[center][img]http://i.imgur.com/muMa5p3.png[/img]
[h1][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ed0902QcjKs]Like a Rose[/url][/h1]
[/center]
[hr]
The dragon looked up from the ground, opening her eyes from mental preparation.

She flourished her glaive, a deep breath escaping her lips as she gazed at her opponent.

[color=aba000]“Are you prepared, warrior?”[/color] She echoed, realizing she had not even known her opponents name. 

Not that it mattered. The anticipation of this day had reached its peak, and it was almost deafening.

[color=aba000]“Then let us duel.”[/color]

She hoped this would prove entertaining. The dragon waited, and motioned for Arata to move first.

Breathe in, breathe out.

His heart hardened, and his muscles coiled.

There were a hundred ways to start, but there was only a single one that had meaning.

Was she stronger than him? Or was she just equal to him? Was she a wall? Or was she a rock?

He took all those questions and fed them to the flames as strength flowed into his body. He coud no longer hear the clocktower. His heartbeat kept time for him.

[i]Ba-dump ba-dump ba-du-[/i]

A fire flower bloomed in the distance, white and yellow sparkles outshining the sublime stars.

And then, the ground shattered.

He was fast.

Much faster than the dragon anticipated, but it wasn’t something she couldn’t handle.

A frontal charge. Dozens of ways she could defend against it. Avoid it. But this was something more than a fight wasn’t it?

He wanted to see how strong she was, and she him.

She spun her glaive, slamming the blunt end right into the Oni’s chest with as much inhuman strength she could muster.

Good! They were thinking the same way!

His right palm thrust outwards, a shockwave bursting out of his elbow as he faced her strike head on. His sleeve was torn asunder, piece of fabric dancing in the wind. The sudden jolt of pain felt good, and that hand closed onto the butt of the glaive.

[b]"YAMA HAKU ATEMI!"[/b]

Perpendicular to Sorcha's stance, and past the effective range of her glaive, Arata aligned his shoulder, twisted his hips, and slammed his body into her.

It was a strike with the overbearing weight of a mountain, but if she was what she claimed to be, this should still not be enough.

If she was what she claimed to be, the world wouldn't be enough.

Aha, a glorious fight of sheer strength! It had been ages since she had fought such a battle! Not since the days of her fighting alongside of Arthur. Perhaps this cretin wasn’t so bad after all.

As he slammed his body into hers, she only allowed herself to budge an inch. She had definitely felt that – it had been awhile since she had taken such a heavy blow. This man…creature, whatever he was, was strong.

She didn’t respond with any words. The dragon only responded by releasing a hand on her Glaive, spinning and slamming her elbow full force into Arata’s body. 

She withstood it? As soon as the resistance he felt from holding onto the glaive was gone, Arata smiled, his eyes feral. This bat-winged bitch dare challenge an Oni of the Night Parade in a point-blank battle?

A flick of his wrist sent the polearm spinning high into the air as he removed that pointless weapon from this contest of strength.

As Sorcha spun around, Arata hopped upwards, catching the elbow between his left arm and his knee. No, not catching it. Another shockwave burst out of his body as he only mitigated the full force of strike, a grunt escaping from his clenched teeth. Caging that elbow instead, he lifted up his legs entirely, wrapped them around the bat-winged bitch's neck, and twisted his body.

[b]"Juji Hangeki!"[/b]

An aerial cross arm breaker, with the intention of slamming the opponent into the ground while simultaneously tearing off their arm.

A grapple? Well, she wasn’t entirely expecting it, but it wasn’t something she was incapable of avoiding.

Just as he grabbed her elbow and aimed for her neck, the dragoness ducked – missing his legs by mere centimeters.

Next, she jumped, twisting her elbow forcefully so that it would weaken his grasp on it, intending to do similar what he had just tried to do with her. She twisted in a display of acrobatic prowess, and attempted to lock her legs around [i]his[/i] neck while her free arm grabbed one of his.

The dragon then twisted her body, intending to flip the Oni, slamming him down as forcefully as she could onto the roof of the tower.

