The Bloodbath
Sept 16, 2020 16:13:37 GMT -5
Post by mat on Sept 16, 2020 16:13:37 GMT -5
Almost on cue, the gates flew open once again, revealing a second feline rushing out and into the mix of tributes. It sprung every which way, as if hunting through a buffet line for which piece of meat they had found most appetizing. One direction, the next, and another. Just as the lion ravaged towards the boy from Ten, the new character sprung swiftly towards Ander and his group. Its eyes were distinct and he could see that it charged towards him more than the others. It jumped out toward him, mouth slowly starting to widen. All Ander could do was drop his sword and stick his arms out, weather the blow if he could. He pressed up against the feline's chest, knocking him back a few stumbling paces. The cat quickly swept around the corner and began to charge elsewhere.
"Oh," his sighs of relief quickly turned into deep, nerve-filled breaths. Every few moments, it seemed as if there was another animal being released into the colosseum, some that he'd never even heard of or seen pictures of before. It seemed that they were more excited to be around human beings than bloodthirsty to rip them to shreds, but communication had always appeared to be a human strength, not any other animal's.
It couldn't have been more than thirty seconds before another creature scuffed on the grainy floorboards in the direction of his group. Its fangs were pierced by the sunlight as it approached at a rapid speed. This creature was much smaller than the last cat, so Ander held his ground again, hands in the air as if he could catch it mid-pounce and send it back to where it had come from. He wasn't as fortunate as the last time, though, as the creature's white teeth snagged at his face, pulling and dragging on it for a brief moment before letting go and rushing to take on another target.
Everything seemed to stop at that time when his hand clutched at the wound. Somehow, it stung worse than the ointment that his peacekeeper treated him with all over the rest of his body. Someone had clearly forgotten to feed the animals today, but with twenty-four bodies in the arena, live and in flesh, they'd get their fill soon.
His eyes squinted as tight as they could and he bit down on his cheek. But nothing could distract from the sickening pain that brewed on the side of his face. The cut from his hand met the bites on his cheek like two hurricanes locking eyes, with one consuming the other and only growing stronger. Don't be a wimp. He forced himself to grow thick skin as young as ten years old, but his tolerance struggled like a balloon meeting with a needle.
Ander's mind wandered to his past dreams, ones of Luca's demise, his death. In the dream, they'd left Luca to rot in the pit, but threw down chunks of meat to keep him company. Ander's head peered halfway around a tree trunk as he watched wolves and bears crawl down into the pit, one by one. The dream went on for nights at a time, and the screams echoed as constantly as crickets calling out in the nighttime or birds chirping in the day. The dream left Luca in the pit to be eaten alive, a never ending cycle that a Drifter feared when they closed their eyes for the night. Animals in the wilderness had a wicked sense of smell, and it wasn't exactly rare for them to pick up camp and make a move if there were bears or wolves rumored to be lurking around their part of the woods.
"Yall with me? Let's give them hell." The words felt like a distracted mutter in comparison to the swamping pain on his face and vivid recollections of his dreams, blood squirting in the air like geysers and a twitching fingertip, barely visible to the human eye, begging to get out of the pit. He still couldn't open his eyes. Luca could have been eaten alive, and you can't even open up to fight?
"You, come on!" The words were directed to his ears, and he perked up, looking at the surroundings once more. The creatures within the arena seemed to double, with more and more sweeping towards their group. "Drifting away may have made things easier, but now isn’t the time. We need to stand up and fight!"
The animals were charging again, and their group of five seemed to spread out a bit. Mario and Séui Ngàhn were the two who seemed to be breached the most by the creatures. One by one, the group fell in line with the rest of the arena, taking their fists and blades up to challenge the monsters.
Ander looked to his left as the animal he'd once held off from tackling him turned up again, coming in his direction.
He took his sword up in his hands again as it grew closer and closer, the glistening yellow eyes once again promising conflict.
Sword raised, he did his best to swipe at the creature before it got to him. All he could do to drive him to swing was imagining that an animal like this sealed Luca De la Cruz's fate, too.
Bears, wolves, and bugs eating him alive in a pit. In an arena like this, it wouldn't be any different.
"Sorry. I'll be honest, I'm more bark than bite."
[post five; ander x-games majjati and thinks about his dead brother s'more]
[ander attacks majjati; sword]
Xiha9izcAnsword
[1025 -- Severed Left Hand at Wrist -- 9.0 damage]
sword