Azereiah

The Two Sides

"You're implying a war hasn't already been going on for a while. Anyway - Kianna, you get the knife."

Brick reached down to take Misha by one arm and help her up out of the water. A light twinge of pain floated through his lower back, and he realized that he wasn't exactly built for standing upright. He'd have to tough it out until they got back, though.

The Two Sides

Brick pulled his hand back and swung a massive fist at her knife hand instead - with no intent of stopping, knife or no knife. He had tried being nice.

The Two Sides

Brick stood at the edge of the ford and looked down at Misha, then reached down and swatted at the knife to try to disarm her. He'd have to get her out of the water and haul her back to camp. He was thankful to her, even though she had been trying to kill him a moment earlier. He had never felt a rush like that before, and probably wouldn't for quite some time.

The Two Sides

"Think fast."

Brick's mind swirled with even greater excitement to the point of overflowing as he tossed his sword towards Misha, point aimed towards the sky. The threat of blood loss, the endorphins, the adrenaline - they all coalesced into a moment of pure ecstacy. His mind went blank for just a tiny fraction of a moment as he shifted for the first time. He felt new, stronger, faster, warmer - and not just from the blood coating his chest. The sword was still flying through the air as though it had just left his hands when he came to, and he charged at Misha, readying a backhand to the legs.

She now had to deal with a fully grown silverback gorilla.

The Two Sides

Brick's eyes narrowed a bit, and his smile widened. Drip, drip, drop - the blood spattered across the river's bank as he held his head high. No arteries or veins had been slashed, so he estimated he had a good twenty minutes left in him before he started tiring from blood loss. Still, he felt he had to take it seriously now. He moved his top hand further up the dull blade of the sword, widening his grip significantly.

"It was until a few moments ago."

The Two Sides

The Metallica shirt was ripped open, and he felt hot, steaming blood flowing down his chest. The smile returned to his face as the endorphins started flowing in full and the scent of his own blood filled his mind. His eye was twitching from excitement.

"See, that's the sort of thing I've been hoping for. Now I can't say this fight was totally worthless."

He dropped into a forward stance, holding the blade upright, ready to pivot it around its center of gravity at a moment's notice.

"Third time's the charm? Get another good strike like that in and I'll probably slow down a bit."

The Two Sides

Brick didn't bother swinging the sword this time. Instead, he waited a split second before he flicked his right foot up, slinging gravel towards Misha's face, followed by stepping in for a backhanded slap to the face with the left hand and immediately pulling back to a safe distance. He'd probably get nicked by that knife this time.

The Two Sides

She wasn't quite close enough to worry about just yet, and she hadn't picked up enough momentum to worry about. He dug his toe into the gravel a bit deeper. She'd probably try to fake him out one or two more times before committing to it. The adrenaline was building up more, and his twitch reflexes were starting to go into overdrive. He'd have to swing pretty damn hard to get that nervous energy out.

The Two Sides

"That one's gonna hurt like hell in the morning. I hope you guys have ibuprofen over there or something."

He didn't take his eyes off of hers, and his frown deepened. He had been hoping for a proper fight - not just two fools standing in a river staring at eachother. He dug the toe of his boot into the gravel.

The Two Sides

Brick took a single step back and hefted his sword to his right shoulder. The smile disappeared and turned into a frown. Disappointing. He had been hoping she would have thrown herself to the ground or something.

"Strike one."