Turnabout was fairplay too.

As Sorcha's own legs wrapped around his, the oni grunted in approval. Was this 'copying'? Or was this 'prior knowledge'? If she had simply dropped him down from there, he would have taken that hit, but as Arata's own body was spun, his feet were free once more.

Both of them slammed into the roof of the Tower, spiderweb fractures spreading from the epicenter of the impact. They were both lightweight existences with abnormal amounts of strength, and Arata was going to take full advantage of that.

Reciprocating Sorcha's grasp on his arm and ignoring the pressure of her calves against his neck, the Oni roared as he slammed her headfirst through the roof.

[b]"EAT ROOF!"[/b]

She ate roof alright. A small grunt of pain came from the dragon as her head was slammed through the bricks. She was fairly certain she was bleeding, just a little from that impact since her head did not, in fact, have any protective scales on it. But well, she wasn’t going to stop just because of that.

The dragons’ head may have been buried in the floor, but she still had a firm lock around his neck and her arms were mostly free, and intended to make full use of that. Her poor home wasn’t going to survive this, but she honestly could care less right now.

She was having too much damn fun after so long of not having a decent fight.

The dragon placed her hands firmly on the roof, doing a handstand as she lifted Arata with her legs, and slammed the Oni’s own head through the roof, intending to put the entire creature right through it.

Unfortunately, the roof was definitely not built to withstand such attacks, and the fractures that formed from their earlier attacks couldn’t take the blow.

The roof beneath the both of them, collapsed.

Head ringing, heart pounding, blood boiling!

Arata's teeth chomped through the stone bricks as his face met the roof. Gravity took hold of the both of them as they began to spin from the centrifugal momentum of Sorcha's flip.

[i][b]CRUNCH.[/b][/i] He slammed her body into the floor, breaking through to the next.

[i][b]SMASH.[/b][/i] She drove his back into the next, creating a man-sized hole that they fell through.

[i][b]CRACK. CRUSH. SMACK.[/b][/i]

[b]"UOOOOHHHHHHH!!!!"[/b]

[i][b]BAM![/b][/i]

The earth quaked as the two blasted themselves through all five floors of the Tower, until Arata finally tossed Sorcha into the ground floor, a small crater forming as pieces of rubble rained down upon the two.

Sorcha slammed into the ground floor, looking quite roughed up. The Oni had thrown her into the ground, but she was certain she got a few good hits in as they fell. Needless to say, at this point they were probably both a little bloody from that fall, but they were both neither going to back down so easily.

A slight burning sensation formed in her chest, but she ignored it. She wasn’t going to let that stop her, even if she ended up getting injured because of it.

The dragon stood, completely ignoring any injuries she may have gotten on the fall. She was breathing a bit from the exertion, but that was nothing she couldn’t handle. In fact, there was a grin plastered on her face. Sorcha was definitely enjoying this, and she wasn’t about to stop any time soon.

She closed the distance between her and the Oni, aiming a fist right at the Oni’s face.

The tattered remains of his clothing fluttered in the wind as Arata aimed his gaze at Sorcha. He could feel the jubilation of the Night Parade, the pounding of his heart, and the strength bubbling in his body. Small bruises and cuts adorned his body, superficial injuries that felt like sparks, tickling his nerves.

Sorcha was strong.

But that alone wasn't strong enough.

Arata lowered his head as her fist rushed into his face. In that moment, what she struck was not his head, but one of his dimunitive horns. A white shock blinded him for just a moment, the concussive force causing the dust all around them to part. But, even as blood trickled down his face, the oni looked into Sorcha's eyes, a blue fire burning.

[b]"You have more than just that, don't you?"[/b]

And, from the black heavens, the glaive descended, falling down upon its master.

Sorcha pulled her fist off of his horn. She didn’t seem to completely acknowledge the injury. It hurt, definitely, but it wasn’t going to stop her. 

[color=aba000]“It’s been awhile since I was injured in such a manner.”[/color]

More than that, though? Sorcha glared at him as she gave the wound a small glance. No, she honestly did not. Not in her current state. Her physical abilities may have not been affected by the curse after this many years of living with it, but she could not fight full force for long before it started taking its toll.

