[b]Elliot Tessel[/b]

Elliot blinked once as he stared in confusion, wondering where everyone had disappeared to, and feeling more than a little dumb for having addressed absolutely no one.

The moment of self-shaming quickly came to an end when he felt a hand on his shoulder and heard the voice that spoke to him. 

[color=f26522]"Nonsense![/color] he said as he spun around to face the new-comer. [color=f26522]"As long as I can stand, there's no--"[/color] Two things made him stop mid sentence and caused his face to go pale. The first was the wave of nausea that hit him from turning around so quickly in his state, and the second was the realization of who had addressed him.

[color=f26522]"Oh, uhh... Sorry, Ma'am."[/color] He glanced away, any embarrassed blush appearing on his face hidden away by the countless bruises covering him.

He, of course, had a ton of respect for Erika, seeing as she was the leader of the Mercenaries. Thinking over her words quickly, he decided that they sounded more like a suggestion and less like an order, so - not wanting to take a break in the slightest - he decided to try his luck a little.

[color=f26522]"Thanks for your concern, but I need to keep practicing..."[/color] He trailed off, as he glanced around and again realized that there was no longer any one around for him to spar with. He quickly back-pedalled. [color=f26522]"Uh, actually, sure, I'll take a break from sparring, and just go run or something instead."[/color]

As he finished the sentence, a sudden ball of fire exploded over his head, from it emerging Elliot's Vein, Harley, who promptly landed on his head and began squawking loudly at him, her feet stomping around on his hair.

After his startled jump at the phoenix's loud appearance, he gave a sigh, looking up at her as she bent down, holding her head upside-down to stare directly into his eyes -- this was the young creatures incredibly annoying way of communicating that she was hungry. 

But as aggravating as it was, Elliot felt she was in the right. After all, he [i]had[/i] gotten so caught up in his sparring that he had completely skipped breakfast and now almost lunch.

[color=f26522]"Alright, girl, calm down, we'll go friggin' eat."[/color]

Elliot looked back to Erika, his defeated expression brightening up a little as an idea crossed his mind.

[color=f26522]"Okay, Ma'am, I'll take a break, but on the condition that you have a sparring match with me at a later time!"[/color] The boy's chest puffed out as his excitement grew at the idea -- he had studied Erika plenty in the time he'd been here, but being able to observe her up close as she brutally beat on him? That would be perfect! 

Realizing how forcefully he had just asked his superior for a favour, he mellowed out and glanced away, wiping his bloody cheek with his hand again as he quickly added [color=f26522]"Uh, only if it wouldn't trouble you too much, of course..."[/color]