters were doing the exact same thing.

Wounded. Reeling.

Playing a game of defensive chicken.

Either a knife swipe or a punch would end it.

One single hit.

At this distance, Cho didn't need smarts to know that Tre'yan wanted to lure him in. As much as the afterimages and split-second feints were impressive and all, he could recognise a defense when he saw one. Like when enemy soldiers put up smoke screens and waited for their attackers to enter before dropping them with well-aimed shots.

He knew that he wasn't fully back yet. His inner ear was still busy knitting itself back together. A few more minutes.

Then again, neither was Tre'yan. His single wound on his left arm had incapacitated the whole limb.

But here's the advantage Tre'yan had: bound by the stipulations of the duel he had the upper hand. A trained, well-armed boxer, even with a single arm, could out punch even the most trained soldier. Out fight? He wasn't so sure about that. All Cho had was a knife and his wits.

Play defense. If he isn't going to bite, neither would he.

He backed up a few paces, keeping the distance open between them. It would take at least three strides to approach him at this rate. At a slow pace, he circled the boxer, all the while keeping Barr brandished out in front of him. Slowly he let his knife arm seep into shadow; the darkness leaking black right out of his pores. It did nothing special, just for added effect when he swung his arm around, which he did with gusto, slow, easy swings, not even close to hitting the boxer.

Here chicken chicken chicken chicken

Who's going to bite first?

[Rilla]

As a boxer, there were several facts of life one often had to live by. Your fists are lethal weapons in some, if not all, lands, and people thought you were predictable due to the singular style of combat that you employed. Hands only.

Cho was several strides back, but that advantage, that distance, was nothing. A speed boxer, one like Tre'Yan, could cross the distance in half a second using footwork called Dash. He knew he had to end the fight soon, and that his opponent was reeling from the nearly missed shot. Oh, had that uppercut connected, Tre'Yan would be walking away.

There were sixteen of him now, the limit of his Speed Hell, but that would have to be enough.

Cho was circling, putting himself in movement was smart, but it was also a playing field in which Tre'Yan was a avid practicioner.

The execution of Speed Hell was one of timing, patience, and most of all, perfection. Tre'Yan was suited for the three.

He would need to name it something else, but for now it was time for the Execution of Bones.

Attack.

Tre'Yan seemingly came in at full-bore, ducking to the low and left, aiming right straight slightly off-center center body.

After-image.

A split second later, Tre'Yan was high, right hook to the left chin of Cho.

After image.

Almost simultaneous, he was in close. Uppercut, chin of Cho.

After-image.

Before the uppercut was finished, he was back, two rights flying forward for the body.

Then he was right, the whole left side of Cho, a right straight.

After image. After image.

Tre'Yan, honest and for true, came in like a ballistic missle from his own left, inside the guard, aiming what he hoped would the knockout blow, an absolutely vicious right hook to the face of Cho. His muscles had coiled like snakes, ready to unleash their payload and now it was time. Perhaps his last chance to end it.

All his preparation had been for this. His arm might have been dead, but his lower body wasn't, and by the way Cho was just a fee moments before, his legs were nearly in the casket already.

[DJAtomika]

As he watched Tre'yan up his game, Cho briefly contemplated some semblance of a plan. He had a good one, one that would instantly end the match should it work.

"Hey Barr? I'm gonna do something really stupid."

"What, boss?"

"Just watch."

Cho had a good sense of what the boxer was intending to do: confuse, distract, destroy. Same as earlier with that feint that had nearly ended him. He wouldn't fall for the same trick again, not even with his balance impaired. This whole super speed business was like that feint, only faster.

He waited. Bided his time.

Wait for it.

Then Tre'yan struck. He exploded from his standing stance and burst forth with a flurry of attacks, most of which passed through him.

Cho concentrated. Those after images made absolutely no sound. Only visuals. That was the key.

Image after image buffeted him.

Wait for it.

There, through the chaos, the tell tale sounds of feet on dirt.

Now.

Suddenly the boxer was in his face, that deadly right arm screaming in to sock him again in the exact same place.

Except Cho was ready. As the boxer surged forward, he too took a step forward. His speed not matching his opponent, he had time to hastily move that single step, past the thrown punch even as the boxer's forearm swung in to impact his raised shoulder.

With his knife arm, within that single step he merely twisted his wrist and slightly lowered and extended his forearm so the knife blade stuck straight out, parallel to the ground at chest height. With that step forward, not only was he within range, he was counting on his opponent's forward momentum to carry himself onto the extended blade.

Too close for comfort. No way to dodge.

The hit on his shoulder was like a truck, sending him slightly off balance, but with arm extended and knife pointing out there was no way he could miss. Unless by some miracle that Tre'yan could dodge that.

[Rilla]

There was a flaw in the Speed Hell, Execution of Bones, whatever Tre'Yan wanted to call the move. The name didn't matter, the devil was in the details. If an opponent was brave, so very brave, and weathered the inclement storm, then he had a high chance of etiher dying from whatever hit he messed around and took, or knowing exactly how to counter.