She didn’t have long to contemplate that, however. Her glaive, her own weapon fell from wherever it had gone.

Sorcha was completely unfazed. Her wing greeted the glaive, nonchalantly knocking it away from her. She’d have to give it a good polishing later for that.

For now, though, she was going to give this Oni everything she had.

He saw it in her eyes, and he grinned. There was definitely more that she's hiding, more to be dragged out of this bat-winged bitch. A hell lot more than these love taps they've been exchanging so far.

Arata straightened his back, glaring down at her.

[b]"If you won't show it, then I'll make you."[/b]
[hr][center]
[center][url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ze0KaN-YAd8]Sudden Storm[/url][/center]

They struck each other at point-blank range, their fists plowing into each other's faces before the two half-buried themselves in opposing walls. Undaunted, they rose from the rubble once more and charged once more.

Another thunderous exchange resounded, the very foundation of the Tower shaking from their clash. Fissures appeared in the earth as the two held their respective ground, a hundred strikes countered in an instant.

Blood spewed into the dark soil.

Scales danced in the temptuous duel.

Roars intermingled until it was impossible to tell which was which.

And finally, Arata forced Sorcha back, a powerful kick sending her winged body through the five floors of the Tower once again. Gritting his teeth and bending his legs, he prepared to leap upwards, planning to strike down her airborne form when he noticed it.

She wasn't airborne. She was flying.

[color=aba000]“BURN FROM MY DIVINE RADIANCE, CRETIN!”[/color] Sorcha roared. She had had enough of this. He wanted to see what she was fully capable of, fine then. She’d burn him alive, the debilitating fire burning in her chest be damned.

White lightning pouring down, scarring the night sky. Before this imperial wrath, the remains of the five floors disintegrated, striking down on Arata, tendrils of white-hot plasma burning away at his flesh.

But it wasn't enough. It still wasn't [b]"ENOUGH!!"
[/b]
One step brought him to the side of the hollowed-out tower.

Another caused him to ascend, as arcs of lightning trailed behind him, stone exploding left and right.

But the third, the third wall-shattering step brought him level to Sorcha.

[b]"THERE'S MORE, ISN'T THERE?!!"[/b]

They danced in a storm, Sorcha trading blows with Arata as he rebounded from wall to wall. Her lightning-empowered strikes were more than a match for his own now, and as they lashed out at each other, the Tower continued to crumble.

The air itself was heady and hot.

The stones were half-melted.

Their blood became mist before they bled.

And still, the two kept going, the drums of war beating frenetically throughout the autumn skies. They could still go on. They could still fight. They could still draw out more.

As the last wall crumbled from the recoil of his kick, Arata grabbed onto Sorcha's wings, binding them with monstrous strength, even as electricity coursed into his body ceaselessly.

They tumbled, fell, and then landed upon the pile of rubble that remained of the Tower.

The lightning-scorched winds expelled themselves from the arena, as ten thousand scarlet leaves scattered under the gaze of the sublime moon.[/center]
[hr]

Sorcha shakily stood. Their bout had been going on for some time, now. Her entire body felt like it was on fire, burning in the pits of a thousand hells. Curse this damnable thing! Curse that phoenix for doing this to her! For taking away everything she cared about!

The dragon, was lost to anger at this point, little more than a mindless rage-fueled creature that wanted nothing more than to obliterate everything in front of her. Namely that Cretin.

He wanted to see her use her full power? Norns be damned, she would. She would use every ounce of her power here, even if it killed her. 

Her entire body became coated in lightning, the intensity of it charring the ground around her.

A feral roar, causing a clap of thunder to be heard overhead.

The next instant, countless bolts of lightning would fall from overhead, onto Sorcha as her body became one with the element she wielded.

Whatever she was planning to do, it was not going to leave anything in the area unscathed.

[b]"L-lightning incarnate?!"[/b]

For the first time in a while, Arata's grin of challenge was tinged with fear, as he took a single step back. His left arm was dislocated, his body was lacerated with countless burn scars, and he was literally blind in one eye, but that one step backwards was the only cowardice he would afford himself.