Which was Cho?

Judging by the knife that now protruded deep in his chest, Cho was the latter. Or, rather, he was very Ultimate Opporuntunist, ala the Rated R Superstar Edge.

See, Cho maintained his composure, even in his addled state, and timed the jutting of his knife perfectly for a hit that would have likely knocked him out right then in there. But, how it happened was not the way Tre'Yan intended. Cho took a step in, Tre'Yan was committed. Cho extended his knife in a short space. Tre'Yan was committed. Cho took a blow on his shoulder, and was knocked slightly off balance, and well, Tre'Yan was now married to a vicious Ka-Bar buried in his chest, presumably to the hilt.

The momentum, of course, would in theory take the both off their feet - with the off-balance Cho, and the forward rushing Tre'Yan. It didn't matter though, because, he was a Boxer, and a knife was now penetrating his chest cavity. The same knife that killed his left arm, and the same one that was making his world go dark.

Without accounting for Cho, and whatever befall him, Tre'Yan slumped forward using his body as a prop. Either way, unless Cho had moved, he wouldn't hit the ground.

Tre'Yan, in all likelihood, wouldn't make it to his second sanctioned fight. He had thought wrong. Dyayun wasn't a sanctioned fight. It was a call out. He was a fight booty call, and he had lost. Funny what you thought about when you were dying.

The Raeym Corporation always won. If he died, then they'd just replace him. Dyayun was a prime target. Blood thirsty, and always willing to be as destructive as possible.

The ghosts were loud, louder than eh remembered them at any other point in the fight. They were also fading, the gate was opening, and Tre'Yan was either dying, or something close to it.

Good fight, unnnamed assassin.... good damn fight. I got you good. Hahaha. Man, this world is tough. So very tough.

It was dark. Tre'Yan hadn't said a word.

[DJAtomika]

Cho stumbled under the weight of the now collapsing boxer, Barr sticking out of his chest like a sore thumb. As the daemon embedded himself deeper into Tre'yan's flesh, Cho held him steady even as he tried to regain his balance from the massive hit to his left. He staggered backward a few steps and fell on his ass in trying, making him grumble softly as he slowly lowered the latter's unconscious form to the ground.

The ghostly crowd around them grew silent after their brief jubilation. The fallen emperor stood and silently judged the fighters even as he began to fade away. The gates at either end of the arena began to crank open as the last of the ghosts disappeared into the night.

Cho didn't really notice.

He unclipped his smartphone from his wrist and, seated next to the boxer's body, took a selfie of himself with the knifed body in the background. Once done, he tapped his phone a few times and sent the photo to the Corporation. They would be pleased, of course, but that wasn't the half of it.

His contract merely stipulated "defeat Tre'yan". Didn't mean kill him.

Cho clipped his phone back to his wrist and turned to face the body.

"Y'know, if you can hear me, you put up a real good fight. Got me twice, and got me really good."

He reached forward and gripped Barr again.

"Now it's time to wake up and face your next fight. A man of your talent and skill ain't done rocking the world yet."

With a heave, Cho yanked the knife out of the fallen boxer's chest. He knew the daemon could heal as well as hurt, though he didn't exactly enjoy it.

"Barr, heal him."

"What?"

"You know what I said."

"Oh alright fine. If this comes back to bite you in the ass later, don't say I didn't tell you so."

Barr glowed a gentle, rosy red, and slowly, the two wounds on the boxer's body knitted together and closed. He'd be the picture of perfect health in no time.

Just then, his phone beeped. The Corporation was pleased, alright, and had deposited their payment in his waiting multiverse account. Another job well done.

"Well, nothing else to do but to leave."

"Yeah boss. Let's go before anything else happens."

He turned to leave, slowly walking towards the rest of his gear. Tac bounced a little on his bipod as his boss approached to put on his combat vest.

"Boss that was awesome!"

Cho nodded and smiled a grim little smile as he picked up Hek and holstered him.

"Yeah well it was hard fought. Nearly died to the bugger."

"But sire lived. Another story to tell, perhaps?"

"Yeah, maybe."

Cho slung Kris onto his chest and picked up his sniper rifle.

"But first, I've got something to give to the guy."

In one smooth motion he racked the bolt-action of the rifle, ejected one unspent cartridge and caught it in his free hand. The Shredder round in his palm growled softly and snapped its little jaws at him as he walked over to Tre'yan and gently wedged it in the boxer's hand wraps.

"If you can hear me, know this: if you ever get into trouble like this again, you shake that bullet. Tac'll feel it, and I'll come running. You're a good fighter, and like I said, this was nothing personal. I actually like watching you fight. 'Sides, my contract stated that I had to defeat you, not kill you. I had no reason to do the latter."

With that said, he stood and turned to leave, his body slowly fading into the shadows as he disappeared, off to take his next job. Perhaps not with the Corporation though, they gave him really unreasonable targets sometimes.