This was what he asked for.

This was what he dragged out.

This...this was the wall that he will break through.
[center]
[i]Even if this body were to fall apart.

Even if this life was to be given up.

This person...

I WILL ABSOLUTELY DEFEAT![/i]
[img]http://i.imgur.com/midFLBi.png[/img]
[h2]"SENKI YAGYO...MEZAMEMASU!"[/h2][/center]

The stars died, their faint light turned into specks of nothing as nine hundred ninety-nine arcane ribbons burst out of Arata's back, colorful tendrils that sought to drag the moon out of the sky.

His roar was the roar of one thousand, mixed with the horrific sounds of his muscles tearing themselves apart and his bones being crushed under his own strength. Blood spewed from every orifice of his body, dying the stage red as the leaves that fell from the sky.

But Arata did not feel the pain.

He simply...focused.

Peel away his skin. Cut away his flesh. Grind away his bones.

Until what remained was his soul. The soul that will be sharpened over and over again, tenaciously holding onto life even as his body dies. The light of life that was snuffed out and lit again over and over and over again, as Arata forced this overbearing power to his command.

This was not a prayer. This was an oath.

To defeat Sorcha, the Radiant King of the Heavens, the Dragon of Tempest.

And, when Arata looked outwards once more, there was nothing. No stars. No moon. No world.

Only his foe.

He clenched his fist, and the fabric of reality itself began to warp.

Before either Arata or Sorcha could do anything else, however, a cold, malevolent seeming voice rang out across their battlefield. It sounded almost as if a chilling cacophony of voices were speaking in unison, if only for a moment. 

[color=662d91]“That is quite [b][i]ENOUGH.[/i][/b]”[/color]

As the two clashed, the headmistress appeared almost from nowhere between the two of them A dark, cold, pressure exerted itself over the area as an unseen force gripped the dragon, threatening to squeeze the life right out of her before raising her, and slamming her onto the ground.

The Oni received a similar treatment. He found himself unable to move as an impossibly heavy weight rendered himself unable to move, as though invisible chains shackled every single soul inside of him into place. His resistance and other abilities, seemingly ineffective against whatever force was holding him prisoner.

[color=662d91]“Sorcha, you foolish old lizard! Are you trying to get yourself killed, or have you decided death by combat is the way you should die before your Illness takes you?”[/color] She harshly, but calmly reprimanded, giving a harsh glare towards the dragon. Sorcha merely grumbled in response.

Now that she had been mostly rendered unable to move, it was clear the dragon was not in the best of shape. Her wrath was not only directed towards Sorcha, however. She immediately turned to the Oni who was only a few feet away from her.

“[color=662d91]And you, Oni. Arata, was it?”[/color] She glared. [color=662d91]“I agreed to this duel, but this is getting out of hand. I will [i]not[/i] be having you and your lust for battle bring chaos to my academy.”[/color]

But it ended before it even began. An even more overwhelming pressure sealed his movements, freezing him in his entirety. Space trembled and time distorted, but regardless, Arata could not move in the presence of this being.

Ah, how unfair.

Ah, how delightful.

Perhaps this Livia person wasn't utter trash after all.

The rainbow ribbons receded, melting back into his body as the Oni smirked, chuckled, and then laughed. Peals of joy resounded throughout the broken sky, before Arata said, [b]"Don't worry, Livia! It's not like I didn't destroy the Tower without a back up!"[/b]

[color=662d91]“Are you quite [i]DONE?[/i], then?”[/color] Livia asked glaring at the Oni. The duel was over regardless as long as she was here. The invisible grip that had been asserted on Sorcha had already gone, but the dragon didn’t seem intent on moving. Not that she could, even if she wanted too. Sorcha was done. She knew that much simply from looking at her friend.

[color=662d91]“If so…I will undo your shackles.”[/color]

[b]"Sure sure. Man, that was quite a workout, eh? Gratz, Sorcha, you've been promoted from bat to winged snake!"[/b]

Despite her currently weakened state, Sorcha offered Arata an actual amused looking grin.

[color=aba000]“Heh…you weren’t so bad yourself…if this…damn curse…I would have annihilated you.”[/color] She groaned, coughing up a large volume of blood. Her entire body was on fire, burning in the fire from a curse she didn’t believe she deserved. [color=aba000]“Your name, warrior?”[/color]

[color=662d91]“Shush, Sorcha. Conserve your strength or not even I will be able to heal you.”[/color] Livia replied, as the invisible chains binding Arata vanished.

[b]"Arata, the representative and sole survivor of the Night Parade of One Thousand,"[/b] he replied, sighing as the shackles disappeared. His body was still abnormally heavy, and the oni felt like puking out his stomach, but he decided that he had spat out enough for the night.

Taking a few unsteady steps through the mountain of rubble, he drove his hand into the rocks and fished out that misused glaive that was discarded so easily before. A shame, really, but maybe that was her way of showing a degree of fairness?

Heh, so he wasn't setting himself up for a loss to begin with.

Walking over as nonchalantly as he could, Arata thrust the glaive blade-first before Sorcha, and said, [b]"It'll be a day or so longer before I'm finished, but there's an empty storage shed a few minutes away, if you want a comfy place to lick your wounds. Don't know about your curse or whatnot, but it'd be disappointing if we couldn't do this again soon."

"And please,"[/b] he grinned toothily, [b]"Even if you annihilate me, I'll just will myself back to life and invert your face."[/b]

At this, Sorcha couldn’t help but to laugh even in her weakened condition, even as Livia gave her a disapproving glare. She weakly took her glaive from him, grabbing it as tightly as she could. Even after all these years, it was a small comfort.

[color=aba000]“Hah! Will yourself back to life?”[/color] She coughed. [color=aba000]“I think, I might actually…like to see that.”[/color] With that, the dragon fell silent, unable to retain consciousness, and despite her wounds – she wore a rather huge, almost childlike grin on her face as her breathing slowed. Livia simply sighed, kneeling next to the dragon, placing a hand on her forehead as she tried to ease her soul.

[color=662d91]“If that is all, Arata I must tend to her immediately, or else this curse will kill her before you’re able to try.”[/color]

[b]"What's the curse anyways?"[/b]

[color=662d91]“Hmmm…”[/color] Livia thought for a moment. This was a touchy subject, after all. But she couldn’t say anything about the fact that the culprit, was in fact attending the academy currently.

[color=662d91]“A dreadful thing,”[/color] she replied after a moment. She would simply tell the truth as far as she knew it, even after all these years. [color=662d91]“It was placed on her around…three hundred years ago by the phoenix of legend. I do not know the full story, but as Sorcha tells it, the Phoenix would not face her for crimes the phoenix committed, and fearing Sorcha’s wrath, placed this curse on her to slowly kill her.”[/color]

After she replied, an invisible force lifted Sorcha gently.

[color=662d91]“Now, if you want to know more ask her once she wakes. For now, I must get her to the infirmary.”[/color] With that, the headmistress and Sorcha were both just…gone, in an instant.

A curse and a pheonix, huh?

Just like with Sorcha's claims of being a dragon, Arata had to narrow his eyes at the claim that this pheonix was truly a pheonix. Such cowardice for the Vermillion Bird. And to not wish to face someone like Sorcha in glorious combat as well...this flaming chicken must be an honorless one indeed.

The oni sighed, and decided to discard those thoughts for now.

The heavy weight on his shoulders had been lifted, and now? Now he felt like he could breathe easily once more. If nothing else, in this brave new world, there was Sorcha to look forward to fighting, and there was the summit that Livia stood upon, for him to struggle towards as well.

Arata picked up a particularly large leaf to cover up his nether regions as he walked to the Academy, in search of clothing.
[hr]
[center]
The crescent moon was unobstructed now, the night sky proudly wearing its wound.

[b]"The moon is beautiful tonight, huh?"[/b]

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-8FgT3qpsQ[/youtube][/center]